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48 °F Forecast | Road Cams Friday, April 22, 2005 Today's News | Shop Our Valley | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery | Contact Us SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 21, 2005 Juana Avina holds her 8-month-old daughter, Laura, while speaking to community members about her experience living in poverty. About 200 people gathered Wednesday in Medford to brainstorm ways to solve one of the region�s most pressing problems. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Community leaders shine light on poverty By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune It’s not every day that the world listens to Juana Avina. More often than not, the 20-year-old Talent mother of two is overlooked or undervalued, mostly because she’s poor. On Wednesday, however, Avina and more than a dozen other Jackson County residents who live in poverty took center stage at a conference aimed at seeking new ways to solve one of the region’s most pressing problems. Cradling her 8-month-old daughter, Laura, Avina quietly described the struggles of her daily life. Advertisement "You’ve got to pay your rent," she said. "And then if you want to eat, you’ve got to wait." Heads nodded in the large circle of social workers, teachers, church leaders and community activists — nearly 200 in all — who gathered for the event billed as a countywide "Poverty Summit." "I can do it. I can climb a ladder. Just because I’m poor doesn’t mean that she’s going to be a druggie or use alcohol or be one of those strippers," said Avina, gesturing toward the baby. Organized by a wide coalition of agencies led by the United Way of Jackson County, the summit offered a chance to listen, to think and to talk about poverty — and then to translate that information into action. "We’re here to shift people’s thinking," said Kathy Bryon, co-organizer. "We’re here to decide are there other ways to help people live the lives they want to live?" To that end, participants absorbed statistics, stories and a keynote address by one of the nation’s leading experts on generational poverty, Donna Beegle of Portland. Beegle, who grew up in poverty, dropped out of high school and became a teen mother, transformed her life through education — including a doctoral degree — and now works to change society’s prejudice against the poor. "In this country, we teach people that it is their fault that they live in poverty," Beegle said. In reality, poverty is perpetuated by social myths and educational, economic and political policies that don’t give the poor the information and access they need to succeed, she said. She praised Wednesday’s gathering as an unusually broad collaboration among diverse groups. "You are ahead of most communities," she said. "You can change the world with this kind of energy." Beegle’s speech was followed by more than an hour of small-group brainstorming sessions. Participants conferred about possible actions by groups ranging from schools and businesses to churches, government and social service agencies. "The cross-pollination is good," said Richard Wood, financial officer for the United Way. The daylong gathering was the first public event at the new site of Kids Unlimited, a Medford youth agency that offers after-school, sports and enrichment programs for many poor children and families. The irony of the topic wasn’t lost on agency director Tom Cole, whose new building sits on the border of Liberty Park, one of the most blighted regions of Medford. "It’s a wonderful opportunity to talk about the dynamics of the neighborhood right behind us," he said. By the end of the conference, yards of paper on multiple easels boasted marking-pen suggestions to eradicate poverty. Some were broad — "basic health care for all," "equal access for all students." Some were specific — "provide more sports scholarships for kids," "hold a community garage sale." And some were familiar — "empower individuals," "more collaboration," "simplify access to services." The suggestions all will be included in a report, but participants said the point wasn’t just to produce another communitywide "to-do" list. For Cerella Powell, 47, of Medford, who grapples daily with poverty, the experience of telling her story was action enough. "Instead of being segregated, the community wants to make links between poverty and raising people out of poverty," she said. "I am proud to be a part of this community." Poverty at a glance 11.3 percent of Oregonians, or 396,157 people, lived in poverty in 2002. 13.1 percent of Jackson County residents, or 24,629 people, lived in poverty in 2002. In Jackson County, 17.8 percent of children ages 0 to 17 — 7,829 kids — lived in poverty in 2002. Oregon 2002 median income: $41,796. Jackson County 2002 median income: $35,788. — Source: U.S. Census Bureau estimates, 2002 Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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