OSU Day of Service at Food Bank draws Extension Supporters
Katherine Dougall (right facing camera) brings her children each year to OSU's annual Community Day of Service. Photo Credit: Hannah O'Leary 
Friends and alumni of Oregon State University made a strong showing Saturday, June 20, to sort potatoes, pears and bag up pasta for the Oregon Food Bank as part of OSU's  annual Community Day of Service. Held each May and sponsored by the OSU Alumni Association volunteer opportunities are offered throughout the state.  

Together regular volunteers and OSU volunteers  at both the food bank's Beaverton and Portland locations  handled over 10,000 pounds of food equating to 500 meals per volunteer offered to the hungry in the Portland metro area. 

For some, OSU's service day is a yearly tradition. Katherine Dougall, for example, brings her children to the event each year with her husband, who's a graduate of the university. "It's a great opportunity to serve," Dougall said. "We've always tried to teach the kids to give back."

Second grader Tyler Dougall said he enjoyed the day. "You can see how much pasta you've weighed and how much work you've done," he said.

OSU alumna Jeannie Christen also participates in the day of service each year with her friends from her college days. "It's one of the annual things we girls do together," she said. "It's so cool to see these children volunteering here -- what great parents teaching them service."

While 1990 graduate Elizabeth Butcher also participates each year, she was particularly inspired by the day she spent at the food bank and plans to continue volunteering. "People don't understand how important this is until you need it," said Butcher, who has childhood friends who utilize local food banks.

"This day is a visible way for the community to see how active OSU is," Butcher said. "Being a Beaver never stops."

Volunteer Jim Fitzpatrick's children graduated from OSU and he served on the Extension Citizen Advisory Network for the OSU Extension. "I'm glad to be here; it's fun," said Fitzpatrick, who likes to give back to the organization. "The Extension is great. It touches every bit of Oregon."

Sue Goetz, a 1982 graduate of OSU's College of Business, is a regular volunteer at the food bank. "It's fun to represent OSU and it's fun to meet new people and give back," she said.

OSU alumni and couple Josh Bertoli and Emalee Rabinovitch showed up together to help bag pasta. "It's cool as someone of privilege to see what goes into this," Rabinovitch said. "I personally have never been to a pantry and it's nice to see where it all comes from and who it's going to."  
Small Woodlands Group Awards Money to Aspiring Forester
Austin Finster stood with WCSWA member Vic Herinckx at a banquet.

The Washington County Small Woodlands Association awarded Austin Finster a $2,000 scholarship in May to pursue his forestry studies at Oregon State University.

The WCSWA has been awarding scholarships since 2000 after two members were so inspired by the quality of the OSU Extension Master Woodland program instructors. The group wanted to make sure future students could continue to pursue careers in forestry and positively impact the industry.
"I've seen his credentials and he seems like a great kid," WCSWA President Bonnie Shumaker said of Finster. "He seems like just the kind of kid we want to support."

Finster is a fourth generation tree farmer, helping manage and conduct timber harvests at his family farm in Estacada.

It seems Finster just can't get enough forestry. " I spend a majority of my time away from school helping small woodland owners with management goals, timber-stand improvement and small-scale harvesting," said Finster, who's still deciding whether he wants to be a private consultant or work for a major timber company. "Ultimately, I would enjoy arriving at a position in which I am able to engage in some sort of public education on true forest practices" to curb misimpressions.

Finster said he was pleasantly surprised to receive the scholarship and it gave him "a great feeling of accomplishment while furthering my ambition to create an impactful career in order to give thanks to those who have supported my endeavors," he said. "This award will allow me to further consider graduate degree options in the coming years while also driving me to excel in my program."

Shumaker said the association hopes the scholarships will open opportunities to even more students in the coming years and has created an endowment with OSU's College of Forestry this year. The group fundraises with annual sales of seedlings and woodland shrubs and flowers. "We want to make sure the education of quality foresters is always continued," Shumaker said.

Keep an eye out for Japanese beetles, an invasive landscape pest that damages lawns, ornamental plants and a variety of crops grown in Oregon. 

Currently, there is a large population of Japanese beetles in the Cedar Mill and Bethany neighborhoods. The Oregon Department of Agriculture is actively treating this area to contain and eradicate the population. Adult Japanese beetles are active and visible in June and July, and locals may see them feeding on roses and maples in the affected area. 

OSU Extension has a handy new free publication to help you identify and learn more about Japanese beetles. You can help keep Japanese beetles from becoming established in Oregon by reporting beetles that you see. Bring the suspicious beetle to the OSU Extension office for identification or report it to the Oregon Department of Agriculture, either online or by calling 1-866-INVADER. 
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OSU Extension  SNAP Outreach Coordinator Adejoke Babatunde conducted a Food Hero session at the North Portland Multnomah County Library in May with OSU Extension Nutrition Education Program Assistant Yolanda De La Cruz. Multnomah County Commissioner Loretta Smith was a surprise guest attending the session, Black Storytime with Food: Sharing Farming and Nutrition Knowledge at North Portland Library. The program was in partnership with the local urban farming business Mudbone Grown LLC. 

Enjoy those carrots this season with this healthy Asian carrot salad featuring carrots, peppers, raisins, sunflower seeds and a tangy dressing. This recipe has 190% of suggested Vitamin A.
Learn to reduce food waste and handle food safely to prevent foodborne illness at free class at Beaverton City Hall, 12725 S.W. Millikan Way in Beaverton, Saturday, June 17. The class starts at noon and will last approximately a half an hour. Free lunch will be provided.  Learn to reduce food waste and save money, keep food safe at home, and recognize common causes of foodborne illness. Call 503-846-4749 with questions. Register at WashCoFoodSafety.com. 
Create a small garden that's big on style and function. Landscape architect and OSU Extension Master Gardener explains how to make the most of small spaces. Go to article
One small seed is all it takes to produce a giant pumpkin. Now is the time to start pumping up your favorite festive fall squash. Get tips from an Oregon State University vegetable breeder.
OSU Extension in the Portland Metro region is embarking on an "Urban Communities Reimagined" project intended to empower communities to tackle complicated community problems, which is essential to citizen-centered democracy. As part of the project, OSU seeks your input and engagement in an urban survey. Using literature reviews, surveys, focus groups and cultural engagement tools, we will frame urban stories in urban voices, contributing to the national conversation of what community means to urban. Responses collected from the survey we are asking you to complete will lead to the development of an "urban issue guide" in partnership with the organizations and people who use it, including under-served and under-represented populations. The project involves not only the Portland-metro area but metropolitan communities in Alaska, Colorado, Michigan, Ohio Washington and Wisconsin. We appreciate hearing from you and taking the time it to complete this survey. 
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