8_________
WedNEsdAy, D ecem B er ?, 2001
Feature
TI je CI ac I< amas P rî \
Loren Ford's students psyched for life
________ DAISY BAIN________
A&E Editor
How do you start your day
with humor and learn a thing
or two? Take a class from
Loren Ford, that’s how!
I recently sat through a PSY
101/Human Relations class
taught by Ford and left feeling
as if I had just gone to a comedy
club; What makes this experi
ence even funnier is that I actu
ally learned something by just sit
ting in one class.
What I left feeling seemed to
ring true with majority of his
students.
“I love it! He’s the best
Top: Loren Ford gives a
lecture about growing up. He
uses examples of his sister
and mother's wacky
relationship.
Above: from left to right,
students Kyle Kraxberger,
Traci Flitcraft and Jim
Bodenhamer gather in
groups to discuss their life
traumas.
Left: Students Brandon
Masters and Rachel Tinney
review chapters while
laughing at Ford's unusual
tactics.
PHOTOS BY DAISY BAIN /
Clackamas Print
teacher I’ve ever had. His moti
vation inspires me,” said Rachel
Tinney, a human relations student.
Brandon Masters heard about
the class from the schedule cata
log.
“I got lucky,” said Masters. “I
love the class. It has helped me
in my life in how I deal with oth
ers.”
Ford lectures differently than
most teachers I have come in con
tact with in my two years here at
Clackamas. He uses real-life ex
periences to enforce what he
teaches, with a comedic twist.
The students participate by form
ing groups and acting out situa
tions that relate to the topic of
the day. An example of Ford’s
zany twists to communication
would be his method of introduc
ing yourselves to each other. He
would split the class into groups
and
instead
of
shaking
eachothers’ hands, he would
have you shake your classmates
ears.
Masters’ favorite part of the
class is the way he portrays his
class lectures. “He uses real-life-
examples. He makes it easy to
apply to real life situations.”
According to Ford, the class
covers a lot of personal material
and he tries to do whatever he
can to make it comfortable for
his students, but still be able to
teach them the meaning of his
material.
“There is a method to my mad
ness,” said Ford. “I like to keep
things light.”
Ford’s biggest goal of the class
is to get the students to commu
nicate and think critically about
who they are and how they would
like to get there. The class is an
“advanced warning about real
life experiences,” said Ford.
Ford gets a lot of returning stu
dents, not only from current stu
dents but from past students wH
come back for more because tha
feel they are ready to take in
a greater extent the informatid
Ford offers.
Before Ford started teachin
he worked as a part time couns
lor and worked at a half-wa
house for family counseling. H
started teaching 20 years ago.
“I liked it better because I wJ
going in to underground head
work,” Ford said when aska
why he decided to start teachinl
Ford has been at Clackamas sind
1977, teaching primarily hums
relations. In 1994, he publish«
his own text book titled “Hums
Relations, A Game Plan for Ini
proving Personal Adjustment.”
“I wrote the book because I wis
there were some things peopl
knew before they came ini
counseling.”
During his sabbatical last yea
Ford attended grad school to sta
teaching history. This is the fin
term Ford has taught Oregon hi
tory. He is trying to introduJ
“psycho history,” or “putting hi
tory on the couches,” as he pul
it. The class is about looking |
some of the psychological dl
namics of what goes on in ri
gards to shaping the historic
events.
When Ford decides he has ha
his fair share of time
Clackamas, he plans to becorn
a park ranger or a tour guid
somewhere in Oregon.
“Where do old teachers d
when they retire? They just a
and teach in another place,” sai
Ford.
If you just can’t get enough J
Ford in his classes, you can tJ
to see him and Ed Mills, a socil
science instructor, play in hi
blue grass band. Just ask hi]
for the where and the when!
What would Xmas be without Clackamas' trees?
ELISABETH MEYER
Staff Writer
For a growing number of Oregon’s
businesses, the season of comfort and
joy begins earlier each year. Expand
ing the Christmas season, which com
prises a staggering part of retail activ
ity, benefits merchandisers immensely.
But no amount of preparation for the
annual frenzy rivals the sheer time
commitment the following individuals
make to December 25: Christmas tree
fanners.
Western Oregon’s temperate
rainforest makes it a perfect cradle for
the industry. In fact, Oregon tops the
list of Christmas tree-producing states,
growing 10 million of the35-40million
trees sold in the United States annu
ally, said Clackamas County Extension
Agent Mike Bondi. A quarter of
Oregon’s trees are grown in Clackamas
County alone, 90 percent of which are
shipped out of state. These numbers
help us to understand why you can’t
get to far from campus without seeing
scores of tree plantations.
Ina heavily agricultural state,Christ
mas trees compete for what Bondi es
timates is their tenth-place ranking in
economic importance of Oregon crops.
He said Christmas tree farming began
mostly as a side business for many
Clackamas County families when the sorted sizes cf trees—hot
industry first picked up steam in the drinks, candy canes, and a pet
late 1950s. And although Christmas ting zoo.
trees are now important, Clackamas still
He begins shipping his trees
has more growers than any other wholesale in early November,
county in Oregon.
and usually isn’t done until late
While tree farming isn’t simpleor re in the month. Then the U-cut
laxing, as local grower Jim Ringle season begins.
stresses, it is a favored method of
“This is the first time in 17
supplementing a dayjob.
years I’ve had Thanksgiving
“You can’t (make money) raising a off,” Ringle said. He attributes
couple of cows, or growing a couple the early finish to the timely ar
acres of a grain crop, or hay,” said rival of wholesalers’ trucks,
Bondi. While growing trees is much which have a reputation, he said,
more complex than most people real of being less than prompt.
ize, he says, “It is a whole lot better
Timing is crucial to shipping,
than most of the alternatives.”
since the trees are perishable.
/ America’s Christmas tree industry They must be loaded within
has been growing steadily since the days of being cut.
1920s, when trees became a household
“What you have is a very per
tradition. Michigan was the top grower ishable commodity, and it’s a
till 1979, said Bondi. “Oregon eclipsed very labor-intensive one,” said
all other states after that”
Bondi. “Most everything is
Modern tree farmers fill the done by hand.”
growing gap between a holiday
This makes labor, especially
tradition and a less home-cen at harvest time, a huge issue.
tered lifestyle, said grower Jim
“Without
the
migrant
Ringle of Ringle and Son Tree workforce,” Bondi said, “I
Farm. People are simply too busy frankly don’t think this indus
to go hunt for the perfect tree in ' try would survive.”
the backwoods, making U-cuts
Local farms ship to Guam, Ja
the new holiday tradition. His U- pan and the Philippines, to name
cut in Beavercreek features—be just a few countries. Within the
sides several species and as United States, trees also have
ELISABETH MEYER/ Clackamas Pi
Left to right: Francisco, Ricardo and Carmen Ortiz bale
Christmas trees at Misty Tree Farms in Estacada.
miles to go before purchase.
Estacada tree grower Jim Erwin’s
trees are shipped not only to
places where white Christmases
are rare or nonexistent, but also
where they are much whiter than
the Willamette Valley.
“We ship (them) to Hawaii,
New York, Washington D C.,
Texas, Louisiana, Nevada, Kan
sas, California...and let me
think.. .Idaho,” he said.
Why can’t states grow their
own trees? Some can and still
do. Pennsylvania and New York
are well able to produce trees,
said Bondi. But Oregon’s climate
can produce a tree faster.
“A tree that would take sevi
years here would take nine in Pen
sylvania,” Bondi said. “And ou
would look better... we simp
grow really good trees.”
Add the Northwest-natn
Noble fir to that equation and tl
scales are tipped even farther
Oregon’s favor. Nobles, whi(
Bondi terms “the Cadillac (
Christmas trees,” have been ma
keted back east for about twen
years, but are still popular—ai
expensive.
Growers struggle to keep i
with the demand. “We just can
grow enough (of the Noble firs)
said Ringle.