Area fifth-graders got their fill of laughter and inspiration Thursday at the 32nd annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Kids Program.

Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls school district fifth-graders prepared civil rights essays, learned songs and created art pieces throughout the week to prepare for the big production.

“Every year it’s a fabulous program,” said Lisa Hoffeld, the principal of West Ridge Elementary School. “Kids get to share what they wrote about human rights and heroes. They worked really hard on this and the teachers put in a lot of time, too.”

The Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations has been working with the Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls school districts for the past three decades to put on the production each year, and the Coeur d’Alene Tribe has consistently written grants to fund it/Bethany Blitz, Coeur d'Alene Press. More here.