
Helping neighbors one deal at a time: the story of Frugal Family Thrift
From garage sales to a community store, Frugal Family Thrift helps curb cost of living By ELLIE GRAHAM/ for The Herald -- In a town where...

Trump administration and Democratic AGs launch battle over funding freeze in appeals court
By: Jennifer Shutt - February 12, 2025 || OREGON CAPITAL CHRONICLE WASHINGTON — The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday declined to block a...
Viewpoint
The Sloth: How do we raise our economic standards?
By PAUL SCOTT/for The Herald -- One tough problem: Oakridge's wages are not good compared to the same jobs in Eugene. It's just a function of economics that touches most of rural America. Do not expect to receive quick relief from either party- they have far more...
Recent News
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ODFW Recreation Report Feb. 12, 2025
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It was the funniest newsroom in Oregon
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Oregon Emergency Coordination Center Activates to Level 3 in Response to Severe Winter Weather
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Oakridge School District Board meeting 2/10: Enrollment up on the year, federal funding questionable
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Lowell Sch. Dist.: Closed. Lowell School District will be closed for today February 13th. Mountian View and Bridge Charter Schools included.
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Oakridge LCOG office to open late at 10:00 a.m.
Remembering Our Community
Jim Ward; August 6, 1941 – March 7, 2024
We are sad to announce the death of Jim ward on March 7,2024. Jim died at their home in Oakridge...
Jerry Snyder; 1939 – December 20, 2023
Jerry Snyder 84, of Oakridge passed away on December 20, 2023, after a short battle with lung...
Thelma (Sally) Stephens; June 2, 1925 – December 19, 2023
Thelma (Sally) Stephens passed away on Dec. 19,2023, at the age of 98. Sally was born in Haines,...
Beverly Joyce Haynes; October 1932 – December 13th, 2023
Beverly Joyce Haynes passed away on December 13th, 2023 at the age of 91. She was born in...
Wanda Lee Hall; May 2, 1943 – October 21, 2023
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Wanda Lee Hall (Coakley) at the age of 80...
Current Weather
Road Conditions
Hwy97 @ Chemault

Hwy 58 – Willamette Pass

Salt Creek Tunnel
Oakridge @ Crestview

HWY 58 @ I5

EVENTS
NEWS UPDATES
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Dexter/Pleasant Hill

Over the last weekend, 142 high school graduates from three area schools hit the world running
By GEORGE CUSTER/Editor/The Herald -- Graduating from high school is a big deal. It's not just that you've completed the required 12 years of education, you most likely are 18 years of age (some of you a little older, some a little younger). This age also implies...

LCSO Case #24-0420 – Search Warrant at illegal marijuana grow leads to fentanyl, firearms
News Release from Lane Co. Sheriff's Office Posted on FlashAlert: March 19th, 2024 7:38 AM On Friday, March 15th, Lane County Sheriff’s deputies executed two search warrants related to a large-scale illegal marijuana grow operation. The illegal grow was located in...
News Release: Emergency response team shares soil-burn severity map and research from Lookout Fire
Springfield, Ore. – Oct. 5, 2023 — Today, an Emergency Response Team of resource specialists released their findings on the Lookout Fire, Horse Creek, and Pothole fires burned areas, following field surveys and assessments. The Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER)...
Lowell/Jasper/Fall Creek

Willamette Complex South Update, Thursday, August 15, 2024
Willamette Complex South Update Chalk, Coffeepot, McKinley, Moss Mountain, Tire Mountain, 208 Fire, and 217 Fire Thursday, August 15, 2024 Total Willamette Complex South Personnel: 767 Total Willamette Complex South Acres: 12,737 Resources: 27 Type 2 Crews, 12...

30th annual Blackberry Jam Festival being held in Lowell over July 26 weekend
The 30th Blackberry Jam Festival is being held in Lowell from July 26 to July 28. The festival will host food and craft vendors, live music, a parade and a variety of events and games that are free for citizens to attend. Events that guests can expect to see across...

Lane County Board of Commissioners accept $900,000 state grant to improve communications technology for rural first response services, replace radio tower.
By ANDREW GRIFFIN/for The Herald -- The Lane County Board of Commissioners decided in a July 16 meeting to approve a grant from the state of Oregon worth $900,000 to help improve emergency communications technology in Lane County. Funding secured by a joint...
Oakridge/Westfir

U of O asks readers to do local news and civic information survey
How Well Are Your Information Needs Being Met? The University of Oregon’s School of Journalism and Communication is studying how people in Oakridge discover and share what’s happening in their communities. We are excited to partner with several local organizations to...

KVAL to interview Oakridge residents at noon today over TV Butte at city hall
By GEORGE CUSTER/Editor/The Herald -- The Herald has just been informed by the Oakridge City Administrator, James Cleavenger, that a KVAL television crew will be in Oakridge at noon today to interview people concerning the ongoing battle to save TV Butte. Persons...

Oakridge Community Listening Session: Share Your Voice!
The University of Oregon School of Journalism and Sustainable City Year Program (SCYP) class will be holding a Community Listening Session on civic information ecosystems called, "The Oakridge Civic Information Initiative" at the Oakridge Public Library on 1st Street...
Cascade Summit/Crescent

Outdoor report: Cascade Lakes Scenic Highway Opens
By ROB DEHARPPORT/for The Herald -- After many days of operating snowblower, front end loaders and road graders, the Deschutes County Road Department opened the Cascade Lakes Scenic Highway on Tuesday, May 23rd. The annual task tackled deeper snow this year than in...
Lightning strikes hit Shadow Bay campground early this morning, campers flee
The Herald -- Lightning struck several areas around the Shadow Bay campground at Waldo Lake early this morning. Many campers were awakened by the thunder and crashing. Reports from people who were camping on the "D" Loop indicated that as they were fleeing, branches...

Cedar Creek Fire near Waldo Lake closes numerous trails
Officials with the Willamette National Forest say there’s a new blaze burning about 18 miles east of Oakridge. As of Wednesday afternoon, the Cedar Creek Fire was about 500 acres in size and burning in remote terrain, making access difficult. The fire is located about...
click the header for more outdoors
The Great Outdoors
Wild Mushroom Soup
Ingredients
2 tbsp. butter
½ white onion, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
½ red bell pepper, finely diced
1 lb. mushrooms, diced
4 cloves garlic, finel…

Motorized Avalanche Awareness Classes
Don’t Miss NWAC’s Avalanche Awareness Classes for Motorized Users! Your sled is tuned up and the snow is falling… but have you refreshed your avalanche safety knowledge? NWAC offers FREE virtual Avalanche Awareness classes every month specifically for snowmobilers, so that you can make every ride a round trip. Learn the basics of avalanche safety […]
The post Motorized Avalanche Awareness Classes appeared first on Northwest Avalanche Center.

A new scenic bikeway for Oregon
By Rachael McDonald | KLCC Published November 22, 2024 A forest service road that winds through the Willamette National Forest east of Eugene has been designated as Oregon’s 18th scenic bikeway. At its Nov. 20 meeting, the Oregon Parks and Recreation commission...

ODFW Recreation Report Nov. 13, 2024
Nov. 13, 2024 Includes updates to fishing and hunting CWD – what hunters can do Chronic wasting disease is a fatal disease infecting deer and elk across North America. It has now been found in three bordering states – Idaho, Washington, and California, but has...
Phillip W. Schneider Wildlife Area open for public use Oct. 28
NEWS RELEASE Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife odfw.com Contact: Daniel Somers, (541) 318-7972, [email protected] Oct. 28, 2024 SALEM, Ore. – ODFW’s Phillip W. Schneider Wildlife Area is open for public use as of Oct. 28, 2024, after being closed...
The Arts/Food/Wine/Life
Ben Olson’s contribution to local music comes from both sides of the music sheet - By GEORGE CUSTER/Editor — Stop by the 3 Legged Crane most any Thursday evening and you’ll more than likely see Ben Olson entertaining a rapt crowd. These include his regular […]
Simply Humus, A Name Change and A Little More…
Welcome to Adventures and Recipes, the column formerly called 'We All Eat.' By SU STELLA/for The Herald -- On November 21, 2024, I opened my email and discovered I was one of three Oregon Food Bank's FEAST grant recipients in Oakridge. My project is for a 52-week...
2006: Summer School Elementary Students Tour Museum
By SHEILA CHITWOOD/ for The Herald -- For 18 children from the Oakridge elementary summer school, a trip to the historical museum was an educational and enlightening event. Del Spencer, curator of the museum at that time, had each child choose an object to be talked...
Parvin Butte
Phot of the week: Hills Creek Reservoir
Mike Milandin shot this scene back in November. Over the years, Mike Milandin has continued to chronicle the diverse landscape and scenery of the Oakridge area on film.
It was a good winter for bad Oregon murders, I guess.
I mean it was a good, newsy time on the courts beat. But now I wonder if something awful seeped in and took root as the 1980s recession kicked the s**t out of Oregon's little mill towns. ERIC MORTENSON Dec 16 || ABOUT HALF SHOT I don’t know for certain if something...
We All Eat:Wonderful Bean and Rice Soup
My mother's superpower was keeping cooking simple. We called her a 'One Pot Wonder,' hence the recipe name. This simple stew will warm your kitchen and then your belly and bones. Traditionally, it is made using white beans and rice with smoked paprika. This...
‘Planting of the Trees’ for Tree Planting Festival takes place in winter for better survivability
By ETHAN RODRIGUEZ/for The Herald -- On Saturday, Dec. 7, for the first time in 30 years, Oakridge’s annual winter Tree Planting Festival made a comeback. On that rainy Saturday, about a dozen members of all ages from the Oakridge community gathered to plant 100...
A festive-filled weekend kicked off the holiday season in Oakridge
By GEORGE CUSTER/Editor/The Herald -- Though it was near freezing and there were periods of rain, 1st Street was abuzz with folks for last weekend's events. Tree Lighting Event Starting on Friday evening, there was the annual lighting ceremony for the city's...
McCredie Hot Springs was once a thriving resort
By SHEILA CHITWOOD/for The Herald -- McCredie Hot Springs is 9 miles east on Hwy. 58 just after the Blue Pool Campground. Look to the right for a parking lot and walk a little further to the springs. This was once the site of a grand two-story lodge (complete with...
We All Eat- Rainy Day French Onion Soup
By SU STELLA/for The Herald -- We All Eat- Rainy Day French Onion Soup I am not complaining about the rain; I am embracing sweater weather. Making French onion soup is a must on a rainy day. Because you cook everything in a large pot, there is only one pot to clean....
Oakridge Pioneer Museum: Before there was Oakridge, there was James Sanford
By SHEILA CHITWOOD/for The Herald -- In 1853, Josiah Sanford and his two sons, James and Richmond, rode horseback across the plains from Virginia to California during the gold rush. After getting their gold stake, they traveled to Grand Prairie (Eugene) to begin...
Oakridge sports home schedule for November/December/January
Junior High November 25 - 4:30 - Girls Basketball vs City First Christian December 2 - 4:30 - Girls Basketball vs St. Paul 4 - 4:30 - Girls Basketball vs Lowell/ 6:00 - Wrestling vs Creswell 9 - 4:30 - Girls Basketball vs Central Linn January 8 - 5:00 - ...