Gearhead. Gear junkie. Gear nut. No matter what you call it, outdoor enthusiasts love their gear. But how much gear is too much gear? Across the clothing industry, it’s estimated that more than 100 billion items of clothing are produced each year across the globe. That’s nearly fourteen items for each person on the planet. Sadly, fewer than one percent of these items are made from recycled garments, and many are discarded without ever being worn. According to a report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, over ninety-two tons of textile waste are sent to landfills each year—roughly one garbage truck every second of the day.

Though much of the waste in textiles is produced by fast fashion, the outdoor industry produces its fair share. But the good news for gearheads is there are environmentally friendly ways to still rock more than one puffy. In fact, it’s something many of us were taught in grade school—Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

It’s this second ‘R’ (reuse) that’s been gaining momentum for several outdoor businesses in Central Oregon. Upcycling, consigning and repairing used outdoor gear is a good business model because—let’s be honest—outdoor gear is expensive and there’s a demand for cheaper quality alternatives. But more than that, it’s a way for people to feel good about making choices to extend the life of outdoor apparel and make an impact on the planet through their purchasing decisions.

Here we profile four local businesses making a difference by giving garments a second chance—and giving some outdoor enthusiasts a first chance in the process. 

Rugged Thread

Launching Rugged Thread out of her garage in 2019, Kim Kinney first wanted to remove the stigma to being a seamstress. “There was always such a negative connotation,” she said. “I wanted to bring sewing back as a legitimate skill.”

Kinney did that and then some. Rugged Thread now has six full-time employees and is repairing gear for consumers around the country, as well as serving as the repair shop for established outdoor apparel brands such as Burton, Trew Gear and Descente, among others. Kinney said she focused on creating a scalable model through detailed, standardized repair procedures and streamlined processes. “We have in-depth training programs so people can become some of the best technicians in the country,” she said. “This allows us to pay family wages and provide opportunities for people who may have otherwise not had access to those skills.” 

Whereas Kim’s passion lies more on the social end, her daughter Josie, the company’s director of development, has her eyes—and heart—set on the environment. “There is an overwhelming need for businesses to reduce the impacts of climate change,” she said. “I’m always inspired to see businesses change from a linear model to a more circular one.” 

Josie said Rugged Thread puts this into practice by helping both consumers and brands extend the life of the gear they love and use. To date, she estimates that Rugged Thread has saved around 40,000 pounds from going to the landfill. “People get attached to their gear, and the interesting thing is that if you repair a garment instead of replacing it, it helps with the over extraction of raw materials, overconsumption and over production, which helps to reduce the overall CO2 emissions.” In short, a win for the consumer and the environment.

The Gear Fix

Owner Josh Simms’ passion for the outdoors was ignited as a youth when in sixth grade he attended an outdoor program through the Oregon public school system. The experience was a transformative one and set the foundation for a career in the outdoor industry. In his 20s, Simms worked at Repeat Performance Sports, one of Bend’s earliest gear resellers whose focus was sales of used team sports equipment, such as golf clubs, baseball bats, racquets, etc. While working there, he saw an opportunity to upcycle more apparel and specifically that of outdoor brands. After multiple conversations with the owner, Simms eventually bought the business in 2008 to try his hand.

Simms said from the beginning he wanted the business to be about accessibility and getting people into the outdoors. “I wanted other people to be able to see how transformative outdoor experiences could be,” he said. “Gear is a big part of that experience.” 

Eventually, Simms changed the name to The Gear Fix, shifted the model to focus more on reselling and repairing outdoor gear, and the strategy worked. Today, The Gear Fix has twenty-five employees, includes a large retail space selling used outdoor gear, a bike shop, ski shop, shoe/boot repair and apparel repair. Since the shift to The Gear Fix in 2014, Simms said the business has upcycled over 800,000 items of outdoor gear and repaired more than 40,000. 

Mapping back to Simms’ original goal of getting more people outdoors, The Gear Fix also works with local nonprofits through its give back program, in which consigners can direct the proceeds of their used gear to a 501(3)c. To date, The Gear Fix has donated more than $100,000 and rehomed more than 5,000 items to dozens of community organizations in Central Oregon. The success of the program also spawned a similar partnership and program with Cairn Inc., now part of Outside Media Group, called Gear Up Give Back, which recently received a prestigious Innovation Award at the Outdoor Retailer Show in January 2022 for the roughly $100,000 raised for national nonprofits during the span of 2019 – 2021. 

Patagonia Bend

When store owner Rod Bien partnered with Patagonia to open the first privately held brand store in 2003, he was fully bought in all fronts of the outdoor apparel brand. “We really tried to adopt all the programs that Patagonia had, including Worn Wear when it was introduced,” he said.

Worn Wear originally started as a series of pop ups around the country but the success and reception eventually led to its permanent online launch in 2017. Doing repairs, upcycling into “recrafted” gear (new gear created from used materials) and trade-ins, Worn Wear has quickly grown into a massive operation. So big, in fact, that Patagonia now operates the largest apparel repair facility in North America. 

Bien said the program works similarly at the Patagonia Bend store. “If someone’s not using their Patagonia gear, they can bring it in for credit at our shop, or trade it in online at the Patagonia website or the Worn Wear website,” he said. “We average between 100 and 200 units a month that we send back to Patagonia to be given a second life.” 

According to Patagonia’s website, purchasing used gear extends a garment’s life by approximately two years, which in turn cuts its combined carbon, waste and water footprint by 82 percent. Bien said that Patagonia is always trying to close the loop. “They’re awesome working with us,” he said. “Anything they can do to help they’ll do it.”

Latitude 44 Sports

Stand on Liquid owner Rob McDonald was looking for a way to keep his employees staffed and busy during the winter months. When he found himself looking for deals on gear to outfit his three competitive ski-racing daughters, he realized the idea was right in front of him.

“Every year, youth need new sizes and new equipment,” he said. “I found myself looking for quality gear every year but needing something less expensive than buying it new.” McDonald said the realization led to expanding Stand on Liquid to include Latitude 44 Sports, a used gear and consignment shop focused specifically on winter gear and apparel. 

McDonald said the store prides itself on quality gear that will last for consumers. “We have a slogan: ‘No funk, no junk.’” he said. “The gear must be clean and functional. We want a certain quality.” 

He said he’s seen the store and interest grow each season since Latitude 44’s opening in 2018 (Stand on Liquid opened in 2010), and it’s rewarding to extend the life of good gear. “I love my business,” he said. “Helping people make money on their gear and getting more people outdoors is what it’s all about.”

How to Extend the Life of both your gear and the planet

• Fix and repair your gear! And maybe learn a new skill in the process. 

• Buy secondhand gear for yourself and your family. Central Oregon has so many options!

• Proper washing and care. Seems simple, but it’s worth saying: your gear will last longer if you follow the instructions on your label. 

• Lighter is not always better. Lightweight gear tends to break down faster and need to be replaced faster. Consider the heavier weight garments to make it last. 

• Waterproof your Gore-Tex, Tyvek and coated nylons every six to twelve months to make them last longer. A variety of economic waterproofing sprays and washes are available at most outdoor stores. 

• Make your voice heard through your wallet by demanding organic cotton, recycled materials, Fair Trade certified products and materials.

Fat, airy snowflakes gently fall on the high desert just east of Bend on a cold, brisk January day. The silent world resembles a pristine Central Oregon snow globe with freshly dusted junipers and sagebrush. The silence is quickly broken, however, as a dozen children rush out into the landscape, filling the air with shouts, laughter and gleeful squeals. School is now in session for the first and second grade students at Bend Forest School (BFS). Read on as we introduce some of the non-traditional alternative schools in Central Oregon.

Bend Forest School

Bend Forest School is one of a growing number of non-traditional schools on the rise in Central Oregon, catering to the demands of families looking for a different model of education for their child. According to the BFS website, the inclusive nature-immersion play-based early education program aims to educate and connect children to nature through interest-led, unstructured play outside, creating healthy and confident children who find joy and ownership in their own learning. 

Founder and Executive Director Rae Alberg said she has seen outdoor education grow in popularity over the past five years but has seen an even sharper increase since the pandemic. “Bend is filled with people who love the outdoors and know the value that a connection to nature provides,” said Alberg. “In four short years, we’ve seen demand grow exponentially, and this year we’ll be adding third through fifth grades to our program in the fall.”

From reducing anxiety and depression to improving cardiovascular fitness, the positive mental and physical health benefits of nature are well documented. Alberg believes this directly applies to education in nature as well. “Being outdoors is not only fun for the child, but it also supports emotional, behavioral and intellectual development,” she said. “Kids really develop a sense of self in addition to the connection to the world around them.”     

While Alberg acknowledges tuition can be an obstacle for many parents, she said the school recently created a foundation to help. “We provide scholarships for those who fit within the criteria and next fall we’ll be implementing a sliding tuition scale,” she said. “Creating a more equitable program is very important to BFS.” 

Rachel and Josh Kelley’s daughter has attended BFS since pre-school and is now in the first grade. The parents say one of the biggest benefits of learning outside is that their daughter has a chance to be a kid for as long as possible. “I didn’t want her to have the stress that can come with being in a traditional classroom for six-plus hours a day at such a young age,” said Rachel. “We have always seen that she is her happiest when she is outside. With the small class sizes and the one-on-one teacher support, she has all the tools she needs to be a confident learner, not be afraid to ask questions or make mistakes, and she’s eager to go to school each day.”

Forging a New Path

Another school integrating nature-based learning as part of its curriculum is Forge, a fourth through twelfth grade private school that aims to better prepare youth to enter the adult world. Co-founders Jackie and Todd LaFrenz created Forge’s curriculum after decades of educational experience, much of it in Central Oregon, and based their new school on three principles: self-discovery, nature and culture.

“As teachers, we are most inspired about discovering a child’s passions, gifts and possibilities,” said Jackie LaFrenz. “Even the best schools—and school districts—are still run according to an industrial-age model focused on standards, where there is little time, space or investment in that pursuit. We are creating a model that is all about unlocking a child’s vast potential and guiding him/her to build a more meaningful and impactful life.  We want our students to have a strong sense of self, know their place in the world and feel as if they can do or be anything they aspire to.”

Calling itself “earth centric in a digital world,” Forge offers students an impressive Innovation Lab that would make most R&D departments jealous, with equipment ranging from 3D printers, laser cutters, robotic components and kits to sewing, woodworking and shop tools alongside the traditional computer workstations. According to Todd LaFrenz, Forge hopes to bridge technology and the environment to create better leaders for the future. “It’s not enough to equip our students with the latest in digital tools,” he said. “The leaders of tomorrow will be ambidextrous—as versed in the environmental as they are in the technological. This kind of dynamic balance, where kids are immersed in nature, while learning advanced technologies, yields leaders that can connect dots and cross bridges.”

From the Comfort of Home

During the pandemic’s rise in the spring of 2020, education was turned on its head when schools closed their doors and students went virtual with their classes. Once classes returned to in-person in the fall, some families opted to continue at home but via a different pathway—homeschool. Homeschooling can take on several forms and factors, from the idea of “unschooling,” which lets the students choose their own path of learning through an unstructured format, to a more traditional curriculum-based approach simply with more control on what to learn and when. 

Lauren and Benjamin Edwards of Redmond have been homeschooling their children on and off for more than a decade. According to Lauren, the initial decision to homeschool was primarily due to bullying and the learning environment for their first son. “His ADHD made it difficult in the classroom so we wanted to try a more individualized approach,” she said. “He acted out in a lot of ways that other kids didn’t understand. We wanted to take him out of those negative situations.” 

Edwards said her experiences within the public school system also made her realize the gaps her children were missing. “One of the reasons I love homeschooling is because we’ve been able to take on a more classical approach to learning,” she said. Going broader and deeper on subjects such as personal finance and home economics help the kids to be more self-sufficient and independent, according to Edwards. 

According to the High Desert Education Service District (ESD), the number of families registering to homeschool children in Central Oregon shot up over 500 percent during the pandemic to more than a thousand registered home school students in the 2020/2021 school year.

While High Desert ESD Home school Coordinator Jamie Benton says numbers have since dropped for the current school year, they remain well above pre-pandemic levels. Benton also speculates that many of the students who have transitioned back into the public school system may still be at home, taking advantage of the several new at-home virtual learning environments offered by Bend La-Pine Schools.

Though reasons vary by household, Benton said one reason for the return to public school could be cost. “Home schooling can be difficult and expensive since parents pay the tuition and provide the curriculum,” she said. From books and materials to online memberships and field trips, costs of homeschooling can quickly add up—not to mention that at least one parent must devote much of their time to schooling their children rather than working for pay. “Going virtual at a public school helps to solve that,” Benton said. 

Bend-La Pine Schools offers a range of online learning programs for students and families, from structured and teacher supported to fully independent and family supported. Programs can be tailored for lifestyles and needs, whether a family travels or a child is neurodivergent and needs an environment that a school cannot provide. Online learning programs are offered from kindergarten through the twelfth grade and can be full-time, supplementary or in addition to on-site classroom work. Like all public schools, registration is free and open to all students residing in the district boundaries.

Choice (Options) Among the Traditional

Cost aside, for most families, home schooling or virtual programs may not work regardless due to single-parent households or when both parents work outside the home. Fortunately, there are non-traditional options with the Bend-La Pine Schools at on site locations as well. 

Bend-La Pine currently offers six “choice option” schools, or programs with non-traditional learning pedagogies, as well as five schools that are combination choice/neighborhood schools. Parents of high school students have two possibilities amongst the choice option schools with Realms and Bend-Tech Academy at Marshall High School. The latter offers students programs focused on STEM, engineering, construction technologies, business marketing and entrepreneurship and health occupations. Meanwhile, Realms High School was an expansion from the successful middle school magnet program and is an EL Education model based on the same approach and philosophy, which is a focus on challenge, teamwork, service and compassion, and an active inquiry-based learning. 

Parents of elementary-aged children have six different options for their family, in addition to traditional neighborhood schools, which students are assigned to based on geographic location within the district. (Note: parents who wish their children to go to another school may submit an Attendance Area Change Request (ACR), which is due by March 1 of each year). Ranging from a focus on collaboration and a sense of community (Amity Creek Magnet at Thompson School) to technology (Juniper Elementary Technology Magnet), dual languages (Spanish Dual Immersion program at Bear Creek and R.E. Jewell Elementaries, and continuing through High Desert Middle School and Caldera High School) and a democratically driven, community learning environment (Westside Village Magnet at Kingston), the range of pedagogies is wide and diverse. 

Bend-La Pine Schools Deputy Superintendent Lora Nordquist said the breadth of choices caters to the diversity of learning styles. “Choice options are important to our students because they help provide alternative approaches to learning that may be more effective for some students,” she said. 

At Highland Magnet at Kenwood School, students learn through the Scottish Storyline Method, where children create a setting, become characters and overcome obstacles as the story unfolds. Parents Erika and Robert Sommer feel Highland’s unique approach completely immerses their two daughters in learning. “They come home and can articulate facts and concepts that amaze me for their ages,” said Erika. “It’s not about memorizing facts; it’s about putting themselves into a situation.” 

Sommer says the “sneaky” approach to the Storyline Method is an advantage in getting kids engaged and invested. She gave the example of one daughter’s experience with a surfing storyline that focused on geography, science and art through an immersive experience. “They don’t pull out their social studies book or science book,” she said. “They are given a ‘plane ticket,’ teachers act as airport personnel and they ‘board’ a plane to Indonesia.”

The Spanish Dual Immersion program is a research-based two-way immersion program model that pairs native English-speaking students with native Spanish-speaking students and follows the same curriculum as the traditional classroom. The difference, however, is that beginning in kindergarten, 80 percent of the classes are taught in Spanish. As students get older, more and more English is taught until fifth grade when it’s half English, half Spanish. According to Bend-La Pine’s website, “bilingual skills are shown to increase critical thinking, creativity and problem-solving.” With a balanced class of both native English and Spanish speakers, children are taught their regular school subjects in both languages, and often outperform their monolingual peers in both languages over time. 

Beau Eastes, whose daughter attends the sixth grade at High Desert Middle School and has been in the program since kindergarten at Bear Creek, said their experience has been a very positive one. “Obviously you go in for the fluency in both languages,” he said. “But the biggest benefit is the cultural part of the program.” 

Eastes, whose family is white and native English-speaking, noted that in a town like Bend that is often cited for its lack of diversity, the dual immersion program immerses children in it. “The program really breaks down cultural barriers,” he said. “The norm of the entire education model is diversity. Because of who she goes to school with, because of her friends and teachers, she’s got a better understanding of Latin American culture. For us, bridging that cultural gap is the coolest thing.” 

For children who are native Spanish-speakers, the program offers the chance to receive an education in their first language, removing language barriers that can make learning any number of subjects more difficult, while simultaneously improving their English skills. 

Jasmin Tebbs, who teaches second grade in the dual immersion program at Bear Creek and who identifies as Hispanic, said, “The beauty of being able to learn in your native tongue validates the home language and creates a sense of self confidence that’s not historically been granted to Spanish-speaking children. Research has shown that Hispanic children who are in a dual language program who are educated in their native tongue perform far better than Hispanic children in traditional classrooms.” Aside from improved classroom performance, the dual immersion program grants Spanish-speaking parents the opportunity to play an active role in their children’s education. “Being able to communicate with your children’s teacher and understand the language of their schoolwork might sound like a basic necessity, but many Hispanic parents have not had that privilege. Dual immersion breaks that barrier and more.”

The Luck of the Draw (and District)

If there’s a drawback to Bend-La Pine’s choice option schools, simply put, it’s that it’s difficult for most families to get in. The programs are popular, which means they are also highly competitive, based on a lottery system, and one must have a bit of luck on their side to pull the winning ticket. Though Bend-La Pine doesn’t publish application numbers, Assistant Director of Communications Alandra Johnson said it depends on the program and school.

For the Sommer children at Highland Elementary, it was the luck of the Scots for their oldest daughter. “As soon as we moved to Bend and were starting to research schools, Highland was always at the top of people’s list,” said Erika. “We nervously entered the lottery as it seemed like we could have easily messed up our submission. I remember receiving the letter via snail mail and opening it and exclaiming ‘Oh my gosh, she got in!’” 

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Read more of our feature articles found through the following links: Adventure | Community | Culture | Food & Drink

Editor’s note: The names of some individuals have been changed for privacy and identity protection.

Like hundreds of other Central Oregon parents, Anthony Harper drops his 9-year-old son off at the bus stop and then leaves to go about his busy day with Zoom calls, chores and errands. Unlike most parents, however, Anthony is homeless. For the past four years, he and his son have split time between shelters and their small RV in various locations in and around Central Oregon where they can feel safe and seek refuge.

Anthony is one of a growing population of homeless in Central Oregon. According to the most recent Point in Time count (PIT), an initiative that counts the homeless population on a single night in winter, the number of homeless has grown in Deschutes County to 1,098 individuals—an alarming 13 percent increase from the previous year. Pair that with another 12 percent increase the previous year, and the city has seen a whopping 25 percent increase since 2019. These figures are likely low as well, according to Bend City Counselor Megan Perkins. “It’s not perfect. They take numbers on one night and there are a lot of people that are not reached,” she said. “The likelihood is that it’s much larger.” 

The growth is visible. The number of pitched tents appears to have grown exponentially in the area over the past few years, with ramshackle camps sprouting up in vacant lots, deserted streets and on/off ramps around the city. Just outside of town, along areas such as China Hat Road, dilapidated RVs and trailers dot the forest roads where houseless individuals are living out of their vehicles. The numbers of tent camps and vehicles are difficult to estimate, but Anthony Harper says he’s seen the forest roads transform over the past few years. “It used to be you’d have to walk a good distance to find anyone,” he said. “Now, you’re surrounded by people.”

Our Neighbors without Walls

According to Colleen Thomas, Deschutes County Homeless Services Coordinator and Chair of the Homeless Leadership Coalition, which serves Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson counties along with the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, homelessness is very individualized as everyone has their own reasons for being homeless. “I’d be lying if I said there weren’t individuals in our community who do not struggle with either mental illness or substance abuse,” she said. “It’s a large percentage of the homeless population. Chronic homelessness and mental health or substance abuse go hand in hand.” 

However, Thomas is also quick to debunk several stereotypes of the homeless, including that many are transient or just passing through town. On the contrary, most of the individuals are our former neighbors and classmates, according to Thomas. “Eighty percent of the people surveyed from the most recent point in time (PIT) count were last stably housed in Oregon,” she said. “When we look at chronic homelessness, it’s individuals who have been in our community for years.” Additionally, many individuals who are homeless are employed. “We hear a lot where community members think there are jobs available and wonder why they don’t work, but the reality is that many already do have jobs,” she said. “But ‘affordable housing’ does not always address what people can really afford, nor does it account for wait lists and other variables.”

Anthony Harper has experienced this himself. A Bend resident off and on since 1999, he previously worked as a skilled machine operator and prior to that had a photography business working with clients such as Hoodoo Ski Area. Due to financial struggles and unforeseen hardships, however, he was not able to keep up and eventually was forced to move into the RV. “I made close to $40,000 but still couldn’t find housing,” he said. “People don’t understand. You need rental history; you need IDs and letters of recommendation. You need insurance. And where do you wait while you’re on a wait list?” Eventually, after losing hundreds of dollars in application fees and getting nowhere, Harper says he gave up and turned back to the RV. Since COVID, he’s gone back to school full time and will be graduating from OSU this winter. Upon graduation, Harper says he’s done with Central Oregon. “Once I graduate, we’re out of here,” he said.

The Need for More Services

Affordable housing and financial struggles are primary reasons for many individuals being homeless, but Bend City Counselor Megan Perkins says the lack of services is a close second. “There are not enough treatment programs in Bend, not enough beds in the shelters and not enough mental health programs,” she said. 

John Lodise, the Director of Emergency Services at Shepherd’s House, which provides emergency services for men, women and children in Bend and Redmond, said the demand for shelter continues to rise. “We now have more capacity than ever before but we continue to see more requests coming in to meet that demand,” he said. Lodise noted that this past winter, between Thanksgiving and March, 371 individuals utilized the Bend Shepherd’s House shelter and 106 stayed overnight at the Redmond facility. 

Colleen Thomas agrees that more effort needs to be put toward service providers and acknowledges the current gap between policy and funding and actual execution. “Elected officials can throw money and policy at the issues all day long, but we need to think more about how we can support these projects with staffing and boots on the ground,” she said. “All of our service providers are at capacity and stretched thin.”  

Shepherd House’s Lodise says the real challenge is with staffing and figuring out what is required to effectively provide the services needed to the homeless on the streets. “How many folks does it take to work alongside these individuals [in camps]?” he said. “We don’t know the answer to this, but it’s a lot. It’s hard work, and you have to find people who are committed to doing the work, which is difficult.” 

The strong growth of the homeless population has forced the city to take notice and it has responded in several ways. According to the homelessness page on the city website, “The City of Bend is working with public agencies and community partners to support homelessness solutions for our community. This includes finding ways to keep people in their homes, provide temporary transitional housing and increasing the availability of affordable housing.”

Closing the Gap

Realizing the gap that exists between the policymakers and the service providers doing the work, the city established the Emergency Homelessness Task Force (EHTF), which began convening in early summer 2021. The group currently consists of a mix of government employees from the City of Bend and Redmond, the county and fifteen service provider liaisons. According to a City of Bend website, the group was established “to bring the most informed minds on houselessness together to inform both the city and the county on collaborative opportunities with countywide resources and to develop actions toward ending houselessness in Deschutes County including interim actions to address real-time needs.” 

City of Bend Counselor Megan Perkins serves as the council liaison on the EHTF, and said she hopes the combination of government and service providers will bring a more unified front to the fight against homelessness. “One of the things we didn’t want to do was just barrel ahead without getting input from the people doing the work,” she said. “These are the people that respond most to the homeless in the community.”  

Carolyn Eagan, who serves as the City of Bend’s Recovery Strategy & Impact Officer and EHTF member, said the task force is first prioritizing three main areas: creating authorized encampments, or managed camps, within the city of Bend, developing permanent supportive housing and formalizing emergency protocols to keep people safer during extreme weather events. 

Eagan heads up the subcommittee to find a more permanent location for the managed camps. “We need these immediate authorized encampments,” she said. “The current camps are not safe places for individuals to camp.” Eagan said the target is to launch one camp before the winter season sets in to serve as a pilot, take the learnings and then apply those learnings to one-to-two additional managed camps. She said the camps would cost approximately $350,000 to $400,000 per year to run, which does not include the additional services by those on the ground. The city has $1.5 million in funds slated for the initiative while the county has $750,000 earmarked, with potential for an additional $750,000.  

Eagan stressed that the solution is meant to be temporary until more permanent, affordable housing is built. Until then, the managed camps will provide a stable address for individuals. “It’s easy to become disenfranchised when you lose your home because you lose your address and everything attached to it,” she said. “But if we can find a semi-permanent location and give them an address, we can get them an ID, get them back on OHP [Oregon Health Plan] and get them treatment if needed. There’s a lot of concrete value in having an authorized encampment that’s properly managed.”  

Permanent supportive housing (PSH) is the second priority being worked on concurrently by the group. Colleen Sinski, program manager at Central Oregon FUSE, a non-profit established to address frequent users of health care and law enforcement, is leading the initiative and subgroup for the task force. In a recent EHTF meeting, Sinski stated the goal is to “combine affordable housing with on-site services—health care access, substance abuse treatment, community programs—to meet the needs of folks who are the most vulnerable in the community.” She stressed the need for long-term funding for the project for it to work. “It’s not just funding the operations,” she said, “but how do we have 10 to 15 years of secure funding so that the residents have the support they need to be successful over the long term,” Sinski said funds would be pulled from dozens of sources and the group recently put out an RFP for consulting and development. 

The third priority is developing and formalizing the emergency protocols to address real-time needs for the homeless during heat waves, fire season, cold and inclement weather, and other unforeseen or unpredictable circumstances. “What are we doing when the smoke or the heat don’t go away?” said EHTF member Carolyn Eagan. “We need to be formalizing this process to provide relief for folks that don’t have a place to go.” 

According to the city webwsite, the EHTF has an aggressive timeline and hopes to have strategy and plans in place to begin executing the initiatives in winter. Eagan said the group is making strides but still has a long road ahead. “We’re making progress,” she said. “It’s been the easy progress so far, but the next few months are going to be the difficult progress.” 

Still, the group is feeling optimistic. Deschutes County behavioral health homeless services coordinator and EHTF member Colleen Thomas said she feels Bend is finally going in the right direction. “I’ve been doing this work for a long time, and when we talk about homelessness and addressing it, there’s usually a buzz around the winter months or the holidays, and then it usually fizzles out,” she said. “But now it’s not fading anymore. The community is opening their eyes to the problem.” Thomas said she believes part of it is the shift in elected officials who are now looking to create solutions. “It’s a bumpy road, and there’s always room for improvement, but we’re heading in the right direction.”

How to Help

While the city and service providers strategize for both short-and long-term solutions, citizens can also lend a hand—or in some cases, just a smile. “Just greet someone and smile,” said Anthony Harper. “Even though we might not smile back it doesn’t mean we hate you. We’re just having a hard time.”  

Colleen Thomas said the easiest and most impactful action the community can make is to treat all individuals with dignity and respect. “It seems very basic but it goes a long way,” she said. “The second thing people can do is educate themselves on the topic and the resources. And lastly, volunteer—serve meals, educate, advocate; help in any way.”