Collection affection
Ashton Eaton wins one more time
Jim Wilson, of Redmond, has 10,000 wooden nickels • COMMUNITY, B1
SPORTS, D1
WEATHER TODAY
SATURDAY
Mostly sunny High 76, Low 41 Page C8
• June 12, 2010 50¢
Serving Central Oregon since 1903 www.bendbulletin.com
Suicide calls rise for Central Oregon police Homeless By Erin Golden The Bulletin
The suicide of a man outside a Bend shopping center Thursday morning was an unfortunate recurrence of a situation that has become
Affordable homes are part of plan to stabilize Bend market
increasingly common in recent months, law enforcement officials said Friday. For many local law enforcement officers, calls related to someone who has threatened suicide or at-
tempted to harm himself or herself have become a weekly — and in some cases, daily — occurrence. The numbers have been going up over the last few years, and so far, 2010 seems to be no exception.
In the first four months of the year, the Bend Police Department responded to 65 calls labeled as mental health-related, up 41 percent from 2009. See Suicides / A7
RODEO RUSH
By Hillary Borrud The Bulletin
A local event intended to help homeless people and those who are struggling financially faces its own challenge and could be canceled, after the companies that normally insure it declined to do so this year. In the past, Project Connect’s sponsor, Partnership to End Poverty, was able to get double coverage through its own general liability insurance from Darwin and a special events policy from Gales Creek Insurance Services. Both companies said they could no longer cover the event, after they received a more detailed description of it, said Scott Cooper, director of policy for the Partnership to End Poverty. Project Connect organizers have appealed to Deschutes County for help obtaining insurance, and Cooper said they are trying to find a solution by July 1, because people need to know whether to continue working on the event and investing in it. The insurance premium for the summit was usually about $4,500, and the Partnership to End Poverty would pay Deschutes County for the cost of insurance this year, Cooper said. “With the active support of the county, we’re going to be able to do this,” Cooper said. “But we’re getting to a crunch time for a ‘yes’ or a ‘no.’ ” See Connect / A6
By Hillary Borrud and Scott Hammers The Bulletin
Bend may join in one of the first projects in Oregon in which a local government collaborates with the construction industry, using federal funds to put contractors to work in an effort to stabilize the real estate market. The money comes from the second round of the Neighborhood Stabilization Program, part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act that Congress passed in July 2008. It’s intended to stabilize property values and prevent blight in areas with high foreclosure rates. It helps people purchase foreclosed and abandoned homes. It also allows governments and nonprofits to purchase and redevelop distressed residential properties. As proposed and tentatively approved by the city’s Affordable Housing Advisory Committee on Thursday, the city would provide a zero-interest loan of up to $250,000 to purchase 11 lots in a subdivision currently in foreclosure in northeast Bend. A nonprofit, Building Partners for Affordable Housing, would build homes to be sold to buyers earning up to the region’s median income — $63,500 for a family of four in Deschutes County in 2009. With no profit taken by the developers and additional grants and low-interest loans from the Home Depot Foundation and the city, Building Partners for Affordable Housing expects no home will sell for more than $145,000. If all goes as planned, construction will stretch over the next two years. See Housing / A7
MON-SAT
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The Associated Press
Rob Kerr / The Bulletin
J
ohn Banks, 9, of Sisters,
Sisters Rodeo parade route and detour
end of his snow cone with a
Red Rope licorice waiting around
The Sisters Rodeo parade begins at 9:30 this morning, and will proceed through downtown Sisters on U.S. Highway 20. Detours will be in place 20 for an hour during Barclay Drive 126 the parade. To Eugene, Salem
Detour
his neck while watching the start of the 70th annual Sisters Rodeo on Friday night. Events continue
Parade route
Main Ave. Cascade Ave. Hood Ave.
Finish 242
today with a parade at 9:30 a.m.,
SISTERS
Start
and 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. shows. For
Locust St.
slurps some juice from the
TOP NEWS INSIDE To Redmond To Bend 20
results, see Sports, Page D2.
126
Greg Cross / The Bulletin
We use recycled newsprint
The Bulletin An Independent Newspaper
Vol. 107, No. 163, 66 pages, 6 sections
Abby
INDEX
B2
Comics
LOS ANGELES — What were her parents thinking? Many people were asking that question as a 16-year-old girl sat adrift and alone in the frigid southern Indian Ocean, her ship’s mast dashed along with her around-the-world sailing effort. Abby Sunderland’s ship was rolling in 20- to 30-foot waves as she waited to be rescued by a Abby boat that was expected to arrive Sunderland early this morning. She set off a distress signal Thursday after rough seas disabled her ship and her satellite phone reception. See Teen / A6
Cascade Ave.
Larch St.
DELAFIELD, Wis. — Margaret Zerwekh and Lt. Alonzo Cushing were separated by more than a century but united by a tie to the land here along the Bark River, 35 miles west of Milwaukee. Drawn by that bond, Zerwekh, a 90-year-old with a barbed wit, spent 23 years fighting to get Cushing honored for his brave service in the Union Army at the Battle of Gettysburg. She petitioned congressmen, senators and presidents. See Civil War / A6
By John Rogers
Elm St.
New York Times News Service
Solo sailor’s parents face sea of criticism
Pine St.
By Dirk Johnson
Rob Kerr / The Bulletin file photo
Steven Goodridge gets his beard trimmed at last year’s Project Connect event. In addition to grooming, the event — which is in doubt for 2010 — provides medical and dental care, hot meals and information about a variety of other services to people struggling financially.
Pine St.
23-year quest to honor a Civil War hero
event in doubt, no insurance
B4-5
Editorial Local
Business
C3-5
Community
B1-6
Classified
F1-6
Crossword
B5, F2
Movies
OIL SPILL: Grand Isle, La., is in line for years of repercussions, Page A2
C6 C1-8 B3
Obituaries Sudoku Sports
C7
Stocks
B5
TV listings
B2
Weather
C8
D1-6
C4-5