What’s Happening Salem is presented by
What’s Up Salem Besties!
We have some exciting updates to share about What's Happening Salem.
New Title Sponsor We're thrilled to announce that Saltwater Wellness has joined us as our title sponsor! They've been impressed by the enthusiastic support from our audience and wanted to deepen their involvement with our community. Let’s continue showing them love! 🙂
Continued Gratitude We remain incredibly grateful to Advantage Heating for their ongoing support this past year. Honestly, this resource wouldn't exist without their partnership.
What's Next Today we'll cover:
Current projects we're working on
Introduction to our team
What you can expect going forward
And we always love hearing from you. What do you like about the newsletter and what do you think could be better?
Let us know by replying to this email.
Was this email forwarded to you by a friend?
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What you’ll unlock at your first visit
A quick lab panel + no-rush chat with Nurse Practitioner Nancy Yankovic to pinpoint exactly what your body’s missing.
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What’s Happening Salem, Current and Future
What’s Happening Salem launched just over a year ago with a simple mission: to highlight the positive things happening in our community and make that information free and accessible to everyone. I believe that what gets recognized gets repeated—so we focus on recognizing the people, events, and stories that make Salem a great place to live.
Brick by brick, day by day, we’ve built something that’s making a real impact. One of my favorite things is getting emails from people who say they went to an event because they saw it in our newsletter. Bringing people together is at the heart of what we do, and it’s rewarding to know it’s working.
The first person to join the team was Ernie, who has been writing our Thursday newsletter for a year now. His weekly roundup makes it easy to find the best events around town.
More recently, we’ve added two new team members: Em Chan, formerly of the Statesman Journal, and Kevin Peña, host of our new Instagram channel, @QuePasaSalem. With their help, we now send out our newsletter three times a week:
Sundays: My edition, focused on in-depth community stories and projects.
Tuesdays: Em’s lifestyle guide—highlighting the best places to eat, drink, connect, and get the latest from City Council.
Thursdays: Ernie’s events roundup and city updates.
Right now we are spending a lot of time finding ways to bring our partners and audience even more value. We want this to be the newsletter people tell their friends they need to subscribe to and business
Now, meet the team behind it all:
Ernie Samora
Ernie Samora is the writer behind the Thursday edition of the What’s Happening Salem newsletter. He also works at the Boys & Girls Club, where he helps teens build confidence, skills, and community. Whether pulling weeds in Salem’s parks or polishing prose for the newsletter, Ernie approaches everything he does with grit, energy, and a grin.
Outside of work, you might spot him biking around town, lifting weights, enjoying the trails at Minto-Brown, or chasing high scores on the Pac-Man machine. He has a soft spot for alligators, a deep love for public parks, and a strong belief that building community starts with showing up and caring loudly.
Em Chan
Em Chan is the writer behind the Tuesday newsletter, bringing readers the best places to eat, drink, and gather in Salem. A former food reporter for the Statesman Journal, Em has called Salem home for over three years. She’s a graduate of the University of Oregon’s journalism program (go Ducks!) and is proudly Pacific Northwest born and raised.
Now working as a freelance writer, Em splits her time between Salem and Portland. She’s a big fan of matcha, Asian cuisine, mildly sweet desserts, and cocktails with extra flair. Her favorite hobby is driving around in search of hidden gems—and she’s excited to share them with you each week.
Kevin Peña
Kevin Peña is the host of @QuePasaSalem and a proud voice for the Latino community in Salem. Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, and raised across Corvallis, Albany, and Scio, Kevin now calls Salem home. For him, community means culture, pride, support, and showing up for one another—something he’s seen this city do time and time again.
Kevin is a real estate professional, entrepreneur, and father who brings unmatched energy to everything he does. He’s known for going all-in for his clients—listening closely, showing up authentically, and working hard to help people reach their goals. Whether he’s helping someone buy a home, serving drinks from his mobile tap bar, or sharing stories on social media, Kevin leads with heart, hustle, and a deep love for Salem.
Jacob Espinoza
I’m the founder of What’s Happening Salem and the voice behind the Sunday newsletter. I’m a long tim advocate for leadership, community building, and positivity, Jacob started the platform to spotlight the good happening in Salem and help people feel more connected to their city.
When I’m not making content about Salem, I’m a business coach, social media strategist, and I coach a lot of youth sports. Just like Em, I studied Journalism at the University of Oregon. Glad I finally get to put that degree to good use.
Have any questions about What’s Happening Salem we didn’t answer?
Reply to this email and let us know! 🙂
Thanks for keeping up with Salem this week!
Spotted something interesting in town? Drop us a note at [email protected] We love hearing from you.
See you soon.