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Friends and Neighbors,
Upcoming Events
Community Conversation - This Morning! Friday, May 3rd
Join me at BJ's Coffee in Forest Grove, today, Friday, May 3rd at 9:30am, for a Community Conversation. Come share your thoughts and questions and meet fellow community members. I look forward to seeing you there.
2024 Legislative Debrief with Oregon Environmental Council
Join me and OEC (Oregon Environmental Council) for a Legislative Debrief Webinar on Monday, May 6th at 1:00pm. Register to attend here: https://bit.ly/3Uows1m
Environmental Updates
Oregon Awarded $86.6 Million Solar for All Grant to Support Renewable Energy for Low-Income Oregonians
Shared from the Oregon Department of Energy
April 22, 2024
STATEWIDE – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced that Oregon will receive an $86.6 million Solar for All grant to support renewable energy adoption for low-income Oregonians. The Oregon Solar for All Coalition – which includes the Oregon Department of Energy, Energy Trust of Oregon, and Bonneville Environmental Foundation – applied for the funding last fall.
The U.S. EPA Solar for All program is designed to advance equity, environmental, and energy justice priorities in support of federal Justice40 Initiative goals to deliver benefits to disadvantaged communities. Awardees will develop programs that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollutants, deliver the benefits of those reductions to low-income and disadvantaged communities across the nation, and mobilize financing and private capital to stimulate additional projects that reduce emissions.
The Oregon Solar for All Coalition will use the first year of the five-year grant to plan and develop the grant-funded programs, including leveraging existing solar technology incentives and support platforms already in use. The coalition plans to use the funding to bolster solar through five pathways: 1) support solar installations at low-income single-family households with little to no upfront customer cost, 2) provide rebates for solar projects on multifamily buildings to provide tangible benefits to low-income tenants, 3) offer financial and technical assistance to develop community solar projects that benefit low income participants under the Oregon Community Solar Program, 4) offer financial and technical assistance to develop community solar projects that benefit low income participants in consumer-owned utility service areas, and 5) strengthen the state’s workforce development activities.
Read the full press release here.
Sign up to receive email updates here.
Listen. Learn. Act.
Ride Along with Forest Grove Fire & Rescue
It was an honor to stay nearly 24 hours at the Forest Grove Fire & Rescue station with the crew last weekend. They answer the call at all hours. We experienced several medical calls, commercial and residential fire alarms (even when someone was burning their sticky rice), and a progressive car accident in several areas across town. We went out to Gales Creek, where I grew up, and helped someone on a medical call whose family I knew growing up. I have the deepest respect for their service, dedication and the professional courtesy they pay to every single caller without judgement. Thank you Captain Will, Lieutenant Ted, John, Greg and Curt. I appreciate you and look forward to another visit.
Clean Water Services
This week, I toured Clean Water Services in Hillsboro. They serve 600,000 customers in urbanized Washington County, Oregon, including 12 cities and portions of the unincorporated area. Science, innovation and skilled employees make Clean Water Services a leader in recovery and replenishing water back to the Tualatin River. Their work requires a 25 year lookout for planning and preparation. It was impressive to see the volume of water on site and different treatments it goes through. I look forward to continuing to learn more about the services they provide.
Out and About in Senate District 15
West Tuality Hearts for Habitat Spring Gala
On Saturday, West Tuality Habitat for Humanity hosted a fabulous gala dinner with the theme 'Every One Needs a Home'. The room was filled with generous supporters, familiar faces and friends. It was a good night to celebrate work being done to provide Oregon families with housing.
Moon Tree Planting at Tamarack Elementary School
I was excited to be present at Tamarack Elementary for the presentation of their very own Moon tree! Thank you to my friend and stellar educator, Shannon Jones, for the invite. Moon trees are grown from seeds taken into orbit around the Moon, initially by Apollo 14 in 1971, and later by Artemis 1 in 2022. It was a rigorous and challenging application process, thousands applied, and one of the 50 applicants selected was our own Hillsboro School District Shannon Jones and Tamarack Elementary School. What an honor! The students helped with the planting and will take part in learning opportunities while they watch it grow. It was a great way to wrap up Earth Week and celebrate Arbor Day. To infinity and beyond!
Learn more about this NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration partner program: https://www.fs.usda.gov/learn/conservation-education/moon-trees
Senate District 15 - Small Business Spotlight
Flowers by Zsuzsana
Spring is in bloom and Mother's Day is around the corner! Visit a local florist and see what beautiful creations you can find. Flowers by Zsuzsana is locally owned and run by a Mother/Daughter team. They are located in the Hillsboro Orenco Platform shops. Find more information at their website here.
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Intern Corner
Mukai Chiaki
Mukai Chiaki was born in Tatebayashi, Gunma ken (prefecture) in Japan, in 1952, and was the first Japanese woman to travel into space. Mukai earned a doctorate in medicine and physiology from Keiō University School of Medicine in Tokyo in 1977 and 1988 respectively. She flew into space for the first time as a payload specialist on the STS-65 mission aboard the shuttle Columbia on July 8th, 1994. On October 29th, 1998, Mukai traveled into space for the second time onboard the Discovery, as a payload specialist on the STS-95 mission. On this mission, more than eighty scientific experiments were conducted related to materials and medical research in a microgravity environment. This mission made Mukai become the first Japanese citizen to fly twice in space. During her service, as a NASDA astronaut at NASA, Mukai also worked at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and the Keiō University School of Medicine. Mukai Chiaki's remarkable achievements as Japan's first female astronaut not only paved the way for future generations of aspiring female astronauts but have also demonstrated her dedication to advancing scientific research and space exploration. Her spirit and commitment to excellence continue to inspire people around the world to reach for their dreams.
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~Mari Park
Community Outreach
Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month
Shared from AsianPacificHeritage.gov
May is Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month – a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. A rather broad term, Asian/Pacific encompasses all of the Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia and Easter Island).
The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.
You can learn more about AAPI Month here.
How to celebrate AANHPI Heritage Month in Portland, across Oregon, KGW.com
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Oregon STEM Week 2024 - May 4-12
Shared from Oregon STEM Week
STEM Week is dedicated to igniting enthusiasm for science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. By setting aside a week for celebrating STEM, we get to organize fun activities, workshops, and demos that everyone—students, parents, and the whole community—can enjoy and learn from. It's our way of showing how cool and exciting STEM can be!
With over 10,000 students participating in last year's events, let's make this year even bigger and better!
Oregon educators, we want to hear from you! Share with us how you're engaging your students during STEM Week. By registering your classroom activities, you'll have the chance to win one of twenty $100 gift cards or a grand prize of a $300 gift card, generously donated by Intel and IEEE. Find out more here.
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Additional Resources
Senate District 15 – Event Calendars
Federal Delegation Links
Education Links
Food and Housing Assistance
Be good to yourself and each other. ❤
Onward & Upward,
 Senate District 15 lies on Kalapuya land. The Atfalati were the northernmost band of the Kalapuya that lived along the Tualatin River in present day Washington County. Many of the Atfalati descendants are members of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon today. The Indigenous Peoples of this land experienced a painful history of colonial violence, sickness and removal from their land. The Atfalati are the foundation of Oregon's past and we must honor them well into our future.
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1715
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE, S-207, Salem, Oregon 97301
Email: Sen.JaneenSollman@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/sollman
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