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That’s because one of the most important
parts of the process is determining whether
a given client is eligible for financial assis-
tance or other payment help.
So, while the headlines paint a picture of
a troubled system, scores of cheerful
helpers are waiting by phones in every cor-
ner of the county to help anyone who feels
toll- 800-777-2437; in Spanish, 800-499-
6940;
or
email
coveroregon@
cascadeaids.org;
for more on their help go to www.cas-
cadeaids.org/cover-oregon. Further, people
who are HIV/AIDS positive can talk to their
case manager at Multnomah County HIV
clinic to arrange help with the insurance
forms; starting in November a
Cascade AIDS Project staffer will
be at the HIV Day Center every
Wednesday; and more locations in
the future. 208 SW 5th Avenue
Suite 800, 503-223-5907.
• Central City Concern connect-
ed us to a voicemail for one staff
person who is helping with sign-
ups. 232 NW 6th Ave. Portland,
Oregon 97209, 503-294-1681.
• IRCO/Africa House, main
offices, Asian Family Center and
Senior Services Center-EPCC Office are all
offering in-person enrollment help from 9
a.m. to 5 p.m., call and schedule an appoint-
ment. IRCO main, 10301 NE Glisan St.,
Portland, 503-234-1541; IRCO Africa
House 631 NE 102nd Ave., Portland, 503-
235-9396; IRCO Asian Family Center, 8040
NE Sandy Blvd., Portland, OR , 503-802-
0082; IRCO Senior Services Center-EPCC
Office, 740 SE 106th Ave., Portland, 503
988-6073.
• Multnomah County Health Department,
referral line, open weekdays 8 a.m. -4:30
p.m., 503-988-2228, the operator schedules
you for a group intake (she offered us a
One of the most important
parts of the process is
determining whether a
given client is eligible for
financial assistance or other
payment help
adrift in the CoverOregon process – many
offering same-day appointments and most
ready to help all those who need it whether
or not they may fall within that organiza-
tion’s traditional community.
• African American Health Coalition, Inc.,
is offering appointments for signup help but
with only one staff person able to take calls
or make appointments, we had to leave a
message with another person in the office
for a callback. 2800 N. Vancouver Ave.,
Suite 100, 503-413-1850.
• Cascade AIDS Project, schedule an
appointment for in-person help by calling
the HIV/AIDS/STD hotline 503-223-2437;
PPHOTO BY HELEN SILVIS
continued from page 1
Antoinette Edwards, right, director of the Portland Office of Youth Violence
Prevention, this week receives the Social Justice Fund NW’s Jeanette
Rankin Award, in recognition of her lifetime achievement in community
activism. Here Edwards is pictured in her office on Oct. 22 with Portland
Parks and Recreation Ranger Dave Barrios, another major figure in
Portland’s social justice community. Barrios, a former police officer – and
Reed College alumnus – is a pioneer of community policing in Portland.
meeting on the same day) or a snail-mailed
application with instruction booklet.
• NAMI Oregon, has a dedicated phone
staff to help either in person or via tele-
phone (by appointment). 4701 SE 24th Ave.
Suite E, 503-230-8009.
ble. Specifically, she feels the character can
be a tool to serve the underserved.
The business also represents self-suffi-
ciency, a major tenet of the Nation of Islam.
“That is my goal. Be self-sufficient and
show people that when you become
self-sufficient you use your creativi-
ty,” says Nicole.
The American education system
only teaches people to be consumers
and workers, she says. Nicole wants
to demonstrate that there are more
empowering alternatives. She notes
that thinking outside of the box helped her
make the most of her jobs as a young per-
son.
Her hope is that kids see they can do their
art however they wish. She told this to chil-
dren at the Junior Rose Festival.
“They were like, ‘You’re a girl clown.
You’re a Black clown,’” says Nicole. “They
had a look like, ‘Oh, I can do something dif-
ferent.’”
Although the Brown Clown started with
Black organizations, Nicole gets the full
spectrum of clients.
Lents Founder’s Day sticks out to her, as
Rose Festival audition.
“I can come back with something that no
one else would say,” says Nicole. “Más o
menos means neither here nor there and
that’s kind of funny when a clown says
that.”
Culture is a large part of her char-
acter’s approachability. She bases
Nikki Brown Clown on classy,
Southern women she’s met over the
years.
Nicole’s mother is from Virginia,
her father is from Alabama and she
spent three years in the South as an adult.
“I tease my friends that I’m bi-coastal,”
she says.
Whenever she gets a compliment, she
gives it back, usually saying, “I’m a reflec-
tion of you sugar.”
health conditions around the world, Schenk
says.”
“If we as a community can become more
welcoming and understanding, we’re not
going to see so many people suffering in
silence. We’re going to see people getting
help earlier and getting on their way.”
Mental Health First Aid is a day -long,
hands-on training that teaches community
members the ABCs of mental health prob-
lems. Take the class and by the end of the
day you will know the signs and symptoms
of different mental illnesses, as well as how
and when to get professional help. You will
have the tools and the confidence to help
family and friends who are suffering.
Clackamas County Centerstone is taking
the lead locally, offering classes in Mental
Health First Aid. They are open to everyone
and cost $100, with a reduced price of $75
for anyone involved in support organiza-
tions, such as Folk Time.
“If cost is a problem let us know, because
we can possibly find you a scholarship,”
Schenk says.
Roberta Tyler and her granddaughters
LaQuoya, LaCrisha Tyler took the youth
Mental Health First Aid class this summer.
Tyler says her elder granddaughter had a
friend struggling with suicidal feelings and
desperately wanted to know how to help
him.
“They were begging me, please, please
can we do this class,” Tyler said. “And it
was phenomenal. I learned so much from
the kids who shared their stories. And I
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Clown
continued from page 2
“It fit me to a tee,” she says. “I’m not the
biggest person. Nor am I the smallest but I
am a particular size. To pull something off
the rack—a $12 dress—you can’t go
wrong.”
After her success at Juneteenth, other
Black organizations began reaching out.
She did events on short notice, mostly free
of charge. She just wanted exposure.
Things got serious this past spring. Nicole
took a three day, intensive workshop for the
Rose Festival. After the workshop, she trad-
ed in her Mid-K makeup for professional
grade clown cosmetics.
After becoming official, she registered
her business with the state.
Now, nonprofits are putting her in their
budgets.
It’s important to her that the Brown
Clown is separate from her job at Multnom-
ah County. She wants to make sure she can
share it with as broad an audience as possi-
Culture is a large part of her
character’s approachability
she reflects on the large, diverse Asian pop-
ulation that embraced her.
“You didn’t have to speak their language.
They got it,” she says.
Still, she wants to expand her command of
language. Her goal is to be able to hold
short conversations with anyone she comes
across.
In fact, speaking Spanish was part of her
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First Aid
continued from page 3
than heart disease and cancer added togeth-
er. One in four people are dealing with
mental illness at any one time. And around
half of everyone will suffer from a mental
disorder at some point in our lives. On the
positive side, most people do recover, espe-
cially if they get help and support.
“You don’t have to be a professional,”
says Susie Schenk, the lead crisis specialist
with Clackamas County behavioral health.
“It only takes one person to make a dif-
ference and that person can be you.”
That’s the thinking behind a growing
movement called Mental Health First Aid.
Started in Australia in 2001, Mental Health
First Aid reached the United States in 2008.
“It’s a class that is really changing the
dynamic and the understanding of mental
learned so much about mental health. It
really gives you tools you can use.”
The three feature in a short documentary
film about the class that aired at the Bing
lounge in downtown Portland, Oct. 11.
Directed by Nili Yosha, the film showed
young people and family members going
through the training.
The film was sponsored by mental health
peer-to-peer support organization Folk
Time, along with Open Minds Open Doors,
a Clackamas County campaign to reduce
discrimination against mentally ill people.
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October 23, 2013 The Portland Skanner Page 3