Page 4
May 19, 2021
Scholarships Build on Community
VOA names
annual Al
Forthan scholars
Volunteers of America Ore-
gon recently awarded $60,000
in scholarships to 29 Oregon
students coming from families
impacted by alcohol and drugs
in an effort to break the cycles of
addition.
The Al Forthan Scholarship
awards on May 5 paid tribute to
each scholarship recipient for the
tremendous courage they have
shown.
“A lot of times I don’t want to
share my story because I want to
avoid the pity and the pain that
follows from remembering,” said
Al Forthan
scholarship recipient Yahir Gon-
zalez. “Applying to the scholar-
ship has been immensely liber-
ating. I have found a community
that encourages one to find solu-
tions to generational patterns of
addiction. A community that be-
Show of Force Grows
C ontinued froM p age 3
According to a statement an-
nouncing the joint police and FBI
effort from the mayor and city
commissioners, authorities found
that there are “imminent” efforts
from outside groups, some travel-
ing from Washington and Califor-
nia, to “engage and advance gun
violence” in the city.
When pressed about what kind
of groups were involved, Lovell
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C ontinued on p age 10
year, compared with four by this
time last year and three at this
time in 2019, he said.
Seven people that were shot
at a vigil for a shooting victim in
Gresham last month. A statement
from Wheeler and the City Coun-
cil noted that there are several
upcoming vigils and funerals that
could be targets for more shoot-
ings.
“Our goal is to deescalate and
lower the tensions in the commu-
nity that are fueling this crisis,”
they said.
COVID Business Help Back on Track
C ontinued froM p age 3
For your light bulbs & parts
to repair or make fixtures
said thought the shootings were
gang-related and involved retali-
ation.
“There’s a cycle of violence
here that we’re trying to break,”
he said.
Since the beginning of May,
before Sunday, police have re-
sponded to 40 reports of shots
fired, with four people killed and
14 injured in shootings, Lovell
said. There have also been 31
homicides in the city so far this
lieves in me.”
Another student talked about
the pain of her parents’ addic-
tion, “It has led to personal in-
securities and harmful situations
throughout my life. However, it
has also made me stronger than
anyone could imagine a teenager
being,” said Rena Howard.
Author Nicholas Kristof was
keynote speaker for the ceremo-
ny.
“Addiction is a hard subject
to talk about. I tend to think that
as a country the issues that we
are worst at tackling, as a public
policy matter, are those issues
that are hard to talk about.” Kris-
tof continued, “If we don’t talk
July by the Oregon Legislature’s
Emergency Board. The monies
had been locked up because of a
lawsuit that was recently settled.
“We are working as fast as
possible to notify applicants and
distribute awards, while ensuring
security and compliance,” said
Anthony Jordan, president of The
Contingent, the nonprofit admin-
istering the funds.
Grant awards will go to those
entities and individuals that ap-
plied for the fund in Novem-
ber and December of 2020 and
demonstrated financial harm due
to COVID-19. No new grant ap-
plications are being accepted.
Applicants do not need to re-ap-
ply or take any further action.
Officials said that due to the
need for COVID-aid outpacing
the amount of aid available and
the need to follow U.S. Treasury
guidelines regarding Federal fund
disbursement, not all applications
are guaranteed funding.
In March, The Oregon Cares
Fund reached a settlement agree-
ment with plaintiffs in a federal
lawsuit filed against the fund. The
agreement allowed the remaining
$8.8 million temporarily held
by the court to be distributed to
Black Oregonians, Black-owned
businesses and Black-led non-
profits.
The court immediately re-
leased $5.3 million. The remain-
ing $3.5 million continues to be
held by the court, but those funds
are expected to be disbursed in
the future upon court approval,
officials said.
The Oregon Cares Fund was a
targeted grant program available
to help Black individuals and
families, Black business owners
and Black-led nonprofits across
Oregon weather the financial
harm caused by COVID-19.
This was necessary because
the Black community often re-
ceives a disproportionately lower
amount of financial support from
relief funds, such as last year’s
CARES Act passed by Congress,
officials said.
Jazz Phenon Eyes Artists’ Sanctuary
C ontinued froM f ront
plinary restoration-themed music
projects.
“The environment most condu-
cive to my wellness and creative
productivity is one where oth-
er frontline cultural-workers are
supported and immersed in their
own artistic devotions,” Spalding
said. “Hence, my intention for
this Sanctuary to serve a very real
need among my community for
BIPOC artist-led space to gather,
share ideas, and practice regenera-
tive gardening.”
Spalding has a goal of recruit-
ing 300 individuals to donate
$1,000 by June 3 to complete the
purchase of a property at 10302 N.
Charleston Ave., with contributors
receiving an invitation to watch
her perform in an exclusive zoom
concert.
To donate, visit gofundme.
com/f/esperanzas-bipoc-art-
ist-sanctuary-in-portland.gofund-
me.com/f/esperanzas-bipoc-art-
ist-sanctuary-in-portland