What’s making news in Salem you might have missed
Good morning…
The summer’s first blast of hot air is going to stay with Salem a couple more days.
The National Weather Service warned Sunday morning that “the most intense portion of this heat wave has not yet occurred. The hottest temperatures are expected Monday and Tuesday, with Monday night being the warmest night.”
Salem hit 103 on Saturday and didn’t drop below 90 until about 9 p.m.
The advice to deal with the heat: Don’t push it.
Keep out of the sun. Drink water. Then, drink more water. Don’t exert yourself. Now’s not the time to tackle a major landscaping project or deck refinishing.
READ IT: National Weather Service forecast
Even with the holiday break last week, plenty was going on around Salem.
The board at Chemeketa Community College decided to ask voters for money to upgrade buildings. As Managing Editor Rachel Alexander explains, property owners are about to pay off one old bond by 2026. College officials say they would tag on the new bond so tax rates would stay the same.
Sticking with government money for a moment, the Marion County Board of Commissioners voted to raise the pay for those working in the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. Reporter Joe Siess details the raises – and the cost. The county didn’t provide for the raises in its current budget.
On the police front, another arrest has been made in that recent armed robbery of a neighborhood market. Reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian has the story of the Salem Police Department’s third arrest, this time of a 15-year-old. In another update, a Salem man has been arrested for threatening people at Riverfront Park not long ago.
On a more positive note, neighbors took to the streets to paint yet another mural and reporter Abbey McDonald shares how volunteers have worked on the Brunk Farmstead. That’s the tidy white farmhouse you see along the highway as you head west outside of Salem.
Looking ahead, the Marion County Fair opens on Thursday and we have the details on what you can expect – and what you will pay.
Columnist Lynelle Wilcox shares another telling piece about those who have faced homelessness in Salem. She shares her conversations with one man who found help from an unexpected source.
And finally, I’m delighted to share with you that Salem Reporter once again has scored an intern from the University of Oregon’s prestigious Snowden program. It’s part of the School of Journalism and Communication.
Madeline “Maddy” Moore starts with our team on Monday. She’ll be focusing on how the Salem area is gearing up to improve care for those suffering from addictions. Millions of dollars – and the futures of many people – are at stake.
She just graduated from the UO and brings an impressive resume to our team. She was an investigative reporter for the Daily Emerald and participated in a two-week writing program conducted by journalists from the New York Times.
Maddy also participated in the Catalyst Journalism Project, getting high-level training by skilled journalists. The program takes an approach to reporting we follow at Salem Reporter.
“The Catalyst Journalism Project is a teaching, research and service initiative that brings together investigative reporting and solutions journalism to spark action and response to the complex issues facing our communities,” according to the program website.
She intends to make the most of her 10 weeks with us in her paid position.
“A successful summer at the Salem Reporter would ideally include some independent or team reporting and stories, whether that would be short or long stories. For me, success means
learning, which I will likely do through many experiences this summer,” she wrote in a memo to me.
We look forward to sharing her work while at the same helping hone skills that will make Maddy a journalist that readers can trust and respect. (You can help support this effort by chipping in $50 or $100 to our News Fund.)
As always, thank you for reading and feel free to reach out to me anytime at [email protected] with ideas, questions or concerns.
–Les Zaitz, CEO and editor, Salem Reporter
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Salem Reporter’s new team includes, from left, Les Zaitz, Rachel Alexander, Abbey McDonald, Ardeshir Tabrizian and Joe Siess. (LAURA TESLER/Special to Salem Reporter)
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