Honeyberry Farm, Corvallis FFA win National FFA Award
by Bitterroot Chamber of Agriculture and Local Foods Committee
The Bitterroot Valley is the “banana belt” of Montana, renowned for its fruit production. Apples and pears abound. So do berries, including common ones like raspberry and blackberry as well as less common ones like saskatoon (serviceberry) and aronia (chokeberry). But perhaps the most unusual local fruit is the one whose name alone makes you salivate: the honeyberry.
Honeyberries look like slightly lumpy, elongated blueberries, with the same dusky bluish purple hue. Like blueberries, they
are a superfood, containing high levels of vitamin C and signifcantly more antioxidants than other fruits. With a slightly meaty texture, their tangy sweet favor has been described as a cross between a raspberry and a blueberry, with perhaps some notes of pomegranate and plum.
Honeyberries have other attributes going for them: they are native to northern regions like Montana and are therefore cold-hardy. They are seldom susceptible to pests so lend themselves to cultivation without pesticides. Taken together, these attributes – cold tolerant, native, pest-resistant, full of healthy antioxidants – and most importantly, delicious, mean that honeyberries may well be
the next big thing in fruit.
At least, that’s what students in the Corvallis, Montana, chapter of Future Farmers of America (FFA) are planning on. Last fall, the team of Morgan Bisel, Jackson Pliley, and Beauden Therrien competed at the FFA national convention in Indianapolis and came home with a gold medal, placing 4th overall for their marketing plan for a novel honeyberry product, “Very Berry Vinaigrette.”
Melissa Allred of Aspen Grove Farm in Corvallis is the frst commercial honeyberry grower in Montana. Her fve acres of honeyberry bushes produce about 15,000 pounds of berries annually, all ripening in a narrow window from early July to early August. This sounds like a delicious problem to have, but it poses a challenge on the sales side: simultaneous ripening means that the bounty must all be dealt with at once. Even with presence at area farmers markets, a farmstand, U-pick days, and wholesale and retail customers, not all of Allred’s berries can be sold fresh. Last summer, Therrien worked at Aspen Grove, where he learned frsthand about the risk that all that simultaneous berry abundance would result in food waste.
This is where value-added products like syrups and jams play an important role in the economics of the farm and in avoiding food waste. Some of Allred’s harvest is already transformed into signature products like Honeyberry Heaven Syrup, Honeyberry Jalapeno Jam, or her favorite, Honeyberry Haze BBQ Sauce. But the need to diversify the honeyberry portfolio even further led Allred to partner with the Corvallis FFA chapter on their plan to market the vinaigrette.
Neela Hammerstein is the Corvallis FFA advisor and an award-winning teacher. In addition to agricultural classes, Hammerstein also teaches food science, making use of a repurposed kitchen from the high school’s former culinary arts program. It’s no surprise then that the FFA students’ projects often blend culinary interest and farming perspectives. As Hammerstein explained, “I teach food science and use the kitchen space to teach culinary skills, but also where food comes from and why we should appreciate local farmers.” As part of the FFA program, Hammerstein organizes a local food tour each May, from which she and the students source ideas for the competition season. Over the years, they’ve visited egg farmers and dairy farmers, practiced making charcuterie boards with cheeses and meats made by local producers, and spent time on Allred’s berry farm. “We always think about partnerships with local farms, because it’s so much richer when we meet with the farmer and can then share the story of the farmer” at competition, Hammerstein explained.
Ten percent of Corvallis High School’s roughly 400 students participate in FFA, an organization whose mission is to develop youth leadership and personal growth through agricultural education. Competition is a huge part of the FFA experience – 70,000 people attended the national
every state participate. To represent Montana, Corvallis FFA frst had to win the state competition, beating out teams from much larger schools, including Missoula – where Hammerstein’s dad is the FFA advisor.
Therrien and Pliley, both juniors, partnered with Morgan Bisel, now a freshman in college, on the “Very Berry Vinaigrette” marketing plan. When asked how they came together as a team, Pliley explained, “Morgan is great with words and putting the portfolio together, Beauden had the experience on the farm and worked on the slides and I, well, I speak well during presentation.” The marketing plan competition consisted of two parts: the portfolio, a slide deck containing information about Aspen Grove farm, the vinaigrette idea, marketing statistics, and sales goals; and a 15-minute presentation to a panel of judges followed by Q&A. A critical part of the plan was the survey the students designed to assess the vinaigrette’s sales potential. An impressive 227 individuals and 23 restaurants responded to the survey, informing the marketing and sales projections. Allred and her team supplemented these data with information about her farm’s business, product pricing, and manufacturing requirements.
In 2025, 35 state teams competed in the marketing proposal category, with the top 8 receiving gold medals and the “Final Four” – including Corvallis – honored on stage at the awards ceremony. For Therrien, a nationals first-timer, it was “really fun, because beyond the competition part, it was great seeing so many kids all wearing the same FFA jacket and seeing everyone else’s cool ideas. There’s both competition and service aspects and it’s one big event for FFA members to all come together.” Pliley added “the final was a bit nerve-wracking because there was live television. But winning a gold medal was pretty exciting.”
Said Allred, “The kids have so much passion and I’m amazed at their work ethic. It was a privilege that they asked if they could use the farm for their marketing plan. My kids and I got up early to watch them on live television and during the finals we were jumping up and down – at 6:30 in the morning!”
When asked what favorite foods they’d put the vinaigrette on, Therrien and Pliley leaned into their culinary creativity, perhaps influenced by Hammerstein’s holistic approach to agricultural education. Pliley suggested a salad of local greens and feta with walnuts, while Therrien would love to try it on an acai bowl.
They may soon get to taste it on their dishes of choice. Allred now plans to make and sell honeyberry vinaigrette as part of her product line-up. She’s bringing the vinaigrette to this weekend’s Made in Montana Trade Show as well as the Northwest Food Show next month in Portland. Those vinaigrette bottles will carry a very special label, for which Allred has just gotten the national organization’s approval: “Proud
Pictured left to right: Corvallis FFA advisor Neela Hammerstein stands with students Jackson Pilled, Beauden Therrien and Morgan Bisel. The team placed 4th overall at the FFA national convention in Indianapolis for their marketing plan for ‘Very Berry Vinaigrette.’ Photo courtesy of Aspen Grove Farm.
Lolo National Forest Plan revision meetings to begin
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service will host a series of community meetings in April 2026 to discuss the Lolo National Forest’s land management plan revision. Lolo National Forest Supervisor Ben Johnson will outline the current eforts to create the draft plan and draft environmental impact statement. Johnson will also explain what the public can expect from the revision process this year. Events will be hosted in
communities across the forest and online. The following events will be held in April.
• April 21, 2026: Lolo National Forest Plan Revision Community Meeting, Thompson Falls High School, Thompson Falls, Montana, 5:30-7 p.m.
• April 22, 2026: Lolo National Forest Plan Revision Community Meeting, Seeley Lake Community Foundation Building, Seeley Lake, Montana,
5:30-7 p.m.
• April 23, 2026: Lolo National Forest Plan Revision Community Meeting, Superior Ranger Station, Superior, Montana, 5:30-7 p.m.
• April 27, 2026: Lolo National Forest Plan Revision Community Meeting, ALI Auditorium in the Education Building at University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, 5:30-7 p.m.
• April 28, 2026: Lolo Natio -
nal Forest Plan Revision Community Meeting, Virtual 5:306:30 p.m.
“The progress I’ll share reflects not only the public’s investment in the Lolo’s plan revision, but the work of countless subject matter experts. With the Chief’s priorities guiding our strategy moving forward, this year is an exciting moment for our forest. I invite everyone who
cares about the Lolo National Forest’s future management to come join us,” said Forest Supervisor Ben Johnson. The Lolo NF’s land management plan has not been revised since 1986. The forest has been revising its land management plan in collaboration with tribal, county, state and federal partners, diverse interest groups and hundreds of individuals since 2023.
CIVIC CLUB: new president highlights upcomming events
than glamorous jobs they have trouble flling, like simple set up and tear down. Without help, “these events start disappearing.”
According to Madero, everyone in the valley comes to these events, and so their benefts spread far beyond the town of Stevensville.
“If you don’t participate, there’s a chance it’s just not gonna be, and I don’t want to see that happen,” said Madero. “We all have full-time jobs.”
“It’s a great way to meet people,” and, “Really it’s just fun,” said Madero. For him, that is a big reason why he stays with it. He invites everyone to come out and at least give it a try and to “become a part of it.” He said that, meaning not just becoming a part of the civic club, but becoming a part of the town.
Madero added that it can be a lot of work, and it can be tiring, especially after things like the Creamery Picnic, but it can also be intensely rewarding. One of his favorite things the club does is donate back into the community. An example he gave was the Stevensville Police Department, where Madero said the club was able to help it get the equipment needed “to keep us all safe.” “When you can help them hit that goal,” Madero said it’s an incredible feeling.
“We make the money, but it always goes back into the community,” said Madero. “This is what you can be a part of, and this is what you can keep going,” Madero tells anyone interested in joining.
Madero moved to the valley
in 2022 from San Diego, California. He is a technical editor for Parts Unlimited, a powersports parts company that provides equipment for ATVs, motorcycles, side-by-sides and more. In fact, it is the largest supplier of these parts in the world.
Madero also has a history in editorials, including ATV Rider Magazine, the sister publication to Dirt Rider Magazine, which focused more on motor-cross. Madero said he was also a mechanic for eight years, then got into the powersports industry writing about things he loved.
always taken in the club. Madero got onto the board and “I’ve enjoyed it ever since.”
In California, he and his family had difculties and didn’t feel connected to any community, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. He said after that, things really changed. They no longer felt safe or comfortable raising a family there.
Madero has been with the civic club since not long after they moved into town. Both he and his wife wanted to get more involved and he said, “The whole point of coming to a small town was to fnd a community. I wanted to be in a community where I got to know people, and I wanted to help out.” He also loved how driven the people with the civic club were, how they knew what they were doing and how input was
Looking towards the future, Madero said the club is going to be working to get more businesses on board, and they have some new ideas. Part of their initiative will be to streamline events, and to make things more inviting. An example was the Christmas Parade and moving it to a Saturday. That way, it is easier for people to participate. Though they will not be making any major changes, Madero is foating some ideas around, like maybe adding a 5K event onto the roster of things they do. He also wants to highlight things on Main Street more. One way could be bringing the various Trunk-or-Treat events from all over the area to one central location, like Main Street.
For Madero, it all puts a big emphasis on “community gathering.”
For those looking to participate, Madero said they should become a member of the Stevensville Civic Club. There is no longer a fee to join, and they are adding something that breaks down the events and ways people can help on the website, www.stevensvillecivicclub.com.
He also recommends checking out the Facebook group, saying these are the best places to start.
Madero and the civic club want to highlight their upcoming event schedule.
First is the upcoming Culpepper and Merriweather Circus. It frst came to town a couple years ago and was a big hit, bringing a lot of business to the local community. This year, the club wants to bring them back and have more shows.
The circus will be in town June 8 and 9, with two nights and four shows; one at 5 p.m. and one at 7:30 p.m. on both days. Tickets are on sale on the website and at the i Feel Good Yoga & Juice Bar, Valley Drug and Cenex for in-person tickets.
The club will also be holding their “Pignick” event on July 4, at Lewis and Clark Park. Madero added, “Come out and bring a side to share.”
Finally, Madero wanted to highlight the Creamery Picnic which will be held this year on August 7 and 8. Madero said there will be more vendors, the corn hole tournament will be back by popular demand, the pig races will return, Tightline will be performing on Main Street and 406 will be playing in the park.
Conservationists win battle for Bitterroot grizzly bears
by Mike Garrity, Executive Director , Alliance for the Wild Rockies
On March 31, two Montana grassroots conservation groups, Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Native Ecosystems Council, prevailed in their lawsuit to stop a logging and road-building project on public lands in the Sapphire Mountains of the Bitterroot Valley because the government had pretended that grizzly bears were not present in that region. The facts show otherwise – grizzly bears are repeatedly attempting to repopulate the Bitterroot Valley on both the east and west sides. The court order requires that the government acknowledge the growing presence of grizzly bears in the Bitterroot Valley and act appropriately to protect them.
This victory follows the groups’ recent victory mandating that the government prepare a new environmental analysis on Bitterroot grizzly bear recovery. “These cases are two sides of the same coin. On one side, we fought for and won a new analysis that will look at the big picture of Bitterroot grizzly recovery over the whole region; on the other side, we fought and prevailed against a specifc project that is trying to move forward as if Bitterroot grizzly bears don’t exist. We will continue to protect these Bitterroot grizzly
site-specifc project scale.”
The project stopped by the most recent lawsuit was called the Gold Butterfy Project, and proposed bulldozing in 6.4 miles of new roads, adding 16.5 miles of illegal, non-system roads and decommissioning 5.8 miles of system roads, for a net increase of 17.1 miles of permanent system roads. The project also proposed private, for-proft commercial logging and clearcutting on 5,281 acres or 8.25 square miles of National Forest public lands, including logging 567 acres of old growth forests, and non-commercial logging and burning on an additional 2,084 acres or 3.25 square miles.
Most grizzlies are killed within one-third mile of a road. So this is great news for Bitterroot grizzly bears since they would be at incredible risk if the Forest Service was allowed to bulldoze even more roads into the project area.
The court ruled that the Forest Service violated federal law when it told the public that there weren’t grizzlies in the Sapphire mountains. Keeping grizzlies safe in the Bitterroot region is the lynchpin to recovery of grizzlies in the lower 48 states.
lation in the Greater Yellowstone region with the grizzly bear populations in the Northern Continental Divide, Cabinet-Yaak and Selkirk regions, thus providing genetic diversity to preclude irreversible inbreeding. This is a win for Bitterroot grizzlies and
the entire grizzly bear population in the Northern Rockies Ecosystem. The Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Native Ecosystems Council will continue to fght to ensure the recovery of these bears and the ecosystems upon which grizzlies depend.
BLUEGRASS: organization holds annual festival in Victor
Continued from page 1
many more than it had slots available. Last year, it was only able to help five youth, but it is hoping to raise enough to be able to raise that number.
Speaking of the festival, Conroy said there will be food, music and fun. The food will all be homemade and include chili, cornbread, vegetable soup and desserts. As for the music, this may be one of their biggest festivals yet.
A fan favorite headliner, Johnny Campbell Band, will be returning all the way from Nashville, Tennessee. While the band is on tour, it will “Stop and play for free for us. You can’t beat that,” said Conroy. In fact, all the bands play for free.
“This is such a special event because people come from all over to play.”
The first two bands are family bands
from the Bitterroot. The Dobbins and the Hilbert families will start the festival off at 11. a.m. According to Conroy, they have never played in the Victor festival before. Conroy also wanted to highlight Pinegrass, a group from Missoula. They will be playing at 1:30 p.m. Conroy added that they have been together for over 20 years.
“Can you imagine that?”
Other bands attending include Mountain Springs, from Rigby, Idaho and Bensons Landing String Band, from Belgrade. Conroy spoke about Blue Point, from Missoula, and added that this last one played at the Hardtimes Bluegrass Festival last year. Hardtimes is an unrelated event, but a few bands end up playing in both. The festival will take place at the Neely Center again, located at 150 A Street, Victor. Music starts at 11 a.m. and runs until 8 p.m. Non-member admission is $10. Members pay $5 and children under 12 enter free. More information is available at (406) 821-3777, the organization website: mtbluegrass.com and the MRBA Facebook.
Looking for the Bitterroot Star? It’s FREE on more than 100 newsstands from Lolo to Conner. Or call us at 777-3928 and we’ll let you know where the closest stand is.
A sow grizzly stands with her cub. Photo by Frank van Mane with the USGS.
Legal Notices
Megan S. Winderl
CHOUINARD & WINDERL,
P.C.
99 Marcus St. 3 FL Hamilton, MT 59840
(406) 218-4888
meganw@cwlawmt.com
pleadings@cwlawmt.com
Attorneys for Petitioner
MONTANA TWENTY-FIRST
JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, RAVALLI COUNTY IN THE MATTER OF THE NAME CHANGE OF KAMBRIA
SKYE SCHWARTZ, SABRINA
AUSTIN, Petitioner, On Behalf of KAMBRIA SKYE
SCHWARTZ
Cause No. DV-41-2026-78
Dept. No. 1
NOTICE OF HEARING ON PETITION TO CHANGE NAME OF MINOR CHILD
Notice is hereby given that
Sabrina Austin, the Petitioner, has fled a Petition to Change Name of Minor Child for the above-stated child in Ravalli County District Court, Montana.
Hearing upon said Petition will be held on April 1, 2026, at 1:30 p.m., in Courtroom 1 of the above-named Court, at which time objections to said Petition will be heard.
DATED this 18th day of February, 2026.
CHOUINARD & WINDERL, P.C. /s/ Megan S. Winderl
BS 3-25, 4-1, 4-8, 4-15-2026
MNAXLP
Montana 21st Judicial District Court, Ravalli County In the Matter of the Name Change of Shane Michael Bramsen-Shoopman:
Shane Michael Bramsen-Shoopman, Petitioner
Cause No.:
DV-41-20260000123-NC
Dept. No.: 2- Jennifer B. Lint
Notice of Hearing on Name Change
This is notice that Petitioner has asked the District Court for a change of name from Shane Michael Bramsen-Shoopman to Shane Michael Bramsen. The hearing will be on 04/30/26 at 1:30 p.m. The hearing will be at
the Courthouse in Ravalli County. Date: March 23, 2022. Paige Troutwein, Clerk of Court
/s/ Janenne Sorenson, Deputy Clerk of Court
BS 4-1, 4-8, 4-15, 4-22-2026
MNAXLP CALL FOR BID/QUOTES: INDEPENDENT AUDIT FOR FISCAL YEAR ENDED JUNE 30, 2026 WITH OPTION OF AUDITING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR TWO SUBSEQUENT YEARS
The BOARD OF RAVALLI COUNTY COMMISSIONERS is soliciting bid/quotes for their independent audit for the fscal year ended June 30, 2026 with an option for two subsequent years, June 30, 2027 and June 30, 2028. This is a fee-for-service contract that requires a single audit under the requirements of Title 2 U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.
The minimum requirements necessary to perform the audit are:
1. The frm must be independent and licensed to practice in Montana.
2. The frm must have no confict of interest with regard to any other work performed by the frm for Ravalli County.
3. The frm must be on the Montana Department of Administration’s Roster of Independent Auditors Authorized to Conduct Audits of Montana Local Governments.
It is preferable that the audit feldwork be completed by February 28, 2027 with an audit report issued within 30 days of feldwork completion. The County has accounting staf available to assist with schedules requested by the auditing frm and has qualifed staf to prepare the fnancial statements if time permits. Previously audited fnancial statements from June 30, 2007 through June 30, 2025 can be located on the County’s website at ravalli.us under the Finance Department.
It is expected that the June 30, 2026 Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA) will include FAA Grant expenses of approximately $600,000 and US Department of Fish & Wildlife expenses of approximately $300,000.
Within the bid/quote, Ravalli County requires the audit fee to be shown by each fscal year.
A breakdown of the audit fee for each year needs to be as follows: Audit fee, Single audit preparation, and fnancial statement preparation. The Finance Department plans on preparing the fnancial statements as they have done since the fscal year ending June 30, 2019, audit, but they will need the fexibility for the selected auditing frm to prepare them if other critical items take precedence.
Interested frms must submit their bids/quotes in a sealed envelope by 4:00 p.m., Friday, May 15, 2026, to:
Regina Plettenberg, Clerk & Recorder
215 S. 4 th Street, Suite C (2 nd foor)
Hamilton, MT 59840
The bid/quotes will be opened by the Commissioners on Monday, May 18, 2026 at 10:00 a.m., and the bid/quote will be awarded on Thursday, May 21, 2026 at 10:30 a.m. in the Commissioners’ conference room at 215 S. 4th Street (3rd foor), Hamilton, MT.
If you have questions about the process for bid/quotes, please contact Chris Taggart, Administrative Assistant to the Commissioners at 375-6500 or ctaggart@rc.mt.gov. If you have any questions regarding the audit, please contact Jana Exner, CFO, at 375-6525 or jexner@ rc.mt.gov.
BS 4-1, 4-8-2026
MNAXLP
Public Hearing-Ravalli County TAX ABATEMENT (Benefts) REQUEST: GlaxoSmithKline, LLC
The Board of Ravalli County Commissioners will hold a public
hearing on Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at 11:00 AM in the Ravalli County Administrative Center at 215 S.4th Street, Third Floor Commissioners Conference Room, Hamilton, MT. The purpose for this public hearing is to take public comment on the Tax Abatement Application submitted by GlaxoSmithKline, LLC (GSK), per MCA 15-6-138, for the property located at 553 Old Corvallis Road, Hamilton, Montana, 59840 (Tax ID #777400), and to make a decision, by Resolution, to grant or deny said tax abatement (beneft) request.
If you would like more information contact the Commissioner’s Ofce at 375-6500. If you are unable to attend and would like to make comment you can do so by contacting the Commissioners at the above phone number, or by email at commissioners@rc.mt. gov.
Chris Taggart
Commissioners’ Administrative Assistant
BS 4-1, 4-8-2026
MNAXLP
Innovative Readiness Training Program Project: Darby Cares
The Darby School District and Town of Darby intend to solicit assistance from the Department of War’s Innovative Readiness Training Program (IRT). The assistance will include healthcare services to Residents of the Bitterroot Valley and surrounding areas through basic medical, dental, optometry, behavioral health, and veterinary (small animal) examinations and services. The proposed assistance will take place at the Darby School District in the summer of 2027. Healthcare providers, contractors, labor unions, or private individuals who have questions or who wish to voice opposition to military assistance for this project may contact Miranda Simmons from the Darby School District at 406-821-13047 or via e-mail at msimmons@darby.k12. mt.us no later than thirty (30) days after the frst publication of this notice. Persons not fling comments within the time frame
noted will be considered to have waived their objections to military assistance for this project.
BS 3-25, 4-8-2026
MNAXLP
The Ravalli County Planning Department is inviting public comment on a foodplain permit application for a project within the Regulated Flood Hazard Area of Three Mile Creek. The proposed project will construct a wooden dock for recreational purposes on a pond within the Flood Fringe Area. The pond excavation work will be completed this spring and was permitted under Floodplain Permit FA-2525 issued on February 27, 2026. The project is located at 4618 Hoover Lane north of Stevensville in Section 32, Township 10N, R19W, Ravalli County. Information regarding this application is available at the Ravalli County Planning Department at 215 S 4th St, Suite F in Hamilton. Written comments may be mailed, hand-delivered or emailed (planning@rc.mt.gov) and must be received by 5:00 pm, April 22, 2026. Reference application # FA-26-07.
BS 4-8-2026
MNAXLP
Declaration of Existence
This declaration afrms the mission of the Breatharian Institute of America (BIA) as an ecclesiastic and religious organization. This notice serves to declare this 508(c)(1)(a) has existed and functioned unto itself and no corporate and statutory flings are necessary or required by law, as the BIA functions unto itself. This Breatharian Institute of America is created as a missionary vehicle to assist all beings, sentient and non-sentient, who are sustained by the Breath of Life. This includes but is not limited to housing and all building projects, growing and nurturing all biota and soil, all types of therapies and any other projects that can be perceived as helpful for anyone or anything that breathes.
BS 4-8, 4-15, 4-22, 4-292026.
MNAXLP
MONTANA TWENTY-FIRST
JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, RAVALLI COUNTY IN THE MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF JAMES ADOLPHE STANKER, JR., Deceased.
Probate No.: DP-2026-21
Dept. No.: 2
NOTICE TO CREDITORS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Sheila Kleinschmidt has been appointed Personal Representative of the above-named estate. All persons having claims against the said decedent are required to present their claims within four (4) months after the date of the frst publication of this notice or said claims will be forever barred. Claims must either be mailed to Sheila Kleinschmidt the Personal Representative, return receipt requested, at c/o Montana Legacy Law, PLLC, 178 South 2nd St., Hamilton, MT 59840, or fled with the Clerk of the above Court. BS 4-15, 4-22, 4-29-2026. MNAXLP
Looking for the Bitterroot Star? It’s FREE on more than 100 newsstands from Lolo to Conner. Or call us at 777-3928 and we’ll let you know where the closest stand is.
Community invited to free Reduced-Smoke Workshop
Spring in the Bitterroot Valley often means yard work, slash piles, and the return of smoke drifting through our neighborhoods. While fire is an effective tool for managing debris, how and when we burn matters — for personal safety, for our neighbors’ health, and for reducing wildfire risk across our community.
To support safe burning practices, the Fire in the Root Council and local partners are hosting a free Reduced-Smoke Debris Burning Workshop on Saturday, April 18 held at the Hamilton Fire Department at 247 Foxfield Street from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The workshop will feature Dr. Peter Kolb, MSU Extension Forestry Specialist and accredited forestry research scientist, who will share practical guidance on constructing efficient debris piles, burning safely, reading weather conditions, and choosing the right timing to minimize smoke production. His presentation will blend science with real-world application, helping residents feel confident planning their own fuel reduction projects.
After a complimentary lunch, attendees will travel to a nearby private property for live burn demonstrations. Because
Lottery for Bitterroot River commercial use permits to open
A lottery to fll three available permits for commercial fshing and foating on the upper and West Fork of the Bitterroot River will be open for entry April 20 through May 18, 2026. The upper and West Fork Bitterroot River is a restricted use river, and outftters are required to obtain a permit before conducting commercial operations.
The three available permits are for a portion of West Fork of the Bitterroot and the upper Bitterroot River from C. Ben White Fishing Access Site (FAS) downstream to Wally Crawford FAS. River access points above C. Ben White FAS are managed by the U.S. Forest Service and are not included in this drawing. Apply online at fwp.mt.gov/buyandapply/ specialuseriverpermits from April 20-May 18. The number of commercial permits is capped at 53 annually. Permits become available
periodically when the department conducts a lottery for permits that have been revoked or abandoned. Three new permittees will be selected from those that enter the lottery. The lottery drawing for permits is scheduled for the week of May 18, 2026. The drawing will be randomized by FWP licensing, and successful applicants will be notifed via email shortly after. Those successful must then complete an application to receive their permit prior to conducting any commercial use. Permitted outftters have specifc requirements for operations, and some of the details can be found online at: fwp.mt.gov/buyandapply/specialuseriverpermits. For more information on the permit lottery and operating requirements, contact FWP Bitterroot District recreation manager, Jess Martin, at Jessica. Martin@mt.gov or 406-273-4253.
safe equipment use is a foundational step in this process, there will be an on-site chainsaw safety session offering hands-on instruction and practical reminders before the burn. Participants will then experience firsthand how different pile construction methods affect smoke output and burn efficiency.
This workshop is about more than burning debris piles — it’s about neighbors looking out for one another and building a more fire-adapted, resilient community together. The event is free and open to the public. Lunch will be provided. Please RSVP through the event link on www.fireintheroot.org by April 12. For additional information, contact Fire in the Root Council at fireintheroot@gmail.com or call 406-802-0980. A reminder email will be sent 48 hours prior to the event.
NOTICE OF ELECTION
Notice is hereby given that the following elections will be conducted solely by mail ballot:
Ballots will be mailed to all eligible registered voters in the districts on April 17, 2026, and must be returned to the County Election Administrator, Ravalli County Administrative Building, 215 South 4th Street, Suite C, Hamilton, Montana 59840, no later than 8 PM on May 5, 2026.
For voters dropping off their ballot, a DRIVE-THRU BALLOT BOX will be available at the north entrance of the Ravalli County Administrative Building (215 S 4th Street, Hamilton) between April 22 and May 4 (excluding weekends) from 10 AM to 4 PM On Election Day, May 5, hours are from 8 AM to 8 PM.
ON ELECTION DAY ONLY: A secondary ballot drop-off site is available for all elections listed above Drop Site Location: Stevensville Elementary School (gym lobby), 300 Park Avenue, Stevensville, from 7 AM to 8 PM.
All electors, as defined in Title 13, who reside in the District, are eligible to vote in the elections
Early preparation and reconciliation of mail ballots will be held on May 1, 2026 at approximately 10 AM, in the basement of the Ravalli County Courthouse, 205 Bedford Street, Hamilton Continuation of early preparation and reconciliation of mail ballots, as well as the early counting of ballots, will be conducted on May 4, 2026, at approximately 10 AM, in the basement of the Ravalli County Courthouse, 205 Bedford Street, Hamilton Public is welcome to observe.
Beginning at approximately 12 PM on Election Day, May 5, 2026, ballots will be opened, reconciled, and counted by a counting center board in the basement of the Ravalli County Courthouse, 205 Bedford Street, Hamilton No results will be released until after the polls close at 8 PM.
Dated this 2nd day of April,
BUTTERFLY: effects on grizzly bears considered
line, a court should defer to an agency so long as the agency drew ‘a reasonable and manageable line.’ The issue of remedy is also encompassed by the Cou rt’s realignment regarding NEPA adjudication. ‘[E] ven if the [agency’s NEPA analysis] drew the line on the effects of separate upstream or downstream projects too narrowly, that mistake would not neces sarily require a court to vacate the agency’s appro val of the . . . project.’ This new and binding precedent weighs heavily on the adju dication of Plaintiffs’ NEPA claims,” wrote Solito. In a detailed analysis of all the plaintiffs’ claims about violations of the pro cess and issues about pro ject specific amendments to the Forest Plan concer ning elk and old growth
management, and deficient EIS analysis in terms of considering alternatives, road densities, etc., Judge Solito found in favor of the Forest Service. One critical issue that Solito found, however, that would get the decisi on remanded and call for a supplemental EIS, was the determination that there would be no adverse impact on grizzly bears. Solito notes a discrepancy between information con tained in the Supplemental Information Report (SIR) and the Record of Decisi on, remarking firstly that the Plaintiffs’ cited a local newspaper report indi cating three grizzly bears were present in the Sapp hire Mountains in August, 2023. Secondly, that U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s updated determination
regarding grizzly bears’ presence in the project area. And thirdly, that the March 2024 Supplemental Biological Assessment for Grizzly Bear identified the potential for direct, indi rect, and cumulative effects on grizzly bears.
“In effect,” writes Salito, “the SIR states that the Re cord of Decision relied on the conclusion that tran sient grizzly bears may be present in the Project area. However, the Record of De cision indicates otherwise… on its face, the SIR misre presents the conclusions and analysis underlying the Record of Decision. The SIR arrives at the conclu sion that further NEPA analysis is not necessary. However, that conclusion is based, at least in part, on inaccurate or contradictory recitation of the contents
House District 86
A Rino‑Crat brings together the best of Republican and Democrat, fnding more com mon ground with community neighbors than points of separation.
Over my 50+ years in Hamilton—as a small busi ness owner and employer of anywhere from zero to twenty people—I lived through double‑digit infation in the 1970s and 1980s, three reces sions among other economic shocks. During all of that, I never believed a political party mattered more than showing up for work, making ends meet, and taking respon sibility. I still don’t.
As a native Montanan and a resident of the Hamilton area since 1965, I was raised as an Eisenhower Republican. With reasonable adaptations for current times, those principles remain my core values. Simply put, that means being fscally conservative, socially responsible, and committed to a strong national defense built on strategic worldwide alliances. For anyone interested, there is plenty of historical context available with a simple Google search.
by Archie Thomas
Over the decades, however, the Repub lican Party has left me. When compared to the values of an Eisenhower Republican, the phrase “Republican in name only” now applies far more accurately to the entire GOP than to those of us who still hold those earlier more encompassing values.
Layered onto this shift is the deafening silence of Montana GOP ofceholders—from the state level down to county ofcials—re garding federal policies that adversely afect Montanans’ individual rights, state sover eignty, the Montana Constitu tion, and our local elections. The wholesale attack on election integrity, along with the DOGE style elimination of RML and U.S. Forest Service federal employees is met with silent blind party loyalty. Meanwhile, millions of Montana taxpayer dollars are being spent defending un constitutional enacted laws, fghting citizen initiatives, and addressing so‑called election problems that do not exist. This is Montana style fraud, waste, and abuse benefting moneyed power brokers rather than our community. I do not believe these conclusions are mine alone. I hear them echoed by thoughtful Republicans, Democrats, and independents throughout.
Eisenhower passed away when I was ten years old. Today, I am fled as a Democratic candidate for Hamilton House District 86. That fling does not make me a Democrat in ideology—it refects the reality of where I can stand, speak honestly, and serve. I welcome the opportunity to continue this discussion.
Vote in the primary on June 2.
Paid for by Archie Thomas
An inconvenient truth: a reply to Helen Sabin
It’s almost unbelievable that someone spreading easily disproven claims now wants to lecture others about “bearing false witness.”
Let’s be clear about something: the information I’ve shared isn’t rumor, gossip, or speculation. It’s public record. Anyone can verify it in a matter of minutes. The real problem seems to be that when vot ing records become public, they sometimes expose truths that certain people would rather voters not see. That’s not my problem. That’s the reality of ac countability.
According to the Bozeman Daily Chron icle, Fireweed is partly run by former Democratic stafers and people connected to left leaning organizations. Its owner, Lauren Caldwell, is the former director of the Mon tana Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee—the group dedicated to electing Democrats to the Legisla ture.
And not surprisingly, those same individuals have written maximum dona tions to his campaign.
of the record. Accordingly, the SIR, as currently drafted, cannot sustain Defen dant’s arguments that no further NEPA analysis is required.” She finds the decision not to engage in additional NEPA analysis to be arbitrary and capricious.
Salito decli nes to vacate the decision entirely, however, she does enjoin the Fo rest Service from implementing the project and remands it back to the Forest Ser vice for further review, stating, “It is possible that the agency may be able to resolve the errors that the Court has noted with mini mal delay and disruption to the Project.”
Mike Garrity, Executive Director of Alliance for the
“The SIR states that the Record of Decision relied on the conclusion that transient grizzly bears may be present in the Project area. However, the Record of Decision indicates otherwise…on its face, the SIR misrepresents the conclusions and analysis underlying the Record of Decision. The SIR arrives at the conclusion that further NEPA analysis is not necessary. However, that conclusion is based, at least in part, on inaccurate or contradictory recitation of the contents of the record.”
- Kathleen Solito, U.S. Magistrate Judge
“The court ruled that the Forest Service violated federal law when it told the public that there weren’t grizzlies in the Sapphire mou ntains,” said Sara Johnson, director of Native Ecosys tems Council, a co Plainti ff. “Keeping grizzlies safe in the Bitter root region is the lynchpin to recovery of grizzlies in the lower 48 states,” said Johnson, who has a Ph.D. in wildlife biology and was a wild life biologist for the Forest Service for 14 years. “This critical area connects the grizzly popula tion in the Gre ater Yellowsto ne region with the grizzly bear populations in the Northern Continental Divide, Cabi net Yaak, and Selkirk regions, thus providing genetic diver sity to preclude irreversible inbreeding.”
Wild Rockies, also harke ned back to a preceding legal victory three years ago when a federal court in Montana ordered the
Forest Service to reanalyze the recovery of grizzlies in the region. “On one side, we fought for and won a new analysis that will look at the big picture of Bitterro ot grizzly recovery over the whole re gion; on the other side, we fought and prevailed against a specific project that is trying to move forward as if Bitterroot grizzly bears don’t exist.” “Most grizzlies are killed within 1/3 mile of a road,” Garrity said. “So, this is great news for Bitterroot grizzly bears since they would be at incredible risk if the Forest Servi ce was allowed to bulldoze even more roads into the pro ject area. This is a win for Bitterroot grizzlies. Without Bitterroot bears, we can never fully recover endangered grizzly bears in the U.S.”
Resurrecting Reagan’s ‘Big Tent’
This past legislative session, I was proud to support lowering property taxes for over 80% of Montanans, increasing vocational education opportunities for young Mon‑ tanans, strengthening the fnancial vitality of our rural hospitals, and delivering a balanced state budget that grew at less than 1%.
by Kathy Love
For example, you’ve repeatedly accused me of voting myself a legislative pay raise. That accusation is fat out false. The public re cord shows that my opponent voted yes on that measure. Not me. Anyone can verify it with a simple search.
You’ve also repeatedly claimed to know how I voted in the Montana GOP chairman race. That vote was conducted by secret ballot with three candidates. Unless you’ve suddenly developed psychic powers, you have absolutely no idea how I voted. But apparently facts aren’t nearly as useful as accusations.
Then there’s the claim that I paid the Montana GOP $2,200—later magically infated to $3,300. That claim collapses in stantly when anyone bothers to look at my COPP flings. In other words, the truth is available to anyone who actually wants it. But the truth doesn’t seem to be the goal here.
If we’re going to talk about hones ty, maybe we should also talk about my opponent’s campaign flings. They show that his campaign hired a company called Fireweed.
That’s not a rumor. That’s not an accusation. That’s documented fact.
And while we’re discuss ing honesty, let’s talk about the anonymous attacks that seem to come from a network of fake social media profles—accounts that hide behind fake names while throwing around insults and accusations. We know who you are. That’s not courage. It’s not integrity. It’s political cowardice.
And it certainly isn’t Christian. Scripture warns about bearing false witness, but it also tells us to confront hypocrisy and speak the truth. Even Jesus called out the hypocrites and the money changers when they corrupted what was supposed to be righteous.
Christians are not called to sit quietly while lies are repeated in hopes that they’ll eventually stick. We are called to stand up and speak the truth. And here is the truth voters should remember:
Rumors can be invented. Accusations can be repeated. Smears can be coordinat ed.
But voting records don’t lie. And when the record becomes public, sometimes the truth becomes very incon venient for the people trying to hide it.
So after a lifetime of public service, including 30 years in the U.S. Army, nine years on the local school board, and nearly eight years representing the citi‑ zens of the Hamilton area in the Montana House of Rep‑ resentatives, I had consid‑ ered retiring from public life at the end of this year. But troubling developments in our state politics caused me to reconsider. Specifcally, both major political parties are increasingly dominated by extreme factions that are intent on enforcing ideological pu‑ rity at the expense of serving the interests of all Montanans.
by David Bedey
Republican Party. Let me be clear: I will never swear an oath to any political party. I will never put a party platform ahead of my duty to support, protect, and defend the Con‑ stitution. And I will neither compromise my conserva‑ tive values nor neglect my duty to represent all my constituents just to please party bosses who presume to be empowered to defne what it means to be a con‑ servative and to determine what counts as “conserva‑ tive” policy—and who expect legislators to slavishly follow their orders.
So last November, I announced my can‑ didacy to represent Senate District 43. Since then, I’ve spoken to hundreds my fellow citizens—Republicans, Democrats, and independents—who share my con‑ cerns. They are weary of the often childish hyper partisanship that is infecting politics in our state. They recognize that neither party is focused on serving the people. They expect good government from legislators who do the hard work necessary to solve problems instead of obediently toeing the party line. And they are appalled by the fact that my own party demanded that I swear an oath of allegiance to the Montana
George Washington foresaw this dire situation when in his Farewell Ad‑ dress he wrote: “However [political parties] may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.”
President Reagan knew the way out of such difculties. He championed the concept of a “big tent” Republican Party that appeals to a broad spectrum of conser‑ vatives, can broaden its base, and promotes sound conservative policy.
I am an unashamed Reagan Republican who is committed to returning the MTGOP to being a true party of Lincoln and Reagan. If you share this objective, I’d appreciate your support in the primary election.
This 249-lb. male grizzly bear was captured at Whitetail Golf Course near Stevensville in 2018 and relocated to the Blackfoot area. Star fle photo.
Recently,
like a
feel
than a shave from a straight razor… other than shaving with a straight razor one has made himself. Hence, I sent myself on a journey through the process and found more than I bargained for. Straight razors are beautifully simple and have been found in nearly all cultures across the world. They primarily involve two side handle scales, pinned with rivets at either end, with the pivot point of the razor sandwiched between the scales on one end. The deep ground edge of the blade means no stop is required in the construction. The blade stops naturally by sandwiching between the handle scales. Additionally, friction is created by the riveting process, so no springs or anything else is required for a smooth, controlled opening and closing action. There is also no locking mechanism needed or anything else.
Musings on razors
sword makers who crafted blades from “iron sand” steel would then use that ancient material and skill to make very high-priced razors. These refned, and handless Japanese razors were the true testament of a blade smith.For me, making the razor was not the challenge; it was the sharpening. If it is not already obvious, shaving razors need to be extremely sharp.
by John Dowd
There are a few people familiar with the levels of sharpness that can be attained, but the basic rundown is as follows. Work-sharpness, where a knife can cut, but only roughly; perfect for packing tape. Many people carry their work knives at this state, where they do not need to worry about resharpening or abusing such a knife.
Next is true sharpness, where a knife can perform fne tasks like animal skinning. This is where most knives fall into, and what most people can achieve with limited practice. However, there are three more levels that most people will never be able to achieve by hand.
All that means a straight razor is about as simple a knife as a person can create. However, I have waited years to make one because with that simplicity must come elegance. Straight razors, true handmade ones, often demand a high price because they are simply beautiful, and can showcase a knife maker’s skill.
In ancient Japan, the”kamisori,” was a simple razor made from a single piece of steel. These were made, even after the carrying of weapons was prohibited in 1878 by the Haitō Edict. After that point,
Razor sharp, or “shaving-sharp” would be the next level, and is exactly that. This can only be achieved through consistent rapidity, and with very little variation in each stroke on a stone. This level of sharpness will shave hair, but often leaves what is called “razor burn,” where the edge still irritates the skin.
An even sharper knife may be considered hair-popping sharp. This is where true razors often fall, and is supremely difcult to achieve. Even more so, perfection of action and consistent repeated movement is needed. At the mere touch of a knife to a hair, the hair will “pop” in half. I am proud to
say that this is the level I was able to reach with my sharpening skills. On a stone out of a river, no less. However, there is a fnal level of sharpness that can be achieved by hand called “hair-whittling sharp.”
This level is where a knife can be held at an angle slightly beyond parallel to a human hair. When moving along it, it will shave of strings of the hair, literally whittling the hair into pieces. This is only achievable with masterful technique and specifc tools, migrating from course to fne, and stropping well. I have only seen some people reach this point in skill, and never have I seen a knife taken to this point in person.
Sharpening, to me, is the true test of a person’s skill. They must care for the tool they possess and put hours into perfecting a simple task. Yet, that persistence has actual and visible levels of mastery that everyone, even the novice, can see.
In ancient stories, there was a truly fnal level of sharpness. There were imagined mythical swords so sharp that they could pierce the veil between worlds, split light and even cut the soul. Only true masters could achieve this last and ultimate level of sharpness and it was a craft in and of itself. Often, swords were considered beautiful objects, but a sword with an ultimate level of sharpness was legendary.
Swords like the famed Excalibur were considered to have supernatural sharpness, the ability to cleave cleanly through steel armor. The Muramasa blades of Japan were famous and revered. Often considered bloodthirsty, they could never be satiated and were believed to be cursed. From some blades, a simple cut would be inescapably deadly.
There is a concept I have been contemplating lately. “Mushin.” It is a Japanese word for something many people refer to as “fow,” or “no-mind.” In Zen Buddhist writings, it is described as a state of being where a person experiences an instantaneous severing of
thought during an exercise. In martial arts, this is where the repetition of movement leads to a fow of action commanded purely by muscle memory. In modern science, it is increasingly considered that the human mind may be a quantum machine, able to perceive both past and future occurrences, simultaneously. Our brains may be able to use this information to afect the present. In essence, one learns from oneself before knowing it. That fow state can then be considered a trans-temporal and dimensional state, where one’s body literally becomes coherent with its past, future, and present self in perfect union, across limitless dimensions. This is the point where a motion, practiced over and over again, like water over stone, crafts inconceivable shapes in this present reality. A disciplined hand, focused on perfecting an action, across the breadth of one’s heart, builds something more than the action itself. It ends in the mindless ability to perform perfection, without efort, and a pure, direct result from a thought. To reach Mushin, a person
must persist through humble and reverent practice. The same stroke, over and over again, and upon this combine other perfected actions. It is, essentially, the enlightenment of the body, deriving the spiritual, and distilling that into the physical world. Just as water over a rock, over and over again, the soft can weather the much harder, and create that which cannot exist in nature. Perfection.
My damascus steel straight razor, with buffalo horn handle and reverse-scrimshaw design. Far from perfect. Photo by John Dowd.
Backyard Woodpeckers
Sitting in my ofce on March 5, I’m looking at a winter scene of about 5 inches of snow and we could use more. The ofcial date for spring migration is March 15, and I’m looking forward to seeing more birds in my yard. There are 13 species of woodpeckers in Montana. Most are not backyard visitors. Only four, but most likely three will ever be seen in your yard. The rest have such specifc habitat requirements that it is unlikely you would
by Gary Swant
encounter them in your yard. The Pileated and Lewis’s require large cottonwood trees along river bottoms. Black-backed and American Three-toed require recent coniferous forest fres. Williamson’s Sapsucker require stands of old growth conifers. Rednaped Sapsucker require soft wood deciduous trees but comes occasionally to yards with deciduous trees. Red-headed is an eastern Montana species, and Red-bellied, Yellow-bellied,
White-headed are rare. That leaves Northern Flicker, Downy, and Hairy as common back yard visitors. Flickers are easy to identify. They are large, with a gray head, brown back with black barring. The belly is speckled with black dots. The most distinguishing trait is the black breastband. There are two subspecies locally. The “red-shafted” has reddish underwings and is found mostly west of the divide, and the “Yellow-shafted” with yellow underwings mostly east of the divide. Intergrades are common, showing traits of both sub-species. Males are told from females by a red stripe on the face (malar) in the Red-shafted, and black in the Yellow-shafted. Hairy and Downy are a little more difcult to separate. Both are black and white patterned. The Downy is the more common and smaller, with a length of 6.4 inches compared to 8.7 in the Hairy. I use the length of the bill for identifcation. The bill of the Hairy is equal to the width of the head and Downy’s bill is much shorter than the width of the head. Males have a red splash on the back of the head. I have seen all three species in my yard in Butte and Deer Lodge. Downy tend to like deciduous trees and Hairy coniferous trees.
How do you attract these species to your yard? Maintain healthy trees that have insects just under the bark or in the crevices of the bark. Woodpeckers are insect eaters. Woodpeckers are also attracted to suet blocks. I buy straight suet as they are the least expensive. It’s not necessary to have suet plus peanut chips or other combinations. Place several suet cages
Keep Montana Green art contest winners announced
The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) Southwestern Land Ofce announces sixteen K-12 students have earned top prizes in the Keep Montana Green (KMG) art contest and will advance to the statewide competition.
This year’s regional contest received 138 entries from 12 schools in southwest Montana, showcasing students’ creativity in promoting wildfre prevention. The theme of this year’s art contest was “Hot and Windy, Fire Moves Quickly!” The theme highlights how dry fuels combined with wind can cause fres to spread rapidly and emphasizes the importance of avoiding activities that could spark a fre during high-risk days. Art entries are initially judged regionally; frst, second, third, and honorable mention places are selected from each of the four age groups.
in your yard a little distance apart. Other species such as chickadees will use the suet blocks as well. These three woodpeckers are year-round residents. You can expect to see them, especially in the spring when they need extra energy for breeding and raising
Intermediate Division, Grades 4-6: First Place – Lucy Moore-Zent, ffth grade, teacher Mr. Bosshardt, Hellgate Elementary, Missoula
Second Place – Hendrix Fehrer, ffth grade, teacher Mrs. McKelvy, Fred Moodry Intermediate School, Anaconda Third Place – Paige Finlinson, ffth grade, teacher Mr. Bosshardt, Hellgate Elementary, Missoula
Honorable Mention – Milo Tha, fourth grade, teacher Ms. Ogden, Victor School District, Victor
Regional winners advance to statewide competition to be judged against other regional winners. The state winners receive certifcates, cash prizes, and statewide recognition, including being featured in the yearly Keep Montana Green calendar and recognized on the Keep Montana Green website at www.keepmontanagreen.com/art-contest-winners. State winners will be announced in April, and their artwork will be featured in the annual KMG calendar.
The 2026 Southwest Montana regional winners include:
Primary Division, Grades K-3: First Place – Maya Mannix, third grade, teacher Ms. Gendreau, Helmville School, Helmville Second Place – Allora Williams, third grade, teacher Ms. Wilson, Woodman School, Lolo Third Place – Caydence Kamrath, third grade, teacher Ms. Wilson, Woodman School, Lolo Honorable Mention – Avonlea Tha, second grade, teacher Ms. Ogden, Victor School District, Victor
Junior Division, Grades 7-9: First Place –Evani Spencer, eighth grade, teacher Ms. Schowengerdt, Washington Middle School, Missoula Second Place –Ari Aroner, eighth grade, teacher Ms. Schowengerdt, Washington Middle School, Missoula Third Place –Elise Jessop, ninth grade, grade Ms. Lewis, Stevensville High School, Stevensville
Honorable Mention – Hayley Arlington, ninth grade, Mr. McBride, Florence-Carlton High School, Florence
Senior Division, Grades 10-12: First Place – Luken Kestrel, eleventh grade, Mr. McBride, Florence-Carlton High School, Florence Second Place – Madee Hoover, twelfth grade, Mr. McBride, Florence-Carlton High School, Florence Third Place – Olivia Hanson, eleventh grade, Ms. Lewis, Stevensville High School, Stevensville
Keep Montana Green is an annual art contest that helps teach K-12 students about wildfre prevention and fre safety. In addition to the art contest, Keep Montana Green provides education and resources to community members of all ages, designed to help Montanans reduce wildfre risk and protect the landscapes they love.
young. I take down the suet during July and August when the weather is hot as the suet tends to melt. Some birders have had success making suet by rendering animal fat, but it took more time than it was worth for me. Enjoy the Woodpeckers!
Above, a Hairy Woodpecker female. Below, a Hairy Woodpecker male. Photos by Gary Swant.
A Northen Flicker male. Photo by Gary Swant.
Sports
by Scott Sacry Sports Editor
Florence softball honors Thill, defeats MAC
The Florence girls softball team hosted MAC (Mission/Arlee/Charlo) on Saturday, April 4, in their season opening game. The contest took on added significance as the Florence softball community came together to dedicate Florence’s softball field to Mike “Otto” Thill during a pregame ceremony. Over his lifetime, Thill was an integral part of the Florence athletic and softball community. Thill died on October 17 when a vehicle he was driving was struck on Highway 93 outside Florence. The pregame ceremony included the dedication of the field to Thill, first pitches
thrown out by former Florence softball players, and the unveiling of a plaque under the outfield scoreboard
reading “Welcome to Otto Thill Field. Home of the Lady Falcons.” As an added bonus, USA Softball of Montana posthumously inducted Thill into its Montana Hall of Fame, and they presented a trophy to Thill’s daughter during the ceremony.
Corvallis baseball defeats Stevensville
Numerous Bitterroot Valley sporting events were canceled last week because of the weather, but the Corvallis baseball team was able to host Stevensville on Tuesday, March 31, before the weather hit. The Blue Devils defeated the Yellowjackets 10-0 in fve innings. Corvallis’ Joe Hixon was the star of the day, pitching four scoreless innings, allowing three hits, and striking out four batters. At the plate, Hixon went 3 for 3, scored two runs, and had fve RBIs. Also for Corvallis, Haedon Jessop went 1 for 3 with two RBIs. Adrian Sears went 1 for 3 with an RBI. For Stevensville, Broghan Lenahan went 2 for 2, and Cooper Miller and Exekiel Gardea each got a hit.
Florence 11, M AC 0
A fter the pregame ceremonies, the game commenced. Both teams have historically strong softball programs and both teams qualified for the State B/C tournament last year, where Florence was the 2025 state runner-up.
Florence wasted little time asserting their dominance. The Falcons scored four runs in the first inning and seven runs in the second to jump out to an early lead.
Stevensville tennis at Polson, Ronan
The Stevensville boys and girls tennis teams went to Polson on Saturday, April 4, to play matches against Polson and Ronan. The Stevensville boys beat the Ronan boys 3-0, while the Stevensville girls defeated Ronan 3-2. The Stevensville boys lost to Polson 2-5, and the Stevensville girls lost to Polson 1-5. Girls singles vs Polson: 1. Nevaeh Meeder (S) lost to Baily Lemm (P) 3-8; 2. Gracelyn Godfrey (S) lost to Aleya Kitteman (P) 2-6, 4-6; 3. Dawn Harms (S) lost to Johanna Biebel (P) 0-6, 0-6; 4. Lia Werschmoller (S) lost to Rylee Taylor Jeferson (P) 2-6, 2-6. Girls doubles vs Polson: 1. Nevaeh Meeder/Avery Sacry (S) defeated Hunldy Moss/Greta Lund (P) 3-6, 7-6 (7-4),10-6; 2. Bridgett Madruga/Riley Moore (S) lost to Vivian Grainy/Josie Hendrickson (P) 1-6, 1-6.
Girls singles vs Ronan: 2. Bridgett Madruga (S) defeated Loren Olson (R) 6-2, 6-0; 3. Dawn Harms (S) lost to Amy Snyder (R) 0-6, 0-6; 4. Lia Werschmoller (S) lost to Brinley Shallock (R) 3-6, 4-6. Girls doubles vs Ronan: 1. Nevaeh
Meeder/Avery Sacry (S) defeated Anaka Hardy/Emily Skare (R) 6-2, 6-1; 2 Gracelyn Godfrey/Riley Moore (S) defeated Adele Shallock/Olivia Willer (R) 6-2, 6-4.
Boys singles vs Polson: 1. Jeremy Madruga (S) defeated Ruger Ellis (P) 6-2, 6-4; 2. Luis Eberhardt (S) defeated Brody Kline (P) 6-1, 6-3; 3. Tony Brown (S) lost to Maddox Bird (P) 1-6, 0-6; 4. Lance Morris (S) lost to Cash Brown (P) 2-6, 1-6.
Boys double vs Polson: 1. Jeremiah St. Germain/Drake Tully (S) lost to Marcus Lucas/Teague McEline (P) 1-6, 0-6; 2. Ross Cochran/BK Ketron (S) lost to Strader Gage/Zane Newman (P) 0-6, 0-6; 3. JR Chmeka/Thane Harms (S) lost to Parker Hendrickson/Truman Sawyer (P) 0-6, 0-6.
Boys singles vs Ronan: 1. Jeremy Madruga (S) defeated Rowan Parks (R) 6-0, 6-0; 3. Tony Brown (S) defeated Kaden Buck (R) 6-4, 6-4
Boys doubles vs Ronan: 1. Jeremiah St. Germain/Drake Tully (S) defeated Mason Parks/Matiya Nenemay (R) 7-5, 7-5.
They then cruised to an 11-0 victory.
Florence pitcher Jaden Fisher was masterful, allowing only two hits and striking out nine batters over five scoreless innings. At the plate for Florence, leadoff hitter
Florence/Darby Invitational
The Florence and Darby high school golf teams hosted over 120 golfers at the aptly named Florence/ Darby Invitational on Tuesday, March 31, at the Hamilton Golf Club in Hamilton. In the girls team standing, Florence, the defending 2025 state champions, took 2nd place.
Boys’ individual results
Florence: Brody Duchien fnished in 2nd place (74). Ian McLean and RJ Moody tied for 3rd (81); Preston Ekstedt tied for 11th (86); and Easton Anderson tied for 17th (88).
Girls’ individual results
Florence:
and
Maggie Schneiter went 2 for 2, scored two runs and had two RBIs. Florence also got RBIs from Jemma Bouma, Taylor Pyette, Jaden Fisher, Elizabeth Camp, Anya Stokes, and Hayley Arlington.
Above, Florence’s softball feld was dedicated to Mike “Otto” Thill during a pregame ceremony of Saturday, April 4, in Florence.
Photo by Scott Sacry.
Below, USA Softball of Montana posthumously inducted Otto Thill into its Montana Hall of Fame during a pregame ceremony in Florence on Saturday, April 4. Photo by Stephanie K. Geiser Photography.
Darby: Gus Harrell tied for 22nd (90). Jordan Browning took 32nd (95). Liam Lucas tied for 55th (109); Abe Atkins took 65th (115); and Jaden Bailey took 68th (125).
Kipley Solari fnished in 2nd place (87). Reese Briney tied for 10th (103). Lexi Danczyk and Lacie Ketelhut tied for 14th (105),
Kayla Rodgers tied for 24th (114). Darby: Bently Rouse took 31st (120). Kota Fisher tied for 43rd (148)
Florence’s Maggie Schneiter went 2 for 2, scored two runs and had two RBIs in Florence’s 11-0 victory over MAC on Saturday, April 4. Photo by Scott Sacry.
Above, Florence pitcher Jaden Fisher allowed only two hits and struck out nine batters over fve scoreless innings in Florence’s 11-0 victory over MAC on Saturday, April 4. Photo by Scott Sacry.
Bitterroot Health is proud to announce the continuation of its annual Medical Staf Scholarship, a one-time $4,000 award for Ravalli County high school graduates who are pursuing studies in the medical feld.
The Scholarship, established to support and encourage the next generation of healthcare professionals, is open to students who have completed at least one year of specialized health or medical education. It refects Bitterroot Health’s deep commitment to investing in the future of healthcare within the Bitterroot Valley. Past recipients include John Edwards, a Stevensville High School graduate and current student at the University of Montana’s Skaggs School of Pharmacy. “For me, getting the Bitterroot Health Med Staf scholarship meant that I could worry a little less about my loans and focus more on learning everything I can to become a great pharmacist,” Edwards said.
In a notable year, 2021, the scholarship was awarded to two outstanding nursing
Drake, a Hamilton High School graduate, earned her Certifed Nursing Assistant (CNA) certifcation and began working at The Living Centre in Stevensville while still in high school. Banister, a graduate of Flo-
rence Carlton High School, pursued nursing studies at the MSU College of Nursing.
“We recognize that building a healthier community is more than just healthcare,” said Dr. Weinberger, former Chief Medical Ofcer and current physician at Bitterroot Health. “It’s about fnding multiple ways to support the growth and well-being of our community. Medical studies require tremendous dedication and fnancial investment, and we’re honored to help local students pursue their healthcare dreams.”
Scholarship Application
Requirements
Deadline: Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Submit to: Bitterroot Health Medical Staf Ofce, 1200 Westwood Dr, Hamilton, MT 59840
Requirements:
• Must be a graduate of a Ravalli County
high school
• Must have completed at least one year of post-secondary health or medical education
Application materials :
• Full name and contact information
• High School name and graduation date
• Higher education transcript
• Summary of community involvement and volunteer activities
• Statement of financial need and available educational resources
• One academic recommendation
• List of healthcare certifications
• Essay outlining personal background, career goals, and how they relate to patient care
For questions about the application process, please contact Chelsea at chelseafuge@bitterroothealth.org
New bridge, culverts to be placed on Lost Horse Road
The Bitterroot National Forest
is planning to install a new bridge and replace numerous culverts this summer along Lost Horse Road on the Darby-Sula Ranger District. The work is scheduled to begin August 1 and will take approximately one month to complete.
Two failing culverts at Ten-mile Creek will be replaced by the new bridge, and fve undersized culverts at Twelve-mile Creek will be replaced with new, larger culverts.
The work is located in areas and at crossings that have recently experienced washouts during high water events, damaging the road, and spilling large amounts of sediment into Lost Horse Creek.
In order for the project to be completed in a safe and timely manner, Lost Horse Road (Forest Road #429) is scheduled to be closed at the lower gate, mile post 5, during the month of August. Heavy equipment from the project will be parked along the road, making it impassable. The Lost Horse cabin rental and Schumaker Campground at Twin Lakes will also be unavailable during this time. Local trails will remain open, but parking areas (past the lower gate) will not be accessible by
vehicles.
“We realize the inconvenience of the road closure at this time of year,” said Steve Brown, Darby-Sula district ranger. “We are working closely with contractors and partners to get this work done in as timely a manner as possible and will be looking to reopen the road as soon as the work is completed.”
In addition to improving public access and safety, the project will also restore critical aquatic habitats and help protect native fsh populations including bull trout and Westslope cutthroat trout.
Lost Horse Creek is one of the most important westside tributaries for bull trout in the Bitterroot River. Bull trout are currently listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Project partners include the Clark Fork Coalition, Trout Unlimited, local irrigation districts, Ravalli County, along with numerous federal and state agencies including Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (FWP), and the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). For more information, contact the Darby-Sula Ranger District at 406-821-3913 or visit www.fs.usda.gov/bitterroot.
students – Alivia Drake and Katie Banister.
Legal theft
The residents of the Bitterroot Valley are being victimized by means of and attempt to apply the provisions of Eminent Domain (relating to physical property seizure) to the process of seizure of intangible rights. This transposition is literally taking place. This application of law would provide investors untold leverage under the protection of federal law. This is the formation of a process by which Rights can be taken, as has been done with physical property. This legal “threading of a needle” is exhibited by the proponents of the Sheep Creek Hustle as they constantly compensate for changing circumstances that could challenge their efort to take your rights through abuse of the 5th Amendment of the Constitution. If they are successful in using that law to seize your intangible rights, you will have no means to restore equity to that imposition. No means of appeal.
Apply logic to what you see here. Investors are moving to high-proft activities not previously available, as they are aware of the legal manipulations to seize some of your rights and feel they will be successful.
What is proposed is bad enough. Where does it go from here? You are unwilling participants in a social and legal experiment that investors are betting you will lose. They are buying time here to perfect their instrument of destruction.
The Sheep Creek Hussle is proof of that process at work. We are losing. You need not be an attorney; I’m not, just look at the facts from their perspective, and you will realize what is happening.
Fight to keep your rights. They will be taken without recourse.
William (Bill) Campbell Conner
Bitcoin
It's been reported that the war Iran is costing the American taxpayer upwards of a Billion dollars a day! I was just wondering if Trump and Steven Miller are trying to bankrupt our country in order to change our currency from the dollar to the Bitcoin? The Trump family controls upwards of 6.8 Billion Bitcoin. What is Bitcoin? Will it have the same value as the Dollar? Can we buy as much bacon, eggs and bread as we could with a Dollar? Can we buy a car or house or clothing with it? Will I get the same amount value out of Bitcoin for my retirement as I did with the d Dollar?
I was just wondering!
Charles Sleath Hamilton
Rules of disengagement
We are living through a season in which extremism on both ends of the political spectrum is treated as evidence of conviction rather than a warning sign of decay. Loudness is mistaken for courage, cruelty for honesty, and escalation for strength. In the process, we are steadily abandoning the very habits that make self-government possible.
Our republic will not collapse because people disagree. Disagreement is its lifeblood. It will collapse. When disagreement loses its moral boundaries and becomes an exercise in domination, humiliation, and force. When that happens, persuasion gives way to coercion, and liberty quietly exits the room.
Civility is the frst casualty. Civility is not politeness for comfort’s sake. It is restraint in the presence of power. It is the voluntary limitation of one’s strength so that dialogue remains possible. When civility disappears, speech becomes a weapon, institutions become tools of retaliation, and public life becomes a contest to see who can infict the most damage with the least accountability. Closely following is the loss of sincerity. When people no longer speak to be understood but to perform, language itself erodes. Arguments are no longer ofered to
Opinion
reveal truth but to signal loyalty or provoke reaction. In such an environment, trust cannot survive, and without trust, no free society can function for long.
Humility is next. Not the false humility of self-denial, but the genuine recognition that no individual or faction possesses complete knowledge or moral perfection. Extremism thrives on certainty. It insists that disagreement is evidence of corruption rather than diference, and that victory is justifed by any means. History is unambiguous about where that path leads.
Truth, once treated as negotiable, becomes expendable. Facts give way to narratives, narratives give way to slogans, and slogans give way to force. When truth is subordinated to power, the republic ceases to be a shared project and becomes a battlefeld.
This is where disengagement becomes not only prudent, but necessary. Disengagement is not surrender. It is the conscious refusal to participate once persuasion has been replaced by coercion. It is knowing when continued engagement no longer serves truth or the common good, but only deepens division and hardens resolve. A citizen who cannot disengage cannot govern himself, and a people who cannot govern themselves will inevitably be governed by others.
Extremism on either side feeds on the same failure, the abandonment of self-command. It does not matter whether the language is clothed in righteousness or rebellion. When restraint is gone, liberty soon follows.
Self-government is not sustained by laws alone. It is sustained by citizens capable of civility, sincerity, humility, respect for truth, and the discipline to disengage when necessary. These are not optional virtues. They are prerequisites. Remove them, and no constitution, court, or election can compensate for their absence.
Every generation is tempted to believe it is immune to these lessons. None ever is. It is important to remember that righteousness and rebellion wear the same mask.
If we wish to preserve a republic rather than merely argue within its ruins, we would do well to recover the habits that make freedom possible, before force is mistaken for order and silence for peace.
Tony Hudson Stevensville
‘Transparency’ Project
In spite of being listed as a FAST 41 “Transparency” Project, the only thing transparent about the Sheep Creek mine has been years of public deception by mining company US Critical Materials.
In a newspaper article on May 2, 2024, Ed Cowle, a director of the management team for USCM said the company soon plans to reach out to locals to talk about plans to mine Rare Earth Elements at Sheep Creek mine at the head of the Bitterroot River to address some of the opposition, and announced it may open up a local ofce.
“We thought the smart thing and the right thing would be … to reach out and give some presentations,” he said. “And I think that will be happening very soon.”
On 3/28/26, a newspaper article wrote, “As the face of Critical Materials at the meeting, Osterman acknowledged at the time that his company had been slow to court a skeptical public. He vowed to engage an “advisory board” of local residents, though he said as of March that hadn’t happened yet. By the end of May, Osterman said the company plans to establish a board with “the appropriate representation from all sectors” ranging the spectrum of support for the company’s project.” “We’re just barely into this and we’re trying to do the best we can at this stage,” Osterman said. “It seems like it’s going to be enough economic value that it’s worthwhile moving forward, so now we start the real efort.”
“That’s going to include determining
baseline environmental conditions in the project area and launching more public engagement, he added, including a local ofce and the forthcoming launch of a website about the project.”
As of April Fool’s Day 2026, “the smart thing and the right thing” has still not been done; there’s still no local public engagement or website by USCM or local USCM ofce.
Remember the quote: “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.” USCM claims new, improved mining techniques will protect the Bitterroot while they remove their corporate profts. Don’t believe a thing USCM says. Larry Campbell Darby
Michele for sanity
Does it seem to you lately that things have gone crazy? Well, they have. There’s so much division; so much uncertainty; so much confusion? Why is this so? Take a look back a couple of years to the leadership in our country – those wanting globalist values almost put this country on the brink of disaster. Now is the time to return to commonsense, constitutional ideals for our country, Montana and here in Ravalli County. Michelle Binkley can and will make that happen.
Michele is a leader; a constitutional patriot focused on U.S. citizens. She has been and will be a representative of her constituents here in Ravalli County.
Michele served as a representative in our Montana legislature in both the 2021 and 2023 sessions. Her work in several committees focused on families, education, property taxes and constitutional principles.
Now she wants to return to the task of setting things straight. She will not submit to party bosses, dark money, and out of state special interest groups. All of which are strong infuences in government today; all of which we see fanning the fames of vitriol in Ravalli County! This year’s Republican primary is a decision between loyalty to Ravalli and Montana, or loyalty to out of state interests. I’m going with the candidate who hasn’t signed a loyalty pledge to anonymous donors in Virginia. I’m going with Michele Binkley.
We need a traditional Republican here in our county representing us.
Please join me in voting for Michele Binkley on June 2nd, 2026. Parnelli Sharp Victor
Innovative readiness training
I came across a reference in the Classifed Ads to a new program proposed as a collaboration between the Darby School District and Darby town in the Bitterroot Star (March 25, 2026). The thirty-day comment period is very short for a new outreach that impacts the valley. It even mentions if folks don’t get their comments in by then they “will be considered to have waived their objections to military assistance for this project.”
I’d like more information. I am envisioning hundreds of folks and animals piling into the Darby School District next summer to secure these services. The infrastructure itself looks prohibitive. Who will be evaluating these service providers?
I also see this in direct competition with other providers already established in the valley who will be unable to compete with whatever charges will be necessary (which are not mentioned in the ad).
What is “military assistance?” Does that mean personnel standing by? Delivering services? Funding?
And fnally the amount of this “Department of War” funding is not mentioned, nor how long the project will run for.
I have more questions that I think others might be wondering about as well. Would you please ofer a more thorough descrip-
tion to the community?
Star Jameson Hamilton
Protect the valley!
At the March 24 Hamilton Republican Women’s Club debate, voters in Senate District 43 - Corvallis, Hamilton, Darby, Conner, and Sula, saw a clear contrast in how two candidates approach serious decisions.
Both Kathy Love and David Bedey are running for the SD43 senate seat. When asked about their votes on HB 7 and HB 8 that are bills funding repair and maintenance of infrastructure across Montana, including Painted Rocks Dam, the diference between them was signifcant and shocking. Rep. Bedey voted yes on the bills. Rep. Love voted no. She explained that she believed the bills would pass regardless of her vote and that she did so to oppose the fnancing method, suggesting the legislature use the state’s rainy-day reserve to fund repairs instead of long-term bonds. That distinction deserves careful attention and common sense to be applied.
Infrastructure like dams, roads, and bridges lasts decades. Because of that, it is typically fnanced over time using longterm bonds. This spreads costs across the generations who beneft from the project rather than placing the entire cost burden on taxpayers today.
HB 8 follows that model, using longterm fnancing at relatively low interest rates – up to 30 yrs @ 3% interest. Bedey’s approach matches “cost with useful life,” avoids large upfront fnancial strain on taxpayers today and preserves fnancial stability. This is widely accepted budgeting practice and many states use it.
Montana’s rainy-day fund or as it’s called the “Budget Stabilization Reserve,” exists for a diferent purpose. It is used to ofset revenue shortfalls, have money to respond to emergencies, such as the Painted Rocks Dam overfowing, and be able to maintain essential services during downturns in the economy.
Love ignores or doesn’t know that using those rainy-day funds for planned, “longterm infrastructure projects” does not eliminate cost but instead it reduces the state’s fnancial cushion and limits fexibility when an actual emergency occurs. In plain words she doesn’t understand fscal management. Love is not only ignorant of budgeting and investing principles, but Montana history. The Blackfeet reservation experienced the consequences of infrastructure failure big time in 1964 when the Swift and Two Medicine dams failed. Both like Painted Rocks were “earthen dams” built a long time ago.
Thirty lives were lost. Damages exceeded $60 million or roughly $600 million today. Painted Rocks is a HIGH HAZARD dam! Thus, budgeting must be grounded in results and research, not slogans like when Love suggested we follow the “Kansas experiment” (2012–2017).
Their action to cut taxes by reducing government spending that is Love’s campaign slogan, led to such signifcant fscal stress on the state that in 2018, the state instituted the largest tax hike in history. And she wants us to follow what they did? Seriously?
This race comes down to judgment and choice. You decide.
Should Montana fnance long-term infrastructure in a way that spreads cost fairly across time and keeps reserves safe, or spend funds intended for emergencies?
On June 2, voters in SD43 will decide which approach better protects the Bitterroot Valley both today, and in the years ahead.
Common sense states that you choose the best way to fnance the needed repairs at Painted Rocks and do it efciently. You protect Montanans by good fnancial planning not emptying the very fund meant for emergencies.
Montanans deserve leaders who know
Star Newspaper, Co, a division of Mullen Newspapers. The advertising and editorial content deadline is Friday at 5 p.m. We strive to include news and information that’s important to the people of the Bitterroot Valley. If you have a story idea, or any other concern, call us at 406-777-3928, email: editor@bitterrootstar.com or stop in at our ofce at 115 W. 3rd, #108, Stevensville. The mailing address is P.O. Box 133, Stevensville MT 59870. Correction Policy
Accuracy is important to us. If you see a factual error in a Bitterroot Star news story, please notify the editor immediately and we will print a correction in the next issue.
Our View/Letters
Bitterroot Star editorials are written from the position of the newspaper. The personal columns and letters appearing on the Opinion page and elsewhere in the paper represent the opinion of single individuals and do not necessarily refect the position of the newspaper. The Star welcomes public comment and encourages letters to the editor. Letters on local topics or issues are given priority for publication. Letters should be 600 words or less. Shorter letters generally have a better chance of prompt publication. While letters expressing appreciation for a specifc, out-of-the-ordinary action are welcomed, letters with lists of names of contributors, donors or volunteers are not accepted as letters to the editor. Author’s name, address and phone number (for verifcation, not publication) are required. We do not run letters anonymously. We attempt to run all letters, but reserve the right to edit for length, accuracy, clarity, content and libel. We ask that writers email letters to us, and do not turn them in by hand. This increases the chances the letters will get printed. Our staf already has a full workload.
Bitterroot Star staf
about fnancing and act like
Love has voted twenty-two times to hurt her own constituents. This is just act one. Act two -coming up and voters will NOT be happy to see what she did to make them pay more taxes.
Helen Sabin Corvallis
Maintain the Roadless Rule on national forests
In 2001, the Forest Service passed the Roadless Rule Conservation Act. The Trump administration is seeking to rescind the Act. During a brief public comment period, 99% of the respondents opposed the idea.
The Roadless Rule afected 58.5 million acres of Forest Service roadless lands and put them of-limits to new road construction, logging, and road reconstruction. As the Forest Service recognized in its original review, these roadless lands “have the greatest likelihood of altering and fragmenting landscapes, resulting in immediate, long-term loss of roadless area values and characteristics.”
Abolishing protection from logging and roading provided by the Roadless Rules has major economic consequences, both in direct costs and in avoided costs.
For instance, a practical rationale for the rule is the Forest Service’s acknowledgment that the roughly 370,000 miles of existing Forest Service road network could not be maintained. There is already an $ 11 billion backlog in road maintenance, and creating even more roads would exacerbate this situation.
For instance, nearly 85 percent of the wildfres that start on National Forest land are human-caused. We spend 2.5 billion fghting these fres, and new logging and roading will only increase frefghting costs. A new study found that from 1992 to 2024, wildfres were 4 times more likely to ignite within 50 meters of a road than in a forest without motorized roads. Thus, preserving roadless lands will reduce the likelihood of wildfre.
There are other ecological and economic reasons for preserving the Roadless Rule. Some of the highest quality water is found in roadless areas. Many western cities obtain their drinking water from Forest Service roadless areas and require less treatment than water from other sources.
That same high-quality water supports important fsheries, from salmon to trout, that anglers seek, and provides important food for other wildlife, from bald eagles to river otters. Approximately 70 percent of all roadless areas support native trout and salmon, with 92% of all species at some risk. This includes the “Blue Ribbon” trout streams found in Montana, Idaho, Wyo-
ming, and Colorado, all of which fow from roadless areas. In SE Alaska, nearly all salmon production occurs in Forest Service roadless lands.
Roadless lands are critical for sustaining populations of elk and deer, important to hunters, and essential as prey for predators like mountain lions and wolves. For example, in Idaho, 98% of elk use roadless lands at some point.
Roadless lands are also a major repository of carbon. Carbon emissions are driving climate warming. Just their carbon storage value alone exceeds any economic return from logging.
The idea promoted by the Trump administration that logging our roadless lands can decrease wildfres ignores studies showing that intact forest ecosystems are less likely to burn and burn at lower severity than “managed” forests.
Finally, intact roadless lands are essential for preserving biodiversity, which is the foundation for ecosystem function and stability. Estimates suggest that 57% of vulnerable U.S. wildlife species have suitable habitat in roadless areas.
When all these opportunity costs, as well as actual economic and ecological costs, are considered, any rational person would keep the existing 2001 Roadless Rule Conservation Act intact. Let’s hope a few rational people are working in the current administration.
George Wuerthner, ecologist Livingston/Gardiner
The false promises of artifcial intelligence
Like many, I spend a fair bit of time thinking about AI and its impacts on the world. Much of this time is not by choice. For several years now, we have been bombarded with messages about how AI will improve the world. Some of these promises are things to which anyone can relate. The most common example has to do with AI helping fnding cures for cancer and other medical afictions. This, of course, is a truly exciting prospect and I can imagine a variety of companies employing AI to improve and/or discover new products and solutions.
However, this is not why most large corporations are so excited about AI. They are excited because AI will allow them to fre human beings and achieve even larger profts. It has already begun. According to a recent CNBC report (Dec. 21, 2025), just a handful of large corporations including Amazon, Microsoft, and Salesforce have already cited AI’s role in allowing them to fre more than 50,000 workers. These layofs apparently run the gamut, from high tech to human resource workers. And they are just the tip of the iceberg.
Take web design. I have a good friend who is a highly skilled web designer. Until about a year ago, he was designing websites for a large, well-known retail company. Last fall, I ran into him and was shocked by what he told me. “It’s been six months since I wrote a line of code,” he admitted. “Now, I basically just tell the AI what I want and it comes up with it.” Many of his co-workers, in fact, had already been laid of.
Many of you have no doubt encountered the service-related problems of AI. Just over spring break, a major airline cancelled our child’s fight home with no explanations. We dialed the customer service line to learn that it would be a ninety-minute wait to speak to a real person—but that their brand new, sparkling AI customer service tool was eager and available. As instructed, we gave this AI several tries, only to discover that it totally failed to understand our problem, never mind coming up with a solution.
I admit that I have seen a couple of fun applications of AI, but it is clear that for the average person, the downsides will continue to outweigh positives. Corporations know this and so cloak their AI enthusiasm behind phrases such as “increased efciency”, “empowerment”, and “improved customer outcomes.” AI has dealt just the latest blow to my own writing career as AI bots scour books, blogs, and other sources to perpetrate perhaps the largest theft of intellectual and artistic property in human history. And for what? To make rich people even richer. However, we do not have to go along with all of this. We can fght back. How? First of all, by demanding to talk to real people instead of an AI when you have a problem. Next, push government ofcials to clamp down on companies that are substituting useless AI chatboxes for real customer service people. Finally, and perhaps most important, disengage from giant corporations as much as possible. For both essential and discretionary services, I’ve found that there is usually a smaller, local alternative that is run and managed by real people. Shifting to such businesses not only employs more people, but makes our society more stable—and a heck of a lot more friendly, interesting, and equitable. A world dominated by AI is not a foregone conclusion. Join me in making our voices known, and let’s see what happens.
Sneed Collard Missoula
Mail-in voting ballots
I had the misfortune of seeing Trump speaking on the TV about mail in ballots while watching the news. He told 3 lies in 3 minutes. The frst lie had to do with mail in ballots. He said they were corrupt and a scam. They could not be more secure! To have a mail in ballot sent to your mailing address, you must go to the Court house and
register by giving them your name, your address, your date of birth, your Social Security Number and where you were born. I don’t think an immigrant would be dumb enough to bring attention to themselves by trying to register to vote. The second lie he told was that none of the European countries have mail in voting. Thirty countries in Europe have mail in voting. He told one truth; he said France didn’t have mail in voting which is true, instead they have proxy voting which means if you live in France you can go to the voting poll and vote for your friend, your neighbor, your grandmother or anyone that can’t make it to the voting place. How about that! The third lie was that President Jimmy Carter didn’t like mail in ballots. The Carter administration ordered a study to be done to see if mail in voting was feasible. They never announced a conclusion one way or another! The Republicans and Trump are afraid of mail in ballots because they have no way of controlling this system. It’s a great way to vote if a person is not able to get to the polls, or if they don’t want to be around other people or if they don’t want to be bothered by ICE agents.
Charles Sleath Hamilton
Taco > Chaos
Recently, there have been a couple of events that have confrmed that “TACO leads to CHAOS.”
TACO… Trump “always chickens out” > chaos.
We can see this in his actions in Iran, where he is trying to extricate himself from that situation. He was duped by Mr. Netanyahu of Israel into attacking Iran while negotiations were still going on. Now, Mr. Trump is trying to gracefully exit this mess but, based on his recent address to Americans about the WAR in Iran, he cannot fnd an easy way out. This will lead to more chaos as the Iranians threaten to continue bombing our allies in the Middle East and keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed.
On another matter, Mr. Trump warned countries against supplying oil to Cuba, a country he says he can take control of any time he wants.
Mr. Putin of Russia took this opportunity to challenge our President by sending a large shipment of oil to Cuba.
Mr. “TACO leads to CHAOS” decided at the last minute that it is just fne for Russia to provide oil to Cuba. This action will no doubt lead to a chaotic situation regarding President Trump‘s threats to take over Cuba.
We all remember how chaotic President Trump‘s frst term was. What made us think that his second term would be any less chaotic!
Bondi is OUT!!
Tom Tunny Hamilton
American Legion 94: birthdays, giveaways
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After the regular monthly meeting of American Legion Post 94, a special birthday celebration was held to honor two of its lifetime members.
Featured below, Ed Sperry celebrated his 98th birthday, and Harry Potton celebrated his 91st birthday. Helping with the celebration were Jacqueline and Alexandra Kerry of Patriot Pin Up of Montana.
The American Legion Post 94 of Stevensville recently held a raffe to raise funds for building repairs. The raffe was for fve different black powder guns. The drawing was held March 14.
Pictured clockwise from above: frst place, Walter Wiedemeir, second place, Ashley Bates, third and fourth place, Jill and Paul Delaney and in ffth place was Colleen Lague. Commander Dave Hansen presented the guns to the winners.
My friend Doug Brutocao has fshed all over the world, from places like the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska to New Zealand’s South Island. Much of that experience involved stalking a single fsh or a likely lie, honing in on it, and making repeated casts.
When we last fshed together on the Bitterroot I watched the culmination of those experiences operate at an instinctive level in Doug.
We walked a gravel bar, deciding who would fsh where and how, both of us being careful not to kick or crunch the gravel under our feet more than we had to.
I chose a drop-of below the main current on my side of the river. There had to be some big trout there, hiding under the foam line, waiting for a sculpin – hopefully mine - to wash down from the shallow rife above.
Doug, meanwhile, watched some trout rising in the foam line of a big back-eddy on the opposite side of the river. He continued to walk downstream and I didn’t see him again for about ten minutes.
He found a place where the river spread out to form a slow-moving shallow lip of a pool, crossed there, and then headed up the opposite bank.
As I watched his approach I saw why Doug decided to take the time to cross the river and approach those fsh. Some of them were good-sized, and they were feeding almost lazily on the bluewinged olive mayfies that were circulating in the foam loop at the center the eddy.
The sun angle caused his shadow to fall long across the water. He was nearing the smooth surface of the water at the top of the eddy where its current was fowing opposite of the fow of the main
river. Coming from below, it’s as if he were approaching those fsh from upstream. He stopped well short of where he could be seen by the feeding fsh, took of his shoulder pack and laid it on the gravel bar, squatted beside it and retipped his leader and tied on a fy. He remained in that crouched position and crept forward, his silhou-
ette below the horizon line of the bank, for another forty feet. He was now in position to cast. He kept his rod parallel to the water and kept his false casts to a minimum. He fed line downstream, pulled it aside carefully before casting again at the end of each drift. He caught a couple of trout. The frst was a chunky fsh that put the others down for a few minutes. Doug waited for them to resume feeding and then hooked a fsh that put the others down for good. When we
met up again he told me that the larger trout was a nineteen-inch rainbow that must have eaten a lot of blue-winged olives. That burly rainbow fought with all his weight against his small fy and fne leader. “I got close enough with this,” Doug said when I asked what he was using. He showed me a fy that was close in color and tied sparse, and maybe, by conventional standards, a bit too large. Sometimes, with blue-winged olives, you have to dial the fy choice right in. Overdressed fies don’t make it.
The most important thing, though, is presentation: get the cast in without spooking the fsh, and get it of the water without spooking the fsh. He could have stood on that bank, in full view of the fsh, and failed away with the “right” fy and not caught a thing. Or he could have spent his time changing fies instead of stalking his fsh. Instead, what he did paid of. We were both geared up that day with full chest-high waders, cinched at the middle with wading belts, and high quality wading boots. We both know the impor-
tance of being geared up for safety, even though we didn’t wade, that day, more than knee-deep. As the rivers continue to rise the best water to fsh will be along the edges of the fast water – water moving at about two feet per second. You don’t need to wade more than knee-deep to fsh this stuf. And at that, when you step in, look downstream. One greasy rock can send you tumbling. You don’t want to tumble into fast water or a hazard you can’t escape. My best all-time safe wading advice is this: Be chicken. Chickens don’t drown.
Early-season wade fshing. Photo by Chuck Stranahan.
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Get a break on your taxes! Donate your car, truck, or SUV to assist the blind and visually impaired. Arrange a swift, no-cost vehicle pickup and secure a generous tax credit for 2025. Call Heritage for the Blind Today at 1-855901-2620 today! EXTENSION AGENT –Agriculture, Natural Resources and Horticulture in Richland County, Sidney, MT. Full time. Exciting job with lots of autonomy! Will develop, implement and evaluate Extension programming in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Horticulture. Complete information and to apply: www.montana. edu/extension/careers . Equal Opportunity Employer, Veter-
ans/Disabled
FRESH EGGS from Howell’s Happy Hens are back!
$5.00/doz. Pick up at Bitterroot Star ofce, 115 W. 3rd, Suite 108, Stevensville.
1995 LANCE 10 FOOT
PICKUP CAMPER , self-contained, with A/C unit, very good condition, asking $2000 OBO. Call (406) 945-0000, please leave a message.
MONTH TO MONTH RENTAL suitable for 1 person, furnished apartment on 10 acres with private small yard, gorgeous views in the Stevensville area, $1400/month includes utilities, call for details, (818) 921-5275.
