Two local businesses, representing 128 years of service, paychecks and still family-run, say farewell to their founders this week with the passing of Claire Everson and Jack Adams. Their bios show remarkable similarities, although Everson's Jewelry and Coeur d'Alene Tractor traded in quite different wares.

Both men started their companies, raised families and gave back to their community. Each served the public on city councils in Hayden Lake and Coeur d'Alene, respectively. Their contributions, work ethic and citizenship will define their legacy.

Claire was at work at the store the day before he passed away last week at age 94. Jack retired at age 97 and was 100 years old when he died on Saturday. Both men set an example of lives well lived and will be long remembered.

Received a note from former hometown boy and 1967 IHM grad, Pat Giesa, following the first blurb in this column about the unknown painter. I mentioned that some readers thought it might have been legendary traveling muralist Joe Breckenridge's work.

Says Pat: "It brought back memories of my very first car. It was a 1953 Dodge DeSoto, business coupe'. The entire car was painted by a local artist and I couldn't remember his name until I read your column - Joe Breckenridge!

"I bought it from Joe for $75 in 1967. My father (the late Bill Giesa) wouldn't let me buy it until I saved enough to pay for the first three months of auto insurance. All four fenders, the trunk and both doors were painted with a single, flowing outdoor mural. It had a log cabin with a smoking chimney on the driver's door. There was a small lake in the background. The trunk had a short rapids that drained the lake. The passenger door was a meadow with a tethered horse, with the other side of the lake in the background. It even had a skunk on the right-front fender.

"I worked all summer in the Montgomery Wards auto service bays trying to get enough money to keep it running decently, but it died in the driveway one fall day and it never ran again. I moved to Boise soon after and Dad and my brother towed it down to the junkyard for scrap. Dad had to pay them to take it off his hands and I never lived that one down. I got one whole summer of fun cruising Sherman out of "Mopar" that I'll never forget!"

Pat promised to e-mail a photo of the car if he can find one ... and if so, I'll be sure to post it on More Main Street.

While shopping over the weekend I ran into my friend Kathy White and her seven-year-old granddaughter, A'maya Ohlig. When we were introduced, A'maya asked if I was on TV. I said, no, just in the paper and on the radio. She seemed a bit confused and then Kathy laughed that she sees me on television during city council meetings. What a hoot, a seven-year-old watching cable access city council meetings. So I invited her to come early to a council meeting and I'll let her see the view from the dias. Maybe one day she'll be serving the people of Post Falls.

Happy Birthday today to Stephanie Smith, Paula Rehrmann, Deanna Goodlander, Robin Moss, Jim Wilson, Bruce English, Adam Averill, Morgan Dickinson, Quinn Kennedy and Diana Farquhar. That's one big Main Street birthday party! Tomorrow Mike Kennedy, Helen Pischner, Chuck Ethridge, Colleen O'Brien, Mary Button and Dorene Russell will be celebrating. On Friday Jill Monroe, Lucy Dukes, Susie Bingham and Abbie Nowland are blowing out the birthday candles. Kandi Johnson, Maxey Ryan and Teri Runge Nipp are Saturday's birthday girls. And on Sunday Rick Seward turns 81 years young, sharing a birthday with Thom George, Maycie Goodlander and Jared "Mike" White. Starting the week with birthday celebrations are Megan Lee and Donna Pfeiffer on Monday and Mark Sales and Tami Crawford on Tuesday.

THERE'S MORE ... at More Main Street see photos of people and places. Access More Main Street under the columns tab at www.cdapress.com. If you aren't in the Main Street Birthday Club, enter your birthdate on the link provided on More Main Street. Listen to Main Street Monday on KVNI AM1080.

Kerri Rankin Thoreson is a member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and the former publisher of the Post Falls Tribune. Main Street appears every Wednesday in The Press. More Main Street blog is at http://moremainstreet.blogspot.com. Kerri can be reached at mainstreet@cdapress.com