The Coeur d’Alene Tribe has donated $100,000 to support the Timberlake High School Field House, a project that will provide a place for youth in northern Kootenai County to stay active throughout the year.

“Timberlake High School staff, students, community members and myself want to send a sincere thank you to the Coeur d’Alene Tribe for their support of the Timberlake High School Field House Project,” Timberlake Principal Ryne Eberlin said. “The Coeur d’Alene Tribe’s $100,000 donation will positively impact the Spirit Lake, Athol, Bayview, Twin Lakes and surrounding areas for years to come.”

The donation and recognition have been a year in the making. Eberlin said when he met with Coeur d’Alene Tribal Council Chairman Chief Allan in spring 2024 to discuss the field house project, Allan understood the importance of youth staying active and the benefits to the school and community the project would provide.

“Chief and I both grew up in North Idaho and understand how important community and opportunity is for our next generation and current citizens,” Eberlin said. “Extracurricular opportunities teach so many life lessons and support academics.”

In July 2024, Timberlake’s bookkeeper called Eberlin with news that the school had received the Tribe’s donation.

So far, Eberlin said $700,000 has been raised and another $400,000 is needed to complete flooring and other phases that will make the facility optimally accessible to the community.

The facility will be a 90-by-120-foot steel structure with bathrooms and storage. It will provide space for baseball, softball, golf, track and field, soccer, basketball and other activities, with K-12 youth athletics prioritized followed by community needs.

The Timberlake High School Field House Project is funded by donations.

“The Coeur d’Alene Tribe is a huge supporter of education,” Allan told The Press. “Athletics are a vital part of a balanced and rounded educational experience, teaching kids invaluable lessons about hard work and, of course, healthy lifestyles. The field house project will go a long way to supporting athletic opportunities at Timberlake and is a great fit for the Tribe’s priorities.”

In the two years since the project was announced, Eberlin said fundraising has consumed his summer months, nights and weekends.

“I have really enjoyed meeting everyone and discussing the importance of this project for the community,” he said. “I have found everyone to be willing to listen. Although only half of the meetings resulted in success, the drive to help people has kept me going.”

He said he is ready to see this facility built, but a little more support is needed through in-kind and cash donations.

“I hope a few more folks can step up,” he said. 

All of the geotechnical work, surveying and architectural plans have been completed. The electrical and gas connections and agreements have been completed thanks to Perry Huston and Salmon Electric, Eberlin said. 

Next steps:

• Bid documents are available. The project has been posted to the architectswestplans.com as well as other plan rooms.
•  The bid is open for earthwork, steel building package and foundation.  

Assuming all goes well and funds are in place, construction is expected to begin this fall. Building will be completed as funds are raised for the interior finishes such as flooring, athletic equipment, parking and landscaping.

“I’d like to see it open by summer 2026,” Eberlin said.

Info: ryne.eberlin@lakeland272.org

    With a $100,000 donation from the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, the Timberlake Field House Project — funded 100% by private donations — is getting closer to its fundraising goal.
  

The average cost to register a preschooler for a single season of sports is around $80. For many families already facing financial hardships, that’s a barrier to something every child deserves: the chance to play and grow through athletics.

That’s why Disney Jr.’s Let’s Play! and ESPN’s Take Back Sports have teamed up with Every Kid Sports. Right now, eligible families are invited to apply for grants to cover fall sports registration costs under the Fall 2025 Every Kid Sports Pass.

Family eligibility requirements include:

Children currently enrolled in Medicaid, SNAP, or WIC Children between the ages of 3-7 Child is applying for a recreational sport (not elite or travel) with a season lasting at least 4 weeks

Learn more and apply here.

The Disney Jr. Let’s Play! campaign is part of Disney’s commitment to delivering happiness to kids, families, and communities.

Disney is the parent company of ABC11.

Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola is making kids’ dreams come true.

Raiola hosted his first youth football camp at Memorial Stadium on Saturday. The quarterback and some of his teammates taught the campers drills, signed autographs and more.

Growing up, Raiola attended many camps and now is hosting his own. He said it’s a cool experience getting to run this youth camp.

“It was a surreal feeling, and it was a blessing,” Raiola told Hail Varsity. “It’s kind of crazy to think that I was that kid going to camps, and now people are signing up to come to my camp. So it means the world.”

Many of Raiola’s teammates helped during the camp, including running back Emmett Johnson and wide receiver Jacory Barney Jr. Raiola said it means a lot having them come out and support him.

“It’s amazing,” Raiola said. “It just goes to show our culture, how much we love each other, how much we support each other, and that we’ll do anything for each other.”

Team camaraderie is a huge part of Nebraska football. Johnson said that it was very important for the offense to come out and show their support for Raiola after all that he does for them.

“If we had a camp, Dylan would be there for us,” Johnson said. “So it just shows the brotherhood that we have in the room and just shows how close we are as a team. It means a lot for us to come out here and support him. Dylan’s doing a great job of giving back to the community, so it’s been really fun.”

Giving back to the community is something that’s very import to the Husker players. Barney said he enjoys seeing the kids and doing his part to help Dylan.

“It’s exciting for me to see him bring the whole community out,” Barney said. “It’s always good to give back and I’m just blessed to be in this position. Happy for my guy, I’m happy to be out here.”

Being the star quarterback for the Huskers comes with a lot of perks, including kids wanting to be like you. Plenty of the campers showed up in Raiola jerseys or decked out in his brand gear. Raiola said that it’s cool to be an inspiration to the younger generation.

“I’m glad I can be that person that they look up to,” Raiola said. “I know I was that kid that was looking up to people, and I still do.”

There were a lot of great memories that came from this camp, but spending time with the kids was Raiola’s favorite.

“Just the interaction with the kids,” Raiola said. “We don’t get that interaction very often as football players, especially going into the season. So it’s super fun to just see them and watch them smile and have fun. It brings me back down to my childhood days.”

Along with all the good memories from the camp, the players also want the kids to learn a lot of lessons about Nebraska football that they can carry with them as they grow up. Johnson hopes the kids remember to enjoy what they do and have fun.

“They know that we’ve got some great players,” Johnson said. “Not just football players on the field, but great humans. I hope they take that into their lives after this camp and just have fun with everything they do.”

With all the camps that the Huskers have been hosting lately they have built a strong culture around the football program. Raiola believes that this is a great foundation that they’re setting for future Nebraska players.

“It’s just, everyone’s bought into what Nebraska is, and Nebraska football,” Raiola said. “Everyone says it’s the good life, and then this is what it is. This is what it’s all about, is the kids, and they’re the next wave of guys coming through. So for them to show up and do camps, it’s a lot of fun.”

DYERSVILLE, Iowa — On July 13, the Sugar River Bombers-Nationals (12U) baseball team won the Field of Dreams tournament on the movie set in Dyersville, Iowa. In a season with its ups-and-downs, the boys saved their best for last, the coaches said. 

Each summer, Dyersville runs youth tournaments where families travel to the infamous cornfield-turned baseball diamond which was the movie set for the 1989 film starring Kevin Costner, Ray Liotta, and James Earl-Jones. 

Unfortunately for the Bombers, a severe storm cancelled the skills event, meaning the only way they could play on the movie set was to make the championship of the tournament. Leading up to the tournament semi-finals, the Bombers beat teams from Ohio, Colorado, and Minnesota. They won the semifinal game in the bottom-half of the last inning on a walk-off squeeze bunt. They earned their chance to play on the movie set field, but they weren’t done yet.

In the championship game against the West Dubuque Bobcats, the Bombers took an early 2-0 lead which held until the last inning where the Bobcats tied the game in the top-half 2-2. The Bombers came to the plate with a chance to win the game in their last at-bat. Like the previous game, bases were loaded with one-out. The Bombers executed another successful squeeze bunt to take the lead and win the championship. Players, coaches, and family celebrated on the field under the lights with pictures, smiles, and shiny rings the tournament gives to the winning team. 

The Sugar River Bombers organization has been supporting youth baseball and softball in the Green County area since 2020. They thank the many generous donors who allow experiences like this for youth athletes.

In the film Field of Dreams, the main character Ray Kinsella (played by Costner) hears “voices” which inspire him to tear up his crop and build a baseball diamond. Ghosts emerge from the corn to play baseball, notably the players of the 1919 Chicago Black Sox who were banned from baseball due to allegedly receiving money from gamblers for throwing the World Series that season against the Cincinnati Reds. One of these ghosts, “Shoeless” Joe Jackson (played by Liotta), brings other ghosts to the Field of Dreams to play the game they missed so much. 

The climax of the movie has Costner’s character having a catch with his deceased father, who was one of the ghosts on the field. The father died with the two having a strained relationship. The phrase, “If you build it, he will come,” the notable line of the movie, leaves the viewers teary-eyed as they understand the seemingly crazy notion of building a baseball field in a corn field was all for this emotional ending.

Visiting the field in present day, visitors will see kids and adults alike playing catch in the outfield surrounded by tall corn, pick-up baseball games on the diamond, visitors sitting on the porch of the farmhouse featured in the film, and shoppers buying memorabilia. The allure of the tournament is that all teams get to participate on the movie set in a skills competition on the field featured in the movie. 

ESPN’s ESPY Awards recognize the very best in sports, honoring everything from Best Play to life-changing humanitarian efforts. This year, Buffalo Wild Wings (BWW) received the ESPN Corporate Community Impact Sports Humanitarian Award for its longstanding ALL STARS partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Annually, the BWW Foundation partners with Boys & Girls Clubs of America to provide essential funding for sports equipment and jerseys for the athletes as well as training for the coaches.

“We believe every kid deserves to play, and we’re determined to close the access gap and make sure as many children as possible have the chance to become a champion,” said Inspire Foundation Executive Director Stuart Brown. “This award is an incredible honor, because it celebrates the power of access, opportunity, and sports to change lives.” 

To celebrate, the BWW Foundation and Boys & Girls Clubs of America hosted a special event with Atlanta Dream guard and WNBA standout Rhyne Howard during the WNBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis. Rhyne spent an afternoon with local LeGore Boys & Girls Club kids, sharing her journey from community courts to WNBA stardom as motivation for kids to view sports as a pathway to success.

Driven by its mission to fuel champions of the next generation by providing access to youth sports, the BWW Foundation has helped nearly three million Club kids get in the game since 2013 – and it shows. While only 20-28% of America’s youth get an hour of recommended daily physical activity, more than half of Boys & Girls Club members exercise an hour a day, five days a week. The ALL STARS program also provides structured sports programming to encourage community building and grow team sports skills for success on and off the court.  

The ALL STARS program is supported by fundraising efforts like Team Up for Kids, the BWW Foundation’s annual fundraiser that supports local youth programs. It’s through this yearly campaign that 1,200 BWW sports bars fundraise, volunteer, and advocate on behalf of community programs to make team sports and other resources more accessible to youth in their communities. 

The Inspire Foundation exists to ignite and nourish change for good. In 2024, Inspire’s brand foundations gave more than $23 million to support youth-related organizations, making a difference in the communities we serve. To learn more about the Inspire Foundation, visit foundation.inspirebrands.com.