Nancy Bray (revisited)

January 2007: As a kid growing up in Lane County, Nancy Bray earned summer spending money picking beans in area farm fields. “I became aware that there were families out there picking for their basic needs,” she says. Bray volunteered with the Migrant Ministry while in high school, and, later, at the University of Oregon, she boycotted the EMU for serving non-United Farm Workers union lettuce. Since graduation, she has taught in Springfield schools for 30 years. When she began teaching English language learners in the mid-’90s, one of her first bilingual assistants was Guadalupe Moreno, recently arrived from Baja California. “I had two years of English classes at LCC,” Moreno says. “I was lucky to get the job and help the Latino community.” Since 2003, Bray and Moreno have worked together as director and coordinator of the Lane Education Service District’s Migrant Education Program, providing educational and social service support to children of migrant workers.

2022 update: After retirement from Springfield schools in 2009, then four years working in UO’s Education Studies, Bray joined the board of her neighborhood association, Friendly Area Neighbors (FAN). “I was a founding member of the FAN Equity Action Team,” she notes. “We were concerned about increasing racist graffiti and vandalism. Our first project was a yard sign: ‘All are Welcome Here — Honoring Diversity and Human Rights.’ The signs are popular in the neighborhood.” Then, in 2017, Friendly area neighbor Dr. Ed Coleman II died. A UO professor of English and folklore who taught African American literature, an acoustic bassist who toured with jazz bands, a civil rights activist and a UO track and field official, Coleman was recognized by the Eugene City Council, who renamed the Westmoreland Park Community Center in his honor. “Our team decided to put a mural on the building,” Bray reports. “We applied for a grant from the city and easily raised matching funds. We interviewed Ed’s wife, Charmaine, and others, and hired muralist Jessilyn Brinkerhoff, who designed the mural and finished it in 2019.” The mural depicts Coleman as a musician and an English professor. It was so successful that the team landed a larger grant for two additional murals. “It used to be a drab building,” Bray raves, “and now it’s gorgeous!” View the murals online at FriendlyAreaNeighbors.org/dr-edwin-coleman-jr-center-mural-project.html.

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!