The Woodstock Community Center

The Woodstock Community Center in Southeast Portland is home to dozens of community classes and neighborhood events. It gives people of all ages living in the neighborhood a chance to tap into the pulse of the community and to meet with their neighbors. “The Woodstock Community Center is important for historical, recreational, and educational needs of the community,” says Elizabeth Usher Groff, a member of the Woodstock Neighborhood Association (WNA). “It provides a space that helps to build and strengthen community identity and unity.” The center is located in the heart of the Woodstock Village Center, and is footsteps away from coffee shops, restaurants and the Woodstock Library. Portland Parks and Recreation turned the 1920s era firehouse into a community center in 1959.

The center is a vital community hub that helps keep people active and connected to each other. It holds over 23 classes including yoga, Tae Kwon Do and private guitar and piano lessons. The center also hosts events such as bike workshops, art exhibits from local artists, as well as an annual Open House with tasty food donated by local businesses. Many people enjoy coming to the center, and its record book shows their attendance in the thousands. Despite the large number of people coming through its doors everyday, there is a cozy feeling to the center that makes one feel welcome. “People like the fact that they can walk to the community center, that it’s in the neighborhood, and that it’s small and intimate,” says Lonnie Port, co-chair of the WNA. No pool, locker room, basketball or tennis courts are to be found at the Woodstock Community Center. Instead, there are a couple of rooms upstairs for adult classes and a downstairs area for children’s classes and community meetings. Yet for this very reason people keep coming back to it, because it is a unique place that operates on a smaller scale than larger, often impersonal athletic clubs.

This very special place was in danger of being closed in 2002, when Portland Parks and Recreation notified the WNA that the center would have to close due to lack of funds. This came as a devastating blow to community members. Where would they gather together for birthday parties, girl-scout events, local workshops on biking and landscaping? Where would they take classes that enriched their lives and were offered walking-distance from their home? It seemed like all of the activity that had made Woodstock a thriving community would come to standstill with the closing of the community center.

“Several people at the NA meeting got pretty passionate about not letting the closure happen,” says Lonnie Port, co-chair of the WNA. Neighbors were determined to keep the center open, and brainstormed as to what they could do. They formed a subcommittee of the WNA called the “Friends of the Woodstock Community Center,” (FWCC). FWCC is a unique organization in Portland, the only “Friends of” group dedicated to a community center. It is a team of neighborhood volunteers and WNA members, including Lonnie Port, Terry Griffiths, Elizabeth Usher-Groff, and Desiree Sexton. These women have worked and continue to work very hard to keep the Woodstock Community Center a space that the public can enjoy.

The first weekend after the meeting with Portland Parks and Recreation (PPR) in 2003, FWCC started fundraising. Some were new to fundraising and needed help with this process. Members of the FWCC met with Elizabeth Kennedy-Wong, then the Executive Director of Southeast Uplift. Southeast Uplift is the neighborhood coalition office of the 20 Southeast Portland neighborhoods. Elizabeth gave all members of the FWCC instructions on how to do fundraising over the next couple of weeks. They knocked on doors in the Woodstock neighborhood for several weeks soliciting donations. It was not easy work, but it proved successful. “We raised about $7,000 dollars,” says Lonnie. Considering that this was solely a volunteer-run effort by a group of neighbors, this is no small sum, and points to the power of a group of dedicated neighbors with a vision.

The FWCC didn’t stop there, however. The group lobbied with PPR and was able to negotiate a year - long agreement to keep the center open. After that success, the FWCC continued lobbying for support to keep the center open, and gathered petition signatures to present to the City Council. In 2005, the FWCC was able to negotiate a 3-year Shared-Use Agreement with PPR. The center being open today is a result of the neighbors working hard on this project, whether it be negotiating contracts, hosting events or fixing the plumbing at the center. They are the ones that keep the Woodstock Community Center alive and well.

Through the 3-year agreement, FWCC is in charge of maintenance of the center. Although this can be challenging, it also gives its members a sense of ownership and pride. “It’s always fun when I pop into the center to check on the boiler or do something that I’m there for,” remarks Lonnie, “and you see all this activity, little kids playing or having a class. And they are really excited about their ballet class or Tae Kwon do and they are just enjoying the community center…and it makes you think, now this is why we do this. This is part of the neighborhood that wouldn’t be going on if it weren’t for me.” It certainly wouldn’t be the same bustling and friendly neighborhood without the Woodstock Community Center. It is a special gathering space indeed.