Articles from the March 24, 2016 edition


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  • Funding Offer Received, Strings Attached

    Nathan Bourne, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Sewer District (SLSD) board received a possible funding package for the proposed treatment facility and Phase I of the collection system. The offer from the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development (RD) was discussed at the board’s March 17 meeting. It consisted of 5.7 million dollars in grants and 4.4 million in loans. District Manager Greg Robertson called the offer a “recipe for disaster” if the board accepted all the conditions that come with it. “Based on the structure that they are insisti...

  • Senior Center Celebrates St. Pat's

    Betty Vanderwielen, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE – Green was everywhere as the Seeley Lake Senior Center celebrated St. Patrick's Day March 19. Even the traditional corned beef and cabbage and Irish stew were complemented with green lemonade. After the food settled, cake walkers hoped for the luck of the Irish as they strutted around the numbered circle to Irish tunes or placed their bids on silent auction items....

  • Seeley Lake Local Named Pilot of the Year

    Betty Vanderwielen, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE – Each year the Montana Pilots' Association (MPA) recognizes a member who has exhibited outstanding support to the MPA and made a significant contribution to aviation in Montana. That recognition and appreciation culminates in the Pilot of the Year Award. The 2015 award was presented to Seeley Lake resident Scott Newpower. Newpower served as MPA's Eastern Director for three years and then president of the organization for another three years, from 2013-2016. He took on those r...

  • Real Changes or Shift in Perception

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE - The goal of the Seeley Lake Ranger District (SLRD) recreation event-permitting program is to promote and support recreation events consistent with the Forest Service mission. This includes recreation opportunity and enjoyment of public lands. A recreation event is an organized, commercial event conducted by a private entity that is temporary in nature and that occurs on National Forest System lands. Some examples of recreation events that have been permitted by the SLRD include a cross-country ski race, snowmobile fun run,...

  • Storyteller Queen Nur Includes Audience with West African Tradition

    Colleen Kesterson, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - Karen "Queen Nur" Abdul-Malik from Willingboro, New Jersey is an award winning, nationally known storyteller of West African culture, African American history, folktales and mythology. She was a part of the 2 Valleys Stage Concert Series and performed a public concert March 20 as well as worked with the students in the schools. She has recorded two CDs. Her stories were accompanied by a drum beat and audience participation. Pictured above Queen Nur sang a song about pulling up the...

  • Mushing Fever

    Kaelin Reiley, Seeley-Swan High School, Grade 12|Mar 24, 2016

    by Kaelin Reiley Seeley-Swan High School Grade 12 I. Night Run Settin' up with the setting sun. Pull the snowhook as darkness descends. Unable to see anything beyond the halo of your headlamp; The dogs' breath coming back to you in little puffs. The thrill of the run amplified by the all encompassing night. II. Frostbite and Other Ailments Get done with a fifty mile training run and find that every part of your body aches and there's a chill down to your bones. Put the dogs up and give them...

  • Late Winter Visions

    Kaelin Reiley, Seeley-Swan High School, Grade 12|Mar 24, 2016

    In the gloom of late winter, I sometimes glimpse, the fleeting form of a will-o-the-wisp. I turn to follow my Destiny, to know what it is I'm to do I wish to find my Fate, to learn what is in store for me. But, the wisp becomes a snowflake. A vision of white, to be lost in a white-washed world....

  • She Rides

    Heather Layman|Mar 24, 2016

    This is an ode to the most beautiful woman I know. No finer lady will this world have the pleasure of knowing, and at 66, may she know that she's the most beautiful version of herself now more than ever. May this serve as a reminder that even though she's a mother, a wife, and a grandmother, that she is still all woman, and most importantly, uniquely amazing with what she offers up to this world with the biggest and kindest of hearts.... Happiest of birthdays, Mama... I always picture her here...

  • Sale of Park and Zoning Discussed at Council

    Nathan Bourne, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Community Council (SLCC) hosted WMG Group’s Nick Kaufman to discuss zoning. The council was also presented with an idea from the county to sell a public park on Double Arrow Ranch at its March 14 meeting. The council invited Kaufman, who is a land use planner, to speak about the pros and cons of zoning. The discussion of zoning come up due to the possibility of a cell tower being built in Seeley Lake. Kaufman explained that his first experience in Seeley Lake was in the 1970s when it was very much a lumber town. ...

  • Time for Montana Delegation to Step Up and Finish What Has Been Proposed

    Steve Thompson|Mar 24, 2016

    SEELEY LAKE - Snowmobiles and Seeley Lake go hand in hand during the winter months. Our community sees an average of 125 inches of snow per year…making it a perfect destination for folks looking to unload their sled for a few days and venture into the backcountry. One of our biggest tourism drivers in the winter – which any seasoned Montanan knows lasts longer than our summers – is snowmobiling. Ten years ago, several diverse interest groups came together to strategize and plan for the long-term future of our public lands, in a method that...

  • Public Advised of Saturated Road Beds

    Mar 24, 2016

    MISSOULA – Spring is here and we are all eager to get out into our National Forests. Before you go, please be aware of road conditions and the increased potential to do harm to forest roads or get stuck. Every year, most damage to unpaved roads occurs in the fall and spring when rains and snow-melt saturate soils, leaving road surfaces soft. When vehicles drive on these soft roads, they create wheel tracks and ruts which can hold and channel water and lead to erosion and sometimes road failure. According to Chris Partyka, Lolo National F...

  • The Real Estate Market in the Valley is Getting Hot

    Kevin Wetherell, Clearwater Montana Properties, Inc.|Mar 24, 2016

    REAL ESTATE TODAY Real estate sales in the Seeley Swan and Blackfoot valleys are on a run with dramatic increases in both land and home sales over the last 12 months. Although the number of both homes and land that has sold has increased dramatically, price appreciation is a steady 3.4 percent. The current market is very healthy and represents a rising market environment that has led to investors and buyers gaining confidence and returning to purchase local real estate. The investors have been...

  • BCSP is a Win for All Interests and Stakeholders

    Gordy Sanders and Loren Rose, Pyramid Mountain Lumber|Mar 24, 2016

    The wood products industry has a rich heritage in Montana. Our forests have sustained Montana families for decades. Pyramid Mountain Lumber’s sawmill operation has provided employment for many in Seeley Lake and wages paid have provided countless opportunities to mill and woods workers and has sent many a Montana child to college. Montana’s timber industry remains an important economic engine in parts of Montana. The wood products industry works hand in hand with state and federal agencies and other stakeholders to keep our forests healthy and...

  • Comments Continue on SVRP Draft, Swan River Eligible to Be Wild and Scenic

    Colleen Kesterson, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - Quick Response Unit (QRU) Medical Chief Dan Maloughney and Swan Valley Volunteer Fire Department Fire Chief Randy Williams spoke about their critical need for volunteers and commented on the Swan Valley Regional Plan (SVRP) draft at the Swan Valley Community Council (SVCC) meeting March 15. Kascie Herron and Rick Potts from Montanans for Healthy Rivers coalition also told attendees that local rivers and tributaries are eligible to be designated “Wild and Scenic.” “We are in a crisis situation right now,” said Maloughney. He said...

  • Tavenner Files for PSC District 4

    Submitted by Lee Tavenner|Mar 24, 2016

    ISSOULA - Lee Tavenner of Missoula has filed for Public Service Commission (PSC) for District 4 as a Democrat. Lee filed on March 11. Tavenner is co-owner of Solar Plexus, a solar installation company in Missoula. Tavenner and Mary Hamilton started Solar Plexus in 1994 and have done numerous solar and small hydro installations since then. Son Rip Hamilton joined the company in 2000. The company remains active in the solar installation business in Missoula. Tavenner also owns the Little Gold Proj...

  • Claire Hana Rose

    Mar 24, 2016

    Claire Hana Rose was born March 16 at 12:30 p.m. to Erik and Tomoko Rose of Helena, Mont. She weighed 6 pounds and was 19.75 inches long. Claire is the granddaughter of Loren and Pam Rose of Seeley Lake and Hisashi and Kyoko Sakamoto of Kumamoto, Japan....

  • Olivia Katherine Bourne

    Mar 24, 2016

    Nathan and Andi Bourne of Seeley Lake welcomed Olivia Katherine Bourne March 2 at 8:17 a.m. She weighed 5 pounds, 7 ounces and was 19 inches long. Proud grandparents include Bruce and Diane Bourne and Ruth and Loren Stebleton of Seeley Lake and Carol Poppenga and Tom Darnell of Lewistown, Mont....

  • Student Donations Supplement Food Bank

    Sigrid Olson, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

    POTOMAC - Potomac School first and second grade classes organized a drive to donate 100 cans of food to the Potomac/Greenough (P/G) Food Bank to celebrate 100 days of school. Their 100th day was March 14. People can keep sharing by donating, according to first-graders Lily Dunn and David O'Hara. First and second grade teacher Terri Klein had a class goal to get the students thinking about giving back to their community. "This community gives so much to our school," Klein said. Klein incorporated...

  • Puzzle Visits Potomac School

    Sigrid Olson, Pathfinder|Mar 24, 2016

  • Shawn Ellinghouse - Captain 704

    Mar 24, 2016

    Shawn Ellinghouse has been a volunteer firefighter for 16 years, all with the Seeley Lake Rural Fire Department (SLRFD). During the summer of 2000, Ellinghouse said the SLRFD was really shorthanded. The chief at the time, Joe Ellinghouse, told him that he needed help. With no prior experience in fire, Ellinghouse signed up. During the summer of 2002, Ellinghouse spent 28 days on a fire in Oregon on the Biscuit Fire. "That changed my whole attitude towards fire," said Ellinghouse. "I used to be a...

  • Blanche Harmon Keilman 1916 ~ 2016

    Mar 24, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - What a life. It began on Sept. 24, 1916 in Panhandle, Texas daughter of Rollie Guy and Malvina Jane Harmon. By Blanche's high school years, her family moved to Amarillo, where she graduated from Amarillo High School at the age of sixteen. She attended Amarillo Junior College, before her family moved to Clovis, New Mexico. She worked as a clerk at Clovis Army Air Field, where she met Myron Keilman, who was helping form the 392nd Bomb Group (H), which was equipped with B-24s. They...

  • Dee Lane Mahoney 1935 ~ 2016

    Mar 24, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - Dee Lane Mahoney passed away March 16 in her home surrounded by her family. Dee was born July 24, 1935 to Merle and Georgia Ziegler in Kemmerer, Wyo. She had fond memories of her childhood with her Grandmother Tanner in Kemmerer. She was an accomplished seamstress and used her talent to support her family for many years. In the 1980's, she went to work as a secretary at Thiokol in the Tool Inspection Division, where they made parts for the Peacekeeper, Minuteman Missile and Space...

  • Easter Eggs and Marshmallow Chicks

    Leon Kauffman, Elder - Condon Community Church|Mar 24, 2016

    Easter is arguably the most important holiday for Christians. The death and resurrection of Jesus are the foundation of Christian beliefs. So how has a holiday with so much meaning been seemingly taken over by the Easter Bunny and marshmallow chicks? What should we as Christians make of it all? The decorating of eggs for Easter can be dated back to at least the 13th century. One explanation is that eggs were forbidden during Lent and were boiled or roasted as a way of preserving them. They were then decorated as part of the Easter Celebration....

  • Community Briefs

    Mar 24, 2016

    New Trail, Not Ready SEELEY LAKE – The public is asked to refrain from using the trail around the Seeley-Swan High School (SSHS) property for another couple weeks or until the ground dries out. When the trail was built, funds weren’t available to run a roller across it to compact the gravel. Although some natural compaction occurred during the winter, the surface will be soft after snow melt until it gets dry. Use by feet or wheels will damage the smooth surface. Use is encouraged later this spring. Last fall a section of the “Connecting the Co...

  • Students Take to the Red Carpet - Part I

    Mar 24, 2016

    Seeley-Swan High School (SSHS) students walked underneathe the balloon archway showing off their formal attire at the 2016 SSHS Prom, March 18....

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