East Portland Celebrated at 2009 Spirit of Portland Awards

2009 Spirit of Portland Emerging Community Leader, Mark White receives his memento from Portland City Commissioner Amanda Fritz.

Of the twenty-five 2009 Spirit of Portland awardees on November 12, three recipients were from outer East Portland. This year’s evening event was held at the Newmark Theatre, downtown, on SW Broadway.  The Spirit of Portland Awards are organized by the Portland Office of Neighborhood Involvement (ONI), which is overseen by Portland City Commissioner Amanda Fritz.  “The City [is improving] because we understand that individuals, coming together, build a better community,” Fritz began.

Emerging Community Leader Award: Mark White

Commissioner Fritz told the assembly that Mark White, Powellhurst-Gilbert Neighborhood’s president, showed leadership by producing the successful 2009 East Portland Exposition (EPO XPO), working with students and culturally diverse groups. He increased neighborhood bike lanes, and instituted graffiti cleanups.  “He’s been president of neighborhood association for just over one year,” Fritz noted. “He devotes almost all of his time to improving the quality of life in Powellhurst-Gilbert neighborhood, and outer east Portland.”

Fritz looked up from her notes and said, “I have to break from the script and tell you, when it heard about his plans [for EPO XPO], I thought that was not possible to bring it off. It was a wonderful event, and a tribute to Mark's leadership.”  Fritz continued, “White also wrote and was awarded three small neighborhood association grants last year, including youth internship programs which introduced students to community organizing, focus groups with immigrant youths to identify ways to communicate and engage their non-English-speaking parents and to build community, and a neighborhood night out – that was expanded to include a movie in the park.

“Mark also wrote and received two additional grants from the East Portland Action Plan to begin work on the East Portland Exposition for 2010, and expand a Powellhurst Gilbert urban farming program. This’ll act as an economic development tool, and help address issues of increasing poverty and hunger in the community.”  White responded, “Hello everyone, and thank you so much. It’s an honor to receive this award. I am truly grateful to be able to do the things that I do. I can’t imagine not doing what I’m doing. It is a pleasure to be able to say that.”

Non-Profit Award: IRCO

The Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization, known as IRCO, was recognized with a 2009 Spirit of Portland Award for community-based non-profit organizations for providing an array of culturally specific programs, serving families “from birth to elders”, Commissioner Fritz noted.  Fritz commended, “Since 1976, IRCO’s multilingual and multi-ethnic staff has been able to address the needs of Portland’s increasingly diverse groups – from Asia, the Pacific Islands, Latin America, Africa, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and the United States.”   “IRCO has implemented various projects in response to community needs, such as Africa House, founded in 2006.  IRCO also develops leadership opportunities for its diverse community. They recruit and train community leaders to become advocates in responding to the city and public involvement initiatives.”

“Good evening,” responded Sokhom Tauch. “On behalf of our immigrant and refugee Portland community, on behalf of our IRCO Director and staff, I am grateful tonight to be able to be here and to accept the award.  “Portland is a beacon of hope for many immigrants. We are honored to be able to serve them, and to help them become a self-sufficient and healthy community in Portland.”

Neighborhood Association of the Year: Powellhurst-Gilbert Neighborhood Association

“I’d like to invite Mark White to come back up to accept on behalf of Powellhurst-Gilbert Neighborhood Association,” Commissioner Amanda Fritz began.  “Despite obstacles including poverty, a rapidly growing population, and dozens of different languages spoken by its residents, the Powellhurst-Gilbert Neighborhood Association has made tremendous strides in a brightening the quality of life in its own and neighboring communities. With monthly meetings averaging 20 to 30 individuals, Powellhurst-Gilbert has a very strong core of volunteers.”

The commissioner outlined the association's recent significant achievements, including; the most successful graffiti cleanup in the City's history, an ongoing graffiti cleanup program, the launch of the East Portland Exposition, a coalition-wide festival promoting East Portland and its 13 neighborhoods, producing a successful combination Neighborhood Night Out against crime and Movie-in-the-Park program, Installing a soft surface pedestrian path in West Powellhurst-Gilbert Park, developing an “Adopt-a-Drain” program designed to help manage storm water drains – efforts are underway to use it as a template for the entire city, launching a major restoration project on the Springwater Corridor between SE 128th Avenue and 136th Avenue, and being awarded three small neighbor grants and three East Portland Action Plan grants, including one to launch an urban farming program, and another one for a coalition-wide graffiti abatement program.

“Thank you Mark White and the Powellhurst-Gilbert Neighborhood Association volunteers, members and neighbors,” Fritz concluded.  Powellhurst-Gilbert Neighborhood Association President Mark White accepted the award, saying, “It is truly, truly an honor to accept this on behalf of the neighborhood association. It’s really a group effort. It’s important for people to understand that a small group of people can make a big difference, despite obstacles they face.  “If, for some reason, you have not found your niche, your ‘tribe’ to belong to, a neighborhood association truly is a place where you can come and shine, and give back tremendously to the community in which you live.”

By David F. Ashton