Month: December 2014

Ride-sharing service Uber has grown rapidly since its inception in March 2009. It’s available in 52 countries around the world, and 157 cities in North America. As of now, two of those cities are in Oregon. But as one of those cities fights to change that, it’s never too early to consider Bend as a

Larry Blanton, Sheriff of Deschutes County was awarded “Sheriff of the Year” by his peers at the Oregon State Sheriffs’ Association annual awards ceremony held at The Riverhouse in Bend. This distinguished award is given to recognize exemplary service to the Oregon State Sheriffs’ Association and the contributions a sheriff has made to improve the

Central Electric Cooperative announced Thursday that some current and former members are eligible to receive capital credits payments totaling $1,408,238. CEC members will begin receiving their checks this week. Individual checks will average $108.14 and will be paid to 9,255 present and former CEC members who purchased power in the years of 1989, 1990 and

A Christmas tree burst into flames at a northeast Bend home Wednesday morning, prompting a 12-year-old girl to flee and a neighbor hit the fire with an extinguisher until firefighters arrived, officials said. Crews were dispatched shortly before 11 a.m. to the reported fire in a home at 63205 Town Court, said firefighter James Adams.

Bend Spay and Neuter Project’s fifth annual Doggie Coat Drive is in full swing! This drive is completely volunteer-driven and works to provide coats, sweaters and booties for dogs belonging to people who are homeless or displaced in Central Oregon. Dog coats and bedding is then distributed through local non-profit agencies that serve individuals who

The Shepherd’s House, an organization that serves Central Oregon’s homeless, urgently needs paper plates, cups, bowls, plastic utensils and napkins. There are over 2,000 homeless and hungry people every night in Central Oregon. “We are in the final stages of our Healthy Kitchen Initiative to build a new kitchen to provide meals to the hungry

It was a windy day on Mt. Bachelor as multiple agencies participated in a large-scale disaster drill. “For the first time in a decade, we’re simulating a major disaster in our base area,” said resort spokesman Drew Jackson. A couple dozen people were involved. Actors playing victims, real police, fire crews, ski patrol and the

It’s the National Week of Code, and on Wednesday at Bend’s Miller Elementary, third-graders were teaching kindergartners how to program a computer. “I learned how to code,” 6-year old Andy Bledsoe said. “We helped our kindergarten buddies understand what binary code was,” said third-grader Aidan Flynn. Through the Hour of Code and the Website code.org,

Lance Bechtel of Terrebonne was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2010. None of his treatments have been successful. Despite his condition, Bechtel is staying positive — and now, he has a big trip to take and a big game to catch. We reached out to Bechtel because he won tickets to a pretty hyped football

There’s no new campus yet for OSU-Cascades in Bend, but freshmen are still coming next fall, despite an ongoing legal battle over the proposed Westside campus location. It’s all part of OSU-Cascades’ commitment to move ahead with plans to transform into a full four-year university by fall of 2015. They’ll be making do with their

With the passing of Bend police Sergeant John Lawrence, a procession consisting of police, fire and immediate family member’s vehicles honoring his service to the community will leave the area of the Bend Police Department at 555 NE 15th St. at noon on Friday. Here’s the rest of the details of Friday’s events, released Wednesday

Anew economic impact study says 25 of Oregon’s most significantinvasive noxious weeds cause an estimated annual loss of about $83.5 million tothe state’seconomy, a figure that could be well over $1 billion if not for state, county and federal control efforts. “Thisstudy is key to showing that noxious weeds not only have a criticalenvironmental impact

Troy Field has been used by many open space-lovers in downtown Bend since the early 1900s. It was named after the Troy Laundromat. Kids used to play football there. While it made its mark in history, the field could soon be history, as the Bend-La Pine School District thinks about selling the land. “Yeah, Troy

Marathon all-night talks resulted in an agreement early Wednesday that will end a more than week-long strike by University of Oregon graduate teaching assistants, the two sides said. The two sides were split over pay as well as medical and parental leave. Here’s the joint statement issued by the University of Oregon and the Graduate

Most (70 percent) of Oregon young adults in a recent survey say they don’t binge drink – but that leaves enough who do to prompt a new effort in Deschutes County to reduce the potentially tragic figure. The Shared Future Coalition’s new video public service announcement is part of a larger grassroots awareness campaign designed

It’s the most wonderful time of the year—and potentially the most profitable for scammers. The Better Business Bureau serving Alaska, Oregon and Western Washington has put together a list of 12 common Christmas schemes to help consumers stay safe this holiday season. 12. Holiday surveys: In an effort to take advantage of cash-strapped holiday shoppers,

Travel Oregon and the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department are embarking on an economic impact and user study of bicycle recreation and travel for Oregon’s Scenic Bikeways. As part of their information gathering, the two organizations want cyclists to respond to an online survey by Dec. 31. Oregon is the only state in the nation

Most people are “baby-friendly,” right? The St. Charles hospitals in Bend and Redmond have spent hundreds of hours over more than three years working to officially be called that, through support and encouragement of breast-feeding mothers. Being a “Baby-Friendly Hospital” is an international certification — and only 10 percent of U.S. hospitals have earned it.

Juniper Elementary School in northeast Bend has had maintenance crews working this week on the main line pipes where they believe tree roots have grown to cause a troublesome clog. That clog has forced them to shut off the water this week, a surprise to some. “My son had to go to the bathroom, so

One program that sends millions of dollars to Oregon governments won funding in Tuesday’s negotiated agreement to keep the federal government running but another did not, and that brought contrasting announcements from Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore. Wyden bemoaned what he called the Republicans’ failure to advance the Secure Rural Schools