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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 9, 1978)
Portland Obaarvar Phil 1-ane #39521) Asat. Corree.iondent decent job placement. The men in this V .T. program someday are going to be able to say that they have something to offer in the way of a skill, a trade, and the When you care enough to travel 3,000 miles to tell a group of inmate students enrolled in a vocational training program at O.S.P. in Salem. Oregon, “1 care what ha.i,teas la all a« yen «.ton your release irom this institutian," that's putting your money where your mouth is and really caring. On the morning of February 13, 1978. three individuals, accompanied by Char les Keaton. O.S.P. Rehabilitation Pro gram Manager, came through the doors and into a large shop with a sign reading "Welding Departm ent." “These men are going back into the community some day." staled Keaton, “the community not too long ago was shouting at us to keep you convicts when it came to training and willingness to work, that same commu nity. and we who live in that community, are going to find it very hard to deny them decent employment in order that they may regain th eir self respect." Although the three individuals accom panying Keaton were only visitors to O.S.P., th eir appearance meant a great deal to a great many people who work and live w ithin the walls of this institu tion. H .A . Sosnin, president of the National American W elding Society, headquarters in M iam i. Florida, walked beside D r. Bill Poetry Editor You load 16 tons and what do you get? have to be replaced within the next fifteen years. The housing shortage has been made worse by repeated flooding aggravated by erosion from strip mining. Thousands of people were left homeless by floods last A pril, August, and October 1977 in the Appalachian mountains. State offi cials in both W est Virginia and Kentucky have admitted strip mining was a major contributing factor. Another problem area for miners is health care, which is especially important because of the work-related injuries and diseases they suffer. (Continued from Page 1 Column 6) but it has also meant there is little land gvatiaMe for bousing Tw o-thirdsof West Virginia's privately held land is owned or controlled by o u to f state corporations, including Continental Oil, which owns more than one half million acres through its subsidiary. Consolidation Coal. In the state's major southern coalfield counties, ten corporations own ninety percent of the land. Moat of these absentee landlords pre fer to hold their property for coal development rather than release it for housing. As a result, a coalfield housing shortage is worsening as the coal indus .try expands. The workforce doubled from 1964 to 1974, and a similar increase would be necessary to meet President Carter's goal of a 65 percent production increase by 1986. In addition to popula tion pressures, experts say one-half of Appalachia's existing homes - many of them old company-built houses - «rill Between 1970 and 1976, 225,000 coal miners -- four times the number of U.S. soldiers killed in the Vietnam W ar - were judged by the federal government to have "black lung,” an incurable, fatal disease. Some 335,000 other miners and widows applied for black lung compensa tion. A recent government study showed that coal miners also suffer stomach SHOP FOR B R A N D S y ou k n o w V A R IE T I E S y o u l i k e S IZ E S y o u w a n t 64 1 1 $ 1 • S S th • 1 22nd • N A M - 1 w a u b ■ e • I 4 ’ h * 5 1 lo t* S u r n t.d e • J J rd A N A N ! O b to n • A S f lo rv .E x s rs J a * Q . e e l r y • B a ie -g h • 182nd M ill, o’ J I • e 2 J rd M o » n to n I M o r»< o r k D iv itio n A P I q iu e la k e O tv w w g o D 'n v o n « K ifl C ity Ooh B u r n tid r VO 8 A • » G ro v e UN 'IO «4- . • . UNION OR COMPANY DENTAL INSURANCE is a valuable asset. . . your health and appearance COMPLETE C O O PERA TIO N ON A LL D E N T A L INSUR AN CE CLAIMS W E H A N D L E A LL TH E D ETA ILS OF COMPLETING YOUR C LA IM FORMS N O APPOINTMENT NEEDED Come in at your convenience PARK FREE-Any Park n Shop lo t HOURS- diseases at rates above the national average Because of increased noise levels re sulting from mechanization, retired min ers are five times as likely as th eir wives to need hearing aids, although among the general population men do not need hearing aids more often than women. Each year, the coal companies report about 15,000 accidents to the govern ment. A n In te rio r Departm ent study in 1975 indicated th at up to sixty percent of mine injuries are not reported, so the real injury figures may be close to 35,000 per year. T h a t means th at, on the average, a miner who starts his career at age tw enty «rill suffer at least eight injuries before he retires. Since 1969, when Congress passed a law designed to control coal mine acci dents, nearly 1,500 miners have been killed on the job. U n til last year, more than 800,000 miners, spouses and children w ere pro vided free medical care through the company-financed U M W A Health and R etirem ent Funds. The Funds paid retainer fees to support clinics and hospitals in remote regions of Appalachia where no other medical care is available. Those benefits have been cut off during the coal strike, and the companies and union have agreed th at from now on mining families w ill have to pay hundreds of dollars per year in medical costs. The retainer fees for the clinics and hospitals w ill be cut off perm anently. The new deductibles «rill h it pensioners especially hard. Pensions for 80,000 re tirees are only $225-250 per month, and the small increases under the new pro posed contract would provide only $1 per month added buying power after infla tion. “E ve ry three years, when our contract expires, the companies and the politicians start telling us how im portant it is to our country th at we stay on the job," says one high ranking union official, who asked not to be identified. “I guess we don't respond very well because it sounds like a one way street to us. I mean, when have they ever shown any concern for us before?” Sosnin encourages a student-inmate, first years accomplishment in 1977. The V.T. Welding Program holds the excel lent record of graduating its first nine teen students, with sixteen having al ready been paroled or discharged from O.S.P. The remaining three will be doing the same in the future. Eight of those sixteen former inmates have actually been placed on jobs throughout Oregon with a starting union wage of over $8.00 per hour, with the help of the O.S.P. Vocational Training Welding Advisory Committee. To this day not cue of the graduated ex-felons has returned or become involved with the criminal justice system in the State of Oregon. This was a record so phenomenal that it attracted the attention of H .A . Sosnin, causing him to journey to Oregon from his national office to view such a welding program and see if the program could be implemented into other penal institutions throughout the United States. As Sosnin stood before the class he explained the advantages the welding profession has to offer today. “Just like with a welding torch, keep working in the same direction because it's the only direction to go. A good welder will always be in demand for years to come." Sosnin brought with him reading ma terial, diagrams, manuals and books about the modern welding trade to give to each inmate trainee. “I am very concerned about each and every student in this room, because we need you and (rightl you need a job upon your release, so we are going to do our best to meet those needs,” said Sosnin. A t this Sosnin received a rousing applause from the inmates and guests. D r. Rice interjected w ith how impor tant it is for all students to learn the safety measures of the welding profes sion as well as how to take different steps to protect ones health in such a trade as welding. Ray Veilleux and John Belgarde should be praised for th eir efforts to upgrade the successful O.S.P. V .T . W elding D ep a rt ment. Both instructors have gone to the many Oregon communities in search of help for the men they trained, and help is what they are getting, but not only in the State of Oregon, but nationwide. The impact of the President of the W e ld in g S o c ie ty ’s v is it to th e O.S.P. Vocational W elding Program is demonstrated by the statements of the inmate welding trainees themselves, be cause that is where the “rubber-hits-the- road." Robert Anderson #38565..."When M r. Sosnin came here to the welding shop he told us the advantages of welding. By his doing this it showed me th at he was very interested in our program. This to me shows th at there are people who really care.” Brace Huss #36974...“W hen M r. Sosnin came into this penitentiary to talk to us on welding and metalurgy, he not only offered some good practical instructions, but I received the impression he was offering something more than instruction on welding. H e gave me a lot of incentive.” Alan VaaarsdeO #37884.. ." It gave me a great pleasure to know that the president of the A .N .W .S . is concerned with inmate trainee welders at O.S.P., and took the time to spend «rith us and to let us know that he and others on the ‘streets' want to help with our trade." Sam Brown #36033..." It made me feel good to know that a man in his position is interested enough in our welding pro gram to come and share what we are learning here in prison." Ernest Watson #38917. ..“I find it g rati fying that a man of his standing found the time to try and help us find a b etter way for ourselves." “Finding a b etter way to help our selves,” is why these inmates are training to become welders upon th eir release from behind these prison walls. Isn't that w hat the Oregon State Penitentiary Vocational Programs are all about? Isn’t th at w hat the O.S.P. Vocational W elding Program is all about? A t least eighteen prisoners w ith their instructors believe it is. And so does a president of the Am eri can W elding Society. Just Say “Charge ItT Do you have this credit card in your purse or wallet? B IE N O W S • Interested student-inmates listen as national president af welder’s union speaks to them, (center) Julius D. Snowden «38013, Rice, the director-at-large, chief welding engineer of ESCO Corporation and Bob Weisend, an instructor at Portland Com munity College. This was not Rice and Weisend's first visit to O.S.P., because these tw o men are board members of the O.S.P. Vocational W elding Training Pro gram and Weisend is the chairman of the seventeen man community sponsored board. Sosnin was promptly introduced to Ray (Franchie) Veilleux, O.S.P. Voca tional Training W elding instructor and his eighteen inmate students. Sosnin was made aware of the many months of hard w ork and dedication by these individuals, in a community and institutional effort, to make this program as successful as it had been through its Pagre 8 H.A. Soeain national ;«reaident of the American Welding Society, gives ¡teintera to O.S.P. welding dans, (loft) Behind the wall by Larry Baker, O.8.P. t ’orres.tendent Thursday, March 9, 1979 w " 4 ^ *y a 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday 8.39a.m. telp ^ s. Dr. Jeffrey BRADY, Dentist 8.W . 3RD A Y A M H IL L ST., PORTLAND. OREGON T A K E ELE V A TO R TO 2ND FLOOR 3RD ST. ENTRANCE If not, fill in the application below and w e ll do our best to get one for you. | Matt W itt, former editor of the “United Mine Workers Journal," now writes on job safety issues from Wash ington, D.C.| Jobs available Oregon youth, ages fifteen to eighteen have until March 16th to apply for conservation-related summer employ ment in the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC). Enrollees in YCC w ill clear straambanks, build trails, construct fish hatcheries, plant trees, and engage in hundreds of other similar conservation projects on state and federal lands in Oregon. Jobs are open for both men and women. Enrollees are selected from applicant pool by means of a random lottery. Application forms may be obtained from school counselors and principals, from any office of the State Employment Division, from local offices of the U.S. Departm ent of the Interior or the U.S. Forest Service, or from other youth oriented agencies. To be considered in the lottery, appli cations must be postmarked no later than March 16, 1978. "We m ake our f o r t u n e s , and we cell them fa te ." Benjamin Disraeli W H Y PASS A GOOD BUY? USE C H AR G -A LL CREDIT 1 1 ( ) M ( .OAZYE KY Big value? Sure thing! WARDS ADVERTISING POLICY: II your Ward« »lore »hould run out ot any advertised item» during the sale period, ot should an item not arrive due to production or transpor tation problems Wards will oiler the item to you at thf sale price when it is restocked This does nol apply to "Clearance" and “Closeout" sales or "Special Buys" where availa ble quantities are necessarily limited to stock on hand WARDS PRICING POLICY: II an item is not described as a reduction or as "Special Buy" it ia at its regular price. A "Special Buy", though not reduced is an outstanding value In this ad some regular prices may vary by geographic area II you have a question concerning any Wards advertisement please call the manager of your nearesl Wards »lore iuV&lHBjl JA N TZEN BEA CH 1400 Jantzen Beach Center Phone 28 3-4411, Vane. 693-1406 M A L L 205 9 8 00 S.E.Washington Phone 255-8200 or 256-9631 BEAVERTON 1 10th and Canyon Phone 646-7212 1
