Couple Enjoy Smog-Free Life In North Idaho
Pete Obligato wasn’t willing to see his wife’s health ruined, so he began commuting 1,200 miles to work.
“A lot of people do it. It’s not that odd,” says Pete’s wife, Jan. They live in Hayden Lake, Idaho, but Pete works in Burbank, Calif.
The Obligatos escaped the smog, traffic, crime and earthquakes of Southern California four years ago.
Both had grown up in small Midwestern towns. They met in Arizona when Pete was in medical school and were swept to Los Angeles in 1974 for Pete’s medical residency.
Pete dove into emergency medicine. By 1976, he’d nailed a job at Providence St. Joseph’s Hospital in Burbank. A few years later, he and Jan began their family.
They moved to a nice neighborhood, but it didn’t shield them from earthquakes or allergies. Like most of their friends, they talked about getting out of the area someday. But Pete was hooked on his job.
He had worked with the same four doctors at Providence since 1976. On vacations, the Obligatos looked for new places to live, but they weren’t particularly motivated until Jan’s labored breathing and wheezing began in 1990.
She was diagnosed with chronic bronchitis. The Obligatos connected it to the California smog and interpreted it as their signal to leave. Friends invited them to Coeur d’Alene, and a year later, in 1992, they moved.
Pete arranged to fly to Burbank every five weeks for two weeks of night work in the emergency room. He also signed on to work three to five shifts at North Idaho Immediate Care Center during his three weeks at home. He also volunteers at Lake City Health Care Clinic, Coeur d’Alene’s free clinic.
“I have more family time now,” he says, smiling at Jan. “And she’s much healthier.”
Jan’s breathing problems ended soon after the move north. Each time she has returned to Los Angeles, the wheezing has returned.
“I used to get laryngitis a lot and I haven’t had it up here,” she says. “You can work anything out when you really want to.”
Party time
Everyone needs groceries, so why not take a chance on winning some? Lake City High School parents have thrown together a raffle to raise money for the 1997 senior class party, and they’ve aimed for the stomach. The grand prize is $250 worth of groceries from Albertsons.
Other prizes are dinners at Coeur d’Alene’s Third Street Cantina and Burger King.
Parents of seniors are selling tickets, and they’re easy to recognize - they’re the ones with the inside-out pockets. Tickets also are on sale at Albertsons.
The drawing will be held on Thanksgiving.
Such a deal
Buy someone you love Seattle actor Terrence Kelly’s rendition of “Old Man River” on Saturday. Terrence’s performance is up for auction at the Soroptomists’ annual benefit auction at the Coeur d’Alene Inn. Anyone who has heard Terrence sing in Coeur d’Alene in past summers knows he’s worth a few gold coins.
For more traditional tastes, the Soroptomists are auctioning off a full beef cut and wrapped, a Bev Doolittle print, a snowmobile, weekend trips and 200-plus other items.
The group spreads its money to the Women’s Center, Children’s Village, the juvenile detention center, parks and scholarships.
The Soroptomists have some interesting wares for their live and silent auctions this year. The fun will start at 6:30 p.m., costs $35 and includes some top-notch appetizers.
For details, call 765-5600 or 667-1212.
Full of it
Whom do you know who’s so full of character that he or she belongs in a book or a movie? Profile your star for Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814; or send a fax to 765-7149, call 765-7128 or send e-mail to cynthiat@spokesman.com.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo