So much has happened in Salem in 2024 that I had to do a double-take when looking back at my bylines.
It’s hard to believe it’s been less than a year since the Salem-Keizer School District faced the possibility of a teacher strike, and it’s incredible to see how many new developments and projects have moved forward around the city.
A handful of my favorite stories this year were big news, but most were stories about people — graduating seniors, business owners, students enduring the prospect of violence and people shaping Salem in ways big and small.
Here are the stories that stuck with me in 2024.
As a reporter who doesn’t regularly cover the state Legislature, I’ll confess I hadn’t thought much about the clerks and secretaries who keep everything running behind the scenes.
So when a coworker suggested I profile Obie Rutledge, the newly sworn-in secretary of the Senate, I was excited to learn more. Our conversation lasted over an hour, covering the finer points of parliamentary procedure, the subtle ways he serves as referee among legislators, and the oddities that come with having a job that’s both highly politically engaged and absolutely nonpartisan.
This story was part of a series I worked on with reporter Abbey McDonald. As developers built hundreds of new apartments across Salem, we kept seeing the same questions — what counts as “affordable?” Why is construction so expensive? This article was my effort to answer some queries by looking at Mahonia Crossing, the largest affordable development in Salem in years.
A high school sophomore shooting three teenagers at Bush’s Pasture Park was undoubtedly one of the most traumatic and far-reaching events of the year in Salem. As I spoke with students and teachers at South Salem High School, it quickly became clear that the resulting lockdown they endured was its own story. I set out to create an account of what the school went through and the lingering questions many students had.
In interviewing students, I was struck by how many shared the same thought when the school’s alarms began flashing red, indicating a serious lockdown: “Well, I guess it’s our turn.” Growing up in the wake of Sandy Hook, Parkland and so many other school shootings, many told me they assumed they’d face violence on campus at some point before graduation. I often think back to their matter-of-factness as they described barricading doors and windows in their classrooms.
I will confess to being a cat person, but it’s hard not to love dogs training for a life of service. My favorite part of this story was speaking with the families of dog handlers incarcerated at Oregon State Correctional Institution, who visited for a demonstration. The pride on the faces of spouses, parents and children as they watched their loved ones expertly lead dogs through routines was a spot of joy in an environment that’s often lacking it.
Salem leaders hosted a series of events this year about addressing mounting shootings in Salem. This was the first held in Spanish, and drew many parents from the northeast Salem neighborhoods most affected by violence. Hearing directly from parents who had shielded their kids from shootings or simply wanted to feel safe in their local parks put a much different face on the issue than the more theoretical conversations from people who aren’t as directly impacted.
This story makes my list largely because I was delighted to learn that Weddle Elementary teachers and students regularly find wetland creatures, including snakes, roaming the halls of their school. Nobody seemed upset about this as they described the wild friends that inspired some pieces of the school’s new mural.
Each year, I profile a graduating senior from each Salem high school, including the Teen Parent Program. Without fail, their stories of perseverance and determination are among my favorites.
Even by those standards, Janetzy Velasco stuck out. She’s the only teen parent graduate I’ve interviewed who completed high school in four years, rather than five — despite starting during the Covid pandemic, falling behind before her pregnancy and nearly dying while giving birth. Her daughter was about the same age as mine, and taking photos of her and her child was a highlight.
Peter Courtney was a giant in Salem and the state Legislature, where he served longer than any other Oregon Senate President. News of his death quickly rippled around the state, with most publications highlighting his lengthy track record of legislative accomplishments. As a Salem news source, I wanted to focus equally on how he shaped our city, including securing money for his beloved YMCA and a number of other projects around town. I was privileged to hear stories from some of his close local friends outside the Legislature about the hopes he still had for his adopted hometown.
I’ve been a regular shopper at LifeSource since I moved to Salem, and I’d always wondered about the story behind the store that feels so much like a co-op, but wasn’t. When the business announced its 30th anniversary celebration, I got a chance to get the backstory from founder Alex Beamer, which included plenty of tales from the early days at Breitenbush Hot Spring.
Few developments in the works will change the face of Salem as much as “The Cannery,” a proposal to build a large complex including housing, food and more on the site of the former Truitt Brothers property north of downtown. After much fanfare following the 2023 project announcement, I enjoyed being able to give people an update about tangible progress forward and share more details on the site plans.
Contact reporter Rachel Alexander: [email protected] or 503-575-1241.
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Rachel Alexander is Salem Reporter’s managing editor. She joined Salem Reporter when it was founded in 2018 and covers city news, education, nonprofits and a little bit of everything else. She’s been a journalist in Oregon and Washington for a decade. Outside of work, she’s a skater and board member with Salem’s Cherry City Roller Derby and can often be found with her nose buried in a book.
