PHOTO: Portland’s Black chapter of PFLAG (formerly known as Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) holds its annual Black History Month special event Feb. 26, from 6 – 8 p.m., with the theme “Remembering our past and building towards our future: The past and future of the Black LGBTQ Movement.” The group plans to share a timeline of Black LGBTQ History in Oregon through photos, with a video to guide the conversation of the future of the Black LGBTQ Movement. Join a panel of longtime organizers and activists to remember the past and build towards the future. Portland PFLAG’s Black chapter was the first formed in the United States. Refreshments provided, RSVP on Facebook under PFLAG Portland Black Chapter, or go to www. pflagpdx.org

Roosevelt High School Gym Sees Last Games Friday Night

Roosevelt High School plays its last four basketball games on Feb.20, and the school plans a full slate of commemoration starting with the girls’ Junior Varsity game at 3:30 p.m., followed by the boys’ junior varsity, then the girls varsity and then the boys varsity.

Mayor Charlie Hales is expected around 7:30 p.m. A student and alumni dance kicks off after all the games are over, at about 11 p.m.

The nearly 100-year old gym will be demolished in the coming weeks to make way for a $92 million renovation.

For more information call the school at 503-916-5260.

Zombie Apocalypse Disaster Preparedness Game in Portland 

On Saturday, Feb. 21, Portlanders will have a chance to prepare for fire, floods, earthquakes and zombie attacks. Not the most likely of disasters to occur? Still, better to be prepared, and what better way to get ready for disasters than by participation in the Zombie Apocalypse Disaster Preparedness Game. This free event is open to the public and an opportunity for players to learn basic safety skills, win prizes and build an emergency kit – all while getting chased by zombies.

In the course of the game, players are guided by their smartphones to find Red Cross “Zombie Training Specialists” located around the city. According to Melinda Davis, preparedness and partnership manager for the Red Cross Cascades Region, Zombie Training Specialists will host mini-workshops (5-10 minutes) spotlighting survival skills that can be applied in any emergency.

The Zombie Apocalypse Disaster Preparedness Game is a free community event produced by The Go Game - a company that designs interactive games around the world.

At least one player on each team should have an iPhone 4 or newer version on which the game app can be downloaded in order to play. All participants should wear good walking shoes, clothing appropriate to the weather and whatever one would normally bring when leaving home (e.g., wallet, ID, etc.).

The game runs from 1 to 4 p.m. at a location to be revealed at the time of registration.

For more information, visit www.thegogame.com/zombiepdx.

Allen Temple C.M.E. Church Celebrates 66th Anniversary

Rev. Dr. LeRoy Haynes, Jr. and the Allen Temple C.M.E. Church family will be celebrating their 66th church anniversary Sunday, Feb. 22 to Sunday, March 1. 

The schedule of events includes: 

• Sunday, Feb. 22, 3:30 p.m. “Celebrating Lasting Legacies” (Memorial) Worship Service Location: Maranatha Church 4222 NE 12th Ave., Keynote Speaker is Rev. Robert C. Jointer, Bethesda Baptist Church.
• Saturday, Feb. 28, Allen Temple CME Church Prayer Breakfast 9 a.m.-12 p.m. at the Ramada Inn at Airport 6221 NE 82nd Ave., tickets $25.
• Sunday, March 1, 4 p.m., Family & Friends Worship Service, Maranatha Church, 4222 NE 12th Ave. Keynote Speaker is Bishop C.T. Wells, Emmanuel Temple COGIC. 

For more information call 503-287-0261.

Community Discussions on Race and Policing

Widespread protests in response to the deaths of black men at the hands of police in 2014 have prompted national conversation over issues of race and policing—subjects with which many residents of the Portland area have long been familiar.

In February, Oregon Humanities invites Portland-area community members to talk about the challenges built into how we protect ourselves in a series of community discussions on race and policing. The discussions will be led by trained facilitators and will take place at the following locations around Multnomah County, one last event is scheduled:

Saturday, Feb. 28, 4 to 5:30 p.m. at Rockwood Library, 17917 SE Stark St., Portland. Facilitated by Wendy Willis, executive director of the Policy Consensus Initiative.

The events are free and open to the public. Oregon Humanities is planning two additional events for later in February. Visit oregonhumanities.org for the latest information.

Cat Spaying and Neutering Deals 

In honor of World Spay Day, Feb. 24, the Spay & Save program is running a special promotion called Spay Odyssey from Feb. 23-27, providing free spay/neuter surgeries for people who qualify. Regular co-pay for surgeries is $10. For anyone who would like to get their cat fixed through the program, please call 1-800-345-Spay. 

Under the leadership of the Animal Shelter Alliance of Portland (ASAP), the Portland metro area’s “Spay & Save” program has altered over 50,000 cats in just five years.

This in turn has led to a decrease of cat euthanasia in local shelters by 82 percent with less cats being relinquished -- saving thousands of furry lives.

The six largest public and private animal shelters in the Portland, OR/Vancouver, WA metro area saved an unprecedented 91 percent of cats that came through their doors in 2014 - one of the highest save rates in the nation - compared to 49 percent in 2006 when ASAP was founded.

Spay & Save is ASAP’s highly successful low-cost spay/neuter program which serves cat owners in need of financial assistance as well as people who feed stray or feral cats. The program has altered over 50,000 cats since its launch on February 10, 2010, decreasing the number of cats entering Portland Metro area shelters by 39 percent.

For more information, visit www.asapmetro.org.

Portland Job Fair Coming Up

The City of Portland's 15th Annual Diversity Employment Day Career Fair will be held Wednesday, Feb. 25 at The Ambridge Events Center, 1333 NE MLK Jr. Blvd., from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. As part of its ongoing mission to "Get America Back To Work in 2015", The Diversity Employment Day Career Fair offers the general public a rare opportunity to meet face-to-face with recruiters and staffing managers from Union Pacific, Country Financial, Kaiser Permanente, Les Schwab Tires, Oregon State Lottery and over 20 other major employers representing hundreds of jobs and careers from entry to professional level.

The largest and longest-running recruiting event for diversity and inclusion in the nation, The Diversity Employment Day Career Fair serves Multicultural and Bilingual communities, People with Disabilities, Women, LGBT, Veterans and Mature Workers. Oregon's top corporations, government agencies and non-profit organizations eagerly participate to discover the Greater Portland area's most qualified candidates at this huge annual event.

The Diversity Employment Day Career Fair is free and open to the general public 18 years of age and older. Business attire and résumés are required. Candidates can skip the lines by emailing résumés to fasttrack@citycareerfair.com with PORTLAND in the subject line.

Local Grassroots Organization Offers Free Health Screening

On Saturday, Feb. 28, Fresh Start Restorative Health Services and the Linfield Good Samaritan School of Nursing, holds a free public health screening.

Participants can get their blood glucose tested (requires a 3 hour fast), blood pressure, height, weight and even body mass index checked. Fresh start will provide free healthy snacks for attendees and even a free door prize.

The event runs 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Celebration Tabernacle, 8131 N. Denver, Portland. Fresh Start encourages attendees to bring their children, who can participate in Kids Club, a program that educates children on the benefits of healthy eating and exercise. Kids ages 7 to 13 are welcome.

For more information, call Robin at 503-890-5393 or visit:  www.freshstarthealth.org

Portland’s Black Creative Collective @ Work

Stop by the Collins Gallery at the Central Branch of the Multnomah County Library from through March 8 to check out a curated installation of Portland's Black creatives mobilizing visual art, printed materials, movement, and voice to honor and celebrate the intersection of interests, histories, and cultural production of our community.

Then join the poets, performers, and image makers of Portland’s Black Creative Collective: BrownHall for an art-filled Opening Reception on Saturday, Feb. 7 at 2 pm.

Featuring: Akela Jaffi Auer, Turiya Autry, Samiya Bashir, Aasha Benton, Aisha Edwards, Diamond Ferguson, Chris Fuzell, Keyon Gaskin, Jamondria Harris, Elijah Hasan, Lin Lucas, Nakeia R. Medcalf, André Middleton, S. Renee Mitchell, Sidony O'neal, Alex Riedlinger, Jonny Sanders, Sharita Towne, Tasha Triplett, David Walker.

Free and open to the public, Collins Gallery, 3rd Floor Central Library, 801 SW10th Avenue, Portland.

For more information go to www.multcolib.org/events.

RACC Hosts Public Art Murals Information Session 

On Saturday, March 14, RACC hosts a free information session to help local artists and other community members learn how to organize, fund and navigate two different approaches to creating murals in the City of Portland. 

The event is Saturday, March 14, 10 a.m –noon, at RACC, 411 NW Park Ave., Suite 10.

Coffee and light snacks will be provided.

Presenters include Gage Hamilton, an organizer of Forest for the Trees Northwest—a public art mural project that brought twenty artists together in August to paint murals—and Robin Corbo, a local artist known for her skill at organizing and creating community murals. Peggy Kendellen, Manager of RACC’s Public Art Murals Program, and Doug Strickler from the City’s Bureau of Development Services will also be on hand to help participants navigate the two options available for creating an exterior mural on a wall in Portland. 

The workshop is free and open to artists, property owners, business owners, and community and neighborhood association members. To sign up, email publicartmurals@racc.org with the subject heading “Public Murals Workshop” and include contact information in the text of the email.

For Portland and Seattle area events, see our Community Calendar.