Stories from Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Kenneth and Gloria Baker will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on April 18. The couple were married on that date in 1964 in Hayward, Calif. The celebration is being hosted by William and Janet Baker. The couple have four children, William, Rusty, Keith and Teresa (Terri Lynn), and six grandchildren...

The number of people living in Elmore County remained on a small but steady decline over the past three years, according to the latest figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau. A population estimate published by the bureau for 2013 indicated that the county's population fell by just 122 people over a 12-month period...

Dear editor: Consider Marathon. Not the Elmore County business. Not the 26-plus mile race that celebrates the famed and purported run to the death of the Athenian Pheidippides. Marathon -- the first battlefield where free men gathered to fight and in so doing displayed Democracy for generations to come and in that noble and courageous display the aspirations of every free man since have their root...

Dear editor: To follow up on Kelly's editorial on voter apathy, I'd like to add an important message. I, too, am critical of apathy, and even more critical of organizations whose functions are impaired or damaged as a result of that apathy. Political subdivisions and organizations like the Elmore County Republican Party require more than just voters voting. They require involved, informed voters who actively participate in the organization's functions...

An Elmore County sheriff's deputy, accused of shoving an inmate at the county jail in 2012, was sentenced on lesser charges during a hearing on Friday. Deputy Tom Robison pled guilty to a single charge of disturbing the peace, according to statement released by Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden...

A supersized symbol of Idaho's potato industry made a brief appearance in Mountain Home the afternoon of April 16. The Famous Idaho Potato Truck stopped at the Mountain Home Visitor's Center and remained there for about an hour. Featured in commercials aired by the Idaho Potato Commission, the world's largest "potato on wheels" drove through Mountain Home following a stop at the local Air Force base. The visit was a lead-in to the team's tour of the United States, which officially begins Monday...

One of the fun traditions of the Easter season are the annual Easter egg hunts. Some churches and families hold their own, but there are several community events in the area. Mountain Home The Annual Community Easter Egg Hunt in Mountain Home, sponsored by Sabre Lodge No. 7, Free and Accepted Prince Hall Masons, will take place on Sunday, April 20, beginning at 1 p.m. at Carl Miller Park...