Growth's impact on local farmers

Thank you for the opportunity to submit this letter. My name is Laurin Scarcello, and I reside at our family ranch in the Twin Lakes area, which has been in continuous agricultural production since 1910.

Choose to listen first

The big dustup here in Dalton Gardens has me thinking about my father.

Community Thanks

Community Thanks: Nov. 7

OPINION: Convictions about principled presidential leadership

The conviction of a candidate for president of the United States for felony crimes is not a moment for celebration, but a time for reflection and recommitment to principles that define our democracy. We must carefully consider the character of those we elect, and advocate for leaders who prioritize public service above all else.

Supporting our public school district levies is good for business and community

The vitality of our public schools is directly tied to building a thriving community in Kootenai County and Coeur d’Alene. The quality of education is key to shaping engaged, invested citizens and preparing our young people for the modern job market. In Idaho, our levies are labeled “supplemental,” but there’s nothing supplemental about them. The state only provides funding for 75% of school operating budgets, meaning local communities must cover the remaining 25% for essential operations like staffing, programs and services.

Summer recommendations

While our weather has been anything but what we are used to here in North Idaho during the summer, we are all still spending time on the water and in our yards. The sun and warmth will no doubt return, but we continue to grill food out while we wait, and soon we will be dining alfresco like we have in summers past. Here are some of our new favorite wines and some “old friends” that will pair well with all things summer.

Turkey's great escape foils Thanksgiving plans

PORTLAND, Ore. - Two Sundays before Thanksgiving, my farming partner and I brought a live turkey in a burlap sack to our urban farm on the outskirts of Portland. The lanky brown-feathered bird quietly took her place in our chicken coop.

Behind the scenes

Delivering great bottles of wine to our customers is our job. It is our goal now, and has been for the last 11 plus years that the dinner party has been around. It is incredibly rewarding to hear your feedback on the quality of the wine and the service to go with it that we provide. What doesn’t often get noticed though, is the work that goes on behind the scenes by our great crew of local distributors. Everyone that we do business with here in North Idaho, and they literally span the state, are great at what they do — from assembling broad and deep portfolios of wine to choose from, to getting all delivered on time they make the system run. They rarely get the wonderful feedback that we do — knowing we have done a good job for you, the wine consumer.

OPINION: For Idaho's sake, fund our schools

CDA School District superintendent issues appeal to local legislators

OPINION: Voters must say no to slate of dangerous extremists running in May 17 GOP Primary

Like most Idahoans, I grew up in a conservative family, deeply rooted in our faith and values.

OPINION: Let's make every week National Police Week

Sacrifice and service at heart of Idaho law enforcement officers

MY TURN: Anti Pride = Pro hate

What a beautiful celebration for our LBGTQ community last week in the City Park. Coming together to celebrate our differences always creates so much joy and unity within our community. Our differences do not make us weak, they make us stronger. Unfortunately that is not the opinion of a few bad apples in our community who chose to go out of their way to express their disdain for people who are not carbon copies of themselves. When you go out of your way to be “anti-pride” you are actually being pro-hate.

John Southworth Wheaton, 91

John Southworth Wheaton passed away peacefully on Sept. 29, 2020,

Sales surpass 2007

Sales of homes in the Coeur d'Alene Multiple Listing Service continued to be brisk through June. Our staff reports that we have surpassed Year to Date sales made in 2007, the year before the dramatic slide took place. As of June 30, 2013, we had recorded 1,241 single family home sales. At the end of June in 2007 we had sold 1,167. Even though that puts us 6 percent ahead of 2007, our June numbers put us 24 percent ahead of last year, demonstrating a very respectable recovery.

Giving thanks

I was thrilled when I recently read that The Coeur d'Alene Press and editor Mike Patrick were looking for stories from readers on all that they were thankful for. After all, it is the time of year when we think of all the great fortune we have in our own lives, and how we can extend help in many forms to those who are less fortunate. The question would be for most readers, "How does that work its way into the weekly wine column?" It seems more than a bit trite to be thankful for a great glass of Pinot Noir with our turkey!

The best food and wine holiday

Thanksgiving is about our favorite holiday, and while we still stay pretty close to the traditional dishes and preparations in our celebration, it is still one of the great wine and food pairing opportunities. The gatherings, for most of us, are larger than our normal, which also gives us the opportunity to sample more wines with the meal as we try to have something that will please all the varied palates gathered at our home for dinner. Here are some of our favorites that we plan to have this year.

Why our winds have increased since 2007

Weather Gems

Debbie Mann, no relation to Meteorologist Randy Mann, asked me a couple of weeks ago to explain why our winds have increased in strength in the past few years.

Don't make big mistake with busing

At the Dec. 10 meeting of the Coeur d'Alene school board, the issue of contract busing was discussed. After the issue was presented, the decision was made to put out bids for contractors to provide for the Coeur d'Alene District school busing.

Quinn Joseph McKasty, 16

McKasty, Quinn Joseph, 16, Of Post Falls, Idaho passed away on Friday, August 30th, 2013 from an acute head injury that he sustained in a car crash on Tuesday August 27, 2013. The damage to his brain was so extensive that we believe he died instantly, upon impact. Quinn is in heaven now, where no pain, no fear, and no sorrow can ever touch him. We are eternally grateful for the time we shared with him and will carry those special memoriesin our hearts forever. Quinn will be missed by his loving parents Jason and Julia White, sisters Coralynn, Reidynn and Jocelynn, younger brother Layton, half brother Kyle, Great Grandparents Grandmothers, Grandfathers, lots of aunts and uncles, and too manycousins to list! He was surrounded by those closest to him during his last three days in the hospital. Graciously many of us were given the chance to say our long goodbye to a young man whose life was just beginning. In addition to being an excellent guitar player, extremely hard worker, and talented artist Quinn had far too many wonderful, funny, heartwarming, talented things that he did in his short life to list. Quinn had spent six weeks in Alaska with his Nana and Papa working, fishing, Flying around in Papa's helicopter, swimming in the Bering Sea, and having the adventure of his life. He returned home to us on August 26th late in the evening. We had precious few hours with him before the crash that took his life less than 24 hours later. At 4:21 in the afternoon of August 27, 2013, our beautiful son and daughter were stopped at a red light when they were rear ended by a car with such force that it pushed them through the intersection and into another car. Quinn was the front seat passenger and his side of the car sustained the majority of the impact. Quinn's sister Coralynn, who was driving, walked away from the accident with only minor physical aches and pains, and we believe Quinn died instantly. These two simple facts we believe are miracles. Special thanks goes to all who witnessed this tragic accident and gave assistance to our beautiful children at the scene,to all of the friends and family that put their lives on hold to come support us, in our time of need, in the days following the crash at the hospital. And finally to the staff at the Kootenai Medical Center, especially Quinn's nurse Brenda, all of which were so kind and compassionate to us in our darkest days. May God bless all of you. A memorial and celebration of Quinn's life will be held at the Red Lion Templin's in Post Falls, Idaho, on Friday,October 11th at 6 PM. All are welcome to attend. Donations to help the family can be made to a donation account set up at Global Credit Union under the names Jason and Julia White. In honor of our beloved son Quinn's memory we ask that you drive safely, pay attention on the road and most importantly never drive impaired. Quinn, Joseph McKasty 11-1-1996 to 8-30-2013

The making of a great palate

We have all tasted with folks who have great palates. You know the ones. They can identify every nuance in the flavor and depth of wine as they taste. When we go to dinner with them, they pick wines that they know they will like, but also appeal to their guests' tastes. Much of this is natural talent, but the big question for wine consumers is, is there a way to develop those skills? A way to take our natural aromatic talent and move beyond its limitations to enhance our wine experience?