Author: Hannah Wallace

SNACC Update

The SNACC (Sunnyside Neighborhood Community Care) Committee had a productive meeting on October 5th. We discussed the need for different types of volunteer activities at the Shower Project, including organizing supplies and taking inventory. We also talked about how volunteers need to be more mindful of how our conversations impact our guests – putting them front-and-center rather than focusing on ourselves or our (comparatively privileged) lives. We also discussed the need for further trainings around Trauma Informed Care (TIC), CPR and first aid training, and a Narcan training. 

We will be holding a Narcan training for all Shower Project volunteers and guests on November 12th with a harm reduction coordinator from Instituto Latino Recovery Center and our very own Josette Hodge. We also discussed the Clothing Drive and brainstormed partner agencies we could invite to be there. (See below for more info on the winter clothing drive.) The next SNACC meeting will be on December 7th at 6:30 p.m. 

Winter Clothing Drive

For the 4th year in a row, the SNACC committee is organizing a Winter Clothing Drive for our houseless neighbors. The drive will be on Saturday, December 9th in the basement of the Sunnyside Methodist Church/The Groves on 35th and Yamhill. A crew of volunteers will be on hand to collect donations of winter clothing and gear from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. The main event will be held from 2 – 6 p.m. that same day.

Here are some of the things we especially need (for all genders): 

• Pants, jeans, and sweatpants
• Sweaters and sweatshirts
• T-shirts – short and long-sleeved
• Long underwear
• New underwear (men’s and women’s)
• New or lightly worn socks (wool preferred)
• Raincoats/winter coats
• Boots, tennis shoes, hiking shoes
• Tarps, tents, sleeping bags
• Warm hats, gloves, scarves, and belts

Please do not donate children’s clothing or dressy/formal clothing. 

We will be promoting the event to our shower guests, partner agencies, and local businesses (and on our Instagram at @sunnysideshowerproject). If you would like to help publicize the event or if your workplace wants to donate gear, clothing, or gift cards, please reach out to Diana Deumling at [email protected].

Sunnyside Neighbor Giving Back

A week ago, I got an email from an unfamiliar name. The woman, Lynn Sims, had been a caretaker for Judy Barnes, a 20-year Sunnyside resident. Barnes, who had been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) at a young age, had gone blind and needed help with various daily tasks. Sims wrote, “Of course I read her all her mail—and it was a favorite of hers to have me read the Sunnyside News. That’s how we found out about the Shower Program. Judy died June 11th, peacefully, with the help of Providence Hospice & End of Life Choices. As per her wishes I am making her donation and sending thanks for all your good work!” She then informed me that she had just made a $100 donation to the Sunnyside Shower Project.

Barnes, who had a BA in psychology from Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland, was an excellent cook and gardener who loved classical music and history. Despite being legally blind at age 27, she began work at the Department of Labor in Washington D.C. as a correspondence analyst. After working there ten years, Barnes became disabled due to her RA. She moved to California and then eventually to Portland. In the early 1990s, Judy worked vigorously in support of public power and clean energy futures by promoting Public Utility Districts (PUD) with a broad grassroots coalition. She supported many progressive causes. She is survived by her sisters, Rebecca Shircliff and Cecelia Barnes.

We are so incredibly touched by this generous donation and wanted to publicly acknowledge both Barnes, who loved Sunnyside, and her caretaker, Lynn Sims.

News from the Vice President

Hi neighbors!  I’m writing the column for Chris this month, as he is visiting family. As I write this in mid-August, we’re going through another mini-heat wave. I hope you all manage(d) to stay cool during this oppressively hot weather. And I hope you had a restful summer—maybe with some fun travel thrown in—and are ready to get back to school/work/community with renewed energy. 

At our August Board meeting, we discussed a letter to PBOT written by Rob Galanakis. Rob is a father of two on the board of the Mount Tabor Neighborhood Association who bikes everywhere. Like many of us, Rob was horrified to learn of the senseless death of librarian Jeanie Diaz, caused by a drunk driver who struck her as she was waiting for a bus on Cesar Chavez Blvd. Jeanie’s death was the seventh traffic death in eight days, in the most deadly month for traffic in our city’s history. And it was totally avoidable. 

With four lanes of traffic, vehicles traveling at a high speed (despite a posted speed limit of 30 mph), and narrow sidewalks, this area of Cesar Chavez is extremely dangerous. It was just a matter of time before someone was hurt or killed. In his research, Galanakis learned that PBOT has already identified a stretch of Cesar Chavez (from I-84 to Stark) to receive a Rose Lane—a dedicated bus lane—in each direction. Rose Lanes not only reduce delays for bus routes, they keep cars and trucks from driving continuously on the outer two lanes of the road. (Cars and trucks can enter the Rose Lane only when turning right onto a neighborhood street.) In his letter to PBOT director Millicent Williams, Galanakis asks PBOT to immediately extend the Rose Lane south to Division or Powell. (Galanakis will also send copies to everyone on the City Council.) Rose Lanes are quick and cheap projects. “Rose Lanes require no hard infrastructure, and are some of the cheapest projects to implement, with a per-mile cost of about $200,000. It may be convenient to point to PBOT’s ongoing financial woes as a reason to do nothing, but such an attitude is the reason we have dual crises in budget and human safety in the first place. These sorts of low-cost, high-benefit projects are absolutely essential to pursue and prioritize,” he writes in the letter. The letter can be read in full on Sunnysideportland.org.  

After discussing the letter and knowing that there are additional safety measures PBOT should, and could take, the SNA Board decided to sign onto this letter. However, the week after our meeting the Richmond Neighborhood Association opted not to sign it and are taking time to do more research and get community input. The SNA (and the Mount Tabor Neighborhood Association) believe it’s important that all the neighborhoods surrounding Cesar Chavez agree on one unified message. So, at our Sept. 14th General Meeting we hope to get your feedback on the specific traffic calming and safety measures PBOT should implement along Cesar Chavez.  

We have a lot planned for our Sept. 14th General Meeting. Continuing the theme of pedestrian safety and traffic calming, both State Rep. Rob Nosse and (hopefully) Jonathan Maus of Bike Portland will share their ideas (and listen to ours) on how we can advocate for, and get, safer streets — particularly along Cesar Chavez and other busy Portland arterial roads. Rep. Nosse will also give us an overall update on his work in the Legislature, touching on housing, homelessness, addiction treatment and behavioral health issues. Come and bring your input and ideas! 

The SNA will staff a table at the Belmont Street Fair. Stop by Saturday, September 9th and introduce yourself and consider getting involved in one of our many Sunnyside projects!