West Albany High School: Back to Guns, Back to Violence

Hours before Memorial Day is set to begin, West Albany High School(WAHS) is eerily silent. It could have easily been deathly silent.

Authorities in Albany are planning to charge 17 year old WAHS student, Grant Acord, with aggravated attempted murder. Acord is accused of planning a "mission-like" assault on the school, and Albany police have stated that homemade bombs were found in his bedroom, along with plans of the school and a detailed timeline for the attack.

People my age tend to lament the days of our youth, saying "These attacks at schools didn't happen when we were kids." Nevertheless, educating our own children about the closeness of deadly violence, can and will save lives.

This kid was caught via family awareness, possible social media posts and a 911 call, leaving us to think about the combined value of social media and social awareness.

The sprawling campus is located in west Albany, and is home to three schools, and various community centers. Playgrounds, stadiums, ballfields, and other activity resources are used every day of the year.

West Albany High School

 Sign in front of Memorial Middle School, part of the West Albany High School campus.

In a previous visit to this topic, I wrote of the mental health issues regarding many of these deadly incidents, and my belief remains the same: Teaching teachers, children, and parents to recognize mental health issues among themselves, and preparing them to respond, is crucial to safety in schools.
 

In Clackamas, Oregon, an attack at a local mall left Oregonians pondering solutions like never before. Kip Kinkel, the perpetrator of another deadly shooting 10 years prior at Springfield High School, is still fresh in the minds of residents here in the Pacific Northwest.

The Clackamas Mall shooter was behaving oddly, had sold all of his belongings, and was talking of a move to Hawaii. All of this, even with promising opportunities seemingly ahead. Intervention may have changed the outcome in Clackamas, we will never know. What we do know, is that being aware of your surroundings is paramount to your survival, no matter how dumb it sounds.

My general rules, that I try and "hammer home" to my children, are as follows:

1) If you, or anyone you know, seems to want to act out violence, contact a supervisory adult immediately.

2) A supervisory adult is anyone you respect and know can help in some way.

3) Be aware of mental health, and its "signs" and symptoms.

4) If confronted by violence, leave immediately if possible, and call 911, and then call me.

5) I love you, talk to me anytime.

Our future.

Signs of Victory: A Shelter in Albany Faces Charges

Update 7-5-13: As I wrote this in May, questions arose about multiple "social service" groups in the Albany area. The latest word, on the street so to speak, is that Tom & Kerry(the suspect management for Signs Of Victory) are no longer in that role at the shelter. The pair is not even at the shelter, according to one homeless I talked to.

Although problems persist, the first step is to not only to remove certain "shelter managers," it is also necessary to change the entire structure of shelter management. In both the Albany shelters, managers are still in place that are stealing from the helpless.

In regards to the young woman with the 15-month-old Nolan, she is supposedly in an apartment with a boyfriend, and is not at Signs Of Victory. That has not been confirmed.

Investigation and photos will continue, read on to get the full story:





The charges are my own, based on witness accounts and investigative journalism. The investigation is ongoing...

After a dozen interviews, it is obvious that Signs Of Victory is not interested in personal victory or redemption.

Shelters, particularly this one, have been accused of being racist and discriminatory. In addition to those social problems, the shelter has been accused of "ripping-off" its clients. From literally stealing cash, to demanding unrealistic payments, the Signs Of Victory Mission has burdened homeless women that have children, and has helped spur neighborhood problems such as drunkenness and excessive trash.

In a previous article, the mission was asked to "help out" in the neighborhood, by creating socially accepted rules and by picking up trash left in that area, specifically by homeless patrons. "Garbage has increased since the new management took over," one neighbor said.

The shelter did nothing.

In an interview with local kids playing along the canal a block from the mission, they told me multiple stories of harassment and pointed out a homeless blanket and trash in a small "camp." The blanket was from Signs Of Victory. Beer cans were in many places along the play area.

During my homeless investigation, I encountered a small number of homeless who had enrolled in the local community college. Some are successful. and one of the first stories I was told, was of a young man who had attended LBCC while living at Helping Hands Shelter for about six months. At this time, that 30-ish man is still a student, but lives in his own apartment.

One student in particular, is a social problem. Living at Signs Of Victory, "Bob" is an LBCC student who has harassed bus drivers, administrators, and students. His reluctance to grasp the nature of school has impacted many other students. The constant badgering of one student, over Bob's lack of understanding the course curriculum, led to a dispute on a city bus. This was the third of similar situations involving this "student" in the last month.

Buck Potter, an LBCC Welding student, who struggled for years with social issues such as housing and drinking, has an apartment with his wife, and is a successful student who is on the path to a welding certificate and full-time employment. Potter is an example of the very idea of community college, which is to create educated, and sustainable economic conditions within a community.

A small percentage, however, are abusing the system. One was scrutinized for purchases in the LBCC Bookstore that were for "pawn" purposes only. And some, fuel their alcoholism with school loans.

During an impromptu interview, one of those once-homeless, now-a-student students told me, "I don't want to graduate." As if the idea is not to? This student has the "easy classes and drunk every day" routine down pat. But in a perfect world, maybe we can help that student focus on an education process that steers away from mediocrity, and towards enhanced communities.

This story started with a male resident of an Albany shelter, complaining of  excessive fees and unsupervised sex offenders. As I delved further in, I noticed a food stamp imbalance in the process, as some residents were forced to give up most of their state award in the name of "rent."

When I asked one staff(Signs of Victory), about two young women that were gone(one with a baby), all he told me was that if "..they paid rent they would have a place to live." He said that one of them was at another shelter. When I asked about the woman and baby, he said, "I think she went to a friend's."

In another interview, racism and discrimination were described as "Not our Christian doctrine, but when a client is out in the public, it is out of our hands." That may be true, but to have no rules as to social conduct, is absurd. The woman in charge, Jane, later called the police. While on the phone, she asked me to leave, and I did. But the reality is that they knew of my efforts regarding homeless, and initially invited me in. The interview was in an office at the shelter and included another staff.

The same Signs Of Victory staff that told me of the "Christian Doctrine" also is the same thief who demanded an LBCC student at the shelter overpay. The staff at the shelter noticed the student's loans, and then took advantage, by "borrowing" a few hundred bucks and demanding "rent" on top of the loan. That student was evicted from the shelter two months later, for "non-payment."

Complaints about manipulated drug tests, theft of government payments, abuse of Oregon Food Stamps, and much more, exists at the Signs Of Victory Mission, with little being done. The secretive and defensive nature of the response from questions, leads me to believe the staff is engaged in the same illegal behavior that they were up to when they themselves were homeless, as all staff were at one time.

I will try and find Albany Transit System records(he harassed a bus driver) regarding the subject of the above interview. His name is Bob(staff may have lied about his name), and he resides at the shelter. In addition to the bus driver, witnesses at LBCC have told me on different occasions that they suspected "Bob" was on meth. Excessive "teeth grinding" in the library and odd behavior while attempting to fix his bike. During the May 18 interview, he left the shelter. Could it be to avoid a drug test?

During my earlier story, stories of theft and other crime at the shelter were numerous. Addiction runs rampant, and many of the addicts at the shelter know how to manipulate drug testing. At one point, another LBCC student who lived there, had an MP3 player stolen.

This is May 18, and this story is just beginning. As I research more, and I look into the meth-addicted shelter personality named "Bob," I will try to address his addiction(they say his teeth grinding and poor attitude is a "medical condition"), as well as his hatred for people that are gay or black or whatever.

In the end, I hope to bury that hatred, and push the shelter to a more progressive approach to social problems.

Feel free to add your opinion and "evidence" to the comments. I am sure I will respond.

My homeless article: http://ronborst.blogspot.com/2013/02/homeless.html

Points of interest:

1) The report of the stolen MP3 player was discussed in the meeting with Signs Of Victory staff, and the addict/resident who stole the item happened to pass through the lobby at around that time. One staff commented, "She'll have to take a urinalysis." The statement seemed forced and I doubt the test ever happened.

2) The "borrowed" money, from a female resident who was later evicted for non-payment, was never repaid by Tom & Kerry, the former managers.

3) An easy half-dozen reports, in the last few months, about "Bob" that are meth and anger related. In each report, the impact on society is substantial.

4) Many of the residents at Helping Hands are state classified Predator Offenders. Some are integrating successfully, while others are unsupervised and violating parole far too often.

5) Theft of government benefits is at epidemic proportions in these two shelters.

A resident from Signs Of Victory.

Greg Hawk: 30 Years as Head Baseball Coach at Linn Benton Community College

He was there with Beth, at a rest-stop state park in Oregon, a couple thousand miles from home. Where he would take them, would be a world away.

Thirty years later, and still in Oregon, LBCC Head Baseball Coach Greg Hawk said goodbye to Roadrunner baseball.

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The year was 1983. Greg and Beth Hawk had been married a bit over five years, and at Champoeg State Park, they stopped. The two spent the night in their tiny car, under Oregon skies. It was 2,200 miles from where they had began, in tiny Centerville, Iowa.

"We slept in the back seat, and the street lamp shined in our eyes all night, " Beth Hawk told me.

In the heartland, Centerville, Iowa, was the epitomy of "small town" America. Greg and Beth met while in school there. Almost 40 years later, the two remain glued to one another. At a game in Albany during the 2013 season, I watched them on the field together, and I was moved by the "best friend" demeanor, the eye contact, and Coach Hawk's grin. He couldn't hide the pleasure it brought him, and I felt like I could see his eyes through the sunglasses. His favorite lady was on his ballfield. And Coach Hawk was beaming.

After Centerville High, Hawk attended Indian Hills Community College, and played catcher for the baseball team. Around the same time he married his high-school sweetheart, Beth Wilson, and after one year at Indian Hills, Greg Hawk headed to Northwest Missouri State University to play catcher for the Bearcats. Three years of studying hard, living poor, and wanting to "accomplish something," Hawk graduated in 1980 with a bachelor of science degree.

That same year, he became Coach Greg Hawk, by taking the head baseball coaching vacancy at Sweet Springs High School in Sweet Springs, Missouri.

"I wanted to teach and help others," Hawk said.

An 18-1 final season left the young coach wanting to teach and coach at a larger level. Jim Wasem offered Hawk a graduate assistant position at Eastern Washington University. Greg and Beth now headed west, towards the Cheney, Wash., campus.

Coach Hawk graduated in one year, earning a master's degree in athletic administration. "It was hard," he told me. "It was lots of reading, lectures about fundraisers, and charismatic people in athletics and education."

He and Beth lived off-campus while at EWU, in a tiny, one-bedroom apartment, without much. Welfare helped them get a start. "We were too proud to ask our parents for money, and we didn't believe in credit," Coach Hawk said. Living frugally, and studying intensely, he was about to hit the road again. This time in Oregon.

He had applied for a job in Albany at Linn-Benton Community College. On the road south, down the Interstate 5, he and Beth stopped at Champoeg State Park and having little money, the two stayed the night. Beneath Oregon conifer trees, they slept in the cramped Datsun. The next morning, "I splashed some water on my face and pits, and we headed to Linn-Benton."

He got the job.

At 25 years old, Greg Hawk was LBCC Head Baseball Coach. With little time to prepare, few contacts, and a part-time faculty job, recruiting was unconventional. "That first year was my 'Telephone Ballclub,' and we were 22-22."  It was 1984.

In 1985, the Roadrunner squad led by Hawk won the league title and would win five titles in the next six years. The team won the NWAACC in 1988 and again 1991. Hawk was voted Coach of the Year seven times, and was Rawlings National Coach of the Year in 1988 and 1991.

Pitcher Kevin Logsdon attended LBCC and played for Coach Hawk. Logsdon was drafted and played major league baseball. A Logsdon home-run remains a vivid memory for Hawk. "He hit a three-run dinger against Lower Columbia (College) that won it," Hawk recalled.

I looked up, in between taking notes. Greg Hawk was smiling, and I could see through that big grin, into his eyes. I could see a man that cared about kids.

He went on, "We went up to Bellevue and won a 10-inning 1-0 ballgame to win the NWAACC Championship. Our pitcher, Kenny Neilson, went all 10, and Gary Boyer drove in the winning run."

Hawk taught first aid, health courses, and physical education  in addition to being the head women's basketball coach. "Strategy was important, but conditioning proved a competitive edge," said Hawk. In the four years that Hawk led that team, they were 40-8 in league and 82-32 overall. Conditioning indeed.

Hawk's women's teams won two league titles and Hawk was Coach of the Year twice. In 1985, the lady Roadrunners, led by Coach Hawk, were third in the NWAACC.

As the longtime coach looks towards retirement, after achieving so much, I asked what he thinks about.

"The playoffs."

The current edition of LBCC Baseball is a game out of first place, and Hawk looks forward to the NWAACC Tournament, especially with this team. "I'm goin' up there, but I want to bring these guys with me," he said, grinning.

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This team has chemistry and cohesiveness, and some characters too. "Coach Ryan Godfrey is the team comic," Hawk said. At 26-12, the team is poised to make the playoffs.

After 1,100 games, and 600 wins, Coach Hawk is used to playoff runs. I asked about the bullpen, which has lost middle reliever Cody Blount, and Hawk replied, "We're good." Who is your best pinch hitter, I asked. "Lee Stoops."

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Current LBCC outfielder Taylor Higgins, when asked how he came from Reno, Nev., to play college baseball in Oregon, said, "I wanted to play for Coach Hawk."

South Albany grad, Pete Kenny didn't play at LBCC, but has known Coach Hawk for most of the 30 years, "He was my best man at my wedding," Kenny said.

Arguably the team's best player, and definitely the Gold Glove of this team,  Shortstop Austin Hamilton heads across country to play next year. In recalling Coach Hawk's influence, Austin's father, who met Coach Hawk during the recruiting process. "We met Coach Hawk after Austin's senior year(high school) and we loved him. We still do," Scott Hamilton said.

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Run and hit, or hit and run?

I asked this via email, and the response was "Run and hit!!" The emphatic double exclamation, a metaphor of life with Coach Hawk's enthusiasm. The response was not returned by email, it was handwritten and handed to me personally.

The guy is "hands on."

In the years Hawk was also LBCC's athletic director, he attended almost every home game. Of every sport at Linn-Benton.

Corvallis Knights President, Dan Segel, summed up Coach Hawk's influence:

"After being deemed ineligible at the University of Washington, I came to LBCC and matured. Coach Hawk instilled confidence in me."

When I asked Segel to describe Hawk in one word, the response was quick. "Enthusiasm," Segel said.

The LBCC skipper loves a good pro baseball game, and the history and texture is in Hawk's blood. "The sights, the sounds, the smells." He follows the Minnesota Twins and the St. Louis Cardinals. He likes the outdoors, and spoke of riding bikes as a hobby. "I'm gonna ride a bit when this is all over," Hawk said.

On Tuesday May 14, 2013, the end of an era at LBCC, took place. On a quiet little ballfield, maintained by the team, Greg Hawk coached his last home game. "I enjoyed coaching and teaching equally, and I will be around baseball, just not a head coach."

The crowd at this Game was larger than normal, and Coach Hawk's family watched from the 3rd base line. As I stood there among the women, I asked Beth Hawk what keeps her and the coach so close.

"We are soul mates," she replied.

And although this story is for the LBCC community and the campus newspaper, The Commuter...

My hat is off to you Coach Hawk, you are an inspiration.

Thank you.

Coach Greg Hawk : A 2013 Roadrunner Photo Gallery