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What’s making news in Salem you might have missed

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Good morning…

Salem was a hopping place on Friday, with music of nearly every variety available.

Western University of Health Sciences Lebanon Oregon

From rock and roll to orchestral pieces, people had plenty of options for free entertainment around town.

At Salem Reporter, we’re working hard to alert you to such opportunities. And we’re covering these events as well, from the recent belly dancing competition to the local Juneteenth observance.

If you or your group have events coming up, send a note to Managing Editor Rachel Alexander ([email protected]) with plenty of lead time. Sometimes, we get tips just a day or so ahead of a Salem event.

One of the most read and talked about stories of the week was the abrupt closure of a Salem mainstay – the RAM Restaurant and Brewery. A lot of celebrations and other get-togethers have been held there. Reporter Joe Siess talked to the owners, but he also is interested in talking to former employees, in confidence if necessary, to learn more about what happened. Reach him at [email protected].

On the good news front, our story about a group called Punx with Purpose tracked how they are helping homeless youth. Reporter Abbey McDonald’s piece generated quick help for that mission. One organizer wrote Abbey on Friday: “The story is getting such great feedback and has already received donations and volunteers as a result. Thanks so much for highlighting us!” Take a look at the story to see how you might help.

Another organization doing good work in Salem is Family Building Blocks. Read how a $50,000 grant opened the way for even better care for local kids.

On the local government front, a race for Salem City Council finally is called with the winner leading by just 42 votes. Your vote does matter. The council, by the way, is scheduled to consider plans Monday for professional baseball at Bush’s Pasture Park. This has been controversial, with some neighbors and park fans objecting while sports fans are cheering.

Over in West Salem, a long-time cannery building is gone. Rachel Alexander reports on what’s next for a big chunk of property.

And starting Monday, eight local schools will provide free meals, providing to-go packs for local families. This is a Salem-Keizer School District program.

Two of our columnists served up new items this week. Harry Fuller describes what’s going on with bird families around Salem and Jim Sellers shares cautions about steps that lead to costly overinsurance sometimes taken out by those on Medicare.

We are still getting reader reaction to the three-part series, “Bobby’s Choices.”

“This was an excellent, and heartbreaking, series on the too-short life of Bobby Brown,” one reader wrote. “We cannot shield ourselves from the pain that too many of these kids experience – we do so at our peril.”

Reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian worked months on this ground-breaking account. He doubled back to distill his work into five key takeaways. If you have thoughts about the series, drop Ardeshir a note at [email protected]. He considers every single one and so far has received good suggestions on other reporting to do.

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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