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Newsletter — January 2017    
Greetings,  !

Our community has much to look forward to in 2017.  We hope this issue captures the sense of potential as this year unfolds.  We update you on preparations for moving into our new urban center, announce an important new hire, and share the plans and activities of the Young Adult group.  We are also honored to continue our series on Thankgas in our tradition, curated by our own Sanje Elliott.  You may even catch a glimpse of SCOL in winter within this issue.

We depend upon you to point us toward stories of interest to the community and we appreciate your suggestions, ideas and inspired writing.  May it continue!

Please note that KCC is in the process of switching the software used for a variety of electronic tasks, including the creation and distribution of our newsletter. We request the patience of our subscribers (and non-subscribers) while we troubleshoot and make adjustments.

 

With Gratitude

This month we offer gratitude to the unsung, behind-the-scenes heroes who have labored mightily for months to revise and upgrade KCC’s financial record keeping processes—sangha members Cynthia Irvine, Pat Parker, and Sandy Pollock, working with Steve Unangst, the best financial consultant ever to assist a small non-profit organization. They have left no detail unexamined, from the chart of accounts to the intricacies of income and expense reports. As more and more members commit to support the sangha with sustaining contributions; as we operate the three year retreat at SCOL; as we make the leap to a new urban center, it is imperative that our accounting systems be straightforward and exact. Working with tireless attention to detail, the finance team has met its goal to complete this huge project by the end of 2016. While few of us ever see their work, we all benefit deeply from it.
 

In This Issue

With Gratitude

Project Management Coordinator Hire

New Urban Center

Happy New Year From SCOL Staff

Gampopa Thangka

KCC Young Adult Group

Events Update
 

DONATE

SUSTAIN

VOLUNTEER



John Jennings,
Sanje Elliott,
Deborah Brink-Wöhrmann,
Rosemarie Sweet, and
Ryan Fitz contributed to the production of this newsletter.

KCC Hires a Full-Time Project Management Coordinator

With great pleasure, the Board of Directors announces the hiring of Linda Grove as Project Management Coordinator for KCC. We are gratified that a person of Linda’s qualifications, as well as commitment to the Dharma and to this sangha, is eager to work full-time for KCC. Since becoming active in the community two years ago, Linda has served as point person for the Harmony Council and on the Retreats and Events committee, as well as volunteering for special events and at SCOL work parties. We are eager to work with Linda during this time of boundless potential for KCC.
 

It Takes a Community:  New Urban Center Update

By John Jennings

The old church building we purchased is on its way to becoming a new dharma center. The first work involves repair of roof and ceiling rafters and beams in the attic space. Bill Spangle is leading this effort with much of the work being done by Jef Gunn, with assistance from Robert Archer.  Soon we anticipate replacing the old outdated electrical panel and beginning design and installation of the new heating system. Unfortunately, we will not be very far along on that work until well after the Annual Sangha Celebration. So please dress warmly that day. 

In addition to the work mentioned above, the major work ahead of us in the near term includes removing and refinishing ceilings, removing carpet and refinishing the main floor and re-carpeting the basement, redoing at least one bathroom, moving at least one office wall, replacing stair and balcony railings, rebuilding the handicap ramp, replacing a few windows, redoing the interior trim, adding insulation in the attic and walls, fixing a number of small things and repainting the interior. Depending on funds that come in, we could also upgrade two other bathrooms and the kitchen.

While the planning, design and critical repairs are just beginning, the whole process through construction is expected to take four to five months, depending on availability of funds and volunteers. As a reminder to folks, we will not be moving out of Monroe Street for a while yet. 

Linda Logan and her subcommittee are working on selling Monroe Street. Adele Hilsen will be coordinating volunteers for the construction and move, as well as the space use planning process.  She is also coordinating the move out and move in effort after construction work gets a little further along. An interior furnishings and finishes work group has formed to work with an architect and the other task groups. While we have a number of skilled carpenters, we need other volunteers to help with support labor. We need help mostly on weekdays carrying materials, cleaning and moving debris, and running errands.  We can also use donations of materials like lumber, nails, carpet, rugs, drywall, etc. If you are interested in helping in any of these areas, please let me know. You can email me at jjennings@igc.org

Onward for the dharma.
 

"Wishing sangha far and wide a very happy new year!"
- SCOL Staff
Gampopa

By Sanje Elliott

Milarepa’s best student was Gampopa, the doctor from Dakpo, who combined the best teachings of Tilopa’s Mahamudra and Atisha’s Kadampa to establish the Kagyu lineage. Gampopa was first of all a physician, and married very young and had one daughter. But both mother and daughter died very young and Gampopa renounced the householder’s life and became a monk in 1104 at the age of twenty-five.

Gampopa was renowned for the clarity of his thoughts and his great knowledge of traditional dharma teachings. Among his many writings, The Jewel Ornament of Liberation was the most famous. He had many great students, but most importantly, Dusum Khyenpa, the 1st Karmapa (1110- 1193).

In this thangka of Gampopa, the great master of Rumtek, Ta-ja, shows Gampopa in a beautiful landscape, wearing his traditional “Gampopa” hat.

KCC's Young Adult Group

By Deborah Brink-Wöhrmann

The KCC Young Adult Group began in the fall of 2013, with the support of Bill Spangle and Julia King Tamang. The shared intention was to support young adults on their Dharma path and to invite conversation and reflection about how individuals can integrate these practices into daily life.

"We had an aspiration to foster spiritual fellowship for one another, and to hold questions together.  I think the main wonder of this group has been to keep alive a sense of wonder in itself!" says Holly Hisamoto, one of the founding members. "This group functions as a space where we can invite, support and even challenge one another to contemplate more deeply as we bring Buddhist teachings and practice into our lives."

More practically speaking, Holly explains, "The YA Group serves the community as an institutional entity that opens the way for younger members to integrate into the sangha. I increasingly see YA Group members volunteer, donate, take refuge, deepen practice commitments and participate more in leadership roles. "

Average group attendance at the monthly gatherings is seven people, and about a dozen participants attend regularly and/or see themselves as core members.  The group sometimes Skypes with Abby and Jake, on staff at SCOL, so that they can participate from afar.

"We hope to integrate regular Skyping into our life at the New Urban Center, to help connect the Portland and SCOL sangha. We also hope to make a group camping trip to SCOL next spring, to host a YA Group there," Holly says.

Monthly meetings begin with meditation and then group discussion on a Dharma topic. "Focusing on a question/topic helps us explore the intersection of that Dharma theme and our personal lives. The topics arise from people's personal practice questions and then are enriched by a 'prompt,' such as a Dharma book excerpt, article or snippet of audio," Holly explains.

In terms of leading the meeting, Group Guidelines act as communication precepts for the conversation. These guidelines encourage members to moderate their own discussion behavior in a heightened way, as practice in itself. "Then we rotate each month as the facilitator, so that we each try on the leadership experience of helping the group abide by the guidelines/ precepts," Holly shares.

This year's Self-Review led the group to some visioning around the New Urban Center. "While we plan to retain the Group Guidelines and format, we proposed some new ideas as an experiment for the coming year. These included a shift from the theme focus to having a shared meditation practice focus every quarter, with guidance from the Program Council," Holly says. The aim is to advance their study and practice while integrating the focus of the group with the year's practice focuses generated by the Program Council.

"I also hope that moving through meditation practices together will bring us closer, in some way, to the sense of shared practice commitment by those in Three Year Retreat (TYR). Perhaps it will also make a smoother transition for those young adults in TYR who wish to integrate back into our group when the retreat ends," says Holly. 

"With all these plans still in motion, I think the main takeaway from our latest Self-Review is that the group members are eager to envision the YA Group growing and adapting into the next stage of life at KCC," says Holly. "I really want to thank the KCC community for being supportive and nurturing of this group over the past three years."
 

Events in January

Upcoming events at KCC include some new and some continuing opportunities. Watch the website, www.kcc.org, for updates. For now, here is what is happening:

All events are at KCC Urban Center unless otherwise noted.

Young Adult Group

This monthly meeting welcomes the under-40 set to gather and talk about the dharma as it relates to daily life.

Friday, January 6, 2017 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Annual Sangha Meeting

Saturday, January 7, 2017 - 1:00pm to 3:30pm


KCC Mind Training Group

Tim Campbell and Zopa Herron co-lead an exploration of the entire Lojong, or Mind Training tradition, including the Seven Points and beyond.

Thursday, January 12, 2016 - 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Thursday, January 26, 2016 - 7:00pm to 8:30pm
 

Board of Directors Meeting

Sunday, January 15, 2017 - 1:30pm to 4:30pm

 


Streaming

KCC now streams most events on YouTube at this URL: http://www.youtube.com/user/kccmedia
 
Remember: If shopping on Amazon, please shop Smile.Amazon.com with KCC as your charity of choice. It’s an easy way to support KCC!


Our mailing address is:
73 NE Monroe
Portland, OR 97212

 

 
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