Coeur d’Alene Reservation, ID

The first ever energy fair for this area will be held this year on November 14th at the Plummer Community Center from 3 pm to 6 pm.

Everyone is invited to learn about ways to save energy, money saving programs, energy efficient lighting and appliances, energy audits, and more. There will be items given away at many of the booths along with door prizes to be drawn every half hour.

Participants include all of the local electric utilities - City of Plummer, Kootenai Electric, Clearwater Power and Avista. Other participants include energy assistance representatives, Gateway Fire District, All New Insurance, and Ameri-Gas Propane Company.

November 3rd is a big day for fundraising for Plummer and Tensed Senior Citizen groups while feeding the masses.

The morning starts at 6 am with a breakfast of scrambled eggs, biscuits and sausage gravy, hashbrowns and beverages at the Plummer Legion Hall/Senior Meal Site. It is all you can eat for a $4 donation and everyone is welcome.

Then at noon a stew lunch and rummage sale is scheduled at the Tensed Senior Center. The lunch is $3.50 and pies will be sold for $5.00 each. For more information or to order pies call 274-2085, 274-2166, or 274-2851.

Proceeds from both events will be used to keep the senior meal sites operating.

The Kootenai County Commissioners will be available November 15th at 6:00 p.m. at Worley City Hall/Senior Center for a Town Hall Meeting to discuss county related issues in an open forum.

Elections for City Council and Mayors for Worley, Plummer and Tensed will be held on November 6th.

Positions open and candidates for Worley include:
Mayor - Charlene Waddell, Steven Wheeler, David Harding, and Willis Nigh
Council (2 seats open) - Robert Weinclaw, Karen Babbitt
Council 2 year (1 seat) - Ray Brouse, James Atwood
Polls are open from 12 noon to 8 pm at Worley City Hall.

Positions open and candidates for Plummer include:
Mayor - Tim Clark and Doug Colley
Council (2 seats open) - Jannette Taylor
Electors will also be voting on a $4 million revenue bond for a sewer plant.
Polls are open from 8 am to 8 pm at Plummer City Hall conference room.

Positions open and candidates for Tensed include:
Council (2 seats open) - Shane Sanford
Polls are open from 12 noon to 8 pm at the Tensed Community Building.

RESULTS:
Worley - Mayor Charlene Waddell, Council Robert Weinclaw, Karen Babbitt and Ray Brouse
Plummer - Mayor Tim Clark, Council Jannette Taylor; Revenue Bond for sewer passed
Tensed - ?

Idaho Family Reading week is November 11-17. The statewide theme is “So much to see, so much to do@your library.”

The Plummer Public Library is planning a family night with refreshments and a travel slide show hosted by Lakeside High student Alexis Fanning on Thursday, November 15th at 6:30 p.m. There will also be a prize drawing for a Creaative Zen V Plus MP3Player. Tickets for the drawing are available at the library now.

Flu shots are available at Community Health accross the street from the Benewah Medical Center. A fee of $15 may apply. Children under 18 years of age need to go to the clinic.
Wednesday October 24 from 2 pm to 5 pm
Friday October 26 from 9 am to 12 pm
Monday October 29 from 2 pm to 5 pm
Tuesday November 6 from 3 pm to 5:30 pm
Monday November 12 from 2 pm to 5 pm

The Plummer Public Library is excited to be able to offer E-Audio books through Netlibrary. E-Audio books can be downloaded to your computer and then transferred to an mp3 player for portability; however, they cannot be copied to CDs since they have buildt in DRM.

Presently there are 2,500 titles to choose from and more will be added throughout the coming year. This is a service you can access from home once you set up your free account through the library.

Plummer Public Library is open Monday through Wednesday 10am-6pm, Thursday 2pm-6pm, Saturday 12noon-4pm, and is closed on Friday and Sunday.

The Plummer/Worley Friends of the Library are hosting a holiday arts and crafts fair and used book sale on November 10th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the High School gym.

Vendors/Crafters are still needed. Val Simkins is the contact person at 686-1526 or call the Plummer Library at 686-1812.

Thursday, October 11th at 6:00 pm at the Plummer Community Building.
Pizza will be served for dinner.

The Co-chairs, Josh Arnold and Wilma Bob, welcome participation from the community to discuss ideas. The ideas brainstormed at the Vision Launch include:

Revamping the main streets with landscaping through the Reservation towns.
Hosting movie theaters at the local community centers.
Entreprenurial opportunities with assistance.

Please come contribute your ideas and later your elbow grease.

The Plummer Community POD (point of dispensing) Exercise that is.

We need volunteers to come to the Wellness Center anytime from 10am-12pm to participate in a mock exercise for mass medication distribution for our community.

This is a great way to test how we would handle a real threat.

Any questions please call Benewah Medical Center, 686-1931 ask for Chanda Heer.

Secondly, we are looking for volunteers for the MRC, Medical Reserve Corps. Currently there are less than 15 people ready to help in an emergency in our community. You do not have to be a medical professional. For more information, please contact Public Health Preparedness 208-415-5180.

Lights On After School Flyer

On October 25, 2007 Lakeside Elementary will be celebrating “Lights on After School,” the only nationwide event recognizing the critical need for quality afterschool programs. The celebration supporting Lakeside’s after school program will be from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Lakeside Elementary gym and will include dinner and a mini carnival.

The Success Center is an afterschool program desinged to meet the unique needs of all students, grades 3-5, in the Plummer Worley School District. By providing exciting academic, enrichment, and cultural activities, students will be provided with the tools and assistance to overcome difficult challenges and experience academic and personal success. The Success Center’s schedule is Monday - Thursday 7:30-8:00 a.m. and 2:45-5:15 p.m.

If you are interested in supporting this important program for keeping children safe, inspiring learning and helping working families, please e-mail Jacque Hoffman (hoffman.jacque@lakesidesch.org) or Sharon Sanchez (sanchez.sharon@lakesidesch.org) or call them at 686-2211.

I know - What’s a blogger. I didn’t know until last week when Carla and I attended training to become bloggers. In simple terms it is an awesome way to share information. What you are reading right now is a blog, and the author is called a blogger.

We are looking for people from around the Reservation Community to submit stories about what is going on. Anyone interested can contact Carla Marratt at 686-6803 or cmarratt@cdatribe-nsn.gov OR Donna Spier at 686-1641 or donnaspier@hotmail.com to learn how to be a blogger or to submit information for this site.

The Vision Launch was held on September 27th at the Plummer Community Center. Forty-five community members discussed the issues and concerns which came out of the Visioning Rally. These included a lack of support for educaiton, a lack of investment in the future of the community, a lack of community pride, a non-inclusive environment, a lack of connection between the communities, youth issues and concerns for young people, Tribal and local governments not working together, a lack of future for the children in the community, a division within the community, and a lack of relationships between people.

Four Action Teams were formed to work on issues so that the vision can become reality.

Communication and Leadership Team
Co-Chairs - Carla Marratt and Donna Spier

Community Pride Team
Co-Chairs - Kathy Kolar and Sister Dolores Ellwart

Community Vitality Team
Co-Chairs - Josh Arnold and Wilma Bob

Lifelong Learning Team
Co-Chairs - Dr. Chris Meyer and Gerald Green

On September 13, 2007 over 100 community members of all ages and backgrounds came together at the Long House in Worley to have a conversation about the future of our collective communities on the Reservation. In a word - WOW!

Read more about the Visioning Rally on the Visioning Rally page.

By the end of the night a new vision was created. That vision is below as well as on a separate page “The Vision”.

Coeur d’Alene Reservation communities are close-knit communities with tribal and local governments working in strong partnerships. We have open community conversations and full participation from our citizens. We are renowned for our progressive, cohesive and collaborative communities and self-supportive rural life. We have a strong belief in and support for education that provides for lifelong learning.

We have created vibrant bustling downtowns and a very diverse, progressive, and innovative small business sector. We have developed an abundance of savvy business people who cater to the multitude of recreational enthusiasts and passing visitors.