Friends mourn Bend mother, son killed in Hwy. 97 crash

It was an emotional Wednesday afternoon as friends and neighbors remembered two Bend residents killed Tuesday night after a La Pine man left his lane and his pickup hit their car head-on, according to police.

Steven Clink, 33, and his mother, 50-year-old Pamela James, lived at the Bend Value Inn on Northeast Division Street, where Clink also worked as a maintenance specialist.

“These were two people that were awesome — nice,” said neighbor Cora Glander, wiping away tears. “It was one of those things — it’s like a family community in a way.”

“We all knew him and loved him,” said Glander, who also lives there. “He was just a good guy — always joking, and he worked hard.”

Although it’s a motel, several residents call the place their permanent home.

Neighbors said Clink and James were on their way back from visiting friends in La Pine when their car was struck by alleged fugitive Brett Young’s truck. The fiery crash on Highway 97 north of La Pine left all three dead.

Just minutes before the crash, a Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office supervisor directed a deputy to discontinue a high-speed chase.

It was the last tragedy to strike the family, but sadly, not the first.

NewsChannel 21 interviewed James in March as she recovered from critical injuries in a hospital bed.

“I’m fighting for my life,” James told KTVZ at the time. “They said they almost lost me twice at the scene.”

James was struck on a late January night as she crossed a street in Bend wearing dark clothing. She was not in a crosswalk.

She spent months in the hospital, and friends said she was just getting back on her feet.

“She was still recovering from the incident awhile back ago,” Glander said.

Neighbors said they’re not only saddened by the loss, but angry.

“I have a lot of questions,” Glander said.

She said she wonders if police made a mistake to pursue Young at high speeds.

“I want to know why they didn’t stop. They should have. — if someone’s going 130 (mph), they should have pulled off sooner.”

An online account to help James’ surviving son, who is in the Navy, with funeral expenses has been created at https://www.gofundme.com/keb3d5s8