Committed to Cultural Diversity www.portlandobservencom October 17, 2Ö01 “ffividginp ifa itd a n d ô (iam tnunitiei" Devices Shave Minutes Off Bus Travel Who’s the Weakest Link? High tech holds a green light a bit longer for buses that are running behind schedule The W eakest L ink gam e show is look­ ing for contestants from the Portland area. They will be holding tryouts on T hursday, O ct. 18 at 9 a m. at the V in­ tage H otel Plaza, located at 422 SW. Broadw ay. If you are intelligent, en ­ thusiastic and articulate, h e re 's your chance to play. Call 503-228-1212. National College Fair G et a head start on your col lege search at the P ortland National C ollege Fair! This free event w ill be held on Friday, Oct. 26 and Saturday, Oct. 27, from 9 a.m. -1 p.m. at the Oregon Convention C enter. M eet w ith college representa­ tives from over 250 colleges and uni­ v ersities natio n w id e. C all D onna Rhinevault at 503-359-8137,ext. 236or visit w w w .nacac.com . Motivate Your Teen Teens can learn powerful, self-helptools to break through their emotional barri­ ers. Dr. John Oda, a psychologist and certified N LP instructor will be holding a 7-week workshop called “The Seven Techniques o f Highly Motivated Teens” which is guaranteed to bring immediate results. The workshop will begin on Saturday, Oct. 20at 2325 E. Burnside. To register, call 503-963-9495. Catlin Gabel Rummage Sale The 57,h annual Catlin Gabel Rummage Sale kicks o ff on T hursday, Nov. 1 at the Portland Expo C enter. Shoppers will find a vast selection o f high-qual­ ity goods. Proceeds from the R um ­ m age Sale go to C atlin G abel student financial aid. The sale goes from Thurs­ day, N ov. 1 - Sunday, Nov. 4 at the Portland E xpo C enter in H alls A & B. Call 503-297-1894. Riders on the No. 72 Killingsworth/82rd Avenue line will soon experience high tech features that keep traffic lights green for late running buses. The devices have already been installed on the Tri-Met's No. 4 Fessenden route, serving north and northeast Portland. photo by M ark W ashington JT he P ortland O bserver Tri-M et is adding high-tech features to several bus lines that will save tim e for riders, im prove on-tim e perform ance and low er operating costs for the agency. T ransit Signal Priority holds a green light a bit longer for buses that are ru n ­ ning behind schedule. T hose extra sec­ onds are often enough to get a bus through an intersection and help it get back on schedule. The first line to receive the added tech­ n o lo g y is th e N o. 4 D iv isio n and Fessenden line, serving north, northeast, and southeast Portland. Riders have saved about five m inutes each way since the technology was added to 60 traffic signals. Tri M et officials said. The No. 12-Barbur Boulevard line also has 10 transit priority signals along its route. T he No. 7 2 -K illin g sw o rth /8 2 nd A v ­ en u e line w ill get the sig n a ls o v er the Smith Center Now Serves Children and Seniors Silent Auction The C ouncil for the H om eless will be having an auction and dinner on Sat­ urday, Nov. 3 at the Pearson A ir M u­ seum , located at 1115 E. Fifth Ave. in V ancouver. The M aster o f C erem o­ nies w ill be M ike D onahue o f KOIN - T V . T he event starts at 5 p.m. For more info, go online to w w w .icfth.com or call Betty Johnson at 360-993-9571. “Bridges 101” Tour Portland Parks & O utdoor Rec ’ s bridge walking season concludes with Sharon W ood W ortm an's annual bridge VAN teaching tour. T his one-a-year riding and w alking look at Portland takes people into the operator’s tow er and dow n three stories into the pit o f the M orrison Bridge, and to o therunusual “bridge” destinations. The tour will be on Saturday, Oct. 27, from 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Call 503-823-5132 to register. The Great Pumpkin Chase The third annual Great Pumpkin Chase offers adults and children a festive and safe w ay tocelebrate Halloween while contributing to a good cause. The event will be held on Sunday, Oct. 28 and features several w alks and runs for all ages. Pre-registration is encour­ aged. For more info., call 503-408-8303 St. Charles Spaghetti Dinner The St. Charles Church, located at NE. 42"' and Emerson will be having their 51 * Annual St. Charles Spaghetti and M eat­ ball Dinner on Sunday, Nov. 4, Noon - 6:30 p.m. Take-outs are available. Friends of Trees "Bowl-a-Rama" T eam s o f costum ed tree lovers will be “bow ling for trees" as they raise money to support Friends o f T rees’ com m u­ nity tree-planting projects. The event will be held on Saturday. Oct. 27, from 9:30 a.m. - Noon at the A M F Pro 300 Lanes, located at 3031SE. Powell Blvd. Call 503-282-8846. X I7. I next six m onths, w hile the No. 12 Sandy B oulevard line w ill get dev ices w ithin a year. The signal devices w ork through glo­ bal positioning technology. Buses are equipped with transm itters that send sig­ nals to satellites and allow com puters to com pare w here they are w ith w here they are scheduled to be. O nly buses that are behind schedule will trigger traffic lights to stay green. Community volunteer Kenneth Johnson opens the door for Lennis Grubles as she leaves the Marie Smith Center, a north Portland facility serving both children and seniors, photo bi M ark W ashington /T ih P ortland O bserver A u n iq u e n eig h b o rh o o d ce n te r is now serv in g the n eed s o f b o th ch ild ren and sen io rs. The M arie Smith Center, 4614 N. Albina, co m b in es a V o lu n te er o f A m erica adult day care p ro g ram fo r frail resid e n ts w ith C om m on B ond, the n o n -p ro fit g ro u p 's p ro g ram , p ro m o tin g h ealth y em o tio n al, so cial, and co g n itiv e d ev e lo p m e n t for ch ild ren from b irth to th e ag e o f five. T he resu ltin g In terg en e ra tio n a l C e n te r cre ate s an en v iro n m en t in w hich c h ild ren and o ld e r adults can form relatio n sh ip s by sh arin g and learn in g to g eth er. T he goal is to e n h a n ce the liv es o f both the ch ild ren and th e se n io rs by s tre n g th ­ ening the c o n n e ctio n s an d u n d erstan d ing betw een the g en e ratio n s, m ax im izin g the b en efits at b oth en d s o f th e sp ectru m . “ W e know o f no o th e r p ro g ram in O r­ egon that o ffe rs su ch u n e q u a lle d b en e fits o f in teractio n b etw een a d u lts and c h il­ d ren ." said K ay T o ran , V o lu n teers o f A m erica O reg o n P re sid en t an d C E O . “T he In terg en eratio n al C e n ter m odel is a m u lticu ltu ra l ap p ro a ch to day care that p ro v id es o p p o rtu n itie s fo r young c h il­ dren and se n io rs to in te ract on a daily b asis,” T o ran said. Bradbury Picks Up Smith Challenge for Senate (A P) - Secretary o f State Bill Bradbury says he will run for the U.S. Senate, challeng­ ing Republican incum bent G ordon Sm ith. He says the fram ew ork o f his candidacy will include “strengthening the econom y, ensuring high quality public education and striking a balance betw een protecting the environment while maintaining jobs for w ork­ ing O regonians." Bradbury. 52, w as encouraged to run by Gov. John K itzhaber, w ho last m onth d e­ cided against challenging Sm ith despite m onths o f w ooing by the D em ocratic Party. The D em ocrats viewed K itzhaber as a potent candidate against the freshm an sena­ tor. K itzhaber has said he turned dow n their Former Gov. Barbara Roberts lends her support to an announcement by Democratic Secretary of State Bill Bradbury (left) that he will run for the U.S. Senate. (AP Photo) recruiting effort out o f consideration for his family. U.S. Rep. Peter D eFazio has been toying with the idea o f running against Smith. But his staff last w eek said he has been busy handling airline security issues follow ing the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and h asn 't had the tim e to fully contem plate a bid. Bradbury w as appointed secretary of state in 1999 to fill a vacancy, and was elected to a four-year term in 2(MM). He had told K itzhaber he planned to serve out his term after he was elected secretary o f state, but the governor said changed circum stances justify Bradbury seeking the Senate post. A t Signal priority for em ergency vehicles will not be interfered. T ri M et says the technology w ill not change lights from red to green, and b e­ cause an extended green light returns to norm al w ithin seconds, it's unlikely to be noticed by other motorists. "Signaling devices are another way Tri-M et is using technology to m ake tran­ sit m ore convenient for its riders,” said Fred H ansen, T ri-M et general manager. School Advocate to Address Achievement Gap Cory Booker The m inority achievem ent gap in Portland Public S chools persists d e­ spite concerted efforts to elim inate it. T o ad d ress so lu tio n s. C asca d e Policy Institute will host “Q uality edu­ cation for all." a free evening event on Oct. 25 for parents, educators and in­ terested citizens. T h e fe a tu re d sp e a k e r is C o ry Booker, a board m em ber o f the Black A lliance for Educational O ptions. Booker is the elected representa­ tive o f one o f A m erica's poorest co m ­ m unities, N ew ark 's C entral W ard in N ew Jersey. At age 29 he w as the youngest person ever elected to serve on the N ew ark City C ouncil. In ju st three years this young D em ocrat has earned a reputation as an ardent co m ­ m unity activist, innovative problem solver, and passionate advocate for social justice. B ooker does not limit him self to traditional approaches to im prove edu­ cation. He believes that fam ilies need both public and private school o p ­ tions in order to secure a high quality education. “ 1 d o n 't necessarily w ant to depend on the governm ent to educate my ch il­ dren; they h av e n ', done a good jo b in continued 1 « on page 84 k