Committed to Cultural Diversity
Qrtlandobserver.com
M etro
(Tbr
July 14. 2004
Sheena Johnson
Hurdles Way to Athens
JJortlanb (Obseruer
See Sports, page B6, inside
SECTION
C
O 111 m u n i t y
a l e n cl a r
Creating
Two Wheelin’
Nurturing
You're Right
The next volunteer training for
the Renter's Rights Hotline is
T uesday.July20from 9a.m .to I
p.m. For information, call 503-
460-9702.
Of the People
The Alpha and Omega Minis
tries presents "The People’s
Conference" about Renewing
YourM indat7p.m.,July 16-18at
Matt Dishman Community Cen
ter, 77 N.E. Knott. For more infor
mation, call 503-823-3 186.
Writing Frees
Free your writing spirit with a
free writing workshop by Write
Around Portland through Aug.
12 at locations in and around
north Portland. To register or
contribute, call 503-796-9224.
Interest in Adoption?
A free information meeting for
prospective adoptive parents is
held the third Wednesday of
every month from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
at Belmont Public Library, 1038
S.E. 39lh Ave. For more informa
tion, call 503-226-4870 or visit
www.openadopt.com.
T It
takes
a village
to raise
a child.
X
Safe
Learn Portland's bikeway netw ork
with rides throughout the city
with tours every Tuesday and
Wednesday through Aug. 25. For
information about a full schedule
of rides, call 503-823-5266
r. *
- African proverb
HOMES
"
Mentoring helps
children by
helping parents
O
'y
Parenting is a huge challenge even under
the most ideal conditions. But with serious
obstacles like substance abuse, domestic
violence and temporary loss of children to
foster care, the need for support is even
more crucial.
The Parenting Program o f V olunteers
o f A merica Oregon has launched the Par-
ent-to-Parent M entoring Program to an
swer that call.
Under the leadershipof Linda Gallahan,
this latest program m atches parent m en
tors from the com m unity with parents
about enroll in a 20-w eek parenting pro
gram that helps fam ilies who have been
cited to r child abuse create safe, nurtur
ing and developm entally appropriate en
vironm ents for their children.
Parenting Program counselors refer par
ticipants to the mentoring program so they
D
V
One on one
interaction is a
key to success when
I volunteer mentors
i are matched up with
Volunteer of America
i Oregon clients in the
Parent Mentoring
Program.
J
can continue to be supported and encour
aged as they implement their new parenting
skills.
"Our mai n objecti ve is to help chi Idren by
helping their parents,” Gallahan said.
Volunteers of America Oregon is actively
seeking qualified mentors to join the pro
gram— ages 25 and over who have had expe
rience either in raising or caring for children
or else have had training in child rearing.
After mentors complete a training session,
they commit toone year of volunteer service
and get matched with parents.
Before the match is made, parents and
m entors get a good sense o f who the
other is. The mentor learns what the par
ent considers to be most challenging in
their lives, their worst fears and their
greatest strengths. In turn, the parent
gets to review the m entor’s profile— their
skills, their hobbies, and interests.
The best parent-mentor combinations
have similar interests, experiences and per
sonal characteristics such as age, gender
and ethnicity. Once the relationship begins,
parents and mentors are provided with a
strong support network.
"While the mentors are giving their time
and energy to help a family become stable,
we will be giving our mentorsa lot of support
and encouragement," said Gallahan. “It’s a
major commitment, but one that we feel will
deliver high rewards.”
Individuals and couples interested in
becoming a parent mentor should contact
Linda Gallahan at 503-236-3033.
Health Maintainance
Sankofaa Health Institute offers
a free diabetes support group
from 6 to 7:30 p.m. every third
Thursday at Alberta Simmons
Plaza. 6707 N.E. Martin Luther
KingJr. BI vd. For more informa
tion, call 503-285-2484.
r
Neighbors
Group Needs
Diversity
i ■ '. . .
Work For Change
Community Advocates invites
those interested in protecting
children from abuse to become
an event volunteer, event out
reach , tec h n o lo g y e x p e rt,
graphic artists or office support
team member. For more informa
tion, call 503-280-1388.
J
' * '
Vernon association
reaches out for
participation
j
Home Improvement
The Community Energy Project
holds free workshops on water
conservation and weatheriza
tion. For more information, call
503-284-4962.
Ya Gotta Regatta
You gotta go to the 10"’ annual
Columbia Slough Regatta small
crafts show and paddling event
from9a.m.to I p.m. Sunday, July
26 at the lower Columbia Slough
in northeast Portland.
NAACP Meetings
The Portland Branch o f the
NAACP holds two monthly ex
ecutive committee meetings, on
the second Thursday o f the
month and the Thursday before
the fourth Saturday of the month.
General membership meetings
are held on the fourth Saturday
o f each month. For more infor
mation, call 503-284-7722.
Aquatic Fitness
Providence has a full schedule
o f fitness classes including wa-
terexercising at the Providence
A quatic C enter. 4805 N.E.
Glisan. For a schedule, cal 1503-
215-6301.
Smokin' Chili Contest
Smokin' at the Ocean, a state
barbecue championship sanc
tioned by the Pacific Northwest
BBQ Association, is making a
triumphant return to Chinook
Winds Casino Resort in Lincoln
City with events held on Friday,
July l6through.Sunday.July 18.
A chili and salsa cookoff, na
tional rib eating contest, truck
show, and battle o f the bands,
round out a tun packed family
weekend. Tasting kits will be
available and proceeds will
benefit Business Excellence
For Youth.
■l
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photo by M ark W ashington /T hf P ortland O bserver
Karifa Koroma (from left). Sen. Avel Gordly, Jackie Strong, Aisha Wallace and Tyrone Waters kick o ff a barbecue for
clients, s ta ff and the community at Cascadia Behavioral Healthcare.
Community Health Heroes
Local residents and leaders in the
health care community from north and
northeast Portland gathered for a bar
becue and kickoff party last week at
Cascadia Behavioral Healthcare.
The annual summer party for the
center’s Treatment Not Punishment
program served approxim ately 150
people.
“This is part of Cascadia’s efforts to
engage the community and provide cli
ent centered mental health and addic
tion services,” said program manager
Jackie Strong. “And people had a great
time.”
The Vernon Community Association is
suffering from under-representation of a
diverse community.
Although Vernon is home for many
African Americans and Latinos, very few
people o f color attend the meetings held
th is su m m er at A lb e rta Park on
Killingsworth and 20"’ Ave.
“You should know your neighbors. That
makes neighborhoods safer," said Harvey
Rice, an African American andco-chairof
the association.
Rice said Neighborhood Watch and
crime prevention is only one facet to the
neighborhood association. Other commit
tees include Parks and Open Spaces,
School Safety and Good Neighbor Agree
ments for late-night area-businesses.
The Vernon neighborhood is defined
between Northeast 14"’ Place to 22nd Av
enue and between Northeast Ainsworth
and Wygant streets.
"When we have a general meeting, ev
eryone in the neighborhood should be
coming,” .said Rice.
Meetings are the second Tuesday of
each month at Alberta Park at 7 p.m. For
more information, call 503-287-3135.
Portland’s Freddy Jones Hosts Summer Slam
Plays key role on
and off the court
by J ohanna S. K ing
T he P ortland O bserver
Freddy Jones, a guard for the Indiana
Pacers and the 2(XW NBA Slam Dunk Cham
pion. will host his first Freddy Jones Summer
Slam weekend, July 23-24, sponsored by
Nike Go! and benefiting Big Brothers Big
Sisters of Metropolitan Portland.
The Portland native returns home to raise
$ 10,000 for the organization’s underserved
inner-city youth. The event highlights 100
years of mentoring.
"W e're helping children
across metropolitan Port
land learn , g row , and
achieve in ways that other
wise may have not been
possible,” said Rochelle
Henniger, program director
of Big Brothers Big Sisters.
"E v e ry young person
needs a great role model t o --------------------
look up to. Freddy Jones is F^ddy Jones
a perfect candidate for that."
The weekend will include a comedy slam
with Saturday Night Live's Finesse Mitchell
and stand-up comic and actor Mike Epps on
Friday. July 23 at 7 p in. at
the Aladdin Theater. The
weekend will also include a
series of slam dunk con
tests and 3-point shootouts
for participates ages 16-
years-old and up on Satur
day. July 24 at 7 p.m. at
Jefferson High School with
celebrity NBA star judges
High school and college
athletes will be able to join
Jones on the court tocom pete in a slam dunk
contest for bragging rights and an event
trophy. A 3-point shoot out will follow for
non-collegiate bound athletes to show their
skills and speed for a chance to win $5(X). The
final slam dunk contest of the evening will
offer a grand prize of SI .(XX) and other prize
packages.
Jones will also serve as a celebrity judge
at the Miller Paint Dunk Contest at the Blaz
ers Street Jam presented by Nike on Sunday,
July 18 at the Rose Garden Arena. The win
ner from those competitions at the Blazers
Street Jain will receive an automatic bid into
theTreddy Jones Summer Slam Dunk con
test and 3-point shoo
For tic k e t in fo rm a tio n , c o n ta c t
Ticketmaster at www .ticketmaster.com. To
learn more about Big Brothers Big Sisters,
visit online at www.bbbsportland.org.
I