2020 One year ago
The Idaho Philanthropy Day organization has honored Disability Action Center NW with the Outstanding Non-Profit Award for 2020. DAC NW received this award along with 47 other Idaho organizations being acknowledged for service via the organization sponsored by Serve Idaho. The organization is a part of the Governor’s Commission on Service and Volunteerism and the Idaho Nonprofit Center. Mark Leeper, executive director, said he was delighted and honored to have DAC NW nominated. “I know this was earned, not by me, but by our dedicated and hardworking staff,” he said. “They have the unique experience and expertise which they share free of charge with our consumers.” ... The University of Idaho announced it will lease its steam plant and utility system to a third-party concessionaire for an up-front payment of $225 million which will be invested in student success initiatives and growing revenues. In a news release, the UI said the State Board of Education approved a 50-year agreement with the investment group Sacyr Plenary Utility Partners Idaho LLC after about a year of legwork. UI spokeswoman Jodi Walker said the so-called public-private partnership, or “P3,” will be funded by Sacyr Plenary but the day-to-day management of the facilities will fall to the construction engineering company McKinstry.
2016 Five years ago
The U.S. Capitol’s holiday “People’s Tree” will travel from where it grew in the Payette National Forest in McCall, Idaho, to Washington, D.C., making stops along the way, including one at the ASUI Kibbie Activity Center parking lot on the University of Idaho campus. ... The forecast called for clear skies but saw showers of pumpkins as Washington State University held its 12th annual pumpkin drop. Dozens of spectators looked on as the Physics and Astronomy Club released one pumpkin after another from the 12th floor of Webster Hall. “It has a big explosion and there were a bunch of pieces that blew up,” said Austin Adams, who sat near the front of the crowd. “We were getting sort of hit (with pumpkin debris) when the rapid fire came.” But the club didn’t just drop pumpkins - they were able to combine the fun and excitement with a little history lesson. Event emcee Kaine Schultz took the spectators on a chronological journey of scientific breakthroughs and the people who made them.
2011 Ten years ago
Colorful scarves, baskets, toys, artwork and other crafts set the stage this weekend for an ethical start to the holiday shopping season in Pullman. The Community Congregational United Church of Christ hosted its 12th annual fair trade craft sale with goods sold by Roger Gee and Nancy Spada of Singing Shaman Traders, a fair trade import business based in Hauser, Idaho, northwest of Post Falls. He said the Pullman UCC sale is their biggest one of the year, with others taking place in Spokane, Sandpoint and Seattle. But by the end of December, he and Spada plan to close up shop and head to Guatemala for three months, as they do each winter. He said the lake is bordered by several small communities where they go looking for new crafts to purchase and bring home to the Northwest to sell. ... Several dozen human rights activists and concerned community members from around the region gathered at the University of Idaho in Moscow to set the foundation for the Northwest Coalition for Human Rights, a new organization devoted to combating hate in the Inland Northwest. Participants shared recent volunteer efforts, heard from speakers and brainstormed ideas for forming the new group, which “exists to facilitate connections and communication among organizations and individuals who are engaged in human rights and social justice work in the Northwest,” according to the coalition’s newsletter and website.
