The Idaho Oneida County's News Since 1879 Malad City, Idaho
March 19, 2026 | Vol. 146 No. 12
$1.50
NEWS IN BRIEF Strait of Hormuz blocked
Major General (Ret) Brian Tarbet was the keynote speaker at the Lincoln Day Dinner. Here posing with Dave Colton with a replica of the Declaration of Independence.
Lincoln Day Dinner celebrates America at 250 This year’s Lincoln Day Dinner took place over the weekend at the Event Center, and in addition to the silent auction of a number of donated items, the focus of the evening was song, prayer, and inspiration. Special guest speaker Major General Brian Tarbet spoke powerfully on his experience in the armed forces and his views on the Founding Fathers. At the outset of the evening, Oneida County’s Bob Crowther welcomed Republican voters, candidates, and guests to the dinner by explaining a bit about the connection between Lincoln and Oneida County. “In 1863, Congress passed the Act creating the Idaho territory, and President Lincoln signed it…Two years later, in 1865, is when the Welsh immigrants came into the Malad Valley. And that’s why we tie ourselves to the Welsh— even if you don’t have any Welsh heritage and just make your way into the valley, we still call you Welsh. Is that okay?” Crowther laughed. Republican Region Representative Trent Clark announced from the audience that the Oneida Republican organization was actually the very first Republican organization in the Idaho Territory. Crowther also connected the Welsh origins of the valley to the night’s events. “One of our sayings I like is that Wales is ‘the land of song. To be born Welsh is to be born privileged.
Not with a silver spoon in your mouth, but music in your heart and poetry in your soul.’ So tonight, we’re going to have some music and some poetry to go along with your evening.” The colors were posted by members of the American Legion Ernest W. Jones Post 65 (Rick Madsen, Garry White, and Max Huggins), after which the pledge was given and Emily Christiansen and Carrie Jensen sang the national anthem. “We wanted to focus the evening on the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration, so we’ve done it a bit differently this year. We’re going to introduce all of the candidates, and you’re welcome to visit with them after the dinner, but we won’t actually be hearing from them.” D27 Senator Kelly Anthon, Representatives Douglas Pickett and Clay Handy were introduced, as was Paul Ross from the D27 Cassia County Central Committee. Trent Clark was present as Idaho Republican Region Chair. Representatives from Mike Crapo and Jim Risch’s offices were present as well. County officials Bill Lewis, Ken Eliason, Brian Jeppsen, Leigh Love, and Kathleen Atkinson were also present. Bryan Kerr is the Republican Committee Chair, supported by Karen Kerr. Hess Pumice and Hess Lumber and Home Center were thanked specifically for their help with the event.
Candidates running for office were then introduced, and you can find their names listed in an article on page 8 of this paper. After dinner, Bob Crowther introduced the poetry portion of the evening, by explaining that “Every year at the Welsh Festival, we name a bard. I went to three of our former bards and asked them if they would write a poem about the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and they did. In just a couple of days, the came up with a couple of wonderful poems, which are on your table.” The poems of Dotty Evanson and Jan Myers are reprinted in this paper on page 3. Former Bard Cory Webster was also present to recite from his work, as well as lead the crowd in a singa-long of the American classic “This Land is Your Land” with additional verses. Following the music, Dave Colton spoke by way of introducing Adjutant Gen. Brian Tarbet, whom he served under in the Utah National Guard. “No idea how I get into these things,” Colton laughed. He began by explaining that despite being in the service for twenty-five or thirty years, he had never seen an adjutant general before—“didn’t even know what one was.” However, “In 2000, Major General Brian Tarbet came on LINCOLN DAY On Page 3
Play Ball! New field officially opened for play
MHS Dragon baseball got off to an exciting start last week as it officially opened the season on the new home field. Part of the deal that brought the new Malad Elementary School building to fruition, the baseball and softball complex south of Malad High School is a remarkable asset to the community and a showpiece of a field. “Today marks the official opening of our brand new ball field here at Malad High School,” Athletic Director Ty Price said. “This field represents more than just dirt, grass, and fences—it represents opportunity, pride, hard work, and the future of Dragon baseball.” Price thanked the school board members who had been a part of the process throughout several years (Brent Evanson, Brandon Ward,
Dennis Evans threw out the ceremonial first pitch at MHS’ new ball field last week.
Chalae Teeples, Tresie Carter, Shane Howard, and Jared Crowther), as well as the District administration (Former superintendent Jon Abrams, current Superintendent Dallan Rupp, Principal Robert Hannah, and former AD Josh Smith), as well as the coaches,
athletes, community members, supporters, contractors, builders and donors who had made the field possible. “This field exists because of the commitment and belief this community BASEBALL On Page 11
INSIDE THE ENTERPRISE Evening of the Arts..............................Pg. 2 Lincoln Day Poems.............................Pg. 3 Puzzles................................................Pg. 6
Looking Back.......................................Pg. 7 Mr. MHS Results................................Pg. 10 Sports................................................ Pg. 12
A major development in the Iran conflict is the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important oil shipping routes. Iran has threatened or effectively blocked tanker traffic there, which disrupted about 20% of global oil supply and pushed oil prices above $110 per barrel. The United States has continued airstrikes, including a major raid on Iran’s Kharg Island, a crucial oil export hub, destroying many military targets there. Fighting has also spread across the region, with missile alerts, drone attacks, and disruptions to global shipping and aviation. The U.S. is urging allies to help secure shipping routes and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. In response, Iran has stated that the shipping lane is only closed to U.S. and Israeli vessels. The administration has spoken about increasing domestic oil production as a way to reduce fuel costs, but energy experts have cautioned that domestic production would not have much impact on the price, which is tied to global energy markets too fundamentally for U.S. supplies to impact.
2026 World Baseball Classic
The WBC has essentially taken on the legacy of Olympic baseball, and features national teams from almost two dozen countries, such as Japan, the United States, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Puerto Rico. The defending champion, Japan national baseball team, began strongly, including a 13–0 mercy-rule win over Chinese Taipei highlighted by a grand slam from Shohei Ohtani. Several notable results occurred during pool play. Italy’s national baseball team upset the United States national baseball team 8–6 in one of the tournament’s biggest surprises, while Canada defeated Puerto Rico 3–2 in another close matchup. In the knockout rounds, the United States reached the semifinals and defeated the Dominican Republic national baseball team 2–1. Home runs from Gunnar Henderson and Roman Anthony, along with strong pitching from Paul Skenes, secured the victory and advanced the Americans to the championship game. As of Tuesday, the United States has reached the final and will face the winner of the semifinal between Venezuela national baseball team and Italy national baseball team to decide the tournament champion.
Oscar Time
The 98th Academy Awards (Oscars) took place on March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, honoring films released in 2025. The ceremony was hosted by Conan O’Brien. The biggest winner of the night was the film “One Battle After Another,” directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. It won Best Picture and several other awards, including Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Film Editing, finishing with six Oscars overall. In the acting categories, Michael B. Jordan won Best Actor for his performance in Sinners, while Jessie Buckley won Best Actress for Hamnet. Supporting acting awards went to Sean Penn for One Battle After Another and Amy Madigan for Weapons. Other notable winners included Sinners for Best Cinematography and Best Original Score, the Norwegian film Sentimental Value for Best International Feature, and KPop Demon Hunters for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song.