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LEE PERLMAN
THE MID-COUNTY MEMO
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| During the 2008 Spirit of Portland awards ceremony held last month in Council chambers, Linda Robinson listens as City Commissioner Dan Saltzman reads the list of her volunteer activities and accomplishments as a Mid-county citizen activist. |
| Submitted Photo |
Instead, she became a public outreach worker for the Multnomah County Soil and Water Conservation District. She also became personally involved in volunteer activities at that point.
Her volunteer committee reached its apex last month when it was announced that Robinson would receive a Spirit of Portland Award as a “free spirit.” The awards, chosen by a citizen jury from nominations submitted by the public at large, are given annually to people and organizations that contribute to the city’s livability.
What has Robinson done to deserve the award? This is a partial list of her activities:
• Hazelwood Neighborhood Association board member
• Portland International Airport Land Use Advisory Committee and Airport Futures Subcommittee member
• Gateway Urban Renewal Program Advisory Committee member and the Parks Subcommittee chair
• Co-chair of the Gateway Green Committee, an effort to make a public resource of a 35-acre tract of natural area surrounded by the I-84 and I-205 freeways owned by the Oregon Department of Transportation
• Member of the Keep Colwood Green! Coalition, an ad hoc effort to oppose the rezoning of Colwood Golf Course for industrial use
• Sullivan’s Gulch Trail Committee member
• Advisory Committee member of the Citywide Tree Project, an examination of the city’s tree regulations
• Columbia Slough Watershed Council
member
• Chief organizer of last year’s public concerts at Ventura Park
• Beech Park Master Plan Advisory Committee member
• East Portland Parks Coalition chair
• Charter member of the Citywide Parks Committee
Of the last on the list, Robinson said, “I wasn’t the creator but I was the instigator. Amanda Fritz was the chair, but she said she’d only do it for six months.” Fritz left to run (successfully) for the Portland City Council, with Robinson one of her most active volunteers. In an answer to a frequently asked question, Robinson will not work for Fritz when the latter takes office in January. “I’m not interested in a job,” Robinson said.
No stranger to awards, in 2005 Robinson was recognized with the Environmental Preservation Award at the Mid-county Memo Community Awards.
Born in Portland, Robinson grew up in Gresham and has lived most of her life in mid-Multnomah County. Her husband, David, is supportive of his wife’s volunteer activities; Robinson spent part of his 60th birthday at a Gateway PAC meeting.
He was there last month when Robinson received her award from Commissioner Dan Saltzman at a packed awards ceremony at City Hall. “Like some of the other (award winners), I have a spouse who allows me to do what I do,” Robinson said, paying tribute. Then her advocacy persona took over. “Anyone who wants to talk about Gateway Green or the Gateway Urban Renewal District, see me afterward!”
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| Officer Greg Baldwin in front of the Parkrose Community Contact Office, which he envisioned and created. The contact office, at 11036 N.E. Sandy Blvd., doubles as an office for Elders in Action. |
| PHOTO BY RICH RIEGEL |
At the ceremony, Anderson thanked his wife “for letting me stay out late on Sandy Boulevard on my nights off.” He said that Baldwin, who had more carpentry and building experience, taught him how to hammer a nail.
“He didn’t do too bad,” Baldwin said. He thanked the Rossis, Elders in Action, the Parkrose Business Association and East Precinct Commander Mike Crebs for their support. That so much of the community got behind the project showed “the true spirit of Portland,” Baldwin said.
A Mid-county personality figured in a third award. Hoopin’ It Up, a basketball camp for children from two affordable housing projects in Southwest Portland, was a joint effort by several public agencies, including the Portland Police Bureau. One of those involved was Lt. Kevin Modica, commander of the East Precinct graveyard shift.
| Spirit of Portland awards At times, Spirit of Portland awards have been subjected to second-guessing and sour grapes. Here’s how Robinson’s peers have reacted to her selection: “She’s very, very deserving of this.” — Erwin Bergman, Cully Association of Neighbors board member, Airport Futures Public Advisory Committee member and a strong advocate for making Colwood a park “It’s about time.” — Arlene Kimura, Hazelwood chair and Gateway PAC member “This (recognition) is long overdue.” — Bob Earnest, Hazelwood board member and Gateway PAC chair “They couldn’t have made a better choice.” — Ted Gilbert, Gateway PAC member and Gateway Green co-organizer “She deserves it; she’s put in a lot of volunteer hours.” — Bonny McKnight, Russell Neighborhood Association chair and Citywide Land Use Committee organizer and chair |
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