Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (July 16, 1981)
Paga 4 Portland Obsarvar July 10.1SS1 GROUND BEEF OBSERVATIONS FROM THE SIDELINES By Kathryn H a ll Bogle Young, Black and looking for a career? Careers for women might well in clude the one o f being a phar macists, suggests Geraldine M c Connell Christian. Mrs. Christian bases her recom mendation on the 25 years plus o f time, and the variety of experience, she had had in this profession. A good share o f that time she has practiced here in Portland. Mrs. Christian entered the white male dominated field o f pharmacy soon after her graduation from the University of Colorado at Boulder. All o f her earlier education had been in Denver, her birthplace. In childhood she had chosen to follow in the path blazed by two Black male pharmacists she admired. They encouraged the young woman to study toward this goal. For a Black female it was not easy to find a job very readily after graduation. First there was the state examination; next was the required one-year apprenticeship in a drug store under supervision; then to find a w illing employer. The latter was like looking fo r the proverbial needle in a haystack. It was in I9 5 l that the hopeful new pharmacist decided to search among federal listings o f job openings, trusting that chances o f her being hired would be better. They did prove better. There was an opening with the U.S. A rm y Chemical Corps at their Rocky Mountain Arsenal in Colorado. At the arsenal, the Chemical Corps operated an in firm a ry and two busy First Aid stations to take care o f ill or injured Army person nel. Though there was no declared war at the time, the Corps was engaged in manufacturing nerve gas and mustard gas. The pharmacy was a necessity. Mrs. Christian stayed on the job four years. During this time she also married and became the mother of a small son. Increasingly, however, she felt it wise to remove herself from the proximity o f the dangerous gasses. Fortunately her husband, Conrad M cConnell, also a phar macist, was working. Their situation allowed the wife and mother the convenience o f giving her full time to these roles and she left the Chemical Corps. The couple longed for a home "somewhere on the Pacific Coast” , Mrs. Christian said. “ We started •out believing we could be happy anywhere from San Diego to Seat tle. W'e wrote letters to Urban League offices asking questions im portant to us, like: ‘Job openings in G e ra ld in e C h ris tia n : B e h in d th e c o u n te r o f th e m o d e rn p h a ra m a c y . (P h o to : R ic h a rd J . B r o w n ) your city? What about housing? W'hat is the racial climate? Answers were less than defin itive fo r us. In the end we had to go to see for ourselves. “ We toured along the coast and fell in love with the Northwest. We settled on P ortland. W ithin fo u r days o f our locating here my husband found a jo b w ith the Veterans’ Administration. This was in 1957. He stayed with the VA for a while, but he was offered a bigger job with more responsibility (and money) as head o f the pharmacy at St. Vincent Hospital. He stayed 16 years there. “ Conrad’ s first job was vacant,” Mrs. Christian continued. “ I knew about it. I quickly applied fo r it — and they hired me. “ The VA jo b was d ifferent for me. It was for an out-patient clinic in a downtown location. W'e served veterans in numbers. In those days a pharmacist did more than count out pills and capsules. We had to make up many o f our prescriptions from doctors’ individual orders. “ I made cough syrups by the half gallon. I mixed powders fo r cap sules. I made ointments by formula and we used a lot o f bulk Turner receives BA award PAINTING W e do spray or old brush job w ay. W e also do th e necessary repair jobs; siding, board , glass and so forth. 289 1497 M artin Turner was recently awarded the O utstanding Achievement Award granted to the member o f the Seattle Chapter o f the N ational Association o f Black Accountants who has excelled wihin the professioi . A native o f P ortland, Turner graduated from Jefferson High School and earned a Bachelor’ s degree in Business A dm inistration from the University o f Portland. He received a Master o f Business A d m inistration in Taxation from the University o f Southern California. Upon graduation he was em ployed by the Internal Revenue Ser vice as revenue agent. Through dediction and professional growth M artin was recently promoted to a level o f GS-14 in the Appeals De partment. He has recently been ac- O W N E R S H IP HAS CHANGED Choe's Wigs Introduces (formerly Eestporf Plaza) FREE Comb out With purchase of new wig i SHOP I FON lENOW'S J ■ BRANDS you VARIETIES you lik e SUES you w u o l Th« FrXV>dl»DSt Stores In T o w n Since 1 9 0 1 • - M __ il __ ».I — *«*•)*•• __ • lit* a l a w teFmlA a«W>>iaa • • 1 l i n a a N .l. -atitaa • j a o . a * . i . O U ia e a A » .I. • J i r a t M .l. M a m a rh a N. Cam bara a t O ra a la y • J i r a a W aM a a m t ia a • ■arUlffc M l|l, a la r a • t a k a O » » « ja • • • < I J j a a a t J .l. M a lM a a • K la g C ity m im m i at aratta (M o lili EXODUS <’;c)^rzy/z<zkczzz X tjluca/urui/ a r u / }/ t s i / m s n / Ÿ'wJee 1639 N E. A lb e rta PORTLAND OREGÙN 9721 1 234 7997 From the Front Door By Tom Boothe I From the Front Door, someone once asked me what was the most valuable elements on earth. After thinking for awhile I answered and said, Wisdom, Knowledge and Understanding. He said what about Gold and Oil and other precious stones and materials. I said without Wisdom, Knowledge and Un derstanding, how would you know how to recognize them to develope them to any degree of usability. Most people today seem to emphasize the value of materials, and also the value of Political recognition and all to often these persons wind up making a fool of themselves, because they lack the wisdom to use the materials in cluding money and political recognition wisely. Wigs are the same. Plus new styles, big saving on wigs, hair pieces and ac cessories. BONNIE HOWE medications to divide into smaller bo ttlin g or packaging. 1 liked it there and worked there for eleven years. “ There was a totally different ex perience for me at Crestview Con valescent hospital. This was a large place and I was in charge o f the pharmacy and one helper for me. Here there were dosages fo r each patient for a 24-hour period. Each paiieni had to have detailed direc tions for each medication supplied by the nurses how to administer the medication in each case. I enjoyed all that. “ When I became a widowed per son, I went back to the VA clinic- situation and stayed for five years. “ Being a pharm acist has its credits, certainly. Thorugh phar macy is still male-dominated, there is equal pay for equal hours, and the same benefits accrue fo r men and women a lik e ,” M rs. C hristian pointed out. “ To prepare fo r a career in pharmacy, a student should have high school m ath, chem istry, physics and biology -- and good legs and feet!” she added with a laugh. “ I do not want to work a full time week anymore now, so I ’ m now working on a part-tim e contingent basis. Our pharmacy is located in a medical building that provides o f fice space fo r a great many physicians. “ Pressures fo r me are lessened with this arrangement. I have time to attend the pharmacy seminars and other professional gatherings to keep up w ith new trends and regulations. Some are required by Oregon law to m aintain licensed standing. Or, I can rest or travel.” Mrs. Christian is a pharmacist for the N o rth ru p M edical Center Pharmacy in the Northrup Medical B uilding in Northwest P ortland. Her son, a political reporter for the Oregon Journal, is Conrad (Pete) McConnell, Jr. Most people today try to seek out money, and it evades most people; others find it and spend it foolishly and wind up right back where they started. Others seek Political recognition and it evades most people; others find it and they don't have the wisdom to manage it and it either destroys them im mediately or they become slaves to the system, and they are destroyed in the end. ^ocate^n^lewber^Uoyd^ente^S^OSG^ ER BY. coupon _______ Reg. 43.” Yd. My point this week is, if one spent as much time seeking wisdom, knowledge and understanding as they spend in the search for money and material wealth, they would be richer by a hundred fold. 77 Aflth coupon CORDUROY IN SOLID COIORS OO* o - r w * a i » O' r o M u 'O y s n p o 'yes g ' eo f»O ', S 4 4 4 5 w 1 M A R T IN T U R N E R Ju ly 10th Solid Robe Fleece Acetate and Nylon Machine Washable - So many colors to choose from ... I Reg. 12.» Yd $1. July 1flth cepted to the management career program o f Internal Revenue Ser vice. M artin is a member o f the AIC- PA, C a lifo rn ia and Washington State Society o f C e rtifie d Public Accountants. He is married to Bonita Turner, a manager w ith IB M and has two daughters, Kristine and Michelle. In his leisure time he enjoys playing tennis and reading. He is the son of Mr. And Mrs. George W. Jordan of Portland. It isn't how much you have, as much as it is how well you manage what you have; and how well you are able to manage what you have it directly related to how much wisdom, knowledge and understanding you have. You can have anything you know how to get. You can do anything you know how to do. But, you cannot have those things you do not know how to get. You cannot do things you do not know how to do. But, you can learn if you have a positive attitude. Most people use less than ten percent of their men tal capabilities. Let's go after the ninety percent that is still out there. UP-DATE: Exodus Clean Team is Working..........