Stories from Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Voters will go to the polls Tuesday to cast their ballots in the state's primary election to pare down the candidates for this fall's general elections. Locally, there are a number of contested races on the ballot, most on the Republican ticket. Arlie Shaw and Janet Langfitt are facing off on the Republican ballot for the right to challenge Democrat Jim Sanders for the First District County Commissioners seat. ...

Last Monday night, city council voted to approve a lease with Pleasant Valley Cycle, LLC, of Kuna, to host motocross racing this summer at Optimist Park. The resolution, however, was defeated by Mayor Joe B. McNeal's vote of nay after the other council members deadlocked at 2-2...

Mayor Joe McNeal has threatened to veto any action the city council might take to readdress any homes or businesses in the city, as council moves toward making a few select changes at specific locations requested by the county and emergency service authorities...

A special independent task force reporting to the Elmore Medical Center Board of Trustees has recommended retaining the nursing home in any plans the board has for hospital expansion. In a working partnership with Elmore Medical Center, a Community Elder Care Task Force (ECTF), lead by task force chairperson Cindy Terriberry, met in a two-day session recently to learn about the changing trends in elder care services...

A Mountain Home man was arraigned Monday on attempted first-degree murder charges and held without bond after he allegedly stabbed his wife during an altercation outside the couple's home Saturday. Perry Russell, 42, was arrested without incident after Mountain Home police responded at 7:45 p.m. Saturday to a call from a neighbor concerning the alleged incident at 250 War Eagle Dr...

Larry and Brenda Fincher have announced the engagement of their daughter, Leann Bryant, to Larry Oletski. Their wedding with family and friends will be held June 11 in Legacy Park in Mountain Home. They couple both work for Wendy's in Boise and make their home with their five children...

Marion Conner Buel Peak, 94, of Jerome, formerly of Elmore County, died April 30, 2006. Mass was celebrated in her honor at St. Jerome's Churchin Jerome, on May 2. Her ashes were interred at the Monastery of the Ascension in Jerome following that service. Arrangements were under the care of Farnsworth Mortuary in Jerome...

Raymond C. Huot, 66, of Mountain Home, died Thursday, May 11, 2006, at his home, surrounded by his family. Per Raymond's request, cremation and a private family service wer held. Arrangements were under the direction of Rost Funeral Home, McMurtrey Chapel in Mountain Home...

John L. Gardner, 81, of Mountain Home, died Friday, May 12, 2006. Funeral Services to be held in Entiat, Wash., at a later date. Local arrangements are under the direction of Rost Funeral Home, McMurtrey Chapel. John was born June 24, 1924, the son of John and Nioma Gardner in Wenatchee, Wash...

Ernest H. Tucker, 83, of Boise, formerly of Mountain Home, died May 4, 2006, after battling cancer and heart trouble for four years. A graveside ceremony will be conducted at the Idaho State Veterans Cemetery on Friday, May 19 at 3 p.m. with military honors, followed by a graveside service done by officers of the Mountain Home Elk's Lodge #2276 of which he, his daughter and one granddaughter are members...

There will be no Mountain Home tennis players at state, but that does not mean the Tigers did not put up a good fight at Vallivue and Caldwell last week at the District III 4A Tennis Tournament. The district tennis tourney consisted of five separate tournaments -- boys singles, girls singles, boys doubles, girls singles and mixed doubles -- with seeding in the tournament based on the players' won-loss record the last half of the conference season...

The Mountain Home Tiger golf teams finished sixth in the girls competition and seventh in the boys competition at the District III 4A Golf Tournament at River Birch Golf Course last week. Bishop Kelly won the girls competition, shooting a 332 team total, besting Caldwell by 11 strokes. Vallivue was third with a 351. Skyview was a distant fourth at 431, Nampa was fifth with 450, and Mountain Home came in with a 459. Kuna and Emmett did not have complete teams...

The softball season came to a close for the Mountain Home Lady Tigers last week at the District III 4A Softball Tournament at Kuna with losses to Vallivue and Caldwell. Vallivue 5 Mountain Home 4 (8 innings) It was almost like a replay of last year's district, when Mountain Home lost two heartbreaking extra inning ball games at the district tourney, one of them to Vallivue...

Although their team scores at district might have left them lower than they might have wanted to be, the Mountain Home Tigers track team is sending nine boys and eight girls to the 4A State Track & Field Championships at BSU this week. Kacy Barrie, the defending 100 meter high hurdle champion, will be back to defend her title after capturing the event at district at NNU last week. ...

The Mountain Home Tigers were overcome by heat Friday night in the District III 4A Baseball Tournament Championship, losing to the Knights, 9-0 at Bishop Kelly. The heat was not from the weather, which was pleasant and might have reached 80, but from Bishop Kelly's pitching, where the speed definitely reached 90, as in miles per hour fastballs...