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December 15. 2004
celebrates
KWANZAA
Hams for
the Holidays
F or th e th ird y ear, th e A fri
can A m erican C h am b er and c o r
p o ra te p a rtn e rs S afew ay and
H orm el w ill p ro v id e "H am s for
th e H o lid a y s " to 81 n e e d y
h o u s e h o ld s .
"W e hope to m ake the h o li
days a little bit brig h ter for som e
fam ilies this year" says Roy Jay,
p resid en t o f the cham ber.
T he giveaw ay is from noon
until 2 p.m . M onday, Dec. 20 at
the O regon A ssociation o f M i-
Page A3
nority E ntrepreneurs, 4134 N.
V ancouver Ave.
S en io r c itiz e n s, sin g le p a r
en t fa m ilie s and th o se th a t are
u n em p lo y ed o r d isa b le d are
e n c o u ra g e d to a tte n d . H am s
are lim ite d to o n e p er h o u s e
h old and w ill be d istrib u te d on
a first co m e, first se rv e b asis.
Grow Your Small Business
Are you a small business owner?
Are you interested in doing business
with the City o f Portland?
PHOTO by M ark
W ashington /T hk P ortland O bserver
Members o f this Northeast Hollywood District YMCA are crying out against its closure, announced
earlier this month.
YMCA Hangs in Balance
Since the YMCA of the Colum
bia-Willamette announced early this
month its plans to close its 79-year-
old Northeast Hollywood District
facility, some o f the club’s mem
bers have cried out against the clo
sure.
Som e m em bers have raised a
reported $20,000 in pledges to
keep the fa c ility ru n n in g . A
V ancouver man has m ade an offer
to buy the facility and keep it
operating.
The YMCA announced its in
tention to close the center in Janu
ary because the cost to renovate
the building is too great. The center
has been operating with an average
annual deficit of $50,000 for the
past 10 years.
Before accepting any offers or
reversing its decision to close, the
YMCA board chairman promised
members it would take their pro
posed solutions into consideration.
The board plans to meet again in
January.
The City o f Portland is expanding contracting
opportunities fo r small businesses in the Professional,
Technical, and Expert Services Fields. These include
areas such as architecture and engineering, information
technology, training and meeting facilitation, marketing,
outreach and graphic design, finance and insurance.
Minority, women and emerging small business owners
are encouraged to contact us, as well as to certify their
To lea rn a b o u t s m a ll b u sin ess
c o n tra c tin g o p p o rtu n ities, co n ta ct:
Gregory J. W olley, Program Coordinator
Professional Services
Economic Seed Wins Approval
y-
tion, a 24-hour com munication and
technical operations call center
that’s currently housed downtown
at 309 S.W. Sixth Ave. Developers
argue that bringing V ista's 2(X) jobs
to MLK will be a “catalyst” to fu
by L ee P erlman
ture economic growth for inner
T he P ortland O bserver
northeast Portland.
The Portland Development Com
Ray Leary, one o f the p ro jec t’s
mission has unanimously approved principal developm ent partners
spending $18 million on the first and a local A frican -A m erican
phase o f Vanport Square, a future leader, laid out answ ers to many
jobsite that includes a call center concerns during public m eetings
and ground floor retail space.
with area residents.
Plans call for renovating a former
H e s a id th e d e v e lo p m e n t
auto dealership building and con w ould is designed to place retail
structing a new addition on a large along the M LK street frontage; it
block on the west side of Northeast w ould not be a blank w all d isco n
Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard nected to the com m unity. Leary
betw een Em erson and Sum ner expects the com pany will live up
streets. The major em ployer and to com m itm ents to fill future jo b s
occupant would be Vesta Corpora with local residents.
Vanport Square
to start with one
block on MLK
T he PDC plans were also en
dorsed by Roy Jay o f the A frican-
Am erican Cham ber o f Com merce,
S h e ila H o ld en o f th e N o rth -
N o rth east E conom ic D ev elo p
m ent A lliance, Jenny Portis o f
the N ortheast W orkforce C enter
and C had D ebnum o f the King
N eighborhood A ssociation.
Jen n ifer Jordee Borquist, one
o f the p ro jec t’s sharpest critics
said “ju st m oving V esta to MLK
is not a high enough g o al.” She
questioned w hether the com pany
w ould serve as a cataly st to fu
ture developm ent.
Vanport Square was originally
conceived as several blocks of new
economic development on MLK
from Northeast Killingsworth to
Alberta, a concept that remains
alive.
City of Portland
Bureau of Purchases
(503) 823-6860
www.portlandonline.com/omf7purchases
Parents and Teachers:
Making the Difference
By
Reg Weaver,
President,
N ational
Education
Dear Deanna!
My heart was broken in my last
relationship. The guy I trusted and
loved turned out to be a drug dealer
with drama, police and kids all over
the place. He recently got busted
for drugs and wants me to use my
house to post his bail. I love him
and do n 't want to see him go tojail
but he’s also hurt me and dragged
me through a lot o f mess. There
were times he was good to me.
Should I do this for him? — Sherry
T.; San Diego, Calif.
Sherry:
Ask ö
Real P eo p le, Real Advice
b ro th er’s kids. T hese kids are so
rude and half-raised you would
think they live in a barn. My
brother is so w rapped up in his
g irlfrien d that he d o e s n 't co n
sider th eir stealing, cursing and
ju m p in g on furniture as bad be
havior. He believes everything
they say and w ants to fuss and
fight if som eone in the fam ily
spanks them . T his is tearing our
fam ily apart and he needs to do
som ething. W hat can we do? —
Sam antha; H ickory, N.C.
Dear Samantha:
tzz advice column known for
G o to the nearest tree, grab two
Either you’ve lost your mind or
its
fearless approach to reality sw itches, tw ist them to g eth eran d
have sm oked up som e o f your
based subjects!
w ear those kids out! They need a
boyfriend’s profit. The red light
good spanking coupled with love,
was on before you got tangled up
Dawn; Omaha, Neb.
with a drug dealer. Everybody and
d is c ip lin e an d te a c h in g and
their momma know the lifestyle that Dear Dawn:
th e y ’ll be ju st fine. H ow ever,
com es with a Street Pharmacist. You know in y o u r heart you th e re 's quite a difference between
Consideryourself lucky that you’re shouldn't be shacking with this child abuse and spanking. You
not in jail or dead. D on't lose your man. It’s good you’re not sinning should have a family m eeting with
property behind this nonsense. hy having pre marital sex but you’re your b rother to bring the situ a
Count your loss, hold on to your on the way to being unequally tion to his attention and offer
house and pray and wish the best yoked, which is a bad thing. As II solutions that will help him and
o f luck for your ex-boyfriend.
Corinthians 2 Verse 6 says, don’t the kids. A fter that, he can keep
he yoked together with unbeliev his eyes shut, but th e y ’ll open
Dear Deanna!
ers. However, you can still live apart w ide if the police com e to his
1 live with a man who claims to
from him and continue a friendship house when his d arlings com m it
believe in God but w on't worship,
of love, faith and prayer for his soul a few crim es.
go to church or pay his tithes. He
and sal vation. God works in m yste
has proposed several times but I
Ask Deanna is written hy Deanna
rious ways and you may be his
have said no. He has also tried to
M. Write Ask Deanna! Email:
vessel of salvation through your
get me to be intimate with him but I
askdeannal (fpyahoo.com or 264
life as a Godly woman.
w on’t violate my faith. My pastor
S. LaCienega Blvd. Suite 1288
and friends tell me I need to leave Dear Deanna!
Beverly Hills, CA 90211. Website:
him but don’t know if I should. — I’m at the point o f strangling my www.askdeanna. com
A dvertise w ith d iversity in ul < |J n rtla ttb (ÍH is rru c r
C all 5 0 3 -2 88-0033
a d s@ p o rtla n d o b serxei eoin
Association
Teachers can
provide useful
insights to
help parents.
nea
N A T IO N A L
EDUCATION
ASSOCIATION
n c a .o rg
Girat Public Schools
fo r F.very Child
NEA s 2 7 million
members are the
nation's leading
advocates for
children and public
education
The end of the year is a time of reflection and renewal. For those of
us who work in America’s public schools - and work with the
women and men who have dedicated their lives to helping students
succeed in school and in life - it’s a time to assess what we have
accomplished and what we can do better.
Since 1857, the National Education Association has worked to make
public schools great for every child. We support equity and adequa
cy in the distribution of resources that support those things that
work in the classroom - qualified teachers, smaller classes, and up-
to-date books, materials aligned with high standards and shared
accountability.
We will continue to focus our energies on getting students what they
need - with the support of parents, partners in the community, and
policymakers. But, increasingly, we understand that teachers and
education support professionals can’t go it alone. Students spend
about 9 percent of their time in school. For our young people to
succeed, we also need to pay attention to the other 91 percent of
their time.
Recent polling for Phi Delta Kappan magazine shows that parents
and others understand instinctively what research confirms.
Parental involvement and student motivation are key elements to
whether or not a child succeeds in school. There’s no time for
philosophical discussions or squabbles about who should take
responsibility for taking the first step. The key to helping students is
communications - ongoing, frequent and respectful conversations
between teachers and parents about student needs and progress - in
good times and in bad.
I say respectful communications because both teachers and parents
need to understand the unique role the other plays in students’
growth and development. No teacher wants to usurp the role of
parents. We look for a partnership role, working together to rein
force values like hard work, respect and personal responsibility. In
the same way, parents should understand that teachers' knowledge
and experience can be a resource for them. Teachers and education
support professionals work with children every day, and they can
provide useful insights in helping parents support and encourage
their children.
In 2(X)3, NEA members will be reaching out to parents more than
ever before. Working together, I know we can help all students meet
high standards - and the challenges that face our nation in the years
ahead.
i