North Idaho

Children's Village is collecting new and gently used furniture, lamps, rugs and pictures to be sold on June 11th to raise funds for the direct care of the children that live at the Village.Dr. Anne C. Fox-Clarkson, who was an elementary school principal in Coeur d'Alene, ID, founded the Children's Village, Inc. In 1983, Dr. Fox-Clarkson made a promise to a brother and sister that she would build them a home, as they had suffered child abuse. Two parents from her school agreed to help her, Carol Rankin and Kathy Curran. With the wonderful support of many volunteers and businesses, the 15 acres were purchased and two homes were built.On a daily basis, the Village can serve up to 22 residents. Healing children has been the Village goal since the doors opened in 1990.

The weather right now doesn't having many of us yearning to get out on the water, but it does have the Benewah County Sheriff's Office issuing a no wake zone. It's issued a no wake on the St. Joe and St. Maries River because of high waters. It's worried about protecting dikes and lakefront property. The reminder comes as Chief Meteorologist Kris Crocker forecasts sun and near 80 degree temperatures for this weekend, which means boaters will be more likely to get out on the rivers and lakes. The Benewah County Sheriff's Office says there is a no tolerance in the no wake zone. Tickets range from $67.50 to $224. You can also be liable for any property damage you cause.

Northwest ENERGY STAR will provide an extra draw at the North Idaho College Foundation Really BIG Raffle open houses in June. As part of the ENERGY STAR "Welcome Home" campaign, those in attendance at the June 5 and June 12 open houses will have the chance to complete a survey on the features of the raffle house and enter to win $25,000.  As an ENERGY STAR home, this year's raffle house is loaded with special features including a high efficiency heat pump, granite kitchen counters and eco-friendly flooring. "We were thrilled to have our home sponsored as one of Northwest ENERGY STAR event entries," said Kristen McFadden, NIC Really BIG Raffle event coordinator. "The NIC carpentry students who build this house have worked incredibly hard this year to make this home a great example of energy efficiency and sustainability and they deserve the recognition. It is also a fantastic opportunity for our community supporters to enter in the ENERGY STAR contest to win more great prizes." 

Coeur d'Alene Police arrested a 34-year-old man for trying to pay a grandmother for her granddaughters.Officers responded to the area of North 3rd Street Wednesday afternoon and learned Shan Anderson tried to lure kids twice.The first happened at the same location earlier in the day. Police say Anderson tried to lure a young boy walking home from school. He then offered a grandmother money in exchange for her granddaughters.

One of the largest forests in the Inland Northwest is growing Indoors.  More than one million trees are under one roof alone at the US Forest Service's Coeur d'Alene Nursery.    The Nursery grows tree, shrub and grass seedlings for national forests in North Idaho, Montana and North Dakota.  "We lose trees in the forest from fire, insect, disease and harvest," Nursery Superintendent Joe Myers said.   "We want to reestablish that vegetation."  The Coeur d'Alene Nursery has supplied more than 700 million seedlings in the past 50 years.  Trees are grown for reforestation projects in places like Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks.  Seedlings cannot be purchased by the public and are grown for federal lands.  Plants are grown indoors in 23 greenhouses and outdoors on the 240 acre facility west of Coeur d'Alene.  One greenhouse is kept at a constant 70-degrees and grows tree seedlings in six to eight months that would take two to three years if planted outside.

A group of Coeur d'Alene teens say they were beat up and robbed by another group of teens and a man on Tubbs Hill Tuesday night.Coeur d'Alene Police say the three teens had just met a group of five people, including one adult man in his 30's, and walked with them from a parking lot to Tubbs Hill.They were about 200 yards up the hill when they were attacked by the group and beaten up, though no serious injuries were reported. They took money from their wallets and also the teen's cell phone.

Animal lovers across the state are gathering signatures in hopes that voters will decide to make animal cruelty a felony in 2012. Virginia Hemingway, the founder of Stop Torturing Our Pets, says Idaho is just one of three states that don't have felony penalties for the most extreme animal cruelty cases, nor for repeat offenders. Hemingway's group, along with other animal welfare groups across the state, are working together to try to gather more than 47,000 signatures by next April to get their initiative on the ballot. Jeff Rosenthal, director of the Idaho Humane Society, says the state's largest animal welfare group supports the initiative and will do what it can to help.

The Kootenai County Sheriff's Office, Coeur d'Alene Police Department and Idaho State Police were in a standoff with a possible suicidal woman early Monday morning that ended without incident.The standoff started sometime around 4:30 a.m. in the 1600 block of East Nedddleton Gulch Road on reports on two shots fired. Police shut down the portion of Neddleton Gulch between 17th Street and 15th Street, which is a major thoroughfare in Coeur d'Alene.Central Dispatch in North Idaho reported the woman was threatening suicide from inside a home in that area following a domestic dispute. They could not confirm if he also had a gun or was considered dangerous to others, though witnesses reported seeing officers with their guns drawn. No other homes were evacuated in the area.

The Hagadone Marine Group is hosting the Boats Afloat show this weekend and it's excited to announce the lake is open for boating this weekend. According to predictions from Avista and the National Weather Service, the lake will not reach flood stage, which means there will be no restrictions in effect for boaters. to the lake level prediction, showing the lake staying well below the flood stage.    

I recently noticed that the city of Coeur d'Alene has bumped up some of its fees and I guess it is my own fault for not knowing that it had happened. The reason they say they have raised some fees is to offset the cost of providing certain services. Namely parking and garbage.The most commonly used city parking will stay the same - the first two free hours will continue to be free, and monthly parking passes won't actually increase as the initial proposal had called for. (Here is a link to that proposal page: Parking Fee increases)

There's been flooding all over Idaho recently, but it's not the only state experiencing disaster. Flooding is sweeping through Montana closing roads and isolating communities. There's flood warnings from Great Falls down to Dillon, a flood advisory for Kalispell, up to Eureka and flood watches for many counties in between. The Great Falls Tribune has a slide show of over 50 photos showcasing the disaster in the area. It includes everything from washed out roads to rushing water through homes and camp sites.

As families celebrate the Memorial Day weekend with cookouts and camping trips, our nation will honor Memorial Day by flying flags at half-staff.In accordance with a resolution passed by Congress in 1950, President Barack Obama has declared Monday a "day of prayer for permanent peace." The President has directed the nation to reflect with prayer at 11:00 am and to observe the National Moment of Remembrance beginning at 3:00 pm on Memorial Day. In his proclamation, President Obama says, "As a grateful Nation, we forever carry the selfless sacrifice of the fallen in our hearts, and we share the task of caring for those they left behind."Idaho will honor Memorial Day by flying flags at the Idaho State Capitol and other state buildings and facilities to fly at half-staff until noon on Memorial Day.

Memorial Day is a federal holiday honoring our men and women who have died while in the United States Military Service.   In times past it was known as Decoration Day with the first one being celebrated in honor of those who had died during the American Civil War; later becoming inclusive of all wars. There will be a service at Evergreen Cemetery, 2834 N. Spokane St., Post Falls, Idaho, May 30 from 11am-12pm in honor of this day.  The American Legion Post 143 will be performing the Color Guard while Mayor Clay Larkin and Lauren Smith, Post Falls Young Woman of Distinction will place a wreath at the Veteran's Niche.  Rep. Bob Nonini is the keynote speaker.  Please come join us, as all are invited.

Several popular campgrounds in North Idaho will be closed over Memorial Day weekend because of flooding and a lingering snow pack. The Idaho Panhandle National Forest said this year half a dozen campgrounds will be closed until further notice. In some places, there is still 10 to 15 feet of snow at the entrance of the campsites, making it impossible to get in. 

We're leading up to Memorial Day weekend, which some call the start of summer in terms of vacation time. Memorial Day itself dates back to just after the American Civil War. The City of Hayden will be holding their Memorial Day ceremonies this Monday start at 10 a.m. A memorial wreath will be laid out on Honeysuckle Beach honoring those service men and women lost and sea. The ceremony will include a prayer, rifle salute and taps. More ceremonies take place through out the day as described by the City's website.

Just below you'll see what the Coeur d'Alene city boat launch is supposed to look like. The ramp slopes up from the beach that leads to the floating dock. If you look at the picture above, taken today, you'll notice that they're four feet under water. Word of advice, unless you're an Olympic athlete, the distance from the beach to the dock is not jumpable.

Any adult can tell you reading is important. A kid might be able to do the same, but in a kid's world other things are likely to take priority over opening up a book. So Silverwood Theme Park gives children incentive to do it. Free tickets to the largest theme and water park in the Northwest to every kid that completes 10 hours of recreational reading. It's called Reading Is The Ticket and the program just reached it's $10 million mark in free donated tickets. The program began in 1999. This year, it gave out almost 60,000 tickets to kids from kindergarten to 8th grade. And now, kids at Skyway Elementary in Coeur d'Alene are getting an even bigger surprise. Garfield the cat is set to visit the school next week, a reward for having the highest number of readers in Reading Is The Ticket. Educators who want to enroll their students in the program next year should call Knowledge Unlimited at 800-356-2303.

The Gallup Poll reports Idaho is the fourth most stressed state in the nation. Word on the street, exercise is a stress buster. If you're stressed, why not hop on a bicycle? Idaho residents might kill two birds with one stone by doing so.

The latest results from the League of American Bicyclists are out. Your neighbor, the state of Washington, leads the nation for Bicycle Friendly America, an annual award. Idaho, however, is a roller coaster of emotions.When the organization began the awards in 2008,  [.PDF], ranking 37th in the nation. In 2009, they began to inch their way up to 34th. Last year, they saw their biggest improvement, leaping to 26th.

Looking for a pre-Ironman challenge?  Or how about a reason to drag your friends out on the trail?  If you answered yes to either of these questions, then you might want to know about North Idaho College's seventh annual adventure race.  The race, which is scheduled for Saturday, June 18th, incorporates paddling, trail running, mountain biking, special challenges and navigation trials.  NIC Outdoor Pursuits Coordinator, Jon Totten, says that specific details of the challenge will not be released until just before the race to ensure participants retain their sense of adventure.  Teams of two or four members in co-ed, all-male or all-female divisions must register by June 13.  The cost is $70 per person if you register before June 6th.  After that date the cost goes up to $80 per person.  Though the adventure race is designed to be a team event, for those that are unable to convince their friends to race, a solo division has been added this year.