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November 6,1991...The Portland Observer...Page 5
Twenty-five Years of Service to Those In Need
Continued from front page
and L i ’ t lc Herman, doing comedy rou­
tines” and musical groups including
“ the Hamiltons, the Cleveland Wil­
liams Bank, the Charlie Gable Trio and
Warren Bracket and the All Stars.”
Mrs. Harris recalls that a singing
group known as The Willing Workers
Singers went from church to church
seeking donations. Local grocers do­
nated food for fund-raising dinners,
and organizations such as Hike for the
Hungry in Milwaukie and the Urban
League gave money.
In July 1968, the center received a
six-month demonstration grant from
the Office of Economic Opportunity,
allowing it to move to larger quarters at
321 N.E. Russell Street (where itstayed
for 16 years), and to begin paying Mrs.
Crowe and three full-time employees.
The total operating budget was $2,800
a month.
Government funding ended in 1969
and never returned. Part of the gap was
filled by United Good Neighbors, fore­
runner to United Way, with a $16,583
grant in 1973. By 1976, the grant was
increased to $21,600, which covered
an $800 a month salary to Mrs. Crowe
and lesser salaries to three employees.
Still, the mainstay of the center’s
existence continued to be - and still is
- the volunteer work from people re­
ceiving help from the center. The
Oregonian of September 21, 1976 told
the story of Margarita Lugan, a grand­
mother who had come to the center for
help and stayed to become a supervisor
under Mrs. Crowe.
“ Like many of the L.I.F.E. em­
ployees,” the reporter wrote, “ Mrs.
Lugan first came to the center as a
recipient... S he continued to come daily
until, finally, Mrs. Crowe offered her a
job that paid some $375 per month (and
she) has since been removed from the
welfare and food stamp rolls.”
The same reporter noted that other
L.I.F.E. Center workers had been or­
dered by courts to work at the center in
lieuofafine or jail term. A few ofthem
enjoyed the work and asked to stay on
as paid employees, according to the
report.
In May 1984, L.I.FK Center moved
into its present building at 2746 N.E.
Martin Luther King Boulevard, and
with the help of two large grants as well
as its own savings, it has come close to
paying off its mortgage. In 1985, the
center received a $50,000 grant from
UPS Foundation, the charitable arm of
United Parcel Service, and in 1987, it
received $25,000 from the M.J. Mur­
dock Foundation. Mrs. Harris was
present to receive the first check, and as
the Oregonian reported on December
21, 1985, she turned the check over to
then-board chairperson Patti Bentley.
That building presently is being
renovated. On November 9, 1991, a
front wall mural by renowned artist
Isaka Shamsud-Din will be unveiled as
part of a 25th Anniversary celebration.
L.I.F.E. Center has grown over 25
years and now assists families through­
out the metro area, including Multnomah,
Washington and Clackamas counties
in Oregon, and Clark county, Wash ing-
ton.
Most of the thousands of requests
it filled last year, according to Director
Charles Carter, are from families or
individuals with low or no income,
including many Soviet immigrants.
One of the most successful and
most-publicized projects of the Center
for the past six years has been its back-
to-school clothing drives, done in co­
operation with Children’s World Learn-
ingCenters. KGW -TVandKINKradio
this year donated $35,000 in air time
for public service announcements for
the drive between July and September.
Thousands of children received clothes
and school supplies. KBMS Radio has
a similar drive for winter coats and
clothes, and has made L.I.F.E. Center a
recipient for the past three years.
In May 1991, Challenge Founda­
tion gave the center a $30,000 grant for
producing a video and clothing recla­
mation project. Other businesses have
contiibuted in kind to the center. A
1979 newspaper article mentioned
“ dozens of boxes of shoes donated by
the Thom McAn Co.” and a “ panel
truck given by Pacific Northwest Bell.”
Carter notes that Williams Bakery,
Safeway and Tui-Li Bakery still regu­
larly contribute food; and that Sears,
Nordstrom, J.C. Penney, Norm Th­
ompson, Nike, Lamb-Weston and Christ
community Church of Newberg also
give goods.
Regular corporate cash donors
include PGE, U.S. West employees,
Tektronix Foundation, Nabisco, Ameri­
can Red Cross, Vann & Vann Funeral
Directors, the Oregonian, King Broad­
casting, Emanuel Hospital Orthopedic
Nurses and U.S. West Foundation. Carter
noted that churches which have given
regularly to the center include: High­
land Baptist, SL Luke Lutheran on S ,W.
46th Street, Lake Grove Presbyterian
and Milwaukie Lutheran.
“ But the most support,” Carter
pointed out, * ‘has come from the thou­
sands of individuals who have given
both money and material goods over
the years.”
United Way still provides a por­
tion of L.I.F.E. Center’s $90,000 oper­
ating budget, although the allocation
has shrunk in recent years. Ruth Ann
Jennings, the present board director,
said that the securing and maintaining
of other funding sources has become a
priority in an effort to avoid a reduction
the center’s services.
Director Carter said he would like
to see tlhe center expand into food
deliveries to the elderly and handi­
capped, while broadening its present
base by acquiring new sewing machines
and washer/dryers.
He cautioned, however, that the
reasons for starting L.I.F.E. Center in
1966 still exist today, on an even greater
scale. “ The government’s War on
Poverty may have failed, but poverty
still exists, and so we carry on the fight
as best we can,” he said.
by
Individuals or organizations need­
ing assistance or information from some
slate government offices in Portland
with 238 and 239 telephone numbers
must call new phone numbers as of No­
vember 4, 1991.
Pat Smith, Telecommunications
Network Manager, said “ The new phone
numbers are the result of preparation
for the move of people from the westside
of Portland to the new office building
opening in early 1992.”
The State will be using numbers in
the 731 prefix and the change will
apply to approximately 18 agencies at
this lime. Branch offices for Children’s
Services, Adult and Family Services,
State Police, Highway, Senior and
Disabled Services, and Vocational
Rehabilitation as well as the headquar­
ters for the Blind Commission and other
commissions will be affected by this
change.
The agencies affected by this change
receive several thousands calls per week.
“ It is important that the public begin
using the new numbers in order to as­
sure prompt service from these agen­
cies,” said spokesperson, Pat Smith.
“ That’s why we timed the number
change to coincide with the delivery of
the new Portland telephone directories
from US W est.”
Two of the numbers that receive a
great many calls 24 hours a day are the
Child Abuse reporting hot line, 731-
3100, and State Police Services, 731-
3030.
Pat Smith suggests that callers
wishing to contact Portland Offices of
State of Oregon agencies should check
the Blue pages in the new Portland
directories. Listings appear in the blue
section under the State of Oregon head­
ing in both white and yellow page books.
iD
Katherine Hepburn has been nomi­
nated for 11 Academy Awards,
more than any other actor.
P ro f.
This is the final chapter of a five-
part series that has presented a realistic
frame of reference for examining the
position of African Americans in the
nations criminal justice system. We
have defined the majority of innerci-
ties-predominately black - as most
efficient INCUBATORS OF CRIME;
not as resevoirs of urban blight or a
failed citizenry, nor even as a conse­
quence of underfunded Urban Renewal
programs.
Instead, I have given an insight
into the structure of the American ex­
tension of the 500-year old European
model of GHETTO as an ethnic and
economic containment device (see last
weeks description of origin of name
and system in Venice, Italy). Further,
we have detailed the methodologies
employed by establishment institutions,
public and private, to control and limit
the participation of blacks in the real
property equities and commercial ex­
ploitation of the land. Since real estate
is the major, basic construct upon which
a capitalistic society operates, it is a
given that a people so constrained and
exploited for several centuries could
not help but be the victims of traumatic
social and economic disabilities which
would prevent any effective participa­
tion in that euphemistic AMERICAN
DREAM. Some banks are just now
making feeble efforts at change.
All of these revelations were in­
corporated into a three-quarter corse I
designed and taught for four years at
Portland State University; “ Black
EMconomic Experience,” 1972-76.
Housed in the School of Urban Affairs
and in the same quarters as the * ‘Crimi­
nal Justice Department” with its many
Law Enforcement Classes, I had in-
numberable interactions with person­
nel of Portland Police Department - as
well as employees of related city, county,
stale and federal agencies.
Many of these persons were stu­
dents in my class and, with the notable
exception of the police, represented a
broad ethnic profile. The course began
New Director Named at PCC Small Business
Development Center
Bob Keyser has been appointed to
direct the Portland Community Col­
lege Small Business Development
Center. The SBDC provides assistance
to new and emerging business owners,
offering one-on-one confidential busi­
ness counseling, classes, workshops and
management training programs. The
program is a division of the PCC Open
Campus.
Keyser previously worked as a
marketing specialist and instructor for
the center and helped develop the
SBDC’s popular management and
marketing courses. He brings more than
19 years of experience in sales, market­
ing and management in the manufac­
turing field to hisnew position as SBDC
director.
Keyser holds a bachelor’s degree
in business administration from Ore­
gon State University and a master’s
degree in marketing from City Univer­
sity.
He lives in Beaverton with his wife,
Jan, and two teen-aged sons.
The PCC Small Business Devel­
opment Center main office are located
in downtown Portland, 123 NW Sec­
ond, Suite 321. Services are also pro­
vided at a number of locations through­
out the metro area. For more informa­
tion or assistance, please call 273-2828.
Chase & W eil
Attorneys at law
L.I.F.E. Center plans 25th
anniversary fundraiser
The Low Income Families Emer­
gency (L.I.F.E.) Center celebrates its
25th anniversary with a fundraiser at
Pine Street Theater Sunday, Novem­
ber 10. The event’s theme is “ Cele­
brating 25 years of life with dignity.”
“ The theme conveys the spirit of
L.I.F.E.Center’smissionand its work
with people throughout the commu­
nity.” said Charles Carter, Executive
Director.
KOIN-TV news anchor Eric
Schmidt serves as master of ceremo­
nies for the program that headlines
Body and Soul, a ten-piece ban that
has performed on the Tonight Show,
the Today show and has shared the
bill with The Four Tops and The
Temptations.
Other entertainment includes the
Streetcomcr Singer, a six member
acappella group, the 70 member M l
Olivet Baptist Church Choir, a L.I.F.E.
Center history, award presentation and
a keynote address. A raffle and door
prizes arc also planned during the
evening celebration.
Money raised during the event
goes toward the general operating
fund.
L.I.F.E. Center’s fundraiser is
part of a two-day anniversary cele­
Crime And Punishment In America: Conclusion
New State Telephone
Numbers in Portland
The History Of L.I.F.E. Center
Private practice since 1981, concentrating
in the areas of personal injury; workers’
compensation, domestic relations; wills
and estates
Free initial consultations
bration that begins with an outdoor
mural being unveiled Saturday,
November 9 at the Center, located at
2746 N.E. Martin Luther King Blvd.
Isaka Shamsud-Din painted the ¿50
square-foot mural depicting the his­
tory and purpose of the Center.
The Low Income Families Emer­
gency Center is a nonprofit. United
Way agency that provides food, cloth­
ing and household items to people
throughout the Portland metro area.
The program is unique in that able-
bodied people must work at the Cen­
ter in exchange for items they re­
ceive.
Schmidt makes opening remarks
at 4 p.in. The Streetcomcr Singers
perform at 4:15 p.m. M l Olivet
Baptist Choir sings at 4:30 p.m. The
L.I.F.E. Center history presentation
is scheduled for 5 p.m., followed by
th keynote address at 5:45 p.m. AwanLs
presentations are followed by Body
and Soul at 7 p.m., which will play
till 10 p.m.
Pine Street Theater is located at
221 S.E. 9th. Doors open at 3:30 p.m.
Advance tickets are available for $8
at L.I.F.E. Center at 284-6878.
For more information, call Char­
les Carter at 284-6878.
503 294 1414
240 Willamette Block
722 S.W. Second Avenue
Portland, Oregon 97204
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M c c K
K i i n l I e y
with the period immediately following
the Civil War and by the end of the
third quarter dealt with the contempo­
rary problems of African Americans in
areas of employment discrimination,
the dearth of economic opportunities to
buy, sell or manufaculre goods. Even
the possibility of leasing attractive
locations, or obtaining bank financing
(despite the media hypes about avail­
able government programs). To make a
point I used that widely-viewed CBS
program where “ Famous Amos” of
chocolate cookie fame appeared along­
side the founder of the “ Holidays Inns.”
Both were said to represent the Ameri­
can Dream, a process by which one
could start from scratch and pull one­
self up by the bootstrpas to attain any
goal desired by hardwork.
I will be eternally grateful to Famous
Amos for telling the truth on national
television, “ Despite good crediL a good
business start financed from my sav­
ings, the banks would not lend me a
cent, OR EVEN DISCUSS MY PRO­
JECTIONS. I went over to the Finance
company and was able to secure a high
interest loan on the pretext that I wished
to TAKE A VACATION TRIP TO
THE WEST INDIES.” In subsequent
magazine articles “ Amos” has occai-
sonally voiced his displeasure at those
who would use that success he has
obtained as a model for black youth -
without telling htme of the outrageous
constraints placed upon them by the
financial community. We note that Mr.
Johnson, founder of Ebony Magazine,
was forced to go to Canada to purchase
newsprint when American firms would
not sell paper to a black publisher (Now
that they do we must wonder what the
price was to be let through-surrender
of a sizeable equity?). But then, of
course, Nat King Cole could not get a
sponsor for a network program.
It was the police in the class-from
blue collar and hard hat backgrounds-
who had the most difficulty in acknowl­
edging a connection between these
economics and social barriers and a
B u rt
failed system where many might decide
to get their portion of the highly-adver­
tised dream “ by any means necessary.”
A number of these guardians of law and
order would still insist on recounting
how their grandfathers came over from
the old country, “ broke and ignorant,
also living in a ghetto, but had the will
and drive to beat the odds and succeed
“ just as any american can d o -w e were
never on welfare.”
With only a couple of exceptions it
was impossible to get past the rigid
mindset endowed by a history of Amer­
ica that is racist because it deliberately
avoids (in school or text) revealing the
true story of the operative system that
shaped today’s traumas. Even when I
used “ Commager’s Documents of
American History and The Annals of
the American Academy of Political and
Social Science (Sept. 1966)” to docu­
ment how white European immigrants
were almost exclusively give the better
job opportunities (particularly skilled
trades), unrestricted opportunities to buy
land, botain franchises and join busi­
ness associations. It seemed to no avail
to ask, “ how hard would it have been
for you under these conditions to raise a
family and keep it intact, to endow your
children with a sense of equal worth or
with a drive for upward mobility with a
goal PLAINLY ACHEIVABLE?”
Obviously, this mindset is not solely
attributable to law endforcement per­
sonnel. But, because the attitude is so
general we find that rather than realistic
policies and programs for effective in­
tervention in a disintegrating social and
economic system, frantic efforts to fund
more prisons and control options for
both black and white. The level of train­
ing and education for police and related
personnel has been upscaled and they
do yeoman work for the most part. How­
ever, we not that some of the hottest
issues on the stock exchanges are the
equities in firms building prisons, con­
tracting incarceration, manufacturing
restraints, or providing security. Is it too
late?
Telecommunications
Device for the Deaf
Services Begin
The Motor Vehicles Division has
broadened its service capabilities to
include the deaf community by install­
ing a telecommunications device, or
TDD. This service became available
on November 1,1991.
TDDs provide telecommunications
assistance by allowing callers to type
their message on a keyboard. The
message is then electronically trans­
mitted to the receiving TDD, which
displays the typed message.
“ Our goal is to equally serve all
segments of society,” said Barbara
Pierce, supervisor of DMV’s Commu­
nications Section, where the TDD will
be located.
“ The TDD will help our deaf cus­
tomers feel more comfortable while
conducting business with us,” Pierce
said.
The telephone number for theTDD
is 373-1523.
FDC
PORTLAND
DEVELOPMENT
Com m ission M eeting
Date: November 13,1991
Place: Oregon Convention Center
777NEMLK, Jr. Blvd.
Room 113, Portland, OR
Time: 930 a.m.
Commission meetings are open to
the public A complete agenda is
available at PDC. Call 823-3200.
PDC is the City of Portland's urban
renewal, housing and economic
development agency.
Cargo floating on the water from
a sinking ship is called flotsam,
while the debris washed ashore is
called wreck
Blacks Were In America
Before Columbus Landed
BY DR. MARK HYMAN
Not until recently had historians
recalled that Black people were in
America before Columbus arrived. The
Indians of Haiti told the navigator Afri­
cans had sailed to their island from the
south. Their boats had been loaded with
merchandise.
Leo Weiner, a language specialist,
wrote a book called “ Africa and the
Discovery of America.” He showed
how traces of languages among people
could determine their history and places
they had lived. Weiner found traces of
West African languages among the
ancient Mayans, the Olmecs and cdier
indigenous people of the New Land.
Who created the giant, 40-ton Af­
rican-faced stone heads found in La
Venta, San Lorenzo and Zapotes in
Mexico? What about the perfectly sculp­
tured terra cotta heads of Africans which
date back to 500 years before Christ?
No artist could have created the
perfect image of the African had the
black man not have been present. It was
also found that the football-hclmet-type
crown was worn by Olmec kings as
well as by black kings and pharoahs in
the Eighteenth and Twenty-Fifth Egyp­
tian dynasties. How did they copy from
each other?
Columbus himself gave proof of
the African presence before the Euro-
pean navigator landed. In his writing in
his “ Journal of the Third Voyage,” he
said he wanted to find the black people
the Indians had told him about?
The last of the ancient makers of
pottery, hundreds of years before Co­
lumbus, left pronounced faces of Afri­
cans. Some were wearing earrings found
in West Africa, particularly Gambia.
Tombs of the Olmec Kings gave up
African cameos and miniatures.
Proof goes on with the discovery of
Sickle Cell disease among the Laca-
doncs in an isolated area in Mexico. The
most popular proof of African presence
in America was the farming of yams by
the Indians. Yams is an African-grown
food named after an African people.
The Portuguese found West Africans
cultivating maize which is notan Afri­
can food, but American.
Without question there had been
meetings between Africans and indige­
nous Americans for centuries.
Rumors are one thing, but proof is
another. The records of early Spanish
explorers tell of African ships sighted.
Some had been wrecked on the shore­
lines, but they were here... indeed.
Dr. Mark Hyman is both historian
and journalist. Information on his books
is available by writing to:5070Parkside
Avenue, Philadelphia, Pa., 19131. Or
calling (215) 473-0050.
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