When someone's cell phone rang during a recent meeting in Hailey's Old Blaine County Courthouse, participants paused for a look around.
At first it wasn't clear who had forgotten to turn off their phone.
Like everyone else, Sun Valley Mayor Wayne Willich looked around quizzically, wondering from where the incessant ringing was originating.
"I was thinking, 'Who is this jerk?'" Willich said in an interview.
His irritation dissipated when he realized that it was his phone.
"I was so embarrassed," he said with a laugh.
At any other meeting, the matter would have ended with Willich's red face. But not at the old courthouse.
Since 2005, the Blaine County Commission has enforced a strict no-cell-phone-ringing policy during public meetings.
The penalty for breaking this rule? A $10 fine, the proceeds of which are donated to the Blaine County Hunger Coalition.
The policy was started by former County Commissioner Dennis Wright. Eventually, Blaine County Commissioner Tom Bowman took it a step further. Now, there's a framed sign warning meeting-goers of the penalty.
"I think all jurisdictions should adopt it," Bowman said.
So far, the cell phone fine hasn't really raised much. Not counting the fine Willich paid, the cell phone penalty has raised about $100 for the group, Bowman said.
It's more about raising the public's awareness of the Hunger Coalition, the group's executive director Jeanne Liston said.
"I love it," Liston said. "Any way we can get the word out. I think a lot of people don't realize hungry people exist in our community."
The Hunger Coalition sends a thank-you note to those miscreants busted by Bowman.
Willich thought the $10 fine was a little low for the egregious nature of his crime.
"I thought it was perfectly appropriate that I should get kicked around the block," he said. The decision to donate, he said, was an easy one, given the beneficiary.
"The Hunger Coalition is a fantastic organization," he said. "I was happy to do it."
Tom Bowman
