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LOCAL HISTORY: Salem’s unlikely undertaker-turned-poet
Portrait of Winfield Taylor Rigdon (1849-1942), Salem undertaker turned poet and lyricist. Portrait printed in his 1927 book of poems “Truth in Pleasant Rymes” (Willamette Heritage Center collections 91.27.1) This summer at the Willamette Heritage Center we are celebrating music in conjunction with the June…
Willamette Valley saw highest job growth in Oregon regions over past year
May 2022 unemployment rates across Oregon (Oregon Employment Department) The Willamette Valley has added jobs faster than any other region in Oregon over the past year, the Oregon Employment Department said Wednesday. Jobs in the region are up 4.1% over the past year, compared to…
Child care providers will see higher state reimbursements
Children play at the Oregon Child Development Coalition’s North Lancaster preschool. (Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter) Day care providers and preschools in Salem will see more money from the state to provide care for low-income families. The Oregon Department of Human Services on June 1 raised reimbursement…
COLUMN: The mysterious origin of breeding Canada geese in the Willamette Valley
A family of Canada geese in the Lowe’s parking lot in Salem (Harry Fuller/Special to Salem Reporter) The common name “Canada” goose connects directly to the Latin scientific binomial Branta canadensis. Both are geographically inaccurate like Nashville warbler, Philadelphia vireo or California quail (found in six…
Boy charged with murder first in Marion County to be tried as adult since Measure 11 reform
Joshua Steward left Gresham the night of Jan. 16, 2021 in his girlfriend’s Toyota Camry, headed for Northeast Savage Road in Salem. He had arranged to buy $340 of cocaine, according to testimony by Salem police detective Jamie Vasas in a Marion County Juvenile Court…
Fire officials urge caution as Oregon fireworks sales start Thursday
Sparklers and fireworks on sale in Salem (Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter) Salem residents can start prepping for Fourth of July when fireworks sales begin Thursday. Retail fireworks can be sold through July 6 in Oregon, according to the Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal. The use…
Health insurers not following Oregon law requiring free reproductive health care, state audit says
OregonHealthCare.gov is the state’s website for buying health insurance coverage. Oregon’s governor, lawmakers and state agency officials have often touted the state’s reproductive rights law as one of the most comprehensive and equitable in the country. But there’s a problem: Many insurers providing coverage to…
Driver’s ed instructors needed as Chemeketa faces long waitlist for courses
A car parked in the Chemeketa Community College lot in Salem (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) Hundreds of local teens are on a waitlist for driver’s education classes at Chemeketa Community College because of an instructor shortage. The college is hoping to hire five to seven more…
Willamette’s beautiful landscape, without the chemicals
Willamette University grounds manager Jim Andersen stands in a mulched bed of hardy, pollinator-attractive perennials (Helen Caswell/Special to Salem Reporter) Willamette University and its groundskeepers gained national recognition this spring for having nearly eliminated synthetic pesticide use on campus. The acknowledgement came from Herbicide Free…