News for 9/11

The St. Johns neighborhood is throwing a party for the rededication of our famous St. Johns Bridge. The St. Johns Bridge celebration will be held on Saturday and Sunday, September 17th and 18th. The fun begins Saturday at 11am in Cathedral Park, and continues with the St. Johns Street Fair downtown, and the bridge rededication on Sunday. Before joining in the festivities, take a step back in time and read about the original 1931 bridge opening and dedication from the St. John’s Review, (“Now that it has come to completion and will be dedicated on the morrow…”). For more information on the grand reopening celebration, check out the St. John’s Sentinel.


North Portlanders who enjoy swimming will be pleased to hear that Portland Parks & Recreation has committed to continuing the life of Pier Pool in St. Johns. There has been some heated debate over the permanent closing of Pier Pool, and the appearance that Portland is not doing a fair job in equally distributing recreational funds and facilities throughout the city.

If you live in the Linnton neighborhood, you won’t want to miss the important Linnton rezoning meeting, on Tuesday, September 13th at 7pm. For more information, please check out the Linnton Neighborhood Association website.


Today is 9/11. How can we forget the tragic terrorist events that happened on 9/11 four years ago? I took a community survey this week and it posed the question, “Are you prepared in the event of a disaster?” Honestly, I would have to answer, “probably not”. Whether it is a terrorist disaster, or a natural one, we all need to think about how we would react to a disaster. Is your family and community prepared? If you think you could use some additional information on disaster preparedness, check out this link.


There is a taste of autumn in the air this weekend, with Portland’s cooler temperatures and rain. This time of year gets me thinking ahead about Halloween and a trip to Sauvie Island for pumpkins and other good eats. If you catch this post early enough today, it’s not too late to check out the Sauvie Island Harvest Fair! From the Sauvie Island website: “The Sauvie Island Harvest Fair is Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 10 and 11 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Howell Territorial Park. (Follow the signs after you cross the Sauvie Island Bridge.) Among many wonderful happenings will be the tasty homemade pies baked by the ladies of the Sauvie Island Grange.”

Another event going on today is the Global Portland Festival, which “offers our diverse communities a time together to honor the common humanity that brings us together.” Check it out, from noon to 6pm at Holladay Park across from Lloyd center.

Speaking of humanity, we’ve seen many wonderful examples with the outpouring of help for Katrina victims. By now you’ve probably heard that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has decided not to relocate any of the hurricane evacuees to our city. However, the need for help is still great. Of course, financial donations are still one of the best ways you can help. According to this article in The Washington Post on MSNBC, The Red Cross is using some funds to pick up hotel bills for many people. By some accounts, there are a million homeless people in need of housing assistance. Many are considering opening their homes to refugees and hosting a family. This is a wonderful way to help families in dire need, but before considering this option, you should be aware of some of the risks involved. The organizations that are helping to match families with hosts indicate that there is no way to do background checks on everyone, and that you are assuming some risk by bringing unknown people into your home. If you are considering adopting a refugee family and want to learn more, here are a couple of links:
http://www.katrinahousingnw.org/
http://www.katrinahousing.org/
http://www.hurricanehousing.org/