House District 30 News - October 2019

The Handle With Care Initiative began in West Virginia and has now spread to 27 states. It is a program designed to help children that have experienced trauma receive resources and extra care through their schools. Recently, I witnessed two separate incidents in Hillsboro where children were exposed to traumatic situations outside of school hours and their schools had no idea anything had occurred. Both may have led to smoother transitions had this program been in place. 

The program consists of 3 parts:

• Law enforcement will notify the school district when a child has been present at an incident involving trauma. They identify the child, call the school district and relay the message “Handle with care.” That's it. No other information or private details are given.
• The student's teacher is made aware there was a situation and the child needs to be treated with care.
• The child will visit with school counselor and determination will be made if follow-up/wrap around services are needed.

Salem-Keizer schools and Marion County Sheriff's have been piloting this program for over a year with great results. I am excited to continue exploring this concept and hope to help bring it statewide to Oregon.

I am fortunate to have such strong advocates for gun sense safety living in my district. It was a pleasure to introduce these Moms Demand Action leaders to our House Majority Leader, Representative Barbara Smith Warner and hear about the issues they are working on. One that I am very excited to work on in the upcoming short session is Safe Storage. Storing guns safely saves lives and the people of Oregon agree. In a recent statewide poll, 65% of registered voters support a safe storage law. Safe storage laws in other states have been shown to reduce the number of deaths by suicide and unintentional injury. I look forward to seeing Oregon pass a safe storage law.

Lily Donis is a Sophomore at Liberty High School. Lily is a dedicated student who is part of the leadership team, a member of the AEMBOT robotics team, a thrower on the track and field team, an ally in the gay-straight alliance club and a new member of the HOSA club (Future Health Professionals). Lily is an inquisitive, positive, self-motivated, dedicated team player who possesses a keen interest in government and politics. She is a motivated advocate for keeping schools safe from gun violence, as well as education, and immigration. Born and raised in Hillsboro, Lily is passionate about her community and loves to volunteer at various school and community events. Outside of school Lily participates in the sport of curling, yoga, community gardening and tending to native bees. In her free time, Lily is an avid reader who loves Greek Mythology, nature, traveling, and camping. Past achievements include earning her First Degree Black Belt in Taekwondo and the recipient of the Hillsboro Optimist Student Appreciation Award (2018).

Felicita Monteblanco is an enthusiastic resident of House District 30, she has lived in Aloha for almost 30 years. Spend more than a minute with her and she will likely share her love of libraries and parks!

"I was appointed to the Hillsboro Library Board in 2016 and was elected to the Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation District (THPRD) in 2017. I am privileged to serve and represent so many people in both roles. While each role may seem pretty different, they are similar in their commitment to bringing people together and creating community. As a resident of unincorporated Washington County - which means, I don't have a city - this is of huge value to me.

These two institutions are vital creators of social infrastructure, and the subject of my favorite book this year "Palaces for the People" by sociologist Eric Klinenberg. "Social infrastructure is a set of physical places and organizations that shape our interactions. When social infrastructure is robust, it fosters all kinds of social interactions, helps build relationships, and turns community from a vague, fuzzy concept into a lived experience. When social infrastructure is degraded and neglected, it makes it far more likely that we will grow isolated and be left to fend for ourselves." Great place to pick up this book? The library of course!

And speaking of libraries and connecting with others, join your neighbors by participating in this year's "Hillsboro Reads." This year's book is Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self by Manoush Zomorodi, which inspires readers to develop a more mindful relationship with technology, especially smartphones, and challenges us to find out what happens when we let ourselves be “bored” rather than engaging in constant digital distractions. I'm looking forward to the challenges this book presents and hearing the keynote on October 5th. Hope to see you there (https://www.hillsboro-oregon.gov/our-city/departments/library/events-and-programs/hillsboro-reads)."

Meals on Wheels People Hillsboro is now offering the Silver Sneakers Strength and Balance program at its Hillsboro Center. Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:00am to 10:45 am. To register, please see Gloria at the Center or call 971-808-7885.

Grab a bite, people-watch, stroll, and check out OrenKofest. Free and open to the public, this event is produced by the City of Hillsboro and Tuesday Night Market.

Come and speak with your House District 30 State Rep Janeen Sollman at her October Listening Session. This is a great opportunity to ask your questions and share your concerns. This will be her 57th listening session since becoming a State Representative in January 2017.