Class is in session: There’s a class you can take to learn all about Bend

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Did you know Bend has a class you can take on Bend?

Bend 101 is in session.

This is a special class of sorts, focused on connecting you with information and resources you need to engage and thrive in the place where you live.

“It's an on-ramp to all things Bend,” Garrett Jaenicke, director of marketing and member services, said Wednesday evening. "We talk about the history of Bend, we will share the connections that you can make through attending. And also it's about sharing the values here in our city with the new folks who have moved here.:

Bend 101 is not only for first-time Bendites, but for long-time residents as well.

“Learning about how the city government works and about how the city council comes together and works, I think that is invaluable - to know, 'Hey, this is how this town and this city may be a little bit different than where you came from,'” Jaenicke said.

During the class, a program of the Bend Chamber, Bend 101 drops little-known facts about our “outdoor playground.”

Jaenicke says: “Obsidian was traded - arrowheads, even before Bend was Bend. So that was thousands of years ago. Obsidian from Central Oregon was found as far east as Michigan in the Great Lakes, specifically volcanic rock.”

Bend 101 attendee Kimberly Liszka believes a class about her new hometown is a great idea: “If I'm going to live here, I need to learn about the history and how it has evolved and what it's about now.”

The class is $15 and happens at least three times a year: spring, early summer and fall.

After attending Bend 101, the idea is to obtain new resources and relationships to use further down the road to enhance your community involvement, as well as your impact.