HAVE A STORY IDEA IN KENT COUNTY? EMAIL SAM!
Hey there, West Michigan!
My name is Sam Landstra and I am the neighborhood reporter for Kent County.
If you're reading this biography, thanks for taking the time to watch and read local news. I believe in storytelling and its ability to connect us with our neighbors, both in big cities like Grand Rapids and in smaller towns like Kent City and Caledonia (and also in Hudsonville, where I was raised).
I joined FOX 17 after graduating from Dordt University, leaving the rolling cornfields of Northwest Iowa with a major in journalism and minors in English and film.
I now report on all that's contained within Kent County and, through traveling to new places and meeting new people, am daily defining what home means to me.
A few of my favorite stories from my time so far at the station include a ride along with Kent County's deer sheriff, a late-night hunt for a rumored alligator in Crockery Lake and a cemetery-driven deep dive into a century-old, Halloween night shooting in Muskegon.
I also like to tell stories of faith and, having grown up in the Christian Reformed Church, am both professionally and personally challenged by how religion can both bring people together and push them apart.
Truly, I have a heart for this job and feel called to report on the cities and townships I've known since my childhood. I believe in the importance of home-grown journalism, that writing is an act of love, and that rooting for Detroit sports teams makes you a better person (at least in the long run).
If you have a story in Kent County that's worth telling (or a movie that's worth watching), send me an email at sam.landstra@fox17online.com! I'll be happy to check it out.
