Welcoming New Village Members |
Our Village has not had an information session (the “Village 101”) for prospective members and volunteers since last spring, when the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” orders went into effect in Multnomah County.
Although we have had to limit services and activities to socially distanced contact, our Village volunteers do continue to serve members. Members and volunteers stay engaged via Zoom for book and movie discussions, quarterly meetings, as well as with socially distanced walks and phone visits.
In January, we will begin offering the “Village 101” monthly via Zoom. It will be held on second Tuesdays, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm. If you’re interested in learning how the Village can enhance your experience of aging or know someone else who would like to learn about our Village, use the Zoom info below to join our virtual introduction on January 12 or future second Tuesdays.
When:
Tuesday, Jan 12, 2:00-4:00 pm
Where:
Join remotely using Zoom,
click link:
Or go to zoom.us, click on "Join Meeting", with the following info:
Meeting ID: 837 0073 0829
Passcode: 333478
RSVP: not needed.
Information: phone the Northeast Village PDX office at 503-895-2750
Now, more than ever, we need a supportive community to help us age on our own terms.
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Member Jon Dickson (R)
& his husband (L)
All our members and volunteers were greeted with a holiday gift during December. The box was filled with fruit, cocoa, tea, candy, and a granola bar to stave off the winter damp and welcome a new year!
Mobilized by our membership and volunteer committees, 185 bright red boxes were delivered throughout Northeast Village PDX by 31 awesome members and volunteers. We are always on the lookout for safe places to connect with each other in times like this, in this case a few minutes on our front porches. See the snapshots of some Villagers with their boxes of cheer!
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Kathy and Michael Couch
We wish our Villagers a Happy New Year with gratitude for each person’s part in making and sustaining our strong and spirited community.
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What Makes a Village Tick?
Our Membership Committee
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This is the third in a series of articles since 2019, describing governance and operations of the Northeast Village. This issue describes one of our ongoing standing committees: Membership.
The Northeast Village PDX membership committee is charged with the responsibility to meet persons interested in joining the Village community and to provide initial support for a successful membership.
● The membership committee receives information on persons interested in joining the Village from the web site, Village 101 sessions, and office inquiries.
● The committee assigns a team of two committee volunteers to interview each new member, share services and event information, and provide follow-up for how to connect with Village offerings through the office and web site.
● A liaison on the committee contacts new members over the first three months to encourage Village involvement in the community and answer questions.
● The committee is responsible for annual renewals for members, as well as maintaining and updating membership records and fees.
● If a member is having difficulty connecting with the Village or has a need for additional support due to illness or surgery, the committee assists in obtaining a Village Partner for the member. The partner provides individual assistance during the time the member needs extra assistance.
● The committee also supports NE Village PDX on the Governing Council, for special programs and events, and by reaching out to new and old members and volunteers to enhance the Village community.
It takes all of us to make a Village!
-- Vonnie Condon, Chair, Membership Committee
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Village Without Walls Presents on Jan 9
“Rocket Science and the Human Body: The Challenges Facing the Commercial Crew Astronauts and the Artemis Generation”
What's next in humanity's quest to explore the frontiers of space? Jason-Flor Sisante, M.S., Ph.D. and a NASA-JPL Solar System Ambassador, is a cerebrovascular scientist who is curious to unravel the role of the heart-brain interaction as it pertains to cognitive aging, exercise, and extreme environments such as space. For Dr. Sisante’s background click here.
Please join us for this live virtual session while Dr. Sisante continues his talk about NASA’s plans to return to the Moon and travel onwards to Mars with emphasis on the physical and mental impact on the astronauts.
When:
Saturday, Jan. 9, 2:00-3:00 pm
Where:
Join remotely using Zoom
RSVP:
Bring your questions!
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Connecting Our Community via Common Interests |
The Northeast Village PDX Quarterly Meeting in December drew well over forty members and volunteers to hear reports from each committee, the treasurer, and the chair. We heard the accomplishments and challenges in 2020 and projections for 2021, we engaged in breakout groups and we saw a demonstration of a new way to form connections within our community.
This demonstration showed how people could easily find others within the Village who have common interests and then could connect with each other to share those interests. This became the highlight of the meeting, with people showing great interest in it. It works like this:
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The Membership Directory on our website (click here and log in) has an excellent search function, whereby one can now search for members and volunteers by interests as well as by neighborhood.
- When one clicks on the Interests field in the search form, a long list of various interest areas appears, and by choosing one or more, those people who have indicated that choice as one of their interest areas will be listed, along with their email address and phone number.
- One can then connect with those people by e-mail, phone, or set up a get-together via Zoom. You can also select a neighborhood in the search form, to see if there are people nearby with your area of interest.
- Each one can easily indicate their areas of interest in their profile on the website, and thus become searchable by others.
To get started, each person in our Village was asked to indicate three areas of interest, and these have been added to the directory. Over time, they can add other interest areas, edit their original choices, or suggest new interest categories to be added.
With the pandemic limiting the ways people can connect, do things together, converse, celebrate … this new capability should be of great help. More information will be provided over the coming weeks about this new tool and how to use it. Stay tuned, and give it a try.
--Todd Coward, Chair, Governing Council
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Volunteer Spotlight: Tricia Jett |
Patricia Jett has been a NE Village volunteer for almost three years. That means Tricia has served during the pre-COVID-19 days and has also provided services under quarantine.
Like most volunteers, the type of work she can do has been significantly restricted since COVID. But Tricia is still performing some of the most essential services for the Village. Perhaps the most crucial work she does is driving members who otherwise wouldn’t be able to make it to their medical appointments. While driving a member, she makes sure air is circulating by cracking the windows and has the member take the back seat. And of course they wear masks!
Tricia also takes socially distanced walks with members who need some company and a little exercise. And since this interview, Tricia has taken small holiday gifts to members of the Village.
Though born on a farm in Nebraska, Tricia has spent most of her adult years in Oregon. She went to the University of Nebraska for two years and then made her way to Portland. For 20 years, she also called Medford home. Like so many of us, the primary reason she came back to Portland was to be near her grandchildren, her daughters, and their partners. She loves sharing a lunch with her 10-year-old grandson and taking long walks with her 9-year-old granddaughter.
The variety of cultural activities available in Portland was another factor that brought Tricia here. She particularly enjoys plays and concerts, though COVID has put a crimp in any plans. But Tricia manages well under quarantine. She is learning French on an online app and enjoys working in her yard. Tricia also engages in exercise classes on Zoom. And she finally has time to get back to playing the piano, something she hasn’t had time for in years.
Tricia appreciates a good football game, though she would probably enjoy it more if shared it with some. Her team is the Lincoln Cornhuskers, a nod to her time at the University of Nebraska. And she has one friend she doesn’t have to distance from, her golden retriever, Murphy, who loves to take Tricia for walks.
Tricia has had an impressive career by any standards. She worked as a physician at Rogue Regional Medical Center during her 20 years in Medford. She made a difference in countless new parents’ lives working in her specialty at the Neonatal (newborn) ICU. What a contribution! Tricia describes her career as intense but fun. She started easing her way into retirement by dividing her time between Medford and Portland, and fully retired in 2017.
Since she hadn’t lived in Portland for two decades before retiring, Tricia knew few people from the past. Engaging in outside activities with individuals or groups of like-minded people was missing in her life. Then she found the Village. She started volunteering and enjoyed being part of yard parties helping members maintain their yards.
But before she had a chance to wet her feet, COVID arrived. When asked what Village activities she looked forward to once the virus was under control, without thinking, Tricia said she wanted to go out to dinner with the monthly dinner group. That way, she can enjoy excellent food and meet new people.
When asked what else she looked forward to, she replied a trip to France. That way she’ll get to both practice her French and eat fine food.
--Tracy McDonald
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Several Villagers have discovered or rediscovered the delights of listening to podcasts during the last several months. Following are suggestions contributed to the “Recommendations: Podcasts” thread in our online Village Discussion Forum and/or in individual (masked and socially distanced!) conversations.
These recommendations just scratch the surface of the podcast universe, which grows ever larger each day. Do take a listen to these -- and please share your reactions and additional recommendations in that Village Discussion Forums thread.
Groundbreaking Peabody-Award-winning conversation about the big questions of meaning -- spiritual inquiry, science, social healing, and the arts. Each week a new discovery about the immensity of our lives. Hosted by Krista Tippett. New conversations every Thursday, with occasional extras.
The Michelle Obama Podcast features the former First Lady diving deep into conversations with loved ones -- family, friends, and colleagues -- on the relationships in our lives that make us who we are.
From Samin Nosrat (chef and author of the cookbook Salt Fat Acid Heat) and Hrishikesh Hirway (creator and host of the podcast Song Exploder), Home Cooking is a mini-series to help you figure out what to cook -- and keep you company -- during the quarantine. If you need help or just want some creative inspiration for your kitchen, we’ve got you covered.
The other side is dangerously wrong. They think you are too. But for democracy to work, we need to hear each other out. New York Times columnists Michelle Goldberg and Ross Douthat, with other voices from Opinion and beyond, debate the big questions affecting our lives. Their candid debates help you form your own opinion of the latest news, and learn how the other half thinks. Find the best ways to persuade in the modern search for common ground.
Join CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta for the latest news about the coronavirus. He'll make sense of the headlines, speak with the experts and give you all the information you need to stay safe and healthy. Episodes are short, usually running about 8-10 minutes.
The other half of the list will be published in the next newsletter.
--Nancy Donehower
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Send Us Your Feedback: Can You See, Read, and Hear Us?
Everybody experiences the world, including the content they access through Northeast Village PDX, in their own way. Improving the accessibility of content is about reducing basic barriers between our membership and the information we share.
We invite you to share your experience of our content and give us any feedback that you feel would improve our community’s ability to connect. We hope to hear more about how we can improve the accessibility of print materials, virtual and in-person events, as well as our web site.
● How clearly can you hear people's speech on video or phone or at an in-person meeting?
● How easily can you read our words printed on paper or displayed on your device’s screen (a web page or e-mail).
● Do you have examples of hard-to-read or hard-to-hear situations with our content?
● Do you want to suggest better standards that we could use?
Please reach out to Lindsey Oldani, the Office Manager, via e-mail at officemanager@nevillagepdx.org or phone the office at 503-895-2750 on Monday or Wednesday during normal business hours between 10:00 am and 3:00 pm to chat and share your feedback. |
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Northeast Village PDX is a member of the Villages NW tax-exempt network.
For more information, contact:
Northeast Village PDX
503-895-2750
Mailing Address:
5946 NE 45th Ave – Unit A, Portland, OR 97218
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