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Sara Clifton, a Glenvar grad who now attends Roanoke College, spent the spring studying in England.

Why, here she is in London and what's that she's reading? It's a copy of So Salem!

Below is a photo of Sara in Venice and there's So Salem again!

Thanks, Sara!

Do you have photos from any of your recent travels? And if you want to take So Salem along and get a photo of you with it at some exotic location, well, you know we can't resist!

You can share at news@sosalem.com

Here's what Annie and Jerry did on their last day in China.

"On June 27,2009. We saw at the pottery and porcelain cloisonne by hands. That was an art worker's demonstration.

After that we went to The Ming tombs. The Ming Dynasty tombs of the 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty were located on the southern slope of Tianshou Mountain.

The Chang Ling is one of the tombs which is the burial mausoleum of Cheng Zu (1360-1424), ZHu Di, The third emperor after Ming Dynasty, and empress Xushi.

The Yongle Emperor is buried in the Chang L ling tomb, the central and largest mausoleum of the Ming Dynasty Tombs.

The next tour was "The Summer Palace". The Summer Palace was first constructed in 1750. This large-scale royal garden was completed by the skill full craftsmen al around the country for 15 continuous years costing seventh of the national annual income.

The Chinese call it Yi he Yuan (Garden of Restful Peace).

Jerry said "Are we going  to ride the boats?" Unfortunately that was not included in the tour fee. We just walked around the lake and pavilion.

The Summer Palace is one of the lovelier spots in Beijing."

To see more photos from Annie's trip, click HERE.

MORE ON ANNIE LIN'S TRIP:
* July 31: Photos: Annie Lin's third day in China
* July 30: Photos: Annie Lin's second day in China
* July 30: Photos from Annie Lin's trip to China
* July 30: More photos from Annie Lin's trip to Taiwan
* July 28: Photos from Annie Lin's trip to Taiwan

Do you have photos from your summer vacation? You can share at news@sosalem.com

If you're a Major League Baseball fan, then you're likely following one of the big stories of the day -- a trade between the Boston Red Sox and the Cleveland Indians that sends the big bat of Victor Martinez to Boston in exchange for some young pitching prospects.

Here's what that news hits home for Salem Red Sox fans: One of those prospects is Bryan Price of the Salem Red Sox, the team's Class A farm team.

Here's a story about the deal, and Price's reaction, on the Salem Red Sox website.

The City of Salem broke ground on another phase of the Roanoke River Greenway this morning as city officials and State Legislators ceremoniously turned the first scoops of dirt for a project that will eventually tie into the existing Greenway Trail at Salem’s Moyer Park.
“The groundbreaking today represents the first step in more than 10 miles of planned trails in the city between the Roanoke River Greenway and the Mason Creek Greenway,” says Salem Planner Ben Tripp. “This step is the first link that eventually will connect with pieces in Roanoke City and Roanoke Co. making it possible to walk from Botetourt County to Montgomery County along the Roanoke River.”
This 1.2 mile long phase of the project will be the longest trail the City has constructed to date. Eventually, the greenway in Salem will extend to Mill Lane to the west and Apperson Dr. to the east. This will provide a continuous link to trails in both Roanoke City and Roanoke County.
“You can walk the kids or your dog, stroll the baby and also bike along these trails while enjoying all the views of the river, plus there eventually will be other amenities like benches and canoe launches,” says Tripp.
Salem has been a leader in terms of greenway construction for years. The City built the David Smith Trail and the Hanging Rock Battlefield Trail, two of the first such trails in the valley, more than a decade ago.
“We really appreciate the state’s involvement with the project in terms of funding it through enhancement funds,” says Tripp.
Allegheny Construction will handle the development of this $470,000 phase of the Roanoke River Greenway, which is officially titled Phase II A.

Submitted by Mike Stevens, City of Salem

Photo above:L to R) Mayor Randy Foley, Bill Jones, Jane Johnson, Lisa Garst and Vice-Mayor John Givens

The Disabled Americans Veterans of America Unit 3 is holding a spaghetti dinner August. 15 from 5 to 7 p.m.

Spaghetti Dinner, $5.00
Sponsored by DAVA Unit 3
August 15, 2009, 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
DAV Chapter Home, 2381 Blvd., Salem
Proceeds go to disabled veterans and families

Contact: Sandra Maxwell, 389-3373

Here's a photo from the Fellowship Community Church Middle School. It looks like they had a blast at Look Up Lodge in South Carolina.

Does your church in Salem or western Roanoke County have news or photos to share? If so, you can send them to news@sosalem.com.

Submitted by Becky Walls

Here's who took part: Read more »

The Salem-Roanoke County Chamber of Commerce and the Salem-Roanoke County Chamber of Commerce Foundation are proud to announce the names of four students from Roanoke County and Salem City who have been chosen to receive continuing education scholarships. The scholarship program, which was established in 1996, presents four scholarships annually and is based on career goals, strong work ethic, community involvement and financial need of the student.

Amber Altice is a graduating Senior at William Byrd High School. Throughout Amber’s high school career, she has been an active member on the Varsity Softball team as well as in the Beta Club and Leo Club.
Outside of school, Ms. Altice has done work for various organizations including the Salvation Army and the American Cancer Society. Amber will be attending Virginia Tech and plans to major in either Civil or Mechanical Engineering.
Jonathan Walker is a graduating Senior at Salem High School. Jonathan, a star athlete and scholar, has held the role of Captain of the Salem High School Football team in addition to the President of the National Honor Society and Spanish Honor Society at Salem High School. Mr. Walker has also lent his sport abilities to help coach pee-wee football and junior basketball. Jonathan plans to attend Virginia Tech’s Pamplin School of Business and to one day own his own business.
Kahia Jones will be graduating from Northside High School in early June. In school, Kahia has been very active in sports with Basketball, Track, and Cross Country. Along with her sports interests, she has held numerous offices in SkillsUSA. Outside of school, Ms. Jones has worked with various organizations including the American Cancer Society and C.H.I.P.. Kahia plans to attend a 4-year institution where she plans to study Criminal Justice

Ryan Brock will also be graduating from Northside High School in early June. Mr. Brock has kept busy in his high school career by being active in the Technology Student Association, Burton Robotics Team, SkillsUSA, and the National Honor Society. Outside of school, Ryan has been active in the community by volunteering with Burlington Elementary School, Friendship Manor, and the Rescue Mission. Ryan will be attending Virginia Tech in the fall to study Engineering.
These scholarships are made possible through the generosity of sponsors and other participants of the Salem-Roanoke County Chamber of Commerce Annual Fall Classic Golf Tournament and other fundraisers throughout the year. This year’s golf tournament will be held September 10 and 11. For information on how you can become a tournament sponsor or participant, please call the Chamber office at 387-0267.

The New River Valley Junior Olympic Volleyball has been based in Roanoke and Salem for the past two years. It is a traveling volleyball club that attracted girls from 14 schools this year in age groups from 14-18 on 5 teams.

Karen Bolton, the Director, is presenting two coaches with NRV Coach of the Year awards. They are Pierre Ellis and Susan Smith, who were also assistant coaches of Salem High School Varsity Volleyball and helped lead Salem to the AA State semi-finals.

They coached for the club this year from January through April and took on two teams simultaneously. (age groups 15 and 16) They had 19 girls and took the two teams to 9 tournaments in the ODR (Old Dominion Region) of USAV, sometimes coaching back-to-back tournaments. Bolton is presenting the awards to them for the outstanding job they did coaching two teams and helping and inspiring girls from all over the Roanoke Valley and New River Valley in the sport of volleyball.

Anne Johnston shares some delightful photos of two rec league teams from Glenvar -- the Glenvar Rattlers and the Glenvar Red Sox.

She particularly liked this photo at left.

We're a little late in sharing them with you, but it's never too late to show off nice photos from around Salem and western Roanoke County.

If you have photos, you can share at news@sosalem.com and we'll try to be quicker about those.

Here are some belated photos from spring sports that we regret fell through the cracks -- but it's never too late to show off photos. Leighann Beamer shares these photos, which show Sarah Beamer playing for the Dirt Divas and Brandon Beamer playing for the Red Sox.

You can view them in the photo gallery above or in this gallery format.

Do you have photos involving teams or players from Salem or western Roanoke County? You can share at news@sosalem.com and we'll promise we'll try to be quicker about getting them online!