Portland observer., May 22, 2024, Image 1

Volume LII • Number 10
‘City
of
Roses’
Grand
Marshall
Announced
Foundation
Welcomes
Leaders
Sports Bra CEO
to be in Parade
New Opportunities
for Discovery
Page 9
Page 11
www.portlandobserver.com
Wednesday • May 22, 2024
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Abuse Victim
Creates
Nonprofit to
Help Others
Yolanda Merriweather
From left, Oscar Arana (NAYA CEO), Patricia Rojas (regional housing director at Metro), Ivory Mathews (executive director
of Home Forward), Dr. Adrien Bennings (PCC president), Helmi Hisserich (director of the Portland Housing Bureau), and
Natasha Detweiler-Daby (director of Affordable Rental Housing Division).
our commitment to holistic community
development. Through collaboration
with key partners, we've created more
than just a center; we've created a hub
for opportunity and stability."
The neighborhood revitalization
effort will also include a 16,000-square-
foot plaza for community events and a
casual amphitheater. Additionally, the
Oregon Department of Human Services
will have an on-site office, and the
Multnomah County Health Department
will open a community health center
next year.
The PCC Killingsworth develop-
ment, scheduled for completion by
summer 2025, exemplifies best practic-
es in community-driven solutions and
economic mobility support. Funded by
By Beverly Corbell
Yolanda Merriweather’s childhood was
marked by poverty, so much so that she
and her brother had to work during sum-
mers to buy school clothes for the fall. But
things got worse after she had a baby at
17, and her mother kicked her out in the
middle of winter.
“I had nowhere to go, and it still brings
tears to my eyes,” she said. “I bounced
from house to house with my baby, and
people would take my things, even take
the baby’s juice.”
After that, she endured domestic vio-
lence from a partner who held a gun to
her head when she tried to leave, choked
her to unconsciousness, and harassed and
stalked her to the point that she had to
leave her home in Vancouver and moved
to Las Vegas.
She also felt the effects of colorism
in her own family. Her father’s side was
French Creole, with very light skin, while
her skin is dark. “My father’s family was
not the kindest to me,” she said, and she
didn’t feel smart or attractive.
Continued on Page 4
Continued on Page 4
PCC And Partners Break Ground!
Featuring 84
Income-Based
Apartment Homes!
A significant milestone was reached
May 15 with the groundbreaking of
the PCC Killingsworth apartment
community in Northeast Portland.
The event, celebrated by Portland
Community College, Home Forward
and the Native American Youth and
Family Center (NAYA), was attended
by leaders from the Portland Housing
Bureau, Metro, Oregon Housing
and Community Services, housing
advocates, and various partners.
The new development, set to be a
vibrant community hub, will feature
84 income-based apartment homes,
including 18 studios, six one-bedroom
units, 45 two-bedroom units, and 15
three-bedroom units. Key amenities
include bike storage, Wi-Fi, outdoor
courtyards, a family room, a community
kitchen, a large laundry room, and an
experiential playscape. The project
will be co-located with the new PCC
Opportunity Center at 42nd Ave.,
enhancing the community's resources
and opportunities.
Ivory Mathews, CEO of Home For-
ward, expressed her excitement, stat-
ing, "This collaboration is a testament
to what can be achieved when organiza-
tions come together with a shared vision
of creating opportunities for families to
thrive and communities to prosper."
Dr. Adrien L. Bennings, president
of PCC, emphasized the project's
broader impact, highlighting the
Opportunity Center's role in community
development. "This project exemplifies