Volunteers and sheriff’s deputies lent a hand — and a tow — to help a family that was stranded on the highway just west of Sisters earlier this month.

Lt. Chad Davis of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office reported that on Saturday, June 12, a couple relocating from Oklahoma to Eugene broke down at milepost 99, about a mile west of Sisters at the Deschutes National Forest sign.

“The pickup that was towing them blew a motor, leaving them stranded,” Davis said. “They were relocating to Eugene, where they had located a property to live in their travel trailer. They had two other vehicles with them and two dogs.”

Davis said that citizens lodged complaints to the Sisters patrol office, believing the couple was beginning to set up a camp.

According to Davis, deputies made contact with the couple on Monday, June 14, and learned about their circumstances. Deputies then reached out to Mandee Seeley with the Sisters Houseless Networking Group (SHNG), seeking assistance in helping tow the couple’s trailer to Eugene.

Jim Pritchard, who volunteers with the SHNG and is co-chair of Sisters Cold Weather Shelter, stepped up to assist the couple in towing their trailer to Eugene.

“This was a great example of the community coming together to serve citizens in a need and to address a community concern at the same time,” Davis said.

Seeley noted, “We have locals willing to go above and beyond for our struggling community members, and even those who aren’t part of it. While we do have [Deschutes County] outreach workers now, they are only here on Thursdays. We live here, and we want to help in any way we can. Our community will only get stronger if we work together to help those who need it.”