Jane Ames's blog

PAL HOSTS SAFE HAVEN SPRING BREAK 2008

Portland, Oregon:  March 24-28, 2008, the Police Activities League of Portland will be hosting Safe Haven Spring Break 2008 at the PAL Youth Center, 424 NE 172nd Ave.

A few weeks ago, on Feb. 20th , the Office of Youth Violence Prevention reported to City Council. During the morning session it became clear there are three necessary legs of a stool to tackle gang problems: law enforcement, parole and probation, and community outreach programs all need to be present and strategically working in partnership.

CASH (Creating Assets, Savings and Hope) Oregon, in partnership with the City of Portland,  has  a year of growth and development.  CASH Oregon  helps CASH helpspeople receive the money that the IRS owes them.  Many qualify for refunds, even if they owe no taxes.  But people must file their tax returns to receive their refunds, either their Earned Income Tax Credits,  federal tax refunds or other credits due them.  In 2007, CASH Oregon and AARP Tax-Aide formalized their growing partnership to develop more capacity to serve our residents. 

On August 7th 2007, a minivan-load of Adams' staff, associates, and Sam headed out to wander from one NNO party to the next. Each year we target a quadrant of Portland to visit. We call ahead to make sure the hosts are ok with our visit, then head off, happy to be out meeting neighbors at the parties. National Night Out is Party on Mt. Taboran annual event, designed to heighten community awareness of crime and drug prevention and the role that each and all of us play in prevention.

A lot of workAs North Interstate climbs up to meet the Broadway Bridge, passing the grain elevators to the west, the road has been built up and underneath it is an area that is often called the "Tillamook Caves".  For some time people have camped under there, creating "homes" with cardboard, old mattresses, discards and such.  Everyone I have spoken with, whether it is police, homeless advocates, Portland Transportation Dept. employees, business owners, describes it as a scary place, a camp filled with criminal and dangerous activity.  When police did a clean up there several months ago, they hauled out multiple dumpsters full of stuff, including filling a five-gallon bucket with used needles.

All veterans deserve our respect and appreciation for their service to our community and country. This is an issue that resonates deeply with Portlanders of a wide range of political beliefs. No matter where individuals stand on particular wars, or war in general, those citizens who serve and put themselves in harm's way as part of that service deserve our welcome and support when they return home. Welcome Back

To address support needs many veterans experience when they return to civilian life, the Veterans Reintegration Summit was held on Oct. 29, 2007. The primary goal was to explore how businesses, higher education leaders, healthcare providers, civic leaders and citizens can come together to help veterans receive resources they and their families need to return to their normal lives.

Multnomah County Sheriffs and Port of PortlandSam's intention regarding public safety is to identify what is necessary to provide public safety services in the most effective and efficient manner possible, regardless of who is doing the providing. Services are divided up by the type: generally fire, law enforcement, and emergency. And they are divided by the jurisdiction: Portland, Multnomah County, Gresham, Vancouver, Clark County and such. While a division of labor and responsibilities is necessary, there are trade-offs as each agency works independently and establishes its own protocols, communication systems, and record and data reporting methods. When you add the unique aspects of providing pubic safety upon water, the need for intentional coordination and communication is clear. While coordination and cooperation happen already, there is room for improvement.

"It's Labor Day, so instead of everyone going to work, we are all going to a picnic."

This was the very clear explanation the woman walking behind me to Oaks Amusement Park told her son, who was wondering why so many of us were walking along this trail.Picnicing with FriendsSam and Felicia at SEIUMulti-tasking MomVisiting at the Picnic

Starting out in the Sunnyside NeighborhoodNational Neighborhood Night Out has become a tradition in Sam's office. Each year a van load of staff join Sam in attending several of the neighborhood parties throughout one quadrant of Portland. This year we visited parties in SouthEast Portland.Mt. Tabor Neighbors

Schools are starting up, and student energy will begin to focus in from the expansiveness of summer life lessons to the intentional lessons that make up formal education. Many of those lessons involve reading: either learning to read, or learning from reading.

Chalk It Up for Oregon LiteracyA few weeks ago Sam addressed those gathered for the Oregon Literacy event in Pioneer Courthouse Square.

It is National Night Out again when neighbors throughout Portland, and across the U.S. and Canada, gather for picnics on their streets or in their yards, sit out on the front porch, and in general visit with their neighbors. Portland typically holds over 150 picnics and parties, some are eight to 10 people, others are attended by hundreds.

Last year over 34 Million people participated in National Night Out events in the US and Canada. So walk about your neighborhood, or in your parks and find some neighbors celebrating NNO.

With support from the City of Portland, CASH Oregon (Creating Assets, Savings, and Hope) completed a successful tax season, assisting over 1500 taxpayers at its free Tax Aide site in the Lloyd Center Mall. This year, CASH connected working families in Portland to over $440,000 in Earned Income Tax Credits and over $1 million in federal tax refunds. And, with the help of dedicated volunteer tax preparers, CASH saved working families over $330,000 in tax preparation fees.

Yet, CASH connected taxpayers to more than just tax credits and refunds; it also connected taxpayers to the Portland Clean River Rewards program. All taxpayers coming to CASH Oregon's Lloyd Center office received information about the program and were able to talk a representative from the Clean River Rewards, who signed up eligible customers for the program as they waited to have their taxes prepared. Taxpayers who did not qualify for assistance were encouraged to spread the word about the discount. The CASH Oregon tax office provides a convenient and comfortable platform for working families in Portland to access the City discount program.

An important economic impact for Portland and Oregon, will result from the capital funding allocation for the Oregon University System. The $561 million capital budget  including the $60 million allocated to reduce the system's $640 million deferred maintenance backlog will help meet critical repair needs, and modernize classrooms and laboratories.

The efforts that will take place on campuses across Oregon will also create more than 11,800 construction jobs over the next several years. The projects will provide a $1.25 billion economic output of goods and services through the projects, and provide almost $400 million in increased earning for Oregonians.PCAT Building in the Background on PSU Campus

With Sam's advocacy, this is the first year the City of Portland has added higher education to its Legislative Package. Several of the higher ed priorities have been successful; including increased funding for the Oregon Student Opportunity Grants, and establishing Aspire as an officially recognized State Program. Both of these programs are run out of the Oregon Student Assistance Commission.

Aspire is a highly successful mentoring program, training and coordinating volunteers to help high school students be successful getting Aspire Mentoring Programinto college and applying for scholarships and financial assistance. Beyond being recognized as an official state program, Aspire has been allocated $700,000. These funds will allow Aspire programs to expand from the current 83 high schools in Oregon, to 115 schools next year. $300,000 of the allocation will serve as match, for school districts and high schools to develop their new programs.

Thank Goodness, and THANK YOU Governor Kulongoski and State Legislators.

The Oregon University System (OUS) received a 23% increase in a combination of operating and capital projects funding from the State Legislature and Governor Kulongoski. The General Fund budget for the OUS system for 2007-09 is $870.4 million. As OUS Chancellor George Pernsteiner stated, "This budget signals a major commitment by the legislature to meet ...the ten-year reinvestment plan to improve student access and affordability, high quality learning, innovative research and programs directed at economic development, workforce shortages, and other state priorities for Oregon."