Portland Observer, September 1,1962 Page 5
¿MoUçfaiooô ^Florist
Programs planned for N.E. Senior Citizens
g r o t t i ¿ H o ll^ fn a o b
by Gladys McCoy, County Commissioner
Senior Citizens continue to be on
the move! In M ay, 1 98 2,1 expressed
my excitement about the movement
the Northeast Senior Citizens were
making in regards to the open house
and the planning programs and ser
vices to be provided in th e ir new
building located at 4128 N .E . Union
Avenue, Portland. Once again, I am
excited! Both the programs and ser
vices being planned for Seniors at
the U niversity P ark C o m m u n ity
Center in North Portland are mov
ing right along.
The plan for this Senior program
ming goes back three years when I
implemented a North Portland Task
Force for a Senior Center location.
After a year and a half o f meetings,
the possible sites were narrowed to
the St. Johns Com m unity Center,
Columbia Park, and the University
Park C om m unity Center. The last
meeting before the University Park
C o m m u n ity C enter rem odeling
started was in M arc h , 1981, when
Project A B L E , Housing A uthority
o f P o rtla n d , Loaves and Fishes,
City, County, and Task Force mem
bers were present.
M o re recen tly, the rem odeling
project at the University Park Com
munity Center is proceeding close to
schedule and the opening date for
full activities will be in early Novem
ber, 1982. The building will be very
attractive and inviting w ith zones
fo r m axim um uses by all age
groups. One section is particularly
arranged to provide an array o f
comprehensive programs and ser
vices for Seniors with a handicapped
access ramp that can be convenient
ly separated from other activities in
the building.
An Ad Hoc Committee represent-
ing Project A B L E , C ity Park Bur
eau, the H ousing A u th o rity o f
P o rtla n d , Loaves and Fishes, the
North Portland Community Action,
A rea Agency on A ging, and the
C o u n ty have been m eeting since
June to fin a liz e plans to provide
recreation, education, legal services,
health services, food services, and
classes in conjunction with Loaves
and Fishes and a volunteer corps.
Subcommittees are being formed to
see that these programs are in place
for the Fall T erm , with the under
standing that more specific Senior
needs will be identified during the
Fall Term and implemented during
the Winter Term.
It is acknowledged that the U n i
versity Park Community Center D i
rector is responsible for program
ming for all age groups; however,
my primary concern is for Seniors.
There will be programs and services,
not just fo r Seniors in C o lu m b ia
V illa and T a m a ra c k , but fo r all
Seniors in the North end o f the City.
The effort will be to avoid duplica
tion o f services unless it is necessary
and to emphasize coordination and
cooperation. The goal, as in the
Northeast, is to enhance the quality
in the lives o f Senior Citizens.
1 encourage my constituents to be
aware o f the Senior activities
planned fo r this fa c ility ; become
active through p artic ip a tio n . P r i
vate transportation will be provided
for those who are unable to take the
bus. For those o f you who are able
to use public tran sp ortation , T r i-
M et Bus #4 Fesseden services the
community center.
Look forward to the Open House
for the remodeled Center in Novem
ber!
Michael Stoops: A hand to man
(Continued from page I cot 2)
Avenue, in 1980 because the need
was there: "Some o f the hotels
wouldn't rent to the women who
were on the streets,” he says. “ I
thought the women should have a
choice. Some were selling their bod
ies to get a place to sleep.. . It's a
combination shelter/hotel. We (the
Burnside Community Council, o f
which he is chairperson) give shelter
to a maximum o f 132 women a night
during the winter months.”
Moreover, Stoops and the Coun
cil were responsible for initiating the
Hobo Parade which was recently
held for the second year. He says ev
ery neighborhood needs a parade
and that theirs, the Hobo Parade,
"got national attention.”
Moreover, in his continued en
deavor with the Skid Road Commu
nity, Stoops was instrumental in the
formation o f Project Jackroll: "as
sisting people involved in the crimi
nal justive system” ; providing win
ter patrols for residents o f the com
munity who fear venturing from
their dwelling places; recycling wine
bottles at a penny each (because of
the litter problem they create as well
as the fact that they can be used as
weapons); and the Hobo News. For
merly The Pipeline, the Hobo News,
a quarterly, "is written by Skid
Stoops admits to not being a fan
Road people.”
Classifying himself as a " fu ll o f Mayor Ivancie — in fact, he says
time activist since 1969,” Stoops is he goes through each of the M ayor’s
responsible for inviting Curtis proposals with a "fin e tooth
Sliwa, founder/president of the comb.” Therefore, when the Mayor
Ouardian Angels, to come to Port announced his "W a r on C rim e,”
land and look into the possibility o f Stoops thought it was o ff the mark.
setting up a chapter o f (he Angels in " I f there is going to be a war on
the city. The Guardian Angels, ori crime,” he says, " le t’s all get in
ginated in New York City, serves as volved.” He adds that the M ayor’s
a deterrent to the city’s crime prob attack on parks is directed towards
lem.
the North Park Blocks and possibly
Stoops says he took a risk when the South Park Blocks. Although
the latter, which in a sense can be
he invited Sliwa to come to Portland
called University Row, is question
because he didn’t know if he would
come across as a "tough guy” or able. Students are a lot different
not. Moreover, he says, "There is a from "bum s,” he adds.
While being a self-admitted
cultural difference between Port
"non-fan o f the M ayor,” Stoops
land and New York C ity ."
says if the Mayor had proposed
And that "cultural difference”
bringing Sliwa to Portland there
may be why his concern is so acute.
probably would have been opposi
Explaining (hat he has already in
tion to the idea from the Urban
terviewed many possible candidates
League, the Black United Front,
for a possible Guardian Angels
himself, and some other coalition
chapter, Stoops says that although
groups.
most expressed a genuine concern
W ith those things set aside — ac
for the community, he is adamant
complishments and instigations —
about being involved in every facet
the room at the Butte Hotel is clos
o f the implementation — if a chap
ing in on Stoops. He says he is
ter is formed in Portland. His con
“ good for another five years” but
ception o f the first use o f such a
the urge to "ride the rails, hop
group in Portland would be "along
freight trains, camp out in hobo
the Transit M all and the Burnside
jungles, live from day to day, share
area.”
the ’culture’ o f hobo life and record
And then we come to why he in
a history that is almost as old as the
vited Sliwa to Portland.
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country itself” has set in, and he
also wants to write a novel about the
experience o f hobo life.
And then, if he decides to run for
mayor, he will announce his can
didacy in M ay o f ’83. He feels that
he can “ garnish o ff 20 percent of
the vote and at least force a run
o ff.” He is not particularly over
whelmed about the M ayor’s job and
his decision whether or not to run is
contingent on who opposes the
Mayor if he seeks reelection in ’84.
A Democrat, Stoops sees the City
Council as a place where he could
serve well and he says that Com
missioner Charles Jordan, among
one or two others, is the kind o f per
son he could support for the posi
tion o f Mayor.
Stating flatly that “ I don’t want
Ivancie to get it again,” he sees the
1980s as an anti-tramp era and com
ments that the M ayor’s " 'W ar on
Crime’ is going after the wrong
kinds o f crime.” He adds that “ it’s
a kind o f window dressing.”
“ I want to help people, I am dedi
cated and I want to have an im
pact,” Stoops says. " . . . I want to
help the people on Burnside.”
M ild mannered and mostly soft
spoken, he says, “ I f I am killed on
the streets, I want to be a part of the
action. I t ’s important to me to prac
tice what I believe in .”
Elderly face tough housing decisions
Deciding where to live can be a i
tough for the elderly as it is foi
younger adults, but where young
people may be looking for ways to
purchase a house o f their own, the
elderly are often looking for ways to
get out o f houses (hey have owned
and lived in for many years.
I t ’s a com m on d ilem m a, says
Marilyn Lunner, Clackamas County
Extension agent. Upkeep o f sprawl
ing yards gets more challenging ev
ery year. U tility and upkeep costs
may also be high. And trudging to
the basement to do laundry may be
a real hassle.
" I n spite o f these draw backs,
staying at the ol* homestead may be
feasible if disadvantages can be min
im iz e d ," M a rily n says. " M a y b e
some remodeling can help.”
A ll room s, including the b a th
room and laundry facilities, might
be located on the first floor, for ex
am ple. A n o th er o p tion is to turn
part o f the house into a rental unit.
The tenant could take care o f yard
and house maintenance in exchange
for lower monthly rent.
"M oving to a retirement village is
one option that may be more costly
than other c h o ic e s," says V ick i
Schm all, Oregon State U niversity
Extension gerontology specialist.
"T h e older person may not want to
live around only older people. Also,
if moving to another community is
necessary, the question o f adjusting
to new surroundings and m aking
new friends comes up.”
Selling the home and moving to
an apartment is a favored alterna
tive for many older people. Giving
up open spaces, especially if favorite
hobbies require lots of room, can be
a disadvantage, and so can sharing
common walls with neighbors.
On the other hand, a smaller
space takes less housecleaning, re
sponsibilities for maintenance are
reduced, and all rooms, including
lau nd ry fac ilitie s , may be on the
same floor.
The question o f living with grown
children also may come up, but this
usually isn’t the first choice of older
people. According to Schmall, most
older adults want to live near, but
not with, their children. Four out of
five people over age 63 live within a
h a lf-h o u r’ s drive o f at least one
child, she says.
W hatever housing arrangement
you’ re considering, Schmall recom
mends m in im izin g the risk o f
making a wrong decision. T ry out
the situation before making it per
m anent. M ayb e you can stay in a
retirement village for a week with a
friend — or spend an extended time
in F lo rid a to see what i t ’ s like
m oving that fa r fro m fa m ilia r
haunts.
Professional Rest
Control Supplies
For Do-it-yourself
Hom eowners
D o not make a decision based on
what others have told you or what
you have seen on a short vacation,
Schmall urges. Experiencing a situa
tion as a “ tourist” is often quite d if
ferent from experiencing the same
situation as a "resident.” What will
it be like living in that environment
year after year?
"Finally, remember that selection
o f housing — no matter what your
age — must be a very deliberate de
cision,” Schmall says. " I f it doesn’t
feel right, it probably isn’t. Listen to
your innermost feelings, instead o f
discounting them.”
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