David Brooks gives North Idaho Distinguished Lecture
805 people were in attendance
A bright light shined on the humanities Thursday evening as David Brooks addressed the largest crowd to ever attend the Idaho Humanities Council’s North Idaho Distinguished Lecture and Dinner at The Coeur d'Alene Resort.
Presenting Coeur d'Alene's first poet laureate: Jennifer Passaro
Coeur d'Alene has created a poet laureate program.
Former Borah School faces the future
Meeting space, church services, day care among options
The former Borah Elementary School isn't sitting vacant following its closure this spring.
Women's Gift Alliance celebrates 20 years of community impact
Avista's next CEO gives keynote speech
The first women to break cultural and corporate barriers have made it possible for more women to follow in their successful footsteps. This sentiment was at the heart of the speech delivered by Avista's first female CEO Heather Rosentrater, the keynote speaker of the Women's Gift Alliance's 20th anniversary celebration at the Hagadone Event Center. "You are the ones kicking down those doors so that others can walk through," Rosentrater said Tuesday evening, addressing the many Women's Gift Alliance members in room. "I'm excited tonight to just be a part of this."
Coeur d'Alene School District takes first step for potential sale of district office
Appraisal of Northwood Center Court building good for one year
The Coeur d'Alene School District has taken the first step toward the potential sale of its district office. Deputy Superintendent of Operations Seth Deniston presented an appraisal of the building during an executive session of the Coeur d'Alene School Board in September, which trustees voted to accept. “It’s the recommendation of our administration that you accept that appraisal and that we continue to keep an eye on the commercial real estate market," Deniston said during the Oct. 14 school board meeting. He said the district is keeping its eyes open for a different office, partly due to location.
Coeur d'Alene middle schoolers conquer cardboard boat challenge
The secret to staying afloat in a cardboard boat is duct tape. A lot of it. "We went through like nine rolls of duct tape," Woodland Middle School student Ryon Young said Monday evening. "But we patched up all the tiny seals and cracks and everything. I think that helped a lot."
Elks members distribute dictionaries to Coeur d'Alene third graders
Elks members distribute dictionaries to Coeur d'Alene third graders
The books were on the tables for mere seconds before Cathleen Martin's third graders began digging in, exploring definitions, planets, the Braille alphabet and a whole world of information. On the cover of copies of "A Student's Dictionary" was a quote by philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein: "The limits of your language are the limits of your world."
Avista Foundation donates $50K to Miracle on Britton
Avista Foundation donates $50K to Miracle on Britton
About $700,000 of the $1 million needed to build a neighborhood of 28 attainable "Miracle on Britton" homes has been raised. The Avista Foundation bolstered the funding pool Friday with a donation of $50,000.
Coeur d'Alene High School senior a Coca-Cola Scholar Semifinalist
A Coeur d'Alene High School senior is a 2025 Coca-Cola Scholar Semifinalist. Kyle Rohlinger, 17, of Coeur d'Alene, is part of the 1% of semifinalists chosen from more than 105,000 completed applications.
FAST FIVE Amy Privitt's cup runneth over for others
Meet Amy Privitt, executive director of faith-based nonprofit Cup of Grace Ministries. Amy and her team of volunteers work to serve the people of Spirit Lake and the surrounding communities. Visit cupofgrace.life for details.
Community Resource Fair offers support, info for students with special needs, disabilities
Community Resource Fair offers support, info for students with special needs, disabilities
Hunter Lange's smile was contagious as he visited different information tables and made a few new friends Wednesday evening. He and his mom, Danielle Lange, attended the Coeur d'Alene School District's Community Resource Fair at Venture Academy to scope out post-high-school possibilities for Hunter, 14, who will be graduating before they know it. He said he's interested in art and cooking. "I cook mac and cheese by myself," he said with his friendly smile.
Coeur d'Alene schools may standardize student threat response
Proposed policy out for public comment through Nov. 10
A newly proposed Coeur d'Alene School District policy would formalize and standardize protocols and procedures in the event of a student threat. In the face of a threat, the policy would require the school board to direct the superintendent or designee to develop and update a Student Threat Assessment Team to evaluate whether a student is making a threat or actually posing a threat to a school community.
Teachers, Coeur d'Alene School District agree on contract
An extended bargaining season has concluded for the Coeur d'Alene School District and the Coeur d'Alene Education Association. A tentative agreement between the district and the teachers' union was reached last week and officially ratified Monday. "It was good to just have this done," Coeur d'Alene Education Association President Aaron Hayes said Monday evening after presenting his report to trustees of the Coeur d'Alene School Board.
Carrico, McLeod named 2024 Vandal Outstanding Educators
Carrico, McLeod named 2024 Vandal Outstanding Educators
One's a Viking. One's a Trojan. They're both sharing that Vandal pride. Coeur d'Alene High School business teacher Antonio Carrico and Post Falls High School Choir Director Melody McLeod have been named 2024 Vandal Outstanding Educators by the University of Idaho's College of Education, Health and Human Sciences.
Interact Club to host Mental Performance Coaches Clinic on Monday
Interact Club to host Mental Performance Coaches Clinic on Monday
The Interact Club of Coeur d'Alene is inviting all area sports coaches to participate in a free Mental Performance Coaches Clinic from 5-7 p.m. Monday at the Kroc Center. "While we’ve focused on Mental Health for the past few years, we really wanted to work to approach it from different angles," Interact Club President Joel Bryan said Tuesday.
Shakespeare Coeur d'Alene's 'Macbeth' runs through Oct. 26
Shakespeare Coeur d'Alene's 'Macbeth' runs through Oct. 26
The first actor to audition for Shakespeare Coeur d’Alene is playing the eponymous lead in the nonprofit's production of "Macbeth." "It’s iconically goth. What could be cooler than that?" actor Nick Kittilstved said during a Sept. 24 rehearsal. “As somebody who was obsessed with Tim Burton when I was in high school, this is like a dream come true for me."
Bag and Boob Babes makes comfort items for breast cancer patients, survivors
Bag and Boob Babes makes comfort items for breast cancer patients, survivors
Losing a body part — a limb, a finger, a breast — is never easy. "When we have parts of our body amputated, there’s something missing," Stephanie Keaty, 58, of Hayden, said Tuesday. "When breasts are amputated, as in a mastectomy, something’s gone." Keaty underwent bilateral mastectomy operations not once, but twice following her initial breast cancer diagnosis in 2005.
Theme park donates over $38,256 to local food banks
Theme park donates over $38,256 to local food banks
It's been a Silverwood Theme Park tradition for at least 15 years. A portion of ticket sales from Community Appreciation Weekends in September are collected and distributed to area food banks, which in turn help community members who are struggling to make ends meet. This year, Silverwood and its guests raised more than $38,256 to support the Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, Athol and Bonner Community food banks as well as Second Harvest, which serves 280 independent agencies across the Inland Northwest.
STEP in for a slice
Students with disabilities gain work experience at Wonder Crust Pizza
The pies were slinging and the pizza man was singing the praises of his young helpers Tuesday morning at Wonder Crust Pizza in Coeur d'Alene. "I love this so much," Wonder Crust partner/owner Nick Stafford said during one of his many trips back and forth to the kitchen. "It's so much fun."
Garden Club distributes 2024 Garden Tour funds
Garden Club distributes 2024 Garden Tour funds
The Coeur d'Alene Garden Club awarded $13,600 to local organizations during a check presentation Tuesday at the Coeur d'Alene Public Library. The funds come from the club's annual Garden Tour, a popular summer event that invites gardening enthusiasts of every spot and stripe to enjoy the creativity and work of local green thumbs.
American Legion invites high school students to participate in speech contest
American Legion invites high school students to participate in speech contest
It's never too early to learn about the United States Constitution and how America came to be guided by its forward-thinking Founding Fathers. American Legion Post 143 in Post Falls is encouraging young people to delve deeper into the nation's guiding principles, commit them to memory and share their knowledge with others through the American Legion High School Oratorical Contest.
North Idaho College Workforce Training Center celebrates 30 years
Open house from 3 to 5 p.m. Monday
It's been 30 years since North Idaho College's Workforce Training Center opened doors of opportunity to the community. Over three decades, this extension of the local community college has provided countless hours of training opportunities as well as helped local workers fulfill certification requirements and expand their skillsets. It also serves as another avenue for those seeking higher education to consider building their futures around business and professional development, computers and technology, emergency services, trades and industry, health care and more.
Prairie Home Farm to host 20th anniversary party Sunday
Prairie Home Farm to host 20th anniversary party Sunday
Children scoured the pumpkin patch, throwing their arms around the autumn orange gourds and testing their weight. Once they picked the perfect pumpkins, they scampered away to climb on the tire swing, pet the pigs or enjoy a close encounter with the most docile turkey with a most colorful rainbow wing. “This is my pumpkin. I’m going to carve it,” Genesis Preparatory Academy kindergartner Jenna Jackman said Wednesday morning, holding her prized produce. "Do you want to come see the turkey now?”
From canned food to fresh: Coeur d'Alene schools transform lunch
Coeur d'Alene School District contracts with SFE for nutrition services
School has been in session for a month, and with the new school year came a big change to the Coeur d'Alene School District's meal program. Trustees of the school board voted July 8 to outsource the district's nutrition services to Southwest Foodservice Excellence, a chef-led company based in Scottsdale, Ariz. “Nutrition services has struggled in several key areas over the last few years,” Deputy Superintendent of Operations Seth Deniston said during his presentation to the board.
The new gold: Small farms cope with cost of water
Gordon Sylte’s father fled the Dust Bowl of the Dakotas and came West in 1934. When he arrived in Washington and there was mud on the ground rather than dry dirt, he felt relief after not seeing any rain for seven years.
FAST FIVE Blair Williams cultivates a community of creativity and kindness
Meet Blair Williams, a Creative Placemaker, owner of the Art Spirit Gallery in downtown Coeur d'Alene and board member of the Idaho Humanities Council.
Lake City Playhouse to present 'The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged)'
Lake City Playhouse to present 'The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged)'
Three local actors will be working hard for the Bard when they light up the Lake City Playhouse stage with "The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged)," opening at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 11.
Panel tackles Idaho's Proposition 1 at Coeur d'Alene forum
Panelists discuss open primaries, ranked-choice voting initiative
A concern about ranked-choice voting is that it splits the number of votes from the majority party and paves the way to victory for minority candidates. Luke Mayville recently had this discussion with someone who asked if that's what happened in the 1992 presidential election when Bill Clinton won with 42% of the vote because Ross Perot ran against George H.W. Bush, splitting the conservative vote. "The answer to that is if they had had ranked-choice voting, it would have solved that problem," he said.
State funding boosts school security: Lakeland, Plummer-Worley expand safety teams
The Lakeland Joint and Plummer-Worley school districts are among 27 Idaho districts and charter schools that will be awarded state funding for school resource officers.
Coeur d'Alene group distributes nearly 600 pounds of produce to restaurant workers
Brussels sprouts, monster squashes and a colorful array of peppers of every level of heat were among nearly 600 pounds of food PB and J Haydeners distributed Monday morning at First Presbyterian Church.
Contract negotiations continue in Coeur d'Alene School District
More work left to be done after third meeting; next session date to be announced
More negotiating is ahead for teams representing the Coeur d'Alene School District and Coeur d'Alene Education Association following a more than two-hour Friday meeting.
FAST FIVE Shane Clark celebrates Native culture through cuisine
Meet Shane Clark, the chef-owner of Pow'Waw Food Truck in Post Falls.
Coeur d'Alene schools' Growing the STEM program builds student leaders
Student coaches learn the mentoring ropes through Growing the STEM
Generating student excitement around science, technology, engineering and math is one of many aspects of the Growing the STEM nonprofit. It's also a training ground for student coaches who foster positive relationships with other students, build leadership skills and learn how to be good role models for their younger counterparts.
'Servanthood of Song'
Former Chorale Cd'A director pens book chronicling history of American church music
Music is a foundational piece of the human experience, especially woven into the fabric of American church and congregation history. Stan McDaniel, a former artistic director of Chorale Coeur d'Alene, has chronicled that history in his comprehensive 800-page book, "Servanthood of Song."
Raising awareness, support for human trafficking victims, survivors
Oct. 5 event will benefit Safe Harbor nonprofit
About twice a week, anti-human-trafficking nonprofit Safe Harbor founder Angie Sedore and her volunteers hear from local families in need of help and support.
Cheers to education
Coeur d'Alene schools welcome new teachers at Chamber event
The Coeur d'Alene School District's 2024 Teacher of the Year encouraged his colleagues to raise a glass and celebrate. "Cheers to a great first month of school," Lakes Middle School math teacher Marcus Ross said Wednesday evening just as dusk settled and an abrupt thunderstorm rolled out of town.
Post Falls students are weld on their way at Elevate Academy
Elevate Academy middle schoolers participating in showcases this week
Elevate Academy North in Post Falls welcomed its first wave of seniors at the start of this school year, and things are humming right along for every grade level.
Welcome to Scare School: As Silverwood becomes Scarywood, actors hone their spooky skills
From pop scares to creative costuming, Scarywood delivers harrowing Halloween experiences
A spooktastic Halloween experience calls for an eerie, bone-chilling atmosphere, ghastly ghouls lurking in dark corners, haunted attractions that turn the blood cold and well-timed, well-planned jump scares that send the unwitting running for their lives.
Fernan teacher wins Educator of the Year
"As artists, we're going to stretch and explore," Fernan STEM Academy art teacher Leatha Morgan said Wednesday to the kindergartners in her classroom.
FAST FIVE Child safety is No. 1 for Brian Rauscher
Meet Brian Rauscher, who has lived in the Coeur d'Alene area since 1997. Brian has a bachelor's in petroleum engineering from the Montana Tech of the University of Montana and has dabbled in engineering, entrepreneurship and nonprofit work. Brian finally found his passion, working with and advocating for the health and safety of children, while working in the foster care system.
Something about a cemetery
Peace, sorrow, wonder are found beyond the gates on hallowed ground
Wonder, curiosity and sorrow mix with reverence and reverie when I step beyond the gates and into the sacred space where those who have gone before me are interred.
CLN adults-only area proposal goes nowhere, for now
Network's new director weighs in on draft policy, role of libraries
A Community Library Network trustee's proposed policy to lock away objectionable materials in cabinets, closets or other adults-only areas is going nowhere, for now.
Post Falls author announces new novel, iHeart Radio show spot
Post Falls author announces new novel, iHeart Radio show spot
A Post Falls author and producer with a passion and flair for Western culture has released a new book and will soon co-host a new show on the iHeart Radio.
Under 30? You may need your ID for that book
Community Library Network to discuss adults-only policy at meeting today
The Community Library Network will discuss its Library Cards for Minors Policy and Trustee Tim Plass' Aug. 8 draft of an Adult-Access Only Restricted Area Policy during a regular meeting of the board from 2-5 p.m. today at the Post Falls Library.
East Side Fire earns Idaho Transportation Department award
East Side Fire District in Harrison has been honored as the Outstanding Group of the Year for 2023 by the Idaho Transportation Department’s Adopt-A-Highway program.
Idaho economist: Strong labor market propping up economy
The Federal Reserve is expected to begin announcing rate cuts today for the first time in five years. “This is a really big deal because interest rates have been abnormally high by our recent standards,” said Sam Wolkenhauer, the Idaho Department of Labor's North Idaho economist.
Parkinson's Support Group to host Davis Phinney Foundation on Friday
Free event will be held at Coeur d'Alene Public Library
Parkinson's disease doesn't care how many races you've won, even if you're Olympic Bronze medalist and Tour de France champ Davis Phinney.
A look at transforming public education
Author, Discovery Institute senior fellow Don Nielsen speaks at luncheon
Major change to public education is not brought about by schools, school districts or the federal government. It all comes down to the state. "If we want to fix our schools, it has to be changes of state laws, state codes in order to get a new type of public education system,” Don Nielsen said Thursday during a presentation Thursday at The Coeur d'Alene Resort.
Spiritual connection: Calling out to the other side
Hospice of North Idaho unveils grief tool Telephone of the Wind
If you could pick up the phone and call a loved one who has died, who would you call? What would you say?
Safe Start helping rural communities during Child Passenger Safety Week
Car seat experts from the Safe Start Infant and Child Health and Safety nonprofit are hitting the road for National Child Passenger Safety Week.