Parkrose United Methodist Church is beginning a weekly "Monday Evenings In the Garden" series in its community garden. The first meeting was held July 12, and meetings will continue weekly.

The church describes this group as:

Community time in the garden each week together building community and attending to the soul:

◊ Checking in with each other on garden progress

◊ Sharing insights about your favorite vegetables

◊ Sharing poetry/meditations from: our own garden experiences, from creation spirituality resources, from world religion and “hands-in-the-dirt” spiritual practices and sharing resources and action potential around environmental issues.

During the first meeting, participants sampled nasturtiums, edible flowers with a strong peppery taste. Many participants had never tried nasturtiums before! Some members also brought fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs to share.

Meetings begin at 6:30 p.m. in the community garden at PUMC, 11111 NE Knott Street. Gardeners from outside the community garden are welcome.

The garden... (more)

Food and other items destined for a Ugandan orphanage were stolen recently from a storage container belonging to Abundant Life Church, which has a campus in Parkrose as well as in Happy Valley.  The storage container was also located in Parkrose, at 6339 N.E. 112th Avenue (near the airport).

Portland police are also investigating a couple of recent robberies. Crime Stoppers has issued alerts for suspects in an April 2 robbery at the Key Bank on NE 102nd Avenue and a pair of robberies January 27 that involved both the Plaid Pantry at NE 102nd and Glisan and a Plaid Pantry at 2010 N. Killingsworth.

Parkrose Community United Church of Christ is moving in with Parkrose United Methodist Church! Parkrose Community UCC has sold their building, and will now occupy Miller Hall on the Parkrose UMC campus at 11111 NE Knott Street.  Both congregations will continue to maintain separate identities, while sharing space and fellowship activities.  Parkrose UMC already hosts an Oromo Seventh Day Adventist congregation... (more)

According to a tweet from the Rev. Chuck Currie, Parkrose Community United Church of Christ marked its two-year anniversary as an open and affirming congregation on Sunday, May 17.

Open and affirming groups are, according to the UCC Coalition for LGBT Concerns,  "congregations, campus ministries, and other bodies in the United Church of Christ which make public statements of welcome into their full life and ministry to persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities."

Eastside Foursquare Church is in business -- as the operators of the Quality Inn and Suites/Rodeway Inn and Sacred Grounds Coffee Shop at 9727 NE Sandy Blvd.  They've recently made the news via the Religion News Service; here's the article in the Abilene Reporter News.

The Quality Inn and Suites is also offering a holiday special -- book a Festival of Lights package at $89 (which is their normal room rate) and get two free tickets to the Grotto Festival of Lights (a $15 value).  The Festival of Lights package is available from November 28 to December 30.