Laura at Believe Movement Studio wants the neighborhood to know about all the FREE stuff going on this month!

FREE Body Composition Analysis; Saturday, December 5th  from 12PM – 4PM

An incredibly informative session that will determine lean muscle mass. Great baseline information to start your new year goals off right. No appointment necessary. Should take around 20 minutes.

FREE Teacher Training Yoga Class;  Saturdays, December 5th, 12th, and 19th from 5PM – 6:30PM

This is an ALL-LEVELS class that is taught by the current Prananda Yoga Teacher Trainees. It is supervised by Joy Wolfe (director). Tell your friends. This is part of the training so you are helping the trainees too! First come, first serve basis.

FREE Yoga Classes for Seniors; Mondays at 1 PM (ongoing)
On a personal note, I’ve been going to yoga classes at Believe Movement Studio for the past few weeks and I highly recommend them!  The space is lovely and welcoming and you get personal attention and instruction from the teachers.  Make sure you check out their calendar, rates and events at www.believemovementstudio.com.

Heart of Healing is presenting Village Dance Convergence, a benefit for the Physicians for a National Health Program.  Below is more info from their press release.

When: Friday, November 6, 2009 7:30 pm
Where: Village Ballroom 700 NE Dekum St Portland, OR
Admission: Open to the public at a sliding scale of $10 to $25
Contact info: Mike Meyer, mmeyer //at// efn.org 503-680-6576
Website: http://www.pnhp.org/

Come join your community for a free-form dance, food, conversation, live music, and many more healthy activities to benefit community health care solutions. This celebrational evening will feature Portland’s famed ecstatic dance in a beautifully decorated hardwood space and will intertwine live music into your dance. Read the rest of this entry »

This article is being re-printed with permission from the latest Safe Routes to Schools newsletter put out by the Portland Bureau of Transportation.

- By Dr. Jennifer Rupert, MD

What do walking and biking to school have to do with obesity, mental health, and asthma? — A lot! Children who walk and bike to school have higher physical activity levels throughout the day, helping them meet the recommended 60 minutes of activity daily. This level of activity helps prevent childhood obesity and supports healthy bones.

Walking and biking to school is also a great way for kids to get the physical activity needed for healthy minds. Kids who are more physically active have better academic performance. Studies are also beginning to show that exposure to nature and free outdoor play can reduce stress and relieve ADHD symptoms.

If that isn’t enough to get you out of your car, think about the air quality around a school when dozens of parents sit in idling cars while their children jump out. Air pollution has contributed to childhood asthma rates doubling between 1980 and the mid-1990s. Asthma rates remain at historically high levels and cause 14 million missed school days every year.

Walking and biking to school is healthy for kids, healthy for communities, and healthy for the planet.

Dr. Jennifer Rupert is an Obstetrician and Gynecologist practicing at Kaiser Permanente in North Portland. Dr. Rupert was one of six dignitaries to address James John Elementary students on Walk+Bike to School Day.

Join Lenore Bijan, a feisty and vibrant 78-year-young instructor as she generously shares her enormous talents with our neighborhood through yoga classes offered at Believe Movement Studio (8th and Dekum). Classes are free for seniors Mondays from 1-2 PM and everyone (of senior age) is welcome and encouraged to attend – even if you have never tried yoga. The greater the demand, the more classes Lenore will be able to offer, so spread the word and help this neighborhood resource/business thrive.

The doors are finally open at Believe Movement Studio with a class schedule that suits everyone’s needs and desires.  There are classes for the entire family and the first class is free.  Many of the instructors on the schedule live directly in our neighborhood and want to support you in your health.  Owner Laura Demeri says, “Come on in to see the space and pick up a schedule!” You may also check out what’s being offered on the Believe Movement Studio website.

Article by Marilyn Mauch, Coordinator of the Backpack Lunch Program at Fremont United Methodist Church

For many students, the federally-sponsored school lunch is their main source for a nutritious, satisfying meal during the day.  If there’s not enough food in the house, these children can go hungry on the weekend when the school lunch isn’t available.  In its second year of operation, the Backpack Lunch Program puts food items for two weekend lunches each Friday into the backpacks of 40 children at Woodlawn Elementary.  The need is much greater.

Your food donations can make a difference.  We invite you to bring food donations to the monthly Woodlawn Neighborhood Association meetings, so that we can reach more Woodlawn Elementary students who are at risk of hunger on weekends.

Food items to donate:

* cans of chili, soup, ravioli in meat sauce, cans/boxes of mac n’ cheese

*  small juice boxes—100% juice only, no foil containers

*  individual-size fruit cups

*  small packages of crackers w/cheese, raisins or fruit snacks,

* granola bars (no peanuts)

Four NE Portland United Methodist Churches, including Woodlawn United Methodist, are working with community friends in this non-profit, all volunteer effort.  To learn more about the program, contact Marilyn Mauch at 503/287-3014 or Fremont United Methodist Church at 503/284-4647.

All residents of our community deserve equal access to services and opportunities. The trouble is that good jobs, high performing schools, social service agencies, and even grocery stores are not always conveniently located. Census data shows that poverty now extends past the inner Portland neighborhoods to the County’s outer reaches. Yet, basic amenities and services such as parks, sidewalks, health clinics, and social service agencies are still concentrated in Portland’s inner core. Language and other cultural barriers may also stand in the way of people of color and immigrant communities seeking to connect with these vital resources.

Your input will inform how federal dollars are spent on programs addressing equitable access to services for households in Multnomah County.  You’re invited to a public hearing on equitable access to services, as part of the process of developing the 2010-2015 Consolidated Plan.
Where:          King Elementary School Cafeteria
Date:           Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Time:           6:00-8:00 pm
Trimet:         Bus lines 6 & 72 (www.trimet.org)

If you can’t attend this hearing, there are four other convenient ways to comment. Read the rest of this entry »

From neighbor Gregg Lavender, a re-post from LivableStreets.com:

Where are social networks created? The answers often embrace institutions such as work and school and today, a host of online communities, while the neighborhood block, a historically vibrant source of local relationships, has largely become a disconnected collection of houses and residents. For many communities, this trend of fewer informal links within a neighborhood has been associated with a heightened sense of risks that threaten the health and well being of neighborhood residents and their children. Furthermore, studies have shown that neighborliness influences perceptions of health and reinforces the local relationships enabling response to community concerns. Read the rest of this entry »

by Jennifer Coughlin (Woodlawn resident)
Jake Greenburg hasn’t moved in yet, but has already proven himself time and time again to be a great neighbor. If you search for him on the internet, you will see that he has owned and operated Classic Foods, a Portland-based specialty food wholesaler catering to restaurants, for the past 25 years. You’ll also find out the man is heavily involved in many social causes—donating food, services, and support to organizations like Birch Community Services, Self Enhancement, Inc., Our House, and Community Cycling Center. Read the rest of this entry »