Insect Sculpture with M.E.C.C.A          Art Studio
Hundred Dollar Bill Project                   Ford Lecture Hall
Flower pot decorating                            Ford Lecture Hall

Family Day art activities at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art include:

Appearances

• 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. 
  Visit with the birds of Cascades Raptor Center – North Courtyard
• 12:30 p.m.                   
  Do the Frog Hop with Frannie! – Pape Reception Hall
• 1:30 p.m.                     
  Do the Frog Hop with Frannie! – Pape Reception Hall
• 2:00 p.m.                     
  Tour of the Amazonia photography exhibit with Sam Abell and Torben Ulrik Nissen

For more information visit the museum’s website or call 541.346.3027.

The 2010 Spring Propagation Fair will be held on March 13 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Lane Community College (LCC) Cafeteria. The free, volunteer-driven event is a resource for home orchardists, vegetable gardeners and native plant enthusiasts in and around the Southern Willamette Valley.

Hundreds of varieties of scions (fruit-tree cuttings) and vegetable seed, will be shared by local fruit enthusiasts and seed-savers at the Fair.  Rootstocks will be available for a nominal fee. Grafting assistance will be provided. Adventurous attendees are welcome to attend a grafting workshop at 1:00 p.m.

Attendees are not required to bring seeds or scions to participate. However, they are encouraged to ask questions of the experienced local gardeners and gardening education non-profits (see sponsor list below) or listen to the following speakers:

• 11:00 a.m.

Where to begin? From ground zero to feeding yourself out of a garden. Lauren Bilbao, a senior instructor at the Urban Farm Program of the University of Oregon.

• 12:00 p.m. 

Heirloom Pear Varieties for the Southern Willamette Valley. Joseph Postman, curator of the USDA’s 2000+ varieties pear germplasm collection in Corvallis, will discuss pear heirlooms from around the world, well-adapted to growing hereabouts. Several of the difficult-to-find scions he will be discussing will be available at the exchange.

• 1:00 p.m.

Social Permaculture: Growing Our Food with Our Neighbors. A panel discussion by local residents discussing the current state of collaborative, neighborhood-based approaches to growing food. Jan Spencer (River Road Neighbors), Charlotte Anthony (Victory Gardens for All), Aleta Miller (Environmental Center of Sustainability), Anne Donohue (Friendly Neighbors).

• 2:00 p.m.

Locally Adapted Vegetables: What Are They and Why Do They Work So Well? Andrew Still and Sarah Kleeger of the Seed Ambassadors Project and Adaptive Seeds.

• 3:00 p.m.

Incorporating Native Plants into Food Gardens. Why and How? Devon Bonady of the Lane Community College Learning Garden and Fern Hill Nursery; Brian Basor, president, Emerald Chapter, Native Plant Society of Oregon.

The 2010 Spring Propagation Fair is sponsored by:

Eugene Permaculture Guild
Seed Ambassadors Project
Lane Community Learning Garden
The OSU Extension Service in Lane County
Home Orchard Society
Victory Gardens For All
School Garden Project of Lane County
Huerto de la Famila
ECOS
Springfield Transitions Garden
Gardens Program of Food for Lane County
Urban Farm Program of the U of O
USDA Agricultural Research Service National Clonal Germplasm
   Repository, Corvallis
Native Gardening Awareness Program of the Native
   Plant Society of Oregon, Emerald Chapter
Lane County Beekeepers Association
Eugene Tree Foundation
The North American Biodynamic Farming and Gardening
   Association

Bus service to LCC is available from Eugene Station; Free parking is available at LCC. Spanish-language support will be offered.

For more information, visit Eugene Permaculture Guild or contact Charlotte Anthony.

How do I sign up to take an AP Test?
See Janette Eichler in the Finance Office at Churchill.
Tests are $86 each.Payment in full OR a $20 deposit is due by March 18.If a student is eligible for free or reduced lunch, he/she is eligible to have the fee waived.  Please notify Janette Eichler when signing up if eligible for a fee waiver.If a student is NOT eligible for a fee waiver but is having difficulty paying, please contact Londa in person or at 541-790-5108

After adopting nine children in addition to her three biological kids, Christy Obie-Barrett knew she was prepared to offer something more to the Lane County foster children who were still in search of a loving family.

That’s why she founded A Family for Every Child (AFFEC) Heart Gallery, a non-profit organization that aims to find new homes for Oregon’s foster children.

The organization helps facilitate the process of adoption by recruiting families for foster children, who are often referred to AFFEC by other foster programs. The non-profit recruits adopting families in a number of different ways using the media and its Web site.

AFFEC also creates wall exhibits, or “heart galleries” as the  organization calls them, which display photographs and biographies of foster children seeking permanent families. These heart gallery exhibits can be found in locations throughout Eugene and Oregon including the Gateway mall, the Eugene airport and the Market of Choice at 29th and Willamette.

Additionally, AFFEC also offers a mentor program for foster youth from ages 12 to 21. The program’s goal is to ensure that foster youth are successful in completing school and transitioning into their lives as adults, according to the Lane County Heart Gallery Web site.

The organization has experienced great success in its three years of existence. It has moved more than 200 children who were featured on the Web site into foster families. “I had no idea it would be this big. People really responded,” Obie-Barrett said.

Each year, AFFEC works with 250 of the 1000 kids in the Lane County foster program. Obie-Barrett says around 70 percent of the children in all the different programs their organization offers are in the Lane County area.

Obie-Barrett’s decision to devote much of her time to a foster program stemmed from her compassion for foster children and her first-hand knowledge of the adoption process. “I felt confident that I knew enough to navigate the system,” Obie-Barrett said.

“When I see kids and parents become families,” Obie-Barrett said with a sigh, “I don’t know how I could get that from a private business.” Obie-Barrett said she finds it is an amazing experience to spend her time doing something she knows is making a difference. “I’d like to believe it betters our society by providing a better life after foster care.”

There are a number of ways for Eugene community members to get involved with A Family for Every Child Heart Gallery. Mentoring, volunteering, and sponsoring a child’s photograph to be mounted on a Heart Gallery wall are all great ways to help out Lane County’s foster children. Also, local businesses can support the cause by allowing the organization to set up a Heart Gallery display in their venue.

For more information, contact Christy Obie-Barrett by email or by phone at 541.343.2856.

The City of Eugene is now accepting applications for multiple 911 Call taker/Dispatcher openings and is hosting two upcoming “Career Events” so interested individuals can learn more about the position:

Emergency Services Training Center, 1705 West 2nd Avenue

 
These career events are open to the public; pre-registration is NOT required to attend.

At both events, 911 Call taker/Dispatcher professionals and human resources staff will be available to answer questions about the position. The Eugene Police Department will also be on hand to explain the multi-phase, sometimes months-long, application and testing process.

Those who do successfully complete the application process – which includes a police background check and psychology test – can earn an hourly salary range of $18.77 – $26.44 per hour plus a comprehensive benefits package.

“Only about three percent of the population has the proper skill set and personality to be successful in the career,” said Jenna B LaBounty, public information coordinator for the Eugene Police Department. 

A “Self-Screening Questionnaire” is available online for those who want to test their chances for acceptance and career satisfaction in advance.

For more information about the job requirements or to apply online (registration required), candidates can visit the website. Interested individuals can also call (541) 682-5061 or watch this career video.