Historical Window From a Modern Day Barber

The Barber Pole originated in the early 1800's. Barbers in that time did more than give haircuts; they also performed surgery, tooth extractions, and blood letting procedures. The red and white barber pole designated a sign of barber who did surgery as well as haircutting. Blood letting was a procedure, used with leeches, to help elliviate the ills of mankind. The base of the barber pole held leeches and caught blood and the copious supply of linen bandages.After the operation was completed, bandages would be hung on the staff and sometimes placed outside as an advertisement. Twirled by the wind, the bandages hung would form a red and white spiral that was later adopted for painted poles. The red on the pole represents blood, the blue represents veins, and the white represents bandages.

This is Max Norton doing what he loves inside his shop, Max's Old Time Barber Shop. He is one of the only barbers left who still gives the old fashioned hair tonic and cologne treatment. His business also caters to women's haircuts, facials, nail treatments, and more.




Inside Max's shop is a window to the history of old time barbers and antiques. These three chairs are used for his guest inside his shop. The far left chair was made in 1920, the middle chair was made in 1910, and the far right chair was made in 1879.

The antique chair above is a 1914 dentist chair, which reclines to lay flat. This chair serviced as a seat when getting a haircut, teeth pulled, or an old fashioned blood letting treatment.

This is the first Gillette

hand held razor. It included a case of resharpable razors and a holding case lined with velvet. The invention was given to the public in 1903 at the cost of $5.00.

First electric barber shop clippers developed by the Moore Electric Hair Company. It was put in the hands of barbers for their shops December 28, 1915.

Students at Legacy Ballet show off their graceful skills

Ballet dancers show the team effort, discipline, and precise timing needed when dancing locked together.

(In Background)
Heather Hill, instructor and owner of Legacy Ballet, shows her emotions of admiration towards her students while watching from a distance.


The two girls in front have been practicing ballet for nine years.

5 theme photo

I will be getting a hold of Max Norton, who owns the barber shop downtown and asking to interview and shoot at places relevant to the story. I will also be finding interesting designs in architecture and see where they both take me.

Max's Old Time Barber Shop

Come and visit Max Norton while getting a haircut at Max's Old Time Barber Shop and Salon downtown Albany at 124 Ellsworth St. His shop is open from Monday to Saturday 8:30 to 6:00.

In January of 2009, Norton enrolled in Phagans Beauty College in Corvallis. He graduated in December of 2009 and opened his first barber shop and salon on the first of May in 2010. His business has been a great success for him as he has eight to sixteen new and returning clients a day.

Norton has a passion for building custom made Harley's and hot rods in which he displays in his barber shop. The Harley in the picture is a work in progress displayed within his shop.

Downtown Albany

Celia Formiller is the owner of Frogs and Polliwogs, a store for children, in downtown Albany.

She has remodeled the upstairs of the store turning it into a place where parents and their children may lounge and play in a cozy, fun atmosphere.

"I'm calling it the Lily Pad Lounge and children can come hang out and play with all the fun activity tables and toys," says Formiller, "There will also be free internet available and students with children are more than welcomed to come study while their kiddos play."

The Lily Pad Lounge will be opened from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm Monday through Friday and there is a $3.00 charge per kid for all day play.

The streets of downtown Albany are filled with the hustle of shoppers. Emma is a popular clothing store on first street where women like to gather and shop.








The Pix is a historical movie theatre to catch a mid day movie after shopping downtown.

Geary St. Wreck

Two cars collide Wednesday, 9:30 am, on Geary St. in front of Carino's Restaraunt.

An elderly man hit the tail end of a younger woman's car. Six firemen helped to get the young woman out of her car.

Carried on a stretcher into the back of an ambulance, the woman is taken to urgent care.

Traffic is blocked momentarily as the wreckage is cleaned up.

LBCC philosophers; sign up and start the first philosophy club at LBCC

Karyn Chambers is a religion and philosophy teacher at LBCC who is looking for students interested in creating and maintaining a philosophy club. LBCC does not yet have a philosophy club and Chambers is in the process of collecting signatures to give to the board members in the life and leadership department to get permission to create the club.
Students interested can contact Chambers at her e-mail address; http://cf.linnbenton.edu/wed/dev/chambek/web.cfm?pgID=807
Be sure to leave your first and last name, phone number, and e-mail address and that will be collected as a signature to join the creation of the philosophy club.

"The club will be a forum where members will get a chance to discuss what matters most and it will be ran by the students," says Chambers. "There is also an opening for a club president and vice-president."

Students will get to bring in videos to share and some modern day philosophers will get a chance to visit and share their insights at LBCC.

There will be a meeting set up providing a chance for the students who gave signatures to get together and discuss what they would want out of the club and how the leadership roles within the students will be established. The meeting will be held on a date that will be announced soon.

LBCC's pre-school teacher shares story time at P.C.D.C.

At the Periwinkle Child Development Center, pre-school teacher, Connie Lenderman, shows what it takes to keep pre-schoolers active and eager to learn. While reading a story in the classroom about a squirrell, she shows the young students an acorn demonstrating what squirrells like to collect.

Lenderman mentions how it is a joy for her to be a teacher at the LBCC campus and to give the children a fun learning environment. She also mentions how children are more willing to learn when they are in a group interacting with one another. Lenderman keeps the classroom very bright and fun the entire time she is teaching.

Along with Lenderman, there are other staff members who aide in teaching, interacting, and being silly with the children. Other curricular activities include songs and dance while learning alphabet letters, animal sounds, counting, and so forth. All the pre-school children have a wide variety of art and craft projects to create along with a playstructure outside to explore.

"P.C.D.C. has been finding ways to raise funding to go towards better playground equipment and what we need for the children who are in kindergarten classrooms." says Lenderman

Lenderman also explains a little about her teaching experience;

"You have to bring out your inner-child and not be afraid to act goofy and fun, it's what children crave and they love learning things that way." says Lenderman

LBCC's BBQ celebrates a new school year, raises funds

Cary Reike serves hamburgers at LBCC's BBQ celebrating a new school year for new and returning students on Oct. 6.

Meat and vegetarian burgers were available along with chips and soda.

A hamburger meal cost $3.50 per student and $4.50 per employee.

"The funds collected from the BBQ will go towards the Periwinkle Child Development Center Parenting Club's attempt to raise money for new playground equipment," said Reike, who is a member of the club.

Along with the hamburger meals were free mini golf and music. Information tables were set up giving students a chance to explore the activities and programs that LBCC has to offer.

One of the culinary art students in the LBCC campus kitchen.

Bill, the humble librarian at LBCC.

This is Bill. Bill works very happily in LBCC's campus library.

Three Things I Have Learned from Reporter/Editor of The Corvallis Gazette Times

Who: Editor and Reporter for Corvallis Gazette Times, Bennett Hall
What: Speaks to a Journalism class
Where: Linn-Benton Community College
When: May 24, 2010
Why: To give insight and teach a few things about investigative reporting

Bennett Hall is an investigative reporter and editor for the Corvallis Gazette Times newspaper. Through his many years of experience, Hall was generous to be a guest and share some insight from his career to some college students at Linn-Benton Community College. (link to Rob Priewe who teaches Journalism at LBCC)

Three important things that have stood out for me from Hall's visit is that, one, the power of the press has the ability to speak for the "unheard voices" of the community and perhaps change the law. The second thing I learned is that a "paper trail" is a very useful source for a reporter. And the third is simply this; do not use anonymous sources and do not allow "off the record" conversations to be acceptable.

From the investigative work and news stories of Hall, and other reporters, renters of the communities are finally getting their voices heard. A newspaper in Salem had a headline that read "Lawmakers Hear Proposal to Change Landlord-tenant Laws." This is due to renters who feel as though landlords are charging fees that should be illegal and are not. Fees, for example, like charging $200 for changing locks that never get changed, yet the landlord still keeps the money.

I think investigative reporting is great for the community. Like I said before, reporters are the voices of those who don't get heard. There are a lot of people who take advantage of others and sometimes we all need someone who can see the bigger picture of what is happening. How else do we know that these crimes are repeating if no one is keeping track?

Paper trails are very common for any reporter and become a very useful source for cross-checking a news story to make sure all the facts are, well, facts. Cross-checking paper-trails is also useful for when a reporter has a person who won't talk about a certain subject. A reporter may always find a hundred more stories that come out of one story that has many paper-trails.

A person can ask a question and get a straight answer for the question asked, however, do you notice that a lot of the time, even with the one question being answered, that a couple more questions spring up out of the answer? That is kind of what paper trails, or interviews, will do for reporters.

The third, and probably most important, is do not use anonymous sources or allow anything to be spoken "off the record". The most common reason not to use an anonymous source is because there is no credibility for the reader as to what is being read can be determined as true. For all the reader knows, the sentence in the news story was the writers opinion and not a fact.

As far as "off the record" commentary goes, throw it away before the speaker speaks. Let the person know who is being interviewed that what he or she is about to say and wants off the record is trash to you and you would rather not hear it. It sounds like a shocker, or a rude gesture, but it makes you more proffessional about your work and most of the time something at the tip of someone's tongue will need to come out and they will say, "Ok then you can write it then" and spill their guts out from anticipation.

So what can we learn from Bennett Hall? We learn that the press has the power to change laws based on the voice of citizens, paper trails are great for covering facts and digging up extra news stories, and, most importantly, to discard anonymous sources and "off the record" information.

LBCC Parenting Education receives a $90,000 grant through Oregon Parenting Educatiion Collaborative.

Who: The Linn-Benton Community College Parenting Education Hub
What: Recieves a grant for $90,000 a year for the next three years through the Oregon Community Foundation and the Oregon Planning Education Collaborative.
Where:Linn-Benton Community College in Albany, Oregon
When: 2011
Why: To provide funding for faculty while providing more parenting and daycare education, as well as expanding services provided through LBCC's Family Connections.


The Linn-Benton Community College Parenting Education Hub is receiving a grant of $90,000 a year for the next three years from The Oregon Community Foundation (O.C.F.) through The Oregon Planning Education Callaborative.

The $90,000 a year grant will help LBCC's Parenting Education Program with funding needed for faculty, support additional parenting educational classes, and provide training and resources for parent educators; including major curriculum training and annual workshops. The grant will also give the ability to move services out into the rural communities that don't have parenting and education services.

"The grant is giving us the ability to do more of what we already do. We do a lot of collaborations with different groups and counties that serve the same purposes such as parenting education classes," said Cyrel Gable who is a faculty member at the LBCC's Family Resources and Parenting Education Hub.

LBCC's Parenting Education and Family Connections departments function as a parenting education hub for the Linn and Benton region, focusing on services to parents with children who are six and under.

According to Cyrel Gable, the hub does four main things;

*One is that they will be working with all the other organizations that revolve around serving parents to collectively see what the needs are of the parents in regions and if they are meeting the needs. The first step requires coordination of pulling everyone together.

"East Linn County in particular doesn't have as good of connections with the parents in the community like the Linn and Benton counties do and we have not had the funding in the past to better serve the rural areas." explained Gable. "The grant will allow a way to collect the other rural communities and connect us all together."

*The money left over from the first step will be used for setting up classes, which are either parent only or parent and child together only, that will result from the collaborated ideas from the rural communities. Classes will be for parents and their children of ages six and under to teach parent and toddler education.

"We are wanting to add more classes. We hope to add four to six the first year, six to eight the second, and so on." said Gable

The grant money doesn't add more staff positions, but allows the part-time staff to become full-time.

*The third step is to create a web site.

"We are to create a centralized information source for all parenting advice and oppurtunities." explained Gable.

The web site will show all the classes and information that every town has and not just what the LBCC college campus provides.

*The fourth step is to provide additional support and education for the educators and day care providers. The parenting hub would like to create a workshop that provides a major training in one of the curriculums, although they are not sure what the focus will be yet.

LBCC's Family Connections department will maintain being a centralized information and referral resource for parenting education oppurtunities and as a resource for getting daycare referrals.

Family Connections not only serves families with information on quality child care, a parenting advice line, and a source for information about available family support groups, but they also serve child care providers with information on how to start and manage a child care business, provides referrals from parents looking for child care, and provide training opportunities.

"The hub is in support of parenting education and does not care which organization is delivering the services needed.' explained Cyrel Gable, "If hub can link a need of a parent to another organization that can better help that parent then we will give them all the information about who can better help, or provide a certain service."

If you are a parent, or parent educator, who would like to see what resources are available in your community, or if you would like to know how you may help, you can contact them at the Linn-Benton Community College at 6500 Pacific Blvd. S.W. in Albany OR. You can also give them a call at (541) 917-4999.

America the Consumerist; Who is really making the luxuries we buy?

YouTube: Something To Hide
American super stores are hiding the real labor that goes into making the materials consumerist buy. The truth is this; every toy and piece of clothing parents buy for their children, every materialistic thing a house contains, and most everything you see that is not made in America is probably being made in a sweatshop in another country by the hands of a child.

YouTube; Something to Hide is one of many videos trying to exploit this truth and get consumerist to realize we can stop this. We don't have to throw luxery out the window, but we should watch ourselves to make sure we are not buying irrelevant, useless, expensive things no one really needs.

Drawing of Poet Laureate, Kay Ryan

Portrait of Kay Ryan , Poet Laureate drawn by Colleen Hamilton from when Kay visited and spoke at the Linn-Benton Community College in May of 2010.

Three Things I have Learned from Edna Buchanan

Who; Edna Buchanan
What: Edna's book "The Corpse Had a Familiar Face"
Where: Miami, Florida
When: Copyright 1987
Why: Edna's book covers real stories while working police beat. Motivational book for journalists.

Would you like some great insight on what it takes to be a hard core news reporter working the police beat? Edna Buchanan's memoir "The Corpse Had A Familiar Face" is a book about a news reporter telling her true stories while working the police beat in Miami, Florida for The Miami Herald. Reading Edna's book has given me an idea of not only what it takes to be a woman reporter, but that stories in newspapers can save lives and even change the law.

Three valuable lessons I have learned from reading Edna's memoir is, one, that a reporter must be persistent and not let discouragement loose track of his or her focus. Two, the press can change the law and solve, or expose, a lot of crimes better than most cops from their stories. And three, everyone is human and has a story to tell.

Being persistant about stories means talking to everyone, turning over every rock for clues, and not taking "NO" for an answer the first four times. For a woman reporter one may have to be a little more confidant and persistant. A couple quotes from Edna's book, "The Corpse Had a Familiar Face", I would like to bring up are as follows:

"Police reporters deal with lives, reputations, and careers. So you keep on-- ask one more question, knock on one more door, make one last call and then another. It could be the one that counts."

"A woman in my occupation has to convince the cops that she is not a woman. You want them to think of you as a confdante, a proffessional who will always be fair, or if nothing else, a piece of furniture, someone they are so used to seeing that they forget you are there. And you don't mix business with pleasure."

With everyone's reputation at stake, as well as your own, a reporter should always be on top of their stories and not let authorities shoo them away like a fly. Be a fly on the wall that won't leave. It is the freedom of the press after all.

Being that fly on the wall gives the press the ability to change the law and at times solve crimes
and find missing people better than some police work can. Quotes in stories can put people in jail that may have walked if not for the press. Families with unsolved cases of missing, or murdered kids, end up finding some sort of closure from reporter's investigative work.


Gender does matter to a certain point. Most men in the newspaper business take home higher salaries than women, so as a woman I would suggest working harder than the men and being more efficient like Edna Buchanan is.


A few examples from Edna's book include:


"That issue was later covered in depth by the Herald, and subsequently, new legislation required background checks and liscensing for all guards."

Another way the Press can keep our government in tact, wouldn't you think?

A story of how Edna put someone behind bars:

"We get a lot of subpoenas. Herald lawyers usually have them quashed. It is not good policy for reporters to testify. But this time was different; this guy may actually walk. All I would swear to was the accuracy of what I wrote."....."I testified that I was wearing press identification carrying a reporters notebook, and had identified myself to him as a reporter. He did not think I was a cop. So, although his formal confession to police was ruled out--his comment to me was not."


The following quote from the book bothers me. I wonder what would have happened to this girl if it wasn't for Edna's reporting heart? Would the family have ever found the suspect?


"Albert Brust had kidnapped a runaway couple. He killed and decapitated the boy, put the corpse in the bathtub and covered it with cement. He raped and tortured the girl for days, then took her to Fort Lauderdale and set her free. She went straight to the police. They did not believe her outlandish story and sent her back home to Indiana. She was fifteen."


Reading parts like this in her book make me sit and wonder who is actually cleaning up the streets in our communities? The police, or the press? The press exposes dirty cops and then make them do their job at times. Has Miami cleaned up so much since the 70's because of reporters like Edna Buchanan? I would say so.


The third important thing I have learned from Edna's book is that everyone is human, and everyone has a story even if they say they are a "nobody". The quote I will use from Edna's book to portray an example is this;


"During my second year at the Herald I covered criminal court, another beat where a reporter can mine for gold. You meet the cops, the crooks, the judges, the bondsmen and the lawyers: the good guys, the bad guys, and the majority of who are a mix of both. You see more honest-to-God drama, intrigue, and acting in a criminal courtroom than you will ever find on any stage. Award winning performances: so many stories, so little time."


I hope this blog of mine has given some insight for those who are considering covering the police beat. I suggest reading Edna Buchanan's memoir, "The Corpse Had a Familiar Face". It is not all about murder and seeing if you have a strong stomach. It is about how you can change laws, save lives, and solve mysteries by being a reporter and using the lovely Freedom of the Press standards. The modern super hero. It is encouraging to read about a woman who successfully does not take "NO" for an answer....ever.

Cascade Pacific R.C. and D. recruits ideas from Linn County

Left to Right: Cascade Pacific RC and D Dan Lara, Karen Strohmeyer, Paul Harcombe, Mayor of Tangent Seaton McLennan, and Linn County Commissioner Will Tucker

Who: Commissioner Will Tucker, Mayor of Tangent Seaton McLennan and Cascade Pacific members Karen Strohmeyer, Paul Harcombe, and Dan Lara.
What: Cascade Pacific Resource Conservation and Development (RC and D) (www.cascadepacific.com)
Where: Linn County Fairgrounds in Albany, Oregon
When: April 29th 6:30-8:00
Why: Meeting to create a five year vision based on regional communities' ideas and needs to create rural development and healthy eco-systems.

Linn County Commissioner, Will Tucker, hosted a meeting for Cascade Pacific Resource Conservation and Development on April 29 at the Linn County Fairgrounds. The meeting was held in effort to bring citizens together to share ideas based on the needs of the rural communities to create a five-year project focusing on rural development. Speakers in the meeting included Commissioner Will Tucker, Mayor of Tangent Seaton McLennan, Pacific Cascade Resource Conservation and Development Coordinator Karen Strohmeyer and members on the Board of Directors Paul Harcombe and Dan Lara. Pacific Cascade Resource Conservation and Development areas of concentration are energy efficiency, local food programs, creating jobs, land use, and water treatment. And their areas of work include Polk, Marion, Lincoln, Benton, Linn, and Lane counties. If you would like to share an idea you can contact them at http://www.cascadepacific.com/

This meeting, and others that will follow, are important for they draw citizens of the regional communities together to blend ideas and seek what is needed, such as the need for energy conservation or the need to create jobs. Cascade Pacific RC and D link people and their ideas to the fundings and needs neccesary to carry out and maintain projects for rural development. Cascade Pacific is seeking a five year vision so it's company can expand rural development and needs the citizens of these counties help creating it.

The Mayor of Tangent, who is also a board member of Cascade Pacific R.C.and D. Seaton McLennan,explained what the focus of tonight's meeting was;

"It is an effort for Cascade Pacific to grow more. When a company like this is not enlisting any projects and get stagnent they start to lose their funding. This meeting is an effort to collect ideas and create projects with the communities to expand rural development." said McLennan.

Commisioner, Will Tucker, begins the meeting;

"Cascade Pacific R.C. and D. are here tonight because they want your input and ideas for rural development for the surrounding areas."

"I want a world where I don't have to use fossil fuels but it may be diffucult when you invest way more money than there is energy being produced," said Tucker, "It would cost me $70,000 to put solar and wind panels on my house alone."

Tucker explained that there is still hope for ideas to come together and make projects happen because 70% of the budget is already there from available grants.

McLennan asked the members attending the meeting, "What improvements are needed in the communities? What do you envision of your community in the next five years?"

"What Resource Conservation and Development programs do in general is try to bring the interesting ideas and people together and link them with those who can make the ideas happen." said Dan Lara.

Dan Lara further explains that Cascade Pacific Resource Conservation and Development promote economical and resource development ideas. When start up companies seek funding the funders will put certain companies under certain grades as to where they would put their money. For example, LBCC's new science buildings were on the "A" grade for recieving funding for all the green resources being used and the thought of the students being able to interact and learn from the building such as the power producing windows and bioswale in the garden.

Paul Harcombe, a member on the Board of Directors, mentions some goals created by Cascade Pacific R.C. and D. such as the Local Food Connection and the Oregon County Trails that is to increase tourism by creating guides for all the trails in Benton, Deshutes, Lane and Lincoln counties.

Harcombe said they have a goal to provide water conservation in rural and farm areas.

"In 2009 we had 9 plans in the works for assisting farmers and were hoping for at least 15 more by 2010." said Paul Harcombe.

Paul also mentions that there are only two irrigation systems in the county and a grant out there for $2 million waiting to be used.

Cascade Pacific RC and D is a non-profit organization under the umbrella of USDA Natural Resources and Conservation services, according to RC and D Coordinator, Karen Strohmeyer.

"Our goal is to create a five year vision based on the input from the communities." Karen explained.

Strohmeyer explained Cascade Pacific R.C. and D. are only permitted to help in the rural areas. "Land use laws are a big factor that stop these ideas from happening."

Ideas from the citizens attending the meeting include:

1) Zero energy use community center (off the grid)

2) Transportation/alternative energy (solar) recharging stations.

3) Inventory of ALX generator options in the valley.

4)Wind generation

5) Energy conservation (green box attached to homes that uses hot air)

6)Plan in the making created by Adair Master Plans called "Corvallis to the Sea". Promotes tourism and jobs through city connections of "City Trails" for bike riders. No more riding on the streets.

There were only five couples who showed up for the meeting. The meeting was left with no definate plans, but rather some ideas on the board to think about.

Cascade Pacific will be holding other meetings within the eight regional areas and are hoping that fresh, creative ideas will be presented according to the communities needs.

If you are wanting to share any ideas, or see if Cascade Pacific can help make your ideas grow, you can contact Cascade Pacific at http://www.cascadepacific.com/

Three Golden Guidlines for a Journalist.

There are three golden guidlines I believe a journalist should carry with them everywhere they go. These guidlines came from "Poynter" and I couldn't agree more with them. The three golden rules are Poynter's #5 ; "Get out of your house, or office. Don't hide behind your job, or computer. Rediscover the "local" in "hyperlocal". "# 9; "Journalist should be comfortable with silence during interviews. You'll hear and learn more if you are not talking." And my personal favorite is # 18, in which I hope all humans may go by. # 18; "Impress people with your openness. Learn from everyone. Knlowledge is collaborative. Questions and answers are communal."

I like Poynters #5 because it states that in order for someone to be a true journalist and get a big scoop of the real, or silent stories that lie out in the world one must get out into the world and "join the circus" of finding and chasing stories. I like to bring up a novel about Edna Buchanan who is a news reporter in Miami, Florida that gets involved in a lot of dangerous situations by following murder cases. She claims she has seen, and even solved, more murders than any average police officer. A journalist doesn't get that personal with thier job by sitting at their desk all day. The novel I am reffering to is called "The Corpse Had a Familiar Face" written by Edna Buchanan.

The reason I like #9, which states a journalist should feel comfortable with silence during interviews and one will learn more, is because I find myself needing this reminder from time to time. I will be in the middle of an interview and get so caught up in the "conversation" of the story rather than asking questions, keeping my mouth shut, and writing down the quotes I really need!!!!!

# 18 should be a world wide goal for everyone. "Impress people with your openness. Learn from everyone. Knowledge is collaborative. Questions and answers are communal." Knowledge should be available for everyone about every subject in the world. For example; A 12 year old boy in Africa whos' school had recieved computers sometime recently found out through the internet that people on this planet have set foot on the moon. Why should that knowledge not be able to reach them until 40 years after the event?

Everyone has many questions, and sorry to say, but people won't get to find the real answers they seek if they block themselves from being open minded and listening to others. Knowlege lives and grows if it is allowed to collaborate. Everything started from theories and philosophies, then those theories get tested and we are still all at the same questions that need to be answered such as "What is our purpose?" How did we humans get here?" " Does life exist beyond Earth?"

Want to start digging into the possibility of actually finding the real answers that top physicists, engineers, biologist, and mystics in many fields have come together and collaborated their expertise onto? The movie I would like to share covers a world of quantum mechanics, and odd science. Check out the movie "What the Bleep? Down the Rabbit Hole". The movie was also filmed in Portland, Oregon.

Pendulum in White Oak Hall out of motion.

The pendulum in White Oak Hall remains off limits and not in motion.

Who: Don Johnson and Cary Ponthione
What: The $35,000 Pendulum in White Oak Hall
Where: LBCC's College Campus in Albany, OR
When: April 2010

Why: Motion is delayed due to concern of the need for a railing.

Walk into White Oak Hall and you will notice a pendulum on a crate with no explanation of purpose. There is no marker posted yet to tell what the pendulum represents, or why it is not in motion.

The pendulum, in an atrium of LBCC's new math and science center, was made possible through the donation of $35,000 from LBCC's anonymous donor. The Mark 2 Foucault Pendulum, designed by Cary Ponthione, owner of Academy Pendulum Sales, is designed to blend art and science while representing the Earth's rotation.

The pendulum is not in motion because there is a fear of people getting smashed between the 235-pound brass, mirror polished ball and stairwell. The pendulum will not be put in motion until a railing is placed provided by Don Johnson, who is the architect of White Oak Hall.

The design that will go around the cement base will be put up soon. The base will explain the significance as the pendulum is in motion. And construction on White Oak Hall is expected to be completed in May 2011.

"I believe it was the math and science departments who had requested the pendulum. It is suppose to represent a swinging time circle of the Earth's rotation." explained Fred Haynes, Dean of Instructional Facilities Planning.

A magnetic current pulses through the ceiling, from where the pendulum hangs, giving the pendulum its' back and forth motion. The pendulum is in sync with the Earth's rotation which gives it the circular movement.

Cary Ponthione is one of the last people who designs these pendulums, according to LBCC's vice president, Jim Huckestein.

"The original concept of the pendulum is to give an artistic view of math and science." said Dan Lara, Dean of the Math Department.

According to Lara, there has been a concern with people touching the pendulum and a safety issue of someone being injured if walking on the platform between the pendulum and stairwell.

Jim Huckestein said "Don Johnson is looking at ways to design a safety rail that will have a stylish look for the pendulum."

As Lara mentioned, "LBCC's pendulum and new science buildings are designed to create student diverse gatherings and moments to blend ideas."

Lara explained that LBCC's administration wanted to create a place within the school to give the student body a "home away from home."

White Oak Hall will have couches and stylish sitting areas where all the diversities on LBCC's campus, such as math, science, art, and philosophy groups, can blend together in one building.

Madrone Hall and White Oak Hall; More than extra space for classrooms

Madrone Hall and its' power generating windows.

At A Glance
Who: Lead architect, Don Johnson, and LBCC staff.
What: LBCC's new science buildings; Madrone Hall and White Oak Hall
Where: Linn-Benton Community College
When: Construction expected to be completed by May, 2011
Why: Why these buildings are so special.

LBCC's new science buildings, Madrone Hall and White Oak Hall, are a combination of updated science facilities, expanded classrooms and staff space. The two buildings are special to LBCC for they allow opportunities for students to interact and learn from the new and innovative engineering while bringing a place for the art and literature groups blend ideas with the math and science groups of the student body.

Madrone Hall generates energy using windows that collect solar cells. Along with White Oak Hall, there is a curtain wall system that prolongs the integrity of the buildings. Between the two buildings, under the garden, is a bioswale producing it's own water treatment system.

Madrone Hall is now open while the construction on White Oak Hall is expected to be done by May 2011.

LBCC's new 28,000 sqare foot science building, Madrone Hall, has more than extra staff offices and classrooms. The south facing windows allow light to travel through as the translucent solar cells within the windows collect energy. The excess energy not being used by the building will go onto the city's energy grid providing power to the rest of the city. There will be a generator in which students and faculty may see how much energy is being produced and used.

The new science buildings are 100% made up of recycled materials. Madrone Hall alone cost $8.9 million for construction. The project's superintendent, Dennis Miller, led around three hundred sub-contractors in building Madrone Hall.

On the first floor of Madrone Hall there are classrooms for science, engineering, and technology divisions. The second floor contains physical science, biological science, and biology classrooms.

LBCC's former school president, Rita Caven, was an advocate in using green recources and money saving techniques for the school when laying out the first blueprints of constructing both Madrone Hall and White Oak Hall, according to Don Johnson who is the lead architect of the buildings and garden. Don Johnson's office is D.J. Architecture in Albany, Oregon.

The brick and metal siding on the building has a rain screen system that allows hot and cool air to move around in the walls to lessen the chance of mold and increase the integrity of the building.

Don Johnson said, "It is an innovated curtain wall system and this is the first time it has been introduced to the United States."

LBCC's new garden between Madrone Hall and White Oak Hall houses an indigenious habitat made up of native plants.

"Under the garden is a bioswale that collects rainwater in storage tanks and sterilizes the water," said Don Johnson, "All of the rain water that is collected will be reused and there will be no impact on the city's water system."

The bioswale not only saves the school money, but serves the student body with interactive learning oppurtunities.

"There will be a gazebo in the garden with a transparent roof, when phase two of construction is done, that will generate power using its' roof in the same way that the south facing windows on Madrone Hall do." Don Johnson said.

On the roof of LBCC's prior science building will be a 5,000 square foot green house that will provide a natural habitat for birds and plant life. The natural habitat will also serve as a cooling system for the entire building.

Dan Lara, who is Dean of Science, said "The new science buildings are designed to create a place for all the diversities of LBCC's student body to come together and blend their ideas."

Dan Lara, Bridgid Backus, Warren Coffeen, Stefan Seiter, and Roger Maurer were key representatives of the physical sciences, biology, agriculture, and mathematics staff. They communicated all ideas from their departments to the lead architect.

"Administration were 100% supportive of the ideas coming from the faculty to provide more space for students to come together." said Dan Lara. He calls the project "A labor of love."