Here is the story of a couple who grew up in our neighborhood and then returned to raise their family here. You may enjoy reading this on a crisp October evening, relaxing by a warm fireside with a cup of hot chocolate. Patrick Sweeney and Betty McCall grew up on 34th and 41st Avenues respectively, both living just south of Shaver Street. They attended Beaumont School back when Wilshire Park was nothing but woods, and children could get to school easily by cutting across vacant lots. They went on to Grant High School and Oregon State University. Although Pat and Betty were acquainted during grade school, the four years difference in their ages was significant until their college years. Pat’s four years of service in the Pacific during WWII in navy aviation electronics put them on about the same level in college. They became reacquainted when Pat worked as a houseboy at Betty’s sorority, and were married in December of 1946. Pat went to work for Pacific Telephone and Telegraph after graduation. The Sweeneys returned to Portland after his being employed at the Bell Labs in Allentown, Pennsylvania for four years. They purchased a house on 41st from Betty’s mother, and they moved there with their two sons, Mike and Tim. With the birth of a third son, Kelly, it became expedient to move to their present roomier residence on 40th Avenue, purchased from the Trenholme family. All three sons attended Beaumont Grade School and went on to graduate from Benson Tech, where they enjoyed playing football and serving as Rose Festival drivers. Pat and Betty were pleased that their sons all obtained college degrees and married well. Even though Mike, Tim and Kelly raised their own families in other parts of Portland, it was a family tradition to meet at Grandma and Grandpa’s on Halloween to enjoy pizza. Following came trick-or-treating in this neighborhood that was preferred for its safety and friendly families. Pat Sweeney has been retired from the phone company since 1983. Betty
retired from substitute teaching in about 1985. They have stayed on here
because they appreciate the friendliness of their neighbors and the pride
that is shown in keeping up properties. Also the proximity of stores,
good schools, and small businesses is important to them. When asked where
they want to live during the “autumn” of their years, Pat and
Betty were adamant and unanimous: “Right here!”
Other neighborhoods may have their First and Last Thursday celebrations, which serve to promote and unveil artists’ work, but residents of Beaumont-Wilshire can witness their neighbors’ creativity with a simple click of the mouse. Mario Caoile, webmaster for the BWNA site and an artist himself, created the ‘Artspace’ feature a few months ago on the neighborhood association’s website because he saw that “Alberta Street had its great art thing, but we didn’t have anything like it here.” From the start he wanted to concentrate on presenting the artwork instead of conducting commerce: “It’s totally an online thing. We don’t take any commissions, and it’s a free service to artists.” The site at www.bwna.org now features ten artists, from airbrush painters and sculptors to muralists and bookbinders. Caoile welcomes the submissions of more artists—the only caveat being that they reside or work within the BWNA boundaries—as well as any suggestions on how to improve the site. Adrienne Fritze, an artist whose sculptural boxes are featured in Artspace, explains: “I chose to post the work to get it out of my head and heart and into the world where it actually has some impact on how people experience and live their lives.” Painter Eric Aust, who has watercolors of area homes on the site, says, “It’s a great option to get your work seen by more people.” Photographer Rita Catapano adds, “I view it as an opportunity to get feedback from the public. I would be thrilled if people like my work. If somebody liked it enough to purchase a photo, I would be even more thrilled.” Each artist’s space within the site includes contact information. People who wish to purchase art can contact the artists directly. Many of the artists involved said a bonus of the site is that it raises awareness of the wide variety of work created by the residents of a relatively small neighborhood. Beaumont Wilshire may not have mobbed art openings, but it does brim with creativity. With Artspace, all that’s missing is the wine and cheese. Instructions on submitting work to artspace
Because of changes in her work responsibilities, Debra Kennedy has resigned as President of the Beaumont Wilshire Neighborhood Association. On September 9, 2002, the Members of the Board appointed me President, and I want to take this opportunity to introduce myself. My full name is Melissa Gronquist Ritter, and like many Portlanders, I come from Swedish stock. I grew up on Portland’s west side, but I am thrilled to be living here in the NE now. In fact, I love our neighborhood! I think it’s great that we can walk to so many unique shops and restaurants. I jog in Wilshire Park and I am always impressed by the size of the trees. Professionally, I am a teacher and education policy expert, but I am currently a stay-at-home mom to my 1 ½ year-old son. My husband, Tripp, is a marketing analyst. We enjoy hiking, camping, and other outdoor activities. We also love to read, and our house is filled with books! My personal goal as president of BWNA is to foster a spirit of community. We do that through new neighbor packets, this newsletter, and various charitable and fun-oriented events throughout the year. I encourage you to get involved in one of our many projects. However, I believe we also need to reach out as individuals. Summer is a time when many families move, and I know we now have lots of new neighbors. I urge you to introduce yourself to the people who live close to you, whether they just moved in or have been here fifty years. It’s never too late, and everyone likes to be welcomed! As a community, we’ll be safer and happier when we know each other and know what’s happening on our blocks. It makes me feel good to walk down Fremont and hear people greet each other, and I hope this Halloween there will be lots of lights on as I take my son for his first trick-or-treating. Enjoy the season. I can’t wait to meet those of you I haven’t met yet.
The National Night Out/Beaumont-Wilshire picnic on August 6th was once again a huge success. Over 250 neighbors and friends consumed over 100 pounds of meat and Garden burgers, about 120 square feet of delicious salads and deserts, and over 25 gallons of sodas. Papa Murphy’s provided pizza staight from their portable oven. There weren’t many leftovers at the end of the evening. Two people who should take big bows this year are Jose Escobar and my husband, Baer Charlton, for their great efforts in both organizing the picnic and gathering an impressive quantity of great door prizes from local businesses. Thank you to all the volunteers who made it the event of the summer. If you didn’t go this year, don’t miss the 2003 picnic. We were also thrilled to have a great turnout from city officials. It is not often that kids and adults get to sit in a real fire truck and get their pictures taken. What memories! And the fire hats for the kids were a great touch! Look for a few ‘firefighters’ this Halloween. Portland Police officers also were in attendance, arriving in several squad cars and explaining to kids how their computers work. Even the battalion chief showed up and enjoyed sampling some of the great food. The firefighters and police were heard to say that they had to pace themselves because they were due at several other National Night Out events that evening. It was a great time for all. And as the coals died down and the silence settled in among the trees, we were already looking towards next year’s event. Jose and Carrie Escobar have just moved from BW, so there’s a vacancy on the Beaumont Wilshire Board for a leader for next year’s picnic. Contact any board member, or attend the next meeting on Oct. 14. ** To view photos from the picnic click
here.
The land-use committee did not meet over the summer, however we did provide input to the development plans for the cemetery. We recommended that the bureau implement the plans for a sidewalk and landscaping along the west side of the cemetery during the first phase of development. The City of Portland has the task of improving their land-use and building code regulations, regulatory-related procedures and costs, and customer services. It is seeking to build a more effective approach to regulatory improvement. As a part of their outreach, they invited a land-use committee representative from each neighborhood to a meeting on July 30, 2002 to provide input. I attended for B-W. Land-use is a very important issue to our neighborhood especially with the expectations of increased development along Freemont Street. I reported that our neighborhood is in the beginning stages of creating a Neighborhood Plan with a design overlay and we are interested in having a plan that will influence future development in B-W. The following concerns were also voiced at the meeting:
City meetings will resume this fall. We have a lot of work to do, and
invite your input. During the Freemont Fest and picnic we heard from a
few people who are interested in participating on the land use committee
and will call those who have shown interest prior to our next meeting.
If you are interested and have not talked to anyone on the committee,
please let me know and I will include you. You can e-mail me at trekkers@aracnet.com
or call me at 503-280-0133.
Thanks to Bethany Lutheran church, the Zoo Animal Presenters (ZAP) team paid another visit to our neighborhood and brought with them some exotic and some not so exotic animals. Ready to be petted, stroked and gawked at were: a Madagascar hissing cockroach, an Australian walking stick, a Muscovey duck, a domestic rabbit, a blue-tongued skink and a desert tortoise. To get a glimpse of these animals and the people who enjoyed them, view the ZAP photos on www.bwna.org, photos page. Thanks to Bill Markwart for getting a photo of the skink’s blue tongue. Great job, Bill! Watch the newsletter and the website for the date of the next visit by the ZAP team, which is planned for later this year.
The first time Carrie Escobar heard about Longaberger®baskets she was hooked. She attended a party hosted by Beaumont Wilshire neighbor, Jan Stephens, who has been buying their baskets for 20 years. Carrie felt immediately connected to Longaberger’s unique history and USA made extraordinary quality craftsmanship. Carrie became a Longaberger® sales consultant in July 2001 and by December was a Management Bound Advisor with 3 reps under her. She went to the company’s Ohio headquarters (a building shaped like a giant basket) and met Tami Longaberger. Carrie is an Ohio native and still has family there so she enjoys visiting the headquarters and attending sales conferences. Carrie and Jan both say you can’t fully appreciate how beautiful
and functional a basket can be until you see a Longaberger basket and
hear the story of this unique family run business. I’m glad I attended
one of Carrie and Jan’s parties and purchased some baskets. They
are exquisite and true heirlooms. To see for yourself, call Carrie at
503-282-4156 or Jan at 503-282-7664. Carrie and her husband, Jose, work
at Windermere Realty and volunteered often to better our neighborhood.
Jose was co-chair of our annual “National Night Out” picnic
this year.
BWNA participates in a Friends of Trees planting every two years. If you missed the one that took place March 2002 and can’t wait until 2004, there will be an opportunity for Concordia and Beaumont Wilshire residents to plant trees March 15, 2003. Residents can obtain trees for parking strips or private yards at greatly reduced cost from retail prices. If you are interested in obtaining a tree please return this form by October 31. A city forester will inspect your parking strip and, following the inspection, you will be provided with tree choices (if you would like a yard tree, a list of choices will also be provided). Holes for the trees will be pre-dug and volunteers will help plant the trees on March 15. You must pay for your tree(s), which start at $60, but don’t send money now. You are strongly encouraged to help with the planting in any way you can. If you would like to volunteer during or after planting day and/or would like to donate money to Friends of Trees, please return the form. Planting trees is easy, fun and incredibly rewarding! Get involved in the neighborhood and become part of the planting team. Please call or e-mail Eileen Stark at 503-528-8172 or secondnaturedesign@attbi.com Neighborhood Announcements Public hearings on UrbanGrowth Boundary
Church Bazaars
Neighborhood Traffic Safety Summit
Antique Appraisal
Saint Charles annual spaghetti& meatball dinner
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