Wish upon an
IDAHO STAR in 2021
Boise Skiing Legend BOB GREENWOOD
A Taste of Cuba
Tech Startups Rise
Room with a View
EXPLORE
TODAY Located North on Highway 55 a Mile Above Shadow Valley Golf Course Model Homes Open Daily 10 am - 5 pm • 208-939-5360 • www.avimor.com Marketed by Epic Realty LLC • RCE 35084
Avimor History
For over 100 years, the McLeod family has lived on and cared for the thousands of acres that comprise Avimor. Avimor was part of a larger ranch known as the Spring Valley Ranch, which traces its roots to 1890 when a small ranching community known as “Howell” began to thrive in the area. It was an 80 acre ranching settlement that boasted a general store, blacksmith shop, and post office. In 1916, Colin McLeod, a Scottish immigrant, arrived in Howell and purchased what became known as the Spring Valley Ranch. Colin McLeod raised his family on the ranch and began to purchase surrounding parcels, ultimately growing the foothills ranch to about 37,000 acres. The ranch stayed in the hands of the McLeod family, passing from Colin McLeod., to Colin “Smokey” McLeod II., and then on to Colin “Sandy” McLeod III. Conservation and land stewardship have always been a priority of the McLeod Family. They were implementing sustainable practices many decades before it became popular to do so. It is their heritage of land stewardship that is the basis for The Avimor Master Plan. In early 2000, Sandy McLeod and his family sought to develop a “place” where the land was preserved for future generations and folks could live side-by-side with nature. The McLeods desired a small-town feel, a community where kids could freely enjoy the outdoors and residents could get to know their neighbors. The McLeod family considered many alternatives for development. They first considered selling individual parcels, resulting in a patchwork quilt of development throughout the foothills. They decided, however, that a master plan concept with an emphasis on conservation and small town values would be the best way to meet their vision for the land. As the McLeods and planners began planning, one of their primary goals was to find a way to alleviate the natural conflict between private development and conservation of the scenic foothills. They decided on cluster development. Cluster building, also known as “conservation design,” requires planners to consider environmental features and natural areas while designing any development. It is a way to avoid the simple “checkerboard” development and instead integrate trails, natural open space, creek beds, and parks into the design. Scenic resources and native habitat are preserved while still allowing public access and recreational use. Avimor has set the standard for inclusive conservation-based communities. Like the foothills it’s built on, Avimor is living and growing. The plan is well designed with conservation at the forefront. The foothills lifestyle is affordable and open to all. Advertisement
FRESH AIR FRESH IDEAS
CONTENTS
COMMUNITY 6 Thank You to Our Heroes 7 Immunity Countdown: 11 Important Facts About the New COVID Vaccine 10 What Becomes a Boise Legend Most: Bob Greenwood 14 Boise Now & Then 30 Put Your Money Where Your Heart Is: Support Local Businesses 35 Let's Talk Nice 38 Making the World a Better Place: Idaho Human Rights Collective
FOOD, ARTS, & CULTURE 18 The Pandemic and the Poem: in Conversation With Limberlost Press 21 A Taste of Cuba 24 I Walk in Her Shoes 29 Chow Down: Abs Are Made in the Kitchen 32 Governor's Awards in the Arts: Bridging Cultures in Idaho TECHNICALLY SPEAKING 26 Boise Startup Week ALSO IN THIS ISSUE 5 Publisher's Letter 40 Contributors
Photo courtesy of Ilya Shishikhin.
ON THE COVER There’s magic in Idaho’s winter skies. The solstice has passed. The longest night is over. And yet, the darkness holds a gift. Less traffic means less pollution, giving way to the clearest views of the starry heavens, perhaps, in our lifetimes. Idahoans enjoy eight square miles per person in relation to our wide-open spaces. Did you know 1,400 square miles of central Idaho has been designated the first Dark Sky Preserve in the U.S? Translated into sky acres, the firmament of diamonds above are all yours in the Gem State.
IN THE NEXT ISSUE The History of Film in Idaho
J A N U A R Y/ FEB RUARY 2021 publisher K A R E N DAY karen@idahorem.com features editor H E AT H E R H A M I LT O N POST heather@idahorem.com copy editor S T E PH A N I E N E L SON technically speaking editor H A I L E Y M I N T ON art and design K R IS T I N A C A SE kristina@idahorem.com K A L E Y BE LVA L design@idahorem.com director of operations and sales manager M A R IELLE W EST PH A L admin@idahorem.com staff photographer K A R E N DAY cover photographer CHEW Y Marketing, Sales and Distribution karen@idahorem.com
Photo courtesy of Sun Valley Film Festival.
Community + Culture + Recreation + Real Estate
Image courtesy of Tom Trusky and Boise State University.
IdaHome Magazine is publishing by Idaho Real Estate Marketplace P.O. Box 116 Boise, Idaho 83701 208-481-0693 © 2021 IdaHome Magazine. All rights reserved. The opinions expressed by the authors and contributors to IdaHome Magazine are not necessarily those of the editor and publisher.
Whew! Congratulations—we made it to 2021! Happy New Year—hopefully! As publisher of IdaHome Magazine, I am charged with deciding which stories best serve our community and readers. Balancing good news and bad is often complicated and always a responsibility since our words will float in print and digital ethers forever. Luckily, our staff of writers, photographers and designers overflows with the talent and determination to produce a beautiful and pertinent magazine every time. I am also eternally grateful to the brand clients that continue to support our efforts to offer stories that inspire you to smile, nod or shake your head in disagreement, disbelief or discovery—for free. In short, my job is to ensure what you read in IdaHome represents the best of Idaho. K A R E N D AY This first 2021 issue celebrates new beginnings and IdaHome Publisher Magazine’s third year in print. The stories within reflect optimism, strength, courage and dare we say—fun! Our tech editor, Hailey Minton, digs deep into what makes Idaho startups rise from a pitch to success. The art of letterpress is laborious and gorgeous and our features editor, Heather Hamilton-Post delves into what propels one local publisher to create world-class literature in his garage. If America has learned anything in 2020, it’s that we’re a nation divided. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris leads Cherie Buckner-Webb to examine unique challenges they share as women of color in a white, male political landscape. Nancy Buffington shares ways to bring peace to our conversations and perhaps, with extended hands and heart, to our country. And as a special gift, we talked to Boise ski pioneer, Bob Greenwood, and found out what makes a life legendary.
Let’s lift a glass to 2021 and better times ahead. As always, thanks for reading IdaHome!
We see you. Photo courtesy of St. Luke's Health System
From: IdaHome To: Our Heroes
THANK YOU Healthcare workers, essential workers, first and last responders and lab technicians for pulling us through this crisis.
immunity countdown
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important facts about the
NEW COVID VACCINE
BY DAVID C. PATE, M.D., J.D.
3 4 2 5
Dr. David Pate is the former CEO of St. Luke's Health System. He currently sits on Idaho's Coronavirus Task Force. Photos courtesy of St. Luke's Health System
When will we be able to vaccinate young children?
ORN | PHOTOS COURTESY STATE UNIVERSITY
We don’t know yet, though I would anticipate that we may be able to do so sometime between the end of this school year and before the start of the next.
How many shots do I have to get?
Two shots separated 21 days apart.
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Should I get the vaccine?
For most people, the answer is yes. For this first vaccine, you will have to be at least 16 years of age. Those who have had severe allergic reactions (e.g., anaphylaxis) to any components of this vaccine in the past will not be eligible to receive the vaccine. We don’t yet have enough data to know whether the vaccine is safe for pregnant or lactating mothers.
Where will I go to get vaccinated?
Your primary care provider, local hospital and local pharmacy may be offering the vaccine. Information as to vaccination sites will be made available before the time you become eligible.
How long until I have to get the next set of shots?
We don’t know yet, but we are anticipating that it may be as soon as a year or as long as three years. We will know better before you will be due for next year’s shots if it is a year.
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Is the vaccine safe?
Yes, no serious safety concerns have been identified in the clinical trials thus far. With that said, side effects with vaccines are common, and often are evidence of the body mounting the desired strong immune response we are seeking. The most commonly reported side effects were pain at the injection site, fatigue, headache, muscle aches, chills, joint pain and fever. These side effects are generally short-lived and typically resolve within several days of receiving the vaccine. These side effects tend to be very mild with the first shot and more severe with the second. Interestingly, older recipients of the vaccine tended to have milder symptoms with both shots.
THE EFFECTIVENESS
"The vaccine is highly effective appearing to prevent COVID in 95 percent of those vaccinated."
9 7 10 8 How effective is the vaccine?
The vaccine is highly effective appearing to prevent COVID in 95 % of those vaccinated. In those few who still got infected despite getting the vaccine, they appeared to have significant protection against getting severe disease that would result in hospitalization or death.
Is there a cost for the vaccine?
The vaccine is free, though there may be an administration fee charged by the provider. Be sure to check ahead of your appointment for vaccination whether you will need to pay anything at your visit or whether they will bill your insurance.
Can I catch COVID from the vaccine? No.
When can I get the vaccine?
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Once I get the vaccine, do I still have to wear a mask?
Yes, we will all have to continue following all of the public health advice about staying home when we are sick, washing or sanitizing our hands frequently, covering our coughs and sneezes, keeping a distance of at least six feet from others with whom we do not live, and wearing masks anytime we are outdoors and cannot maintain the six feet of separation from others or indoors anytime we are with individuals who are not part of our household regardless of distance until a sufficient number of Idahoans and Americans have been vaccinated for us to achieve herd immunity (likely next fall). It is not yet known whether people who are vaccinated and are exposed to the SARS-CoV-2 virus might be able to transmit that virus to others even though they themselves are protected from infection so these infection control measures remain important for now.
Because of demand and the fact that the vaccine is being manufactured and distributed, each state will get their vaccine in allotments every month, with the first shipments arriving in mid-December. People will be divided up into priority groups that will determine when you will be eligible for vaccination. The first priority group is health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities. They should receive the vaccine starting this month. We don’t know the schedule for when additional groups will be eligible to receive the vaccine, but we would expect that high risk individuals may be able to be vaccinated as soon as February and the general population perhaps as early as April. However, watch your local news for public service announcements as to when it is time for you to be vaccinated.
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"...Bogus ski area– it’s a gift to Boise. And Boise is a gift too–to me and all the people who get to live here.”
Photos cour tesy of Bogus Basin 10
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What Becomes A BOISE LEGEND Most...
BOB GREENWOOD BY KAREN DAY
A legend usually includes an element of truth, or is based on historic facts, but with mythical qualities. And some people simply embody those mythical qualities until they become history and fact. Such is the case with Boise’s skiing legend, Bob Greenwood, 94-years-young and still carving perfect parallel turns down Bogus Basin three days a week. Pandemic or not, Greenwood’s observance on his long and healthy life remains the same. “I’m happy to be alive and it beats the hell out of the alternative. I play golf three days a week, when I’m not on the mountain.” He claims he’s softened up since the old days, in his '60s, when he used to set race courses or work ski patrol despite Bob in 1951 blizzards or nightfall. “These days, I’m only on the slopes in good weather and never on the weekends. Can’t take the crowds.” He chuckles. “I’m getting spoiled, I guess.“ Greenwood grew up in Wisconsin, not exactly a high-mountain haven for those seeking vertical pitch. Early life in the midwest in no way foretold his future as a dedicated purveyor and champion of downhill skiing in Boise, Idaho. He served in the Navy from 1944-46, then a year in teacher’s college in Milwaukee. Everything changed when his family moved to Spokane. “I came west and never left,” Greenwood says, clearly still in love with the romance of the old west. After graduating from Washington State University in 1950, he arrived in Boise and found his first job selling ski equipment at CNS Sports, which became Idaho Sporting Goods in 1957 and currently, the downtown www.idahomemagazine.com
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Bob's t hree children grew up skiing and t he t radit ion cont inues wit h his granddaugt hers and great grandson
Boise is a gift too–to me and all the people who get to live here.” The number of snow-hounds served by Greenwood’s store and knowledge is unknowable, but the long-term benefits can be measured in three generations of his own family. His three children grew up skiing on Bogus, as are his two granddaughters now, and eventually, his new greatgrandson.
Greenwood's Ski Haus is st ill going af ter 63 years and busy ser ving downhill ent husiast s on Bogus Basin Road.
YMCA annex. “When the shop changed hands, I left in August and opened my own shop in October. Bob’s Ski Haus. The rest is history,” says Greenwood. 63 years of local history, to be exact, since Greenwood's Ski Haus, with new owners, is still busy serving downhill enthusiasts on Bogus Basin Road. Today, four high-speed quads carry an average of 1,800 skiers an hour, but in 1957, the first chair lift at Deer Point was still two years away. And even earlier, since 1939, when famed ski powder 12
pioneer, Alf Engen selected the site, just making the 172 dirt turns leading up the mountain to leather-strap-on a pair of heavy, six-feet-long, maple skis was as dangerous an adventure as racing down the ungroomed slopes. “I’ve been driving that road for 50 years,” Greenwood laughs lightheartedly, which he does often. “Used to be when it snowed, the mud at the lower end could be as deep as your axels. Driving the road today is a piece of cake. The road, Bogus ski area–it’s a gift to Boise. And
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Whether Greenwood is relating yesterday’s golf score or the reality of surviving the pandemic against his ageodds, a light-hearted sense of humor and gratefulness pervade his conversation. So many of his peers have passed, yet his stories of years gone by are devoid of melancholy. One can’t help but feel his near-century has taught him the joys eventually outlive the complaints and sorrows-–that crystalline mornings of fresh mountain powder and a perfect, six-foot putt are as precious as mud-to-your-axles and sand traps. That skiing down Bogus Mountain with your kids, grandkids and great grandkids is what truly makes a life legendary. And most of all, that we’d all be wise to heed Bob Greenwood’s advice. “Just keep moving, if you want to keep breathing!”
INTERFAITH SANCTUARY four shelters • one mission To keep our homeless population safe, sheltered and supported! Since March of 2020, Interfaith Sanctuary has been responding to the increased needs of our homeless population. We have expanded from one emergency shelter to FOUR shelters with ONE simple MISSION: To keep our homeless population safe, sheltered and supported during these challenging times! SHELTER #1 Our emergency shelter serves our SINGLE ADULTS with shelter, nutrition, programming, and case management. SHELTER #2 Our FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN, SENIORS, and our most MEDICALLY FRAGILE are now sheltered in a hotel. SHELTER #3 Our third shelter is dedicated to serving our homeless who have tested positive for COVID-19. The guests are safely quarantined at a separate hotel location. SHELTER #4 THE WARMING SHELTER is a day shelter offering a warm indoor space offering supportive services and nutrition 7 days a week. We are not sure how long we will need to operate as four shelters, but we will continue as long as it takes to ensure safety and care for all in need of safe shelter by night and second chances everyday. You can help us by making a donation to Interfaith Sanctuary! Can you help us help them by sponsoring a night of safe shelter + second chances every day at $25 per guest?
a warm meal
a safe night’s sleep
second chances everyday
Go online at INTERFAITHSANCTUARY.ORG and click the donate button Text GIVE or DONATE to (208) 213-8538 to complete your donation on our Giving Page Mail in a check to Interfaith Sanctuary, PO BOX 9334, Boise, ID 83707
Photo by Grover Burns
BOISE NOW AND THEN
Boise NOW &
THEN
BY BRANDI BURNS History Programs Manager, Boise City Department of Arts & History
Present
Photo by Nick Sawyer
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A changing cityscape is part of the natural progression of a city’s growth and is enriched by the preservation of historic landmarks and natural features.
1930's
These two images from the 1930s and today, highlight Boise’s progression from an isolated western town to one of the fastest growing areas in the region. Starting at the left, the roof and outbuildings of Baxter Foundry are visible. The foundry played an important industrial role in Boise, and their work still exists today: look at the utility hole covers in downtown and notice the Baxter name. Beyond the foundry, an almost empty field dominates. This will become Ann Morrison Park, opened in 1959. Visible at the center of the photo is Capitol Boulevard, envisioned as Boise’s grand
entrance. Constructed during the City Beautiful Movement, it was intended to provide unimpeded views from the Capitol building to the Boise Depot across the 1931 Oregon Trail Memorial Bridge. To the right of the boulevard is the current location of Boise State University. Just visible next to the river is the runway of the Boise Municipal Airport prior to its move to the Bench. Also, notice the bandshell in Julia Davis Park. The foothills dominate, as they do today. With a priority placed on preservation, this scenic approach into the City of Boise can continue to serve residents and visitors alike for decades.
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Welcome home.
420 W Main Street | Suite 102 | Boise, ID 83702 191 Sun Valley Road | Suite 202 | Ketchum, ID 83340 www.ralstongroupproperties.com
The Pandemic and the Poem In Conversation With Limberlost Press BY HEATHER HAMILTON-POST
“It’s been satisfying to edit and bring together different voices–I’ve taken satisfaction in the act of putting together an anthology. It’s really an artistic creation, especially with fewer and fewer print journals,” explains Rick Ardinger. With his wife Rosemary, Ardinger owns and operates Limberlost Press. They also publish The Limberlost Review. “Maybe it’s my old school nature, he says. “But I do know that a lot of writers like to have a hard copy in their hands, on their coffee tables, on their bed stands, so I always knew I wanted to bring out a hardcopy.” Ardinger explains that the Review, in its first iteration, appeared in the 1970s in Massachusetts. When the couple moved to Idaho for graduate school, he had a seasoned journalism professor who insisted his students learn how to set type on a letterpress, even as the press was a fast fading art and long before text-consumed smartphones. “And then, ten years later,” Ardinger explains, “we winched an old letterpress into the garageturned-studio, and began letterpressing books.” In the 1980s, the Ardingers pivoted to beautiful letterpress printed and hand-sewn
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books of poetry and prose by individual authors. Rick Ardinger served as the director of the Idaho Humanities Council from 1991 until 2018, so printing books happened during strange hours.
“It’s very tactile, and when I was working, I needed an outlet, a way to work with my hands. It’s always great to sew up the first copy of a new collection of poems,” he says. Once he retired, he again turned to the idea of a literary journal, which has appeared annually since 2019. The 2021 edition is scheduled for February.
The annual, which Ardinger calls an “occasional journal,” is approximately 375 pages, and features work largely from Western writers, both known and unknown. The book is comprised of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, book reviews, writers reflecting on old favorites, interviews, and even artwork. Each piece is thoughtfully selected and placed within the whole, which brings together a variety of voices to tell a unique–and uniquely western– story.
Rick Ardinger and his wife Rosemary own and operate Limberlost Press
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Limberlost Press and Limberlost Review both exist, in many ways, to bring people together. “When the shutdown hit, I was encouraging people, if they liked someone’s work, to tell them. What writer doesn’t like to hear from people who read their work and like it? There was a lot of interaction. One of the
better things to happen right now is that people have time to read,” Ardinger says. He explains that people are buying books and corresponding with other writers, and reconnecting in unprecedented ways. Ardinger says that people are writing more too, and writing more about the pandemic. “What comes out of it is going to be pretty amazing,” he says, referring to the artmaking happening around the world. Virtual events are indeed making literature more accessible to new readers, but the challenges are also new. Forging words into literature demands isolation, but writing needs readers to fulfill its purpose. Ardinger has friends hosting book releases over Zoom, forgoing in-person readings and book signings they’ve been looking forward to for years. Still, Ardinger explains, the opportunity to connect with writers in different ways has been an unforeseen gift.
In his role as editor for both Limberlost Press and Limberlost Review, Ardinger corresponds with numerous writers, seeking out work he admires, although both the press and the journal accept unsolicited submissions. “In 1996, a very young Sherman Alexie was at a writing conference in Eastern Oregon, and I wasn’t there that year, but my books were. He contacted me–this was before he wrote the movie, “Smoke Signals”–and I’d vaguely heard of him. He wanted to send me this whole book of poems, over 100 pages. I told him I could do a chapbook (small paperback) and that’s how we started working together. The book we brought out this summer, “A Memory of Elephants,” was the fourth we’ve done by Sherman.”
There’s no magic formula in choosing what to print, Ardinger explains, just writing that speaks to him. “One thing I do recommend to people interested in getting a letterpress book or publishing in the Review is get one of our books in hand. See what we’re doing.”
What is letterpressing?
A traditional form of printing press from the 1400's, it's a process in which raised, inked surfaces—usually made of wood, metal, or linoleum—are pressed onto paper. It produces a beautiful texture to the paper.
Ardinger admits to sharing an author’s sense of accomplishment and delight when their first book comes out, which almost explains the painstaking labor of love required to put words literally on paper. He still seeks advice from old friends when his presses malfunction and gathers bibliophiles he’s known for years to assemble, collate, and sew books. “It’s very satisfying to bring in the last page and spread out all the piles of paper. You collate it and then send the first copies to the writer. Later, when they give their first public reading, it’s a big ceremony that means a lot to the writers and to us,” Ardinger says. “That’s what Limberlost is all about.”
Look for the 2021 edition of The Limberlost Review online, or support one of these local bookstores: Rediscovered Books, Bookpeople, The Walrus and Carpenter, Iconoclast.
The work For decades, Limberlost Press has published beautiful letterpress and handsewn books of poetry as well as Limberlost Review.
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This poem was originally published in The Limberlost Review: A Literary Journal of the Mountain West, 2020.
No By Sherman Alexie In the dark hours, I sometimes hold An imaginary knife to my temple
And push it through. I have to grapple With these terrible thoughts. My blood
Wants to become more blood. But, fraught And fraught, one must unlearn what
One has taught one’s self about escape. Three times, doctors have burred
Into my skull. Three times, they’ve pushed Their fingers into my brain and saved My soul. Let every neurosurgeon be
The priest. Let every operating room Be the chapel. Let my imaginary knife Transubstantiate into a holy scalpel.
Let that blade remove the persistent Tumors, flaws, and scars that whisper
Insidious commands. Sometimes, I will Outlast the dark because I want to see The decades pass, and sometimes
Because I know that my self-death
Would steal the breath of people I love. So let the next day begin. Let the birds greet The first light. Let me sit at the table
And break bread with this beautiful life.
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“NOEL BRINGS A VIBRANCY AND CULTURE TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD AT A TIME WHEN WE ALL NEED IT MOST.” -Paul Shubin, a regular customer
A TASTE OF CUBA
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BY KAREN DAY
Walking along 15th Street in Boise’s bucolic north end, listen for the Afro-Cuban beat of bata drums drifting down the snowy sidewalk. You’re getting closer when the succulent smoke of pernil (fresh roasted pork) saturates the air. At the corner of Bella and 15th, the line of customers attests you have arrived. Welcome to Adelfa’s Authentic (pop-up) Cuban Cuisine.
Noel Argote-Hererra serves traditional Cuban fare every day of the week.
“This is the food my mother, Adelfa, cooked when I was growing up in Miami,” says Noel Argote-Herrera. Standing under a sidewalk canopy, he stirs a simmering pot of Ropa Vieja over an open-air propane stove. Fresh bay leaves rise among carrots, potatoes and cubed beef. “I learned how to cook watching her, dancing around the kitchen. Her food was filled with music and love–that’s the secret.” A smile crinkles Arogte-Herrera's eyes above his mask as he heaps fluffy white rice, meat stew and tostones (twice-fried plantains) into a to-go container for customer after customer. Everyone is a return client.
Traditional Cuban food is meat-centric and the tastes are saturated with the undiluted history, culture and vibrancy of the tropical island that is mostly a mirage of palm trees, Buena Vista Social Club, Che Guevara and Fidel Castro to most Americans due to U.S. travel restrictions. Mangos, guavas, tomatoes, plantains, rice, beans and pork–imagine these bright, suninfused edibles and you can almost envision the technicolor houses lining the streets of Havana.
“The pulled-pork is my customer’s favorite," Argote-Herrera says, stacking a dessert tray with fresh-baked raspberry hand-pies. “People start lining up at noon and I sell out in an hour. This Ropa Vieja literally means ‘old clothes’ because when you’re poor, you can add leftovers to this tomato-based sauce.” This street chef lives and bakes in the small house next to his walk-up. Cuban rhythms pipe from his car, parked nearby, the back window offering a moviestar-beautiful image of his mother, as homage and business logo. Twelve dollars buys a complete meal big enough for two. Your taste buds will quickly agree to return since Adelfa’s is the closest you’ll ever come to Cuba in Idaho.
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I Walk In Her Shoes BY CHERIE BUCKNER-WEBB
Image courtesy of Bria Goeller and WTF America-Good Trubble
While we knew not her name, we knew she would embody the whole of all women, races, backgrounds, cultures, professions. AND FINALLY, SHE IS HERE.
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We
knew she was coming. We waited. We made preparations. For generations, many laid the foundation, shared the promise of women of power, passion and purpose. No one lost hope. We kept the faith, were prayerful: we did not falter nor faint. We heard her voice in the admonitions of our mothers, felt her fervor in our DNA, tasted her freedom in our dreams. Her determination swelled in our hearts. Our destinies were woven with will and perseverance she would possess to overcome the naysayers and adversaries. We remained vigilant.
All the while she was learning the ways of the advisory and how to best address the myriad paradoxes she would face as a woman of color in a white world. She learned the formidable lessons of diplomacy, order, tact, and finesse, while understanding that there is opportunity in chaos. She acknowledged the juxtapositions she represented, those that seemingly confounded the mainstream, dominant culture. In every endeavor of her life: educationally, personally, professionally, and politically, she was pushed back and pulled forward always heading toward the future. Our future. She did not accept either/or as the only answer. She worked, listened, and learned from those who came before and inhabited her paradox like a second skin. She is clear about being an individual and being a member of a group, always aware of her sameness and difference. Knowing how and when to challenge and when to support and serve an ideology, a person, the greater good, made her a leader. She is the first and will not be the last.
She honors the women who forged the path for herself and all of us. She epitomizes the skills and capabilities, the cherished “firsts” in the political and in life–the Honorable Shirley Chisholm, Barbara Jordon, Carol Moseley-Braun, Rosa Parks and six-year-old Ruby Bridges, the first African American child to attend a white elementary school in southern America. While we knew not her name, we knew she would embody the whole of all women, races, backgrounds, cultures, professions. And finally, she is here. We call her sister, mother, trailblazer and Kamala Harris, Vice President of the United States of America. We welcome you, Kamala, at this place in our time. We knew you were coming.
Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm was the first Black
woman elected to the United States Congress, representing New York’s 12th congressional district for seven terms from 1969 – 1983. Announcing her candidacy on the steps of the Brooklyn Concord Baptist Church, Chisholm said, “I am not the candidate of black America, although I am black and proud. I am not the candidate of the women’s movement of this country, although I am a woman… I am the candidate of the people of America.” Congresswoman Barbara Jordan was the first African-
American state senator (Texas) since 1883 and the first woman ever elected to that chamber. In 1974, with the support of Lyndon B. Johnson, she was appointed to the House Judiciary Committee,
where she gave the 15-minute opening statement of the impeachment hearing for Richard Nixon. “I am not going to sit here and be an idle spectator to the diminution, the subversion, the destruction of the Constitution.” Jordan served in the 93rd, 94, and 95th U.S. Congress(es): 19731979. Congresswoman Carol Moseley-Braun was a
Democratic senator from Illinois (1993-99) who in 1992 became the first African American female elected to the U.S. Senate. “I cannot escape the fact that I come to the Senate as a symbol of hope and change.” Women across the U.S. cheered her candor. “The Senate absolutely needed a healthy dose of democracy,” she observed. “It wasn’t enough to have millionaire white males over the age of 50 representing all the people in the country.”
And not to be overlooked: Geraldine Ferraro, Sarah Palin and Hilary Clinton.
It wasn’t enough to have millionaire white males over the age of 50 representing all the people in the country.” -Congresswoman Carol Moseley-Braun
ABOUT THE AUTHOR The Honorable Cherie Buckner-Webb is an Idaho State Senator, Certified Professional Coach, Consultant and Motivational Speaker
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TECHNICALLY SPEAKING TECHNICALLY SPEAKING
Boise Startup Week revealed how drones, virtual reality, and a fundraising platform is advancing Boise in technology. BY HAILEY MINTON
The 2020 Boise Startup week adjusted to the times by going virtual on Brella, an event platform that fosters engagement. The mingling and taste testing of the popular Trailmix segment was traded for goodie bags delivered to those who ordered them, prerecorded presentations were intermixed with live recordings, and attendees watched and engaged from afar. Nick Crabbs, co-chair of Boise Startup Week, said they had 1,800 registrations and 4,000 unique visitors and he deemed it a success. Here are a few presentations that caught our eye.
CONSERVATION Biomark uses identification tools and associated hardware and software to make strides in the field of conservation. They developed the Drone Assisted Stream Habitat Protocol which helps them monitor populations and habitat for fish in waterways. Many conservationists agree that using drones is a superior way to survey an area compared to sending a team with expensive equipment 26
into hard-to-reach and potentially hazardous areas. However, the volume and complexity of the data gathered from the images is a barrier to entry for the use of drones in conservation. Dr. Sarah Hoffmann, a scientist at Biomark, said, “Our goal is to develop tools that are broadly applicable to the research and conservation communities so we can start to see the implementation of drones in wildlife management and conservation purposes.” Artificial Intelligence and computer learning help them turn the data into information that gives them actionable results. With it, they can render a 3D image to show the progress of restoration over time, determine the quality of habitat of a large geographic area, map the waterways, and more. Richard Carmichael, a scientist at Biomark, said they want to know how a potential restoration project will affect the uplift for the animals in a given watershed. “They can go in, do some type of habitat enhancement, and then assess what the capacity uplift is in that given location,” he said.
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This puts a monetary value on how much restoration needs to occur to get species de-listed from the Endangered Species Act. Richard said he anticipates drones will be replaced with satellite imagery in the near future.
“You’re essentially buying a brick on the Disneyland walk of fame.” -Drew Lorona on having the community own TreeFort
FITNESS Black Box VR is the first-ofits-kind virtual reality workout experience. Ryan DeLuca, cofounder of Bodybuilding.com and Black Box VR, said “The only secret to fitness success is consistency over time.” They’re hoping to make fitness more fun to keep people coming back. Ryan and his cofounder, Preston Lewis,
wanted to start something brand new that combined fitness and new technology. They hoped to use pre-existing fitness equipment, but nothing they tried was compatible with what they were trying to build, so they built the system from scratch. What they have today looks something like this: Black Box VR is a Virtual Reality fitness gym and one of their six locations is right here in Boise. Athletes enter a private booth and the virtual reality equipment places them as the hero inside the game. Each exercise has the potential to advance them through the game and it depends upon the athlete’s ability to execute.
Learn more!
“You’re doing a full-resistance based workout with high intensity interval training while you’re playing a game,” said Ryan. It began with them imagining what games could grow from the movements they had in mind, building a rudimentary product, and making adjustments along the way.
THE MUSIC SCENE The 2020 TreeFort festival was postponed until Sept 2021 and Drew Lorona, Associate Producer and Co-Founder of TreeFort, explained they needed some creative fundraising to keep their talent paid and available for the next year. “We want to position ourselves to come
back aggressively and in a way that establishes us as a next gen festival.” They have turned to an online crowdfunding platform called Wefunder to sell SEC certified shares of TreeFort for a small investment. They’ve had investors interested in TreeFort before, but Drew and his team want the festival to be owned by the community. “You’re essentially buying a brick on the Disneyland walk of fame.” They plan to have investor focused activities at the festival next year. With the funding they have accumulated thus far, the September festival in 2021 is comfortably within sight.
Biomark machine learning: https://youtu.be/44qaT68JIt8 Black Box VR innovation: https://youtu.be/RYO_Pj9fAmU Treefort and the growing music scene: https://youtu.be/4q26AXo8Aw4
THE FACES OF STARTUPS
Biomark
Dr. Sarah Hof fman
Biomark
TreeFort
Black Box VR
Richard Carmichael
Drew Lorona
Ryan DeLuca www.idahomemagazine.com
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CHOW DOWN
2021 ADVICE
"Remember, we're all in this together in our sweatpants. "
been a dumpster fire, so, if you must fast, take into account the hours you’re sleeping and consider it time served. Consider dumpsterdiving for mom's cookies a peacekeeping act.
CLEAN EATING
Abs Are Made in the
KITCHEN To diet or not to diet.
BY HEATHER HAMILTON-POST
M
aybe you’ve heard the joke this year (and we can all use one) that the “19” in COVID-19 stands for the pounds we all gained in lockdown. I don’t own a scale, and generally, I’m just grateful to my body for keeping me healthy during a global pandemic. It doesn’t hurt that many of us have exponentially expanded our wardrobe of elasticwaist pants or that Trader Joe’s is killing it and me with their selection of chocolate-covered JoJo’s and English toffee. But, in the interest of research and resolution, I decided to check out some of the diets routinely hashtagged on Instagram accounts I have never followed.
KETO As far as I can tell, this diet asks you to eat more butter, but not like on bread or anything that actually tastes good. Someone I know puts a teaspoon of butter in their coffee,
which makes me question how it can even be called a diet. After careful social media analysis, the philosophy appears to be: eat a lot of foods with “bomb” in the name, suffer a detox that makes you smelly and cranky, live like this until you wish you were dead. COVID-19 adaptation: Add butter to literally everything you eat, but absolutely don’t stop eating carbs.
INTERMITTENT FASTING This one is a little easier to comprehend. Abstain impossibly without eating and then start eating again, but try not to eat all the meals you missed. Undoubtedly, this will be especially easy during this lockdowned holiday. Everyone knows that Mom’s sugar cookies are nasty and dumping them in the trash will be easy and definitely won’t start a family feud that lasts until the next pandemic. COVID-19 adaptation: 2020 has
Clean eating asks that you forgo processed foods in favor of whole foods. Who wouldn’t rather eat an entire spaghetti squash or pancakes made with raw almond flour that requires 24-hours of hand-grinding? I think you’re supposed to eat food raw, too, which eliminates dry spaghetti and meat, unless I’m confusing this plan with another designer-guru-diet. Either way, if you must cook, keep it bland– wouldn’t want to heat up the blood, which is verboten by enlightened influencers who sustain on nothing but nettle soup and millions of IG followers. (Hot blood should be limited to your alcohol intake).
COVID-19 adaptation: Increased levels of covid-sanitation mean that everything you eat right now is clean–so have at it, friend. Don’t forget to handi-wipe your wine glass.
Remember, abs are made in the kitchen, which is both creepy and fortunate, I guess. So get out that sculpted torso-shaped cake pan and whip up your favorite musclebound quarantine surprise. I’ll be cheering you on with my own six pack. Locally brewed, of course, to support our community businesses. Remember, we’re all in this together, in our sweatpants.
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There’s one thing that’s been consistent throughout the 2020 crisis–the focus on connection within the community. “One of the things that’s come out of the pandemic is regular calls with other leaders of downtowns across the continent. It’s been nice to connect with other people who are doing the same work. We feed off each other and share ideas–it’s great,” Hensley says.
BY HEATHER HAMILTON-POST
D
ecember 2020 has passed uneasily, but downtown Boise continues to sparkle with twinkling lights and the promise of a better new year. It’s a quiet and peaceful scene–too quiet. Just ask the local and unique businesses that make our city so special. It’s been a year tougher than no other and small businesses have suffered like no other. The good news–there are ways we can help. “Places are open and being very safe, and they’re offering their goods and services in lots of different ways,” explains Downtown Boise Association Executive Director Jenn Hensley. “It’s actually a nice time to be downtown.”
Not to mention the connections developing between business owners, which Hensley explains she’s seen from the beginning. From collaborations to kind words, the people who make downtown feel like a hometown have stuck together. “It’s one of the things that makes Boise so different,” Hensley says. ”Everybody is out for the health of each other. They understand that if everybody does well, they do well.” Like many of us, small business owners are facing a heightened struggle after the holiday season. Hensley points out that local shops and restaurants have proven themselves to be the heart of our community–Amazon isn’t sponsoring your kid’s soccer team, but the local sports store may have done so for many years. “Small businesses are personal, they care about the community, they’re your neighbors. It’s the store you always remember because they sold you the perfect thing and they did it personally,” she says.
The Funky Taco restaurant graduated from a food truck to a downtown location two years ago. “Our staff is down to myself, my husband and two cooks,” says Sherie Archambo, owner. “This take-out window has saved us–but just barely.” Natalie Durham, owner of Piece Unique, a 20-year establishment in downtown Boise, says “Catering to customers with personal shopping services and online purchases through our new website has helped maintain sales.” 30
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To accommodate different kinds of shoppers, Hensley says stores are innovating with FaceTime shopping and personal shopping appointments. While the news dwells on anti-mask protestors, downtown is largely peaceful and businesses are striving to protect the health and safety of their customers. The downtown is still alive and happening this winter, Hensley insists, just differently. Mask-up and dine-in or participate in Dine Out Boise where restaurants offer specials via takeout and creative, outdoor dining options.
organizations around them. “I’m just hopeful that those with income that hasn’t been affected as much are feeling the need to support them too,” she says.
And remember, there are more ways than money to support your favorite Boise establishments. Small businesses prosper through social media recognition and online reviews, which helps guide moneyed tourists where to spend. So, start posting! And remind others to do the same. “Every time we lose a business, people comment that they wish they would have known they were hurting and supported them more. I’m telling you right now– these places are hurting, and it’s important that if you love something, please show it. Right now,” Hensley adds.
Luckily, locals have been fairly generous. Yes, Boise has said goodbye to some beloved businesses, not only in downtown. However, storefronts are still being rented, and Boise has welcomed some new folks. Hensley is hopeful every downtown business will survive into the morepromising 2021, despite the fact the beginning of the new year will be tough and telling. “January is typically the slowest month for restaurants and on-foot retail, even in a normal year. Shoppers may have the luxury of saying they’ll shop later. But these businesses can’t wait. If you want to see them in the future,” Hensley emphasizes, “Put your money where your heart is.”
“If you want to grab dinner, there are free, 20-minute parking spots downtown so you can run in. There are places that will run food out to your car and restaurants with tented outdoor seating. We want to make sure that everybody can support small business,” says Hensley, “whatever their comfort level.” Despite the fact that many businesses are struggling, Boise’s small-business community shares an exemplary spirit of charity, donated money, time, and items to
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Established in 1970 by the Idaho Commission on the Arts, the biennial awards provide Idaho’s Governor and First Lady with an opportunity to recognize exceptional artists, organizations, and supporters–some with nationalities, genders, and disciplines that aren’t always acknowledged. But their creative accomplishments and distinguished service are no less noteworthy.
“I’ve been very pleased that people from varying ethnic backgrounds are represented–both in being nominated and receiving the awards,” says Michael Faison, Executive Director of the Idaho Commission on the Arts. “These people–whether they’re tradition bearers or innovators–are at the center of our civilization. It’s critically important that, at the center of government and civics in our society, we recognize them.” We invite you to get to know a few of these tradition bearers and innovators who are recipients of the 2020 awards.
Award Recipients, clockwise: Tabish Romario, Karen Day, Gary Eller
Governor’s Awards in the Arts: Bridging Cultures in Idaho BY AMBER DALEY
“Build bridges, not walls.”
—Suzy Kassem, Writer, Philosopher, and Artist
Historically, the work of building proverbial bridges between differing ideologies and cultures has often been spearheaded by the world’s outsidethe-box thinkers–storytellers, artists, musicians, and creatives of all kinds. Idaho, too, has taken a somewhat surprising lead in prioritizing diversity and inclusion in recent years, as demonstrated in its Governor’s Awards in the Arts. 32
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Boise’s Tabish Romario, a recipient of the Excellence in the Arts award, is a professional Latin ballroom dancer and instructor who overcame physical violence, ostracism, and public shaming in his native Pakistan before courageously pursuing a life of music and movement in the United States. Despite risking his life and disownment from his family, he believes these experiences were powerful lessons in how to process anxiety and fear–lessons he passes on to his students at Idaho DanceSport. “Dance is the one of the gifts I share with the world,” he explains. “It makes other people come alive–and fundamentally changes who they are and their quality of life.”
Karen Day, a recipient of the Excellence in the Arts Award, is the first female filmmaker recognized by the Governor’s Awards in the Arts. Day has received local and national attention for her poignant documentaries. One such film, Bamboo and Barbed Wire, examines the tragic history of a Japanese internment camp in Idaho. Another, Girl from God’s Country, shares the previously untold story of Nell Shipman, the first female independent filmmaker who left Hollywood to make films in Idaho. “I could never be making documentaries to empower women and girls around the globe if these women in film had not come first,” says Day. “Their work deserves to be rediscovered and appreciated.”
Recipients of the
"These people–whether they’re tradition bearers or innovators–are at the center of our civilization." - Michael Faison, Executive Director of the Idaho Commission on the Arts
Gary Eller of Nampa, musician and performer, songwriter, and teacher, is being recognized for Support of the Arts, thanks in part to his tireless efforts discovering and performing native songs and stories based on historical Idaho people, places, and events. “Their stories are worth preserving,” he explains. “And poetry and music are outstanding, effective ways to do that.” Eller, born and raised in West Virginia, pays homage to his Appalachian roots and deep love for music and history through his efforts in Idaho, where he has served on the board of National Oldtime Fiddlers, Inc., formed a volunteer team to renovate the dormitory rooms in Slocum Hall, and organized various musicrelated camps and contests. Eller is also a founding board member of Co-Opportunities, Inc., a nonprofit that heads up the Bee Tree Folk School and oversees the Simpson-Vassar Collections Museum in Weiser. As COVID-19 spread across the U.S. in early 2020, Diana Thompson witnessed musicians across the country struggling financially, and identified a way to both support them and bring people together through music.
Thus, with the help of her husband Todd, the COVID Concert Series was born. The newly created Facebook group, which allowed musicians to perform live, interact with fans in real-time, and request donations, acquired 20,000 members in 80 countries joined in just two weeks. Today, the group has 34,000 members in 90 countries (and counting). Diana, recipient of the Innovation in the Arts award, recounts their interactions with expats from Costa Rica, whose one-night takeover of the Facebook group and donations received from their performances enabled them to purchase pallets of food and supplies for their community. “We get choked up thinking, ‘You just fed a village!’” she says. “It’s humbling to be able to help people during such a hard time.” The year 2020 marked the 25th year of the Governor’s Awards in the Arts. Due to safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the date and location of the official awards ceremony is yet to be determined, but will likely happen sometime in 2021.
2020 Governor’s AwArds in the Arts EXCELLENCE IN THE ARTS Tabish Romario, Boise Karen Day, Boise Randy Van Dyck, Boise EXCELLENCE IN FOLK & TRADITIONAL ARTS Nancy Martiny, May Joanne Hultstrand, Boise SUPPORT OF THE ARTS Gary Eller, Nampa Dr. Nikki Halverson, Twin Falls SUPPORT OF ARTS EDUCATION John Anderson, Salmon Michele Chmielewski, Coeur d’Alene Kathy Stefani, Moscow EXCELLENCE IN ARTS ADMINISTRATION Mark Junkert, Boise Roger Rowley, Moscow LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT IN THE ARTS Kay Hardy, Boise INNOVATION IN THE ARTS Diana Thompson, Rigby
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Let's Talk
NICE
BY NANCY BUFFINGTON
This past holiday season, I had several friends whose families cancelled their get-togethers. It wasn’t COVID-19 that disrupted their plans–it was anger. They weren’t on speaking terms. Whether it’s the recent election, race relations, or “Meghan Markle: Diva or Heroine?”–we’ve become more and more polarized. Conversations can heat up quickly–just when we really need to stay connected! So what to do? How can we get talking again, peacefully and productively? How do we move towards understanding rather than arguments? I recently took a deep dive into Nonviolent Communication (NVC), a powerful tool for resolving the roughest of conflicts. It has healed rifts between family members, business colleagues, and warring countries. It’s been around for
decades, it’s used all over the world, yet few of us know about it. When I told my BFF Laura about NVC, she stopped me mid-sentence with, “Wait. This is important! Why don’t I know about it? It should be on the cover of the New York Times!” So I’m here to get the word out.
Created by psychologist Marshall Rosenberg (I call him “Mr. Rogers for adults”), NVC has been taught in businesses, schools, prisons and mediation centers globally. By the time he died in 2015, Rosenberg had worked to facilitate communication conflict resolution in 60 countries: Congo, Rwanda, Palestine, Afghanistan. In other words, the Hot Zones. Today, hundreds of thousands learn NVC each year worldwide. Rosenberg’s technique focuses on uncovering each party’s needs—more precisely, the unmet needs behind
Photo by Ivana Cajina
our actions. With our needs heard and validated, we can move to real communication and problem-solving, together. Here’s my unofficial abridged version of NVC’s basic assumptions: • Every human has universal needs. Things like respect, honesty and support. When our needs are met, we feel good! Life is beautiful. We (usually) behave well. When they’re not…read on. •
•
A range of universal feelings arise when our needs aren’t met. Think embarrassed, detached, resentful. Which leads to…
We take action to feel better and get our needs met. Sometimes we resort to notso-helpful actions: teasing, stalking, or ghosting.
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Photo credits Top Row L-R: Tabitha Turner, Tania Mousinho, Nikita Fox Second row: Kelly Searle Third row: Anton Darius, Nicola Chodan
For example: Your teenage son has a need to feel understood by you, though he may not know it. One night, you’re too busy to listen to the details of his latest crushing on a new rapper’s obscenity-laden music. He feels ignored. He takes action: goes to his room, shuts the door a little too hard, and goes silent when you’re ready to listen an hour later. NVC uses this need-feeling-action theory in reverse, looking at actions only to discover needs. If you yell at your son for slamming his door, you don’t get very far. However, when you realize he needs you to understand him, you’re on a better path. Once someone feels truly heard, it’s as if a miracle occurs. Body language softens, voices mellow, stubbornness melts.
Here’s the power of NVC. In the 1990s, Rosenberg was asked to mediate a violent conflict between warring Christian and Muslim tribes in northern Nigeria. He started with his best NVC approach. After a while, one chieftain jumped up and exclaimed, “if we knew how to speak to each other this way, we wouldn’t have to kill each other.” Soon after, the war was permanently resolved. What about NVC at work? An NVC training was held at Merck about ten years ago. A posttraining assessment found an 80% increase in overall efficiency, and up to a 90% decrease in issueresolution time. My favorite? Staff meeting time was cut in half.
NVC offers actionable hope and help for us to reconnect, talk through differences, and do better work. With a little post-pandemic luck and effort, we can enjoy more peaceful, joyous family dinners. Onward, to a more understanding future for all! 36
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To learn more: Center for Nonviolent Communication: www.cnvc.org/about
Connect with Nancy: Website: www.nancybuffington.net/ www.linkedin.com/in/nbuffington/
The Spirit of the Mountains is TIMELESS... The Best Snow In Idahoâ„¢ is TIMELESS...
...but some things WILL BE DIFFERENT when you hit the slopes this winter. Photo courtesy John Webster
LEARN MORE & Book your McCall adventure at
visitmccall.org
Please remember to RECREATE RESPONSIBLY and research the new protocols at your winter destinations.
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Making the World a Better Place
IDAHO HUMAN RIGHTS COLLECTIVE BY MICHAEL STRICKLAND, IDAHO HUMAN RIGHTS COLLECTIVE FOUNDER
I AM NOT OK–
and neither are many. This phrase has been shared by more and more African Americans in recent months, and begins the opening statement for the Idaho Human Rights Collective (IHRC), a group founded to help identify solutions for a hurting nation. Through active multimedia and in-person training and education, IHRC aims to dismantle racism in Idaho. “Show me this imaginary racism. Then I’ll do something about it,” a man at an Idaho university repeated, which underscored the fact that a large portion of racism is so ingrained in our society that it had become invisible. Unfortunately, conversations like this one were and are too common. The collective, which began as a Facebook page called Human Rights Report, wanted to raise awareness of racism in our state, and began posting with the hashtag #ExamplesOfRacism. With no shortage of material, a growing and very loyal group
R.H., a Black 12-year-old autistic child, created the logo and artwork for the Idaho Human Rights Collective.
Right-Mural at Inspiration Alley in Boise.
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of followers began to engage, validating the need for such a discussion. About a year later, the images of George Floyd were flashed across the screen and indelibly marked in the American psyche, forever. No longer could the reality of hostility and discrimination toward Blacks in the country simply be dismissed.
Hundreds of people from all walks of life, races, and political perspectives started asking what they could do. The outpouring of sincere concern, from around Idaho and the rest of the nation, was astounding. So the IHRC evolved, and helped the community tap into the mission to, as our tagline says, “make the world a better place.”
The response from the community were thoughtful and robust. “I keep hoping that all of this was what we (USA) have to go through collectively to address all of the nastiness and racism that was always there. I hope that somehow, these backward steps will lead to some real change as opposed to the lip service we often give to the issues in this country. The whole history here is rank with abuses, and people need to start addressing and rectifying (to whatever degree possible) these abuses. We (collectively, Caucasians) were (and are) too complacent and frankly, distracted to see what was really happening. I cannot imagine how draining it is,” wrote one concerned citizen in a message to IHRC. She expressed hope that this extremely rough patch leads to real evolution of consciousness and action.
Another supporter, from Boise, sent a message to explain that she has made a lot of Black friends over 31 years from her job at Merck. The company has always been very diverse, including in leadership, she wrote. The firm made it very clear that racism wouldn’t be tolerated. She explained that recently, they began devoting about two hours per week every week to discussions of microaggressions, unconscious bias, and privilege, and said Merck also welcomes stories from Black colleagues of personal and professional racial psychological assaults they have endured. She added that these kinds of conversations, although likely exhausting for some, are really fostering empathy and understanding, and more importantly, outrage. Many Idaho companies are doing this. It is important progress, the supporter concluded. The responses reflected a growing consciousness in Idaho about race, and still better, a desire to do more. One supporter noted what she saw as the one small silver lining in all the turmoil–the newfound realization that things were bad for our Black brothers and sisters. “Now I realize just how bad,” she wrote.
To help further a local dialogue about race and related social justice issues, the IHRC works with a variety of organizations and activists in the community and has established scholarships at Boise State University to award
funds to students whose work and service activities directly impact the community. The scholarship donations are given out through a memorial fund in the name of my mother, the late Dr. Dorothy Strickland of Rutgers University, who was a fourth-grade teacher, reading consultant, and learning disabilities specialist. Later, she earned her master’s and doctorate, teaching at Kean College of New Jersey; Teachers College, Columbia University; and Rutgers University Graduate School of Education. A beloved literacy advocate, she served as the inaugural Samuel DeWitt Proctor Endowed Chair at Rutgers and was the first African American president of the International Literacy Association. Along with her many contributions to the field, she served as an inspiration for countless women, particularly those of color, who followed in her footsteps.
In the future, IHRC hopes to host in-person events, which will highlight the work of community leaders and activists, support small businesses, and help facilitate conversations about race to enact real change. I grew to realize that the IHRC was needed to bolster and support the many progressive efforts in the Gem State and beyond. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that,” wrote Martin Luther King. “Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
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“Show me this imaginary racism. Then I’ll do something about it,” a man at an Idaho university repeated, which underscored the fact that a large portion of racism is so ingrained in our society that it had become invisible.
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CONTRIBUTORS Heather Hamilton-Post is a writer and editor in Caldwell. She holds degrees in both agriculture and creative writing and is herself surprised by that. When she’s not writing, catch her at a socially distanced baseball game with her husband and young sons. Find her work across the web and buried in the lit journals you didn’t know you had. Michael Strickland is an author and teacher whose articles have appeared in publications including the Idaho Statesman, Idaho State Journal, Ridenbaugh Press, The Post Register, Idaho Education News, and scholarly journals. He is the author of more than a dozen books. He has taught various classes at Boise State University as well as to 10th and 11th graders in TRIO/Upward Bound and in public schools. Nancy Buffington is an English professor turned public speaking coach. She attended Boise High (’82) and Idaho State (’86), then left Idaho for graduate school and an academic career. She left Stanford and returned to Boise in 2010, opening a coaching practice. She has two sons and fronts a local band, The Soulmates. Hailey Minton is a freelance writer and loves painting with her words. She approaches life with inquisitiveness whether in writing, raising her daughter, or developing her hobbies. With a Bachelor’s in Business Management, she has a love for seeing innovators bring solutions to our ever-changing world. Cherie Buckner-Webb is an Idaho State Senator, Executive Coach, speaker, business consultant, strategist, and 5th generation Idahoan. In addition to work in corporate and nonprofit environments, she assists institutions of higher education in the development of diversity curriculum and training and sits on a variety of local and national boards. Amber Daley is a fifth-generation Idahoan who appreciates potatoes in all their forms — but also finds opportunities to politely inform newcomers of our official nickname: the Gem State. She finds writing inspiration through spontaneous road trips, mountain bike rides, and long walks down the cheese aisle.
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