Youth Program signup opens April 1
Early registration for Ketchum’s Summer Youth Activity Program, the “granddaddy of youth recreation programs” for youngsters entering the third grade and up, begins April 1.
A recent Ketchum Parks and Recreation Department news release states that those who register by April 15 will receive an early registration discount. A list of the department’s summer offerings is available on the Parks and Recreation Department page of the city’s website at www.ketchumidaho.org. The department will offer an online registration option on that page once the signup period opens. According to the release, registration assistance is available at the department’s headquarters at 900 Third Ave. in Ketchum, near Atkinson Park and Hemingway Elementary School.
The city is also looking for youth program counselors who are 15 or older. For more information, contact Recreation Supervisor John Kearney at jkearney@ketchumidaho.org or 726-7820. He speaks Spanish.
Vintage has new ownership
Jeff Keys, former owner and chef of Vintage restaurant in Ketchum, has sold the establishment.
Keys said that Rodrigo Herrera, the restaurant’s former assistant chef under Keys, bought the restaurant with his brother Humberto Herrera in January.
“It was time for me,” said Keys, 68. “I’ve been doing this kind of work for a while. I’ve built six restaurants of my own over the past 45 years. After we got the restaurant rebuilt and went through the holidays, I realized I didn’t want to do it anymore.”
In September, Vintage suffered extensive fire damage that Ketchum Fire Chief Mike Elle attributed to a faulty air-conditioning unit. Keys reopened the restaurant in December.
Keys said Rodrigo Herrera is the “perfect guy” to take over Vintage’s reins.
Keys opened Vintage in 2003 and has owned many other restaurants in the valley over nearly the past 30 years, including Soupçon (in the same location as Vintage), Bellevue Bistro and Mountain Decadence Ice Cream.
Ketchum BAH set for April 2
Wood River Economic Partnership and St. Luke’s Wood River have teamed up to present a multifaceted Business After Hours on Tuesday, April 2, from 5:15-7 p.m. in the lower Giacobbi Square atrium in Ketchum.
Two local businesses, the new CompUCenter and the Copy Center, will showcase what they do. In addition, a new proactive health insurance provider, SelectHealth, will use the CompuUCenter to educate those who wish about its new plan.
Attendees will be able to enjoy refreshments and drawings while they network with local businesses. RSVP to dougbrownsv@gmail.com.
Alaska Air extends summer flights
Fly Sun Valley Alliance and Sun Valley Resort have partnered with Alaska Airlines for a summer flight program to extend summer nonstop daily flights between Hailey and the cities of Seattle and Los Angeles through late September.
For the 2013 summer season, the flights between Seattle and Sun Valley will run June 14 through Sept. 22 and the flights between Los Angeles and Sun Valley will run June 21 through Sept. 22.
In addition, Sun Valley Resort will once again offer deals for Alaska Airlines passengers this summer. Everyone flying to Sun Valley Resort on Alaska Airlines from Seattle or Los Angeles can exchange their boarding pass for a free gondola ride, putting on the 18-hole Sawtooth Putting Course and a free bucket of range balls.
The Alaska Airlines summer and winter nonstop flights are made possible through a minimum-revenue guarantee program. Funding to support the program is provided by Sun Valley Resort and by Fly Sun Valley Alliance through fundraising programs.
Sheep festival lands key grant
The Idaho Humanities Council has awarded a $3,500 grant to help bring best-selling author Mark Kurlansky to the Wood River Valley for the 17th annual Trailing of the Sheep Festival. Kurlansky will speak about the importance of celebrating cultures, cultural survival strategies and collecting and preserving stories on Oct. 11 at the nexStage Theatre in Ketchum as part of the event’s opening festivities. He will also conduct a workshop on Oct. 12.
Kurlansky has published 24 books, including “The Basque History of the World,” “Salt: A World History,” “Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World,” “Birdseye: The Adventures of a Curious Man” and “The Food of a Younger Land.”
DEQ plans to lower stream temps
The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality is seeking public comment on a proposed plan to address higher temperatures in streams within the Big Wood River basin.
According tot a press release from the department, temperature is a key factor in the health of fish and other cold-water organisms. Recent analyses of water quality data demonstrated that temperatures exceed water quality standards in Quigley and Rock creeks due to excess solar loading from a lack of shade.
The department proposes to establish total maximum daily loads to restore conditions supporting cold water aquatic life and salmonid spawning.
The document is available for review at DEQ’s Twin Falls regional office and on DEQ’s website. Comments can be made on DEQ’s website or sent by mail to Sue Switzer, DEQ Twin Falls regional office, 1363 Fillmore St., Twin Falls, ID 83301 or by email to HYPERLINK "mailto:sue.switzer@deq.idaho.gov" sue.switzer@deq.idaho.gov. Deadline is April 19.
Idaho union membership declines
Union membership in Idaho continued to decline in 2012, dropping below 5 percent of all wage and salary workers.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 29,000 of the state’s 613,000 workers last year belonged to unions. That 4.8 percent rate was down three-tenths of a percentage point from 2011.
Unions represented another 7,000 Idaho workers, who are not required to belong under the state’s 1985 right-to-work law.
The other states with lower union membership were all in the South—North Carolina, Arkansas, South Carolina, Mississippi, Georgia and Virginia.
Nationally, 11.3 percent of workers—14.4 million—were union members, down from 11.8 percent in 2011. Another 1.2 million workers were represented by unions but were not members.
Learn about hoarding disorder
On Thursday, March 28, clinical social worker Gay Miremont will explain elements of obsessive-compulsive hoarding and how new psychological studies are providing insight into the symptoms and treatment of this disorder, as well as how family and friends might be able to help.
The talk will be held from 12:15-1:15 p.m. in St. Luke’s Wood River Baldy Rooms.
All Brown Bag lectures are free and no pre-registration is required. Call St. Luke’s Center for Community Health for information on this or other educational programs, 727-8733.
Benefit set for Carey crash victims
A benefit auction will take place on Saturday, March 30, at the Carey Elementary School to raise funds to help cover hospital and living expenses for crash victims Jessie Taylor and Nathan Hennefer. The Carey School is located at 20 Panther Lane.
Taylor and Hennefer were involved in an automobile crash near Carey in early March. Both are sole providers for their families and require several months of convalescence, neighbor Erica Cook said.
Food will be served. Silent auction and raffle items include a weekend trip to Las Vegas, and a cabin rental.
The cost is $5 per person or $10 per family. Donations of items valued over $20 are welcome. Call Cook at 721-8774 for more information.
School registration scheduled for April 3
Registration for kindergarten, Dual Immersion kindergarten and preschool will take place on Wednesday, April 3, at three locations in Blaine County.
Parents of students attending Bellevue, Woodside and Hailey elementary schools, parents can register their children at the Community Campus, 1050 Fox Acres Rd. in Hailey from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.
For students attending Hemingway Elementary, parents can register their children there from 8:30 a.m. to noon and 1-3:30 p.m.
For students attending Carey School, parents can register their children there from 1-3 p.m.
Parents or guardians need to bring an original state-certified birth certificate and documented proof of residency with a physical address in Blaine County. They also need to bring immunization records.
Half-day preschool is offered five days a week on a sliding fee scale. Space is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.
For details on proof of residency, immunizations and preschool, go to HYPERLINK "http://www.blaineschools.org/" www.blaineschools.org or call 578-5000.
