Just two towers handle public safety radio across the 3,000 square miles of Itasca County, explained Sheriff Pat Medure, and some areas do not have service at all.

That will change soon.

The Federal Communications Commission has mandated that counties move to narrowband radio service by 2013. For the past six years Medure and a county Radio User’s Group has been working toward proactively meeting that date while overhauling the current system.

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In 2002 the Bigfork High School Alumni Association came together behind an ambitious idea: to build a regulation 6 lane, state-of-the-art 400 meter track for the high school.

Why a track? Although limited by the number of students at the school, the athletic team attracted a comparable turnout as other northland schools, but it had no place to practice except back streets. In spite of this, Bigfork had among its alumni a track star who won the state mile title in 1948 and held it for seven years, Gordon Campbell. The new track complex would be named for him.

With high hopes, the $500,000 project was submitted to the state for approval to proceed.

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Forty-four projects were considered for grants in October through the North Itasca Electric Co-op member RoundUp program. Over $37,000 was requested through project applications, on total project values of over $400,000.

Do you know that when it comes to your appliances, the refrigerator uses the most electricity in your home? Approximately one-sixth of all the electricity used in your home comes from your refrigerator.

The weather didn’t cooperate. It was rainy, cold and windy. But still, said Jim Cox: “All in all it was just a great experience.”

In September a full bus made the trip to western North Dakota where North Itasca Electric Cooperative members had a chance to see the Coal Creek Station, Great River Energy’s large coal power plant that is a major supplier of electricity to its system.