![\"Beverly](\"http:\/\/pdxpeople.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Beverly-Harmon.jpg\")
<\/a>Beverly Harmon is at a bit of a crossroads. She had been a careerwoman for a successful law firm, working for them as a paralegal for nearly thirty years. Now, she is 65 and looks at a whole new life, an entirely new chance to start something fresh. What will she do in retirement? <\/span><\/p>\n I hope I go into it with the attitude she does. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019re lucky, you get older, but you never get old,\u201d she says, a truism we could all stand to remember.<\/span><\/p>\n She makes this remark as she explains how she survived a breast cancer scare in 2015. She is a survivor and is proud of it. She mentions how she loved being an artist and used to paint. She knits and counts on these hobbies and passions to keep her going. <\/span><\/p>\n This mentality? Likely driven by her life growing up, as is the case for so many (all?) of us. There\u2019s a lot to tell. Interviews like these could go on for hours. <\/span><\/p>\n Born in Wyoming, Beverly lived on a ranch 38 miles from the nearest town. Yet, as happens for many country kids, she wound up in the city, living with her grandparents. After graduating high school, Beverly got married and had a child.<\/span><\/p>\n It was then that she, with her husband and new baby, hit the road to Alaska. There was an oil boom happening at the time \u2013 during the 1970s and 80s \u2013 and Beverly\u2019s family went there not just for money but for the excitement of moving to a frontier town. <\/span><\/p>\n Then, on her final year up there, Exxon Valdez happened \u2013 the huge oil spill that dumped nearly 11 million barrels of oil into the into Prince William Sound\u2019s Bligh reef in Alaska.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI spent time in Valdez washing oil from the fur of sea otters,\u201d she explains. \u201cThey have a very thick fur\u2026 we would wash them for four hours with soap and then rinse them for four hours.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n And yet, still, after all that?<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cMost of them died,\u201d she states sadly, yet quite bluntly. <\/span><\/p>\n It is a stark reminder of the mark humans have made on this planet, and the mark we continue to make. And long memories bear justified grudges.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI will run out of gas and be stranded for days before I buy another Exxon product,\u201d she says. <\/span><\/p>\n It was the following year \u2013 1990 \u2013 that she and her (ex)husband moved to Portland where she was following his job and being a mom.<\/span><\/p>\n Though life has taken her many places, having been here for nearly thirty years now, Beverly loves Portland and surely has the authority to call it home. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI like its quirkiness,\u201d she says. \u201cAll the lovely shades of green and just being able to get out into the woods quickly for a walk, access to vegetarian food,\u201d she trails off, yet could go on.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cNot so easy in Wyoming,\u201d she says, finalizing the point. <\/span><\/p>\n She goes on to explain how proud she is and how much love she has for her family, including her step-daughter, a one Holly Harmon, who perhaps herself might want to become a PDX Person interviewee (hint, hint)? We\u2019ll ask.<\/span><\/p>\n Either way, what an honor to have had Beverly here to share her story. Whether she is out volunteering, serving over 28,000 meals last year with her church, checking out a new waterfall, or knitting, she adds the charm that is exactly what we look for in <\/span>PDX People<\/a>. Thanks, Beverly, for letting us in on it.<\/span><\/p>\n Click Here to Read More Articles on – People from Portland<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n William Bessette<\/strong> \u2013 PDX People Contributor<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Follow William on: <\/strong> Facebook<\/a>\u00a0, Twitter<\/a>\u00a0 Connect with William on:<\/strong> LinkedIn<\/a><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>William Bessette is a journalist and freelance writer who has been covering politics, entertainment, culture and travel for over thirteen years. When he\u2019s not profiling Portland-area restaurants and residents, you can find him reporting on national and international travel and eco-tourism through his travel brand, <\/em><\/strong>Floppy Hat Adventures<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n
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