Representative Knute Buehler Republican - District 54 - Bend - SALEM 2017

Charter Local Edition host Dana Cowley interviews local officials, community leaders and politicians about the issues that matter to you.

Representative Knute Buehler is a doctor, small business owner, inventor, civic leader, husband and father. He represents Bend in the Oregon House of Representatives (District 54) because he believes in public service, helping people solve problems and improving our quality of life.

A native Oregonian, Knute grew up in Roseburg and earned a degree in microbiology from Oregon State University in 1986. At OSU, he played baseball and was the university's first Rhodes Scholar. After attending Oxford University from 1988 to 1990, where he studied politics and economics, Knute earned his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in 1991. While at Johns Hopkins, Knute met Patty – his wife of 24 years. Patty is an eye surgeon in Bend. Patty and Knute have two children – Owen and Hannah. ​

As a surgeon, Knute has improved people's lives, replacing more than 5,000 hips and knees. He helped build The Center, a patient-focused Orthopedic and Neurosurgery care facility in Bend that includes 34 medical providers and 180 employees.

Knute has also served as an adjunct professor with the Oregon State University School of Public Health and as a medical device consultant to public and private entities around the world. He has published more than 20 scientific papers and book chapters and lectured extensively in the U.S. and internationally on the topic of medical research, product development and computer-assisted surgery.

As a civic leader, Knute serves on the budget committee for the Bend-La Pine School District and on the board of the Ford Family Foundation, Oregon State University Foundation and the St. Charles Health System. He previously served on the board of OSU-Cascades Campus, St. Charles Health System Foundation, Oregon Orthopedic Association, Central Oregon Medical Society and High Desert Museum.