Stories from Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Rebecca Allene Smith and Matthew Ryan Arnone, both of Cupertino, Calif., were united in marriage on July 4, 2014, at Lake Coeur D'Alene, with Terry Gurno officiating at the ceremonies. The bride is the daughter of James and Teri Smith of Mountain Home and the granddaughter of Arnold "Bud" and Gin Smith, also of Mountain Home...

Following a sharp drop in recent years, the assessed value of homes in Elmore County continued to show signs of recovery over the past year with the value of commercial businesses showing similar signs of stabilizing. Figures released recently by the Elmore County Assessors Office showed home property values fell by 1.5 percent in 2013, which represents a slower rate of decline since the housing market crash in 2008...

Dear editor: I would like to thank everyone who helped make the 18th Annual Garden Tour a success. The 26 hosts and hostesses who greeted everyone at each of the gardens, Jennifer at the Stagecoach Espresso for selling tickets in advance and especially all the eight homeowners who shared their gardens with all of us. Special thanks to Mountain Home News' Kelly Everitt and Brian Orban for all the publicity...

Dear editor: Our family loves our pets. We feed them, water them, care for them, hold them, pet them, and take them to the vet when they are sick, just as many other pet lovers do with their animals. Today, someone's dog came into our yard and killed two of our beloved pets, while our 14-year-old son tried to stop the carnage...

Dear editor: When a senator votes "present" 129 times, it should have been clear even to a Democrat that handsome, charming or not, this guy can't make a decision. Instead of turning his attention to Benghazi, this president flies off to a party fundraiser. Now, instead of going down to the border situation HE knew was coming since January, he's off to another party fundraiser. "Priorities" eh?...

The Western Elmore County Recreation District will meet tonight to decide what are the next steps that must be taken to achieve its goal of building a community center. The meeting will take place at the WECRD offices at 245 E. 6th South St., beginning at 6 p.m...

The Elmore County Fair and Rodeo essentially opens to the general public today and will run through Saturday at the fairgrounds in Glenns Ferry. Daily gate admission to the fairgrounds, located just off I-84's exit 121, is $3 for individuals ages 7 and older and free for children up to age 6. Admission to the Idaho Cowboy Association (ICA) rodeo and the all-youth junior rodeo is $9 for adults, $3 for youth and $6 for seniors. Individuals up to age 5 are admitted free...