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Committed to Cultural Diversity
March 19. 2008
Celebrating Women’s
History Month
M etro
îl’1 ^lortlan h (iDbscrucr
o m m u n ity
C a l e n d a r Accomplished Women Blaze Trail
My Naked Soul
Poetry N M otion, a Nite with Savon Lind­
say. takes place Saturday, M arch 22 at
Izogie’s Fine Dining, 1301 N.E. DekumSt.
Lindsay is the author o f a startling auto­
biography My Naked Soul, the story o f a
hlack recovering addict. D oors open at 8
p.m. A dm ission is $5.
Spring Revival
W ednesday, M arch 19 and Thursday,
M arch 20, at 7:30 p.m., Bishop Lomax
invites the com m unity to attend a Spring
Revival a t5637 N.E. 14th Ave. Bring your
fam ily and friends.
Get Your Garden Ready
W ednesday, M arch 26, from 2 to 7 p.m..
P eople’s Farmers M arket, 3029 S.E. 21 si
Ave., will kick o ffsp rin g with this free
gardening event, featuring food samples,
live music, gardening tips and more.
Chamber leader
promotes
advancement
G ale Castillo is the first President o f the
H ispanic M etropolitan C ham ber and a
founding m em ber o f the local chapter
w hich is affiliated with the U.S. H ispanic
C ham ber in W ashington. D.C. She is also
the first Latina to have served as a Port­
land Developm ent Com m issioner.
The H ispanic M etropolitan C ham ber is
the largest H ispanic cham ber in the N orth­
west with over 700 members. T he gro u p ’s
m ission is to work with all m em bers o f the
com m unity to increase the econom ic ad ­
v an c em en t o f H isp a n ic-o w n ed b u si­
nesses. C ham ber services and programs
Gale Castillo
include technical assistance to Latino
businesses, scholarships for Latino stu­
dents statewide, leadership and construc­
tion career training and monthly m em ber­
ship luncheon meetings.
Castillo also represents the cham ber as
a m em ber o f the C ontract M anagement
G roup responsible for the m anagem ent of
the City o f P ortland’s "Sm art Park G a­
rages” . T he CM G includes Star Park, the
A frican-A m erican, the Philippine A m eri­
can C ham bers o f C om m erce and the H is­
panic Cham ber.
She is also the co-ow ner o f Cascade
Centers, Inc., one o f the largest privately
held com panies that provides Em ployee
A ssistance Program services and staff
d e v e lo p m e n t th ro u g h o u t th e U nited
States.
Before taking on the responsibilities of
the Hispanic Cham ber. Castillo operated a
retail store: Bellissim a Fine G ifts and a
continued
on page Ii6
Tree-Mendous Spring Break
M arch 24 through 28. the W orld Forestry
C enter D iscovery M useum will offer a
variety o f fun and educational activities
included with m useum adm ission. A c­
tivities include hikes in Hoyt A rboretum ,
scavenger hunts, face painting and more.
For more inform ation, call 503-2 2 8 -1367
or visit W orldforestry.org.
Building careers in public service
Kai J. Robertson is helping students
entercareers in fire, police, am bulance and
other public services as the D irector o f the
Em ergency Services D epartm ent at Port­
land C om m unity C ollege’s Cascade C am ­
pus in north Portland.
A M ississippi native, she graduated
from Alcorn State University with a Bach­
elor o f Science D egree and served on the
faculty at O regon State University. She
received her M aster’s o f Science degree
from Portland State University and taught
Send in the Clowns
C haracter C low n C orps is a three-day
w orkshop for people interested in per­
forming at the Grand Floral Parade. Twenty
participants ages 14 and up will be se­
lected through an interview process. A p­
plications are due by April 4 and are
available at R osefestival.org.
Learning English
Every Tuesday and Thursday, starting
April Sending May 29, the SUN Center at
Marshall Campus, 3905 S.E. 9 1 st Ave., will
offer the free open English as a Second
Language classes to anyone interested.
For more information, call 9 7 1 -570-1384.
Spring Beach Cleanup
Saturday, M arch 29, between 10 a.m. and
1 p.m .,S O L V needs thousands o f volun­
teers for the 24th-annual beach cleanup
to restore the coastline to pristine condi­
tion. T oget involved.call 800-333-7658.
Kids Who Help K.I.D.S.
Sunday. M arch 30, from 9 a.m. to noon,
kids 12 and under who bring a new cloth­
ing item with tags attached to their near­
est Sw eet Tom atoes Restaurant will re­
ceive a free breakfast meal; all clothing
will be donated to Kids in D istressed
Situations. For m ore inform ation, visit
w e b s ite s S w e c tto m a to e s .c o m o r
K idsdonations.org.
Camp Fire Incredible Kids
C am p Fire USA Portland M etro Council
invites the public to honor any incredible
child. Honorees will receive an award,
coupons and their nam e in print. The fee
is $25 per child with registration available
until March 31. For more informat ion. cal I
503-224-7800, extension 142.
Concordia Candidate Forum
T uesday, April I , fro m 6 :3 0 to 9 p.m .,the
public is invited to attend this free forum
featuring candidates for the Portland
C om m issioners Position I and Position
2.; the event is to be held in the G ym o f
M cM enam in's Kennedy School, 57.36
N.E. 33rd Ave. For more information, visit
Concordiapdx.org.
Walk MS 2008
Saturday. April 12 and Saturday, April 19.
rain or shine com m unities around O r­
egon and Clark County will take to the
streets to raise funds and aw areness in
the m ovem ent tow ard a world free o f
M ultiple Sclerosis (M S (.To get involved,
c a ll
1 -8 0 0 -3 4 4 -4 8 6 7
or
visit
W alkM Soregon.com .
Kai J. Robertson
continued
Executive achieves top post
A nita D ecker becam e the C hief O per­
ating O fficer of Bonneville Pow er A d­
m inistration last O ctober, overseeing a
not-for-profit federal electric utility that
m arkets more than a third o f the electric­
ity consum ed in the Pacific N orthwest.
She oversees the internal m anage­
m ent o f the m ajor line functions in the
Portland-based agency which includes
pow er services, transm ission, internal
business services, energy efficiency and
fish and wildlife.
D ecker has spent over 27 years in the
electric utility industry. She previously
continued
on page 116
on page H6
Promoting
the
community
Lolita B. Burnette joined
the Portland D evelopm ent
Commission in January 2(X)7.
Lolita Burnette
As the primary represen­
tative between PDC and com ­
m unity groups, she helps to cultivate positive relation­
ships, implem enting and directing strategies and pro­
gram s to ensure PDC supports com m unity values, goals,
equity and diversity.
Anita J. Decker
continued
on page H6
Law career
leads to judge
A drienne Nelson is the second A fri­
can-Am erican fem alejudge in O regon's
history.
Judge Nelson was appointed in F eb­
ruary 2006 by Gov. Ted Kulongoski and
elected to a six-year term in N ovem ber
2006 in the general election.
Born in K ansasC ity. M o., and raised
in Arkansas. Nelson moved to O regon
in July 1994. She graduated from Gurdon
High School in G urdon, Ark. in 1985 as
the first black valedictorian since inte­
gration.
Nelson attended the University o f
Arkansas at Fayetteville Sum m a Cum
Laude and earned a bachelor arts d e­
gree in Crim inal Justice and English in
1989. She graduated from the U niver­
sity o f Texas at Austin School o f Law in
1993.
Prior to taking the bench. Judge
Nelson was a practicing attorney in
Portland and handled a variety of legal
m atters, ranging from crim inal defense
to labor nelations to union matters to
family law m atters to em ploym ent law
matters.
Nelson is active in a num ber o f pro­
fessional activities and has won num er­
ous aw ards for her public service.
In addition to her professional activi­
ties. she sits on the Girl Scouts Beyond
Bars Advisory Board and is a form er
m em ber o f the Black United Fund of
O regon Board o f Directors.
Students Bring International Perspective
Academic all-stars
Two students who bring international
perspectives to education have been se­
lected to represent Clark College on the
2008 All-Washington Academic Team.
Jennifer Patterson and Men-Ok (Irina)
Ziyu, who both reside in Vancouver, will be
among 62 students from Washington s 34
community and technical colleges who will
be recognized on Thursday, March 20, in
Olympia. Former Washington Gov. Gary
Locke is scheduled to be the keynote speaker.
Patterson credits her upbringing in Las
Vegas, a city that attracts tourists from
around the world, with creating her deep-
Jennifer Patterson
Men-Ok “Irina" Ziyu
seated fascination with other cultures.
She left her job in retail as an assistant
manager and was drawn to Clark's de­
gree program in international studies.
Ziyu came to the United States from
Russia in 2004. leaving behind family and
friends, her education at a medical uni­
versity and her job. She spoke no En­
glish.
After taking English as a second lan­
guage (ESL) classes at Clark, Ziyu wanted
to pursue her education further. She
enrolled in general education classes and
soon discovered her passion for chemis­
try. Now she is studying to become a
nurse and works as a chemistry tutor.
Women’s Art, Women’s Vision
Rain Garden Workshop
Saturday, April 5 from 9 a.m. to noon, the
Leach Botanical Gardens, 6704 S.E. 122nd
Ave., will host the workshop teaching how
to build a beautiful rain garden to capture
rainwater runoff, followed by acommunity
open house of the Botanical G ardens, from
I to 4 p.m . T o r e g is te r, v isit
Welcometherain.org orcal I503-652-7477.
Homebuyer Programs
PD C 's homebuyer-assistance programs
address the gap in home ownership rates
between whites and com munities of color.
For information about the new and ex­
panded homebuyers assistance programs,
visit pdc.us/nhporcall 503-823-3400.
at PSU while com pleting her m aster's d e­
gree in counseling education.
At PCC. Roberson is charged with re­
cruiting students and m em bers from the
im m ediate com m unity to educational pro­
gram s that help prepare students for ca­
reers in em ergency medical services, 9 11
dispatching, firefighting and other em er­
gency career choices.
As a result o f her partnerships, the City
Judge Adrienne Nelson
Remedios Rapoport's "Gentle Revolution " promotes art activism.
A W om en's History Month art
exhibit at the Interstate Firehouse
Culural Center, 5340 N. Interstate
Ave., supports and inspires posi­
tive activism and a celebration of
an engaged citizenry.
R cm edios R a p o p o rt's "T he
G entle Revolution" is a stunning
collaborative exhibit o f sculptures
and paintings. Em erging artist
Jacquelyn Bond presents water-
color political pin-up illustrations.
Rapoport received a Project
Grant Award from the Regional
Arts and Cultural Council for cre­
ation of a lilete mobile. She works
in the traditional Argentinean lilete
art of sign painting, which is a
very playful and vibrant style remi­
niscent of vaudeville or circus
signage.
They com bine beautifully w ith
B ond's equally mischievous il­
lustrations.
Jacquelyn Bond's "Wake Up. America!"