Ellington

Strange stirrups in the Flathead

LETTER: Overcrowded shelter needs help

New wastewater plant underway

Demand jumps for school meal help

Whitefish XC club strong at Nike race

Turkey Trot race to help food bank

Steele earns Super-State soccer honor

Thank you Whitefish

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Mary Moore

John Jones

Gladys Ellenburg

Edward Harper

James Collins

Bruce Beagle

Mussel signs found in Flathead Lake

Council OK's new donut agreement

Canyon parent group considers split from School District 6

A group of parents in Hungry Horse is circulating a petition to support the secession of Canyon Elementary School from School District 6. If successful, the school would transfer to West Glacier School District 8.

Glacier evacuates headquarters building

Glacier National Park closed its headquarters building last week due to the possible threat of asbestos contamination in the building. Contractors are installing a new heating and ventilation system in the building. Some of the original building materials the contractors had to work through to install the new system may contain asbestos.

Man severely injured at Plum Creek

A worker at Plum Creek’s plywood plant suffered a severe injury after a log apparently came off a piece of equipment and crushed his leg. Plum Creek spokeswoman Kathy Budinick said the accident happened the evening of Nov. 8.

FWP may have found mussels in Lake sample

Classes bring flavor to cooking in Lakeside

Food bank gathers gifts for local kids

Robert (Bob) E. Burns

Robert (Bob) E. Burns passed away Nov. 8, 2010. He was a resident of the Montana Veterans Home in Columbia Falls.

School district adopts new notification system

Outlook is bright for MatCats

Nearly 50 athletes are trying out for the Columbia Falls wrestling team, a development that brings a smile to head coach Jessie Schaeffer.

Give thanks

A very happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

Letter from the editor: Plenty of thanks to give this week

Despite the frigid temperatures and piles of snow, Bigfork residents have a lot to be thankful for these days, especially for the abundance of community pride shared throughout the past week.

Poetical Practices

Mother Nature delivered a mighty winter weather punch to eastern Montana 41 years ago, and the deep snows and cold temperatures seemed to go on forever. Hungry Horse News founder, Mel Ruder, went to the Blackfeet Reservation in mid March, visiting his friend and unique Heart Butte columnist, John Tatsey. Mel took pictures, of course, and returned with a story of suffering and hardship being stoically endured by the Blackfeet … through an unusually bad winter.

Sports commentary: Vikings brighten up Bigfork's shoulder-season

Obituary: Ivan Halksworth

Bigfork Vikings - Class B State Champions

FWP may have found mussels in Flathead Lake samples

Bigfork wins state

The Bigfork High School Vikings are the Class B State Champions.

Holiday Art Walk nears

Sports commentary: A day to remember

Battling injury, Kats prepare for divisionals

The Columbia Falls High School girls volleyball team couldn’t oust the Northwestern A conference’s No. 1 Polson from its seat Thursday. The Kats lost all three matches 25-14, 25-17 and 25-11.

Las Vegas magic show on stage

High court rules in injured conductor case

Zoning compliance idea goes to planning board

Make school funding a priority

Every month, I attend a school board meeting. Nearly every week, I walk the halls of at least one school in School District 6. I’ve watched children dancing, reading, laughing, drawing, singing. I’ve watched high school students play their hearts out in band practice. I’ve watched students discuss literature with remarkable maturity.

Council zones subdivisions

The Columbia Falls City Council dealt with land issues Monday night.

Pot slipping into school

Columbia Falls Police say they’re catching more students at the junior high with marijuana this year and parents may be the ones to blame.

Home consumed by fire

A fire consumed a home on Wood Ridge Drive Friday night about a half mile from the Silver Bullet Bar. The cause is yet unknown.

Threatening the N. Fork

To the editor,

What were they thinking?

To the editor,

Vote again on gravel pits

To the editor,

A few were not heroes

America’s annual Veterans Day has come and gone along with the media coverage, public speeches, and private remembrances. Wars have changed a lot since WWII. They are fought differently and thought of differently. Several things have not changed and the most important fact is that our freedom has been paid for over and over again by those who served “honorably” in the Armed Forces.

The football season, by the numbers

Now that the final pass has been thrown, the final run made, the final block and tackle executed (or not) here’s a look at some of the more interesting statistics on the Columbia Falls football season:

Food pantry gets support boost to help meet demands

Knoll makes All-State volleyball list

Cindy Lee Shields-Koponen

Cindy Lee Shields-Koponen, 46, went to be with the Lord on Nov. 13, 2010 at Kalispell Regional Medical Center.

Group to preserve Somers history

LETTER: A thank you

Arthur Vincent Dresen

Arthur “Art” Vincent Dresen, 77 passed away Thursday, Nov. 11, 2010 at home in the arms of his wife of 53 years, after battling several long illnesses.

Nation can no longer live beyond its means

Marcella 'Toni' Wells

Marcella “Toni” Wells, 88, died peacefully in her sleep at home with her daughter by her side, on Nov. 12, 2010.

Bigfork drama team takes first at Hamilton meet

Obituary: Marcella 'Toni' Wells

Lakeside bank robbed

Local authorities were combing the West Shore on Wednesday evening in search of a man who robbed a Lakeside bank.

Vals, Vikes named All-Conference for soccer

Family moves into Habitat home

Council delays vote on donut doc

Morrison steps down as girls soccer coach

A fence or an ambulance

We citizens can all give thanks, the ugly general election campaigns of 2010 are over, and we will now intelligently deal with the results. When stripped of their political spins, many of the big issues boil down to arguing whether to treat the Cause or the Effect.

Roberta Iris Brown Bakshas

Roberta Iris Brown Bakshas, 88, surrounded by family and friends, was taken into the arms of her Savior on Oct. 30, 2010, at Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland, Wash. She was born on July 15, 1922, in Lewistown, to Harry and Cecilia Corrigan Brown. She grew up in Grass Range, and was deeply involved with family, church and music. While attending high school, she worked in her parent’s creamery. She also enjoyed being a part-time seamstress, hairdresser and musician for the local community.

Margaret “Marge” Ryan Bennett

Marge (Ryan) Bennett passed away on Oct. 6, 2010 at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, Mo. She was born on Sept. 5, 1939 in Columbia Falls to Anne and James Ryan. She attended school in Columbia Falls through her graduation in 1957. She then moved to California and joined the U.S. Navy.

F. Eleanor Bell

Eleanor Bell, 81, died Friday, Nov.5 in a Kalispell Hospice facility from complications related to a fall suffered at her home. Eleanor was born and raised in Ontario, Calif., before moving with her husband and five children to her current residence at Lake Five. Eleanor was well known for her love of animals and had numerous cats, dogs and other creatures of nature. She nursed many young birds, squirrels and other wounded animals back to health in hopes of returning them to their homes. Never one to leave an animal hungry, the raccoons, deer, squirrels and birds will miss her generosity and feeding schedule. Surely they are chattering right now as to why their dinner is late.

Elaine Patrice (Patty) McClenahan

Elaine Patrice (Patty) McClenahan passed away on Nov. 6, 2010 at the age of 56, in Kalispell. Patty was born in Hot Springs, on Sept. 9, 1954. She grew up in the town of Plains and moved to Missoula for her freshman year of high school. She attended Hellgate High for two years and then moved to Chinook, where she graduated in 1972. She graduated from the University of Montana in 1995 with a degree in music education. Her emphasis was in flute and piano. Patty continued to work towards her master’s degree.

Glacier Nordic welcomes new coach

Spikers place fourth in divisionals, ending season

The Wildkats placed fourth at the Northwest Montana Conference A divisional tournament in Columbia Falls this past weekend, ending their season.

Cowboys herd Cats in playoffs

For a half, it was a heckuva football game. But the Miles City Cowboys, behind a big offensive line, ground down the Columbia Falls football team in the second half en route to a 34-13 playoff victory.

I-161 impacts under debate

A voter-passed initiative that changes the way out-of-state hunting licenses are issued could have repercussions in the outfitting business here, a local outfitter warns.

Glacier sees progress in battle against lake trout

Biologists in Glacier National Park say they’re making progress in the fight against non-native lake trout.

Council asks state to approve Nucleus stop sign

The Columbia Falls City Council wants to make Nucleus Avenue safer for pedestrians.

Obituary: Thor W. Garaas

Football 2010 Playoffs: Bigfork v. Townsend

Vikes battle into final four

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'The Butler Did It' in new BPCT show

As the saying goes, it’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt and that’s particularly true in the Bigfork Playhouse Children’s Theatre’s production of “The Butler Did It, Singing.”

Prescribed burns part of a healthy forest

Fall is here and smoke is in the air across Western Montana. The smoke we see and smell can come from one or two very intentional actions by forest managers to benefit our forests.

Lloyd W. Wilson

Lloyd W. Wilson, 85, husband, father, grandfather and retired Flathead High School teacher, died Oct. 14, 2010, at his home in Yuma, Ariz.

Major fix up for Many Glacier hotel

The Many Glacier Hotel will go through some major renovations in the next 18 months. Crews from Swank Enterprises began working on the nearly 100-year-old historic landmark earlier this fall.

Jerry O'Neil wins HD 3

Jerry O’Neil, Republican candidate for House District 3, was the clear winner in Tuesday’s election, garnering 52 percent of the vote.

A Strange Hunt

Son Shannon started off this hunting season by getting a fat whitetail buck opening day and I asked him why he did that. He answered, “Dad! I just wasn’t thinking,” and he rationalized that he can still hunt elk. As for me, I don’t hunt much anymore. Remember far more days afield than most.

Elsie Swain

Elsie Swain, 100, passed away Oct. 25, 2010, at the Immanuel Lutheran Home in Kalispell. She was born May 9, 1910, to Chris and Augusta Paulsen in McNabb, Ill. She graduated from John Swaney High School in 1928.

BLUAC denies height variance for Bay Villas

The Bigfork Land Use Advisory Committee voted 4-1 to recommend the denial of a request for a variance to exceed the height restrictions on a proposed four-plex in downtown Bigfork at its meeting Thursday, Oct. 28.

'We'll laugh about it later'

As readers may know, I got married last week. I’d wondered how I would write about the event after the fact. I’d figured that something was bound to go wrong, because no wedding is perfect. And of course my wedding had its hiccups. But that’s what makes for good stories later. So here’s a good story:

Fred Mumbower

Fred Mumbower passed away in the early morning of Oct. 26 2010, at his home in Columbia Falls.

Bigfork knocks out Loyola in first round

The proverb “Revenge is a dish best served cold” wasn’t coined in regard to football or even weather, but on Saturday’s chilly, foggy afternoon the Vikings gave new meaning to the phrase as they beat Missoula Loyola 41-31 in the first round of playoffs.

Cats face Miles City Saturday

The Cats have to cool off Cooley, limit mistakes, play solid defense and hope a speed advantage on offense will tip the scales in their favor.

A new way to welcome visitors

Volunteers unveil steel town signs

A true community effort has come to fruition as new welcome signs for Columbia Falls are going up.

General election results out

Republicans swept the region in Tuesday’s general election.

General election results reported

Republicans swept the region in Tuesday’s general election.

Will Alan Harris and Hayden Kate Harris

Will Alan Harris and Hayden Kate Harris, son and daughter of Aric and Katie Harris, of Chadron, Neb., were born Sept. 15, 2010, at Chadron Community Hospital. Will was born at 8:26 a.m. and weighed 6 pounds 7.5 ounces and was 18.75 inches long. Hayden was born at 8:28 a.m. and weighed 5 pounds 3 ounces and was 18 inches long. Paternal grandparents are Ronald Harris, of Whitefish, and Barbara Stava, of Kalispell. Maternal grandparents are Doug and Christine Rommereim and Kathy McGrath and Mike Conkling, all of Whitefish. Paternal great grandparents are Gene and Mildred Stava, of Rushville, Neb. Maternal great grandparents are Al and Helen Jane Rommereim, of Kalispell, and Lois Zirk, of Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Lady 'Dogs blaze into tourney

The Lady Bulldog volleyball squad wrapped up the regular season on a tear with three wins over three quality opponents. Coach Jackie Fuller says momentum is on their side going into the divisional tournament.

Outback Ski Shack changes hands

Glacier Cyclery is ready to trade in their stock of NordicTrack exercise equipment for an actual snow-covered Nordic track.

School district recognized for healthy meals

Those who eat in the lunchrooms in the Somers-Lakeside School District have known for some time that the meals are “delicious and nutritious,” but after last week the whole state knows — now that the district has received the Healthier Montana Menu Challenge award.

Girls second at state

There were no surprises in this one. For the 43rd consecutive match, Billings Central did exactly what they do — win. The two-time defending Class A girls soccer champs made it three titles in a row Saturday when they knocked off an outmatched Whitefish team 4-1 at Rocky Mountain College in Billings. The nine seniors on the Rams squad haven’t lost a match since 2007 when they were freshmen. They finished their careers 52-2-3 overall.

Cheers for volunteers

Since June 2009, we have read the inspiring words written by Jake Heckathorn about the incredible volunteers who have donated countless hours of service to our community. But now it is time to hear about the writer himself.

Traffic hazards at Smith Fields is the issue

I figured it was only a matter of time before a “no dogs” sign would be posted at Smith Fields. What did surprise me was that the signs include a clause saying dogs are a threat to the children at Smith Fields. You may find my next comment surprising but needs to be said.

Flathead County election results

FLATHEAD COUNTY GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS

Secrets of the Superfund site

Documents from ‘lost’ file describe the scope of oil pollution by railroad

Documents recently “re-discovered” at the Montana Department of Environmental Quality in Helena not only provide a revealing look at the scope of the oil pollution in the Whitefish River before effective action was taken at the BNSF Railway facility — they also pinpoint a potential pollution source that DEQ officials currently overseeing the Superfund site were not aware existed.

County growth policy update starts

The Flathead County Planning Board kicked off the public process for updating the county growth policy with a workshop on Oct. 20. The move coincides with other development issues county planners and the commissioners looked at in recent weeks.

River flowing again at clean-up site

Water began flowing once again last week in a section of the Whitefish River that was dammed off and drained as part of the cleanup ordered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

City recreation opportunities pay their own way

Coordinator gives notice he’s moving on

When Erik Bruner took over as recreation coordinator for the Whitefish Parks and Recreation Department in July 2008, the department was actively looking for a way to develop more opportunities for elementary school children in Whitefish.

Forest thinning project proposed for Round Meadow

The Flathead National Forest is seeking comments on a proposed commercial-thinning timber project near Round Meadow, about seven miles northwest of Whitefish.

Republican sweep: Holmquist, Skees win

It was a bad night for local Democrats as the Republicans swept the Flathead County, taking all six county offices and all 14 legislative seats, according to preliminary general election results.

Valkyries fail to get out of districts

When the Valkyries volleyball team started the season, aspirations were high and a berth in the state tournament seemed likely. Those dreams crumpled last weekend as Bigfork was eliminated from the District 7B Tournament in its first two matches.

Project may be delayed

The construction contract for the Grand Drive portion of the Bigfork Stormwater Project has been awarded, but delays in the process may mean that work cannot begin until spring.

Obituary: Kathleen A. J. Jones

Kathleen Anne Jordan Jones, 57, of Bigfork, died at her home the morning of Friday, Oct. 22, 2010.

Seats open up on BLUAC

The Bigfork Land Use Advisory Committee is seeking applicants for two seats that have recently become open.

Wolf forum turns political

Shoot the wolves. Vote Republican. Oust Molloy. That was the sentiment of a Montanans for Multiple Use “public information” forum on wolves held Monday night at Flathead valley Community College.