This was my third year at Salem Reporter, and my first being on the homelessness, housing and health care beat full-time.
It means my list of top stories this year is heavier and full of more complex challenges than years’ past. But, this year, I’ve also gotten some of the kindest messages from readers of my career, those who had questions about their and the community’s futures which I helped answer.
Here are the stories that had the biggest impact on me this year, and those that made my job feel the most meaningful.
Sentenced to the Sidewalk
This investigative series began as an email from a daughter desperate for anyone to pay attention to what was happening to her mother, Melinda Lou Kayser, on Salem’s streets. I did what I could to tell their story with dignity while highlighting the systemic failures of Oregon’s mental health, civil commitment, sheltering and justice systems. I think about Melinda every time I drive past the street corner where she died, and every time I meet someone experiencing homelessness and feeling like they have nowhere to turn. Melinda Lou Kayser’s story will stay with me the rest of my life.Â
How Salem Hospital responded to a mass casualty event
The difference between community reporting and ambulance chasing is what happens in the aftermath of a horrific breaking news event. I’m proud of the way our team focused on the impact on victims and shelter residents at the Union Gospel Mission immediately following the June stabbing which injured 12 people, and the lasting trauma the weeks following. The very next day, I pitched, reported and wrote this story about the experience of Salem Hospital’s emergency room doctors. It’s a rare type of reporting to do after a major breaking news event, and provided the community with a peek behind the curtain.
How a group of library lovers convinced a reluctant Salem to raise property taxes
Longtime Salem Reporter readers will remember that I got my start here as the city council reporter, and spent much of 2023 writing about the city of Salem’s budget and the ultimately failed payroll tax effort. While the city’s budget issues aren’t over, the levy passing brought a new chapter to this lengthy coverage topic.
As businesses call for fixes to clean up downtown, some say the problem is more complex
This story, which I wrote with colleagues Joe Siess and Ardeshir Tabrizian, narrowed in on a nebulous communitywide conversation with a wide range of perspectives. It’s a thorough, definitive story I find myself often returning to reference when writing updates about the ongoing discussions about public safety and homelessness downtown. It’s always a great feeling to have multiple reporters work on one story, and to have a cohesive and informative end product.
Community gathers to honor life of West Salem student who died in crash
Speaking with Elijah Jung’s mother shortly after his death on a rural road outside West Salem had a profound impact on me. I’m grateful she trusted me with these personal moments, and that I could help tell the community who Elijah was.
Mayor Julie Hoy leads effort to expand city, county ability to sweep homeless encampments
I have been keeping a close eye on the developing national, statewide and local discussions and policies around how to address homelessness and public camping. Though written in a day, this story about Mayor Julie Hoy’s participation in a statewide initiative on public camping and my follow-up coverage on the public reaction took years of built-up local knowledge and a well-timed trip to a reporting training in Washington D.C. to have this level of context and complexity. I was happy to get readers in my inbox telling me they learned something new when they read it.
A unique downtown medical clinic works to care for homeless patients’ long-term needs
I really enjoy talking to people who are passionate about their work, and that’s in abundance at Northwest Human Services’ Homeless Outreach & Advocacy Project’s free medical clinic. Homelessness is a complex topic, and I learned a lot from the staff here about how access to health care plays a key role in someone’s ability to become housed.
Salem Health cancels patient appointments after Regence split
Access to health care was top of mind for a lot of Salem residents this year. In February, I reported on Regence BlueCross BlueShield members losing access to in-network care at Salem Health after a failure to reach a contract. In September, I reported on around 10,000 Medicaid patients needing to find new doctors after Salem Clinic and PacificSource failed to reach a contract for 2026. In the last week of 2025, the future of Medicaid access at Salem Health remains unclear. It’s a defining topic of the year, and I’ll continue to do my part to answer questions for concerned patients amid the uncertainty.
After five-month delay, senior residents at Mahonia Crossing get consistent hot water
It’s my job to listen to marginalized people when they’re feeling ignored, and to ask questions of those in leadership positions on their behalf. I did not expect that sending a few emails would, apparently, lead to low-income seniors getting consistent hot water in their new apartments for the first time in over five months.Â
As local governments sharpen focus on Wallace Marine Park, residents worry about a lack of options
There are a lot of questions about the encampment at Wallace Marine Park, and this story sought to answer some of them. It includes conversations with residents, a trek through the mud and an unprecedented meeting between governments. I expect this story will be just the beginning of a major topic for the new year.
Contact reporter Abbey McDonald: [email protected] or 503-575-1251.
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Abbey McDonald joined the Salem Reporter in 2022. She previously worked as the business reporter at The Astorian, where she covered labor issues, health care and social services. A University of Oregon grad, she has also reported for the Malheur Enterprise, The News-Review and Willamette Week.