STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

It may be Hailey’s best kept secret—unless you’re a 4-year-old.

Tucked away around the corner from Hailey Town Center West is a Mud Kitchen.

It was built by educator Amanda Riccardi, her husband Roger and their two young boys, along with a few others. And it has captivated young’uns who love to stir up a plump mud pot pie and plop it in the oven.

Riccardi is one of two women who used an ESSER grant to provide weekly STREAM—science, technology, engineering, reading, art and math—projects for teens and youth at the Hailey Public and  Bellevue libraries this summer.

The projects were meant to help kids learn how to interact socially and work with another—skills that were impacted by the COVID shutdown. Lack of cooperation and problem solving were noticeable issues in the schools in some of the younger grades after in-person learning resumed, Riccardi said.

“I think the Mud Kitchen is also a nice place for parents to connect,” she added. “I stayed at home with my twin boys when they were young and thought we lacked places where parents can connect and kids could be easily entertained with other children. It’s a small little park, but has some great benefits!”

DID YOU KNOW?

The Bellevue Library is no longer under threat of its budget being slashed. The Bellevue City Council voted to continue funding the library following a read-in protest where 70 people showed up in support of the library.