A MAVERICK SCIENTIST AND A TEENAGED DITCH-DIGGER ONCE CHANGED THE COURSE OF BEND’S ECONOMY–WHILE STAYING TRUE TO THEIR ROOTS.
Written by Cathy Carroll | Photos by Joshua Langlais
It is 1974: Rod Ray is a 17-year-old, cooking at a former general store in Tumalo where loggers, mill workers and ranchers kick up their boots for a sarsaparilla, or something harder. The sign by the road simply reads: Eat.