November 3, 2004
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P ortrait of Dignity
PHOTOS BY M i l H OT R u BENSTEINZT h E PORTLAND OBSERVER
^nrysier cneue, me security coordinator and co-dead o f the building department at Dignity Village says the encampment helped her
get o ff drugs. “I ’ve gone from being a junky under a bridge to a leader in my community," she said.
continued
fro m Front
“I was com puter illiterate until 1
b ec am e
h o m e le s s ,” m u ses
McCarthy.
The D ignity V illage offices are
eq u ip p ed w ith c o m p u te rs for
b u sin e ss o p e ra tio n s and p e r
sonal use.
“Do I think w eat Dignity Village
have it made? Yes, we do," he said.
But for all the benefits the village
provides, McCarthy says the rules
are strict and enforced, and no one
gets a free ride.
“Instead o f charging anybody
money, we charge them sweat eq
uity,” he says.
O ne o) the.ficst rules to “m ak
ing i f ’ at D ignity V illage is that a~
“couch pass” is only w orth three
nights. A fter that, a new resident tinuous disruptive behavior is al- "W e’re not any different and we
has a w eek to build the 10 by 12 lowed.
live so close together that we
foot platform on w hich to build
W hether Dignity Village works know everything th a t's gong o n.”
their house.
like the utopia it was engineered to
“On the other hand,” he adds, “if
"W e’ re quite talented, actually,”
says C hrysler Chelle, security co
ordinator and co-head o f the build
ing department for the Village. “We
know nothing about building and
construction, but all my houses are
built to code.”
Besides needing a motivation to
build and pitch in, residents must
abide by five rules or face the Coun
cil for eviction. No violence to one
self or others is tolerated. No theft
is allowed. Everyone must contrib
ute to the upkeep o f the village and be is a matter ot perspective.
you need help, all you have to do is
log 10 hours weekly. No drugs or
“ If you have problem « w><your ask.”
•alcohol are allowed within a one- neighborhood, w e have tbcNanw
Chelle said some residents "think
block radius o f the village. No con problem s h ere,” M cC arthy said, we have too many rules.”
If you have problems in your
neighborhood, we have the same
problems here. We 're not any different
and we live so close together that we
know everything that's gong on. On the
other hand, if you need help, all you
have to do is ask.
The American flag flies high over Dignity Village.
K uttnetraue-otlsare worth it tor
many. McCarthy values that he is
able to live with his pets, a cat
named Namaste and a dog named
Zags. He also says many of the
residents are grateful for not being
hassled by cops and feel safe at
theircurrent location. Othersenjoy
their freedom to live with their same-
or opposite-sex partners, which is
not allowed in many single-occu
pancy shelters.
McCarthy says he is also proud
of the diversity in races and reli
gions represented at Dignity Vil
lage.
The D ignity Village council
cham ber is inclusive by design.
On the wall hangs an illustration
that can only be interpreted as a
black Jesus with dreadlocks. On
the round council table are sym
bols o f the S tar o f D avid, a lotu
b lo sso m re p rese n tin g Buddh;
and a Druid Heart Chakra, paintei
in yellow and green, the triba
colors o f the P atow am ine Indi
ans.
"If we get moved to another pieci
of land, we hope it’s permanent,’
said McCarthy.
A cco rd in g to the c o u n c il’!
proposal, an estim ated $5(X),0(X
is needed to purchase a perm a
nent site and m eet phase one ol
c o n stru c tio n g oals. D onation:
may be earm arked directly to the
D ignity V illage Land A cquisitior
Fund.
For more information about do
nations and volunteer opportuni
ties, visit w w w.dignityvillage.org.
Building Businesses. Building
Communities.
You cannot mistake pride in a job well done. It can be seen
everywhere you look at the New Columbia project. But then,
such dedication is to be expected. Walsh Construction Co./OR
and the Housing Authority of Portland helped subcontractors
hire trades people from ETAP, the Evening Trades
Apprenticeship Pi jaration program, and from
the community.
A
This is the final bid oppoitunity for the
project. Come join our team . For fu r
ther information, call Carolyn Wilson at
503-222-4375 or vist our website at
www.walshconstructionco.com.
P re-b id M e e tin g fo r
N e w C o lu m b ia Phase II H ousing
November 9, 9-11 a.m.
or
November 12, 9:30-11:30 a.m.
Both pre-bid meetings to be held at
Oregon Association of
Minority Entrepreneurs (OAME)
41 34 N. Vancouver Avenue, Portland
IWJ WALSH
Construction Co./OR
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