The RAPS Sheet The newsletter of the Retirement Association of Portland State MAY 2019 Retirement Association of Portland State Portland State University–RAPS Post Office Box 751 Portland OR 97207-0751 Campus Public Safety Building Second Floor, Room 212 SW Montgomery at Broadway Office Manager Ilana Tarasyuk Telephone: 503-725-3447 Email: rapsmail@pdx.edu Office hours: Tues. & Thurs., 9 am to 5:30 pm; Fri., 1 to 5 pm. Campus mail: RAPS Web: www.pdx.edu/raps Board Members Co-Presidents David Krug Doug Swanson Secretary Brian Lewis Treasurer Ansel Johnson Members-at-Large Steven Brenner Nancy Eriksson Charlie White RAPS Sheet Editor Eileen Brennan Website Editor Larry Sawyer RAPS Representative to Regional & National Retirement Associations Larry Sawyer Committees Awards Steve Brennan, Chair History Preservation Nancy Koroloff, Chair Membership/Program Dawn White, Chair Scholarships Barbara Alberty & Joan Shireman, Co-chairs Social Nancy Eriksson, Chair President’s Lunch for Retired Faculty and Staff on May 9 RAHMAT SHOURESHI, in his second year at the helm of Portland State, hosts the annual President’s Luncheon for Retired Faculty and Staff Thursday, May 9, beginning at noon in the third floor Ballroom in SMSU. The program includes an address by President Shoureshi followed by the announcement of the 2019 Outstanding Retiree and Special Recognition Awards. The recipient of the 2019-20 RAPS Scholarship will also be introduced. PSU is well served by public transportation, and we encourage those who are able to use Tri-Met, MAX, or the Portland Streetcar. Free parking is available in Parking Structure 1, 1872 SW Broadway, and Parking Structure 3, 1631 SW 12th Avenue. You must check in at a kiosk with the event number to obtain the free permit. Enter Structure 1 on Sixth Avenue or Structure 3 on 13th Avenue and give the parking kiosk attendant the Event ID number 22659. Please allow extra time to obtain parking. Plan to arrive by 11:45 am to check in and get a nametag. Space at the President’s Luncheon is limited. If you plan to attend, please RSVP no later than Wednesday, May 1, to RAPS Office Manager Ilana Tarasyuk by email (preferred) at rapsmail@pdx.edu or by phone at 503-725-3447. RSVPs after May 1 cannot be accepted. We look forward to seeing you at one of the most highly anticipated annual events of the RAPS programming year. —
Co-President’s Message Supporting the RAPS Scholarship Fund OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS RAPS has awarded a $3,000 scholarship annually to an undergraduate or graduate student studying a fieldrelated to gerontology. Due to rising tuition and fees, beginning with the 2019-2020 academic year, RAPS is raising the award to $4,500. In addition to the annual award, the RAPS Board hopes to establish a “base fund” of $50,000 in order to ensure that RAPS can Second, money raised at RAPS general meetings, which have recently replaced wine raffles with a door prize, has ranged between $800 and $1,000 per year. Third, Collette, the travel company that leads our annual overseas trips—the next one will be Portugal in 2020—donates about 10 percent of each RAPS member’s booking fee to our scholarship fund. The 2018 trip to Italy resulted in a donation of over $1,900, and it looks like this fall’s Eastern Canada trip will yield about $2,000. If you enjoy traveling, consider our trip to Portugal. Going through Collette is a great way to save money and contribute to the RAPS Scholarship. We greatly appreciate all those who continue to keep the RAPS Scholarship on their donations list. Thank you! —Dave Krug continue to fund scholarships during years when the infusion of new money is low. Currently the RAPS scholarship base fund is slightly over $40,000. RAPS is now raising funds via three primary methods. First, direct donations from RAPS members, which over the past several years have brought in between $5,000 and $8,000 per year. SAVE THE MONTH! Portugal The next chapter in the RAPS travel catalog is Portugal! Mark your calendar for October 2020. Discover Lisbon, walk the medieval walled city of Evora, travel Portugal’s scenic Silver Coast, and enjoy Alentejo’s farms and vineyards—and much more! Fully escorted by Collette, and part of your fare goes to the RAPS Scholarship. Look for more details in the coming months! October 2020
RAPS Group Reports Book Group THE RAPS BOOK GROUP met on April 16 and discussed Perfume River, A Novel by Robert Olen Butler. Set in North Florida, Perfume River is the story of the family impact, and the generational effects, of members holding differing positions during the Vietnam war. Though well reviewed, members reported that they found it disheartening to read. There was an intensity in reactions to the book that mirrored the intensity of the feelings of the family members portrayed. In May we plan to read Evolution’s Captain by Peter Nichols, the story of the captain of the Beagle, who took Darwin along on his voyage. The title page reads: “The TRUE STORY of the Theft of a Whaleboat AND the Subsequent ABDUCTION of FOUR SAVAGES from Tierra del Fuego Whose Shocking Misbehaviour at the WALTHAMSTOW INFANTS SCHOOL Led to CHARLES DARWIN’s Voyage Aboard the Beagle, the Shattering of Man’s Profoundest Beliefs, AND the Most Ironic and Melancholy Fate of its Captain ROBERT FITZROY.” We will meet on Tuesday, May 21 at the home of Gwen Pierce, 512 SW Maplecrest Dr., Portland. Call Gwen at 503-246-9632 of email her at gwen-pierce@comcast.net to let her know whether you will be there. We have selected Before We Were Yours, a novel by Lisa Wingate, as our book to read and discuss on June 18. We will meet at the home of Steve and Eileen Brennan. This book is based on a real-life scandal and is the tale of a group of siblings abducted from their home, placed in a children’s home, and then adopted, and the uncovering of hidden family history as one of the siblings, now adult, traces her original family. It is well reviewed. The book group meets the third Tuesday of every month. New members are always welcome. —Joan Shireman Bridge Group THE RAPS BRIDGE GROUPmeets in the afternoon on the first Tuesday of each month. We begin play at 12:15 pm. We try to finish up by 4 pm. We meet in Smith Center. We have had some new and returning members join us for our last few meetings. Please feel free to be another one of our new members for bridge (we really would welcome more new members). Please mark your calendars for the following upcoming spring term meetings: Tuesday, May 7, and Tuesday, June 4, both in SMSU 258 I will send out the reminder email notice about one week prior to each date we play. If you wish to join us, please contact Steve Brennan, 503-646-6297. My email address is the.steve.brennan@gmail.com. 3 —Photograph by Deve Swaim Hikers explioring Catherine Creek in April found an abundance of wildflowers along the trails. Hiking Group THE RAPS HIKING GROUP met on Tuesday, April 23, at Catherine Creek, east of Bingen on the Washington side of the Columbia Gorge—a premiere spot for spring wildflowers. Starting under cloudy skies, four hikers climbed up through open meadows amid flowers ranging from showy (Balsamroot, Lomatium) to tiny (Silene, Miner's Lettuce). The group descended through woods on an old jeep road (and a different cohort of flowers). The May 28 hike is a 3.6-mile round trip up to Tom McCall Point, with 1,070 feet elevation gain. It is known for its views, wildflowers, ticks, and poison oak! The trail starts at the Rowena Crest Trailhead off the Columbia River Highway. Pack a lunch and water. The hike will start at 10:30 am. Carpooling options are the Gateway Transit Center or the Troutdale Factory Outlets, to be discussed by hikers. On June 26 the hiking group will follow the Silver Falls State Park Canyon Trail. We will hike up the canyon, to have the best views of the falls that are the major attraction of this popular park. The hike will be a carpool hike with cars spotted at the upper end of the canyon for our return. As with the May event, those hiking will bring their own lunches and water to the June hike. For more details about this hike or future hiking plans in 2019, please consult the RAPS hikers’ website: https://www.pdx.edu/raps/RAPS-Hikers If you plan to hike in May or June, please contact Larry Sawyer at 503-771-1616 or larry_sawyer@comcast.net. —Larry Sawyer
Save the date! RAPS Summer Picnic on August 15 THE 2019 RAPS SUMMER PICNIC will be held at Willamette Park Shelter A from noon to 4:00 pm on Thursday, August 15. Please bring a dish to share with RAPS friends. RAPS will provide paper plates, disposable utensils, cups, and bottled water. You are welcome to bring other beverages of your choice. Beautiful Willamette Park is served by TriMet Bus lines 43 (Taylor’s Ferry) and 35 (Macadam). See you there! Please note, this event is to provide time together. If your circumstances don’t allow you to bring food, please know you are welcome. We always have plenty to eat. Questions? Contact Nancy Eriksson, 503-913-7200 or nan254@hotmail.com —Nancy Eriksson, Social Chair —Photograph by Larry Sawyer The RAPS Summer Picnic will be held at Willamette Park on Thursday, August 15. Have you forgotten all of the moms in your life? LAST MONTH I WROTE about how you could remember the special women in your life with a Mother's Day donation to the RAPS scholarship fund. There is still time for you to honor or memorialize the mothers, grandmothers, godmothers, stepmothers, mothers-in-law, mentors, and women who love with a mother's heart. Mother's Day is May 12. For each contribution you make to the RAPS Scholarship Fund we will send a beautiful Mother's Day card directly to the person you choose in time for Mother's Day with your name on an insert which tells of your contribution in that person's honor or memory. Do it today! Please include with your donation the name of the person you are honoring or remembering along with a sentence or two that we will write in the card for you. The cards will be lovely and hand addressed with an appropriate stamp. Send your contributions to Ilana Tarasyuk, RAPS Office Manager, Portland State University—RAPS, PO Box 751, Portland OR 97207-0751. —Barbara Alberty, Scholarship Committee Co-Chair 4
RAPS Elections Ballot Spring 2019 Don’t forget to vote!! 5 STEVE BRENNANjoined RAPS in 2011, after he retired from work in the private sector and his wife, Eileen, retired from the PSU faculty. Currently Steve serves as chair of the RAPS Award Committee and as organizer of the RAPS Bridge Group. Prior to the Brennans’ move to Oregon in 1984, Steve earned his PhD in sociology from the University of Kansas where he was a member of the research faculty. BRIAN LEWIS worked in Smith Memorial, Facilities, and Human Resources in his 36-year career at Portland State. He is just completing a three-year term as Secretary for RAPS. Brian and his wife, Chris, are active members of RAPS. Before becoming Secretary, Brian served as chair of the Membership Committee. ANSEL JOHNSON is professor emeritus of geology at Portland State, where he specialized in geophysics and groundwater. He served RAPS as Member-atLarge and chair of the Awards Committee before assuming the role of Treasurer in 2016. CONSTANCE ANDERSEN Came to PSU with an extensive background in public relations and community service. She worked as an office administrator for several units within PSU including the Center for Urban Studies, Graduate School of Social Work, Institute for Nonprofit Management, and College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. CO-PRESIDENT(2-year term) Steve Brennan Other ___________________________________________________________ SECRETARY(2-year term) Brian Lewis Other ___________________________________________________________ TREASURER(2-year term) Ansel Johnson Other ___________________________________________________________ MEMBER-AT-LARGE(2-year term) Constance Andersen Other ___________________________________________________________ Ballots may be dropped off at the RAPS Office, Room 212 Campus Public Safety Building, or mailed to PSU/RAPS, PO Box 751, Portland OR 97207-0751. Ballots must be postmarked by Friday, May 31, 2019, to be counted.
6 APRIL 23: CATHERINE CREEK TRAIL RAPS hikers encountered carpets of wildflowers as they explored Catherine Creek Trail in the Eastern Columbia River Gorge, part of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. —Photograph by Deve Swaim RAPS member events—from blockchain to amazing vistas APRIL 18: JEFF GAUS Jeff Gaus, founder of Oregon Blockchain Venture Studio, presented some key arguments and incentives for building up Oregon’s blockchain ecosystem at the April 18 member meeting. —Photograph by Larry Sawyer
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