BONNERS FERRY — Just because records are made to be broken doesn’t mean they aren’t also made to be remembered.

That point that was underscored at the Bonners Ferry Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony at the Boundary County Fairgrounds Exhibit Hall last Saturday. Over 100 attended the banquet and ceremony, which saw four Bonners Ferry High School alumni and three of its teams honored for their athletic achievements.

“The idea is to honor the past, represent the present, and support the future,” said Badger Athletic Director Travis Hinthorn.

The ceremony marked the third-year Bonners Ferry honored its greatest athletes.

“About three years ago, we started a Badger Athletic Hall of Fame,” said Hinthorn. “I was asked if I wanted to be a board member on the North Idaho Hall of Fame. I got on there, and I thought, ‘Man, that’s a lot of fun. Why don’t we have one here?’”

The third year’s honorees included golfer Sarah Rice, who graduated in 1998 after leading Bonners Ferry to a state championship in golf. Rice went on to play golf for the University of Portland.

Local legend Jack Yount was also inducted – Yount was a standout running back who scored 23 touchdowns for the 1974 championship football team, which was also inducted at the event. He holds an unofficial record with a 95-yard touchdown run as well as recording a four-interception game during his varsity career. 

Elite track and field star Ed Rice was also given a spot in the hall of fame. He led the 1975 Badgers track team to an undefeated season that saw them capture the Idaho State Championship. His 6-foot-9.25-inch-high jump at the state championship meet remains an outdoor school record over 50 years later.

Then there was Don Sinclair, who is known as one of the best all-around athletes in school history - so much so that the 16-time letterman was simply inducted under the category “athlete.”

“A 16-time letterman is going to be hard to beat because that just doesn’t happen anymore,” said Hinthorn.

Three championship teams were inducted along with the standout Badger athletes. The undefeated 1974 football team, the 1975 boys and girls track team and the 1996 girls' golf team.

The football team finished its season 10-0 to claim the North Idaho championship - many of the athletes from that team helped the 1975 track team capture the state championship. And the 1996 girls' golf team also earned a state championship under the leadership of Walters.

The Hall of Fame’s five-member board selects inductees from a list of nominees submitted by community members and through a nomination box at the school. The committee gives priority consideration to athletes who are still alive, Hinthorn said.

“We want to recognize people before they’re gone,” he said.

Retired Spokane County Superior Court Judge Linda Davidson-Tompkins to see Rice, her great-niece, inducted.

“This is precious,” she said. “I was born and educated in Bonners Ferry. I left a lot of my heart here. I’m so proud of our family.”