In the 12/12 Opinion, “The Machinations Continue with Sheriff-Elect’s Effort to Recoup Legal Fees,” we stated the records were released on Vander Kamp’s website, and that Vander Kamp’s attorney was based in California. Those statements were incorrect. We have also removed a section in the fifth paragraph that speculated on Vander Kamp’s hiring of a private attorney rather than county counsel. We regret the errors.
Sheriff Legal Fees
The Source’s Sept. 18, 2024, Opinion piece titled “Vote Kent Vander Kamp for Deschutes County Sheriff” started out with “Like it or not, the present election for the next Deschutes County Sheriff plays as a referendum on current Sheriff Shane Nelson. Under his leadership, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office has been plagued with lawsuits and personnel complaints that have not only put a stain on the office, but cost county taxpayers plenty, to boot.”
Vander Kamp ran on a platform of changing the Deschutes County office culture and building fiscal responsibility. Depending on where you get your news and how you interpret Vander Kamp’s own statements, it appeared Vander Kamp was prepared to release the details of his prior personnel file contents himself. Then his attorneys filed suit to prevent the release of those file’s contents in October. THEN that same team of attorneys inadvertently released the contents of the personnel files via a legal filing.
NOW Vander Kamp is asking the courts to rule in his favor for Deschutes County taxpayers to pay his legal fees! Vander Kamp has not yet even been sworn in (slated for January 2025), and it appears to me that the culture which Vander Kamp sought to disrupt is prevailing.
Sir, you won the election. Pay the legal fees. Let’s move forward toward the progress of culture change and fiscal responsibility.
—Nick Rajewski
Regarding Road Traffic to the East Side in the Next Few Years
We moved to the east side of Bend in 2010 after buying in 1998. My concerns now are the road traffic to the east side via Reed Market Road. Just a few years ago, we (residents of Bend) paid $7 million for the sidewalk and paving of Reed Market up from Main Street. Now, several developments around the new east side library are putting up hundreds of homes that will all have one or two cars. I called the city back then to tell them it was going to be a waste of money to no avail. How are new residents (and old) going to get home from the west side or even Main Street with hundreds of new homes going up near Caldera High and along 27th, not to mention Reed Market and Greenwood? Who is planning this community without a look at the future? This is a nightmare in the making in my opinion. And what can we, the residents, do other than vote?
—Cindi Garvie
Support Children via Saving Grace
With holidays approaching, are you aware that incidences of domestic violence typically increase at this time of year? Did you know that in the past year Saving Grace has served 350 children in Central Oregon who are among the 5 million children in the United States who witness domestic violence annually? The impact of domestic violence on children is well documented, heartbreaking and something that we must address as a community from both a moral and public health perspective.
Exposure to domestic violence is widely recognized as an adverse childhood experience (ACE) that can literally change how a child’s brain develops and how their bodies respond to stress. This trauma can cause childhood depression, attention deficits and memory problems that affect children socially and in terms of their education. Trauma can hold otherwise bright, talented, compassionate youth back from thriving, instead often creating struggles that can last a lifetime.
When children with ACEs grow up, they can also experience a wide range of unfavorable outcomes such as chronic health problems, mental illness and substance abuse, and are also statistically more likely to commit acts of violence.
Understanding the childhood trauma of domestic violence is one of many reasons the services of Saving Grace have been and remain so important. As our region’s domestic violence and sexual assault support organization, Saving Grace serves survivors AND their children, helping kids heal and break the cycle of abuse. As you consider your holiday giving, please support Saving Grace however you can.
—Connie Peterson
Something to be Thankful For: The Public School System
I could go into the history of my personal benefits, my children’s benefits and my grandchildren’s benefits from this system, but I won’t. Instead, an overview of my direct experience of 63 years participating in this system.
The teachers: Overall they are great! Like any aspect of the world, there will be some you love and some you don’t. But this I know: Teachers are dedicated, caring, intelligent people who do their very best to achieve excellence in their profession. They spend an inordinate amount of time designing and integrating lessons for their students. Many times, this includes raising extra money in their spare time to make sure students have supplies to enhance the learning experience (such as books, art supplies, etc.).
Teachers are involved in continuous professional education for quality improvement of their teaching skills. This benefits the teachers’ expertise, thereby improving the quality of education for the students. Secondarily, this benefits their colleagues as the standard of expertise and professionalism continuously improves and that standard of practice becomes the expectation for everyone involved in the public school system.
Whether we like it or not, the world in which we live is continuously changing. Teachers rise to this challenge in the process of continuous quality improvement while adhering to standards of practice.
The student is a whole person, bringing with them all the challenges in their lives to school. Teachers know this. That is why schools strive to create an environment that supports students, parents and families. After all, the family is the biggest influence on a child. Teachers know this. That is why they include families in the process. I suggest that if you have questions regarding these statements, just ask to be a volunteer at a school and/or speak with the staff to see if you may observe the process.
I for one am so thankful that I have had the experience of participating in my children’s education. Not only for the educational part, but also I got to know their friends, the parents and the staff. This makes for strong schools, strong communities and strong students. This contributes to a society that has knowledge of critical thinking, communication skills and an expectation that all citizens have value. Most of all it elevates caring, safety and the knowledge that one is valued. And with all those skills our children will be caring, confident individuals. With these attributes in their “toolbox,” they will be able to be true to themselves and speak that truth to power.
—Vikki Hickmann
Letter of
the Week:
Vikki, thanks for sharing your thoughts on how our education system serves our communities. We can appreciate sharing the love for our local teachers! Stop by and get your gift card to Palate.
—Chris Young
This article appears in Source Weekly December 19, 2024.
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Thank you, Vikki, for your letter about the importance of teachers and our public school system. We need a well educated public to have a strong and vibrant society. Education, both giving and receiving, is a challenge. Even if you don’t directly use our public education system, you should be glad it is there, giving everyone a chance to learn and grow.