President’s Message THE YEAR OF LIVING ECONOMICALLY The RAPS Sheet is back after a two-month vacation. Our August picnic at Willamette Park had 57 attendees. It was the windiest RAPS picnic I can remember, but the rain just barely held back. I would like to use the remainder of my first President’s Message to talk about the short-term financial situation at the University. As many of you know, the dues and other income into our Foundation account do not come close to funding our activities. The major financial support comes from the Provost’s Office. The office has not challenged any of our expenses, and at this writing we have not been asked to cut back. The Provost’s Office pays the salary of our office manager plus our office expenses. It also pays our printing and postage expenses for The RAPS Sheet and the special flyers we send out. The University is facing some major cutbacks this year. The exact amount is not known until the outcome of any voter challenge to the tax increases. The University is considering reducing the salary of all employees by 4.6 percent. This amounts to a one working day per month reduction. These cuts may result in up to one day unpaid leave per month and closing the University over the December break. I know of several layoffs. All university presidents and the chancellor have taken a voluntary 4.6 percent salary cut. The Chancellor’s Office budget has been cut by 25 percent. In addition to the layoffs and 4.6 percent salary cuts, departments may be facing cuts of up to 12 percent, and students may see a double-digit tuition increase. What can we do? A painless savings would to receive our notices by e-mail. MiMi Bernal-Graves, our office manager, is already sending out messages by e-mail. Of our total membership, 66 percent have an e-mail account. If most of that 66 percent volunteered to receive The RAPS Sheet and flyers by e-mail, we could save the Provost’s Office about $3,000 per year. The cost of each newsletter mailed is about $1.50. This includes printing, folding, envelope, postage, and label. It doesn’t include the 10 percent of our office manager’s time spent in stuffing and mailing them. Aside from the cost, the other advantage to receiving The RAPS Sheet electronically is that you would receive it in color and before you’d receive the paper version in the mail. Another very important advantage is that we would be sending a message to the University administration that we are aware of the budget problem and are willing to do our share. Please contact the RAPS office at raps@pdx.edu and volunteer to receive The RAPS Sheet, flyers, and other correspondence by e-mail. —Larry Sawyer, President Retirement Association of Portland State Portland State University Post Office Box 751 Portland, OR 97207-0751 Koinonia House, second floor SW Montgomery at Broadway Campus mail: RAPS Web: www.raps.pdx.edu Office hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Officers Larry Sawyer President Clarence Hein President-elect / Program Chair Marge Terdal Past President / Membership Chair Robert Vogelsang Treasurer / Regional Retirement Association Ad Hoc Committee Chair Joan Shireman Secretary Doug Swanson Editor Board Members-at-Large Priscilla Blumel Charlene Levesque DawnWhite Committees Alumni Association Pat Squire Awards Committee Chair Robert Tufts History Preservation Committee Chair Steve Brannan Pictorial History Book Committee Chair Mary Brannan Social/Friendship Committee Co-Chairs Beryl and Vic Dahl Office Manager MiMi Bernal-Graves 503-725-3447 / raps@pdx.edu THE RAPSSHEET SEPTEMBER 2009 Larry Sawyer
—2— The first edition of RAPS’ 2009-2010 Program/ Speaker Series will be a guided tour of the Portland Classical Chinese Garden, beginning at 11 a.m., Thursday, Sept. 17. There is a $6 per person charge for the tour, and we will collect the money at the Garden to facilitate the purchase of tickets. Please RSVP to MiMi BernalGraves at raps@pdx.edu or 503-725-3447 by Sept. 10 so we can provide the Garden an accurate count. A postage-paid response card is enclosed in this issue of The RAPS Sheet should you prefer to respond by mail. The tour takes about 45 minutes, and you are free to remain in the Garden following the tour to continue touring or to visit the Tea House. You also may want to walk a few blocks for lunch or other activities in the Pearl. Parking may be difficult at the Garden, although there is a Smart Park Garage at Naito Parkway and Davis. The new MAX line will be operating from PSU to Union Station and the ride is within Fareless Square. There also are several bus lines that go by the Garden. However, the buses will no longer be free downtown at the time of the tour. The Garden, which opened in September 2000, is based on a garden built in Suzhou during the Ming Dynasty. These gardens attempted to duplicate nature found in traditional Chinese landscape painting and were used to entertain guests and to engage in intellectual pursuits. Clarence Hein, RAPS president-elect, is program chair for 2009-2010. RAPS has a shiny new Web site. It contains all the information the old website had—upcoming events, archives of past RAPS Sheets, links to other sites of interest to PSU retirees, and, of course, those riveting biographies of the executive RAPS will tour the Portland Classical Chinese Garden on Sept. 17. Chinese Classical Garden tour inaugurates 2009-10 program series Major Morris, former Affirmative Action officer at Portland State, who now lives in Escondido, Calif., has publishedNurture Their Dreams, a book of photography of urban children “being children in an extremely underprivileged environment—their innercity communities.” RAPS Web site undergoes major overhaul, makes its debut Former PSU administrator publishes book of photographs board. The new site also conforms with the graphic standards of the University. TheURL is www.pdx.edu/raps. If you have any questions or comments, e-mail MiMi Bernal-Graves, RAPS office manager, at raps@pdx.edu, or call 503-725-3447. Morris reports, “Nurture Their Dreams has enjoyed a successful debut, albeit a limited one. I have had two book signings and in general the book has been well received.” The book can be reviewed and purchased at www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/647214. Photo by Larry Sawyer
—3— In memoriam: Robert Gridley, 1916-2009 In memoriam: June F. Underwood, 1927-2009 Professor Emeritus Robert J. Gridley died June 8, 2009, in Portland, where he had been born and lived most of his life. After graduating from Grant High School, he attended the University of Oregon and in 1939 earned a bachelor of science degree in education. As an undergraduate he actively participated in campus life as a member of Sigma Chi fraternity and was elected to three honor societies. He taught at Vale Union High School until the United States’ entry into World War II. In 1956 he earned a master’s degree in education at Oregon State, and he continued to pursue doctoral studies for several years. In 1933 Prof. Gridley enlisted in the Oregon National Guard. Soon after the United States’ entry into World War II, he joined the U.S. Army, and subsequent military service included a 29-month assignment in the Aleutian Islands Theater. After the war ended, he continued to serve in a reserve component, and retired in 1976 with the rank of lieutenant colonel. Upon returning to civilian life he worked for a brief period as a Veterans Administration training officer. In 1949 he took a position as a field representative for the Oregon State System of Higher Education’s General Extension Division in PortJune Florette Underwood, associate professor emerita of business education, born in Albany on June 20, 1927, died in Portland on June 12, 2009. A memorial service was held on June 18 at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Portland. After completing a B.S. in business education at Oregon State College in 1949, Prof. Underwood worked variously as a bank secretary and public welfare caseworker in Salem. In 1955 she launched her business education career, starting as a Portland Public Schools teacher. In 1958 she took an appointment as an assistant professor of business education in Portland State College’s Business Administration Division. She earned a master’s degree in education at Oregon State in 1961 and continued to pursue graduate work that ranged over various aspects of vocational office education and data processing. Professional business education met the immediate working career needs of many students and supported various aspects of teacher training programs. Prof. Underwood’s course offerings consistently attracted large enrollments of students who found the class content to be exceptionally useful for pursuing employment objectives. After 1955 the University’s overall business instructional program evolved from a section within the Division of Social Science to become a separate division, ultimately emerging as today’s School of Business Administration with a full range of professional undergraduate and graduate studies. Her active academic contributions through committee service earned a high level of respect from colleagues across the campus. She regularly contributed research-based articles to professional business education journals. Wide-ranging engagements with professional organizations featured workshop participation and presentations to components of the Oregon, Western, and National Business Associations, as well as to Delta Kappa Gamma, a national teachers honor society. Poise, talent, and recognized achievements often prompted public appearances, media appearances, and community outreach. On this campus she served as faculty adviser to various women’s groups. She served as the state AAUP secretarytreasurer. She and her late husband, Ralph, pursued longdistance sailing on their boat, June Bug. Her interests, talents, and accomplishments included outdoor sports, music, dance, and painting. In retirement she displayed art pieces at the June Bug Gallery in Portland. Her willingness to be helpful, coupled with an outgoing personality, earned her a wide circle of lasting friends. Survivors include her daughter, Lori Moylett; a sister, Carol Lauritzen; and two grandchildren, to all of whom we extend our condolences. Those of us who knew and worked with June appreciated her generous and valued contributions to our mutual academic enterprise. —Victor C. Dahl, Professor Emeritus of History continued on page 4
—4— In memoriam: Wendelin H. Mueller III, 1941-2009 Professor Emeritus Wendelin H. Mueller, born February 12, 1941, in St. Louis, died July 6, 2009, at the family’s Happy Valley home. After graduating from Christian Brothers College High School, Prof. Mueller attended St. Louis University, where he earned a civil engineering degree in 1962. At the University of Missouri, Rolla, he completed master’s and doctoral degrees in 1966 and 1972. In 1973 he joined the College of Science’s Department of Engineering and Applied Science, and retired as emeritus professor of civil and environmental engineering in 2003. Prof. Mueller came to PSU during the gestation stage of what some years later became the Maseeh College of Engineering and Computer Science. Prof. Mueller provided vital leadership for the development and growth of PSU’s Infrastructure Testing and Applied Research (iSTAR) laboratory. His work encompassed analysis and testing, reaching out to meet the needs of large-scale regional companies and organizations, including Bonneville Power Administration, the Gunderson Manufacturing Corporation, and Microflect. During his distinguished PSU career Prof. Mueller provided high quality professional education, training, and research that benefited several generations of engineers. Concurrently he tirelessly pursued innovative research activities. He served as a principal investigator, directing projects sponsored by the Army Corps of Engineers in St. Louis and Portland, National Computer Service in St. Louis, Boeing Corporation in Seattle, Bonneville Power Administration, and many other regional businesses. Successful applications for external funding of research projects generated ongoing support for graduate students, a significant factor undergirding the Maseeh College during its formative years. Through committee service he enjoyed a high level of respect throughout the University. His agreeable personality and thoughtfulness made it easy for him to develop lasting friendships. Wendelin avidly followed a wide range of outdoor pursuits—fly fishing, canoeing, hiking, mountain bike riding, and camping in all kinds of weather conditions. Frequent communing with nature came easily to him, paralleling his deep religious convictions, devotion to his family, and concern for resolving mankind’s problems. According to Prof. Scott Wells, chair of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: “To say that (he) will be missed greatly is truly an understatement . . . I envied his success in recruiting teams of new graduate students—he had the knack. His warm manner and his humorous jokes always seemed to break the ice and allow for good communication with other faculty, students, and staff. We will miss his fishing stories.” For my part, having an end-of-the-day beer with Wendelin was always a memorable experience. He is survived by Elizabeth, his wife of 43 years; daughter Beth Evans (Scott); and son Wendelin IV (Diane); and four grandchildren. A private celebration of his life took place on July 16. A campus memorial will be scheduled for October. land. After 1955 the newly formed Portland State College gradually absorbed the extension division, and Prof. Gridley joined the new institution, remaining with PSU until his 1979 retirement. As a longtime faculty member, Prof. Gridley served as a valued member of various committees and provided liaison for departmental programs that featured extension and continuing education dimensions. His training, experience, and thoughtful engagement with campus instructional sectors generated a high level of respect from colleagues throughout the University. Those of us fortunate enough to interact with Bob regarded him as an agreeable, productive, and dependable colleague. He was a longtime member of the Oregon Council on Economic Education. In retirement the Gridleys traveled at home and abroad, and they faithfully and actively engaged in RAPS functions. Bob thoroughly took advantage of the Northwest environment’s outdoor sports opportunities, especially for fishing. Survivors include his widow, Bernadean, and their three children: Pamela Poor, Vine Grove, Ky.; Cheryl Dobbs, Portland; and John E., Milwaukie; a sister, Mary Ann Singh, Santa Barbara, Calif.; and five grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren. Inurnment and burial were in Willamette National Cemetery. —Victor C. Dahl, Professor Emeritus of History Robert Gridley . . . continuedfrompage 3
— 5 — RAPS club reports Book Club: ‘The White Tiger’ The RAPS Book Club will meet on Tuesday, September 15, at 1:30 p.m. at the home of Joan Shireman, 13584 SE Snowfire Dr., Happy Valley. Contact her at 503-698-9951 or jshireman@verizon.net to RSVP and for directions. We will discuss The White Tiger, written by Aravind Adiga, which was the 2008 Man Booker Prize winner. On the cover, it is described as: Balram Halwai is a complicated. Man. Servant. Philosopher. Entrepreneur. Murderer. Over the course of seven nights, Balram tells us the terrible and transfixing story of how he came to be a success in life—having nothing but his own wits to help him along. And with a charisma as undeniable as it is unexpected, Balram teaches us that religion doesn’t create virtue, and money doesn’t solve every problem—but decency can still be found in a corrupt world, and you can get what you want out of life it you eavesdrop on the right conversations. Amoral, irreverent, deeply endearing, and utterly contemporary, this novel is an international sensation—and a startling, provocative debut. Seven of us met in August to discuss The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society. We talked about the various books read by the members of the Guernsey Literary Club and the deprivations they endured during WW II. We especially liked the decision by the author to tell the story through letters, thus providing a variety of voices and individual stories. While discussing the fact that one character in the book had read Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights, we decided to read that book ourselves for October. If you want to read further ahead, we will be reading Out Stealing Horses, by Per Petterson, for November. —Mary Brannan Past Tense A WINNING TRADITION ENDS RAPS Bridge Group: Bids on second Tuesdays The RAPS Bridge Group meets regularly on the second Tuesday of each month. The group is open to all members of RAPS. If you would like to play or would like information about the group, please call Colin Dunkeld at 503-292-0838. —Colin Dunkeld Hikers: Headin’ up the Klickitat On Friday, Sept. 25, the hikers will walk a portion of the Klickitat Trail. The trail is a historic railroad bed running 31 miles from Lyle, Wash., up the Klickitat River and Swale Creek Canyon. We will make a sixmile round-trip hike along the Klickitat River between mileposts 16 and 13. Meet at 9:00 a.m. at the southeast corner of the Gateway Transit Center parking garage. We will carpool from there. Please confirm by Thursday, Sept. 24, with Larry Sawyer, 503-771-1616 or larry_sawyer@comcast.net. —Larry Sawyer Wrestling has a rich tradition at Portland State. For many years, PSU boasted one of the top wrestling programs in the Pacific Northwest and a powerhouse in the Division II of the NCAA. The team was ably coached for 19 years (1952-71) by Howard Westcott. PSU’s most successful wrestler was Rick Sanders, who wrestled at 115 pounds and led his team to national prominence. As a freshman, Sanders won the NAIA gold, the first of five national freestyle championships. He took a bronze medal in the 1966 World, won the 1967 Pan-Am games, took silver in the 1967 World, and became the first American to win a world championship at his weight. He won the silver in the 1968 and 1972 Olympics. Tragically, he died in an automobile accident after the latter event. Portland State’s wrestling team won the NCAA Division II National Championships in 1969, 1989, and 1990, the latter two anchored by Dan Russell ’91 and coached by Marlin Grahn. Russell was a four-year NCAA Champion and a two-time NCAA Division I All-American. Another well-known Portland State wrestler is All-American Eddie Dahlen, who is now a mixed martial arts fighter. In 1997 the program moved up to Division I of the NCAA along with all of Portland State’s athletic programs. At that time, the wrestling program was accepted into the prestigious Pac-10 conference. Unfortunately for the state of Oregon, the PSU wrestling program was cut at the end of the 2008-09 season. Past Tense features glimpses into Portland State’s history. To submit a story (or an idea for one), e-mail the RAPS History Preservation Committee at raps@pdx.edu. Rick Sanders
In memoriam: Laird Charles Brodie, 1922-2009 Professor Emeritus Laird C. Brodie, born August 30, 1922, died July 31, 2009, after a long illness. A lifetime Portland resident whose parents were practicing physicians, Prof. Brodie attended local public schools and completed a bachelor’s degree at Reed College (1944). Wartime military training for meteorology assignments (1943-46) included attending designated classes at Harvard, MIT, and the Universities of Washington and Chicago. After completing graduate studies in physics (M.A. 1949, University of Chicago; Ph.D. 1954, Northwestern), he taught at Reed during 1954-55. In 1955 Prof. Brodie joined the physics “section” of the Science Division at the newly formed Portland State College. As a pioneering faculty member, he performed exceptional services under conditions that provided only limited support and resources. His subsequent distinguished teaching and investigative achievements paralleled, indeed provided a vital foundation for, the institution’s emergence as a major urban university that has achieved global recognition for academic excellence. Prof. Brodie demonstrated noteworthy investigative leadership and effectively collaborated with colleagues. His research accomplishments included investigations of heat transfer in helium and cryogenic liquids, for which he received ongoing National Science Foundation grant support that also funded graduate assistantships so desperately needed at a young institution. Research findings generated many journal publications and enabled him to conduct numerous seminars. He inspired many brilliant students who subsequently developed productive scientific careers. As a student, he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa at Reed and to the Sigma Xi science honorary society at Northwestern. Playing the French horn in the Portland Junior Symphony from 1937 until his 1943 draft call reflected a lifelong dedication to musical instruments. For many years he performed with the Portland Opera and the Marylhurst College Orchestras. At PSU he developed highly successful and popular courses for studying the physics of music and photography that appealed to students from all disciplines. Active involvement in academic governance included Faculty Senate service and assignments to various departmental and University-wide academic governance committees involved with important curricular development. On several occasions he acted as department head. After a long and distinguished career, he received emeritus status in 1987. Laird and Mary Brodie were longtime members of our organization. They regularly attended local performing arts programs and participated in hiking events scheduled by RAPS, the Unitarian Church, Friends of the Columbia Gorge, and the Mazamas. Survivors include his second wife, Mary Ella Carson Brodie; children from his first marriage: Ann Brodie-Knope, of Portland, and Carol Davis and Walter Brodie, of Seattle; seven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren; brother Alan Brodie, of Chicago; and sister Eleanor Brodie Jones, of Wilsonville. Our organization extends its deepest sympathies to Mary Brodie, our fellow RAPS member, and other family members for their great loss. All of us who knew and worked with Laird will always retain affection for him, remembering his generous, kind personality. The University community is deeply indebted to him for a lifetime of exemplary contributions to our shared intellectual mission. At Laird’s request there will be no memorial service. A small gathering to celebrate his life will be scheduled at a future date. Memorial donations may be made to Portland State University, Reed College, First Unitarian Church, or Planned Parenthood. —Victor C. Dahl, Professor Emeritus of History PORTLAND STATE: A History in Pictures It’s taken three years, but the wait was worth it. Portland State: A History in Pictures, is a handsome, large-format book that documents PSU’s history in more than 300 photos and text spread over 180 pages. AVAILABLE AT: PSU Bookstore University Market in Smith Union Annie Bloom’s Books Oregon Historical Society Powell’s City of Books
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