Page A3
November 4, 2009
Services Measured for Equity
Evaluating
changing
social
landscape
by J ake T homas
T he P ortland O bserver
A panel o f city and county
officials is getting a glimpse into
w hat's w orking and not w ork
ing with P ortland's social ser
vices as w ell as the re g io n ’s
changing social landscape as it
gets input on how to spend a
large federal grant.
R esidents’ concerns on eq
uitable access for social ser
vices in Portland, G resham and
M ultnom ah County were heard
as part o f the form ulation o f the
C onsolidated Plan, which will
direct $100 m illion in funding
from the U.S. D epartm ent o f
H ousing and U rban D evelop
m ent over the next five years.
During the session last Thurs
day at King School in northeast
Portland, Barry Joe Stull told the
panel that he had been evicted
from non-profit housing and was
now homeless.
“It kind of means: 1 got pushed
under the bus, and since I’m un
der the bus I can look up and
say, ‘the wheel is about to fall
off,’” said Stull, wearing a bushy
beard and black knit cap, o f his
situation.
He said that he had trouble
finding a place to sleep, and was
often hassled under the c ity ’s
anti-camping ordinance, which
makes it illegal to sleep on public
property.
Stull explained that he had
been given flyers stating that tran
sitional housing was available.
H ow ever, w hen he in q u ire d
about it at Transitional Projects
Inc., he discovered that the wait
ing list was 10-weeks long.
“This is insane,” said an irate
Stull.
Deborah Willoughby, an infor
m ation referral specialist, said
that she has a good sense of
what needs are going unmet as
people call in to inquire about
social services, ranging from
hom e foreclosures to getting
badly needed medical services.
“W hat we're seeing right now,
and it’s no surprise to anyone
working in social services, our
call volume is really high,” she
said.
She recalled how a w om an
with diabetes called in whose
teeth hurt so badly from u n
treated dental problems that she
Ask Deannal
Real People,
Dear Deanna!
W hat do you do w hen your
h u sband gets fat and out o f
shape? W hen we w ere m ar
ried, he w as in shape; he w ould
go to the gym and kept things
together. N ow h e ’s c o m fo rt
able and has gain ed a lot o f
w eight. It turns m e o ff so bad
that I c a n ’t be intim ate. T h is is
cau sin g us to argue a lot and
he tells m e that I have to take
him as he is because h e 's not
c h a n g in g . W h a t c a n I do
ab o u t th is? --Lorraine; Ja ck
sonville, Fla.
Dear Lorraine:
photo by J ake T homas /T he
P ortland O bserver
A busy Old Town sidewalk fronts the nonprofit Sisters o f the Road café, a social services organization that provides vital services to the homeless and
other disadvantaged populations. The café serves, hot, nutritious meals that can be purchased in a variety o f ways, including with cash, food stamps,
or in exchange for work.
couldn’t eat. W illoughby also
mentioned how a laid-off carpen
ter called in who needed serious
medical attention from a broken
wrist. Both had very limited re
sources, she said.
T he m eeting also revealed
how gentrification has driven
many residents from north and
northeast Portland out to east
Multnomah County, which com
plicates the work of social ser
vice providers.
Jim Buck, chair o f the East
C o u n ty C a rin g C o m m u n ity ,
noted that none o f the meetings
on the Consolidated Plan were
within five miles o f Gresham,
which poses a barrier for resi
dents of East County in getting
their voices heard.
“W e’ve seen increased migra
tion from gentrification in neigh
b o rh o o d s ,” sa id B u ck , w ho
drove 20 miles to attend the meet
ing. “I certainly ask that you look
at that in terms o f collecting in
formation."
Pat Daniels, who works with
the jo b training provider Con
structing Hope, noted that her
organization, w hich prepares
African American men with crimi
nal histories for construction
jobs, has had its work com pli
cated because o f gentrification
in north and northeast Portland.
T he m eeting also revealed
what does work.
Brian Franz told the panel how
he w as o n ce h o m e le s s and
struggled with substance abuse,
but with the help o f Central City
Concern, a large social services
provider, he got clean, got a job,
and is now living a productive
life. He stressed that funding for
similar services was essential.
A number o f individuals from
local non-profits made an impas
sioned case for more funding for
job training and micro loans for
small entrepreneurs, arguing that
both were essential to getting
people connected with living-
wage jobs.
Andrew Mason, the director
of Open Meadows, which oper
ates an alternative school and job
training program, hoped that the
Consolidated Plan would include
jo b training funding for young
p eo p le w ho face o ften h av e
trouble getting work from a lack
of experience.
He brought along 20-year-old
Jacqueline Seeley, who a landed
a job in an assisted living facility
from her jo b training at Open
M eadows.
“We can’t get into good jobs
without some sort o f back story -
without someone to really speak
for us,” said Seeley, who is now
studying to be a nurse, o f the
barriers young people face in
getting work.
T h e n e x t m e e tin g is on
Wednesday, Nov. 4 at the United
Way at 619 S.W. 11 th Ave. from
2-4 p.m. The following day, an
other hearing will be held from
6-8 p.m. a, New Columbia Com
munity Center, 4605 N. Trenton
St.
T h e p lan n ee d s to be a p
proved by both G resham and
Portland city councils, as well as
the Multnomah County Board of
Commissioners.
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and be fat and happy together.
Dear Deanna!
I m ade m y se lf get o u t o f an
ab u siv e rela tio n sh ip . 1 w as
beaten, verbally abused, raped
and torm en ted on a daily basis
fo r alm o st three years. 1 had
co n v in ced m y se lf that I loved
this m an and his abuse w as his
w ay o f show ing affection. I’m
at a p o in t now w here I feel as
if I’ve m oved on. H ow ever, my
ex -b o y frien d is now trying to
com e back and h e ’s convinced
m e that h e 's chan g ed . S hould
I give him an o th er ch an ce? —
N O W D E L IV E R IN G
Y o u r fa v o r ite n e ig h b o r h o o d g r o c e r y s to r e n o w d e liv e rs
g r o c e r ie s r ig h t to y o u r h o m e o r o ffic e .
à
Rebecca: Buffalo, N. Y.
Dear Rebecca:
If you go back, be sure you
have y o u r fun eral a rra n g e
m ents in o rd er o r get ready for
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N o, you sh o u ld n 't g iv e him
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k illing you. T he w ritin g ’s on
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If y o u ’re resp o n sib le for the
cooking, then perhaps you can
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