S eptember 2 8 , 1994 • T he P ortland O bserver
P age B2
1
for North/Northeast Portland
Local
Volunteers
Sought For
Exchange
Program
J u a n ita A n d C la rissa
Sisters Juanita and Clarissa both
have large, toothy smiles and infec
tious laughs. They are two of ap
proximately 180 Oregon children
currently awaiting loving adoptive
families.
Friendly Juanita plays well with
other children. She enjoys typical
pre-school activities such as play
ing with building blocks and dolls,
and watching Sesame Street and
Barney. A happy child, she can fre
quently be found singing and danc
ing about. With older children, she
tends to be a follower.
Shy Clarissa is initially reserved
around people she does not know.
She enjoys playing with stuffed ani
mals and dolls, watching children's
programs, and being with other chil
dren. particularly Juanita. She is a
calm, contented child.
Despite the neglect they expe
rienced in earlier life, Juanita and
Clarissa are both normal, average
little girls with no major delays. In
an enriched home environment filled
with loving attention and intellec
tual stimulation, there’s no telling
how far these two might progress.
O regon a g e n c ie s w aive or
red u ce fees for fa m ilie s a d o p t
ing o ld e r c h ild re n and sib lin g
g ro u p s. To learn m ore ab o u t the
w aitin g c h ild re n and the a d o p
tion process, call The Special Needs
Adoption Coalition at 222-9661.
Singles as well as couples are en
couraged to inquire.
G e v e lle
Several hundred children in the
Northwest, including many of Afri
can-American heritage, are currently
awaiting adoptive parents. These
children have experienced extreme
neglect or abuse, and now need the
loving guidance of new parents to
help them heal and grow. Some of
the children are school-aged, some
are toddlers and pre-schoolers, and
many come in sibling pairs or groups.
Meet one such youngster - a bright
eight-year-old girl who longs for a
mom.
Gevelle has a sweet disposition
and a delightful curiosity about her
world. Adults as well as other chil
dren really enjoy being around her.
She is an appreciative child, who
truly enjoys the simplest activities.
This second grader is an excel
lent reader who learns fast and takes
direction well. She has the added
strength of being an attentive lis
tener. Her teachers are already say
ing that she should aim for college.
In addition to her academic skills,
Gevelle is a talented dancer and
singer. She enjoys dancing ballet,
jazz, and rap, and has a lovely sing
ing voice.
Although she will be sad to
separate from her very nurturing
foster mom, Gevelle wants a family
of her own, and she is ready to take
that step. Single moms are espe
cially encouraged to inquire about
this child.
Both adoptive and foster fam i
lies are urgently needed for children
of color. Oregon agencies waive or
reduce fees for families adopting
children in state care, and on-going
financial assistance is often avail
able. Foster fam ilies receive a
monthly stipend. To learn more,
call the Special Needs Adoption
Coal ition at 222-9661, or your local
Children's Services Division.
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Needed School Supplies
Sent To Russia
School children from Trinity
Lutheran School will be buying extra
pencils, notebooks, erasers and other
school supplies this fall to send to
Russian school children through a
firs t-e v e r p ro ject spo n so red by
Lutheran Hour Ministries.
The program, called “By Kids...
For Kids,” provides Lutheran school
children all over North America the
opportunity to purchase and pack
school supplies for distribution in
Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia.
The purpose is to give the children
“hands-on” mission experience and
learn more about the religious his
tory o f Russia and new attitudes
toward Christianity, while provid
ing children in Russian schools and
orphanages with much needed school
supplies.
T h e p ro g ram o rig in a te s at
Lutheran Hour Ministries in St. Louis,
where Bruce Wurdeman, manager of
North America volunteer services,
directs the program. “W e’re expect
ing 400 schools to participate, and
th a t’s being co n serv ativ e,” says
Wurdeman. That translates into about
40,000 boxes for Russian children.
In the first weeks of the program 136
L uth eran schools o rd e re d over
13,850 boxes, and Wurdeman says
that number continues to increase
daily.
T h e p r o c e s s b e g in s at
L utheran H our M inistries h e a d
q u arters in St. L ouis w here the
“ By K ids... For K ids” school kits
are m ailed to the p a rtic ip a tin g
L utheran schools. Each kit con
tains standard-size school boxes to
ship to Russia, instructions for con
ducting the school box project and
five lessons about Russia for partici
pating Lutheran teachers to use in
th e ir classroom s. The L utheran
schools pay $1 per box to cover cost
for the box and shipping to Russia.
In addition to standard school
supplies put in the boxes, the school
children will also include a postcard
of their home area, a booklet of Bible
stories in Russian, a small toy and a
personal note from the student pack
ing the box. The boxes w ill be
shipped in February, March and April
of next year, with distribution to the
Russian schools and orphanages in
April, May and June.
World Heritage, a not-for-profit
student exchange organization dedi
cated to fostering cultural enrich
ment and intercultural understand
ing, is seeking enthusiastic volun
teers to be Area Representatives for
its program in your community. Rep
resentatives serve as liaisons for high
schools, Host Families, Students, and
World Heritage Offices as well as
recruit qualified North A m erican
teenagers to go abroad. Volunteers
are reimbursed for their expenses.
If you feel this is an ideal way to
leam about other countries and cul
tures while sharing your local area
with eager high school teenage stu
dents, please call Roger collect at
(801) 969-9270 or 1-800-888-9040
for further information.
Trainings Offered To Enable Childcare
Providers To Serve Disabled Children
The Arc of Multnomah has an
nounced that it has been joined by
Oregon Health Sciences University
in offering their innovative KICS
tra in in g to c h ild c a re p ro v id e rs
throughout the state of Oregon. As
part o f this unique partnership and
for a limited time, the trainings will
be offered at no charge, with the cost
to participants absorbed by OHSU.
KICS, or Kids in Community
Settings, is acom prehensive training
which enables childcare providers to
acquire skills needed to include chil
dren with developmental D isabili
ties in childcare programs already in
place. The training, which was de
veloped by The Arc o f Multnomah
under a grant from the Oregon D e
velopmental Disabilities Council, is
equally adaptable for childcare cen-
ter staff including those in work site
facilities, and family childcare pro
viders.
Presented in two half-day ses
sions, the eight hours of training of
fer valuable, comprehensive infor
mation addressing types of disabili
ties and general child development,
and provide ideas for adapting ac
tivities to include all children. The
training also assists childcare pro
viders in complying with the ADA
(Americans with Disabilities Act).
Noting that 600,000 families
nationally have young children with
developmental disabilities, OHSU
has incorporated KICS to enhance
its “Raccoon Project” which is also a
training program on how to include
c h ild re n w ith special needs in
childcare programs. W ith the guid-
Cull (503) 288-0033 to letun about Advertising in
(Che ^Jnrtlanb (Dhserlicr
Lewis & Clark
College Schedules
Host Of Alumni
Events
We don't gift w rap our
free checking.
But we do include a
thoughtful card.
Revisit a favorite professor's
class, listen to a jazz band, honor
your distinguished fellow alumni and
cheer on the Pioneers during Lewis
& Clark College’s 1994 homecom
ing, Thursday, Oct 6, through Sun
day, Oct. 9.
H om ecom ing weekend high
lights include class “sit-ins' featur
ing old and new courses, Friday, Oct.
7, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; the Arts
Alive opener with the Hart/Green
Jazz Quartet, Friday, Oct. 7, at 7:30
p.m., in Evans Auditorium, alumni
tickets $7; a tailgate party at the
Griswold Stadium parking lot from
12:30 to 1:30 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 8,
followed by the homecoming foot
ball game between the Lewis & Clark
Pioneers and the Simon Fraser Clan;
and the alumni awards brunch at noon,
Sunday, Oct. 9.
For complete homecoming in
form ation, call the hom ecom ing
hotline,(503) 768-7950 or 1-800-
753-9292.
W ashington Mutual’s Classic Checking" has no minimum balance requirements
and no monthly service fees. Plus it includes a Washington Mutual Cash
Trade Career
Classes
Open
Card'"1 that lets you conveniently access your checking account at stores,
restaurants and cash machines all over the world. S o stop by and get a good
deal on checking and a good deal more.
M any O regon Tradesw om en
Network members got their start in
the trades through B-FIT (Building
Futures in Industry and Trades).
This is a pre-apprenticeship
training program for women who
want to have careers in the building
and construction trades.
The six-month program provides
hands-on experience in many basic
skills, as well as trade math, job
search and interviewing skills.
Classes are held at the Rock
Creek Campus of Portland Commu
nity College.
Fall term classes started Sept.
19. Some scholarships are available.
Call 244-6 111, extension 7432,
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family’
1-800-756-8000
FDIC Insured
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Speedy Service
Friendly Call
For Quote
frtcross the MAX line from the Oregon Convention Center)
Registration fee for three days, $355. For registration information, call 731-4073.
SPEAKERS INCLUDE
MARIA ESCHAVESTF.,. V/fw/w/.t/rif/or. Wage and Hour Division. ( S Department of labor.
MARY WFNDY ROBERTS, Commissioner. Oregon Bureau o f Labor and Industries:
Paula Barran and Rick l.iebinan. /.«ne Pou ell Spears l.ubersky and ( ampbell.
I , r B eiru t First Interstate Bank Ric hard Busse. AttorneyJorge Espinoza. Portland Community College:
.
Hagcn Cooney and Creu. and Jim Shore, Williams, ¿ografas. Peck and Atwood
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282-5111
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MARY WENDY ROBERTS, COMMISSIONER
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ance o f OHSU professionals, addi
tional em phasis will be placed on
creating teamwork between the pro
vider, schools and other profession
als involved in a child’s life, and on
updating training m aterials. The
“Raccoon Project” is part o f a com
prehensive interdisciplinary program
funded by the federal government
which was started by OHSU in 1992.
The KICS trainings are offered
in a variety o f sites throughout the tri
county area, and in other com m uni
ties upon request. A nominal charge
for the training manual will be asked
of those participants who live out
side o f M ultnomah County.
Providers interested in taking
the trainings are asked to call Mary
Magee. KICS Coordinator, at The
Arc office, 2 2 3 - 7 2 7 9 . _____ __
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