May 25, 2005______________________________ ___________
îl’1 ^Jortlaub (Dbsi'rUVr_______________ _____________ PageAS
Young Lessons in Ethics
Concordia helps build life foundations
sip not only hurts feelings but also
hurts productivity, the children all
agreed that talking behind theirclass-
m ates’ backs doesn’t benefit any
one and takes time away from their
schoolwork.
They also learned that dishon
esty, such as not correcting the
cashier’s error, has larger conse
quences. The cashier may lose her
job, the store loses profit, and even
the custom er may experience a lin
gering feeling of guilt.
Concordia U niversity is a private,
Lutheran liberal arts college in north
east Portland.
If a cashier m istakenly hands you
too much change, should you give
the money back? Or if you work in
a restaurant where servers pool their
tips, is it right to pocket the tip
money left on a table you served and
not share it?
These were ju st two o f the issues
a group of elem entary-school chil
dren, ranging in ages from 6 to 12,
discussed on Tuesday, May 17, d u r
ing a special presentation called
“ Basics of Ethics” given by the stu
dents in C oncordia U n iv e rsity ’s
“Ethical Foundations for O rganiza
tions” class.
Through role-playing and interac
tive gam es, the students took turns
dem onstrating the values o f respect,
honesty, responsibility, and leader
ship in the workplace. Following
each segment, they asked their young
special guests to share ways they
can apply these four key values at
school and at home with their fam i
lies.
After learning that workplace gos
Andrea Prasad, 6, and
Joshua Truman, 9, take
to heart lessons in
stealing, being respec
tive and being respon
sible during Concordia
University's special
presentation on ethics.
Local Student Benson Graduate
Joins Marines
Honored
A ry a
P a try c e
Morman, a sophomore at
De La Salle High School
was recently honored for
her academ ic success
during the current school
year. She achieved her
goal of making the Dean’s
list for the second year in
Arya Patryce
a row. In addition, she
Morman
has been recognized as
one of the leading scorers on the K nights’
girl’s basketball team.
Arya is the daughter o f Joseph Lewis
Morman (deceased) and Rev. Renee’ Ward,
pastor of Zion CME Church in Portland.
Marine Corps Pvt. Arthur M. Sherriff III, a 2000
Benson High School graduate and son of Jana and
Arthur Sherriff, recently completed 12 weeks of basic
training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego,
Calif.
Designed to challenge new Marine recruits both
physically and mentally, the instruction is marked by
an extreme physical conditioning program and hours
of hours of classroom and field assignments which
included first aid, uniform regulations, combat water
survival, marksmanship, hand-to-hand combat and
assorted weapons training.
Sherriff and other recruits also received instruction
on the Marine Corps’ core values— honor, courage
and commitment, and what the core values mean in
guiding personal and professional conduct.
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W ESTER N
U N IO N
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Call for details (503) 287-M O N Y (MLK, Jr. location only)
Butterflies are back!
by Ron W eber
Black Solders Build the Alcan Highway
On Nov. 22,1942 the largest high
way project ever built by the United
States was officially opened. The
1,500 mile highway cost $ 130 mil
lion dollars and was finished in
only eight months.
Over 10,000 workers completed
the project, including 3,700 Afri
can-American soldiers who were at
first only allowed to “operate” picks
and shovels. Believing that the
black military men were not intelli
gent enough to operate tractors,
backhoes, trenchers, and paving
equipment, white supervisors lim
ited their role.
At one point, the project was in
danger o f failing, as a bridge was
needed to be built in record time.
WWII was gaining momentum and
America was afraid that the Japa
nese would take Alaska. A group of
black engineers from the 95,h Engi
neering Regiment took on the task
o f designing and building the
bridge in three days. They com
pleted their mission, greatly sur
prising white leaders.
The 95lh won much w ell-de
served praise and recognition. As
a result of their efforts, the men
were then asked to design and build
several other bridges along the
tre a c h e ro u s h ighw ay that cut
straight through the harshest of
Canadian forests. Their success
brought great joy to fellow African-
American troops and proved to the
world that they were not only intel
ligent enough to design structures,
but also had the ability to drive and
operate sophisticated equipment.
Their quick and accurate bridge
design also shocked the engineer
ing world of the time, which was
solely white.
After the road was completed,
thousands o f American troops,
black and white drove tens o f thou
sands of vehicles to Alaska where
a strong defense was set in place
World War II Black Regiment troops who helped build the Alcan
Highway, the largest highway project ever built.
none too soon. All of the roads and
bridges that were constructed by
African-American troops stood the
tests of both heavy WWII demands
and time. Thousands of Japanese
troops invaded Alaska (Aleutian
Islands) in some o f the bloodiest
battles o f the war.
Thanks to the efforts of the 95lh
and many other Americans, the
Alcan Highway provided a trans
portation route that would become
one o f the turning points of the war.
Without this highway and its many
bridges we would have certainly
faced Japanese soldiers on our
home front in the “Lower 48."
Although African Americans
were denied much of the comforts
given to the white soldiers, they
stayed on task. With picks and
shovels, they followed the bulldoz
ers to ge, into areas that could not
be reached by the large cats. Limbs
had to be cut off each of the thou
sands o f trees that were cut and the
large logs then hand rolled into
place. All downed limbs and other
debris had to be dragged and raked
into piles off to the sides. The rain
poured and the snow fell, but the
men kept working hard in their sop
ping wet clothes. All the while their
boots were filled with cold water
and snowflakes.
The conditions for both black
and white soldiers were deplor
able. But as in past w ars, deser
tion, fighting and alcoholism were
rare am ong the A frican A m eri
cans. They w ere obedient troops
and hard dedicated workers, truly
a credit to their race.
In the end, white troops began to
understand that blacks could do
anything they could. Thanks to the
efforts o f the 95,h and other black
units. President Harry Truman fi
nally signed legislation in 1948 that
outlawed segregation in the mili
tary. The African-American Sol
diers had shown their true metal
and earned their spot along side of
the whites once and for all.
Roh Weber is a writer and
speaker on African-American his
tory and regular contributor to
the Portland Observer.
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May ?i through Labor Day
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