All are welcome at third annual Health and Wellness Fair, taking place Saturday at Bend’s Ponderosa Park

KTVZ on September 17, 2025

KTVZ

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – In celebration of Welcoming Week 2025, three local organizations are bringing back the popular Health and Wellness Fair to be held Saturday, Sept. 20 from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. at Ponderosa Park (225 SE 15th St.) in Bend.

Mosaic Community Health, Deschutes County Health Services and Volunteers in Medicine Clinic of the Cascades are co-hosting the third annual outdoor event to welcome immigrant, refugee, Latino and other community members and provide easy access to useful information for improving health and well-being.  

“We aim to improve the health and wellness of community members who are most affected by health disparities and inequities,” said Shana Falb, Community Partnerships and Engagement, Deschutes County Health Services. “This year, the event convenes vetted healthcare providers and social service organizations to provide on-site services—improving community access and ultimately reducing those health inequities.” 

Welcoming Week takes place Sept. 12-21 citywide, with events that celebrate inclusivity and belonging in Bend. The City of Bend became a Welcoming City in 2017 and participates in this national event every year. Welcoming Cities are guided by the principles of inclusion and creating communities that prosper because everyone feels welcome, including immigrants and refugees. This year’s national Welcoming Week theme is Stories We Share—recognizing and celebrating voices in our community who are actively building welcoming spaces by practicing belonging and resilience.  

The Health and Wellness Fair increases awareness of where community members can receive medical and dental care, mental health and wellness services, social services, vaccine education and other care addressing social determinants of health. In addition, the event will provide on-site health services such as emergency dental care, blood pressure checks and education on hypertension, skin health screenings and education, diabetes wellness and more. 

“This year we’re expanding access to on-site health services, including oral health screenings, and making sure Latino families receive information in their language about where and how to get care,” said Jason Villanueva, Mosaic Spanish Communications Coordinator. “Beyond connecting people with the resources they need, we also want the fair to be a time for the community to come together, celebrate and have fun.” 

The event will also offer activities such as group fitness classes facilitated in Spanish, free nutritious food from a local vendor and fun health education activities for children and families. Interpretation services in multiple languages will be provided for any community member to access, and most participating vendors will have bilingual staff available.  

This year, the event organizers received sponsorships to increase the number of on-site health services at the event. Sponsors include Pacific Source Community Solutions, St. Charles Health System, City of Bend, Deschutes County Health Services, Central Oregon Health Quality Alliance, Central Oregon Health Council, Central Oregon Independent Practice Association and Northwest Credit Union, plus a grant from First Interstate Bank.  

“Thanks to generous support from sponsors, we are glad to host this community event again,” said Courtney Gallant, Director of Philanthropy and Community Outreach at VIM Cascades. “Especially now, with policy changes and subsequent shifts in care delivery, it is important that community members know where and how they can access the healthcare and social care service providers they need.” 

About Welcoming Week 

Welcoming Week is a national campaign and celebration held annually to bring together neighbors of all backgrounds to build strong connections and affirm the importance of welcoming and inclusive places in achieving collective prosperity. Launched in 2012 by Welcoming America and its members, Welcoming Week provides individuals and organizations the opportunity to showcase their values through events and initiatives that foster connections and collaboration between immigrants and non-immigrants, as well as belonging for all. Learn more about the national campaign at welcomingweek.org. Learn more about the City of Bend’s Welcoming Week at https://www.bendoregon.gov/events/welcoming-week 

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Women’s Expo comes to St. Joseph

News-Press NOW on September 17, 2025

Carter Ostermiller

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — St. Joseph’s Civic Arena will play host its first-ever Women’s Expo.

The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 4.

The expo is going to have many features, such as a silent auction, fashion show, food and so much more.

“The idea is just, really, celebrating women. Our health and wellness is so important. Our mental health is so important for not only ourselves, but our family and their mental health,” said Cornelius.

Cornelius said the event is inclusive for all women and will have activities for all ages.

For adults, the event costs $7, or $5 if you bring two cans of food to donate to Second Harvest. For those ages 16 and under, the event is free.

For more information, you can visit the website www.stjowomensexpo.com.

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Randolph County woman accused of sending illicit photos of man without permission

KMIZ on September 17, 2025

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Randolph County woman was charged on Wednesday after authorities say she sent nude photos of a man to people he knew without his permission.

Roni Spicer, of Cairo, was charged with nonconsensual dissemination of private sexual images. A warrant was requested and a court date has not been scheduled.

The probable cause statement says Spicer sent nude photographs of a man to someone’s phone on Nov. 27, 2024, and Feb. 17, 2025. In February, she allegedly sent the photos to “everyone at his place of employment,” court documents say.

The victim allegedly told law enforcement that Spicer was the only other person who had access to the account where the photo was stored, the statement says. Spicer allegedly admitted to sending the photos after accusing the victim of infidelity, the statement says.

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Date for Oral Arguments Confirmed in Paul Flores Appeal Case

KEYT on September 17, 2025

Alissa Orozco

VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) – A date has been set for The California Court of Appeal to hear oral arguments in the appeal case of Paul Flores, the man convicted of murdering Cal Poly student Kristin Smart.

Flores was the last person seen with Smart after leaving a campus fraternity party before she disappeared back in 1996. Flores was found guilty of first-degree murder by a Monterey County jury in October 2022.

After an unsuccessful initial appeal attempt, Flores filed a second appeal earlier this year, attempting to reverse or reduce his conviction to second-degree murder.

In the appeal, Flores argues Juror 273 should not have been allowed to testify, two additional alleged rape victims of Flores should not have been allowed to testify, and former San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Chris Peuvrelle committed misconduct during his closing arguments.

His team attempted have Juror 273 removed four separate times during the trial for a “dramatic emotional outburst,” and his appeal claims Juror 273 admitted to speaking about the case to the bailiff and acquaintances.

The appeal also claims the court improperly allowed two women, who claimed to be alleged victims of Flores, to testify. Criticizing their testimonies, along with the testimony of another Cal Poly student who claims Smart appeared “roofied” the night of her disappearance.

Flores is currently serving his sentence at Corcoran State Prison where he was moved to after being attacked twice at Pleasant Valley State Prison in Coalinga.

Both sides will give their oral arguments on October 9th at 1:30pm in a Ventura County 2nd District, 6th Division courthouse.

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OSU-Cascades is one of eight universities chosen for a national career development pilot program

KTVZ on September 17, 2025

Barney Lerten

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Oregon State University-Cascades students will have new opportunities to gain valuable workplace experience through a new career accelerator program, the school announced Tuesday.

OSU-Cascades is one of a handful of universities from around the country selected to participate in the National Work-Integrated Learning Accelerator, which aims to help university institutions pilot scalable models of career-integrated learning that align with regional workforce needs.

Here’s the rest of the OSU-Cascades announcement:

The accelerator is a two-year project led by Arizona State University, a recognized leader in advancing student career preparation, and funded by the JPMorgan Chase Foundation and Strada Education Foundation.

OSU-Cascades was selected in part for its success launching activities that integrate career readiness into the student experience, including the Cascades Edge career preparation program launched in 2023, and SnoPlanks Academy, where students lead and manage all functions of a snowboard company. The award will help launch similar opportunities in the coming years. 

Other participating universities, also noted for prioritizing undergraduates’ academic learning in conjunction with career preparation, include Bowling Green State University, Morgan State University, Rowan College at Burlington, University of Central Florida, University of Maryland Baltimore County and University of North Texas.

“At OSU-Cascades, our goal is for every student to graduate with the ability to articulate the leadership and career outcomes they’ve cultivated during their academic experience,” said Cynthia Engel, director of the OSU-Cascades’ Career Development Center. “Through the Work-Integrated Learning Accelerator pilot, we’ll scale that vision and design, test and build a dynamic and inclusive model that prepares students for even more meaningful and durable professional success — and work with employer partners to collaborate in that success.”

OSU-Cascades’ Work-Integrated Learning Accelerator pilot will be led by a cross-functional team of faculty, staff and administrators to include representatives from across degree fields, as well as information technology and industry relations experts. The team’s work will be guided by input from students and industry partners. 

The team will collaborate with ASU and participating institutions to co-develop and test innovative approaches to work-integrated learning, such as embedding work experiences into courses through micro-internships, project-based learning and employer challenges. 

The pilot will also consider future opportunities to take place within OSU-Cascades’ planned innovation district, which is designed to foster collaborations between the university, industry and the community. 

OSU-Cascades’ pilot activities are anticipated to launch in spring 2026.

Participating universities were each awarded $150,000 in funding to support startup costs and technology adoption.

Through learnings from the pilots, accelerator leaders at ASU will develop an open-access digital resource available to share with higher education institutions, employers and others.

The pilot at OSU-Cascades will support OSU’s strategic goal of becoming a university where every student graduates, and complement a new university-wide requirement launched in summer 2025 that ensures every student graduates with career skills and connections.

About OSU-Cascades:  Oregon State University’s campus in Bend brings higher education to Central Oregon, the fastest growing region in the state. Surrounded by mountains, forest and high desert, OSU-Cascades is a highly innovative campus of a top-tier land grant research university, offering small classes that accelerate faculty-student mentoring and experiential learning. Degree programs meet industry and economic needs in areas such as innovation and entrepreneurship, natural ecosystems, health and wellness, and arts and sciences, and prepare students for tomorrow’s challenges. OSU-Cascades is expanding to serve 3,000 to 5,000 students, building a 128-acre campus with net-zero goals.

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Musician who spied on boys at Palm Desert restaurant restroom sentenced

KESQ on September 17, 2025

City News Service

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A Coachella Valley musician who spied on boys using a restaurant bathroom, illegally recording them, was sentenced today to three years in state prison.

Joseph Paul Seiders, 45, of Palm Desert in June pleaded guilty to felony possession of child pornography and misdemeanor counts of intent to invade privacy through use of a concealed camera, annoying minors and attempted invasion of privacy via cameras.

Seiders made his plea directly to Riverside County Superior Court Judge Dean Benjamini, without negotiations between the defense and prosecution.   

During a hearing at the Larson Justice Center in Indio Wednesday, Benjamini imposed the upper term sentence for the felony count. The lesser terms of incarceration for the misdemeanor counts were either set aside or folded into the prison sentence.

According to sheriff’s Sgt. Daniel Milbrandt, on April 7, an 11-year- old boy revealed that while he was using a Chik-Fil-A bathroom in the 73-000 block of Dinah Shore Drive in Palm Desert, a man entered and recorded him with a camera phone. The person left before patrol deputies arrived. However, two days later, employees observed the same individual going in and out of the bathroom at the same time as young boys, prompting calls to 911, Milbrandt said.

This time, deputies reached the location within a few minutes and arrested Seiders without incident.

They seized evidence from his “residence, vehicle and cell phone,” Milbrandt said.

After the defendant was taken into custody, it was confirmed that, for the last decade, he’d been drummer for the indie band New Pornographers.   

The group issued a statement stating, “Everyone in the band is absolutely shocked, horrified and devastated by news of the charges against Joe Seiders. We have severed all ties with him. Our hearts go out to everyone who has been impacted by his actions.”

Seiders had no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.

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Monterey County’s 211 resource to receive PG&E grant

KION on September 17, 2025

Katie Nicora

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) — PG&E is giving a $30,000 grant to United Way Monterey County to help expand access to the county’s 211 services, according to the company.

In the event of an emergency, 211 is a lifeline that can connect people to important resources like food, shelter, health care, financial assistance and other resources.

The program can also help people who rely on electricity for medical equipment make safety plans during a power outage.

United Way says that just in 2024, 211 Monterey County handled over 13,300 calls and texts that resulted in over 19,000 referrals.

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EPA delivers Moss Landing battery fire research numbers to Monterey County

KION on September 17, 2025

Ata Shaheen

MOSS LANDING, Calif. (KION-TV) – Representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) here in Salinas gave an update on clean-up efforts and current conditions at the Moss Landing Battery Energy Storage Facility.

The building went up in flames at the beginning of the year.

It has now been two months since the U.S. EPA tasked Vistra Energy with cleaning up and removing the batteries and debris, and footing the bill. It will take them more than a year to actually get the batteries out.

Vistra has private firefighters on site and is continuing to monitor and sample air quality. The EPA said they’re focused on transparency and communication.

“No community needs or wants an incident like this. Nor does Vistra who was trying to be a community partner in this as well,” said Lynn Keller, supervisory environmental engineer at U.S. EPA. “So, we’re all trying to work together to do the right thing and get this issue addressed in a way that is transparent to the community and gets these potentially dangerous, partially burned batteries out of your community.”

The EPA stated they’re taking extreme precautions to ensure another issue does not arise during the cleanup.

A county website that displays testing results for hydrogen fluoride and other toxic chemicals near the site shows the limit to be below the health risk threshold in both the immediate and surrounding areas.

Vistra also said there’s no time frame for a decision about whether to start operating again at the facility

The question of where the batteries will be disposed of was answered as they will be sent to a special site near Reno, Nevada.

A demolition contractor is working on stabilizing the facility to make it safe for the removal to begin.

The building will be demolished in phases between this year and the end of next.

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CPUC set to vote Thursday on Edison rate hike that would add about $17 to average monthly bills

KESQ on September 17, 2025

Garrett Hottle

SAN FRANSISCO, Calif. (KESQ) State regulators are scheduled to vote Thursday on whether to let Southern California Edison raise residential power bills by nearly 10 percent starting Oct. 1, an increase the California Public Utilities Commission estimates would add about $17 a month, or roughly $200 a year, for a typical household using 500 kilowatt hours.

The vote is on the utility’s 2025 General Rate Case, which sets Edison’s base revenue for the next four years. A proposed CPUC decision would authorize a 2025 revenue requirement of $9.756 billion, about $727 million less than Edison requested, with additional inflationary adjustments in 2026 to 2028.

Thursday’s meeting is scheduled for 11 a.m. in San Francisco, with public comment at the start of the agenda. Edison’s application, listed as Item 43 on the agenda, could be approved, modified, or held over.

Edison says higher revenues are needed for day to day operations and grid upgrades, including wildfire mitigation, vegetation management, and preparing the system for growing electric demand. In an interview this week, an SCE spokesperson said the company understands rising costs are challenging, while arguing the case supports a reliable and resilient grid.

Table 1 provides an estimate of what the impact on rates from this increase in the revenue requirement will be. It assumes a residential average monthly bill and usage of 500 kWh/month. – CPUC Fact Sheet on SCE rate increase.

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, who is also running for governor, urged commissioners in a letter Tuesday to reject the increase, calling it an unacceptable burden on families and criticizing a new income based fixed charge that begins in November. “Ratepayers cannot continue to be treated as a bottomless piggy bank,” Bianco wrote.

If the CPUC adopts the proposed decision, Edison would implement new rates on Oct. 1 and amortize revenue differences that accrued since Jan. 1 over 24 months, according to industry summaries and CPUC materials. Further adjustments are contemplated through 2028.

News Channel 3 will be tracking Thursday mornings commission meeting, and update you with any new developments as they come in.

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Border Patrol speaks on deployment of state, federal troops to El Paso

KVIA on September 17, 2025

Heriberto Perez Lara

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — U.S. Border Patrol El Paso Sector’s Interim Chief Patrol Agent Walter N. Slosar recently posted on social media the deployment of 500 Texas National Guard soldiers to El Paso to support the border mission along with DHS.

The soldiers will be performing various duties, including working on infrastructure.

“The technology will be able to track illegal entries in ‘real time,’ and intelligence sharing will be conducted worldwide,” Border Patrol mentioned on a social media post.

ABC-7 reached out to the Texas Military Department, the Department of Homeland Security and the National Guard Bureau Public Affairs Office for comment.

The Texas Military Department stated that, for operational security reasons, it cannot disclose the number of personnel, mission specifics, or particular capabilities.

“TMD’s Texas Tactical Border Force (TTBF) continues to support Operation Lone Star alongside state and federal partners. Together, we continue to disrupt cartel activity and narco-terrorism, stop illegal immigration, and protect our southern border,” said the Texas Military Department in a statement.

“Our service members have been working with federal partners extensively and continuously on the border for decades, and the Texas Tactical Border Force is activated to continue this enduring mission,” TMD’s Public Affairs Office added.

“Governor Abbott continues to work closely with the Trump Administration to secure the border,” said Andrew Mahaleris, Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s Press Secretary. “The Governor directed all state agencies to coordinate with the Trump Administration on border security, deployed Department of Public Safety tactical strike teams to support homeland security operations, and entered into agreements with DHS earlier this year that authorize the Texas National Guard to help enforce immigration law. Texas will continue utilizing every tool and strategy to secure the border and protect Texans.”

The 1st Armored Division from Fort Bliss also announced today the deployment of approximately 2,500 troops from the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team that will assume the southern border mission from the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, for this fall.

“The Strike team is taking all necessary steps to prepare to assume this mission,” said Col. Douglas Baker, commander of the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division. “Our Soldiers are taking their training and preparation for this mission very seriously, as some of the areas we will operate in will be close to the communities in which we live. It is important for us to continue to maintain the trust and confidence of our friends and neighbors as we conduct operations in support of our nation.”

According to a news release, the brigade will operate under the command of Joint Task Force – Southern Border.

“Joint Task Force – Southern Border, under the direction of U.S. Northern Command, executes full-scale, agile, and all-domain operations in support of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to protect the territorial integrity of the United States and achieve 100% operational control of the southern border,” 1st Armored Division and Fort Bliss Public Affairs Office added.

ABC-7 reported in February, dozens of Texas National Guard Soldiers were deputized to enforce immigration law along the border.

More updates in later newscasts.

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