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IjJorthmò (Obstruer
Making the Impossible Seem Routine
C a sc a d e
C o n n ectio n s
In the life of every educational
institution, there are events that
stand out as high-water marks that
will linger in the memory for years
and decades to come. For Portland
Com m unity C ollege’s Cascade
Campus, one of those events took
In other words, she has spent the
place recently when our Technol­ past four decades making the im­
ogy Education Building was offi­ possible seem routine.
cially renamed and dedicated for
Sen. Carter was the driving force
former State Sen. Margaret Carter. behind the creation of a Cascade
For a community college campus Campus program that now bears her
president, this is a pretty big deal. name, the Margaret Carter Skill Cen-
It’s not every day that we get to ter, which has helped more than
dedicate a building, let alone do so 6,000 people from this community
for someone as eminent and re­ get the skills they need to find and
spected as Sen. Carter. A virtual keep a living-wage job. These are
who’s-who of Oregon politicians the most underserved among us,
showed up to honor this extraordi­ the people most in need of a way to
nary woman, including Gov. John lift themselves to a better place, and
K itzh ab er, U .S. R ep. E arl the Skill Center has helped them to
Blumenauer, and a host of luminar­ d° >t-
ies from state, county and local
Sen. Carter’s life has been filled
government, as well as family, friends with many significant historical
and members of Portland’s faith firsts. A former state chair of the
community.
Oregon Democratic Party, she was
The life of Sen. Margaret Carter is the first African-American woman
the story of a remarkable journey. to head a major political party in the
This is a woman who made her way American West. She is a past presi-
here from Louisiana some four de­ dent of the National Organization of
cades ago as a single woman with Black Elected Legislative Women,
six children in tow. She was at a the first Oregonian to be elected to
crossroads in her life, and she had this prestigious position. She was
no way of knowing that the path she the first African-American woman
had chosen would lead to heights to be elected President Pro Tempore
she never imagined.
of the Oregon Senate.
And once she arrived here,
Carter was the author of land­
among the roses and the raindrops, mark divestiture laws targeted to
she bloomed. From the most chal­ South Africa during Apartheid, and
lenging of circum stances, she Sudan for genocide in the Darfur
climbed, giving of her time and tal­ region. She helped create a state
ents in service to those less fortu­ holiday to honor Dr. Martin Luther
nate. She is living proof that it King Jr., and she continues to work
doesn' t matter where you came from for the betterment of all Oregonians,
- it only matters where you’re go­ particularly those from traditionally
ing.
underrepresented communities.
And oh, what places she has
Sen. Carter has done all these
gone. Sen. C arter got her start in things because, above all else, she
education at Cascade Campus, cares for the well-being of this com­
and went on to become a counse­ munity. She cares about the hopes
lor, an instructor, and the first and dreams and struggles of the
African-American woman to serve people she has so ably represented.
in the Oregon Legislature. Along In all my years of working in educa­
the way she has nurtured and tion, I have never met someone so
guided a whole army of children, passionately dedicated to her con­
grandchildren and great-grand­ stituents, or so committed to the
children. She even found time to power of education to transform
be the adopted team mom for the peoples’ lives.
Portland Trail Blazers.
Thiscampus,thiscommunity and
ilie ^artlanh (©bserver
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A lgie
C. G atewood
th is
state
could not ask
for a better
advocate or a more stalwart cham­
pion than Sen. Carter. It is fitting
that future generations will see her
name on a building where people
learn the skills to transform their
lives, just as Sen. Carter transformed
her own and helped to do the same
for so many others.
In my mind, there is no person
more deserving, no person whose
life’s work is more worthy of such an
honor. The Sen. Margaret Carter
Technology Education Building will
stand as a testament to her deeds,
and an inspiration for others to seek
greatness.
Algie C. Gatewood is president
o f Portland Community College's
Cascade Campus.
T H E L A W O F F IC E S O F
Patrick John Sweeney, PC.
Patrick John Sweeney
Attorney at Law
1549 SE Ladd
Portland, Oregon
Portland:
(503) 244-2080
Hillsoboro:
(503)244-2081
Facsimile:
(503) 244-2084
Email:
Sweeney@PDXLawyer.com
Urban Jobs Initiative
1
AV*».
Urban League
o f Portland
Save the date:
Wednesday, November 30th
Urban Jobs Initiative Community Forum
Date: Wednesday, November 30th, 2011
6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Place:
Humboldt Gardens
Opportunity Center
5035 N Vancouver Ave.
(NE of Alberta St.)
Portland, Oregon
C o n ta c t us
w w w .u p d x .o rg
h ttp ://u r b a n jo b s in itia tiv e .
e v e n tb r ite .c o m /
5 0 3 -2 8 0 -2 6 0 0
Panelists
K a th le e n S a a d a t
In te rim D iversity D e v e lo p m e n t/A fttrm ative A ction a n d
Inclusion M a n a g e r,C ity o f P ortland
C arl T a lto n
President, CEO e n d Exec. C hair
P o rtlan d Fam ily o f Funds
J o h n G a rd n e r
CAW S In v e s tm e n t M a n a g e r
D e b ra L in d s a y
Il,r ■ f jo rtla n ò ( D b a e r u e r
P.O. Box 3137
4747 N.E. Martin L. King Jr. Blvd.
Portland, OR 97208
Portland, Oregon 97211
www.portlandobserver.com
Director o f Workforce & Developm ent Urban League o f
Portland
Sen. D ia n e R o s e n b a u m
SO -21, P o rtlan d (legislative s ta ff to a tte n d )