October 2014
THE COUNTRY STORE
By Erik Vidstrand
The Southwest Portland Post
Sunshine and Mustangs
make Raleigh Hills
Community Fair a success
The fourth annual Raleigh Hills
Community Fair was held on Sept.
7 and according to the folks in the
Raleigh Hills Business Association a
grand time was had by all. Twenty-
seven booth spaces and 13 classic
Ford Mustangs were present.
Brian Jarrett and his 1967 Mustang
Fastback took top honors with four
ribbons starting with Best of Show.
“In all it was a really good fair
without the rain we had last year,”
FEATURES
The Southwest Portland Post • 5
said Michael Chase, board member.
“Over 700 raffle sales were made
but we really did not keep count of
the total number of visitors.”
Former Pagenwood
building gets remodeled
for two new businesses
The former Pagenwood building
on Southwest Capitol Highway at
35th Avenue in Multnomah Vil-
lage has been empty for years. But
recently work has begun creating a
place to get a haircut then get some-
thing to eat next door.
BMK Construction has shored up
the back wall and is waiting for city
permits for next steps as water and
sewer lines are installed.
The upper lot where garbage bins
are stored has been remodeled and
will provide some off street parking.
Accuracy is important to Multnomah
mystery writer April Henry
By KC Cowan
The Southwest Portland Post
April Henry said that
when she was a little girl in
southern Oregon, she want-
ed to be a writer when she
grew up. However, she also
didn’t think it was possible
that someone from Medford
could ever be a “real author.”
As an adult, she composed
informational medical piec-
es, ad copy and press re-
leases. But the dream to be an
author never left her.
“And then in my thirties,
I read a book that was re-
ally bad, and it was pub-
lished and I thought, well, I
could write a book that bad!”
Henry said. “So I started
writing.”
Henry completed her first
book and set about finding
April Henry holds The Body in the Woods, her latest
an agent. She got rejection book for young adult readers.
after rejection.
(Post photo by KC Cowan)
She wrote a second book
and tried again, eventually approach-
If you read Henry’s books, you’ll
ing an agent she read about in a maga-
often notice references to Portland
zine. The agent loved her book and
locations, restaurants and businesses.
signed Henry as her client.
A Multnomah Village resident, she
Unfortunately, no publishing house
loves to sprinkle her books with lo-
bought Henry’s book. So she wrote
cal places.
another one. It also didn’t sell. But in
In addition, accuracy is very impor-
1997, her fourth book, titled “Circles
tant to her. Her favorite source of ma-
of Confusion,” sold in three days.
terial is the Writers Police Academy,
Henry was off and running and has
held annually on the grounds of a real
published 17 books since. On Feb. 1,
police academy in North Carolina.
2008 she was able to quit her day job
“It’s like a summer camp for mys-
and has been making a living as an
tery writers. It was started by a retired
author ever since.
cop, (who was) tired of mystery writ-
She doesn’t get huge advances, but
ers making mistakes in their books.
as she puts it: “I’m doing OK. I’m do-
Getting police procedure wrong,
ing pretty good!”
getting all sorts of things wrong,” she
Henry writes mysteries and thrill-
said.
ers for adults and young adults. In a
“And a lot of the lectures are hands-
mystery, the identity of the bad guy is
on. For example, presumptive blood
kept hidden from the reader and “red
testing. They might have a class where
herrings” abound.
you are given something with red on
However, in a thriller, Henry said
it and then you’re given the equip-
both she and the reader know who did
ment and then you test it.”
it, so the plotting is different.
“And you can see, ‘Oh! It smells like
“With thrillers, you just have to
vinegar when you snap this little vial.’
keep throwing bad things at (the
Details that you would never get even
hero) and you know they’re going
if you looked at a catalogue showing
to be all right at the end. So you just
that equipment.”
keep going.”
(Continued on Page 6)
Visitors admire the Mustangs at the Raleigh Hills Community Fair on Sept. 7.
(Post photo by Erik Vidstrand)
On the west side of the building
will be Bishops Barbershop. Cel-
ebrating almost 14 years, Bishops
began in Seattle and has grown to
13 locations including Seattle, and
Bend, Ore. Most are in Portland.
While there are several hair salons
and barbershops in the immediate
area, Bishops draws a different cli-
entele according to several stylists
in the village.
“It is competition for sure, but
competition is healthy,” said Ta-
mara Marshall of Fusion Cut and
Color.
“We have just celebrated 11 years
in Multnomah Village,” Marshall
said, “and we have been best eco-
friendly and organic hair salon five
years in a row.”
A representative of BMK Con-
struction said Bishops should be
open by the end of November.
Next door, Tastebud, which cre-
ates wood-fired baked goods, will be
opening east of Bishops in the same
building. Many folks were fortunate
to get a sample of their food during
Multnomah Days, but they sold out
early.
Tastebud began as a sustainable
farm, but after building a brick oven,
found their niche in cooking bagels
and pizzas. They have a variety of
food carts around Portland and are
at the Hillsdale Farmers Market year
round. They are expected to open
their doors in February.