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T he P ortland O bserver • O ctober 11, 1995
P age A3
<TI|e J J n r t l a t t b (O b se rtie v
Family Platters
“I Hear The Man’
Coming, Mama”
P a r a g o n C o n te s t P r o m o te s
e O f R e a d in g
Area teens are being challenged this
school year to test their creative instincts and
expand their reading in a contest sponsored
by Paragon Cable.
The Find Y ourself in a Book contest w ill
see students compete for prizes and an ap
pearance in a nationally-aired public service
announcement.
“ This teen reading campaign motivates
BY P rofessor M c K inley B urt
Last week, I introduced the readers to
a contemporary nontraditional fam ily that
functioned very w ell in our neighbor
hood: the “ Van lady” whose very being
and purpose here seemed to be that o f
nurturing her extended fam ily o f little
ones who had needlessly suffered the sling
sand arrows o f current socio-economics.
I think that it is quite alright to extend
the meaning o f “ fam ily” beyond that con
veyed by conventional words and phrases
such as “ kinship, bloodlines, paternity,
consaguinity and so forth - this comes
from observation (and mother w it). But,
in any case, even Webster’ allows us to
avoid those constraints and seek a more
humanistic viewpoint as follows.
For today’s presention o f an extend
ed fam ily o f a sort from yesteryear, I call
on ’ Webster’ for the fo llo w in g ancillary
definitions o f fam ily: “ D eriving from a
common stock - A group related by com
mon characteristics” . Or, how about, “ A ll
God’ s children” ; that concept’ s been
around awhile.
I m ove on to describe a special
extended fa m ily that I knew as a c h ild ;
lets take the 19 3 0 ’ s fo r instance and
choose a ty p ic a l c ity w ith a ty p ic a l
ghetto — St. L o u is, M is s o u ri. The
“ fa m ily ” in question w o u ld be co m
posed o f the m ost o u tra g e o u sly fla m
boyant group o f vendors that ever
traversed the mean streets o f urban
Am erica. A fascina ting breed o f m ost-
ly -in d e p e n d e n t b u s in e s s p e o p le ,
sm a ll-tim e m erchants and artisans,
cooks and bakers.
Nathan Stoven doesn’t even give his
But these people o f a more warm,
mother a second glance before scooting
I caring age were so firm ly integrated into
through the multicolored, child-sized door o f
| the neighborhoods that’ they and their
Freddie’s Playland. “ Bye Nathan!” Linda
customers were all on a first name basis
Stoven
cal Is out as she departs for an hourlong
and parents away at w ork would leave all
shopping
trip at Fred Meyer. The 3-year-old
sorts o f notes, directions and monies for
boy
flashes
her a quick smile, then turns his
these vendors; Sometimes w ith small chil
attention
to
a “ Tiny Toons” cartoon on the
dren and sometimes in special ‘ hiding
television.
“
Now
I can shop in peace,” Stoven
places which were really nothing o f the
says.
“
And
the
other customers probably
kind. Some got notes telling them to be
appreciate
not
having
Nathan running up and
sure the children were alright and who to
down
the
aisles.”
Retailers
such as Portland,
call in an emergency.
-based Fred Meyer, Fort Worth-based In
Now, lets see; traipsing through the
credible Universe and Smith’s Food & Drug
neighborhood at all times o f day were
o f Salt Lake City are discovering the value o f
these tradesmen w ith their loud sing-song
providing short-term care and support for
description o f their wares; some in good
parents with small children.
voice w ith a melodious chant, and others
Fred Meyer first tested its drop-in baby
screaming out a hoarse description o f
sitting areas in 1988 at four Utah stores. A fter
their wares. It was, “ get your red hot
rave reviews by parents and employees, the
tamales here” in a liltin g com position—or
chain expanded the concept to Oregon, Wash
it was brusque “ rag man, rag man, I buy
ington and 10 o f 12 stores in Utah. Now, all
old rags” , some pushed converted baby
new and renovated outlets include play areas.
buggies with butane burners. Others drove
Parents can drop o ff children ages 2 to 6 at
horse and wagons. Just a few had the new
“ Freddie’s Playland” for up to an hour There
fangled step vans’ .
is one attendant — trained in CPR — for
But, in any case, you could hear them
every
eight children. There often is a waiting
coming from a long way o f f and loud and
list to get a child in because the service is so
clear. As we said in the title o f this article,
popular, says Tate. “ Kids have fits i f they
kids would shout, “ I hear the man coming,
students to discover ways reading can en
hance their lives and stimulate learning,” said
Kevin G. Kidd, president o f Paragon Cable.
Students in grades 7 through 12 are
asked to write a 50-75 word script tied to the
contest theme. Entries must be submitted by
June 30.
One national grand prize winner w ill
receive a $2,000 educational merchandise
certificate and the winning school wins a
$1,000 certificate. Paragon Cable w ill also
provide local prizes to teens whose entries
are picked during a random drawing in July
Entry forms are available at Paragon
Cable walk-in centers and participating school
libraries. For more inform ation, contact
Jonene Zinne at Paragon Cable at 230-2099,
extension 362.
President Les
Swanson (left) and
Chancellor Joseph
Cox of the Oregon
Board of Higher
Education cut the red
tape, to symbolize new
legislation that allows
the board to develop
its own purchasing
and contracting
methods. By moving to
a more entrepreneurial
approach to doing
business, the board
expects to save $5
million annually to
support educational
programs.
Stores Watch Kids, While Parents Shop
mama!” and a mighty host o f them there
was.
There was the “ peanut man, the
fish man, the skin man, the ju n k man,
the rag man, the ice man, the coal man
the bread man, the co ffe e man, the
m ilk man, the egg man the popcorn
man, the ice cream man, the tamale
man, and the flo w e r la d y” . B u t, d o n ’ t
fo rg e t the la m p lig h te r w ho came by
every evening at dusk to lig h t the gas
street lamps. D roves o f c h ild re n and
dogs w o u ld fo llo w h im fo r b lo cks. In
later years I ’ ve th ou gh t o f that fa iry
tale, “ The Pied P iper o f H a m e lin ” (he
s p irite d a ll the c h ild re n away when
the greedy tow ns people refused to
pay him fo r g e ttin g r id o f the rats).
Well, that’ sthis week’ s ‘ fam ily’, from
an age o f warm interpersonal relation
ships, trust and sincerity. I have a thought.
In these times o f traumatic layoffs and
economic dislocation some sharp folks
w ill see an opportunity in renewing not
only these type o f commercial relation
ships, but some new ‘to-your-home ser
vices. A fter all, we now have big modem
vans with every type ofconvenience. Hey,
why not go fo r it?
can’t come in here,” says Playland attendant
Lucy Jones, who works at the same store.
“ I ’ ve had parents call on the phone and ask to
reserve time for their children.”
Incredible Universe customers w ill be
able to drop their young ones o ff at “ Kids
View ” when the electronics and appliance
chain opens its first Utah store this winter.
“ Kids V iew ” is a glass-walled area capable o f
holding up to 30 children ages 3 to 9 for an
hour. Children can play the latest videogames,
tacklr educational computer programs or
snuggle into a beanbag chair to watch a
movie on a big-screen television. Those less
interested in technology can color or create
their own art at a crafts table. “ It is easier to
make that important decision about the re
frigerator you need without wondering i f
your kid is getting lost,” says Incredible
Universe spokesman Doran Davidson. “ The
area exposes kids to our products and lets
them take a test drive.”
Fred Meyer and Incredible Universe
officials stress their play areas are not day
care centers. Employees do not change dia
pers or provide meals. And ifchildren misbe
have, parents are paged to immediately pick
up their child. In addition, parents are not
allowed to leave the stores to do other errands
Attention
Called To
Child Abuse
According to government and p ri
vate sources nearly 2,000 children a year,
or five children a day, die at the hands o f
their parents or caretakers in the United
States.
October is domestic violence aware
ness month and the fol lowing chi Id abuse
facts were provided by the U.S. Depart
ment o f Health and Human Services,
OregonChildren’s Services D ivision and
Children First and the National V ictim
Center.
• In 1993, there were 10,948 inci
dents o f child abuse and 11 deaths in
Oregon.
• Most victims o f child abuse are
infants.
• Abuse and neglect in the home is
a leading cause o f death for children age
5 and under.
• Some 18,000 children are perma
nently disabled and about 142,000 are
seriously injured from abuse each year in
America.
• The rate o f American children re
ported for child abuse or neglect increased
50 percent from 1985 to 1993.
• Mothers and fathers are the two
most prevalent perpetrators ofch i Id abuse.
• Head trauma is the leading cause
o f child abuse fatalities.
• Shaken Baby Syndrome k ills 20
to 25 percent o f its victims.
• An estimated 50 percent o f homes
with adult violence also involve child
abuse or neglect.
• O nly 2 1 states have laws that al
low parents to be prosecuted for murder
ing their children under “ felony murder”
or “ homicide by child abuse.” Charges o f
homicide are routinely reduced to lesser
crimes.
• Twenty-nine percent o f all forc
ible rapes in America occur when the
victim is less than 11 years old.
without picking up their children. “ We had
one couple that dropped o ff their child and
went over for lunch at M cDonald’s,” says
Jones. “ The child had to go to the bathroom
so bad he was crying. One o f our managers
finally took him. I read the parents the riot act
when they got hack.” In exchange for paren
tal compliance, Fred Meyer and Incredible
Universe say they provide safe, secure, and
free play areas for children. Doors are locked
at all times and no one other than the children
and attendants are allowed inside. Store in
surance covers any child who might get hurt.
Children left at “ Freddie’s Playland” wear a
bright pink hospital-type wristband with an
identification number. The parent who drops
the child o ff wears a matching band and must
O cto b er 16 kicks o f f L . I F.E. C en
show the number upon their return. “ I f the
te r’ s m o n th -lo n g d riv e to c o lle c t 300
parent removes the bracelet before coming
blankets fo r P o rtla n d ’ s im poverished
back for the child,” says Fred Meyer spokes
in d iv id u a ls .
man Rob Boley, “ then they go through an
W in te r w ill be here soon, and
elaborate process to prove who they are.” At
hundreds o f single parents w ill need
Incredible Universe, parents must show ID
blankets fo r th e ir c h ild r e n ,’ said C h a ir
— usually the store’s membership card —
R ichard R ic k e l.
when dropping o ff their child. A computer
B lankets should be clean and in
prints out matching stickers for the child and
u s e a b le c o n d it io n . T h e y can be
parent. To get the youngster out, the same
dropped o f f at L .I.F .E . C enter, 2746
parent who checked him or her in must show
N. E. M L K B lv d , P ortland, weekdays
the sticker and ID.
from 10:00 an to 4 :30 pm., or dona
tio n p ic k -u p can be arranged by c a ll
ing 284-6878.
The blankets w ill be given out
b
e
g
in
nin g N ovem ber 13.
pre-school programming block Nick Jr.,
L
.I.F
.E . C enter has been serving
which includes“ Allegra’s Window,” “ Gullah
the
fo
od
,
c lo th in g and household item
Gullah Island” and “ Eureeka’s Castle” ; and
needs
o
f
P
o rtla n d ’ s im poverished fo r
Sony Wonder’s
m
ore
than
28
years.
own original, direct to video “ Enchanted
F
o
r
m
ore
in fo rm a tio n , c o n ta c t
Tales” series, which includes the platinum
C
harles
C
arte
r
at
284-6878.
selling “ Jungle King,” “ The Night Before
L.I.F.E. Center
Collects Blankets
For Portland’s
Children
Sony Releases Videos To Day Cares
Responding to the M otion Picture Li
censing Corp.’s recent announcement that it
w ill stop day care centers from showing
home videos to children unless the operators
pay a public performance fee, Sony Wonder
has announced that it w ill allow and encour
age day care facilities to screen its videos free
o f charge.
Sony Wonder is currently developing
and establishing national outreach programs
tc work with day care centers on an on-going
basis. Details on the program are expected to
be announced shortly. Sen. Dianne Feinstein,
D -Calif., has expressed concern about the
fees and has stated that unless an exemption
is granted to day care centers, she w ill begin
proceedings to legislate an exemption. Sony
Wonder’s pre-school releases include new
Sesame Street” titles, which w ill be instores
beginning January 1996, as well as existing
titles. Also included in the program are Sony
Wonder’s pre-school videos from the c riti
cally acclaimed new PBS pre-school series
The Puzzle Place : the new Nickelodeon
Christmas,” “ Snow White,” “ Peter Rabbit,”
“ Noah's A rk,” “ The Christmas Elves” and
others.
Sony Wonder is the children’s and fam
ily division o f Epic Records and Sony Music.
TIME TESTED PHONICS HELPS CHILDREN READ
an e ffo rt t0 halt the d ecline o f
c h ild re n s reading s k ills , C a lifo rn ia ’ s
top educators are recom m ending a c o r-
rective course fo r schools, the re in tro -
duction o f phonics,
a tim e-tested approach, to e a rly ed
ucation reading c u rric u lu m s . A u g m e n t
ing this trend, L ea p F ro g ’ s new Phonics
Desk and Phonics T ra ve le r, learning aids
w hich a llo w parents to teach phonics
and reading s k ills to th e ir c h ild re n at
home, are m aking a tim e ly appearance
in the m arketplace.
P u blic and professional reaction to
L e a p F ro g ’ s new teaching toys has been
n o th in g short o f enthusiastic. Am ong
.the c o u n try ’ s forem ost educators
. Dr.
R obert C alfee, o f S tanford U n iv e rs ity ’ s
G raduate School o f E d uca tio n, said,
“ L e a rn ing to read and w rite
is the d oo r to success in school. To
ensure success in reading
parents should read stories
dren and introduce them to
p rin t - le tte rs , so un ds,
“ L e a p F ro g ’ s Phonics Desk
and w ritin g ,
to th e ir c h il
the basics o f
and w o rd s .
uses modern
te chn olo gy to help parents introduce the
basics to th e ir c h ild re n in a p la y fu l way,
w h ile ensuring that learning is e ffe ctive .
Based on 50 years o f research, the Phon
ics Desk teaches le tte r names (the best
p re d ic to r o f re a din g success), le tte r
sounds (the second best p re d ic to r o f
reading success), and w ord fa m ilie s .
C h ild re n learn to read and to spell at the
same tim e - and i t ’ s fun.
The Phonics Desk is a va ila b le at
s p e cia lty re ta ile r stores and Toys ‘ R Us
stores n atio nw ide .
Family Classes Offered
At Dishman
D ishm an C o m m u n ity C enter is
now o ffe rin g classes that w ill g ive
young and o ld new insights and w iden
th e ir h orizo n s.
Basics fo r M usic is a in tro d u c tio n
to the elem ents o f m usic class. I f you
p lay by ear and w o u ld lik e to learn
how to read m usic, th is course is fo r
you.
Otherclasses include HomeworkClub,
Chess Club, Gospel Choir, The Joy o f
Color, Fall Frolic, Lady Hoops, G irls V o l
leyball, Sewing for Kids and Jump Rope.
For course schedules and more infor
mation, or to volunteer your expertise, cal I
Todd at 823-3163 or 823-3165.
I