Mon April 30
 
STORY STOP. Children ages 0-6, and adults, will have story time. 2-2:15 p.m. Central Library, 801 S.W. 10th Ave.
 
NEW CRAFT. A knitting and crocheting class for beginners. Ages 8-adult. 4-5 p.m. Belmont Library, 1038 S.E. 39th Ave.
 

WASHINGTON -- A first-time crack-cocaine conviction should mean a lower federal minimum sentence…

SALEM -- With Democrats now in charge of the Legislature, lawmakers may try to soften a 1994…

 LOS ANGELES -- With rows of Afro-centric boutiques, cafes and soul food restaurants shaded by…

After months of letter writing, name-calling and hurt feelings, the simmering controversy over one North Portland business' sign may be cooling down.
Patty Earley, co-owner of The Florida Room at 435 N. Killingsworth Ave., says she will soon take down the "Church of the Bloody Mary" slogan that seems to have offended so many in the Black community.
"To me, this started off as a free speech issue, but it seems to have turned into a cultural issue," Earley said. "I want to be culturally sensitive, so I will take down the word 'church.'"
The Florida Room's sign, which reads "Church of the Bloody Mary" on one side and "Go Team Evil" on the other, has been called "insensitive, inappropriate and offensive" by many people in North Portland's African American community.

Jefferson High School Principal Leon Dudley is on leave of absence until the end of the school year, according to Portland Public School officials. Cynthia Harris, area director for the Jefferson Cluster, will take his place on a temporary basis.
Dudley was hired as Jefferson's principal on Aug. 14, 2006, and the end of this school year would have marked his first year at the school, which has been marked with controversy over his leadership style, including recent criticism from the student council over Dudley's allegedly frequent absences.
Portland Public Schools Spokesman Matt Shelby declined to say if the leave was forced or if Dudley chose to leave, but said the leave is for a defined amount of time and that he expects Dudley to return to his duties after that time.
"We're affording him the same respect we would any other (PPS employee)," Shelby said. "It is a personnel matter."
Harris, who also started her position in the fall of 2006, has been involved with many of Dudley's duties, says Shelby, and supervises all the principals in the Jefferson Cluster. The district will be filling Harris' position in the near future, but says it will have "zero effect" on day-to-day functions.

Ten years into his tenure as Portland State University's president, Daniel Bernstine announced
Wednesday that he is leaving. "It's time to explore different opportunities," Bernstine told The Skanner on Wednesday. "I will miss it ... but it's better to leave too early than to leave too late."

When August Wilson's Tony Award-winning play "Fences" opens in Portland this week,
only two of the actors will be able to sleep in their own beds each night.
Ten-year-old Justyce Chaney and 9-year-old Makayla Irvan, both local girls, will rotate the part of Raynell, a sassy youngster whose family is dealing with the racial inequalities of 20th century America.

Awoken from his sleep at 1 a.m. on Feb. 22, 1987, Luther Lockett got a call that would save his life. Less than one hour later, the 52-year-old was at OHSU being prepped for a heart transplant – the 25th such transplant ever performed at OHSU.
"Without that heart, I wouldn't be here at all," Lockett said.
Now, 20 years later, Lockett said he's grateful to the man who lost his life, and for the family who agreed to let their loved one become an organ donor.
As a Black man, Lockett knows his chances of receiving a transplant were less than if he had been White.
"About 35 percent of people waiting for a kidney are African American," says Mary Jane Hunt, director of Donate Life Northwest.

Pastor Pat Wright and the Total Experience Gospel Choir sing at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Peacemakers Banquet, held April 4 at Mt. Zion Baptist Church. The event raised funds for survivors of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.