Fort Worth Star-Telegram from Fort Worth, Texas • 53

Section A Page 26 Fort Worth Star-Telegram Saturday September 3 aboraood Ne Neig NEAR NORTH SIDE R1VTR0AKS Lions phone for MD 4 I The River Oaks Lions Club will join more than 2 million volunteers Sept 4-5 to raise money for theJerryLewisMuscularDystro- phy Association's Labor Day )( Weekend Telethon In 1993 the River Oaks groups raised more than 1 500 for the telethon This year volunteers wjll meet at 6 pnvSept 4 at Dick tjart-man's office at 5150 River Oaks Blvd Volunteers will work untij midnight Sept 4 and from 7 apvr to 5:30 pm Sept 5 r') Linda Whartuii -y ydyc -y V' y-y r-y -v yv r-- Fort Worth Star-Telegram STEVEGARIEPY Pre-schoolers take a stroll past Sam Rosen Elementary Neighborhood sustains strong heritage while eyeing today's needs iff' a '3 I didn 't realize really how nice our neighborhood looked It went down but it is coming back" Aliene Pokluda Northside Neighborhood Association member Iffy y-'- DIAMOND HILLJARVIS YjN SI 6 Saturday at the library nc Parents and school-aged chijn dren can receive tutoring in En-E glish language skills or reading 7 from 10 am to noon Saturdays a while their younger children at-fl tend a bilingual storytimeat am at the Diamond HillJarvis library branch 1 300 NE 35th Themes of the Saturday storyT timeforchildren3to lOare "Honey!" Sept 3 Grandparents Sept 1 0 Stars Sept 1 7 and Book Sept 24 Other library activities include "Communicating with Children" presented by the Pa- renting Center at 1 1:30 am Sept 3 Diane Lovell's "Enchanting Amazonia" photo and artifact collection through Sept 1 0 and tutoring and roving readers Call the librarian at 624-733 1 for tutoring and reading schedules LAKE WORTH Art group meets Arlington artist Don Mullins will demonstrate oil landscape painting at the Northwest Art Association's first fall meeting at 7:30 pm Sept 6 at Ford Community Center Telephone Road and Mer-ritt Street Association President Bee Ro- manoff will update the group on'the ual arts and crafts show and members will vote for picture arid craft of the month '-'s" Elra Whitney-Parker WHITE SETTLEMENT n-'iii Learn to dance Free country-western and ball-' room dance lessons resume Sept'7 at the White Settlement Senior Services Center 82 1 1 White Set tlement Road Level 2 and 3 classes are taught Wednesday after-'' 1 noons and Level 2 and 3 classes are taught Thursday afternoons For information or to enroll call the center 246-66 1 9 or dance teacher Pat Nasche at 237-4472' Alan Woods AZLE Pancake breakfast The Father Emil Gerlich Council of the Knights of Columbus will host a pancake and sausage break fast from 7:30 to 1 1:30 am Sept 1 1 at St Thomas the Apostle par-' ish hall 2920 Azle Ave The cost' family Proceeds will benefit the! Texas State Charities Program Call 237-9368 for information The Father Emil Gerlich Council was awarded the Star Council Award for 1 993-94 The council qualified for this honor by receiving the Columbian Award the Father McGi vney Award and the Founder's Award ni WESTPOINT Artists and crafters wanted The Westpoint Neighborhood Association is seeking artists and crafters to display their wares at thegroup'sannual family fall festival from I0amto4pmOcL'22ll at George Markos Park at Academy Boulevard and Farmers Branch Street To register for display space call Geri Cronenworth at 246-8 1 47 by Oct 1 Volunteers are also needed to help with the festival GregCeesa RIDCLEA 11 Preschool stories "Gretchen the Dog Docs Tricks" is the theme of preschool storytime at 1 1 am Sept 9 at the Ridglca branch library 3628 Bcrn-ie Anderson Ave Other highlights of the storjes (More PEOPLE AM) EVENTS neit page) Residents along tion said he wants to see public transportation in the area to bring people to the jobs at Alliance Airport the Federal Express center and other employers in north Fort Worth The area is home to many small businesses including garages beauty salons small restaurants air-conditioning repair shops and gas stations Francine Pratt executive director of the Northside Inter-Church Agency said the businesses don't offer many job opportunities for people living there because they operate on shoestring budgets Census data show that few of the neighborhood's residents have jobs in management or administration while approximately 60 percent work in manufacturing and service-related industries The 1994 estimated average household income for the area is TARRANT COUNTY 1 31 Eff tl: Editor's note: This is one in a series of profiles of Fort Worth neighborhoods By Elizabeth Campbell Fort Worth Star-Telegram The near north side area of Fort Worth is a picture of contrasts ranging from streets lined with stately trees and panoramic views of downtown to graffiti-covered industrial buildings and streets in need of repair Rich in history and tradition as it is close to the National Stockyards Historical District the near north side lies within the general boundaries of Jacksboro Highway 28th Street North Main Street and Grand Avenue It boasts some of the oldest landmarks in Tarrant County such as Marine Park and the one-room Marine School-house built in 1879 The Stockyards meat-packing plants and railroads drew im- migrants to the north side from many countries including Mexico Greece and Germany According to 1 994 estimated US Census figures more than 70 percent of the people living in the near north side are Hispanic I Residents speak with pride of -their neighborhood's history and its contributions to the growth and development of Fort Worth But also express concern about de-terioratingstreets crime and improving the appearance of the neighborhood Aliene Pokluda a member of the Northside Neighborhood Associa-! tion said that taking pride in the wealth of old trees and varying ar-' chitectural styles is important But she also tries to coax residents into working harder to clean up the area "I'm looking for neighborhoods to be upgraded in terms of people following city ordinances where cars wouldn't be parked in yards Fifteen 91 1 i Fifteen Tarrant County emergency call-takers have received the first statewide "Silent Hero" awards created to recognize people who are the foundation of the 9 1 1 emergency response system The Tarrant County winners who represented nearly one-fourth of the 61 statewide winners were chosen for their positive attitudes professional appearance flexibility in assignments admiration of co-workers willingness to be "CA4Hy Grand Avenue are keeping their The grace of old homes tree-lined streets and landmarks evidences the community's history and character $3440 1 In terms of education census figures show that around 19 percent of the residents age 25 and older graduated from high school around 1 0 percent completed two years of college and around 2 percent received bachelor's degrees Street repair is another priority for the area Pokluda said that many streets lack curbs and gutters and that the Northside Neighborhood Association has talked to the city about the streets since it formed 1 0 years ago In spite of the problems people Bill Leader River Oaks Police Department Karen Elmore Saginaw Police Department Don Whorton Tarrant County Sheriffs Office Terri Tate Westover Hills Police Department Amy Nutt Arlington Police Department Cathy Lynch EulessJPolice Department We need more code enforcement officers in the area People however are working on the appearance of the neighborhood by cleaning up trash" she said Crime is another concern for near north side residents Several Citizens on Patrol groups such as the Boulevard Barrio Association and the Belmont Terrace Association have been organized in recent years to combat the crime problem Ben Mercado 6 1 drinks coffee with friends at Joe Garcia's Bakery 2 1 40 Main St where the talk drifts from concerns about crime to memories of growing up during a time when people sat on their front porches and discussed the day's events "I don't really go out much at night anymore because of all of the crime" Mercado said He said he wants to see meetings between the police and area residents Despite resident concerns or perhaps because of them thefts assaults and rapes during January-July 1 994 declined 1 7 percent compared with the same period last year according to Fort Worth police figures Misdemeanors such as vandalism remained the same Many near north side residents express concern about employment and street repair Jesse Aguilera president of the Northside Neighborhood Associa- dispatchers team players and performance beyond the call of duty at all times The winners will be honored during a Sept 8 "9 1 1 Day" awards luncheon in Austin "Our telecommunicators truly are the backbone of the 9 1 1 system" said Bill Nunn Tarrant County 911 executive director "9 1 1 Day gives us a great opportunity to publicly recognize the success of emergency response here and affirm the exemplary ser 'Ttwi5 lawns in good shape seem to enjoy living on the near north side because such amenities as drugstores doctors' offices and groceries are close at hand The drive downtown takes about 1 0 minutes and Ridgmar Mall is about 1 5 minutes away The area also has a diverse collection of churches including an American Indian Baptist Mission All Saints Catholic Church St Dcmetrios Greek Orthodox Church and others from denominations such as the Assemblies of God Southern Baptist and Church ofChrist And neighborhood activists say that the near north side is getting better "I didn't realize really how nice our neighborhood looked" Pokluda said "It is improving It went down but it is coming back I'm noticing people taking pride in their yards and keeping their houses up more" Terri Meador Keller Police Department Fritz Omlor Mansfield Police Department Kimberly Killion North Richland Hills Police Department Sharon Dyer Richland Hills Police Department Jodi Foster Southlake Police Department 1 arrant County 91 1 across county win statewide awards vice given by all of our call-takers to Tarrant County residents for the last seven years" Tarrant County dispatchers honored as Silent Heroes include: Calvin Montgomery Ben-brook Police Department Kathy Enriquez Blue Mound Police Department Anna Stapleton Fort Worth Police Department Mark Dana Ned-StarFort Worth.