Three intersections on Highway 97 near Metolius in Jefferson County that have a history of serious and deadly crashes is being permanently closed Wednesday.

The Oregon Department of Transportation is shutting down SW Bear Drive and Eureka Lane at US 97. ODOT said poor visibility and the fact the intersections are at the end of a passing lane have made the intersections especially dangerous.

A concrete barrier will be installed where Bear Drive meets the highway.

SEE ALSO: 3 trail segments near Phil’s Trailhead closing to remove vegetation

SEE ALSO: 22 Deschutes Nat’l Forest campgrounds closed for snow

The closure will mean changes for…

Desert Sky Montessori has received On Point Community Credit Union’s Community Builder Award. Learn more here.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) — As the 13th annual OnPoint Prize for Excellence in Education campaign continues, OnPoint Community Credit Union announced Tuesday the five schools. including Bend’s Desert Sky Montessori, that have won this year’s Community Builder awards. The winning schools will receive up to $5,000 for a special project that positively impacts their school and community.

OnPoint also announced today the six finalists for the Educator of the Year awards. Three winning teachers (one representing grades K-5, 6-8 and 9-12) will have their mortgage or rent paid for one full year and receive $2,500 for each of their schools. The three runners up (one…

Meta in Prineville awarded a $11,200 grant to Family Access Network. Find out more here.

Meta’s (previously Facebook) Prineville Data Center just gave a $11,200 Community Action Grant to Family Access Network (FAN).

The funds are meant to assist FAN’s Crook County program, supporting the two advocates in the area.

FAN has connected 474 people in Crook County to crucial needs like clothing, food, and school supplies during the first three quarters of 2021-22.

“FAN is deeply grateful for Prineville Data Center’s support of our services in Crook County, and their long-term commitment to the community,” said Julie N. Lyche, FAN Executive Director. “This grant will help many families in Crook County regain stability, so kids can thrive in…

Brightways Counseling Group of Bend was named SBA’s 2022 Small Business Person of the Year. Find out more here.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) — – The U.S. Small Business Administration 2022 Small Business Person of the Year is Brightways Counseling Group of Bend, founded by husband and wife team Kevin and Angie Shaw.

Founded in 2017, Brightways Counseling Group counselors provide whole person care for people suffering from a variety of different mental health issues in Central Oregon. What started with one clinic and eight employees has grown to four locations in Bend, Madras, Redmond, and Woodburn, Oregon with 65 employees who in 2021, helped 2,634 patients be the best version of themselves.

The SBA Small Business Person of the…

Mosaic Medical will have a new community health center in Madras. Find out more here.

Mosaic Medical was recently awarded a $50,000 grant from the Marie Lamfrom Charitable Foundation as well as a substantial grant from The Ford Family Foundation.

The funds will be used to support the development of the new Madras Health Center, a partnership with Jefferson County Public Health that is scheduled to open this spring.

These two grants bring Mosaic’s capital campaign for the project closer to reaching the $5.3 million funding goal, over $5 million has been raised to date.

“My grandmother, Marie Lamfrom, was committed to caring for people, especially those who were hospitalized or in need of care,” said Sally Bany, co-founder…

Katherine Holden, assistant principal of Ashland Middle School, has been named the national assistant principal of the year in recognition of how she helped creatively and cheerfully guide her school through the aftermath of 2020′s home-destroying wildfires.

Holden said in a statement that she considers it “my mission to do everything I can to create a school environment where students feel safe and staff feel supported so they can be their best and have fun teaching and learning.”

“As…

Tini’s Bar in Portland donates 100 percent of its profits to nonprofits for low-income youth. Learn more here.

by Maya MacEvoy

Portlanders can now help fund aid for unhoused and low-income teens while popping by a neighborhood bar.

Mike and Courtney Nierengarten, the owners of Oregon-based distillery Dregs Vodka, opened Tini’s in January — a Portland tasting room on NW 23rd, pouring flights of mini-cocktails and selling bottles of its branded vodka. But the Nierengartens aren’t pocketing the sales from Tini’s; rather, the couple donates 100 percent of the profits from the bar and distillery to nonprofits specifically working with low-income youth, including Portland-based P:ear Mentor, Friends of the Children,…

mRNA technology will be used for pathogens and diseases other than Covid. Learn more here.

By Liz Szabo, Kaiser Health News

(KHN) The billions of dollars invested in covid vaccines and covid-19 research so far are expected to yield medical and scientific dividends for decades, helping doctors battle influenza, cancer, cystic fibrosis, and far more diseases.

Alaska Airlines is launching a program to train more pilots. Learn more here.

By Jamie Goldberg | The Oregonian/OregonLive

Alaska Airlines is prepared to spend millions of dollars to help students attend an Oregon flight school, get their commercial pilot licenses and then get them flying planes for Horizon Air, its regional sister carrier.

The Seattle-based air group is partnering with the Hillsboro Aero Academy to launch the flight school program, which will offer training in either Hillsboro or Redmond. The airline will offer low-interest flight school loans, cover the cost of a commercial pilot license, then give the new pilots a job upon completing the program.

T-Mobile for Business teamed up with BackyardBend to help give a big boost to a small, local business. All of us would like to congratulate Jackaroo Pies as the big winner of the $10,000radio advertising grant to advertise Jackaroo Pies on our four Central Oregon radio stations.

BackyardBend would like to thank T-Mobile for Business for helping local businesses like Jackaroo Pies, the winner of the $10,000 radio advertising grant. Head down to Jackaroo Pies at the Box Factory in Bend today or visit them online at jackroopies.com.