Cyril’s Wish: 90th Birthday Like Any Other

Nothing much rattles Cyril Schaefer. Maybe that’s why he’s lived so long. He’s 90 today and his wife, Kathryn, is scrambling all over the region to arrange a reunion for him this weekend.

Cyril just raises his white eyebrows and slowly shakes his head at the fuss.

“I didn’t want her to go through all that,” he says.

“But she says I’ll never see 90 again.”

True enough. But Cyril’s days aren’t numbered. He’s already outlived two wives and dozens of friends. Chances are that list will grow in the next decade.

“I may be 90 years old, but I’m not done,” he says, chuckling.

His memory is clear, which makes Cyril popular with Kootenai County historical groups. He remembers running a Post Falls dairy during the Depression, until people couldn’t pay their bills.

He remembers growing wheat on the Rathdrum Prairie and running a small dairy on the Mica Flats. He sold his milk to a Coeur d’Alene creamery that supplied the U.S. Naval Base at Farragut. The military was more interested in Cyril’s milk than his muscle.

After the war, he opened a dairy in French Gulch, where a golf course sits now.

“At one time, there were 81 small dairies in Kootenai County,” he says. “Now, there’s none.”

Cyril’s first wife died in 1950, leaving him with three children to raise. He never thought about remarrying until he retired 23 years later.

“You just do what you have to do,” he says. “I don’t let things bother me too much.”

Which is why he’s reached 90 without a bend in his back or a crack in his voice. He doesn’t even argue during pinochle, a game he plays somewhere in the county every day of the week.

“Been playing since 1973,” he says. “After I didn’t work anymore, I had to do something.”

Cyril’s birthday celebration will be from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday, at the Oakcrest Mobile Home Park clubhouse, N. 4301 Ramsey Rd., in Coeur d’Alene. All family, friends and neighbors are invited.

Take the test

Maybe you don’t consider it risky behavior to pierce your bellybutton with an unsterilized safety pin, but the North Idaho AIDS Coalition does.

The coalition will offer free confidential HIV testing 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., Aug. 29, at Dowd Publishing, 421 Sherman Ave., in Coeur d’Alene.

Who should go? The risk takers - people with multiple sex partners or who share needles, get unprofessional tattoos or body piercings. Panhandle Health District nurses will help with the tests.

Don’t ignore the opportunity. Call 762-8197 with questions.

Hands on

Remember Barb Scarth and Jan Meyer, the Coeur d’Alene women starting a public ceramic and pottery studio? Paint was flying over pie plates, salad bowls and mugs when they opened last week.

Even the art-repressed can have fun here. Anything goes. If it’s dabbed on with confidence and no self-conscious glances at neighbors, it’s art. Take your kids or your parents. Hands On Art Studio is at 112 Hazel Ave.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

MEMO: Where in the Panhandle did you have the most fun this summer? Share your excitement with Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene, ID, 83814; FAX to 765-7149; call 765-7128; or e-mail to cynthiat@spokesman.com.