Source Weekly

More than 36% of eligible Deschutes County voters have already voted as of Thursday morning in the upcoming Nov. 3 general election, with registered Democrats outpacing Republicans in early returns. Deschutes County is also slightly outpacing the state in early voting, with a little more than 31% of Oregon voters returning their ballots as of Thursday, according to unofficial reporting from the Oregon Secretary of State.

Becky Drury, 54, of Bend, is recovering in hospital after a fourth, and “hopefully final,” surgery Oct. 27 to reconstruct the left arm that was injured during the Oct. 15 shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School.

Looking to score oodles of candy, maybe do a little shopping and enjoy a family-friendly, fun fall day? There’ll be candy galore at Bend shopping areas on Saturday, Oct. 31, aka Halloween, including in the downtown Bend business core, the Old Mill District and at the Bend Factory Stores. In downtown Bend, from 3-6pm, look for a purple “Treat Trail Stop” flyer in a business’ window or otherwise prominently displayed to find out whether it’s handing out treats.

Twenty-five episodes in, and this baby podcast is celebrating the only way a comedy show should: by raising a glass to the terrifying, glorious moment someone decides to try comedy for the very first time. Host Julia Reed Nichols dug through her favorite “first time on stage” stories for this one β€” and they’re messy, human, and weirdly inspiring. If it’s in you, it’s for you.

In this episode host Aaron Switzer sits down with Sara Odendahl, CEO of the Bend Chamber. Sara shares her journey from journalism and public affairs to government relations, nonprofit leadership, and small business ownership. She discusses her experience in Colorado policy work, launching Work Collective in Bend, and ultimately stepping into leadership at one of Oregon’s largest local chambers of commerce.

Bend-La Pine Schools announced Tuesday it plans to reopen Silver Rail Elementary following the Oct. 15 shooting tragedy that left three students and a teacher dead, after an “overwhelming” 86% of parents said they wanted their children to return to the school. A letter to families posted to the district’s website didn’t specify a date for return, but said the school will remain closed for repairs through at least Nov. 6.

In 2005, when musician, promoter and then-agent Gabe Johnson moved to Bend, our city, now nearing 110,000 people, was a town of around 67,000. As the population began to explode and the building cranes began to hover in the sky, Johnson also found a music scene in need of a lift. Johnson is a lifelong musician who founded an agency representing musicians, In the Pocket Artists, in 2005.

The topic of school resource police officers was a hot one at an Oct. 21 Bend City Council meeting, the first since the mass shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School less than a week before. The Bend Police Department presently provides Bend-La Pine Schools with five school resource officers and a supervising sergeant, each of whom serves five to six of BLPS’ 32 schools. The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office contributes three school resource deputies, with another on the way as of this week.

When the news broke Oct. 15 about the deadly shootings at Silver Rail Elementary School, community organizer Greg Delgado was in the middle of a crafting session, preparing items for an upcoming Day of the Dead, or Día de los Muertos, event at The Open Arts Center. As the reports came in, so, too, did various community members, sharing their stories of anguish over people they knew who worked at or attended the school, and were as-yet unaccounted for, Delgado said.

Bend isn’t cheap. With median home prices hovering around $725,000, living here requires a significant financial commitment. But what if the value of living here isn’t measured solely by the square footage of your home, but by everything waiting just outside your front door?