June 29, 2015

Friday, June 26, was an amazing day. To start off, I attended the grand opening of the Portland Water Bureau’s new Interstate maintenance building with Nick. Here are some of my photos of the event. I got to see the old building versus the new building. I also took a group tour; my favorite part was standing on top of the building. The roof is an eco (green) roof, it also has solar panels, along with a great view of the Fremont Bridge. The whole Interstate building is design to save energy. I also met a women named Catherine Howells, she is a teacher at Portland State. Catherine works with the Water Bureau, and teaches about our water system. Catherine invited me to join her class to visit the Bull Run Watershed, where Portland gets its drinking water. The Bull Run Watershed collects water from rain and snow melt, and more than 17 billion gallons are stored in two reservoirs. The bureau treats the water before it enters the three conduits that bring water to Portland. The water moves through the system by gravity, requiring no fossil fuel consumption to move water from its intake to the main storage reservoir at Powell Butte.

Next, I joined Nick at the Annual David Campbell Memorial service. Here I also took pictures of Nick and the service. At the memorial service I met Police Assistant Chief Modica, he was great and told me I should intern for the Police Bureau. He said if I am interested he will buy me coffee, then he gave me his card. See he is just the sweetest. I met a lot of great leaders serving for Portland. One of he firefighters sang Israel Kamakawiwo'Ole's version of Somewhere over the Rainbow - it was very beautifully sung. When Fire Bureau Chief Jannsens introduced Nick as the former Commissioner in charge of the Portland Fire Bureau, I cheered for Nick. Everyone was completely silent, and turned to see who Nick's fan was. I saw Nick chuckle a little, then I was completely embarrassed!!!

After Friday's Supreme Court ruling, I joined Nick at a rally for LGBTQ equality - it felt very lively. There was a lot of energy, love and support in the crowd. The weather was very warm; however, it did not seem to bother anyone. Love was too great. From the overcrowded crowd, I could experience first-hand that people who are gay are looking for acceptance and equal rights. Prior to the ruling, 37 states and the District of Columbia had legalized same-sex marriage.

Last, I visited Zenger Farm, and I ran into one of my scholarship cohort members, Raisa. She is volunteering at the Zenger Farm. The structure of the farm has a beautiful balcony, along with a brand new building. I got to meet and chat with the loving couple whom designed the new building. The City of Portland’s Bureau of Environmental Services purchased the land in 1994. BES saw opportunity for this land, and today Zenger Farm is an official and sustainable public space. 

Friday could not have been any better!