East Idaho Ties

Heather Sampson interviews Idaho State Police Sgt. Andrew Nakashima of the motorcycle unit about an event ISP and the local motorcycle community is putting together to promote safe motorcycle operation and motorcycle awareness this summer. The motorcycle community will meet at Don Floyd Park in Shelley for a group ride to the event at Hillcrest High School. People who attend the event at Hillcrest High School will be able to talk to other motorcycle enthusiasts, motorcycle police officers, and Idaho STAR motorcycle trainers. Training bikes and teachers will be available for a very basic 20-minute introduction to motorcycle skills. People will also be able to sign up for a full skills course, and if they already ride can qualify for their motorcycle endorsement for $25.  There will also be prizes for riders who complete a slow ride course. The event takes place on Saturday, June 7 with the skills course available from 11 to 3. 

Heather Sampson interviews Alycia Jensen of Keller Williams Realty, Nelson Group gave a breakdown of the current realty market in East Idaho. She said that the market here is stable and she feels confident in the current market. It is a fairly balanced market for buyers and sellers and while tariff policy is affecting Moody's rating, lending rates are stable around the historical average of 7%. There aren't any housing bubbles (meaning outlier activity compared to a historical average. The Federal Reserve hasn't indicated that rates will drop any time soon, so now is a good time to by and lock in a rate before it goes up. Sellers must be mindful to go with a fair market value when listing a home so that it doesn't sit on the market. When homes sit on the market for too long, they become stigmatized by sellers who fear that there may be something wrong with the home or count on making low offers to sellers who have been waiting for a long time. 

Issue: Citizens of Jefferson County have the opportunity to vote on whether or not the county should create its own ambulance district. Currently, the county relies on ambulance services from Idaho Falls to cover the area. This doubles the ambulance response time, as it must travel from Idaho Falls before returning with patients to the Idaho Falls hospital. Response time is critical to saving lives, especially in emergency situations involving the heart and brain. If Jefferson County residents approve the creation of a new ambulance district, the cost for full-service ambulance will be about a third of the price that they would otherwise have to pay Bonneville County for continued services. Currently, ambulance first responders are volunteers with the fire department, and they are only allowed to be EMS class responders because of the lack of a local ambulance district. Full-fledged paramedics must be in the jurisdiction of an ambulance district. This means that not only do local first responders in Jefferson county have to choose between keeping their jobs and volunteering, but they also are not allowed to administer drugs and take other life-saving precautions that a paramedic can. Detractors say that the ambulance district would be a new government agency, and they do not want an increase in government.

Teens who wonder what it’s really like to be in law enforcement, or even those who are just curious are encouraged to apply for the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office Teen Leadership & Career Day Camp. This FREE 4-day camp is packed with real law enforcement action, like SWAT and bomb squad demos, dive experiences, studying cold cases, an emergency driving demo, a jail tour, and a service day. It offers participants a  chance to get hands-on, behind-the-scenes experience. Teens from outside Bonneville county are welcome to apply. Participants can choose to attend camp the week of June 2-5 or the week of June 9-12.

Applications are now open to teens entering 9th grade through recent grads. Those interested can find more info and download an application by visiting bonnevillesheriff.com and searching teen career camp.

Elevate Academy in Idaho Falls is part of Idaho's Elevate Network, which is a network of year-round 6th-12th grade technical career charter schools. They have schools in Caldwell, Nampa, Post Falls, and now Idaho Falls. The Idaho Falls campus is new this year and when Westmark leadership was introduced to the Academy and its educational model, they knew they wanted to make an investment in Elevate, and because of the returns it would bring to Elevate's students and the community. Elevate Academy’s mission is "for all students to take responsibility for leading their own lives and studying a career track that may include vocational and college paths or a combination thereof.” Elevate offers technical education  designed and taught by professionals from those industries. It also aligns offerings to meet Idaho’s industry needs. Local industry partnerships include construction, welding/manufacturing, culinary arts, criminal justice, firefighting, business/marketing, graphic design, medical arts, and others according to community input and need. (www.elevate208.org)

Heather Sampson interviews Micheal Johnson of the local of Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), chapter 972. He emphasizes that the organization will do what it can for any veteran, not just Vietnam Vets, and operates under the motto of "no veteran left behind". Johnson says the VVA has gotten more laws passed that help veterans than any other organization. Right now, his mission is to raise funds so the chapter can install ramps on the outside of veteran's homes. The VVA chapter cannot install the ramps because of legal liability, so they raise money for ramps and installation. There are companies interested in donating ramps to chapter 972, but installation is still a hurdle. The chapter will gladly accept labor from companies that do ramp installation. They could also use some help with IT support so they can process online donations. Currently they meet at the Veteran's Memorial Building in downtown Idaho Falls every 3rd Thursday and need to get the word out as their numbers are dwindling.