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In Memory

Glenn Perkins - Class of 1940

Glenn Perkins was born June 24, 1922 the son of Ira and May Perkins.  Mary met her life partner and husband - Glenn Perkins while he was working in Kemmerer for the railroad.  Glenn was born and raised just west of the Wyoming boarder in the small southeastern Idaho town of Montpelier.  In Glenn’s words, “I knew the very first time I met her she was special….and feisty.”  Glenn courted Mary in the traditional ways of their era.   Working for the railroad was hard on the relationship because Glenn was assigned to work in different towns around the state of Idaho.  One such assignment took Glenn to Hailey, Idaho.  This assignment was a long term one, so Glenn asked Mary to accompany him to Hailey.  While in Hailey, Mary was asked by a local merchant owner if she was interested in working for him in his small store which also sold fuel by way of hand pump.  Mary agreed on one condition:  Mary stated “I do not want to pump the fuel”.  The merchant agreed and so began the days of “Mary’s Place”- unbeknownst to the store owner.

The store was located near Sun Valley, Idaho--a known getaway for the rich and famous Hollywood types now, and back then.  The first time a person meets Mary she has a knack of leaving a lifelong impression on you with her with quick wit, sense of humor, and no nonsense approach to things.  A person never has to guess what’s on Mary’s mind because she has no problem expressing it, good and bad.  The local store had a name, but the longer Mary worked there the official name of the store became an afterthought.  Because of Mary’s unique hospitality style, the store became known as “Mary’s Place” by all the locals, visitors, and the seasonal rich and famous Hollywood personalities.

The two became Glenn and Mary Perkins and exchanged their vows while residing in Hailey.  The ceremony was held in Peacabo, Idaho.  In 1949, the railroad shut down the Hailey station and moved the young couple to Pocatello, Idaho.  Glenn and Mary purchased their home this same year on the west side of the city which they still reside in today.  Their move to Idaho would be the last one.   Mary’s love for the outdoors and camping was shared and embraced by Glenn.  In 1974, Glenn and Mary purchased a small campground in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho called the “Mountain View Campground”.  They owned and operated the campground under the name of “Mountain View Campground” from 1974 through 2010.  Like the small store in Hailey, the name of the campground became an after thought because of Mary’s unique hospitality style and the lifelong impression she has on people.  The locals and loyal customers nationwide and from countries near and far refer to the campground to this day as “Mary’s Place.” 

In the winter of 2010, Glenn realized the demands and the day to day operations of the campground were becoming too much for he and Mary to handle.  After turning away several lucrative offers from prospective buyers that would provide a lifetime of monetary benefits for Glenn and Mary, Glenn decided to donate the campground to the Bannock County Deputy Sheriff’s Association.

There are no words or any amount of effort that could ever express the amount of gratitude the Bannock County Deputy Sheriff’s Association have toward Glenn and Mary. In November of 2010, the Bannock County Deputy Sheriff’s Association unanimously voted to officially rename the campground “Mary’s Place”.  To continue the legacy of “Mary’s Place” is only one of the many ways of expressing our respect toward Glenn and Mary Perkins.   We can never duplicate Mary’s unique hospitality style.  Our hope and goal is to leave a lifelong impression with the people who stay here, that when they return home, they will always remember their experience and the history of “MARY’S PLACE”.