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McDonald to lead communications for Energy Keepers
Energy Keepers Inc., has hired Robert McDonald as communications director to focus on media relations, public relations and wider communication efforts regarding operations of the SKQ Dam on Flathead Lake.Energry Keepers is an entity of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. Dam operations have face heightened scrutiny since last summer when low stream flows led Flathead Lake's level to dip nearly 2 feet below full pool.McDonald had worked as the communications director for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes for 15 years beginning in 2006. Most recently, he had worked in the CSKT Natural Resources Division of Engineering and Water...
Makena Morley fifth at LA Marathon; top American finisher
Bigfork product Makena Morley finished fifth at the 2024 Los Angeles Marathon Sunday, making her the top American on the women’s side.Morley, 27, completed the 26.2-mile route from Dodger Stadium to the Avenue of the Stars in 2 hours, 30 minutes and 24.11 seconds. Stacy Ndiwa of Kenya repeated as the women’s winner in 2:25:28.97.In between Ndiwa and Morley were Volah Mazuronak of Belarus and Ethiopian runners Atsede Bays Tesema and Sichala Kumseshi (fourth, 2:27.06.06).In a post-race interview posted on the Los Angeles Marathon’s Twitter/X account, Morley said she ran with the lead pack until around the 15-mile mark.“I got dropped...
Judge Christopher announces resignation, effective April 5
In a letter dated March 15, District Court Judge Kim Christopher informed Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike McGrath that she is officially stepping down from her duties April 5. She calls the decision to resign “especially bittersweet,” given her family’s long history in Lake and Sanders counties.Rumors about the judge’s impending retirement had been swirling since March 8, when Christopher closed her campaign fundraising account with the Commissioner of Political Practices. However, even as of Tuesday her name remained on the Montana Secretary of State’s website.Her letter to McCrath makes her intentions clear.Christopher leaves office after nearly 24 years on...
Flathead County passes septage treatment facility to Lakeside district
Flathead County is handing over the construction and future operation of a regional septage treatment facility to the Lakeside County Water and Sewer District.County commissioners on March 19 approved an interlocal agreement that provides payment of up to about $23.5 million to Lakeside to build the facility and sets terms of its operations for the next 20 years. Commissioners lauded the move, which is a departure from the county’s original plan to construct the facility itself and use the district for wastewater disposal. “We very much need this in our county,” Commissioner Brad Abell said of the treatment facility. “If we...
Flathead Forest plans spring burn operations
The Flathead National Forest is planning to conduct spring prescribed fire projects when weather, fuel conditions and air quality become favorable. Smoke will be visible from various places in the Flathead Valley depending on the location of the burn units and weather conditions.Swan Lake Ranger District:How Now Timber Sale – This project includes broadcast burning in timber harvest units located on Sixmile Mountain, North of Swan Lake. Swan Valley Bottom Maintenance Burning – This project includes maintenance broadcast burning in previously treated timber harvest units located within the Swan Valley. Swan Lake Ranger Station – This project includes under burning the administrative...
Bigfork church hosts Easter cantata on March 24
Bigfork Community United Methodist Church will present an Easter Cantata "What Wondrous Hope" on Sunday, March 24 at 10 a.m.The performance will feature the Sanctuary Choir, King's Ringers (handbell choir) and Children's Choir. The church’s music director and church and community coordinator, Dr. Jordan Neiman, will be directing the performance. He will also be part of a piano duet. Pastor Wendy Ochs will lead worship. Founded in 1902, the church is located at 750 Electric Ave., in Bigfork, one block from the Bigfork schools.
Construction on new Bigfork library makes strides toward summer opening
Monica Pastor used to walk herself down to storytime at the Bigfork library back when she was a kid running around the village in the 1980s.“At the time, Bigfork was lovely and fine, but tiny,” Pastor said. “The library was a sort of portal to other places and other things — where you could go to hear about different worlds.” The library made a big impression on Pastor and her sister Alicia, who went on to become an elementary school teacher, reading specialist and advocate for early childhood literacy. Pastor, an artist involved in many community projects, has art and jewelry...
Orley Martin, 85
Orley Martin, 85, died March 11, 2024 in Kalispell.He is survived by his wife, Candy; and his children, Jerilee Gudmunson, Jody Martin and Lori Fuller.Services are to be announced for a later date. Arrangements are under the care of Johnson-Gloschat Funeral Home.
Charlotte French, 98
Charlotte Bleecker French (Peachey) passed away March 6, 2024, in Chula Vista, California. She was born on May 4, 1925, in Fort Benning, Georgia. After the death of her father Harry at age 2, her name was changed to Harriet Waldron French. In later years she reverted to her birth name of Charlotte Bleecker French. Many of her early friends called her “Bamby”.Charlotte embraced the value of lifelong learning and growth. After raising her children, she attended San Diego State College where she graduated 1st in her undergraduate class. A career in education included a Master’s degree and a Doctoral...
Flathead Basin dam managers defend management decisions
Dam managers in Northwest Montana reiterated in a public presentation last Thursday that reservoir operations during drought years require a delicate balance of competing objectives.“There will be tradeoffs,” cautioned Jennifer Carrington, regional director for the Bureau of Reclamation, which oversees the Hungry Horse Dam above Columbia Falls.Power production, flood-risk management, fish and wildlife mandates, recreation and downstream obligations all must be taken into account when determining the water levels at Hungry Horse Reservoir and Flathead Lake. And during a drought like the summer of 2023 – when the basin’s streamflows hit historic lows – water management becomes even more fickle.“Last...
Mack Days: Perfect weather for opening weekend
The 2024 Spring Mack Days on Flathead Lake, sponsored by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and sanctioned by Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, began Thursday, March 14, and wrap up May 11.Mack Days fishing events, held each spring and fall, are a fish conservation effort designed to lower the numbers of non-native voracious feeding lake trout in Flathead Lake to increase the numbers of native bull trout and westslope cutthroat, which were the dominant fish of the lake for hundreds of years.The event offers up to $225,000 in cash and prizes to the many qualifying hard-working anglers who must...
Vikings notch first win in baseball debut
RONAN — Carson Parish’s one out, RBI double in the eighth inning broke a 3-3 tie and Bigfork held on to beat Ronan 4-3 Monday, in the high school baseball debut for both programs.Parish had two hits and drove in two runs for the Vikings, while Ryder Hamilton tripled in a run and scored in the second inning. Down 2-0, the Chiefs knotted the game at 2-all in their half of the second when Coleton Sherman hit an RBI double, and eventually scored while DaVonne Curley stole second. They went ahead in the third 3-2 when Hunter Luedtke walked, stole second and came around on an error. Luedtke drew three walks.Bigfork got the equalizer in the seventh when Hayden Mayer singled and came around on an error as well.It was a bit of a pitchers’ duel: Cash Atkinson, Tristan Fisher and Ben Mitchell combined to allow four hits and three earned runs for Ronan: Five Bigfork pitchers combined to allow one earned run on three hits (and seven walks) for Bigfork.
Bigfork baseball team begins inaugural season
After a huge surge in community efforts and support, Bigfork High School officially has a baseball team this spring. The team is made up of mostly underclassmen with a few juniors. Although they are young, they are also talented and head coach Dave Romano is looking forward to seeing them grow throughout the season.“They’re young, but they are good character kids with a lot of heart,” Romano said.Spring is notorious for its spotty weather, something Romano expects to be a challenge for the group. Right now, they are forced to practice inside until the snow clears from the fields. This...
Mountainfilm Tour to benefit Bob Marshall Foundation
The Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation is hitting the road, bringing their annual film festival to five different cities around the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex. Mountainfilm on Tour features a selection of culturally rich, adventure-packed and incredibly inspiring documentary films curated from the Mountainfilm festival in Telluride, Colorado.The tour will end with two events in the Flathead Valley: first in Whitefish at the O’Shaughnessy Cultural Arts Center on Thursday, March 21, and then in Bigfork at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts on Friday, March 22. Both evenings will feature the same set of films that explore themes connected to...
Tester talks crime, drugs and border with Flathead law enforcement officials
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester met with law enforcement officials from Flathead and Lincoln counties in Kalispell on Friday to discuss crime prevention, fentanyl interdiction and border security efforts.The three-term Democrat — who is running for reelection this year — joined a roundtable discussion March 15 that included Flathead County Sheriff Brian Heino, Lincoln County Sheriff Darren Short, Columbia Falls Police Chief Clint Peters, Kalispell Police Chief Jordan Venezio, Deputy Chief Kevin Conway of the Whitefish Police Department and members of the Northwest Montana Drug Task Force. The gathering was held in the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office. Ahead of his trip to...
Flathead County planning board signals intent to recommend Somers subdivision
For want of more affordable housing the Flathead County Planning Board on Wednesday tabled the proposed Steamboat Landing subdivision, asking the developer to return with traffic mitigation measures so that it could support the project. The proposed subdivision calls for 252 residential units made up of single-family residential lots and condominium lots on 63.79 acres adjacent to the Somers Middle School. Several board members said they wanted to support the higher-density project located in an area where sewer and water services are available, but worried about the impact an estimated 2,200 new daily vehicle trips from the subdivision could have on roads...
Lake County officials look for answers on Public Law 28 withdrawal from U.S. Attorney
Frustration seemed to be the tenor this week at the Lake County Courthouse as public officials contemplate their withdrawal from Public Law 280, which has given the county felony jurisdiction over tribal members on the Flathead Reservation for nearly 60 years. The county announced in November that it was pulling out of the agreement, and in a letter dated March 1, Gov. Greg Gianforte acknowledged that decision on behalf of the State – which is the other signatory in the law enforcement agreement, along with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and Flathead, Missoula and Sanders counties.That means Lake County’s...
Gary Lee Lapka
Gary Lee Lapka was born in Veblen, South Dakota on April 30, 1940, to George and Leona (Kallas) Lapka. The oldest of five children, Gary had a strong work ethic. He went to work for his father at a young age, driving cattle to market. Never one to pass up fun, Gary learned to carve out time for fishing and hunting rabbits when he wasn't working or in school. By the time he graduated high school from Leola School in 1959, Gary had developed the art of balancing responsibilities with fun, which enabled him to buy his first love, a...
PHOTOS: 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'
Bigfork Playhouse Children’s Theatre presents the musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts. (Brach Thomson photo) Bigfork Playhouse Children’s Theatre presents the musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts. (Brach Thomson photo) Bigfork Playhouse Children’s Theatre presents the musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts. (Brach Thomson photo) Bigfork Playhouse Children’s Theatre presents the musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts. (Brach Thomson photo) Bigfork Playhouse Children’s Theatre...
All-Northwest A hoops teams picked
The all-conference basketball teams for the Northwest A have been released, and a total of three players each from Bigfork and Browning were selected All-State, along with two from Columbia Falls.Bigfork’s trio of Braeden Gunlock, Paeten Gunlock and Ava Davey and Browning’s Jerel White Grass were voted All-State for girls basketball by the league coaches; all of them are first-team all-Northwest A, as is Taryn Borgen of Columbia Falls.On the boys side, Browning’s Maurice Redhorn III and Tommy Running Rabbit are first-team all-conference and All-State, bracketing Jace Hill and Cody Schweikert of Columbia Falls.Each of the four Class A leagues...
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