Dorothea Marie Lensch (1907–2000) was the first director of recreation at the

Portland Parks & Recreation Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) is a Bureau of the City of Portland, Oregon that manages the city parks, natural areas, recreational facilities, gardens, and trails; properties that occupy more than in total. The bureau employs a total of 4,36 ...

bureau from 1937 until 1974. She founded the

Portland Children's Museum Portland Children's Museum was a children's museum located in Portland's Washington Park, adjacent to the Oregon Zoo. Founded in 1946, Portland Children's Museum was the sixth oldest children's museum in the world and the oldest west of the Miss ...

and was a founding member of the

Portland Opera Portland Opera is an American opera company based in Portland, Oregon. Its performances take place in the Keller Auditorium and Newmark Theatre, both part of the Portland Center for the Performing Arts. Portland Opera also produces a separate su ...

Association and the Japanese Garden. During her time with the Portland Parks Bureau, sixteen recreation centers were added to the city.

Early life and career

Lensch was born in

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

on October 5, 1907. In 1929, she was awarded a bachelor's degree in physical education at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

and, in 1930, a master's degree in health from

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a Private university, private Women's colleges in the United States, historically women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henr ...

in Massachusetts. In 1966, she completed a PhD in health, physical education and recreation from the University of Oregon. Lensch's believed that individuals should have a wide variety of recreational activities to choose from and the parks programming should be aware of and responsive to people's needs. In 1943, thousands of soldiers trained for

WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

deployment in Portland's shipyards. These soldiers, as well as shipyard workers, swelled the city's population. A parks report under Lensch's directorship notes that the newcomers would adjust to Portland life more easily if they experienced "personal satisfaction" and called for providing recreation "to every age level, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, within walking distance." Swimming, horseshoe pitching, table tennis, archery, knitting, woodcarving, painting, sketching, folk dancing, pageants, community sings, garden groups and first aid classes are among the recommended activities for the Parks Bureau to provide. In 1946, she founded the

. She created specific programming to meet the needs of children with disabilities as well as the elderly. In 1963, members of the community accused Lensch of discriminatory hiring practices and of not listening to feedback from black community members. Lensch died in Portland on July 27, 2000.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lensch, Dorothea 1907 births 2000 deaths People from Portland, Oregon