Mayra Martinez is never certain that she’ll get to class on time, if at all. Martinez, a 20-year-old Portland State University student, lives on a rural farm near Beaverton with her family, five miles from a TriMet bus stop. Uncomfortable biking or walkin ...
22 Aug 2014 - Alex Zielinski
On any given evening along the dark, wooded perimeters of the Springwater Corridor in Clackamas County, more than 50 homeless individuals tuck themselves in for the night and hope for the best — or, at least a good night’s rest. To many, uninterrupted sle ...
20 May 2014 - Alex Zielinski
Crouched in the trampled underbrush along the Springwater Corridor, Mike Davis pulls back a loose tent flap to reveal a quietly sobbing woman. “I don’t know what to do, Pastor Mike,” she says, shakily raising an unlit cigarette to her lips. “Can you help? ...
13 Mar 2014 - Alex Zielinski
Portland State gets back to its roots with a new resource hub for returning veterans Disconnected. That’s the word army veteran Dave Christensen used to describe his first year on the Portland State University campus. “It was very difficult for me to get ...
9 Nov 2013 - Alex Zielinski
The president of the American Public Health Association, Dr. Adewale Troutman has devoted his 40 years of work to health equity within active communities, leading him to found the first Center for Health Equity. This summer, the Coalition for a Liveable F ...
4 Nov 2013 - Alex Zielinski
A new documentary looks at the experiences, challenges of gay seniors Four years ago, director PJ Raval dove headfirst into weaving together a documentary on an often overlooked slice of the country’s population: LGBTQ seniors. Shadowing three 70-plus gay ...
4 Oct 2013 - Alex Zielinski
Dr. Bob Sayson’s journey has brought him around the world to serving Rockwood’s residents It’s midway through lunchtime at the Good News Community Health Center and Dr. Bob Sayson has yet to take a bite of his sandwich. “Here, take my seat! Are you hungry ...
10 Sep 2013 - Alex Zielinski
Customers rally to restore a vendor’s pearly whites It’s been months since Raymond Thornton has felt comfortable smiling. “With my teeth missing or infected all the time, I was always guarded with my smile,” says Thornton, who started vending newspapers f ...
13 Aug 2013 - Alex Zielinski
Last month’s unveiling of the vast, multi-faceted efforts the National Security Agency has put into collecting private data — paired with the outing of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden — has left Internet users across the country feeling vulnerable, viola ...
9 Jul 2013 - Alex Zielinski
How Oregonians are eating the social and economic cost of bad oral health By Alex Zielinski, Staff writer Sitting in a reclining chair in Multnomah County’s newest dental clinic for the first time, Kenneth can’t help but smile. Despite his crooked, gapped ...
27 Mar 2013 - Alex Zielinski