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Staffer Who Fought Bend Silver Rail School Shooter Speaks Out

Bend-La Pine Schools reveals learning specialist Cassidy Schutz helped slow the deadly attack
Avatar photo by Clayton Franke

A Bend-La Pine Schools staffer who wrestled the shooter during the deadly attack at Silver Rail Elementary on Oct. 15 spoke publicly on Friday for the first time since the incident.   In a statement posted to the district’s website Friday, the district identified the staffer who engaged with the assailant as Cassidy Schutz, a […]

Posted inLocal News

Early Deschutes County Voting Outpaces Previous Midterm Elections

Democrats have outvoted Republicans so far, although that could change
Avatar photo by Clayton Franke

More than 36% of eligible Deschutes County voters have already voted as of Thursday morning in the upcoming Nov. 3 general election, with registered Democrats outpacing Republicans in early returns.   Deschutes County is also slightly outpacing the state in early voting, with a little more than 31% of Oregon voters returning their ballots as […]

Posted inLocal News

Silver Rail Educator Makes More Progress After Surgery on Oct. 27 

Bend teaching assistant undergoes lengthy, but hopefully final, surgery on her left arm after she suffered injuries during Oct. 15 school shooting
Avatar photo by Dallas Finn Calvert

Becky Drury, 54, of Bend, is recovering in hospital after a fourth, and “hopefully final,” surgery Oct. 27 to reconstruct the left arm that was injured during the Oct. 15 shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School. Post-surgery, her husband reported she can move her fingers “a small amount” and blood flow to her hand “looks […]

Posted inLocal News

Bend-La Pine Says Silver Rail Will Reopen, But Exact Timing Unknown

In a survey, 86% of Silver Rail parents said they want their children to return to the school
Avatar photo by Clayton Franke

Bend-La Pine Schools announced Tuesday it plans to reopen Silver Rail Elementary following the Oct. 15 shooting tragedy that left three students and a teacher dead, after an “overwhelming” 86% of parents said they wanted their children to return to the school.  A letter to families posted to the district’s website didn’t specify a date […]

Posted inLocal News

After Silver Rail, Community Asks, How Many School Resource Officers — and Deputies — Are Enough? UPDATED

Two conflicting school safety reports have muddied the public discourse
Avatar photo by Peter Madsen

The topic of school resource police officers was a hot one at an Oct. 21 Bend City Council meeting, the first since the mass shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School less than a week before. The Bend Police Department presently provides Bend-La Pine Schools with five school resource officers and a supervising sergeant, each of […]

Posted inTake Me Home

Why Bend is Worth the Price Tag

The real value of living in Bend goes far beyond the home itself
by Nathan Powers Engel Volkers Bend

Bend isn’t cheap. With median home prices hovering around $725,000, living here requires a significant financial commitment. But what if the value of living here isn’t measured solely by the square footage of your home, but by everything waiting just outside your front door? From world-class outdoor recreation to an increasingly impressive dining scene, Bend […]

Posted inLocal News

Bend’s Silver Rail Shooter Was Chronically Absent. Then He Disappeared.

In a state where attendance rates are among the worst in the nation, the tragedy has raised questions about who should step in when students drift away
Avatar photo by Clayton Franke

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek spent a Saturday morning in October 2025 at Silver Rail Elementary in Bend, helping make phone calls to hundreds of families in Bend-La Pine Schools to encourage and celebrate good attendance. On the call list were students who had gone from being chronically absent to regularly attending school.   Meanwhile, one sophomore […]

Posted inLocal News

Wounded Silver Rail Victims Continue Recovery

A young girl injured in shooting left intensive care after nearly two weeks, while a staffer underwent several surgeries to her arms and hand
Avatar photo by Clayton Franke

The young girl who was shot in the Oct. 15 attack at Silver Rail Elementary but survived is continuing to recover, her family announced Monday. Meanwhile, a teaching assistant whose arms and hand were badly wounded from gunshots went into surgery to restore their function.   Seven-year-old Saylor Graham-Poarch was taken to St. Charles Medical […]

Posted inLocal News

Local Students Stage Mass Walkout Against Gun Violence 

More than 300 young adults packed the sidewalks around Peace Corner in downtown Bend on Monday afternoon
Avatar photo by Dallas Finn Calvert

–Update: This story was updated at 4pm Oct. 27, adding details about four tickets issued to drivers around the protest. Approximately 300 young adults filled the four corners of Wall Street and Newport Avenue Monday afternoon, while many more in vehicles circled the downtown core, hanging out car windows, standing in truck beds, screaming and […]

Posted inLocal News

Governor Declares State of Emergency for Bend-La Pine Schools and High Desert ESD

The designation frees up state resources while awaiting assistance from the federal government
Avatar photo by Peter Madsen

During a press conference Monday morning, Gov. Tina Kotek told Central Oregon that, in the wake of the Silver Rail Elementary School shooting, we are not alone. Kotek issued an executive order, declaring a state of emergency in Central Oregon in response to the mass shooting at Silver Rail on Oct. 15. The declaration pertains […]

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