Willamette Valley, Ore. — Thousands of runners, wine enthusiasts, sponsors and spectators will converge at the finish line of the Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon, presented by Subaru, in the “great little town” of Carlton on Sunday, September 2. Now in its third year, the race is one of the most scenic half marathons in the country, and features four days of events beginning on Thursday at the Sports Authority store in Beaverton.
Two-time defending women’s champion Carre Heineck is returning to attempt to win her third-in-a-row. The 30-year-old Portland resident set the women’s course record last year at 1:18:44 and looks to better that mark in 2012.
“The Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon is a big, competitive race, but it doesn’t seem like it, because people are so friendly and supportive,” comments Heineck in a brief moment between being a full-time middle school teacher and the mother of a two-year-old. “It has a great community feel to it. At most big races, you never really talk to the other competitors, but at this race, everyone hangs out. Last year, I met Eva Vail, who finished 3rd and now we’re friends and we train together.”
The 13.1-mile race starts at Stoller Vineyards and winds through scenic Yamhill County in the heart of the Willamette Valley wine region before finishing on North Pine Street in Carlton. A Wine & Music Festival, awards ceremony and other activities follow the race in Carlton. New for 2012 will be the Winery Team Challenge, in which local wineries field teams of runners and compete for the winery trophy.
According to Matt Dockstader, the Event Director, two course changes and new elements such as the Winery Team Challenge have been added to enhance the event experience. “Oregon has such a strong running community which is even evident within the wineries. Many of them pull together teams to compete in the race, which gave us the idea to incorporate this challenge into all our races. It gives it a fun, local flavor, although we draw from all over the country.” Each race participant receives a specially designed technical running shirt, colorful finishers medal with a wine-stopper and corkscrew, plus a Riedel Oregon Pinot Noir wine glass and entry into the post-race Wine & Music Festival, where 24 wineries and one brewery from the region will be pouring. Additional glasses and tickets for the festival can be purchased for friends and family. With so many people visiting the Willamette Valley before, during and after the event, local businesses thrive. “On that weekend, we are extremely busy, especially on race day,” bristles Retta Carl, co-owner of Cielo Blu Restaurant in Carlton. “We get not only the race participants, but also the event staff, the volunteers, and the friends and families that come to watch the runners cross the finish line.” The Health and Fitness Expo is held on Saturday September 1 from 10:00am to 6:00pm at the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum, and is free and open to the public. Under the wings of the Spruce Goose, the expo features exhibitor booths, seminars, wine tasting and packet pickup for registered runners, plus discounts on other Evergreen attractions. Other ancillary events include early packet pickup at Sports Authority in Beaverton on August 30, a welcome reception on August 31 at Grand Cru Estates, a pre-race dinner and a post-race wine tasting tour. Adam Goucher and Tim Catalano will be guest speakers at the Expo. Adam was a 2000 US Olympian in the 10,000 meters and co-authored “Running the Edge” with Catalano. He is also the husband of Kara Goucher, who will compete for the U.S. in the marathon in London.
The primary beneficiary of the Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon is Carlton Together Cares, a non-profit organization that operates the Carlton Community Center and develops programs for youth and families in the Carlton-Yamhill area. They are largely focused on providing youth with useful roles in the community, and safe and healthy activities.
Registration for the Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon is still open and can be accessed through the event website, www.run4oregonwine.com. A team competition with six or more runners is offered, in addition to a 2-person relay. A registration price increase goes into effect on Saturday, July 28. The race is part of a series produced by Destination Races, who also produces Wine Country Half Marathons in Napa-Sonoma, Healdsburg, Santa Barbara and Virginia. For more information on the series, visit www.destinationraces.com. Oregon Sports Authority The mission of the Oregon Sports Authority is to position the state of Oregon as the preferred location for select amateur and professional sports events, franchises and related activities in order to enhance the quality of life of Oregonians and to stimulate the state’s economy. The Oregon Sports Authority was named 2010 Sports Commission of the Year by the National Association of Sports Commissions. Learn more at oregonsports.org.
Oregon Sports Authority | 1888 SW Madison St. | Portland, OR 97205 | [email protected]
Portland, June 26th. Nationally renowned filmmaker Todd Haynes is the subject of a one-of-a-kind portrait that posted on eBay. This ten-day auction supports a good cause: Haynes donated the giclee print to benefit The Right Brain Initiative’s arts education programming in Portland, Oregon area schools. The print is signed by both Haynes and the portrait’s artist, Steve Cohn. Cohn is brother-in-law to Haynes, and works under the pseudonym Jasper Marks.
The giclee print is available in an eBay auction through Sunday, August 5. http://r.ebay.com/iNGdP7
Portrait of Todd Haynes by Steve Cohn
Cohn rendered the portrait in homage to Haynes’ remarkable body of work in filmmaking. Haynes, a Portland resident, is the creative mind behind Far from Heaven, a feature film starring Julianne Moore, for which he was nominated an Academy Award for original screenplay; and I’m Not There, a biopic about Bob Dylan. He is also the writer/director of Mildred Pierce, a 2011 HBO miniseries nominated for an unprecedented 21 Primetime Emmy awards.
The original oil painting of this portrait hangs in Portland City Hall, inducted in April 2011 by Mayor Sam Adams as a testament to the city’s dedication to supporting independent artists and cultural leaders. “This office is honored to display such a beautiful portrait of one of our most prolific artists,” said Adams at the hanging.
The Right Brain Initiative’s dedication to providing rich arts education to all K-8 students in Portland resonates with Haynes’ personal experience as a student. “Music, art was all part of basic curriculum that most of us grew up with in the public school system. It’s a really different story today,” he said. “I’m extremely honored to have played even the smallest part in supporting The Right Brain Initiative and its commitment to bringing art and the value of creative experience into the lives of so many young people.”
The auction closes at noon on Sunday, August 5. Portlanders can see the work in person during business hours at the Lara Sydney Framing Gallery, 1230 NW Hoyt Street (including the First Thursday art walk on the evening of August 2) through the end of the auction. http://www.larasydney.com/
Watch the signing and dedication of the portrait to The Right Brain Initiative at https://vimeo.com/22419272.
About The Right Brain Initiative
The Right Brain Initiative is an equity-based arts education partnership of the Regional Arts & Culture Council, serving the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area. During the 2011-12 school year, Right Brain brought learning to life for 11,500 students and 31 schools with visual and media arts, music, dance and more. In 2012-13, the program will grow to serve 45 schools. Established in 2008, the program’s vision is to transform learning for all children in the Portland area through the arts, creativity, innovation and whole-brain thinking. Young Audiences of Oregon & SW Washington serves as Implementation Partner. Read more online at TheRightBrainInitiative.org
About the Regional Arts & Culture Council
RACC is a nonprofit arts services organization serving the Portland metropolitan area, including Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties. In addition to serving as the managing partner for The Right Brain Initiative, RACC provides grants for artists, arts organizations, schools and other community-based arts projects; conducts workplace giving for arts and culture (“Work for Art”) and other advocacy efforts; provides workshops and other forms of technical assistance; shares printed and web-based resources for artists; and integrates artwork into public places. Read more online at racc.org.
Portland, July 24th. Tom Hanks received a warm welcome in the Rose City even though he’s an avid Aston Villa fan (so much so that he’s featured on the club’s official website as a ‘Famous Fan,’ along with British royalty, Prince William.) The Aston Villa team, based in Birmingham England, defeated the Portland Timbers with penalty kicks after a 2-2 draw in regulation. (Photo credit, Craig Mitchelldyer/Portland Timbers)
Tom Hanks visits the Timbers locker room at JELD-WEN Field.
The gracious star posed with the Timbers and their opponents, Aston Villa.
Hanks took time to pose with British Consul Priya Guha and Black Sabbath’s Geezer Butler before the start of the Timbers game versus Aston Villa. The Academy Award winning actor supports several charity foundations which advocate for health, the environment, and an end to poverty. Hanks turned 56 earlier this month.
Hanks’ visit coincided with President Obama’s fundraising trip to Portland where he spoke at a Oregon Convention Center. Obama’s reelection team created a campaign video trailer which is narrated by Tom Hanks.
The Timbers hold up log slabs after the game with Aston Villa.
During the Timbers game, Rookie Rincón scored his first goal for Portland. Tom Hanks joked with the team beforehand instructing them to, “Change the face of the game.” The Hollywood movie star enjoyed the Portland fans. Reporter Shawn Levy said that Tom Hanks gestured toward the Timbers Army and said, “Why can’t all of America have something like this?”
Portland, July 24th. The President landed at the Oregon Air National Guard base and met with greeters, including his brother-in-law OSU basketball coach Craig Robinson. White House journalists who travel with the President were treated to Voodoo Donuts. According to Jeff Mapes, they were quite amazed by the bacon maple bars. In a lighthearted moment, President Obama asked local reporters, “Got any granola?”
The quick fundraising visit brought out protesters and created traffic snarls.
The President held two fund-raising events. An invitation-only gathering where 25 people paid $30,000 each to meet with the President, according to campaign officials. He also attended a fundraising lunch, where 950 people paid about $500 to attend. At the Oregon Convention Center, President Obama told supporters, “It’s wonderful to be back in Portland, one of the memories I love is the rally we had by the water four years ago, it was just as pretty as can be. There were people kayaking and in boats, you could see just as far as… it was just beautiful.”
Along with supporters, protesters lined the streets outside the convention center. Many waved signs pushing for stricter gun laws in the wake of the mass shooting in Colorado.
The First Family has a warm relationship with OSU basketball coach Craig Robinson. That connection brought Robinson’s sister, First Lady Michelle Obama, to Oregon State University’s graduation last spring.
Michelle Obama was the keynote speaker at the main graduation ceremony for Oregon State University on Sunday, June 17, 2012.
Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republic presidential nominee, visited Portland in June. Romney was in Portland for a luncheon at the downtown Governor Hotel. The event was not open to the public or media. The event reportedly cost $2,500 per person to attend.
Look for more campaign visits from the Presidential candidates in advance of the November 6th General election.
Portland, July 19th. Charity movers and shakers learned about new social media at workshop organized by Meyer Memorial Trust. Amy Sample Ward, Holly Ross and Eleigh Doineau from NTEN offered advice. NTEN and PAGATIM joined forces to educate over 175 nonprofit leaders.
Laura Mansfield is the Co-Founder of PAGATIM, Marie Deatherage is the Director of Communication & Learning for the Meyer Memorial Trust, Tara Rojas is from PAGATIM, and Mike Phillips is from Myer Memorial Trust
We work with and invest in organizations, communities, ideas and efforts that contribute to a flourishing and equitable Oregon.
Values:
As of December, 2011, Meyer Memorial Trust had made 6,687 awards for more than $554 million since it began operating in 1982. The man behind the Meyer Memorial Trust – Fred G. Meyer – was ahead of his time. His values – to innovate, take risks, embrace diversity, adapt to changing circumstances, contribute to economic development/parity and to develop the power of the mind – continue to create and inform our culture, influencing what we do and how we do it.
We fulfill our mission using a mix of strategic, proactive and responsive investments, including grant-making, loans, initiatives, commissioning research, supporting policy advocacy and a range of community and nonprofit engagement strategies.
First called the Fred G. Meyer Charitable Trust, this foundation was created by the late Fred G. Meyer, who built the chain of retail stores bearing his name throughout the Pacific Northwest. When Mr. Meyer died in 1978 at the age of 92, his will established the charitable trust, bequeathing it nearly two million shares of stock in Fred Myer Inc. In 1982, most of the designated funds were transferred from the estate and the charitable trust began operating. All stock in Fred Meyer Inc. was sold prior to the transfer.
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