By Melissa Wagoner Right about the time Lexi Tucker was learning to talk, she was also learning to sing. Raised on a farm near Stayton, it didn’t take long before Tucker’s mom noticed her daughter’s talent and enrolled her in voice lessons. “I always took the chance to sing in talent shows,” Tucker said, recalling that, even when the family […]
By Melissa Wagoner Learning to read is one of the most important skills a child can master, according to Mark Twain Elementary School principal Katie Beckett. “It’s the gateway to equity,” she said. But that doesn’t mean it’s always easy, especially for those students who spent their kindergarten year learning online during the COVID pandemic. For those students, lower than […]
The Kennedy High baseball team won its final 7 games in the 2022 season, ending up with a state Class 2A-1A title. Last year, a veteran team that started eight seniors went 31-0 and repeated as state champions. This season a young squad with just one returning starter, Brody Kleinschmit, won its first eight games. That’s 46 in a row […]
I grew up in a family, and community, which revered our small-town newspaper. We read it, we discussed it and we argued about it when we thought the viewpoint was flawed. We knew the writers. We saw them at gatherings, they were the friends of my parents and the parents of my classmates. In other words, they were people just […]
Submissions are open for the 10th annual Community Art Show at Oak St. Church and local artists are invited to share their talent, skill and creativity. The show is Saturday, May 4, 3 – 8 p.m. at 502 Oak St., Silverton. Art submissions are due April 24. To enter, artists can email [email protected] with a well-lit, in-focus photo of their […]
This is an open letter to the person and/or persons who came onto my property and stole the flag I had attached to a soffitt on my house. I can only assume that you removed the flag of Stu Rasmussen because you put him in a box of your prejudice. You didn’t ask why I have the flag. You didn’t […]
On the Silver Falls School District financial situation: Where was (Assistant Superintendent) Dan Busch during the last 12 months? … Where was the School Board? The School Board absence and neglect during the past 12 month is completely unacceptable. The “thank you note” delivered to Mr. Drue at the March 13 public meeting is totally incomprehensible. I invite you to visit […]
Fraud charges filed for hardware store scheme A Silverton man has been implicated in an alleged large-scale and sophisticated fraud scheme targeting hardware stores throughout Oregon, including new local charges. Elton Bud Ralston, 40, has been charged in four separate cases in Marion, Linn, Yamhill and Washington counties for alleged thefts involving tens of thousands of dollars in merchandise. According […]
By Bruce Kingwell Silverton First Baptist church is welcoming its new lead pastor, JD Winters. The congregation has gathered at its current location on Westfield Street, between Safeway and Robert Frost Elementary School, for more than 70 years. While in that time much has changed, a congregation of seven decades learns to recognize joyful change when it comes. Such was […]
By Stephen Floyd Community members walked away with more answers but no fewer questions about an $825,000 deficit after the Silver Falls School District Board meeting March 11. An estimated 120 people attended in person and more than 200 watched by Zoom. The large audience was prompted by the deficit projection announced to the board at its Feb. 26 meeting. […]
Just this past summer, I lost a dear friend of mine. His name was Justin. He lived outside, had a very unique sense of style, and often made others uncomfortable by sifting through garbage cans for little treasures. He was a complex figure, as we all are, but his personality was marked by a gleaming naivety, an earnest impulse to […]
By Stephen Floyd The Oregon Garden Foundation has been awarded a $150,000 grant from Marion County to help develop financial sustainability in its operations of The Oregon Garden. The Board of County Commissioners approved the grant during their March 6 regular meeting, with funds coming from the Oregon Lottery. Oregon Garden Director of Operations Delen Kitchen told Our Town the […]
By Melissa Wagoner Kelly Farrah is a self-taught historian who never does anything halfway. As a child growing up in Southern California, he developed an interest in both the American Civil War and the Revolutionary War. But it was the materials used during those time periods – the flags, guns, clothing and everything that was a part of daily life […]
By Sailor Hill Silverton is now home to a creative and ambitious couple of hatmakers in the Historic Wellman Building downtown. Sean and Jessica McClellan are born artists, passionate about fashion, craftsmanship, and above all: hat making. They recently opened their first storefront, Flyin High Hat Co., where they create and customize western-style hats. “We’ve taken an idea of having […]
By James Day The Marion County 4-H ThinkRobots Club, which includes students from the Silverton area, placed three teams in the top 5 at the Feb. 24 elementary and middle school state tournament at Cedar Ridge Middle School in Sandy. A total of 26 middle school teams and 19 elementary school teams competed in the all-day event. One ThinkRobots team […]
The Community Roots School chess team of Silverton finished second at a regional chess tournament on Feb. 24 at Tallmadge Middle School in Independence. The team, in its second year, was led by Grayson Huebsch and Deklan Pozos, who finished second and third, respectively, in the 4th grade and under division. The tournament brought together teams from Marion, Polk and Benton […]
I work in a local nonprofit. It has been a wonderful experience that has allowed me to get to know members of the community who I otherwise wouldn’t have crossed paths with. I am grateful for this opportunity and for the privilege that it is to be able to live in Silverton. I am a transplant, like many of my […]
By Brenna Wiegand A group of local men who came together for a Bible Study are finding ways to reach out to their community. They call themselves the Noble Men of Oregon. They meet weekly at Noble Inn, owned by study leader Gregg Harris and his wife Bonnie. Built by June Drake in 1904, the historic home is now a […]
By Melissa Wagoner In 2011, when Elise Trask decided to get married on the farm where she grew up, she not only gained a husband, she gained a career as well. “That got our wheels turning,” Trask’s sister and business partner, Clarissa Rapacz, said, recalling how that wedding – held amongst a field of flowers – became the first of many, thanks […]
By Melissa Wagoner Growing up, Michael Turner knew that his Hungarian grandmother, Lici, was a Holocaust survivor and that both her parents and sister were killed in Auschwitz. But it wasn’t something Lici talked about – at least not with her grandson. “When I was in high school, some video producers came and interviewed my grandma about her experiences in […]
David and Linda (Esser) Gerlits of Silverton, Oregon will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on March 23, 2024. They were married on March 23, 1974, at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Silverton by the bride’s cousin, Father Michael Sprauer. The bridesmaids wore green polyester dresses, and the groomsmen wore their hair long. Both Dave and Linda are life-long residents of Silverton. […]
By Stephen Floyd For many Silvertonians, The Home Place Restaurant represents a rite of passage. It’s where they got to have their first big birthday party, where numerous teenagers got their first jobs, where generations of athletes gathered for pre- and post-game celebrations. Co-owner Debbie Bennett said the establishment is old enough now that customers bring their own families, talking […]
By Melissa Wagoner It’s been 40 years, nearly to the day, since Laura Wanker became a part of the Silverton community, initially working as an educator and volunteer tutor, mentor and educational advocate for students at Silverton High School before joining the Silverton Area Community Aid’s (SACA) board. “Laura Wanker’s impact on the Silverton community is broad and substantial,” former superintendent […]
By James Day Sometimes your ability to make a difference in your community can be as simple as how often you say ”yes.” That’s been the case in recent years with Oak Street Church and its pastor John Friedrick. Yes to continuing its Monday meal tradition. Yes to using the church building for a warming shelter. Yes to hosting listening […]
By James Day From its arrival in Silverton in 2002 Willamette Valley Bank has lived by the motto that to serve the community you must be involved in the community. “Twenty-two years ago a group of business owners opened Willamette because they believed the community would be better served by a locally headquartered bank, managed by people who understood the […]
