It could be argued that blood is the most important fuid in the human body. It carries oxygen and nutrients throughout the body, and assists in every function of the anatomy. It is no wonder that it is always in great medical need. To attempt to fll this need, the American Red Cross has been holding blood drives since 1941, and today, the American Red Cross is responsible for providing over 40% of America’s blood and blood components.
Something a lot of people may not be aware of is that Montana is one of the top contributing states. Montana regularly donates more blood than it needs, and that blood often makes it across the country, to areas of greatest need.
One location, referred to as the “Stevensville Blood Drive Center” by the American Red Cross, has been donating since 2001. The Stevensville United Methodist Church is one of the top drive locations in the valley, and they have so far held 115 drives. Last Friday, they held one of these drives, and as of last Friday, they have seen over 670 frst-time donors. The place has collected over 4,014 units
of blood since the beginning. Over the last year, as they have seen the need increase, the church has moved to holding drives monthly, instead of every other month.
Beverly Schneider has helped to organize these events for the last 10 years. Schneider is a retired registered nurse, with a career of 54 years behind her. She loved what she did, and loved the interaction with people, and helping to “save lives.”
“I loved every year of it,” said Schneider.
Schneider spent the majority of her career in critical care, and now, she is the ambassador of the Stevensville United Methodist
Church blood drive, on behalf of the church. This event has always been organized by a local chapter of United Methodist Women of Faith, the local chapter of which Schneider was president until recently. They help organize all the blood drives hosted by the church, helping schedule people to donate and preparing the space for when the American Red Cross blood collection team arrives. According to Schneider, there is always a “desperate need for blood.” With her background as a critical care nurse, she knows well the need the medical profession has for blood. Schneider always wanted to volunteer with the American Red Cross in a disaster relief capacity, but with MS, she felt she would be a liability. She thinks that is
why she loves doing what she does for the drives, and is a way she can help. She encourages everyone who can to donate, and said the process is incredibly pain-free and easy.
Prepare to donate: Schneider wanted to explain a few steps people should take before coming to donate blood.
The frst is to be well fed, and to eat the right things. According to Schneider, eating things like chili, raisins, red meat or liver can help increase the hemoglobin in the blood. This is especially true for foods that contain red beans.
She said donors should also try to be well-hydrated, starting heightened fuid consumption up to a couple days in advance of their donation. They should also plan to drink fuids after a donation and to take it easy, allowing their body to restore itself. She also recommends donors come well-rested.
See BLOOD, page 4
Gail Olbricht prepares to have her blood drawn through the “Power Red” machine by Luis Hall, a local and lead mobile phlebotomist for the American Red Cross blood drive in Stevensville. Photo by John Dowd.
Zack Beresheim and Brent Cotton jok about vampires after giving blood. Photo by John Dowd.
HAMILTON: library, city decide fate of old fre hall
Continued from page 1
instrumental in directing the process.
The plan:
The partnership ultimately decided to do a few things. The frst will be to move Hamilton City Hall back into what was the Old Town Hall building. They also want to construct a space, bridging the gap between the current Bitterroot Public Library and Old Town Hall. This will create more ofce space, and will allow the library to expand. This will replace the current vehicle bays on State Street that were added on for the Hamilton Fire Department.
“It’s kinda cool to see the buildings coming full circle and in public hands,” said Wetherington. As he explained, the Old Town Hall building was originally home to all three, the library, the fre department and town hall. The space also eventually added the Hamilton Police Department.
Over time, the library moved into its own building, the Hamilton Police Department and legal arms of the city moved into another new building and the city municipal government outgrew the space, and moved into its current building (the former Elks Lodge). The only one of the three original occupants to stay was the fre department.
The frst step:
The frst step in determining the future of the space was to determine the nature of the space, and if such a project could even be feasible. Through a Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) funded grant, the partnership was able to commission a Preliminary Architectural Review (PAR). This review took a lot of the feedback and ideas into consideration and took a deep dive into the property and buildings. The PAR assessed everything from existing conditions and statutory and code requirements to area growth and public needs.
The PAR helped the partnership get a grasp on the process, and they expect this to be a multi-year project.
“The PAR was the high-level concept,” said Rohrbach. “The next part is where we try to parse out all the individual projects.”
Piecing out the individual projects, and deciding what those are even going to look like, as well as establishing a funding schedule for all those projects is going to be the next and ongoing stage for the partnership. Many of these projects will be stand-alone pieces that will need to have uniquely established funding. The PAR established that the total project will cost an estimated $21.5 million.
One of the leading things will be abatement for potential asbestos and lead paint. This project will be paid for by more Montana DEQ funding. They have also recently fnished adding new windows, which were paid for by a Montana Historic Preservation Grant. However, there are some unique concerns facing the process that have made these, and future pieces, more complicated.
Concerns:
Both the Bitterroot Public Library and Old Town Hall buildings are listed on the National Historic Registry. Old Town Hall was built in 1906, and the library soon after, in 1916. “That means that, for the contractors working on these buildings, there are more complications,”said Wetherington. This means that the buildings, namely Old Town Hall, will need to be brought up to code. When these
were built, there were not the same building codes there are today.
Additionally, Rohrbach highlighted how the project will also need to include plans to make the buildings more accessible. They will need to build an elevator, which will also need to navigate the fact that both buildings are at slightly diferent elevations. This means somehow, the elevator will need to land on foors corresponding to each structure. The addition of the elevator should also solve another problem, which is creating other forms of egress through the space.
The partners:
The project will be split between the two parties, with some overlapping projects. Each side will have diferent goals and complications.
On the library side, according to Wetherington, they are a municipal and county library, serving over 29,000 people. With a building layout spanning only about 12,000 square feet, they are woefully under-built. Wetherington stated that a rule of thumb for libraries is that they should be about one square foot for each capita they serve. “That’s our biggest limiting factor, space,” said Wetherington.
They already lease the space from the city, and this expansion could add about 10,000 square feet to the library’s usable space, almost doubling it. Wetherington hopes this would allow them to add more space for their children’s section and family meeting rooms, as well as more general storage for their collections. They could also add more study rooms and generally plan a better and more efective layout for community visitors.
Wetherington has been director of the Bitterroot Public Library since late 2014, and said this has always been a problem. “We’ve really been undersized for quite a while,” he said, but he said they have done their best
to work with what they have had.
Serving an estimated 250 people a day, on average, the library is in need of expansion.
Speaking on their funding, Wetherington said their part will come from their Bitterroot Public Library Foundation. The funding arm of the library has been raising money for such a project for the last 40 years, since the last expansion.
On the City of Hamilton side, Farrenkopf said they will need to fundraise, but will also be searching for grants for each part of the project.
“We’ll be chasing that grant money,” said Rohrbach, but he says people should also understand, “we’re in this for the long haul.”
“We’re thinking of it as an asset that we already own,” said Farrenkopf. “It’s needed anyway,” he said, speaking of things like abatement, so it is not a waste of money if any part of the project gets halted. However, they expect it to all be a great beneft to the community. Farrenkopf also wanted to remind people that, “it’s going to take time for this to happen.”
As for the joint projects, one they already know of is the elevator, as well as some of the demolition work. They also want to try to preserve the historic spirit of the space, especially the outside appearance. The partnership is working to retain as much of the original structure as possible. They have historic photos of the outside to help recreate the original landscaping. They are also trying to keep iconic visages, like the old staircase and the wood foor of the upstairs, which will be the council chambers.
“If we weren’t going to keep some historic aspect of the historic buil-
ding, why keep the building?” added Farrenkopf
According to Rohrbach, after the engineers looked at it, they found that “that building is still in really good shape.” This bodes well for their potential projects. Other than some obvious things, wiring, etc, the structure is doing well.
Final thoughts:
According to Wetheringon, this project will have a lot of “complexity and nuance,” due to the many moving parts, and factors like the buildings being historic. However, he added, “It’s just great that what’s best for the library, will be good for the community as well… it’s cool that it will be a whole block that’s going to be community accessible.”
Rohrbach wanted to reemphasize that there has also been a lot of “future proofng” to address growth and future needs. They are planning for this to meet community needs for the next 50 years, according to Wetherington.
For Farrenkopf, he is excited to have all the city services in one building, and for everything to be more centralized. Currently, several municipal government services are spread across town. He said that is going to make a huge diference for everybody. Parties looking for more information on the project and the status can look to the Bitterroot Public Library website, bitterrootpubliclibrary.org. A digital copy of the PAR is available on the city website, cityofhamilton.net, under PAR-Hamilton Town Hall Reuse Appendix. Flyers as well as ways to donate are available at both Hamilton City Hall and at the Bitterroot Public Library.
The Old Town Hall, on the corner of State Street and Third Street, was constructed in 1906. Hamilton City Hall will eventually relocate back into the old building. Photo by John Dowd.
Highway improvement project starts near Stevi
The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), along with construction partner Riverside Contracting, Inc., began a pavement preservation project along US Highway 93 (US 93) near Stevensville.
The Stevensville section of the project includes US 93 from just north of Stevensville to north of Schearbrock Lane, from mile marker 69.4 to 69.9. Crews will replace the top layer of asphalt and install curve signage, panel delineation, guardrail delineation, a high friction surface
treatment, and new pavement markings. Work north of Stevensville began the week of July 28 and continue through September, weather and other factors permitting.
The purpose of this project is to extend the service life of the roadway, improve the ride due to rutting, and to provide safety improvements.
Travelers can expect single-lane trafc controlled by faggers, trafc signals, pilot cars, and delays up to 15 minutes. Follow all posted signage and reduced speeds through the proj-
ect area. For the most up-to-date information, visit https://www.511mt. net/. The public is encouraged to contact Joan Redeen at 406-396-1978 with any questions or comments.
For more information about active MDT projects around the state, visit https://mdt.maps.arcgis. com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=8a296611c11b4eecba0d647842510ccb and MDT’s fve-year https://www.mdt.mt.gov/other/webdata/external/planning/maps/TCP/
TCP-MONTANA.pdf.
MDT is a workforce of over 2,000 people across Montana determined to do all we can so that you arrive at your destination safely. Our mission is to build, operate, and maintain a safe and resilient transportation system. For more information, visit https://mdt.mt.gov/. Anyone needing an alternative format of this document should contact MDT’s ADA Coordinator at mail to: mmaze@mt.gov, 406-444-5416 or Montana Relay Service at 711.
BLOOD: Methodist church helps hundreds donate
from page 2
Schneider said in order to give blood, donors must have appropriate blood pressure, and people cannot be on any blood thinners. They must also be cleared of things like malaria, and must have an appropriate hemoglobin count.
Giving blood:
The process to give blood the standard way can take as few as 10 minutes. People can only give blood every two months or so, and each time can only give a single unit. However, with some newer technology, there is another, more efective way to give.
The “Power Red” is a device that allows a donor to give the equivalent in red blood cells of about two units in a single setting, versus the single unit that can regularly be donated. This new machine separates the red cells from the other elements in the blood, and stores them.
Both kinds of donations are needed, but red blood cells, according to Montana Palen, the Mobile Blood Collection Specialist and drive lead for last week’s drive, red cells are by far the ones most used in blood transfers. The Power Red donations can only be done about every four months, and the process takes longer than a standard donation, about 30 to 40 minutes. To donate this way, a donor must be healthy and for women, must be over 150 pounds and 5-foot-5-inches tall. For men, they must be at least 130 pounds and 5-foot-3-inches or taller.
For all donations Palen said visits start with a physical exam and each
donor must complete a “Rapid Pass.”
This is a questionnaire that provides background information to vet those who can be allowed to give blood to the American Red Cross.
uses a machine that fts onto a donor’s thumb, and non-invasively checks their hemoglobin count.
said she loves what she does because she often hears the positivity that comes from donating
This all allows for information collection to add information to each sample of blood donated. This allows blood to get to the right place, as the blood can afect the person it is going to.
The checkup sees each donor’s blood pressure, hemoglobin count and pulse rate, among other things. Something Palen wanted to mention was that there is no longer a need for donors to get “pricked” for their hemoglobin count. Now, the American Red Cross
Palen added that they are always in need of donors and there is not currently a way to synthesize blood. According to the American Red Cross Team, the need is often higher in the summer, as there can be fewer donors giving. This is also true for the holidays. They also explained that blood does not last forever, and can have a very short shelf life. In the case of the red blood cells, they can be refrigerated for up to 40 days. However, standard blood, because of the platelets, can only last up to about fve days. Blood also must be sent to a location to be processed before it can be given, so that eats into the lifespan in which it can be used, which is already a very tight window.
The state of Montana is also unique in that it produces a lot more blood than it uses, allowing it to send blood to other underserved areas.
For Palen, she
“People feel good, they say ‘I know that I’m helping people,’” said Palen, and she added she has “always wanted to help others,” and the values of the American Red Cross also align with her values.
For those interested in giving blood, the next few drives at the church will be on September 19, October 10 and November 7. Walk-ins are allowed, but they prefer to have people sign up ahead of time. They can do this on the American Red Cross website, where prospective donors can put in their zip code, and the site will bring up all the local drives. Drives can usually take only 40 people, so it can be a lot of help to register before to make sure a donor can give on the desired date.
These drives will often give out promotional things for donors, like free movie tickets, as was the case in last week’s drive. They also do t-shirts and sometimes enter people into drawings for bigger prizes.
The American Red Cross website is redcross.org, and fnding the “Give Blood” landing page will allow a person to fnd local drives and schedules. Those interested in reaching out to the Stevensville United Methodist Church can call (406) 777-5443.
Beverly Schneider and Carolyn Mickens welcome donors to the blood drive. Photo by John Dowd.
Low water and the predator crouch
Most of the people I fsh with
a fsh,
and cast ever-so-carefully. Then they track the fy with their whole upper body bent, eyes aimed directly at the fy as it drifts.
I don’t think they’re even aware that they do it. I’m not, although it’s been caught on camera.
There’s something about fy fshing for trout that brings out that predatory instinct in us – even though we’re careful as can be to release our quarry unharmed once we’ve caught it.
by Chuck Stranahan
I’m not going to wax philosophical about this paradox other than to say it’s there. But it’s interesting to watch: the ones who brings their predatory animal instincts into this genteel sport and crouch while they stalk their trout, as-if he’s getting ready to pounce, are likely to catch a lot of fsh. The one who’s casting to show of how well he can do it, and then tries to sneak a look to see if anybody’s watching, isn’t likely to do as well.
Neither is the guy who’s fshing casually, hoping a fsh will attack his fy anyway. Sometimes you can get away with it but most of the time you can’t, and I’m living proof – more on that, later.
Extra stealth is demanded these late summer days when the rivers are low, slow, and clear and the trout are stressed, spooky, and skittish. I’m reminded of an adage from the best the best beginner’s fyfshing book ever written, “The Curtis Creek Manifesto:” Mustn’t spook.
Crouch, creep, and crawl if you need to.
Approach the stream like a predator.
Avoid breaking the horizon where you can be seen by the trout.
I took my friend and fy tackle distributor Doug Brutacao fshing several years ago. It was about this time of year – low water, spooky trout. He was on his game; I was tired and admittedly lazy.
I watched him cross the river well below a big, slow eddy. There were just a few trout rising in the eddy’s reversed foam line. A couple of them were good-sized.
Doug took of his sling pack and left it on the gravel bar, dropped into a deep crouch and slowly crept into position upstream, keeping his profle in the shadow below the bank. He then dropped
to one knee and with his rod held low, began to cast. On about his third or fourth try he was into a nineteen-inch rainbow that lit up the still sky with water shaking of of its twisting leaps in the sun.
Meantime, on the other side of the river and not putting much efort into it, I went fshless.
Doug was careful when casting not to let the shadow of his rod or line fall over the fsh. To a trout, shadows moving overhead mean death – and the trout that don’t get it are combed out of the gene pool by kingfshers, ospreys and eagles.
Trout “hear,” as it were, with their whole body. The thin dark lateral line that runs the full length of a trout’s body is basically an exposed nerve that is sensitive to vibration. Trout sense the vibrations of current rushing water past them, occasional shifts in streambed gravel, and objects falling into
the water.
Unnatural vibrations send them scurrying.
Rules of thumb here: No heavy footfalls, move slow and deliberate when you wade or walk the bank, no gravel crunching if you can avoid it, and don’t push a wake.
Even though I have a pair of studded wading boots I seldom wear them. My felt soles give me traction enough most places I fsh, and they’re quieter on the streambed.
Preparation is a big part of the game – I try to bend the odds in my favor before I go out. Some days may start out to be casual fshing “just to get away” days, but things can get serious if I see a good fsh rise in an unexpected place.
Then, if anybody’s watching, they’ll probably see me go into that predator crouch.
Low water, trickly lie on far bank, I’m into that predator crouch. Photo by Chuck Stranahan.
SUPERFUND: long process on site clean-up
Continued from page 1
The principal contaminants at the site include chlorophenols (primarily pentachlorophenol [PCP]), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, petroleum hydrocarbons, and dioxins/furans. According to DEQ State Superfund Site Section Supervisor Mariah Bucy, dioxins/furans are considered toxic even in trace amounts.
Although investigation of the extent of the contamination continues up to today in preparation for doing a Feasibility Study for remediation work, some “interim” remedial work by IP has already been done. It started in the early 2000’s with the removal of some buildings from the facility site. According to Smith, in 20212022 the company excavated about 15,000 tons of soil from a portion of the mill property, and then another 1,000 or so tons from the Waddell Ditch. The contaminated soil was hauled to the certifed and licensed land fll in Missoula.
According to DEQ Environmental Scientist Robert Roll, some contaminated soil in the area was also removed to reduce the contamination to levels acceptable for commercial use to accommodate a parking lot for the rodeo grounds and a new restaurant in the vicinity.
As investigation into the extent of the contamination progressed, IP has been purchasing properties where sampling has occurred. According to Roll, after sampling in 2010 on the Chaney property immediately across the street, they saw exceedances of DEQ standards for ground water and EPA limits for drinking water. He said IP immediately provided Chaney with bottled water and DEQ required IP to provide him a source of uncontaminated water by digging a deeper well.
As a result, DEQ also required looking a little further out for more contamination. In 2011, three more test wells were installed on the Chaney property and the neighboring property owned by Christine Hammer. In 2014, IP bought both properties. According to Smith, the purchase was made in order to make any remediation work easier for the company.
DEQ then required IP to extend the sampling further out and in 2015 two more test wells were added closer to the Tiedt-Nicholson Ditch.
It’s around this time that Randy Maxwell, one of the owners of the Waddell Ditch, began beating a loud drum over his concern about potential contamination in both the Waddell Ditch and the Teidt-Nicholson Ditch with an emphasis on the potential interaction of ground water and surface water in the area.
According to Roll, in 2018 and
2019 they started looking at the Waddell Ditch which they knew was impacted by run-of from the contaminated area and as a result they required IP to do more investigations into the ditches and at the same time more monitoring wells were put in a little further south of IP properties on the east side of Highway. Four more test wells were installed, two between the Tiedt-Nicholson Ditch and the Bitterroot River, and two more on the edge of IP’s newly acquired properties.
Testing of ditches and ground water continued and in 2022 a test well was installed on the Darby Distribution property close to a pond and in 2023 two more wells were installed on the property.
In 2024 another well was installed close to a neighboring property belonging to the Ellises. The Ellises sold their property to IP this year.
According to Roll, the latest data from the testing has shifted their conceptual picture of the contaminated groundwater plume signifcantly. He said their opinion early on was that the plume was headed north-easterly towards the river, but subsequent data has delineated a plume stretching northward parallel to the river.
As a result they have extended the investigation this year into Hatch Waste Ditch and properties to the north on the east side of the Highway. That data will not be available for another month or so.
But in the meantime, Roll said, “We feel good with the data that we have from the Tiedt-Nicholson Ditch and Overturf Ditch that we are seeing the plume move toward the north and that the GW is following that pathway, so we had IP do this extended investigation into the properties along the Hatch Waste Ditch to the north… We are thinking that this will be the culmination that will allow IP to fnally continue on with a Feasibility Study.”
Smith agreed, saying, “We have a good idea, I think, that the ground water is pretty well delineated, and we are now looking at surface water. I think the idea is now that after the July sampling we will have everything we need to move forward and put a pin in the site characterization and move forward with the feasibility study. We have just completed that investigation but haven’t gotten the results back yet.”
Local landowner Maxwell, who has been pushing DEQ for decades to get a full and complete picture of the contamination, doesn’t think the testing should stop where the Hatch Waste Ditch ends. He said the Bitterroot River is just one more property away. He said for over a decade he has
pushed a reluctant DEQ to expand their testing and each step of the way IP has bought up contaminated property.
“The problem area keeps expanding every time they check a little further,” said Maxwell. “They don’t have far to go now before they reach the river. Why don’t they just go ahead and check all the way to the river? If they did, I think they might fnd it is already there.”
Although they have not tracked the source of the contamination, Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks has found enough dioxins/furans in fsh tissue to place the Bitterroot River on its Montana Sport Fish
Cnsumption Guidelines advisory page for dioxin-furan contamination. They advise people not to eat any Northern pike over 26 inches in length and limited amounts of smaller pike and Rainbow trout fsh down to 14-inch pike and 10-inch Rainbows.
According to FWP fsheries biologist Trevor Selch, the fsh sampled were from halfway up the river but downstream of Darby and Hamilton. “We did just get some new data that we are trying to get qualifed, and we might be able to get it diferentiated within the river a little bit more in the future,” said Selch. “But for right now it’s just for the entire Bitterroot River.”
Latest study on Hatch Waste Ditch. Map courtesy DEQ, from reports by International Paper Company.
The truth be told
Con gratulations to a wise gentleman for his informative letter in the Bitterroot Star on 7/30.
He said it pure and simple, how we have such a corrupt gov’t which is now being laid open to the good people by President Donald Trump.
He covered it good when he said, and I quote, “God is great, dogs are good, and people are crazy.” What more can we say in so few words?
Our country is not perfect by any means and no one is, but we still are the greatest and basically the strongest on earth. Donald Trump is batting one hundred percent to fulfill his promises made. He has suffered so much from the crooked, evil people who apparently hate our country and him so much, to try every dirty trick in the book to change the USA into a communist country.
I have news for these evil people, that we are not going to let this happen. Get back under the rocks where you came from!
It amazes me how so many people come to Washington to represent us in the gov’t, and on their salaries spend some time in Congress or other office for a while, and leave as millionaires. How corrupt!
Millions of dollars stolen by the crooks that is meant to help those citizens who are hurting, veterans who sacrificed for our country and can’t get the help they need. All of us who can’t afford food, gas, insurance, and the younger generation who can’t buy a home or nice car, etc.
Joe Biden and gang about destroyed our country with everything they did or didn’t do. Thank goodness that our Heavenly Father is with the President and I’m sure saved his life, and has a purpose for him to correct the evil that has been done.
I am sure that the bad people in the gov’t are in for a reckoning fairly soon.
If they are leftist Democrats or RINO Republicans doesn’t matter. There will hopefully be prison time, maybe huge fines and permanently losing any chance of ever working for our country again.
I suggest that these people who hate this country so bad better pack up their stuff and permanently leave the country.
We as patriotic citizens are not going to put up with all their crap any longer.
It saddens me that so many people here in our valley buy into the crap being fed to us by the left fake news media. They continue with all the lies they told about Donald Trump which have been proven to be false.
I do not hate the Democrats in general, as I know some who are good people and also hate what the party is doing.
It makes me glad that we still have older citizens and a younger generation who love our country, and respect our President and those helping him.
I really respect Elon Musk who has the nerve and power to stand up for free speech. Each of us can decide for ourselves what is true and false, and we don’t have to accept what is being told to us by the fake news.
I truly believe that the left Democrats are on a slippery slope and headed downhill rapidly.
They also curse him for his playing golf. The man works tirelessly
Opinion
for the country and all of us. He has survived all the cruel lies, lawsuits, etc. against him and came out the other side more popular than usual. He doesn’t even take a salary for all he is doing, so I’m told. He needs the time to relax somewhat and golf is his way of doing it.
Compare that to “BDB” (Braindead Biden) who spent most of his time hiding somewhere, or sitting on a beach not doing a darn thing good.
I am a Christian, I believe 100% in the Bible, and it tells us that one day, probably soon now, God is returning to stop all the bad and will deal with the righteous and the wicked for whatever they may deserve.
For now though - MAGA is good.
Don Herr Hamilton
Disappearing press
I just wanted to drop a note to say how much I appreciate having your publication available to us here in the valley. When I read of the Wyoming closure of so many local newspapers, with historic and profit value, it is a great sadness. I appreciate the Star’s local coverage and read it all every week. May independent journalism ever exist in Montana! May your advertisers increase their investments to avoid such a calamity! Thank you for your service to all of us. Our democracy is at even greater risk if the presses are shut down. How else can we speak truth to power and share our voices with others?
Star Jameson Hamilton
Overstreet part o f problem
I recently reread an April newspaper column by Greg Overstreet, our legislative representative for House District 88, who defeated me in the last election. His article was patting himself on the back for what he had accomplished in the first half of the legislative session. It struck me that none of the issues he put forward had anything to do with the needs of Montanans struggling in this economy.
At the end of the April article, he said he was looking forward to working with his fellow Republicans for the rest of the session. That’s the part that grabbed my attention. Whether you’re an Independent, Democrat, or Republican, you deserve equal representation in Helena.
As a native-born Montanan, with several generations rooted in Treasure State soil, I have a better perspective than Overstreet, the recent newcomer voters sent to Helena. We have certain needs here, many of which are unique to a rural Western state with more cows than people, regardless of our political affiliation. Though we may fundamentally disagree about the best course of action, the focus of state government should be on what we can do for all Montanans.
Now, in late July with the benefit of hindsight, Overstreet’s claim about working with Republicans through the rest of the session rings particularly hollow. Representatives passed beneficial laws because a coalition of Republicans, the “Nasty Nine,” put the needs of their constituents ahead of party loyalty and voted with Democrats. Bills passed thanks to this cooperation included the expansion of Medicaid,
and passing a revised state budget. Although the bill ultimately failed, these Republican “defectors” worked with Democrats to establish a child tax credit. Legislation blocked would have weakened labor unions, made judicial elections partisan, and established unlimited hunting for wolves.
Overstreet was part of the problem, not the solution.
I remain concerned about property taxes, which did not get adequately resolved last session, and state income taxes remain excessive. And like the vast majority of my fellow Montanans, I remain steadfast in my opposition to the sale of our public lands. In addition, we need to address public education.
Is Rep. Overstreet up to the task? His first legislative performance casts grave doubt.
Evan Schroedel Florence
NorthWestern Energy commits w
hat it doesn’t have
Ho w many more times will Montana residential and commercial customers get hosed down over the lack of regulatory oversight by the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) that allows NorthWestern Energy to run amok with its latest schemes and questionable business acumen?
NorthWestern announced its intent to supply an AI server center to be developed by Quantica Infrastructure, out of Texas, a developer of AI “server centers,” with electricity in an amount of power that exceeds 100% of its present generating capacity and a good bit of its “purchased power” sources. Gee, that’s a big bet on the future.
So, who will be paying to increase NorthWestern’s generating capacity? Existing residential and commercial customers? Sounds like it. What will be the method of generating this added capacity? Green energy? Not likely in the Trumpian era of “drill baby drill.”
Ahh, let’s connect the dots here. NorthWestern is constantly seeking greater profitability of its coal mine investments. With some “expedited permitting,” perhaps the Montana PSC will give NorthWestern a green light for coal generated megawatts to serve this new facility, consistent with the PSC’s long standing commitment to fossil fuels as the engine of economic growth in Montana. That is not intended to be funny. And it isn’t.
How much longer can we sit still for being hosed down in the name of a few construction phase jobs that will generate enormous profits for companies who do not care a whit for Montana’s environmental future or Montanans?
Tell NorthWestern, the PSC AND the Texas based Quantica Infrastructure to build the damn thing in Texas where “Dinosaur Wine” is plentiful and profits reign supreme.
We have too much to lose to subsidize anything with as murky a future as AI just to make a few oligarchs even richer.
Consider too, the best recent news in Montana’s favor is that the production company of the soap opera “Yellowstone “ moved its entire production capacity to Texas, thus ending the false promise of durable “economic opportunity” for Montanans. Thank goodness. Let’s
keep Quantica Infrastructure out of here and demand NorthWestern serve us with reliable power rather than chase the next short term “sure thing.”
John Grant Hamilton
Damage to America’s p ublic lands
Did you know the new Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke Rollins, is closing nine regional Forest Service Offices including Region 1 in Missoula? Did you know Trump signed an executive order to rescind the 2001 Roadless Rule which protects millions of acres from timber harvest and unnecessary road building? Roads on public lands haven’t been adequately maintained before this action and more roads will destroy the beauty of long protected forest areas. Roadless areas preserve clean water, wildlife habitat, recreational opportunities, and mitigate climate change and drought by a forest canopy of old growth. Montana has over 6 million acres of inventoried roadless areas. Opponents of the Rule want wildfire mitigation by logging and say local management is better for local solutions! Then why close the Region 1 office? By the way, prescribed burns do more to manage wildfires than logging. Further review shows DOGE fired 3,400 Forest Service employees, many with wildfire certification. Now there is a frantic need to rehire 1,400 employees lost to the ruinous actions of the Musk/Trump plan to downsize government. Many agencies have to rehire to operate adequately like the National Nuclear Security Administration that protects the nuclear stockpile, the National Weather Service that predicts serious weather events across the nation and the Bonneville Power Administration that manages power in the Northwest. We have unqualified idiots, untethered by Congress, making deep administrative cuts that will cause grievous harm to our country.
It’s interesting that the Secretary of Agriculture wants only five regional Forest Service offices or hubs in the nation. They are North Carolina, Missouri, Indiana, Colorado, and Utah. North Carolina has five national forests, Missouri one, Indiana one, Colorado eleven, Utah one. Montana has ten national forests. Utah is mostly desert. If you feel that public lands are under attack, join me by contacting Secretary Rollins. Comments end 8/26/2025. Email reorganization@ usda.gov or mail a letter to the Secretary, 1400 Independence Ave SW, Washington DC 20250. Now is the time to comment before all the ruinous actions get implemented.
Marilyn Wolf Stevensville
Hoping
O ne of the beauties of American democracy, as we have known it, is the right of people to disagree in person and in print. My hope is that this beloved tradition continues in spite of the pressures from our current administration!
Thomas Tunny Hamilton
Bitterroot Cares: supporting valley students
For the past three years, Bitterroot Cares – along with their coalition partners – has provided welcome bags to incoming kindergarten and middle school students throughout the Bitterroot Valley. The group is excited to announce that this year they are expanding their initiative to include 600 backpacks flled with school supplies and school spirit wear for every incoming sixth grader in the valley.
Each backpack is thoughtfully packed with fun items, helpful resources, and information designed to encourage youth engagement in the community. The welcome bags also include valuable mental wellness resources, recognizing the importance of supporting students beyond the classroom.
Local data from the Montana Prevention Needs Assess-
The goal of Bitterroot Cares is simple: to let every sixth grader know how much their community cares about them. To learn more or to get involved with this mission, visit: bitterrootcares.org
New history exhibit at Daly Mansion
The Daly Mansion invites you to explore a captivating new exhibit titled “Journey Through Time: The Hidden History of Skalkaho and Marcus Daly’s Bitterroot Stock Farm.” This exhibit, featuring the detailed maps of esteemed cartographer Gary Liss, reveals the intriguing origin story of the largely forgotten community of Skalkaho and its signifcant role in the creation of Marcus Daly’s Bitterroot Stock Farm and the town
of Hamilton. Visitors will delve into a rich tapestry of history, beginning with the establishment of Skalkaho in the 1860s, through Marcus Daly’s arrival in the 1880s, and the subsequent growth of the Bitter Root Stock Farm. The exhibit also highlights the pivotal role of James W. Hamilton, a key land agent for Daly, whose land acquisitions were instrumental in the founding of Hamilton.
Gary Liss’s presentation includes rare maps, such as a Montana Territory map from circa 1864-1865, showcasing the Skalkaho area. These maps, along with narratives of the fnal days of Skalkaho and the events leading to the establishment of Hamilton, ofer a unique glimpse into the region’s past.
The Daly Mansion is located at 251 Eastside Hwy, Hamilton. The community is encouraged to explore the
exhibit and learn about the original townsites that played a crucial role in local history. Gary Liss notes, “There are very few of us who know the old settlement of Skalkaho.” This exhibit aims to change that by bringing these stories to life for all to appreciate. For more information, contact Elena Lopez at operationsmanager@ dalymansion.org or visit the website at www.dalymansion.org
Members of Bitterroot Cares fll backpacks and welcome bags for students. Photos courtesy Tracey Golder.
Sports
by Scott Sacry Sports Editor
Red Sox roll through regionals
The Bitterroot Red Sox won the 2025 Northwest Class A Regional tournament in Burley, Idaho on August 7-11. In the championship game on Monday, August 11, the Red Sox defeated the Klamath Falls Falcons 7-0 to claim the title.
The Red Sox dominated the tournament, going 5-0 and winning by a total combined score of 64-8. In their frst game on Thursday, the Red Sox defeated the Wasilla Road Warriors 11-0. Then on Friday they defeated the Lovell Mustangs 23-4. On Saturday, they defeated the Klamath Falls Falcons 10-0. On Sunday they defeated the Cache Wolverines 13-4. Finally, in the championship game on Monday they played the Klamath Falls Falcons again and won 7-0 to claim the title.
Red Sox 7, Klamath Falls Falcons 0
In the championship game on Monday, the Red Sox had a rematch against Klamath Falls and won 7-0. Red Sox pitcher and the 2025 Montana Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year, Cash Lawrence, was money as he pitched a complete game shutout, striking out eight batters and only allowing two hits.
At the plate for the Red Sox, Hunter Harrness went 2 for 3 with 3 RBIs, Boedy Tadvick went 3 for 3 with an RBI, Reese Earp went 2 for 3, scored 2 runs and had an RBI, Jude Widmer went 1 for 3, scored 2 runs and had an RBI, and Jackson Lubke went 1 for 2 and scored two runs.
To get to regionals, the Red Sox won the West Class A District tournament, then took second at the Class A State tournament, which qualifed them for Regionals. In Class A Legion baseball, Regionals is the furthest a team can advance. The Class AA Legion season culminates in an American Legion World Series.
Red Sox 11, Wasilla Road Warriors 0 In their frst game on Thursday, August 7, the Red Sox defeated the Wasilla Road Warriors from Alaska 11-0 in 5 innings. Red Sox pitcher Jackson Lubke got the win, only allowing one hit. At
the plate for the Red Sox, Jude Widmer went 4 for 4 with 2 RBIs, Boedy Tadvick went 1 for 3 with 3 RBIs, and Lubke went 1 for 1 and scored 3 runs.
Red Sox 23, Lovell Mustangs 4 In their second game on Friday, the Red Sox defeated the Lovell Mustangs from Wyoming 23-4 in an ofensive explosion. Jude Widmer went 3 for 4, scored 4 runs and hit 5 RBIs, Reese Earp went 2 for 3, scored 3 runs and had 4 RBIs, Elijah McNair-Neal went 3 for 4 with 4 RBIs, Cash Lawrence went 3 for 5 and scored 3 runs, and Boedy Tadvick went 1 for 1, scored 2 runs and had 2 RBIs.
Red Sox 10, Klamath Falls Falcons 0
In their third game on Saturday, the Red Sox blanked the Klamath Falls Falcons from Oregon 10-0. Red Sox pitcher Jackson Lubke struck out nine batters to get the complete game shutout win. Lubke went 2 for 4 and scored 3 runs at the plate. Also for the Red Sox, Reese Earp went 3 for 4 with 4 RBIs, Jude Widmer went 2 for 4 with an RBI, Boedy Tadvick went 1 for 3 with 2 RBIs, and Brady DeMoss went 2 for 3 and scored 2 runs.
Red Sox 13, Cache Wolverines 4 In their fourth game on Sunday, the Red Sox defeated the Cache Wolverines from Utah 13-4. The Red Sox trailed 1-3 heading into the top of the second where they scored six runs to propel them to the victory. At the plate for the Red Sox, Cash Lawrence went 2 for 4 with 3 RBIs, Hunter Harrness went 1 for 4 with 3 RBIs, Boedy Tadvick went 2 for 3, scored 2 runs and had 2 RBIs, Jackson Lubke went 2 for 4, scored 2 runs and had an RBI, and Owen Marston went 2 for 4 and scored 2 runs.
McCarthy basketball camps continue to grow
The annual McCarthy Basketball Camps completed their 2025 summer camps on July 31st in Stevensville. The McCarthy Camps, run by Frank McCarthy, are one of the most popular in the Bitterroot Valley and were held in three locations this year: Darby and Hamilton in June, and Stevensville in July.
“We had our best number this year with 285 total campers,” said McCarthy. “I’ve been doing summer basketball camps for over 40 years, and this is our fifth year of putting on basketball camps in the valley, and we’re really gaining momentum. The camps were a great success this year.” McCarthy has coached basketball
since before the Reagan administration. He started his career coaching basketball in Australia, then in 1979 he coached at the St. Labre Indian School. Next he went to Powell High School for six years, then to Eastern Wyoming College, then he coached MSU-Billings for 10 years, MSU Bozeman for two years, then spent 16 years at Sheridan College in Wyoming. He finally settled in the Bitterroot Valley where he has coached 7th & 8th grade boys in Hamilton.
The four-day camps are for boys and girls basketball players of all skill levels who are entering kindergarten through 9th grade, with the boys going in the morning and the girls in the afternoon. McCarthy
wants to give the kids a strong foundation in basketball, so they learn the fundamentals, like rebounding, shooting, defense, and passing. But McCarthy also feels it’s important to teach and highlight the life skills that sports in general and basketball specifically can teach our younger generation.
“Basketball and sports teach us valuable life skills and I feel it’s important to teach this to the campers,” said McCarthy. “We give them pointers on how to be a young man or a young woman, like the importance of having integrity, and what it takes to have a strong character. We teach the importance of a firm handshake and looking people in the eye.
Parents come up and thank me after the camps for this. We tell the kids the same things as their parents, but coming from us it helps to really drive the point home.”
McCarthy strives to keep the camp affordable. Campers only pay $75 for the week and besides the education, all campers get a basketball, a t-shirt and a water bottle. Compare this to similar basketball camps in Montana that cost over $200. “We work really hard to keep the price down for the kids,” said McCarthy. “We do a lot of work getting sponsors to help with the costs, and our local community has been very generous; without their help none of this would be possible.”
The Bitterroot Red Sox won the 2025 Northwest Class A Regional tournament in Burley, Idaho on August 7-11. Red Sox pitcher Jackson Lubke, shown here, was the winning pitcher in two of the Red Sox games. Photo by Hope Earp.
The annual McCarthy Basketball Camps completed their 2025 summer camps on July 31st in Stevensville. Photo by Amy McCarthy.
Extinct North American bird species
There is concern for the survival of bird species with worldwide global warming. From 1900 to 2000, the global temperature rose 1.3 degrees Fahrenheit each decade.
What does this mean for birds? Birds might arrive earlier in the spring and stay longer in the fall. Is that a threat? Yes. Birds could overfy insect activity in the spring and starve. The same is true for fall. Birds die in cold weather due to hypothermia or starvation. I have observed Tree Swallows arrive in large numbers in warm spring weather, then followed by a snowstorm, many birds die of hypothermia or starve due to a lack of fying insects.
We know the earth has long term temperature swings. The continental ice sheet covered most of North America 20,000 years ago. As it melted many animals such as the Wooly Mammoth perished along with other species. Are we currently in a warming trend exacerbated by modern living?
The biggest factor for the extinction of bird species has been man as he changes the landscape. Much of America’s breadbasket lands were once prairie grasses. Today they are monocultures of cereal grains ofering little food for most birds. In the east we cut down deciduous forests and drained wetlands. Even our good intentions of putting out western fres create problems. Instead of a mosaic of trees and parks we have forests full of fuels which burn hotter than fres in the past.
Insecticides can be devastating. DDT accumulated in fsh when we sprayed for malaria. Bald Eagles ate the fsh, resulting in thinning of eggshells and the death of chicks. Our national bird dropped to just over 400 pairs nationwide. After banning DDT, we have more than 400 breeding pairs in Montana. Women’s fashions were once adorned with feathers, and we nearly lost species with long plume feathers. The frst Christmas Bird Count was a contest to see how many birds you could shoot in a day!
The American Conservatory estimates we have lost 2.9 billion breeding birds in my lifetime. As an example, the familiar Dark-eyed Junco has lost 175 million individuals since 1970. As healthy ecosystems become isolated and smaller, it puts stress on birds.
As Montana’s population grows, housing is taking up more land. However, if we build/preserve healthy ecosystems, birds respond. The most important area is the streamside riparian ecosystem. Eighty percent of all birds use this ecosystem sometime in their life.
North America has lost eleven species. The most familiar are the Passenger Pigeon (1914), and Carolina Parakeet (1918). The Passenger Pigeon had an estimated population of 3 billion birds.
The most recent loss was the Ivory-billed Woodpecker (2021) due to overharvesting of southern coniferous forests. Other losses are the
by Gary Swant
Labrador
Hopefully we have learned how to prevent further extinctions.
A man born 100 years too late—but right on time for everyone who loved him.
Jerry King, age 83, passed unexpectedly on July 24, 2025, in his hometown of Erwin, Tennessee - likely still wondering why Wi-Fi was ever invented and muttering something about how Darby got too crowded back in 1980.
Born near Corpus Christi, Texas, to George and Molly (Smith) King, Jerry was the firstborn of a set of twins and never let anyone forget it. He grew up in Erwin, Tennessee, where he developed a lifelong love of the outdoors—and a stubborn streak that rivaled Tennessee ridge lines.
A lifelong patriot, Jerry served in the U.S. Air Force right out of high school before returning to Tennessee to begin his next adventure.
In June of 1961, he married Dolly Cooper, also from Erwin, and they made their home there. The couple had three children before the call of the wild proved too strong to ignore, and Jerry moved his young family west to Darby, Montana. Jerry found his calling in the small town, where he ran a pack string and guided big game hunts for Indian Lake Outfitters in the Selway Wilderness. Their fourth child was born there in 1977— and though his name was Benjamin, Jerry insisted on calling him by his middle name, Wilde. In 1980, Jerry and Dolly divorced, and shortly after, he moved even further off the map—north to Alaska.
That love of wild places eventually led him to Wiseman, a tiny village north of the Arctic Circle, which suited Jerry just fine. Summers found him fishing in Bristol Bay, and fall and winters meant hunting moose, caribou, Dall sheep, or anything else that tasted better than what the store was selling (which he didn’t visit often, anyway). He always claimed he was born 100 years too late, and that 1860 would have been perfect—mostly because that’s when the Henry Repeating Rifle came out.
He was a man of grit, heart, and humor—
Mary Eva Temple
Jef Demme
It is with great sorrow that I announce the death from cancer of my brother, Jef Demme. He passed peacefully on November 14, 2024. Jef died in his favorite chair, with the view of his beloved Bitterroot Mountains as his last vision. His dear friend, Paddy, was also at his side as he passed. Not a bad way to go!
Jef had a great love for Montana. He also had a
equal parts mountain man and mischief-maker. He had no use for pretense, plenty of use for practical jokes, and always knew how to make someone feel like they belonged—especially if they brought jerky and a can of snus.
Jerry’s passion for guns was unmatched. He could talk for hours about calibers, ballistics, and the perfect setup for whatever you were chasing—or avoiding. His stories were even bigger than his mustache (and that’s saying something). They were equal parts unbelievable and absolutely true, depending on who was listening.
Jerry was preceded in death by his parents, his younger twin brother Tom King, and his sister Maria De La Garza. He is survived by his sister Jeanette Santiago; his children Denise Katzmeyer, Angela (Todd) LaQue, Craig (Michael) Platt, and Benjamin Wilde (Trisha) King; a rowdy crew of five grandchildren, three great-grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews, all who carry on his gift for storytelling and stirring the pot.
He is also survived by his longtime companion and kindred spirit Sylvia Bailey and her daughter Mendy (Nick) Harris, his beloved blue heeler Queenie, and—somewhat unexpectedly— far too many kittens, having morphed into “Cat Man King” in his later years.
While he likely would have had a fit at the cost of a formal service (“Confound it! Do you know how many guns you could have bought with that?!”), we want to honor and celebrate his unique life, his eccentric personality, and share some stories, have some laughs—as he so loved to do.
A memorial service will be held at Valley Funeral Home, 1085 N Main Ave, Erwin, TN on Monday, August 11, 2025 with visitation at 1 PM and memorial service at 2 PM.
For those who can’t attend—don’t worry—he won’t fault you for that. Instead, raise a glass, tell a tall tale, and step outside—he’ll be there in the wind, the ridges, and the sound of a six gun echoing in the distance.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks what Jerry
In Loving Memory of Mary Temple May 13, 1935 – August 4, 2025
Mary Eva (Smith) Temple, beloved mother, grandmother, and friend, passed away peacefully on the evening of August 4, 2025, in the gentle care of Beehive Homes Hospice.
Mary was born on May 13, 1935, in Los Angeles, CA, as an only child to George and Malfn Smith. She attended college in Santa Barbara. After meeting Richard Temple, they were married in 1955 then later their marriage was solemnized in the Los Angeles Temple. Richard and Mary raised their fve children in Northern California and the Pacifc Northwest. Mom worked for Head Start in California, while also holding various church positions. Mom and Dad immigrated to the beautiful Bitterroot Valley where their oldest son, Dave, was living. Daughter Jennifer moved up with her husband in 2007 and became Mary’s weekly Boggle partner. Mom loved the Bitterroot Valley where she and Dad had made their home for the last 32 years. Mom was active in the LDS church and cherished her many friendships she made along the way.
Mary and Richard enjoyed their life in Montana and would frequently take mini road trips to
passion for his sky diving habit, with over 2500 sky dives to his credit! His crowning glory was achieving his High Altitude, Low Opening sky dive from 35,000 feet! At the age of 73!
Jef was a Vietnam veteran who lived his life on his own terms and had many adventures. He used his carpentry skills all of his life and built himself a cozy cabin in Corvallis where he lived for 45 years.
would have asked: that you practice gun safety, use common sense, and if you don’t have any common sense then you shouldn’t own a gun. And during the next full moon, be sure to let out a hearty wolf howl—just like he always did.
explore our beautiful state. Mom and Dad served a mission in Darby, Montana. Mom taught various classes at the LDS church, including Sunday school and primary classes. Mom and Dad enjoyed their life together, but more than anything, Mom loved her family.
Mary is survived by her faithful and loving husband of 70 years, Richard Temple, daughter Laura Jones (Dave), son David Temple (Dolinda), daughter Jennifer Deitrich (Rod), and son Daniel Temple (Naomi). Mary is also survived by eight grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren. Mary was preceded in death by her dear daughter, Jane Hammer, whose memory she carried in her heart every day. Her legacy lives on in her children and all who had the privilege of knowing her. Her warmth, wisdom, and gentle humor touched many lives, and she will be deeply missed.
A service was held by the family at the Corvallis Latter Day Saints Church on Monday, August 11. The service was followed by a burial, then a luncheon at the church. In lieu of fowers, the family asks that you honor her memory by extending kindness to someone in need or spending time with those you love—just as she always did.
Condolences may be left for the family at www. dalyleachchapel.com
Jef is survived by his sister, Susan. He will be forever missed.
A celebration of his life will be held at the Stevensville Airport on August 23, 2025 at 2:00 p.m.
Jef’s sky diving friends will do a memorial dive to free some of Jef’s ashes into the sky.
We will continue our celebration with a picnic following the ceremony.
Robert C. Downing
March 18, 1931 - July 31, 2025
Robert Charles Downing – a replaced Kansas guy – met, dated, and married a gal from Montana (1974), both living and working in the school district of Brookings, Oregon.
Bob, as most folks knew him, passed away on July 31, 2025, from his year of kidney failure.
He spent his very young years as a 5 & 10 cent helper in his parents’ small store in their small community of Glasco, Kansas. His “love” at that time was all school sports. He went on to graduate from Kansas State, then spent nearly 31 years as a high school guidance counselor in Brookings and Eastern Oregon at Elgin, living most of those years in La Grande. Plenty of scenic areas to ride double in beautiful Wallowas or over the mountains to Walla Walla (wonderful college concerts there) or to Pendleton Round-up on his Gold Wing.
It was our years in this part of the USA when we decided to ride Bob’s Gold Wing East – the summer of 1983. 10,000 miles across, Ferry to Nova Scotia and all the way back home. Bob did not have an accident, cause an accident, nor get a single ticket!
Perhaps the greatest love of his 56 years of our dating was table tennis… from a low scorer at Las Vegas to the club in Sun City West (on and of snowbirds) until a heart attack. In Hamilton at the club – he MUST get the point for his teammate. A broken hip this time. He had three months to heal or get left behind on a booked tour of New York City.
In retirement, 1993, Bob was “hooked” on volunteering with the Forest Service in their Passport in Time projects: ‘Magruder’ in the Westfork District, Roosevelt’s hunting ranch north of the Yellowstone, a lookout tower near Stanley, Idaho needing some repair, near Pole Bridge in Glacier, and another project near St. Regis. Each reminded Bob of his summer jobs working for the Forest Service at Priest Lake National Forest as well as the Loveland, Colorado forest and a summer in Glacier National Park. He would have enjoyed being a Forest Service Man.
Of course, traveling far and wide was on his wife Shirley’s bucket list as she had made two trips to Europe before his own 1969 Europe adventure. By 1993, Bob and wife number one were packed and ready for many travels. Perhaps a favorite of Bob’s was Easter of 2003 in
Great Britain. We had decided to have just a few goals for our six weeks of travel, one being to look up where some of our greats were married. That Easter it was Olney, England, where Bob’s greatgreat-grandmother was married. It was also the
church where John Newton was a minister and was known to pen the beloved song, “Amazing Grace”. Bob was introduced as the great-great-grandson of Eleanor Yorke, this wedding some 100 years after John Newton’s time in Olney and another 100 before Bob’s visit.
Before this last chapter in Bob’s life came to a close, we had made a few Pilgrim journeys to Bible lands, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Mexico, several countries in Europe, a week on the Danube, Wales, Hawaiian and Alaskan Cruises, and our own American states in 2000-2020, such a wonderful place to live. We are grateful for all the years we had together, a wonderful soulmate and a caring neighbor and friend. He was loved. He is missed.
A family memorial service for Bob will be held in May of 2026 at his hometown cemetery. Joining for the service will be Bob’s four nephews and their wives: Steve and Marille Downing (Thorton, CO), Tom Downing (Gulf Breeze, FL), Mike and Shelly Downing (Boulder, CO), Tim and Erin Downing (Denver, CO). Bob’s brother Don and wife Connie Downing are deceased, as are Bob’s parents, Fred and Lola Downing (Sun City, AZ). Tom’s wife Tracy passed in February of this year due to a blood clot in her brain. Some members of Shirley’s family will be in Kansas to honor their Uncle Bob, too.
Condolences may be left for the family at www. dalyleachchapel.com.
Legal Notices
PUBLIC NOTICE
The Council on Aging
dba BitterRoot Bus is proposing a rate increase to support rising costs in providing transportation throughout Ravalli County. We will accept comments until August 15, 2025.
Please direct comments to Ryan Shelton 406-3637484.
BS 7-16, 7-13, 7-30, 8-6, 8-13-25.
MNAXLP
Montana 21st Judicial District Court, Ravalli County
In the Matter of the Name Change of Rebecca E. Mann, Rebecca E. Mann, Petitioner.
Cause No.: DV-41-20250000229-NC
Dept. 1
Howard F. Recht
NOTICE OF HEARING ON NAME CHANGE
This is notice that Petitioner has asked the District Court for a name change from Rebecca Elizabeth Mann to Rebecca Elizabeth Busch.
The hearing will be on August 20, 2025 at 1:30 p.m. The hearing will be at the courthouse in Ravalli County.
DATED this 8th day of July, 2025.
/s/ Paige Trautwein
Clerk of District Court
By: Sarah Sargent
Deputy Clerk of Court
BS 7-23, 7-30, 8-6, 8-13-25.
MNAXLP
Daniel Browder, Esq. Browder Law, PLLC
217 North 3rd Street, Suite J Hamilton, MT 59840
Telephone: (406) 3613677
Facsimile: (406) 3612999
Email: browderlawmont@gmail.com
Attorney for Cleo A. Monroe MONTANA TWENTY FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT RAVALLI COUNTY IN THE MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF GLADYSMAE GARRARD, Deceased.
Cause No. DP-2025-86
Dept. No. 1 NOTICE TO CREDITORS NOTICE IS HEREBY
GIVEN that Cleo A. Monroe has been appointed Personal Representative of the above-named estate. All persons having claims against Decedent are required to present their claims within four months after the date of the frst publication of this notice or said claims will be forever barred. Claims must either be mailed to the Personal Representative, Cleo A. Monroe, return receipt requested, c/o: Browder Law, PLLC, 217 North Third Street, Suite J, Hamilton, Montana, 59840, or fled with the Clerk of the above Court. DATED this 23rd day of July, 2025. BROWDER LAW, PLLC /s/ Daniel Browder Attorney for Personal Representative BS 7-30, 8-6, 8-13-25. MNAXLP
William J. Nelson, Esq. Nelson Law Ofce PLLC 217 North 3rd Street, Suite J Hamilton, MT 59840 Telephone: (406) 3633181
Attorney for Personal Representative
MONTANA TWENTY FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT RAVALLI COUNTY IN RE THE ESTATE OF: BRIAN QUENTIN
GEDLING, Deceased.
Cause No. DP41-2024127 Dept. No. 1
NOTICE TO CREDITORS NOTICE IS HEREBY
GIVEN that the undersigned has been appointed Personal Representative of the above-named estate. All persons having claims
against the decedent are required to present their claims within four months after the date of the frst publication of this notice or said claims will be forever barred.
Claims must either be mailed to the Personal Representative, Sharon E. Luedecke return receipt requested, c/o Nelson Law Offce PLLC , 217 North Third Street, Suite J, Hamilton, MT 59840, or fled with the Clerk of the above Court.
DATED this 23rd day of July 2024. /s/ William J Nelson Attorney for Personal Representative /s/ Sharon E. Luedecke Personal Representative BS 7-30, 8-6, 8-13-25. MNAXLP
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BEFORE THE HAMILTON ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT
Variance Request #202501, 101 Pine Street and 305 N 1st Street: A request by William E. Cofee of Stockman Bank of Montana for a variance from the required front yard setback in the Highway Related Business District (B-2). Per Section 17.08.180(3) of the Hamilton Municipal Code (HMC) the minimum required front yard setback in the B-2 District is 35-feet. The applicant is requesting a front yard setback of 15-feet. This request falls under “variances” in HMC Section 17.12.070, which provides a process for Zoning Board of Adjustment review and decision on requests to vary from zoning district standards. 101 Pine Street, Hamilton, MT is approximately 8,382 Sqft, and is identifed by Ravalli County Tax ID # 528500 and Geocode 131467-25-1-15-03-0000, and is legally described as:
Lots 1 and 2, Block 14, Original Townsite of Hamilton, Ravalli County, Montana according to the recorded plat thereof.
Reference for Recording: Document No. 769617
305 N 1st Street, Hamilton, MT is approximately 25,146 Sqft and is identifed by Ravalli county Tax ID# 462700 and Geocode 131467-25-1-15-02-0000, and is legally described as: Lots 3,4,5,6,7 and 8 in Block 14, Original Townsite of Hamilton, Ravalli County, Montana according to the recorded plat thereof; and Lots 16,17,18 and North 10 feet of Lot 15, and all of Lot 19 EXCEPT a tract described as follows in Northeast corner of Lot 19; Beginning at Northeast corner of Lot 19; thence South 14 feet; thence West 24 feet; thence North 14 feet; thence East 24 feet to the point of beginning. All in Block 14, original townsite of Hamilton, Ravalli County, Montana, according to the recoded plat thereof.
Reference for Recording: Document No. 766594
The Hamilton Zoning Board of Adjustment will hold a public hearing to take public comment and make a decision on the variance request on Monday, August 25, 2025 at 5:30 PM on the 2nd foor of Hamilton City Hall, 223 South 2nd Street, Hamilton, MT.
The public may attend and make comment in person, or on the Internet / by phone through Zoom. Instructions are available on the City of Hamilton website www.cityofhamilton.net, or by contacting aenglish@cityofhamilton.net or cityclerk@ cityofhamilton.net.
Meeting agenda and documents related this hearing are available by contacting aenglish@cityofhamilton. net. Written comments may be submitted in advance of the public hearing to aenglish@cityofhamilton.net, or to the Planning Department at 223 S. 2nd Street, Hamilton, MT 59840. All comments will be distributed
to Zoning Board of Adjustment members. BS 8-6, 8-13-25. MNAXLP
William J. Nelson, Esq.
Nelson Law Ofce PLLC 217 North 3rd Street, Suite J Hamilton, MT 59840 Telephone: (406) 3633181 Attorney for Personal Representative MONTANA TWENTY FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT RAVALLI COUNTY IN RE THE ESTATE OF: WILLIAM C. MOLENDA, Deceased.
Cause No. DP-2023-130 Dept. No. 1
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE IS HEREBY
GIVEN that the undersigned has been appointed Personal Representative of the above-named estate. All persons having claims against the decedent are required to present their claims within four months after the date of the frst publication of this notice or said claims will be forever barred.
Claims must either be mailed to the Personal Representative, Grace E. Shewmake, return receipt requested, c/o Nelson Law Ofce PLLC , 217 North Third Street, Suite J, Hamilton, MT 59840, or fled with the Clerk of the above Court. DATED this 4th day of August 2025. /s/ William J. Nelson Attorney for Personal Representative /s/ Grace E. Shewmake Personal Representative BS 8-6, 8-13, 8-20-25
MNAXLP
NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING – STEVENSVILLE RURAL FIRE DISTRICT
NOTICE IS HEREBY
GIVEN that the Stevensville Rural Fire District (S.R.F.D.) Board of Trustees will hold a public hearing August 20st, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. at 156 Kinsman Drive Stevensville Montana, to allow public comment and review of the S.R.F.D. proposed Fiscal Year 2026 Budget.
Any taxpayer or resident may appear at the special board meeting and be heard for or against any part of the proposed Fiscal Year 2026 Budget. The proposed Fiscal Year 2026 Budget will be on the agenda of the regular board meeting, following the public hearing, to be discussed and adopted on August 20st, 2025. If you have any questions, or want a copy of the proposed budget, please contact the Stevensville Rural Fire District at (406)777-7033 please leave a message if no answer or email admin@ stevensvilleruralfre.com or at P.O. Box 667, Stevensville, MT 59870. Please make all communications attention: District “Proposed Fiscal Year 2026 Budget”
BS 8-6, 8-13-25.
MNAXLP
Montana 21st Judicial District Court, Ravalli County
In the Matter of the Name Change of Micalann Campbell, Micalann Campbell, Petitioner.
Cause No.: DV-41-20250000264-NC
Dept. 2
Jennifer B. Lint
NOTICE OF HEARING ON NAME CHANGE
This is notice that Petitioner has asked the District Court for a name change from Micalann Rose Campbell to Micalann Rose McCrea.
The hearing will be on September 4, 2025 at 1:30 p.m. The hearing will be at the courthouse in Ravalli County.
DATED this 29th day of July, 2025.
/s/ Paige Trautwein
Clerk of District Court
By: Sarah Sargent
Deputy Clerk of Court
BS 8-13, 8-20, 8-27, 9-3-25.
MNAXLP
John D. Greef Attorney at Law P.O. Box 1926 Hamilton, MT 59840 406-360-8117
Attorney for Petitioner MONTANA TWENTY-FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, RAVALLI COUNTY IN RE THE NAME CHANGE OF: Alivia Marie Gates, Jorden Lynn Lawyer, Petitioner, on behalf of Alivia Marie Gates Case No. DV-41-20250000241-NM
Department No.: 1 NOTICE OF HEARING ON PETITION FOR NAME CHANGE OF MINOR CHILD
NOTICE IS HEREBY
GIVEN the Petitioner has asked the Court to change a child’s name from Alivia Marie Gates to Alivia Marie Lawyer. A hearing will be held on the Petition for Name Change on the 24th of September 2025, at the hour of 1:30 p.m., or as soon thereafter as the matter may be heard in the courtroom of the above court at which time all interested persons may appear and object. Dated this 6th day of August, 2025.
/S/ Paige Trautwein Clerk of District Court
By: Catherine Di Gleria Deputy Clerk of Court
BS 8-13, 8-20, 8-27, 9-3-25.
MNAXLP
John D. Greef Attorney at Law P.O. Box 1926 Hamilton, MT 59840 406-360-8117
Attorney for Petitioner
MONTANA TWENTY-FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, RAVALLI COUNTY IN RE THE NAME
CHANGE OF: Alayna Lynn Gates, Jorden Lynn Lawyer, Petitioner, on behalf of Alayna Lynn Gates Case No. DV-41-20250000242-NM
Department No.: 2
NOTICE OF HEARING ON PETITION FOR NAME CHANGE OF MINOR CHILD NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN the Petitioner has asked the Court to change a child’s name from Alayna Lynn Gates to Alayna Lynn Lawyer. A hearing will be held on the Petition for Name Change on the 24th of September 2025, at the hour of 1:30 p.m., or as soon thereafter as the matter may be heard in the courtroom of the above court at which time all interested persons may appear and object. Dated this 6th day of August, 2025.
/S/ Paige Trautwein Clerk of District Court By: Catherine Di Gleria Deputy Clerk of Court BS 8-13, 8-20, 8-27, 9-3-25.
MNAXLP
LEGAL NOTICE
The Ravalli County Planning Department is inviting public comment on an afterthe-fact foodplain permit application (FA-25-05) for work performed within the FEMA regulated foodplain of the Bitterroot River. The applicant is Russ Fox on behalf of Peter Krause (Sub Peak Inc.). The project repaired a 15-foot section of damaged riprapped bank. The work occurred on a section of stabilized bank permitted under “Floodplain Permit FA-22-05”. The landowner completed the repair work described above in April of this year. The applicant submitted all necessary application materials in accordance with the Ravalli County Floodplain Regulations, including an engineer certifed No-Rise Analysis. The project site is located adjacent to 4858 Osprey Lane, Stevensville, MT in Section 25, Township 10 North, Range 20 West, Ravalli County. Detailed information regarding this
application is available for review 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 August 27, 2025 by 5:00pm (Reference Application #FA-25-05). BS 8-13-25. MNAXLP
RAVALLI COUNTY ATTORNEY Bill Fulbright, County Attorney Ravalli County Courthouse 205 Bedford Street, Suite C Hamilton, MT 59840 rcaoservice@rc.mt.gov
Phone: (406) 375-6750
Ravalli County Public Administrator
MONTANA TWENTY FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, RAVALLI COUNTY IN THE MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF: DONALD WAYNE JOHNSTON, Deceased. Cause No. DP-25-89 Dept. No. 1
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE IS HEREBY
GIVEN that the undersigned has been appointed Personal Representative of the above-named estate. All persons having claims against the decedent are required to present their claims within four months after the date of the frst publication of this notice or said claims will be forever barred.
Claims must either be mailed to Ravalli County Public Administrator, 205 Bedford Street, Suite C, Hamilton, MT 59840, return receipt requested, or fled with the Clerk of the above-entitled Court.
DATED: August 4, 2025 /s/ Kiki Smethers for Bill Fulbright, Ravalli County Attorney BS 8-13, 8-20, 8-27-25. MNAXLP
PUBLIC HEARING
The Town of Darby will hold a public hearing for the purpose of obtaining public comments regarding a proposed application to the Montana Department of Commerce’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program and other programs, as applicable, for a wastewater improvement project. At the public hearing, the proposed project will be explained, including the purpose and proposed area of the project, activities, budget, possible sources of funding, and if applicable, any costs that may impact local citizens as a result of the project. All interested persons will be given the opportunity to ask questions and to express their opinions regarding this proposed project.
Comments may be given orally at the hearing or submitted in writing before 5:00pm on August 25th. Anyone who would like more information or who wants to submit suggestions should contact Tammy Stuart, (406) 821- 3753. The hearing will be held at: Darby Town Hall 101 East Tanner Avenue August 26, 2025 6:00PM BS 8-13, 8-20-25.
MNAXLP
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING FOR PERMISSIVE
MEDICAL LEVY
North Valley Public Library District Board of Trustees will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, at 3PM in the Library Community Room at 208 Main St., Stevensville. The purpose of this hearing is to take public comment and pass a Resolution regarding the proposed permissive medical levy for health care premium increases for Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2026.
If you have any questions, please feel free to call the Library Director Denise Ard at 777-5061. BS 8-13, 8-20-25.
MNAXLP
INVITATION TO BID
RECEIPT OF BIDS:
Sealed bids will be received at the Ravalli County Commission Ofce at 215 S 4th Street, Hamilton, MT 59840, until 3:00 p.m. local time on Thursday, August 28th, 2025, for construction of the Ricketts Road Reconstruction/Resurfacing Project, and will then be publicly opened and read aloud immediately thereafter within the Ravalli County Commissioner’s Conference Room. Proposals must be sealed and marked “Ricketts Road Reconstruction/Resurfacing Project” and marked “Sealed Bid” with the contractor’s name and address included.
DESCRIPTION OF WORK: The works consists of roadway demolition, reconstruction and resurfacing for approximately 2 miles of Ricketts Road. Work includes complete pulverization and reclamation of existing asphalt surfacing, demolition of existing facilities, excavation and embankment, irrigation ditch facilities, roadway base installation, asphalt paving, signing, striping, restoration and related work in accordance with the plans and specifcations. The project includes a base bid and one bid alternative.
PROJECT FINANCING: The project is federally funded through the Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Project Funding, and is subject to all applicable local, state, and federal regulations as included within the contract manual.
SITE OF WORK: The project is located in Ravalli County, Montana, west of the City of Hamilton, between Bowman Road and Gerer Lane.
COMPLETION OF WORK: All work must be substantially complete within 120 calendar days after the commencement date stated in the Notice to Proceed. Contractor may elect to have a Notice to Proceed in 2025 with a winter shutdown or have a Notice to Proceed no later than April 1, 2026. OBTAINING CONTRACT DOCUMENTS: The contract documents may be examined or obtained, upon paying a non-refundable fee of $100.00, by contacting the Engineer, WGM Group, Inc., 1111 E. Broadway, Missoula, MT, 59802, (406) 728-4611. Attn: Jonathan Gass. An additional charge of $10.00 will be applied for shipping and handling, if required.
Contractor’s submitting a bid must have an ofcial Bid Set of documents obtained from the Engineer. Contract Documents may also be reviewed at the Missoula Plans Exchange (406) 549-5002. BID SECURITY: Each bid shall be accompanied by bid security made payable to Ravalli County in an amount of ten percent (10%) of the bidder’s maximum bid price, including bid alternates, and in the form of a cashier’s check, certifed check, or bid bond issued by a surety authorized to do business in Montana. Successful Bidders shall furnish approved Performance and Payment Bonds each in the amount of one hundred percent (100%) of the contract amount, along with required Insurance coverage. The bidder shall guarantee the total bid price for a period of 60 calendar days from the date of bid opening.
CONTRACTOR’S REGISTRATION: Montana law requires all contractors to register with the Department of Labor prior to execution of the contract agreement. Forms for registration are available from the Department of Labor and Industry, P.O. Box 8011, 1805 Pros-
pect Ave, Helena, Montana 59604-8011. Information on registration can be obtained by calling 406-444-7734. All laborers and mechanics employed by the contractor or subcontractors in performance of the construction work shall be paid wages at rates as may be required by law. The contractor must ensure that employees and applicants for employment are not discriminated against because of their race, color, religion, sex or national origin.
WAGE RATES: The Contractor shall not pay less than the latest Federal Davis-Bacon Wage Rates. A copy of the applicable wage rates is attached as part of the specifcations in Section 00910.
PRE-BID CONFER-
ENCE: Prospective bidders are encouraged to attend a pre-bid conference, which will be conducted jointly by Ravalli County and Engineer at the Ravalli County Commissioner’s Conference Room, 215 S 4th Street, Hamilton, MT at 10:00 a.m. on August 21, 2025, with an optional walk-through of the project site upon completion
of the meeting.
PROJECT ADMINISTRATION: All questions related to this project prior to the opening of bids shall be directed to the Engineer. It shall be understood, however, that no specifcation interpretation will be made by telephone, nor will any “or equal” products be considered for approval prior to award of contract. The Engineer for this project is WGM Group, Inc., 1111 E. Broadway, Missoula, MT 59802, with questions addressed to Jonathan Gass (406) 728-4611, or email jgass@wgmgroup.com.
OWNER’S RIGHTS
RESERVED: The Owner reserves the right to reject any or all bids, to waive any informality in a bid, or to accept the lowest responsive and responsible bid and bidder, and to make awards in the interest of the Owner.
AWARD CONTIN-
GENT: Without limiting the foregoing, it is expressly stated that fnal award of the Contract is contingent upon securing appropriate fnancing.
BS 8-13, 8-20-25.
MNAXLP
SECTION 00 11 16 INVITATION TO BID
Separate sealed bids for construction of Victor Crossing Lift Station will be received by Victor Water and Sewer District at the ofce of Victor Water and Sewer District until 2:00 PM local time on August 26, 2025, and then publicly opened and read aloud.
The project generally consists of, but is not necessarily limited to, the following major items: Construction of new lift station, gravity sewer main connection and forcemain connection and demolition of existing lift station.
The Contract Documents consisting of half-size Drawings and Project Manual may be viewed or obtained by either electronic documents on-line, or a hard copy at the ofce of Morrison-Maierle, Inc., (Missoula). Only frms obtaining documents by these methods will be placed on the Planholders List.
Complete electronic Project Plans, Project Specifcations, and Bid Proposal Packet are available at
the Morrison-Maierle, Inc. website “www.m-m.net” by clicking on the “About” tab, scroll down to “Projects Bidding”. Select this project from the project list which will direct you to the QuestCDN website. Plan documents and the Bid Proposal Packet can be downloaded for a fee of $40.00. Please contact QuestCDN at 952233-1632 or email “info@ questcdn.com” for assistance in the free membership registration, downloading documents, and working with this digital project information.
The QuestCDN ebiddoc number for this project is: #9820191
In addition, the Drawings and Project Manual may also be examined at the following locations:
Victor Water and Sewer District and the ofces of the consulting engineer, Morrison-Maierle, Inc., at 1055 Mount Ave, Missoula, MT. Montana Plan Exchanges at Montanabid.com; or your regional plan exchange(s).
There will be a Pre-Bid Conference at the ofce of Victor Water and Sewer District, at 2:00 PM on August
19, 2025. Interested CONTRACTORS are encouraged to attend. A tour of the project site(s) will be conducted after the meeting.
The CONTRACTOR must ensure that employees and applicants for employment are not discriminated against because of their race, color, religion, sex or national origin.
Each bid or proposal must be accompanied by a Certifed Check, Cashier’s Check, or Bid Bond payable to Victor Water and Sewer District, in an amount not less than ten percent (10%) of the total amount of the bid. Successful BIDDERS shall furnish an approved Construction Performance Bond and a Construction (Labor and Materials) Payment Bond, each in the amount of one hundred percent (100%) of the contract amount. Insurance as required shall be provided by the successful BIDDER(s) and a certifcate(s) of that insurance shall be provided. This project is funded in part or in whole with grant/ loan funding from Montana ARPA Award of the project
will be contingent upon receiving funding and award concurrence from Montana ARPA. A bid may not be withdrawn after the scheduled time for the public opening of the Bids specifed above unless it meets requirements and procedures outlined in Article 16.02 of the Instructions to Bidders. The right is reserved to reject
MTGOP: legislators disenfranchised at convention
that Montana lacked the feeling of a deep-red conservative state. He suggested a “conservative governance committee” to hand out party endorsements in primaries. The Montana Republican Party has mostly avoided advocating for one Republican over another in primary races. Gianforte notably put his thumb on the scale in 2024.
“That’s something you can bring up, a debate when you’re voting for these people,” Ellsworth said. MTGOP “has always managed to stay out of the fray and now it’s being sunk completely into the fray. Ultimately, I think we will end up losing some seats. That’s what even Art said, ‘We may not have as many members, but we’re going to have red members.’ Well, defne red.”
The lawsuit fled last week in Lewis and Clark District Court asks for a legal determination of what the lawmakers’
rights are. The Montana Constitution grants legislators absolute immunity for legislative actions, which the plaintifs argue should have prevented their disenfranchisement and earlier censuring by the Montana Republican Party executive board.
The censure issued in April said the lawmakers weren’t upholding Republican values, though questions submitted to one lawmaker, Sen. Josh Kassmier, R-Fort Benton, focused more on his interactions with Senate President Matt Regier, R-Kalispell, who lost control of his caucus on the session’s frst day.
There’s been no censuring of House Republicans who collaborated with the disenfranchised senators to build a bipartisan working majority that included Democrats from both chambers.
In the House, on key votes, Speaker Brandon Ler, R-Savage, and Majority Leader Steve Fitzpatrick, R-Great Falls
voted with the working majority. Ler also voted against the state budget bill that was a working majority priority.
A look at 2,696 Senate foor votes and 2,728 House votes indicates that the majority of Republicans who voted with the working majority also voted on the side taken by most Republicans at least 80% of the time and more than some Freedom Caucus members.
Republican members of the working majority have said that during the session they advanced the priorities of their constituents, not “party bosses.”
At the convention, state Republican Party rules should have prevented the lawmakers from being excluded, Ellsworth said.
Ellsworth is a past president of the Montana Senate who was censured during the 2025 legislative session for attempting to award up to $170,100 in government work to a longtime busi-
ness associate without disclosing the relationship and not putting the work out for bid.
The work was to involve monitoring Montana courts as they put into efect 27 new “judicial reform” laws proposed by Republicans during the 2025 Montana Legislature. Only seven of the bills passed.
Ellsworth maintains his innocence, but the Senate consensus was that he violated Senate ethics. Senators banned Ellsworth from in-person participation in legislative functions. He fnished the Legislature participating remotely, capable of voting but not debating or asking questions about legislation.
Separately, lawmakers referred Ellsworth to the Department of Justice for alleged ofcial misconduct, a misdemeanor, stemming from the contracts.
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HELP WANTED: WHITTECAR RIFLE & PISTOL RANGE Caretaker needed. $14.50 hour. Onsite living required, housing & utilities provided. Open to couples. Nancy Preston, Apex Human Resources, Inc , 406 777 9869, nancy@apexhumanresources.com
Extension Agents –Family and Consumer Sciences and 4-H in Blaine County, Chinook, MT. Full time. Exciting job with lots of autonomy! Will develop, implement and evaluate Extension programming. Complete information and to apply: www.montana. edu/extension/careers.
Extension Agent in Meagher County, White Sulphur Springs, MT. Full time. Exciting job with lots of autonomy! Will develop, implement and evaluate Extension programming. Complete information and to apply: www.montana. edu/extension/careers . In compliance with the Montana Veteran’s Employment Preference Act, MSU provides preference in employment to veterans, disabled veterans, and certain eligible relatives of veterans. To claim veteran’s preference, please complete the veteran’s preference information located in the Demographics section of your profle. Montana State University does not discriminate against any applicant on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, political ideas, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, national origin, physical or mental disability, or any other protected class status in violation of any applicable law.
FRESH EGGS from Howell’s Happy Hens are back! $5.00/doz. Pick up at Bitterroot Star ofce, 115 W. 3rd, Suite 108, Stevensville.
AKC CHESAPEAKE BAY RETRIEVER MALE PUPPIES for sale.
Whelped 5/25/2025, second vaccination, worming and microchipped, 4 generation pedigree showing championship genetics. Very social, playful and friendly. Call or Text (559) 730-5873 to arrange an in-person visit.
AMAZING HIS & HERS SALE! Astounding amounts of tools & vintage glassware & collectibles, PLUS! 412 College, Stevi. 8/14 - 9 to 3 (prices frm), 8/15 - 9 to 2, 8/16 - 9 to 1, 8/1710 to 1 (½ price or offers). His = sockets, end wrenches, screwdrivers, rolling tools chests, 10” table saw, 2 drill presses, disc belt sander, router table, battery chargers, air stapler, 100’s of hand tools, vintage Torco vice, electric chain saw, & so much more! Hers = tea pot collection, tea cups, music boxes, Penguins, Holland wooden shoes, primitives, littles, glassware = ruby, depression & cut pressed, linens & more. Plus = fshing tackle boxes, leaf blower, painters easels, fle cabinets, lumber pieces, electronic items, 1&½ ton foor jack, cargo & equalizer hitches, hand truck, pictures, blankets, etc. This is an unusual, fun sale! Find time to check this one out! Note the time on Sunday. CASH - NO EARLIES.
MOVING SALE - 121 Snowberry, Hamilton. Fri, Aug. 15th & Sat, Aug. 16th, 8-2. Studded snow tires, new, 18-inch. Weber charcoal grill. Outdoor furniture. Ladies retro Trek bike. Household items and more.
FOR RENT: 1 BDRM APT. fully furnished, utilities/trash paid. Rural Stevensville, very quiet neighborhood. $1500 per month, on a month to month contract. Deposits required: Security $400, Cleaning $300. 406-5501289/208-827-3101.
1 BEDROOM APT. for rent, 804 South 4th, across from Rocky Mountain Lab. $800/mo. 406-381-2204.
ROOM FOR RENT. Bed, dresser, TV, small fridge, includes utilities, common areas, kitchen use. Hamilton. $350/ month. Call or text (406) 880-8351.
RENTAL NEEDED Retired Christian man, Bitterroot resident for 25 years, non-smoker/drinker, needs rental, can do security/livestock care for partial rent, October or later move in time, (406) 369-4473.
MONTH TO MONTH
RENTAL, furnished apartment on 10 acres with private small yard, gorgeous views in the Stevensville area, $1450/month includes utilities, call for details, available mid August, (818) 921-5275.
