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Nicole Vulcan

Nicole Vulcan became Editor of the Source in 2016 and was promoted to Editor in Chief in 2024, managing the Editorial Board and the news team's many investigative projects. She's also at work on her debut book of journalistic non-fiction, titled "Self Medication," which traces Oregon's drug decriminalization efforts in the 21st Century, and tells a parallel tale of her own family’s losses from fentanyl addiction in the age of Measure 110. With all of that on her plate, send snacks. Catch up with the adventures at her book's Substack, called Self Medication.

nicole@bendsource.com
Posted inNews

We Asked Local Groceries About Their Mask Policies. Here’s Each Store’s Response.

With local health departments recommending mask wearing, we wanted to know where local grocery stores stand
Avatar photo Miina McCown and Nicole Vulcan

How is your local grocery store helping protect its workers? We wanted to find out. On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began recommending that all Americans wear cloth masks to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. And on Monday, the health departments in Crook, Deschutes and Jefferson counties affirmed that, recommending that […]

Posted inNews

Fundraiser Targets Those Left Out of Stimulus

Central Oregonians launch campaign to offer assistance to support undocumented and mixed-status families (incluye recursos en Español)
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

A group of Central Oregonians is working to provide support to those who won’t be seeing that $1,200 check promised to Americans as part of the CARES Act. According to information published on the web page of Embrace Bend—a group aimed at dismantling white supremacy, it, and another group, Mecca Bend—described, in Spanish, as a “Directorio Digital […]

Posted inNews

It’s Official: Central Oregon Health Departments Recommend Wearing Masks

Hand sew ’em. Make ’em out of t-shirts. Buy one from a pro.
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

Many Central Oregonians have been hard at work in recent weeks, sewing masks to bolster the supplies for local health care workers. With today’s announcement from the health departments in Crook, Deschutes and Jefferson counties, recommending that everyone wear masks in public, that public mask-making is going to see an uptick. County health officials from […]

Posted inOpinion

Letters to the Editor 4/5/20

Continued bookings at local Airbnbs, neighbors having parties and more in this week’s Letters
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

Our print issue won’t be back til May 20, but ’til then, Source readers continue to weigh in on issues that are important to them. Here are the recent Letters to the Editor. Ignorance is Deadly, 4/5 First of all, thanks to the Source for continuing to provide quality news and information for our community […]

Posted inOutside

Pole Pedal Paddle Canceled

Multi-sport event is a highlight of Central Oregon spring… but it will have to wait til 2021
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

Event organizers for the Pole Pedal Paddle announced Friday that the 2020 event is canceled. With PPP scheduled to happen on May 16 and no clear picture of when the COVID-19 pandemic will be behind us—nor when Gov. Kate Brown’s “Stay Home Save Lives” order will be lifted—organizers made the tough call that many event […]

Posted inBend Nest

Bright Futures Ahead

In-school and private college counseling help local high school students plan their next steps.
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

When I was a high school junior, my “college counseling” consisted of sitting down with my school counselor, who asked me what my future plans were and reminded me of upcoming dates for the ACT and SAT. Selecting a college, back in the ’90s, involved paging through pamphlets sent by regional schools through that throwback […]

Posted inNews

Interning in a Pandemic

A conversation between the Source’s editor and our student intern, who’s now interning in a world of social distancing
Avatar photo Miina McCown and Nicole Vulcan

In the midst of this global pandemic, millions of workers are laid off—living in fear of the future, without a paycheck coming through the door, their careers largely on hold. Meanwhile, those who have yet to start their careers are seeing the internships that will help get them there canceled. So, what is it like […]

Posted inNews

Crook County Sees Its First COVID-19 Case

After weeks without any cases, health officials in Prineville report one positive case in the county
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

Crook County is seeing its first reported case of COVID-19. The county health department announced Wednesday afternoon that one person had tested positive for the virus, and stated that the case appears to be related to travel. The person is not hospitalized, and officials said the person is cooperating with public health officials. According to […]

Posted inNews

St. Charles Puts Out New Call: 10,000 Community Made Masks

Hospital system aims to get its employees masked, then distribute more masks elsewhere
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

Since the advent of COVID-19 in Oregon, local people with sewing skills have been mobilizing to create homemade masks that help address the shortage of personal protective equipment for health care workers. Groups such as the Central Oregon Emergency Mask Makers have formed from the ether in the past couple weeks. Local nurses, dentists, orthodontists […]

Posted inNews

Make Masks Cool

Bend nurses dole out PPE for fellow workers, after an angel donation falls in their laps
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

Editor’s note: There’s so much going on in the world of hand-made mask making and community efforts to protect health care workers (and others), that we simply can’t put it all in one single story. As a result, we’re launching the “Masking Together” series, telling the stories of people working grassroots-style to support their community […]

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