Students lend help, hope to Safe Rest Village residents ahead of holidays

Published 12:19 pm Sunday, December 18, 2022

In a classroom at the International School of Portland, two tables were strewn with cards and bookmarks hand made from construction paper. Nearby, origami boxes crafted from patterned paper with perfect angles awaited their recipients.

In just a few days, the hand made cards and boxes will go to residents at the Queer Affinity Safe Rest Village on Naito Parkway, just before the holidays. The paper crafts will accompany clothing and other cold weather items collected during a winter supply drive hosted by students at the school.

Jackets, blankets, socks, handmade scarves, dog food, hygiene items and other essentials were collected just before the school’s winter break for distribution to the 20 or so residents at the homeless village managed by All Good Northwest.

“Dear neighbor, some people think that houseless are scary outside but in the inside everyone thinks that you are perfect,” a paper card with an origami kimono on the front and marker drawn hearts inside, read. “Remember that everyone loves you. I hope you have a good year.”

Each handmade paper card and bookmark contains messages of encouragement, love and kindness.

“We wanted them to have a nice holiday,” John, a third-grader in the schools’ Japanese track, said. “They know someone’s thinking about them.”

John and other students wrote Japanese characters on their cards so recipients could learn short phrases.

The third-graders’ sentiments stood in contrast to some of the complaints and concerns lodged earlier this spring, when the Queer Affinity Safe Rest Village first opened across the street from the elementary school’s playground.

Staff and leaders at the private, language-immersion and multi-cultural school in Portland’s South Waterfront area worried about the safety of students.

“We were extremely skeptical of city and county leadership, and also accountability,” Bodo Heiliger, head of the International School, said of the initial response to the Safe Rest Village that neighbors the school.

Six months later, the school is still hoping for a good neighbor agreement with Multnomah County regarding the managed homeless village, but just before the holidays, students extended a neighborly welcome to the village residents.

Heiliger said the donation drive and card making aligns with the school’s mission of creating culturally well-rounded, empathetic students.

“Our kids take different action, depending on what they’re learning about,” Heiliger said. “This was the first (project) that was directed to our neighbors and our community.”

The school’s proximity to downtown Portland means students have seen many of the issues that have come to define Portland in recent years, from homelessness and social justice protests to the proliferation of graffiti and street art. Teachers try to foster discussions about what kids are seeing every day. Recently, the school commissioned its own street art by partnering with parents to create a mural on a concrete wall near the school.

During the winter supply drive, International School students were studying media stereotypes and messages regarding LGBTQ+ people. The school invited All Good Northwest’s executive director, Andy Goebel, to talk to students about homelessness and the meaning of the Queer Affinity space.

“The supply drive connects directly to their neighborhood,” Heiliger said. “We want the kids to recognize that their world is bigger than just their immediate space. We want them to know how to make a difference in their world.”