Democratic Club elects new officers

The Kootenai County Democratic Club elected new officers for 2017: Shem Hanks, president; Tom Hearn, vice-president; Peggy Cedros, secretary; and incumbent Shirley McFaddan; treasurer. They take over for David Porter, Suzanne Marshall, and Patty Beyer, respectively.

The Democratic Club is the main social and educational arm of the Kootenai County Democrats.

The club meets every Friday at noon at the Ironhorse Restaurant in downtown Coeur d’Alene and usually features a speaker on a topic of current, local interest.

The public is always welcome and announcements appear weekly in the Press Community Calendar.

This year is the 44th year of the club’s continuing presence in Coeur d’Alene. According to Mary Lou Reed, longtime Democrat and former Idaho legislator, the Democratic Club started in 1974.

That year was notable to Democrats because the Democratic State Convention was held in Coeur d’Alene and the keynote speaker was Joe Biden. He was new to the U.S. Senate and fresh from the tragic car accident which claimed the lives of his wife and daughter. He brought Beau and Hunter, his two very young sons, whom he took with him everywhere he went.