Sept. 11, 2006

Dwight Emmons needed some peace and quiet.

It was 2001 and Emmons, then 37, had just come out of life-threatening surgery and needed a break from his routine in Portland, Ore. Looking eastward on a map, Emmons' eyes found a spot that would do the trick: Coeur d'Alene. A beautiful resort community located near the top of the chimney on the western border of Idaho, this place was the perfect place for recuperation.

While Coeur d'Alene (pronounced CORE-da-lane) may have been the perfect prescription for a healing body, it was not the place for an aspiring lacrosse coach -- something Emmons most certainly was.

Mentored under the direction of Mark Flood, the godfather of lacrosse in Oregon and the coach at West Linn High School in Portland, Emmons was excited to become a coach prior to his malady. He had first picked up the sport as a senior at Daniel Hand High School in Connecticut and honed his playing skills on the now-defunct Syracuse `B' team before moving west. Just as it had for so many before him, coaching seemed a natural extension of Emmons' love of lacrosse.

While Emmons was willing to pass along his love of the sport, there weren't a whole lot of people in Northern Idaho who had a real grasp on lacrosse. Some of the kids had heard of the sport, and others had even heard it described during gym class. There was a school in Moscow, Idaho -- a city 120 miles south of Coeur d'Alene -- that traveled to down to Boise to play games, but that was as close as most came to lacrosse.

Emmons made a decision: he was going to start lacrosse in Northern Idaho.

"It seemed like a great way to leave my mark on society," said Emmons. "It would allow me to give something back for all I've taken. It was something I knew I could do."

It would not be easy, but Emmons decided to approach the goal strategically. Watching the fierce rivalry between Coeur d'Alene High School and Lakeside High School, the two preps within city limits, he figured this was a good place to plant the lacrosse seed.

His original advertisement in the local paper was posted in the fall of 2001 and was answered by a total of 65 students from both schools, but once the potential players learned they would be required to pay for their own equipment, the number was halved. Still, there was enough to field a team for both schools and Emmons decided he would be the de facto coach of both squads. He would start his afternoons guiding Coeur d'Alene and finish up with Lakeside.

"They would overlap a little bit, but the kids were great," said Emmons. "They assumed a lot of responsibility because they knew I couldn't do it all."

In addition to the help he received from the players, Emmons was struck by the support he received from both school administrators and parents. Whereas lacrosse is battling for field space and recognition all over the country, the sport was embraced by Coeur d'Alene. After just two years, the schools were giving varsity letters to the players, even though it was, by definition, a club sport. More importantly, the schools picked up the tab for the lacrosse teams' transportation costs.

"The schools have been awesome," said Emmons. "I can't say enough about them and the people in this town. I was bracing for rejection and everyone opened their door to me."

The success and popularity of the sport between the two rivals spurred a migration into outlying areas of Northern Idaho. Lakeland High School (in Rathdrum, northwest of Coeur d'Alene), Gonzaga Prep (Spokane, Wash., due west), Sandpoint High School (halfway to the Canadian border) and Bonners Ferry (60 miles from border) have joined the existing programs to form the Northern Idaho Lacrosse League.

For the second year in a row, the NILL played a championship game in the spring of 2006, and for the first time it had the funds for championship trophies. Lake City, for which Emmons is now a full-time coach, took home the shiny hardware with a 6-4 triumph over Gonzaga Prep.

Emmons has put a lot of time and energy into making lacrosse a reality in Northern Idaho. It hasn't always been easy, but using some of the political acumen he learned from his mother, Emmons has been able to keep key players in the community on his side.

During the summer, he enjoys the fruits of his labor. Not only does he get to see the 40-plus junior high school students forming the next generation of Idaho lacrosse players, but he gets to pick up a stick and take to the field himself. At 42, Emmons is not quite as spry as during his East Coast days, but he pushes on.

Never mind two decades ago, Emmons is amazed at what he was able to do just five years ago.

"Sometimes I look back and realize I had no idea what I was getting into."

So much for his peace and quiet.