THE SPOKESMAN • TUESDAY, AUGUST 2, 2022 A3
Habitat for Humanity builds homes for 19 families
Plans to build
Restore in 2023
BY TIM TRAINOR
Redmond Spokesman
Bend-Redmond Habitat
for Humanity recently fin-
ished construction of ten
townhomes and nine acces-
sory dwelling units in Red-
mond, providing housing for
19 local families.
“This is a really big deal for
us,” said Mellissa Kamanya,
director of grants manage-
ment for the nonprofit. “It’s
really exciting that this proj-
ect has been completed and
families are moving in.”
Kamanya said the ten,
three-bedroom homes were
purchased by low- to mid-
dle-income residents who
attended financial training
with Habitat for Humanity
and expressed a need to se-
cure stable housing.
According to Kamanya,
one family moving into a
home is a single father of two
young children. After a dif-
ficult divorce, the three of
them moved into the man’s
parents’ basement to try get
back on their feet. The father
worked hard to save money
for a place of their own, but
the high cost of housing and
two children to care for made
it difficult.
Courtesy photo
Bend-Redmond Habitat for Humanity built 10 new homes and 9 dwelling units in Redmond, which marked the 200th families served by the or-
ganization.
Kamanya said the resi-
dent “can’t wait to feel like
my kids are in a safe commu-
nity, where I know everyone
and where everyone supports
each other.” As he was pre-
paring to move in, he said he
was looking forward to living
near a park and giving his
children their first bedroom
of their own.
The location of the homes
Redmond School Board unanimously selects
former Bend principal to fill vacant seat
BY BRYCE DOLE
CO Media Group
The Redmond School Board
approved a controversial former
Bend principal to fill an open
board seat for the upcoming
school year, drawing concern
from some parents whose chil-
dren attended the high school
she led for more than six years.
Alice DeWittie, the former
principal
of Summit
High School
in Bend, was
unanimously
appointed
by the board
June 22 to
DeWittie
fill the va-
cant seat after
board mem-
ber Jill Cummings resigned.
The position runs through June
30, 2023.
DeWittie left her job as prin-
cipal of Summit High at the
end of the 2017-2018 academic
year, shortly after some par-
ents voiced concern over an
email and essay she wrote that
included references to Chris-
tianity. The writing suggested,
in part, that public education
should be restructured to con-
form with Christian values,
according to news reports. At
least one person complained to
the district about her writing,
but district officials concluded
she had not violated policy.
DeWittie did not return re-
quests for comment prior to
press time Tuesday.
Some families remain con-
cerned that DeWittie’s religious
beliefs could compromise her
ability to maintain religious
neutrality as a board member.
At least one parent, who vol-
unteered as a robotics coach at
Summit High and whose chil-
dren attended the high school
when DeWittie was there, said
he plans to attend Wednes-
day’s board meeting and speak
out against her appointment.
He said his concerns are not
with any religious beliefs she
expresses but with the way she
leads.
“I always appreciate people
who step up for civic service,
however, my observations of
Alice, her decisions and her be-
haviors, she is the wrong person
for this type of role,” said Scot
Brees, who runs a nonprofit
in Bend. As a volunteer at the
school, Brees said he frequently
felt belittled in arguments with
DeWittie, adding that she ruled
by “intimidation and fear.”
Redmond Superintendent
Charan Cline said Tuesday that
he was aware of the contro-
versy that surrounded DeWittie
when she left her role in Bend,
but said that he had not dis-
cussed the matter with her spe-
cifically. He noted that there is a
large body of law in education
systems around respecting be-
lief systems, including the sep-
aration of church and state, but
said board members are free to
hold whatever personal beliefs
they wish.
“I’m not overly concerned,”
Cline said of DeWittie’s history
as an educator. “Every board
member comes to the table
with their own set of values.”
Cline said that he’s hopeful
DeWittie brings her knowl-
edge and years of experience as
a professional educator to the
board. Cline said Monday that
Cummings had resigned due to
“personal reasons.”
But when Stewart Fritch-
man, a vocal critic of DeWittie’s
who owns a coffee business in
Bend, heard that the board had
approved DeWittie to the in-
terim role, he said he thought to
himself: “You’ve got to be kid-
ding me. Did they not do their
homework?”
DeWittie did not say in an
email to parents in 2017 pre-
cisely why she was leaving the
school. Fritchman noted that it
was clear that a growing num-
ber of parents were alarmed
about her religious comments
in the school.
The board chose DeWittie
after interviews with five can-
didates. They included Melissa
Williams, the executive director
of Every Child Central Oregon,
which helps children and fam-
ilies in the foster care system;
Russell Johnson, a data center
operations analyst for a cyber
security company; Marv Ka-
plan, a retired owner of a con-
sulting company who serves
on the board of the St. Charles
Foundation, Central Oregon
Veterans Ranch and the Rotary
Club of Redmond; and Valerie
Nichols, a real estate developer
who worked for the city of Red-
mond from 2017-2021.
In a box below, the form asks
the applicant whether they in-
tend to run in the May 2023
election that would serve the
remaining two years of the four-
year term. DeWittie filled in a
box that said: Maybe.
█
and their new residents are
not being identified. Some
residents of the homes have
been victims of violence and
Habitat for Humanity has
a policy of not publicizing
their new addresses.
The one bedroom acces-
sory dwelling units on the
property are the first of their
kind built by Bend-Redmond
Habitat. They required part-
nerships with the city of Red-
mond in order to permit and
construct the homes. The
city, as well as local, private
donors, provided consider-
able funding for the project,
said Kamanya.
John Roberts, Redmond’s
deputy city manager, said
“these affordable townho-
mes and ADUs are creating
long lasting legacies of hope
and change for hard working
families in Redmond.”
Kamanya also noted the
build is a “significant mile-
stone” for the organization.
The 19 families who moved
in mean that Habitat for Hu-
manity has now built hous-
ing for 200 families in Cen-
tral Oregon.
But that’s not the only big
news in Redmond for Hab-
itat for Humanity. Kamanya
said they plan to open a Re-
Store location in Redmond
in the fall of 2023. Kamanya
said they plan to erect a new
building near the current Mo-
tel 6 in Redmond, south of
downtown between Highway
97 and Canal. The store will
offer employment and volun-
teer opportunities, as well as a
place to recycle and purchase
discounted materials.
Habitat has similar stores
operating in Bend and Sis-
ters.
█
Reporter: ttrainor@
redmondspokesman.com
Fentanyl found after burglary arrest
BY TIM TRAINOR
Redmond Spokesman
A Redmond man was ar-
rested Wednesday with what
police say was a “commer-
cial” quantity of fentanyl.
Levi Towry, 37, was
charged with unlawful pos-
session and attempted de-
livery of a Schedule II con-
trolled substance, as well as
an unrelated burglary charge
out of Bend.
Police allege Towry was
importing pills containing
fentanyl from Portland with
an intent to distribute them
in Deschutes County.
Police say they followed
Towry’s vehicle to the Vil-
lage Squire Motel, 629 SW
5th in downtown Redmond.
When Towry pulled into the
lot, detectives detained him
on the Bend burglary charge,
then secured a search war-
rant. Police allegedly then
found “a commercial quan-
tity of counterfeit oxycodone
pills containing fentanyl” on
Towry.
According to statute a “a
commercial quantity” is five
grams or more of a mixture
or substance containing a de-
tectable amount of fentanyl,
or any derivative of fentanyl
as defined by the rules of the
Oregon Board of Pharmacy.
Towry was transported
to the Deschutes County
Sheriff’s Office Jail, then to
the emergency room at St.
Charles, Bend. He was even-
tually cited and released.
Doug MacLeod
Reporter: 541-617-7854,
bdole@bendbulletin.com
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Joe A Lochner, Agent
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