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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 18, 1996)
» , -r . S S ä^W << • > ' ' ’ ' *' • . *.-l lu i P qrii and O bserver • D ecember 18, 1996 CHILDWATCH Grandparents raising grandchildren House parties allow everyone to help black children Bi. M A ki vs W sig h i E n k i \tv s O n S e p te m b e r 2 6 . D w a y n e Crom pton turned 50. But instead o f a birthday party, he held a “ House P ar ty" to help black children get a healthy and safe start in life. He told 200 or so friends who attended his party no, to buy him a new tie or any other gift, bu, instead to donate the money to the Black C om m unity Crusade for Children (B C C C ) to help accom plish its m is sion to leave no child behind. D w a y n e , w h o ru n s K C M C (K aring for Children is our M ain C oncern), a w onderful child care center in K ansas City, was one o fth e 270 black A m ericans across this country who hosted H ouse Parties on Septem ber 26 to support the C ru sa d e’s work and renew the black com m unity’s long tradition o f ser vice and self-help. N ational House Party Day is about black folks taking responsibility and building a m ovement for children by opening their homes, schools, hous es o f worship, and com m unity cen ters to friends and neighbors who want to improve the life chances o f children. Follow ing are a few exam ples o f the House Parties that have been held around the country. • Jim m ase Shalaby, a single mom in T renton. N.J., invited several o f her friends to a party she organ ized at her apartm ent com plex's clubhouse. She prom oted the event by hanging posters throughout the com m unity, and friends helped prepare food. • A Richmond, V A „ group known as Youth Nation 2001 held a party highlighting M ocentric them es a, the city’s A frican Cultural Center, It be gan with a drum concert and attract ed black college student. A local grocer donated food. • In New York City, superm odel I man and her husband, rock star D av id Bowie, hosted a dinner and auc tioned com m em orative dinner plates painted by celebrities, inc hiding Rosa P a rk s , M u h a m m e d A li, M ay a A n g e lo u . B ill C o s b y , W h o o p i G oldberg, Eddie M urphy. W hitney H ouston, Janet Jackson, Spike Lee and O prah W infrey. A lso in New York. BCCC W orking C om m ittee m em ber G e o ff C anada held a house party at his home, and the Persaud B rothers, three young, black hum an itarians known for hosting charity functions, held a party for young professionals and figures in the fash ion and music industry. • In Los Angeles, director O z Scott and his wife, Lynne, opened their home and, along with actress V ictoria Rowell (w ho plays D rucilla W inters on the Y oung & The Restless soap opera), hosted a dow n-hom e, after noon soul food feast with collard greens, m acaroni and cheese, chick en, and peach cobbler. G uests were entertained by a ch ild ren ’s gospel choir, a youth string quartet, and three teenage pianists. A ctress Anna M aria H orsford joined actor, Samuel L. Jackson, and others on the host com m ittee, and raffled o ff som e tra ditional black dolls. Reed Tuckson, president o f the C harles Drew C o l lege o f M edicine and a m em ber of the BCCC W orking C om m ittee, ad dressed the guests. • In W est H ollyw ood, Calif., re cording artist Tevin C am pbell and producer Q uincy Jones held a party that featured New Q w est Jungle re co rding artists Red Foo and Dre Kroon. • Pat W esley, w ho runs a day-care center for children with special needs in Dallas, decided to hold her party in O ctober to coincide with a statew ide recognition day for special needs children. Som e parties raised $10, w hile som e raised tens o f thousands o f dollars. Every dollar raised will be m atched dollar for d o llar by a $3 million grant from the Charles Stewart M ott Foundation and will be used to support the w ork o f the BCCC and endow the form er Alex H aley farm, which is the C hildren’s Defense Fund; B C C C ’s center for spiritual renew al, and character and leadership d ev el opm ent. The most im portant thing about H ouse Parties is that they allow ev eryone to get involved in helping children. A ta tim e when m a n y o fo u r p o litical leaders are sh am elessly abandoning children and their fam i lies, I am so grateful that black folks are com ing together to do w hat w e’ve alw ays had to d o - ta k e care o f our own. And w e’ll w ork together to build a m ovem ent that is so pow erful that no politician will ev er again be able t hurt children as they did in 1996. Elder advocates needed V olunteers are needed to protect the rights and dignity o f th e elderly and to advocate for quality long term care. They will serve as C ertificate O m budsmen forthe residents o f nurs ing homes, residential care facilities, assisted living facilities, and adult foster care homes. The advocates will participate in a nationally-rec ognized training program that covers areas such as the aging process, com munication skills, m editation, prob lem-solving skills and investigations. An orientation training will be held in Portland beginning D ecem ber 5. Certified O m budsm en investigate com plaints and concerns o f the resi dents and then work with the facili ties to make changes. "O m budsm en em pow er residents and provide a means to solve their problem s,” says Kathv Walter, Volunteer Recruitment Supervisor. “ I think that som etim es we forget about the elderly. But it is im portant to rem em ber that th e y -th e e ld e rly -h a v e the same rights, needs and wants that everybody else does.” For information about the program o rto learn how toget involved, contact Kathy W alterat 1-800-522,-2602. Project Independence Project Independence is a free program for single parents and dis placed homemakers located at the Cascade Campus o f Portland Com munity College. The program is ac cepting applications for the class wh ic h beg i ns on M onday, J an uary 6, 1997. For further information, please call Linda Palmer at 978-5633. G row ing num bers o f g randpar ents are finding them selves parents once again, housing and raising their children's children. It is estim ated that 3.4 million children in the U.S. currently live in a household head ed by their grandparent. Tiie Center on Aging at Bradley University has received a three- year research grant from the N a tional Institute on Aging to study grandparents who are sharing a household with agrandchikl. I lead ing up the study is Dr. Rachel Pruchno, the D irector o fth e C enter on Aging and a well-know n psy chologist who studies fam ilies in their m iddle and later years. The C enter on A ging w ill be co n ducting personal and confidential interview s with 700 g randparents, age 50 o r older, w ho live w ith atleast one grandchild under the age o f 18. Dr. P ruchno stresses the im portance o f g ran d p aren ts com ing forth and sharing their ex periences, so that researchers, ed u cato rs, and policy m akers can b etter understand their needs. The G randparent Study will fill an im portant know ledge gap by p ro v ing inform ation about the challenges and rew ards o f grandparents w ho are raisin g ag ran d ch ild . Specifically, the S tiff// Male, 2 lbs 12oz, 15" Mother: Qiana P C. Dixon Grandparents/Paternal: Jacqueline Jones Grandparent/M aternal: Patrick Dixon Sr. Great Grandparents/M aternal: Chrttsbine Jones Great Grandparents/Paternal: Wille A. Jones Sr. Great Grandparents/Paternal: Larry Dixon Jr. Great Grandparents/M aternal: Patricia Dixon o f Kalazou, ML WANTED MEN & WOMEN Seeking exciting jobs in aviation, piloting, small boats, saving lives, stopping illicit drug trafficking and protecting our environment. We Offer: • Exciting Jobs • Good Starting Pay • Technical Training • Good Opportunity for • 30 Days annual Advancement paid Vacation • Free Medical & Dental If you re 17 to 27 years old, a high school senior or graduate, and in good health, call: 1-800-GET-USCG Be part of the action... 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Enjoy Extra Savings With The SAFEWAY EXTRA In-Store Savings Guide Available at your Safeway store. “24 Ways To Strengthen A Weak Memory In Classroom Learning” by V ivian O wens l W rite a w ord or num ber dow n on a card Refer to the card frequent ly- 2. R ecite silently the num ber or w ord several tim es before putting it aw ay Return to it later for another recital. 3. Recite "it" orally several tim es. 4. O rally discuss “it” with som e one else w ho is also interested in the details o f your topic. 5. Study “it" and m ake asso cia tions w hich stim ulate instant recall. 6. Sing “it” and create a jingle. Rehearse the song at every available opportunity. 7. R em ove distractions and allow y o u rself tim e to co n cen trate when you need to m em orize or rem em ber som ething. G ive yourself a noise-free environm ent if possible, or a soft m usic setting if you know m usic helps. 8. W orries and anxieties handicap memory. Rid yourself o f worries be fore you set about a m em ory task by writing the worries down on paper and sticking the worry list into a brown paper bag. Set the bag outside o f your work door and accept perm ission to return to it, after y o u ’ve concentrated on your needed topic. 9. Consider good nutrition as essential to a g<xxJ memory. A sluggish, over-fed body does not function well, and neither does an under-fed body. Adequate proteins in food promote alertness. IO. A good nig h t’s sleep or a c a t nap in the late afternoon will give the brain the rest and restoration it needs to perform for you. I I . Read and reread an item you w ant to rem em bers. Reading gives you the connective tissue necessary for recall and link. 12. E lim inate m edical reasons as a cause for w eak m em ory. O ften, poor m em ory in children or adults arise from m edical conditions, w hich can som etim es be corrected. 13. D evelop system s for m em o rizing nam es, faces, num bers, p o em s. long lists, short lists, facts, pro cedures, or other item s by using a s sociation techniques. 14 D evelop a m ethod w hich links one item to som ething very vivid in your im agination, allow ing you a quick and easy retrieval. 15. D istin g u ish betw een those item s that require m em orization and those that require fam iliarity. 16. K now w hat type o f m em ory you need for an item. D o you need a detailed, replica o f an item, or do you need a flashback recall? Do you need a short term or long term m em ory for a p articular item ? 17. L earn to observe People ob serve with the m ind and see with the eye. T each children to observe as they see. Ask them questions as they look at things, requiring them to look for detail in observation. Point out details w hich they m ight overlook 18. Reduce absentm indedness by becom ing aw are o f w hat y o u ’re d o ing during at a given m om ent Re quire y o u rself to consciously observe w here you put som ething 19. From routines or habits for certain actions in order to elim inate som e forgetfulness. V
