Hi Neighbors,
I believe many of you found big changes in the February issue of The Concordia Newspaper, placing us on the map as far as local papers go. The Board’s “News Team” was instrumental in providing our Editor, Mary Wiley, the assistance she needed to give the Paper a new start in life. Thank you Steve Elder (News Team Chair and CNA Board Member) for organizing this effort and bringing on Susan Trabucco who has the expertise to ensure a great future. I personally want to thank them and all of the folks who put out this paper every month as it is no easy task to do so. Being Chair for CNA, I am fortunate to have this opportunity to write to you each month, and this has given me a unique perspective on the value of a local paper that I had taken too much for granted.
While watching the presidential debates, I was in awe as to how the people have taken back the process and are bypassing the establishment. Regardless if you are on the right or left side of the political aisle, the political landscape is in for big changes. Seems that “The People” have had enough of Congress protecting their own vested interest, and that appears to be a real misunderstanding of what their constituents want. So while we wait and see what comes of all this, let us remember that it is our individual voices that have power, and together we are the ones who are agents of change. Both Bernie and the Donald have realized this and are going directly to the people to make their case, but we must also make our wishes known. This starts with one person speaking up to see who else shares their belief. At one time I had made efforts to contact my local representative, but like so many others I found the cobwebs growing around my feet waiting for an opportunity to plead my case. However, I am fortunate to have become a member of the Board of Directors and now know that my voice and those of who I represent will appear in print for all to see. Not all of us have the luxury of time to become involved, much less the willingness to go through the aggravation of pounding on government’s door, but we all have the opportunity to pick up a pen or hit the keyboard and make our point by way of The Concordia News. Your opinions do matter, and when you share your beliefs and opinions in the Paper, you are calling to action other likeminded neighbors as they begin to realize they are not alone in their beliefs.
St. Francis was correct when he said to light one candle as it is that single candle which acts like a beacon for others to find and join in with you. Our Concordia Newspaper is our most important institution. It gives all of us an avenue to express our basic right of “free speech,” but use it or lose it. It is unfortunate to see how The Oregonian like many other dailies has been reduced to providing day-old news and advertisements for things we don’t need. (My main reason now for buying the Sunday paper is for the comics.) As a result, our local news and neighborhood issues are marginalized because they are not “Breaking News” or of sufficient interest to be considered in larger publications. Major events are not typically spontaneous but grow out of small issues, usually incubating in local neighborhoods. These issues only grow out of proportion when they not addressed locally. Having a pulse on local news and keeping our neighbors aware by posting current issues in our Paper is a sure way of preventing things from getting out of hand. Even more importantly, we can provide accurate information that people need in order to have a meaningful conversation for action. So regardless of your interests or concerns, write your article or series or letter to the Editor and submit it to the CNA News to begin making a difference in our world.
A couple of other things I want to mention is that we are looking for another Board Member, hopefully someone who is familiar with the responsibilities of a Treasurer. We are also shy of a Vice-Chair at the moment. For those of you who are anticipating our neighborhood community Garage Sale, please note this year we are without an organizer for this even so if you are interested in helping out with this event, please let us know. The neighborhood Garage Sale will not happen if we don’t get a volunteer.
Our next General Meeting will be on March 8th in the Community Room in the Kennedy School beginning at 7pm ending at 8:30pm. We will be discussing the Mayor’s plans for siting homeless camps in our neighborhood. This should be a very interesting meeting for all, and I believe you will not be alarmed by the proposals but should attend to get properly informed.
Happy Daylight Savings on March 13th!
ISAAC QUINTERO
President
Concordia Neighborhood Assoc.