3 The RAPS Sheet May 2020 RAPS Group Reports Book Group THE BOOK GROUP met this month on April 21 via Zoom, with Eileen Brennan, with her knowledge of technology, setting up the meeting for us. We discussed Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover, the story of a young woman who was, as a child, kept isolated from the world in a survivalist family. The decision to move away from that world, the difficulties encountered in entering the wider world, and the conflict evoked by leaving family are the subjects of the memoir. Our experience with Zoom was good overall, though the flow of the discussion was awkward at times. We did enjoy seeing one another again and exchanging ideas. And it was nice to have Nancy Chapman’s beautiful cat join the meeting for a time. In May we are planning to discuss Sapiens: a Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari. Eileen has agreed to set up another Zoom meeting for us. And we exchanged ideas on how to acquire the book, with usual sources not available. We will meet at our usual 1:30 p.m. time on May 19. Eileen will email directions to access the meeting. Amazon describes the book as “highly original. It begins about 70,000 years ago with the appearance of modern cognition. From examining the role evolving humans have played in the global ecosystem to charting the rise of empires, Sapiens integrates history and science to reconsider accepted narratives, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and examine specific events within the context of larger ideas.” In memoriam: Harold Thomas Sims, 1935-2019 HAROLD THOMAS SIMS, who served Portland State and the Department of Art as stores clerk for many years, died at his home, in his studio, on November 5, 2019, after many years of declining health. He was 84 years old. Mr. Sims was born in Harrisburg, Oregon, on March 27, 1935, and was buried in the family plot in Harrisburg. Mr. Sims found a second home in the Department of Art. He graduated from high school in Forest Grove, where he grew up, and he faithfully attended his high school reunions, maintaining many lifelong friendships. He enrolled as a freshman at Portland State, majoring in drawing and painting, and, under the tutelage of professors Fred Heidel and Richard Prasch, became an accomplished, working painter. He also had a great interest in architecture and, on his own, became knowledgable of the work of Frank Lloyd Wright as well as of the work of the illustrious architects who have given Portland its flavor. In the interim between his student days and his job in the Art Department, Mr. Sims was drafted into the peacetime Army Reserve, and was stationed in California. Returning from the Army, he worked for a time in the Portland Public Schools before joining Portland State. Because of Mr. Sims’s interest and support of Oregon artists, a fund has been established in his name for the installation, security, and preservation of the PSU Collection of Art, installed throughout campus. Donations to the fund may be made to The Harold Thomas Sims PSU Art Collection Fund, PSU Foundation, attention Jaymee Jacoby, PO Box 243, Portland OR 97207. Please write the name of the fund on your check. In June we plan to discuss The Dutch House by Ann Patchett. We hope to meet in person as a group again; if not, we will use Zoom. Additional information will be available later. The Book Group meets on the third Tuesday of every month. New members are always welcome. —Joan Shireman Bridge Group BRIDGE GROUP activities are suspended during the coronavirus pandemic. Look for further information in the next RAPS Sheet. If you wish to participate in post-virus bridge, please contact Steve Brennan at 503-646-6297 or email Steve at the.steve.brennan@gmail.com. Hiking Group HIKING GROUP activities are suspended during the coronavirus pandemic. Hikers are advised to check the hikers’ page on the RAPS website to get the latest updates: https://www.pdx.edu/raps/RAPS-Hikers. RAPS Board scrubs picnic THE SUMMER PICNIC, the annual event that signals the beginning of the programming year for RAPS, has been cancelled, a victim of the coronavirus pandemic. The RAPS Board of Directors made the decision, and Nancy Eriksson, who organizes the event, cancelled the reservation with Portland Parks & Recreation.
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