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March/April 2003 NW Newsmakers
Community News

The Star*Kids Program

If you have or know any exceptionally gifted children, you may want to look into the Star*Kids Program, now starting under the guidance of Deborah Cross. Does this child or grandchild know that they are different? Do they ever say ‘I’m not like other children’? Do they hold you to a high level of honesty and call you on your stuff? Are they loving and wise beyond their years? Are they psychic or remember their past lives? Can they sometimes be challenging to the extreme? Do they see themselves as your equal? Do you find that old methods of discipline do not work?

If any or all of these apply, they may be one of the new children. They have been called Indigos, Crystal, and Psychic. They KNOW they have a purpose here, and they feel and expect to be treated like the royalty they are.

The Star*Kids Program is being offered to children such as these--Masters residing in children’s bodies--that could benefit from the companionship of others like themselves. Presented as an after school program, Star*Kids promotes companionship, self discovery, and a nurturing place for these ‘different’ children to be accepted and celebrated. This program will be co-created with the children participating in the process.

You and the children in your life are invited to an introductory meeting to hear about the Star*Kids Program. Meetings will be held in the Portland area during March and April. Call for details on how your child, grandchild, or a special child you know can participate in this very unique program.

Contact: Deborah Cross, 503-803-5892, StarKidsShine@msn.com

 

Communication, Relationships and Responsibility

International Peacemaker, Author, and Educator Marshall B. Rosenberg, Ph.D. comes to SE Portland on Saturday, April 12th to provide an Introduction to Compassionate (Nonviolent) Communication. For over 35 years, Marshall Rosenberg has traveled the world sharing the language of Nonviolent Communication, contributing to a shift in consciousness from violence, alienation and oppression to a new paradigm of interconnectedness. He will be showing how to apply these simple but powerful principles of conscious communication to situations of personal, organizational and political discord worldwide.

 Nonviolent Communication focuses attention on compassion as our motivation, rather than fear, guilt, blame, or shame. It emphasizes improving the quality of relationships as our goal and taking personal responsibility for our choices. It is effective even when the other person or group is not familiar with this process.

The event will be held from 7pm - 9:30pm at Cleveland High School Auditorium, 3400 SE 26th Ave. (Corner of 26th and Powell), and admission is on a donation basis ($5 - $15 suggested). For more information, see www.orncc.net, or (503) 450-9909.

 

On Science, Spirituality, and Personal and Planetary Wellbeing

Michael Dowd, riveting storyteller, evolutionary evangelist, and former pastor, and Connie Barlow, acclaimed author of four popular science books will be presenting three programs in April at Unity Church of Beaverton, 12650 SW 5^th.

Rev. Dowd, a veteran sustainability activist, is the author of the 1991 book "EarthSpirit: A Handbook for Nurturing an Ecological Christianity." This was the first major work to popularize the epic of evolution for Christians. Michael's great joy is telling the history of everyone and everything in ways that evoke awe, gratitude, and trust in the emergent cosmic process, inspire faith in God, and empower people to follow the path where their own great joy and the world's great need intersect.

His wife, Connie Barlow, is an author of popular science books, whose most recent book, "The Ghosts of Evolution," was Amazon.com's top recommended science book for several months in 2001. Connie's great joy is sharing ways in which an understanding of the evolutionary and ecological sciences can enrich our spirituality and our communion with the natural world and with one another.

On Friday evening, April 25 from 7:30-9:30pm they will offer a program on Science, Spirit, and Passion for Life. Michael shares how he came to be an evangelical Christian who embraces and celebrates all other faith traditions, even while preaching the new sacred story born of science. His sense of the sacred, his trust in time, and the intimacy of his relationship with God become evident in the stories he tells that rekindle passion for life, and evoke Christ-like compassion for others, human and non-human alike.

On Saturday, April 26 there will be a 2-part "participatory playshop" on the Cosmos, Mysticism, and Reverence for Life from 9:30am-noon and 1:00-3:30pm. Join this dynamic husband-and-wife team to learn and celebrate the Sacred Story of the Cosmos (morning), the Sacred Story of Life (afternoon), or both.

Each session will include meaningful and awe-inspiring science teaching by Connie, which will then be translated into empowering and uplifting lessons for heart and soul by Rev. Dowd. There will also be opportunities for reverential and playful participation by those who attend, and for participants to share their own cosmologies and understandings of the nature of ulitimate Reality.

All three programs are offered Free of Charge. Donations and love offerings will be accepted. Note: Bring a sack lunch if you plan to attend both sessions

Visit Michael and Connie's website: www.TheGreatStory.org, one of the best community empowerment tools in the sustainability / eco-spirituality / conscious evolution movement.

 

Local Minister Founds New Ministry

Local minister, Rev. Julia Worrell Applegate of Clackamas, has joined together with Rev. Peggy Olson and Rev. Robin Tudor to create a new ministry, Stillpoint Community. Stillpoint Community’s purpose is to experience a deeper conscious contact with God, develop self-awareness, promote spiritual growth and express our spiritual gifts.

Stillpoint is a non-denominational New Thought spiritual community emphasizing practical spirituality and the inherent divinity goodness and wholeness of the individual. The community has chosen to focus on service. Locally they are working to meet community needs and globally are supporting the work of Mother Theresa’s missions.

Stillpoint Community Sunday celebration services are held at the Paulist Center, 2408 SE 16th (corner of 16th and Division) in Portand at 11:50 AM

 

A Sense of Wonder - A play on the Life of Rachel Carson

Rachel Carson almost single-handedly alerted Americans to the dangers of chemical pesticides, showing that DDT and other chemicals used to enhance agricultural productivity were poisoning our water, food, air and ourselves. After publishing Silent Spring in 1962, Carson endured vicious personal attacks from the chemical industry while dying of breast cancer, which may have been caused by the same environmental carcinogens she was studying as a biologist.

Carson's story will be presented by Kaiulani Lee, an award-winning actress, in a one-woman play that captures Carson's love and devotion to the natural world and her battle to defend it. You won't want to miss it!

Friday, March 28, 2003, 7:30 p.m. at Portland State University, Lincoln Performance Hall
1620 SW Park, Portland. General Admission Tickets: $10 adults, $5 students, Patron Tickets: $45
Patrons will be invited to a reception with the actress following the performance.

Tickets available at Annie Bloom's Books, Broadway Books, Looking Glass Books and In Other Words, or from the sponsors, Rachel's Friends Breast Cancer Coalition, POB 2942, Portland, OR 9720; info@rachelsfriends.org, or call 503-226-7870.

 

Community Wellness Fair

Holladay Park Plaza, a retirement community across from Lloyd Center, is hosting a Community Wellness Fair on Friday, March 28^th from 10am-2pm to which the public is invited. This fair is designed to promote and encourage health, wellness and overall well being to our residents and the general public. There will be a variety of different organizations and speakers focusing on wellness, including: the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, a healthy cooking demonstration, free Chair Massages and Health Screening Tests provided by the National Kidney Foundation, blood pressure testing, eye exams, nutrition counseling, fitness testing, fall prevention, hearing tests and more! Door prizes, raffle prizes and giveaways throughout the day.

The Fair will be held at 1300 NE 16th Avenue Portland across from Sears at Lloyd Center. For more information call René Swar, Wellness Director, at 503-280-2221.