Local grad tied to hot holiday gift
Courtney Coleman Everson graduated from Coeur d'Alene High School in 1999 and went on to earn a degree in economics at Princeton University. Heady stuff but a most gratifying moment for Courtney took place just last week with the phenomenally successful launch of Microsoft's Xbox One. More than a million of the latest video game consoles sold within 24 hours.
Courtney, a seven-year employee of Microsoft, managed the sourcing for wireless connectivity technologies, i.e. contracts, pricing, supply for the Wi-Fi components in the box and on the controller. She also managed microcontroller components on the Xbox One launch as well.
I don't have to understand what all that means to be impressed with the accomplishments of this hometown girl made good.
Why shop local? Local businesses pay local taxes, provide paychecks, donate and contribute to organizations and events throughout the year. If not for local businesses, who would be donating to the auctions, raffles, scholarships, grad night parties, senior centers, charitable causes, youth sports sponsorships etc., etc.? This Christmas season let your gift giving pay it forward in our communities ... SHOP LOCAL!
My former morning radio partner Joe Paisley is a popular jock on Rock 94 and 1/2 (94.5 FM) by day. But the multi-talented Joe is also the writer-director-editor of a 30-second television commercial submission in the Doritos "Crash the Super Bowl" contest. If his entry is selected by the worldwide public, Joe will be in a VIP box at Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2 making plans to spend the $1 million prize and readying to work on the set of Avengers 2.
Joe shot the video at Steven A. Scroggins Fine Art studio in Coeur d'Alene with a little help from his friends Ethan Harrison, Matt Conover, Phil Hall, Mary Gonzales, Mickey Hough, Aaron Hough, Dan Clark, Ray Gruis, Dana Gruis and Eric Boblick. If you'd like to do your part to send Joe to the Super Bowl, go to www.doritos.com and in Crash the Super Bowl, look for his submission "Edible Art" in the Top Rated section. Be sure to vote once a day from your computer before next Tuesday (Dec. 3) when the semi-finalists will be selected. I know Joe would be very thankful for your support.
Big doings in town this weekend with the Festival of Lights Christmas Parade on Friday night and the kick off of Kootenai Health's Festival of Trees events. I'm looking forward to a ninth year of emceeing my favorite Festival of Trees celebration with the North Idaho Eye Institute's Senior Social on Saturday morning. And you'll want to make sure to see Ellen Travolta's Christmas Cabaret at The Coeur d'Alene Resort during the season and the Traditions of Christmas show with Anna Pearce aka Patty Duke as Mrs. Claus at the Kroc Center in December. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in our little corner of the world!
If you're buying a fresh Christmas tree, consider a lot that benefits local organizations including: Boy Scout Troop 3, next to Michael's on Canfield and Government Way or Idaho Youth Ranch/Anchor House, on Government Way just north of Harrison Avenue.
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." - John F. Kennedy
Happy Birthday today to Sue Hutter, Ian Martin and Bob Eachon. Sharing a Thanksgiving birthday this year are Katie King, Cody and Tristan Webb, Breanna Joyner and Judy Dahl. On Friday Amanda Hildebrant Robinson, Gary Ingram, Shirley Thagard, Carol Covell and Carol Ann Eachon will celebrate another year. On Saturday Kevin Ekness, Carol Kreighbaum, Kevin Krieg and Cindy Scinto will mark their annual trip around the sun. The first day of December will find Chris Pappas, Marge Chadderdon, Jay Bremner and Connie Price putting on their party hats. Brandi Hague, Lois Covill, Hope Connally and Georg Nagrone (60!) are blowing out the candles on Monday. Carol Fairhust, Sandy Bradbury, Sandra King, Joyce Ekness and Jennifer Keefe have Dec. 3 birthdays.
Kerri Rankin Thoreson is a member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and the former publisher of the Post Falls Tribune. She was voted Best Local Writer for 2013 by the readers of the North Idaho Business Journal. Main Street appears every Wednesday in The Press and Kerri can be contacted on Facebook or via email mainstreet@cdapress.com.