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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 29, 2006)
Committed to Cultural Diversity www.portlandobserver.com November 29. 2 0 0 6 Grant’s Phenomenal M etro (T liv Season Ends Football team has best year in decades |Llnrthmb (10bserbe JF < > years- •'community' service See story, page B6 SECTION Quick Loan Costs Heavy Passion All-women dance troupe celebrated In the Bété language of the Ivory Coast, “T chéT ehé” m eans "eagle," and that is a perfect symbol for the young all-w om en dance troupe from A bidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, com ing to Portland for the W hite Bird/Portland State U niversity dance series, “C elebration o f International W omen Choregraphers.” W ith their dream s o f Hying high in a clear sky o f People lose cars, debts goes unpaid (AP) — More than 1(X) Oregonians lost theircars. and 104,000had problems repaying after borrowing money from payday and car title lenders last year, a state agency reports. The report said payday lenders charged annual rates of interest that averaged 528 percent and soared as high las 2,551 percent. contem porary choreographic creation, "C om pagnie TchéTehé" will m aketheir Portland debut Thursday. Dec. 7 through Saturday. Dec. 9 at 8 p.m .each night at Portland State U niversity's Lincoln Performance Hall. Founded by Béatrice Kom bé in 1997 to "Show that woman is not the weaker gender," Com pagnie TchéTehé has em erged as a valiant symbol o f the power and passion ofw om en. TheOregon DepartmentofConsumer and Business Services released figures for 2005 showing payday lenders made 840,748 loans — a 15 percent increase over the previous year. The loans were worth more than $278 million. The Legislature passed a law to cap interest at 36 percent, beginning in July. But the cap will not apply to car title lenders, who make short-term loans us ing car titles as collateral. Cartitle lenders made 17.801 loans in Oregon last year and repossessed 114 I cars. Since the Legislature's crackdown, a fourth of the payday lenders have ap plied for conventional consum er li censes, which are not affected by the interest rate cap and enable lenders to restructure payday loans into small in stallment loans and continue charging high interest. The state agency is proposing to re quire loans from conventional lenders to exceed six months and be approved by experienced underwriters. | The department is proposing legisla tion to extend the 36 percent cap to car title loans and to limit check-cashing fees, also charged by many payday lend ers, said David Tatman, administrator for the Division of Finance and Corpo rate Securities. | A coalition that includes churches, the Oregon Food Bank and A ARP will push for a cap of 36 percent on al I lenders in Oregon in the 2007 Legislature, said Angela Martin, economic fairness direc tor for Our Oregon, a progressive non profit group in Portland. ! The new speaker of the House. Rep. Jeff Merkley of Portland, said he may ask a committee to consider further regula tions, possibly an across-the-board cap on interest rates. The governm ent is unfairly target ing payday lenders, said Luanne Stoltz, a payday lender and vice president of the Consum er Financial Services A s sociation. p o m m unity C a le n d a r Scouting for Food The “Scouting for Food” Boy Scouts food drive takes place Saturday morning, Dec. 2. Scouts will collect non-perishable food from residents door to door. “Scrooge Lives" Craft Bazaar Hood Community College will host the 37th annual craft bazaar, at the Gresham Campus Lounge; Room 1051 on Wednes day, Nov. 29 and Thursday, Nov, 30, from 10a.m. to6p.m . M l. Reverse Mortgage Workshop Thursday, Nov. 30, I p.m. to 3 p.m.. The S.A.G.E. Computer Learning Center, 5209 N.E. 22 Ave., will host a workshop for senior citizens on ‘reverse mortgages' to avoid displacement from their homes. For seat reservations and information, call 503- 287-3135. Holiday Bake Sale The SCRAP holiday bazaar & bake sale is Saturday, Dec. 9, from 11 a.m .to6p.m . at 3901A N. W illiams Ave. Local arti sans will transform unwanted materials to cool and creative gifts to raise rccy- B 1 he company's signature style is powerhouse dancing at the edge o f physical danger juxtaposed with intense and arrest i ng sti I Iness. Through dance, thecompany reconfigures notionsof "subservient" African wom anhood into an em phatic reclaim ing o f pow er and purpose. Tickets are $25 plus service fee and avai lable at the PSU Box Ol lice, 1825 S.W. Broadway or from all Ticketmaster outlets. Intense and arresting stillness is a signature style of the international dance troupe ‘Compagnie Tche Tche. Reflections Bookstore Hosts Cancer Authority An acclaim ed surgeon who has devoted his life to the study o f c a n c e r, p a rtic u la rly in A frican Americans, will appear in northeast Portland Monday, Dec. 4 for a pub lic book signing event and recep tion. Dr. LaSalle D. Leffall Jr. will discuss his book “No Boundaries, A Cancer Surgeon's O dyssey” from 6 p.m. to 8p.m. at Reflections Book store and Coffee House, 446 N.E. Killingsworth and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The reception is sponsored by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and hosted by Jefferson High School students. Dr. L effell's appearance is cour tesy o f N IC H E' Public Relations, in association with Chrysalis M inis tries, Reflections and Howard Uni versity Press. LaSalle D. Leffall jr ., m . d . M ftoundaiws A Cancer Surgeon’s Odyssey photo by Top Blazer Pick Gives Back Brandon Roy, the new Portland Trail Blazer and one o f the top picks in the NBA draft, serves up a holiday meal at the annual Harvest Dinner at the Rose Garden, sponsored by Project Home less Connect, Portland Arena management and the Trail Blazers. cling awareness. Holiday Wreath Sale Christmas Tree Permits The Portland Parks Environmental Educa tion Department will be hosting the holi day wreath sale on Thursday, Nov. 30 thru Sunday. Dec. 10from9a.m. to4p.m „ at the Mt. TaborGreenhouse, 6437 S.E. Division St. All prtx’eeds go to scholarships for low-income youth. The Mt. Hood National Forest has opened its personal use Christmas tree cutting program. Permits are $5. limited to 5 per mits per household, with a 12' foot maxi mum height per tree. For more information, call the fores, headquarters at 503-668- 1700 Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m.to4:30p.m. December Zoo Lights The walk-through winter wonderland ()r- egon Zoo Lights comes to life throughout the month of December. The festival in cludes a lighted zoo train, choral and en semble music, puppet shows, and a m<xlel train display. Festival hours are Sunday - Thursday, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday,5 to 8:30p.m. Closed Dec. 24and Christmas Day. Presents for Primates Thursday. Dec. 14, at 10 a.m., Santa’s Elves will give holiday gifts to the Oregon Zoo'schimpanzecs, orangutans, mandrills and other primates. Bring your cameras this is a great picture opportunity. Call 503-226-1561 or visit oregonzoo.org for i more information. M ark W ashing ,<» s /T iie P ortland O bserver Holiday Ceramics Sale Mt. Htxxl Community College invites the public to attend the 23rd annual student works sale to be held in the Visual Arts CenterGallery at the MHCCGresham Cam pus on I uesday. Dec. 5 through Friday, Dec. 8. from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on Saturday. Dec.9 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Work Against Abuse Community Advocates invites those in terested in protecting children from abuse to become an even, volunteer, event out reach, technology expert, graphic artists or office support team member. For infor mation, call 503-280-1 388. Women in Community Service Volunteer female mentors are being sought by Women in Community Service towork with incarcerated women at the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility. The women provide support and encouragement for inmates transitioning from prison back into the community. For information, call 503-5706614. Black History Museum The Black History Museum of Oregon is seeking brilliant minds o f concerned indi viduals to help in restructuring the mu seum foundation's committee. For infor mation, cal 1503-284-0617. Oregon Food Bank I lie Oregon Fixxl Bank seeks volunteers on Mondays from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.. and Tuesdays. 9 a m. to noon, to sort and repack perishable foods. Cal1503-2824)555. ext. 272 or visit Oregonfoodbank.org. Volunteer for Crisis Line Wan, to make a difference in your commu nity? Volunteers and advocates are needed lorthe Portland W omen's Crisis Line. The needs include on-call advocates to re spond in person or over the phone, out reach and ed ucational e ffo rts, and fundraising and administrative duties. Call 503-232-4176 for more information. Home buying Classes Portland Community Land Trust helps f first time and low-income homebuyers purchase homes a, below market price. Attend a free, one-hour class to learn more about the p rogram . C o n tact Kelly pclt.org or call 503-4934)293. Bradley-Angle House I'he Bradley-Angle House needs volun teers to help its outreach against domestic violence. Women of color and bilingual women are encouraged to call. For more information, call 503-282-9940. Parenting Classes Newborns don't come with instruction manuals but parents and parents-to-be can attend classes through Providence Health Systems to learn about a variety of topics from pain and childbirth to breastfeeding to infant CPR and much more. For a schedule of events, call 503- 574-6595 or visit: providence.org/classes. Hatha Yoga Class In Other W ords Books and Resources hosts Hatha Yoga classes for beginners and all levels, every Monday. Tuesday and Thursday from 9a.m to lO a.m .a, In O ther Words, 8 N.E. Killingsworth. All genders and ages and donations are welcome. J