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April 19. 2006
Page A5
- a ;
Cindy Baker o f
Providence
Health System
(left) and Abby
and Sally
Egland o f
Abby's Closet
show o ff the
evening wear
donated by
Providence
employees for
girls who can’t
afford expen­
sive prom
dresses.
Fashions Bring Night to Remember
Donations help girls
go to the prom
Remember that little black dress that made you the
hit of your senior prom? Or the red number that set
you apart in a wedding? Maybe they are still tucked
in the back of the closet, and folded away in a drawer.
The good memories of yesterday - could be a
better reality for a teenager today. That's what has
prompted a number of Providence Health System
employees to dig out their old formal dresses to help
create new memories for young girls who otherwise
might not have a prom dress.
Providence employees collected 29 gently used
pally dresses and gowns and a variety of accesso­
ries and donated them to Abby’s Closet for the
organization’s annual “Prom Boutique” gala. At the
event, Abby’s Closet distributes the fancy dresses
free of charge to girls who might otherwise not be
able to attend their prom due to cost.
Cindy Baker, Providence Portland Medical Center
information services director, organized the dona­
tion effort by Providence employees.
“Most of us had these one-time evening, party or
wedding dresses that could be enjoyed by another,”
explained Baker. "And knowing how important it can
be to young ladies in high school to participate in
activities like the prom, and to help them feel good
about themselves - well, that was enough motivation
forme." And for other Providence employees as well.
Baker is exci ted that something as simple as donat­
ing a dress will make a huge difference in a young
woman's life.
"We can all make a difference in our community
in little ways by looking for opportunities,” she said.
A bby's Closet is a Portland based non-profit
organization.
Brothers Reflect Adoption Needs
Two brothers with smiles
These brothers need to
and giggles that will tug at
be placed together. They
anyone’s heartstrings reflect
need energetic parents who
the approximately 300 Or­
can provide both boys with
egon children available for
lots of activities and learn­
adoption through the state,
ing opportunities. W ith
generally because of abuse
love, structure and enrich­
or neglect.
ment, Maleek and Amir will
Maleek is charming and
bring many rewarding times
polite. His brother, Amircan
forthe right family.
be cautious, but engages
For more information on
Maleek and Amir, ages 4 and 2.
others with games of peek-a-
the availability of these chil­
boo. Both boys are active and en­ opm entally on target. Amir needs dren for adoption, or on how to
joy riding bikes or playing ball.
some extra bolstering o f his so­ become a foster or adoptive par­
At Head Start, Maleek is thriv­ cial, em otional and m otor skills. ent, contact the Special Needs
ing and his teachers love having He r e c e iv e s in d iv id u a liz e d Adoption Coalition at 503-542-
him in their classroom . He fol­ therapy, in addition to also at­ 2392 orDepartmentofHuman Ser-
lows directions well and is devel- tending Head Start.
vicesat 1-8OO-331-O5O3.
COURAGEOUS
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W a W
b y Ron W eber
Triple Nickels to the Rescue
The
A fric a n -
American presence in
A m erica’s wars has
alw ays been in strong
numbers. However, a
pow erful and brave
all-black military com ­
bat group almost went
entirely under the ra­
dar when it cam e to
re c o g n itio n d u rin g
W orld W ar II.
A lth o u g h e v e ry
single post in a m ili­
tary contingent is of
absolute major im por­
tance, few w ere as
terrifying as those held
by the 555,h Parachute
Infantry Battalion,also
known as “The Triple
N ickels.”
From 1944-1947,
this all-b lack p a ra ­
The Triple Nickles were an all-black military paratrooper group.
tro o p e r g ro u p w as
trained to face near annihilation in decad es, including the fa­ began to see not only the bravery
in the sky, hails o f bullets while m ous T illa m o o k B urn, right o f our black soldiers, but also the
parachuting down to earth, and here in O regon.
sh e e r d e te rm in a tio n o f o u r
even worse conditions once on
O r ig in a lly u n tra in e d as nation’s African American men
the ground. Nervously standing firefighters, these men jum ped and women. Black soldiers in
in the dark in the back o f a plane right into the center o f fast m ov­ many other units would rise to
they were sure to face an uncer­ ing and extrem ely intense blazes, the occasion again in the Korean
tain future. They could be blown driving the flames back to save War, the Vietnam W ar and any
out o f the sky w ithout every American lives and millions of other conflicts.
seeing what hit them. O nce on acres o f valuable forests.
In early wars, the United States
the ground they could be sur­
A lthough racism kept them counted on A m erica's minorities
rounded by machine guns and from fighting in the war, their to "help.” Today we could not
cut to pieces.
bravery in com bating forest fires win without people o f color. W ith
Sadly, after m onths o f tra in ­ brought the Triple Nickels re­ groups like the Triple Nickels,
ing, the 555,h w as little used on spect and m edals here on the who patiently trained and took
the front lines. H ow ever, back home front. W ithout their cour­ w hatever assignment they were
in the U nited S tates, the para­ age against these horrific natural given, A m erica's armed forces
tro opers battled som e o f the disasters m uch o f our nations are fully integrated and fully
m ost treacherous forest fires. beautiful green forests would have trained with the best soldiers
W ith so m uch o f o u r able bo d ­ been reduced to nothing more around the globe.
ied m en scattered around the than sm oldering black ashes and
Roh Weber is a local speaker
globe in com bat, few fire fight­ many civilian lives may have hqen and author on African American
e rs re m a in e d in c o u n try to lost.
history and a regular contributor
battles som e o f the w orst fires
After W orld W ar II, A merica to the Portland Observer.
NEW S E A S O N S J
M A R K E T ]
PM uriti id
S U S H I T IP S & T A S T E S
Making sushi is actually pretty easy and can be a lot of fun. Visit us this
weekend and w e'll do our best to make a sushi chef out of you. We w ill be
rolling sushi at the Solutions counter using Lundberg O rganic sushi rice
w ith fresh vegetables and fruits. There w ill be some classic vegetarian rolls,
like cucum ber and avocado, alongside some more creative com binations.
W ith a few tips, some inexpensive tools, and a little practice, you can
create this delicious cuisine in your own kitchen.
Have you steered clea r of sushi because of the raw fish that m ost tra d itio n a l
dishes co n tain? W ell, fear not! A lthough sushi o rig in a te d in China during
the 7th century w ith raw fish and rice as its main in g re d ie n ts, tim es have
changed. A visit to any sushi bar w ill uncover many vegetarian cho ices. O f
cou rse you can always add raw fish as you please w hile p repa ring sushi.
There are only a couple hard and fast rules to sushi preparation. The first is to
only use the very freshest ingredients. The second is never eat the wasabi by
itself. Visit us Saturday and Sunday, 1 1:00am to 5:00pm .
EA SY
&
ARBOR
FU N
TO
S H O P
•
LO C A LLY
O W N ED
&
O P E R A TE D
L O D G E : N I n t e r s t a t e A v e & P o r t la n d B lv d P o r t la n d O R 9 7 2 1 7 5 0 3 .4 6 7 .4 7 7 7
C O N C O R D I A : N E 3 3 r d & K il lin g s w o r t h P o r t la n d O R 9 7 2 1 1
5 0 3 .2 8 8 .3 8 3 8
...a n d fiv e o t h e r P o r t la n d a r e a lo c a t io n s . V is it u s o n lin e a t w w w . n e w s e a s o n s m a r k e t . c o m .