Pago 4 Portland Observer, January 21,1962
RUMOR HAS IT
*
Thomas Chamberlain and M ika Porter, para
medica, with "Shirley Ann*, emergency car purch-
ased and maintained by St. Johns residents.
(Photo: Richard J. Brown)
Shirley Ann: Is she ours?
by Bonnie Seal
Is it better to be a big fish in a lit­
tle pond, or a little fish in a big
pond? This is a question some resi­
dents o f St. Johns have begun to
consider over the last two months
since the inception o f the emergency
dispatch number, 911.
The new dispatching system a l­
lows persons throughout M u ltn o ­
mah County to use the same emer­
gency number, and was established
as part o f a state-wide effort.
W ith the county’ s effo rts to es­
tablish a uniform system came the
fear that St. Johns would lose access
to the Shirley A nn— the emergency
medical rescue unit that has been fi­
nancially subsidized by the citizens
o f St. Johns through donations for
over twenty years.
The controversy has its roots in
the death o f a St. Johns baby, Shir­
ley Ann H o w ell, who choked on a
graspe and died in a fireman’s arms
en route to the hospital in the late
1950s. As a result o f the in fa n t's
death, the citizens o f St. Johns
pooled their efforts and their pock­
etbooks to purchase the first emer­
gency medical unit in N orth P o rt­
land— the original Shirley Ann, pre­
decessor to the present car, P o rt­
land’ s Rescue U n it number t h r e e -
wit h the idea that service would be
free for all residents o f St. Johns.
Since that time, financing for the
original car’s successors and equip­
ment has been subsidized by a trust
fund fed by donations, and chaired
by Jewel Sundquist and R ita
Cocannour, citizens o f St. Johns.
Sundquist claimed the fund paid
$7,000 toward the purchase o f the
present car, and that it is the best
equipped o f all three rescue units in
Portland.
Because o f their investments into
the car, St. Johns residents became
concerned about losing access to it,
in the new ly-established co u n ty­
wide system.
T h eir com plaints hinged on the
premise that the Sh irley A n n was
cost-free, and an am bulance that
might be sent by the dispatchers at
M u ltn o m a h C o u n ty Em ergency
Medical Services (E M S ) would not
be.
“ M an y o f the residents o f St.
Johns are elderly, and can’t afford
that kind o f service,” said Sund­
quist. “ I don’ t want people to be
stuck with paying for an ambulance
coming out which isn’t needed.”
The rescue car has not been re­
placed by private ambulances, ac­
cording to Stephen Dean, director
o f Emergency Services for M ultno­
mah County and the C ity o f P o rt­
land. Rescue units do not transport
the patient, he explained. For most
medical emergencies, both a rescue
unit and an ambulance must be sent.
“ Studies have shown that the
sooner you get treatment, the more
likely you are to survive,” empha­
sized Dean, and fire department ve­
hicles including cars and trucks have
an average response tim e o f fo u r
minutes, two minutes faster than the
average o f six minutes that it takes
for an ambulance.
J
In most cases a person must be
transported to the hospital, and this
requires an ambulance, according to
Dean. “ I f the emergency sounds se­
rious, and the ambulance is the clos­
est vehicle, it will be dispatched.”
Sundquist said she has received
no complaints about the system dur­
ing the last few months, nor has she
heard o f anyone in St. Johns not
getting the Shirley Ann. She said a
person could call the fo rm er fire
alarm num ber, 232-2111, and ask
specifically for the Shirley Ann. and
that few cases in which the Shirley
Ann was not available had come to
her attention.
B oth fire departm ent and E M S
spokesmen discouraged using the
old num ber. W h eth er the Sh irley
Ann is the only vehicle dispatched
depends upon the availability o f the
car and the seriousness o f the emer­
gency, according to D ean, who
stated that, “ In most emergencies
the rescue unit w ill be followed by
an ambulance. A person can ask for
the Shirley A n n, but if it is out on
call they will get another emergency
unit.”
Dean did not know if the rescue
unit was located in St. Johns speci­
fically because o f the subsidy, or if
ano th er lo catio n w ould be m ore
strategic for the county.
He pointed out that three o f Port­
la n d ’ s 23 am bulances are located
along a h alf-m ile stretch on N orth
L o m b ard between W abash and
Cary. “ This makes St. Johns one o f
the best equipped sections o f the city
for an emergency,” he commented.
the resources.
W hile no statistics are available
on unemployment o f Black youth in
Oregon, the Commission estimates
approximately 38 per cent based on
national figures and a recent local
poll.
The Commission plans to submit
a proposal to a private foundation
seeking funding to address Black
youth unemployment.
The Commission was established
by Governor Atiyeh on September
30, 1980, along with the Governor’s
Commission on Hispanic A ffa irs .
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Commission presents report
Governor Vic Atiyeh has received
the first annual report o f the Gover­
nor’s Commission on Black Affairs,
which place priority for the coming
year on fund raising and unemploy­
ment o f Black youth in Portland.
Fund raising is essential, accord­
ing to chairman Pearl Spears-Gray,
since only one dollar was appropri­
ated by the Legislature for the two-
year period. D u ring the past year
the Commission received a $500
donation from the Joint Council o f
Teamsters N o. 37 and $100 from
Links, Inc. Fund raisers added to
Still Has The Best Curl In Town A t The Best Price!!
W ith this ad
Its functions include monitoring ex­
isting laws and programs designed
to meet the needs o f the Black pop­
ulation; identifying and researching
problem areas and issues and
recommending action; serving as a
liaison between the Black com mu­
nity and government entities.
A d dition al members are: G eral­
dine C hristian, Thomas Kennedy,
Bobbie N u n n , B arbara P a tric k ,
Frank W ilson, o f Portland; Bruce
Broussard, Sandy; Patricia Creal.
Springfield; and Mathette Williams,
Salem.
i JRockwell Glasses
a n d jg e ta glass.
,
Middle school controversy brews
(Continued fro
m pane
from
nnot» I lm column
in m n 5)
c i
schools. The Board will be asking
for a new tax base in M ay and we
need these voters.”
A t the present time board mem­
bers H erb C aw th o rn e and Steve
Buel support the E lio t site, while
Bill Scott favors Eliot unless a better
site can be found within the commu­
nity.
The School D is trict s ta ff has
studied seven sites including Eliot.
Their conclusions are:
•Adam s High School: Facility is
adequate but too large; no capital
investment is needed; transportation
would cost $155,000 per year; out­
side o f attendance area.
•Boise: occupied by K-8 school;
relocation o f K-5 to Eliot would not
allow space for incoming transfer
students; not adequate space;
$3,185,075 building cost; $125,000
transportation cost.
•E lio t: C urrent program would
have to relocate; not adequate
space; $ 3 ,6 5 0 ,0 0 0 building cost;
$125,000 transportation cost.
•Kennedy: Building depreciated.
I
; _____
rr. •_* _____••
insufficient space; $6,381,600 build­
ing cost; $140,000 tran sp ortation
cost; out o f attendance area.
•M o n ro e : inadequate space;
$1,750,000 building costs; $171,000
transportation cost; out o f attend­
ance area.
• W a s h in g t o n /M o n r o e H ig h
School: land deficient, building too
large; no cap ital investm ent re­
quired; $ 171,000 tra n s p o rta tio n
costs; out o f attendance area.
The Area I and A rea II C itizen
A dvisory Com m ittees were asked
for their input. These committees
are appointed by the School Board.
The A rea I C A C recommended
Adams High School. The Adams II
C A C recommended the elimination
o f Kennedy, Adams and Jefferson
from consideration, the selection o f
a site close to the attendance area,
move o f C o lum bia/W hitaker to the
Adams building, sale o f Colum bia
/W h itaker to fund Tubman site.
The Board's Desegregation M oni­
toring Advisory Committee went on
recorded again as “ strongly recom-
mending the Eliot site.”
The O regonian revealed on F ri­
day th a t the School D is trict and
Portland C om m unity College have
entered into talks concerning a pos­
sible trade o f the P C C Cascade
Campus fo r Adam s H igh School,
with the possibility o f using Cascade
fo r T u b m an M id d le School. The
Cascade property was acquired by
Portland C om m unity College with
Model Cities funds and at the time
made a long-term com m itm ent to
serve the model n e ig h b o rh o o d -
bounded on the east by a p p ro x i­
mately 21st Avenue. This possibility
also has not been discussed with rep­
resentatives o f community organiza­
tions.
The Black United Front expressed
its anger at the School B o ard ’ s
apparent in ten tio n to abandon
earlier promises to locate Tubman
at the E lio t b u ild in g . Ronnie
H ern d o n ,
C o -c h a irm a n ,
said
that the desegregation plan has
brought little if any improvement in
education for Black children.
I B re a k fa s t Is
: S u p re m e A t
Steak & Shrimp
Dinner
&
Coke
*61 9
Jan . 20th thru Jan . 30th
• STEAK HOUSE
I
I
■
L
Account »60 «02
Coupon valid for purchase of Steak it
Shrimp dinner Dinner include* Rib eye
•teak, 4 piece* of «hrimp, baked potato,
rod and »alad Dinner include* Coke and
Rockwell ylaae Offer valid from Jan 20th
thru Jan . 30th.
-o
Steak & Shrim p
Dinner
&
Coke
♦611
Jan . 27th th ru Fob. 7th
Account »00 S02
Coupon valid for purchase of Steak b
Shrimp dinner Dinner include* Rib eye
•teak, 4 p,«(.e* of «hrimp, baked potato,
roll and salad Dinner include* Coke end
Rockwell glass Offer valid from Jan 27th
thru Feb 7th, 1982
A
Right good eatin’ at a righi good price
QKSQSB
425 N o ^ e a s T ^ g P Street
(Between Union and Graod)
RUSTUER