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Wednesday, February 9, 2022
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redmondspokesman.com
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Redmond ranchers are caught in beef squeeze
@redmondspox
Redmond
Proficiency
Academy
sets open
enrollment
From a press release
Bill Bartlett photos
Red and black Angus dominate the many breeds of cattle surrounding Redmond.
BY BILL BARTLETT • For The Spokesman
R
edmond was once full of cows from the backyard milker to herds on small ranches. Urbanization has turned Redmond
farmland into homes and businesses but you only have to drive to the north city limits to find cattle of all breeds and sizes.
From NW Canal to Terrebonne there are hundreds of head of cattle. Drive another five miles north to Crooked River and
more than a thousand cows are grazing. And that’s just what you can see from US 97.
Cattle ranching and
Redmond are joined at
the hip to this day.
From ag equipment
suppliers to beef proces-
sors, more than a dozen
businesses employing
several hundred per-
sons cater to central Or-
egon farmers and ranch-
ers. That is in danger of
changing.
“We can collectively preserve water for our ecosystems, endangered species and
farmland. By collaborating together, we can find a balance between continuing to grow
and produce food, and responsibly preserving water and land, without threatening
wildlife habitat, recreation or agriculture.”
— JoHanna Symons, co-founder with her husband, Jeremy, of The Symons Beef Company in Madras
Squeeze is on
Cattle ranchers partic-
ularly are being squeezed
by rising costs, lower mar-
ket prices and the multi-
year drought. Mark Hut-
tinga has been farming
and ranching since he was
a kid. For the last 26 years
he has worked a small
corner of a 456-acre hay
farm north of Redmond
raising Dexter cattle and
eight children. He’s throw-
ing in his hat and moving
to Montana. In the pro-
cess he is selling off his
herd.
He’s not alone. He
knows of 20 other ranch-
ers calling it quits, primar-
ily not being able to get
enough water.
That has been true for
a while.
See Beef / P4
Redmond Proficiency Acad-
emy’s (RPA) annual open en-
rollment period begins on Feb.
15 at 8 a.m. and runs through
March 1 at 5 p.m.
The two-week period allows
students and families to learn
more about the public charter
school and apply for admis-
sion.
“We’re excited to once again
offer an open enrollment pe-
riod for Central Oregon stu-
dents and families to think
about their current education
and how it compares to the
experiences we offer at RPA,”
Executive Director Jon Bullock
said in a press release.
“RPA offers robust educa-
tional and extracurricular op-
portunities and our 98 percent
graduation rate is a testament
that our unique educational
approach is working. We’d be
honored to have students and
families participate in our webi-
nars and learn more about us.”
RPA features a College Prep
program that utilizes a univer-
sity model scheduling system
in which students take ad-
vanced courses and learn to be
effective university students by
learning in seminar environ-
ments — emulating a college
campus experience.
This flexible scheduling
model works well for students
and families seeking a choice
in their educational experi-
ence, one that allows them to
focus on additional interests
outside of school, including
downhill and cross-country
ski racing, equestrian events,
rodeo circuits and many other
activities.
This model allows students
of all academic levels and inter-
ests to accelerate or decelerate
their learning in the manner
that works best for the students
and their goals.
The cumulative experience
of seven years at RPA is prepa-
ration for life after high school,
Bullock said. The conversa-
tions start in middle school
when faculty and staff encour-
age students to explore their
interests and talents, and ways
they can apply them to careers.
The tuition-free public char-
ter school offers courses in
award-winning theatre, robot-
ics and arts programs, in addi-
tion to computer science, rock
climbing, Spanish language
immersion and many others.
Applications for enrollment
are being accepted for students
entering grades six through
twelve, and there are currently
openings in all grade levels.
New students interested in at-
tending RPA should apply on-
line at rpacademy.org, during
this open enrollment period.
Students and parents inter-
ested in learning more about
RPA are invited to learn more
about Open Enrollment on our
website or attend the following
webinars:
Mark Huttinga’s herd of Irish Dexter cattle are bred for a smaller footprint.
See Enrollment / P4
The Spokesman uses
recycled newsprint
Wednesday 2/9
Events in and around Redmond
The Redmond Spokesman welcomes event information for
its community calendar. Submissions are limited to nonprofit,
free and live entertainment events. Deadline is 5 p.m. Thursday
for the following Wednesday’s paper. Items are published on a
space-available basis and may be edited. Contact us at
news@redmondspokesman.com or fax 541-548-3203.
Bingo Night: Free to play every Wednesday; 6:30 p.m.; The
Vault Taphouse, 245 SW Sixth St., Redmond; facebook.com/ko-
boldbrewing or 541-504-9373.
THursday 2/10
Porter Mania: Beertenders and brewers teamed up to cre-
ate three new porters for all of the dark beer lovers out there;
11 a.m. till beer runs out; free; Wild Ride Brewing Co., 332 SW
Fifth St., Redmond; wildridebrew.com or 541-610-2520.
Historic Landmarks Commission Meeting: A regular meet-
ing will be held; 4:30-6 p.m.; free; Redmond City Hall, Online;
redmondoregon.gov or 541-923-7710.
Lino — Range Music Series: The local jazz, Latin, and world
musician will perform; 5:30-8:30 p.m.; free; Brasada Ranch,
16986 SW Brasada Ranch Road, Powell Butte; brasada.com or
855-318-4960.
The Ballybogs: The Irish traditional music band will perform;
6-8 p.m.; free; Porter Brewing Co., 611 NE Jackpine, Ct. 2, Red-
mond; porterbrewingco.com or 541-504-7959.
Songwriting Dance Party: Join local singer-songwriter Ca-
sey Hurt Thursday nights, where he creates retro pop and soul
dance tracks right on the spot; 7-10 p.m.; free; General Duffy’s
See Calendar / P3
INDEX
Puzzles ............. 2 Obituaries ....... 5
Flashback ........ 3 Classifieds ....... 5
Volume 112, No. 24
USPS 778-040
U|xaIICGHy02326kzU