FEATURE
May 20,1992
THE CLACKAMAS PRINT
Page 3
Family Resource Center awaits dedication
by Tracy Hobbs
Staff Writer
October 1 will be the dedica
tion for the Family Resource
Center, but already its new ten
ants have moved in.
The main occupant, Camp Fire
Day Care, is already running in
its new facilities. The building
which used to house it will be
tom down next week. The cen
ter, whose maximum capacity was
for 45 children, is now licensed
for up to 96.
The playground and equip
ment will be moved adjacent to
the new site. A parking lot will
be built where the former site is
located.
The center, which averages
about 55 kids a day, is for chil
dren six weeks to six years old.
However, during the summer there
will be programs for 7-11 years
old.
The child care center, which
runs on funding from the United
Way and other resources, has a
sliding fee scale. The children
are from the community, from
students and 20 are from the Young
Parent Opportunity Program
(YPOP).
Besides the Mt. Hood Camp
Fire program, the Family Resource
Center also houses the Life and
Career Options program, YPOP
and the Women's Resource Cen
ter.
The Women's Resource
Center is available to anyone and
contains books and tapes of par
ticular interest to women.
The Life and Career Options
program was formerly called the
Displaced Homemaker/S ingle
Parent Program. The program
provides pre-employment train
ing through college credit classes.
It also helps students evaluate
their job skills, build confidence,
develop life skills, explore career
options and begin a directed job
search.
YPOP is an educational pro
gram for young parents. Stu
dents are referred by local high
schools. The program is an op
portunity for pregnant and par
enting teens to continue their
education, improve their parent
ing skills, and prepare them for
employment with the added sup
port of child care and transporta
tion.
Also at the Family Resource
Center there will be classes on
Parenting and Child Care Pro
vider training. These programs
follow the building’s theme
building families for a better
photo by Tracy Hobbs
The new Family Resource Center will house a variety of programs, including Camp Fire
Day Care, YPOP and Life and Career Options.
tomorrow.
In the building there are also
counseling rooms available for
outside agencies. Some programs
to use them include the county
mental health division, Adult
Family Services (AFS) and
Employment, Training and Busi
ness Services (ETBS).
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According to Carolyn Knut
son, Department Chair of Fam
ily-Human Services, the build
ing is a partnership, in both the
construction and operational
aspects.
The construction was funded
by a Clackamas County Block
Grant and over $60,000 in pri
vate donations from two indi
viduals. Knutson said, “$50,000
is designated to name the Women's
Resource Center after a particu
lar family.” According to Knut
son, the name will be announced
after the negotiations are final.
The building operates in a
partnership with the Mt. Hood
Council of Camp Fire, Oregon
Department of Adult and Family
Services, ETBS, Clackamas
County High Schools, the State
Department of Education and in
conjunction with the College.
Knutson said the center is still
seeking new partnerships with
agencies that will support the
existing programs. “The combi
nation of education and support
is very important...we are part of
a national movement to make
families more successful,” added
Knutson.
Besides the child care center,
all the other programs plan to be
moved in by finals week. They
will all be supporting the build
ing’s mission statement—the
Family Resource Center provides
cooperative, comprehensive,
coordinated services and support
for families as they enter the
educational system and prepare
to meet the demands of a chang
ing work force and economy.
Through the collaboration of
diverse community organizations,
the Family Resource Center will
be able to develop more effective
programs and make them more
readily accessible to families.
Poet reads work at CCC
by Allan Ziemke
Staff Writer/Photographer
Daytona Beach it ain’t. But stopping at Shurgard on
your way home this summer is a lot more fun than hauling
your bundt cake pans and limegreen Barcalounger all over
the country and back. Plus with the 10 percent student
discount, you get to see for yourself how higher mathematics
can indeed be applied to real life situations.
SHLRGARD
STORAGE CENTERS
Oregon City
19426 South Molalla
657-6623
Milwaukie
3701SE International Way
652-1134.
Gladstone
660 SE 82nd Drive
656-0105
Poet Marvin Bell brought his
unique style of quick wit and
humor into the McLoughlin
Theater Thursday evening.
People were still getting
seated when Bell began answer
ing questions 30 minutes before
the scheduled reading start of 7
p.m.
He began greeting people com
ing in by telling them, “Come on
in, we're just talking, I’m the
warm-up act”.
Bell, bom in New Yoik City,
has many poetry books to his
credit. His latest is entitled, “Iris
of Creation.”
Bell’s literary career began
in grade school. He had a friend
who had been given one last
chance to pass an English class
by writing a ten-page paper on
anything. His friend was not
exactly excited about the idea.
Bell said he would stay up with
him and help him if he would
give it a try. Bell wrote poetry
while his friend typed his paper.
When it got late, Bell would show
him a few lines to keep him awake.
Bell admits, like most poets,
“My first poems were lousy.” He
remembers his first poem that
was exposed to a large audience:
“I remembered seeing an adver
tisement in the window that read:
Money for Poems. I couldn’t
believe it They would actually
pay people for giving them poems!
photo by Allen Ziemke
It was amazing. The first poem I
submitted was called 'Ontology
Part II,' the part two was put in so
that they wouldn’t think it was
my first poem. “
Bell is currently Flannery
O’Connor Professor of Letters at
the University of Iowa.