February 9, 2000
Page A6
(Observer
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$Iurtlaub
IB Business
UM M M R
Second death causes Burger King to urge
State Farm sponsors “Kids Day”
custom ers to discard Pokem on toys
CUBI KIBl ItU ilO M
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety
Commission (CPSC) and Burger King
Corp, are again urging consumers to
immediately destroy and discard
Pokemon bal Is distributed with Burger
King kids meals in November and
December, 1999. On January 25,2000,
a 4-month-old boy in Indianapolis,
Indiana, reportedly suffocated when
one-halfofa Pokemon ball that w as in
his crib became stuck on his face.
B urger K ing C o rp o ratio n , in
cooperation with the U.S. Consumer
Product Safety Commission, issued a
voluntary recall o f more than 25
million Pokemon balls on December
27, 1999. The balls may pose a
suffocation hazard to children under
three years o f age.
November through December, 1999.
Consumers should immediately take
the balls away from children under
the age o f three. They should discard
the ball or return both halves o f the
ball and the clip to a Burger King
restaurant for a free order o f small
fries. Children can continue to use
the Pokemon toy that came inside the
ball.
As part o f the voluntary recall effort,
m ore than 8,100 B urger K ing
restaurants posted recall notices in
both English and Spanish. When the
recall was first announced, Burger
King placed an ad in US A T oday, and
CPSC broadcast a video news release
so local television stations could use
video tape showing the danger. CPSC
C h airm an A nn B row n a lso
announced the recall on the Today
show reaching millions o f viewers.
In December, a 13-month-old girl
reportedly suffocated when one-half
o f a Pokemon ball covered her nose
and mouth. Also in December, an 18-
m onth-old girl nearly suffocated
when a ball half got stuck over her
face. On the second attempt, the girl’s
father was able to pull the ball half
from her face.
Pokemon balls are plastic, ball­
shaped containers between 2.75 and
3 inches in diameter. They pull apart
to reveal one of 57 different Pokemon
toys inside. The balls were distributed
in a variety o f colors including red
and white, and hot pink. Packaging
described them as safety tested and
recommended for all agesofchildren.
Burger King restaurants nationwide
distributed the Pokemon balls inside
Burger King Big Kids Meals and
reg u lar kids m eals from early
B lack H istory Kdonth
Heather Tanner and her child were entertained Sunday at the Portland Auto show by Bizzy
the clown.
During World War II, the war
and maritime boom changed
the course o f Portland
history’. The ship building
industry attracted many
people to work. Many Black
southerners who had worked
fo r extremely low wages,
came to Portland in hopes o f
doubling and tripling their
wages while working less
hours. Can you name the
shipyard company that
attracted many out-of-state
Blacks to work fo r them. They
have also founded one o f the
largest hospitals in Oregon.
car available on the market today.
S h o w g o ers
also
had
the
opportunity to enter a raffle for
valuable prizes including $500 in
free gas, and Emergency Roadside
Service Kit valued at $ 115, and 100
long distance phone minutes. State
Farm policyholders picked up a free
road atlas just for stopping by.
Shoe Revue” and State Farm “Good
Neigh Bear’ was on hand to hand out
hugs, candy, and bear ears to all.
State Farm company representatives
were available, during the entire four
day event, to provide valuable
information to car buyers including:
instant auto insurance quotes and
detailed on-line reports o f any new
February 6 was State Farm Insurance
Kids Day at the Portland Auto Show.
All children 12 and under got in free
with a paying adult.
On this special day “Bizzy the
clown” was handing out balloon
animals and perform ing magic
tricks; Ronald M cD onald and
friends performed in the “Big Red
^ o r tla n b (©hseruer
W A N tS YOU TO KNOW WHAT IS H A P P E N IN G IN YOUR N E IG H B O R H O O D .
...A n d a r o u n d t h e w o r l d !
A Ticket A Ta&ket
T h e p la c e f o r c a r d s , g if ts a n d b a s k e ts
P —————————————————————n
Valentine Headquarters
Custom order your Valentine’s Basket today.
Choose from a variety o f Valentine’s items,
Including teddy bears, cards, candles, lotions, chocolates and balloons.
■J3sioy¡ :J3M.suy
Long Stem Roses
Half Dozen $40.00
Dozen $60.00
(Delivery available)
Senior property tax deferral deadline is April 17
VALENTINES PAY
C O M R I B L I tl) STORY
io r T he P oktland O bserver
The Oregon Department o f Revenue
reminds taxpayers thatApril 17 is the
deadline for filing applications with
county assessors for the senior
property tax deferral program.
“The senior deferral program allows
qualified senior citizens to defer
payment o f their property taxes on
theirhome,” explained Shirley Leiper,
supervisorofthe department's Senior
Deferral Unit. “The state pays the
taxes to the county, maintains the
account, and charges 6 percent simple
interest, which is also deferred.’’
Taxes and interest must be repaid
when the taxpayer dies, sells the
property, changes ownership, or
ceases to live permanently on the
property.
To qualify, senior citizens must be
62 yearsofageor older by April 15of
the year they apply, must live on the
property which is the taxpayer’s
principle residence, and must have a
deed or recorded sales contract. The
total household income must be less
than $24,500 for the year before
application. Once on the program,
senior citizens need an adjusted gross
income o f $29,000 or less to continue
to participate. Participants can come
in and out o f the program if their
income goes up or down.
A surviving spouse may continue to
defer past and future taxes if she/he
is at least 59 '/a. A new application is
required for surviving spouses or in
the case o f re-marriage.
Senior citizens can get applications
and information about the deferral
program by contacting their local
county assessor’s office.
For a d d itio n a l in fo rm a tio n ,
ta x p a y e rs m ay c o n ta c t the
Department o f Revenue’s Tax Help
line at 503-378-4988 or may call toll
free within Oregon at 1-800-356-4222.
Spanish speakers may call 503-945-
8618. For T T Y , the year-round toll-
free number within Oregon is 1 -800-
886-7204. In Salem thenumberis5O3-
9 4 5 -8 6 1 7 . T h ese n u m b ers are
answered by machine only and are
not for voice use.
Bring in this coupon in and receive $10.00
O ff any basket over $35.00
(One per person, expires February 29,2000)
10 am-6pm Tuesday through Saturday, 11 am-4pm Sunday
Open Valentine’s Day, February 14,8 am-6pm
1305 NE Fremont
Portland, Or. 97212
284-7344
tisketgifts@yahoo.com
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