I chatted recently with Sharon Price, secretary of the Friends of Idaho Public Television Board of Directors, about her experience with the board and living in the Gem State. Sharon and her husband, Park, have lived in Idaho Falls for almost 50 years. They’ve spent the last 20 years in Idaho Falls, but the previous 25 were spent in Pocatello. During their time in Idaho, they have been big public television supporters and know quite a few people on the board.
Sharon is originally from Iowa. “I grew up in Cedar Rapids, a city of about 100,000,” she says. She worked for United Airlines as a flight attendant after attending the University of Iowa for two years. “I hadn’t traveled much growing up so it was a real opportunity to see the United States.” She met her husband on a flight from Chicago to Denver. Park asked if he could call when he got back to Chicago, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Since Park worked for General Motors when they were married, they lived in large cities (Los Angeles; Washington, DC; and Detroit) moving every three to five years. In 1979, they moved to Pocatello so Park could take over his father’s automobile dealership. Although the move was a bit of a change, they relished the idea of being able to contribute more to the community, as well as letting their children experience life in a smaller town. “Our children were 9 and 6 at the time, and we had lived in big cities for 10 years, so we thought moving to Pocatello sounded like a good place to raise the children,” Sharon says. “And it proved to be just that. We have been very happy. Plus, living in Pocatello gave me the opportunity to complete my degree at Idaho State University.” Later on, they moved to Idaho Falls for Park’s career.
Sharon enjoys many parts of the Gem State. Their children live in Boise now, so they’re visiting the grandkids in the Treasure Valley “…at least once a month.” You can catch her skiing in Sun Valley during the winter. And eastern Idaho is a great jumping-off point for enjoying all the Intermountain West has to offer. “We are so well located in Idaho Falls because we’re only a couple of hours from Sun Valley, a couple of hours from Jackson Hole and Yellowstone, and three hours from Salt Lake. It’s a great place to live.” The beautiful outdoors during the summertime was a draw when their kids were little. Sharon especially remembers camping at Redfish Lake.
Another hobby Sharon enjoys is travel, both domestic and foreign. “We’ve traveled extensively during our 54 years of marriage. Many of our trips were through my husband’s businesses.” They’ve been fortunate to travel throughout the world and recently returned from Japan for an international investment conference. “It was really interesting to learn about that culture and get to know the people. We were very impressed with Japan.” The world’s busiest intersection in the world is in Tokyo. “It’s called ‘The Scramble’ … and in 90 seconds, 3,000 people walk through that intersection. We did it twice and were amazed at how routine it seemed.” Sharon is very involved with the arts in her community. “We have season tickets to both the Idaho Falls and the Pocatello symphonies. I’ve served on both their boards and want to support these excellent orchestras. I just really believe that arts are so important to a community’s growth and well-being.”
Being a member of the Friends Board is an honor for her. “They do such amazing programming and I so enjoy working with the IdahoPTV staff and board. I’m just privileged to be a part of it.” Sharon remembers her kids both enjoying Sesame Street and Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood when they were young. And the snack she likes the most is “…a fresh, hot cinnamon roll but I can’t have them often!” she says.