Locals to Know

Three local businesses (and artists!) to know

In recent newsletters, we’ve been sharing interviews with some amazing local businesses to know series! ICYMI, we’re talking with business owners who are a part of Planned Parenthood Columbia-Willamette’s Shared Window project. It started in 2020 to uplift the community by providing free ad space to small businesses and local artists. With the help of […]

/ August 4, 2022

Local to Know: Trevor Solomon

Let’s get into an interview with a local who is bringing a long roster of lively performances to Portland stages! Today we’re talking to Trevor Solomon, the talent buyer at True West, a concert promoter and event producer in the PNW. If you’ve been to a show at the Aladdin or Roseland Theater or a concert […]

/ July 28, 2022

Locals to Know: Emily Darchuk

Emily Darchuk is the founder and food scientist behind Wheyward Spirit, a company that makes a one-of-a-kind spirit from whey. It breaks the mold of traditional spirits, while tasting delicious and eliminating gallons of food waste. Emily is all about engaging with the sustainable food community, connecting with her local community, sipping on a good […]

/ June 20, 2022

Locals to Know: Alex Gamboa Grand

Sustainability is top of mind for many Oregonians these days, especially today’s Local to Know. She’s the co-founder of low-waste shop Way of Being and actually appreciates our sometimes-gloomy weather — as she puts it, it keeps us from taking the nice days for granted! She also brings the vision of ​​protecting the environment and uplifting her surrounding community […]

/ June 14, 2022

Locals to Know: Beach Pace

Beach Pace is the CEO of Big Brothers, Big Sisters in Portland, a national nonprofit which connects young people with mentors who can inspire them, enrich their lives and help them plan for adulthood. Philanthropist Mackenzie Scott also just selected the Portland chapter, alongside just 38 others of the 237 nationwide, to receive $1.5 million to increase […]

/ June 7, 2022

Meet the Man Behind the @Portland Instagram

Marcus Harvey is a Portland-born, Nike-loving, Oregon Duck alum with his own apparel brand that celebrates Portland pride. “I loved the Blazers and Timbers, but the logos weren’t ‘Portland’ enough for me,” Marcus said, “so I just came up with Portland Gear.” He also created the @Portland Instagram handle, which now has over 380,000 followers. […]

/ February 1, 2022

Latina or Latinx? Maria Garcia of Revolución Coffee Says Neither

“I want to make a comment about the term Latinx because I don’t agree with it. There is a misconception about the term ‘Latinx’ — that it’s inclusive. But actually it’s not.” —Maria Garcia It is a cold and extremely drippy Monday afternoon when I go to meet Maria to speak with her for this […]

/ January 5, 2022

Weird Portland – Holiday Lights

Craig Giffen, the creator of Problematic.TV, The Human Clock. The Human Calendar, the Pacific Crest Trail planner, Portland Free Crap and on and on (does he ever stop? We hope not!), brings back deee-lights. We’ve sat down to ask Giffen 8 very important questions about deee-lights, including, what they are. Bridgeliner: For those Portlanders who don’t know about […]

/ December 21, 2021

20 Questions with Painter J Wesley Willis

J Wesley Willis, a.k.a., John, is a talented oil painter from Portland, Oregon. But wait. The word talented falls way short of the complete eye explosion of beauty you encounter when you look at one of his paintings. The man brings to canvas what Wordsworth brought to the page. But Willis doesn’t believe that creating […]

/ December 14, 2021

Portland is weird and weirder because of this man

Craig Giffen is not your average weirdly cool human being. He is the probably the most diverse, creative, weirdly cool human being Portland has the honor to call their own. Yet, in all probability (and we don’t think it’s problematic… wink wink), Giffen is someone you don’t know by name, but the minute you hear […]

/ December 13, 2021

A Different Kind of Turkey for Thanksgiving Day – 3 Strikes!

Meet the Granddad of KingPins KingPins Portland hosts bowling leagues every day of the week for all ages, and if you go often enough, you’re just about certain to meet Dwight Sagli, aka the “granddad of KingPins.” Watch our video and then you’ll understand why this is THE Place to be on Thanksgiving in Portland! […]

/ November 22, 2021

💖 How to make friends in Portland

We’ve got a few simple suggestions on where to start.  Join a dragon boat team Join a kickball league. Join a Pot Social. Pick up games in Portland are everywhere – volleyball, dodgeball, etc. Hop into a group bike ride. No matter your social style, we loved all the great tips and friend-making stories you […]

/ May 25, 2021

💉 Six questions with a vaccine volunteer

We spoke with volunteer and Bridgeliner reader Nick Schoeps, who helps distribute vaccines to Portlanders at the Oregon Convention Center.

/ May 21, 2021

Meet the Duo Behind a Podcast That’ll Move You — Or At Least Try

Can you imagine a Portland with more bikes and public transit on the road than cars? Because it might not be far away. As things stand now, roughly half of Portlanders commute to work alone by car, while 33 percent walk, bike, carpool, or ride public transit to work. (The remaining 17% work remotely, carpool, […]

/ May 13, 2021

📸 Snapshot some amazing Portland women

We’re asking you to drop into our inbox and tag us on social media in pictures of amazing Portland women and organizations making history right now. 

/ March 19, 2021

PSU Students Convert Any Car to Carbon-Free

Portland State University students Blake Turner and Sean Krivonogoff have a plan to make driving emissions-free, and it doesn’t involve equipping the whole world with Teslas. “Instead, their big idea is to convert existing cars from gas guzzlers to green machines that run on hydrogen — a switch that would cost a fraction of buying […]

/ February 28, 2021

🎁 Bridgeliner’s Very Merry Gift Guide (Extended)

From games to jewelery to sauces, there something with a Portland flair for everybody on this list — and not just for the holiday season.

/ December 7, 2020

Teena Soto Smith Doesn’t Have All the Answers. And That’s OK. 

Teena Soto Smith (right) This is the second installment of our contributor project We Count: Latinx Portland in 2020. Subscribe to the Bridgeliner newsletter to follow this series. By Jordan Hernandez “[The Census] is going to have a huge impact on them. People are going to be fearful and apprehensive. Especially now, it’s like, what […]

/ May 12, 2020

Candace Avalos Now Embraces Her ‘Blacktina’ Identity — But It Wasn’t Always Easy

Photo by Jordan Hernandez This is the first installment of our contributor project We Count: Latinx Portland in 2020. Subscribe to the Bridgeliner newsletter to follow this series. By Jordan Hernandez Candace Avalos identified as a Latina teenager when she walked into her first black church service with her dad’s family. By the time she […]

/ May 4, 2020

Adam Sweet Eases the Pain of Moving

You might already know Adam Sweet as the local entrepreneur who disrupted the home-moving business (in a good way). But after keeping his personal story private for years, Adam says he’s ready to share another part of his background — his experience in Oregon’s foster system. “I was kind of embarrassed to be a foster […]

/ August 23, 2019