P n r tla n ò (0 b »tm e r
July 29. 2 0 0 9
Page AS
Vernon Art Promoting Multicultural Ties
,
Four Vemon Sun school children and a hand­
ful of dedicated local artists spent two days ear­
lier this month brightening up a drab comer of
the school’s playground.
Students, with some help from local artists
Addie Boswell, Emily Tarleton, and Karlene
Lusby, wrapped up a mural depicting a white child
and an African American child holding a globe
against the backdrop of an American flag.
The project began as spring painting day last
spring, where students from 25 classrooms de­
picted flags of other nations along the school’s
surrounding wall.
The concept behind the mural was formed by
Addie Boswell, who is also a children’s book
writer and illustrator.
“1 have great faith in the imagination of chil­
dren and the importance of creativity,” she said.
The painting projects are in line with the
school’s International Baccalaureate Program,
which incorporates children’s social, physical,
emotional, and cultural needs into an academic
program.
“Watching our school community come to­
gether to complete this project has been ex­
tremely rewarding. 1 am grateful to be a part of
such an amazing school and community. The best
is yet to come,” added Tina Acker, the school’s
principal.
Vemon Sun School children and local artists create a mural on the northeast Portland campus.
Managing our Money
Save Now or Save Later?
Most people have good in­
tentions about saving for retire­
ment. But few know when they
should start and how m uch
they should save.
Sometimes it might seem that
the expenses of today make it
too difficult to start saving for
tomorrow. It’s easy to think that
you will begin to save for re­
tirement when you reach a more
comfortable income level, but
the longer you put if off, the
harder it will be to accumulate
the amount you need.
The rew ards o f starting to
save early for retirem ent far
outw eigh the cost of waiting.
By contributing even sm all
am o u n ts ea c h m o n th ,,y o ji
may be able to amass a great
deal over the long term. One
helpful method is to allocate
a specific dollar am ount or
percentage of your salary ev­
ery m onth and to pay your­
self as though saving for re­
tirem ent were a required ex­
pense.
H e re ’s a hypothetical ex­
ample o f the cost o f waiting.
Two friends, Chris and Leslie,
want to start saving for retire­
ment. Chris starts saving $275
a month right away and con­
tinues to do so for 10 years,
after which he stops but lets
his funds continue to accu ­
mulate. Leslie waits 10 years
before starting to save, then
starts saving the same amount
on a monthly basis. Both their
accounts earn a consistent 8
percent rate o f return. A fter
20 years, each w ould have
contributed a total o f $33,000
fo r r e tir e m e n t. H o w e v e r,
L e s l i e , the p ro c ra stin a to r,
w ould have accu m u lated a
total of $50,646, less than half
of what Chris, the early starter,
w ould have accum ulated at
$112,415.
This example makes a strong
case for an early start so that
you can take advantage of the
power of compounding. Your
contributions have the poten­
tial to earn interest, and so does
your reinvested interest. This
is a good example of letting your
money work for you.
If you have trouble saving
money on a regular basis, you
m ight try savings strategies
that take money directly from
your paycheck on a pre-tax or
after-tax basis, such as em ­
ployer-sponsored retirem ent
plans and other direct-payroll
deductions.
Regardless of the method you
choose, it’s extremely important
to start saving now, rather than
later. Even small amounts can
help you greatly in the future.
You could also try to increase
your contribution level by 1
percent or more each year as
your salary grows.
Financial A dvisor Rick L.
Lee, CRPC, can be reached at
5 0 3 -5 3 9 -8 9 9 4
or
pro_w ealthm gnt@ w vi.com .
Scholar to Teach in India
demic disciplines, particularly
with regard to an increased
fo c u s on In d ia and o th e r
South Asian nations.
"I would like to see PCC en­
rich its curricula relating to
South Asia," he said. "We are
strong on C hina, but India
Portland Com m unity C ol­
will soon have more people
le g e p r o f e s s o r M ic h a e l
than China. I expect to infuse
Sonnleitner has been chosen
m ore S o u th A sian stu d ie s
for a Fulbright Teaching Fel­ Michael Sonnleitner
low ship - the only com m u­ the tw o schools. Once he re­ content into my political sci­
nity college instructor in the turns, he intends to use his ence courses, and, perhaps,
ex p erience to co n tribute to even create a new political
nation to be picked.
S o n n leitn er, a sc h o la r of PCC's effort to international­ scien ce c o u rse fo cu sed on
M ohandas
“ M a h a tm a ” ize its curricula across the aca- South Asia."
Gandhi, will join 25 other lec­
turing Fulbright fellows going
to India for the 2009-10 school
year. He will spend about six
months teaching at St. T ho­
mas College, which is in the
southern state of Kerala, bor­
dering the Arabian Sea.
Sonnleitner said he is look­
ing forw ard to the o p p o rtu ­
nity to build institutional ties
between PCC and St. Thomas
C o lle g e , w h ic h he h o p e s
might someday lead to further
cultural exchanges betw een
Promoting
cultural
exchanges
Peninsula Little League Coach and Portland Observer Public Relations Manager
Mark Washington (left) was honored as Coach of the Year by the Portland Beavers
and the group Friends o f Baseball during a recent Beavers game at PGE Park. Also
pictured (from left) Beaver mascot ‘Lucky, ’ and Keenan Longcor and Ben Longcor
o f Friends of Baseball.
Coach of the Year
P o rtland O b serv er P ublic R elatio n s
M anager Mark W ashington was honored
recently by the P o rtland B eavers and
F riends o f B aseball w ith th e ir annual
“Coach of the Year” award for his tireless
w ork as a coach w ith P eninsula L ittle
League.
Mary Dunn, Peninsula president, said that
Washington consistently goes the extra mile
to make sure the league is a success.
“H e’s constantly prom oting the base­
ball in his community, getting new kids
signed up, and roping in sponsors," she
said. “He really puts everything into it.”
W ashington said he hopes that base­
ball will help steer them on the right path
and keep them out of trouble.
“I just want to help kids,” he said.
Platinum Fade
S A L O N
Volunteer
Tutors Needed
A group that brings older resi­
dents together to enrich lives
and strengthen communities is
recruiting volunteers to serve
as tutors to make a difference
in a young person's life.
T he
O A SIS
Intergenerational Tutoring Pro­
gram helps students become
more confident learners.
For more information, call
5 0 3 -2 4 1 -3 0 5 9
or em ail
vifoster@ lhs.org.
i
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