Get in on Friends of Trees’ Spring Planting

Your tree is waiting (and waiting) for you
People in more than 40 neighborhoods can still buy trees to plant at their homes this spring. If you haven’t ordered your tree yet, don’t miss this chance to make your home happier, healthier and wealthier. This slideshow on January 20 can help you choose which tree to order. Read about a new Portland study that links tree-lined neighborhoods with healthy newborns.

Be a leader this winter
If you missed our fall crew leader trainings, it’s not too late to join our team of well-loved leaders. Sign up online for our January 27 and 29 trainings.
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The Albina Mural Project: Filling a Void in Portland’s Public Art and History

From McMenamin’s Kennedy School:

The Albina Mural Project: Filling a Void in Portland’s Public Art and History
Kennedy School Theater | Monday, January 31, 7 p.m. | Free | All ages welcome

In the late 1970s, a group of several artists of color created murals and sculptures that hung outside for five years in the historically African-American Albina neighborhood. They worked to depict the history of black culture, both within in and outside America, aiming to fill in the gaps left by silent history books. Mural scholar Robin Dunitz will explain the context in which the artists worked and the impact the project had on them and the community. We will also show a film on the Albina Mural Project created by Portland State University’s Center for Moving Images.

Robin J. Dunitz has been researching, photographing, and writing about murals for almost thirty years. The traveling exhibit “Walls of Heritage, Walls of Pride: African American Murals” is based on a book of the same name, which she co-authored with James Prigoff and which was published by Pomegranate Communications in 2000. In 2005, the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Museum and Center for African American History and Culture hosted the exhibit. Her other books include Street Gallery: Guide to 1000 Los Angeles Murals and Painting the Towns: Murals of California, the latter also co-authored with James Prigoff. She holds a B.A. in people’s history from the University of California.

About History Pub Monday
Join us for beer and history, sponsored by the Oregon Historical Society, Holy Names Heritage Center and McMenamins, in which you’ll hear lively local or regional history while you enjoy a frosty pint or two of handcrafted ale.

The Kennedy School is at 5736 N.E. 33rd Avenue.

Step It Up Helps Youth Succeed

From Step It Up:

Career development is important, especially for teens. At a time when youth unemployment is at historic highs, learning what being in the workplace is like, what skills are needed, and how to act are essential for youth to achieve success in the workforce and in life. But many youth are disconnected from these opportunities, having no chance to learn skills that will help them succeed in a professional career. Alexis was one of these teens, yet through Step It Up, Inc.’s programs, she was able to gain career knowledge, experiential learning, and continuous support.
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