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In this Issue of C.O. Local BUZZ…

🤔Local Trivia T&TH

🌄Bend, OR Weather

📅 Lots and LOTS of Events

 🎅The 2024 Bend Christmas Parade - Dec. 7th

🏃‍➡️Ugly Sweater Fun Run on tap in Sisters

🎉New Event Calendar! Central Oregon Local Live!

📅Save The Date Section

📰Local News - What’s a Happening?

📰Warm Springs Launches Salmonfly Solar Energy Project

🔥📰Oregon Offers $250 Incentive for Wildfire Defensible Space Projects in High-Risk Communities

📰Regional / National News

♻️Oregon introduces new statewide recycling rules to combat plastic waste

🚧 Road Closures & Construction

🔥⛑️Fire & Rescue News

🚨Crime News

🚨📦‘Most thieves are opportunistic’: Bend Police Dept. shares how to keep your packages safe this holiday season 🎦

📰 Community News

🎁Get your gifts wrapped for free in Bend while supporting Central Oregon horse trails

 Got some news or know of news for our Community News Segment - share it with C.O. Local Buzz!

📲Sponsors & Partners

😁 MEME of the Day

🌆 On going Events Fun N Games in Central Oregon has LAUNCHED 🚀

 Name That Peak

This 7,524-foot peak is located in the Three Sisters Wilderness in the Central Oregon Cascades and is part of a group of familial-named mountains. What is the name of this peak?

A. The Wife
B. The Husband
C. The Sister
D. The Groom

👉Find the Answer in Tomorrow’s Newsletter👉

Good Morning!

 BEND

SANTIAM PASS WEATHER

GOVERNMENT CAMP WEATHER

Events Sponsored By

Enjoy Bend Life Real Estate

What’s Up Central Oregon 

December 6th

4pm - 7pm

Kick off the holiday season at Downtown Bend’s Annual Tree Lighting! Join us for a magical evening filled with festive lights, carols from local choirs, hot cocoa, and a special visit from Santa himself! Bring your family and friends to celebrate and watch the tree light up the night. See you there!

The 2024 Bend Christmas Parade

Saturday Dec. 7, 2024 – 12pm Start Time

Bend's most beloved event is coming soon! After 40 years, the Parade keeps on going and growing, and the 2023 Parade  was the largest ever!
2024 is going to surpass 2023!

Our Grand Marshals this year truly deserve the honor. For 39 years of the Parade history Terry Rahmsdorff served as our Santa Claus, bringing up the rear of the Parade and bringing cheer to countless kids of all ages with his booming, "Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!" Sadly, Terry passed away last year and he was greatly missed at the 2023 Parade. His wife Terri and his family have agreed to serve as Grand Marshals this year so that we can acknowledge and express our gratitude for Terry's years of love and care for our community. 

Ugly Sweater Fun Run on tap in Sisters

Runners and walkers are invited to don their ugliest sweaters and other holiday garb for the fourth annual Ugly Sweater Run/Walk. The 5 kilometer event, set for Saturday, December 7 at 10 a.m. will be  staged from the Fir Street Park in downtown Sisters.

Photo by Charlie Kanzig

Participants in last year's Ugly Sweater Run show their holiday spirit. 

Race director Kelly Bither, founder of RunSistersRun, sponsors theme-oriented runs during the year and sees the events as an opportunity to  get people together for some fun while also raising funds for local non-profits. This year's event will support Living Well with Dementia in Sisters and the Sisters High School alpine ski team.  

Last year's event attracted 250 participants and Bither hopes to match that this year. 

Participants can form teams of six or more to qualify for a discount on the registration price of $39. The cost is $25 for 12 and under and  there is also a free "Santa's Lil Helpers" 100 yard dash just before the 5k starts for the little ones. 

Bither said, "Registration includes holiday glasses to complete your outfit, jingle bells to put on your shoes, and hot chocolate, coffee, and holiday snacks to enjoy." 

Rumor has it that Santa will be present on his red Vespa, according to Bither. 

Registration must be completed online at http://www.runsistersrun.com which also includes complete details of the event. 

The course finishes at The Barn food truck court where food will be available for purchase. Post-race festivities include prizes in recognition of the best, or ugliest, outfits. 

"This is a great way to kick off the holiday season with family and friends," said Bither.

December 7th

5pm- 8pm

The Festival of Trees is Hospice of Redmond’s Annual Fundraiser. Voted the Best Nonprofit Event in 2024, it is held at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds on the first Saturday in December. We have both a daytime and an evening event.

During the free daytime event, the community is invited to come see Santa, enjoy cookies, and view the 30+ stunningly decorated Christmas Trees prepped and ready for the live auction, which will take place during the evening event.

For the evening event, attendees purchase tickets to enjoy dinner, music, raffles, games, and a moving and exciting live Christmas Tree auction!

All Festival of Trees Fundraiser proceeds go towards our various free programs.

Coming up - Save the Date

Got an upcoming event you want us to FEATURE?

Click here to let us know about your upcoming Event!

Warm Springs Launches Salmonfly Solar Energy Project

Warm Springs Power & Water Enterprises is partnering with BrightNight to develop the Salmonfly Project, a large-scale solar and battery energy storage facility on the Warm Springs Reservation. This renewable energy initiative aims to create jobs, boost Tribal revenue, and enhance infrastructure while using surplus interconnection from the Pelton-Round Butte hydroelectric project.

Tribal members are invited to a public meeting on December 4 at Greely Heights Community Center to provide input on the project’s location, size, and impacts. BrightNight, experienced in working with Tribal Nations, will ensure the development aligns with cultural needs.

The project prioritizes Tribal members for jobs in solar manufacturing, installation, and maintenance, supporting careers in the growing renewable energy industry. Early planning stages focus on community feedback to shape the project and maximize its benefits.

The Salmonfly Project builds on the Tribes’ history of managing large-scale energy projects and positions Warm Springs as a leader in renewable energy.

Oregon Offers $250 Incentive for Wildfire Defensible Space Projects in High-Risk Communities

The Oregon State Fire Marshal is extending its incentive program to help Oregonians pay for defensible space projects in more communities in Oregon.

"The 2024 wildfire season comes as a reminder of the importance of defensible space and completing projects at home and at the community level to be better protected," the agency said.

While supplies last, home and property owners in select wildfire-vulnerable communities may be eligible to receive a $250 payment following a defensible space assessment by the agency or a participating fire agency. The assessments are free and can be easily scheduled online at oregondefensiblespace.org. 

The list includes Redmond, Prineville, Madras, Culver, Terrebonne and Warm Springs.

“On the heels of a record-breaking wildfire season, we know that now is the time to prepare our homes for next season,” said State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple. “We strongly encourage home and property owners to schedule an assessment. Taking this first step can make a significant difference in protecting your home and neighborhood from wildfire risks."

Defensible space is the area around your home and buildings managed to keep embers from having a place to land and catch fire. Creating and maintaining defensible space is one of the most effective ways to protect a home during a wildfire.

The Oregon State Fire Marshal understands that money may be a barrier to complete these projects, and the incentive is designed to encourage people to implement the recommendations received during their assessment.

The OSFM’s defensible space program is a crucial step toward building more fire-adapted communities in the face of increasing wildfire risks. By empowering Oregonians to take proactive measures, we will reduce the impact of wildfires on lives, property, and the environment.

Eligible communities were chosen based on their vulnerability to wildfire to get money to those who need it the most. After the assessment is complete, those who qualify will receive the payment in the mail. For a full list of communities and eligibility requirements, click here.

Oregon introduces new statewide recycling rules to combat plastic waste

Starting this summer, Oregonians across the state will begin to receive a standardized list of what can and cannot be recycled statewide, and owners and managers of apartment complexes and multi-unit housing will need to prepare to provide recycling for residents. 

These are among new rules around recycling finalized Friday by Oregon’s Environmental Quality Commission following four years of negotiation and planning. The Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act will go into effect July 1, 2025, making it easier for Oregonians to recycle. It will establish new packaging fees for companies selling products in Oregon, based on the weight and recyclability of the material. 

Hard-to-recycle materials, such as plastics, will command higher fees from companies than products that are easily recycled, ideally incentivizing producers to choose lighter, more sustainable materials. This follows regulations in Oregon in recent years that require manufacturers to pick up some of the end-of-life costs of paint, mattresses and electronics, or to invest in programs to recycle such products. 

“Part of the goal is to move companies into more recyclable materials. There is a cost to packaging that needs to be internalized,” said Sen. Michael Dembrow, who championed the Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act in the legislature in 2021. 

The rules also give authority to collect and invest some new packaging fees to the Circular Action Alliance, or CCA, a nonprofit based in Washington D.C. Local governments and the alliance will be in charge of reinvesting fees in projects that improve Oregon’s recycling infrastructure. The alliance was formed in 2022 by 20 multinational corporations in the food, beverage, retail and consumer goods industries, including Amazon, CocaCola and Nestle. It oversees similar recycling programs that are rolling out as a result of new policies in California, Colorado, Maine and Maryland. 

Under Oregon’s new rules, environmental officials will release a standardized list of items that can be recycled across the state beginning this summer. Owners and managers of multi-family buildings, such as duplexes and apartment buildings, will also need to eventually provide recycling services for residents. 

Two other bills passed in Oregon in 2023 will require manufacturers to label products to indicate whether and where they can be recycled in Oregon and ban the use of styrofoam containers for takeout food. The latter, Senate Bill 543, will go into effect in January. Rules under Senate Bill 123, the Smart Labeling Bill, must be finalized by 2027.

No nation on earth produces more plastic waste than the U.S., according to a 2022 report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

The average person in the U.S. in 1980 produced about 60 pounds of plastic waste per year. Today, each person in the U.S. produces more than 200 pounds of plastic waste each year, according to the EPA. Up to 2 million metric tons of that waste escapes into the environment each year, and much of it ends up in waterways and oceans, eventually becoming microplastics. 

The nonprofit Environment Oregon tested 30 rivers and lakes around the state in 2021 and found detectable levels of microplastics in all of them.

Despite efforts to improve plastic recycling, no more than 9% of plastic waste generated in the U.S. each year gets recycled, according to EPA.

‘Most thieves are opportunistic’: Bend Police Dept. shares how to keep your packages safe this holiday season

Mail theft has become more common, as people turn to online retailing, during the holiday season. 

For this Bend resident, his family already takes the necessary precautions. 

"We're home most of the time, but what we do - is my son gets lives around the corner," Paul Cutshaw said Sunday. "So we do go over at his house periodically and we check his front door because, you know, he's got a family and there are ordering from Amazon and all that."

Bend Police recommends working with neighbors around you, to grab packages off your porch, and holding them until you get back. 

Sergeant Andrew Davis said, "Most common thefts are between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. So it's during the daytime when people are usually gone. And so if they can arrange their porch in a way that it's not obvious that packages are sitting out in front."

Bend Police said you can protect your packages by having shrubbery, or anything that hides the packages. Setting up surveillance cameras, and motion sensor lights also helps to deter mail thefts. 

Davis said, "Most thieves are opportunistic, so they may not start their day looking to, steal something. but when they see the opportunity, they will seize it. As our packages pile up on the front door, that creates that opportunity that, those then get stolen."

If you encounter any mail theft, Bend Police encourages you to reach out.

Get your gifts wrapped for free in Bend while supporting Central Oregon horse trails

Oregon Equestrian Trails is offering free gift wrapping services through Christmas Eve.

OET is set up at the Bend River Promenade between Macy's and The Party Store. Gifts will be wrapped while you wait, or you can drop them off and OET will call you when they are ready to be picked up.

“We don’t have a limit. There’s no limit. You can bring whatever you want—Christmas, Hannukah, we wrap it all. Weddings, baby showers. Whatever you’ve got, we’ve got wrapping paper for it," said Donita Elbert of OET.

The group is asking for cash donations which will pay for horse trail maintenance in Central Oregon.

Hours:

• 12 p.m. - 6 p.m. (Dec. 1-15)

• 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. (Dec. 16-23)

• 10 a,m. - 3 p.m. (Dec. 24)

 😎Just Sayin

Fun N Games in Central Oregon

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