A Place for All
Like last year's variety show, the Chamber will be hosting "Cabin Fever Tonic," and evening of dinner and entertainment, Jan. 23. Pictured "Shades of Gray" (L-R): Beth Layman, Lynn Mitchell, Carol Evans and Ginger Williams.
Snow sculptures will line Highway 83 again this year during Winterfest 2016. Pictured "Don't Fence Me In" by AJ Love and Donna Love, 2013
Participants come from all over the area and beyond to race in the Seeley Lake Challenge Biathlon. This year it will be held Jan. 23.
SEELEY LAKE - Winterfest 2016, Jan. 15-31, is well on its way! Every year a number of groups have events in January under the Winterfest headline. The Seeley Lake Area Chamber of Commerce (Chamber) then markets these events along with their own to increase consumption of local goods and services. This year the Chamber joined forces with Alpine Artisans, Inc. (AAI). The artisans bring their expertise to the variety show as well as advertisement and poster design.
To begin the planning the Chamber seeks out volunteers for a small committee. Last year the theme was Wild West Winterfest and this year a number of themes were suggested including 80's, 70's, luau and red carpet. The committee decided the 2016 theme will be Cabin Fever.
"Cabin Fever" is a book compiling local stories from the Seeley-Swan and, of course, it is what we all start to feel in January. The "Tonic" for cabin fever can be found in all the events held in January. It is a chance to get out of your house (or cabin) and have some fun.
Hence the variety show is called Cabin Fever Tonic this year. Auditions will be held on Jan. 7 and this year AAI will be looking for humorous skits, dances and songs about five minutes in length and must be performed by those who are age 16 and older but don't worry there are lots of other fun events for kids!
The Chamber then focuses on obtaining sponsors. The sponsors this year are Alpine Artisans, Blackfoot Telecommunications, Cheri and Steve Thompson, Citizens Alliance Bank, Missoula Electric Co-op and the Chamber. The sponsors are a huge part of these events. They help fund advertising, the dinner, which is sent out for bid to the local restaurants, the snow sculptures, insurance and venue rental.
The snow sculpture competition is a great draw to our community and yields $1140 in cash prizes! The snow sculptures are always tricky because they are very dependent on the weather. Last year we had snow but it was followed by unusually warm days and the sculptures which had so much time and effort invested into them melted. You can never predict the weather, especially in Montana.
Another aspect of planning is simply finding out what the events are, the date and time, where it will be held, how much is costs and other details. These details are then relayed to resident and visitors alike.
Visitors often contact the Chamber by email or phone to find out what the events are, where they should stay or where they should eat. The Chamber is happy to point them in the right direction and give them information on the area and events.
This year there is really something for everyone. The events range from films, a biathlon, cross country ski marathons, a snowmobile poker run, book club and a skate party. There is a lot going on! See the full spread of events in the Seeley Swan Pathfinder on Jan. 14.
This year, the Chamber has a special treat in store for Seeley Lake. During the Fourth of July, we were unable to give a firework show due to the fire restrictions. There are no fire restrictions now! Seeley Lake will be treated to a $3,000 firework show on the lake ice. Sparkling ice, snow and fireworks will be held during the finale weekend Saturday, Jan. 30.
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