Tag: Blake Helm

Meet Our RARE AmeriCorps Participant: Blake Helm

Posted on by Julia Havens

Blake Helm RARE Resource Assistance for Rural Environments

Blake Helm received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from The University of Texas, Austin. After attaining his Bachelor’s degree, he went on to complete a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in GIS from Penn State University before moving on to work with Lane Council of Governments, Willamalane Parks and Recreation, and the Army Corps of Engineers on an array of GIS related projects. Needless to say, Blake is more than efficient when it comes to GIS. Blake applied to RARE AmeriCorps – Resource Assistance for Rural Environments in hopes of further developing a skill set that will allow him to find work in his most desired career field – planning and community development. Following his year with the RARE Program, Blake plans to apply to the University of Oregon’s Community and Regional Planning graduate program.

Blake is placed with Port of St. Helens, which is a special district focused on the creation and sustainment of jobs, primarily through the use of transportation infrastructure, land sales and leases, and access to bond finance. The Port of St. Helens’ mission is not only to recruit new businesses but also to help industries that currently exist. The Port of St. Helens works with numerous businesses as Port tenants that provide hundreds full-time jobs. Approximately 2,600 acres of property split between a general aviation airpark, a public marina, and a combination of light and heavy industrial zoned sites exist within the Port’s boundaries.

With the Port of St. Helens, Blake will carry out an array of planning activities. Specifically, Blake will use GIS to develop a more sophisticated mapping of Port properties for marketing and development efforts, provide vital assistance with the complex permitting process needed for further development of the Port Marina, assist with compiling various grants, and help address an increasing need to develop more robust Emergency Management Plans.

Organization: Port of St. Helens
Community: Columbia City, Oregon
Population: 49,351
County: Columbia

ready. . . set. . . SNOW!

Posted on by Julia Havens

Top Story on the News Tonight: Snow

Just about every community in the state of Oregon is hunkering down for snow, snow and even more snow. Levels range from 1 to 3 inches along the south coast to 7 to 10 inches in areas east of the Cascade Range. The National Weather Service says the cold weather will last through the weekend and transition to milder and wetter conditions (a.k.a. rain) by the middle of next week.  With that in mind, the Resource Assistance for Rural Environments-RARE AmeriCorps participants took a moment to share photos of their community’s first winter wonderland conditions before the rain washes it all away.

Resource Assistance for Rural Environments - University of OregonThe mission of the RARE Program is to increase the capacity of rural communities to improve their economic, social, and environmental conditions, through the assistance of trained graduate-level participants, from across the US.  These RARE AmeriCorps participants live in and serve 25 rural Oregon communities assisting in the development and implementation of projects for achieving a sustainable natural resource base and improving rural economic conditions. The markers on the map represents the 25 RARE placements throughout Oregon for 2013-14.



Special thank you to Andrew Barbier, Aubrey Erwin, Jeremy Goldsmith, Laura Goodrich, Maggie Hanna, Julie Havens, Katherine Hayes, Blake Helm, Gabby Pauling, Maddie Phillips, Rebecca and Jason Sergeant, Saira Siddiqui, and Titus Tomlinson for sharing their photos with us.