Sorted by date Results 1 - 21 of 21
MISSOULA – The discrimination lawsuit against Missoula County Public Schools (MCPS) was dismissed last week. In February 2022, MCPS filed a request for summary judgment to dismiss the suit brought against Seeley-Swan High School (SSHS) and MCPS by Owen Mercado and his mother Deidre Lechowski-Mercado in January 2021. The plaintiffs sought $2.4 million in damages. Dana L. Christensen, United States District Court Judge for the District of Montana Missoula Division, stated in a brief filed Aug. 15 that the disputed facts need not be reviewed s...
SWAN VALLEY – On Aug. 19, the Missoula County Commissioners and Missoula County Parks, Trails and Open Lands honored Swan Valley residents Barb and Joe Raible as the recipients of the 2022 Land Stewardship Award and toured their property. The Land Stewardship Award recognizes Missoula County landowners and residents who prioritize stewardship of the land and undertake projects and practices that make a difference for land, water, forests, wildlife and communities. The Raibles have owned the 1...
SWAN VALLEY – Swan Valley resident Barry Brubaker yelled at Swan Valley Centre owner Mike Smith to call the Fire Department. "I was talking to someone on the business phone and I looked over and said, 'Gotta go. The Café is on fire,'" Smith said. "I hung up on them and called 9-1-1." Smith said he saw two-foot flames were shooting out of the north door area which is where the walk-in cooler and freezer are on the north covered deck. "To have flames that big shooting out of that area, it didn't t...
SEELEY LAKE – Missoula Electric Cooperative (MEC) and the Seeley Lake Community Foundation (SLCF) hosted a formal ribbon cutting ceremony to unveil the first electric vehicle charging station in Seeley Lake Aug. 17. Representatives from the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) were also present to celebrate the partnership that leaders on this project feel are "keeping Seeley Lake relevant" for locals and tourists into the future. MEC General Manager Mark Hayden first credited the M...
SWAN VALLEY - Officials from Missoula County presented information on property taxes, how taxes fund road maintenance and answered questions about the quality of maintenance in the area at the Swan Valley Community Council meeting Aug. 16. The Council also discussed the open Council seat and how it will be filled. New Council member Grace Siloti questioned some of the Council’s recent activity and transparency. Missoula County Treasure Tyler Gernant explained that property taxes are the primary source of funding for local governments in M...
SEELEY LAKE - Doesn't every family have its secrets? Some bigger than others? Six years ago, I was sitting with author Caroline Patterson on the front porch of her cabin at Pierce Lake sharing our family secrets. I told Caroline of a half-sister I didn't know I had until I was 16 years old. And she shared an amazing story from her family – also of a sister whose existence was a carefully guarded family secret. This family story she skillfully crafted as her latest, highly praised novel "The S...
I want to share with you a tool that I love. The Waterline Model is a process for resolving team breakdowns. This tool can help you distinguish between the common issues that bog teams down and be deliberate about how you address them. It has helped me get through many vexing situations. We all have experienced conflict with others, whether in the workplace, in a volunteer situation or in whatever capacity we have worked in a team environment to implement a project. The Waterline Model was...
SWAN VALLEY – At their Aug. 18 meeting, the Swan Valley Elementary School Board voted to contact Missoula Electric Cooperative and request a bid for burying the power lines at the school access points. They also approved contracts for certified and classified staff. Chair Jimmy Boyd presented information to the board regarding the process of burying power lines. The lines currently cross both access points to the school. If the lines were down and emergency services needed access to the school, responders would have to wait for the crews f...
SEELEY LAKE - Home baker Mickol Rathbun sells the sweetest treats at the Seeley Lake Market every Sunday at her stand Mickol's Goodies. Rathbun always loved baking as a hobby and said this is her first year at the market. "I've done a couple of other markets but this will probably be the only one that I've done long term," Rathbun said. She said she's used to making treats for family, but didn't consider selling her bakery goods until her family recommended it. "Just this past fall, I really...
HELMVILLE - A community development and zoning follow-up meeting was held Monday, Aug. 15 in Helmville. During the meeting community members discussed possibilities for changing zoning ordinances around the Helmville town area. Amanda Cooley, Powell County Planner, led the meeting of over 30 attendees from Helmville and Ovando. Early this summer, the Helmville community expressed interest in exploring ways that the community could grow and potential re-zoning to allow more families into the...
For those of us that would call ourselves "Christian" we must reconcile ourselves to sin. Now I understand that there are "Christians" that do not believe in the "inerrancy of Scripture." The problem with that is that if Scripture is not inerrant, we are left with no solid truths or guidelines for our lives. We are free to pick and to choose those things from God's Word which best match up with our own thinking. There are consequences to this line of reasoning as pointed out in the book of...
MISSOULA – An effort to restore native sharp-tailed grouse to western Montana is underway, and this fall Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is reminding hunters and others to be especially careful to identify grouse when in the field. FWP biologists, with the help of conservation groups and private landowners, relocated approximately 75 sharp-tailed grouse from eastern Montana to western Montana in the fall of 2021 and then more this spring. Birds were released in the lower Bitterroot Valley near Florence, in the Flint Creek Valley near Drummond a...
SWAN VALLEY – While engaging the Swan Valley Café structure fire Aug. 18, Swan Valley Emergency Services (SVES) volunteers were seen drinking from cans with the Anheuser-Busch logo. What was not always visible was the word WATER clearly printed on the outside of the can. "Since the fire there has been a lot of questions asked about us drinking alcohol and it was not, it was water," SVES Fire Chief Randy Williams said. SVES recently received a donation of canned emergency drinking water from th...
SEELEY LAKE – Science class at Seeley-Swan High School will have a different look this year for students. The year will start without an in-person instructor. Former instructor Gretchen Watkins accepted a position with Big Sky High School in Missoula at the end of the school year. “I don’t blame her one bit, that’s the unfortunate part,” said SSHS Principal Shawn Holmes. The Missoula County Public School District posted the open position in mid-June. “We have had no applicants apply for the position,” Holmes said. “I think it’s more of an...
SEELEY LAKE – This year marked Montana Shakespeare in the Parks (MSIP) golden anniversary-50 years of performing live outdoor productions of Shakespearean and other plays for the people of Montana. On Aug. 15, a large crowd of area residents set up their chairs and spread their blankets on the Double Arrow grounds to watch MSIP unfold the compounded tragedies resulting from King Lear's narcissistic decisions. As is usually the case when one of Shakespeare's works is performed on the modern stage...
SEELEY LAKE - Ron Richards, 86 of Seeley Lake, passed away on Wednesday, Aug. 17 at home of natural causes. The eldest of three children, Ron was born April 19, 1936 in Jefferson Island, Montana, to William and Doris Richards. Ron graduated from Kalispell High School in 1956. While in high school, he participated in gymnastics. He also reached the rank of Star Scout in the Boy Scouts of America. While serving in the National Guard, Ron met and later married Glenna Rae Hanson on Nov. 25, 1955....
GREAT FALLS - Frances Mae Jorgensen (Fran) Wylder, 91, of Great Falls, passed on Saturday, Aug. 13 at Benefis Grandview Cottages in Great Falls of complications of Alzheimer's disease and COVID-19. Fran was born Aug. 3, 1931 in Great Falls, Montana, the first child of Robert F. and Frances J. Burleigh Jorgensen, both of whom were also born in Great Falls. Fran was raised in Great Falls by her parents, with special help from her aunts Mae Taylor, Zita Burleigh, Marguerite Schaefer, Helen Wellens...
SEELEY LAKE – Seeley-Swan High School 2010 graduate Janelle Greenwood is the new volleyball head coach. Greenwood returned to Seeley Lake after 10 years in Alaska. During her time in Alaska, Greenwood was the head coach of the Cordova Junior Senior High School Volleyball team for nine years. While she was head coach, the team qualified for state six times and won the state tournament in 2015. Greenwood was offered the head volleyball coach in Alaska after her team won the volleyball t...
In celebration of 36 years of the Seeley Swan Pathfinder, each week we will run parts of articles that appeared in the issue 35 years ago and 20 years ago. The entire issue will be uploaded to our website seeleylake.com for you to enjoy. We hope you will enjoy the journey with us as we follow our community through the past 36 years as documented by the Pathfinder. 35 years ago: August 27, 1987 issue Warren Skillicorn: Homespun musician and fireside entertainer By Will Kats Warren Skillicorn has...
Weekly COVID-19 update As of Aug. 22 there have been 302,455 cases of COVID-19 in Montana. There have been 1,530,306 doses of vaccines administered and 572,211 Montanans fully immunized. There are 2,078 active cases, 13,016 total hospitalizations and 3,490 deaths in Montana due to COVID-19 complications. Missoula County did not report a case update this week by press. There have been 214 COVID-related deaths to date in Missoula County. At-home test kits are available at no cost at the Seeley Lake Fire Department, 200 Firehouse Lane. For the...
SEELEY LAKE - Locals and visitors alike enjoyed this year's Loon and Fish Festival at the Seeley Lake Foundation Building Aug. 19 and Aug. 20. Art was displayed in the West Wing all weekend and attendees enjoyed live music from local musicians, art demonstrations, hands-on activities and several presentations. Alpine Artisan, Inc President and Event Organizer Kris Gullikson said every scheduled event was well attended, the booths outside were hopping as was the kids activities table- and the...
