Gresham and outer East Portland now have an extra crime-fighting weapon in their collective arsenal.

Starting last week, Deputy District Attorney Nathan Vasquez began spending one to two days a week based out of the new East County Courthouse to focus on prosecuting crimes taking place in Rosewood, a high-density area with a growing crime rate that straddles the border of Portland and Gresham along 162nd Avenue.

When Gresham’s new police facility opens, possibly by the end of the year, Vasquez will move his base of operations there.

The move brings Vasquez full circle in his nearly 12-year career in the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office.

Most recently, he’s focused on high-profile child abuse cases, including the 2010 death of Oleander Labier, a 5-year-old Gresham girl who was starved, tortured and beaten to death by her biological father while her stepmother turned a blind eye. But he also spent two years prosecuting misdemeanors at the now closed Gresham Courthouse on Powell Boulevard that the new East County Courthouse replaces.

Vasquez served as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods targeting youth gang and gun crimes and was a neighborhood deputy district attorney representing many Southeast Portland neighborhoods.

The move is part of an effort by Multnomah County’s newly elected District Attorney Rod Underhill to help combat the shift in crime from North Portland to Gresham.

When Underhill took the reins from Mike Schrunk, the county’s longtime district attorney who retired Jan. 1, he asked a simple question: What is being done at the prosecutorial level to help combat East County’s growing crime rates?

“Obviously not enough,” he said, adding that assigning a deputy district attorney to Rosewood is just part of an effort to address the crime trend.

Vasquez will focus on Rosewood cases — everything from homicides to drug arrests to gang issues. But he also will network with the community to build connections that could get budding criminals back on the right track by either “getting them the services they need or the additional law enforcement attention they need,” Vasquez said.

On the other end of the spectrum, he could hold more hardened criminals fully accountable.

Vasquez will work in collaboration with Brenda Allen, a neighborhood district attorney who works with police in Gresham, Fairview and Troutdale to prosecute cases.

A Clackamas County Circuit Court judge has struck a compromise, approving parts of a proposed ballot title for Damascus disincorporation while adding details to the summary portion.

The ruling clears the way for disincorporation proponents to start collecting signatures needed to place the issue on the November ballot.

Presiding Judge Robert D. Herndon on Thursday, March 14, issued a written opinion on a complaint by a Damascus political activist who said the proposed ballot title on whether Damascus should disincorporate as a city doesn’t explain the effects of disincorporation well enough.

Herndon did not change the originally proposed caption, “Vote to Determine Whether to Disincorporate the City of Damascus,” or the suggested question, “Shall the City of Damascus be Disincorporated?”

Dan Phegley, through his attorney Bruce McCain, argued that both elements of the ballot title were too concise and insufficient.

He suggested the caption explain that disincorporation would surrender the city charter, transfer all city property to Clackamas County and eliminate services provided by the city, such as law enforcement.

Phegley also wanted the ballot to specify that a city can only disincorporate if it is not liable for any debt or other obligations. This could be an issue in light of City Manager Greg Baker’s renegotiated contract, which guarantees him one year of salary and health benefits if the city disincorporates, Phegley said.

Herndon approved Phegley’s proposed summary, which included those extra elements, noting that it “better identifies the issue and appropriately summarizes the consequences of either a yes or a no vote.”

The summary also now states that if voters approve disincorporation, city taxes and fees will be eliminated, and Damascus will revert to an unincorporated area governed by Clackamas County.

Damascus residents in 2004 voted to create a city out of the area’s unincorporated 18,000 acres in order to have more control over how it is developed. Metro had expanded the regional growth boundary to include Damascus, earmarking it as a potential suburb ripe for development.

But residents and city leaders have been unable to agree on a comprehensive plan. Metro officials also have said they overestimated the area’s growth projections.

Frustrated by the lack of progress, among other things, two Damascus residents on Dec. 6 filed the paperwork to start the process of disincorporating the city.

Phegley filed his ballot title challenge in Clackamas County Circuit Court on Dec. 31, but it then took city attorneys another month to respond, further delaying a court ruling and the subsequent approval to collect signatures needed to place it on the November ballot.

“We could be collecting signatures within a couple of weeks,” said Chris Hawes, a disincorporation supporter.

Family history conference draws 500-plus to Boring

When Shirley Briggs’ great-grandfather was adopted as boy in the early 1800s, little was recorded about that life-changing event or the circumstances that left him orphaned at a young age.

But with a few clues about his life, Briggs managed to find genealogical records for her great-grandfather’s biological parents. Curiosity about the life her great-grandfather lived prompted her to keep looking for clues that would connect her to the past. And it changed her life.

“It turns out after my great-grandfather was adopted, he only lived a few blocks away from his biological father but never knew it,” Briggs said. “It’s been fascinating to learn about him and my ancestors. After I found the records of his biological parents, I was able to connect with living relatives from that side of my family. I love family history. I heard someone say that there’s at least one historian in every family each generation, and I guess that’s me this time around.”

Briggs, who lives in West Linn, was one of 500-plus people from the greater-Portland area who attended the Mount Hood Family History Conference in Boring earlier this month. The free two-day conference, hosted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, featured 55 classes taught by family history experts and award-winning genealogist Stephen P. Morse.

In Boring, community members can visit the Mount Hood Family History Center, 12300 S.E. 312th Drive, and use free resources to access genealogical records. The LDS Church manages the largest genealogical collection in the world with records for more than 3 billion people. The collection also includes billions of records for births, marriages, deaths, land transactions, military service and more.

Briggs isn’t alone in her pursuit to discover her own family history. Popular genealogical sites such as FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com receive more than 10 million hits per day. And an entire industry has emerged surrounding family history that includes fact-finding vacations, computer software, photo preservation and restoration, and even a series of reality television shows.

In addition to classes, the Mount Hood Family History Conference included free help from trained family history consultants to help people locate information about their ancestors. For years, Portland resident Andrea Heim has wondered about the events that brought her great-grandmother to the United States from Denmark in the 1890s. Heim went to the conference to see if someone could help her learn more about her great-grandmother’s life.

“We were able to find out that she came to the United States when she was nine years old,” Heim said. “She was a bond girl, which meant she was committed to work for someone for seven years after she arrived. And at 17 years old, she married the man she had been working for. It was really interesting to find this information. Now I have even more questions about her life, and I’ve got three shelves of family history records, books, and materials of other people I want to know more about.”

Throughout the two-day conference, family history consultants helped dozens of people like Heim locate information about their ancestors using FamilySearch.org and other online tools that make it easier to locate historic records than a generation ago.

“When you look at your own family history and try to find out all you can about a person, it deepens your relationship with them and adds meaning to your own life,” said Gresham resident and Mount Hood Family History Director Patti Paxson. “I owe a lot to my ancestors who made great sacrifices that still bless my life often. When you learn about your own family history and find out about their struggles, sacrifices and successes, it changes you and can make you a better person.

Reynolds High metals students create shamrock signs for shelter pets

Metals students at Reynolds High School brought some tender loving care to cats and dogs at the Multnomah County Animal Services & Shelter in Troutdale on Friday, March 15, attaching metal shamrock signs to cage doors.

The 60 metal shamrocks helped promote a St. Patrick’s Day special at the shelter and added pizzazz to the rows of metal kennels.

“The students just really rise to the occasion in a selfless manner,” said Bernie Kleiman, the metals teacher. “We heard that after we put hearts up for Valentine’s Day last year, more animals were adopted than usual. These signs help gravitate people toward the animals a bit and warm them up.”

Painted bright green, the shamrock signs bear St. Patrick’s Day-related messages, such as “pick me” and “I’m lucky.”

Kleiman said each year he and his wife brainstorm ways his program — this year, six classes with about 200 students — can contribute to the community and plan various ways to help out.

“I’m glad we had the opportunity to help the Humane Society,” said Jeffery Pane, a freshman in the metals program.

Kelsey Orchard and Emma Miles, also freshmen, said the project was a perfect combination of their interest in metals and passion for animals.

Along with the shelter signs, students last fall created a veterans display at the school and fabricated ornaments for Troutdale’s Christmas tree lighting in Mayors Square.

Additionally, the classes create specialized metal clocks for children at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital at Oregon Health & Science University.

To learn more about Reynolds’ metals program, call 503-667-3186, ext. 1100.

A small pair of boxing gloves hangs on the wall in Lee Mitchell’s faculty office at Mt. Hood Community College. The gloves were a gift from his department head, meant to encourage him to keep fighting after he learned four years ago that he had multiple myeloma, a cancer of the plasma cells in bone marrow.

Mitchell teaches biology, and before teaching he did laboratory research. Because of his profession, it was not difficult for him to understand what was in store for him and his family as a result of the diagnosis.

The boxing gloves are clearly a valued gift for Mitchell; although he does not practice the sweet science, he does practice karate, and in fact holds a black belt.

Ironically, it was his training and testing for the belt that helped him discover his condition. The 62-year-old noticed he was getting winded much more quickly than normal while performing the strenuous routines, and his instructor encouraged him to visit the doctor.

Mitchell has the cancer back on its heels, through an oral chemotherapy drug that he continues to take, and because of this he continues to teach and lead a normal enough life.

“Myeloma is a very wimpy cancer, so to speak,” he said. “And the treatment I’m taking happens to target the myeloma cells very well.”

Complications

While karate is the practice of fighting with “empty hands,” Mitchell found another complication, brought about through his cancer, requiring some assistance beyond his hands.

“This type of cancer tends to gum certain organs up,” Mitchell said, “because it’s really a water-hating cell and so it gets stuck in places.”

Mitchell said the cancer will attack one of three vital organs: the brain, the heart or the kidneys.

“When I first learned that I said, ‘Whoa, that’s like bullets whizzing by my head,’ “ Mitchell said. “I thought, ‘If it goes for the brain or the heart, I’m a dead man walking.’ “

Luckily, the odds fell in Mitchell’s favor, relatively speaking, and he found himself with failing kidneys.

“That was the best scenario,” he said, “because if it’s the kidneys, we have something we can do about it.”

What to do about it was dialysis, a time-consuming, recurring outpatient procedure that cleanses the kidneys and allows them to continue functioning.

“It was obvious at the beginning that my kidneys were slowly failing,” Mitchell said. “And I had a very good doctor, and he had me do the fistula operation very early on.”

The fistula operation is a preparatory procedure that beefs up a vein so it will be able to be tapped regularly without failing.

“When you’re dialyzing, you need a big, rough tough vein that can withstand repeated poking,” Mitchell said. “So what they do is they trick a normal vein into behaving like an artery. Arteries beef up under lots of pressure; veins stay wimpy for lack of pressure.”

The operation ties an artery to the vein, so the vein mimics the artery and becomes tough. Mitchell shows a large vein just under the surface on his arm, marked with an incision scar. Placing a finger on it reveals a pulsing, high-pressure rush of blood.

“That’s really strange feeling an arterial beat on the surface,” Mitchell said. “It’s supposed to be down deep where it’s protected.”

Mitchell is thankful his doctor had a sense that he was going to need dialysis.

“He had me do the fistula operation very early on, to my mind.”

Getting prepped for impending dialysis is one thing, but the life-interrupting and expensive realities of regular outpatient treatments are altogether different, especially for a busy professor who is accustomed to leading an active lifestyle.

The help Mitchell needed came in the form of a new at-home hemodialysis machine, created by a company called NxStage. Mitchell’s doctor suggested the product, he said, because he felt his background would give him an advantage in operating it.

“My doctor knew that I was a professor and highly intelligent, and so thought I would be able to handle the machine,” Mitchell said.

“It’s ingenious what they’ve done,” he said of the home equipment.

Mitchell said the machine can be daunting for some but that he has had little trouble with its operation.

“When I call for technical support, the NxStage technicians say they are impressed with my questions because I’m not calling for lack of understanding the instructions,” Mitchell said. “I’m usually calling to ask technical questions about the machine itself.”

The home hemodialysis machine is covered by Mitchell’s insurance, which he suspects is because it’s considerably cheaper for them. But another benefit to the home treatment is that he can do the treatment when he has the time and also can do it more frequently.

“The nice thing about the clinic dialysis is that you don’t have to do anything,” Mitchell said. “They put the needle in and watch the machine. But, they only do it three times a week, as opposed to the five that I do at home.”

Mitchell said the higher frequency allows for less of a roller coaster ride between treatments, explaining the fatigue and other side effects that accompany dialysis.

“And it gives me more control of my schedule,” he said. “Even though the home takes more time, it’s less constraining when you’re trying to work.”

Through his illness and with the advent of the home treatment option, Mitchell said he has come to appreciate things more, and to be better prepared for surprises.

“My wife likes to say, ‘If you’re expecting normal to happen, it won’t,’ “ Mitchell said.

Sky Theater show

The Hubble Space Telescope has provided an amazing photo album of space, which will be the topic of Mt. Hood Community College’s next planetarium show.

“Galaxy Treasures,” presented Monday, April 1, at 7 and 8:15 p.m., will show off some of the best images from Hubble’s photo album.

“The variety of these images is amazing,” says Pat Hanrahan, planetarium director. “They range from nice, orderly spiral galaxies to complex shapes caused by interactions between merging galaxies.

“One shape (Hanny’s Voorwerp) is a galaxy-size object of unknown nature,” Hanrahan adds.

Visitors are always encouraged to ask questions during each 45-minute program. Campus parking is free, all days, no permit required.

The Sky Theater is located beneath the library on the Gresham Campus at 26000 S.E. Stark St. Admission for the general public is $2 and free for Mt. Hood students and employees (identification required). Planetarium shows are held the first Monday of each month, October through June. The show schedule and campus map can be found at mhcc.edu/planetarium.

Individuals requiring accommodations due to a disability should call 503-491-6923 or 503-491-7670 (TDD).

Mary Melissa Almond

Jan. 26, 1911-March 9, 2013

Gresham resident Mary Melissa Almond died Saturday, March 9. She was 102.

A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, March 20, at Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 22801 S.E. Stark St., Gresham. Interment will follow at Lincoln Memorial Park Cemetery in Portland.

Mary was born Jan. 26, 1911, in Manila, Utah, to Charles Frederick Olson and Celinda Jane Twitchell.

She married James Clayton Almond on Dec. 18, 1930. Mary worked as a teacher and raised two children.

She was preceded in death by her husband; brothers, Charles Huston Olson and John Kent Olson; and sisters, Margaret Davidson and Mable Field.

Mary is survived by her daughter, Dixie LaRue of Wilton, Calif.; son, James Clayton Almond Jr. of Elk Grove, Calif.; 18 grandchildren; 84 great-grandchildren; and 80 great-great-grandchildren.

Herberger’s Elk Grove Funeral Chapel is handling arrangements.

June Joyce Davis

June 22, 1937-March 13, 2013

Eagle Creek resident June Joyce Davis died Wednesday, March 13, in Portland. She was 75.

A funeral service was held Monday, March 18, at Sandy Funeral Home.

June was born June 22, 1937, in Bismarck, N.D., to Katherine (Gress) and Virgil Jackson. The family moved to Oregon, settling in Boring, and June attended Boring Grade School and Sandy High School.

June married Richard Davis on Jan. 28, 1955. She was not only a mother to her own children, but to many other young friends and family members throughout her life. She was also very involved in the family scrap metal business.

Survivors include her son, Rex Davis of Sandy; daughters, Joan Davis of Prineville, Jodi Nichols of Ridgefield, Wash., and Lana Davis of Eagle Creek; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Sandy Funeral Home is handling arrangements.

Paid obituaries

Richard Clare Malowney

January 26, 1925 – March 9, 2013

Richard “Dick” Malowney, the son of Thomas John Malowney and Mary Alice Triggs Malowney, was born in Wymore Nebraska, a railroad town and farming community south of Lincoln Nebraska. One would think growing up during the ‘Great Depression’ would be hard on a person, but not Dick. He had a lust for life and found opportunities around every corner. He knew everyone in his home town from his days working at the Payless Drug Store, where Dick would wait on customers wearing a white shirt, tie and bib overalls while earning ten cents an hour.

Dick graduated from Wymore High School in 1943 and joined the US Army Air Corp. He loved flying and was assigned to a B-17 Bomber crew as a Radioman/Navigator, Pvt. 1st Class. Known by his call sign of “TJs Boy”, his crew served the war effort by couriering classified and secret documents, crisscrossing the US and some Atlantic and Caribbean islands including Cuba. Friends and neighbors at the Payless Drug Store rolled out a roll of wallpaper on the counter and everyone in town signed it, sending him best wishes for a safe return home. His time in the Air Transportation Corp was one of the great adventures of his life and he fondly retold stories to his two sons and grandchildren.

After the conclusion of the war, Dick returned to civilian life residing in Lincoln Nebraska as a Quality Assurance Inspector for General Electric (GE), testing telephone equipment. It was at GE that he met the love of his life, Mary Lou Starkel. Dick & Mary Lou had a wonderful romance and were married on February 22nd, 1947. In 1949 with $200 dollars to their names, they pulled up stakes, packed up an old Oldsmobile and moved to Portland Oregon to join the remainder of Mary Lou’s family who had moved there a few years earlier. Mary Lou was pregnant with their first child Michael, who was born in 1950.

With a wife and child to support, Dick worked a short time on the railroad and for Heinz Foods before taking an assistant manager position with Western Auto Supply in North Portland, followed by managing a store in Portland’s Hollywood District. In 1953 Dick and Mary Lou moved to Gresham where they eventually became owners of the local Western Auto store, in turn making Gresham their home for the rest of their lives. John, their second of two children was subsequently born in 1955.

In 1953 Gresham was a very small rural town and the Western Auto store was a very special place, a hardware store extraordinaire. The store was large by 1950s standards while the building still stands at 301 N Roberts Street. Townsfolk and farmers could find all the necessities at Western Auto, from tires and batteries to sporting goods, bicycles to lawn and garden tractors, wood stoves to major appliances. Dick became a master salesman. TVs were the newest thing in the 1950s, and Dick would lend neighbors a television for a week, “just to try it out” and of course made every sale.

Many times customers would come into his store seeking advice on how to plumb or electrify their homes and/or new additions they were building. Dick would draw a schematic diagram on the back of a large brown paper bag illustrating all of the necessary wiring, junction boxes, plug-ins and fixtures, all the while walking the customer through the store and filling the brown bag with everything needed to complete the job. Dick loved working with electricity.

Over the years Dick, Mary Lou and the boys watched Gresham grow while establishing countless friendships. In approximately 1976, Dick and Mary Lou sold the store and embarked upon a long well deserved vacation before returning to Gresham where Dick began his 2nd, 3rd and 4th careers. Richard was a Maintenance Engineer at Good Samaritan Hospital in Portland, a Revenue Agent for the State of Oregon’s State Accident Insurance Fund (SAIF), while finally joining Mary Lou as a Realtor.

Dick and Mary Lou loved big band music and loved to dance. They were active members of the Gresham Elks Club and the Country Cut-Ups Square Dancers. Their beautiful East-hill home located on NW 4th Street was a popular gathering place, where many Independence Day and family celebrations took place.

Dick was a loving caregiver for Mary Lou who was terminally ill for a number of years until her life ended in 1994. Dick lived his remaining years in good spirits and was a good father and friend to all who knew him. He returned to Wymore Nebraska many times for various High School Class Reunions and to maintain close relationships with classmates, who for the most part have preceded him in death. Richard was preceded in death by his younger sister Phyllis and older brother Thomas. Dick Malowney is survived by his youngest son John, Mike and daughter in-law Connie, grandchildren Sean, Corey, Andrea & Daniel, and two, soon to be three, great grandchildren.

Military Honors will be at 3:00 pm, Monday, March 25 at Willamette National Cemetery, 11800 SE Mount Scott Blvd. Portland.

The family suggests contributions for Dementia research through the Alzheimer’s Association.

East County lays out hopes for the 266th pope

When Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected the 266th pope last Wednesday, Father Charles Zach said it felt like a parent was back in the home.

“It’s our big connect,” the priest of St. Henry Catholic Church said of having a pope back in office 13 days after the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.

As they learned about the new pope last week, East County residents celebrated that Bergoglio was from Latin America and championed the rights of the poor.

They spoke about the significance of the name Pope Francis and the changes they would like to see under the new pope’s leadership.

“The first thing we want from our holy father is that he be the best CEO in the world,” Zach said.

The son of Italian immigrants, Pope Francis was born in Buenos Aires. Ordained in 1969, he became the archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998 and a cardinal in 2001.

The conclave elected him the first Jesuit, Latin American pope following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on Feb. 28. The name Pope Francis honors St. Francis of Assisi.

“Considering his reasons for choosing the name Francis, and the fact that he is the first pope with that name, reveals to me that he going to be somewhat unique in his approach to dealing with the issues that our world is currently facing not only within our church,” said Matilde Flores, parish health promoter program coordinator with El Programa Hispano.

Pope Francis

Influenced by a childhood of poverty, the new pope suffered from a bout of pneumonia at age 21 and had part of his lung removed.

Today, he lives in a simple apartment and refuses to drive a car. When he checked out of his motel in Rome, he carried his own bags down and paid for his own bill. To Zach, the new pope’s selection of the name Francis, the saint of the poor, means everything.

“We can expect with the name Francis that the church will be reformulating how it operates, especially in dealing with the poor,” Zach said. “He is simply going to put an exclamation point behind what it is the church is to do universally throughout the world.

“We have terrible injustices in our world to correct,” Zach said. “There are very wealthy and very powerful people trampling on basic human rights. I’m assuming the name Francis is going to be very significant. He’s going to call for peace.”

Patrick Casey, a history instructor at Mt. Hood Community College, said that by taking a vow of poverty and doing what his community is supposed to do, the new pope will have the potential to make regular worshippers feel like they have a voice.

Sister Therese Gutting, an administrator of the Franciscan Montessori Earth School, agrees.

“I am very pleased he would choose a name near and dear to my religious community’s heart,” Gutting said. “He is certainly showing us his humbleness, his willingness to move the Catholic Church forward in the future. He exhibits humility, gentleness and a willingness to make decisions that won’t always be popular. St. Francis of Assisi believed he was called to rebuild the church, and I see the new pope as a man who will continue to live that same mission.”

At St. Therese School, many students skipped their recess and had lunch in the classroom so they could see firsthand who was chosen to be the new pope.

“The children were truly excited to hear that the new Holy Father had chosen the name Francis after St. Francis of Assisi,” Principal Kathy Cordes, said. “St. Francis is one of their favorite saints because he loved and cared for the animals. The children were also excited to see what the new Holy Father looked like and watched eagerly as he stepped out onto the balcony.”

Change

After Pope Benedict XVI came under scrutiny for his handling of sex abuse scandals, many in East County are looking to the new pope for leadership. They also hope to see change take root in the structure of the church.

“I hope that he deals with the sexual abuse allegations within the church in a way that truly reflects the church’s teachings and the need to protect the vulnerable,” Flores said.

“I would like to see him change the celibacy guidelines and allow those interested in the religious life (seminarians, nuns and priests) the freedom to choose whether they want to get married and meet their basic needs or to practice celibacy if that is what they prefer.”

Elizabeth Milliken, a history instructor at Mt. Hood Community College and Casey’s colleague, says huge changes are needed within the church, but doubts Pope Francis will deliver.

“My personal perspective is that the church is really going to need to change much more dramatically,” Milliken said. “He is a hard-liner on things related to sexuality, and it’s unlikely he’ll show deviation from the party line.”

Milliken said she was encouraged by the pope’s support of social justice teachings, but that the church’s focus on hierarchy, sex and sexuality can overshadow its positive social outreach. She would like to see the church consider the ordination of women, something she thinks Catholics worldwide would welcome.

Despite the new pope’s conservative social view on abortion, same-sex marriage and female priests, many in East County are heartened to see the first pope from the Americas and the Southern Hemisphere.

“The pope being from Latin America and born to immigrant parents means hope for the immigrant community in the United States,” Flores said.

Zach said the new pope’s message of peace could be a major unifying force. “We’re a very human church, made up of human beings. We trip up and fall, but despite it all, the Holy Spirit is guiding the church. We need to readdress that God is calling all of us to be a means of peace in a world so in need of it.”

Musical artwork on display at Caswell Gallery this week

If a picture can paint a thousand words, music can conjure a thousand images and then some.

Such is the conclusion the viewer draws from the Painted Violin Project of the Portland Youth Philharmonic Association, which supports two full symphony orchestras, a chamber orchestra, a wind ensemble and one string orchestra. Each group is made up of outstanding musicians who range in age from 7 to 23, come from communities across the region and represent more than 100 different schools.

A number of painted violins commissioned by the PYP are on display this week at the Caswell Gallery in Troutdale. The violins are painted or adorned with one or several images, ranging from a black and white painting of Niccolo Paganini, the famed composer, by Sophie Zhang, to Kristin Qian’s “Stars and Stripes,” which turns the instrument into a red, white and blue emblem.

On display

Since February, the painted violins have been displayed in galleries throughout the Portland area, including Caswell’s. The philharmonic will host a gala exhibition and auction of the violins at 5:30 p.m. Friday, April 19, in the Governor Hotel, 614 S.W. 11th Ave., Portland, to raise money for the orchestra. A number of members of the PYP played a reception at Caswell’s on March 15 to encourage interest in the upcoming auction.

One of the violin’s painters is Ellie Phillips, 14, from Oregon City, who created a collage of images on the instrument and called it “Universal Language.” The neck of the violin is inscribed with a quote from the 19th-century poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow — “Music is the universal language of mankind.”

The violin’s painter says the Longfellow quote sums up her feelings about song and composition.

“It doesn’t matter how different people are,” Phillips says. “We all kind of share this same medium of connection.”

Phillips says she spent hours and hours sanding the violin, then putting primer on it and drawing on it. She glued pictures and photographs to it and used acrylic paint to create a vibrant work of art that depicts a flamenco dance, Earth and other objects.

“I just tried to blend the pictures together as much as possible so they looked unified,” Philips says.

The young artist won a fan in Kathy Toynbee, general manager of Caswell Sculptures Inc.

“It’s a mixed media piece, and I love the flamenco dancer,” Toynbee says. “There’s a bit of romance there.”

Phillips is a member of the PYP, and although she can play the violin, last year she switched to its slightly larger cousin, the viola.

“There’s a lot less violists than violinists, so the demand is a lot higher for violists,” she says, noting she has her eye on a professional career down the road. Her mother is a voice and piano teacher, she says, so music runs in the family. She also says she was excited to be invited to participate in the Painted Violin Project.

“How many opportunities do you have to paint a violin?” Phillips asked rhetorically.

On that note

In addition to young amateur artists such as Phillips, the PYP invited professional artists to create artwork out of the instruments. One such artist was Damien Gilley, 35, of Portland, who created “Crystalizer,” which attempts to represent the process of creative thought.

“My piece reacts to rhythm and repetition within a deconstruction of the characteristics of sheet music,” he says. “So the side of the violin represents the five bars of sheet music, but the front of it depicts the gradual decomposition of that rigid structure.”

Gilley says he hopes “people see the synthetic, angular marks as a beautiful, poetic deconstruction of the act of composing music.”

As for Phillips, she hopes folks will seriously consider supporting her musical program by coming to the PYP auction.

“PYP helps us develop our skills in music and in that way helps us in developing our skills in connecting with people,” she says.

Live Music

Eastside Bluegrass Series — 7 p.m. Saturday, April 26, at Freedom Foursquare Church, 660 S.E. 160th Ave. If you show up at 5:30 p.m., you can join a jam in the lobby, so bring your instrument. The next show features Roundhouse playing bluegrass, folk, southern and classic rock, a cappella, gospel, and country. Other acts include Runway Ranch Band and Cinder Blue. Eastside Bluegrass shows take place every third Saturday of the month. Suggested donation is $10 per person, with children admitted free. Plenty of parking is available. For more information, visit eastsidebluegrass.com or email eastsidebluegrass@yahoo.com.

Edgefield Live Music Series — McMenamins Edgefield, 2126 S.W. Halsey St., Troutdale. All shows are free, for ages 21 and older, and are held in the Winery unless noted otherwise. For more information, visit mcmenamins.com/edgefield or call 503-669-8610.

• Dylan Thomas Vance, 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 19.

• Crown Point, 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 20.

• The Don of Division Street Duo, 7 p.m. Thursday, March 21.

• Spud and Joel, 7 p.m. Friday, March 22.

• Naomi Hooley, 7 p.m. Saturday, March 23.

• Billy D, 5 p.m. Sunday, March 24.

• Groovy Wallpaper, Monday, March 25.

Live Music at Celebrities — Celebrities Parkway Grill, 20725 N.E. Sandy Blvd., Fairview. No cover charge. Call 503-666-2027 for information.

• Jimmy Thompson Jam Session, 4 p.m. to midnight Sundays.

Open Mic Jam — Gresham Inn, 117 N. Main Ave. 8 p.m. Sundays. Hosted by Back Alley Jammers. For more information, call 503-661-1403.

Open Mic Jam — M&M Lounge, 137 N. Main Ave., Gresham. 6 p.m. to midnight Sundays. Classic rock, blues, boogie blues, country, alternative, originals, acoustic, electric with live band. Sound system, drums, amplifiers provided. For more information, call 503-665-2626.

Karaoke — 9 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Midnight Roundup, 345 N.W. Burnside St. For more information, call 503-489-5860.

• Dance instruction, 8 p.m. Thursdays followed by dancing at 9 p.m.

• Sunset Highway, 9 p.m. Friday, March 22.

Park Place Coffee — Live Music Saturdays. Free. All ages. For more information, call 503-808-1244 or visit parkplacecoffee.com.

Out & About

Troutdale Open-Air Market — 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays, Depot Park Rail Museum, 473 E. Historic Columbia River Highway, Troutdale. Shop for organic produce, fine arts and crafts, food and one-of-a-kind items at Troutdale’s farmers’ market, located in downtown Troutdale. Visit windancemarkets.com.

Arts & Culture

“The Glass Menagerie” — 7 p.m. Monday, April 15, Gresham Chapel & Evening Event Center, 257 S.E. Roberts Ave. Presented by Readers Theatre of Sandy Actors Theatre, this classic play was penned by Tennessee Williams. Tickets: $8 general admission (no reservations). Info: Tim Park at 503-869-6183 or visit sandyactorstheatre.org.

First Thursday Concerts — Mt. Hood Community College, 26000 S.E. Stark St., continues its free first Thursday of the month shows in the Student Union from noon to 1 p.m. April 4: Chuck Redd Group. With a career that spans more than 30 years and includes touring and recording with jazz greats Dizzy Gillespie, Barney Kessel, Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, The Lionel Hampton Big Band and Mel Torme, vibist/drummer Redd will make a stop at the college while on a West Coast tour. Stalwarts of the Portland jazz music scene will join him on stage.

“Passport to Adventure” — 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through April 14. Gresham City Hall, Visual Arts Gallery, 1333 N.W. Eastman Parkway. Presented by the Gresham Art Committee. Info: greshamartcommittee.com.

Fight between 30 people breaks out, suspect knocks out two teens

An 18th birthday party turned into a brawl involving approximately 30 people late Saturday, March 16.

When the dust settled, police took one man to jail, a minor into police custody and medics tended to two knocked-unconscious teens.

It began when a mother threw a drinking party for her daughter in the 17600 block of Northeast Glisan Street, said Lt. Claudio Grandjean, Gresham Police spokesman.

At 11:41 p.m., police responded to a report of a mob of 30 people fighting in the street at Northeast 178th Avenue and Oregon Street. The fight began between Kavonte Jolaray Wells, 19, of Northeast Portland and a 17-year-old boy, who Wells reportedly gave a bloody nose and knocked unconscious.

When other partygoers came to the 17-year-old boy's defense, Wells and his 15-year-old cousin left the party, “due to a sudden lack of popularity,” Grandjean said, quoting the police report.But the crowd chased the two and the cousin pulled out a knife.

Then a struggle broke out between Wells and another partygoer, who Wells also allegedly knocked unconscious.

When police arrived, the crowd scattered but officers rounded up 15 people and interviewed them.

But none admitted to seeing anything, Grandjean said, adding that everyone involved was intoxicated.

Police arrested Wells on an allegation of misdemeanor second-degree disorderly conduct. He was released on his own recognizance the same day. Officers also recovered the knife and took his cousin into police custody. He was released to his guardians.

Firefighters and paramedics tended to those injured in the melee.

Possible charges also are pending against the mother who hosted the drinking party.

A highly publicized civil-rights complaint against a Gresham bakery appears to be caught in bureaucratic limbo.

Last month, Sweet Cakes by Melissa of Gresham gained international attention when a lesbian couple from Portland said the bakery's Christian owners refused to make a cake for their upcoming same-sex wedding.

The couple filed a complaint with the state's Department of Justice, accusing bakery owners Aaron and Melissa Klein of violating Oregon's anti-discrimination law. The law doesn’t allow places of public accommodation to refuse service based on several classifications, including sexual orientation.

Last month, when news of the incident hit the media, it set off a firestorm of controversy.

Supporters flocked to the bakery, overwhelming it with orders. Gay rights activists picketed the business and a famous baker from the Food Network's show “Ace of Cakes” offered to personally bake and delivery the couple's wedding cake.

The Department of Justice had confirmed the complaint was under investigation.

Now, a representative for Oregon's Bureau of Labor and Industries says the complaint instead should have been filed with the bureau's Civil Rights Division, which has yet to receive it.

Laurel Bowman filed a complaint with the Oregon Department of Justice on Jan. 18 — one day after the incident in which she alleged that not only refused to do business with her and her fiancée, but also called the couple “abominations unto the Lord.”

Aaron Klein said making the cake would violate his Christian belief that marriage is between a man and a woman. He also said it’s their constitutional right to refuse service based on religious beliefs, that the Oregon Constitution does not recognize same-sex marriage and that the comment regarding the couple being abominations unto the Lord was taken completely out of context.

The Kleins insist they serve homosexual individuals: They just don’t make cakes for same-sex weddings.

In February, when the media covered the complaint, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Justice confirmed the complaint was under investigation.

But since then, the department advised the couple to instead file their complaint with the Bureau of Labor's and Industries' Civil Rights Division.

Although the Department of Justice does investigate complaints about businesses — about 12,000 such complaints a year — and the couple's complaint did not fall within the department's fraud regulations.

Charlie Burr, the bureau's spokesman, said the couple has “been in conversations with us” and that the bureau provided the necessary paperwork to complete and file in order to lodge an official complaint.

But so far, the complaint has not been filed.

“If they were to, then we would open up an investigation,” Burr said. “We have a complaint-driven process, and right now we do not have a complaint filed against Sweet Cakes by Melissa.”

The couple has a one-year window from the date of the incident to file, he added, so it's unclear whether the couple is waiting or whether they've decided to not pursue the case.

A call to their attorney seeking clarification on the matter was not returned by press time.

Police arrested a wanted sex offender who was hiding out in a Gresham apartment.

Deputies with the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office Warrant Strike Team and members of the U.S. Marshals Service arrested Kenneth Keith Muskevitsch, 28, in the 300 block of Northeast Eastman Parkway at 7:40 p.m. Wednesday, March 20, according to sheriff's officer records.

He was wanted on a felony fugitive warrant out of Clark County, Wash., and for violating his parole in Polk County on a 2006 conviction of second-degree attempted rape and sodomy, according to jail records. He also was convicted of felony first-degree sodomy and sex abuse in 1998 when he was 14 years old.

Jail officials have released him to the custody of Polk County officials. Television news accounts of his most recent arrest report that he was staying with a Gresham woman and her child, and that he's been wanted by police for two months. He also has been arrested for failing to register as a sex offender four times in three counties.

Portland Lutheran charters Key Club

Portland Lutheran High School, 740 S.E. 182nd, has chartered its first Key Club, a student service organization sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Rockwood.

Student officers and general members of the new Key Club were installed Tuesday, March 5, during one of the school’s twice-weekly chapel services. Members of the Rockwood Kiwanis Club sponsoring the high school students presented Olivia Nyberg, president, with a certificate honoring the new charter.

“(Kiwanis) truly believes that the youth of the world are our future,” Bill Ragsdale, the club’s Kiwanis advisor,” said. “Key Club gives those youth the opportunity to develop leadership skills and then learn the importance of service to others.”

Mt. Hood student earns Women’s Opportunity award

Soroptimist of Portland has awarded Tamara Young, a student in Mt. Hood Community College’s Mental Health and Human Service program, a $5,000 first-place award in its annual Women’s Opportunity Program.  

Eligible applicants must be the primary financial support for their families and pursuing undergraduate education. Winners also have the chance to receive one of three $10,000 finalist awards. 

“(She) is an inspiration to all those who meet her,” Leslie Allen, director of the Mental Health and Human Service program. “She has a special drive and resilience that has allowed her to overcome incredible personal challenges.” 

Young will graduate from Mt. Hood in June and plans to transfer to Portland State University to study social work. She is completing her internship at Fir Ridge alternative school where she supports at-risk students in achieving their goals of graduating from high school.

CAL student wins state poetry contest

Rosie Reyes, a Troutdale resident and student at Gresham’s Center for Advanced Learning, will represent Oregon in the National Poetry Out Loud competitions April 29-30, in Washington D.C.

At the national competition, Reyes will compete for more than $35,000 in scholarships. As the state winner, her school will be awarded $500 to purchase poetry books and a $200 cash prize.

For more information on Poetry Out Loud, call the Oregon Arts Commission at 503-986-0082 or visit the national website at poetryoutloud.org.

Sometimes securing and keeping a job comes down to something simple, such as owning a pair of sturdy work shoes. 

SnowCap Community Charities is experiencing requests from many men who don't have adequate footwear to perform comfortably on the job or seek employment.

"We've never before had to make this request for community support, but it is important for the clients we serve," said Judy Alley, SnowCap executive director.

SnowCap is seeking a variety of shoes with good, nonskid soles, such as tennis or athletic shoes. The organization also is seeking used black leather footwear.

"They will be worn to work by many of our clients who are employed in blue collar jobs — fast food workers, security personnel, service station attendants," Alley said. "Some men also need shoes to wear for job interviews, but they are not usually worn for office-type employment."

SnowCap is looking for all sizes of shoes that are clean and free of dirt and odor. Shoes may be delivered to the SnowCap warehouse at 17788 S.E. Pine St. from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays. 

SnowCap Community Charities is a philanthropic organization created 47 years ago to provide food, clothing, advocacy and other services to the poor in East Multnomah County.

For more information, call SnowCap at 503-674-8785, ext. 17, or email judy@snowcap.org.

Easter programs offered at Pleasant Home

Pleasant Home United Methodist Church, 31632 S.E. Bluff Road, Gresham, invites everyone to join in their observance and celebration of Holy Week and Easter 2013.

• Palm/Passion Sunday - March 24, worship at 11 a.m. with special choir music.

Fellowship Time at noon.

• Tuesday of Holy Week - March 26, prayer service at 2 p.m.

• Wednesday of Holy Week - March 27, prayer service at 2 p.m.

• Thursday of Holy Week - March 28, prayer services at 2 and 6 p.m.

• Good Friday - March 29, Holy Communion and Service of Darkness at 7 p.m.

• Holy Saturday - March 30, free brunch and Easter egg hunt at 10 a.m.

• Easter Day - Sunday March 31, Easter breakfast in Pioneer Hall at 9:45 a.m.

Worship Celebration of the Resurrection at 11 a.m. with a parade of flowers and special music.

For more information, visit pleasanthomeumchurch.org or call church office 503-663-5654.

Stations of the cross at Hillsview Community Church

Hillsview Community Church, 23225 S.E. Borges Road, Damascus, has artistically arranged several stations of prayer for the observer to reflect upon the events that led up to Christ’s death upon the cross.  

The church will be open from noon to 6:30 p.m. during Holy Week so individuals, families or friends may participate.

At 7 p.m. there will be a combined Good Friday service with Hollyview Family Fellowship  at 14095 S.E. 257TH St. in Damascus.  

For more information, call Pastor Michael Conrad of Hillsview Community Church at 503-912-0116 or Pastor James Erb of Hollyview Family Fellowship at 503-658-5680.

Debra Derr and Jacob Ng are the remaining finalists

Suzanne Miles has withdrawn from consideration for college president, The Mt. Hood Community College District Board of Education announced Wednesday, March 20.

“We accepted her resignation and are committed to moving forward to identify the best president to lead MHCC,” said Dave Shields, board chair. “At this time, we do not anticipate expanding the number of finalists beyond the existing two.”

Miles came under scrutiny recently in her role as interim chancellor of Pima Community College in Arizona.

According to an article published in the Arizona Star March 20, Miles’ decision came a few days after Pima’s accreditor released a scathing investigative report about the school’s top administrators.

The report describes “corrupt hiring and contracting practices, a “culture of fear and retribution” created by abusive administrators and a “dysfunctional” board of governors that shirked its oversight duties and dismissed its critics.”

The report alleges former Chancellor Roy Flores, who left the college under a cloud of sexual-harassment allegations, the Governing Board and current top administrators all committed "serious breaches" of ethical standards.

According to The Star, it wasn't clear if Miles decided to leave the top job on her own or was asked to step down. Brenda Even, chairwoman of Pima’s Governing Board, did not respond to the newspaper's three requests for comment Tuesday.

Miles' last day will be April 12, according to The Star. She will stay on at Pima as president of the college's community campus.

Presidential forums at Mt. Hood

The remaining two finalists for the Mt. Hood position will participate in public forums Friday, April 5, in the Visual Arts Theatre on the Gresham Campus, 26000 S.E. Stark Street.

Each candidate will open with a five-minute statement, followed by 35 minutes of questions from the audience and a five-minute closing statement.

The forum for Debra Derr will be held 12:25-1:10 p.m. and the forum for Jacob Ng will be held 1:20 – 2:05 p.m. The board will interview the two finalists Saturday, April 6.

For more information on the candidates, visit mhcc.edu/presidentialsearch.

A man arrested last year for his role in a fatal park brawl now faces attempted murder and assault charges.

Roger Dale Elliott, 24, of Northeast Portland is being held on $750,000 bail at the Multnomah County Inverness Jail on charges filed Thursday, March 21, of attempted murder, first-degree assault and second-degree assault in which he allegedly stabbed the mother of his child's new boyfriend.

Elliot pleaded not guilty to the charges during his Thursday arraignment.

Gresham police arrested Elliott on Sept. 23, 2012, following a knife fight between 10 people at Pat Pfeifer Park in the 300 block of Northeast 172nd Avenue. The fight killed Destiny A. Smith, 23, of Gladstone, who died at the hospital. Her death remains the only unsolved homicide of the five Gresham police investigated last year.

Elliott is accused of trying to kill a different person, Henry Real — one of three people injured in the fight.

Real was transported to a hospital for emergency surgery on serious stab wounds to the chest, abdomen and an eviscerated bowel, according to court documents.

The two men met at the park to fight over a woman Real was dating, who had a child with Elliott.

Witnesses reported seeing Elliott armed with a knife in each hand and Real armed with one knife. Mutual friends tried to stop the fight from happening and one even took Real's knife away from him.

Once Real was unarmed, he was knocked to the ground. Witnesses saw Elliott on top of Real striking him repeatedly in the ares where he was injured.

Because of the gang ties of those involved, both suspects and victims were not cooperative with police.

But one day after the fight, police arrested Elliott for violating his parole on convictions of being a felon in possession of a weapon and for unauthorized use of a vehicle.

Six months later, on Wednesday, March 20, police added attempted murder and assault charges to the list of charges he is facing.

Smith's death remains under investigation. Anyone with information about either case is asked to call the Gresham police tipline at 503-618-2719 or 888-989-3505.

A 19-year-old Gresham man faces Ballot Measure 11 charges for his alleged involvement in an armed robbery last December.

Gresham police on Wednesday, March 20, arrested Andre Rashaun Stowell on an allegation of first-degree robbery with a firearm and two allegations of second-degree robbery with a firearm, according to court document.

At 11:35 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8, 2012, Stowell allegedly used a gun to rob a 21-year-old Gresham man of $1,500 in cash and an undisclosed amount of medical marijuana on the street in the 2400 block of Northeast Division Street, said Det. John Rasmussen, a Gresham Police spokesman.

Stowell is being held on $250,000 bail at the Multnomah County Inverness Jail. He pleaded not guilty during his Thursday, March 21, arraignment.

NAVY

Navy Seaman Apprentice Raymond D. Mullen, son of Diana M. Kennedy-Mullen of Fairview and Craig A. Mullen of Washougal, Wash., was recently promoted to his current rank upon graduation from recruit training at Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Ill.

Mullen received the early promotion for outstanding performance during all phases of the training cycle. He is a 2010 graduate of Washougal High School of Washougal, Wash.

Navy Seaman Recruit Jonathan D. Beiersdorf, son of Rebekah J. and Timothy D. Beiersdorf of Gresham, recently completed U.S. Navy basic training at Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Ill.

Beiersdorf is a 2011 graduate of Gresham High School.

AIR FORCE

Air Force First Lt. Michael D. Mclain has been named Junior Company Grade Officer of the Year for the 436th Airlift Wing Medical Group.

McClain is a resource management flight commander assigned to the 436th Airlift Wing at Dover Air Force Base, Del. The first lieutenant has served in the military for two years.

He is the son of Debbie Butler of Damascus and Larry McClain of Beaverton. He is also the grandson of Helen Stone of Gresham and nephew of Blake and Lori Rowe of Longview, Wash.

McClain graduated in 2005 from Centennial High School and received a bachelor’s degree of science in 2010 from the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

ARMY

Army Reserve Pfc. Mario J. Hernandez has graduated from basic combat training at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S.C. Hernandez is a 2012 graduate of Reynolds High School, Troutdale.

Army Pfc. Jared A. Riehl has graduated from basic combat training at Fort Jackson, Columbia, S.C. A 2012 graduate of Sam Barlow High School, Riehl is the son of Paul Riehl of Damascus.