Articles from the February 4, 2016 edition


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  • Horse, Mule Fall Through Ice

    Colleen Kesterson, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - During the afternoon of Jan. 31, Swan Valley resident Tony Hulett thought his horse Trav and mule Mitzy would surely die. They both fell through the thin ice after following an elk trail to the confluence of Meadow Creek and Alder Creek that flow into a pond on his property. With help from neighbors and the Swan Valley and Swan Lake Volunteer Fire Departments, they were able to rescue both animals. "Just the horse's head was showing above the ice but the mule had his front legs...

  • Snow Sculptures Part of Cabin Fever Cure

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE – The Alpine Artisans, Inc. (AAI) continued their tradition of judging the Seeley Lake Area Chamber of Commerce Winterfest Snow Sculpture competition. The judges agreed that the competition between the 14 different sculptures was very tight this year. Despite the small amount of snow to work with and rain and snow the day of judging, they were all impressed with the amount of time and talent put into this year's entries. This year's Winterfest theme was Cabin Fever. Sculptures i...

  • Local Students Busy in Bees

    Sigrid Olson, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    POTOMAC & SWAN VALLEY - Students at Swan Valley and Potomac elementary schools studied for the January geography and spelling competitions. Potomac's Lars Erickson won the geography bee. Jayla Kauffman from Swan Valley Elementary School and Bethany Heisey from Potomac won their spelling bees as well. Potomac School has been organizing geography bee competitions for more than 14 years. Students in grades four through eight participated in class geography bees that qualified them for the school...

  • Tax Incentives Permanent for Conservation Easements on Agriculture Land

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    WASHINGTON D.C. - Agricultural landowners now have the opportunity to donate a conservation easement on their land that allows for permanent tax deductions for up to 15 years in trade for a permanent easement. In addition to the wildlife benefits and preservation of open space, proponents of the legislation feel this allows landowners to take full advantage of the donation for the easement and is an opportunity for Montana landowners to keep the land within their family. Conservation easements are available to private landowners through state...

  • Save our Waters

    Shane Lindemer, Seeley-Swan High School, Grade 11|Feb 4, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE - Seems with everything these days money is always a factor. It mostly is everyone's first priority but why won't that change? For the sake of the environment and ourselves, why can't money be our last priority? Seeley Lake isn't getting any smaller and no one in town that I know of would want our lakes and rivers to become unsanitary for recreational sports and for the animals that depend on them. Not many people think about where our waste goes and not very many people would think...

  • Expanded Yellow Pages in Lions Club Directory

    Lion William Campbell, Seeley Lake Lions Club|Feb 4, 2016

    The new 2016 Lions Club Directory is now available. This year there is an added benefit for local residents found in the Yellow Page portion of the directory. This year the business listings section of the directory has been expanded and features Missoula area businesses which are non-competitive with local business interests, yet have been requested by area residents. This year, for example, listings can be found under: truck dealerships, automobile dealerships, satellite TV, water softeners, steel building materials, hearing aids,...

  • A Logical Solution: Using Symbols and Myths

    Ken Silvestro|Feb 4, 2016

    In the Dec. 24 issue of the Pathfinder, Nicole Williams, a Seeley-Swan High School student, wrote an article for the Junior Journal addressing a logical solution for harmoniously living with wolves. Her article introduced a number of psychological characteristics described in my previous articles. So, I thought it worthwhile to review these characteristics using Nicole's examples. Nicole presented the idea that civilizations around the world and throughout time have portrayed the wolf as the...

  • SVE Receives Grant to Help Fund Community Interpretive Trail

    Colleen Kesterson, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley Elementary School (SVE) received a $2,500 matching grant from Missoula County Park and Trails. Superintendent Chris Stout applied for the grant on behalf of SVE school board to help fund the interpretive trail, part of the students’ community forest project, located on the school’s property. The students want the trail to be used by the community to enjoy and to gain knowledge about the site’s trees and vegetation. In 2013, the SVE junior high students created their plans for the community forest project using...

  • Swan Valley Regional Plan Available for Review and Comment

    Feb 4, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley Planning Committee announced the release of the draft 2016 Swan Valley Regional Plan update. The plan is available to review at this link: http://tinyurl.com/SVPlanUpdate. Over the last several years, growth, development and conservation in the Swan Valley have been guided by the 1996 Swan Valley-Condon Comprehensive Plan. The draft plan update is the product of many years of work from many members of the community. Starting from gathering statements from community members on their thoughts about the valley and...

  • Seeley Lake Rural Fire District Gets New Type III Engine

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Rural Fire District received their 1987 Type III fire engine this past week. Seeley Lake Fire Chief Bob Vanden Heuvel acquired the engine through a state program that offers used equipment to fire districts for the cost of shipping. The fire truck is a 6X6, 1,200 gallon tender with 22,000 miles on it. The district purchased it for $4,000 from Fort Drum, an Army base in Pittsburg, Penn. At a special board meeting, Jan. 29, Vanden Heuvel gave district board members a...

  • Seraphina Lynn Lewis Arroyo

    Feb 4, 2016

    Seraphina Lynn Lewis Arroyo was born to Samantha and Marcos Arroyo in Lake Stevens, Wash. on Jan. 1. She was 8 pounds and 7 ounces. She was the first baby of the New Year in the Everett, Wash. area. Seraphina's three-year-old sister Virginia, maternal grandparents Gary and Cheryl Lewis of Seeley Lake and paternal grandparents Judy and Genaro Arroyo of Texas, welcome her to the family....

  • MEC Solar Allows Co-op Members to Take 5

    Dan Rogers, Missoula Electric Cooperative|Feb 4, 2016

    In November 2015, Missoula Electric Cooperative (MEC) launched its community solar array dubbed MEC Solar for short. Since that time, significant work has taken place at the site adjacent to MEC's substation just south of Lolo. Just before Christmas, installers completed their work and brought the system online. Shortly afterward, the meter was installed which measures all of the electricity produced by the system. To date, the panels have produced nearly 2,600 kilowatt-hours of energy. For...

  • Health Department Makes Septic Records Available Online

    Feb 4, 2016

    MISSOULA - The Missoula City-County Health Department, with the help of Missoula County Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Division, is pleased to announce a new online system for searching septic system permit records. This system allows property owners, real estate agents, environmental consultants and other interested parties to search and access the Health Department septic permit records online. Previously, the only way to access septic permits was to visit or contact the Health Department during normal business hours. Now, the public ca...

  • AAI Celebrates 25th and 15th Anniversaries

    Betty Vanderwielen, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE – In September 1991, the Seeley Swan Pathfinder ran an article about a newly organized group in Seeley Lake that named itself Alpine Artisans. In January 2016, 25th Anniversary decorations festooned the hall at the Alpine Artisans, Inc. (AAI) Annual Meeting. Out-going President Kris Gullikson announced the theme for the year was "Remember When," a time to look back over 25 years. Before introducing their organization in the Pathfinder, AAI founding members Jeanne Moon, Cindy T...

  • Support from the Home Front

    Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - Condon Community Church sent another shipment of needed items to troops deployed in Afghanistan. Realizing that certain items are hard to get in the combat zone, church members bought and packaged boxes to ship to them. The group that received the packages had a local connection to the Swan Valley. These care packages were sent directly to the members of the 189th Security Force of the Jacksonville Arkansas Air National Guard at Bagram Air Force Base outside Kabul, Afghanistan. A...

  • There is Hope

    Bruce Rippy, Condon Community Church|Feb 4, 2016

    In the gloom of all the tragedies in the world; the injustices and corruption in our government and country; the dysfunctional families and abuses; the addictions and life-threatening diseases; the starving and the homeless; the prejudices and the hate; the immorality and the fascination with evil and darkness; the self-centeredness and the greed; and the inevitable certainty of our death, there is still hope! We live in a fallen world where no one is without sin. Romans 3:23 states, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of G...

  • Blackfoot Challenge Outreach Series Timely Reminder for Avalanche Awareness

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE - In the wake of the Swede Creek Avalanche fatality that occurred Jan. 23 in the Whitefish Mountain Range in the Flathead National Forest, the Avalanche Awareness class taught to area junior high students was a timely reminder of the dangers in the backcountry. Avalanche instructor and Seeley Lake resident Steve Thompson taught the class at schools in Potomac, Lincoln and Seeley Lake. It is a part of a monthly outreach series to schools in the Blackfoot/Clearwater watershed funded...

  • Fireworks & Annual Skating Party End Seeley Lake 2016 Winterfest Festivities

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE - The fireworks show over Seeley Lake and the annual Seeley Lake Lions Club Skating Party closed out the 2016 Winterfest Festivities this past weekend....

  • Tamaracks Resort, LLP

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    Goal: Owners Jeff and Sue Heagy and Managers Jessica and Jeff Kimmel work to provide a personal, old-school experience for their guests and keep the 57-year-old history and tradition of the Tamaracks Resort alive. As a family-run business, they are proud to stay green, eco-friendly and are keen on recycling. History: Maude and Henry Turner built the first cabin in 1916. Their dream of the Tamaracks Resort became a reality in 1928. The Turners contracted with Amtrak and marketed the resort to...

  • OSCR Goes Digital

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE – The 34th annual Over Seeley's Creeks and Ridges (OSCR) ski race drew 157 racers Jan. 30, 25 racers shy of last year's record. Skiers came from Montana, Idaho, Washington and Oregon to race in the 50 kilometer (K), 20K, 10K or the kids' 5K races at the Seeley Lake Nordic Trails. This was the first year the OSCR hired Competitive Timing out of Whitefish, Mont. to do the timing. For the past 33 years, volunteers did all the timing using stopwatches. Race Coordinator Lynn Carey was ple...

  • Swan Valley Warhawks Fall Short Against Hall

    Ken Donovan, SVES Assistant Coach|Feb 4, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - For the second time this year, the Warhawks failed to beat the scrappy Hall Huskies on the Warhawk’s home floor, losing by a score of 28 to 34. The “A” squad ended up 6 points short after holding a 14-point lead in the first half. The offense just couldn’t make the shots they needed to maintain a halftime lead of 22 to 10. A 6 point second half by the Warhawks allowed the Huskies to work the floor and forced the Swan Valley team to give up the ball on numerous occasions for a 24-point second half. Coaches Ken Donovan and John Ta...

  • Blackhawks Soar Over Eagles and Fall to Mountain Cats

    Nathan Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    The Seeley-Swan Blackhawks had a split week defeating Two Eagle River on the road after falling to the Clark Fork Co-op at home. The Blackhawks overall record is now 5-9. Versus Clark Fork Co-op The Blackhawks were unable to repeat their victory earlier this season against the Clark Fork Co-op Mountain Cats Jan 28. The Cats rallied near the end of the first quarter to put the Blackhawks down 4-13 setting the tone for the next two quarters. The Blackhawks headed into the final quarter trailing...

  • Lady Blackhawks Back to Winning

    Nathan Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 4, 2016

    The Seeley-Swan Lady Blackhawks got back to doing what they do best, winning games against Clark Fork Co-op and Two Eagle River. The victories improve their overall season record to 13-1. Versus Clark Fork Co-op The Lady Blackhawks hosted the Mountain Cats from the Clark Fork Co-op Jan. 28. The Ladies took an early lead dominating the first quarter, allowing the Mountain Cats only two points. The Cats found limited success in the second quarter while applying a full court press but the Lady...

  • Community Briefs

    Feb 4, 2016

    Boat Inspection Station Inspectors Needed SEELEY LAKE - The boat inspection station at Clearwater Junction will be opening earlier this year, under a program run by the Flathead Basin Commission. Inspectors are needed to operate the station from March 1 until Memorial Day, when Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will take over management of the station. The pay is $11/hour. Training will be provided locally, and will consist of two days of classroom training and one day of field training. Training will occur sometime after mid-February. For more...