Nancy Zadoff and her husband Paul relocated to Bend several years ago after working and living in various locations around the globe including Australia, Europe and California. They vacationed in Central Oregon for years and always knew they would make Bend their final stop. Nancy, one of seven children, grew up in her parent’s gardens and always loved every aspect of gardening. In her former career Nancy was a creative global marketing leader of high-performance teams in driving product vision, creation, marketing and merchandising within the consumer goods/apparel & fashion arena. She’s now happy to be growing her flowers and curating cheeses, meats and other special foods and gifts from talented artisans and makers both locally and around the world at her shop, Wild Petals Provisions. The shop is located in Brooks Alley in downtown Bend.

Kenny Adams is a writer, designer, film maker, and a father. As Executive Director of The Father’s Group, Kenny has bolstered and strengthened The Ujima Youth Program, developed the Night Out With The Father’s Group series, developed and administered The Father’s Group Film Festival featuring his own documentary, Blend, in which he interviews many Black residents of Central Oregon. Kenny has an IT professional background but his life is devoted to the betterment of his family, friends and community, by any means.

In this edition of Bend Don't Break, we chat with Adams about the Juneteenth celebration happening June 17 and 18 in Drake Park in Bend, his work with The Father's Group and much more.

Craig Brauner is a theatre artist and educator who's called Central Oregon home since 2018. Originally from Louisville, Kentucky, he has starred in over 80 productions across the country with prominent regional theatres as well as numerous workshops, readings and devised pieces. He obtained his MFA in Acting from the University of California-Irvine and BFA from the University of Evansville. He is a proud Founding Member and current President of Ellipse Theatre Community, a 501(c)(3) arts and education non-profit located in Central Oregon. We chat with Brauner about the theatre's current production, "Fun Home," about its Pride Month events, called Project Pride and what the future holds for Central Oregon theatre.

Summer 2023 includes a whopping 51 shows at the Hayden Homes Amphitheater in Bend, just one show fewer than last year. Ahead of the big season, marketing director for Hayden Homes Amphitheater and the Old Mill, Beau Eastes, chats with the Source crew about the partnership with Live Nation, memorable shows from past years and more.

Food writer, food stylist, recipe tester, cookbook editor, podcast producer/host are a few of the creative hats Donna Britt wears. Donna loves to hike, paddle board and spend quality time with family and friends. Oh, and she also collects cookbooks and cast iron cooking vessels.

As a revered member of the Source eating team, she was part of the crew that helped to name our Restaurants of the Year for the 2023 Restaurant Guide, out on stands in May 2023. In this podcast we chat at Bend and Central Oregon's restaurant scene, what we want to see in the market and much more.

Redmond, Oregon has a new political action committee aimed at helping quality candidates navigate and fund their efforts in the political process. In this podcast we chat with one of the founders of the Building Redmond's Future PAC, Adam DuQuette.

Adam DuQuette lives in Redmond where he works from home full-time as a software engineer. He graduated from Oregon State University-Cascades in 2017, receiving a Bachelor of Science in Applied Computer Science, after moving to Bend in 2014 with his wife Denae.

Adam and Denae have two children: Evelyn, a 7-year-old second grader at Hugh Hartman Elementary, and Arthur, an 8-month-old mastering how to crawl.

In addition to work and family, Adam serves as a board member on the Hugh Hartman PTC and Building Redmond's Future PAC.

Oregon became the first state to legalize psilocybin therapy when voters approved Measure 109 in 2020. The state did so under strict parameters about the use of the drug, and people are only allowed to take the drug under the supervision of facilitators who have undergone a 300-hour course. In a recent episode of our Bend Don't Break podcast, two Central Oregonians who are among the first licensed facilitators in the state, Dave Naftalin and Jeanette Small, spoke with the Source Weekly about their training, how they plan to work with clients and the state of psilocybin research.

Matthew Davey, park manager for Smith Rock State Park, joined the Source Weekly for a chat about the recently released draft master plan for Smith Rock.

Davey is currently serving as the park manager at Smith Rock State Park. He originally came to the park as a lead ranger in 2012 and took the manager reins in 2019 after a 3 year stint as ranger supervisor at Silver Falls State Park and The Cove Palisades State Park. Davey has been with Oregon State Parks now for 17 years and said he feels very privileged to work for Oregon’s amazing park system.

Jason McNeal Graham, also known as MOsley WOtta, joins Editor Nicole Vulcan on the Bend Don't Break podcast.

Graham's professional career spans multiple decades in mediums including, writing, painting and music. His curriculum vitae highlights Creative Laureate for the City of Bend, Oregon Fields Fellow, Oregon Humanities Conversation project leader + Bridging Oregon facilitator, Art Oregon “Black Matter” Visual Artist, Salem Art Association Fellow, Slam poetry Champion for the State of Oregon, NPR, OPB, TED X, The NBA several other three-letter acronyms. His work focuses on making positive connections between the negative space of perceived difference.

In this podcast we talk about the lessons learned during his time as Creative Laureate of Bend, the scope and breadth of the term "Black" in its various forms and much more.

Joel Wirtz is the Executive Director of the nonprofit public defender’s office in Bend: Deschutes Defenders. After serving in the Marines, he moved to Oregon and has been a public defender for nearly 20 years. He has successfully defended accusations from theft to murder.

A strong advocate for veterans and those suffering from mentally illness, Joel has served as attorney for those going through Mental Health Court and the Veteran’s Intervention Strategy. A leading proponent of holistic defense, he has worked with local stakeholders to ensure a safer and more equitable community. In his spare time, he runs the trails, often with a headlamp, and tries to expand his emotional intelligence with the help of his daughters and wife, a therapist.

In this edition of Bend Don't Break, we talk with Wirtz about the crisis in public defense resources in Oregon and the nation, how Oregon's challenges in mental health care play a role in adequate defense and more.