The Ross News

2025 year in review: Bobby Ross Jr.’s most memorable stories and columns

By Bobby Ross Jr.

OKLAHOMA CITY — In 2025, I celebrated my 35th anniversary in full-time journalism.

The best part: I still love what I do.

I serve as editor-in-chief of The Christian Chronicle and write the Weekend Plug-in column for Religion Unplugged. Besides my regular work, I freelanced in 2025 for The Associated Press and the Washington Post.

This fall I flew 5,000 miles to France, and my wife, Tamie, got to go with me. My in-depth Chronicle series explored spiritual renewal in that secular Western European nation.

Tamie Ross explores an old Catholic church in La Chapelle Au Riboul, France.

Closer to home, April 19 marked the 30th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing. I interviewed Susan Walton, “the most severely injured” survivor, about her ongoing journey. In my Religion Unplugged column, I reflected on how covering the biggest story of my life changed me. When the OKC Thunder won the NBA championship in June, I delved into why the team’s first title meant so much to my adopted hometown.

Related: 10 Sundays to remember

2025 marked the five-year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic. The timing seemed appropriate to tell for the first time the story of my brother-in-law’s miraculous — as our family sees it — survival.

Once again this year, I enjoyed doing a few baseball-related stories. In May, I traveled to the Motor City to report on Home Plate Detroit — an annual faith event before a Tigers game. Later, I wrote about the Texas Rangers’ faith day and did player profiles of Evan Carter and Jake Burger. I also covered a sermon by former Mets star Darryl Strawberry after he got a pardon from President Donald Trump. And I pursued a few non-baseball sports stories, profiling Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans and writing about the OKC Thunder’s pregame prayers.

Bobby Ross Jr. at Comerica Park in Detroit.

Devastating wildfires brought me to Southern California, and I got to witness the “faith-based FEMA” again in Stillwater, Oklahoma. I talked to parents who’ve lost children about grief and guilt after deadly flooding in the Texas Hill Country.

Other memorable stories took me to Arizona, California, Idaho, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Meanwhile, I spoke at the Associated Church Press annual meeting in Chicago on how journalists can cover natural disasters without exploiting victims and moderated a panel discussion at the Religion News Association annual meeting in Arlington, Virginia, on religion reporting in small markets.

During the year, I was honored to receive the seven-state Diamond Journalist of the Year Award and the Oklahoma Print Reporter of the Year Award, along with multiple national honors from the Associated Church Press and the Evangelical Press Association.

The Diamond Journalist of the Year Award presented by the Arkansas chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

I’m excited to see where the news takes me in 2026.

First up: a trip to Nashville, Tennessee, on the first weekend of the year. I’ll save the details of that story for later, but I can’t wait for you to read it.

Featured photo by Jerry Jones: Bobby and Tamie Ross at an old Catholic church in La Chapelle Au Riboul, France