Historic club celebrates libraries, past and future

Earlier this year, a Main Street reader emailed asking if I’d be interested in speaking at a monthly meeting of the Coeur d’Alene Womans Club. Yes, that’s the correct spelling of “woman” for the 121-year-old organization. According to member Julie Westbrook, the Coeur d'Alene Womans Club is a study club, not a service club, whose purpose is to promote good fellowship among its members, stimulate intellectual development and support the library.

In 1905, the library, founded by the CWC, consisted of a few shelves of books and was located in a mercantile near the intersection of Fourth Street and Sherman Avenue. Mrs. James Spaulding was the club’s first president. As was customary until probably the 1970s, married women’s first names weren’t used in newspaper reporting.

Intrigued by the organization, I accepted Julie’s invitation and last week joined the group of women at their monthly meeting. We talked about my growing up in Coeur d’Alene, our family moving here in 1965, column writing and newspapers. Every woman in the room is a longtime Coeur d’Alene Press subscriber and reader. My people!

I told the story of living in the historic John T. Wood home on Ninth and Sherman as a young teen in the 1960s and how I loved walking to the library on Seventh and Lakeside most evenings after dinner. Books and newspapers were an important part of our family culture.

In more than three decades of writing this newspaper column, I’m often impressed to learn of groups who gather together, creating community. If you’re interested in knowing more about the Coeur d’Alene Womans Club, contact their president, Nancy Nagey, at lcpcs@hotmail.com.

And here’s a bold-faced column mention for Nancy, Julie and my new BFFs ... Lorna Wasson, Peggy Appleman, Mary Kit Lynam, Sheila Brunning, Thea Lewis, Judy Carlson, Judy Edwards, Janet Crane and Karen Ebert.

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Retired Coeur d’Alene Parks Director Doug Eastwood, now a published author, has a hobby that fills any “spare” time. Pun intended. Bowling in the Scratch League at River City Lanes last week, Doug achieved perfection ... a 300 game. It was perfect game No. 9 for Eastwood in his career. Quipped he, “If I can do this 91 more times, I could join the Century Club.” Goals.

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Do you love being visited by hummingbirds? Now’s the time to fill those feeders to make sure the first arrivals are able to fuel up. Mix one part sugar with four parts water and boil until the sugar is dissolved. No red dye!

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Things to Do: The North Idaho Mushroom Club is inviting anyone interested in mushrooms, the outdoors, foraging or just making friends to join them tonight at 6 p.m. at the Trailhead Event Center at Q’emiln Park. Tim Gerlitz will teach you how to identify and find healthy morels and other spring fungi.

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Happy birthday today to Jonathan Owens, Judi Jackson, Dallan Pope, Taylor Huber, Kathy Willy, Beth Barclay, Nell Gordon and Lee Periman (88!). Tomorrow, Liz Montgomery, Doreen Porter, Cameron Dominquez and Cindy Jordan blow out the candles. Friday, Chrissy Wortman, Laura Keck, Marshall Meeks, Nancy Gurno, Keith Hanlon, Duffy Taylor, Ann Fox, Nicholas Kane, Pappy Butler and Toni Hackwith will celebrate. Sharon Stevenson, Terri McTavish, Dan Powers, Sharon Wagner, Kelli Hawkins, John Negaard, Jamie Dallas and Gail Osterson take another trip around the sun Saturday. Bruce Hough, Caitlin Hodl and Tyler Bush ring in another year Sunday. Monday birthdays are Carrie Gridley Shenfield, Katie Keane, Mary Epstein, Melaine Spalding and Eli Gonzales. Putting on their party hats April 8 are Amy Bartoo, Wilma Higgins, Pat Hughes, Greg Prado, Kevin Kram, Veldon Lee and Shanna Riske.

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Kerri Rankin Thoreson is a member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and the former publisher of the Post Falls Tribune. Main Street appears every Wednesday in The Press and Kerri can be contacted on Facebook or via email thoreson.kerri@gmail.com.