Deschutes County is encouraging residents to get their homes ready for wildfire season and take advantage of the free yard debris drop-off events offered each year through the FireFree program. During a wildfire, most homes are lost when falling embers smolder and ignite dry, vulnerable areas around a house. Embers can travel several miles to […]
Free Yard Debris Disposal Returns to Deschutes County Collection Sites This Spring
Posted inBusiness News
Central Oregon OSU Master Gardeners at This Year’s COBA Home & Garden Show
The Central Oregon chapter of OSU Master Gardeners™ will host an educational booth at the Central Oregon Builders Association’s 2026 Spring Home & Garden Show, offering attendees access to OSU‑trained volunteers and research‑based gardening information. Throughout the weekend, Master Gardener volunteers will be available to answer questions, share proven horticultural practices, and connect visitors with […]
Posted inBusiness News
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Oregon Honored with 2025 Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Pinnacle Award
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Oregon (BBBSCO), a program of J Bar J Youth Services, has been recognized as a Big Brothers Big Sisters of America (BBBSA) Pinnacle Award Winner for program excellence in 2025. Every year, the BBBSA Nationwide Leadership Council, made up of local agency leaders and board members, selects agencies for […]
Posted inFun
Summer Photo Contest
The Source Summer Photo Contest is here. Long days, dusty trails, cold drinks, river floats, golden hour that seems to last forever—summer in Central Oregon is something special, and we want to see it through your lens. From April 6 through May 17, submit your best summer shots for a chance to be featured in […]
Posted inPodcasts
LISTEN: Lunchbucket Podcast, Cash 🎧
In this episode of the Lunchbucket Podcast, Donna gets a haircut while chatting with her longtime hairdresser/friend Cash about his livelihood. We learn what it’s really like to cut and color hair all day long, what it takes to build a clientele and own your own shop and how to make the perfect PB&J! You’ll […]
Posted inLetters to the Editor
Letters to the Editor, Week of April 9
Critique of Land Use Planning in Bend The term “crisis” is often used to describe the current housing situation in Deschutes County. By definition, a crisis is an unstable period that threatens to result in highly undesirable outcomes. While there is a current imbalance between housing supply and demand, it doesn’t rise to the level […]
Posted inCulture
‘60s Band The Cowsills to Perform Benefit Concert for New Madras Museum
The Cowsills, a popular band from the 1960s, will perform a benefit concert raising money to convert a church into a historical museum in Madras. The Jefferson County museum will include exhibits with Native American themes, digital elements, antique photography and artifacts from the Homestead era. The Jefferson County Historical Society begins renovations on the 6,400-square-foot building, known to locals as the Madras Gospel Mission Community Center, this month. Heating, ventilation and air conditioning […]
Posted inLocal News
Homelessness Nonprofit Leader, Former Disaster Responder Face Off in Deschutes County Commissioner Position 4 Race
The race for Position 4 on the Deschutes County Board of County Commissioners is the only contest on the jam-packed May 19 ballot that’s all but certain to be decided without moving on to the November general election. The leader of a prominent homeless housing nonprofit, Rick Russell, and a former firefighter and emergency responder in his third try for local office, Chet Wamboldt, are vying for the seat — one […]
Posted inLocal News
Mt. Bachelor to Helm Motel Previously Known as LOGE Entrada
You can’t move a mountain, as it were. But sometimes, the mountain moves closer to you. Mt. Bachelor has signed a lease agreement with Entrada Lodge, the Century Drive motel previously known as LOGE Entrada. Rebranding the property Trailhead Lodge, Mt. Bachelor will begin accepting reservations for summer 2026, according to a release. That 79-guest-room […]
Posted inLocal News
‘I Lost It All’: Residents of Bend Homeless Camp Say Forest Service Blew Off Calls, Appointments to Reclaim Lost Property
On the day last year the U.S. Forest Service evicted hundreds of homeless people from national forest land just outside Bend, Oregon, Chris Walston was in the hospital. Walston had been living in a sprawling encampment in the Deschutes National Forest — known by its residents and locals as “China Hat” after the access road that […]