Oregon Public Broadcasting

The people of Hailey, Idaho are settling into a new routine. The southern Idaho resort town has weathered the initial tidal wave of media attention related to the capture of its native son, Bowe Bergdahl.

The Army private is a prisoner of the Taliban.

Now, the network news crews have left and some of the immediate controversy over his capture has died down. But Hailey is left quietly waiting for Bergdahl to come home. Correspondent Doug Nadvornick reports.

The streets of Hailey, Idaho are lined with reminders that this is Bowe Bergdahl's hometown.

Yellow ribbons and signs hang in the windows of many Hailey, Idaho businesses in honor of Bowe Bergdahl, an American Army private who's held captive by the Taliban.

Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jim Spinelli says, in the days following Bergdahl's capture, civic groups have tied hundreds of yellow ribbons to street trees.

He says it connects the community to wartime tragedies that date back a century-and-a-half.

Jim Spinelli: “I think the yellow ribbons started back during the Civil War time. That's what the wives in the families used to do. They put yellow ribbons out until the soldiers came home.”

Businesses have displayed yellow “Bring Bowe Home” signs in their windows.

And, at Zaney's Coffee House, customers have written prayers and best wishes on a yellow board hung on the wall.

Zaney's has served as Hailey's unofficial information hub since news of Private Bergdahl's capture was made public.

His parents decided not to talk to the media so they could grieve in peace.

They asked owner Sue Martin to be the go-to person for the reporters who descended on Hailey.

She did dozens of interviews with news outlets all over the world. Now the reporters are mostly gone, but Martin says the locals still come in for the latest news.

Sue Martin, the owner of Zaney's Coffee House in Hailey, Idaho, has been the spokesperson for Bowe Bergdahl's family as the world learned about the American soldier's captivity.

Other well wishers from far away, who couldn't place Hailey on a map, are also calling.

Sue Martin: “Our phone here at Zaney's has been ringing an average of every few minutes now. And the e-mails we're getting and the posts on the websites. It's a really wonderful show of support.”

Unfortunately for Bowe Bergdahl, there are places outside of Hailey where he doesn't enjoy that same level of support. That's because of the uncertainty about how he was captured and the initial questions about whether he left his base unescorted.

In this video released by the Taliban, Bergdahl appears to question the war in Afghanistan.

Bowe Bergdahl on the Taliban video: “Please. Please bring us home so that we can be back where we belong and not over here wasting our time and our lives.”

When the Fox News Network covered Bergdahl's capture, it called on retired Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Peters for analysis.

Ralph Peters: “If he walked away from his post and his buddies in wartime, I don't care how hard it sounds. As far as I'm concerned, the Taliban can save us a lot of legal hassles and a lot of legal bills.”

Those remarks ignited heated discussions on blogs all around the world. In Hailey though, they didn't make much of a wave.

Jim Spinelli from the Hailey Chamber of Commerce says many in town didn't hear Peters' comments or similar remarks by Fox host Bill O'Reilly. And if they did, Spinelli says, they've chosen to ignore them.

Jim Spinelli: “You know, the bottom line is that Bowe's from here, Bowe is a soldier, Bowe is in captivity and being punished and he is the Bergdahls' son. None of that stuff matters to us right now. He just needs to get home.”

Not everyone lets the criticism slide.

Render Crayton: “I was very upset.”

Render Crayton lives in Ketchum, Idaho, about 15 miles north of Hailey. He says any pronouncements are premature.
Crayton is watching with special interest.

He, too, was a prisoner of war. He was held for seven years in north Vietnam with Senator John McCain and more than 500 other American servicemen.

While Bergdahl's critics say he should never have given his captors more than his name, rank and serial number, Crayton scoffs.

Render Crayton: “They have no conception about what's going through that poor guy's mind right now. And if he wants to try to save his life by saying what he said, then all the power in the world to him. I do not fault him for that.”

Crayton says, as far as the town of Hailey goes, Bergdahl's captivity has raised the community's global awareness.

Render Crayton: “I think if there's anything good to come out of this whole thing, I think it's the fact that people are beginning to realize that we've got soldiers over there that may be captured, but are being killed and wounded and there's a war going on there.”

Crayton recently met with Bowe Bergdahl's parents. He says they're wrestling with whether to talk about their son in public.

For weeks, people in the community kept Bergdahl's capture a secret. But now, his friend, Hailey Police Chief Jeff Gunter, says the town's challenge is to keep people from forgetting about Bergdahl.

Jeff Gunter: “There's a motorcycle group that wants to come to town with 600 motorcycles, showing tribute to Bowe. Bowe loved to ride bikes. Possibly a community bike ride. We're just going to keep things fresh in everybody's mind and keep it everybody's thoughts and prayers until Bowe's home.”

Gunter and all of Bergdahl's friends and family here are just hoping that's soon.