®*!e ^portíanh (©bseruer
www.portlandobserver.com
September 26, 2007
From Heart
to Startup
Blazers Stay
Sound Minority
Construction
PCC class builds reality
fo r entrepreneurial dreams
Under guidance of
business-minded
Brothers build towards
a lasting neighborhood
impact
Jfl
See page B16
President Larry Miller
__ See page B3
See page BI3
Minority & Small Business Week
Entrepreneur Expands Community Reach
Opens the
Terry Family
Funeral Home
by J ason F loyd
T he P ortland O bserver
Although his business is new,
Dwight Terry is not new to the mortu­
ary business.
Just prior to opening Terry Family
Funeral Home at 2337 N. W illiams
Ave., Terry managed two funeral
homes in Vancouver, and prior to
that he was an area m anager over
six funeral hom es in P ortland,
wracking up a total of 16 years of
experience.
But it doesn’t stop there. He also
teaches embalming lab at Mt. Hood
Community College, where he is also
an alum, and he holds leadership posi­
tions in the community such as mem­
bership in the Albina Rotary Club, as
a Royal Rosearian, and a first ser­
geant in the Reserves to name a few.
His goal has always been to open
his own funeral home. The opportu­
nity came when a significant area
from north and northeast Portland to
St. John’s was void of any funeral
homes.
Managing so many different fu­
neral homes for so many years pro­
vided him with a host of interactions
with the different cultures Portland
has to offer. And when your business
is specifically geared toward families
wanting to send off their loved ones
with dignity, cultural competency is
required.
photo by M ark W vsiiington /T he P or i land O bserv er
“My main thing is, my prices are
Community leader Dwight Terry, a respected, longtime professional in the local mortuary business,
reasonable and I think families should
has opened Terry Family Funeral Home at 2 3 3 7 N. Williams Ave.
photo by
be taken good care of.” Terry said.
Believing that the family should
be honored, Terry leaves no matter
undone. He is on call 24 hours a day,
seven days a week. He recounts
how in the past he would be on his
way out of town for vacation and
receive a call from his wife about a
family in need and have to turn
around. His dedication is matched
by his insight. Even the details in the
decor of his chapel and offices are
comfortable and warm to take the
emotional edge off of a grieving
family.
Of Terry's three children, only his
youngest shows an interest in follow­
ing in his occupational footsteps. But
Terry understands their reluctance in
wanting to be in this line of work.
He explains that many skills are
necessary for success in the occupa­
tion. Because the emotions of grieving
families are running high, funeral di­
rectors may be the temporary target
of their frustrations or you may have
to mediate between feuding family
members, while taking it all in stride
and maintaining confidentiality with
the client.
“The funeral home is a friendly
en v iro n m en t” states Terry. His
doors are open and he encourages
people to come by. Believing that
everybody deserves a decent ser­
vice when they die. he encouraged
people to prearrange their funerals,
and if they have a plan somewhere
else, they can transfer it over to him
with no complication.
He doesn't believe that people
should be forced to travel across town
to receive funeral services.
continued
on page It 14
M ark W ashingtow T he P ortland O bserver
O'Neill Electric President Maurice Rahming and employee Ron Jimmerson oversee the progress on six miles of
underground wiring for the Max light-rail construction to Clackamas.
Business Mentors Matched to Start Ups
Port of Portland program builds success
Rhonda Herschell. president of ar­
chitecture and construction firm.
Cherokee General, remembers well
the early days of getting her business
started back in 1993.
“I was so excited to be an entrepre-
neur, working for myself and being in
charge. It wasn’t until I was well into
it that I realized how much I didn't
continued
yr
on page H 7
Construction Business
DaJosha Foskey works for the bridge-building firm Hamilton Construe
tion and is one of the carpenter apprentices enrolled at Northwest
College o f Construction in northeast Portland.
„
See story. Page B8