Idaho
‘For what they have given to the nation’: First of Idaho veteran’s three wars was WWII – East Idaho News
BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — Joseph Katancik was overwhelmed with emotion.
And this is a man who has experienced a lifetime of emotion.
The veteran of three wars — World War II, Korea and Vietnam — returned to Idaho from an Honor Flight to Washington, D.C., in September. He was met at the Boise Airport by his wife, Midge, who was laughing, waving and holding an American flag. His friends were holding signs. And they were all joined by his dog, Daisy.
Joseph held out his arms, and he and his wife embraced — to applause. Everyone came in for hugs. Daisy jumped at his legs, and Joseph pulled her onto his lap.
“I think (everyone coming) is wonderful,” said Midge, who met Joseph in Seattle more than 50 years ago.
An Honor Flight is a trip paid for by a nonprofit that allows veterans to go to Washington, D.C., to visit memorials that honor their service. And for Joseph, 94, who served in the Air Force, that’s no quick trip to a single memorial.
Vietnam veterans are still plentiful in the United States, numbering in the millions, according to the Pew Research Center. The conflict in Korea peaked in the early 1950s, but there are still hundreds of thousands of military service members alive who served then.
World War II, of course, is a different story, with the numbers barely exceeding 100,000.
On this Veterans Day weekend, it’s not known how many other people there are like Joseph, who stayed in the military for all three.
“I wanted to go to war,” he told the Statesman, reflecting on why he first enlisted.
Nowadays, the Fruitland resident likes to stay as active as he can in his community and in the Treasure Valley.
Joan Hernandez, an American Legion Auxiliary unit president, came with her family to the airport to welcome him back to Idaho from the D.C. trip.
She described Joseph as a “loving, generous” guy who is always willing to offer a hug.
“His dog is his life. He still likes to garden. He still drives. He goes to school assemblies. He loves to talk to kids. … He goes and visits nursing homes,” Hernandez said. “He asked to be (my kids’) honorary grandpa.”
Owen Spurling, who’s involved with Disabled American Veterans and Veterans of Foreign Wars, said he met Joseph because they belong to the same Veterans of Foreign Wars post.
“The significance of this is, to me anyway, it’s an appreciation for what they have given to the nation,” Spurling said. “It’s an honor to be able to do that. Obviously, our heroes are dwindling. It’s great to be able to put this together.”
Another person who came to the airport, Jamie Boian, met Joseph while driving veterans to appointments in Southwest Idaho.
“For his age, I know he’s very adamant about mowing his own lawn,” Boian said. “He’s just a great guy. He’s always super grateful for even the smallest things.”
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PAYETTE — A Payette mom’s bond was revoked Tuesday after she was charged with suffocating her twin children earlier this month and is believed to pose a danger to the life of her newborn child.
The case, which has drawn national headlines, concerns Andrea Renee Shaw, a 23-year-old Payette mother who in May 2025 said her 18-month-old fraternal twins died the same day, after receiving routine childhood vaccinations. In January, Shaw joined as a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit filed by Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine organization founded by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., with several other plaintiffs claiming vaccine injury or death.
Kennedy, who now serves as secretary of Health and Human Services, is no longer part of the group after taking on the cabinet position, as was reported by the Associated Press.
In Idaho, the twins’ deaths prompted a 14-month investigation by the Payette County Sheriff’s Department. On June 29, the investigation yielded a grand jury indictment of Shaw on two counts of first-degree murder by suffocation. If convicted, Shaw can be punished by up to life in prison or the death penalty, and the court would have the ability to order the penalties be served consecutively, or back to back.
Tuesday’s arraignment at the Payette County Courthouse was primarily attended by Shaw’s relatives and members of the media. Payette County Judge Kiley Stuchlik, who serves Idaho’s Third Judicial District, presided.
A key consideration for Stuchlik on Tuesday was a request from Joseph Filicetti, the legal counsel for Shaw, to have her bond reduced from $2 million to $100,000. Filicetti said this would allow for Shaw to care for a newborn girl, who, according to court documents, was born by caesarean section on June 25, four days prior to Shaw’s grand jury indictment.
State prosecutors objected to the motion for bond reduction, noting at hand was a potential death penalty case and asserting, unlike her husband, Shaw’s story repeatedly changed during questioning. Prosecuting Attorney Mike Duke said releasing Shaw would ultimately put the newborn’s safety at risk.
“That child is the most at risk. We do not think she should be allowed to be anywhere near any children, let alone her own children,” Duke said.
Stuchlik decided to revoke bond entirely, stating Shaw posed a “risk of safety” to the newborn child that was not known to Stuchlik or prosecutors when the $2 million bond was initially set.
Also for consideration Tuesday was a request to have grand jury transcripts of witness testimony provided to prosecutors and defense counsel to prepare their respective cases.
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