Crooked River Ranch saloon owner fighting for his life amid restaurant shutdown

Randy Knight of Big Dog Saloon suffers brain aneurysm

CROOKED RIVER RANCH, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The year 2020 has already been a difficult one for the restaurant industry -- and with two-week freeze starting on Wednesday, it's even harder.

But for Randy Knight, the owner of the popular Big Dog Saloon at Crooked River Ranch, that's just where the trouble is beginning.

Melynda Lappin, a family member of Knight’s said Wednesday, "They love Randy. He is part of the ranch."

And right now, a big part of the ranch is missing.

On Monday, Melynda Lappin found Knight collapsed on the ground and took him to the hospital. He had suffered a brain aneurysm.

"He has some heart issues, he has some lung issues and he has some kidney issues,” Lappin told NewsChannel 21 of Knight’s condition. “They working on all aspects of what's going on with him. He will definitely be in ICU for quite some time."

He also had another issue.

"When he was in the Redmond hospital, they also of course did the COVID test,” Lappin said. “They determined that he did indeed have COVID."

Knight is now at St. Charles-Bend, while his saloon sits closed.

"The hardest thing is, our friends depend on us,” Knight’s wife and Melynda’s mother, Barbara, said. “We've been there for 18 years. Nov. 15 was our 18th anniversary."

But it's their friends who are doing their best to help out Knight, who does not have medical insurance.

Lynnelle Morgan is the owner of The Over The Edge Taphouse, just down the street from Big Dog Saloon.

"When we want to escape our own establishment, we come up here and share fun stories with Randy's group,” Morgan said. “So when we heard that this happen to Randy, we immediately jumped into action, put a donation jar out -- and in one day yesterday, we collected over $1,000 to give to him and his family."

That makes a difference, because even if the freeze ends as scheduled, if Knight isn't back, the bar won't open.

Barbara, who tested positive for COVID herself but is asymptomatic, has one message for everyone.

"Everybody be safe," she said. "Go get checked. Wear your mask. Because I was stupid enough not to feel that, 'Hey its not going to hurt me.'"

Melynda and Barbara have set up a Caring Bridge page for the community to provide support to Knight's family.

They also have a GoFundMe page to help cover some of the medical expenses for Knight's treatment.