EIZER times
$1.00/ ISSUE
Vol. 43 • No. 28
APRIL 29, 2022
Brown era begins
BY CHARLES GLENN
Of the Keizertimes
Adam Brown arrived in Keizer this week to
take over for Wes Hare as the city’s new chief
executive. The former Ontario, Ore. city man-
ager said he’s all about collaboration and build-
ing teamwork.
“Building relationships is number one,” he
said. “Then assessing where the organization is
at and helping to build up a team environment.”
Brown managed Ontario since June of 2016,
having served as a deputy county administrator
in Michigan prior to that. He holds a bachelors
and masters degree in public administration
from Virginia Tech and was described by Mayor
Cathy Clark during his selection process as “a
proven local government professional with a
strong reputation for integrity, competence and
achieving results through teamwork.”
A former colleague of Brown agrees. “Adam
does not speak loudly but his words carry a lot of
weight,” Ontario City Councilor Michael Braden
told the Argus Observer in February.
“I’m a builder - I like to create stuff,” said
Brown. “I really love team environments and col-
laboration — getting people in the organizations
and institutions in the community to be on the
same path, so we can have a collective impact,
and Keizer is on a good trajectory.”
Brown describes himself as a Navy brat, and
like most children in military families, he moved
around quite a bit while growing up.
“My dad was enlisted for seven years and was
a reservist for 30,” he said.
Brown’s father, who still lives in Ontario,
spent most of his Department of Defense career
helping develop the Aegis missile cruiser, and
they lived in New Jersey, California, Mississippi
and Virginia. Brown’s own family includes six
children, three that still live at home.
“We have a senior, a sophomore and a sixth-
grader,” he said. “This is the first time we won’t
have a kid in elementary school.”
Brown said after six years in Ontario, his fam-
ily is looking forward to living in what he called
“the green part of the state.” He’s still looking for
a home that meets his family’s needs in Keizer.
When it comes to hobbies, Brown says he’s
got too many.
“I used to do beekeeping and run mara-
thons,” he said. “Recently my son got me a game
called Magic the Gathering, and while we were
playing I noticed everyone had these play-mats
that they use to play on, so I decided to make a
leather one for myself and everyone thought it
was great. Now I have an Etsy shop and I make
enough from one hobby to
pay for the other.”
Brown spent the
week meeting with
council members
and leaders in the
community, and will
be formally intro-
duced at the city coun-
cil meeting on May 2.
Keizer’s got some lucky dogs
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BY CHARLES GLENN
Of the Keizertimes
Between the charitable donations
from the Ladies of Keizer Elks Club to
the generosity of non-profits, Keizer’s K9
unit is well-supplied.
Keizer Police announced this week
that K9 Max will receive a bullet and
stab protective vest in about eight
to 10 weeks through a collaboration
between Jim Huggins of Salem and
Massachusetts-based Vested Interest
in K9s, Inc. - a nation-wide charity that
designs and produces specialized K9
equipment. Max’s vest will be embroi-
dered with the words “In honor of Staff
Sgt. Bob Hartsock, USA and K9 Duke.”
Vested Interests in K9s, Inc. has pro-
vided over 4,600 vests to K9s in all 50
states at a value of $6.9 million, made
possible by both private and corporate
donations. To qualify, K9s must be at
(Left) KPD Officer Scott Keniston has
been with the department since 2007
and a K9 handler since 2009. K9 Blitz is
a Belgian Malinois. Blitz is responsible
for tracking and trailing, building and
area searches, discarded article search-
es, suspect apprehension and officer
protection.
(Right) KPD Officer Jeremy Darst with
K9 Max. Darst has been with the depart-
ment since he was 14 years old, serving
as a cadet, where he spent many hours
working with the K9 unit as a decoy
during training and special events. He
is the handler for K9 Max, a 2 year-old
German Shepard.
least 20 months old, actively employed
and certified.
In addition to the vests, the Ladies of
Keizer Elks Club raises money through-
out the year through basket auctions and
50/50 drawings for local organizations.
The Keizer Police Department was the
recipients of this year’s primary dona-
tion. KPD said the money will go toward
training, equipment and other K9 unit
expenses.