R. Gerard Lester

Introduction

I met up with Gerard on Thursday the 12th of June at about 9:00am at a great little coffee shop called Common Grounds Coffeehouse off SE Hawthorne in Portland. We had set up a meeting time earlier that week on Tuesday but he was so busy he had to reschedule. I met with him because of a socially driven Portland State University senior capstone class in which we explored the NE Alberta area. The point of the class was to find out how gentrification had changed this once high crime area into one that is be revitalized today. I knew I had to create a documentary about a person involved in the NE Alberta community but didn’t want it to be a question and answer session. I prepared no prefabricated questions or themes for the meeting, as I wanted to create a more friendly organic experience. I’ve always been good at talking with people, and even getting at some underlying things people are hesitant to talk about at first. Basically I wanted to be myself and friendly as I could to get some very real stories about the area and how he felt about it. I was also lucky that Gerard himself is a very easygoing conversational guy, as I really enjoy talking to open people.

Gentrification in the NE Alberta area

Initially I didn’t meet Gerard first, one of my class mates and good design buddy Graham Barey hooked me up with his contact info. The NE Alberta Portland area used to be a mostly black populated area after the destruction of Vanport Oregon by a flash flood caused by a dike collapsing on May the 30th 1948. Vanport was the largest housing project in the United States at the time, and in one night it was gone. Gerard moved to the NE Alberta area about 8 years ago after seeing his house with his wife and falling in love with it. He told me he had taken a lot of flak from his father and mother for it since he had been raised in SW Portland as a kid. He laughed as he told me when his father had first come over to see the house, not liking the neighborhood much, walked out into the middle of the street and using a very loud tone said "I like the house, but I sure don’t like the neighborhood." Gerard loves the area and enjoys the sense of community but has some issues with how gentrification has changed the area in just the past few years. I got the sense through all his stories that while he sees himself as part of the specific community he has reservations about how he might be changing the community even today with his presence there. Gerard talked about how this one house a few doors down from him had been flipped numerous times in the time he has lived in the area. He led in to how this was happening all over the area and couldn’t help wonder if he himself was somehow feeling the effects of a further wave of gentrification. He really feels he is "rooted" to the community and that people moving in recently are pushing more and more people like him out of the area.

I asked him about how gentrification had effected the black community and culture in the area. We talked about this for about a good 15 minuets, and he told stories about things he didn’t want me to repeat as well as a few of his experiences. Before I start talking about the personal stories he told here is the summary of what gentrification is for those that don’t know, straight off of good old Wikipedia.org:

Gentrification, or urban gentrification, encompasses a number of processes of change in demographics, land uses and building conditions in an area, accompanied by rapid increase in a neighborhood's property prices and influx of investment and physical remodeling and renovation. In many cases, the lower-income residents who originally lived in the neighborhood have to move out of the neighborhood because they can no longer afford to live there.

Later on I’ll talk about how Gerard is involved in community learning programs, but this led from that discussion as a side bar of sorts. He talked about how these young black kids, when he first moved in, had stopped him on the street or came to his door every year asking for donations for their basketball team. Being interested in helping youth out he gave a little money the first few times. However after that he got curious and started asking about practices and times they played to see if he could come and watch, the kids didn’t have many details to share. Now he was explicit to say that he didn’t want to pass judgement on them but really only wanted to see them play basketball if he was giving them money for it. What does this say about how the NE Alberta area is being effected by the influx of more wealthy residents, that is up to you to judge. But I thought it was an interesting situation for a possible "hussle" to go down, preying on the newer residents of the area.

I also asked him if he had seen or been involved with any crime or drug related activity in his time there and he told me one story I remember quite well. He did a little complaining about the drug deals he’s seen and the prostitute issues that happen as you get closer to MLK Blvd. After chatting about that for a few he went on about a story of him walking his dog and holding his young daughter near his house. At first he saw this thuggy-looking guy walking his pit bull, he had seen this guy and his dog before and complained about how he just let his dog poop all over the neighborhood and not clean up after it. But as he was about ready to confront the guy after he watch the dog poop and then start to walk off he noticed a parked car with a male and female sitting in it. He didn’t go into explicit details about what he saw happening in the car. He was hold his little girl and walking his dog and could only confront the guy about leaving the dog waste all over. Luckily he had walked in view to where the people in the car could see him and they took off rather quickly. Gerard also talked about crime he’s seen covered on the local news in his area and I think it makes him more aware of the still present crime problem. He talked about thing being fine during the day but at night he wasn’t as comfortable about going out and about.

The NE Alberta Community

We switched gears in the conversation as I talked about my class exploring the area, and showed him the Some People website. He was really happy to see a socially driven website that focused on normal everyday individuals and was immediately interested. Out of the blue he saw Kara Larson’s name on the list of documentaries and said, "I know Kara". Apparently he frequents her clothing store and has purchased a few dresses for his wife as well as other little items. He laughed when he mentioned that even though he and his wife have been in the store a few times, and the community is pretty tightly nit, that he wasn’t sure if Kara knew his name. This was kind of a cool revaluation since Graham who had initially introduced me to Gerard interviewed Kara for this same project. You can ready more about Kara on this same website. Maybe by comparing and contrasting these two people profiles we can discover why Gerard thinks Kara doesn’t know his name!?

After I had shown the Some People website to Gerard he stated talking about his run in with the one person assisting my class. Sandy is a graduate student sitting in the class as well as exploring the NE Alberta area with the class every week. Gerard asked me if I knew Sandy and I said sure, she helps our class. He mentioned he had run into her before the class had even started, at the empty lot where the class met every week. He noticed that the people working at the lot were very "gun-hoe" about doing a community project. He talked with them to see what they were up to and noticed they were putting in cement stairs on the incline of the lot. He wanted to tell them how to do it better but instead opted for the sit back and watch approach. He went on to talk about the fact he doesn’t really like to tell people how to do things in a better fashion. He also talked shortly about the NE Alberta area being a "teacher ghetto" in which he seemed to notice there were a large population living in the area.

Great Outdoors Academy

Time was quickly running out at this point as he had to be somewhere else which in total only gave us about an hour to meet. I quickly turned the topic to Gerard’s non-profit youth program, which I had received a pamphlet from Graham with his contact information. I visited his website Great Outdoors Academy and read through his pamphlet because as a kid I love the outdoors. My family camped just about every year after I was 5 years old until I was in high school. The outdoors and the many adventures I had are still to this day very important to me. Needless to say I was very interested to talk to Gerard about his passion. And he expressed it as so, a very deep passion for the ever shrinking wild spaces.

Gerard is the owner and operator of Great Outdoor Academy which is a not for profit charitable organization established for helping troubled youth with there understanding of the outdoor spaces. Gerard overall goal is to help these kids develop a understanding about these outdoor areas through artistic introspection and expression. I got the feeling talking with Gerard that this wasn’t a selfless act but instead a passion he wants to share with others. He loves the outdoors even talking about his time at Portland State University and that his favorite memory about it was being on the grounds crew. Which is when he met his wife as well. So I really believe that his love for the outdoors and experiencing a more natural world is what drives this Academy. Not only does he operate an ever growing & popular non-profit organization, but he also spends time at local Portland youth centers like the Youth Employment Institute, "a nonprofit organization that provides education, employment, and personal development programs for youth in Portland." As well as the Mt Scott Learning Center which is about a mile down the road from where I live.
I asked him what was the inspirational force besides just loving the outdoors that made him want to create the Great Outdoors Academy. His response was a question if I knew who Jon Muir was. I wasn’t positive but it sounded familiar for some reason. In order to do Jon Muir more justice then I could here is an excerpt from good old wikipedia.org:

John Muir (April 21, 1838 – December 24, 1914) was one of the first modern preservationists. His letters, essays, and books telling of his adventures in nature, and wildlife, especially in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, were read by millions and are still popular today. His direct activism helped to save the Yosemite Valley and other wildernes areas. The Sierra Club, which he founded, is now one of the most important conservation organizations in the United States. His writings and philosophy strongly influenced the formation of the modern environmental movement.

Gerard said he was inspired at a young age from Muir’s writings and perspective put forth about he experiences traveling the western wilderness. Gerard mentioned that it was something about Jon Muir’s ability to just gather minimal items for survival and explore. He mentioned that he has to carry many items not only for his safety but for the kids he oversees on trips and how its changes the experience for him as opposed to the romanticized version in Muir’s writing. One of the last things Gerard and I talked about was after I asked about how he was able to integrate artistic expression into a camping trip. He mentioned that he encourages the kids to draw, paint, write about anything they with to convey about the trip. He also discussed a excursive he does with the kids called "Still Hunting". Basically, from what he explained, it is standing still in a place you pick for a period of time watching, & listening to your surroundings. It’s a time of reflection and observation you can only achieve by not interrupting your surrounding with your own activities. He mentioned that the kids he works with are typical of the generation and always have to be moving, talking, or doing something to keep their attention. Still hunting helps them calm down and see the natural beauty and the many things going on around them.

That pretty much summed up the conversation at that point as time was already gone. I thanked him for his time and made him an offer that really seemed to excite him. Since I’m a designer by trade and really appreciated him going out on a limb for me in such a short time frame, I offered some pro bono redesign work for his publication and his pamphlet. He was very excited about improving his publication, as I really believe what he is doing with the Great Outdoors Academy is a novel and helpful way to educate people about the outdoors.

R. Gerard Lester - Documentary



I first have to thank Graham Barey for the generous handoff of Gerard's contact information and image. I'm currently waiting to hear back from Gerard as well as answers to a host of questions regarding his involvement in the NE Alberta community & the non-profit he is involved with running.

I wrote to him via email late last week in order to establish first contact, here is what I wrote to him:

"Hello Mr. Gerard Lester,

My name is Garrett Milojevich and I am a senior majoring in Graphic Design at PSU. I'm currently a part of a Universities Studies Class that has been exploring the NE Alberta area for this past term. My good friends Graham and Melissa who chatted with you a few weeks ago about some of your yard art your wife had made while attending PSU refereed me to you. Graham said you were a really interesting guy to talk to and have a great non-profit you oversee.

I'm interested to know a bit more about you, what you do with your non-profit, and how you are involved in your community since these are the goals of the larger class project. I was hoping to document your involvement in the NE Alberta area as well as other aspects of your life in the goal to build a better understanding of the changes the community is undergoing currently.

If this sounds like something you would be willing to be apart of then I have a series of question I?d like to ask you either through email, over the phone, or in person. Thank you very much for your time and I hope to hear from you soon.

Sincerely,

Garrett Milojevich

P.S. Please don't hesitate to ask any questions of me as I would be more then happy to answer anything. Thanks again."

I'm hoping to hear back from him as soon as possible. If i don't hear back from him by Friday I will try contacting him by phone.

Great Outdoors Academy - Non Profit/Public Charity

"Adventures in Wilderness and Expeditionary Learning" http://www.greatoutdoorsacademy.org

"Great Outdoors Academy works with young people, creating opportunities for personal expression through writing and expeditionary learning. Our programs promote intellectual and personal development. We help young people build a positive relationship with writing, foster appreciation and respect for the natural world, and promote involvement in a community of peers."



Here is a picture of Gerad's business card, and pamphlet for Great Outdoors Academy. I further plan on offering a pro bono publico graphical redesign of his pamphlet for his time and answers to my questions. I hope maybe this could break the ice between me [a perfect stranger] and him so I can delve a bit deeper into his life and learn more then just what a Q&A would tell me about him.

Memorial Day Chicken Massacre

Well I had to miss today [Wednesday] because I went with my girlfriend to the hospital to see an ultrasound of our baby. We could of found out what sex it was but both her and I didn't want to see, all we cared about was that is was healthy. Oh and just for you religious nut jobs my GF and I have been together almost 7 years come this New Years Eve. That's longer then most marriages last!

But to my disappointment I noticed that the class took a trip to a women’s house that owned chickens and had a larger garden/yard. I was upset a bit as I to own 3 egg-laying chickens and love to garden even if it is only 3 6'x4' planter boxes in my back yard. I figured I would post some images of my birds.

I introduce you to Parmesan, Teriyaki, and Cordon Blue. They are a bit squawky but very friendly birds since I’ve handled them ever since they were chicks. This last week [Memorial Day] a Opossum got into the hen house and attacked Teriyaki... she’s such a perfect bird, not to squawky, and lays perfect sized eggs.

Here are the accounts of that night:

4:45 this morning Andrea and I are rudely awaken by the death throws of one of our chickens in the coop. I jump straight out of bed in nothing but my underwear and run outside, while Andrea pounds on the window frame. [our window is directly in front of the coop] I run out grab a rake as I head for the coop. At first I don't see a thing but as I go to open the coop fearing the worst I see it. I god damned Opossum with a mouth full of chicken feathers. My eyes adjust its not moving but I see it right in front of me. The chicken is in the corner just screaming and screaming. I grab a shovel near me and slam it into the Opossum's head, it doesn't move. The chickens still just screaming. I yell "Andrea... get out here now!" She runs out and I say "Get me the pitchfork quick!" She starts fumbling around looking for it as I say "I think I've got to put her down" "She’s hurt bad, and I’ve got this damned Opossum trapped" I tell her the pitchfork is near the vegetable garden and she runs over worry in her face. I tell her to get away because I don't know what to expect from this cornered animal. Then, the chicken realizes I'm saving her and jumps out right next to me, looks at me and runs to the two other chickens in the corner of the yard. I can't tell if this damned thing is dead or alive because it's playing dead so I slam it as hard as I can with the shovel, it doesn't move. I hit it so hard one of the boards in the back of the coop pops off, as I’m completely jacked up with adrenaline. I grab the pitchfork and do the deed; it looks at me and curls into a ball. I feel bad but it disserved it.

I close the coop with it in it and leave the pitchfork in. I need to calm down. Birds are fine from what I can see in the early morning light. It's only the middle bird, the good bird... figures. She’s got a few feathers missing and what looks like a bite mark on her hindquarter but otherwise alive and well. I let the birds on the other side of their fenced off area and close the gate. Andrea and I go inside and try to calm down.

What happened to the damned opossum you ask? Well I don't know... I figured it was dead so I left it with the pitchfork trough it's neck but when I went to clean up the mess it's gone. Escaped through the one bored I knocked out of the back even though I had put a stepping stone up on the entrance of the coop to keep it in. I'm sure it will be back, so next time i will be more ready. Looks like i will be making a fence sooner then later.

Terrell Brandon's Barbershop

The day started off slow with news of Obama's Oregon primary win the class wanted to see what Earl had to say about it. We headed to Earl's barbershop again and talked with him for a few. He was happy and his patron was very talkative as well. He was a African American man who was a retired electrian, but he seemed well educated and was very proud that Obama was that much closer to the presidential nod.

Earl informed us we should head down the street to Terrell Brandon’s Barbershop a few blocks down Alberta for more information about the area. Harrell didn't recognize the name at first but I did right away. One of the great basketball players in the NBA right as I was getting out of high school in 97. Terrell Brandon interestingly enough is mentioned on Wikipedia, so here is the link incase you’re the non-sports type: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrell_Brandon


So we headed down to see what we could find. Harrell walked in to see if it was cool if we came inside to talk. It was and so we all went in to chat. It was kinda funny because there was this younger African American women getting her "hair did" and the first thing she wanted to know was whom all these white folks voted for. All of us kinda looked around to see if there were any Hilary supporters and there were not. She was stunned! We all laughed, as we all knew that the ice had been broken. We chatted a bit with one of the barbers working who was very nice and just answered topical questions. We left a bit later and stopped a short distance up the street.

Harrell had a funny story as to what had happened when he came in to ask if it was cool if we came in. What had happened was that when he had come in and started to ask if he could talk to everyone about the neighborhood, the same women asked him whom he had voted for? He said Obama and she couldn't believe it. Apparently another barber was going "I told you so, I told you so" the whole time. Pretty funny how no matter if you are black or white we all have a slight fear of people that is different from ourselves. And what's even more interesting is that by a simple vote, something so American in deed, that it breaks the ice and brings us together even in the simple of circumstances.

Obama '08

The class made a trip to the Obama camp after talking with Earl at his Barbershop and a few of his patrons. I wasn't sure what to expect as he was right in the middle of working and here the whole class was crammed into his small shop. Earl was a friendly guy after he got a few answers in him and seemed to warm up pretty fast. The class asked him what he thought of the upcoming primaries and what he thought of Obama's chances. Needless to say he was proud and excited at the prospect of a historical presidency possibility.

We ended up chit chatting to some of the volunteers at the Obama Office just a few blocks from Alberta. General questions really but you could feel the excitement in the air. I'm sure it was partly due to my own excitement about this election but you could see it in these volunteers smiling faces more so! We learned that some of the head organizers were from back east and even one that had graduated from UofO. Overall a great experience which I really enjoyed.

The one thing I did notice was the many children’s drawings, some of them pretty comical but all of them full of spirit. I'm very partial to children’s drawings as I remember many of times I drew as a child. I can almost imagine what they are thinking when they draw images of Obama. It's all very interesting really because its that generation that has the most to lose.

While in the office i noticed several large designed portraits of Obama on the walls. It struck me most becasue it was graphically the strongest thing in the white/wooden room we were standing in. I found it when i got hom eonline and it was done by the same artist that does all the OBEY artwork. Here is a link: http://obeygiant.com/post/obama

first day on the spot

UNST 421 10:05am Aprial 23rd 2008

I get off the 72-bus line at about 5 after 10 and see some of my fellow classmates standing down the street by the empty lot. I do the cordial thing and say hello then I scope out the lot for the first time. Interesting to say the least with littered junk mixed with in-progress/long-forgotten student art projects. I take some pictures of things I think say something about my initial feeling on the space. Fascinating really, coffee cups, good beer bottles, and high alcohol beer cans seem to be the local litter trend in this area. I paid careful attention to the photo's compositions, as I believe it talks more about my initial emotions of what I see, then just the items themselves.





I walk back down to the street where my classmates stand when a white late 90's caddie with dubs backs in to park on the street. An African American fellow gets out signing some gospel song I don't recognize and looks right at me. I think I catch his eyes go to my Obama for President button on my bag strap as he says hello with a gold toothed smile. I smile back as I acknowledge his observation of my political affiliations and say "what's up".

START IT UP... FIRE IT UP

Well i've been working hard these past two weeks organizing my design work into some kind of online website portfolio. For the most part i think i've been successful with putting myself out there. It's kind of surprising to look back at the last two years worth of work and see all the stuff i've done, not to mention the progress and improvements i've made. I've been taking pictures of all the work that needs to be in context as well as other images for the website. Like this one of my phone:


I took my phone apart then took a picture of it on my desk, then uploaded it to my computer and displayed it full screen on my monitor then took another picture. Interesting i know... NOT. I've done this with a few images, and it kinda gives a flavorful look as opposed to a straight digital photo.

As far as everything else goes i have my work cut out for me. I have to finish up my Bachelors of Science prerequisites at PSU these next two terms... that means boring math, and science classes. I say boring because its all review from high school or from classes i've taken at Portland Community College many moons ago.

Well i think thats a good start to my first online blog, i will be coming back more often to get more of whats going on down since these next 6 months are going to be rough and rewarding at the same time! See ya soon.