We’re assembling this newspaper on a Tuesday, like we have done every Tuesday since 1997 (OK, besides six weeks during that pandemic…).
Tuesday is always a big day for us — but this time, it’s also a big day for the USA. Right now, our reporting team is out and about, gaining insights from candidates as they wait for election results. Before we put this paper “to bed” on this Tuesday night, we’ll include the most up-to-date results from before midnight on Election Day. Still, so much will be resolved in the days following Election Day, so be sure to check out bendsource. com and our daily newsletter, the Cascades Reader, for the very latest in local elections. (Sign up for our newsletters at bendsource.com/newsletters.)
In one of my notes to readers in the Cascades Reader last week, I joked about how the election was scarier than Halloween. A reader told me she thought that was stoking fear – and maybe she was right. However you voted this election, it’s the job of all of us to remain calm, to allow votes to be counted and re-counted if necessary, and to remember that democracy is the work of all of us to create and preserve. Thanks for doing your part, readers!
LIGHTMETER:
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
EDITOR
Nicole Vulcan - editor@bendsource.com
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Julianna LaFollette- reporter@bendsource.com
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OPINION
The Plan for Juniper Ridge is Tenuous — and Temporary – at Best
We’ll at least hand this to the Deschutes County and City of Bend officials who have worked these last several months to come up with a plan for the houseless individuals camping at Juniper Ridge: They’re doing something. But is that something more of a stopgap than an actual solution?
After several fires cropped up there this summer, neighbors in the area were justifiably concerned and wanted their governments to do something to mitigate the risk. The status quo was not tenable. A joint agreement between the City and the County now aims to shut down most of Juniper Ridge to unsanctioned camping by the end of May, creating a “Safe Stay” area for vehicle-only camping on the portion of Juniper Ridge between the railroad tracks and Highway 97. The Temporary Safe Stay Area will be roughly 40 acres in the first year and be reduced to 20 acres the second year. After that, the plan is to eliminate this facility all together.
It should be clear this is far from a lasting solution.
County and City officials finally settled on that agreement last month, in hopes of securing funds that remain out there under the American Rescue Plan Act. But even as they inked that deal, staff members from the two entities disagreed on their interpretation of the law around the siting of emergency shelter facilities. This clash between staffers is nothing new.
County staff believe the plan won’t be approved by state officials, because the land they’ve identified for the Temporary Safe Stay Area is zoned Exclusive Farm Use, County Commissioner Phil Chang told the Source Weekly. City staffers see it otherwise – citing Section 6 of the emergency shelter bill, 2021’s HB 2006, that says, “Any political subdivision in this state may allow churches, synagogues and similar religious institutions to offer overnight camping space on institution property to homeless persons living in vehicles.”
So that’s one area of concern that could stand in the way of any action at all being taken on Juniper Ridge.
Another concern: the interpretation made by the City under that section of the bill allows only for camping in vehicles. But visit the current residents of Juniper Ridge and you’re likely to find people living in various means of shelter — tents,
DIY cabins and so on. When the land is cleared this spring and local officials tell people they must leave or go live in the Temporary Safe Stay Area, how many people will even be eligible to go there, without an RV or other vehicle?
So even if we manage to overcome the land-use hurdles that Chang is concerned about, there will be people who are displaced by this move.
And even with interventions from the case managers planned to work at the site, will there be anywhere else for the non-vehicle dwellers to go? It sounds a whole lot like another round of whack-a-mole that will see as-yet-unaddressed public lands, like China Hat, increase in population.
And even if the people without vehicles are by some miracle secured into housing, there’s still the temporary nature of this plan. It’s only for two years. Then, as the joint agreement stipulates, the Safe Stay Area will be closed. The ARPA funds that will hopefully fund this temporary Safe Stay Area will be spent, with no easy funding source, like that pandemic-era pot of money, readily available to fund a more permanent sanctioned camping area. Are we going to magically solve homelessness in these two years, so that when we close that area, no one else will be displaced?
Bend badly needs a sanctioned camp that allows for camping of many types. We’d be remiss if we didn’t point out that Redmond, with a far smaller population, is nearing completion of its own sanctioned camp — also a joint agreement between city and Deschutes County officials. In light of that, it’s even more frustrating to see such temporary progress happening a little farther south.
These are the many questions and the half-step solutions we currently face. The status quo of continuing to allow unsanctioned camping at Juniper Ridge is a health and safety issue that has the potential to affect the entire community. But this current solution is tenuous — and temporary — at best.
Letters
IN RESPONSE TO THE PILOT BUTTE INCIDENT WITH CHILD BRINGING GUN TO SCHOOL
Did you also know, Oregon ranks near dead last for mental health care in the nation, and ranks dead last for mental health care for youth in our nation?
I remember being told this statistic somewhere around the last two years I was working in the high schools as a school counselor.
Our hands were tied. Unless an individual was ACTIVELY a danger to self or others —presently going through a school and shooting, (which studies show a psychotic break is generally only a time window of 10 minutes, give or take) nothing could be done. Preoccupation with self-harm or other harm, talk of harm. Nothing. We could strongly encourage interventions and support, provide referrals, but unfortunately those were often ignored or fell through. Leaving an individual to only escalate further in their mental health breakdown.
A great book that further describes this issue in lay person's terms is this one, which depicts a father's journey with trying to get interventions for his ailing son in our broken system: goodreads.com/ book/show/402432.Crazy
It really paints the picture of what needs to change.
Terrible things like this most recent incident at Pilot Butte can largely be prevented. People can be helped. It is the humane thing to do. And more shootings will continue until we fix our broken system.
Look beyond just labeling it a gun control issue.
Look at the broken mental health care system.
We don't ban cars because people are careless, distracted and/or drink and drive.
Fix the human, fix the problem.
If you, or someone you know struggles with a mental health care need, or if you have lost someone to an unmet mental health care need — know that we are in a broken system. There is not enough funding, resources, facilities or procedures to follow through on someone that needs preventative or responsive services.
What can YOU do to help? Like a First Aid Card, get your annual Mental Health First Aid Training done. It is as Wonder Woman says, “It’s not about deserve. It’s about LOVE. Only love will truly save the world.”
We must come together as a community and as a nation to care for each human being.
—Diana Prince
HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY? Send your thoughts to editor@bendsource.com. Letters must be received by noon Friday for inclusion in the following week’s paper. Please limit letters to 250 words. Submission does not guarantee publication. Opinions printed here do not constitute an editorial endorsement of said opinions. Letter of the week receives $5 to Palate!
MY YARD SIGN IS A WILDFLOWER
In my little patch of earth between the street and my lawn, is a garden. We plant wildflowers here. Not just red, white, and blue, but every color of the rainbow.
Wildflowers are my political affiliation. My candidate, the Cosmo, is not afraid to appear frivolous, in a silky pink pantsuit of petals.
Peonies are registered to bloom every day of the week.
Here, we vote for Marigolds. We vote for the rogue squash that survived our compost pile which sprung up, nourishing us beyond the feast for the eyes, and the bees, and the butterflies.
Here, we vote for daisies as yellow as the sun, violets black as night, and cow cockles as white as the moon. We vote for Monarchs who live on humble diets of milkweed. Our royals wear rich purple and blue, but they are simply cornflowers.
My candidate never makes demands, never asks for money. They only bob their head in the wind, Saying, “Yes, Yes, Yes.”
The promise of a wildflower is that it starts as a small seed in which contains a universe. Packed inside its husky capsule, its DNA includes the plans for its growth, its economy, its prosperity, its happiness. It believes in itself to deliver life and hope. It can’t help but keep its campaign promise to unfold into something beautiful. To change the world.
We trust the wisdom of the wildflower. Wildflowers know that everyone belongs in this little patch of dirt.
When the wind blows, Dandelion comes to town. Dandelion grows happily
alongside intentional plantings. We know this because there is peace here. Their neon-yellow pom-poms are the cheerleaders of the earth. They only grow a few inches from the ground but hold their heads high. They have joy. They belong in this garden.
Wildflowers are my yard signs. Their beautymore fabulous than the global aristocracy, says it all. They never strive for it, they simply just are.
They just let that rain, and the sunshine fall on them, softly.
THIS WEEK ON
Yes, they will live and die in a season, but during their short lives, they reflect cosmic glory, on this little patch of earth between here and eternity.
— Dominique Ovalle-Kongsli
Letter of the Week:
Dominique: During a week when there is so much uncertainty and anxiety in these United States, I hope your poem brings a perspective to people’s days, as it did mine. Come grab your Letter of the Week gift card at our office!
—Nicole Vulcan
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Police Investigate Election Day Threat at Mountain View High School
Bend Police responded to a report of someone possibly armed with a gun near the football and baseball fields at Mountain View High School on Tuesday morning. At about 8:30am, a caller reported seeing a man in his early 20s wearing a white shirt and a blue baseball hat, possibly carrying a pistol, according to a press release from Bend PD.
A Bend Police School Resource Officer, who was at the scene, along with Bend Police and Deschutes County Sheriff deputies, responded to the area. The high school went into lockdown initially, then changed to secure status, with the front door serving as the only entrance available to those arriving to school.
Bend PD used drones to search the area, and officers in vehicles and on foot searched the campus, along with the parking lot and surrounding neighborhoods. Police were unable to locate anyone matching the description. The school left secure mode around 9am. School Resource Officers and police remain on the scene to ensure there is no threat to students and staff, according to the press release. An increased police presence continued throughout the day.
—Julianna LaFollette
A Rise In Mailbox Break-Ins Around Bend And Redmond
Ballots may be among the mail officials say has been stolen from boxes in Central Oregon
By Julianna LaFollette
Reports of people breaking into mailboxes in and around Deschutes County have spiked this fall season, according to officials, leading to an ongoing investigation.
6,000
“We
don’t
-The number of pieces of bread baked by Big Ed’s on an daily basis. From the Chow story, “Big Ed’s is Bend’s Biggest Secret Bakery.”
want it to ever feel like you’re buying a subsidized home. You’re just buying a home.”
-Amy Warren, founder of housing nonprofit Thistle & Nest, from the Feature story on the nonprofits of Central Oregon Gives.
Oregon’s Gov. Kotek warns against election violence, would deploy National Guard if needed
By Lynne Terry, Oregon Capital Chronicle
Gov. Tina Kotek issued a reminder against election violence on Tuesday, saying any attempts to undermine the election will be stopped.
In an email to the Capital Chronicle, spokesperson Roxy Mayer said any voter intimidation or criminal acts aimed at undermining the election would not be tolerated and that the governor’s office is closely monitoring
the situation, working with local, state and federal agencies to ensure Oregonians can safely vote.
Portland has a history of election violence. Last week, an arsonist attacked a drop box outside Multnomah County Elections offices in southeast Portland before dawn. Only three ballots were damaged but could still be counted. A drop box in Vancouver was also attacked, and hundreds of ballots were destroyed because the fire suppressant there didn’t work. That was the second ballot drop box attack in Vancouver last month.
Police believe all three attacks are connected.
—Compiled by Nicole Vulcan
Since Oct. 15, the Bend Police Department has seen an increase in reports of community mailboxes being forced open, or attempts to do so. Bend PD also noted reports of some mail found in piles on trails or empty lots.
“We have definitely received more reports of this in the past two weeks or so than we typically do,” said Sheila Miller with Bend PD.
According to Miller, the locations of these community mailbox break-ins have varied greatly, with at least one in northwest, northeast and southeast Bend. The mail Bend PD recovered was found unopened.
While reports in Bend seem to have increased, a more significant problem has occurred in rural areas of Deschutes County.
“The ones that I’m aware of are in the rural areas between Bend and Redmond,” said Deschutes County District Attorney Steve Gunnels. “Although, I’ve read reports of others occurring around the county.”
The increase, Gunnels noted, has generally occurred this fall. As of Oct. 31, some individuals have been charged with mail theft in Deschutes County, but there are still more out there, according to Gunnels.
“Some of the mail thefts occurred after those individuals were in custody and in the jail, so those individuals were not involved in the later mail theft,” Gunnels told the Source Weekly.
Typically, mail theft occurs when thieves go through mailboxes looking for letters containing cash or inactivated credit cards that they can activate and use quickly. This most recent rash of mail theft has occurred right around the time ballots were coming out, said Gunnells, so, there is a concern among residents that people were trying to steal ballots.
The usual motives for mail theft involve stealing something of value or identify theft, not ballots. Gunnels noted that there may have been ballots stolen and disposed of in recent weeks.
Deschutes County advises people to track their ballots or call the Deschutes County elections office and ask if their ballot has been received. If someone is missing their ballot, the County is able to mail them a replacement ballot, provided
the request is received with sufficient time for mailing, or they can pick up a replacement ballot in person at the County election office.
Reports and posts from residents about mailbox break-ins have also surged on social media in the last few weeks.
Colin DuPlantis, who lives on the east side of Bend outside of the city boundary, reported that his mailbox was one that was targeted.
Being in a rural area, he shares a "cluster" mailbox with a dozen or so of his neighbors. Last week, he went to his box and noticed that the mail lock, which the postal carrier uses to open the entire unit, had drill marks, metal shavings and scratches around the lock, indicating an attempted break-in.
While he later found out that the thieves were not successful in opening his box, other boxes in the area were reportedly broken into. DuPlantis didn’t get his mail for a few days as the post office had to replace the lock.
Bend PD recommends people pick up their mail every day, even if it’s in locked community boxes. People should also be cautious about mailing cash or leaving cash or credit cards in outgoing mail, added Gunnels.
Jason Wall with the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment on the situation, citing an active investigation. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, responsible for defending the nation’s mail system from illegal or dangerous use, was also unable to comment due to ongoing investigations into the crimes.
“Utilizing proven fraud detection and loss prevention strategies and countermeasures, Postal Inspectors will continue to actively identify attempts to compromise the mail system our Nation is depending on during this critical time,” Justin Lothyan told the Source Weekly in an email. “In doing so, the Inspection Service will be working closely with our state and local law enforcement partners, as well the Federal Bureau of Investigation, to respond to and investigate election crimes involving the U.S. Mail.”
According to the USPIS, inspectors arrested nearly 9,000 suspects for theft of mail and packages from 2018 to 2023. A March 2024 report concluded that beginning in 2020 and continuing into 2023, the Postal Service experienced a nearly 139% increase in reports of high-volume mail theft, with 20,574 reports in 2019 and 49,146 reports in 2023.
Julianna LaFollette
As Election Day ends, we at this newspaper are sending this election page just before midnight, when Donald Trump won Pennsylvania, and appeared to take the presidency. While that was a blow for Democrats, in Oregon, results showed a positive night for the Democratic ticket. Here’s a recap of our local coverage from Election Night.
Janelle Bynum Leading in Congressional District 5
By Jennifer Baires
Arace that could tip the balance of power in the U.S. House is happening right here in Oregon's Congressional District 5, which includes Bend, Sisters, parts of Redmond and suburban areas of the Portland metro.
Janelle Bynum (D) led incumbent Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R) with 47.87% to 42.13% of the vote late Tuesday, according to early numbers. If Bynum holds on to her lead she will become the first Black woman to represent Oregon in Congress.
Bynum is in her fourth term as the Oregon State Representative for House District 39 representing Happy Valley
and North Clackamas. She and Chavez-DeRemer have faced off twice before, in 2016 and 2018, when running for Oregon's House District 51. Each time Bynum won.
It is, potentially, a consequential flip in a district that was long considered a toss-up according to polling throughout the general election. With a district that is 32% registered Democrats, 27% Republicans and 34% unaffiliated, CD5 is one of the few seats in the nation considered to be in play. The race received intense attention and funding from political action committees.
Kent Vander Kamp Projected Winner in Deschutes County Sheriff's Race
By Jennifer Baires
The acrimonious race
for Deschutes County Sheriff is nearly at an end with Sgt. Kent Vander Kamp leading Capt. William Bailey with 59.12% of the vote, compared to Bailey's 40.31%, according to the county clerk’s 10pm Tuesday update.
Vander Kamp joined the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office in 2006 as a reserve deputy and was promoted to detective sergeant in 2019. His campaign was mired in controversy early on when outgoing Sheriff Shane Nelson opened an internal investigation into
Vander Kamp’s then-unknown history as a reserve officer at a Southern Californian police department.
Embattled retiring Sheriff Nelson’s endorsement and support of Vander Kamp’s opposition, Bailey, played prominently into the election. Bailey has worked at DCSO for decades, joining as a reserve officer in 2000 and being promoted by Nelson to captain in 2022. Critics of Bailey say that he should have done more to distance himself from Nelson and his history of alleged retaliation and favoritism.
Ed Fitch Leads in Redmond Mayor Race
By Julianna LaFollette
Redmond's mayoral race included three candidates in 2024, with current Mayor Ed Fitch, sitting City Councilor Cat Zwicker and "depopulationist" Charles Baer vying for the seat.
Incumbent Ed Fitch beat out Charles Baer and Redmond City Councilor Cat Zwicker in early results of the Redmond Mayoral race, with nearly 58% percent of the votes as of 10pm.
Broadman Takes Lead For Senate Seat, Levy Holds Onto House Seat
By Julianna LaFollette and Jennifer Baires
In the race for the seat to be vacated by Sen. Tim Knopp, the Republican disqualified from running again due to repeated walkouts, a clear winner has emerged.
Anthony Broadman beat out opponent Michael Summers in early results with about 59% percent of the votes, as of 10pm updates Tuesday. Broadman joined the Bend City Council in 2020. He works as an attorney for tribal governments and small businesses and the Chief Judge of the Warm Springs Court of Appeals. His opponent, Summers, serves as the chair for the Redmond School Board, runs a family business and is a drummer for local cover band, Precious Byrd.
early returns Tuesday night. Levy, a renewable energy attorney who lives in Bend, narrowly flipped the seat in 2022 by just over 500 votes, a fact that fellow Democratic House Represenative Jason Kropf (D-OR54) reminded her of during victory speeches on Tuesday night.
"It's so incredible what you were able to do in your first term," Kropf said to Levy before handing over the microphone to her.
"I did not see this big of a margin coming," Levy said before thanking her family and campaign staff for their support and dedication during the election.
“I can guarantee you that for the first time in 40 years, you're going to have a Democratic state senator who will show up for you,” said Broadman during his speech after the early results at 8pm. “Tonight, let's celebrate. Let's work even harder tomorrow for our community.”
Emerson Levy (D) looks to maintain her seat in Oregon’s House District 53, leading with 55% of the vote in
Keri Lopez (R), who ran against Levy, has served on the Redmond School Board since 2021 and owns a homebuilding business with her husband. House District 53 includes north Bend, south Redmond, Tumalo, Sisters, Eagle Crest and Black Butte. It is fairly evenly split between registered Democrat (31%), Republican (27%) and non-affiliated (34%) voters, according to the Secretary of State's most recent numbers.
Bend City Council sees returning members, with some newcomers
By Julianna LaFollette
Four positions were up for grabs on the Bend City Council in the November 2024 election, with eight candidates vying for a chance to serve the city of Bend.
In early returns, incumbents Megan Norris and Megan Perkins appeared to keep their seats, with newcomers Gina Franzosa and Steve Platt appearing ready to join the Council.
"I'm kind of overwhelmed and very thankful," Platt told the Source Weekly Tuesday. "It's a lot of responsibility, and I feel like I've been extended a lot of credit by the community, and so I take that really, seriously. I want to validate that credit, I want to pay it back with interest. It's important to me to just really really dig in and be the best informed that I can."
JuliannaLaFollette
JanelleBynum
KentVanderKamp
StevePlatt
PICKS
THURSDAY 11/07
CONNECT W MUNCH & MINGLE
NETWORK, MUNCH AND MINGLE
ConnectW is connecting professional women over a delicious meal every first Thursday of the month. Munch & Mingle events are an opportunity for networking, friendship and business sharing. Thu., Nov. 7, 11:45am-1pm at Madaline’s Grill & Steak House. 2414 Highway 97, Redmond. Cost of Meal.
SATURDAY 11/09
CELESTIAL CELEBRATIONSCORPIO
A ZODIAC SIGN CELEBRATION
Pangaea Guild Hall is hosting a celebration of those born under the star sign of Scorpio. It will be a night of bespoke cocktails, fine food and more all set in a 1930s vintage house in downtown Redmond. Sat., Nov. 8, 6-11pm at Pangaea Guild Hall. 652 SW 6th St., Redmond. Free. SATURDAY 11/09
CENTRAL OREGON FILL YOUR PANTRY
BULK-BUYING FARMERS MARKET
Fill Your Pantry is a community bulk-buying farmers market created to encourage local food security and food sovereignty. Those interested can choose to pre-order items, shop the day of the event or both! Sat., Nov. 9 , 11am-3pm at Deschutes County Fairgrounds OSU Extension. 3800 SW Airport Wy., Redmond. Free.
Redmond Art Show Boosts Cultural and Educational Opportunities
educational art programs
By Julianna LaFollette
Afree art show in Redmond will offer a wide variety of local art for folks to view and purchase, with a chance to help fund art education for Redmond elementary school students. The free Fall Art Show and Sale, organized by Dry Canyon Arts Association, will showcase art and one-of-a-kind gifts from over 40 Central Oregon artists, including Redmond high school students.
The nonprofit organizes bi-annual art shows in the fall and spring to help support and promote artists and makers. The organization’s mission is to encourage art and culture in Redmond and the surrounding areas. Last year, DCAA decided to move its art show from the Redmond Music Hall to Redmond High School, accommodating more people and art. This year, there are about 44 artists, nearly double the number it previously had.
“I'm absolutely astounded by the talent that we have in Central Oregon, it's just phenomenal,” said
Jay Lowndes with DCAA.
A few years ago, DCAA decided to introduce a raffle at its events to help raise more money for schools. Attendees can pay $5 for a ticket, or $20 for five tickets, for a chance to win a piece of art. These proceeds help fund supplies and programming at schools. According to Lowndes, the Redmond School District doesn’t have formal art
programs in its elementary schools.
In the last year, DCAA started its Jumpstart Art initiative, which hopes to raise $80,000 a year to help all eight elementary schools support, or start, art programs. As of Nov. 5, the nonprofit had enough funds to donate $3,000 to each of the eight schools. DCAA hopes to continue providing more opportunities for local artists and students.
“Although our nonprofit is not solely focused on art education, it's always been part of our vision as an association to educate the community of art with art, and a big portion of that is getting into the actual school district,” said Lowndes.
Fall Art Show & Sale
Sat., Nov. 16, 10am-5pm and Sun., Nov. 17, 10am-4pm.
A painting by Jennifer Ramerman is one of the raffle prizes available at the upcoming art show.
Jennifer Ramerman
Dry Canyon Arts Association presented Vern Patrick Elementary School with funds to bring a curriculum-based art project to the school last spring.
Dry Canyon Arts Association
Aumentan los robos de buzones en Bend y Redmond
Las papeletas
de voto pueden estar entre el correo que, según las autoridades, ha sido robado de los buzones
en Oregón Central.
Por Julianna LaFollette
Los informes de personas que rompen en los buzones en y alrededor del Condado de Deschutes se han disparado esta temporada de otoño, según los funcionarios, lo que lleva a una investigación en curso.
Desde el 15 de octubre, el Departamento de Policía de Bend ha visto un aumento en los informes de buzones de la comunidad que han sido forzados, o intentos de hacerlo. El Departamento de Policía de Bend también observó informes de algunos correos encontrados en montones en senderos o lotes vacíos.
"Definitivamente hemos recibido más informes de esto en las últimas dos semanas más o menos de lo que normalmente
hacemos," dijo Sheila Miller con Bend PD. Según Miller, las ubicaciones de estos robos en buzones comunitarios han variado mucho, con al menos uno en el noroeste, noreste y sureste de Bend. El correo recuperado por la policía de Bend se encontró sin abrir.
Mientras que los informes en Bend parecen haber aumentado, un problema más significativo se ha producido en las zonas rurales del condado de Deschutes.
"Los que yo conozco están en las zonas rurales entre Bend y Redmond," dijo el fiscal de distrito del condado de Deschutes, Steve Gunnels. "Aunque he leído informes de otros ocurridos en todo el condado."
El aumento, señaló Gunnels, se ha
producido generalmente este otoño. A partir del 31 de octubre, algunos individuos han sido acusados de robo de correo en el condado de Deschutes, pero todavía hay más por ahí, según Gunnels.
"Algunos de los robos de correo ocurrieron después de que esos individuos estuvieran bajo custodia y en la cárcel, por lo que esos individuos no estuvieron involucrados en el robo de correo posterior," dijo Gunnels a Source Weekly. Normalmente, el robo de correo se produce cuando los ladrones revisan los buzones en busca de cartas que contengan dinero en efectivo o tarjetas de crédito inactivadas que puedan activar y utilizar rápidamente. Según
Gunnells, esta última oleada de robos de correo se ha producido justo en la época en que salían las papeletas de voto, por lo que existe la preocupación entre los residentes de que la gente estuviera intentando robar papeletas.
Según el USPIS, los inspectores arrestaron a casi 9,000 sospechosos por robo de correo y paquetes de 2018 a 2023. Un informe de marzo de 2024 concluyó que a partir de 2020 y hasta 2023, el Servicio Postal experimentó un aumento de casi 139% en los informes de robo de correo de alto volumen, con 20,574 informes en 2019 y 49,146 informes en 2023.
- Traducción realizada con la versión gratuita del traductor DeepL.com
In honor of this week's Give Guide, the Source team spent some time exploring the stories of a few local nonprofits.
Families Supporting Families Kindred Connections offers the bonds of family for parents who need a helping hand
By Nicole Vulcan
For some, family members are the ones to step in when a parent needs help with child care, recovery from illness or other struggles that arise in life. But for others, a small calamity can balloon into a big one when there’s no one to lend a helping hand. Kindred Connections aims to be that type of family support for those who don’t have it. The program offers a helping hand to struggling families, offering support including child care, housing assistance, transportation, home stays and much more for families who are experiencing hardships.
“Kindred Connections is a team of allies who rally around families in crisis,” the program describes on its website. “Participating area churches mobilize volunteers who build relationships with families in times of hardship, and who open their homes to care for children while their parents cannot.”
While the program — a part of J Bar J — doesn’t work with families who are part of an active case with the Department of Human Services, the Kindred Connections program sometimes does stand as an alternative to foster care.
“Parents always remain the guardian, and it's voluntary on both ends,” co-founder Becca Beal described. “We have had one volunteer in particular — she's had so many families under her wing that she still keeps in contact with. She helped host
a teenager who essentially was homeless, and it was probably a two-year process, and this teenager just recently got married, and she went to the wedding, still talks to her, supports her from afar.”
Beal, a parent of two biological and two adopted children, was inspired to start the program, originally called Safe Families for Children, after seeing her sister-in-law participate in the Safe Families program in California. In 2012, Beal and co-founders Jana Hill and Chris Earwicker contacted the national branch of Safe Families and started one in Central Oregon, eventually merging its programming with J Bar J and changing the name to Kindred Connections.
Today, volunteers contribute thousands of hours monthly to supporting the families in its program. Area churches support the work by spreading the word and recruiting volunteers. Today, with the other two co-founders pursuing other endeavors and Beal less involved than in the past, she said she is grateful for the work the nonprofit does, and for the person who now keeps the program running.
“Hilary Metcalf has taken beautiful ownership of this program/ministry,” Beal told the Source Weekly. “Without her, Kindred Connections may not be still running. We are all so thankful for her involvement.”
At left, Kindred Connections began hosting these two girls about 10 years ago, according to cofounder Becca Beal, finding care for the girls while their sole parent attended a mandatory program. The families stayed in touch, with the host family continuing to support the
Photos courtesy Kindred Connections
A School For Learning Ranch Skills
A new nonprofit in Central Oregon is building community one homesteading class at a time
By Jennifer Baires
Beth Covert leans over a large table covered by butcher paper and scoops a softball-sized chunk of soil from a bucket near her feet. With practiced hands, she adds tiny seeds to the dark grey earth, blending and molding them into the dirt mixture while explaining to a small group of rapt onlookers that today she’ll help them make wildflower bombs for guerrilla gardening.
Covert is one of over a dozen instructors who lead workshops and classes at School of Ranch, a nonprofit launched in 2022 to bring together people throughout Central Oregon interested in learning new skills to support their modern-day homesteading goals. The classes are wide-ranging, including everything from soap making to animal husbandry, carpentry and food preservation.
On this Saturday morning, Covert is part of a small team from School of Ranch providing free workshops to the public at the last farmer’s market of the season in Sisters. The wildflower bomb lesson is a collaboration with Worthy Environmental, a nonprofit that advocates for conservation and natural and science education.
Mark Gross, the founder and executive director of School of Ranch, says collaborations like the one with Worthy Environmental, along with free-community events, are key to the organization’s goals of bringing together people
Homebuying Made Easy with Thistle & Nest
A fast-paced effort to help homebuyers find affordable housing
By Julianna LaFollette
Afrom diverse backgrounds and beliefs.
Gross started the nonprofit a year after he and his wife moved to a 10-acre ranch in Terrebonne, and he realized that watching how-to videos online to tackle projects around the property wouldn’t cut it.
“You can’t learn how to use a chainsaw on YouTube,” Gross said, chuckling. “The being live and face-to-face with a human is key.”
Over the last two years, through classes and workshops in spaces around Central Oregon, School of Ranch has taught over 1,000 students. And, according to Gross’ estimates, about 30% of enrollees in classes are repeat attendees.
Local experts lead the classes, and students are charged per class. The class payments, Gross said, go to the instructors and cover the cost of class materials. About a third goes back to School of Ranch for marketing. Other than three paid high school interns there are no paid staff members, Gross said.
Beyond teaching skills, Gross hopes that the workshops will lead to deeper community change. “It’s creating common ground in our society today,” he said.
School of Ranch
650-224-6750 schoolofranch.org
new nonprofit, helping homebuyers purchase affordable housing, has hit the ground running with about 460 homes in the pipeline in under two years. Created in March 2023, Thistle and Nest offers homeownership to people who qualify, while helping them build equity.
Founder Amy Warren has been in the construction industry for 22 years. In 2014, she founded Rooted Homes when it was named Kor Community Land Trust, a nonprofit providing affordable, zero-energy housing.
In late 2021, she left and joined forces with local developer, and co-founder of Thistle and Nest, Larry Kine. Together, they wanted to make a greater impact on a larger scale.
After some time workshopping the business, Thistle and Nest was formed as a nonprofit in 2023, the same year it was awarded about $23 million from Oregon Housing and Community Services.
“We had this little, young nonprofit that all of a sudden had $25 million in funding backing us. It was a big deal, and we were pretty excited to take it on,” Warren said.
Today, Thistle and Nest has planned developments in Bend, Madras and Prineville. Woodhaven, its first neighborhood underway in east Bend, will include 133 units once finished. Another in southwest Bend is set to create 104 homes.
“With the scale of homes that we’re building, it’s our goal and our hope that
if someone is buyer-ready, meaning they qualify for a loan and they have all their funding sources lined up, that we have a home for them,” she said.
To qualify for a home, buyers must make less than 80% of the Area Median Income for their household size. With this limit, a household of two can make no more than $67,000 a year.
With more affordable housing programs popping up around Central Oregon, Warren is excited to see more availability within the region.
“I feel like, finally, our town has a capacity where if you want to purchase a home and you’re under 80% of the area median income, there is something out there, opportunities and options.”
While Thistle and Nest has many projects set for the next few years, Warren hopes to always give buyers the best experience during the process –one of her favorite things about her job.
“It’s very important to me that our nonprofit treats every potential client that comes to our door with a level of dignity through, not just the home and quality of the home…but also in their interactions with us,” she said. “We don’t want it to ever feel like you’re buying a subsidized home. You’re just buying a home.”
Thistle and Nest
250 NW Franklin Ave., Suite 401. Bend, OR 97703 info@thistleandnest.org thistleandnest.org/en/home/send-us-amessage/
Courtesy of School of Ranch
Jennifer Baires
Above, Elly Jocham leads an introduction to soap-making class on Sept. 22, 2024. At left, Beth Covert, an instructor at School of Ranch, shows market-goers in Sisters how to make wildflower bombs on October 27, 2024.
Julianna LaFollette
Think Wild: Helping Central Oregon’s Wildlife, One Animal at a Time
How a Bend-based nonprofit is making a difference in the lives of local animals through rescue, rehabilitation and engagement
By Savannah Mendoza
If you spot a baby bird fallen from its nest or an owl tangled in fishing net, Think Wild is the organization to call. Based in Bend, this nonprofit provides critical care for injured and orphaned wildlife across Central and Eastern Oregon, helping animals get safely released back into the wild.
According to its 2023 annual report, Think Wild has experienced tremendous growth, with more people calling its hotline, and around 700 of wildlife patients arriving for care per year.
Think Wild’s mission, as stated on its website, is “to inspire the high desert community to care for and protect native wildlife through education, conservation, rescue, and rehabilitation.”
Founded in 2016 as a small wildlife rehab center, Think Wild has since expanded into a full-fledged wildlife hospital, hotline service, educational program and habitat conservation organization. With the guidance of Executive Director Sally Compton and Director of Wildlife Rehabilitation Pauline Hice, the Think Wild Conservation Center and Hospital opened in 2020, enabling the organization to provide top-quality care for native wildlife.
“It’s inspiring to see how many people care about animals and want to help,” says Molly Honea, Think Wild’s development and communications coordinator. “People across Oregon, regardless of background or beliefs, reach out because they genuinely care about wildlife. They want to do their part and come to us for help.”
Most animals arrive at Think Wild through hotline calls, with the team assessing the best treatment for each patient. The process begins with an intake exam to determine if x-rays, medications, physical therapy or time in a customized enclosure are needed. Before any animal is released, it must pass a “wildness test” to ensure it’s ready for life back in its habitat.
One recent rescue involved a Great Horned Owl caught in power lines, entangled in fishing line with a hook embedded in its wing. Thanks to a community member’s quick action, most of the fishing line was removed and the owl was put
in a quiet, warm, location overnight before being brought to Think Wild for care. Under the team’s watch, the owl received medications and rehabilitation including physical therapy to restore full extension as their wounds healed. Think Wild is cautiously optimistic the owl can recover and eventually return to the wild.
Think Wild is always open to volunteers and offers flexible ways to get involved. Volunteers can work hands-on in the hospital, assist with habitat restoration, staff events, join educational programs or help with projects like building nest boxes.
“Volunteers often play a meaningful role in each animal’s story, from rescuing an animal to helping with its daily care,” Honea explains. “Even those here just one day a week are part of the animal’s journey.”
Operating largely on community support and grants, Think Wild faces challenges around funding. “It can be challenging to feel confident about funding when it’s not guaranteed or consistent,” Honea says. Despite these obstacles, the organization remains committed to caring for the region’s wildlife with the help of local support.
Community members can help Think Wild through donations, business sponsorships, or volunteering. The organization also hosts trivia and bingo nights, offering fun ways to support local wildlife.
“People reach out to us because they care about an animal, and we exist because we care too,” Honea says. “Together, we work to make the outcome as positive as possible for each animal.”
More information about getting involved is available on Think Wild’s website. With ongoing support, Think Wild will continue to provide Central Oregon’s wildlife with the help it needs.
Think Wild
62410 Erickson Road Bend OR 97701
Hotline: 541-241-8680 info@thinkwildco.org
Above, a group photo of the Think Wild hospital staff and interns in 2023.
At right, a Great Horned Owl receives care from the Think Wild Team and volunteers after being brought in by a community member.
Below, the Wildlife Hospital is open 7 days a week, where the Think Wild team provides medical care and rehabilitation for injured and orphaned wildlife for release back to the wild. Volunteers through Think Wild can get hands-on experience in the Wildlife Hospital and help with daily care for an animal.
Courtesy Think Wild
Savannah Mendoza
Courtesy Think Wild
Courtesy Think Wild
SOURCE PICKS
WEDNESDAY 11/06
EXHIBITION ON SCREEN: VAN GOGH – POETS & LOVERS
A CHANCE TO UNDERSTAND THE ICONIC ARTIST
The Exhibition on Screen is a chance to reexamine and better understand the iconic artist Vincent Van Gogh. Focusing on his creative process, Van Gogh: Poets & Lovers explores the artist’s years in the south of France, where he revolutionized his style. Wed., Nov. 6, 6:30-8pm Sisters Movie House. 720 Desperado Ct., Sisters. $16.
THURSDAY 11/07
SALOMON SKI & RIDE FILM WATCH PARTY
RAFFLE SUPPORTING COAC
Grab your friends, have a beer and enjoy Salomon’s latest ski and ride films that will get you stoked for winter. Raffles and $1 from each beer and cocktail will be donated to support the Central Oregon Avalanche Center. Thu., Nov. 7, 6:30-9pm at Deschutes Brewery & Public House. 1044 NW Bond St., Bend. Free.
FRIDAY 11/08
RAINBOW GIRLS
A BAY AREA HARMONIZING TRIO
The Bay Area trio Rainbow Girls is composed of Erin Chapin, Caitlin Gowdey and Vanessa Wilbourn. The threesome self-released its latest album, “Haunting,” with songs that reflect on death, loss, trauma and overcoming fears. Catch The Rainbow Girls performance for a melancholy evening of music. Fri., Nov. 8, 7-9pm at The Belfry. 302 E. Main Ave., Sisters. $25
FRIDAY 11/07
IN THE ROUND: A SINGER/ SONGWRITER SERIES
FOUR SOLO MUSICIANS TAKE THE STAGE
Music In The Round is a concert format where solo musicians take the stage together, taking turns playing original songs. The singer/songwriter series includes Matti Joy, Ky Burt, Mark Quon and Lilli Worona. Audi ences can hear the artists discuss their songwriting process, including the stories and emotions that shaped the song’s creation. Thu., Nov. 7, 7-9pm at Open Space Event Studios. 220 NE Lafayette Ave., Bend. $15
FRIDAY 11/08
BACHY BADDIES GEAR SWAP
SNAG SOME WINTER GEAR
Bachy Baddies is hosting its first event of the season: a gear swap. Prepare for the winter season and attend the gear swap with winter gear including boots, outerwear, skis, snowboards, along with accessories such as helmets, goggles, gloves and more. Fri., Nov. 8, 4-6pm at Title Nine. 812 NW Wall St., Bend. Free.
BLIND PILOT
INDIE-FOLK BAND
American indie-folk band Blind Pilot was formed in Portland in 2007. The band will share new music, after a long-awaited eight-year hiatus, from Blind Pilot’s new album, “In the Shadow of the Holy Mountain.” Fri., Nov. 8, 8pm at The Domino Room. 51 NW Greenwood Ave., Bend. $32.50+.
SUNDAY 11/10
WINTER CLAY WORKSHOP WITH LA LUCE STUDIO
MAKE YOUR OWN CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS
Get ready for the holidays by making your own ornaments. Through the winter clay workshop with La Luce Studio, learn how to make ornaments with
SUNDAY 11/10
DRIED FLOWER WREATH MAKING WORKSHOP
SUSTAINABLY DECORATE
Sustainably decorate your home this fall and join Think Wild and Stumpmunk Farms for dried flower wreath making workshop. $1 for every beer sold at Bridge 99 will be donated to Think Wild during the festive and creative collaborative event. Sun., Nov. 10, 3-5pm at Bridge 99 Brewery. 63063 Layton Ave., Bend.
MONDAY 11/11
VETERANS DAY AT THE MUSEUM
FREE ADMISSION TO MUSEUM FOR VETERANS
In honor of Veterans Day, the High Desert Museum is proud to offer free admission to all U.S. Armed Forces Veterans. Check out the museum’s latest exhibitions, including the Blood, Sweat and Flannel exhibition. Mon., Nov. 11, 10am-4pm at High Desert Museum. 59800 S. Hwy. 97, Bend. Free for U.S Armed Forces
Blind Pilot Ticketmaster
Sally @ThinkWild
Rainbow Girls Evvnt Nicoles@HighDesertMuseum
Bachy Baddies
CALENDAR
6 Wednesday
The Cellar-A Porter Brewing Company Wednesday Jam Sessions Drink some fine cask or imported beers and try some amazing British pies while listening to local musicians jam out. 6:30-8:30pm. Free.
Craft Kitchen and Brewery Comedy Open Mic Sign-up 7:30pm. If you’ve ever wanted to try stand-up comedy, this is where you start! 8-10pm. Free.
Crosscut Warming Hut No 5 If and When Relax with a pint and enjoy great local music from If and When at Crosscut Warming Hut. 6-8pm. Free. Deschutes Brewery & Public House Head Games Trivia Night Eat. Drink. Think. Win! Head Games multi-media trivia is at Deschutes Bend Public House every Wednesday. Win prizes. Teams up to six. 6:30-8:30pm. Free.
General Duffy’s Waterhole Wednesday Night Open Mic Join Central Oregon School of Modern Music and General Duffy’s for the Wednesday night Open Mic! Play 3 songs. Groups of up to 3. Sign-up begins at 5:30. Food trucks, 25+ taps, drink specials! 6-9pm. Free.
JC’s Bar & Grill TRIVIA + Wing Wednesday! $.75 cent wing special all day and trivia kicking off at 7:30pm. Don’t forget the infamous “physical” challenge as one of the categories (think musical chairs, limbo, paper airplane throwing etc)! Get a free appetizer by winning that round and happy hour pricing all week for the winning team. 7:30-9:30pm. Free.
M&J Tavern Open Mic Night Downtown living room welcomes musicians to bring their acoustic set or turn it up to eleven with the whole band. Bring your own instruments. Goes to last call or last musician, whichever comes first. 21+. 6:30pm. Free.
Northside Bar & Grill Mellow Wednesday Acoustic Open Mic and Jam hosted by Derek Michael Marc Sign-up sheet is available at 6:30pm. 7-9pm. Free.
Prost! Bend Trivia Prost! UKB Trivia is now at Prost! Bend on Wednesdays at 7pm! Genuine UKB Trivia is no average trivia night! Meet up with friends, win gift card prizes for top teams! Enjoy Prost’s authentic beer and food menu. Trivia is free to play, with no buy-ins! 7-9pm. Free.
The Dez Lounge Paul Eddy solo set Join us for a solo set from local musician, Paul Eddy! Sip medicinal elixers, NA cocktails and enjoy charcuterie and desserts at The Dez! 6-8pm. Free.
The Vault Taphouse at Kobold Brewing Trivia Night Trivia Night at The Vault! Come test your knowledge and drink top notch local beer! 6:30-8pm. Free.
7 Thursday
The Ballybogs and Friends Grab a pint, relax and enjoy live music by an amazing group of artists that brings the best Irish trad music in Central Oregon. Every Thursday at The Cellar. 6-8pm. Free.
Austin Mercantile Live Music Every Thursday Join at Austin Mercantile for live music every Thursday. Offering a light happy hour menu — daily flatbread, chili, charcuterie, soft pretzels and more! 4:30-6:30pm. Free.
Bend Elks Lodge #1371 Bingo Bingo at the Elk’s Lodge. Win cash prizes. 6-9pm. $23.
9 Saturday
Austin Mercantile Saturday Afternoon Live Music Austin Mercantile is now adding live music on Saturdays! Serving wine, beer, lite happy hour menu, gifts and home decor. Hope to see you soon! 4:30-6:30pm. Free.
Bridge 99 Brewery Live Music Saturday at Bridge 99 Come enjoy live music at Bridge 99 Brewery in NE Bend. Rotating musicians, check our FB for who’s playing! Grab a beer and a pizza and enjoy our amazing local and traveling musicians! Looking for a location to play solo or with a band? Email events@bridge99brewery.com for more information. 6:30-8:30pm. Free.
American indie-folk band Blind Pilot was formed in Portland in 2007. After a long, 8-year hiatus, the band will share music from its new album, “In the Shadow of the Holy Mountain.” Fri., Nov.8, 8pm at The Domino Room.
Bridge 99 Brewery Trivia Thursday at Bridge 99 Brewery Trivia Thursdays at 6:30pm at Bridge 99 Brewery with Useless Knowledge Bowl. It’s no ordinary trivia night, Team up to win house gift cards! Great brews, cocktails, and more. In-house menu and food truck options available! It’s free to play. Indoor and outdoor seating available. 63063 Layton Ave, Bend. 6:308:30pm. Free.
Bunk+Brew Karaoke Thursdays Come out to Karaoke Thursdays from 7-10pm at Bunk + Brew! Whether you’re a seasoned singer or just want to have fun, everyone is welcome to grab the mic. Enjoy great tunes, food from our carts, and a laid-back atmosphere for all to enjoy! 7-10pm. Free.
Elements Public House Trivia Night at Elements Public House with QuizHead Games Come be all you can be with Trivia Night every Thursday from 6-8pm! Featuring QuizHead. games. Located at the north end of Redmond. Full bar and great food! 6-8pm. Free.
Mountain Burger Carl Vetis at Mountain Burger Come check out Carl Ventis at Mountain Burger’s Thursday Night Live. 5-7pm. Free.
Open Space Event Studios In The Round: A singer Songwriter Series Music in the Round is a concert format where solo musicians take the stage together, taking turns playing original songs. Audiences hear the artists discuss their songwriting process, including the stories and emotions that shaped the song’s creation. Tickets and more info available at openspace.studio/events 7-9pm. $15.
River’s Place Dust Devils Blues (old and new), swing, a little country and other fun stuff. 6-8pm. Free.
Silver Moon Brewing Trivia on the Moon Come down to Silver Moon Brewing for a night of trivia! Teams are welcome to show up in groups up to 8 people. Silver Moon also offers seating reservations for $20 donations that all go to F*Cancer! If you would like to reserve a table please contact the Trivia on the Moon Facebook page. 7pm. Free.
The Dez Lounge Captain Pedro /DJ Set Get into The Dez and Groove with Captain Pedro (Peter Butsch) coming from Port Orford to bring his beats. Enjoy NA cocktails, NA beer and wine, medicinal elixers, charcuterie and desserts while grooving to body moving beats. 6-9pm. Free.
The Lot Live Music with Dan Delion Newish to town! Welcome Dan Delion to our Thursday night live music series. His music is Buskin’ to Barrooms a walking contradiction of partly fact and partly fiction. Folk Singer, Song and Dance Man, Hard Travelin’ Storyteller. 6-8pm. Free.
Volcanic Theatre Pub Black Lips w/ Pancho & The Wizards & Profit Drama Boasting an unapologetic southern-fried twang, with a clang and harmony that is unmistakably the inimitable sound and feel of the Black Lips. Their songcraft and stylistic evolution are as infamous as their now legendary live shows. 7pm. $20.
8 Friday
The Domino Room Blind Pilot Blind Pilot, which consists of Israel Nebeker, Ryan Dobrowski, Kati Claborn, Dave Jorgensen, Ian Krist and Luke Ydstie, was formed in Portland, Oregon, in 2007 when songwriter Israel Nebeker and co-founding member Ryan Dobrowski went on a west coast tour via bicycle. Twelve years later, Blind Pilot has released three studio albums, 3 Rounds And A Sound (2008), We Are The Tide (2011) and And Then Like Lions (2016) and has sold out concerts throughout the U.S., Europe and the UK since its inception. The band has performed on Ellen and The Late Show With David Letterman as well as at Newport Folk Festival, Bonnaroo, and Lollapalooza, among others. 8pm. $32.50-$121.50.
Hardtails Bar & Grill Stage 28 Karaoke Come out for a night of Stage 28 Karaoke with your host Miss Min! What’s your go-to karaoke tune? Come to Hardtails for a fun Friday night and sing your heart out! 8pm-Midnight. Free.
Big E’s Sports Bar Karaoke Night Central Oregon’s most fun karaoke venue! Karaoke is hosted by A Fine Note Karaoke Too and DJ Jackie J. Delicious food and drink and a friendly staff. Come join the show where you are the star! 8pm. Free.
Velvet Bobby Lindstrom & Ed the Whistler Little blues and some whistlin'. 6pm. Free.
Volcanic Theatre Pub Hippie Death Cult w/ Kadabra and Slow Goat Hippie Death Cult is renowned for its electrifying and passionate stage performances. Its captivating stage presence has taken the band on tours across the United States, Canada, and Europe, where it hasgarnered a dedicated and growing fanbase. 7pm. $15 presale. $25 door.
The Domino Room Hot Buttered Rum Hot Buttered Rum, a souped-up, left-coast string band, is the brainchild of uniquely gifted musicians who weave their love of bluegrass, folk, jazz and soul into a riveting strain of Americana. String bass and five-alarm fiddle merge with guitar, banjo, mandolin, drums and keyboards to frame the voices of its two contrasting writers, fueling a dance party with roots in Appalachia and its branches in California. 9pm. $20.
Immersion Brewing Barrel Room
Bend Comedy presents: An Evening with Laurie Kilmartin Laurie Kilmartin is a comedian, writer, and author who has made her mark as a headliner with a unique blend of sharp, biting wit and deeply personal humor. Best known as a longtime writer for “Conan” and a finalist on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing”. 8-10pm. $25.
Northside Bar & Grill Long Gone Wilder Blues and classic rock favorites! 8pm. Free.
Pangaea Guild Hall Celestial Celebration - Scorpio A celebration of those born under the star sign of Scorpio. Join us for a night of bespoke cocktails, fine food, and more! Free admission, all ages. 6-11pm. Free.
Portello Wine and Spirits Live Music: Mark Creech Mark Creech comes from Santa Cruz, CA, and now spends most of his time in Bend. He plays a mix of crowd favorite sing-along classics, and dusty relics from the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s. Come out for a fun night of music, wine, cocktails, and tasty food! 6:30-8:30pm. Free.
Postdoc Brewing (Redmond) What’s So Funny About Happiness? Hailing from Bendnear the other Redmond is Anthony “Never Tony” Poponi. Anthony is the founder of Focus on the 40 and Humore. us Productions, is a stand-up comedian, international professional speaker, author and an expert in human happiness. “What’s So Funny About Happiness” covers Anthony’s comedic journey from a youth born in New Jersey to his current day home of Bend! Find out more about Anthony at www.humore.us, www. focusonthe40.com and https://www.linkedin.com/ in/anthonypoponi. 7-9pm.
River’s Place Saturday Jazz Sessions Jack Krouscup Trio. Jazz standards. 6-8pm. Free.
Sunriver Public Library Alpenglow Reed Trio Alpenglow Reed Trio is comprised of Alephair Bylund on clarinet, Kayla Golka on bassoon, and Ryan Zwahlen playing the oboe. Individually, the three can be heard in various ensembles throughout Central Oregon, including the Central Oregon Symphony and Cascade Winds. 2-3pm. Free.
The Oxford Hotel Jazz At The Oxford Saturday Morning Concert & Educational Workshop With Jazz/R&B Vocalist & Pianist--Sy Smith. The same artist who performed Friday night on the very same stage. Interact directly with Sy and band. Musicians are invited to bring their instruments, “sit-in” and be coached by the artist(s). www.desertjazz.net. Georges Bouhey. lessons@desertjazz.net 11am-1pm. Free.
Courtesy Blind Pilot FB
CALENDAR EVENTS
10 Sunday
The Astro Lounge Local Artist Spotlight Sundays This is a chance to listen to Central Oregon’s newest and upcoming local artists. They have earned their spot to perform a two-hour show, changing weekly, every Sunday. Support local top notch talent! 7-9pm. Free.
Bridge 99 Brewery Open Mic Comedy at Bridge 99 Get ready for a night of belly laughs at Bridge 99 Brewery! Join us for our Comedy Open Mic Night, hosted by the hilarious Hopper, now every Sunday! Whether you’re a seasoned comedian, trying stand-up for the first time, or just looking for a fun night out, this is the perfect stage for you. 7pm. Free.
The Commons Cafe & Taproom Trivia Night Sunday Funday Trivia with Sean. Gather your team, or roll solo and find a spot early in the cafe, knowledge tests begin at 6pm. Prizes for 1st and 2nd place. 6-8pm. Free.
The Domino Room Descartes a Kant Descartes a Kant is a group from Guadalajara, Mexico, that fuses an eclectic palette of musical influences with disciplines such as theater, dance and film. It is a balanced mix of composition and performance, created from its own narrative language that the group has managed to consolidate throughout its career. 7:30-10pm. $15.
River’s Place Travis Ehrenstrom Quality musicianship and well-crafted original songs. Travis is accompanied by an old soul and the spirit of John Prine, Jackson Browne, and Bob Dylan. 5-7pm. Free.
11 Monday
Bevel Craft Brewing Bingo with Bren Supporting Central Oregon Veterans Ranch As we honor our veterans this month (and always), we are proud to support Central Oregon Veterans Ranch this month at Bingo with Bren! Central Oregon Veterans Ranch helps veterans develop their inner strength and find purpose by providing camaraderie and access to nature on our working ranch. 6-8pm. $2.
Bridge 99 Brewery Trivia Mondays at Bridge 99 Trivia Mondays at 6:30pm at Bridge 99 Brewery with Useless Knowledge Bowl. It’s no ordinary trivia night, Team up to win house gift cards! Great brews, cocktails, and more. Inhouse menu and food truck options available! It’s free to play. Indoor and outdoor seating available. 63063 Layton Ave, Bend. 6:30-8:30pm. Free.
Bunk+Brew Open Mic Show off your talent at Bunk + Brew’s Open Mic Night, happening every Monday! Sign-ups start at 5:30pm, with performances from 6-9pm. Whether you’re a musician, poet, or comedian, the stage is yours. Grab a drink, share your skills, and enjoy a night of local talent! 6-9pm. Free.
Crux Fermentation Project Trivia Night @ Crux Trivia Night at Crux! First place team wins a $25 gift card! 6-8pm. Free.
Elements Public House Open Mic with DMM Music Come jam with some great local musicians and enjoy an evening of music, great food and full bar. Musician sign-up at 6pm. Sound and PA provided by DMM Music LLC Located at the North end of Redmond. An award-winning full bar and great food! 6:30-8:30pm. Free.
Elixir Wine Locals Music Night and Open Mic Bend’s friendliest open-mic! All genres welcome. Oregon and international wine, beer and tapas menu available all evening. 6-9pm. Free.
On Tap Locals’ Day Plus Live Music Cheaper drinks all day and live music at night, get down to On Tap. 11am-9pm. Free.
Silver Moon Brewing Comedy Open Mic Comedy open mic every Monday at Silver Moon Brewing in the Green Room. Sign-ups at 6:30pm. Presented by Tease Bang Boom Productions. 7-8:30pm. Free.
12 Tuesday
Bevel Craft Brewing Puzzled Pint Puzzled Pint is a casual, social puzzle-solving event happening at rotating bars on the 2nd Tuesday of the month. These puzzles often incorporate crossword clues, code breaking, word play, and logic problems. “Game Control” will be there to give hints and verify answers. Completely free, come any time! Puzzledpint.com 6-9pm. Free.
Boys & Girls Clubs of Bend Bend Ecstatic Dance An all-out, full-on, spectacular music and free-form movement journey happens every Tuesday on one of the biggest dance floors in Bend. A no-booze and no-shoes venue. No experience required, no dance instructions given. Just really excellent music curation and a big, clean floor to explore your unique movement across. 7:45-10pm. $15-$25 sliding scale.
Bunk+Brew Trivia Tuesdays! Test your knowledge at Bunk + Brew’s Historic Lucas House. Trivia every Tuesday with rotating themes 7-9p. Gather your team, grab some drinks, and see if you’ve got what it takes. Fun, food, and prizes await! 7-9pm. Free.
The Commons Cafe & Taproom Storytellers Open Mic StoryTellers open mic nights are full of music, laughs and community. Mason James is the host. Poetry, comedy and spoken word are welcome, but this is mainly a musical open mic. Performance slots are a quick 10 minutes each, so being warmed up and ready is ideal. If you wish to perform sign-ups start at 5pm in the cafe. 6pm. Free.
Crosscut Warming Hut No 5 Head Games
Trivia Night Live multi-media trivia every other Tuesday at Crosscut Warming Hut No. 5, Bend. Free to play, win prizes, teams up to 6. Please arrive early for best seats. Every other Tuesday, 6-8pm. Free.
Northside Bar & Grill Karaoke with DJ
Chris Karaoke Night with DJ Chris 6-8pm. Free.
River’s Place Bingo! Have fun, win money and help out a local nonprofit organization. Cards $1-$5. 6-8pm. Free.
The Lot Think Wild Trivia at The Lot! Think Wild Trivia Nights are back this fall! Test your knowledge of local wildlife, outdoor recreation, conservation news, and more! Support Central Oregon’s wildlife hospital, win fun prizes, and enjoy delicious food and beverages at The Lot!
Second Tuesday of every month, 6-8pm. Free.
Volcanic Theatre Pub Big Fun w/ Gaspack and Weapon World Hatching out of the underground diy punk scene in LA, Big Fun has assembled a noisy, hard- hitting, electronic sound that zig-zags throughtechno, hardcore, and dance punk. The band is known for its mind bending and powerful live performances. 7pm. $12 presale $20 door.
Worthy Brewing Head Games Trivia Night
Join for live multi-media trivia every Monday night. Win prizes. Teams up to 6 players. 7-9pm. Free.
MUSIC
Cascade Winds Fall Concert & Silent Auction 50+ musicians under the baton of Michael Gesme will entertain you with symphonic dances, marches, and Riverdance. Also back from covid is our Silent Auction: Experience the Winds. Items and experiences crafted or selected for you from our talented musicians. This concert is also streamed. Nov. 10, 2-4:30pm. Summit High School Auditorium, 2855 NW Clearwater Dr., Bend. Contact: 541-383-7516. info@cascadewinds.org. Free.
DANCE
Argentine Tango Classes and Dance
Join every Wednesday for Tango classes and dancing! Your first class is free. Tango 101 Class from 6:30-7pm, no partner needed! All levels class from 7-8pm. Open dancing from 8-9:30pm. Wednesdays, 6:30-9:30pm. Sons of Norway Hall, 549 NW Harmon Blvd., Bend. Contact: 541-7283234. tangocentraloregon@gmail.com. $5-$10. Learn to Square Dance The High Desert Dancers are offering lessons to beginning square dancers. The lessons are every Monday and Thursday from 6:30-8:30pm. Lessons are $80 for all 20 lessons. Mondays-Thursdays, 6:309:30pm. Through Nov. 14. Pine Forest Grange Hall, 63214 Boyd Acres Rd., Bend. Contact: 541382-7014. rswee3@gmail.com. $80.
FILM EVENTS
BendFilm: Getting Lost 20 years ago, the show LOST first aired and changed television forever. An Emmy-winning #1 network show, LOST introduced audiences to serialized science fiction storytelling and paved the way for the higher budget and shorter seasons of today’s television. From the director of The Last Blockbuster, the documentary Getting LOST. Nov. 10, 5pm. Volcanic Theatre Pub, 70 SW Century Dr., Bend. $12. EXHIBITION ON SCREEN: VAN GOGH - POETS & LOVERS 200 years after its opening and a century after acquiring its first Van Gogh works, the National Gallery is hosting the UK’s biggest ever Van Gogh exhibition. Van Gogh is not only one of the most beloved artists of all time, but perhaps the most misunderstood. Nov. 6, 6:30-8pm. Sisters Movie House, 720 Desperado Court, Sisters. Contact: 541-549-8833. inquiries@sistersmoviehouse.com. $16.
Hot Buttered Rum, is a west-coast five-piece string band composed of uniquely gifted musicians who weave their love of bluegrass, folk, jazz and soul into a riveting strain of Americana music. Sat., Nov. 9, 9pm at The Domino Room.
Courtesy Hot Buttered Rum FB
S
Salomon Ski & Ride Films and Raffle Supporting Central Oregon Avalanche Center! Come grab a beer, enjoy the films, hang with friends, support COAC and get stoked for winter! We’ll be raffling off skis and more with all proceeds going to COAC! Nov. 7, 6:30-9pm. Deschutes Brewery & Public House, 1044 NW Bond St., Bend. Contact: info@coavalanche.org. Free.
Sunday Movie Nights! Bunk + Brew presents winter movie nights! Join us every Wednesday, 6-8 pm, in our cozy winter shelter with heaters and bonfires or indoors if it’s too cold. Vote on weekly movies via our Instagram and enjoy a relaxed night with friends all season long! Nov. 10, 6am-8pm. Bunk+Brew, 42 NW Hawthorne Avenue, Bend. Contact: 458-2021090. jasmine@bunkandbrew.com. Free. To What Remains Film Screening and Q & A To What Remains is the story of Project Recover, a team of scientists, oceanographers, archaeologists, historians, and military veterans, who scour the ocean and the farthest corners of the earth, to search for and recover the remains of the more than 80,000 Americans missing in action since WWII. Nov. 12, 6:30-8pm. Wille Hall, Coats Campus Center, COCC Bend Campus, Bend, Bend. Contact: 541-383-7257. cgilbride@ cocc.edu. Free.
ARTS + CRAFTS
Date Night - Weld Together! It’s DIY Cave’s date night version of welding workshop! You’ll learn to cut steel with a torch then try your hand at Mig Welding and take your creations home with you. Couples that weld together, stay together! Ages 13+ welcome. No Welding Experience Needed! Two students minimum per booking. Nov. 8, 6-8pm. DIY Cave, 444 SE Ninth St. Suite 150, Bend. Contact: 541-388-2283. classes@diycave.com. $99.
Fused Glass Plant Stakes - Flowers and Mushrooms Do you want some beautiful flowers or mushrooms in your yard or in your potted plants all year long? Come and play with colored glass and make your own garden art. You will learn the basics of working with fused glass under the guidance of an experienced instructor. Nov. 9, 10am-Noon. DIY Cave, 444 SE Ninth St. Suite 150, Bend. Contact: 541-388-2283. classes@diycave.com. $159.
Hand Painted Taper Candles ’Tis the season for candlelight. Enjoy a cozy evening in the Cottage at Pomegranate and sink into the calming process of hand painting taper candles. You’ll leave with a set of three candles to keep or to gift. Charcuterie, treats, and refreshments will be offered. Nov. 9, 5:30-7:30pm. Pomegranate Home and Garden, 120 NE River Mall Ave., Bend. Contact: 541-383-3713. hello@pomegranate-home.com. $65.
Paint and Sip at The Grove in NWX Looking for a laid-back night out? Come join me, your friendly local artist, for some painting and sipping fun! No pressure, just good vibes and a relaxed atmosphere. Whether you’re a seasoned artist or a total beginner, everyone’s welcome! This event is two hours, and I’ll provide the 11”x14” canvas. Nov. 7, 6-8pm. The Grove, 921 NW Mt. Washington Drive, Bend. Contact: chalkedcreative@gmail.com. $52.
Painting in Fiber Join us for a fun workshop where you’ll create stunning fiber-based landscape “paintings” using Anastasia’s innovative collage technique. Learn to layer sheer materials for depth and color. Materials will be provided, but bring your own scraps to personalize your art. Perfect for artists age 8 and up. Reference images welcome! Nov. 7, 5:15-7:30pm. FREAK’N ART, 1265 NW Wall st., Bend. Contact: 541-5087438. hellofreaknart@gmail.com. $50.
Reduction Printing Join us for a three-class workshop where you’ll master the reduction printmaking technique to create stunning, limited-edition prints. Each session builds on the last, as you carve layers from a linoleum block and print vibrant colors. By the end, you’ll have a unique piece that can never be reproduced. 12+ Wednesdays, 5:15-7:30pm, Wed, Nov. 13, 5:15-7:30pm and Wed, Nov. 20, 5:15-7:30pm. Through Nov. 20. FREAK’N ART, 1265 NW Wall st., Bend. Contact: 541-508-7438. hellofreaknart@gmail.com. $150.
Wine and Paint Night at WVV Get ready for the holidays and join local artist Debbie Irwin to guide you through a paint night and create your wine-inspired masterpiece. Grab some friends and make it a fun night out. Your ticket includes a $10 wine credit toward a bottle of your favorite wine! Nov. 6, 5-7pm. Willamette Valley Vineyards, 916 NW Wall St., Bend. Contact: 541306-6000. bend@wvv.com. $45.
Winter Clay Workshop with La Luce Studio. Get ready for the holidays by making your own ornaments! The first part of the workshop is held at Tumalo Lavender Farm. Learn how to make ornaments with imprinting, stamping, and adding texture. The second part of the workshop will be held at La Luce Studio to paint your ornaments. Nov. 10, 1-3pm. Tumalo Lavender, 19825 Connarn Road, Bend. Contact: 541-383-2441. info@tumalolavender.com. $90.
The Traditional Japanese Art of Flower Arranging Create unique and beautiful Japanese Ikebana floral arrangements using techniques established over centuries. Historical, cultural, and spiritual aspects of the practice accompany hands-on learning. Students may take their arrangements home. Locally sourced floral materials will be provided. Perfect for beginners and those already familiar with ikebana. Sun, Nov. 10, 1-3pm. Boyle Education Center, COCC, 2600 NW College Way, Bend. Contact: 805-886-0542. geriservi@gmail.com. $199.
Uplift Art Show featuring Kristine Cooper Fine Art Join local artist Kristine Cooper for an the inaugural Uplift Art Show, featuring original fine art, prints, limited edition merch and more. Community painting, silent auction benefitting HUE arts education and plenty of gift ideas. This event is family friendly! Nov. 9, 4-8pm. Lovebird Yoga, 418 SW 6th St, Redmond. Contact: 206-2578300. info@cooperartandabode.com. Free.
PRESENTATIONS + EXHIBITS
Cycle in Germany and Austria Cycling downriver alongside the Danube River in Germany and Austria is known as the premier cycling holiday in all of Europe. It’s a wonderful way to explore Europe on a bike path. No bike touring experience required! Join Jim Kress for tips on how to make this trip a reality. Nov. 7, 6-7:30pm. Downtown Bend Public Library - Brooks Room, 601 NW Wall St., Bend. Contact: 541-312-1029. laurelw@deschuteslibrary.org. Free.
The History and Variety of Oregon
Soils Learn all about soil and what makes our Central and Eastern soils unique from Oregon State University’s James Cassidy. Nov. 8, 6-7:30pm. Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr., Bend. Contact: 541-316-0080. info@worthyenvironmental.org. Free.
Open Studio Please join us for the last Open Studio of the 2024 residency season at Pine Meadow Ranch Center for Arts & Agriculture!Presenters for this event include folk artist/writer Sylvia Friday, author Jackleen de la Harpe, metal artist Arūnas Ošlapas and fiber artist Katie Ošlapas. Free to attend, registration required. Thu, Nov. 7, 4pm. Pine Meadow Ranch Center for Arts & Agriculture, 68467 Three Creek Rd., Sisters. Contact: 541-9040700. inquiries@roundhousefoundation.org. Free.
Tribal Sovereignty & Water Rights:
The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Bobby Brunoe, CEO/Secretary/ Treasurer for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, and Josh Newton, Partner at BBK Law, explore tribal sovereignty and treaty rights related to water in the region. They will highlight the importance of water to tribes and the ways that tribes continue to enact their rights today. Nov. 6, 6:30-7:30pm. High Desert Museum, 59800 S. Highway 97, Bend. Contact: 541-382-4754. info@highdesertmuseum.org. $5, Members receive 20% discount, Free for tribal members.
United States of Misinformation With the fast pace of 21st century media, superspreaders of misinformation have it easier than ever. Learn tips for honing critical thinking skills to help identify misinformation and find resources and solid information to guide your understanding of, and decisions about, critical issues. Presented by Brian Dunning of Skeptoid podcast. Nov. 12, 3-4:30pm. Sunriver Public Library, 56855 Venture Lane, Sunriver. Contact: 541-312-1029. laurelw@deschuteslibrary.org. Free.
Veterans Day In honor of Veterans Day, we are proud to offer free admission to all U.S. Armed Forces veterans. Nov. 11, 10am-4pm. High Desert Museum, 59800 S. Highway 97, Bend. Contact: 541-382-4754. info@highdesertmuseum.org. Free for U.S. Armed Forces veterans.
THEATER
A Charlie Brown Christmas & ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas BEAT Children’s Theatre is thrilled to present its holiday double feature production – ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas AND A Charlie Brown Christmas!! These two holiday classics will be performed together to help us all get into a jolly holiday mood. Sat, Nov. 9, 10-11am, 1-2, 4-5 and 6:30-7:30pm. Bend Elks Lodge #1371, 63120 Boyd Acres Rd., Bend. Contact: 541-419-4388. lindsay.russell@beatonline. org. $15-$20.
Oregon Shadow Theater Presents: The Green Bird Behind the illuminated shadow screen, colorful shadow puppets come to life and tell the story of The Green Bird. A drum roll and a cymbal crash, the calliope sound of a button accordion, and the play begins: A boy is transformed into a fortune-telling bird by a magician. Nov. 11, 2-3pm. Open Space Event Studios, 220 NE Lafayette Ave, Bend. Contact: 541-410-5866. info@openspace.studio. $18$26.
THURSDAY, NOV 7 AT 6PM SATURDAY, NOV 9 AT 8PM
The Lonesome Ace String Band brings grit, skill and positive energy to Americana music. The band brings old-time, bluegrass and folk traditions into seamless tunes that are fresh and timeless. Sat., Nov. 9, 6:3010pm at The Belfry.
Courtesy Lonesome Ace Stringband FB
MARCH 19
MIDTOWN BALLROOM
CALENDAR EVENTS
WORDS
Cycling Through Seasons of Change: Creative Writing Workshop Registration Required. The seasons inspire reflection on cycles of change and the beauty, challenge, and promise of transitions. Multiple archetypes and texts will be used to prompt creative writing. We’ll time travel, ending in the present, focused on regenerative qualities of connection, creativity and resilience. Fledgling and seasoned writers welcomed! Nov. 11, 4:30-6:30pm. Downtown Bend Public Library - Brooks Room, 601 NW Wall St., Bend. Contact: 541-312-1063. beccar@dpls. lib.or.us. Free.
How Writing & Reading Poems Can Make All Your Writing Better Poetry brings so much to the table when it comes to enriching your creative writing—music, concision, and sure, lyricism. Join Irene Cooper in an exploration of how to read and write poems with an eye toward making all your writing sing. Nov. 12, 5:30-7:30pm. Downtown Bend Public Library - Brooks Room, 601 NW Wall St., Bend. Contact: 541-312-1063. beccar@dpls.lib.or.us. Free.
Intro to U.S. Church Records: Why We Care Where Grandma Went to Church
U.S. church records of many denominations can reveal ancestors’ vital events, family relationships, overseas birthplaces and other residences and religious lives. From the co-author of the acclaimed book How to Find Your Family History in U.S. Church Records, learn what these records may look like, and more. Nov. 12, 10-11:30am. Williamson Hall at Rock Arbor Villa, 2200 NE Hwy 20, Bend. Contact: 541-317-9553. Info@bendgenealogy.org. $10 for non-members..
Moon Pacific Northwest Hiking Join Matt Wastradowski, author of Moon Oregon Hiking and Moon Coastal Oregon, to discuss the second edition of Moon Pacific Northwest Hiking, available October 1—a great gift idea! Nov. 7, 6:30-7:30pm. Roundabout Books, 900 NW Mount Washington Dr., #110, Bend. Contact: 541-3066564. julie@roundaboutbookshop.com. $ 5.
Nonfiction Book Club Please join us for Nonfiction Book Club. We will discuss “The Enigma Girls: How Ten Teenagers Broke Ciphers, Kept Secrets, and Helped Win World War II” by Candace Fleming. Nov. 8, 9-10am. Roundabout Books, 900 NW Mount Washington Dr., #110, Bend. Contact: 541-306-6564. julie@roundaboutbookshop.com. Free.
ETC.
Herbal Medicine Making Workshop: Herbal Extracts Join Dr. Ashley at The Peoples Apothecary to learn how to make nourishing, herbal remedies. Herbal extracts or tinctures are a timeless way to use herbal medicine safely and effectively for all ages. Take this single workshop or all four in the series! Nov. 8, 5-6:30pm. The Peoples Apothecary, 1841 NE Division Street, Bend. Contact: 541-728-2368. classes@thepeoplesapothecary.net. $65.
November Tarot Tuesday @ the Black Bird On the 2nd Tuesday of each month we open our cottage up as a magical divination space, where Nova can help you discover what the future has in store. Stop in with a question or just to see what the cards have to say! Nov. 12, 4-7pm. Black Bird Magical Tea & Tales, 191 S 5th street, Madras. Contact: blackbirdteaandtales@gmail. com. $15+.
OUTDOOR EVENTS
Bachy Baddies Gear Swap We’re excited to present the first Bachy Baddies event of the season: a gear swap! Both sellers and buyers are welcome. If you plan on selling gear, please fill out the Gear Swap Item Submission form below by Nov. 1: https://docs.google.com/ forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSebuUTZsWkPC0N0islcsYxzXTI1wCjYg1uu2OGm79Ehrwbujw/viewform?usp=sf_link Nov. 8, 4-6pm. Title Nine, 812 NW Wall Street, Bend. Free.
Pick Up and Play Free Clinic: National Celebrate Lacrosse Week Want to try a new sport? We’re hosting a free pick pp and play clinic at Cascades Academy for all kids 3rd - 8th grade, as part of the USA Lacrosse National Celebrate Lacrosse Week. Come run around and learn about the game! Nov. 9, Noon-2pm. Cascades Academy, 19860 Tumalo Reservoir Rd., Bend. Contact: 541-952-2707. play@centraloregonlacrosse.com. Free.
Survival Shelters + Wild Water Purification Workshop Learn about and make a survival shelter using only materials we find on the land. For survival basics purposes. Learn to purify wild water using natural materials. This is the last in a 3-part Survival Basics series, new folks are welcome to sign up for this session on its own. Nov. 10, 10am-3pm. Bend, RSVP for address, Bend. Contact: info@nighthawknaturalistschool.com. $65.
GROUPS + MEETUPS
45+ Single Mingle & Speed Dating at Bridge 99 Calling all Central Oregon Singles! Ready to mingle? Join in the fun for a night of mingling and speed dating with other singles in the area! Female to Male Speed Dating. 45+ and over event. RSVP Requested.Meet our matchmaker, Jamie from All Things Love and get on her free singles database! All proceeds go to the charity of the quarter.Not single? Grab your single friend and be their wingman/woman!Follow us at @centraloregonsingleites or at www. oregonsingleites.com Nov. 12, 6-8pm. Bridge 99 Brewery, 63063 Layton Ave., Bend. Contact: 541-323-0964.
All Ages Game Night with Modern Games Come learn some board games with your friends from Modern Games! We will bring a selection of our favorites and staff ready to teach you how to dive into your next game. We’ll have games for all ages and a selection of snacks! Children must be accompanied by a caregiver. Nov. 6, 6-7:30pm. Downtown Bend Public Library - Brooks Room, 601 NW Wall St., Bend. Contact: 541-312-1062. Elsah@deschuteslibrary.org. Free.
Bend ET Expert Lab—Mentorship
Unlocked —November 7 Are you ready to unlock the potential of mentorship? Join us for this dynamic session led by Jeff Kitchens, an experienced mentor and advocate for professional development. In this Expert Lab, Jeff will lead us in an exploration of the importance of mentoring. Nov. 7, 5-7pm. Cascade Theatrical Company, 148 NW Greenwood, Bend. $25 Members I $35 non-members I Free to Passport Holders. Commerce & Coffee at Touchmark @ Pilot Butte - Nov 7 Come extend your professional network at Touchmark at Pilot Butte while enjoying coffee from Thump and morning bites from Bend Breakfast Burrito! The best part? It is free to attend for members! Non-member pricing is $10 per person. Nov. 7, 8-9:30am. Touchmark at Pilot Butte, 1125 NE Watt Way, Bend. Free to Chamber Members | $10 for non-members.
Community Bonfire Fridays! Just got done Skiinn? Snowboarding? Off of work and need some fresh air? Bunk + Brew will be doing community bonfires every Friday open to everyone in the community to gather, relax and refresh. Bonfires, heaters, food carts and drinks. Sauna passes available at the front desk! Nov. 8, 6am-9pm. Bunk+Brew, 42 NW Hawthorne Avenue, Bend. Contact: jasmine@bunkandbrew.com. Free.
Connect W Munch & Mingle in Redmond ConnectW is connecting professional women over a limited-seating, monthly noon meal every first Thursday of the month. The result? Business sharing, social networking and, yes, friendship. Attendance is capped at 12 and registration is required at https://connectw.org/ event/nov-2024-munch-mingle-redmond/ Nov. 7, 11:45am-1pm. Madaline’s Grill & Steak House, 2414 Highway 97, Redmond. Contact: 541-4101894. info@connectw.org. Cost of meal.
Museum & Me A quieter time for children and adults who experience physical, intellectual and/ or social disabilities to enjoy the High Desert Museum after hours. Explore the Museum’s newest exhibitions and revisit your favorites. Sensory packs are available to borrow with headphones, fidgets and more. Nov. 7, 4-6pm. High Desert Museum, 59800 S. Highway 97, Bend. Contact: 541-382-4754. info@highdesertmuseum.org. Free with RSVP ticket.
Paint and Sip at The Grove in NWX Looking for a laid-back night out? Come join me, your friendly local artist, for some painting and sipping fun! No pressure, just good vibes and a relaxed atmosphere. This event is two hours, and I’ll provide the 11”x14” canvas, all the supplies you need, and a guided tutorial. Nov. 7, 6-8pm. The Grove, 921 NW Mt. Washington Drive, Bend. $52.
FUNDRAISING
Community Skate Jam Join Board House for our first FUNdraising event. DJ/Dance party, rad raffle items, local brew and epic skate/rail jam! All proceeds to go to Bend’s future indoor skatepark and community hub. Nov. 9, 5-9pm. The Commons Cafe & Taproom, 875 NW Brooks St., Bend. Contact: hi@boardhousebend.com. Free.
HOMESPUN HOLIDAY BAZAAR AND RAFFLE Community event supports our Ministries plus St. Vincent DePaul. Everything is donated by our wonderful Parishioners. You will find: A Country Store filled with homebaked goods; plus handmade items like quilts, crafts; Grandma Martha’s Attic find like new items and treasurers; Plus Keep Christ in Christmas Gifts. Stay for lunch! Nov. 9, 9am-3pm. St. Thomas Catholic Church, 1720 NW 19th St., Redmond. Free.
KIDS Center’s Poker Night at The Loft of Bend Feeling lucky? Then secure your seat at Poker Night at The Loft in Bend! Play for fun and prizes at this friendly tournament—the top players win fantastic prizes- the night’s champion takes home the coveted Prize Belt! Enjoy delicious hors d’oeuvres from Zydeco, plus beer and wine. Benefiting KIDS Center. Nov. 7, 5-9:30pm. The Loft, 919 NW Bond St., Bend. Contact: 541306-4497. dross@kidscenter.org. $100.
Mt. View High School Robotics Garage Sale Fundraiser Join us on 11/09 at our annual garage sale to raise money for Mountain View High School’s Robotics team! We will have tools, sporting goods, household items, furniture, books, electronics, toys, clothes, and more! Team is also accepting sellable items on 11/08 from 4-7pm at the school. Nov. 9, 9am-2:30pm. Mountain View High School Cafeteria, 2755 NE 27th St., Bend. Contact: 541-355-4562. todd. andresen@bend.k12.or.us. Free.
Colorado-based folk artist Megan Burtt kicks off Suttle Lodge’s Fireside Concert Series. The singer/ songwriter has shared the stage with artists, Gregory Alan Isakov, Marc Cohen and Leanne Rimes. Thu., Nov. 7, 6-8pm at Suttle Lodge & Boathouse.
Courtesy Megan Burtt FB
GUNG HO CALENDAR EVENTS
Sip by the Bonfire at Harmony Farm Sanctuary - Nov. 9! Spend an evening at Harmony Farm Sanctuary. Enjoy a bonfire, drink and visit with the animals. Learn their names and what makes them special as the volunteers tuck them into bed. All proceeds go toward providing a safe, loving and caring forever home for our more than 145 rescued farm animals. Nov. 9, 6-8pm. Harmony Farm Sanctuary, PO Box 2347, Sisters. Contact: 248-860-3646. shari.harmonyfarmsanctuary@gmail.com. $10 - $25.
EVENTS + MARKETS
Central Oregon's Fill Your Pantry This year's ninth annual Central Oregon Fill Your Pantry event is coming to you Saturday, November 9th from 11am to 3pm at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds OSU Extension parking lot rain or shine or sleet or snow! Fill Your Pantry is a community bulk-buying farmers market created to encourage local food security and food sovereignty. Sat., Nov. 9, 11am-3pm. Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center, 3800 SW AIrport Way., Redmond. Free.
Central Oregon’s Largest Women’s Consignment Event RBK Women presents Central Oregons largest women’s consignment event! Shop thousands of clothes, shoes, accessories & home decor! Located at Seventh Mountain Resort, to the right of the Ice Skating Rink. You don’t want to miss this amazing community event! Fri, Nov. 8, 10am-7pm, Sat, Nov. 9, 10am-7pm and Sun, Nov. 10, 10am-3pm. Seventh Mountain Resort, 18575 SW Century Dr., Bend. Contact: 541-390-6920. riverbendresaleboutique@gmail.com. Free.
Downtown Madras Holiday Sip & Shop
Meander down 5th street in Madras for a fun evening of holiday shopping, pop-up vendors, fun drinks, and checking out the festive decor during our 2nd Sip and Shop of the season! Find unique gifts for everyone on your list and enjoy an evening on the town. Nov. 9, 5am-7pm. Black Bird Magical Tea & Tales, 191 S 5th street, Madras. Contact: blackbirdteaandtales@gmail. com. Free.
Dried Flower Wreath Making
Workshop Join Think Wild and Stumpmunk Farms for a Dried Flower Wreath Making Workshop to sustainably decorate your home this fall! $1 per every beer sold on Sunday, Nov. 10 at Bridge 99 will be donated to Think Wild! Nov. 10, 3-5pm. Bridge 99 Brewery, 63063 Layton Ave., Bend. Contact: 541-316-0067. becca@thinkwildco.org. $65.
Home For Christmas Holiday Bazaar
Please join us for our third annual holiday craft event at 674 NE Penn Ave., Bend. We again have some of the great vendors from years past and have some new ones to help us sell homemade goodies, handmade crafts, antiques, home decor, Christmas decor and so much more. Nov. 8, 9am-4pm and Nov. 9, 9am-4pm. 674 NE Penn Ave., 674 NE Penn Ave., Bend. Contact: 541-6409066. pattytichenor@gmail.com. Free.. Wild Bird Market Come shop a curated and rotating selection of local artists and vendors every 2nd Friday of the month! Hosted by Tate and Adele and My Rowan Tree Boutique. Second Friday of every month, 11am-4pm. Through Nov. 8. The Commons Cafe & Taproom, 875 NW Brooks St., Bend. Contact: 503-550-8030. Free.
BEER + DRINK
Central Oregon Pro-Am People’s Choice Tasting Event The Central Oregon Homebrewers Organization (COHO) present the People’s Choice tasting event at Boneyard Pub. Come out to taste and vote on your favorite home-brew recipe brewed at one of eleven local professional breweries. Proceeds go to a local charity nominated by the winning homebrewer. Nov. 9, 11am-5pm. Boneyard Pub, 1955 NE Division St., Bend. Free entry ($10 per tasting tray).
Central Oregon Rotary Casino Night Casino Night on Nov. 7 at the new RE/Max office on Greenwood. $125 ticket price includes heavy appetizers, beer, wine and gamblng money. Cocktails available. Biggest winners will receive raffle tickets to win a gift baskets. Proceeds benefit the Gift of Literacy Program. Gift of literacy helps introduce new readers to the fun of reading by sharing several books with them during the school year. Nov. 7, 6-9pm. RE/ MAX Key Properties, 42 NW Greenwood Avenue, Bend. Contact: 541-323-0964.
An Evening with Patricia Green Cellars Join us for a tasting of renowned and sustainable Willamette Valley Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from this Benchmark producer. “Patty Green” wines are consistently exceptional and always a customer favorite. Winery rep Melissa Groshong will guide through both whites and reds, highlighting AVA/terroir differences. Look for a surprise bottle, too! Nov. 7, 5:30-7pm. Viaggio Wine Merchant, 210 SW Century Drive, Suite 160, Bend. Contact: 541-299-5060. info@ viaggiowine.com. $35 ($25 Wine Club).
Wine Workshop Series: Sights & Sounds - Exploring the World of Wine & Music with Sleight of Hands “Wine Workshop Series” of Wine Education with Tastings Sleight of Hands Cellars are dedicated to making the best wines in Washington State, they do it without being stuffy or intimidating. Join Trey as he takes you through a lineup of some of his best selling bottles! Nov. 6, 6-7pm. Flights Wine Bar, 1444 NW College Way Suite 1, Bend. Contact: 541-728-0753. flightswinebend@gmail. com. $25 refunded with 2 bottle purchase.
HEALTH + WELLNESS
Prenatal Workshop Nourishing workshop designed specifically for pregnant mamas. A variety of exercises and rituals that support the mind/body/spirit in the entrance into motherhood. We will explore the journey inward of pregnancy through practices like gentle flow yoga, massage, breath and sound work, intuitive movement, inner reflection and more. Nov. 9, 1-3pm. Bend Hot Yoga, 1230 NE 3rd St. UnitA230, Bend. Contact: yoga@bendhotyoga.com. $45.
Sacred Soul Circle with The Modern Day Intuitive Join Sarah Noble in this sacred space where we reconnect with the divine love and wisdom within, gaining clarity and insight through archetypal teachings, energetic practices, and intuitive guidance. Align with your soul’s purpose and find the support you need to live more fully and authentically. Nov. 7, 6:308pm. The Peoples Apothecary, 1841 NE Division Street, Bend. Contact: 541-728-2368. classes@ thepeoplesapothecary.net. $55.
The Sanctuary - a day of refuge for empowering fem embodiment This is a full day experience for women. Journey into You to awaken and move unintegrated overwhelm, stress, or burden. As you develop more intimate connection with your unique body+mind, feel empowered, feel your aliveness activate, and experience a vibrance from within as the Truth of you emerges. Nov. 9, 9:30am-8:30pm. East Bend Private Residence, Emily Ct, Bend. Contact: 541228-5330. elizabeth.weigand@gmail.com. $170.
Weight Loss, GLP-1, and Perimenopause - What you need to know from a Board Certified Holistic Nutritionist Bring a friend and come learn about: weight loss, implications of GLP-1 agonists like: Ozempic, wegovy, and rybelsus, ways to boost GLP-1 naturally, detoxification, strength training, nutrition. Nov. 7, 6:15-7:30pm. Apex Spine and Performance, 1900 NE Division St STE 206, Bend, OR 97701, Bend. Contact: 970-481-7760. info@ wnourished.com. Free.
By Savannah Mendoza
Cozy Up for Live Music at Suttle Lodge’s Fireside Concert Series Experience intimate live music, fireside warmth and mountain charm all winter long
With winter just around the corner, there’s no better way to embrace the season’s coziness than by enjoying live music beside a warm fire. Suttle Lodge & Boathouse is reviving its beloved winter tradition – the Fireside Concert Series, bringing live music to its rustic lodge nestled in the Deschutes National Forest outside of Sisters.
Known for its unique blend of rustic charm and upscale comfort, Suttle Lodge offers year-round outdoor adventures alongside serene indoor escapes, like fireside relaxation with a good book. Imagine the crackle of a fire, the scent of pine in the air and the sound of a soulful guitar filling the lodge. The Fireside Concert Series, held almost every Thursday in the Skip Bar & Restaurant, invites music lovers to experience a wide array of intimate performances with artists hailing from near and far.
The series kicks off Nov. 7 with singer/songwriter Megan Burtt, a Colorado-based folk artist with national recognition. Burtt is the winner of the Kervville New Folk competition and the Rocky Mountain Folk Festival and has shared the stage with acclaimed artists such as Gregory Alan Isakov, Marc Cohen and Leanne Rimes.
Following Burtt, the lineup features pop artist Megan Diana, soulful Americana singer Kolby Knickerbocker, folk artist Lindsay Clark and more. Each artist brings a different genre to the comfortable lodge setting, adding layers of warmth and a variety with folk, pop, soul and funk.
Tickets are available on Bend Ticket’s website and guests staying overnight in one of the lodge’s cabins or rooms enjoy complimentary tickets.
In addition to the Fireside Concert Series, Suttle Lodge is also hosting a Dirty Jazz night, held every first Wednesday of the month from 6-8pm in collaboration with Wolf House Records. With lively jazz filling the lodge, this event brings a spirited energy to the winter season, offering another reason to bundle up and head out for some live music.
Suttle Lodge Fireside Concert Series Thursdays, 6-8pm
The Suttle Lodge and Boathouse 13300 US-20, Sisters thesuttlelodge.com $10
Courtesy Suttle Lodge IG
LETTER FROM OUR FOUNDER
Welcome to Central Oregon Gives 2024!
We’re excited to kick off our seventh year of supporting local nonprofits through our digital year-end giving support program. Nothing gets the giving going like the generous gifts our sponsors have extended to anyone supporting their favorite nonprofit at this time of year.
In today’s challenging environment, nonprofits are navigating post-pandemic hurdles in fulfilling their missions and still meeting community needs as federal and state dollars shift. As resources become increasingly strained, the support of individual community members is more crucial than ever.
Every dollar raised on the centraloregongives.com platform goes directly to the nonprofit you choose to support. A huge thank-you to our local business incentive partners, who make this initiative even more impactful, and to our project team, People People, for their dedication. Our crew at The Source Weekly and Lay It Out Events also pour their time and effort into making each fundraising season a success for our nonprofit partners. Together, we helped raise over a million dollars for Central Oregon charities last year and that’s incredible, Central Oregon—thank you!
From all of us to all of you: thank you for your generosity and commitment to Giving! Let’s go!
Warmly,
Aaron Switzer, Publisher
The Source Weekly
BRIGHTER FUTURES FOR YOUTH
HOMELESSNESS
HOW TO PARTICIPATE
1. Research nonprofits using this guide or visit centraloregongives.com
2. At centraloregongives.com go to the nonprofit pages of your choice to donate
3. Click the donate now button and use a card to donate
4. For every donation of $25 or more you get the weekly incentive! Give generously!
5. Visit local businesses to redeem your special gifts by Jan. 15, 2025
6. Watch the donations roll in and see who wins the big prize!
SCAN TO VISIT
ABOUT CENTRAL OREGON GIVES
Central Oregon Gives is not just an annual giving program; it’s a movement that empowers our community to come together and make a real difference. Powered by your favorite free, weekly newspaper, Source Weekly, Central Oregon Gives has consistently raised thousands of dollars each year for local nonprofits. But we need your help to keep the momentum going and continue supporting the causes that matter most to our community.
This year, we’re encouraging families to come together and inspire the next generation by teaching their young kids the importance of giving back. Through the Central Oregon Gives Family Giving initiative, kids and teens will have the opportunity to experience the joy of making a difference in their community, fostering a spirit of generosity and compassion from a young age. Join us in nurturing a culture of philanthropy and community support.
Every donation of $25 or more receives a SPECIAL OFFER from one of our local sponsors.
WEEK 1 - Nov 6-12
Backporch Coffee Roasters, Teacupfuls & 3rd
Street Beverage
• 1 free cup of coffee from Backporch Coffee Roasters (downtown location only)
• Be entered to win 1 of 2 free five pack of drinks from Teacupfuls
• Be entered to win a gift basket from 3rd Street Beverage
WEEK 2 - Nov 13-19
Boss Rambler, Lay It Out Events & Metalheads
Boutique
• 1 free cup of Boss Coffee
• Be entered to win a ticket package from LIOE, including two tickets to Bend Winterfest, The Little Woody Beer Festival and Theater in the Park
• Be entered to win a custom pet tag & matching keychain OR bracelet from Metalheads Boutique
WEEK 3 - Nov 20-Nov 26
Port of Subs & Makin’ It Local
• 1 free 5 inch sub from Port of Subs
• Be entered to win 1 of 3 gift cards from Makin’ It Local for $100, $50 or $25
WEEK 4 - Nov 27-Dec 3
High Desert Frameworks & Barre3
• 1 free 8x10 print from High Desert Frameworks
• Be entered to win 1 month of unlimited free classes from Barre3
WEEK 5 – Dec 4-Dec 10
Silver Moon Brewing & Mt Bachelor
• 1 free pint from Silver Moon Brewing
• Be entered to win 1 of 4 one day lift tickets to Mt. Bachelor
WEEK 6 - Dec 11-Dec 17
Sisters Coffee & Breedlove Guitars
• 1 Free Beverage from Sisters Coffee Co.
• Be entered to win a Breedlove guitar
WEEK 7 – Dec 18-Dec 24
Cascade Lakes Brewing Co
• 1 free pint from Cascade Lakes Brewing Co (valid at Reed Market or Redmond location)
• Be entered to win a $50 gift card and a gift basket from Cascade Lakes Brewing Co
WEEK 8 – Dec 25-Dec 31
Pinky G’s Pizzeria & Old Mill District
• 1 free slice of pizza from Pinky G’s Pizzeria
• Be entered to win a gift package from Old Mill District including concert tickets to Hayden Homes Amphitheater
FOR DONORS 21 AND UNDER!
Our Family Giving Category Sponsor is Mountain Burger. Earn a Free Basic Shake or Float (with purchase of a meal) when you donate.
CATEGORY SPONSOR
EDUCATION, FAMILY & CHILDREN
MEET OUR LOCAL NON PROFITS
at: project
Bend Park & Recreation Foundation
Bend-La Pine Education Foundation
Bend Endurance Academy
Bend Science Station
Big Brother Big Sisters of Central Oregon Boys & Girls Clubs of Bend
CASA of Central Oregon
Cascade Youth & Family Center
Central Oregon Shriners
Citizens4Community City Club of Central Oregon COCC Foundation
Deschutes Children’s Foundation
Desert Sky Montessori
Every Kid Sports
ABOUT US
Family Resource Center
Heart of Oregon
J Bar J Boys Ranch
The Jasper Fox Project KIDS Center
Kindred Connections
Lava Bears Water Polo
MountainStar Family Relief Nursery
New Each Morning
Saving Grace
School of Ranch
Sisters GRO SMART Reading
Treehouse Therapies Associates
Waldorf School of Bend
Helping victims become survivors. As the local responders for the National Human Trafficking Hotline, The at: project (Anti-Trafficking Project) works directly with victims and survivors of human trafficking in Central Oregon. We provide confidential support and assistance to adult and minor survivors of sex and labor trafficking, including crisis intervention, case management, and connection to other resources.
The at:project also coordinates the Anti-Trafficking Alliance of Central Oregon (ATACO) which is a multidisciplinary collaboration of agencies working together to coordinate and leverage local resources to provide a comprehensive approach to human trafficking and exploitation that brings trained, skilled, trauma-responsive service to identify and recovers victims of human trafficking; proactively investigate, identify, apprehend and prosecute those engaged in human trafficking; and provide trauma-informed, survivor-centered services to those impacted by human trafficking and exploitation.
atproject@jbarj.org at-project.org
ABOUT US
Say YES!
There are many people in our community who face the challenges of affording to live and work in Bend and finding the money to pay for essential programs like afterschool care and swim lessons or the chance for their children to play on a team. Your donation to Bend Park and Recreation Foundation can help by providing the resources needed to take part in Bend Park and Recreation District activities that can improve health, develop confidence and independence, and enrich lives.
To learn more about the recreation scholarship program and how you can help, visit bendparksandrec.org/give.
BEND ENDURANCE ACADEMY
ABOUT US
EDUCATION, FAMILY
Support the Bend Endurance Academy: Empower Youth Through Outdoor Adventure!
At Bend Endurance Academy, we believe in the transformative power of sport and active experiences. Every day, we guide young people on their journey through Rock Climbing, Mountain Biking, and Nordic Skiing, helping them build confidence, resilience, and a lifelong passion for health and well-being.
Since 2009, we’ve been dedicated to creating opportunities that keep youth engaged in non-traditional sports. Our programs encourage long-term participation and foster healthy habits that last well beyond their time on our teams.
Thanks to generous support from our community, we’ve grown significantly. In 2023, we celebrated the opening of our new office space and youth specific climbing facility, allowing us to unite our staff and programs under one roof, expanding our reach and impact within the community.
Your Donations Make a Difference:
• Expand Access: Increase need-based tuition assistance, so more kids can participate.
• Keep Programs Affordable: Maintain reasonably priced programs to make outdoor sports accessible to all.
• Build for the Future: Continue to develop our youth-centered programs across all three program disciplines.
By donating today, you’ll help more young people in our community thrive, stay active longer, and enjoy the outdoors in a supportive, inspiring environment. Join us in making a lasting impact.
To learn more about the Bend Endurance Academy and how you can join us in this incredible journey, please visit our website at www.bendenduranceacademy.org.
BEND SCIENCE STATION
ABOUT US
Bend Endurance Academy 222 SE Reed Market Rd Ste 200, Bend 541-904-5048
The Bend Science Station engages young scientists and educators through laboratorybased experimentation, teaching them to be critical thinkers and creative problem solvers. We do more than teach science; we nurture a mindset of curiosity, embracing the notion that being wrong is not a failure but an opportunity for growth and learning.
Founded in 2002, the Science Station is committed to making STEM education accessible to all students, regardless of financial means or background. Through partnerships with school districts and youth-serving agencies, BSS delivers innovative STEM programming to 5,000 K-12 students and 200 educators annually across Central Oregon, focusing on Title I schools, low-income youth, and multilingual learners. Our programming offers students experiences they can’t access in a regular classroom. And for many of these youth, participating in our programs is their first chance to explore a college campus, helping them envision a future in post-secondary education.
WHY YOUR DONATION MATTERS.
“Investments in education result in lifelong impacts. We believe the Science Station is a unique and outstanding institution. Its inquiry-focused, hands on, lab-based model of teaching science is not only engaging, it is a real world model for problem solving. In addition to its direct impact on kids of all backgrounds and ages, BSS provides valuable training, curriculum, and lab resources to teachers and school districts. In supporting BSS, we know our funding goes toward spreading this model beyond the walls of their own amazing facility.”
(S+D Schrott, donors)
Give to inspire young minds and help shape the next generation of innovators.
This profile is sponsored by:
EDUCATION, FAMILY & CHILDREN
BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF CENTRAL OREGON
ABOUT US
Mentorship remains one of the most powerful tools we have to close the gap between people and possibility. The power of mentorship lies in the moments that spark curiosity, aspiration, and inspire potential. Maybe it was the coach who encouraged you to keep going. The guidance counselor who insisted your dreams were within reach. Even the littlest moments can grow into big ones – with a little encouragement, a little hope, and a little inspiration.
You don’t need to have a specific title, a degree, or any special qualifications other than being compassionate, patient, and accepting. You don’t have to be perfect, you just have to be present. It takes a little time, a little encouragement and a laugh or two, so that every child has what—and who—they need to achieve a BIG and brighter future.
90% of Bigs with Big Brothers Big Sisters are proud of their time mentoring. 85% of alumni believe their involvement changed their life for the better. Mentors, called Bigs, say they benefitted from their mentorship relationship just as much, if not more, than their Littles.
You have a big opportunity in front of you—to not only impact a child’s life today, but to transform their potential for tomorrow.
Become a Mentor. Go Big Today.
We’re always looking for people eager to positively impact a child and improve their community at the same time. Big Brothers are especially in high demand. Nationwide, more than 70% of children waiting for a Big are boys, but only 3 out of every 10 inquiries to volunteer come from men. Research shows that having the positive influence of a mentor makes a real difference in a kid’s life.
For a few hours, a couple times a month, you can give a Little the invaluable gift of your friendship. By simply changing their perspective of what the world can offer, you can literally start changing their life. Play a board game. Make fun crafts. Hit the playground together. Just as your options are unlimited, so is your Little’s potential. It takes LITTLE to be BIG.
We are J Bar J Youth Services.
BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF BEND
ABOUT US
As our 30th year of service in Central Oregon comes to a close, we at Boys & Girls Clubs of Bend are reminded of the vital role you play in shaping the future of our community’s youth. Kids and teens are the heart of our future, but with limited after-school options, they face challenges that can impact their progress and success.
At BGCB, we provide a safe and nurturing environment where youth can build meaningful connections with trusted mentors and engage in life-enhancing experiences. Your support helps them stay on the path to success, encouraging growth, learning, and development in a supportive setting.
Last year, thanks to your generosity, we provided over $487,000 in financial aid to families in need. However, the demand for financial support continues to grow. This fall you have the opportunity to make a profound impact on the lives of Central Oregon’s students.
By donating to BGCB, you stand behind our youth as they work their way through the school year and into the rest of their lives, ensuring they have the resources and support they need to thrive. A monthly gift of $30 contributes to after-school programs and resources for a child in need where they will receive academic support, gain important social skills, learn about local businesses during Workforce Wednesdays, and more!
Will you join us in supporting our local youth and closing out our 30th year with a bang?!
Brothers Big Sisters of Central Oregon 2125 NE Daggett Ln, Bend 541-312-6047
bbbsco.org
bbsco.org
Big
BOYS RANCH
ABOUT US
J Bar J Boys Ranch is a residential treatment program for teen boys involved in the juvenile justice system, providing an opportunity to restructure thinking, succeed academically, and grow in responsibility.
The newest initiative on campus is a vocational program. By providing vocational training in addition to a strong academic curriculum, the opportunity for gainful employment increases. Meaningful employment reduces the likelihood of engaging in criminal behavior and the training helps to build a workforce. Help boys who have made poor choices build a brighter future and become contributing members of the community.
We are J Bar J Youth Services.
ABOUT US
info@jbarj.org www.jbarj.org
CASA of Central Oregon is dedicated to transforming the lives of abused and neglected children in the Tri-County area. As a nonprofit organization, we recruit, train, and support trauma-informed volunteers who advocate for the best interests of these vulnerable youth in the court system. Last year, CASA volunteers served 82% of children in foster care across Central Oregon, working collaboratively with legal counsel, key agencies, and community resources to ensure that every child can transition into a safe, loving, and permanent home.
Our vision is to reach 100% of children in foster care, but we need your help to make this a reality. By donating today, you can empower us to recruit, train, and support more volunteers and expand our reach, ensuring that no child in our community is left without a voice.
Give today for tomorrow’s children! Your support can change lives and create a brighter future for those who need it most.
CASCADE YOUTH AND FAMILY CENTER
ABOUT US
At Cascade Youth & Family Center (CYFC), we provide support and services to youth who have run away, are experiencing homelessness, or are at risk of running away.
Emergency Shelter: CYFC provides short term shelter for teens who are homeless, on the streets, or have run away.
Crisis Intervention: We offer crisis intervention services, including family mediation.
Street Outreach: Our outreach team offers supplies and assistance to youth experiencing homelessness. They also staff drop-in hours where youth can access showers, laundry facilities, and nutritious meals.
Transitional Living: This program offers longer-term support and focuses on personal accountability at the LOFT and Canal House in Redmond. Here, youth receive the tools they need to complete their education and develop essential life skills.
Independent Living: Our case managers work with current and former foster children, providing guidance and mentorship to navigate the challenges of independent living successfully.
Supportive Housing: This program supports young adults ages 16-24 as they work toward independence, offering stable housing and case management in a setting that promotes selfsufficiency. Unlike our Transitional Living program with 24-hour support, Supportive Housing provides a step toward independent living for those who need less intensive daily oversight.
At CYFC, we believe in creating a future where every youth is empowered with personal accountability, resiliency, and equipped with the skills to be a happy, healthy member of the community. Our program and shelter is the only one of our kind within 150 miles.
Get Involved: Whether you’re interested in donating or simply spreading the word, your support helps our mission.
November is National Runaway Prevention Month (NRPM), a public awareness campaign designed to shine a light on youth who have run away and experienced homelessness that too often remain invisible.
Once a young person faces the instability associated with homelessness, whether they are couch surfing, staying in shelters, or sleeping on the streets, the consequences can be farreaching. Some youth, including young people who identify as Black and/or African American, LGBTQIA2S+, non-White, and/or unmarried and parenting, experience homelessness at significantly higher rates compared to their peers. Our goal is to work with homeless youth to prevent them from becoming homeless adults.
We are J Bar J Youth Services.
CASA OF CENTRAL OREGON
CENTRAL OREGON SHRINERS
ABOUT US
The Central Oregon Shriners support Central Oregon children in need of orthopedic services by referring them to Shriners Children’s in Portland.
The Club supports their travel to and from their hospital visits as well as giving sizeable donations to Shriners Children’s, each year.
The Central Oregon Shriners also donate $3800 in food to the Hospital, each year for the annual Food Caravan. The food is purchased from Local Acres Market and transported to the Hospital, for their use. An additional $1500 was donated, this year, by Club members and Mike’s Fence who donated $500.
Please help us help our local kids!
ABOUT US
Citizens4Community (C4C) is a nonpartisan nonprofit that fosters a connected community in and around Sisters, Oregon by encouraging civility, collaboration and civic engagement. Founded in 2016, we’re working to build a vibrant rural community where people have strong and durable social connections; practice civil discourse and treat others with respect; work together to tackle local challenges; and feel empowered to make a difference.
To achieve this vision, we offer a wide array of free local events and programs. Some of our most notable initiatives include:
• Sisters 4th Fest – a classic small-town Independence Day celebration
• The Banner Project – celebrating local high school graduates with banners hung from downtown lampposts
• Sisters Civic Leadership Academy – cultivating future civic leaders through a 6-week training program
• Bi-annual Community Forums – town hall-style discussions exploring local hot topics
CITY CLUB OF CENTRAL OREGON
Our Mission
To create a more informed and engaged community by creating learning opportunities and fostering meaningful dialogue that inspire responsible civic involvement.
About Us
At City Club of Central Oregon, we believe that communities thrive when everyone has the chance to learn, engage, and make their voices heard. We bring Central Oregonians together for open, respectful discussions on the issues that matter most to our region—whether it’s local governance, environmental challenges, or community well-being. Through public forums and events, we connect neighbors and leaders, transforming complex issues into informed discussions that empower citizens and shape the future of our community.
Our Goal
To build a more informed, connected, and civil community where individuals can explore ideas, share perspectives, and make better decisions for Central Oregon.
COCC FOUNDATION
ABOUT US WHO ARE WE
Since 1955, COCC Foundation scholarships have enabled students to learn new skills, earn technical certificates, complete two-year associate degrees and be prepared to pursue the remainder of their undergraduate studies at a college or university.
WHAT WE DO
Our scholarships provide financial support, but for many students being a scholarship recipient means something more. It means someone believes in them enough to provide them with the financial resources needed to attend COCC. It means someone else believes in their dreams.
DESCHUTES CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION
ABOUT US
EDUCATION, FAMILY & CHILDREN
Deschutes Children’s Foundation is a safe haven for children and a home for the nonprofits that serve them. Each year, tens of thousands of vulnerable children and families seek essential resources at our campuses. With 23 nonprofit partners across four DCF locations in Redmond, Bend, and La Pine, we work together to ensure families have what they need to not just survive, but thrive. Families can access vital services such as infant essentials, therapeutic care, early childhood education, nutrition assistance, and more.
The demand for our services in the community is ever-growing, and you can help! We envision a community where all children and families have the resources they need to thrive, and you can play a key role in making that vision a reality. Contributions to Deschutes Children’s Foundation support our mission of providing the space and support necessary for nonprofits to succeed in helping children and families.
ABOUT US
Desert Sky Montessori is Central Oregon’s only tuition-free public Montessori Elementary School. As a public charter and nonprofit, we serve a diverse community and are committed to bringing the highest quality, Montessori-based education to our students.
Children at Desert Sky benefit from one-on-one learning, individualized and self-paced lesson plans, and a smaller student to teacher ratio.
Our teachers and staff are committed to the development of the whole child through a curriculum rooted in Montessori philosophy and principles that emphasize:
• Education and personal development
• Improving academic performance and attitudes
• Motivating students to become confident, competent, creative lifelong learners
• Encouraging students to be joyful contributors to society, compassionate global citizens, and committed caretakers of the earth
Our mission is to inspire the growth of the whole child by providing a safe, secure, and loving environment. Your contribution will help us extend our reach and empower more students to develop into productive, culturally diverse, successful people that will impact our community here in Central Oregon and beyond.
Thank you for considering Desert Sky Montessori in this giving season!
“The greatest gifts we can give our children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence.” -Dr. Maria Montessori
THE EDUCATION FOUNDATION
ABOUT US
Support the Bend-La Pine Education Foundation! Student success leads to community success!
At BLPEF, we believe that a vibrant public school system is essential to the social and economic well-being of our community. Since 1988, we have been dedicated to improving access to a well-rounded education. From grants and scholarships to enhanced classroom resources, the Education Foundation empowers students and teachers to create a brighter future and help those most in need maximize their academic and personal success. Our programs create equity for all students through access to Classroom Enrichments that enhance the learning experience, and need-based Activity Fee Scholarships which support middle and high school students that wish to participate in athletics and other state sanctioned activities.
Your donations make a difference! To learn more about BLPEF, visit blpef.org.
info@dsmontessori.org
www.dsmontessori.org
DESERT SKY MONTESSORI
EVERY KID SPORTS
ABOUT US
EDUCATION, FAMILY & CHILDREN
Every Kid Sports believes that every kid deserves the chance to play. We’re the national nonprofit providing kids from low-income homes access to youth sports. Did you know, 78% of kids from low-income homes are unable to access youth sports... To support kids in our community, where we planted our roots 14 years ago, we are starting the Born in Bend initiative; helping disadvantaged kids throughout Central Oregon access youth sports.
Born in Bend will begin as a three (3) year initiative to support 2,500 local kids throughout Central Oregon. This is a 350% increase of kids supported throughout our community. We will be dually working to connect in the community by attending meaningful events, partnering with community organizations, attending youth sports events, and promoting our efforts throughout our local media. We aim to raise $100,000 in year one. We are proud of the impact we’ve already had on the Central Oregon community and look forward to increasing that impact and having more of a presence in our hometown.
Play is so much more than just physical activity. Please consider supporting our youth with your generous donation this holiday season!
ABOUT US
It all starts with family relationships! Strong, connected relationships let children know they are loved, belong, and can rely on the adults in their lives. Without this sense of belonging, children can become overwhelmed by life’s challenges and develop negative coping behaviors, which can follow them into adulthood.
There’s no denying our own upbringing forms a unique experience that frequently influences our parenting choices - creating times that will be smooth and predictable, and days that leave you wondering how on earth you will survive.
“My childhood wasn’t the best, and I hate when I hear myself saying something I heard from my mom as a kid. I am working hard to be a different parent.” - Participant.
We believe no parent is perfect, yet most parents are eager to raise healthy, empathetic and resilient children. We also understand there might be feelings of isolation, or times when guilt or shame sneak in. After all, raising tiny humans or rebellious teens can weaken even the most confident parents.
It can take effort to reflect and create change – that’s where Family Resource Center of Central Oregon’s team of parent coaches and home visitors can help. They are ready to work alongside parents as they learn and grow - creating healthy attachments, improving communication, and setting boundaries to guide their children. Donations help keep services free and available to all parents.
“I feel like this class has truly made me a better parent, father, friend, and just an allaround better human being.” - Participant.
HEART OF OREGON
ABOUT US
Heart of Oregon Corps provides significant, life-altering opportunities to local young people who need and deserve them.
We empower youth and young adults ages 16-24 through employment, job training, education, and service to Central Oregon communities. Participants learn job skills through hands-on community projects that benefit us all, like building affordable housing, reducing wildfire fuels, improving trails on public lands, or helping to fill a much-needed gap in local childcare facilities. Our programs engage youth to build confidence, a sense of purpose, and drive for their futures.
As challenges grow for disconnected youth, your support is more essential than ever. This holiday season, make a difference by donating to Heart of Oregon Corps and empowering local youth to transform their lives and strengthen their communities.
This profile is sponsored by:
THE JASPER FOX PROJECT
ABOUT US
The mission of The Jasper Fox Project is to comfort families who have experienced stillbirth, miscarriage, and infant loss. We do this by sewing handmade stuffed animal foxes and weighing them to match the exact birth weight of a child who passed away. These foxes are personalized and unique gifts meant to offer comfort to the parents and recognition to the child. In the last three years, we have sent over 300 foxes to families in 40 states and 3 countries internationally.
We have begun networking with local churches and resource centers to be a readily available service when a community member experiences a loss. In a situation where many friends and families don’t know what to do or to say, we offer a simple and sweet gift to be sent to those who are grieving. Our goal is that no family would have empty arms after a loss.
KIDS CENTER
ABOUT US
KIDS Center is the local nonprofit working to end child abuse. As the Children’s Advocacy Center for our region, we provide child abuse evaluations and on-going support to local children and families impacted by abuse. Over the last 30 years, KIDS Center has helped more than 17,000 children and families find hope and healing—at no cost.
We also offer free child safety trainings, so people like you can make the world a safer place for kids.
If you believe in a world free from abuse, donate today! You can make a difference!
KINDRED CONNECTIONS
ABOUT US
Helping Families in crisis who lack a safety net: Mobilizing and equipping mentoring families and area church communities to provide support while parents work to secure stability for their families.
We provide families in crisis with mentoring relationships for parents and temporary housing for children. We connect families with needed support during a time of challenge, including possible job loss, serious illness, homelessness, or other issues that complicate parenting. Providing support in those times of need can help keep the family together.
We are J Bar J Youth Services.
Our club is a non-profit organization that relies solely on the funding we raise from local businesses, friends and family. The goal? To allow any interested students to play water polo, be good humans, have fun, and be part of the community. I’ve seen the difference this club makes in student-athletes...it’s provided a positive, healthy outlet in a very inclusive setting. The benefits of this club help promote discipline, inclusivity, hard work, humility, teamwork, fun, accountability, communication, exercise, health and wellness, academics, and pretty wonderful social skills. They are truly an amazing, fun-loving group and we’d love to have you come watch one of our games to see what we’re about! We could really use the help to continue the program.
While we are trying to have OSAA recognize it as a school funded sport, that is several years out and it’s increasingly difficult to continue to raise over $25,000 each season and have it affordable for families. Every single donation helps pay for essential items such as coaches, pool time, referees, insurance, games and tournaments, equipment, etc. Lava Bear Water Polo has players from both Bend Senior High School, Caldera, and other schools without a program. These players work extremely hard throughout the entire year to ensure they can play - during the off-season they are recruiting for our growing program, hosting social hangouts, practicing/ swimming, and fundraising (not to mention their normal day jobs).
This profile is sponsored by:
EDUCATION, FAMILY & CHILDREN
MOUNTAINSTAR FAMILY RELIEF NURSERY
ABOUT US
MountainStar Family Relief Nursery (MountainStar) is dedicated to preventing child abuse and neglect by providing life-changing support to Central Oregon families. Through therapeutic early childhood programs and family-strengthening services, we help children heal from adverse childhood experiences and build healthier futures. Our programs foster the development of essential social-emotional skills, healthy relationships, and help children and their families thrive.
By investing in families, MountainStar creates lasting impacts: improved parent education, increased employment, and generational stability. These positive outcomes reduce the need for government assistance and lead to stronger, more resilient communities. Most importantly, our services prevent child abuse and neglect, keeping children out of foster care and the juvenile justice system.
We envision a community where every parent has the support they need to nurture their child’s emotional, physical, and intellectual growth in a safe and loving environment. Your support of MountainStar helps ensure children and families have the tools they need to thrive.
ABOUT US
Addiction is a widespread and devastating issue in Oregon, affecting individuals, families, and communities. At New Each Morning, we are committed to helping women graduates of drug and alcohol addiction recovery programs transition into a productive life. Our mission is to provide the support, resources, and opportunities these individuals need to rebuild their lives, find stable employment, and live as contributing members of society.
Peer Support is a cornerstone of our program, we harness the power of Peer Support by pairing graduates with mentors who have overcome similar challenges. Because it is proven that Peer Support is key in the fight against an approximate 80% recidivism rate happening, we are expanding our outreach and impact in the Central Oregon community.
Beginning October 2024 we will be offering Peer Support Specialist (PSS) trainings. This training delivers the education necessary to equip graduates for PSS certification through Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and Certified Recovery Mentor certification (CRM) through Mental Health & Addiction Certification Board of Oregon (MHACBO). We are working hard to meet the ever-increasing demand for certified PSS/CRM in the recovery community through these trainings.
Because supporting Peer Support initiatives is essential for helping recovering addicts successfully transition into productive, fulfilling lives, we need your financial support in funding the operations of 4 PPS/CRM trainings and ongoing support.
SAVING GRACE
WE ARE HERE
Saving Grace is here offering safety, hope, and healing to survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault while engaging Central Oregon to build life free from violence.
HOW YOUR DONATION HELPS:
$50 – provides gas for a survivor fleeing intimate partner violence
$100 – provides a security camera for safety in a survivor’s home
$250 – provides a safe hotel stay for a survivor and their children
$500 – provides 3 weeks of meals for survivors at shelter
$1,000 – provides rental assistance to survivors
*Donations made through Central Oregon Gives will be matched, up to $45k.
Match provided by The Eccles Foundation.
SCHOOL OF RANCH
ABOUT US
100% of All Contributions to School of Ranch Are Paid Out to Local High School Students!
At School of Ranch, our high school-student interns learn valuable tech, business and social skills while doing a critical work for School of Ranch. And they get paid $20 an hour.
School of Ranch is a volunteer-run local 501c3 nonprofit. We hire skilled community members to teach practical and artisan skills to newcomers. Our mission is to educate, to build community by creating common ground, and to support our local students and small businesspeople.
NEW EACH MORNING
SISTERS GRO
ABOUT US
Sisters GRO partners with individuals and businesses across the region to ensure equitable access to continuing education for all Sisters High School students. Whether students plan to pursue trade or technical programs, or are headed for a two- or four-year degree, Sisters GRO awards at least one scholarship to every SHS student that applies.
Our mission is to help graduates achieve their educational aspirations, inspiring them to give back by becoming more. Since 2008, Sisters GRO has awarded over 1,500 scholarships which have reduced local student debt by more than $2,600,000. Thank you to all past and present donors for growing funds for GROwing futures.
ABOUT US
SMART Reading is a children’s literacy nonprofit that serves kids in Oregon’s highest-need schools with two ingredients critical for literacy and learning success: shared reading time and access to books. We mobilize volunteers to read with PreK through third-grade children, building confidence, literacy skills, and a love of reading. Kids in our program get to choose and keep 14 books a year to build their own personal libraries!
Simply put, life is harder when children can’t read proficiently. Reading is a critical gateway skill that paves the pathway for successful futures. Without it, kids are less likely to graduate from high school or find gainful employment as adults, leading to a host of additional hardships. Building a strong foundation of literacy can change a child’s life trajectory, and can help prevent and alleviate issues of poverty, homelessness, hunger, and injustice.
TREEHOUSE THERAPIES
ABOUT US
At Treehouse Therapies, we empower children with disabilities to develop confidence, acquire new skills, improve functionality, realize their utmost potential, and live their best lives. Treehouse Therapies was founded in August 2013 and is the only nonprofit multidisciplinary pediatric therapy clinic in Central Oregon, serving Deschutes, Jefferson and Crook Counties, and the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. We bring to life our mission, to unlock the limitless potential of children, families and community by providing exceptional care regardless of financial limitations.
With locations in Bend, Redmond, Warm Springs, and Sisters, Treehouse offers physical and occupational therapy, and behavioral health services, to children from birth through adolescence. Treehouse Therapies currently serves approximately 700 children per year and there are over 500 children on our wait list for services. The majority of children served qualify as having a disability. Experienced therapists help with a variety of conditions including development delay, cerebral palsy, autism, sensory processing disorders, down syndrome, and behavioral health disorders including ADHD, PTSD, anxiety, depression and more.
As the only non-profit multidisciplinary pediatric therapy clinic in the Central Oregon region, children and families come from all over our region for care. We serve families from Sisters, Prineville, Redmond, Madras, Warm Springs, Bend, La Pine, and other small rural communities.
SMART READING
WALDORF SCHOOL OF BEND
ABOUT US
The Waldorf School of Bend nurtures each child’s innate potential through a holistic, imaginative approach that cultivates responsibility, creativity, environmental stewardship, and strong community values. Our tech-free curriculum gives children a solid foundation, preparing them to become compassionate, resilient citizens who contribute meaningfully to the world.
Your donations directly support:
• Classroom enhancements and essential educational materials
• Tuition assistance to ensure equitable access to Waldorf education
• Continued professional development of our teachers
• Critical school facility repairs and improvements
• Developmentally appropriate and nature-based playground equipment
With your support, the Waldorf School of Bend can continue the long tradition of providing a nurturing space where children and families grow in harmony, curiosity, and purpose, empowered to make a positive impact on our community. Together, we make this vision a reality.
Thank you for helping us cultivate future generations of thoughtful, responsible, and compassionate leaders.
“The need for imagination, a sense of truth, and a feeling of responsibility — these three forces are the very nerve of education.”
— Rudolf Steiner
Even the littlest moments can grow into big oneswith a little encouragement, a little hope, and a little inspiration.
BECOME A BIG TODAY! bbbsco.org
BRIGHTER FUTURES FOR YOUTH
RISK: Family Conflict
RISK: Human Trafficking
Approximately 36% of runaway and homeless youth reported trading sex for a place to stay or another need
75.5% - 90% of youth in shelters cite family conflict as a critical issue leading to their homelessness Crisis Intervention Cascade Youth & Family Center offers crisis intervention services, including family mediation at: project (Anti Trafficking)
Direct support and assistance to victims and survivors of human trafficking
RISK: Lack of Mentors
Mentors contribute significantly to the future success of youth. 1 in 3 young people will grow up without a mentor
RISK: Pregnancy & Parenting
Single parenting youth are 3x more likely to experience homelessness than their non-parenting peers
Creating and supporting one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth
LOFT: Living Options for Teens
Longer term shelter and support focused on personal accountability while youth complete their education & develop essential life skills
RISK: Homelessness of homeless youth drop of school. Those without a high school diploma or GED 4.5x more likely to experience homelessness Big Brothers Big Sisters of CO
House
Shelter and programs for youth who are pregnant or parenting where they can continue their education and gain life skills
ARTS & CULTURE MEET OUR LOCAL NON PROFITS
Ellipse Theatre
Kaycee Anseth Legacy Foundation
Lay It Out Foundation
OUT Central Oregon
World MUSE
ABOUT US
The Mission of Ellipse Theatre Community is to build a supportive and artistically aware community through the performing arts and education. The Vision of Ellipse Theatre Community seeks to dynamically create community through entertainment, education, and diverse perspectives for cultural enlightenment. We strive and will encourage all to lead, create, and learn from our core values of Collaboration, Outreach, Relevance, and Excellence. With these as our foundation, we intend to create quality theatre for an inspired and evolving community - “one stage at a time.”
Our Roadshow Programs tour throughout Central Oregon. Our goal is to bring low-cost, highly professional theatre to our neighboring communities twice a year in order to allow audience members to see quality theatre without requiring them to drive to Bend. We have performed in Redmond, Sisters, Prineville, La Pine, and Sunriver. Starting in 2025, we also hope to perform in Madras and Warm Springs. In addition, our Immersive Theatre Events provide educational opportunities surrounding specific themes or topics. For instance, the PTSD Awareness Project in conjunction with “Craig Fox Had a Wife”, Project Pride Events as part of our performances of “Fun Home”, and our ALS/End-of-Life Awareness Project as part of our “Tuesdays with Morrie” shows.
Ellipse Theatre Community 61141 S Highway 97 PMB #136 Bend, OR 97702 (541) 647-9757
info@etcbend.org etcbend.org
WORLD MUSE
ABOUT US
World MUSE is a non-profit organization committed to supporting and amplifying the work of change-makers in our local community and beyond. We believe in the enormous potential of individuals to inspire positive change in their communities and in our world.
World MUSE has been providing programming and platforms to inspire positive social change for 15 years. Some of our highlights include:
• 2 feature-length documentaries addressing social justice issues.
• 5,000+ attendees at MUSE Conference and MUSE Teen Conference.
• 1,000+ youth in Bend, Redmond, and Madras have participated in MUSE Clubs.
• $50,000+ has gone to support local and global grass-roots projects through MUSE Maker Grants.
We are currently focusing our efforts on supporting local changemakers through our MUSE Maker Grant Program. Your support will go towards youth-based projects in Central Oregon.
ELLIPSE THEATRE COMMUNITY
KAYCEE ANSETH LEGACY FOUNDATION
ABOUT US
The Kaycee Anseth Legacy Foundation seeks to beautify, heal and unite our community by removing financial obstacles for Central Oregon artists, amplifying their ability to create.
Prior to her transition in March of 2020 following a long battle with ovarian cancer, Kaycee entrusted a group of friends, family, and creators to find a way to use her body of work to “pay it forward” to artists in the region. To honor her legacy, we support artists via The Paper Tigers Fund and The Outcreate Grant.
To date, we have distributed over 50 artist and creator grants across the region, helping fund projects in fine arts, music, publishing, compassionate end-of-life care, education, process and skill building, performing arts and live events, album completion, dance, film, ‘zines, woodworking, social activism, beadwork, comedy, youth art classes, and small business. Our grantees live across the tri-county area, are from all age groups, of varied backgrounds, and encompass a wide range of creative disciplines.
We believe in the power of art and creativity to uplift the community and we are committed to supporting creators of all backgrounds and abilities to do what they do best.
Join us in our shared mission to Outcreate.
LAY IT OUT FOUNDATION
ABOUT US
For 28 years, The Source Weekly has been a locally owned, independent voice for Central Oregon. As an independent watchdog, The Source Weekly is beholden to no one and has no political agenda, prioritizing transparency and integrity to deliver real journalism in a completely free publication.
Central Oregon Gives is a project of the Lay It Out Foundation, through which we’ve amplified our impact by directing essential resources to where they are needed most, strengthening community bonds, and fostering a collective spirit of responsibility. This work makes Central Oregon a stronger, more inclusive, and resilient region by empowering individuals and enhancing the quality of life across communities.
Contributions to the Lay It Out Foundation help sustain independent, high-quality journalism that keeps readers informed on critical news, culture, and events across Central Oregon. Support for the Lay It Out Foundation empowers The Source Weekly to deepen its role as a vital resource, offering progressive perspectives and delivering in-depth, impactful stories that matter.
50 SE Scott St #6 Bend, Oregon 97702 kayceeansethlegacyfoundation.org kayceeansethlf@gmail.com
Thanks to donor contributions like yours, the Lay It Out Foundation has funded the addition of Jennifer Baires, our first dedicated features and investigative journalist, enhancing the capacity to bring essential stories to the community. We invite you to join us in our mission to keep Central Oregon informed, engaged, and empowered, by giving today. No matter the size of the donation, your gift goes directly to sustaining the mission of keeping Central Oregon informed.
Lay It Out Foundation abstains from the category prize competition.
Jennifer Baires in the field news gathering
Kaycee Anseth Legacy Foundation
OUT CENTRAL OREGON
ABOUT US
OUT Central Oregon promotes inclusivity, visibility, and advocacy for 2SLGBTQIA+ people and our allies by enabling community engagement within the social, cultural, and economic landscape of Central Oregon. By developing and building partnerships between businesses, government agencies, and other nonprofit organizations, we promote and support the well-being of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and our allies.
The 2SLGBTQIA+ community is growing and thriving in Central Oregon. OUT Central Oregon has become an information and resource hub for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, helping to establish Central Oregon as welcoming and fostering a vibrant 2SLGBTQIA+ culture and community.
Highlights of some recent activities are included below:
• Distributed over 75,000 YOU ARE WELCOME HERE progress pride flag stickers to individuals, businesses, school districts, and cities/towns at no cost
• Annual production of Winter PrideFest, the only multi-day and multi-event celebration of inclusivity featuring outdoors PNW, with approximately 1,200 attendees in 2024
• Direct collaboration with local organizations in an effort to help create and sustain welcoming spaces for youth support, education, and community.
• Provide educational resources, event promotion, and financial support to ally organizations throughout Central Oregon. In 2024, Out Central Oregon connected with:
• Bend-La Pine Student Groups & Events
• Building Belong Workshop via the Bend Chamber
• COCC LGBTQ+ & Friends Club Event
• Heart of Oregon Corp PRIDE group (via mentorship)
• Juneteenth and the Father’s Group
• PRIDEville (Prineville June Pride)
• No Man’s Land Film Festival & BendFilm Redmond Pride Group
• Sisters Festival of Books SUS Magazine
• Warms Springs Community Action Team
Your donation will:
• Provide critical funding needed for OUT Central Oregon to continue to serve our 2SLGBTQIA+ community, including creating assessments to identify current needs of the population and establishing initiatives to address the identified needs
• Expand Winter PrideFest 2025 with new community events not included in previous festivals, including a family-oriented community event
• Continue our YOU ARE WELCOME HERE sticker program to provide Central Oregonians an opportunity to increase visible support for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community
MUSE
MUSE MAKERS
Supporting those who work to inspire positive social change in their communities and in our world.
WORLD MUSE began as a youth empowerment organization in 2009. Supporting youth as change makers will always be at the heart of what we do. This year, we chose seven organizations that work to support youth within Central Oregon to receive our 2024 MUSE Maker Grants.
World MUSE has contributed well over $50,000 to individuals, projects, and organizations that work to create positive change. MUSE Maker Grants have provided support to efforts ranging from a creative writing program for survivors of domestic abuse to non-competitive cycling events for young girls, from women’s farming cooperative projects in Zambia to programming that supports our LGBTQIA+ community here in Central Oregon. These grants allow us to directly support those who are working to inspire positive social change in their communities and in our world.
We invite you to learn more about the amazing organizations that received MUSE Maker Grants this year and support them in whatever ways you are able. We will be hosting a very special Night Light Show event on November 19th to celebrate them in person. We hope you will join us for an evening of community, comedy, and inspiration. Tickets are sliding scale and are available now. More details can be found on the back of our MUSE Maker Guide.
With
Gratitude, Amanda Stuermer World MUSE Founder
WORLD MUSE PRESENTS
2024 MUSE GRANT RECIPIENTS
Family Access Network (FAN)
FAN’s mission is to offer assistance, possibility and hope to Central Oregon families in need by connecting them with crucial resources that will help children flourish in school and in life. FAN is unique to Central Oregon, located in nearly all public schools across Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties. Working through a dedicated FAN advocate, a child or parent is connected to essential services such as food, shelter, heating, health care, clothing and more.
FAN advocates link children and families to critical basic need services with the goal of keeping children healthy and in school. FAN provides a direct and convenient way within the school to connect children to vital resources, and coordinates with over 100 partners to ensure those in need are assisted quickly. FAN advocates support our most needy families, removing barriers and paving the way for a child’s success. Every year, FAN advocates improve the lives of over 7,500 children and family members in our community.
RAICES
RAICES is a program of the Latino Community Association. It is aimed at school-age Latino youth from low-income, immigrant families. The goal is to provide relatively simple, yet impactful interventions that produce lasting change, propelling kids to succeed in both school and in life.
The Youth Rising Program provides integrated services with several community partners that focus on bilingual literacy, cultural literacy, social-emotional skill building, fun, adventure, and leadership development. The components include: Youth Literacy & Empowerment, Amiguitos Summer Club, Biblioteca en Camino, and Paseos Recreativos.
Better Together
Better Together activates networks across sectors and communities to transform the systems that serve children, youth and families. They work collectively to identify gaps in opportunity, build knowledge and align strategies, so we can act together to change policy and practices.
Too many children and youth in Central Oregon do not have what they need to thrive. Fixing this multi-layered systemic issue is not about adding programs that only address surface-level symptoms of the problem nor is it only about meeting the needs of a few impacted individuals. It’s about thinking differently, adding seats to decision-making tables, and listening to community members. It means acting collectively, outside of our siloes to transform systems. The Better Together solution remains rooted in the value that we can do better if we do it together.
Papalaxsimisha
Papalaxsimisha focuses on supporting indigenous students and their families in 6th through 12th grade on their educational journey using culturally based educational practices that are grounded in the acknowledgment and awareness of historical trauma and healing.
Papalaxsimisha’s programming incorporates historical trauma, healing, self-identity, cultural awareness, high school readiness, college and career readiness in a curriculum developed by three native teachers.
J Bar J
J Bar J is the largest social services organization helping youth in Central Oregon. To provide an ever-evolving continuum of resources for at risk and unhoused youth, J Bar J Youth Services prioritizes the leadership and voices of youth with lived experience in implementing new opportunities and improving existing programming. The Central Oregon Youth Action Board, a board of youth with lived experience, fills this key role.
J Bar J’s programming includes: The J Bar J Boy Ranch, J5, Cascade Youth and Family Center, AT: Project, Grandma’s House, Big Brothers & Big Sisters of Central Oregon, The Academy at Sisters, J Bar J Learning Center, and Kindred Connections.
Infinite Healing Solutions
Infinite Healing Solutions' mission is to develop, deliver and disseminate research-based programs addressing the physical, emotional, social and spiritual elements to strengthen individuals, families and to increase accessibility for every community in Central Oregon.
Infinite Healing Solutions plays a vital role in our community by weaving the social, cultural,
environmental, and economic fabric of our society together. They provide needed services and opportunities for community members to participate, advocate for inadequately serviced communities, and pioneer solutions to major social problems.
Gender Hive
Gender Hive is a project envisioned by the Central Oregon Trans Health Coalition and launched in March 2023 as part of the Trans Health Equity Project — a year-long effort to improve access to trans-inclusive and genderaffirming care in Central Oregon.
Transgender and nonbinary people — in every community — deserve access to healthcare that affirms their gender and meets both their transition-related and holistic health needs. That’s why Gender Hive was created.
A Very Special Night Light Show with Shanan Kelley & Magnificent Guests
This event will honor the work of our 2024 MUSE Maker Grant
Recipients to support youth in Central Oregon. Please join World MUSE in celebrating their efforts to inspire positive social change.
Open Space Studios
Tuesday, November 19th
6-8pm
Tickets / Scan QR code
nov 19th
ANIMAL WELFARE
MEET OUR LOCAL NON PROFITS
Brightside Animal Center
Companion Animal Medical Project
Dogpac
Embers Wildflower Animal Sanctuary & Bunny Rescue
Furry Freight Shelter Transport
Happy Trails Horse Rescue
Harmony Farm Sanctuary
BRIGHTSIDE ANIMAL CENTER
ABOUT US
Humane Society of Central Oregon
Lark Ranch Rescue and Rehabilitation
PET Evacuation Team
Silver Linings Rescue Ranch
Street Dog Hero
Think Wild
Help BrightSide Animal Center Support Our Growing Community of Animals in Need!
At BrightSide Animal Center, we are dedicated to reducing animal homelessness and preventing unnecessary euthanasia. Our shelter plays a vital role in Central Oregon, providing essential services like sheltering, placement, and prevention programs.
As our community grows, we face significant challenges, including a troubling rise in homeless animals entering our shelter and an increase in families surrendering pets due to financial hardships. This has led to more animals needing our help more than ever before.
As a 501c3 nonprofit, BrightSide relies on grants, adoption revenues, donations, and income from our beverage recycling program and thrift store.
Before animals leave our care, they receive comprehensive medical attention, including vaccinations, microchipping, and spaying or neutering, ensuring they are fully prepared for their new homes.
To continue our life-saving mission, we seek financial assistance to provide necessary care for these animals and support our community. Every animal deserves a chance at a secure future and at the core of our mission is a commitment to giving animals a second chance at a fulfilling life. BrightSide serves as their voice, advocating for those who cannot speak for themselves.
Your donation, at any level, helps us save lives:
$20 can vaccinate a shelter cat.
$50 covers microchipping five animals.
$250 covers a dog’s spay or neuter surgery.
$500 supports two dog adoptions.
$750 buys a month’s worth of kitty litter for the shelter.
$1,000 supports one month of dog and cat food for the shelter.
Thank you for your support and helping us create brighter futures for pets and people!
Animal Center 1355 NE Hemlock Ave, Redmond 541-923-0882
info@brightsideanimals.org brightsideanimals.org
BrightSide
COMPANION ANIMAL MEDICAL PROJECT
ABOUT US
Meet our “Friends of CAMP!”
Companion Animal Medical Project (CAMP) is a homegrown, grassroots 501c3 nonprofit organization in Central Oregon. Established in 2020, CAMP’s mission is to help ease the burden on those experiencing homelessness, or facing other debilitating financial hardships, by providing veterinary care and supplies to their companion animals.
Since our inception we have, at no-cost to owners:
• Vaccinated 4,000+ pets,
• Performed 500+ spay & neuters,
• Financially covered 100 critical-care cases,
• Adopted out 100+ animals,
• And, distributed 20,000+ pounds of pet food.
While these numbers are as impressive as they are important, they do not tell the whole story. The pets we serve and the people who love them are often complex and complicated, just like we all are. Yet, their unique stories reveal that we have more in common than we might think.
Over the next 8 weeks, we’ll be hosting a special social campaign called, “Friends of CAMP.” Through candid photos and honest storytelling, we’ll offer an exclusive glimpse into the lives we’ve touched and the relationships we’ve built as a result. We hope to share the diverse human/animal experience while fostering a connection that only our furriest friends can facilitate. This is a celebration of love, hope, and the transformative power of friendship.
Join us on this journey by following us on Instagram (@campclinics_) and Facebook (facebook.com/ campclinicsofCO). You’ll meet Patti the Parvo-Survivor, our OG mama, Patches, the rogue-Romeo, Frog, and many more! Then, we hope you’ll consider making a yearend gift to ensure our critical services remain available to our friends of the future. We are so grateful for your support!
And remember, “We’ll be there for you...When the rain starts to pour...”
profile is sponsored by:
This
ABOUT US
Dogpac supports off-leash recreation and responsible dog ownership. We work with Bend Parks and Rec and the Forest Service to provide access to public lands, including dog parks and the Deschutes National Forest. We are the voice of Central Oregon dog lovers (and visitors), who walk, hike, bike, ski, and snowshoe with their best friends. We developed the only dog-friendly, groomed xc ski trails in Oregon, at Wanoga SnoPark. We give out thousands of free Off-Leash brochures with information about dog-friendly places to go.
Your donations support trail-grooming at Wanoga, brochures, disposal of poop from Rimrock and Phil’s Trailheads, and other dog-friendly activities.
ABOUT US
Ember’s Wildflower Animal Sanctuary and Bunny Rescue is a registered nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization established in 2019 that serves Central Oregon and surrounding regions by providing the only bunny-specific rescue and sanctuary option for our community.
Domestic bunnies are the 3rd most abandoned pet. Our mission is to provide rescue and sanctuary to abandoned and unwanted domestic bunnies; to spay/ neuter, vaccinate, provide veterinary care, and prepare them to be adopted into loving homes through socialization and training. To provide education and resources for current and future bunny owners and reduce cycles of surrendering unwanted animals by carefully reviewing potential adopters and ensuring good matches of humans and companion animals. For bunnies whose medical needs preclude them from adoption, we will provide lifelong sanctuary.
Most rescues are experiencing record surrender and we are no exception. Our rescue barn is full, and we have a long waitlist. We request a surrender donation, although we don’t always receive one. Medical costs incurred with each bunny are as follows:
$150 Spay
$100 Neuter
$34 RHDV2 vaccination
$15 Microchip
As of October 15, Embers has taken in 356, spayed/neutered 236, adopted out 259, administered 235 RHDV2 vaccines and paid for 16 life saving surgeries.
FURRY FREIGHT SHELTER TRANSPORT
ABOUT US
Our mission is to save shelter pets one road trip at a time.
This profile is sponsored by:
We help at-risk animals in severely overpopulated areas escape the risk of euthanasia by giving them a safe ride to our rescue partners throughout the Pacific Northwest. Our volunteers drive as far as Oklahoma, Texas, and Central California to pick up our furry passengers and deliver them to safety.
In addition, our Spay it Forward Program combats the root cause of this crisis by directly supporting free spay and neuter surgery in Oklahoma where owners in lowincome areas can have their family pet fixed for free. This program prevents thousands of puppies from entering already overcapacity shelters.
Your generosity directly saves lives and any amount is greatly appreciated.
HAPPY TRAILS HORSE RESCUE
ABOUT US
Happy Trails Horse Rescue is dedicated to the protection of horses and their quality of life. While we strive to rescue those horses in need, we also provide community outreach, education and resource - such as our SURRENDER PREVENTION PROGRAM (food, medical/farrier assistance or temporary shelter) in an effort to alleviate an owner’s difficult choices of relinquishment or euthanasia. We believe that every equine deserves compassionate care and unconditional love, regardless of age, health, or behavior.
$25 = One Microchip for one horse
$50 = One Farrier trim for one horse
$100 = Hay for one horse for one month
$250 = Basic needs for one rescue horse for one month
$750 = Pain medicine for one horse for one year
$1000 = Cushings medicine for one horse for one year
EMBER’S WILDFLOWER ANIMAL SANCTUARY AND BUNNY RESCUE
HARMONY FARM SANCTUARY
ABOUT US
Harmony Farm Sanctuary (HFS) is a 100% volunteer-run nonprofit, accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS), dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating neglected and abused farm animals. This year, as we reflect on our past decade of work, we are incredibly grateful for the support that has enabled us to rescue, rehabilitate, and rehome over 1,000 animals in need.
Currently home to 145 rescued animals, each with their own unique story of survival, HFS provides a safe haven for healing and rehabilitation. Beyond rescue, we offer a free compassionate curriculum in partnership with local schools and organizations, empowering youth and differently-abled adults to develop empathy and kindness toward all living beings.
Your gift this year will directly support our efforts to provide vital care, shelter, and rehabilitation for rescued farm animals, while expanding our education programs and advocacy work to promote compassionate animal well-being. As we celebrate our 10year anniversary, 100% of your donation will go towards our lifesaving work, helping us reach our fundraising goal of $35,000.
$500 will help cover professional veterinary care, including emergency treatment and surgeries.
$200 will help cover routine vet care, contribute toward vaccinations, minor medical treatments, and keeping our rescued residents healthy.
$100 will help supply nutritional supplements and specialized feed for our senior residents.
$50 will help provide weekly fresh produce and feed for our 145 residents.
“It is with small, everyday acts of love and kindness, no matter the species, that the world becomes a better place.” — Robine Bots
HUMANE SOCIETY OF CENTRAL OREGON
ABOUT US
The Humane Society of Central Oregon (HSCO) has been serving Central Oregon since 1961. As a Socially Conscious Shelter, HSCO strives to achieve the best outcomes for every animal in its care, covering seven counties within a 100-mile radius.
Your donation has a direct impact on thousands of animals each year, providing safe shelter, adoption opportunities, and reuniting lost pets with their families. Community support makes it possible to deliver critical veterinary care to underserved areas, supports foster homes for young animals, and keeps pets with families during crises.
A gift to HSCO not only saves lives - it transforms them. Together, we can create a safer, healthier, and more humane Central Oregon for pets and the people who love them.
LARK RANCH RESCUE AND REHABILITATION
ABOUT US
Lark Ranch Rescue and Rehabilitation is committed to helping animals have better lives through a number of programs. We run an animal sanctuary with 60 animals on site; each with their own story of hardship and redemption. We also provide free medical care and surgeries for other rescue groups. We have performed over 700 spay and neuter procedures on feral cats over 6 counties through our Trap-Neuter-Return program.
LarkRRR has partners over 4 counties who we have worked with to provide medical care, wellness visits and needed surgeries in multiple species. We work with animal shelters, rescues and groups large and small to make Central Oregon a better place for both animals and people. We ask for your support so we can continue to contribute to our community in this positive way.
PET EVACUATION TEAM
ABOUT US
SERVING ANIMALS AND PEOPLE IN CRISIS
Emergency animal evacuations and sheltering during disasters are critical to our community and save lives. PET works in partnership with the Red Cross, law enforcement and local emergency services during Central Oregon disasters, providing care and a safe haven for animals who have been evacuated. We have assisted in disasters for over 20 years, including 16 local wildfire evacuations. PET also assists individuals with animal/pet-related emergencies, and law enforcement in animal seizure cases. Our volunteer-based organization serves all of Deschutes County, and parts of Jefferson and Crook Counties.
Each fire season is worse than the last one, with fires often occurring in different locations simultaneously, and lasting longer. To serve people and pets in crisis PET is seeking donations to help us stay AT-THE-READY with our trucks, rescue equipment trailers and supplies.
ABOUT US
At Silver Linings Rescue Ranch, we have a special place in our hearts for senior dogs. Our mission is to help these wonderful companions find loving homes where they can enjoy their golden years. We provide essential medical care and emotional support to prepare them for adoption.
We also encourage pet guardians to create a plan for their furry friends, as life can be unpredictable. Recognizing the special bond between senior dogs and older adults, we offer adoption discounts for seniors and military veterans.
Your generous donation helps us cover adoption fees, purchase specialized food, and provide vital veterinary care, including dental cleanings and extractions, physical therapy, prescription medications, blood tests, echocardiograms, and much more.
ABOUT US
Since 2017, Street Dog Hero has rescued more than 3,700 dogs from neglect, abuse, and starvation globally and locally, offering them medical care, sterilization, transportation, fostering, and adoption opportunities.
In addition, Street Dog Hero has provided over 9,100 animals with free or low-cost spay and neuter services, along with other essential wellness treatments.
Their mission is to create a world where every dog is safe, healthy, loved, and wanted.
Your donation this year will enable Street Dog Hero to save more lives and offer critical veterinary care to families in Central Oregon and beyond.
A gift of $500 will rescue a dog from an uncertain fate and ensure their transportation and care.
A donation of $150 will spay or neuter two pets, cover vaccinations, and provide wellness exams for families in need in Central Oregon.
A contribution of $75 will supply our dogs with food, training, and enrichment as they transition from foster care to their forever homes.
A pledge of $40 will spay or neuter a dog at an international clinic, helping to mitigate the issues of overpopulation.
STREET DOG HERO
This profile is sponsored by:
SILVER LININGS RESCUE RANCH
THINK WILD
ABOUT US
Think Wild is a nonprofit wildlife hospital and conservation center serving Central Oregon. We are fundraising to build an aquatic mammal enclosure to rescue and rehabilitate injured and orphaned river otters and beavers.
This summer, Think Wild received two orphaned North American river otter pups after a park ranger found them in a ditch on the side of the road near Cove Palisades State Park. The otter pups were severely dehydrated and had likely been there for days prior to being rescued.
While Think Wild could stabilize and provide initial veterinary care for the otters, we do not have the proper facilities for rehabilitating aquatic mammals like river otters and beavers for release back to the wild. These animals require 8 months to 2 years of care when rescued as orphans, and their enclosures must include a pool with a filtration system, steel caging, and other species-specific enrichment and safety features. Fortunately, Think Wild was able to transfer the otters to another facility on the coast for care, but this is not a sustainable solution.
Please consider donating to support the construction of an aquatic mammal enclosure for the rehabilitation and release of river otters and beavers.
These species are important members of riparian ecosystems, yet their populations have declined over time due to trapping and habitat loss. The completion of this $80,000 project will allow us to rescue these keystone species when in need and support their positive impacts on local wildlife and their habitats.
CATEGORY SPONSOR
BASIC NEEDS
MEET OUR LOCAL NON PROFITS
Around the Bend Farms Assistance League of Bend
Bethlehem Inn
Family Kitchen
Fly Fishing Collaborative
Furnish Hope
The Giving Plate
AROUND THE BEND FARMS
ABOUT US
Grandma’s House High Desert Food & Farm Alliance
RootedHomes
Sisters Habitat for Humanity
Thistle & Nest
United Way of Central Oregon
We are creating a system where fresh, nutritious produce is abundantly and locally grown in compact urban farms and distributed throughout the Central Oregon region. We work to build an all-inclusive urban agriculture society, and put our unique twist on bridging our communities as we improve access to healthy food.
We are expanding our capacity to grow and distribute fresh, nutritious food to our participants in Warm Springs. Our current Farm-to-Warm Springs Project impacts our neighbors in Warm Springs by ensuring that produce from our Bend farm is grown with Tribal member input and distributed to those who can benefit the most within the community.
Assistance League® of Bend is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization that has been supporting vulnerable children and adults affected by poverty and cancer in Central Oregon for over 35 years. Because we have no paid staff, all donations go directly to the local community. Our community-based philanthropic services include:
• Operation School Bell® is our signature program which provides new clothing, shoes, and books for school-age children. Last year, we dressed over 2,800 K-12 Deschutes County children in new school clothing giving them the confidence to succeed in school. We also offer clothing bundles, which provide emergency clothing for children entering foster care. Foster children and their families are also invited to a complimentary yearly holiday event at a local restaurant.
• Cinderella’s Closet provides local high school students with formal dresses and accessories so they can attend school events.
• These Kids are Cookin’ offers a four-week cooking and nutrition class to low-income students in Title 1-A schools in grades 4 and 5.
• Hats & More delivers handmade hats, hand knit breast prosthetics, lavender & rice heat packs, and comfort shawls for cancer patients in infusion centers.
• Senior Caring provides personal care items and holiday gifts to low-income seniors that have little or no family.
Everybody needs help sometimes.
“Never in a million years did I think I would be homeless,” says Rick, “but then one day I was.” He learned about Bethlehem Inn, called, and was welcomed. “I was safe and had a space I could call my own,” Rick says. “They know your name. They’re there for you.” During his stay, Rick worked, saved money, found housing, and bought a car.
For 25 years, Bethlehem Inn has been a beacon of hope for people like Rick. In that time, you have made it possible to provide over one and a half million meals and provided more than half a million safe nights sleep. Each meal and bed represents a moment of dignity, a chance to rebuild, and a reminder that no one is alone. Your support makes this possible, ensuring people in crisis have a safe place to turn, a warm meal, and the opportunity to regain stability.
We offer more than shelter; we provide personalized support and accountability-based services that empower individuals to take charge of their journey in a safe and sober environment. For those we serve, being seen and heard is vital. Our case managers work one-on-one with each person, helping people set goals, access resources, and build a stable future. This approach helps individuals not just survive but thrive.
Right now, over 1,800 adults and children are homeless in Central Oregon. This isn’t just a statistic—it’s a crisis. You can make a difference. Whether by donating, volunteering, or spreading the word, your involvement is crucial. Visit bethleheminn.org today and help give more people like Rick a second chance. Your donation, of any size will directly impact the outcome of people experiencing homelessness. Bethlehem Inn can only function with support of community members like yourself! While many programs rely solely on grants, the majority of the funding for Bethlehem Inn comes from people like you. Because of your support we are able to listen directly to the folks we serve and the community we live in to make impactful changes. Together, we can transform lives.
FAMILY KITCHEN
ABOUT US
BASIC NEEDS
For 38 years, Family Kitchen has provided hope and nourishment for Central Oregonians facing food insecurity. Through our Community Meal Program, we provide free, nutritious meals to anyone in need in a safe and caring environment. At a time when many in Oregon are struggling to afford healthy meals while also navigating many other complex challenges, our work has never been more critical. Last year alone, we served 215,296 meals, and we now prepare and deliver over 20,000 meals each month across Bend, Redmond, and Sisters.
Our meals do more than nourish the body; they restore hope and dignity. Our 400+ volunteers prepare, serve, and provide meals daily, while other teams shop for food and pick up donated food from local markets. We promote food security, ensure that meals have generous portions, and meet all diners’ dietary needs.
With the help of dedicated local organizations, we also go beyond the plate. Family Kitchen partners with other local service providers that support our diner population with other complementary services like case management, healthcare, personal goal setting, and transitional shelter.
But we can’t do it alone. Your support helps us continue to feed our neighbors in need and provide a crucial lifeline during tough times. By donating to Family Kitchen, you’re not just giving a meal—you’re giving hope, compassion, and the assurance that someone cares. Join us in the fight against hunger today.
FLY FISHING COLLABORATIVE (FFC)
ABOUT US
Since 2014, FFC, an Oregon based non profit, has been on a mission to create lasting change for some of the most vulnerable people in our world— those who are caught in the vicious cycles of poverty and human trafficking. Our mission is creating sustainable solutions to poverty and human trafficking through our custom-designed Aquaponics Farms, these farms offer not just food and resources, but hope and a chance at a better future. These farms are built in orphanages, safe homes, and communities struggling to survive in resource-scarce environments. With each farm, we aim to nurture growth, opportunity, and independence. Our work has taken us to 10 countries, where we’ve built 13 Aquaponics Farms and provided ongoing support to ensure these farms thrive. But what keeps us going is knowing the real lives behind the numbers—children, families, and entire communities who now have a sustainable source of food and income because of people like you.
Closer to home, we are making a difference here in Oregon. Last year was a special moment for us as we expanded our Kids Fishing Day into a multiday camp for youth in foster care. Considering that approximately 60% of child sex trafficking victims in the U.S. have been involved in the foster care system or other child welfare programs, this camp serves as a vital prevention strategy by providing a supportive environment where youth in foster care can develop life skills, form positive relationships, and create lasting memories. These efforts are crucial in reducing their vulnerabilities to poverty and trafficking. We’re committed to continuing to grow this program, offering more opportunities for youth. We are equally excited about our partnership with the Warm Springs Community Action Team (WSCAT) as we prepare to break ground on the Warm Springs Aquaponic Farm in Spring of 2025—our first U.S. domestic farm. This project will address the critical issue of food insecurity on the Warm Springs Reservation, while also offering tribal youth educational and employment opportunities in sustainable agriculture. For many of these youth, this farm will offer hope, a sense of purpose, and a path to a brighter future.
FURNISH HOPE
ABOUT US
By linking arms with a network of referring agencies, our community of supporters, and teams of volunteers, Furnish Hope is able to furnish homes for hundreds of our neighbors in need throughout Central Oregon each year. We furnish over 40 homes a month, serving 500+ children a year.
Furnish Hope supports foster families, aged-out foster youth, veterans, those transitioning from homelessness and recovery programs, refugees and people fleeing domestic violence as well as other difficult situations. Your financial gift will help us deliver the comforts of home to a family in need today.
Together, we furnish hope and homes!
THE GIVING PLATE
ABOUT US
Family Kitchen P.O. Box 982 Bend, OR 97709 (541) 760-5677 info@familykitchen.org familykitchen.org
The Giving Plate operates four core hunger-relief programs: the Grocery Program, Kid’s Korner, Kid’s Korner Mobile Pantry, and Backpacks for Bend. In 2023, we provided food to over 76,000 individuals, distributing nearly 914,000 pounds of food. Since opening in April 2024, we’ve seen a 46% increase in families accessing our new Community Store, where guests shop for free in an empowering, choice-based environment. Through Kid’s Korner, children joyfully select their own food in a kid-friendly space.
We are committed to providing compassionate, dignified support because no one should feel shame for needing help. Your support not only fights hunger but also feeds hope, making a real difference. Join us to ensure no one in our community goes hungry.
hello@furnishhope.com www.furnishhope.com
Furnish Hope
GRANDMA’S HOUSE
ABOUT US
BASIC NEEDS
Young people with their babies are extremely vulnerable when they become homeless or escape abuse with no place to go. The immediate needs of safety, shelter, and food become enormous challenges. Such a rough beginning can be traumatizing and can have long-term effects on these parents and the lives of their babies. What they find at Grandma’s House is a home and support, a second family. During their time with us they learn life skills and nutrition, get pre- and post- natal care for themselves and their babies, and work toward self-sufficiency.
A beginning that prepares young parents to build a future they want, and bridges the opportunity gap for the next generation.
We are the only home in our region serving the shelter needs of this vulnerable population.
We are J Bar J Youth Services.
ABOUT US
HDFFA believes everyone deserves good food.
We connect our community to locally produced food. This results in healthy meals for food insecure neighbors, a healthier local economy for our producers, and better health outcomes for all. In 2024, we reached over 75,000 Central Oregonians.
Food Access:
• Our Grow & Give, Fresh Harvest Kits, and VeggieRx programs contributed 30,000+ meals with nutritious, locally grown produce.
Farmers/Ranchers Support:
• Over $125,000 in produce purchases, reimbursements, on-farm improvements and offered networking events to local farmers and ranchers.
Connecting our Community with Local Food:
• Increased awareness through our 13th Annual Food and Farm Directory, film screenings, Farm-to-Table and annual SOUPer Bowl events.
Do you believe everyone deserves good food? Please support HDFFA with a donation today! hdffa.org/donate
ROOTEDHOMES
ABOUT US
RootedHomes provides environmentally sustainable and permanently affordable homeownership opportunities for those who contribute to the fabric of the Central Oregon economy and community. These are working families who can qualify for a mortgage but cannot afford to purchase a home given the housing crisis our community faces.
Our newest homeowner, a Sisters School District math teacher shares the impact of being rooted to the community, “With RootedHomes, I have security and the feeling of being settled. I am so thankful for being able to now live and work in the same community. I can now truly make this community my home.”
RootedHomes is building over 100 homes throughout Central Oregon in the next three years from Bend and Redmond, to Prineville and Sisters. With your help, we can raise $50,000 to help build sustainable and affordable homes for our local workforce.
Donate now to help us reach our $25,000 goal that will be matched by a local family!
Sisters Habitat for Humanity is part of a global, nonprofit housing organization that seeks to put love into action by building homes, communities, and hope. Sisters Habitat for Humanity is dedicated to eliminating substandard housing locally through constructing, rehabilitating, and preserving affordable homes; advocating for fair and just housing policies; and providing training and access to resources to help families improve their shelter conditions.
We build and repair homes to provide safe, stable and affordable homes in the greater Sisters community.
Since its founding, Sisters Habitat for Humanity has created more than 80 homes in Sisters to provide opportunities for households with incomes less than 80% Area Median Income to own a home. Our goal is to construct at least 30 affordable homes within the next three years. The stability inherent in homeownership is key to sustaining individual and family well-being.
THISTLE & NEST
ABOUT US
Thistle & Nest dignifies the affordable housing experience by providing the opportunity to own a high-quality, energy-efficient home in Central Oregon. The nonprofit offers down payment assistance to low- and middle-income buyer-ready households, making the dream of homeownership a reality. Using an innovative, collaborative model, Thistle & Nest has built and sold 20 homes this year and is on track to close out 2024 with 30 homes.
One of our recent homeowners, a Bend healthcare worker, shared her experience: “At the beginning of this year, I never imagined owning a home was a possibility for me. I appreciate all your amazing work for people like me who couldn’t afford a home otherwise.”
The organization is slated to build 146 homes over the next two years in Bend, Madras, and Prineville; however, one of the largest barriers to making this dream work for some households is the need for additional down payment assistance, especially for first-
UNITED WAY
BASIC NEEDS
For over 70 years, United Way has been serving Central Oregon. We exist to advance equity by mobilizing the caring power of our communities, responding to community needs, and investing with our community partners to improve and strengthen lives.
Across Central Oregon, 38% of households don’t have enough income to cover their housing, childcare, food, transportation, health care, smartphone, and taxes, much less having savings for emergencies or goals like college or retirement.
That’s:
~10,000 households living below the federal poverty level, and another ~28,000 more households living below what it takes to make it.
We call these families ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed). These are folks who are working hard, every day, sometimes more than one job, but still not making enough to make ends meet.
ALICE families live in a gray area: working hard but not earning enough to cover their basic cost of living yet earning too much to qualify for government programs. These families are living paycheck to paycheck and can’t cover an unexpected $400 emergency expense.
2 in 5 Central Oregon families are not getting by. That’s too many.
That’s why we are focused on healthy communities, financial security, youth opportunity, community resilience, and equity.
We’re helping our neighbors who are working hard but falling short to get back on their feet—and stay there. Through strategic partnerships and collaborative efforts, we work to identify and address evolving needs in Central Oregon, ensuring that resources are invested where they are most needed and can have the most substantial impact.
RIDE UNITED
Transportation is widely known to be a high priority need amongst Central Oregonians. For 211info, transportation is the second highest need among those seeking assistance in Central Oregon, after housing. Envision Bend, the Central Oregon Health Council, and the Deschutes County Transportation System Plan all identify improving access to transportation as a top priority. Access to transportation contributes meaningfully to individual and community health, wellbeing, productivity, and prosperity.
That’s why we’re excited to be launching our new transportation program – Ride United – in 2025!
Ride United will reduce transportation barriers and ensure equitable access to transportation, allowing Central Oregonians to meet their basic needs by accessing essential services – employment, job interviews, veterans’ services, food pantries, shelter, housing, doctors’ appointments, education programs, legal assistance, and more – playing a crucial role in promoting financial security, employment opportunities, education, social participation, and physical and mental health for individuals, as well as bolstering the local and regional economy.
EMERGENCY FOOD & SHELTER
We direct grant funds towards emergency food, shelter, and clothing programs throughout Central Oregon. By addressing long-term basic needs, these services contribute to individual health and well-being, as well as a more stable, productive, and inclusive economy.
More than $300,000 in funds coming from FEMA and Deschutes County have been deployed in 2024 to strengthen the efforts of agencies providing these services. These are our Community Partners.
United is the way to help our community members who need it the most.
Unite with us. Donate today!
HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT
MEET OUR LOCAL NON
PROFITS
The Center Foundation
Central Oregon LandWatch
Central Oregon Veterans Ranch
Deschutes River Conservancy
Destination Rehab
Diversability Inc.
The Environmental Center Healing Reins Equine Assisted Services
THE CENTER FOUNDATION
ABOUT US
Oregon Trails Coalition
Oregon Wild Partners In Care
Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette
Ronald McDonald House of Oregon & SW Washington
Upper Deschutes Watershed Council Volunteers In Medicine
Since 2000, The Center Foundation has been dedicated to protecting the health and safety of Central Oregon’s student-athletes. We provide certified athletic trainers in eight local high schools to offer onsite injury prevention, rehabilitation, emergency care, and concussion management. But we don’t stop there.
We also recognize the importance of mental health in youth sports. That’s why The Center Foundation offers mental health support and referral services, alongside sports injury and concussion prevention education for students, parents, and coaches.
With your help, we can continue providing these critical services - all free to youth and families - to keep kids safe while they pursue the sports they love. Your support makes a lasting impact on their physical and emotional well-being.
Join us in protecting the future of youth sports. Donate today to The Center Foundation.
CENTRAL
OREGON LANDWATCH
ABOUT US
Creating well-planned cities and protecting open spaces since 1986.
As we confront the pressures of increasing development and a changing climate, ensuring a balanced and sustainable approach to planning for the future of Central Oregon is critical.
To protect the land and water that sustains our people and our wildlife, Central Oregon LandWatch guides development where it belongs. We’re making sure Central Oregon remains a one-of-a-kind place to live, work, and recreate.
Our approach:
STRONG LEGAL DEFENSE. We use the power of federal and state law to defend and protect the natural environment. SOLUTIONS-ORIENTED POLICY. We bring our expertise in land use planning to guide the way to a sustainable future that balances growth and development with natural resource protection and centers community voices. COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT. We help the public (that’s you!) participate in land use matters and we organize community engagement on critical natural resource and urban growth decisions.
Thanks to our generous and active supporters, LandWatch is at the forefront of defending our region’s waterways, wildlife, farms, and forests and promoting vibrant and sustainable cities and towns.
svisnack@centerfoundation.org
centerfoundation.org
CENTRAL OREGON VETERANS RANCH
About Us:
Our Mission
The Central Oregon Veterans Ranch helps veterans develop their inner strength and find purpose by providing camaraderie and access to nature on our working ranch.
Our Vision
We envision Central Oregon Veterans Ranch as a premier model for nature-based veteran development and compassionate community engagement.
How Your Support Helps:
Daily Ranch Operations & Staffing
Your generosity provides the vital resources needed to cover essential daily operational costs, including funding for our staff, many of whom are veterans. This dedicated team is the backbone of our work, ensuring we’re always here to serve the veterans in our community.
Site Management & Maintenance
Donor contributions keep our ranch running smoothly, from equipment to facilities. Thanks to recent donations, like a new lawn mower, we’re able to maintain our grounds and create a welcoming space for veteran support and development.
Agritherapy & Peer Support Programs
We’re expanding in 2025! Your contributions will help us build stronger connections with other veteran organizations and introduce new agritherapy programs to serve more veterans across Central Oregon.
DESCHUTES RIVER CONSERVANCY
ABOUT US
Founded in part by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and a diverse group of local stakeholders, the Deschutes River Conservancy (DRC) has brought people together for more than 25 years to create consensus-based solutions to complex water issues. Through our longstanding partnerships and innovative programs, the DRC has restored 350 cubic feet per second to our rivers and streams, improving fish and wildlife habitat. That’s the equivalent of 14 Olympic-sized swimming pools per hour flowing in the rivers and streams of the Deschutes Basin.
This year we are excited to announce a new opportunity for river supporters to engage with our work. The Instream Collective is a community of passionate river supporters that invest in solutions to steward innovative and sustainable water management in Central Oregon. Check out our website for more details.
The Instream Collective – where your monthly membership becomes water in our rivers!
Whether you make a one-time donation today or become a monthly supporter, a gift to the DRC is a gift to the river and all who depend on it, now and for generations to come!
DESTINATION REHAB
ABOUT US
Destination Rehab transforms the lives of adults with neurologic conditions through outdoor adventures in Central Oregon. Our services, such as personalized physical therapy, outdoor group support programs, and weekly fitness classes, promote health, independence, and community reintegration.
Established in 2016, we’ve evolved into Central Oregon’s sole nonprofit outdoor physical therapy practice. Our dedicated team along with a devoted board and volunteers collaborate to address the vital need for integrated and closely coordinated services for this vulnerable population.
The impact Destination Rehab has is best told by our participants “Destination Rehab has, in all honesty, changed my life for the better in countless ways. Not only has their unique approach to physical therapy empowered me to comfortably engage in physical activities in the outdoors, their staff have created a community for nuero patients that has become like family. I am forever grateful to the staff for pushing my physical limitations while improving my nuero plasticity and helping me live a healthier life regardless of my diagnosis.
DIVERSABILITY INC.
ABOUT US
Guided by our shared core values, the Diversability Inc. team collaborates with community partners to meet our mission and realize our vision. We are dedicated to empowering community connections so that people with disabilities/diversabilities are seen, heard, respected, and included.
We invite you to join us in shaping a more inclusive community by:
• Supporting our programs through financial donations
• Employing individuals with diversabilities (we can help you with this!)
• Engaging people with diversabilities in community conversations, dancing, singing, all the things!
THE ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER
ABOUT US
Over the last 35 years, The Environmental Center has grown to become a regional leader in environmental education, engagement, and climate action. Our work helps to shape sustainable communities that meet human needs equitably, live within our planet’s ecological limits and build a prosperous economy for all — without compromising the ability for future generations to do the same.
Our mission is to embed sustainability into daily life in Central Oregon. We do this through educational programs, meaningful partnerships, and by advocating for policies to advance a low-carbon, resilient future.
SERVICES
ABOUT US
At Healing Reins, we offer diverse programs to empower our Central Oregon community, including Adaptive Horsemanship, Equine-Assisted Mental Health, and Heroes Horsemanship for veterans and first responders. We also provide Making Connections, focusing on memory care, and collaborate with Occupational and Physical Therapists to incorporate horses’ movements into treatment plans. Currently, we serve around 200 participants weekly.
Your donations can make a significant impact:
$25 – Funds weekly outreach marketing for rural Central Oregon communities to access our Tumalo location.
$50 – Keeps tack updated for a comfortable experience for horses and participants.
$100 – Provides horse enrichment supplies, such as scratch pads and treat toys.
$200 – Enhances the volunteer experience for our 80+ weekly volunteers.
$500 – Covers emergency veterinary care for our Healing Herd.
$1,000 – Supports subsidized rates and expanded scholarships to ensure financial accessibility for all.
$3,000 – Sponsors a Healing Herd member for one year. Your support allows us to serve more youth and families in our community.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! No Horse Experience Needed No Time Commitment Required
We Teach You Everything You Need To Know! Apply on our website
HEALING REINS EQUINE ASSISTED
OREGON TRAILS COALITION
ABOUT US
The Oregon Trails Coalition is a cooperative body of broad-based, statewide trail interests dedicated to supporting, promoting, and advocating for the preservation, development, and stewardship of a statewide network of sustainable, world class trails. The Oregon Trails Coalition strives to ensure that Oregon’s trails benefit all of our residents and visitors, and inspire respect for Oregon’s natural and cultural resources.
Our coalition is made up of many Central Oregon groups including the Central Oregon Trail Alliance, Bend Paddle Trail Alliance, Meisner Nordic Club, Oregon Natural Desert Association, and more. We work with a collective voice to preserve and increase local, state, and federal funding for trails in Oregon, lift up local stewardship efforts through relationship building and providing training opportunities and work together on the challenges facing trails in Oregon and ensure access to outdoor recreation for all in our communities. We also released a Signature Trails Inventory Report last year which recognizes several Central Oregon trails.
ABOUT US
Oregon Wild works to protect and restore Oregon’s wildlands, wildlife, and waters as an enduring legacy for future generations.
Founded in 1974, this conservation nonprofit represents the fish and wildlife, ancient forests, and rich diversity of public lands and landscapes that make Oregon so special. With a statewide presence and offices in Bend, Eugene, and Portland, Oregon Wild works to hold our government accountable to the public, defend our public lands, and advocate for protecting our state’s iconic landscapes and waters.
Across five decades, we have successfully fought to protect nearly two million acres of Wilderness, over 2,000 miles of Wild & Scenic Rivers, countless endangered wildlife, vast stretches of old-growth forests, and essential ecosystems all across the state. We advocate for Oregon’s unique environments through a combination of education, public communications, direct lobbying, grassroots activism, litigation, and partnering with and elevating allied groups and voices. Whether in the courts or the court of public opinion, we will always be there to fight for the wild.
Over the next year, your generous support will help Oregon Wild:
• Advance a historic opportunity to protect over 3000 miles of rivers across Oregon including Tumalo Creek and key tributaries of the Deschutes and Metolius Rivers right here in Central Oregon
• Defend Oregon’s old-growth forests and the immense ecological and climate benefits they provide.
• Speak out for gray wolves, sea otters, condors, and other native wildlife.
For more information, please visit www.oregonwild.org. Thanks for helping keep Oregon wild!
PARTNERS IN CARE
ABOUT US
Steph.noll@oregontrailscoalition.org
info@oregonwild.org www.oregonwild.org
Partners In Care is a unique home health and hospice service provider as an independent 501(c)3 nonprofit organization managed and operated by medical professionals and executives who live in Central Oregon. As the largest provider of home health and hospice services in Central Oregon, we provide care to communities throughout Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties. Our largely mobile workforce of over 200 employees serves patients and their families in a 10,000 square mile area. Patients who choose Partners in Care have continual support by an expert and devoted medical team that is the region’s most well-respected, referred hospice organization. Our whole-person approach and life affirming philosophy of care guides patients and their families with unparalleled support and medical choices that ensure they get the best care for their unique situation. Our services go well beyond a traditional hospice and home health organization. Our commitment is to providing comprehensive hospice, home health, and palliative care at all stages and ages. We support advanced illness and recovery, to end-of-life care at home and at the Hospice House, and grief support for loved ones following a death. Our non-medical Transitions program helps fill the gaps for people who are medically fragile and need a helping hand or watchful eye. Your generous support goes back directly into the Central Oregon community helping your neighbors through one of the most important and difficult times in their lives.
OREGON WILD
PLANNED PARENTHOOD COLUMBIA WILLAMETTE
ABOUT US
Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette (PPCW) is the largest nonprofit sexual and reproductive health care organization in Oregon. Our mission is to provide, promote, and protect access to sexual and reproductive health care, regardless of the patient’s income level, insurance, immigration status, race, or sexual orientation.
Last year, our dedicated staff served a record 74,000+ patient visits at our eight health centers, providing birth control, STI testing and treatment, cervical cancer screening and treatment, abortion care, gender affirming care, vasectomies, and more. In addition to these services, PPCW’s Education & Outreach programs provide comprehensive sex education and resources for local schools, educators, and young people.
Donations to PPCW help us ensure that every person in our community has access to sexual and reproductive health care, no matter what.
UPPER DESCHUTES WATERSHED COUNCIL
ABOUT US
The Upper Deschutes Watershed Council (UDWC) works to protect and restore the 2,000,000-acre Upper Deschutes River watershed through collaborative projects in watershed restoration, monitoring, and community awareness. Since becoming a 501(c)3 non-profit organization in 1997, our organization has brought more than $20 million to watershed restoration and education projects in the upper Deschutes River watershed and has led or helped support the completion of over 50 habitat restoration projects. Healthy rivers and streams provide clean water to support local economies, ecological diversity, recreational opportunities, and unparalleled natural beauty throughout the region and UDWC is committed to leading collaborative efforts that protect and restore the rivers and streams that make Central Oregon so unique.
Many of Central Oregon’s iconic rivers and streams – the Deschutes, Metolius, Whychus, Tumalo – provide abundant recreational opportunities, clean water, and critically important habitat for native fish and wildlife. In order to improve the health and resiliency of our incredible home waters beyond these restoration efforts, we know that community education is at the core of long-term conservation and watershed protection. Therefore, we provide hands-on stewardship experiences that are designed to educate and inspire students of all ages to participate in streamside science, creative writing, music, art, and hand-on stewardship projects. Through our educational programming, we guide local students to forge a lifelong, caretaking bond with our home watershed. By helping students develop a sense of place while they also foster an informed sense of environmental stewardship, we seek to ensure the health of Central Oregon’s rivers and streams for generations. We also work with community groups, local business, recreation companies, and municipalities throughout the year to educate them and engage them in hands-on stream stewardship and watershed education. Through activities such as riparian planting projects, river cleanup activities, and informational presentations about river health, we engage community members of all ages in the protection and conservation of our watershed.
Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette
ABOUT US
At Ronald McDonald House Charities of Oregon and SW Washington (RMHC), we are dedicated to lifting the financial and logistical burdens families face when an emergency pediatric medical crisis occurs. Our goal is to be the first line of support for families with critically ill or injured children as they manage the additional economic burdens and inequities that especially impact low-income and rural families.
RMHC plays a vital role by filling essential service gaps that often act as barriers to critical medical care for families from underserved and/or under resourced communities. As the only free housing resource of its kind serving Oregon and SW Washington, we take away the added stress of commuting, hotel costs, laundry, meals and everyday necessities and provide powerful support to the many families we serve who are in need of specialized medical treatment and critical care far from home.
TAIL E R
RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES OF OREGON & SW WASHINGTON
This profile is sponsored by:
VOLUNTEERS IN MEDICINE
ABOUT US
Right now in Central Oregon, thousands of people without health insurance choose between healthcare and food, childcare, or housing. Without access to medical care, untreated conditions could lead to severe or life threatening illness, visits to the emergency room and overwhelming medical bills.
VOLUNTEERS IN MEDICINE
ABOUT US
Volunteers in Medicine is our successful, local solution to this terrible dilemma.
What we do
VOLUNTEERS IN MEDICINE
ABOUT US
Our patients are low-income, working adults not covered by the Oregon Health Plan and who cannot otherwise afford insurance.
Right now in Central Oregon, thousands of people without health insurance choose between healthcare and food, childcare, or housing. Without access to medical care, untreated conditions could lead to severe or life threatening illness, visits to the emergency room and overwhelming medical bills.
Right now in Central Oregon, thousands of people without health insurance choose between healthcare and food, childcare, or housing. Without access to medical care, untreated conditions could lead to severe or life threatening illness, visits to the emergency room and overwhelming medical bills.
Volunteers in Medicine is our successful, local solution to this terrible dilemma.
What we do
Volunteers in Medicine is our successful, local solution to this terrible dilemma.
We treat people by partnering with St. Charles, local pro-bono specialists, and nearly 2,000 volunteer doctors, nurses and community members over the last 20 years.
What we do
Our patients are low-income, working adults not covered by the Oregon Health Plan and who cannot otherwise afford insurance.
It’s special. We are neighbors taking care of neighbors.
Jane’s Story
Our patients are low-income, working adults not covered by the Oregon Health Plan and who cannot otherwise afford insurance.
We treat people by partnering with St. Charles, local pro-bono specialists, and nearly 2,000 volunteer doctors, nurses and community members over the last 20 years.
When Jane’s husband was laid off they no longer had health insurance, so they applied for and enrolled in Oregon Health Plan. Then, in November last year, Jane was diagnosed with COVID-19. She seemed to recover and her husband found new employment. They were no longer eligible for OHP but their new income wasn’t enough to afford private health insurance. In January, Jane visited a primary care due to trouble breathing and they admitted her to the ICU. She spent four days there and another four in the hospital recovering. Jane and her husband couldn’t afford the hospital stay let alone all of the follow-up appointments and care Jane needed to fully recover her health.
We treat people by partnering with St. Charles, local pro-bono specialists, and nearly 2,000 volunteer doctors, nurses and community members over the last 20 years.
It’s special. We are neighbors taking care of neighbors.
Tony’s story
It’s special. We are neighbors taking care of neighbors.
Tony’s story
Tony is a dishwasher at a local taco shop who began feeling dizzy until one day he fainted at work. When he awoke, his co-worker said this reminded him of diabetes. They drove straight to the emergency room, where Tony was tested. The co-worker was right: Tony had diabetes.
Tony is a dishwasher at a local taco shop who began feeling dizzy until one day he fainted at work. When he awoke, his co-worker said this reminded him of diabetes. They drove straight to the emergency room, where Tony was tested. The co-worker was right: Tony had diabetes.
They weren’t sure they would qualify for VIM, but attended a new patient info night anyway, and through working with our patient navigator they learned they qualified! Their care was set up quickly, especially for Jane. Through VIM’s pro-bono provider network Jane was able to make all of her follow-up appointments and medications. She needed an oxygen concentrator to maintain her O2 levels and have mobility, but they are expensive. VIM staff and volunteers went to work looking for a solution. Lo and behold, a few days later an oxygen concentrator was donated to VIM and staff put Jane’s name on it! When asked about her experience Jane says, “I can’t believe the help VIM provided at a time when I felt so stuck. It still gets me emotional. Everything just seemed to fall into place and I attribute that to the dedication of volunteers and staff at VIM.”
The outcomes
Now, with a large medical bill from the emergency room and a new diagnosis, Tony was facing a major question. How would he pay for this health problem and provide for his family?
Now, with a large medical bill from the emergency room and a new diagnosis, Tony was facing a major question. How would he pay for this health problem and provide for his family?
But the nurse told Tony about VIM. He got a referral to our clinic and was seen quickly. We provided glucose monitoring, education about nutrition, and the medication Tony needs to stay healthy and keep working.
But the nurse told Tony about VIM. He got a referral to our clinic and was seen quickly. We provided glucose monitoring, education about nutrition, and the medication Tony needs to stay healthy and keep working.
“I don’t know what I would have done without VIM,” said Tony. “I would probably have gotten sicker, with more complications. It could have spiraled out of control. It’s scary to think about.”
“I don’t know what I would have done without VIM,” said Tony. “I would probably have gotten sicker, with more complications. It could have spiraled out of control. It’s scary to think about.”
The outcomes
The outcomes
In our 20 years, we’ve:
In our 20 years, we’ve:
• Treated 16,000 patients
• Treated 16,000 patients
• Provided 111,000 patient visits
• Provided 111,000 patient visits
• Racked up 114,000 volunteer hours
• Racked up 114,000 volunteer hours
• Provided $150 million+ in medical care and community benefit
• Provided $150 million+ in medical care and community benefit
In our 20 years, we’ve:
Change lives with a gift today!
Change lives with a gift today!
• Treated 16,000 patients
• Provided 111,000 patient visits
• Racked up 114,000 volunteer hours
• Provided $150 million+ in medical care and community benefit
Change lives with a gift today!
Thank you CAMP for making Central Oregon better for us all! - Bend Pet Express
Bend Pet Express is dedicated to healthy pets.
We tirelessly research and vet every product on our shelves to ensure we’re providing you with the best available pet nutrition from the highest quality brands in the industry.
We aren’t satisfied to let our service stop at the doors of our buildings. We feel we have a responsibility to the greater community as well. This is why we helped fund the creation of CAMP three years ago and while we continue to believe in them and their mission.
Bend is a better place for all of us when we can all help each other.
Companion Animal Medical Project (CAMP),
is a homegrown, grassroots nonprofit which started and operates right here in Central Oregon.
Established in 2020, the CAMP mission is to help ease the burden on those experiencing homelessness by providing veterinary care and supplies to their companion animals.
CAMP Services Include:
Pet Food/Supply Distribution
Return-to-Owner Assistance
Emergency Assistance
Vaccinations
Spay/Neuter
Wellness
mission to combine ultimate comfort with stylish designs. That’s why we handcraft each piece using only the best materials and meticulous attention to detail. With fur niture and decor for every room in the house, La-Z-Boy can create a seamlessly beautiful home.
S SOUND Anna Tivel’s Energized by Hope on 'Living Thing'
The Portland-based folk singer known for her tender somberness emerges from the pandemic with her most alive, upbeat and poppy record yet
By Chris Young
When music is your full-time job, making ends meet means it’s, “always sort of a patchwork quilt of touring and writing and recording, and they all sort of feed each other,” singer/songwriter Anna Tivel explains.
“Being out in the world touring is a lot of taking in the way things move, and people and their stories and connection. Then bringing all that back home and having the urge to express it in music and in writing, and then having the urge to lay that down, in a way that you can share with people those thoughts. And it sort of starts itself over again.”
For an artist like Tivel, 2020 sent shockwaves through her existence. “During the pandemic, I was so stationary for a while,” she says. Her normal life involved “moving about in the world and bumping up against unknown things. On tour, you really have no control. You just end up in all these mad situations, and you meet all these beautiful people who you didn't expect to come upon. You just end up seeing a lot of different ways that life unfolds for a lot of different people, and I think that just really moves me and then that makes me want to write.
“I realized during the pandemic, I sort of lost the thread after a while because it was just very isolating. That part of the equation dropped out a little, and you can only write so many songs about your neighbors,” she jokes.
Contrary to what she says now, she did write a lot during the pandemic and took those songs to Eau Claire, Wisconsin, where her friend Shane Leonard lives. Leonard, a producer and multi-instrumentalist, collaborated on Tivel’s 2019 record “The Question” and 2022’s “Outsiders,” so when “there was no way and no means to gather a full band,” she “brought the songs to Shane’s doorstep knowing and fully trusting the skill and exuberance of his creative imagination,” Tivel tells.
were a lot of parameters, when we got in the studio, we really just wanted to have a joyful, rambunctious time. We’d loop eight-track symphonies backwards. I played wine glasses through an echo machine.
“It felt fun to take a departure and really collaborate with a friend who I love and trust and let him go wild with his ideas,” Tivel says. “I do think it came out a bit more peppy and poppy. I don't know if it'll ever sound like that again.”
Thing” live and more about how these three naturally interpret it in the moment.
“We kind of just do our own freedom adventure with it,” Tivel says. “I really love just doing whatever the specific people that I'm playing with have in their skill set and creative toolbox.”
“Nobody tells it like it is, they say don’t blow around on a different wind. But you’re gone and you’re not even listening, they were wrong, and the wind is a living thing,” she sings on “Disposable Camera,” a standout track with an opening twang reminiscent of The War On Drugs. It’s a song that poured out of her “in one furious motion” and sees her hollering lyrics like “what a feeling to be alive” and “how to dream until you believe yourself.”
Tivel is known for weaving rich, stormy vignettes in her soft whisper while strumming an acoustic guitar. Over the years, her records have evolved into sparse, melancholic symphonies documenting life through her eyes, so one might imagine that the quarantine of the pandemic would take her down a darker rabbit hole. Yet, the record she emerged with — “Living Thing,” released this May on Portland’s Fluff & Gravy Records — has a newfound pep not previously heard in her work.
The pandemic was all about rules, but once Tivel got in the studio with Leonard, they took a “try anything” approach to “Living Thing.”
“This album was a pandemic experiment,” Tivel says. “Because the pandemic was so isolating and there
“The songs in general were a bit more melodic. There's a lot more choruses happening in them. I sometimes can write a whole album of, like, 17-verse story, death dirges,” she laughs. “I’ve made another album since that’s not out yet and gone right back to recording live, and it has its same sort of tender, sparse darkness that just kind of happened naturally.”
She recorded this unreleased effort “right down the street from my house” in Portland at Anjuna Recording Studio. “I'm always trying to lean into something that feels right in the moment,” Tivel says. “Maybe from all the breaking down and building back of the ‘Living Thing’ album, I really craved just sitting in a circle and playing freely with people.”
Back on tour, this is exactly what Tivel, drummer Micah Hummel and guitar player Sam Weber (who is also opening the evening) will do when they play Silver Moon Brewing on Sunday, Nov. 17. For the trio, it’s less about recreating the recorded material of “Living
“Because the pandemic was so isolating and there were a lot of parameters, when we got in the studio, we really just wanted to have a joyful, rambunctious time.”
—Anna Tivel
“There’s an aliveness and a physical movement and a desperate hope to the songs on the album [and the title ‘Living Thing’] felt like an idea that encompassed the songs well to me,” Tivel explains. “Just this idea of being alive and how many things it is at once — how painful and how beautiful, and how [you] struggle some and how vibrant,” and that you still have to find hope in all of it.
Anna Tivel
With special guest Sam Weber Sun., Nov. 17
Silver Moon Brewing
24 NW Greenwood Ave., Bend Doors 6pm; show 7pm; all ages $15 advance venuepilot.co/events/117317/orders/new
Anna Tivel and bandmate Sam Weber play Silver Moon Brewing on Sun., Nov. 17.
Photo by Cody Onthank OR Kale Chesney
Big Ed’s is Bend’s Biggest Secret Bakery From year-round sourdough to seasonal cider doughnuts
By Brian Yaeger
Acouple weeks ago, I focused my quarterly doughnut roundup on fall favorites, specifically apple cider doughnuts. The only places that make them at this moment are Too Sweet Cakes and Sisters Bakery. Or so I thought, until a reader mercifully informed me that Big Ed’s Artisan Breads makes this autumnal delicacy (available only late September through Jan uary). They’re small. Simple. And at only a buck a piece (get a dozen and that 12th one’s free), they’re a new personal favorite. In fact, had I but known to include them in the roundup where all the other judges taste test them blind, I’m somewhat confident Big Ed’s would’ve won. The only problem is that I go around to every doughnut shop early the Saturday morning of the blind taste-test to ensure maximum freshness, but Big Ed’s isn’t open weekends, when I imagine those of us who do doughnut runs do them. What’s more, if you don’t make it into their retail store built into their large-scale wholesale bakery before 1 o’clock, you’re fresh outta luck.
“We’re Central Oregon’s best kept secret,” says Seth Chilcutt, who some folks call Little Ed on account of being Ed “Big Ed” Chilcutt’s son. Mrs. Ed, as it were, Merri Chilcutt, also runs what is tru ly a family business with a total of around 25 employees from bakers to bread shapers to packagers to deliverers.
Big Ed himself personally takes almost every wholesale order from their scores of customers — over 150 are listed on their website — ranging from the largest restaurants to the smallest food trucks throughout Central Oregon. Whether you’ve been to the bakery or not, whether you’ve had the Hideaway Tavern or the Victorian’s famous benedicts, or a burger at Mountain Burger, or nearly any meal betwixt a bun or bread from Alley Dogz to Zydeco Kitchen, from the Big Foot Tavern down in Sunriver to the VFW Hall up in Redmond, “If you’ve lived here for any amount of time you’ve likely had our goods and possibly not known it,” says Seth Chilcutt.
That’s how Big Ed’s Artisan Breads grew into a glutenous institution since 2013. Seth was just 13 at that time and moved back to Bend last year to help run the family biz.
MerriChilcutt and son S eth Chilcutt, whooperate the business withEd “Big Ed” Chilcutt.
2,000 during these two months. The company’s space has multiple commercial ovens and several walk-in cold storage units because their various sourdough loaves, hoagie rolls, potato buns, English muffins and, increasingly, pizza doughs, are, of course, the breadand-butter of the bakery.
On a good day, Big Ed’s bakes some 6,000 pieces of bread a day. The various shapes of baking pans are stacked in many corners. They go through an estimated 10,000 pounds of flour per week.
“If you’ve lived here for any amount of time you’ve likely had our goods and possibly not known it.”
— Seth Chilcutt
Big Ed himself is a classically trained chef who got his start working as a chef on a private yacht at age 18, moving the family from Seattle to Bend to open Anthony’s at the Old Mill in 2004. The senior Chilcutt eventually found himself at Di Lusso Bakery until it closed.
Thanksgiving and Christmas are extra busy thanks in part to Big Ed’s popular pies that are only available over the retail counter. Customers can start order ing pumpkin pies as well as Dutch apple or marionberry pies in large or small sizes. There’s a chocolate-bourbon-pecan pie that’s family sized and a cherry pie that’s, um, individual sized if you love cherry pie as much as I do. What’s more, Big Ed’s is now rolling out its cranberry-gouda rolls that have become a Thanksgiving staple.
“Pastry is a lot of labor for a small (portion of our sales),” says Seth Chilcutt. He says they sell just under
By comparison, very little of that flour winds up in the apple cider doughnuts. This marks its third year making the morsels that are simply cake batter with Washington apple cider as the sole liquid, fried and tossed in cinnamon sugar. It’s presently the only time of year Big Ed’s brings out the fryer, but the Chilcutts are mulling the idea of offering a seasonal doughnut — and I’m here to remind them that rhubarb season is coming up. As is peach season, and it's always filbert season.
Big Ed’s Artisan Breads 601 NE 1st Street, Unit B, Bend 541-323-3773 bigedsbread.com
Photos by BrianYaeger
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SERVICING BEND & REDMOND AREAS
By Nicole Vulcan
Freeland Spirits Opening Tasting Room in Bend Box Factory
The Box Factory in Bend is already a big draw for those looking to sip some of the spirits made in the region — and now it’s adding yet another location to the list. Portland’s woman-owned distillery, Freeland Spirits, announced this month that it’s opening a tasting room in the Box Factory, in the location formerly occupied by Avid Cider. Freeland will be in the company of other tasting rooms, including the Bend Wine Bar & Winery Tasting Room, Bledsoe Family Winery and Stoller Wine Bar, all located in the same complex, as well as Elixir Wine Group located across the street on Arizona Avenue.
Jill Kuehler founded Freeland Spirits in 2017 in Portland, featuring whiskey and gin, and subsequently won Best Distillery in Willamette Week’s Best of Portland three years in a row.
“The new Bend tasting room allows us to connect with an even broader audience,” Kuehler said in a press release. “We are so excited to share
our craft and commitment to quality with more of Oregon’s diverse communities.”
The Freeland Spirits space in the Box Factory opens Nov. 17.
Freeland Spirits Bend Tasting Room 550 SW Industrial Way #190, Bend freelandspirits.com
A New Hideaway for North Bend
The Hideaway Tavern, a Bend and Redmond staple for great pub food and game-day-ready vibes, has added a new location on Bend’s north side. Hideaway Empire opened last week, on the corner of Boyd Acres Road and Empire Boulevard, in the former location for Backyard Pizza. Like the other locations for the Hideaway, comfy couches, big TVs and a
wealth of elevated pub food are on offer, along with a full bar. A grand opening is planned soon.
Hideaway Empire
63130 Lancaster St., Bend 541-797-0545 On Facebook @hideaway_empire
Courtesy Hideaway Empire FB
Courtesy Freeland Spirits
Groundwater Grief, River Relief: The Status and Future of Central Oregon's Water Supply Register Today at: CityClubCO org
OPB’s Emily Cureton Cook joins... Remond Mayor Ed Fitch
Central Oregon LandWatch’s Tod Heisler
Bobby Brunoe, Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs to discuss our region’s groundbreaking new groundwater rules, drought, and the challenges around competing needs from agriculture, and our region’s rural and urban areas. Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:30am to 1:00pm
A heartfelt thank you to everyone who attended this year’s Empty Bowls. Your support truly makes all the difference in Central Oregon. A special thank you to our amazing volunteers, talented potters for their beautiful bowls, the Cascade Culinary Institute for the delicious soups, and our generous sponsors. Without all of you, this event wouldn’t be possible!
SC SCREEN May the Source Be With You: November Edition
Fighting SAD with cozy vibes
By Jared Rasic
For one such as me, who doesn’t partake in any winter activities other than drinking hot toddies and making the occasional snow angel, I mostly spend the cold months binging podcasts, movies and shows I missed in the summer. I know, I’m boring as hell, but ending up headfirst in a tree well is a phobia of mine, so I’m cool with being boring. My anxiety usually comes out of hibernation in the winter, kicking my Seasonal Affective Disorder into a gear somewhere between mild annoyance at everything and everyone on Earth and a full-blown panic attack acting like an ever-present stomach tornado — which is why I normally take November off from my typical diet of horror movies and weirdo podcasts and try and fill my brain with things a bit more on the delightful end of the spectrum.
Here are a few things I’ve been enjoying so far this month.
Now Streaming
Ever since “Ted Lasso” ended, I’ve been searching for a cozy hangout show that gave me the same feeling of faith in the human race that I find myself sometimes missing after watching the news or just listening to strangers talk to each other out in the wild. While it has a somewhat darker center than “Lasso,” I think the closest I’ve come to finding a replacement has been the AppleTV+ original “Shrinking,” starring Jason Segal, Harrison Ford, Jessica Williams and Crista Miller. With Bill (“Scrubs”) Lawrence, Brett (Roy F**king Kent from “Ted Lasso”) Goldstein and Segal as creators, the pedigree to create something truly remarkable is here. Following a therapist who is grieving the loss of his wife and decides to radically change how he invests himself in his patient’s lives, “Shrinking” is at turns touching, hilarious and humanist in ways that never feel saccharine or inauthentic.
I also love the coziness of “Only Murders in the Building” which takes our fascination with true crime shenanigans and weaponizes it into a sweet and heartfelt comedy/mystery. While the actual mysteries aren’t as satisfying as I think they could be, the real pleasure of the show comes from spending time with Steve Martin and Martin Short, two men who have been on my TV for as long as I’ve been alive. With Selena Gomez not only holding her own but, more often than not, stealing scene after scene, the show is never anything less than 30 minutes of watching two comedic legends try to keep up with her.
Really, this list could go on for so long. From the nostalgic and heartfelt hilarity of the Irish gem, “Derry Girls,” to the consistently heartwarming “Abbott Elementary,” back to the tenderly crafted “Gilmore Girls” or the life-affirming “The Good Place,” there are plenty of humanist stories to choose from to keep us warm and cozy in the colder months.
Heck, here’s 10 more just in case:
“Friday Night Lights” “New Girl” “The Great British Baking Show”
“Parks and Recreation”
Pod Save Us All
This one might be old news to most folks, but Sam Anderson’s six-part miniseries “Animal” is one of the strangest and most beautiful podcasts I’ve ever stumbled across, and something I think I’ll probably go back to multiple times. Each episode follows Anderson as he connects to a different animal and then writes these little essays that connect the animal to the human condition. It’s sometimes a little cheesy, sure, but as a piece of writing it’s also bittersweet and lovely in unexpected ways. There are only six parts, so just as you truly sink in to the ‘cast’s pleasures, it’s already gone.
As someone who specifically loves finding cozy podcasts that might sustain me through the cold winter nights, I was extremely excited to discover “The Curious History of Your Home” from British historian Ruth Goodman. If ever I feel those thin tendrils of anxiety flexing their way into my brain, hearing Goodman accessibly teach me the history of carpets or lawnmowers helps turn those dark and stormies into warm and fuzzies.
“Kim’s Convenience” “Midnight Diner”
“Dr. Who” “Schitt’s Creek”
“All Creatures Great and Small”
“Bob’s Burgers”
Look at the joy coming from “Only Murders in the Building.”
At left, “Shrinking” will absolutely make you cry.
Courtesy of AppleTV+
Courtesy of Hulu
It’s Time to Sow Your Seeds
Plant now to enjoy native wildflowers next spring and summer
by LeeAnn Kriegh
Successfully growing plants from seed in Central Oregon is challenging. It’s also fun, inexpensive and deeply rewarding, once you learn the basics.
Few people understand the struggles and rewards better than Lisa Sanco, the executive director of Worthy Environmental.
“There’s nothing wrong with buying plant starts from nurseries,” she says, “but it’s more economical to put seeds in the ground yourself, and it can be extremely satisfying to see them grow.”
Sanco, a board member for Pollinator Pathway Bend, is especially passionate about teaching others how to raise native plants. Native species, from buckwheats to goldenrods, grow naturally in Central Oregon and have co-evolved with native pollinators like bumblebees.
Alongside Worthy’s popular eastside pub, Sanco and her team tend to a public, 1-acre demonstration garden where they raise native plants and collect the seeds to sell in the pub.
Plant seeds in fall or winter, not spring
Tempting as it may be to plant seeds in spring, when the days grow longer and we can’t wait to sink our hands into the soil, Sanco says fall and winter are the best seasons for sowing nearly all native seeds.
Colder seasons are ideal for planting because most native seeds (and spring-blooming bulbs) need to go through a process known as cold stratification, in which they are first exposed to a period of cold temperatures, before being hit by warm temps. Requiring cold before warmth is nature’s ingenious way of ensuring that seeds don’t germinate at inopportune times, like right before winter.
Seeds can be cold-stratified artificially, in a refrigerator, but the easiest method is to do what nature does and sow your seeds outside, where they can overwinter in containers or yards.
How to nurture native seeds
Right now you can buy packets full of wildflower seeds — everything from blue flax to orange globe mallow — at Worthy Pub, WinterCreek Nursery and Central Oregon Locavore.
The challenge is to turn those tiny seeds into thriving plants in Central Oregon’s famously hostile growing conditions. Of the many methods, Sanco says the simplest is to scatter the seeds across weed-free ground, after first laying down a small amount of compost.
The seeds need to be spread out so they don’t grow on top of one another, and a light raking is helpful to ensure they make contact with the soil. They need light, so don’t bury them under a lot of soil — a light dusting is all you need.
For even greater protection from wind and hungry birds, Sanco often waits to scatter seeds until January or even early February. The ideal time is right before a snowfall because the snow will hide the seeds from birds and the eventual snowmelt will help to work the seeds into the ground.
Watering usually isn’t necessary until April or May, or whenever you see plant starts emerging from the soil. Water the starts consistently and lightly, up to every day, for the first few weeks, keeping the soil
“Gardening in the high desert is challenging and full of failures, but that only makes it more gratifying when you succeed.”
— Lisa Sanco
moist but not wet. You can go longer between watering sessions as root systems mature. In summer, it’s generally best to soak plants twice a week, adjusting depending on conditions including soil type and how exposed the plants are to wind and sun.
As summer turns to fall and high temperatures come down to the 70s, Sanco advises tapering your watering further, eventually stopping so the plants can enter their normal winter dormancy.
After babying your plants through that first year of growth, you can reduce your efforts in future years — but they’ll still need a helping hand. Although native plants grow unaided in natural areas, Sanco notes that they need our continued assistance in landscaped spaces where we’ve disturbed the soil and broken up their underground fungal networks.
In year two and beyond, water your native plants beginning in June, or whenever temperatures consistently hit 75 degrees. Keep that up through August,
providing a weekly or bi-weekly soaking of 15 to 30 minutes with an overhead sprayer or an hour or more with a drip system.
Sanco says the relatively small amount of time and attention needed to grow native plants from seed is well worth it. “Gardening in the high desert is challenging and full of failures,” she admits, “but that only makes it more gratifying when you succeed.”
To learn more about native plants and how to grow them from seed, visit worthyenvironmental.org.
Above, Showy milkweed, a plant crucial to the survival of the Monarch butterfly. At right, Lisa Sanco harvests seeds in the garden.
Photos courtesy Lisa Sanco
By Savannah Mendoza
Pray for Snow: 10 Barrel’s Winter
Bash Welcomes Arrival of Snow-Riding Season
Gear up for the season with the 13th annual Pray for Snow Party, 10 Barrel Brewing’s biggest winter celebration
As the snow begins to dust Bend’s pine-covered mountains, locals know winter is right around the corner. For outdoor enthusiasts, snow means endless days of carving down the slopes of Mt. Bachelor, skiing at Hoodoo Ski Area or snowshoeing through powdery trails. To celebrate, 10 Barrel Brewing is hosting its annual Pray for Snow Party at the east side location on Saturday, Nov. 16, from 5-10pm.
What started 13 years ago as a small gathering in the parking lot of 10 Barrel’s westside pub has grown into one of Bend’s most anticipated winter kick-off events. Now, Pray for Snow welcomes the community to rally together, inviting winter-lovers of all ages for a night of music, giveaways and winter excitement.
“Pray for Snow was always meant to be a gathering to welcome in the winter season and to raise the stoke for the upcoming winter season,” says Jordan Egger, West Coast experiential manager at Tilray Beer Brands, owner of 10 Barrel.
The free event promises live music including sets from DJ Indica Jones, local reggae band Rubbah Tree and Down North. 10 Barrel’s team also lined up plenty of giveaways, from cozy winter gear to high-performance outdoor equipment for those eager to hit the slopes fully prepared.
“We try to offer an inclusive, safe gathering for the community,” Egger told the Source Weekly. “We welcome people to bring their whole family out. It’s going to be a great night with tons of opportunities to walk away with some sweet gear and support our local athletes as well.”
Alongside the music and giveaways, local vendors will showcase winter essentials from Black Strap, Spiral Wax Co., Rome Snowboards and more. Powder House is offering free ski and snowboard waxing and Snowshoe Leather care is offering free repair on snow gear apparel as well. Attendees can also look forward to the premiere of, “Beer Lodge,” a 10 Barrel athlete video project shot last winter in McCall, Idaho.
“We hope everybody comes out, braves the weather and supports us this year,” Egger adds. “We encourage everyone to bundle up and kick off the season together with a great night of fellowship, fun and community.” says Egger.
Courtesy Jordan @ Tilray Beer Brands
SIGNALS
10 Years of Adult Use Cannabis On the anniversary of Measure 91, a long way to go to see the industry thriving
By Josh Jardine
This month marks 10 years since Oregon passed Measure 91, which created our Adult Use cannabis program. Since then, the state has grown, sold, taxed and consumed a tremendous amount of cannabis (including edibles, vaporizers and other canna products.)
While there are valid arguments that in doing so the state decimated its long-running Oregon Medical Marijuana Program, the benefits from Adult Use have been multifold. Most would agree we are better off now than we were 10 years ago, be it the taxes raised, the jobs created, the relief offered, or the fears of prosecution alleviated.
In 2014, only Washington state, Colorado, Oregon and the District of Columbia had Adult Use programs. By 2024, 24 states, two territories, and D.C have such programs. Voting on establishing Adult Use programs just concluded in Florida, Nebraska, North and South Dakota. A Gallup poll in 2023 found approximately 70% of Americans favor cannabis legalization, the highest it’s ever been since Gallup began asking the question in 1969.
class action suit back in June 2024 on behalf of over two dozen dispensaries that had been shut down by the city.
A recent study determines no more than 15% of cannabis sales are done through the state’s 222 licensed dispensaries, which could expand to over 1,000 if the illegal shops were shut down.
But problems remain in states which have established Adult Use, including Oregon. Granted, many issues could be solved through re/descheduling cannabis at the federal level. But each state seems to have struggles with its own program.
In September, I wrote about the growing pains experienced in New York. New York City in particular has been playing whack-a-mole with more unlicensed dispensaries (3,000+) than Oregon has licensed dispensaries statewide (824).
In May, its “Padlock To Protect” program began, shuttering 1,200 illegal dispensaries through October. (One unlicensed dispensary was even fined a staggering $9.5 million for refusing to cease operating despite warnings going back to June 2023.)
But a Queens judge ruled late last month that New York City’s efforts were unconstitutional, moving the City to file an emergency appeal. But per the Associated Press, the plaintiff's attorney Lance Lazzaro, “predicted the ruling would allow every store that has been shut down to reopen and sue for damages, including for lost business and reputational harm.” Larazzo is not a newcomer to the idea, having filed a
On the other side of the country, California continues its own battles against unlicensed sales, which one study estimates accounts for more than half of the state’s cannabis sales. That isn’t welcome news to the licensed industry, who found 2024 to be another bruising one at best. The SF Gate ran a story in June saying, “Overall sales have been falling for the past two years. The number of legal cannabis growers and brands has decreased by more than 70% since legalization first went into effect…. companies owe the state more than $730 million in back taxes, money that California likely will never see as most of those companies have already folded…employment in the legal industry is also falling…and Michigan has surpassed Cali as the nation’s largest legal marketplace.”
Here at home, things look brighter on some fronts, while also confirming long-held suspicions about inflated potency claims.
Thanks to ideal grow conditions, and a reduction in wildfires, the sun-grown harvest for 2024 is being deemed a “huge improvement” over recent years. This should result in a greater variety and lower prices for consumers.
The less-happy news is that the state is considering pulling the licenses of three cannabis testing labs that were caught boosting the THC content of submitted flower samples, while another four face suspension or fines. The Portland Business Journal reports that in one case, “...Lab employees ‘added a cannabinoid concentrate, kief, to the samples taken for testing…”
This may just be the start, as the Journal continues that an attorney for one of the labs states, “They're going after the labs, then the employees involved, then all the producers and wholesalers who are implicated… you saw the first wave, but you're going to see more."
Once again: Chasing THC numbers in flowers is for fools.
AphiwatChuangchoem
The Red Devils”
By Brendan Emmett Quigley
Utah ski resort that prohibits snowboarding (plan accordingly)
Without question
As a stopgap
Mannheim Mrs.
Breakout machines?
Corned beef establishment
Drop down on the far right
Perfectly matching
Food drive piece
Slightly wet
Beats to a pulp
Drink garnish
Fail, big-time
Big bauxite miner 34. Loud speaker 36. Opposing side
37. Jane Austen novel set in the village of Highbury
38. "I need to be kept up to date"
39. Spot for some lamps
40. "No need to keep talking, all right?"
41. Sculpted by ___ (cosmetics brand)
46. Not, not good
47. Either of Hermione Granger's parents, e.g.
49. Put a line through
50. Come to light
51. Most confident
55. Single-master
58. Zero
59. Plane part
60. Woodworking tools
61. Spots for some hookups, briefly
Pearl’s Puzzle Difficulty
Puzzle for the week of November 4, 2024
Difficulty Level:
The highlighted letters read left to right and top to bottom will complete the quote: “Since golden October declined into sombre November And the apples were gathered and stored, and the land became brown sharp points of death in
Fill in every row, column, and 3x3 box with each of the letters D R U M S W E A T exactly once.
Answer for the week of October 28, 2024
ANSWER TO LAST WEEK'S PUZZLES
The highlighted letters read left to right and top to bottom will “Since golden October declined into sombre November And and stored, and the land became brown sharp points of death ” - T.S. Eliot
Answer for the week of October 28, 2024
WELLNESS
Alcoholics Anonymous
ASTROLOGY
By Rob Brezsny
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In the life cycle of a butterfly, the earliest stages are larva and pupa. As a larva, the future beauty crawls around as a caterpillar, cramming itself with nutritive substance. After it transitions into the pupa state, it’s inert for a while, working on the inside of its cocoon to transform itself into its ultimate form. I don't want to be too literal about the comparison, but my sense is that your time as a larva will last another two months, whereupon you will begin your pupa phase. When will you emerge as a winged creature? It depends on how earnestly you work as a pupa, but I expect no later than March 2025.
and no matter how well I chew it, my stomach always rebels. There's an additional problem: For several reasons, cattle farming is a significant factor causing the climate crisis. I would rather not contribute to that decimation. Does my attitude toward hamburgers mean I am a judgmental, close-minded zealot? No, it doesn't. I don't proselytize to those who relish burgers, especially if they take other measures to reduce their carbon footprint. In this horoscope, dear Taurus, I am illustrating an approach I hope you will cultivate in the coming weeks. Be extra zealously devoted to your ideals and proclivities without condemning and dismissing those who don't share them.
Tending to personal healing helps make
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Brian Wilson, co-founder of the Beach Boys, is one of the most innovative and imaginative songwriters ever. Many of his compositions have become bestselling hit tunes. But he had a rough start in his craft. The first song he ever wrote was “Surfin.’” He submitted it to fulfill an assignment in his high school music class, but his teacher gave it an F, the lowest possible grade. Fifty-eight years later, Wilson returned to the school for a visit, and the new principal changed his original grade to an A. I foresee a comparable event occurring in your life sometime soon: a vindication, restitution, or reparation.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19): Earlier this year, 79-year-old rock singer Rod Stewart performed his greatest hits during a multi-city tour in many countries. "I shall never retire!" he proclaimed. Can you guess what astrological sign he is? Capricorn, of course. Many members of your tribe age very well, displaying stamina and vitality into later life. I bring this to your attention because I think you are close to discovering new secrets and tricks that will serve you well as you ripen. Here are some meditations that might be helpful: 1. What haven’t you been ready to do before, but might be soon? 2. What fun things would you love to be doing years from now, and how could you seed their future growth?
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): There are numerous approaches to getting good results from meditation. One is to sit silently and still in a tranquil sanctuary. Another is to lie on the ground under a dark sky and beseech the stars to bestow inspiration. One of my personal favorites is to sing rowdy hymns to birds, insects, and trees while hiking vigorously in nature. How many other varieties can you imagine, Gemini? The coming weeks will be a favorable time to develop and expand your meditation skills. Here's a key consideration: How can you achieve maximum fun while meditating? I recommend you free your mind to experiment with a host of interesting approaches.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): If there was ever an appropriate time for you to indulge in creatively rowdy thoughts and inspirationally unruly behavior, it would be now. Life is giving you license to de-emphasize decorum and formalities—and to emphasize boisterous enthusiasm and plucky adventures. For the sake of your mental health, I believe you need to engage in experimental improvisations that include maverick expressions. What areas of your life need liberation? What feelings need to be released from their constraints? What worn-out old theories and opinions should be abandoned?
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Scientists have discovered the fossil remains of over 700 dinosaur species buried underground. But the experts agree there are many more down there. Previously unknown species are still being unearthed every year. Let's use these facts as a metaphor for your life in the coming months. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, you could learn a host of fresh truths about your history. You may have imagined that your past is finished and finalized, but it's not. I encourage you to have fun hunting for revelations and investigations that will transform the story of your life.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You haven’t fully tapped into all of your vast potentials, Pisces. Latent talents and aptitudes within you may still be at least partially dormant. It’s even possible that some of your future powers are so foreign to your self-concept that they will feel like magic when they finally come into full expression. Now here’s the very good news: The coming months will be an excellent time to figure out what you need to do to express a more complete version of yourself.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): I rarely recommend acquisitive behavior. But my analysis of the astrological omens tells me you now have cosmic authorization to indulge in a sublime version of voracity. We might also refer to it as a license to practice a spiritually correct variety of greed. Here’s the fine print: You should NOT interpret this as permission to amass materialistic treasures and status symbols. Instead, the things you gather will be rich feelings, encounters with inspiring beauty, epiphanies about your divine purpose, and exquisite states of consciousness. You can also ask for and receive colossal supplies of love and affection.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The last time I ate a hamburger was in 1994. I doubt I will ever eat another. Why? The taste is not enjoyable to me,
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Are your talents even slightly underrated and overlooked by others, Leo? Have your gifts received less than the full appreciation they deserve? Could you be of greater service and inspiration to your fellow humans if only your offerings were better known? If you answered yes to any of those questions, I’m pleased to tell you that the coming months should bring remedies. Life will be conspiring with you to help spread your influence and boost your clout.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I wish it were true that the forces of darkness are lined up in opposition to the forces of light. Life would be so much easier for you. But I'm afraid it's not that simple and clear. In my view, a more accurate metaphor might be that the energies of smokey grey are squaring off with the energies of dusky beige. Each side has a touch of both wrongness and rightness, a bit of ugliness and beauty. So what is the most honorable role you can play in this showdown? My suggestion is to develop a third side, an alternate way.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In the early part of his career, Libran author Mario Puzo wrote short stories and novels, but never a screenplay. At age 49, he was asked by director Francis Ford Coppola to co-write the script for the film The Godfather. It turned out to be a sensational rookie effort. He was ultimately awarded an Academy Award for it, and later garnered another Oscar for his screenplay for The Godfather Part II. It was only then that Puzo realized he had found his calling and decided he should study the art of screenwriting. In the first chapter of the first book he bought about the subject, he read with great amusement that the ideal screenplay was the one by Mario Puzo for The Godfather. I bring this story to your attention, Libra, because you are approaching a time with resemblances to Puzo's situation before Coppola solicited his work. Trust your rookie instincts!
AWAKENING YOUR INNER HERO
A COLUMN TO HELP LOCALS LIVE A KINDER AND MORE COURAGEOUS LIFE
By Burt Gershater
Synopsis
Wake Up, Every Day
I am sitting in my living room, close enough to our wood stove to feel its warmth soaking into my fingers, arms, legs and every other part of me as I type this message.
I love it.
It’s autumn.
It was a chilly 20 degrees this morning. Our ever-dependable sun didn’t rise until 7:35 am. The aspen and maple leaves in our backyard are dazzling. Bright yellow, red and orange. Dazzling, stunning, incredible, mesmerizing. You name the word. There are none that can fully match our actual sensory experience, but still each one gives us a flicker of our beyond-words autumn celebration.
Autumn is a time to pause, to soak in these spell-binding days of color, and to ponder and prepare for winter which is inching our way.
Change. Season to season. Month to month. Week to week. Day to day. Moment to moment. Change is the ONE predictable force in our lives. Nothing remains the same. Nothing. Ever.
I tell myself when I am in a wonderful mood that I want it to last forever.
I’d like the rule of life: nothing remains the same, to dissolve for me, but it never has and never will. Thank God! Because sometimes when I am in an awful mood or in an awful time of my life, I fear it won’t ever end, I fear I’ll be stuck in this miserable place forever.
That has never happened! Never! Change always finds a way to intervene.
Sometimes it’s like a slow-moving ocean wave, and sometimes more like a fast-moving uppercut. This is the nature of change. Sometimes we have control over the speed of change. And very often it’s totally out of our control.
Sometimes it appears we are able to negotiate our way through hard times all by ourselves, but very often we can’t. Sometimes, in hindsight, we realize we should have asked for help, which often is not our strongest skill. We need each other or things simply won’t change… except for the worse. Often our downhill changes happen incrementally, out of our awareness.
Here is one of my favorite wisdoms on this subject:
I don’t know who discovered water but I am sure it wasn’t the fish. -author unknown
Whatever we’re immersed in, we aren’t able to see. We’re immersed in it! And we can’t fix what we can’t see.
This one is my favorite definition of hitting bottom, which is when we final ly decide to make the courageous move out of darkness into the light: Hitting bottom is when our spiral down is going faster than our ability to lower our standards.
-Rabbi Shais Taub
Wow!
Now, back to autumn. It doesn’t last forever, so we must remember to celebrate its magnificence while it’s here. Leaf by leaf. This is one of our primary jobs in life: to acknowl edge and appreciate the beauty sur rounding us each and every day. I want every one of us to achieve at least a B in Gratitude 101. Some days will be harder than others, but the amount of gratitude that surrounds us rarely falls out of the B range. Keep looking.
Repair
LIFT KITS Suspension Maintenance Performance
This morning the sun was shining brightly out the window to the north. Not a cloud in the sky. Then I went on the porch to get more firewood, glanced to the south and it was dark and pouring rain in our front yard!
Bright sunshine in our back yard. Pouring rain in our front yard. You can relate to this. This is the way life is delivered to us.
Our dark rainy days and our bright sunny days are gifts, but too much of either one can be “too much.”
I just took a pause in my writing and went into the backyard to chop some kindling wood, which is one of my greatest joys in life. On the stroll to the woodpile, I saw many, many tiny green grass sprouts that we just planted a few weeks ago. They are making their way into the light.
Increments. Awareness. Change. Seasons. B or B+ in Gratitude 101. Maybe even an A. Please. Life. Shine on.
Blessings…
- Burt Gershater is a local counselor, leadership trainer, speaker and writer. He can be reached at info@burtgershater.com
Lovingly maintained, unassuming 4-bedroom Westside cottage with beautiful, bright ADU sits above 1100 sf 2 car garage. Designed for privacy, this property has a whimsical, fenced-in backyard with a patio, Spa, old-growth Ponderosa pines, easy to maintain turf & colorful landscaping on a drip-system. The 1-bedroom ADU boasts a sunny deck with views of Lava Butte & the Old Mill Smokestacks & an open oor-plan with cathedral ceilings. Situated on a dead-end street with driveways in the front & through Dog Alley, there is plenty of parking, little tra c & easy access. Walkable to downtown & the River Trail, this is an old Bend gem with upgrades. The 1458 sf main home was remodeled in 2018 with 2 full bathrooms, slab quartz countertops, new appliances, on-demand hot water heater, gas heat stove and an open oor plan. The roof was replaced in 2023 when the 97% peak e ciency solar system was installed. Turnkey & ready for someone to enjoy, this home on 1.5 lots is sure to please.
TAKE ME HOME
How Real Estate Agents
Take the Fear Out of Moving
Feeling a bit unsure, or even afraid, to move with everything going on right now? The decision to move shouldn’t be scary, it should be exciting. And the best way to eliminate any fear is to work with a pro.
Real estate agents are so much more than just transaction facilitators; they’re trusted guides to help you navigate the complexities of the housing market with confidence and ease. And a great agent can turn what may feel like a daunting process into a manageable — and even enjoyable — experience.
Here are just a few examples.
Explaining the Current Market
You may be seeing misleading headlines about the real estate market. And when you’re not an expert yourself, it’s easy to get swept up in the clickbait and let that scare you. As Jason Lewris, co-founder and chief data officer at Parcl, says: “In the absence of trustworthy, up-to-date information, real estate decisions are increasingly being driven by fear, uncertainty and doubt.”
A real estate agent is there to help you separate fact from fiction and to debunk any headline that does more to terrify than clarify. With their deep understanding of local market trends, home values, inventory levels and more, they’ll help you feel more confident in your decision.
Walking You Through the Process
Is this your first time going through the process as a buyer or a seller? Don’t worry. Your agent will walk you through every step along the way, from the initial conversation all the way to closing day. As NerdWallet explains, “If it's your first time buying — or selling — you're likely to come across terms you don't
recognize and tasks that seem baffling. What's the difference between pending and contingent? Why do you need title insurance? How thoroughly do you need to fill out disclosure forms? Your agent should be able to confidently and competently explain it all.”
And if you’ve done this before, but it’s been a while, an agent will tailor how they explain it all to your previous experience. They won’t bog you down with details, they’ll only give you as much of a refresher as you want and need.
Advocating for Your Best Interests
Does the thought of dealing with the back and forth of the transaction make your palms sweaty? Put that anxiety aside. Your agent is a skilled negotiator trained for these exact scenarios. And the best part is, they work for you. So, it’s your goals they’re using that expertise to fight for. They’ll work to secure the best possible terms for you, whether it’s getting a better price as a homebuyer or negotiating a higher sale price as a seller. This removes the fear of a bad deal or being taken advantage of during the process.
Solving Any Unexpected Problems
Quickly
Worried something is going to come up that you don’t know how to handle? Rest assured, your agent has you covered. Agents are skilled problem-solvers. They not only address issues, but they get ahead of them before they become deal-breakers – and that helps keep the process on track. So, if any challenges do pop up, know your agent has the skills and experience necessary to find a solution that works for you.
Don’t let fear or uncertainty hold you back from achieving your goals.
