Sorted by date Results 1 - 21 of 21
SEELEY LAKE – Seeley-Swan Search and Rescue volunteers responded to a call near Marshall Lake Thursday evening, March 1. A snowmobiler was reportedly pinned beneath his snowmobile in a small creek. The 60-year-old injured man from Frenchtown, Mont. was extracted by volunteers with the help of Two Bear Air and was taken to St. Patrick's Hospital via Life Flight. Two snowmobilers were riding near Marshall Lake Thursday evening. One of the riders jumped a 12-15 foot boulder and crash-landed in a r...
POTOMAC - The future remains uncertain regarding the Friday Explorers program at Potomac School. Parents feel they have little support from the school in trying to sustain a Friday program while the board chair does not feel it is appropriate to allocate limited funds to a program only used by 20 percent of the students. Parents question where the responsibility lies for figuring out a place for students on Fridays who initially went to Explorers. Principal Rouse and Board Chair Cliff Vann said, while they have the best interest at heart for...
SEELEY LAKE – Discussions of the extraordinary 2017 fire season with a focus on the Rice Ridge fire filled Seeley Lake Elementary Feb. 28. This time 16 panelists from 10 different organizations provided a closer look at the overall fire season and answered questions specific to the Rice Ridge fire. The Lolo National Forest Fire Management Officer Laura Ward said the LNF has a 10 year average of 138 fires per year that burn an average of 44,000 acres per year. This year there were 94 fires. The R...
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Water District received Montana Rural Water Systems, Inc.'s 2018 Outstanding System of the Year. This is the biggest award the district has ever received. Montana Rural Water helps small water and wastewater systems that service less than 10,000 people across the state do their job, fix problems and help with funding situations. They are federally funded through sources including the Farm Bill. "We will help anyone but we are designed to help small communities," s...
Why is it that our political parties are so disagreeable while we still visit with each other over coffee? The answer is that our political parties in Montana are no longer drawing their direction from our grassroots. Including Libertarians, of the 4758 precinct vacancies in the June 2014 Primary Election, only 571 positions were filled by properly filing a Declaration For Nomination and Oath Of Candidacy in a County Clerk and Recorder’s Office. Of more concern only 10 of 168 potential County party committees achieved 50 percent of precinct pos...
There seems to be misinformation being shared publicly. This is being written to clarify actions in part. At our recent district board meeting with four board members present, who bring over 100 years combined volunteer/board experience, spoke on various topics. The four board members present thanked our current Interim Chief Michael Greer. He has our full support in the decisions that he has made in an effort to making and bettering this department. It is unfortunate that less than a handful of volunteers chose to challenge the system. The...
After the last go round with Ben Widrick, set me to think'n about one of his trapping endeavors. Back in the late thirties times were still tough and a dollar looked like a dinner plate. Uncle George and my dad were trapping beyond Bennies line but their paths crossed sometimes. Beaver was worth a dollar an inch and you were only allowed four per trapper. Anyway, to measure a beaver you stretched the hide almost round, measured nose to tail and side to side. A big beaver might measure 70 to 75 i...
March 1 marked the opening of outdoor burning by permit in western Montana. All burns require a permit, that can be obtained at the County Burn Permit System online at www.burnpermit.mt.gov, at the Seeley Lake Fire Department (200 Firehouse Lane) or online at www.seeleyfire.org. All permits cost $5. Permits can also be renewed. All of last year’s information is saved and ready to go. Check the mail each spring for a postcard with your permit number, or call the City-County Health Department (258-4755). Burn permit reminder postcards were m...
SEELEY LAKE - The next meeting of the Seeley Lake Community Council will open on a cheerful note. Lee Boman has collected four great ideas for Seeley that will be presented to the public. Boman explained that “our objective is to make the community aware of some new ideas and perhaps trigger more involvement and volunteers.” The first idea is a covered, outdoor ice rink for Seeley Lake, presented by Scott Newpower. Following Newpower, Jessica Kimmel will propose that Highway 83 be renamed “Glacier Parkway.” Next will be Auguste Lockwoo...
SEELEY LAKE - The seeds for the Seeley Lake ski team we know today were unwittingly sown in 2009, when some Seeley moms who loved to ski wanted to get more local kids skiing on our local trails. One of our first organized outings involved scraping together ski equipment and hosting a family cross-country ski day at The Lodges on Seeley Lake. To our amazement, we had more than 50 Seeley Lakers -- parents, grandparents, toddlers and kids of all ages, show up to ski on the lake, most for their...
For much of rural Montana, brain drain has been a fact of life for decades. Come high school graduation, the pattern goes, small towns see their most ambitious sons and daughters pack their bags, heading off to attend college or otherwise try out life somewhere else. And comparatively few of them ultimately come back. Take Anaconda, population 9,000, a former company town abandoned by its founding industry in the 80s. These days it faces a demographic gap, with only 22 percent of its residents...
SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley Community Council discussed how to distribute the completed second draft of the regional plan to the public at their meeting Feb. 27. The council members agreed that residents can peruse the plan and submit specific comments by the April 10 deadline. Council member Henry Westra asked what the council’s responsibility was in regard to the draft plan. “Do we have to say yes or no [to the draft plan]?” Westra asked. Council member Lacey McNutt said that their responsibility was to get it thoroughly out to the public....
Of this there can be no doubt for in the Good Book in Mark 10:16 Jesus took the children in His arms, put His hand on them and blessed them. It should trouble us all to hear how many children are abused and neglected. The little ones are denied the joy, love, security and correct discipline that childhood deserves. What troubles my soul is Planned Parenthood and their lack of compassion for the unborn. The callous way they sell baby body parts makes Hitler look like a day care provider. The last year I could find was 2014 - 926,000 helpless...
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Fire District Board of Trustees held two special meetings Feb. 27 and March 1 to discuss the new chief candidates, address board concerns and approve revisions to several sections of the District’s Operations Manual. Chief Candidate The board received 32 applicants from the U.S. and internationally for the open chief position. The hiring committee presented the board with their top choice at the Feb. 27 special board meeting. The board agreed to extend the offer to the candidate from Nevada in hopes he would sta...
SEELEY LAKE - At the Feb. 20 Seeley Lake Fire District Board meeting Martin Cahoon presented the Board with a petition from Swan Mountain Estates to be annexed into the Fire District per Montana Code Annotated Section 7-33-2125. Swan Mountain Estates is a proposed 61-lot subdivision north of the Seeley Lake Airport in Powell County. Cahoon requested a decision on annexation prior to his meeting with Powell County in mid-March. Chief Michael Greer said developer Kurt Fredericks met with him and they toured the site. Greer was surprised how...
SEELEY LAKE – When Terry Lucke's first patient asked him to be her provider he wasn't sure if he could provide marijuana to a 70-year-old woman. After she told him she had been smoking weed before he was born, he agreed. He has since watched countless patients lead more normal lives after using medical marijuana while they otherwise would live in pain. "My primary focus is just helping people get through their lives and make life a little easier," said Lucke, sole owner of Fat Hippie A Friend I...
MISSOULA – Seeley-Swan High School junior Kyle Peltier and senior Amber Leetch participated in a Poetry Slam at the Public House in Missoula Feb. 17. The Slam was hosted by Big Sky High School's Creative Writing Class to help raise money for their Literary Journal. There were more than 100 in attendance and 40 people competed. Peltier placed third. Poetry Slams are an opportunity for poets to share their writing in a competitive atmosphere. "Poetry slams are such a good place for students to p...
Date Change for Music in the Schools Concert SEELEY LAKE – Due to scheduling conflicts, the Music in the Schools concert including the Seeley Lake Elementary band and Seeley-Swan High School band and choir has been moved from March 14 to March 21. Everyone is welcome to come for the concert at 7 p.m. in the SSHS Auditorium. Chandler Wins Snowmobile Package SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Area Chamber of Commerce raffled off a half day snowmobile adventure for a two-person snowmobile at the Snow Blind and Bored part Saturday night, March 3 at the...
DEWEY, ARIZ. - Parents Carie and John Hughes of Dewey, Ariz. announce the birth of their daughter Bristol Macklee Hughes Feb. 12 at 10:18 a.m. She was born 7 pounds, 10 ounces and 22 and half inches long. Bristol is granddaughter to former Seeley Lake residents Carol White and Rick Bartels now of Dewer, Ariz., Terry White Sr. of Arizona and Skeeter and Patti Hughes of Arizona. She is great granddaughter to Helen Cleckner of Arizona. Bristol blesses the Hughes' as a sixth generation ranching...
SAN DIEGO, CALIF. – Private 1st Class Terry L. White II, 19, graduated at Recruit Depot San Diego, Calif. Jan. 5. He is the son of Terry and Heidi White of Alaska, grandson of former Seeley Lake residents, Carol White and Rick Bartels, now of Dewey, Ariz.; Terry White Sr. of Arizona and James and Lynn Wilhelm of Arizona and great-grandson of Helen Cleckner of Arizona. Private 1st Class White is a fifth generation Eagle Scout and follows his predecessors in one of many branches of service to h...
I am proud to endorse Russ Fagg for the United States Senate. Russ announced that he had received endorsements from over 100 current and former Republican leaders from around the State. I am on that list because I believe that Russ is the only conservative that can beat Jon Tester. Russ Fagg is a fourth generation Montanan, a two-term Republican legislator, and was a Judge in Billings for over 20 years. Russ will represent Montana in the US Senate because he is one of us. He understands Montana values and his campaign is Montana focused....
