New art display graces museum portrait hall

On Wednesday, March 1, the Boundary County Museum hosted fourth graders from Mt. Hall, Naples and Valley View Schools. The occasion was to celebrate March 4 - Idaho Day. This year's theme for Idaho Day was "We the People, Serving Idaho." With a bit of community pride, the theme was changed to "We the People, Serving Boundary County, Idaho." They left behind a wonderful collection of art, now on display in Portrait Hall.

The fourth graders, with many volunteers from the Museum, toured the downtown area to visit with individuals who serve our community. The first stop was the courthouse, where they met our three commissioners and the county clerk. The next place on the tour was the sheriff's office, where Sheriff David Kramer, a deputy, a patrolman and a member of the tribal police came outside, spoke, answered questions and showed the students a patrol vehicle.

Safely crossing the street with our volunteer crossing guard, the students walked to the fire department and heard two firemen explain their gear and fire truck. The volunteer ambulance crew was along this route and gave the students an explanation of how they serve Boundary County. The students were able to look in the ambulance.

Again crossing the street safely, the tour group stopped at the post office to hear the postmaster talk about how we get our mail. The group continued over to city hall, where Bonners Ferry Police Chief Brian Zimmerman and City Administrator Lisa Ailport spoke about the services the city provides everyone.

Nearly every child raised their hand when asked if they have been to the city swimming pool!

From there (a bit cold from the walk), the fourth graders crossed the street to arrive at the Museum for hot cocoa and a cookie shaped like Idaho. They were each given a booklet, created by the Museum, showing the historic places they had visited and learning puzzles to complete.

They were asked to draw a picture of something they saw on the tour, or someone in their family who serves the community. All of the drawings have been hung on the wall in Portrait Hall. What a fine exhibit to have on display for all to see!

The drawings will be taken down in May and returned to the students at their schools. Come see this wonderful collection of art expressing: "We the People, Serving Boundary County, Idaho."