Cynthia Taggart

HAYDEN – "Fit at 50" became Marilyn Hainsworth's mantra as she closed in on her half-century birthday a year ago. She packed her life with healthy swims, runs, bike rides, kayak trips and hikes between directing air traffic and taking care of her aging father.

The new skinny houses sprinkled throughout town on streets named after trees and presidents cleaned Sandpoint's appearance like a mother's handkerchief on a smudged face. Dilapidated and unsafe houses disappeared. So did trailer homes so rickety that even mild winds doubled as air conditioning. The people who called those places home also disappeared because they couldn't afford to rent or buy the new houses. No one knows where they went, because low-cost rentals are so rare in Sandpoint now that people wait up to two years for a vacancy.

Kids at Winton Elementary shouldn't miss show and tell next week. Their classmate, Brandon, 6, plans to show off his teeth, which Dr. Tom Smart fortified free with two new fillings Friday. "I brush my teeth every day so I don't get really bad cavities," Brandon said proudly as Smart prepared to work on him.

WORLEY, Idaho – Some people believe gambling is a vice, but North Idaho's school officials aren't seeing much wrong with the money sport this week. Superintendents, principals and teachers were giddy with joy Tuesday as Ernie Stensgar, chairman of the Coeur d'Alene Tribal Council, handed them a total of more than $1 million as the tribe's investment in education. The money represents 5 percent of last year's profits from the Coeur d'Alene Casino Resort Hotel.

COEUR d'ALENE – A daily bus service with stops and regular routes will start rolling in Coeur d'Alene, Hayden and Post Falls at the beginning of April, if all goes according to plan. Buses will travel as far south as DeSmet in Benewah County and stop at such popular spots as the Coeur d'Alene Casino, Benewah Medical Center, Coeur d'Alene Resort, Silver Lake Mall and Kootenai Medical Center.

The big white mobile health clinic that parks at Safeway in Bonners Ferry once a month is a welcome sight to dozens of families with no health insurance. They've learned during the past 18 months to count on the clinic, which looks like a bloodmobile, for dental checkups, immunizations, X-rays and help for ailments from colds and flu to stomach problems and mysterious headaches.

The heart that doctors transplanted into Coeur d'Alene's Larry Powell in Spokane on Nov. 28 needed minor repairs first, so people ahead of Powell on the waiting list for hearts passed it up. Jan Powell, Larry Powell's wife, is grateful they did. Her husband left Sacred Heart Medical Center last week for rehabilitation at St. Luke's Extended Care Center. He's standing on his own now and unencumbered by the heart pump that followed him around in a pull cart for a record 1,136 days.

Carol Sebastian knew nothing about the Kootenai Environmental Alliance in 2002, but she knew plenty about environmental issues. She'd found money to help rebuild wildlife habitats and trails in Southern California. She'd worked on land and water issues and helped persuade voters to tax themselves to acquire green spaces. She'd joined the Sierra Club and Audubon Society while she was in high school. And she was cool, confident and in control. Barry Rosenberg, KEA's executive director, wanted her.

THE MOOSE MOUNT peering over Leon Roulette's living room is in the same crowd dead as when it was alive. Elk, deer, even grizzly bears and wild sheep share the moose's indoor home and suggest the presence of a passionate hunter. Leon, in his jeans and flannel shirt, proudly claims the title, which, he's quick to point out, he shares with his wife, Carolyn Parker.

Sen. Larry Craig is a champion as far as TESH is concerned. Larry is not known as a tireless crusader for better living for TESH's developmentally disabled clients or one who constantly shines a spotlight on the good work TESH does to improve living and jobs skills for its clients. But TESH has never questioned the senator's support of its mission and hopes it never has to. Which is why the nonprofit organization is dubbing Larry a JWOD Champion. Larry now has to prove that's he's worthy of the honor.

THE SIZE OF ST. LOUIS rattled Kay Kindig more than she'd expected. She'd grown up on a farm in Illinois where family took care of family and she was taught respect for age. But when Kay took a job in bustling St. Louis managing a home health care program for the oldest generation, she quavered at the thought of growing old in the city.

December was the worst month Mary Ann Mattson can remember. The Orofino woman took her toddler, Nicholas Ashby, to Utah to save his life. But for 10 days this month she held him in his hospital bed while he shook with a 105-degree fever. He coughed and his mouth exploded with sores. Doctors had just replaced all his bone marrow. Until Nick's body accepted the transplant, he had no immune system to protect him.

TERRY STIDMAN ROARED and Coeur d'Alene's Lions awoke from their lengthy hibernation. "I didn't want to lose 67 years of history," Terry says, proudly displaying his Lions Club International pin on his jacket lapel. "They built Coeur d'Alene's first ballparks. They have a proud history."

This year flew by and brought good news for some people who shared their stories with Close to Home and sad news for others. A Hayden family threatened with ruin after a devastating fire proved the strength and comfort of family unity. Two other families just as united, though, are showing that the best support can't conquer some things. Anyone familiar with Hob and Katie Blank in Hayden knows even a major fire, like the one that threatened to toast their entire corner Aug. 30, couldn't keep their family down.

Katherine Law, 8, knows the most comfortable spot in her family's living room is on top of her dad, John Law, when he's spread out on the couch. John wraps his arm lovingly around his blond, blue-eyed daughter as she wriggles like a puppy until her head settles on his shoulder. Content, Katherine listens as her mom, Lee Anne Law, tells the family's favorite story. "I knew the second I saw these four on the state's Web site that these were the kids we had to adopt," Lee Anne says, lifting Katherine's brother, Chance, onto her lap. "When the social worker called and told us we were selected, I could hardly breathe. Everyone was so excited."