Oregon
Stroke Awareness Oregon welcomes four new board members, introduces staff – KTVZ
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Stroke Awareness Oregon, a local nonprofit working to eliminate death and disability from stroke, Is pleased to announce the addition of four new members to its board of directors and to introduce the staff.
These additions to the board of directors will assure the organization’s continued success in assuring accomplishment of board goals.
Stroke Awareness Oregon Goals are 1) to educate about the causes and prevention of stroke, 2) to make B.E.F.A.S.T. a household safety word and 3) to support the recovery of stroke warriors and their families. The newly appointed Board members are:
Ralph Cortese – Prior to relocating to Bend, Mr. Cortese was a businessman and business owner. Serving as Vice-President of Advanced Labor he also was the founder and/partner of National Staffing Services. He currently is the Manager of Southside Storage and U-haul. As a dedicated community volunteer, Mr. Cortese has been active with Stroke Awareness Oregon in many capacities including Silver Moon Bingo, Raplh’s Rummage fund raiser and facilitating the men’s stroke warrior group. Ralph is the founder and owner of Stroke Warrior Radio. He is committed to growing Stroke Awareness Oregon and sharing his skills and enthusiasm.
Christin Hunter – Ms Hunter is a principal realtor broker with Duke Warner Realty. A successful businesswoman and graduate of Leadership Oregon she serves on the Oregon State Association of Realtor Government Affairs Committee. A member of the National Realtors Association, Oregon Realtors Association and Central Oregon Association of Realtors, Christin was named in 2016 one of Cascade Business News Accomplished under 40. Having been an involved community volunteer, she has served with The Center Foundation, Healing Reins and Co-Serve International. A practitioner of servant leadership, she plans to use her skills so that those who experience stroke have an opportunity to live their best possible life.
Steve McDonald – A title and escrow professional, Mr. McDonald is the owner/manager of Deschutes County Title. He has been involved in the community as President of Rotary Club of Bend and a board member for Habitat for Humanity. Steve has numerous interests as a board member including finance, education, special events and marketing. He and his business are Most Valuable Partners for Stroke Awareness Oregon and he states “I am a strong believer in what Stroke Awareness Oregon is doing.”
Aryn Seiler – An estate planning and litigation attorney at Lynch, Murphy, McLane LLP, Ms Seiler joins the board willing to do whatever is needed to move the mission of Stroke Awareness Oregn forward. She served on the Portland Independent Police Review Board and the Bend Metro Planning Organization Budget Committee. Aryn’s board interests are special events, policy development, and program evaluation. She is particularly interested in educating communities about the signs and symptoms of stroke and the importance of obtaining rapid medical intervention.
Stroke Awareness Oregon is also pleased to introduce its staff:
Carol Stiles – Interim Executive Director
Joey Drucker – Operations Manager
Kate Eskew – Education Coordinator
Taylor Drusick – Marketing Coordinator
About Stroke Awareness Oregon:
Stroke Awareness Oregon exists to minimize death and disability from stroke through prevention education and to support the best life possible for stroke warriors and their loved ones.
For more information about Stroke Awareness Oregon contact 541 323-5641 or www.strokeawarenessoregon.org.
BLUE RIVER, Ore. (KATU) — The founder of a former disaster relief nonprofit is being sued for allegedly diverting nearly $837,000 in donations and grants for personal gain.
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield filed the lawsuit Thursday against the founder and executive director of Cascade Relief Team (CRT), Marcus Brooks. In the complaint, Rayfield calls CRT “a sham.”
Brooks is accused of stealing donations and government grants meant for disaster relief following wildfires and flooding in 2020, and using it for personal expenses including casino visits, travel, vehicles, and more.
CRT was founded in 2020 and was hired for cleanup and relief services following the Labor Day Wildfires that burned over 1 million acres across Oregon.
In Blue River, an unincorporated community in the McKenzie River Valley, the 2020 Holiday Farm Fire destroyed nearly 800 homes and burned more than 173,000 acres.
I am angry that my community was taken advantage of
Just months after the fire, long-time Blue River resident Melanie Stanley said CRT stepped in and promised help to the community.
“For us, it was…like a savior at that point,” Stanley said.
Stanley was the manager for the Blue River Resource Center and worked for Brooks to help facilitate recovery efforts. She said CRT operations slowly became questionable.
“None of us knew the level at which all of this stuff that finally came out was at,” Stanley said. “We knew that there was some stuff that had started to look hinky or feel hinky, or there was just some lack of communication that was happening. There were some other things that were happening, and so we just all were kind of guarded.”
In fall of 2023 the nonprofit was reported to have run out of money, and Brooks allegedly fired staff without disclosing the organization’s financial conditions and did not notify donors or beneficiaries. Stanley was one of those people fired.
The state now claims the funds that were meant to go towards communities like Blue River, never made it out of Brooks’ hands, including donations given by Blue River neighbors.
“I am angry that my community was taken advantage of, and I am angry that they now have to worry about trusting when something else happens, because we know something else is going to happen,” Stanley said. “We hope to God it’s never anything as big or as bad as what has happened, but you know, we also have learned that groups like Locals Helping Locals…they are our foundation, and they are because they’re us.”
The state is seeking to recover the money, permanently bar Brooks from serving in a leadership role at a charitable organization and dissolve the nonprofit.
Stanley said Brooks’ actions have tainted reputations.
“We as a community and as the people from the community who helped kind of put all of these things together, we did what was asked of us,” Stanley said. “We did help clean things, and we did help get things to provide, you know, more progress and get things moving forward, and we did good work, and so I just really hope that this is not overshadowed.”
According to Stanley, Blue River’s recovery now stands at 50%.
“We will be very picky from here on out about who and what groups gets let in to help with anything,” Stanley said. “And sadly, it may be to our detriment, but he did more damage now, as far as reputations go, and for that I’m angry. I’m very angry.”
The Oregon Ducks have been progressing through the class of 2027 with hopes of landing some of their top target’s commitment on both the offense and the defense.
With many names left on the board, the Ducks have started to receive some great news, including some news from someone they have been targeting since they offered back in January of 2025.
Darius Johnson Releases His Top Four Schools
One of the Ducks top targets’ in the 2027 class at the cornerback position is Darius Johnson. Johnson recently released his top schools with Hayes Fawcett, as he is entering a crucial part of his recruitment. The four schools he has listed at the top include the California Golden Bears, Michigan Wolverines, UCLA Bruins, and the Oregon Ducks.
Johnson is one of the better cornerbacks in the country. He currently ranks as the nation’s No. 178 prospect in the country, No. 20 player at the position, and the No. 14 player in the state of California, according to Rivals. Landing his commitment would be major for any of the schools, as he is someone who could see the field early due to his size, and his growing ability to lockdown a side of the field all by himself.
More About Darius Johnson
Johnson currently measures in at 6-1 and 155 pounds, and will be someone who continues to add weight through his high school program, and will eventually have the chance to really improve his frame when he gets to college. As of now, each of the four schools has a solid chance to win its recruiting battle, but there seems to be a clear leader at this moment.
The leader for the Ducks target seems to be the Michigan Wolverines, who have the only scheduled official visit at this moment. It seems likely that the talented prospect will schedule his other official visits sooner rather than later now that he has officially cut down his list. If the Ducks want to land his commitment, they will need to get him on an official visit because they are likely trailing at this point.
What If He Committed to Oregon Today?
If he were to commit to the Ducks today, he would be the ninth commitment for the Ducks in the class of 2027. He would also be the third cornerback commit for the Ducks in the class of 2027, which is a position they have been recruiting heavily. The cornerbacks the Ducks have at this moment are four-star Ai’King Hall from the state of Alabama and four-star Josiah Molden from the state of Oregon.
Some of their other commits at this moment include four-star EDGE Rashad Streets, four-star defensive linemen Zane Rowe, and four-star EDGE Cameron Pritchett. This class is shaping up to be another top-five class if the pieces continue to fall into place for Oregon coach Dan Lanning and his staff.
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