Local News
Portland Celebrates Juneteenth’s 150-year Anniversary
T
his year marks the
150th anniversary of
the end of slavery in
America. On Saturday, June
20, 2015, all Portlanders are
invited to join a very special
celebration of freedom.
Annually, millions of peo-
ple across the U.S. join the
African-American communi-
ty to recognize “Juneteenth,”
a commemoration of the lib-
eration of the last slaves on
June 19, 1865 in Galveston,
Texas. Today in Texas, June-
teenth is a recognized state
holiday.
In Portland, on June 20, the
day will begin with a com-
munity parade down Martin
Luther King, Jr. Boulevard,
starting at 11:00 am. From 12
Noon to 6:00 pm, a public
festival will be held at Lega-
cy Field on NE Vancouver
Avenue at NE Russell Street.
The event features musical
performances by local artists,
a marketplace, delicious
foods, and a Kids Fun space
with games, crafts and
bounce-houses.
Portland is the first and
only city in the U.S. to host
an Historic Pavilion featur-
ing
actors
portraying
historical figures like Harriet
Tubman, who in character,
tell their amazing life stories
to adults and children.
This year, organizers are
planning the largest program
yet thanks to generous spon-
sors like Wells Fargo Bank,
Legacy Health Systems, and
The Skanner News Group
and support from the City of
Portland.
The Juneteenth planning
group is seeking more volun-
teers, vendors and sponsors.
Please contact us at juneteen-
thoregon@gmail.com or call
503-381-0056 to join this
milestone celebration of free-
dom.
Portland’s unique Juneteenth features renowned actors wrick Jones (playing
Frederick douglass) and Skeeter Greene (as Beatrice Cannady).
Legacy Program
Trains Lifelong
runners
By Arashi Young
Of The Skanner
News
Y
ears of a seden-
tary
lifestyle
were taking a toll
on Kim Lowry. Exercise
always seemed to be the
last priority in her busy
life. But, after a visit to
her doctor last year, she
found out she was on the
verge of becoming dia-
betic. At that moment,
she knew she had to
make a lifestyle change.
By chance, she ran
across the Legacy Health
Couch-to-Starlight 5k
Training
Program
through a Facebook post.
Lowry nabbed the last
spot and spent the next 8
weeks preparing for her
first 5k (3.1 mile) race.
to” into someone who
regularly completes 5k
runs.
The original regimen
involves interval training
where the athlete runs a
short distance and then
walks a short distance.
As training progresses
and the runners get
stronger, they run longer
distances and walk less.
The Legacy program is
open to those who have
never run before, runners
who are recovering from
an injury and seasoned
runners who want to
improve their form. The
group sessions will be
accompanied by physical
therapists that are there
to give advice and moti-
vation.
Those who participate
in the program will
‘I didn’t think I could do it,
but now I can. Anyone can
really; it’s just getting off the
couch and starting’
Training began April 7
for the 2015 Legacy
Health Starlight Run.
Practice groups meet
once a week to partici-
pate in group workouts
and learn how to run
properly. Legacy offers
meetings in five loca-
tions;
Downtown
Portland, West Portland,
Tualatin, Troutdale and
Vancouver, Washington.
The end goal is to run
the 5k in the 37th annual
Legacy Health Starlight
Run on May 30. The run
takes place on the
Starlight Parade route
during the Portland Rose
Festival.
The Couch-to-Starlight
5k program takes its
name from the Couch-to-
5k running plan which is
a method to transform a
non-runner “couch pota-
Page 6 The Portland and Seattle Skanner April 8, 2015
receive a professional
training plan written by
the physical therapists.
There will also be infor-
mational sessions before
each group workout
where the therapists will
go over:
Shoe analysis
Dynamic stretching
Injury prevention
Strengthening your core
Proper running form
Equipment
Hydration and Nutrition
The cost of the pro-
gram is $40 which
includes registration in
the
Legacy
Health
Starlight Run and an
official run T-shirt.
Legacy is essentially
offering eight coaching
sessions for $10 total.
Read the rest online at
ww.theskanner.com