Shriver's legacy unfolds in a Head Start classroom in Portland | OregonLive.com

Shriver's legacy unfolds in a Head Start classroom in Portland

Published: Friday, January 21, 2011, 5:07 PM Updated: Friday, January 21, 2011, 5:23 PM

Beth Nakamura/The OregonianTatiyana Lewis, left, 4, plays with Brooklynn Keith, 4, during breakfast Friday at Applegate School Head Start in North Portland. R. Sargent Shriver, a founder of Head Start in 1965, died Tuesday; his funeral is today.

A continent away from the halls of power where R. Sargent Shriver gave his life to public service, one of his most significant legacies comes to order in a North Portland classroom.

"All right, friends, time to stop talking and finish up," says teacher Barbara Rhiger to a table of six 4-year-olds in tiny chairs.

The discussants conclude their exchange about food, Play-Doh and rain to bear down on orange slices, a little cereal and milk. Then it's time to engage the brain, for D is the letter of the week.

Head Start, the federal education program begun in 1965, lost a founder Tuesday when Shriver died at age 95; his funeral is today. Since Head Start's creation under President Lyndon B. Johnson, more than 25 million children under age 5 have learned their numbers and colors through