Portland

Contents 05.2011

}

up front

Are You Connecting to

ALPFA?

We are here to start something

“One-on-one mentoring has been proven to be a very effective method of positively influencing kids. A

mentor in the life of one child makes a difference that one can’t even begin to fathom”

By Ninon Anker Lagos

Almost three years ago, Big Brothers Big

Sisters (BBBS) matched me with a twelve

year-old Latina because of our shared

passion for art and poetry. We quickly

discovered more similarities – both our

birthdays fall on a holiday, hers is on

Halloween and mine is on Christmas, and

some differences – she abhors chocolate

and I’d happily swim in it and indulge. Both

coming from tight-knit Hispanic families, I

also noticed many similarities in terms of

our families. A birthday party is a huge

celebration and central to that is the piñata.

Your cousin is commonly your best friend,

and there are usually a handful of them

within a two block radius. Over the years, I

have learned a lot from my “little” and I

think she would agree that she’s learned

some from me.

I initially became involved with Big Brothers

Big Sisters by attending an ALPFA

community service event. The mission of

BBBS – to match at-risk youth with positive

adult role models - immediately resonated

with me. One-on-one mentoring has been

proven to be a very effective method of

positively influencing kids. A mentor in the

life of one child makes a difference that one

can’t even begin to fathom. At the

beginning of our match, there were

instances when I thought that my “little” was

disinterested; at times maintaining a

conversation felt like pulling teeth. Little, by

little, she began to open up and share her

feelings, life experiences, and points of

view.

When her older brother mentioned the funny

things that occurred on our outings, I knew

my “little” was enjoying the time we spent

together

The match facilitated by Big Brothers Big

Sisters has provided me with not only a

friend but also a commitment to

strengthening relationships within my

community. My dedication to the

organization has led me on many

adventures. I am grateful to be a part of two

organizations that are committed to

strengthening relationships and supporting

our community.

Throughout the year, BBBS holds a plethora

of events to support its mission. Currently,

the organization is hosting Bowl for Kids’

Sake fundraiser. Several ALPFA members are

on the “ALPFA Strikers” team. We’ll be

working to raise money to help BBBS meet its

fundraising goal of $200,000. There are so

many ways to be involved with this life-

changing organization. For more

information, you can visit their website or

reach out to me.

Bowl for Kids’ Sake Fundraiser

http://bbbsnorthwest.kintera.org/bfks-

2010/jael

Big Brothers Big Sisters Columbia NW

Website

http://www.bbbsnorthwest.org/

As most busy professionals know, staying healthy can be difficult

especially during busy times in the year. Many people find

it difficult to wake up early to jog especially when

a normal work day leaves you with less

than 6 hours of sleep a night. Trying

to head to the gym after a long day’s work

is not any better. However, there are quick and

easy diet changes just about anyone can make to

help keep you healthy and fit.

1) Switch to non fat milk instead of whole milk or

2% milk. A typical cup of whole milk has about 150

calories while a serving of 2% milk carries about 120

calories. A cup of nonfat milk has only 90 calories.

This saves between 30 and 60 calories per cup. For

a cup a day, this comes out to between 10,950

and 21,900 calories or 3lbs and 6 lbs a

year!

2) Have a sweet tooth? Switching from

a typical scoop of vanilla ice cream (140

calories) to a nice cold sugar free

Fudgesicle (40 calories) saves 100 calories

per indulgence.

3) During lunchtime, making a sandwich

without mayonnaise can save as much as 90

calories per sandwich. Try adding mustard which

has less than 5 calories a serving or using a little vinegar which has almost no calories. That saves about

15 minutes of walking for someone weighing 150lbs.

4) Switch from white pasta to whole grain. Although the calorie difference is not very large, whole grain

pasta holds more fiber, more vitamins, and more protein in the same amount of calories. Getting more

nutrients in fewer calories comes to a big win.

5) For those who use hamburger meat in cooking, many calories can be saved by switching to a lower fat

content. For example switching from 15% fat which has over 200calories a serving to 7% fat which has

less than 160 calories a serving saves more than 50 calories per serving.

Making these simply changes can save you over ten lbs a year. Imagine ten pounds lighter without having to

put in any extra effort!

Quick Easy Changes for a Healthier Life By Ady Ramirez

FOLLOW US

ON TWITTER

@ALPFAPDX

LIKE US ON

FACEBOOK.COM

/ALPFAPORTLAND

WANT TO

KNOW WHAT

OTHER LATINO

PROFESSIONALS

ARE THINKING?

FOLLOW US ON

FACEBOOK TO

JOIN THE

CONVERSATION.

1. Your Customer Knows Best

Social media has little to do with you; it’s all

about your audience, customers, or

whomever you’re trying to reach. Marketing

101 says to think like your customer thinks.

And the same holds true in social media. In

my particular business, my clients aren’t

necessarily flocking to Foursquare or

augmented reality, but they are

using LinkedIn and some other niche sites (in

addition to Twitter and Facebook). Not sure where your customers are on the

social web? Just ask. Early on, I found myself

asking clients if they were using any social

networks. Most of the time, this simple

question led to an interesting conversation

and great insight on how I could take part

and provide value. You don’t always have to

be the expert — you can let your customers

show you their way.

2. Social Media Isn’t Necessarily Free

Social media is attractive to small businesses

because of its perceived price. You can set

up a new blog, fan page, video site, and

Twitter account without paying a dime.

There’s no expensive software, or costly

media buys. However, even though there’s a

low price tag to enter the game, social media

is far from free. It requires time, energy, and

effort. It’s a never-ending commitment to

create interesting content, listen to

conversations, and respond.

Instead of rushing to join any and every

social media community out there, I prefer

the slow and steady approach. Pick one or

two communities that are important in your

market. Determine your key goals and define

who will be responsible for keeping activity

going day in and day out. And just remember

that your time is valuable. This new

marketing is far from free.

3. Don’t Measure Success by Follower Counts

Starbucks has more than 1.3 million followers

on Twitter. You probably don’t, and that’s OK.

As a small business, you shouldn’t get caught

up in the numbers game or try to keep up with

the big brands. Growing your community is

important, but you should be focused on who’s

engaging with you and at what levels. I know

it’s tempting to pay a service to deliver

thousands of followers literally overnight.

However, in the long run it’s more important to

have a devoted, enthusiastic community. Be

patient. It’s organic growth that matters. Things

don’t (and won’t) happen overnight.

4. Social Media Doesn’t Equal Self-Promotion

I’ll be honest; my first experiment in social

media wasn’t too successful. I spent all my time

posting and tweeting about my company, our

news, and services. And the process became

incredibly frustrating since I saw little results for

my efforts. It wasn’t until I began working with

some very smart people that I realized two

things:

I needed to show the person behind the

company, and

I needed to focus on my customers, and

not my company.

I began searching across the web for people

looking for help and began offering advice and

information. That was my ―ah-ha‖ moment, and

when social media began clicking for me.

5. Learn From the Experts

There are some great companies and brands

doing great things with social media, so there’s

no reason for you to reinvent the wheel. Put on

your consumer hat for awhile and take note of

the various social media campaigns, or just

general interactions, that appeal to you. I got in

the habit of bookmarking and noting particular

blog posts or company responses on

Facebook.

But, we can’t just be copycats. Beyond any

ethical considerations, there’s an effectiveness

issue. Just because something worked for one

company doesn’t mean it’s going to work for

your community. You’ve got to learn from the

work of others, while tailoring their experiences

to your own particular needs, goals, and

customers.

6. Get Help Without Relinquishing Your Identity

As a business owner, I know you simply can’t

take care of everything. And you simply can’t be

an expert in everything. You hire employees to

specialize in or take care of certain areas of

your business, and you contract outside help

(a.k.a. outsource) other jobs as well. There’s

tremendous value in hiring a social media

consultant or agency to help you. You

shouldn’t, however, hand over the reins entirely.

In my particular line of business, I like to be in

control of establishing the relationship with my

community and creating my networks. I’ve also

decided I want to play a large role in defining

the message and content for all our

communications, as well as engage with every

tweet and blog comment directly.

Small business owners will be well-served by

working closely alongside their social media

expert to learn about the various social

platforms, communities, and protocol. By

spending just a little bit of time each day with

your agency manager or consultant, you can

learn how to use the platforms and interact with

communities. As a result, you’ll become more

comfortable and proficient using these tools

yourself. At the end of the day, it will result in

more authentic interactions. More than

anything, the key is to get in there and try. You

have to start somewhere.

One of the visions of the newsletter is to celebrate the work of individuals locally. Thus, each newsletter will feature a local

professional who works to support the Latino community in Portland. This month we introduce Patty Narvaez.

1. What do you do? What does a typical day look like for you?

I work for a local non-profit organization, Impact NW, as the site manager of a community school program called Shine at

Barnes Elementary School. Working at a Title 1 public elementary school in Beaverton, the organization serves a diverse

community including many working families and at risk youth which includes a large Latino Community. Shine offers

enrichment and academic opportunities taught by local community members for students in 1st -5th grades such as

homework help, Shakespeare, soccer, and Mexican folkloric dance classes. We also offer enrichment opportunities for

parents/guardians of the community such as cooking classes, ESL, and a gang prevention workshop. These classes are

organized by myself and the Parent Engagement/Extended Day coordinator of Shine, Kassidee Fisher.

A typical day for me includes working and communicating with an amazing team of women, who have a heart for their

community and talents in logistics and education. Every day we nurture existing relationships and keep open lines of

communication with Barnes staff, students, parent/guardians, and partner organizations. Every day we manage the operations

of Shine's daily programming from 2:30 -5:30pm which include assisting instructors and tending to behavioral issues and the

occasional scraped knee. In the evenings we communicate with parents/guardians and prepare to provide childcare for the

evening parent enrichment classes.

2. How did you reach where you are now?

The guidance and support from my family helped me reach where I am now - specifically the strength, love, and example of

my parents who emigrated from Nicaragua in the late 70s and raised us well. They instilled in me a strong work ethic, and the

priceless value of family, education, and honoring your roots. As a second generation immigrant who was raised in the

suburbs, I gained a lot of exposure to various realities which ignited in me a passion for social justice issues related to

immigrant/refugee communities and a keen interest in issues of identity and empowerment of bi cultural youth. I believe that

it was not only my family but also my experiences abroad, access to higher education, and collaborating with grass roots teams

that brought me to the place I am at right now.

3. What inspires you?

I am inspired by writer and activist Arundhati Roy, the challenge that is evoking positive change, and love, beauty, and art in all

its forms.

4. Any words of wisdom or advice for future leaders?

Go confidently in the direction of your passions but remember to be humble. Always keep your ear to the ground, be

consistently thankful, and value all of your relationships.

5. How can we support your cause?

Sustainability is critical to any community program. Shine is searching for more community organizations and business that

will support the after school program with funding or volunteers. Many people don't know that Beaverton is an area with

many vulnerable residents and high needs families. By supporting the Shine program, more diverse students in Beaverton have

access to opportunities that may help them develop their leadership potential. We want to bring in more local partners to give

back to their community and help sustain Shine through funding, donations, and volunteers!

Q & A

ALPFA PORTLAND PRESENTS

SOCIAL MEDIA:

The new rules in the Digital Age Are you a facebook or twitter addict? Does your Linkedin profile look professional

while your facebook image could use some help? Presented by Barbara Brainard,

leading attorney and partner at Stoel Rives, this event provides guidelines for your

professional life in cyber space.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

6:00 PM – 7:30 PM

Deloitte Offices

111 SW 5th Avenue, Suite 3900

Portland, OR 97204

Please RSVP to: info@portland.alpfa.org

by Friday, June 17, 2010

For more information on ALPFA, visit: portland.alpfa.org