Whether Academic team is to be considered a sport, a hobby, a favorite pastime of trivia spoofs, or a highly lethal informational dream team, Salem High School’s crew has been whooping up on the competition in their first matches of the season.

Here are the results, courtesy of the Academic team’s website, which incidentally has links to some of the material they’re expected to know:

Dec. 1: William Byrd at Salem – Match 1: Salem 190, William Byrd 120, Match 2: Salem 140, William Byrd 110

Dec. 4: Salem at Christiansburg – Match 1: Salem 205, Christiansburg 140, Match 2: Salem 205, Christiansburg 90

Dec. 8: Salem at Lord Botetourt – Match 1: Salem 225, Lord Botetourt 55, Match 2: Salem 255, Lord Botetourt 90

Dec. 11 – Salem at Blacksburg – Match 1: Blacksburg 190, Salem 135, Match 2: Salem 175, Blacksburg 155.

Dec. 15 – Northside at Salem – **Match 1: Salem 185, Northside 55, **Match 2: Salem 235, Northside 30. (**approximate score.)

Upcoming matches: (Home matches are in Room 270, and both home and away matches are scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. Spectators welcome!)

Jan. 8 – Cave Spring @ Salem
Jan. 14 – Salem @ Pulaski
Jan. 16 – Hidden Valley @ Salem
Jan. 24 – District Tournament @ Cave Spring

Photo, courtesy of Fred Campbell: Front Row (L to R): Christina LaFon, Brigitte Linkous, Natalie Dilley, Sarah Hakkenberg, Mary Kathryn O’Hagan. Standing (L to R): Anthony Hernandez, Alex Reed, Evan Tatarka, Quinn Lester, Jason Garst, John McElmurray; Not Pictured: Karl Sorensen

Even while recycling in Salem is getting a boost with the future addition of collection bins at the Walmart on West Main Street, lingering reports about the city’s decision not to accept glass as a recyclable could still be haunting the program. The reports seem to have grown into rumors that Salem doesn’t recycle any of its collections.

“Back when the glass market dissipated, we went for a period of time still collecting glass and looking for a market … We just couldn’t keep accumulating glass, so we sent it to a the landfill,” said Jim Fender, director of Salem’s solid waste management program. “It gave us enough information to get a figure on what our recovery rate was” for a possible reentry into the recycled glass market, Fender said.

As for the recyclables that are accepted by the city now, ton loads of plastic No. 1 and No. 2, as well as aluminum and steel cans and scrap metal, are recycled to Roanoke-based Cycle Systems. Newspapers and 1-ton cardboard bales are shipped to Sonoco, a recycling company in Columbia, South Carolina.

The city pays $41 for each ton load of waste that ends up in the landfill. For the recyclables, the city saves that money when they don’t end up with the rest of the trash, as well as recovering some market value for the materials (so that even when the market value is down, costs are saved.)

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Wes Wyatt holding the wooden horse plaque

Wes Wyatt, of Salem, made this wooden horse plaque for his daughter, Lindsay, for Christmas. He was assisted and encouraged in the workshop by Steve Krzysko.

It really is difficult to take a photo in the dark, but Lisa Garst has done it!

Here are a couple of photos she sent in of the Christmas Eve luminary lighting at Salem Presbyterian. The glow for their Christmas Eve services was achieved by placing weighted milk jugs around the church (at the corner of Main, Clay, and Broad Streets.

College students and youth leaders set out 92 milk-jug luminaries. The luminaries were lit for the 5 p.m. Children’s Program (Radio J-O-Y) and the 11 p.m. worship service.

Thanks Lisa!

Do you have Christmastime photos from in and around Salem? Family friends, or Salem people fun in different places? We’ll take those too! Send it to news@sosalem.com and we’ll post it up here! (Or you could use the handy-dandy share tool in the upper right hand column of this webpage.)

At left: Reid Garst and John Bowen (Bowen’s home from Virginia Tech) light candles for the earlier service.

This picture was taken at the Krzyskos’ Christmas dinner.

Pictured are: Steve Krzysko, his mom (June Krzysko), Barbara Krzysko and Fran Dennemeyer.

Here are Christmas photos of the Chitwood family from Salem.

Do you have any Christmas photos? If so, send them to us at news@sosalem.com.

Check out this release from the city about the Winterfest Beach Bash:

“The City of Salem Parks and Recreation Department and Q99-FM present the 2nd Annual Winterfest Beach Bash on Friday, January 30, 2009 at 6 p.m. Come out to the Salem Civic Center to enjoy a little summertime fun on a cold winter’s night!! Featured bands are “Domino” and “Coastline.”

Tickets are on sale now at the Salem Parks & Recreation Department!! $12 in advance and $15 at the door and include admission and food. Gates open at 5 p.m. Proceeds will benefit the Penguin Club’s community service projects.

No coolers, or outside food or drinks will be permitted.

For additional information please contact Kathy Murphy or Kristen Finley with Salem Parks and Recreation at 375-3057.”

What’s going on in your local farmers market? Here’s a report from Salem city employees Beth Carson and Alice Austin:

“Winter Market Begins in January! At the request of our farmers, the Salem Farmers Market will begin a trial “Winter Market” starting January 2009. Since this will be a first for us, please bear with us as we iron out the kinks during this first season.

In the past, our market has decided to stay closed from December 31st to April 1st because we felt there would be a lack of vendors and enough seasonal products to make a winter market successful. Due to the increase in the varieties of items that our vendors now offer, and the number of requests that we have received, we now feel that it is time to try our luck in winter marketing!

What will we have to offer over the next three months? While produce may be limited to locally grown items that can be stored over the winter like potatoes, apples, turnips, and cabbage, we will also be introducing a new line of products to the market. We will still be having delicious baked goods, jams, jellies, gourmet spice mixes, local honey, eggs, doggie treats, and nuts. Starting winter market, we will be welcoming local cheese and meat producers to the market as well. (I have already heard some good remarks about Sterling Bridge Dairy’s gift cheese sets from this last weekend and we look forward to having them back!)

The market will be open to the vendors for setup from Monday through Saturday. Vendors may come at their convenience on a first come first served basis. If given advance notice, we will try to let customers know who is coming to market and when, and what goodies they will be bringing! So watch for our email!

Please help make our winter market a success! Good Luck and many thanks to all our first time Winter Market vendors!”

Salem's Kenzie Poindexter runs past Northside's Molly Deacon. Photo by Jeanna Duerscherl, The Roanoke Times

We have a gallery of photos by Roanoke Times photographer Jeanna Duerscherl from Saturday’s game of Salem v. Northside: click here to view the scenes from the girls’ tournament at William Byrd High School. 

Salem emerged victorious, 52-45. Salem will play Lord Botetourt in a semifinal at 6 p.m. Monday. Click here for the report on Saturday’s game by Roanoke Times sportswriter Mark Berman, and check varsity.roanoke.com for other tournament action.

Salem plays Gar-Field in the Holiday Hoopla Tournament. Photo courtesy of Curt Goetsch

Curt Goetsch has sent two photos of Salem vs. Gar-Field on Friday in the Holiday Hoopla Tournament at the Salem Civic Center. Unfortunately for Salem, Gar-Field got the win, 62-55. Here’s a link to Roanoke Times sportswriter Robert Anderson’s report from the game.

Click here for a link to his photos from another game at the tournament Friday: Cave Spring vs. Brooke Point. And for still more tournament action, click here for a link to photos by Roanoke Times photographer Jared Soares from Friday’s Hidden Valley vs. Patrick Henry game.

The tournament continues Monday at the Salem Civic Center. For more coverage, visit varsity.roanoke.com

For another photo, click “read more” below:

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