• Viva Village update
• Washington County Public Affairs Forum virtual meetings
• Remainder of THPRD spring term cancelled
• ODOT opens Safe Routes to School project applications
• Inside WashCo Radio
• Bethany and Cedar Mill Libraries continue to bring programs online
• Washington County Library
• Eventbrite
• Writers’ Mill Monthly Meeting on Zoom
• Census update
• BSD selects Principal for new Middle School

Viva Village update

Online Age Cafe: Helping Each Other Through the Coronavirus Crisis

Fridays through May 29, 11 am–12 pm

Join us for small group discussions to explore issues, feelings, and thoughts during the coronavirus crisis. We will be meeting online via Zoom until the happy time when we can safely gather together face-to-face.

This event is open to all. To register, go to vivavillage.clubexpress.com. Under events, click on Age Cafe for the dates you’d like to attend. Once you have registered, you will receive the Zoom link by email.

Co-hosted by Viva Village, Washington County Disability, Aging, and Veterans Services (DAVS), and the Beaverton City Library.

We’re putting out weekly Village updates to keep our members informed about services currently available. Only essential services are being provided by volunteers for now, including grocery shopping, picking up prescriptions, etc. The office is closed, but office volunteers are answering phone messages from home and sending out service requests to volunteers.

The updates include useful tips and upcoming Zoom gatherings, etc. Village updates and the bimonthly Viva Village Voice issues can be accessed on the Viva Village website: vivavillage.clubexpress.org under Village News.

Washington County Public Affairs Forum virtual meetings

Join us at “Virtually” at the Washington County Public Affairs Forum! As we all do what we can to stop the spread of COVID-19, the Forum will bring you three virtual events to finish its 2019-20 season. You can obtain the ZOOM link to join these free events by visiting the Forum website at www.washingtoncountyforum.org.

Founded in 1956, the Forum provides a place for the interchange of ideas on civic matters. Each week the Forum brings together community leaders, members, and guests who care about what happens in Washington County, the Metro region, and our state.

Here are the exciting Forum topics for May and June:

Monday, May 18, 7-8 pm
Braver Angels with Sherre Calouri
Braver Angels is a nationwide organization dedicated to restoring respectful civic engagement between America’s polarized political factions. Calouri will discuss what Oregon must do to fix its struggling political environment.

Monday, May 25, 7-8pm
2020 Primary Election Debrief with Scott Bruun and Marc Abrams
Bruun, former Republican lawmaker and Abrams, former Oregon Democratic Party Chair, will breakdown the results of the 2020 primary.

Redistricting Reform in Oregon: What is the “People Not Politicians” Ballot Measure Campaign?

Thursday, May 28th, 6:30 pm
Registration is required. You can register here.

The League of Women Voters of Oregon is a part of People Not Politicians, a coalition of Oregonians from all party affiliations, income levels, backgrounds, and regions of Oregon who have come together to rally for equal, fair, and transparent political representation at the state and congressional levels. At present, our politicians draw their own district boundaries. People Not Politicians has introduced a series of ballot measures to create an independent, multi-partisan commission of Oregon citizens to take over this responsibility.

In this webinar Candalynn Johnson of the League of Women Voters of Oregon will tell you how the commission would operate and answer your questions. Patricia Garner from the AAUW will also speak about this effort.

Remainder of THPRD spring term cancelled

The safety of THPRD guests, staff and community is our top priority. Due to this, the remainder of the 2020 spring term of classes and activities at all Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District facilities have been cancelled. THPRD had previously cancelled and refunded program fees through April 28, to match the Governor’s original school closure date. However, with the Stay Home, Save Lives Order now in effect, and based on the information from state public health authorities, the district has now officially cancelled the full spring term which runs through early June.

With the full spring term cancelled, patrons will receive refunds for all remaining class and program fees paid through early June. Please be patient as we process those refunds. We expect to have them complete in early May. Payment will be credited back to the original form of payment, so if you paid on debit or credit card, please review your statement for the credit.

Summer registration dates will be rescheduled. We do not have a new date to share yet. Our goal for summer programming is to return to offering summer camps and classes as quickly as we safely can, complying with state law and guidance from public health authorities. When THPRD does reopen, we expect a staggered opening, with only a few sites opening at first.

Please monitor the district’s website www.thprd.org for the latest information or sign-up to receive emailed Tualatin Hills Today updates on the website.

ODOT opens Safe Routes to School project applications

The ODOT Safe Routes to School site is ready to accept Letters of Intent for the Competitive Construction and Project Identification programs. Open solicitations include:

• TheRapid Response Infrastructure Grant Program – now open for applications
•  The Project Identification Program – now open through August 31, 11:59 pm
• The Competitive Construction Program – now open through August 31, 11:59 pm

Monday, May 4, 11 am-12:30 pm: Safe Routes to School Grant Funding Webinar

Please watch the Safe Routes to School recorded webinar for more information. This 34-minute recording focuses on upcoming funding opportunities for ODOT’s Safe Routes to School Construction Program. ODOT will allocate $26 million in grants and select 30 communities to receive Safe Routes to School planning assistance this year. Learn more about these opportunities:

• Project Identification Program (planning assistance) begins at 2:35.
• The Competitive Construction Grants Program begins at 5:00.
• Information about the Rapid Response Grant Program begins at 19:59.
• Tips for your proposals begins at 21:51.

Email leeanne.fergason@odot.state.or.us to RSVP.

For more information, please contact:

LeeAnne Fergason, Safe Routes to School Infrastructure Program manager, 503-986-5805

Heidi Manlove, Safe Routes to School Non-Infrastructure Program manager, 503-986-4196

Inside WashCo Radio

Here’s the weekly scheduled radio broadcast times (each program is released on Monday on our site, and to our subscribers): All programs are available through podcast subscription, or direct on the website. For more information, visit our website.

Broadcast schedule (KBOO 90.7 FM, KUIK 1360 AM)

• Candidate Debate #4: Beaverton Mayor
  • KBOO: May 6; KUIK: May 8
• Encore: Juan Carlos Gonzales, Metro Councilor
  • KBOO: May 13; KUIK: May 15,
• Encore: Kathryn Harrington, County Chair
  • KBOO: May 20; KUIK: May 22,
• Encore: Jason Kafoury: “Money in Politics”
  • KBOO: May 27; KUIK: May 29

Bethany and Cedar Mill Libraries continue to bring programs online

Online Story Time Videos for Families

Recorded videos posted to Facebook on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10:30 am

Facebook Live on Wednesdays and Fridays at 10:30 am

• Mondays: Baby Time with Teresa; Stories and Rhymes with Rebecca
• Tuesdays: Stories and Rhymes with Nicole and Steve
• Wednesdays: Stories and Rhymes with Jenny; Folktales with Marta
• Thursdays: Songs and Rhymes for Young Children with Marta
• Friday: Stories and Rhymes with Rebecca and Julie

Storytelling has been a key feature of American libraries for over a century, and for good reason. As children listen to stories, they acquire essential tools for learning and communication, including vocabulary expansion, development of literacy, and active listening skills. Storytelling programs can include sing-a-longs, dancing and puppets. By offering live, group story times, libraries create community and promote inclusivity. As children attend the events on a regular basis, librarians become some of the most beloved people in their lives.

Cedar Mill and Bethany Community Libraries (CMBCL) offer over 500 live story times each year that are regularly attended by up to 75 children at a time. When library staff learned that the libraries would temporarily close due to Covid-19, they immediately set out to create an online story time program. As emails poured in from parents telling of kids missing “their” librarians, staff were studying video editing and filming storytelling videos in their homes. The result has been a great success, with videos reaching thousands of followers and receiving enthusiastic feedback.

Through online story times, CMBCL librarians seek to provide children with a sense of normalcy and an uninterrupted connection to the libraries they love, while teaching them skills they will use for a lifetime.

Recorded videos also on YouTube and Instagram.

(Online) Owl Book Group

Friday, May 29, 10:30 am-noon, Online via Zoom

Join us virtually this month to discuss Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover. This event will be held online via Zoom. If you already receive e-mail from the Owl Book Group, you’ll receive a link for this meeting a few days before the event. If you’re new, welcome! Please e-mail laurab@wccls.org to receive a link for the event a few days before it happens.

The group typically meets on the last Friday of each month. Newcomers are always welcome! Learn more at Library.CedarMill.org.

For a complete list of titles, past and present, visit the library site here.

Washington County Library

Our lives and communities have been upended by COVID-19. But your Washington County libraries continue to provide you with the education, enrichment, and entertainment resources you need. We are delivering core services and innovating to provide a variety of new connections for you:

Our programs continue! Visit our events calendar at wccls.org/events-online to check out the range of virtual programs our libraries are offering, including storytimes, book clubs, and one-on-one sessions with a librarian.

Do you know someone who lives in Washington County and doesn’t yet have a WCCLS library card? With a new online library card, Washington County residents can access all WCCLS online resources mentioned in this issue in addition to e-books, audiobooks, and streaming video!

It’s never been more important to rely on trustworthy, factual information, and your libraries are here for you.

• Get direct access to world-class journalism with unlimited 72-hour digital passes to the New York Times.
• Find full-text articles from thousands of peer-reviewed journals withAcademic OneFile.
• Get journal articles and book chapters from institutions around the world delivered to your inbox using our electronic document delivery service.
• Find current, reliable information about COVID-19 and your libraries.

Eventbrite

Eventbrite is a great source for finding online events! Go to eventbrite.com/d/or–cedar-mill/events/ to browse events.

Writers’ Mill Monthly Meeting on Zoom

Sunday, May 17, 1-3 pm

Email admin@portlandwritersmill.org for link and password

Portland Writers’ Mill enjoyed an exciting virtual meeting in April, and we’re looking forward to another great event in May. Our monthly meetings will continue on Zoom, on the third Sunday of the month and we’re very grateful for our librarian at Cedar Mill library who will set it up and monitor it for us.

We have a great guest speaker, Mollie Hunt, author of a wonderful collection of cat mysteries and even some cat poetry and cat fantasy. But Mollie doesn’t just write about cats; she takes action. And she’s going to talk about Changing the World through Writing.

Contest winners, member news, and a critique will round out the meeting. Email admin@portlandwritersmill.org with details of your writing interests—new members always welcome! And remember, if we’re locked in, that just means we have more time to WRITE!

Census update

All field operations have been suspended until June 1. In adhering to guidance from national, state, and local authorities, the Bureau has made these recent operational changes to ensure a safe, complete and accurate count.

The self-response window can be accessed online at 2020census.gov. The website is available in 59 languages—simply click the globe icon on the top right corner of the main page to open a drop-down menu of options. As of now, the response window will be open until October 31, extended from July 31 due to the Coronavirus.

You can also respond to the Census by returning the form you received by mail, or over the phone by calling 844-330-2020, or visit this web page for additional language phone numbers.

Updated response rates for the 2020 Census in your community are available here.

BSD selects Principal for new Middle School

Jill O’Neill has been selected as Principal of the New Middle School (Timberland), effective January 1, 2021. Currently the principal at the International School of Beaverton, Jill joined the District in 2002 as the principal at Meadow Park Middle School. With many years of middle school teaching and administrator experience, Jill is well prepared to open the new middle school.