Sorted by date Results 101 - 125 of 295
SEELEY LAKE - Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) Bear Specialist Jamie Jonkel and Rob Green, an environmental studies graduate student with the University of Montana, unloaded building supplies outside of The Ice Cream Place with the help of restaurant Co-owner Paul Daniels Thursday, May 27. The supplies are intended for an electric fence meant to keep bears from getting into the restaurant's dumpster. Jonkel said he expects the project to take roughly a week with the goal of having it compl...
GREENOUGH - Ryan Sokoloski, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks park manager for Placid Lake, Salmon Lake and Beavertail Hill State Parks, said that the Clearwater Junction RV dump site will be closed indefinitely unless something changes substantially. According to him, in spring 2019 FWP saw the site's system fail repeatedly for a multitude of reasons. The built-in alarm system continually went off and when maintenance workers went in to fix the issue they would have to manually override it to get...
SEELEY LAKE - Volunteers with the Veterans and Families of Seeley Lake (VFSL) did some maintenance work to the Memorial Garden Tuesday, May 18 in preparation for Memorial Day. Aside from cleaning the grounds and removing weeds, the biggest change the site saw was at the kiosk. The wooden plaques were replaced with metal-engraved ones. The new kiosk features metal-engraved plaques that will be protected from the elements under a roof. The previous version had wooden plaques hung on a chain....
GREENOUGH - Students from Sunset School ended their school year with a bang as they performed a drum concert inspired by West African music for family members Friday, May 21. The students had been training with Matthew Nord, who teaches African rhythms for Tangled Tones Music Studio in Missoula, for about five sessions over the course of two months. In between performances, Nord educated audience members on the various drums they were using in the set including djembes, dunun, sangbans,...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Elementary School Board unanimously approved a canvass of the election results for the general fund levy during its regular meeting Monday, May 17. During the meeting the Board also approved the school’s 2021 Summer Lunch program, new hires and talked about updates to the School Improvement Plan. Superintendent Josh Gibbs said the levy passed but by “a very narrow margin.” A total of 990 ballots were submitted, 887 of which were accepted. Of those 887 votes, 452 were in favor while 418 were opposed. The remai...
OVANDO - Students at Ovando School gave audience members a taste of all seven continents as they explored various cultures through the medium of dance during the school's May Day Tea event in the school gym Thursday, May 20. Teachers Leigh Ann Valiton and Andrea Tougas as well as community member Angela Williams organized the event. Valiton said this performance was made possible through the Ovando School Cultural Enrichment Committee. According to her, the students have been preparing for...
SEELEY LAKE - After its building was purchased four years ago by Jason Moe of Moe Opportunities, LLC, the Moe-asis bar and hotel is now on the brink of being fully operational this upcoming summer. Located on Highway 83 just north of Seeley Lake, the bar opened Wednesday, May 12 and the hotel will hopefully be open around the beginning of July. Named after its owner, Moe-asis Manager Katelyn Lewis said the goal for the bar and hotel is to have an inviting environment for both visitors and...
SEELEY LAKE - As bear and human interactions become more frequent in the warmer months, the annual cycle of bears becoming acclimated to human attractants will come into full effect. Continued conflicts with humans can eventually result in the removal of a bear. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) Bear Specialist Jamie Jonkel said he has begun seeing a lot of trash inadequately disposed of in the area which will continue to perpetuate the situation. "When I was driving around town, I mean...
GREENOUGH - Wildlife enthusiasts scoured the Blackfoot Clearwater Wildlife Management Area, also known as "the Game Range," for antlers as the area opened to the public Saturday, May 15. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Sergeant Dan Curtin said that from his perspective this year's turnout was about the same as previous years and may have actually been slightly less than in the past. He estimates that there were close to 1,000 people on the Range. "Everything went really smoothly," he said....
SWAN VALLEY - Members of the Swan Valley Elementary School Board unanimously voted to follow the recommendations of the Missoula-City County Health Department (MCCHD) to rescind their mask mandate during their monthly board meeting Tuesday, May 11. As of Wednesday, May 12 students and staff are no longer required to wear masks on school grounds. During the discussion Principal Ralph King said that he wanted to add the verbiage “optional” to whatever motion the Board would make to avoid implications. “There’s nothing mandatory or recomme...
SEELEY LAKE - Seeley Lake Community Council heard updates regarding the Bob Marshall Music Festival, the status of the sewer project, Paws Up’s use of two motels for employee housing, and U.S. Forest Service summer projects during their regularly scheduled meeting Monday, May 10. Bob Marshall Music Festival Heidi O’Brien, Lewis and Clark Brewing marketing director, provided updates on the Bob Marshall Music Festival. She said they were ready to make any adaptations required should conditions change in the weeks leading up to the festival sch...
SEELEY LAKE - Seeley-Swan High School students took their learning schedule outside at Placid Lake during the school's Community Discovery Day Wednesday, May 12. Trace Stone, social studies and Spanish teacher, organized the event with science teacher Shelby Holmes. He said that previously the day has been either more service or educationally oriented, however, this year was a combination of both. He believes it has been around for at least a decade. "The fundamental reason [of the day] is to...
GREENOUGH - Author Tanya Fyfe spoke with Sunset Elementary School students about her new book, "Lost and Found in Missing Lake," as well as her writing process during their class Friday, May 14. After a brief presentation she answered questions from the fifth through eighth grade class. Fyfe shared her personal experiences and how they impacted the creation of the book. She spoke about her upbringing in a small town before moving to Vancouver, Canada where she trained as a figure skater. She...
POTOMAC - The Potomac Elementary School Board unanimously approved maintaining their 1900 policy series and Return-to-School Plan with certain amendments during their monthly board meeting Thursday, May 13. While the series contains policies intended to prevent the spread of COVID-19, masks are no longer required on school grounds. At the meeting, the board also changed membership and approved Montana School Board Association (MTSBA) policy updates on first reading. Board members decided to keep the 1900 policy series until the end of the...
MISSOULA COUNTY - According to the Missoula City-County Health Department, Missoula County met its vaccination goal to move face coverings from a mandate to a recommendation as of Monday, May 10. In a public statement, Health Officer Ellen Leahy said that 60% of the county’s eligible population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, reaching its intermediate vaccination goal. The county’s case incidence rate has also stayed below 25 new cases daily per 100,000 population on a seven-day rolling average. In April, the County Health Boa...
SEELEY LAKE - The Missoula Education Foundation and Missoula County Public Schools recognized Seeley-Swan High School seniors Kess Victor and Quinlan Ream as the school's Most Inspiring Students. The students were presented with their awards at the MCPS banquet April 22. According to Principal Kellen Palmer, the nominators look for students who have overcome adversity and have been an inspiration to staff and students alike. "It's just someone that's gone above and beyond and has really set a...
BLACKFEET RESERVATION - Three Seeley-Swan Search and Rescue (SSSAR) volunteers were involved in the search and recovery efforts for missing three-year-old Arden Pepion the weekend of May 1. Pepion was last seen near Joe Show E Road off of U.S. Highway 89 S at approximately 7 p.m. Thursday, April 22 on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation southeast of Browning. Pepion was last seen wearing a purple jacket with a unicorn design on front, gray under sweater, black leggings and black boots with green tr...
SEELEY LAKE - Seeley Lake Elementary School students spent the day at the Lions Club Park learning about bear safety and the role bears play in the local ecosystem during the school's Bear Academy Tuesday, May 4. Students transitioned through presentations taught by local agencies throughout the day. "We just have this really awesome, collaborative group of people who've all come together to educate Seeley's young people about living in bear habitat," organizer Rob Green said. "It's really cool...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Elementary School Board unanimously voted to rescind their mask policy in accordance with Missoula-City County Health Department’s (MCCHD) recommendations during a special meeting Wednesday, May 5 in the school gym. Face coverings are now optional due to the MCCHD rescinding the requirement Monday, May 10. In an April 15 meeting, Missoula City-County Board of Health decided that face covering requirements will be converted into recommendations when at least 60% of Missoula County residents ages 16 and older have r...
SEELEY LAKE - Two Seeley-Swan boys qualified for state this past week following the tournament in Canyon River Tuesday, May 4 and the Wayne Cahoon Memorial Golf Tournament Thursday, May 6. In addition, the girls placed first overall in the Wayne Cahoon Memorial Golf Tournament at the Double Arrow Golf Course in Seeley Lake scoring 353, four strokes ahead of Plains. Bethany Hoag led the Blackhawks on her home course. She placed fourth overall with a score of 110. Cora Stone was second among her...
SWAN VALLEY - Two unknown suspects were caught on camera stealing Condi, the green dinosaur statue located outside of Mission Mountains Mercantile between 1:40 and 1:50 a.m. Monday, April 25. They cut the cable that secured the statue, loaded it into a box truck and headed north. Missoula County Sheriff's Deputy Ryan Dunster said the two suspects were wearing white hoodies and pants with masks and black gloves. They were seen coming in from the south on Highway 83 but driving northbound in a...
SEELEY LAKE - After taking a year off due to COVID-19, Alpine Artisans, Inc.'s (AAI) Loon and Fish Art Show and Festival will return for 2021 with a new date. Instead of taking place Memorial Day weekend, the festival will instead take place from 5-9 p.m. Friday, Aug. 20 and 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 21 in the Seeley Lake Community Foundation Building. AAI Program Manager Jenny Rohrer said they attempted to change the date last year to late July but because it was canceled they set it a...
SWAN VALLEY – Swan Valley Connections (SVC) received a $1 million North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grant to fund a wetland restoration project on the Swan River National Wildlife Refuge in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). NAWCA is the federal grant program dedicated to funding the conservation of wetland habitats for migratory birds. This was the only project funded in Montana by the NAWCA this grant period. The goal of the project is to restore the n...
SEELEY LAKE - Seeley Lake community members and visitors had the opportunity to meet the top five candidates for the Seeley-Swan High School principal position at a Meet-and-Greet event April 30. Current Principal Kellen Palmer resigned his position effective at the end of this year. Candidates included Daniel Grabowska, John Stilson, Thomas Vail, Shawn Holmes and Edward Norman. Attendees were able to ask candidates questions and provide written feedback on forms outside the event. Missoula...
MISSOULA COUNTY - The Missoula County Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) unanimously approved $63,699.19 in funding for seven projects intended to improve the Lolo and Flathead National Forests during a meeting Thursday, April 29. Seeley Lake Ranger District’s Placid Gold Phase 1 Herbicide Application received $15,719.19 in funding, $281.19 short of the amount requested. The RAC approved the lower amount to remain within their budget while having minimal impact on the project’s objectives. The objective of the project is to manage invasive spe...
