COVID blues
May: Shoshone County Fire District No. 2’s new building at 911 Bunker Ave. in Kellogg.
Photo by CHANSE WATSON
More local events canceled amid pandemic
When it comes to Silver Valley summer events, COVID-19 is batting 1.000 as it has effectively shut down even more local summer events.
It was announced this week by their respective organizers that Pinehurst Days, Silver Mountain’s BrewFest and the new Shoshone County Fire District No. 2’s open house were all being canceled or pushed back.
Pinehurst Days may be the most heartbreaking, considering the momentum they gained in last year’s event. After returning to their roots in 2019 and making Pinehurst Days a must-see again, having to cancel the event on what would’ve been its 50th anniversary is a tough blow.
Originally scheduled for Aug. 7-10, the event’s committee met earlier in the week and expressed concerns over volunteer recruitment, as well as weighing the risk associated with having a large, multi-day affair in the midst of this recent COVID-19 spike.
“Even though there was some progress, the overall opinion of the committee was that the perceived rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in Idaho and Washington was making it difficult to continue planning the event for 2020,” the committee stated in a news release.
The committee has now turned its focus to next year and making their 50-year (plus 1) anniversary event as big as possible.
“The entire committee remains committed to providing a family friendly event that the residents of Pinehurst and surrounding community can be proud of.”
Brewsfest, Silver Mountain Resort’s annual craft beer festival, has also been canceled for 2020.
“We feel it’s the responsible decision to cancel this year and look to make it bigger and better in 2021.” said Gus Colburn, marketing coordinator.
Brewsfest is an annual tradition for Silver Mountain dating back 24 years.
The event, originally scheduled for Aug. 15, is a showcase for craft breweries from across the Northwest, and regularly draws crowds of up to 1,200 people for a day of beer tasting, scenic chairlift rides and live concerts.
The last recent cancellation came from SCFD No. 2 when it announced on Wednesday that its already once postponed open house would once again be pushed out until a later date.
SCFD No. 2 Fire Chief Mark Aamodt had originally planned to hold the open house at the end of May, not long after the building was finished, but state pandemic restrictions at the time forced the event to be moved to July.
With the July 11 date being canceled now as well, Chief Aamodt is now taking the same approach that most other event organizers are taking — one of the wait-and-see variety.