Independence Northwest Demographics

Some quick stats on Independence Northwest’s current customer base. Independence Northwest serves 450 adults with disabilities across Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington counties.

Multnomah – 61% of our customer base
Clackamas – 23% of our customer base
Washington – 16% of our customer base

  • 65% of our customer base is under the age of 30
  • 35% of our customers are between 18 and 21
  • 57% of our customers are male; 43% are female
  • Over 20% of our customers fall on the Autism Spectrum
  • 6% of our customers experience Down Syndrome; another 6% experience Cerebral Palsy;
  • 5% of our customers experience Epilepsy; another 5% experience FAS or Drug-Affected Disorders
  • 7% of our customers are exclusively non-English speaking

Next Sunday Parkways Walk – August 16th in Southeast Portland

Next Walk:  This Sunday in Southeast Portland.

Opening streets to walking, bicycling, rolling, and roller blading – without having to watch out for cars!

Sunday Parkways are 7-8 mile “temporary parks” along city streets connecting neighborhoods and residents in North, Northeast and Southeast Portland.

A relaxed, non-competitive, FREE event featuring a variety of activities in several parks and along the routes.

Intersections are staffed by volunteers allowing residents to get to and from their driveways, with larger streets supervised by Portland Police Bureau staff and certified flaggers.

Sunday Parkways gives Portlanders a chance to get out and be active right in their own neighborhood. Participants walked, biked, rolled, ran, strolled, and roller bladed along the route to activities in the parks as well as to nearby shops and businesses in the vicinity.

Why?

Sunday Parkways highlights Portland as a walkable and bikeable city.  Sunday Parkways is ideal for connecting neighborhoods by bringing people together with healthy activities.  Health, transportation, recreation, community, environmental, and safety interests all benefit by partnering to implement Sunday Parkways.

Full information here.

OrPTI Resource: Free Night at the Zoo

From the OrPTI blog:

Recognizing that most kids enjoy the zoo, but some have a harder time than others getting here, Oregon Zoo is inviting children (birth to 18 years) with disabilities and chronic or terminal illnesses, plus their immediate families, to a free evening as a VIP at the zoo on Wednesday, August 26, 2009, from 4-8pm. The Zoo is offering this experience for free as a community service, since medical expenses often prevent these families from enjoying a night out as a family.

Participating organizations (including OrPTI) are helping families get invited. You must registered through one of the organizations to attend.

As part of this special events, participants will receive:
* Free admission to the zoo, free train rides and free access to the Chimpanzee Challenge Maze (extra fee-based summer attraction)
* Complimentary popcorn
* Animal contact with a variety of animals at the Family Farm
* Special performances of the popular Wildlife Live animal show on the main stage
* Costumed characters around zoo grounds
* 25% discount at all zoo restaurants and food stands

RSVPs for VIP Safari will only be accepted through partners. To register contact our Salem office at 888-505-2673, or email dbethell@orpti.org.

Voluntary Emergency Registry Open in Multnomah County

The Voluntary Emergency Registry is a list of persons who need help evacuating their home during an emergency, or who would be unable to evacuate without special notification from emergency response personnel. The registry also includes people who would be unable to remain at home without assistance following a disaster. Information in this list will be provided to the Bureau of Emergency Communications (911) and other emergency response personnel from the City of Portland and Gresham and Multnomah County.

You can register online here.