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About The Bulletin. (Bend, OR) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 13, 2022)
SUNDAY • February 13, 2022 • Serving Central Oregon since 1903 • $3 GROWING SUCCESS Central Oregonians support CSAs, which allow farmers to understand their customer demand and plan their crops accordingly • BUSINESS, C1 SPECIAL REPORT Central Oregon’s child care desert Central Oregon parents partner with churches to form nonprofit About our coverage The Bulletin shared stories last week of parents and providers strug- gling through a broken child care sys- tem, where child care operators keep long waitlists to fill limited — and of- ten expensive — slots. In a community survey we con- ducted several weeks ago before launching our child care series, one theme was clear from the dozens of responses we received: Pretty much anyone in Central Oregon knows there’s a crisis of child care availability — but what’s being done about it? Today, our coverage turns to solu- tions. In the absence of a society-wide reconsideration of the value of child care and how it gets funded, provid- ers, parents and nonprofits are finding creative ways to fill some of the gaps they face. Four responses to the region’s child BY ZACK DEMARS The Bulletin Casey Lamont knew there had to be other parents out there like her. In 2019, when her son, Milo, was about 6 months old, she knew even just a few hours of child care a day would make her work much more efficient. A calligraphy artist, her work was sporadic, and she noticed half-hour tasks were four times longer when she had to hold Milo at the same time. “I’m able to stay home and my work can be flexible, but I didn’t want that to be all I was doing, and I just knew there were other moms in the same boat,” Lamont said. “Could we share the bur- den of child care?” Lamont started asking other parents that question. Now, those conversations have inspired a promising response to the region’s child care shortage. ReVillage, a nonprofit formed by parents and local faith leaders in 2021, utilizes empty space in area churches as co-op day care centers. Dean Guernsey/The Bulletin Zaiden Nelson, 2, from left, Joslyn Walker, ReVillage parent and assistant director, Jonas Walker, 3, and Oliver Bourque, 2, play with blue dough Feb. 10 at ReVillage Community Co-op Childcare Center in Bend. Editor’s note: This is the second day of a two-part series leading up to a City Club forum on child care issues in Central Oregon. More coverage at bendbulletin.com. care shortage are featured in today’s stories to provide just a few ideas about what more could be done: Par- ents coming together to form their own care, business leaders coaching new child care providers, a school starting a daycare for its own employ- ees and an ambitious partnership to deploy hundreds of new child care slots to three sites. There are more solutions to be ex- plored. We’ll continue reporting on the solutions that are making a difference locally and in other communities in the weeks and months to come: From developers designing housing that can double as at-home daycare, to scholarships that support professional development for child care providers, to state subsidy programs that guar- antee slots for low-income families and pay teachers a living wage. — Zack Demars, The Bulletin See Parents / A6 ABOUT THIS SERIES TODAY’S WEATHER Mostly sunny High 71, Low 43 Page B6 faces of homelessness MEET CENTR AL OREGON’S HOUSELESS COMMUNITY Homelessness in Central Oregon was scarcely noticeable as recent as five years ago. Today, no one can ignore there are hundreds of people without a house to call their home. Who faces houselessness in Bend, Sisters, Redmond, La Pine? Who are the real people impacted by skyrocketing housing prices, decisions about shelters or plans to sweep informal camps? Who do we mean when we talk about those who are homeless, experiencing homelessness, unhoused or unsheltered? BY DAVID JASPER • The Bulletin Duayne Dittmer Local man has called Deschutes National Forest home for 3 years T he ponderosa pines growing along China Hat Road in Deschutes National Forest stand as they have for centuries. Although these days, they tower over woods peppered with tarps, tents, trailers and trucks. The houseless have often sought shelter in the national forest, their campsites making up a kind of im- permanent neighborhood. Some vehicles look as though they haven’t budged in months. Other camps suggest more financial security, such as RVs surrounded only by neatly ar- ranged solar panels. While plenty of campsites are vis- ible from China Hat Road, others lie deeper in the forest, scattered along the many eroded dirt roads winding through it. This is where you’ll find the trailer of Duayne Dittmer, 58, who will mark three years living here in March. On the last Friday of January, he sat in a folding chair and answered questions in his gravelly voice. INDEX Business/Life Classifieds Dear Abby C1-8 B5 C3 Dean Guernsey/The Bulletin Duayne Dittmer and his dog at their camp off of China Hat Road. The first six months he lived out here were spent in the tattered tent that still stands next to the trailer, now serving as storage for some of his belongings. Dittmer has lived in Oregon since the age of 8. Before coming to Bend, Editorial Horoscope Local/State A4 C3 A2-3 Lottery Market Recap Mon. Comics B2 B4 C5-6 Obituaries Puzzles Sports he lived in La Grande, the last five years in Section 8 housing. Retired now, Dittmer said his last job was in construction in and around La Grande. Earlier in his life, he owned a video store for several years. Dittmer seems to be a popular or A9 C4 B1-6 key figure in his neck of the forest. During the 35 minutes he spoke to The Bulletin, the Apple Watch on his wrist chimed several times, one caller trying to locate another nearby camper. See Dittmer / A5 The Bulletin An Independent Newspaper We use recycled newsprint Vol. 117, No. 329, 28 pages, 4 sections SUN/THU The Bulletin wants to offer in- sight by telling their stories through a new series, Faces of Homeless- ness, and answer some of those questions. Every two weeks this year, Bulletin reporters will intro- duce readers to a different homeless person. The Bulletin will profile indi- viduals of all kinds experiencing homelessness on all fronts in Cen- tral Oregon. Readers will meet peo- ple who look and sound like them, and many people who do not. The series spawned from conver- sations The Bulletin convened with local service providers, advocacy groups and elected leaders. They shared that misconceptions some community members hold about people experiencing homeless are some of the biggest barriers they face in responding to homelessness, and this series seeks to broaden the con- versation. The goal of the series isn’t to ad- vocate for any one outcome, but to paint a more honest picture of the complicated reality of homelessness in Central Oregon and shed light on the preconceptions and mis- conceptions about those living un- housed. The time is right for the series: A 2021 survey from Invisible Peo- ple, a national homeless advocacy organization, found most people (70%) surveyed think homelessness has increased in their communities (and they’re right: The homeless population nationwide and in Cen- tral Oregon has increased in recent years). But the survey also found many hold misconceptions about who is actually homeless. Survey respon- dents guessed 21% of those experi- encing homelessness were veterans, while the Department of Housing and Urban Development puts that figure at 8% nationwide. Mean- while, respondents guessed those under 25 made up 18% of the pop- ulation, while HUD estimates the share is 26%. Meeting the community members who experience homelessness won’t “solve” the issue. But by seeing eye to eye with the faces of homelessness, The Bulletin hopes we can help us all remember the people behind the is- sues we’re discussing. U|xaIICGHy02330rzu
