Adults
Our Adult Program inspires community members with dynamic offerings that spark creativity, build connection, and support mental and physical well-being. From clubs and workshops to open gyms and evenings of connection and play, here’s always something new to join. If you would like to apply for financial assistance for any of our programs, please click here.
Workshops, Classes & Events
Clubs & Groups
Workshops Classes & Events
Author Readings at Sellwood Community House
Three Wednesdays in february, march & april | 7:00-9:00 pm | free | SCH
Join SCH and Sarah Bunger, series curator and two-time Moth GrandSLAM Champion, for a series of local author readings. Enjoy listening to authors read excerpts from their books, followed by a moderated discussion and question & answer session. Books & beverages will be available for purchase, with snacks provided on the house. We hope you can join us for one or all of our author readings!
Past Authors Have Included:
Have a book you would like to share at a future author reading? Please click here to fill out our author interest form! We plan events on a quarterly basis, so it may take a little while for us to get back to you…but thank you for your interest!
Rocco Jaconis and Secret Creek
Sunday, August 23 | 4:oo-5:30 pm | SCH | Free, RSVP HEre
Join us for a lovely afternoon with Sellwood resident and local author Rocco Jaconis, for readings and conversation from his memoir, Secret Creek. Drinks & refreshments included.
About Secret Creek:
Stories shape our lives. We carry them with us everywhere. Read about Ziarella and her pig, Black Trout, Capuzzelle, The South Bronx, The Catskills, Calabria, Norwegian Strawberry Cake, and much more as Rocco Jaconis shares some of his stories.
About Rocco:
Rocco Jaconis, son of Calabrian immigrants, was the first in his family to earn a college degree. A native of the Catskills, he graduated from Cornell University on a Regents scholarship, with a BSc. in wildlife management, and the University of Parma, Italy with a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine. With multilingual fluency his empathic tales are enriched by his wry humor and affinity for the natural world.
Tai Chi
Thursdays | 1:00-2:00 Pm | $18 or $80 for a 5-class punch card/ DROP-IN | the shack at sellwood park
Summer Classes will take place at The Shack at Sellwood Park
Tai Chi for Health is an introductory class for both beginners and anyone returning to Tai Chi after taking a break. This class practices the Yang style, short form, which consists of 24 forms. Tai Chi helps us all with balance and slow breathing, feeling calm and strong in our bodies. Come join us and find out how joyful movement can be!
Swedish Staff Gymnastics
Wednesdays | 1:00-2:30 Pm | Free | the shack at sellwood park
June 17-August 19
Classes will take place at The Shack at Sellwood Park
Swedish Staff and Wand Calisthenics is a holistic approach to strengthening and stretching the whole body that is suitable for almost anyone. It is a versatile system of simple, yet dynamic movements that bring relief to stiff and immobile joints; while building muscle for functional strength and daily activity.
These calisthenic exercises are the creation of Pehr Henrik Ling; a Swedish doctor who lived in the late 1700’s and is considered to be one of the creators of modern gymnastics and exercise. He believed that gentle daily exercise was the basis to long term health and vitality. His system of exercises for the staff and wand reflects that philosophy by using a simple stick to manipulate the internal tension of the human body to adjust and correct imbalances in the muscles and fascia.
Summer Solstice Altars: Holding Grief & Joy
saturday, june 13 | 12:00-3:30 Pm | $180, Register HEre | SCH Meeting Room
The Summer Solstice Altars: Holding Grief & Joy, invites participants to honor the fullness of their inner landscape at the height of the light. Through creating personal altars with clay, we will explore joy, growth, intention, and the quieter presence of grief. Working with clay offers a grounding and restorative process that supports reflection, expression, and gentle healing.
In this one-day workshop we will create, be in community, explore ritual, and hand-build personal clay altars as weather in community to create and share a ritual, honoring both what is blooming and what feels tender.
This experience offers a supportive space where joy and grief can be held side by side, led by grief-tenders and ceramicists, Daria Matza and Amanda Feaver.
Wednesdays
Portland Go Meetup
wednesdays | 6:30 pM-9:00 pm | free | meeting room
Join us for an evening of Go, a strategic 2 player game with lots of theory & philosophy around it. Also known as "baduk" or "the surrounding game." We have a limited supply of boards; if you have one you can easily bring along, please do!
Open to all skill levels, new players encouraged!
Mah Jongg Nights
1st, 3rd, and 5th Thursdays | 6:15-8:30 Pm | Free | SCH meeting room
Join this growing group of players for an evening of American Mah Jongg. ALL experience levels welcome, come and learn with us!
Book Club
fourth thursdays | 6:30-8:30 Pm | FREE | SCH meeting room
* Please Note, book club will meet the third Wednesday in march!
Join this lively group of readers to discuss each month’s book choice.
Dates & Reading Selections:
March 19: Tilt by Emma Pattee
April 23: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
May 28: The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali
June 25: Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
July 23: Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy
Saturdays
Portland Haiku Group
Second saturdays | 1:00-3:00 Pm | $3/ DROP-IN | SCH
Come together to share haiku and similar short poems, and support each other in the development and appreciation of poetry originating from Japanese culture. Contact Shelley Baker-Gard for more information: sbakergard@msn.com
Summer Dates: June 13, July 11, August 8
Please Note: Portland Haiku Group will meet at The Shack in Sellwood Park on Saturday, August 8.
Pickleball
Check back soon to reserve a 90-minute pickleball slot in our air-conditioned gym, starting mid-June on Wednesday and Thursday evenings.
Club Incubator
We ❤️ Clubs! Sellwood Community House is all about bringing people together to meet friends, make friends, and build community. Many clubs have formed under our roof, and we would love to add to that list! If we don’t offer something that sparks your interest, come to us with your ideas and we can help connect you with others who might like to start something new!
Interested in Leading a Class or Club at SCH, or Proposing an Event?
Are you interested in bringing a class or workshop to SCH, either? Tell us more about your idea here!
Interested in more offerings at SCH?
Is there a class you would like to take, or a club you would like to join, that we aren’t offering yet? Please let us know by filling out this class interest form, and thank you for sharing your ideas with SCH!
Need financial support for our Adult & Senior programs?
Apply for our scholarship program!