The County Lines

Sat., Dec. 5, 1998

WASHINGTON

ADAMS COUNTY Othello

A homecoming prank involving duct tape led to violence in Othello. A boy, 17, was convicted on juvenile charges of second-degree assault when he used his pocketknife to stab another boy, also 17, in retaliation for being bound with duct tape and left in a park. The victim spent five days in the hospital recovering from stab wounds to the hip and side. His assailant will spend 15-36 weeks in a state institution.

FERRY COUNTY Republic

County commissioners recently opened a single bid for the position of alternative public defender, but no decision was made. The sole proposal came from local attorney Cleve O. Ives. Ives bid $600 per case for 1999, and $625 per case in 2000. Ives currently backs up the county public defender for $300 per case.

GRANT COUNTY Moses Lake

Victims of domestic violence will soon have a safe place to go in Grant County. Grant Mental Healthcare was recently awarded a $126,000 grant to open a shelter and provide service to local abuse victims.

LINCOLN COUNTY Almira

Superintendent Rick Doehle says the Y2K computer bug should have little or no effect on the Almira or Coulee-Hartline schools. He says a few older school buses with embedded microchips may not start, and school bells may need resetting, but all computers and files are on updated systems.

PEND OREILLE COUNTY Selkirk

Ten voices have been chosen for the Selkirk High School Show Choir, an elite singing group that performs for the public. The choir will kick off its holiday tour with a concert at Deck the Falls today and Sunday. The group also plans a Monday concert at the school, a tour of various churches and a show at NorthTown Mall in Spokane on Dec. 17 at 10:30 a.m.

SPOKANE COUNTY Cheney

Tops in Blue, an Air Force music group featuring American songs from the 1920s to today, will perform a free concert Sunday in the Reese Court Pavilion at Eastern Washington University at 7:30 p.m. The group has performed 120 U.S. concerts this year and has performed in more than 20 other countries.

STEVENS COUNTY Colville

The community Christmas tree is up and twinkling thanks to Vaagen Brothers Lumber Co. The giant tree, donated by Lou Hunt, was put in place by Vaagen Brothers and decorated by the city crew. The tree at the corner of Main and Astor is the cornerstone of the town’s holiday light display. The town has more than 2,000 lights strung on Main Street to welcome visitors this season.

WHITMAN COUNTY Pullman

Washington State University crews began spraying campus evergreens this week with compounds of animal and chemical scents to punish those who cut them as Christmas trees. If a treated tree is cut and taken indoors the warmer temperatures cause it to give off an offensive odor, according to Kathy Brun, campus facilities operations. Detection of the chemical sprays could also be used to prosecute individuals who stole trees from university property. One tree was lost this week near the east Coliseum parking lot.

IDAHO

BENEWAH COUNTY St. Maries

The Benewah County Master Gardeners is looking for new members to learn about plants and gardening. Participants must complete 35 hours of classroom training and 35 hours of hands-on gardening during the first year. For more information contact Lois Burrington, (208) 245-2320, or Nancy Maher, (208) 245-2808.

BONNER COUNTY Priest River

The Priest River Elementary PTO is collecting aluminum can tabs to provide free lodging at the Ronald McDonald House in Spokane for a North Idaho family with a sick child in a Spokane hospital. Each pound of tabs collected provides one night of lodging. Last year the PTO collected 40 pounds of tabs. Tabs can be turned in at the elementary during school hours.

BOUNDARY COUNTY Bonners Ferry

The second annual Bonners Ferry High School Festival of Crafts will be in the cafeteria from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Dec. 12. Booth applications are available at the Athletic Connection. For more information, call (208) 267-3432 or (208) 267-5368.

KOOTENAI COUNTY Coeur d’Alene

Auditions for two North Idaho College plays will begin next week. Auditions for “A Doll’s House” will be 7-9 p.m. Monday and Tuesday in Schuler Auditorium. The play runs Feb. 25 through March 6. Auditions for “Bitter Cupid” will be 7-9 p.m. Dec. 14-15 with the play running March 1-2. For more information, call (208) 269-3220.

LATAH COUNTY Potlatch

More than 100 people recently reminisced about the Potlatch Mercantile at a new exhibit sponsored by and presented at the Potlatch Historical Society. The store opened in 1907 and was destroyed by a fire in 1963.

SHOSHONE COUNTY Kellogg

Kellogg High School drama students, who placed first in the District I Drama Festival at Lake City High School Nov. 21, will compete in the state tournament in Twin Falls this weekend.

Wallace

Local dance students, ages 4-17, will perform the Nutcracker today and Sunday at 2 p.m. in Miner Hall. The class is taught by Jonie Bartel.

MONTANA

LINCOLN COUNTY Libby

The Kootenai River flow increased Nov. 30 as discharges at Libby Dam went up to 25,000 cubic feet per second. The increase in discharges is for power production demands from the Columbia River power grid and to accommodate for the lowering of Lake Koocanusa to meet flood control levels.

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.