INFLUENTIAL~MmmCOOOODEdited by Zach Dundas IPhotographs by Andy Batt( ONTRIBUFORS ( ’i/ /bui 1,1 I / ",U),i(I /) Y\/7(!S 1( 2(/J G"(/pp,(// (II? /’J /( /k}I / (// 10 / 1\( /( 1/101 0/ \ /t 1 (1(i/ /) , / /)f I/o11 1( (f/Il/il 1/01/1/k 1 0/h / / i11 I /0 I( / ( j )I( ,Il(I0II(I 11 i//I l(J/l N. WI SuiilOi /(I 1(1PORTLANOMONTHLYMAG.COM I JAN 2012 1 49
HE WORD "INFLUENmeans many thingsPortland, the adjectcould apply to electpoliticians, radio tashow hosts, and pocal consultantsalwhom we chose noname here.What matters fo:city figuring out wit wants to be when it grows i.if it wants to grow up) isn’t inence alone, but how the influtial meld their sway with othqualities. Vision. Clout. JudgiTaste. Connection. Principle.Gravitas. Andin a time inanother key element, power,be so fleeting (ask the mayorthe president)momentum.Change is at hand. Portlandwill restock city council with =faces. The city’s old economycontinues to sputter, but techstart-ups and small businesseare percolating. Our populatiodiversifying, as are the marketeverything from our lumber (China can’t get enough of) toindie rock bands. Huge instituare redefining themselves fornew era that other, more nimland youthful enterprises haveready begun to create.With all of this in mind, hero people (including a few groiwe think possess the spark amto craft Portland’s future. (Addown choices at portlandrnont]mag.com/power.) We hope yoagree that this eclectic roster Fnesses enough raw energy to iience any citywhatever influmay mean right now.NicholeMaherA 1Vniii’’ jI,IIrII/0 Ii /11,0111! ’,’/i/ir/111/0tl/I1/I/II/1/it 11/Il Ill! In’ iii!’SIGNATURE MOVE: At age 22 in 2001,Maher became leader of the NativeAmerican Youth and Family Center(NAYA). Since, the nonprofits annualbudget vaulted from $215,000 to $10million, in the city with the ninth-highesturban Native American population,NAYA now serves 10,000 people a yearwith education, social, and cultural ser -vices. Kids in NAYA’s education programare five times more likely to graduatehigh school than other Native children.WHAT’S <strong>NEXT</strong>: On a growing list of communityroles, this Tlingit tribal memberand mother of two serves on GovernorKitzhaber’s education investmentboard, set to redesign education statewidesheatheyoungest member. (MB)James Curleighii’c’:.’SIGNATURE MOVE: Aside from haulingin $200 million last year? Guidinghis company’s cash into creative philanthropy(like sponsorship of ambitiousnew-media coverage of the Gulfoil spill) and building a superefficient,15,000-square-foot factory to makeshoes on Swan Island.WHAT’S <strong>NEXT</strong>: Untucked and tousled,the 45-year-old may look crunchy, butKeen now aims for blue-collar workers,with a new line of steel-toed boots.Meanwhile, the company’s own footprintgrows: in November, Keen nabbedNike merchandising vice president RonHillto amp up its retail efforts. (BC)Don KrahmerSIGNATURE MOVE: This 54-year-oldcorporate attorney (at <strong>Schwabe</strong>, <strong>Williamson</strong>&<strong>Wyatt</strong>)hashelcl aroyalfiushofICON KEYinfluential posts, from past presidency’ill, lilllil1. 1, , i tof the elite Arlington Club Loa current01 ;i11[ltii IIbl 1 iU1111111’,!Weigh50 1 JAN 2012 1 pORTLANDMONT’(MAGCOMseat on the }iegence Blue Cross hoard.The soft-spoken Hillsboro native useshis dense Rolodex to connect promisingyoung players with each other andwith established mentors. A Krahmer -orchestrated dinner is a networker’sdream of nonprofit leaders, buddingbosinessfolk, and aspiring politicians.WHAT’S <strong>NEXT</strong>: Krahmer bridges oldboys-clubPortland and the fluid, morediverse networks of today. Says oneadmirer, ’He’s pivoted from connectingthe powerful to focusing on 20- and30-somethings." (ZD)Dan Ryanliii’ ’’’ii’ 01/1111111/I’ di,iiii,?, 1!:rlu/1:/f/ll,’,7 ’ , ii .’ .1/0.10/Ill! ,Olo 1’.SIGNATURE MOVE: In three years atopthe Portland Schools Foundation, Ryanrealized the nonprofit’s work boostingPortland Public Schools’ budget wasn’tenough. ’We needed to get outside thecity," says the 49-year-old former OregonBallet Theatre fundraiser. Enter Cradleto Career, a push by all six big Moltnon-rahCounty school districts, includingfast-growing East Portland schools,to improve dropout rates. Ryan’s outfitadopted a new name (All Hands Raised)to match its new mandate,WHAT’S <strong>NEXT</strong>: Ryan recruited a highoctaneadvisory council, fueled moreby business, government, and nonprofitplayers than traditional educators, tosteer a complex mix of achievement andsocial-equity initiatives. "We can all talkabout what’s wrong;’ Ryan says."A lot ofpeople want to//x what’s wrong," (ZD)Stephanie Snyderii,I 1’ ,,iIio’iSIGNATURE MOVE: In her eight yearsas curator and director of Reed College’sCooley Gallery, this Oregon-born,ileed/Columbia/Universityof Londonschooleddynamo openect the insular collegeto mainland Portland, presentingnew work by international artists andcollaborating with institutions acrossthe city. She also writes for Art roroai,curates shows (like the current ii1t,’I’io),Margins at the Lumber Room), nominatescontenders for major fellowships,and oversees a seven-year-old programthat exposes school kids to art,in on Portland’s influence peddlers in our poll:faceboOk.COm/P0rtla*m0flth1Yfliag
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