Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Surviving Oregon's Tough Times: Poverty Awareness Day At PCC Rock Creek

Photos and story by James Hill

Surviving Oregon’s Tough Times: Poverty Awareness Day At PCC Rock CreekFriday, May 7th, 200411 a.m. 5 p.m.Building Three of the Rock Creek CampusSchedule of Events11 a.m.-1 p.m. Registration and Resource Center Building 3 Mall1 2 p.m. Keynote Presentation "Overcoming the Limits of Poverty"Linda C. Hummer Building 3 Forum2:15 3 p.m. Breakout Session #1Building 3, Rm 227 Follow Up With Keynote Presentation Linda Hummer, Portland State University Building 3, Rm 228 Tax Reform: History and Discussion for Shaping Positive Changes Angela Harris, Oregon Food Bank Building 3, Rm 229 Resources (or lack of?.) in Washington County Jerralynn Ness and Jeri Alcock, Community Action of Washington County Building 3, Rm 230 In Our Own Voice: Living With Mental Illness Panel of clients from National Alliance for the Mentally Ill 3:15 4 p.m. Breakout Session #2 Building 3, Rm 227 Woman and Homelessness Tony Bernal, Transition Projects Building 3, Rm 228 Understanding Fair Housing Laws Peggy McGuire, Fair Housing Council of Oregon Building 3, Rm 229 Finding Your Way Through the Education Maze Panel of PCC Students Building 3, Rm 230 Navigating the System: Understanding Mainstream Julie Massa, Oregon Food Bank 4:15 5 p.m. Town Hall "How Can Oregon’s Poor Survive Declining Resources"Come and discuss where are Oregon’s priorities. This discussion will be Moderated Lowell Greathouse, the Vision Council Manager for "Tools for Living"and "Council for Helping Hands?, programs affiliated with the United Way of the Columbia Willamette. An ordained Methodist Minister, Dr. Greathouse has used his education and talents to work for programs related to poverty for the last twenty years. He is a native of Washington County and recently worked for Community Action of Washington County and served as the poster of the Beaverton United Methodist Church from 1992 98.About Our Keynote PresenterLinda C. HummerBorn into five generations of "poor-folk?, Linda Hummer’s family got by on odd jobs and government assistance. Her kin and neighbors battled low wages, a lack of education and job skills, widespread work and environmental hazards and racist and classist beliefs and stereotypes. Public educators both supported Linda to negotiate new possibilities and to impose limiting boundaries in her life. She learned early that the world offered only limited and critical images of those on the bottom of the economic ladder. Art and storytelling became an important part of her life, providing her a voice to express the harsh realities of poverty and to challenge the stereotypes and limitations placed on poor-folk.While working in low paying service jobs, Linda attempted to go to college five times before finding support and success at PCC and going on to become the first of her family members to earn a bachelor and then master’s degree. Linda has worked to understand it was what allowed and supported her to find educational and career success and a sense of self-empowerment, while it eluded most of her family and community members. After receiving degrees in Women’s Studies, Black Studies, and Adult Education, she continued her work in community organizations fighting for racial and economic justice and addressing struggles poor people face in developing an empowered sense of self, adequate skills and educational achievement, and a sense of security in their homes and communities. Her career has taken her on many paths from facilitating Community Mural Projects to teaching in single parent programs in higher education. Linda currently teaches Women’s Studies at Portland State University. Participating OrganizationsOregon Food BankCommunity Action, Washington CountyNAMI National Alliance for the Mentally IllTransition ProjectsFair Housing Council of OregonUnited WayRock Creek Women’s Resource Center and ASPCCSAWERADomestic Violence Resource Center Washington CountyWIC Women, Infants and ChildrenHabitat for Humanity, Women BuildOregon Faith Roundtable against HungerInterrreligioius Action Network of Washington CountySponsored by:The Associated Students of Portland Community College, Rock CreekThe PCC Rock Creek Women’s Resource CenterThe Rock Creek Multicultural CommitteeFor More Information Contact:Mandy Ellertson at 503-614-7261 or melletso@pcc.eduOrChristine Paull at 503-614-7448 or cpaull@pcc.edu