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 Eben Yemoh Telephone: 503-725-3447 Email: rapsmail@pdx.edu In office: 11 am-3 pm Mon-Wed Remotely: 11 am-3 pm Thurs & Fri Campus mail: RAPS Web: www.pdx.edu/raps Board Members Co-Presidents Pat Squire Bruce Stern Secretary Brian Lewis Treasurer Ansel Johnson Members-at-Large Nancy Eriksson Cheryl Livneh Michael Taylor RAPS Sheet Editor Doug Swanson Website Editor Larry Sawyer RAPS Representative to Regional & National Retirement Associations Larry Sawyer Committees Awards Steve Brennan, Chair History Preservation Eileen Brennan, Chair Membership Pati Sluys, Chair Program Dawn White, Chair Scholarship Joan Shireman, Chair Social Nancy Eriksson, Chair The RAPS Sheet The newsletter of the Retirement Association of Portland State NOVEMBER 2021 WHEN PRESIDENT Steve Percy spoke to RAPS via Zoom last April, bringing members up to date on the campus response to COVID, the University’s financial situation, and a host of other topics, he mentioned PSU’s racial justice and equity initiatives, saying he would love to come back to talk to RAPS about them. The Program Committee jumped at his offer. The result? The president is scheduled to speak at the November 18 member meeting on “Envisioning and Creating a Just and Equitable PSU.” The president will be joined by Ame Lambert, vice president for global diversity and inclusion. Lambert came to PSU in August 2020 from Roger Williams University in Rhode Island, where she served as vice president for equity and inclusion. Striving for a ‘just and equitable’ PSU President Steve Percy and Ame Lambert, vice president for global diversity and inclusion, will speak to RAPS on November 18. She previously worked at Champlain College in Vermont, serving as its inaugural chief diversity officer. Lambert brings more than a decade of experience in promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion across campuses and in the greater community through strategic planning, collaboration, and innovation. The meeting begins at noon on Thursday, November 18, in 333 Smith Memorial Student Union, with a light deli lunch. The presentation by Percy and Lambert follows at about 12:35 p.m. Lambert brings to PSU more than a decade of experience promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion.
2 The RAPS Sheet November 2021 CO-PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Expand your social connections through RAPS A FEW WEEKS AGO, Charlie and Dawn White and I had lunch with Bill and Genna Lemman in McMinnville, near their home. It was a delightful meeting of longtime friends. Bill was a student at Vanport and one of the early administrators at Portland State, and Charlie was one of the early faculty members. That visit got me thinking about the many connections PSU employees make with fellow faculty, administrators, and students. We meet each other through committees, Faculty Senate, departments, experiences like ad hoc basketball games, through loose-knit organizations such as the Ferdinand Society, or at social, musical, or athletic events. In my early years at Portland State, faculty and staff often lunched together in the Portland Room on the second floor of Smith Center, where a buffet was served in a casual atmosphere and gathering space. Many faculty and staff wished for an official Faculty Center, but alas, that was not to be, and the Portland Room is long gone. Now we have RAPS, an organization for retired faculty and staff, that fills many of those needs for connection, lifelong learning, and social time together. It’s time for you to think about getting your favorite colleagues involved in RAPS so we can expand the connections. The Membership Committee wants to be sure you know you can invite nonmembers to meetings, to give them a taste of our organization. In other words, bring a friend! Connect! —Pat Squire RAPS fills many of those needs for connection, lifelong learning, and social time. Upcoming RAPS events DECEMBER Thursday, December 9 Annual Holiday Party, Augustana Lutheran Church, NE Portland. JANUARY Thursday, January 20 “What Happened in Afghanistan?” presentation by Grant Farr, professor emeritus of sociology. Room TBA. FEBRUARY Thursday, February 17 “The Inside Story on Who First Planted Pinot Noir in Oregon. It Might Not Be Who You Think,” presentation by Michael Alberty, wine writer for The Oregonian. Room TBA. MARCH Thursday, March 17 Annual March Potluck and spring opera preview with PSU opera program director Harry Baechtel and student performers. After a delay of two years, PSU Opera is mounting the previously planned production of Merry Wives of Windsor, an operetta in three acts by Otto Nicolai.
3 The RAPS Sheet November 2021 RAPS Group Reports Book Group THE BOOK GROUP met on October 19 and discussed Walter Isaacson’s The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race. The book tells the story of the development of a way to modify the genetic code of humans, a story that is replete with both competition among scientists and with collaboration to achieve remarkable discoveries. Much of the our discussion focused on the unusual presence of a woman as a leader in the discovery. Jennifer Doudna was a 2020 winner of the Nobel Prize in chemistry. The ability to alter the genetic code puts enormous power in the hands of mankind, and another thread of our discussion concerned the ethical questions this has raised, and the discussions among scientists of ways to monitor the uses of this new knowledge. We were impressed by the book, learned from it, and were pleased to have read and discussed it. Next month we are planning to read Isabel Allende’s Long Petal of the Sea, a novel of the Spanish Civil War. A New York Times best seller, it has received excellent reviews, and we are looking forward to reading it. The Book Group meets the third Tuesday of each month, traditionally in the homes of various members. Currently we are using Zoom for our meetings. Any RAPS member is welcome to join the group. —Joan Shireman Bridge Group THE RAPS BRIDGE GROUP (pre-pandemic shut down) used to meet in the afternoon on the first Tuesday of each month. Play began at 12:15 p.m and finished up by 4 p.m. We met in Smith Center, and we had a set of about 10 regular players. Most months we had two tables, but some months we could only gather enough players for one table. Given the recent decline in COVID-19 cases in Multnomah County, it is time to consider restarting in-person bridge sessions. Multnomah County is currently at a “very high risk” level. We will watch that risk level and begin bridge sessions when the risk drops down to “moderate” or maybe just “high risk.” We need additional players; do you want to join us? I would like to hear from any interested RAPS members or others you know who might want to play in our group. The RAPS Bridge Group does not require RAPS membership; your friends and relatives would be welcome to join us. Please contact Steve Brennan, 503-889-0146. My email address is: the.steve.brennan@gmail.com. —Steve Brennan In memoriam: John A. Hanson, 1943-2021 JOHN A. HANSON, who served Portland State University as a professor in the School of Urban Affairs in the 1970s, died on September 17 at the age of 78. Professor Hanson was born on February 18, 1943, in Stockton, California, to Edwin Hanson and Alpha Low. He graduated from high school in Galt, California, and earned a bachelor’s degree in business finance at California State University, Sacramento, in 1967. He received a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Oregon in 1972. At Portland State Professor Hanson conducted graduate seminars focused on the economics of urban problems and the analysis of urban and regional growth. His primary research interests involved abstract mathematical modeling of urban development with a focus on determinants of urban density patterns. In 1980 he began a second career at NW Natural as director of forecasting and utility planning, often serving as an expert witness in energy utility regulatory matters before state public utility commissions. He also spoke at energy utility conferences across North America. He retired in 2005. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Marion; his daughter, Kirsten; two grandchildren, Kristen and Kevin; a sister, Nora; and two brothers, Thomas and Michael. Due to the pandemic, there was no memorial service. Remembrances may be sent to the American Cancer Society.
4 The RAPS Sheet November 2021 Another RAPS Scholarship to be awarded. Thanks! RAPS Scholarship Donation Form N a m e __________________________________________________________________________ A d d r e s s ______________________________________________________________________ C i t y __________________________________________________________________________ State ________ Zip __________________________________ P h o n e __________________________________________________________________________ Email __________________________________________ Donation amount: q $500 q $250 q $100 q $50 Other: ____ Donation made in memory of: ______________________________________ Donation made in honor of: ______________________________________ Make checks payable to: PSU Foundation and noted for RAPS Scholarship Please mail to: RAPS, Portland State University, PO Box 751, Portland, OR 97207-0751 To use a credit card, go to the PSU Foundation website: https://www.psuf.org Since 2011-12 RAPS has awarded a scholarship every year to a student whose interest is focused on some aspect gerontology. Thanks to your generosity, we are again this year awarding a scholarship. The recipient has not yet been selected, but a decision will be made in the next few weeks, and then we will introduce the student to you. The RAPS Scholarship is funded through member donations. As we begin this year, we return to an open campus and the opportunity to raise money for the scholarship in the customary ways. As in the past, at the general meetings you will find a basket for donations. Those who attend the general meetings have been generous. And we will continue to have a donation form as part of the RAPS Sheet. A major source of funding is travel with Collette tours; Collette has a program that provides a rebate for worthy organizations that promote their tours. With travel again being possible, we expect to offer a RAPS tour soon. We hope you will join the RAPS tour or travel on a different tour with Collette. Watch for announcements! This has been a major source of funds for our scholarship. Larry Sawyer manages this program. Additionally, there are occasional special events or campaigns to raise money for the scholarship. The first of these will probably be the Holiday Sale—mostly a bake sale, but featuring also some craft and art items. There will likely be other promotions to raise funds, but just what those promotions will be has not yet been decided. So, we are off to a new academic year full of promise! —Joan Shireman
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