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Valley Press - Mineral Independent
Plains art students show off talents
Plains High School artists continued a decades long tradition of showing off their art work.Forty-four students created and displayed 240 pieces of artwork in the new gymnasium and art room. One piece of artwork will be displayed in the school cafeteria. This work was a combined effort of several students in the sophomore and junior class. Many of the pieces were for sale. A variety of media was used this year, including ceramic, pencil, pen, clay, paint, papier-mâché, and the occasional trash can. The artwork ranged in size from the smallest, a tiny textbook created by Jackson Leckey and Hunter Bradley to...
New class focuses on foraging in western Montana
Indigenous people knew that the plants and trees were Mother Nature’s pharmacy and there is a trend today to rediscover what is growing in our backyards. Heather Ewert lives in DeBorgia and has spent many years studying plants for medicinal purposes for her family and herself. “I am not accredited with any certificates but between books and the internet, I do have a solid grasp on what I’m going to be sharing.” Her first class in the Old DeBorgia School on Saturday, May 11 had around 30 attendees and the May 15 class attracted over 20. Ewert selected 10 local plants for her...
Plains Day events set for June 1
Plains Day, taking place Saturday, June 1 will have activities for everyone’s taste. Starting off the day, Local VFW Post located on Lynch Street, will be serving breakfast from 7-11 a.m. Mini Horse Rides will get an early start at Fred Young Park, starting at 8:30 a.m. and will continue as long as they have interested riders. For those that will be in the Parade, sign up starts at the Plains School from 9-11 a.m.Rocky Mountain Bank will be the place for the ice cream social and it starts at 10 a.m. One of the most poplar events during Plains...
Spotlight on the Arts: Jullian Keeney
“Spotlight on the Arts” by The Paradise Center honors and encourages students in the arts by highlighting their talent and acknowledging the support they receive through their schools and teachers.Jullian Keeney, a 16-year-old sophomore at Plains High School, has been making art all her life. Her parents describe her drawing at such a young age that she does not even recall it. She was fascinated with drawing birds, horses, and cats. She says she would draw and scribble on almost anything she could find, including the walls of her house. Keeney’s mother was an early influence on her artistic talents,...
Lolo Forest hosts public meetings on plan revision
The Lolo National Forest will hold public meetings this month on its Forest Plan revision.The forest recently completed the analysis of comments received during the scoping process of the proposed action which closed on April 7. The comments are now available in the public reading room and the summary of comments is posted to the web hub at fs.usda.gov/goto/lolo/planrevision.During the analysis of comments, forest staff refined the issues presented in the scoping letter and are starting to formulate the development of alternatives. Information on the issues to be discussed as the engagements will be posted to the web hub.“This is...
Alberton hosts annual All-School Fun Run
After five years of organizing the All-School Fun Run, Amy Park of the Mineral County Health Department, carries clipboards, radios and safety vests to the volunteer sign in a large meadow where the inflatable finish line is being pumped up. “About 300 kids are on their way right now, and what a perfect day to have this,” as she looks at partly cloudy skies and 64 degrees at 9:40 a.m. on Thursday, May 16. The three county schools rotate hosting the event which Park guesses has been going on for 15 or 16 years, and this year, Alberton had a new course...
Construction resumes on Perma bridge over Flathead River
The Montana Department of Transportation and Frontier West are resuming work on the bridge that carries Secondary Highway 382 over the Flathead River near Perma this week, weather and other factors permitting.Planned work for this construction season includes removing and replacing the pavement on the bridge approaches, upgrading guardrail, painting portions of the steel structure, installing advance warning rumble strips and signage, and applying final pavement markings. Traffic will be reduced to one lane over the bridge and controlled by temporary signals. A 10-foot width restriction will be in place during painting work. The river beneath the bridge will remain...
Junior Rodeo Princess applications open
The rodeo at the Mineral County Fair began 42 years ago and was a huge community project with the Superior Lions leading the charge. A few years later, it became the Go for the Gold Rodeo with an ounce of gold added to the purse each year if a cowboy or cowgirl didn’t win, as there were certain conditions. The price of gold has skyrocketed since then and changes have been made, but the purse still grows as only one person has been the winner. The rodeo remains a huge part of the fair and the Superior Lions remain as the stewards...
Superior students ace FVCC welding program
Montana Technical Institute in Butte offers a two-year program where students are introduced to welding fabrication, pipe and structural welding, and aluminum welding — but a faster-track does exist. Earlier this month, 10 students from a welding class that Jeff Schultz has taught at Superior School for nine years would most likely be eligible for that fast-track program. Each student received the AWS 1G welding certification at Flathead Valley Community College in Kalispell. “The most that we’ve ever had pass was four,” said Schultz. “Earlier this year I took my other class up there and we had one out of seven...
Rediscovering home: Superior school board
Excuse the pride that surged through my chest as Superintendent Logan Labbe led me through the entry to Superior High School gymnasium. The sign above us read: Lee B. Moats Memorial Gymnasium.My father was among those who worked hard so that I and my graduating class of 1974, and all those classes after me, could enjoy a vastly superior (forgive the pun) gym. Dad, who repaired and sharpened the huge saws at the mill, served on the board for 25 straight years, and then served two or three more to fill an unexpired term.A massive heart attack struck him down...
West End market pops up for summer
Summer market season has arrived, and now in almost every corner of Mineral County, you can find a collection of growers, artists, crafters and artisans to buy from.Alberton holds a farmer’s market from May through September on Thursdays from 4:30 to 7 p.m. The Superior Saturday Market will get underway at the old Schoolhouse on June 8 at 9 a.m. to noon. And now even the West End has a market of its own, it’s called the Pop-Up Market at the Hideout in DeBorgia every other Thursday from 5 to 7 p.m.One of the vendors, Naomi Mesenbrink, the face behind...
Bobcats claim division championship
Quietly and overwhelmingly the Superior girls high school tennis team has put themselves in line for a State B-C team title.Buoyed by the return of senior leader Lanie Crabb, who missed a year of Superior athletics due to a knee injury that required surgery, the Lady Bobcats overwhelmed the competition this past weekend to win the Northwest Division championship in Missoula as Crabb and company “dominated” the event.“We pretty much dominated the tournament,” said an elated head coach, Rick Berreth.Crabb teamed with junior Perri Jasper to win the doubles title, 6-1, 6-2 over a team from Mission. That win gave...
Connolly leads Tigers at golf championship
St. Regis high school golfer Jack Connolly fired a two-day total score of 171, good for tenth place individually at the State Class C championship in Hamilton last week.And in the process, he helped the Tigers place sixth in the boys team standings, the only local Class C team to place.Scobey won the boys team title with a score of 509 and the girls from Broadus captured the ladies team title with a score of 569.The two-day tournament was held at the Hamilton Golf Club last Tuesday and Wednesday.Connolly’s tenth place finish earned him All-state honors, along with 14 other...
Wayne David Bricker, 90
Sept. 16, 1933 - May 14, 2024Wayne Bricker was born September 16, 1933 in Douglas, Wyoming, as the 13th of 15 children to Ernest & Bessie Bricker. At 5 or 6 years of age, the family moved to Sandpoint, Idaho, where his father and brother Ernest, Jr., worked on building Farragut Naval Base and an older sister, Mildred, also worked there. He went through all his school years in Sandpoint, graduating in 1951.After high school, he worked on the Blister Rust with the Forest Service in Priest Lake, the Falls Ranger Station in Priest River and the Cabinet Gorge Dam.Several...
Plains softball wraps up season
For half an inning, it looked like the streak was over.Plains was up 7-0 in their Western Divisional play-in softball game in Troy. And it was not just a trip to divisional play at stake, the large early lead was a good sign that the season long losing streak was going to end in the home park of the Lady Trojans.Teirainy Bellinger scored the first run for the Trotters when she singled , stole second, moved to third on a single by Tia Bellinger, then scored on a wild pitch.Emma O’Keefe then drove in a pair of runs with a...
Legals for May, 15 2024
REQUEST FOR BIDS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, that in accordance with Title 7, Chapter 5, Part 23, M.C.A. 2021 and all acts supplementary and amendatory thereto, the Fair Board of Sanders County, Montana will receive written sealed bids until the 10th of June, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. of said day for the purpose of Parking Contract, Security Contract, Ticketing/Ushering Contract for the Sanders County Fair for the 2024-2025 season. No Bids will be considered unless said bids are received by the Sanders County Fairgrounds Office, 30 River Road, Plains, MT 59859, by 5:00 p.m. on June 10th, 2024....
A candidate for conservatives
When it comes to representation, I choose someone who will represent the conservative values held by a majority of Montana citizens. I will not vote for politicians who are more focused on "working with" other politicians than working for the priorities and values of regular Montanans. Particularly when "working with" results in a voting record that shows a long history of voting with Democrats on key issues.AnnaMarie White will negotiate rather than compromise. She has already demonstrated that she takes a strong, unwavering conservative stance on parental rights and defending children against irreversible chemical and surgical sex change procedures.It is time for truly conservative, fully Republican representation. It is time to vote for AnnaMarie White.— Kelly Morrison, St. Regis
Litter lingers from last year's train derailment into Clark Fork River
On April 2, 2022, about two dozen Montana Rail Link freight cars derailed directly across from Quinn’s Hot Springs Resort on the Clark Fork River near Paradise. It happened early in the morning and by noon, Montana Rail Link had teams using the riverside of the resort as an incident command center analyzing, coordinating and communicating with media, residents and spectators. Four days later, the trains were running back on schedule. The after-action report indicated no injuries or evacuations were required and only a small amount of fuel escaped making the cleanup look spic-and-span from Highway 135.This month, more than a year...
Plains receives statewide award for wastewater system
The Town of Plains was recognized for outstanding performance during the May City Council meeting.Ward one Councilor Lana Dicken presented two awards to Wastewater Operator Greg Dicken. The first award came from the Montana Water Environment Association and was the 2024 Small System Award for outstanding operation, maintenance and administration of a wastewater treatment system. MWEA is a not-for-profit technical and educational organization established in 1928 to protect health and the environment and increase awareness of the impact and value of water. The second award went to Dicken for Wastewater Operator of the Year for 2019. Montana Rural Water Systems Inc....
St. Regis sends two golfers to state
St. Regis golfers continued to enjoy success this year, with two going to the state championships following a strong showing at the Class C Divisional meet in Great Falls this past weekend.Advancing to this week’s state tourney in Shelby are Jack Connolly and Dillon Thomas, both of whom finished in the top 20 in Great Falls.The St. Regis boys team placed second with a plus 71 score. Manhattan Christian’s boys won the team title with a +44.Connolly, who was a state qualifier last year, fired an 85 and teammate Thomas carded a 93 to also qualify for the State finals.The top 20 individuals from the West qualify for the state tournament, as do the top four teams.Denver Thomas was third on the St. Regis team, shooting a 103, while Kaleb Park was fourth for the Tigers with a 107.The tournament was held at the Anaconda Hills Golf Course in Great Falls.St. Regis played a practice game this past Monday (May 13) in Hamilton. The two teams will also play for score this Tuesday and Wednesday in Hamilton, the site of this year’s Class C State tournament this week.
Valley Press - Mineral Independent
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We are the local newspapers for Sanders & Mineral Counties in Montana. The Clark Fork Valley Press is published in Plains, and the Mineral Independent is based in Superior. Both papers are published weekly on Wednesdays. Our office (at 105 W. Lynch St., Plains MT 59859) is open Mon. - Fri. 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
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