Jefferson High School - Spectrum Yearbook (Portland, OR)

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Rationing Board To help in the difficult job of seeing that everyone gets his fair share of sugar, gasoline, coffee, shoes, and canned goods, many commercial students are working at the rationing board. These girls spend from two to four hours filing all the information about each person registered at each board, typing out files and other necessary items, or doing other such office work. This leaves the regular members of the board free to interview the people who come with various problems, and saves time, energy, and manpower which are so vital now. And not only are these patriotic girls helping in the war effort but they are gaining experience in the way of office routine which will be valuable to them in later years. Victory Garden A Victory Garden is the thing this year. Some people are pessimistic about Victory Gardens because of the way they failed last summer after the first big showing. But this year they must work. The rationing of canned goods has forced people to buy fresh fruits and vegetables. But with the labor shortage the farmers can not grow as many fruits and vegetables as needed so we must have Victory Gardens. Therefore, we Jefferson boys and girls are spending our spare time in gardening. We have bought seeds of many varieties and have planted them in that little patch of ground behind the house. We weed our gardens, water our delicate plants, and measure each little shoot as it comes up. Finally, out comes a full-grown carrot or tomato or radish fit for a king and all the better because we grew it ourselves. Now we can laugh at any food shortage, and know that we have helped our country. We realize that we cannot win the war unless everybody helps.

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Victory Book Campaign When service men have leisure time, instead of always going to a movie or can- teen, they sometimes like to go off by themselves and read. But since the camps have not had enough reading matter, the men often have had nothing to do. Therefore, the Red Cross is sponsoring the Victory Book Campaign to obtain good books for the men to read. The Library Guild is carrying out this campaign at Jefferson. They collect best sellers, good detective stories, and recent technical books. Those are the kinds of books the boys want to read. They do not like dull reading any more than we do. It is for their entertainment, so the books we like the best are the best books to give. Many have already sacrificed their favorite novels; that is, if that can be called a sacrifice. We should feel that we can at least give up a few books for the enjoyment of those who are sacrificing everything for us. Employment Bureau One of the projects relative to the Victory Corps is the employment bureau under- taken by Philomatheans. This employment bureau was established for the benefit of women in the Jefferson district who are working and need outside help. A survey was taken of Jefferson girls who wanted to work. A file was then made and placed in the counselors' room. When someone calls asking for help, immediately a girl is found who is willing to work at the time required. The girls who answer these calls do light housework and care for children. Those that are willing to harvest crops are working in the fields on Saturday.

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4-H Club Even before the war the 4-H club did fine and important work. But now in war time their work is even more valuable and important. The development of skills and responsibility is essential for the successful carrying out of the war and the peace after- ward. and the 4-H club is one of the best ways of gaining this development. The 4-H club teaches cooking, sewing, meal planning, etc., to the girls, and farming, gardening, raising of animals, etc., to the boys. The best in these various activities receive the honor of going to Chicago. The members of the 4-H club have exhibits of their work at the county fairs, and if they receive a certain prize, they can enter their exhibit at the state fair. After being in the 4-H for so long, one can work up to be a leader and control other 4-H members. The 4-H club was started by the Department of Agriculture and is carried out through Oregon State College in Oregon and the Portland Public Schools in Portland. Shipyards Working at the various shipyards in Portland, many Jefferson students are fulfilling their Victory Corps pledge and at the same time aiding the war effort. Some girls are working full shifts in the offices and some boys are working full shifts in the yards. These students are releasing men and women for the armed forces, or for a more skilled job. They are sacrificing their time building ships so that some soldier might not have to give his life. They are doing one of the things that the youth of America can do to further the war effort.