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HAILEY NEWS
City, Nonprofit Team Up PG 5
SUN VALLEY
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DOVE
Changing Frequencies PG 9
City Mgr. To Retire PG 4
HAILEY
BELLEVUE
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WOOD RIVER WEEKLY
YOUR VOICE IN THE WOOD RIVER VALLEY
Free | Mar 9 - 22, 2022 | Vol. 3 - No. 5 | woodriverweekly.com
“Where flowers bloom, so does hope.”
A NO WIND SOLUTION – Lady Bird Johnson
The Minidoka National Historic Site, a Japanese internment camp during World War II, is one area of impact within the Lava Ridge project since the 400 wind turbines could be seen from the visitor center. Photo credit: Dainee Gibson-Webb
1,000-megawatt producing, 400 wind turbine proposal generates scrutiny
E
By Eric Valentine
verybody likes the idea of green energy. Add windmills to that mix, and most folks still get images of Dutch landscapes, not goofy cancer-causing
The green dot is where the windmills are proposed to be placed. Various studies indicate that large wind turbines in a western landscape can be visible to the human eye up to 36 miles away. Source: BLM
claims. But when a project for up to 400 wind turbines with a maximum height of 740 feet each—the Seattle Space Needle is 605 feet—is proposed in your neck of the woods, a different level of scrutiny typically kicks in and questions start blowing in the wind. The Lava Ridge Wind Energy Project, as it’s called by the U.S. Department of the Interior, is proposed by Magic Valley Energy, a subsidiary of LS Power, which has developed significant renewable, transmission, and other energy projects across the U.S. It would be constructed on BLM-managed public land in southern Idaho, approximately 25 miles northeast of Twin Falls. It could generate 1,000 megawatts, which loosely translated means it could power up about 12,000 homes a year. “Renewable wind projects are a critical component of the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to confronting climate change, promoting clean air and water for our current and future generations, creating thousands of good-paying union jobs, and jump-starting our country’s transition to a clean energy future,” said Deb Haaland, the Biden Administration’s Secretary of Interior. “At the Interior Department, we are doing our part to ensure these projects are done thoughtfully and avoid impacts to surrounding communities.” For Diana Nielson, a concerned citizen who lives southwest of the project and owns property in the area of impact, too, that impact to surrounding communities is flying under the radar. Nielson said her calls to attention had started to make headway, including interest from The Sean Hannity Show. “And then the war in Ukraine broke out,” Nielson said.
Nielson is not anti-renewable energy, nor is she pro-fossil fuel. She does believe hydro power is the best alternative energy for Idaho, but has no particular stake in that industry. Among Nielson’s concerns is that wind energy solutions are not as “renewable” as they sound. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, a quality, modern wind turbine will generally last for 20 years. “And they have no reclamation plan!” Nielson adds. Although such a plan would have to come at some point in the future, that doesn’t allay Nielson’s concerns now which, among other things, include: • Impact to fowl—wind turbines kill approximately 681,000 birds each year in the U.S. (American Bird Conservancy) • Impact to fauna—the proposal area is a corridor for wildlife • Impact to soil—batteries used in a wind turbine project affects soil quality • Impact to hunting units “Hailey and Ketchum like their dark skies. Where are the dark sky ordinance people on this?” Nielson asked.
Continued A NO WIND SOLUTION Page 2
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NEWS
ENVIRONMENT
Lava Ridge Continued from Page 1
She’s Not Alone It may not feel like it to her, but Nielson is not alone in her concerns. Last fall, the Idaho Conservation League—which supports renewable energy overall—published a blog noting the impacts of a project like this. Some excerpts from the article by Dainee Gibson: • “Each wind turbine foundation would require around 21,600 gallons of water for the turbine foundations. The primary land use in the proposed project area is agriculture. It is important to consider the impact of this much water use on the local water supply, which is already limited. On the other hand, additional renewable energy projects will help mitigate carbon dioxide pollution that furthers climate change, which is currently causing droughts and water shortages throughout the region. • “Some of the wildlife that could be impacted by the project include pronghorn and mule deer, which migrate through the proposed project area and are especially reliant on the project area during the winter months. • “Another impact from the project: the wind turbines would be visible from Minidoka National Historic Site. Minidoka was one of the isolated internment sites that held unjustly relocated and incarcerated Japanese Americans during World War II.” The Coalition To Protect America’s National Parks—a 2,000-member organization of retired, former, or current National Park Service employees—penned a scathing tome of a letter to Kasey Prestwich, the project manager for Lava Ridge. The group cites 12 core issues in its comments to the BLM and provides four areas in which they claim the BLM has failed in its management responsibilities. The group provides eight specific steps it expects the BLM to take.
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Editor’s Note: For convenient links to these letters, articles, project descriptions and more, please check out this story online at WoodRiverWeekly.com
How to participate in the scoping process: •
Attend the virtual scoping meetings to learn more about the project and ask questions. • Visit the BLM’s project website https://go.usa.gov/xFKxg. Click on the “Participate Now” button to the right of the document link. • Sign up for the project mailing list to receive project updates or submit comments by emailing: BLM_ID_LavaRidge@blm.gov • Mail comments to: Kasey Prestwich, Project Manager, BLM Shoshone Field Office, 400 West F Street, Shoshone, ID 83352 • For more information regarding the public scoping meetings or the proposed project, contact Kasey Prestwich, phone 208-732-7204, email kprestwich@blm.gov.
Happy St. Paddy’s Day
NEWS
IN BRIEF
Two SV Community School Seniors Recognized For Academic Excellence Sun Valley Community School senior Maria Mendoza has been named a semifinalist for the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation’s Cooke College Scholarship and senior Ben Colbeck was named a National Merit Scholarship Finalist. Mendoza was one of 411 student semifinalists chosen out of a pool of more than 5,300 applications. Semifinalist applications will be reviewed again to choose approximately 60 finalists to receive the scholarship. The 2022 Cooke College finalists will be announced in April. This highly selective scholarship provides high-achieving students with financial need up to $55,000 annually for four years of college, to enable them to attend a top college or university. Cooke College Scholars are selected based on exceptional academic ability and achievement, financial need, persistence, and leadership. As for Colbeck, the National Merit Scholarship Program recently named him a finalist from among 16,000 semifinalists named in September. Around half of the National Merit Scholarship Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship of Maria Mendoza and Ben Colbeck. $2,500, earning the title of National Merit Schol- Photo credits: Sun Valley Community ar title. National Merit Scholarship winners of School 2021 will be publicly announced in the spring.
Democrats Have ‘Change Of Toone’
After six years of serving in the Idaho House of Representatives, Democrat Sally Toone will not seek reelection, the Blaine County Democrats announced late last month. Statewide redistricting placed Toone’s hometown of Gooding into District 24 for the 2022 elections. “Sally’s passion for public education was demonstrated daily on the legislature floor while her love of ranching and farming was represented in countless hours of committee work,” Karen Bliss, the Blaine County Democrats chair, said. In the hopes of replacing Toone, Democrat Karma Fitzgerald has announced her candidacy for the District 26 Seat B position.
Hemingway STEAM School Earns STEM Status
Blaine County School District announced that its Hemingway STEAM School has been officially certified by Cognia as an official science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) school. It’s an effort the school’s staff has been working toward the past five years. Now that it has been approved for accreditation, Hemingway STEAM will receive an annual stipend from the Idaho STEM Action Center. “Hemingway has achieved STEM certification while maintaining its original commitment to integrate the arts. This was no easy task and we are proud of our staff for this achievement,” said Jim Foudy, Superintendent of the Blaine County School District.
Hailey’s Senior Center Marches For Meals
The Senior Connection will be participating in the 20th Annual March For Meals, a month-long, nationwide celebration of Meals on Wheels and the senior citizens who rely on this essential service to remain healthy and independent at home. “We’ve experienced a 400% increase in the demand for our services in Blaine County since COVID struck our community,” said Teresa Beahen Lipman, The Senior Connection executive director. “We have been in awe of the outpouring of support, and there’s still much we can do to ensure everyone in need of our vital lifeline can benefit from being well-nourished and more connected to our community.” The annual March for Meals celebration commemorates the day in March of 1972 when President Nixon signed into law a measure that amended the Older Americans Act of 1965 to include a national nutrition program for seniors 60 years and older. Since 2002, Meals on Wheels programs from across the country have joined forces for the annual awareness campaign to celebrate this public-private partnership and garner the support needed to fill the gap between the seniors served and those still in need. “The pandemic has introduced many of us to the newfound and harsh realities of food insecurity and social isolation, something that far too many seniors experience as their daily norm. More than ever, we must rally around our essential community-based programs that serve as lifelines to a growing number of people in need, to enable their own long-term vitality,” said Ellie Hollander, president and CEO of Meals on Wheels America. “Even when we make it through this unprecedented time in our nation’s history, there will still be millions of vulnerable older adults who will rely on that familiar knock on the door that provides peace of mind and hope beyond the meal itself.” Hailey’s Grocery Outlet and Atkinsons’ Markets across the Valley have committed to supporting March for Meals and The Senior Connection’s Meals on Wheels program. For information on how to donate to The Senior Connection, ask at checkout or online at seniorconnectionidaho.org/donate.
W O O D R I V E R W E E K LY
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MARCH 9 - 22, 2022
WRW STAFF PUBLISHER Christopher Seldon (208) 788-4789 publisher@woodriverweekly.com
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MARKETING & SALES Mandi Iverson (208) 721-7588 mandi@woodriverweekly.com NEWS EDITOR Eric Valentine news@woodriverweekly.com COPY EDITOR Patty Healey PRODUCTION & DESIGN Mandi Iverson mandi@woodriverweekly.com Christopher Seldon chris@woodriverweekly.com ACCOUNTING accounting@woodriverweekly.com DEADLINES Display & Classified Ads, Monday 5 p.m. Calendar Submissions — Friday 5 p.m. CONTACT Wood River Weekly P.O. Box 3483 Hailey, Idaho 83333 (208) 788-4789 woodriverweekly.com
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PUBLISHER’S NOTE Hello Valley Residents,
While we are still hoping for precipitation in any form in the coming weeks, and with the COVID-19 pandemic finally on the wane, we know spring is just around the corner and hope everyone stays safe and well as the seasons change. We will still publish every other week, with the aim of going weekly as soon as conditions are suitable. We at Wood River Weekly wish all our readers, advertisers and columnists health and success. Cheers! Chris & Mandi
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W O O D R I V E R W E E K LY
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MARCH 9 - 22, 2022
NEWS
REMODEL YOUR BATHROOM
ALL HAIL HAILEY’S HEATHER Retiring City Admin goes from ‘a leap’ of faith appointee to City Hall figurehead over 32 years
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By Eric Valentine
ow does a city manage its affairs when it knows by June it will no longer have its longtime leader at the helm? With a calm and steady hand, apparently, if the city is anything like Hailey and its leader anything like Heather Dawson. Last week, the 14-year city administrator, along with Mayor Martha Burke, announced to staff and then the public that May 31 will be Dawson’s last day as a city employee, something she has been here for 32 years. “It’s time to prioritize my family,” Dawson said. “Circumstances in my personal life have led me to this difficult decision.” City of Hailey administrator Heather The Tao of City Hall Dawson. Photo credit: Heather What won’t be difficult about Dawson Dawson’s decision is the transition to new leadership, she says. A three-month period has been planned for an orderly transition within city government. And with a sort of Zen-like mindset and grace, the martial arts black belt offered this: “The team we have in place at the City of Hailey is highly capable, creative and vibrant. Each transition affords an organization the opportunity to improve itself. This will be one of those opportunities.” Dawson’s comment can evoke thoughts of “The Art of War” and its most famous line, “Every battle is won before it’s ever fought,” attributed to Sun Tzu, a Chinese military strategist and Taoist philosopher whose 6th-century B.C. teachings are widely used in business by managers today. It at least partly describes how Mayor Burke is approaching the change. “It will be a challenge to replace Heather, who has been a gift and a strength to the city,” Mayor Burke said. “In the mandated operations of city government, with so many required nuts, bolts, and processes, she brings a deep knowledge of people, along with so much institutional knowledge. She is highly analytical and deeply intuitional both at the same time. We will miss her, but know as well as anyone that life becomes shorter each year. We wish Heather and her family our very best.” The How of Heather In the late 1980s, Dawson was a Blaine County jury clerk at the time current school board president Keith Roark had been elected prosecutor. Roark said he was always impressed with her skillset and when he was elected mayor of Hailey in 1990, it was Dawson he recruited for city clerk to help him steer the ship. In a media interview, Dawson had once called Roark’s appointment of her “a leap” of faith. “The city clerk job was a leap for Heather,” Roark said Monday. “It requires a broader range of responsibilities and a greater depth of knowledge than the deputy clerk positions did at the time. Heather jumped in, learned everything she needed to know without any training and proved herself to be the city’s most valued employee in no time. Most people don’t really know or care who the city clerk is, but without a top-notch individual in that office, there is no way a parttime mayor and city council will be able to stay on top of the business of governing.” Roark added, “Nice job, Heather. You’ve made a huge contribution to the betterment of Hailey and saved more than one mayor from disaster with your knowledge and work ethic.” For the last 14 years, Dawson’s role has been city administrator, the highest non-elected position in city government. But if the position ever were an elected one, it’d be hard to imagine Dawson not winning in a landslide. She has the respect of longtime residents, city staff, and the business community, too. “Heather is an unsung hero for Hailey. She mostly stayed behind the scenes serving as a driving force for our community for decades. While the mayor and city council have varied over the years, Heather has been the steady and compassionate leader at the helm for Hailey,” said Mike McKenna, the local chamber of commerce director. “She has helped guide The Chamber to create top-notch local events and an environment where local businesses and nonprofits can thrive. She has helped Hailey grow into one of the best places to live, work and play in Idaho. We’ve been lucky to have her.” In her 32-year career with the City of Hailey, Dawson served under the leadership of eight mayors. That’s a chronic amount of change requiring someone who can roll with the punches. And Dawson did. “Each mayor brought differing perspectives and style to city government, and with each transition it was like getting a new job, each time with a bit more experience behind me,” Dawson said. “This work’s mission has been critically fundamental, the effort fruitful and deeply rewarding. I will truly miss it.”
W O O D R I V E R W E E K LY
NEWS
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MARCH 9 - 22, 2022
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HOUSING, HUNGER
CRISIS PAIRING
Hunger Coalition, City of Ketchum team up to take on housing, hunger challenges
D
By Eric Valentine
evelopment in a capitalist society can make for interesting bedfellows. And when it comes to wrapping one’s head around the overlap here of food insecurity and an affordable housing crisis, any partnership that helps the Valley’s working class can’t come soon enough. The Hunger Coalition is partnering with a City of Ketchum task force to help address the affordable housing crisis and resulting hunger crisis in Blaine County. In 2021, The Hunger Coalition provided food for 1 in 4 local people and 2,330 of them were new to the organization, indicating both a population growth and a food insecurity among the working class. Over half of new families reported housing insecurity, compromising their ability to buy food. Last month, Carissa Connelly, housing strategist for the City of Ketchum, attended a food distribution at Bloom Community Food Center, in Bellevue, to get a better idea of the community’s housing needs. That day, Connelly spoke with dozens of people who shared their struggles with housing. She spoke with people living in trailers, couch surfing, or crowding three generations into a single-family home. Hunger Coalition participants are living in poverty, or, put another way, they are Asset Limited-Income Constrained-Employed (ALICE) households. ALICE households can be making the area median income of $75,000 for a family of four, and still living paycheck to paycheck in poverty-like conditions in Blaine County because of the cost of living. In 2018 and pre-pandemic, 41% of Blaine County households were ALICE, and an additional 11% were below the federal poverty level of $26,500 for a family of four. In housing-speak, this means Hunger Coalition participants are low- and middle-income households, many of whom are forced to choose between paying rent and eating. Stories of Housing Insecurity Connelly and Jenni Rangel, a resource coordinator for The Hunger Coalition, recorded stories from local people who shared their housing experience. Regarding one family that lives in a two-bedroom house with six adults, Rangel said, “The adults in the household are single and employed through construction. The two-bedroom and one-bathroom house is being rented at $3,000 per month. Having six people in the home is the only way they could afford rent in the valley. Rent does not include utilities.” “[The community] should look at prioritizing people here for housing, even seasonal,” commented another individual who returned from working on the river to find their rent doubled. “Now living in my car, it’s one-on-one survival.” Another resident shared that their rent increased by $1,000, which they could not afford since the woman recently gave birth and only the husband, who works in construction, was able to work. They had to move or face eviction. Help may not come soon enough for those residents, but Connelly said the The Hunger Coalition and Ketchum partnership means the Valley is taking a step in the right direction. “During my time at The Hunger Coalition, I spoke with seniors on a fixed income, an outdoor guide, teachers—including one who retired early due to a disability—tradespeople and professionals, all experiencing housing insecurity,” Connelly said. “The conversations confirmed what the data says: Low- and middle-income households desperately need housing support. There are professionals experiencing homelessness, people foundational to our economy working three jobs and still low-income, and people who are low-income because they are unable to work. I have faith that we can actually do something, but we need to come together.”
Source: City of Ketchum
“Financial literacy has always been my thing. Sharing that knowledge is my passion.”
A Valley youth takes part in a recent food distribution event. Photo credit: The Hunger Coalition
Connecting The Disconnect Kristin McMahon, communications supervisor for The Hunger Coalition, said her organization and Ketchum city leaders are doing more than just addressing the effects of the crisis. The two entities are working to address the root causes of quality-of-life challenges; namely, a disconnect. “A challenge in our tourist economy is a disconnect between the second homeowners and yearround locals. So long as the runs are groomed and rooms are clean, it’s hard for a part-time population to really see the struggle of our teachers, housekeepers, first-responders, waitstaff, lift operators, fishing guides, landscapers, childcare and hospitality workers,” McMahon said. “The lifeblood of our community is being driven out of the Valley and we need to reckon with this crisis before it’s too late.” Enter the City of Ketchum Housing Action Plan. In response to the housing crisis, the City of Ketchum is developing a plan in collaboration with a housing task force composed of a cross-section of community members. Actions being analyzed include: • Rental assistance • Incentives for converting to long-term rentals • Preserving existing affordable housing • Homeownership assistance • New housing development • Zoning changes To ensure adequate funding for these actions, the Ketchum city council is considering putting the Local Option Tax (LOT) on the May ballot. The measure—if approved by voters—would allow Ketchum to use a portion of its sales tax revenues to offset housing costs. An approved measure would levy sales taxes on the following types of purchases: • Lodging— a 2% increase • Liquor-by-the-drink (e.g., drinks bought at bars, pubs, etc.)—a 2% increase • Construction materials (excluding workforce housing construction)—a 1% increase The city has not proposed an increase in LOT for general retail sales. Ketchum’s city council will determine the final ballot language and percentages. Ketchum voters will decide whether to implement those proposed tax increases. A sign that at least some voters are ready to chime in would be a large amount of participation and feedback on ProjectKetchum.org—the city’s new website to find information on significant projects and initiatives taking place in Ketchum. “We have received more than 386 responses to our parking survey and are getting multiple views on our housing initiative,” said Ketchum Mayor Neil Bradshaw in his most recent issue of the Mayor’s Missive. “Communication and transparency remain our priority and we are delighted with the response to this new website.”
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Times-News
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Kindergarten to Graduation IN 9 WEEKS! Kindergarten to Graduation IN 9 WEEKS! • No Food treats • No Food treats • No shock collars • No shock collars • No whistles • No whistles • No clickers • No clickers • No paNic • No paNic • No leashes • (after No leashes week 6 of 9) (after week 6 of 9)
• No kiddiNg • No kiddiNg How obedient is your dog? How obedient is your dog?
• obeys for food treats? • Nursery obeys for School food treats? Level Nursery School Levelto, • obeys when he wants • or obeys he wants to, afterwhen repeated commands? or after repeated commands? Kindergarten Level Kindergarten Level • obeys with lightly held leash • obeys with lightly held leash and no distractions? and no distractions? Middleschool Level Middleschool • obeys leash-freeLevel on first command, • with obeysheavy leash-free on first no command, distractions, shock collar with heavy distractions, no shock collar and no food treats? no foodPINES treats?GRADUATE! Aand SCOTCH A SCOTCH PINES GRADUATE!
Editor’s Note: Visit ProjectKetchum.org/Housing-Matters to see trends, updates, engagement opportunities, and data sources.
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W O O D R I V E R W E E K L Y • M A R C H 9 - 2 2 , 2 0 2 2
NUESTRA VOZ CUENTA
TAMMY DAVIS
Past, Present & Future Voices Empowering Community
THE REPUBLIC
ERIC VALENTINE
By Tammy Davis
OUR VOICE COUNTS “Live for today!” “Don’t let the past define you but rather guide you.” “Look to the future.” Most of these expressions are for when we are attempting to deal with emotional trauma from our past and we are trying to forget about something and “move on.” What about when the things we did in the past helped to provide a better life for us today and the choices we are making at this moment are building a strong tomorrow for ourselves, our families, and our communities? That’s the example Dolores Huerta, president/founder, Dolores Huerta Foundation, set for herself, her family, and her community. Dolores has been an activist since a young age. She had a vision, believed in herself, made personal sacrifices, and provided for some groundbreaking and longstanding civil rights for farm workers, women, children, and families. She is most easily recognized with the work she accomplished with Cesar Chavez in the 1960s for United Farm Workers of America. She was and is
Image credit: Independent Creativity
When One Evil Trumps Another
Dolores Huerta, president/founder, Dolores Huerta Foundation. Photo credit: Dolores Huerta Foundation
much more than that. Dolores is a Presidential Medal of Freedom Honoree, awarded to her by President Barack Obama in 2012, in which Obama acknowledged also that his campaign slogan, “Yes We Can, Si Se Puede,” was created by Dolores Huerta. Dolores Huerta has offered to our communities a sense of inspiration to believe in yourself and don’t give up!
Dolores Huerta and her life is a prime example of how we can live wholly in the present, understanding the value and guide our past can be for us and how we can make choices today that we will all be proud of tomorrow. Si Se Puede!
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By Eric Valentine
hen choosing the lesser of two evils, keep in mind you are still choosing evil. It’s time for our five-year sociopolitical self-check—the colonoscopy of how you vote, why you vote that way and, more importantly, why the heck you let others see or know anything about that intentionally secret process. It gets messy in there! The litmus test for this political science issue this year is the Russia-Ukraine War, brought to you for free by every news organization on the planet, including Wood River Weekly. It pits judo master and bareback, bare-chest equestrian Vladmir Putin against Hunter Biden … wait, no … some politician whose name we can’t pronounce … I mean … some Ukrainian actor-comedian turned politician. Wait, aren’t all politicians actor-comedians in a way? So I contact my dear friend Anna Y, whose family defected from the Soviet Union when she was 14. She grew up in the Ukraine, but not speaking Ukrainian. She spoke Russian. I asked her whose team she’s on now. Her answer? “Eric, I’m first and last a Jew.” OK, so back to political science … Meanwhile, as I satire, Ukrainians are quickly dying—or becoming Russian slowly—and Russians are gearing up for 15 years in prison thanks to having a conscience and protesting this unnecessary, immoral war. I can say that this war is unnecessary and immoral because all wars are unnecessary and immoral. Yep, you read me right, but don’t be upset with me; it’s not my or a new idea. So, whose side you take in this Super Blow Up depends on the narrative you follow. But all narratives “beg the question”—that means they assume something that isn’t necessarily true and develops an argument that relies on that assumption to work. It’s like a polyp— something extra that isn’t dangerous, unless it turns into cancer. Putin’s narrative is a Cold War plotline—one that recalls the millions of Russian lives lost thanks to Nazi incursion. And, it’s an historical timeline that understands Russia as an ever-expanding, ever-contracting geography protecting Western civilization from Mongol invasion, Muslim terrorism, and Western civilization itself. For Volodymyr Zelenskyy (I promise that’s how you spell the name), the narrative is a cultural one wherein he plays far more than the starring role. Like a tinier Hugh Jackman, he did the rom-com parts. And like a Tyler Perry, he was a media mogul who actually ran the show. Zelenskyy is not Ronal Reagan the B-movie actor, he is Ronald Reagan the 40th President of the United States. To the Russian military, Zelenskyy said, “And when you will be attacking us, you will see our faces, not our backs.” To the Russian people he talked about a region in Russia he is accused of wanting to bomb. He asked what should he bomb, the parks where he grew up, the pubs where he spoke Russian? And therein lies the rub, an “irony curtain” if you will. Zelenskyy, a Jew whose gandfather lost a father and three siblings in the Holocaust, is like Anna Y, both a product of being Russian and not being Russian. So, although my Facebook profile won’t be flying the blue and gold flag of Ukraine—the country that according to Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index (a scale of least-to-most corrupt nations), ranked 122nd out of 180 countries in 2021, the second most corrupt in Europe, ahead of Russia—I do condemn Russian aggression and offer one idea for sanctions: For all people publicly praising the Ukrainian resistance and the heroics of Ukraine’s president to go to the voting booths of 2022 through 2024 and remember two things: • •
Ukraine is the country Donald Trump threatened to withhold military funding from unless it could produce corruption information about Hunter Biden. President Zelenskyy is the Ukrainian leader whom Trump threatened to produce that information—information that has still never emerged.
Finally, a pandemic we can all agree upon: one that mandates we take a mask off.
W O O D R I V E R W E E K LY
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MARCH 9 - 22, 2022
NEWS
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IN BRIEF If you are contacted by someone claiming to be from Idaho Power and anything seems suspicious, hang up and call Idaho Power Customer Service immediately at (208) 388-2323 or 1-800-488-6151 (outside the Treasure Valley).
St. Luke’s Goes Online To Help Housing Crisis
To mitigate the impact of limited availability of housing on healthcare, St. Luke’s Wood River (SLWR) has launched stlukesonline.org/housing—a web portal to assist the hospital’s current and prospective employees to access affordable places to live. Almita Nunnelee, COO/CNO for St. Luke’s Wood River, explained, “Last summer, we asked for the public’s help to address the immediate critical housing need. We asked rental owners to consider renting on a short- or long-term basis … Many homeowners have thoughtfully and generously reached out to St. Luke’s to make us aware of available properties which we then pass along to our employees.” Information on a rental property that has been submitted is shared with St. Luke’s employees, potential employees, and contracted workforce in need of housing. The form allows for both short-term and long-term rental options. St. Luke’s is not the listing agent and will not enter into any agreements or contracts for the rental property. The information provided includes the listing contact for each rental so employees can work directly with the property owner or their property manager.
Capturing Kauai, With A Camera
Ketchum-based fine art photographer Jeffrey H. Lubeck will present Capturing Kauai—Circumnavigating the Garden Isle, on Friday, March 11, at MESH Gallery in Ketchum, from 5 to 7: 30 p.m. Lubeck is in his second year of splitting time between Idaho and the Hawaiian island of Kauai. MESH Gallery will present a series of images at the event. Lubeck says he has taken the same approach to photographing Kauai as he has with the six mountain ranges surrounding the Sun Valley area. “I comb the area to pinpoint as many locations for shooting opportunities as possible,” Lubeck said. “I then establish what will be the ideal time of day, time of year, angle of light, and weather condition to capture a compelling image.” Lubeck says that while Idaho and Kauai are vastly different in many respects, both are equally compelling places to live and photograph. “Sitting on top of the Sawtooths or the Na Pali Coast at sunset is nothing short of breathtaking,” Lubeck said. “Both are as good as it gets for me personally or as a professional photographer.” Kauai is known as the Garden Island. Lubeck says the title is an understatement. “There are few, if any, places in the world where you can experience seven different climate zones in under 20 miles. These are all present as you travel up the canyon from Waimea,” said Lubeck. “The bottom of the canyon receives 24 inches of rain a year on average and the top sees close to 460 inches.”
Idaho Power Warns Scams ‘On The Rise’
Phone scams targeting Idaho Power customers—both homes and businesses—have been on the rise, the utility company says. These scams involve spoofing Idaho Power’s phone number and demanding immediate payment or service will be disconnected. Customers also continue to report the use of misleading statements by some companies selling residential solar systems. Some common tactics being reported include solar sales representatives: • • • •
Stating they are affiliated with or have been sent by Idaho Power Telling customers they will never pay a power bill again Providing inaccurate information regarding Idaho Power’s rates, solar payback periods, tax credits, and how and in what amount excess energy is credited back to the customer Giving false promises of customers being “locked in” to current pricing
Idaho Power never demands payment over the phone or requests payment through prepaid cards. And, Idaho Power’s tariffs are not contracts and are subject to change with approval from the Idaho and Oregon public utility commissions. Any Idaho Power visits to customers’ homes will be preceded by a phone call or other communication. Idaho Power employees will arrive in a company vehicle clearly marked with Idaho Power’s logo.
Ketchum, Land Trust Partner Up On Warm Springs Preserve
The City of Ketchum and Wood River Land Trust (WRLT) have made it official. They will collaborate to explore the restoration of the Warm Springs Creek and riparian area of Warm Springs Preserve. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was approved by the Ketchum City Council on Monday. As fundraising continues, the city is preparing for the master planning process for the Preserve. One phase of the plan includes the restoration of the riparian zone adjacent to Warm Springs Creek and its floodplain connector trail. Ketchum’s collaboration with WRLT will begin by drafting a request for proposals for services to create the master plan specific to the restoration of the creek and property. WRLT will assist the consultant on the master plan by providing input from their experience with watercourse restoration and allocating water to reduce water use necessary to restore and maintain the watercourse and property. All local, state and federal approval will be obtained by the city. Sources for funding the restoration work will be determined after a plan is approved. “The Wood River Land Trust is the ideal partner for this part of the master plan,” said Mayor Neil Bradshaw. “They not only have the necessary experience in riparian restoration but share the community’s passion for this particular property.” The community will be asked to participate in the full master planning process in the spring. With less than seven weeks to the April deadline, the city is just $523,309 away from the full $9 million campaign goal. This includes a $500,000 pledge to finish the campaign if we raise those remaining funds. Since the start of the campaign, 992 donors have made donations worth $8,468,336.75.
Airport Call For Artists Takes Off
The local airport’s art committee launched its biannual call for artists March 2, marking the eighth spring in a row Friedman Memorial Airport (SUN) will use its blank wall space to showcase the work of Blaine County artists and non-resident artists who create work inspired by Central Idaho. SUN was remodeled and expanded in 2015, with renovations creating increased wall space the airport saw as an opportunity to exhibit artwork. Submitted work will be juried by representatives of the Friedman Memorial Airport management and board, members of the Hailey and Ketchum arts “Traveling Light” by Alex Timmercommissions, local gallery owners, and arts advomans cates in a blind jury process. There is no entry fee. All applicants will be notified of the jury decisions via email during the week of April 25. Other notable dates are: • April 6, 2022 – Submission Deadline (Wednesday) • April 18-22, 2022 – Jury Review of Submissions • May 26, 2022 – Installation of Art • June 9, 2022 – Artist Reception • TBD (Fall 2022) – Artwork Removed
Bellevue skier debuts in 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing Jesse Keefe of Bellevue made his Paralympic debut on Saturday in the 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing, China, placing 22nd in the men’s standing downhill Para-alpine skiing event with a time of 1:22.48. “Today was one of the biggest races I’ve ever had in my life,” Keefe said. Keefe had his right foot amputated at 11 months old after he was born without a right ankle bone. He will be back in action on Saturday, March 12, in the men’s slalom event. Photo credit: Joe Kusumoto/USOPC
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Fishing R epoRt
W O O D R I V E R W E E K L Y • M A R C H 9 - 2 2 , 2 0 2 2
COMM ENT ARY
NO BONES ABOUT IT THE “WEEKLY” FISHING REPORT FOR MARCH 9 - 22 FROM PICABO ANGLER
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inter has come back temporarily, but should change back into spring weather by the weekend. Looking at the forecast, we feel safe saying this coming weekend will provide spectacular fishing. There are times of the season when everything is perfectly in place; by Saturday, we are going to be in that perfect place, meaning, we will have warmish temperatures, March Midge hatches, pre-spawn fish, fish coming off of a long cold winter, and the Creek will have that perfect tint of dirty water! Silver Creek is entering the time of month when we see the first epic spring Midge hatches. On a warm and calm day on the Creek, anglers can see clouds of Midges during the month of March—hatches that make you not want to open your truck doors or windows! If the hatches don’t materialize, anglers will be able to count on great Streamer fishing. Stay on the move if you Streamer fish. The farther you can cast, the better, but staying on the move is just as important. Make a cast, retrieve, take a step, repeat. Stay dialed in and fish hard. You will be rewarded. The Big Wood on a warm day in March is a slam-dunk. There are spots that have seen plenty of winter pressure and the fish are finicky in those places. In general, though, a lot of what the fish have learned this winter goes out the window during the prespawn time. They just want to pack on the calories and will eat with abandon when the temps begin to warm. Fish all the same winter patterns you normally fish, and anglers willing to hike the farthest will probably catch the most fish. BUT, don’t forget the snow in the morning that you are walking on top of you may have to posthole back through in the afternoon! This is a fun time of the season to fish the South Fork of the Boise and the lower Big Lost River as well. Midge and Baetis hatches can happen on these waters when things begin to warm. You will find fewer anglers on these rivers, but the fishing isn’t quite as consistent as what you will find on the Creek and the Big Wood in the coming weeks. No matter where you fish, remember the warm days will bring out a few more people. Practice kindness and always help your fellow angler. Happy fishing, everyone!
Hwy 20 in Picabo info@picaboangler.com (208)788.3536 www.picaboangler.com
Collars and Harnesses
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By Fran Jewell
don’t usually write much about equipment for dogs because I have always believed that equipment should be discussed and recommended for the individual dog. I also believe there is a time and place for the use of almost every piece of equipment. However, I recently spent some time with many of my NADOI colleagues. I had a few eye-openers and reinforcements for feelings I have had about some equipment. I am not a veterinarian, but I am confronted with harnesses on a daily basis. My colleagues did address the use of harnesses and collars with relationship to behavior. Behavior IS something I deal with every day. I have not been much of a supporter of harnesses, although many people feel they do help with stopping pulling. Let’s face it— some harnesses are adorable! What I have seen are improperly fitted harnesses, and harnesses that dogs can get out of. Continued use of a harness can cause pulling, resulting in dogs wrenching their shoulders, backs, ribs, elbows and necks while wearing them. Recently, I came across a study done in the UK that showed that natural movement was inhibited by all harnesses, especially the ones designed for attachment at the front. I wonder, too, if the straps around the chest inhibit breathing because of the pressure on the ribs. This could be enormously important for dogs with very short muzzles, like French bulldogs and the like. In one case I am aware of, a dog on a harness for every walk suffered permanent spinal damage. Now I see that many breeders are sending puppies home in harnesses. This rather terrifies me for several reasons. First, I don’t believe this can be healthy for developing structure of a puppy. Secondly, almost all
harnesses lay across the brachial nerve plexus that causes pain for the dog. When everyone is touting how humane harnesses are, I have to ask, “Are they, really?” I was unable to find any studies on the Internet about the potential of brachial plexus nerve damage related to harnesses, yet I suspect at some point there will be. This nerve is vital to the proper function of the front legs and it can be damaged or impaired. While everyone feels they are being more humane when they use harnesses, I am not quite sure I can buy into that. In most cases where I see dogs in harnesses, the dogs are still misbehaving. There are, of course, reasons for harnesses that can be lifesaving. As with everything, we have to decide if the benefits outweigh the risks. My feeling is to use another piece of equipment unless the harness is necessary for a certain activity to keep the dog safe. Now the question is, “What do you use instead?” Well, another fallacy is that flat collars are the best collars to use. The flat collar is supposed to be the most humane. There is also the concern that flat collars hurt the dog’s trachea. Again, I am not a veterinarian, but there is some logic to this. When a dog is wearing a flat, buckle collar with a leash, the leash puts pressure on the opposite side of the neck from where the leash is attached. A flat, buckle collar can, indeed, influence damage, especially for some dogs with known breathing and soft-tissue issues. The alternative is what is called a martingale collar, or limited slip collar. This collar allows for pressure to be applied evenly around the dog’s neck without choking when the leash is attached, so the amount of pressure is not directed to one area. For many years I recommended these collars for puppies because it does not allow the puppy to
SCIENCE OF PLACE
This is a martingale collar and one I am recommending for everyday use. I encourage you to get one with a buckle for easy on and off. Photo credit: Fran Jewell
learn how to escape the buckle collar. I almost lost one of my own dogs 25 years ago in downtown Ketchum because she slipped out of her collar. She ran onto Sun Valley Road! From then on, I personally always used martingale collars so my pups never learned how to escape from a collar in the first place. There are many brands of martingale collars. Some are much nicer than others and prices vary enormously. For any breed, this collar is even preferred over a harness because it has so much less potential to physically hurt your dog. Equipment is a very important issue for dog owners. All things should be considered when you start placing them on your dog. Don’t fall prey to the glamorous ads and pretty colors! Do some research and consult a professional if you are concerned. Fran Jewell is an IAABC Certified Dog Behavior Consultant, NADOI Certified Instructor and the owner of Positive Puppy Dog Training, LLC in Sun Valley. For more information, visit positivepuppy.com or call 208-578-1565.
ALIENS IN PARADISE
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BY LARRY BARNES
bout 6-7 million years ago a desperate flock of Asian rosefinches lost at sea somehow found paradise – the Hawaiian Islands. They would have looked similar to our reddish house finches. The castaways found a tropical world having flowers, seeds, and insects, but no or few forest birds. The rosefinches found opportunity in a land of unoccupied niches; no finches, no woodpeckers, no parrots, no hummingbirds. And so, like a pebble dropped into a calm pool, they created ripples of new species in a process called adaptive radiation. A milestone occurred in our own lineage around the same time. One species evolved into two, and over the next few million years those two evolved into a small bush of related primates. Evolution has pruned them back to just two species today: humans and our closest kin, chimpanzees. Our human-chimp common ancestor traveled through Central African forests at the same time that Asian landbirds were discovering Hawaii. The rosefinches became the Hawaiian honeycreepers and in their heyday there were over 55 species. Seeing this diverse menagerie illustrated on one poster there would be little reason to conclude that they evolved from one form only 6-7 million years ago. In terms of natural selection, bird beaks are chiefly where the rubber meets the evolutionary road, and honeycreeper beaks show a staggering diversity in shape; long, thin needle-like affairs to vise-grip-crushing-style tools and everything in between. If there is a food source in Hawaiian forests suitable for birds, there is a specialized beak to get it, at least there used to be. Meanwhile, nature worked its evolutionary magic on our own ancestry, innocently
enough for several million years, creating a nice side branch of now extinct forms, arriving at our genus, Homo, about 2 million years ago. Then, just 200,000 to 300,000 years ago Homo sapiens arrived on the African scene. Like Asian rosefinches 6-7 million years ago, opportunity awaited the nascent Homo sapiens beyond the confines of Africa. And so, beginning 50,000-100,000 years ago we left Africa in fits and starts, enabled by our big brains, dexterous hands, and extremely social nature, spreading across the globe, saving Earth’s islands for last. The trouble began in the usual way. Roughly 1,000 years ago three new mammal species simultaneously arrived on Hawaiian beaches – Polynesians, pigs, and rats. Their arrival was a trifecta of mammal-caused bird extinctions. Before this time there was just one mammal, a bat, and the islands were instead filled with a bewildering assortment of birds, many of them flightless, some of them large and meaty. The people ate the
Photo by Larry Barnes. ‘Akiapola’au in Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge, Hawaii
FRAN JEWELL
LARRY BARNES
flightless birds, the pigs and rats ate their eggs. The land was transformed by fire and agriculture and rooting pigs. Many bird species blinked out. Captain James Cook began the next extinction phase in 1778. I recently visited Hawaii to see if I might get any sense of its former glory. European boar, cats, mongooses, cattle, and many other alien species now call Hawaii home. The most dangerous among them are mosquitos and avian malaria for which native birds have little resistance. Hawaii is now a warm wasteland of alien species and a lost paradise of endemism. But pockets of wonder persist. We visited Hakalau Forest where our government and private groups have protected and restored a cathedral of evolution. Eight of the Big Island’s nine remaining native forest birds survive here in the shade of koa and ‘ohi’a trees. Rarest and most wondrous among them is the Holy Grail honeycreeper, the one with a Swiss Army knife beak, the ‘akiapola’au. It pecks like a woodpecker with its lower mandible while probing for beetle larvae with its upper. It lays just one egg every two years, making the “aki” the least fecund member of the 6,600 species in its order (most other birds lay several eggs annually). Our forest guide has seen seven Hawaiian bird species that are now extinct. Many other species have vanished since Captain Cook’s arrival. We can forgive the first Hawaiians for not knowing what they were doing. But we have science and reason now, and we cannot forgive ourselves. Larry Barnes retired from 26 years as a biology teacher at Wood River High School and is now transitioning to full-time amateur exploration of the natural world.
W O O D R I V E R W E E K LY
MONEY MATTERS
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KRISTIN HOVENCAMP
MARCH 9 - 22, 2022
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ON LIFE’S TERMS
JOELLEN COLLINS
WHY REAL ESTATE STORY TIME INVESTMENT TRUSTS B NOW BY JOELLEN COLLINS
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BY KRISTIN HOVENCAMP
eopolitical turmoil, Federal Reserve policy uncertainty, and extreme swings in the broad markets can create tension in even the most battle-hardened investors. The volatility is more unsettling when your nest egg is at stake. Long-term investors can stay the course by investing in a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT). A REIT is a company that owns, operates or finances income-producing real estate properties. Access. According to the National Association of REITs, investors can gain exposure to offices, apartment buildings, warehouses, shopping centers, medical facilities, data centers, hotels, gaming, infrastructure, and cell towers with the evolution of REITs. REITs invest in varied geographic regions, property sectors, and real estate qualities. Liquid securities. Unlike private assets, a REIT can trade Kristin Hovencamp is an Inon major stock exchanges and offer transparency to share- vestment Executive and Diholders. Investors buy and sell shares just as they would a rector of Business Development with HAZLETT WEALTH stock, ETF, or mutual fund. MANAGEMENT, LLC. Regular income stream. Capital appreciation, inflation protection, and dividend income are qualities that attract long-term investors to REITs. REITs are required by law to distribute at least 90% of their taxable income to shareholders annually, in the form of dividends, to maintain tax-exempt status. Portfolio diversification. Investors seek exposure to stocks, bonds, and alternative investments to generate returns independent of one another and spread risk across asset classes. Income-producing REITs complement traditional securities because of their low correlation and risk-adjusted returns. In times of market uncertainty, a REIT can help dampen portfolio volatility. During economic uncertainty, adding commercial or residential real estate securities to a balanced portfolio can provide an income stream, liquidity, and diversification. HAZLETT WEALTH MANAGEMENT, LLC, is independent of Raymond James and is not a registered broker/dealer. Investment advisory services are offered through Raymond James Financial Services Advisors, Inc. Securities offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Inc., member FINRA/SIPC. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected. Be advised that investments in real estate and in REITs have various risks, including possible lack of liquidity and devaluation based on adverse economic and regulatory changes. Additionally, investments in REIT’s will fluctuate with the value of the underlying properties, and the price at redemption may be more or less than the original price paid. Diversification does not ensure a profit or guarantee against a loss. Past performance may not be indicative of future results. 675 Sun Valley Road, Suite J1 + J2 Ketchum, Idaho 83340 208.726.0605. HazlettWealthManagement.com
INSPIRATIONS FROM MY HEART
CHANGING FREQUENCIES
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DOVE
BY DOVE
ow!!! We are certainly at a time in history when it is important to be responsible for the energy you are contributing to the overall frequency on the planet. There is so much conflicting information being put forth that it is easy to get sucked into negative thought patterns. From my perspective, we do need to be informed about what is going on in the world, but we don’t need to wallow in it. Choose your path of service and then do your thing. Is your thing prayer? If you are praying, be sure to see all the conflict being resolved. Do not focus on the drama. Instead, put your focus on the desired outcome of any situation. Use your frequency to raise the vibration. Is yours a pathway of action? If so, make sure your action resonates with the highest thought possible and hold the energy of peace with power. If we all contribute the highest vibration we can hold, it does change the overall outcome of whatever is going on. Know your truth and find a positive thought or action you can contribute. You may ask, How do I raise my frequency? It is different for all of us, but beautiful music that makes my heart sing fills my soul. I dug out my old iPod with my favorite music and that encourages me to walk, almost dance, as I move. Moving your body raises your frequency. Dance, dance, dance. It is good for the body and the soul. I make good food that nourishes my body and I create my form of art. Let go of the drama, because that is not what we want to energize. Focus on your heart and hold peace. Don’t think peace, be peace. Think water and ask for moisture to fill our valley. Determine how best you can give to the overall energy to raise it up. Give up discussions of illness and have discussions about paths to health. Resist reiterating your woes or the woes of the world. Go for joy. Remember that things are not always as they seem. Truth is hard to extract from all the information we are bombarded with. Be selective in the way you use your thoughts. Choose love, peace, and be those things, and we as a family of humanity can create a better outcome for each of us. Dance, create, raise your vibration so the ugly no longer has a frequency to exist. Use your power to create joy. We can shift all that is if we take a few minutes—even just 10—to find peace in ourselves and spread that energy. Be prepared, choose peace and be truth. Much love, Dove
eing near the California coast is a great pleasure for me, and I expected that bonus when I left my charming B and B in San Francisco to visit a friend of mine from many years ago. Connecting with my family and many acquaintances is always special, but this time I was reunited with a woman who was once my tiny girls’ babysitter. She now lives in Soquel, one of the places I wish I had been smart enough to recognize as an ideal place to “retire.” Amid inimitable ocean scents, gentle sunshine and early spring fruit trees blossoming, we spent many hours catching up on our lives and, as both of us enjoy telling and listening to stories, we shared many different emotions. Her husband is a friendly and dynamic man and was more welcoming to me than I might have expected. We three truly enjoyed our time together. How lucky am I! I need to write down all the colorful incidents we related, but one stands out because it is especially lovely and a reminder of the good hearts of most of the people we encounter in our lives. Another family in our neighborhood at the time I mothered little girls had two lovely early teens, also very handy for babysitting and, over the years, I have kept up with them, joyously. Their mother was suffering from kidney disease and, as time passed, needed to have dialysis. Several years later, their mother passed away from that illness. Her daughters left our neighborhood but stayed in California. While relating my fondness for them, I learned that the younger sister had, a few years later, also con- JoEllen Collins—a longtime tracted the same kidney disease and needed a trans- resident of the Wood River Valley— is an Idaho Press plant. Club award-winning columApparently, as most people involved with this dis- nist, a teacher, writer, fabric ease know, it is very hard to find a match for a trans- artist, choir member and plant, and this lovely young woman was fortunate unabashedly proud grandma to have many volunteers. Unfortunately, none were known as “Bibi Jo.” matches. Around that time, she heard from a young man she had not known before, who offered his kidney. She refused that noble effort and mentioned that, as did all the other possible donors, he would have to be tested as a match and didn’t think it would be worth it. Time passed and, ultimately, he called her again, asking how her search was progressing. After further bad news, he decided to have the tests and—yes—he was a perfect match. I would love this story even if it ended there, but it didn’t. After the successful surgery, they became friends, fell in love, and married. As Jane Austen said, “There is no charm equal to tenderness of heart.” It’s so much fun to learn of the blessings that have accrued to these deserving friends AND to realize that keeping in touch with so many amazing people allows one to learn of often beautiful events. The world contains, of course, sadness, violence, and hatred, but it is sweet to occasionally smell the roses of friendship and remember the lovely moments of life.
COWBOY POETRY
BRYCE ANGELL
STAFF OF LIFE
I’d just come in from doing choirs and plowing out the road. A winter storm was blowing snow and drifting overload. I washed on up for dinner, appetite more like a bear. And told my wife we’d be snowed in. She shot a cold, blank stare. She said, “We’re running low on the essential things we eat.” I knew this weren’t no time to cower down and call retreat. So, I stretched on my old coveralls. They smelled like coughed-up cud. Then pulled my wool hat past my ears. I could pass for Elmer Fudd. The wife threw on my thermals, she was scared right to the core, and sporting only boots and long johns, ran right out the door. I tried to stop her. She declared, “My leggings ain’t no crime. We better get a moving ‘cuz we’re running out of time!” I cranked up the old Chevy, threw the front in four-wheel drive. My wife let out a sigh and said, “Please keep us both alive!” We busted through the snowdrifts, sweating bullets from my brow. I knew my Chevy truck would get us to the store somehow. I could see the Elk Creek Station. Were they open through this storm? And then I saw their welcome light. A place to keep us warm. But we headed for the shelves and filled our cart with tater chips. Then grabbed five bottles, extra hot, of spicy salsa dips. A lonely case of diet Coke was sitting on the rack. We snatched it up so quickly that we both threw out our back. I was sure we had some popcorn stashed away at home, some place. But I grabbed a box of Showtime buttered popcorn, just in case. Last of all we snagged two gallons of Rocky Road ice cream. And wondered if it might outlast this weather so extreme. And then I saw a box of chocolate pudding, “Cook and Serve.” I figured, “Buy a dozen. ‘Twas no more than we deserve.” We carried out our plunder to a blizzard night so black. When the storm let up just long enough to drive our Chevy back. Our cabin was a welcome sight from driving filled with strife. Thank heaven we are plumb stocked up on the daily “Staff of Life.” – Bryce Angell Bryce Angell - The outdoors has always been a large part of my life. My father was an outfitter and guide for 35 years and I was there to shoe and care for the horses and help him do the cooking. We took many great trips into the Yellowstone area. Even now that I’m older, we still ride into the Tetons, Yellowstone and surrounding areas. My poems are mostly of personal experience. I am now retired and enjoying life to the fullest. I plan to do more riding and
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W O O D R I V E R W E E K L Y • M A R C H 9 - 2 2 , 2 0 2 2
SENIOR CONNECTION
THINGS NOT TO SAY OR DO TO A NEWLY WIDOWED PERSON
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ADVERTORIALS BETTER HOMEOWNERS NEWS
ANNA AND MICHELLE
BY SHAWNA WASKO, M.OLP
s many of you know, I was widowed in 1980. My 25-year-old husband Ken was killed in a logging accident and our only child, Brandie, was 22 months old. I quickly found out that the vast majority of people did not know what to say to me, and the others who thought they knew what to say to me were huge idiots. I have been facilitating widowed support groups for over 41 years now. I am in the process of writing a book on all the stories I have been told by my widowed persons who have attended my groups, male and female. What an honor it has been. Recently, I had a widow in my group that shared she went out to the funeral home to prepare for her husband’s funeral and when she came home her family had washed all her husband’s clothes and the sheets on the bed. She cried and cried because all she wanted to do was go home and sleep in the bed that still smelled like her husband of 55 years. I had a sister-in-law tell my daughter that God took her daddy because He knew Brandie was tough enough to take it. After I got through shoving the sister-in-law up against a wall and informed her not to speak to my daughter again about her beliefs, I cried for hours. I have had a funeral director in one of our eight counties tell newly widowed men, “Hey, now you can date.” What the guy did not know was if a man marries too soon after the death of his spouse, he often makes a huge mistake and statistics prove that this man’s life expectancy is shortened. A man who waits at least a year to date and marry has a long-life expectancy. So essentially the funeral director is trying to build up his business (albeit unknowingly) by encouraging someone to date too soon. The exception to this is someone whose spouse dies over a long period of time; i.e. from Alzheimer’s, ALS, etc. They simply lose these people long before they lose them. So, they have grieved for a long time. Shawna Wasko, M.OLP I have people who told me I should remarry. CSI Office on Aging I have not, and people see this as strange. But (208) 736-2122 statistically, if a woman is widowed at the age swasko@csi.edu of 45 and above, only 1.8% of them will ever remarry. If they were widowed under the age of 45 (I was 23), only 7.8% of those women ever remarry. Simply put, widowed women rarely remarry. When I was first widowed, we outnumbered widowed men 6-1. Now, in 2022, we outnumber widowed men 4-1. Small pickings. Reason they don’t remarry? Money mostly. They will lose pensions if they remarry. Also, they fear loss again. We are told we need to go through personal effects, we shouldn’t cry this much, we should be over grief by now, blah, blah, blah. Just shut up. You need to cry. You need to take your time with personal effects. My daughter is still mad I didn’t wait for her to be older so she could have gone through her dad’s things. She simply rifles through my house and takes anything that was her father’s. She doesn’t know where the good stuff is. She will find it after I die. We never ‘get over’ grief. We assimilate the loss. I will miss my husband forever, but I am happy, and date, and love my grandkids and all the groups I facilitate, all my friends, and all my family. I have a full, wonderful life. Best grievers take about two years to grieve the loss. But they get better as the year or two moves on. Suicide deaths and murders take longer to assimilate. So be more patient with these souls. Don’t say, “Call me if you need anything.” For crying out loud, my spouse just died, I need a lot of things! How about you just show up. My father-in-law, Greg Wasko, used to come to my house twice a month for a long time. He would get out of his truck, put his coveralls on, pick up his toolbox and come in and repair anything he could find in the house to repair. I often unscrewed things, and said things like, “I think my dryer is broken,” knowing full well it wasn’t. He simply wanted to help me and Brandie and doing these things for us helped him grieve. He never once talked about Ken’s death. He just showed up. It meant the world to me, and Brandie. He would take her out for a “Happy Meal” after and give me a break to be on my own for a little while. A good man he was. I miss him. So, what should you say? How about nothing. Just hug them and tell them you love them. My husband’s cousin’s wife died fairly young. When I went to the funeral, I simply walked up and held his hand for a while, then walked away. You could actually show up afterwards. I lost every friend I had when Ken died. They didn’t know what to do, so they wrote me out of their little black books. The older we are, the less this happens when we are widowed. But when you are no longer a couple, couples don’t want you. We find new friends. I had a lady I admired once ask me how it felt to grieve. I made the mistake of confiding in her. She said to me that I had married too young, and she would never have as much trouble as I have with being widowed. She was a nurse, mother of two, and two years older than me. In 1981 the housing market went under. Her husband was a contractor in Washington State. He had to leave the small town we lived in and be in Seat-
Remodeling As It Relates To Value BY ANNA & MICHELLE
While updating and remodeling certainly make a home more enjoyable and livable, and increases the value, homeowners should not expect to recover 100% of the cost of the remodeling. And while improvements can make a home sell faster, some of the expenditures will not return their full cost, although some do return more than others. Exterior home improvement projects rank 11 out of the top 12 for the highest return on investment for homeowners, according to Remodeling magazine’s 34th annual report. The top two places included a garage door replacement and manufactured stone veneer, which estimated a 94% and 92% cost recovery, respectively. The choice of materials slightly affected the cost recovery, such as siding replacement, which varied from 69% for fiber cement and 68% for vinyl. Similarly, vinyl window replacement inched out wood by the same percentages of 69% and 68%, respectively. Some of the other outside improvements included steel entry door replacement at 65%, wood deck addition at 63%, and asphalt roofing replacement at 61%. The lone interior improvement in the top 12 was a minor kitchen remodeling at 72%. Repairs to a home are necessary to maintain the livability of the home, as well as the fair market value. As homes age, improvements are major expenses that update the home and give it the feel of a newer property. Some improvements are for pure personal enjoyment, such as putting in a high-end, professional-grade gas cooktop. If the homeowner is a foodie and enjoys cooking, this could bring much enjoyment, but buyers may not add the increased value over a midrange cooktop commensurate with the value of the home. If a homeowner has been using a bedroom for an office, sometimes the agent might recommend that they return it to a bedroom so that people can recognize it for what it is. Even though this isn’t a far stretch of the imagination, professional stagers would probably agree.
tle all week, building houses. He came home on the weekends. This lady had a complete nervous breakdown, and he had to leave his job and come home and take a much lower paying job. His wife was ‘committed’ for over a month and could no longer do the job of nursing. They lost their home. It was terrible. So, people think they know what it is like to be alone, and they don’t. I hope you know now what you don’t know. You could always tell widowed people about my group and other grief groups. You could treat them kindly and not run the other way. I remember being at the grocery store and people would see Brandie and me coming down the aisle and they would turn around and run. Being widowed is very isolating. We need love and kindness.
On the other hand, if the functionality of a bedroom had been changed such as to be an extraordinary master closet for the adjoining bedroom, it could affect the value negatively. If most typical buyers for that home would value the transformed bedroom more, they might discount the price by the cost to make the conversion back to its intended use. One major question to consider before embarking on remodeling projects is how long you intend to stay in the home. The longer you are going to be in the home, the more opportunity you must personally enjoy the improvements. This is especially important if the expected return on the cost is small. Another consideration should be to determine if you are overbuilding the neighborhood. There is a principle in appraisals called conformity. All homes in a neighborhood should be of similar size, quality and amenities. Homes that are overbuilt will be brought down in value by the smaller ones. Conversely, smaller homes could be elevated in value based on most of the homes being more expensive in that neighborhood. If an investor were doing a fix and flip, they could evaluate a situation and decide on what to do to a home to maximize the value. For homeowners, it isn’t the same thing because they are living in the home and don’t really consider return on investment the same way as an investor. Homeowners certainly want to recapture as much as they can but, realistically, they need to consider that there is a personal cost to most improvements that will not be reflected in the final sales price. The popularity of Remodeling magazine’s annual cost-vs.-value report gives homeowners an idea of what they can expect to recapture. One final thought: Homeowners should keep track of the money they spend on improvements because it raises the basis of their home, which will lower the gain. Because this calculation isn’t made for an unknown number of years into the future, many homeowners neglect to make a record. When they do need the number, they either estimate or forget about the expenditure.
And we need our friends. Remember that most widowed persons are burned-out caregivers. They are exhausted before the death happens and more exhausted after their loved one dies. Feed them, pray for them, and love them. Take care, all of you. Take care of those in your life who have lost someone. They need you. Sincerely, Shawna Wasko, M.OLP CSI Office on Aging 208.736.2122 swasko@csi.edu
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W O O D R I V E R W E E K L Y • M A R C H 9 - 2 2 , 2 0 2 2
CHAMBER CORNER
MIKE MCKENNA
Grocery Outlet Caters To The Community
Hard way Pipeline
By Mike McKenna
T
he biggest reason Shane Anderson wanted to move to Hailey and open a Grocery Outlet was because of the community. Every time he’d visited here throughout his life felt like it was a “magical place.” Not too long after making that dream come true and moving to Hailey, Shane found out his feeling about the community was true. Last fall, Shane nearly died after contracting COVID-19. The fabulous folks at St. Luke’s kept him alive. Meanwhile, numerous community members stepped up to help Shane’s daughter and her three kids move to town for a couple months to keep the store running. “I was really impressed with how the community stepped up to help,” Shane said over beers recently at Sun Valley Brewery. “One of the reasons I chose Hailey is because I knew it had a great community and I wanted to be in a place where I could give back. But every time I try to give back to the community around here, I get even more in return.” Shane grew up in Utah and would come up to pursue his winter passion of snowmobiling. After raising three kids in Montana, he discovered Grocery Outlet when he went to visit his daughter and son-in-law, who owned one in Washington. “The first time I walked in, I had the same experience so many people who walk into my store have. I was blown away at how clean and fresh everything looked and how amazing the deals were and how nice the staff was. It’s definitely not your normal grocery store.” Grocery Outlet was founded in 1946 in San Francisco and has evolved into essentially a cross between a big box wholesale store and a typical supermarket. Basically, they purchase product overruns and package changes at discounted rates and then pass the savings on to the consumer. They offer everything from dry goods to fresh produce, meat and organic products. “You can’t get everything from me, and sometimes it’s here today, gone tomorrow. What we have is always changing. But you can save up to 40% to 70% on items you want and that can make a big difference,” Shane said. Grocery Outlet Bargain Market went public in
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How To Play Sudoku
The Classic Sudoku is a number placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once.
CLASSIC SUDOKU See answer on page 11 2019 and last summer they celebrated their 75th anniversary by opening their 400th store in Hailey. One of the things that makes Grocery Outlet stores unique, and is a key to their success, is that the owner-operator franchise model allows each store to cater to its community. “I order 95% of what comes in so I can serve my community what it wants,” said Shane, who can often be found stocking shelves and talking to customers so he can find out what we want. That’s why he now offers lots of healthy snacks, specialty cheeses and wine, and the cheapest beer in town, too. It’s what we want around here. “Community is important and that’s why I’m proud to own a very community-oriented store,” Shane said, adding, “and it’s a store that offers crazy savings.” Grocery Outlet in Hailey is open daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
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