Trustees to consider levy spending
The Blaine County School District board of trustees has scheduled a special meeting for Friday, Oct. 14, to consider borrowing an additional $6.23 million on future revenues from a 10-year $59.8 million plant facilities levy approved by voters in 2009.
The money would be used to fund site improvements at Carey School, safety and security upgrades throughout the district and heating, venting and air conditioning retrofits and other improvements at Hemingway Elementary School in Ketchum.
The district has already borrowed nearly $21 million on future levy funds for an aggressive new construction and repair program undertaken in 2010.
The meeting is scheduled to begin at noon at the district office, 118 W. Bullion St. in Hailey.
The school board's regular monthly meeting is scheduled at the district office beginning at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 18.
U.S. Bank donates to YMCA
The Wood River Community YMCA's Kids Club program has received a $5,000 donation from the U.S. Bancorp Foundation. Bob Buersmeyer and Tracy Silver of US Bank's Ketchum branch presented a check to the children of the Y Kids Club last week.
The Y Kids Club is an after-school program that teaches kids values such as caring, honesty, respect and responsibility by focusing on community service experiences, study time, arts, fitness and character building.
The program serves 52 kids at the Y in Ketchum and 22 kids at the Y's Hailey Elementary location.
Meet the Candidates set for tonight
Candidates for Ketchum City Council will participate in a Meet the Candidates event tonight, Oct. 12, at 5:30 p.m. in Ketchum City Hall. This is a forum where voters, business owners, property owners and anyone interested in the future of Ketchum can ask the candidates questions. People will have an opportunity to learn more about the proposed council-manager form of government and find out how the candidates stand on local issues.
Open house on bond set for today
Sun Valley residents can learn more about a general obligation bond election today, Oct. 12, at an open house.
The $14.2 million bond, which will appear on the Nov. 8 ballot, would pay for projects identified in the city's Five-Year Capital Improvement and Fixed Asset Plan.
People can stop by Sun Valley City Hall anytime between 8:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. For questions, call 622-4438.
Community to honor Pat Murphy
A graveside service with military honors for Pat Murphy, a longtime Ketchum resident who served with the Army during the Korean War and had a noteworthy career in journalism, is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 15, at 11 a.m. at the Ketchum Cemetery, followed by a reception from noon to 2 p.m. at Trail Creek Cabin.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Animal Shelter of the Wood River Valley.
To share memories or condolences, visit Lorenzo "Pat" Murphy's memorial page at www.woodriverchapel.com.
URA to expand web presence
The Ketchum Urban Renewal Agency has issued a request for proposals seeking web-design services.
The URA is looking for "something fairly simple, something fairly inexpensive," Board Member Trina Peters said at a URA meeting Oct. 10.
The forthcoming URA website will include information such as what an urban renewal agency is and what the Ketchum URA does.
"Over time, we'd like to make it more robust," Peters said.
Information on the URA currently is available through the city's website, www.ketchumidaho.org.
Foundation unveils new website
The St. Luke's Wood River Foundation has launched a new website, www.slwrf.org, to educate and engage the Wood River Valley community through individual generosity stories—how generosity impacts community health and well-being.
The foundation has also announced new, bedside ultrasound diagnostic imaging technology in the emergency department, funded by community generosity.
Exploring nutritional myths
St. Luke's Center for Community Health will present a Brown Bag Health Talk, "Exploring Nutritional Myths," on Thursday, Oct. 13, from 12:15-1:15 p.m. at St. Luke's Wood River Medical Center's Baldy Conference Rooms.
Among health experts, the media and the diet industry, messages on nutrition can be confusing. While research advances, a nutritional fact today may crumble under mounting evidence next year. Becky McCarver, a registered dietitian, will help participants become critical consumers, read food labels and nutritional claims carefully and learn to decipher fact from fiction.
All Brown Bag lectures are free and no pre-registration is required. Call St. Luke's Center for Community Health at 727-8733 for information on this or other educational programs.
Deer season opens in most of Idaho
The regular deer season opened Oct. 10 in most regions of Idaho.
To hunt deer in Idaho during the regular season, a hunter must have valid 2011 Idaho hunting license and a deer tag.
With the opening of the general deer season, Idaho Fish and Game enforcement officers will be setting up check stations across the state at major access points to hunting units with open seasons. All hunters and anglers are required to stop at check stations, whether they have any game animals or fish in the vehicle or not. They must stop if going to their hunting or fishing spot or returning home from hunting or fishing. They must stop even if they were unsuccessful.
Some check stations are biological, some are enforcement and some are both.
Fish and Game law enforcement officials ask that hunters report any poaching or suspicious activities they encounter or hear about while hunting. Hunters with information about a wildlife crime may call the Citizens Against Poaching hotline at 800-632-5999, the nearest Fish and Game office or local law enforcement. Callers may remain anonymous.
Middle School Book Fair starts Oct. 17
The Wood River Middle School Book Fair, with books provided by Iconoclast Books, will be held from Monday, Oct. 17, through Thursday, Oct. 20. Hours are Monday and Tuesday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Wednesday and Thursday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The book fair will be held in the school library
It raises funds for the library, and this year's goals are expanding the collection especially in ebooks for reference, audiobooks for struggling readers and books for Read 180 students.
The book fair will offer a wide range of books, especially for teens but also for young children and adults, and will include fiction, nonfiction, language phrase books, cookbooks, holiday books, craft books and educational games.
Attendees can help build classroom libraries by purchasing books for teachers through the school's wish list program.
