Thanks for the memories Templin's Sportsbar

In 1986, Bob Templin invested $4 million to build a 62-room hotel on the Post Falls River. When it opened in May that year, the town had a population of 6,000 and a City Hall that opened only three days a week. With a conference center and restaurant, Templin's Resort quickly became our community's hub of activity. 

By the '90s, it was where the Chamber of Commerce general membership met monthly and where various organizations met, with business and social lunches and dinners held daily in the river-view restaurant.

We also began an election night tradition of meeting in the lounge to await election results. They weren’t partisan gatherings, just a casual group of local businesspeople and movers and shakers interested in politics who enjoyed each other's company.

On election nights, Post Falls City Clerk Chris Pappas would be at the Kootenai County Courthouse as ballots were tabulated; he'd call Police Chief Cliff Hayes, one of the attendees, for updates to share with the group. Election results were generally complete within an hour or so of the polls closing back then.

The one huge exception was the November 2000 general election. A record-shattering 45,075 (75%!) Kootenai County residents went to the polls that Nov. 7. Locally, the hotly contested sheriff’s race between Sheriff Rocky Watson and Ted Pulver, and two seats on the county commission, drew as many voters as the presidential race between G.W. Bush and Al Gore.

That evening, most everyone headed home before 10 p.m., but Cliff, Joe Doellefeld and I were determined to stay until the presidential race was declared. By 11 p.m., the Templin's bartender said he had to close up, but we were welcome to stay. He asked us to lock up when we left. Only in a small town, LOL! We hung in for another hour or two, but that presidential race went down in history, with the winner not declared until December.

Last week, a few days before Templin's closed indefinitely on Oct. 23, Joe and I met in the lounge to reminisce. We toasted our friend, Cliff, who died several years ago, and shared laughs about that most memorable election from a quarter century ago.

Here's to small towns, old friends, high voter turnouts and to the StanCraft group as they evaluate the future of that hallowed ground on the Spokane River.

• • •

Last week, I had the pleasure of speaking with the Leadership Coeur d'Alene Class of 2026 on Media Day. The leadership program began in 1986 and is the Coeur d'Alene Chamber's longest-running immersive leadership opportunity. While I enjoy sharing my love of what I do and newspapers, the bonus is engaging with people who are already making a difference in our communities, or will be.

Here's a bold-face column shout out to alumnus Annie Parker and this year's class ... Todd Feusier, Wyatt Gibbar, Zachary Sifford, Matt Logan, Natalie Grace, Robert Davies, Roxanne Kusler, Sara Bennett, Scott Ferguson, Seth Deniston, Tami Edmunds, Tiffany Westbrook, Louisa Rogers, Madison Canale, Maria Diffenbaugh, Kim Polfer, Keith Pitsch, Jessica Waller, Heath Gunns, Heidi Webber, Ezra Grossglauser, Aaron Drake, Erik Lee, Elizabeth Brewer, David McNeill, Ann Jaworski, Bill Pfingraff, Briana Stockdale, Christie Johnson and Cyndy Donato.

• • •

Daylight Saving Time ends on Sunday, Nov. 1, when the clock falls back an hour. It’s traumatic enough that I have to wear socks and turn on the furnace; the darkness of night at 4 p.m. sends me into carb-fueled hibernation. See you in the springtime!

• • •

Vote! Tuesday, Nov. 3.

• • •

Happy Main Street Birthdays today to Jonathan Mueller, Melanie Simpson, Terri Gervais, Laura McNeil, Jenni Gibson, Jill Swoboda, Tracie Olin, Kathleen Clancy, Bernadette Oaks, Heather Montee, Dale Fitch, Jamie Oliver and Ashley Gerzina. Tomorrow, Sandy Patano, Jerry Baltzell, Mark Symons, Kara McCollum, Bill Guy, Amanda Krier, Mary Ransdell, Dave Clark and Shawn Duncan blow out the candles. On Friday, Rainey Coffin, Lori Dahlke, John Kelly, Lori Jurado, Vivian Stadley, Brad Oliver, Kay Mills and Derek McGee celebrate. Halloween birthdays for Kathy Prosser, RaeAnne Capaul, Amber Copeland, Rob Moser, Jabet Wheeler, Tyler Engelbrecht, Kevin Grady, Linda Haughton, Jaks Fowler and Susan Johnson. Happy first-day-of-November birthdays to Brandon Burchfield, Randy Martens, Bernice Dymek and Pam Jank. On Monday, Alex Capaul, Mike Miller, Charity Thompson and Kathleen Lazor take another trip around the sun. On Election Day, Patti Harris, Jill Jurvelin, Hara Allison, Karen Pearl, Darin Hanson, Helen Nuener, Jerry Mason and Kelly Tuntland vote for happy birthdays.

• • •

Kerri Rankin Thoreson is a member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and a former publisher/editor with the Hagadone Newspaper Division. Main Street appears every Wednesday in The Press. Kerri can be reached on Facebook or via email at [email protected].