Basketball tourney attracting national sponsors

After nine days of looking for sponsors, $14,000 has been raised for the first Bonners Ferry Swish on Aug. 2 and 3.

National sponsors include Budweiser and Odom Dis-tributing. Odom, which distributes Red Bull energy drinks, and Coors and Miller beer, has donated $5,600 to sponsor eight basketballs hoops.

“I am humbled by that because it is a great support,” said Brown. “I am amazed that all the businesses came together so soon.”

The three-on-three basketball tournament will be hosted on the downtown streets.

“What a better place to do it than Bonners Ferry,” said co-chairman Brett Brown. “It is a beautiful place to be. We have a perfect downtown to do it.”

So far local sponsors include Pace-Kerby, Kootenai River Inn, Panhandle State Bank, Three-Mile Café, Under the Sun/Yount Logging, Woodbury Reports, Boundary County Masons, Eagles Aerie No. 3522, Edward Jones, Boundary Trading Co., Safeway, Boundary Abstract, Community Title, Mountain West Bank and Wells Fargo.

The event, which is co-chaired by Jack Douglas, will be for co-ed players in fifth-grade and older.

Brown plans to have minimum of 512 players and expects close to 2,000 spectators to town.

“The economic benifit should be huge,” Brown said.

Proceeds will be spent on upgrading the playground at Boundary County Fairgrounds.

“It is near and dear to my heart because I have 4-year-old and 7-year-old,” said Brown. “It is the only place in Bonners Ferry, other than the schools, to take your children to play.”

Right now he is trying to get more sponsors and people to volunteer to referee, pick up garbage, keep score and more.

“The people are starting to come out of the woodwork,” Brown said. “It is nothing that can happen overnight.”

For more information contact at Brown at 946-8650.