Greetings Pamela,
Here is the info:
Title: Oregon Prosperity Initiative
Content:
· The Oregon Prosperity Initiative is a bold and comprehensive effort to increase prosperity for all Oregonians by removing barriers that keep people trapped in the crisis of poverty.
· Just imagine how amazing Oregon could be if all of our people were able to fully flourish and lean in to making our communities and our state the best we could possibly be?
· Poverty is both a human tragedy and a drain on our overall economy.
· Recent accomplishments/ status
o First draft of the first comprehensive state poverty-reduction plan. Upcoming roadshows and launch.
o Kiva Oregon: an opportunity to invest in fellow Oregonian entrepreneurs
o Opportunity Conferences: Neighbors helping neighbors navigate barriers to prosperity
o Oregon Solutions Prosperity Communities: Innovative community engagement to stamp out poverty in some of our hardest hit regions.
Mary, will you please send my photo and bio?
As for food, if it’s fish then I’d like that. If not vegetarian would be great. It will likely just be me and one security person – they will not eat lunch.
Thanks,
C
Cylvia Hayes
First Lady of Oregon
cylhayes@gmail.com
(503) 373-7489
From: Pamela Mason [mailto:pamela.mason@comcast.net]
Sent: Saturday, April 13, 2013 10:09 AM
To: 'Cylvia Hayes'
Subject: Portlandia
Hi Cylvia,
You are a woman of your word and I so appreciate your getting back to me last night! You have given us plenty of notice, so no worries about the change to July 11.
I’m thinking that if you could get your presentation info to us soon, we can start the publicity process and use this extra time to get an even bigger audience.
What I need:
Confirmation of your title. Will it be “The Oregon Prosperity Initiative”?
A brief description or bullet points about the presentation.
A brief biographical sketch and picture of you.
Are you coming alone on July 11 or will it be you +1? And will you (and your guest) want a regular meal or vegetarian?
I have pasted information below from your website. I can create publicity materials from this, if it is okay with you. Otherwise, you can send me something else, as requested above.
I hope you have time for some R and R this weekend. From what I read in The Oregonian this morning, there are important things scheduled for the Governor this coming week, so it may be a weekend of working. I’m going out to do battle with blackberries in a couple minutes. They are my thorny opponents and I prefer them today to dealing with thorny people.
Thanks for all you are doing for our state, and for Portlandia!
Pam
Pamela Mason
Program Services Director
Dress for Success Oregon
1532 B NE 37th Ave.
Portland, OR 97232-1844
503-249-7300
The mission of the Professional Women's Group is to provide our network of employed Dress for Success women the partnership of support, practical information and inspiration to achieve self-defined success in career and life.
The Oregon Prosperity Initiative
Article Content
I grew up poor. As a kid, my family lived for a time without electricity and running water. My clothes came from Goodwill and other second-hand shops. I wound up on my own at an early age and have known frighteningly lean times. I know what it means to be unable to pay a power bill until the threat of shut-off becomes imminent. I know what it feels like to have to choose between going to the doctor and having enough gas money to get back and forth to work between paychecks.
But I never went hungry, and with a lot of hard work, I became a first-generation college graduate and small-business owner. Thankfully, I didn’t have to do it alone. Along the way, people at key points helped me when I needed it.
We all need a little help sometimes, which is why, as First Lady, I’m leading the Oregon Prosperity Initiative.
Poverty’s Impact on Oregon
Poverty affects not just individuals, but the future prosperity of our whole state. Children who grow up in poverty have lower earnings as adults, poorer health, and are more likely to be involved in the criminal justice system. Society bears these costs, through higher health care, police and incarceration expenditures, and foregone economic activity. Failing to address hunger costs Oregonians $2.1 billion annually, primarily from health care costs associated with poor nutrition and educational losses for kids who are too hungry to concentrate.1 Poverty is estimated to cost the U.S. approximately $500 billion annually.2
Meeting Current Needs
The Oregon Prosperity Initiative aims to ensure that people who are struggling to feed and shelter themselves and their families have access to critical resources as soon as they need them. Our state has a tremendous network of food banks and affordable housing facilities. The community organizations serving our low-income citizens are an inspiration and, given the tremendous state budget constraints, their services have never been more important. The Kitzhaber Administration is supporting these organizations by:
§ Raising awareness about these organizations’ work and how people can support them in communities across the state.
§ Improving our systems of education and health care.
§ Prioritizing state funds for critical support programs.
Preventing Poverty in the First Place
We also need to take effective steps to address the systemic challenges of generational and situational poverty, including unemployment, lack of education, mental illness and substance abuse.
The Governor’s priorities are interconnected and intricately tied to making Oregon a more prosperous place to live, learn and work. By containing costs and improving outcomes from our health care system, Oregonians are healthier and we free up vital resources for education while providing a more secure future for employers and workers. By investing in education, we help give students an equal opportunity to excel. At the same time, we are ensuring that today’s youth will be prepared to contribute to our state and to our economy, and on the path to careers that produce family wage jobs, keeping Oregon thriving for decades to come.
Additionally, through the Oregon Prosperity Initiative, we are embedding poverty reduction strategies into the Ten Year State Budget Plan and the Early Learning Council and engaging the business community in developing entrepreneurial approaches to improving opportunities for people to achieve prosperity.
Lifting Up All Oregonians
The Oregon Prosperity Initiative is ambitious but realistic – we can reduce and ultimately eliminate poverty, but it will take both short-term and long-term actions. It will demand impatience with the status quo, and recognition that the returns on our investment take time. It will require understanding of just how systemic and structural the barriers can be.
And it will require that we all get involved. Visit the “How You Can Help” section to learn more about resources available and opportunities to lend a hand. You can also learn more about how the Governor is committed to improving our state’s health care and education systems.
Each step we take lifts up all Oregonians. We hope you will join us in this work!
From: Cylvia Hayes [mailto:cylhayes@gmail.com]
Sent: Friday, April 12, 2013 9:04 PM
To: 'Pamela Mason'
Cc: 'ROWINSKI Mary E * GOV'
Subject: RE: did you get my voice message about scheduling challenge
Greetings Pamela,
OK, we are going to have to schedule my presentation for the July 11th as I cannot get back from my DC commitments in time for the June Portlandia event. So sorry. I look forward to meeting you all in July.
Cylvia
Cylvia Hayes
First Lady of Oregon
(503) 373-7489
From: Pamela Mason [mailto:pamela.mason@comcast.net]
Sent: Monday, April 08, 2013 3:46 PM
To: 'Cylvia Hayes'
Cc: 'ROWINSKI Mary E * GOV'
Subject: RE: did you get my voice message about scheduling challenge
Hi Cylvia,
Although our first choice would be for you to speak on June 6, July 11 would also work for us. So, if indeed you do need to travel to Washington DC in June, July will be fine.
How soon will you know for sure that June 6 will NOT work for you? It would work best for us if we know by April 22, (2 weeks from today.)
I am attaching a form that asks for some additional information about your presentation. Please complete it and return it to us by April 22 if you are speaking in June, or May 20 if you are speaking in July.
Some additional information from us:
We will be buying your lunch on the day of your presentation and need to know if you have any special dietary requests. You are welcome to bring one guest/support person with you and we will also treat them to lunch and need dietary information about them as well.
You are welcome to have a PowerPoint presentation as part of your talk, and if you plan that, please let us know so that we can have the projector set up and the screen ready.
We are so grateful to you for volunteering to speak to Portlandia Club, and that you are working on ending poverty in our state.
Thank you,
Pam
Pamela Mason
Program Services Director
Dress for Success Oregon
1532 B NE 37th Ave.
Portland, OR 97232-1844
503-249-7300 My home office is 503-643-5936 and that is the best place to reach me.
The mission of the Professional Women's Group is to provide our network of employed Dress for Success women the partnership of support, practical information and inspiration to achieve self-defined success in career and life.
From: Cylvia Hayes [mailto:cylhayes@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, April 08, 2013 7:58 AM
Cc: 'ROWINSKI Mary E * GOV'
Subject: did you get my voice message about scheduling challenge
Greetings Pamela,
Did you receive my message about my conflict on June 6th? I am very much hoping to be able to reschedule for another time without causing too much trouble on your end. There is still a small chance the 6th might work and I am trying to run that down but I wanted to give you a heads up.
Thanks,
Cylvia
Cylvia Hayes
First Lady of Oregon
(503) 373-7489