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lune 8, 2011
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Page 5
Good in the Neighborhood, a Family Affair
Table set for annual
\n
multicultural
Qk '
celebration
by M indy C ixiper
T he P ortland
O bserver
T he m onth o f June
has finally arrived, and
people throughout the
city are getting ready for
the 19th annual G ood in
the N eighborhood festival com ing up
on J une 24-26 at King School Park, w here
fam ilies and friends w ill com e to g eth er to
once again celebrate the unique diversity o f
the com m unity.
T he m ission o f the festival is to celebrate
cultural diversity found throughout the north
and northeast Portland com m unity.
Stakeholders have been preparing all year
to bring the festival to life, explained Lafreda
C easar, w ho co- ow ns one o f the sponsoring
th p
to o n e o f P o rtla n d ’s b e st D Js, as
w ell as be c a p tiv a te d by the p re
se n ta tio n o f fu tu re le a d e rs fro m
the h ig h sch o o l g ra d u a tin g class
o f 2011.
Festival sanctioned event that attracts m ore
and m ore people each year, but C easar said
com panies. Baseline entertainm ent,
m ore sponsors and pledges o f support will
w ith her husband W illiam . Af- young people h a v e n ’t been as en g ag ed in help m ake the event be an even bigger suc
t ter
p r f four
our m
n t h o as
ac a
o m
m K ber
n«-
m n onths
m o em
the ev en t,” she said. “ A nd we w anted to give
cess.
o f the planning com m ittee,
them som ething to feel good ab o u t.”
She co m m en d ed the w ork by the chairs o f
o
she is excited for June to
-s
T he festival, w ith free adm ission, will fea the festival as the reason the event has been
finally arrive.
ture a w ide variety o f m usical en tertainm ent,
able to happen for so long.
The schedule for G ood as well as allow m em bers o f the com m unity to
“T hey keep this thing going every year,
in th e N e ig h b o rh o o d is represent their ow n m ulti-cultural traditions
and they do this at no ch arg e,” she said. It’s
packed w ith talented m usi and educational opportunities. T here w ill be
am azing how m uch they do.”
cians. N ’T ouch will appear ethnic foods, an arts and craft area, ethnic
C easar further expressed her excitem ent
live w ith special perform ances
m arketplace, and a com m unity inform ation
for the G ood N eighbor night on Friday, June
by Abduel Hall, Saeeda W right, Patrick
village.
24, w hich wi 11 be a red carpet event. “O ften we
Lam b and C hatta A ddy.
C easar em phasized the im portance for d o n 't take the tim e to ho n o r each o ther,” she
This y ear’s them e is ‘I f s a fam ily A ffair, ’ people to understand that, even w ith the influx
said. “T his will be a great opportunity for
w hich C easar said goes hand in hand w ith
o f recent the gang violence, the celebration will people to com e out and w alk the red carpet,
new featured events that will take place for be a safe event for people to com e together.
hear som e good m usic, and let people know
y o u th .
She told how the festival ’ s planning com m ittee
w e are the stars o f the co m m u n ity .”
“W e have new additions o f w hat we are has been in coordination with the Portland
F or further inform ation on w ays to be
bringing to the table,” she explained. “This
Police Bureau, which is com m itted to provid com e involved w ith the G ood in the N eigh
y ear there will be a k id ’s space, w hich will
ing security all weekend.
b o rh o o d , v is it th e f e s t i v a l ’s w e b s ite ,
feature hula-hoop lessons.”
G ood in T he N eighborhood is a R ose g o o d in th e n e ig h b o rh o o d .o rg .
X
o
Debutante Ball
Celebrates 60 Years
C e le b ra tin g 6 0 y e ars o f c o m
m u n ity serv ice , the L es F em m es
y o u th o rg a n iz a tio n p re s e n ts its
a n n u a l an d D e b u ta n te B all on
S u n d a y Ju n e 12, at the R ed L ion
H o te l on the R iv e r at Ja n tz e n
B each.
T h e p r e s tig io u s e v e n t is a
w h o ’s w ho a m o n g the in flu en tia l
an d p ro m in e n t in th e c o m m u n ity .
T h e d o o rs w ill o p e n at 6 :3 0 p.m .
A m o n g the n ig h t’s list o f e x c it
ing e v e n ts, g u e st w ill be serv ed a
fo rm al an d e le g a n t d in n e r, d an ce
A basketball tournam ent w as also added
to the agenda as a w ay to have m ore events
for the youth to take part in. “ In the past,
T h e b a ll is th e c u lm in a tio n
e v e n t o f a y e a r-lo n g p ro c e ss th at
sta rts in e a rly S e p te m b e r w h en
ap p licatio n s are due from p ro sp e c
tiv e p a rtic ip a n ts.
D e b u ta n te s a tte n d w o rk sh o p s
in e tiq u e tte c o lle g e p re p a ra tio n ,
re la tio n s h ip s, an d a h o st o f o th e r
e m p o w e rin g su b jec ts. T h e y m eet,
w o rk w ith an d e sta b lish p o sitiv e ,
la stin g re la tio n sh ip s. T h e y a lso
w o rk e ffe c tiv e ly a n d c o o p e r a
tiv e ly w ith a d u lts fro m th e c o m
m un ity .
F o r D e b u ta n te B all tic k e ts and
m o re in fo rm a tio n , c all 5 0 3 -2 8 4 -
3 5 9 1 , leav e a m essag e at 5 0 3 -6 6 0 -
3327
or
e m a il
LesfianmesEtebiitantes.txgig’gmail.cxm
1948 Vanport Flood remembered
W ith the C olum bia R iver rising
I t rl 1 a few
Frxaa ■ inches
a lx awaa o f X* flood-
XI * J
to it
w / ithin
stage level, rem em bering the M ay
30, 1948 V anport Flood and its
afterm ath is all the m ore poignant.
T ens o f thousands o f fam ilies
lost their hom es in a m atter o f
seco n d s w hen th e d e v asta tin g
flood sw ept aw ay the entire com -
m unity o f V anport. R ecords indi-
_ a that
. 1 as few as 4 a, 15 a i lives w ere lost,
cate
but som e com m unity m em bers be-
lieve the num ber to be m uch higher,
A lyse Kay Spencer, an A frican
A m erican w om an w hose m other,
now deceased, w as a survivor o f the
V an p o rt flo o d w ants to rem in d
people o f the event that directly
affected so m any people.
S p en cer said, “ S u rv iv o rs su r
vived, becam e an intrinsic part o f
com m unities, fam ilies, n eighbor
hoods and are still here if not in
body, in spirit and the hearts and
souls o f those that love th e m ...”
C o n ta c t
Spencer
at
v an p o rtsu rv iv o rs@ sp irito n e.c o m .
Oregon Symphony
CARLOS KALM AR. M U SIC DIRECTOR
The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra
with Wynton Marsalis
Keeping Theater in View
c o n t i n u e d f r o m page 3
the R ite A id building across Sandy
B oulevard. But local resident E d
w ard Love said that people w ould
not use such parking because they
w ould have lim ited access to it.
L ove w as particularly vehem ent
a b o u t the e ffe c t on th e th eatre
façade. “If you put a five-story build
ing next to a three-story building, it
becom es the building o f p re-em i
n en ce.” H e called the plan “m aking
p a te ’ o f o u r golden goose.” O thers
called the theatre “our gem , o ur
nam esake,” and pointed out that it
w as on the N ational R egister o f H is
toric Places.
Sow ieja replied, “As often h ap
pens w ith designs, I disagree w ith
you. T his w o n ’t rob the theatre o f its
proposes to close this and replace it
with a public plaza. Closing the street
at end ends w ould create som e new
curb parking, but the plaza w ould
m ean a net loss o f five spaces.
Paul Clark, realtor and longtim e
local activist, said an adequate sup
ply o f parking was essential to the
health o f local businesses, and sev
eral shop ow ners agreed with him.
Gary M cCready, ow ner o f the nearby
H ollyw ood Court A partm ents, said,
“At least 50 percent o f your tenants
will ow n cars.” O thers said that at the
B ookm ark A partm ents, above the
H ollyw ood Library to the north, there
has been an overflow parking impact
on the surrounding neighborhood significance.”
despite easy access to transit.
The project will require tw o Type
S ow ieja said C reston H om es is II D esign R eview processes, one
seeking to secure parking space atop each for the building and the plaza.
>
►
Thursday, June i6 | 7:30 pm
L
/
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J
Acclaimed trumpeter, composer and band leader Wynton Marsalis
performs w ith his world-renowned Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra
- composed of many of the finest jazz players today.