June 30, 2008Photos of Salem Nationals All-Star team We have a photo gallery of 50 photos of the Salem Nationals All-Star team that participated this past weekend (and again tonight) in the Dixie Baseball tournament at Walrond Park in Roanoke County. This particular game was against the Bedford Lakes All-Star team. At left: One, two, three, Salem! Photos by Jeff Marvin Do you have sports photos involving teams or players from Salem or western Roanoke County? If so, you can share them at news@sosalem.com Lautenschlager passes the Salem Rotary gavel to Joe Cundiff Joe Cundiff stepped up to fill Edward "Skip" Lautenshlager's position as President of Salem Rotary on June 27. The club meets once a week as well as volunteering and raising money for vaccinations abroad, bringing canes and braille-capable technology worldwide, and other worthy causes. The worldwide organization is well-known for its efforts to eradicate polio worldwide. Salem Rotary hosts the ODAC Division III basketball tournament at the Salem Civic Center. Other appointed officers include: Aaron Garber, President-Elect Our last post about Rotary was here. Alli Pickle is open for business The Salem-Roanoke Chamber of Commerce held a well attended ribbon-cutting on June 27 for Alli Pickle’s new Farmers Insurance Office in the Spartan Square Courtyard. The office opened earlier in June. Pickle is a graduate of Salem High School and attended Roanoke College, where she studied business. While she plans to complete her degree, her career with Farmers is on the fast track. “It’s just been kind of like drinking out of a fire hose, but I’ve learned a lot,” she said. Her father has been with the company for 12 years, and “it was just something that I felt I wanted to do.” Salem Rotary Club helps dig a well in ZambiaThere's a story over on our Southwest Roanoke County site that mentions some good works by the Salem Rotary Club. The Salem Rotarians donated $6,000 to a project to help dig water wells in Zambia. For more on the project, click here. June 27, 2008Here's what some in Salem are doing this summer
(You may need to click the map around a bit, because at least one Salemite is over in Europe!) So what are you doing? Send us your photos and tell us and we'll put you on the map, too. You might also like this photo gallery of people we've talked to about their 4th of July plans. Sticks, snails, and puppy dog tails... Crystal Pruett sent in this picture of her son, Cole. We've added it to our photo gallery of Fellowship Community Day. She writes: Cole Pruett, age 2, is in hog heaven as he sits on a Harley Davidson at Fellowship Church's Community Day. A local biker group had their blessed motorcycles on display at this event. Cole is the son of Crystal and Randy Pruett. You can send us a picture of a family outing, just like Crystal did! Just let us know who's in the picture, what's going on, and the ages and/or schools of the kids in the pic! Email it to news@sosalem.com, or drop it off in our box--affixed to our newsstand at the front of Mill Mountain Coffee & Tea in Salem! Photos from Salem art camp For 12 years, Darlene Marshall, a teacher at South Salem Elementary, and Mike Gibson, the Salem High School art teacher, have helped put together the Salem Art Camp. It's a refuge for elementary and middle school students who want to take a break from the sun to foster their creativity. Elementary-age kids learn about artists and time periods and are given a little instruction. "What are the names of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?," Marshall asked. One project included a book about Renaissance artists, and then the kids sculpted their very own turtle. Middle school students are given freedom to work on projects just like high schoolers would, learning life skills for art. "They're not being forced on them, they can kind of experiment and adventure," Gibson said. First photo: Caleb Underwood, right, and Sarah Tooley, left, learn to draw to scale and stylize. Second photo (courtesy of Mike Gibson): Christopher Clemens focuses on his sculpture. That's Emily Bell on the left.
June 26, 2008An online guide to the June 27 print edition of So SalemCan you believe June is almost over? Our latest issue of So Salem comes out Friday, destined to reach more than 90 percent of the households in Salem and western Roanoke County. (How do we do that? See below. And if you’d like to find out how you can advertise in So Salem to reach all those households, click here for retail advertising or click here for classifieds.) We update this site multiple times a day on weekdays, and sometimes on weekends, so think of this as your site for daily coverage of Salem and western Roanoke County. Meanwhile, in the June 27 issue, you’ll see several places where we direct folks online for more photos or other coverage. Here’s a guide to our . . . SPECIAL ONLINE EXTRAS * Photos from Salem’s Relay for Life Want to find out how to get other news and photos in So Salem? Keep reading below!
Continue reading "An online guide to the June 27 print edition of So Salem" » What are you doing for the 4th of July? That's what we asked 12 people in Salem this week. You can check 'em out in our photo gallery. Among the folks we talked to were Ross Hart and Susan Proctor, producing this memorable exchange: Ross: "I’m tempted to sit by the pool, drink mint Juleps, and stay the hell off the streets." Photos by Tiffany Gibson Others we talked to were Fred Campbell, Mark Novak, J.R. Shelor, Katherine Hoffman, Wanda Hayes, Tony Weaver, Mark Lucas, Allan Fashnact. So what are you doing? You can leave your comments below.
June 25, 2008Cruise for your School raises $1,251 for Glenvar High School Forty eight test drives and a car wash by Glenvar High School students added up to success for the fundraiser, organized by Berglund Ford on East Main in Salem. We have a photo gallery of 11 photos from the event. Here's the complete press release: The June 21st Cruise 4 UR School fundraiser sponsored by Ford and Berglund Ford here in Salem raised $1, 251 for Glenvar High School. The one-day event invited people to test drive an assortment of 2008 Ford products and for every individual who participated, Ford and Berglund Ford donated $20 to Glenvar High School. “I want to thank the community for making this event a huge success,” said Robbie Brookshier of Berglund Ford. “This was a great way to show Berglund Ford’s support for our community’s youth.” “The money raised will go a long way in helping us take care of our students,” said Kevin Clifford, Football Coach of Glenvar High School. Continue reading "Cruise for your School raises $1,251 for Glenvar High School" » Salem Senior Singers make their monthly visit to Snyder's
"Shake, Rattle, and Roll" rocked down the halls of Snyder's Nursing Home on Tuesday, June 24. The Salem Senior Singers visit the home the last Tuesday of every month, singing songs to residents and guests. This go-round included the "Chatanooga Choo Choo," "Me and My Gal," traditional church hymns, and showtunes. "Songs you can't hear on the radio anymore," Wilton Coleman, the choir's director, said, "you can hear here from the Salem Senior Singers." Most of the group's members have a love for, and a history of working with music. Pianist Jeanne Browning played at Locust Grove Methodist Church for 25 years, and she now plays with the Singers everywhere they go. The group will sing for churches and nursing homes, most recently working out a monthly scheme with Our Lady of the Valley. Continue reading "Salem Senior Singers make their monthly visit to Snyder's" » Stitch-and-Pitch at the Avs game June 19 Robin Ferguson sent us a few pictures of the Stitch-and-Pitch event at the Salem Avalanche game on June 19. She writes in her blog: "I think I can say that a good time was had by ALL! We had about 22 show up, including hubby's & kids...a wonderful family night! Check out Robin Ferguson's or Pam Winchell's blog for more about the event. Our last post about the knitters was on June 16. Continue reading "Stitch-and-Pitch at the Avs game June 19" » Salemite goes green the old-fashioned way with a garden and a clutch of her own It all started with finding little ways to save money, like making homemade laundry detergent and cooking meals from scratch. Then Carrie Cox, founder of the environmental group Big Lick Green Drinks, decided that she wanted to be organic. She had some experience by working at the Natural Foods Co-op on Grandin Road, but the prices for natural and organic food were still out of reach. “Once you see the effects of how your food is raised … you can’t unsee it” she said. “I started thinking, what did our grandparents and great-grandparents do during the Depression…they obviously did something to get by, they obviously didn’t die off, so what did they do and how did they do it?” Cox said. She’s got deep enough roots in Salem’s history to know. Her great grandmother Carrie Brown-Taney, she said, used to live where Roanoke College’s Fintel Library stands now. “She gardened all the way down the hill and across Thompson Memorial, which wasn’t there then…I think you can still see the outline of the chicken coop,” she remembered. Her ancestor later moved into the family house on Academy Street where Cox lives now. While Brown-Taney didn’t take chickens to the new house, she did garden in the lot out back. “There used to be horses in the field behind her house,” Cox said. Her eco-friendly approach to natural foods falls in line with an old-fashioned way of thinking, when neighbors dropped off vegetables, eggs, and baked goods off on one another’s porches and when a family didn’t buy something at the store when they could make it at home. Continue reading "Salemite goes green the old-fashioned way with a garden and a clutch of her own" » Photos from the Salem lacrosse clinic Salem Parks & Recreation is holding a lacrosse clinic for 4th to 9th graders at Salem High School this week. A total of 45 players have signed up for the clinic (30 boys, 15 girls) and we have a photo gallery of 16 photos. Do you have sports photos involving teams or players from Salem or western Roanoke County? If so, you can share them at news@sosalem.com Photos by Erin Millar Photos from Mason's Cove Eagles game We have a photo gallery of 16 photos from Monday's game between the Mason's Cove Eagles and the South County Astros in the RAYSA Softball Tournament at Moyer Sports Complex. Here, Shayna Palmer of Mason's Cove pitches. Mason's Cove won 12-5. Photos by Erin Millar Do you have sports photos of teams or players from Salem or western Roanoke County? If so, you can share them at news@sosalem.com
The not-so-typical life of a Gus Mitchell School graduate Graduation season has come and gone, and left Jorge Cuestas Jr. -- Lee to friends -- with a high school diploma. Photo by Josh Meltzer June 24, 2008Remus Tales, presented (free) by Theatre Roanoke College
Here's something free you can take the kids to: This Friday (June 27) through Monday (June 30), Roanoke College students as the characters Brer Rabbit, Brer Rox, Brer Terrapin, and Brer Bear will enact Remus Tales, adapted from the stories of Joel Chandler Harris, by Stanley Vincent Longman. Showtime is 8 p.m. The play's location is slated for the outdoor amphitheater next to Olin Hall on High Street, on Roanoke College campus. If the weather doesn't hold up, the play will move inside, says director Lisa Warren. The play is suitable for all ages and admission is free! Photo, from left: Brer Rabbit, played by Haley Thompson; Brer Bear, played by Ryan Webster; Brer Fox, played by Cory Lawson; and Brer Terrapin, played by Chelsea Stroker. Salem Relay for Life raises more than $161,000
The American Cancer Society fundraiser, Relay for Life, which took place at Salem High School last Friday, surpassed their fundraising goal of $142,000 bringing in a total of $161,596. "And the money is still coming in," said Colleen Turner, a Relay community manager. Turner would like to thank Melvin and Becky Crowder and the rest of the committee for doing "an awesome job" and making this event a success. She would also like to thank community manager Annie Cooper. We had a previous post about the Salem Relay for Life -- with a photo gallery -- on June 21. The Salem Fair opens July 3, runs through July 13 The 21st annual Salem Fair will open Thursday, July 3 at 4 p.m., and carnival riders can buy a $10 pass for all night before 6 p.m. The fair will run through Sunday, July 13, opening at 4 p.m. on July 3 and 11, and at noon every other day. The fairgrounds will be open until 11 p.m., with other attractions closing earlier. While there won’t be any more fireworks due to recent business development on land below Elizabeth Campus, everything else should all but make up for it. The Navy Fleet Forces Bands Four Star Edition will also be playing on the free stage July 7, 8, and 9—performing nightly at 7 and 8:30 p.m. As well as daily attractions like the USA Basketball Red, White, and Blue tour, Pirates of the Colombian Caribbean Aerial Highwire show, and Elephant Encounter, an opportunity for fame will grace the Salem Civic Center grounds. WDBJ7 is offering fairgoers a chance to tape a 3 minute audition for the popular CBS reality show, Survivor, on July 9 from 5 to 8 p.m. Who knows? A Roanoke Valley resident may be the next "Cao Boi Bui" (Christiansburg native, 2006 season.) Above: The Elephant Encounter troupe performs a trick called "the elephant leg lift." What's your favorite thing about the Salem Fair? Leave a comment below or email us at news@sosalem.com June 23, 2008Salem names all-star team to face Olympians July 24The U.S. Olympic softball team is coming to Salem July 24 to play an exhibition before it heads to the Beijing games -- and today the Salem Parks and Recreation Department released the roster of regional all-stars who will suit up against the Olympians. No Angela Tincher, the Virginia Tech softball star. But a number of other Hokies made the list. Here's the official release: Continue reading "Salem names all-star team to face Olympians July 24" » Laura Cox honored at piano recital Laura Michelle Cox of Salem was honored during the June 7 piano recital given by the students of Sarah Reaser O’Brien. Laura is a recent high school graduate who has studied piano with O’Brien since March 1999. She has performed in 18 studio piano recitals, three outdoor concerts at the Salem Farmers Market, and she has auditioned for adjudication at the Virginia Music Teachers Association Fall Festival three times. Among her numerous piano awards during the last nine years are three practicing awards and 13 perfect attendance awards. Laura has maintained a perfect recital record, never missing a studio recital in her entire term of study. She plans to continue studying music as well as dance in college and pursue a career in the performing arts thereafter. For our previous post on the recital -- including a link to video -- click here. Photo of Sarah Reaser O'Brien's piano students (with video link) Sarah Reaser O'Brien sends us this photo of her piano students. There's even a link to video of their recital earlier this month. Thirty-one piano students of Sarah Reaser O’Brien, NCTM, of Salem performed in an all-ensemble recital Saturday afternoon, June 7, in Talmadge Recital Hall at Hollins University. The program included twelve duets, five trios, three quartets, and one sextet. Solos were performed by senior Laura Michelle Cox as well as by Tara MacMillan – a student who moved to Atlanta last month but returned to Roanoke to perform in the recital. The entire group of performers is pictured here. Front row: Tara MacMillan, Urmila Bharathan, Elly Goldstein, Elizabeth Almond, Lydia Warren, Natalie DeForest, Eve-lynn Deegan, Jordan Hayes, Grace-Marie Mills, and Skyler Hayes. Middle row: Phoebe Stevens, Kimberly Stephenson, Richard Warren, Alex Baynum, Isabel Baynum, Caroline Stephenson, Rebekah-Lynn Mills, and Caroline Warren. Back row: Sarah Gobble, Savannah Stevens, Carrington Austin, Laura Cox, Molly Deegan, Morgan Gart, Janagan Bharathan, Natalie Dilley, Alyssa Bradley, Audrey Stephenson, Sarabeth Bukowski, Charlotte DeForest, and Sarah-Dale Mills. Video highlights of the recital can be viewed at www.youtube.com/user/ThePianoSchool. Video: Senior World Cup softball in SalemIf you were wondering who the old fellows out at the Moyer Sports Complex (or the Arnold R. Burton fields, or even the Botetourt Sports Complex fields) were this weekend, wonder no more. They were with the Senior World cup softball tournament, and we have this video of the action. Salem lawyer recognized by the Supreme Court of Virginia
Ross Hart, of Hart & Hart Attorneys Ltd. in Salem, received an award for his pro bono work, a certificate of appreciation from the Virginia State Bar and the Supreme Court of Virginia. He was honored by the Salem/Roanoke Bar Association on May 5. The award commends him for accepting "twenty-two complex cases covering domestic relations...and guardianship of persons with severe physical and cognitive disabilities" in the last eight years. His firm specializes in guardianship, elder law, wills & trusts, and estate planning. "I grew up with the idea that lawyers have a duty...to represent our clients, yes, but also to represent those that cannot afford our services but whose legal aid needs are as great as, if not greater than, those who can [afford them]" Hart said. His father, Colonel James Hart, had a hand in beginning the Legal Aid Society of the Roanoke Valley. Hart received his bachelors at Monmouth College in Illinois and a degree in law from the University of Virginia. Salem Senior Mountain Pickers draw a crowd From six or seven pickers and a handful of audience members six years ago, the Salem Senior Mountain Pickers get-together has grown to a sizeable event. "I think 120 is the largest crowd, and on a regular basis we’ll always have 80 or 90 out there," senior center program manager Anne Andrews said. They play mostly bluegrass, and some "old time" music (that's what Iva Stillwell usually likes to play,) and it brings back memories or instills traditions to all involved. "I come down here because my brother passed away and this is his kind of music, and I relate to it," Sylvia McCroskey said, although coffee, doughnuts and good company may draw some of the crowd, which meets every Monday at 12:30 p.m. and Friday at 10:30 a.m. at the Salem Senior Center on Union Street. This is a bi-weekly tradition that is sure to continue -- it draws Radford University students, grandchildren, nursing home and group home patients. Flatfooters usually get to dancing, and the group can get downright loud at times, including the audience. "We have had a few complaints about the audience visiting and being so loud, but that’s a good problem I guess," Andrews said. Photo: Marshall, Jim Kibble, and Rhoda Kemp jam it out. Click here for more photos of the Salem Senior Mountain Pickers. June 21, 2008Salem Relay for Life photos! Salem's Relay for Life kicked off on a magnificent first night of summer. Survivors, caregivers and other participants greeted one another with hugs as Robynn James of Star Country gave an inspirational talk before the first survivors' lap -- then donned pink boxing gloves to illustrate this year's theme, "Remember. Celebrate. Fight back." Visit our So Salem Flickr site for pictures from the event. Robynn James of Star Country joins survivors as they begin their first lap at Salem High School on June 20th's Relay for Life. Photos by Erin Millar, special to So Salem. We had previous coverage of Salem's Relay for Life on June 16. We also had a photo gallery from the Roanoke Relay for Life in Green Hill Park on May 30. June 20, 2008What's your favorite thing about the Salem Fair?The Salem Fair kicks off July 3. So what's your favorite thing about the fair? Leave comments below or email us at news@sosalem.com so we can include them in an upcoming issue. (A full name would help!) Got a favorite ride? Favorite game? What advice would you give to someone who's never been before? (Yeah, we know -- we hasn't been to the Salem Fair? But just in case . . .) And just so you know: The fair runs through July 13. Photos from the Doll's Tea Party
Enraptured 2-to-10-year-olds (and their mothers and grandmothers) sat and listened to Leslie Long read "The Doll's Tea Party" on the front porch of Petticoats and Petit Fours Tea Room Thursday afternoon. The event was the second of ten on the Summer Tea & Tale schedule. The Salem establishment has been voted as one of the top ten tearooms in the country in this month's issue of Victorian Homes Magazine (available at Barnes & Noble.) 
Photo: Bottom row, from left: Sarah Norman, Mekayla Wilson, Maura Ryan. The doggie daycare bus is coming soon
July 1 will mark the one-year-anniversary of the Six Wags Dog Park, and its owners, including Katie Halstead, are cooking up a shuttle system scheme to make its Doggy Daycare more convenient to working parents of pooches. Plans for the final look of the van include a nose and ears (akin to but classier than the van in Dumb and Dumber.) Pickup is slated to begin Monday, June 23 and will feature a once-a-week pickup to different locations in the Roanoke Valley. Salem will have a Friday pickup opportunity at the Kroger in Spartan Square between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. Dogs will be crated and transported, and payment is expected to be rendered at pickup or prepaid. Interested owners should contact Six Wags Dog Park before bringing Fido to the scheduled pickup--proof of vaccinations and other simple prerequisites are required for the safety of every attendee of the doggie daycare. Our last post about the Six Wags Dog Park was here. For more pictures of last Wednesday's Yappy Hour, click here. Photo: Pooches, pups, and people enjoyed the park at June 18's Yappy Hour. Many came to rescue during cyclist’s collapse
Somewhere between 10:20 and 10:45 a.m. on Thursday, May 29, Kate McIntyre’s heart malfunctioned. The 32-year-old mother of two, stepmother to two, and cupcake entrepreneur was riding her bike on Apperson Street into Salem. It’s believed that she was following the route she and her husband of five months, Tim, rode together just three days before. She was climbing the Colorado Street Bridge when she collapsed "like a rag doll." Unconscious and still clipped into her bike pedals, the amateur cyclist gasped for air. Several motorists stopped, including Al Wooldridge, Cheryl Staver, Stephen Hughes and three others. Continue reading "Many came to rescue during cyclist’s collapse" » Salem, Roanoke County crime maps updated through June 15 We've just updated our Roanoke Valley crime map with the latest offenses from Salem and Roanoke County -- and Roanoke, as well. The data includes offenses through June 15. In western Roanoke County last week, there were two larcenies. In Salem last week, there were four burglaries, three larcenies and three motor vehicle thefts. When you map them, well, you see a definitely pattern. Also, the Salem Police Department provides more detailed information than other localities -- so in addition to the Roanoke Valley crime map, we have a more detailed Salem crime map you can search, as well. Follow the links above and you can see where they were and what they were. Our data delivery editor, Matt Chittum, has more information how you can use the searchable crime maps. Also on our Datasphere collection of searchable data: A guide to where you can find locally-grown food. June 19, 2008An online guide to the June 20 print edition of So SalemOur latest issue of So Salem comes out Friday, destined to reach more than 90 percent of the households in Salem and western Roanoke County. (How do we do that? See below.) In the June 20 issue, you’ll see several places where we direct folks online for more photos or other coverage. We update this site multiple times each weekday, so really have daily coverage of Salem and western Roanoke County. Meanwhile, here’s a guide to our . . . SPECIAL ONLINE EXTRAS: * Photos from Salem High School graduation * Photos from Glenvar High School graduation Now's a good time to remind graduates of our invitation: Write your own graduation blurb and we'll run it for free. Here's how. Plus, we’re asking parents to send in their own graduation photos -- and Carol McGuire of Glenvar already has. You can see her photo gallery right here or send your own at news@sosalem.com Finally, whether you're a graduate or not, here's another invitation that applies: Tell us what you're doing this summer. And now on to the other extras: * Glenvar grad Adam Clark rocks Blue 5 with song for his mom * Mother sues Roanoke County schools over treatment of autistic son at Glenvar Elementary * Photos of antique speedsters * Photos from East Salem Elementary field day -- both our own plus some from a parent. * Photos from Dixie baseball: Glenvar vs. Salem * Salem kids draw Father’s Day pictures So how can you get your news and photos in So Salem? Easy! Keep reading below: Continue reading "An online guide to the June 20 print edition of So Salem" » Update on the gas leakHere's the official account from the Salem Fire and Rescue Department on the gas leak that morning that sent two people to the hospital. For our previous report, click here. What follows is the press release: Two taken to hospital after gas leak in SalemBreaking news: Two people were taken to a hospital this morning with non-life-threatening injuries after a natural gas leak at an office building in Salem, an official with the Salem Fire and Rescue Department said. Fire crews were called to Liberty Medical Supply in the 2100 block of Apperson Drive just before 9 a.m., said Capt. John Prillaman. For more on this developing story, click here. Photo of Salem fan at Movies in the Park
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