A6 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2017
COMMENTARY
Widening opportunity gap
requires immediate action
As 2017 draws to a close, we consider the challenges,
hopes and opportunities for the year ahead and we are
confronted with the stark reality that Oregon can and
must do better for children and families. It is humbling
to know that more than 100,000 children in Oregon
are living in households with $800 a month or less in
income. If nothing changes, these children — and many
more in Oregon — are unlikely to escape poverty and its
effects during their lifetime.
New research from The Oregon Community
Foundation confirms that disparities in Oregon are
growing along socioeconomic, racial and geographic
lines. The circumstances of one’s birth, where one
is born, and longstanding patterns of discrimination
determine the life-long opportunities that are available to
Oregon’s children. Families face economic stagnation,
children face barriers to quality education and
neighborhoods are increasingly segregated and isolated.
Left unaddressed, this gap in opportunity will cut to the
very core of Oregon’s future.
But we can change this trajectory and close the
opportunity gap for many of Oregon’s children by
supporting economically and racially integrated
affordable housing solutions, encouraging community
engagement and promoting leadership development.
Parenting education and expanded career and technical
education opportunities are also part of the solution. We
need to invest in education, from quality and affordable
childcare and preschool to out-of-school enrichment,
mentoring, and access to higher education. These
strategies will be most successful when they are led by
community members who can best define community
assets, problems and potential solutions. When seeking
to improve outcomes for low-income communities and
communities of color, members of those communities
need to play a leadership role in designing feasible and
sustainable solutions.
Challenges and assets in each community are varied
and there is not one “silver bullet” solution. But we have
faith in the real power of Oregon communities to address
these challenges because we see examples around the
state where communities, donors, volunteers, local
government leaders and great nonprofit organizations are
addressing these challenges.
As we enter the new year, we challenge Oregon
communities to focus on the children whose promise
of the American dream is becoming an illusion. Timely
solutions will come from committed Oregonians who
are willing to organize, collaborate, advocate and invest
in families and strategies that renew the promise of the
American dream for every Oregon child.
HH FILE PHOTO
Volunteers Jeanie Turner and Don Self prepare food for guests in April at Desert Rose Ministries in Hermiston.
Giving is not just for Christmas time
t the end of our last
Leadership Herm-
iston class, we
explored a topic I hadn’t
expected to touch on so
early: is it important to be
recognized for the good you
do?
It was in the context of a
yearlong class project, but it
applied to the theme of the
day we’d just spent. Lead-
ership Hermiston is metered
out into monthly classes
exploring different sides of
the community, and Decem-
ber’s focus was “Human
Needs and Services.”
We spent the day visit-
ing Head Start, Desert Rose
Ministries, Agape House,
Guardian Angel Homes and
the Department of Human
Services. We also heard
from people at the Warm-
ing Station and the Domes-
tic Violence Shelter.
At each stop, we learned
about people in the commu-
nity who suffer from lack
of a basic service. There are
under-nourished kids and
families that can’t support
them, recovering addicts
A
Tim Mabry
Hermiston
Letters Policy: Letters to the Editor is a forum for the Hermiston Herald read-
ers to express themselves on local, state, national or world issues. Brevity is
good, but longer letters should be kept to 250 words.
No personal attacks; challenge the opinion, not the person. The Hermiston
Herald reserves the right to edit letters for length and for content.
Send letters to editor@hermistonherald.com, or Hermiston Herald, 333 E.
Main St., Hermiston, OR 97838 or use this online form.
0
or homeless that stop in
for a hot meal, or the peo-
ple between jobs that need
a safe, warm bed. There
are women who are vic-
tims of domestic abuse and
stalking, and children who
get passed to several differ-
ent foster homes in a year.
As Jody Frost of DHS
said, “All the stuff that hap-
pens in big cities — we’ve
got it here. It just looks dif-
ferent in rural America.”
It’s encouraging to hear
from people making a dent
in those problems. But, as
Frost said, if the problems
look different here, the solu-
tions may look different
as well. At each stop, we
learned how we could help
your wallet, but for each
one, the donation of time is
even more valuable. They
involve varying degrees of
commitment and respon-
sibility — from reading
to students through Head
Start’s SMART program or
volunteering at the Warm-
ing Station, to becoming a
foster parent or a Court-Ap-
pointed Special Advocate.
Which brings me back
to my original thought: is it
important to be recognized
for the good you do? Or, the
fact that you did something
for others at Christmas?
I’m inclined to say no.
Giving is good whenever
you can do it. The organiza-
tions we visited serve some
of the most invisible mem-
bers of the community. It’s
important to keep them in
mind — and not just during
the most visible giving time
of year.
———
Jayati Ramakrishnan is
a reporter of the Hermiston
Herald and East Oregonian.
Contact her at jramakrish-
nan@hermistonherald.com.
% UP TO 72 MONTHS
ON SELECT NEW 2017 & 2018 TOYOTA MODELS
On Approved Credit
NEW 2018
NEW 2018
NEW 2018
COROLLA
$
Jayati
Ramakrishnan
the people at those places,
and most often, the requests
they made were not for sup-
plies, but for donations of
money and time.
It’s no coincidence, I’m
sure, that this particular
Leadership Hermiston les-
son fell so close to Christ-
mas. It makes sense. Peo-
ple are in a giving mood,
it’s the end of the year and
charitable deductions are on
people’s minds, and some of
the organizations we visited
focus on providing basic
warmth and shelter needs
that are perhaps even more
important during this time
of year.
But in marrying the idea
of charitable giving to one
single holiday, it’s easy
to forget that those needs
don’t disappear for the rest
of the year. Come spring,
the domestic violence shel-
ter will still need people to
answer the crisis line, and
Desert Rose will still be
serving hot meals every day.
For some of the organiza-
tions we visited, the best
thing you can do is open
235
CAMRY
L
/MO
On Approved
Credit
ONLY $ 235
DUE AT SIGNING
249
$
RAV4
LE
/MO
On Approved
Credit
294
$
ONLY $ 249
DUE AT SIGNING
AWD LE 2
/MO
On Approved
Credit
ONLY $ 294
DUE AT SIGNING
Stk #18h165 New 2018 Toyota Corolla L. Sale $19,048. GFU $10,241. Net Cap Cost $18,698.21. After $1,000 rebate by Toyota Financial Services. 36 month/12k mile per year lease at $235 cash down = $235/mo. On approved credit. No security deposit required. Plus tax, title and $75 doc fee.
Stk #18h243 New 2018 Toyota Camry LE. Sale $23,884. GFU $14,083. Net Cap Cost $22,984.86. After $1,250 rebate by Toyota Financial Services. 36 month/12k mile per year lease at $249 cash down = $249/mo. On approved credit. No security deposit required. Plus tax, title and $75 doc fee.
Stk #18h181 New 2018 Toyota Rav4 LE AWD. Sale $26,153. GFU $15,854. Net Cap Cost $25,802.25. After $1,000 rebate by Toyota Financial Services. 36 month/12k mile per year lease at $294 cash down = $294/mo. On approved credit. No security deposit required. Plus tax, title and $75 doc fee.
For all leases: Subvention cash from Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), not applicable for cash back offers and must qualify for cash through Toyota Financial Services, does not include college or military rebate. Based on 12k miles per year lease. Available to qualified customers through Toyota Financial Services, except Tacoma lease which is on approved credit thru US Bank. Not all customers will qualify. $350 disposition fee due at lease end.
For all offers: Offers cannot be combined, other restrictions may apply. See dealer for details. A documentary service fee of $75 will be added to vehicle price or capitalized cost. Does not include taxes, license, title, processing fees, insurance and dealer charges. Subject to availability. Must take retail delivery from dealer stock by 1/2/18.