District 54 Candidates Knute Buehler and Craig Wilhelm Face Off Tuesday in Bend Chamber Debate | The Source Weekly - Bend, Oregon

District 54 Candidates Knute Buehler and Craig Wilhelm Face Off Tuesday in Bend Chamber Debate

One way or another, voters will be getting a new representative for House District 54. Rep. Jason Conger (R), who currently fills that seat, will be returning to his law practice following his defeat to Monica Wehby in the Oregon Senate primary election.

District 54 candidates Republican Knute Buehler and Democrat Craig Wilhelm will debate the issues—including the economy, Oregon's budget, job creation, education, healthcare, and land use issue—as part of the Bend Chamber's "What's Brewing" series Tuesday, Aug. 5 at Volcanic Theatre Pub.The modified presidential style debate will be moderated Aaron Switzer (Source Weekly), Jamie Christman (Bend Chamber), and Kelly Bleyer (NewsTalk 1110 KBND).

Dr. Knute Buehler is a doctor and small business owner who grew up in Roseburg and earned his degree in microbiology from the University of Oregon in 1986, where he was the university's first Rhodes Scholar. He went on to study politics and economics at Oxford University from 1988 to 1990 and earned his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in 1991. Buehler current teaches at Oregon State University School of Public Health as an adjunct professor and serves as medical device consultant. He also serves on the budget committee for the Bend-La Pine School District and on the board of the Ford Family Foundation, Oregon State University Foundation and the St. Charles Health System. He has previously served on the board of OSU-Cascades Campus, St. Charles Health System Foundation, Oregon Orthopedic Association, Central Oregon Medical Society and High Desert Museum.

Craig Wilhelm is decorated military veteran and president and part owner of a business that provides metal recycling services to the federal government. He graduated from West Point in 1993 and commanded the largest Chinook helicopters unit in the U.S. Army, after serving for more than 13 years in the United States, Germany, Albania, Kosovo, Bosnia, Afghanistan and Iraq. Wilhelm earned his Masters of Business Administration at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business between deployments. He also worked for the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics). Wilhelm currently volunteers by providing strategic planning assistance to the Central Oregon Food Policy Council, the Crook County Foundation and the Bethlehem Inn, and in 2010 founded the Windy25 Memorial Fun, which honors the crew members of Windy25, who died in a combat helicopter accident in Afghanistan.

Tickets to the debate are available in advance and at the door; the price includes one beverage.

What’s Brewing? – Bend’s Town Hall
Tue., Aug. 5, 5 – 6:30 p.m. Volcanic Theatre Pub, 70 SW Century Dr. 
$15 members, $20 non-members (in advance). An addition $5 at the door.

Erin Rook

Erin was a writer and editor at the Source from 2013 to 2016.
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