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Find the latest updates and information on the COVID-19 pandemic at www.bitterrootstar.com Volume XXXVI, Number 19
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
www.bitterrootstar.com
In transition
Governor issues new directive to address the COVID-19 surge
By Michael Howell
Following a record-breaking week of new COVID-19 cases in Montana, Montana Governor Steve Bullock has issued a new directive. Effective Friday, November 20, the latest directive concerning the COVID-19 pandemic restricts the capacity of restaurants, bars, breweries, distilleries and casinos to 50% of normal operating capacity and they must close no later than 10 p.m. They can re-open after 4 a.m. It limits the number of people at a
table to six and mandates six feet of social distancing. Public gatherings and events where social distancing is not possible or not practiced are limited to 25 individuals. Anyone planning an event with more than 25 people should consult with their local public health office on a plan to implement adequate social distancing. The 25-person limit does not apply to bars, restaurants, breweries, distilleries, and casinos operating under the requirements set forth in Part I of the directive. The directive does not alter
existing requirements for houses of worship. Faith leaders are urged to continue to ensure that social distancing is possible and practiced for all in-person services, and to encourage the use of virtual services where possible. The directive does not alter existing requirements for public and private K-12 schools. The requirements described in the July 15 directive providing for the mandatory use of face coverings in certain settings and See COVID, page 2
Health board won’t enforce mandates during Covid surge By Michael Howell
Governor-elect Greg Gianforte received a COVID-19 briefing last week from Major General Matthew T. Quinn at Fort Harrison. “General Quinn has been at the helm of Montana’s response to this pandemic since March, and I value the experience he brings to my COVID-19 Response Team. While we’re both optimistic about a forthcoming COVID-19 vaccine, we also know there’s room to improve Montana’s response to this health and economic crisis, and Montanans are counting on us,” Gianforte said. Also participating in the briefing via Zoom was Jim Murphy, bureau chief of Communicable Disease Control and Prevention; Stacey Anderson, lead epidemiologist for the Communicable Disease Control and Prevention Bureau; Delila Bruno, division administrator for Montana Disaster and Emergency Services; and Dr. Greg Holzman, the State Medical Officer. Quinn, the adjutant general for Montana, will provide the governor-elect with regular briefings on COVID-19 and the state’s response. Governor-elect Greg Gianforte also met with newly-elected Republican legislative leaders, including Speaker-elect Wylie Galt (HD-30) and Senate President-elect Mark Blasdel (SD-4). “Montanans have given us a clear and historic mandate. They want to get our economy going again and change the way Helena does business,” Governor-elect Gianforte said. “I look forward to working with legislative leaders on both sides of the aisle to enact the Montana Comeback Plan.”
Stevensville schedules interviews for two vacant council seat The Stevensville Town Council has received four applications for the two seats on the council that were recently vacated following the resignations of Ward 1 Councilor Bob Michalson and Ward 2 Councilor Robin Holcomb. By the close of the November 18 deadline, four applications had been received, two applications for each ward. Wallace Smith and Paul Luding-
ton applied for the Ward 1 seat and Patrick Schourd and Sydney Allen applied for the seat in Ward 2. The two remaining councilors, Jaime Devlin and Dempsey Vick, who will make the appointments to fill the vacancies, held a special meeting last Friday at which they decided to interview all four applicants. The interviews will be conducted in a live streamed Zoom meeting, sched-
uled for November 30 at 7 p.m. The appointments could possibly be made in time to have the new councilors on board for the December 10 council meeting. Due to a timing issue an unrelated item will also be added onto the Zoom meeting agenda so that the council can take action on a lease contract for a hangar at the airport.
serve, according to Duce. She said those two sponsorships alone more than made up for the funds missed out on due to the COVID-19 restrictions and limitations. Then the MDMH Board of Directors matched every dollar to show their commitment to adding cancer services at the hospital. “Luckily, we still had creative community members come up with some amazing colorthemed events to raise money in memory of loved ones lost to a particular type of cancer or to honor someone currently fighting the battle,” said Duce. New color teams were formed this year including Team White for Lung Cancer and Team Orchid for Testicular Cancer. She said the response was emotional for many and successful as far as fundraising goes. For example, Team Orchid tripled the amount they used to raise for Team Pink
and the Darby Rodeo Association gave $7,500 from their events and raffles. “We’re really grateful for the enthusiasm from so many and the lives who have been honored and remembered by these new color teams,” said Duce. With the annual fundraiser behind them, now the tireless supporters of the hospital and its cancer patients is pushing forward with the continuing efforts at raising funds to add a Cancer/Infusion Center at the hospital. The idea was announced last January but was put on hold in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It will involve a renovation and addition to the south side of the hospital including the main entrance. “Looking forward, we feel a deep responsibility to be successful with our fundraising as donations are directed to a new cancer and infusion center,” said Duce.
At its last meeting on November 10, the Ravalli County Health Board made it clear in its discussion with officials from the City of Hamilton that it supports the CDC and Public Health recommendations and guidelines concerning masking and social distancing, but the Board is not going to enforce any mandates. It was also made clear that the Board had no plans for addressing the current surge in COVID-19 cases. Public Health Officer Dr. Carol Calderwood told the Board that the county was seeing a higher percentage of positive test results for COVID-19. She said she was not privy to the numbers of available Intensive Care Unit beds at the hospital but that she knew they were transferring people from other departments who had experience in the ICU over there to help. She said there was also less availability for transferring patients to other facilities as well and that everyone was under a lot of stress. One positive note was that the new PCR tests for the health care workers that had been taking up to a 48-hour turnaround for results were down to 24 hours.
County Public Health Nurse Tiffany Webber gave the Board an update on her office and how it was steadily falling behind in its work despite hiring more help. Two new people were hired fresh out of nursing school. Webber said nurses were hard to find and that, as far as nurses go, Ravalli County
was “at the bottom of that barrel.” A third employee was hired to work on tracing and tracking contacts. Webber said the number of COVID-19 cases coming in were “more than we can get to.” See HEALTH, page 3
‘Colors of Cancer’ campaign gives way to fundraising launch for MDMH Cancer and Infusion Center This year’s Colors of Cancer campaign was quite a success, according to one of its main drivers, Stacie Duce, Director of Philanthropy at Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital. This year, despite the difficulties incurred during a pandemic, the campaign brought in over $55,000. After adding in the $1 for $1 match from the hospital, it brought the total contributions to $110,185. “While we were uncertain about the possibilities of some of our grassroots fundraising ideas this year, we ended the month exceeding our goals during the 31-day campaign,” said Duce. She said they received incredible support from First Interstate Bank and had a new sponsor of their 5K race, Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle. The Seattle hospital was celebrating its 100-year anniversary and supporting health-related initiatives across the region they
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“We know that every day we get closer to our goal is one day sooner that ground can be broken and ultimately, that more patients can receive infusion treatments close to home. It will impact so many families and community members, we are really anxious to reach our goal with haste.” Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital CEO John Bishop said the consequences of COVID-19 brought all the hospital’s major projects “to a screeching halt.” “With the success of the 2020 Colors of Cancer campaign in October, we want to keep that momentum of generosity and pick up where we left off, however, we truly will be dependent on the Foundation’s capital fundraising campaign before we break ground on the next phase.” Bishop said the new Cancer and Infusion Center will include three outpatient clinic exam
rooms, which will double as private infusion stations. He said the space is designed to be flexible for ongoing needs of patients and staff. It will also include seven private infusion bays with an open design and glass exterior walls and a shared infusion bay for a group of three patients. There will be an open kitchen counter space for patients to help themselves to complimentary snacks and beverages (critical for those treatments that can last 4 to 8 hours). The center area of the new space is a nurse’s station with support staff that can serve both clinical visits and infusion services. Bishop said it was smartly designed space for staff that is ideal for storage needs, entering/exiting the clinic without disrupting patient flow, and includes a lounge area. “It’s a complex project that’s intertwined with several other renovations at the hospital,” said
bishop, “specifically, the space in the center of the facility that served as the surgical center and operating rooms since the hospital opened in 1975. Our new state-of-the-art surgery center is fully functioning with a robotics machine and exceptional staff, it’s time to renovate that former space.” Because of recent improvements in the pharmacy inside the hospital, they now have mixing stations for chemotherapy drugs that can be mixed at the time needed and delivered to the clinic. “We are working on a multi-tiered staffing solution that will include several new full-time positions at the hospital,” said Bishop. “We want to partner with an experienced group of oncologists to enhance treatments for local patients and give them excel-
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lent care without exhausting and expensive travel.” Other design elements include improving the main entrance on the south side of the hospital by adding new waiting areas, reception areas and a “warm, welcoming design that includes double-sided rock fireplaces.” Bishop said that new regulations required adding a covered drop-off area when making modifications to the main entrance. He said the hospital’s exterior will be improved and look similar to the entrance of the new Surgery Center. The new cancer and infusion center will take over space currently occupied by the IT Department. So, IT will be moving to the center section of the hospital
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COVID continued
All trees created by Stevensville Businesses and are on display Dec. 4th-13th
the August 12 directive providing for the mandatory use of face coverings in all K-12 schools are modified to apply in all counties statewide, whether or not a county has identified four active cases. The narrow allowance permitting students to remove face coverings while seated and observing proper
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and create a better space for new employee orientation and continuing education. A new conference room would also be added and have many functions for staff and the community, he said. The cumulative cost of the correlating renovations will top $8 million, according to Bishop, but the hospital is only fundraising for the cancer clinic portion of the project which will roughly come close to $4 million. “Although we had preliminary estimates on cost of the things we’ve designed, construction costs have skyrocketed this year,” said Bishop. “Our bidding process has not started and won’t until our fundraising is well on its way to its target, so we hope by then that construction and material costs will have leveled out and we can complete this important project wisely and prudently.” Jennifer Bush, Director of
Patient Care Services, said she was excited to be a part of the planning for the Cancer Center. “We have all been touched by the effects of cancer at some point in our lives and know how important it is to have our loved ones close to home. Our nurses at MDMH give the most kind and compassionate care to our community. They have been amazing this year in particular. Responding to the needs of our community is important, and being here for patients when needed makes me very proud to be a part of expanding our services at MDMH,” said Bush. To learn more about giving opportunities and the amenities of the proposed Cancer and Infusion Center, contact Stacie Duce at 406.375-4674 or Stacie.duce@ mdmh.org. Anyone can give online anytime at www.mdmh.org/ give.
social distancing of six feet, set forth in the August 27 directive, remains in effect according to the terms of that directive. The directive, along with any prior directive that implements and references the public health authorities of DPHHS provided in Title 50, constitutes a “public health . . . order” within the meaning of the law, and is enforceable by the Attorney General, DPHHS, a county attorney,
or other local authorities under the direction of a county attorney. Local public health agencies and all officers and agencies of the state are directed to assist in the administration and enforcement of this directive. Counties, cities, and towns may adopt more restrictive ordinances. The directive can be seen online at covid.19.mt.gov.
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Health continued
She said they have generally been infected for three to four days and then it will take another couple of days to get lab results. She said they needed to get a swabbing program going but haven’t had the time. She said Ravalli County was one of a handful of counties getting complaints about violations of the governor’s mandates submitted on the state site. Webber said that when the lab notices come in the people have to be contacted. She said they may not be showing symptoms and need to be informed. But right now, they are having trouble making all the calls. Under the current overload it can be four or five days before they contact the person that tested positive, leaving it pretty much impossible to do effective tracking. At the time (Nov. 10) they had one full time nurse out sick and two nurses fresh out of graduate school and three retired nurses working a couple days a week on the tracing program. They are asking the people who test positive to contact people who may have been exposed. She said there was a 4% positivity increase at Marcus Daly Hospital the first week of November. Hamilton City Council President Claire Kemp said that city residents were reaching out a lot about the COVID-19 situation and a majority were wanting more enforcement of the Governor’s mask mandate. She said that their attorney informed them that authority to enforce a mask mandate locally was in the hands of the Ravalli County Health Board. She said that they were hoping to discuss with the Board at what point there would be more enforcement. “Do we need more numbers? We wanted to hear from you,” she said. County commissioner Jeff Burrows, who chairs the Health Board, asked if she was requesting a citation for not wearing a mask or citing the businesses for
not requiring a mask. Kemp said they were just looking to the Board for what its next steps might be, “because, as your public health officer just stated, it’s getting worse.” Councilor Jenny West said they were thinking about limiting group sizes and “seeing what we can do together to make this easier, but as a city we have our hands tied.” Burrows called the request vague and suggested they put together a list of what they would like to see done. “We have asked the public to follow the guidelines. There is no penalty or citations. Is that what you are requesting?” West replied, “What is your plan? We are looking to you for guidance.” Burrows said, “For me it’s just sort of status quo and trying to meet the needs of our public health office as far as contact tracing. I don’t know what else we can do. Or we pull the trigger on a mandate with citations. I’m not in favor of that.” Board member Dr. Michael Turner said that it was the citizens of Ravalli County who had to take responsibility here. “There are things that you can do. I don’t think this board wants to be a police organization going out and arresting people who don’t have masks on or are meeting in too big of groups. So that means citizens have to take responsibility.” Board member Dr. Chilcote said, “We are not going to stomp out the disease. We are not going to stop it. Maybe a vaccine will help. What are we aiming for here? Our concern is overwhelming our medical community. It would be nice to have some beds.” He said the question was, “How do we keep our medical facilities functioning without clamping down on society?” Board member Roger DeHaan said, “My answer would be, we don’t have a plan. We are just letting this thing run its course. Unfortunately, the ones who are susceptible and at most risk are the ones being deprived. They are not able to go to meetings or gatherings because other
The number of new cases reported daily also continues to climb with 38 new cases reported on the 17th, another 53 on the 18th, another 82 on the 19th and another 92 on the 20th. people are not willing to wear masks or social distance. It’s a tough line to follow but we will know it’s working when businesses can get back to work. When our schools can function normally. To me that’s the goal.” “Some people in Ravalli County feel they don’t want to give up a little freedom now for more freedom later on. And we don’t know if this will be months or years,” he said. Dr. Turner said, “We are not going to be doing the community a favor by locking everything down I don‘t think, because there’s a side effect of that,” with kids out of school and parents out of work. He noted that the disease was most serious for elderly people and those with co-morbidity symptoms. Burrows said, “Maybe that answers your question about our plan. We don’t have much of one, but maybe it’s an answer you don’t like.” Kemp responded, saying that “by and large our constituents want some action. They want some mandate, but it is not in our authority. But without it, if hospitalizations rise and we run out of beds, what do we do?” Dr. Calderwood said, “I don’t think it would be successful in this community to try the heavy hand. I think it might be time for the board to make a strong statement with a louder voice that we take some action because the holidays are going to be very bad if people don’t limit their contact groups and if they don’t stay home when they are sick. Even if you can’t mask, then it would be good
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if you could have a strong voice that we need to do something different. “ Turner said that with 400 people sick it amounts to 1% of the county. “That’s what we know. I would assume there are several more of those that we don’t know they have it,” he said. Calderwood said they were seeing clusters in the county and cases with no known contact and no travel, meaning that there was community spread and no way to really track it. She said they were also seeing big clusters in certain businesses and schools, hospitals and dental clinics and nursing homes. “But we have not shut anybody down,” said Calderwood. “All these businesses are running out of staff due to quarantines whether through being sick or being in contact with someone who is sick. It’s heartbreaking not just for the people who get sick and die, also the economic impact and the personal impact on people who can’t do their daily activities because they are trying to reduce the spread.” She said they are seeing from 5 or 10 people daily who test positive and say they have been within six feet of people in their office because they work in a business that is not masking and not keeping social distance, resulting
Bitterroot Star -- Page 3 in all the workers needing to be quarantined. She said in the hospital where she works they do not eat together, do not get within 6 feet of each other, and mask 100%, “so that if I get sick I haven’t given it to you. And you do not have to be quarantined because of me.” She said her only contacts are at home. “I’m not going to any parties, I’m not going to any bars, I’m not going to sit in a group that’s touching, because that’s what I can do. Even if I don’t believe in masking I could still stay apart. But people don’t think about it until they get sick and they are shedding the virus for 48 hours before they have any symptoms. They have already spread it for a couple of days. If they keep going to work because they think it’s a cold but then lose their sense of smell and come in, there has already been five days since they were sick plus the two days before that, so it’s been a week that they have been spreading it.” “If you don’t want to enforce things and I don’t think it’s going to be successful in this county, then the main thing is to just push the education and maybe a strong voice from the board would be impactful at this point. It isn’t a normal year to go to work if you don’t feel well. Employers need to realize that it is a different day,” said Calderwood. “I think the main people who are spreading it just aren’t listening to the warnings and doing the basic guidelines. In a way, it is a loss of freedom but in a way it is a willing sacrifice to make, and if everyone did make a sacrifice we could keep the hospital from being overwhelmed. I fear for this holiday season,” she said. Over 30 people attended the meeting, almost all of them sitting shoulder to shoulder and without masks. The public comment went
on for hours with most everyone speaking against the enforcement of any directives which were generally considered a violation of constitutional rights. Other comments included allegations of data being misused and even fraudulent, that enforcement of mandates would ruin the economy and were basically useless and unenforceable, and some still claiming that the pandemic is a hoax. Following this meeting on November 10, there was a hiatus in the steady reports that had been coming from the Public Health Office of the number of daily active cases of COVID-19 and the number of daily new cases in the county. When the reports were resumed they came from the Sheriff’s Office and only the number of new cases for November 13 were reported. The number of active cases was not included in the report. The next report of active cases was released on November 16 when the county reported 137 new COVID-19 cases over the weekend (November 14th and 15th) and an additional 59 cases on Monday, November 16th. The report also noted, “Ravalli County has updated the number of recovered cases, and currently has 326 confirmed active cases of COVID-19 in Ravalli County.” This update is reflected in the associated graph as the drastic drop in the graph line from 405 active cases on November 10 to the updated number of 326 on November 16. From there the number of active cases begins another climb upwards, more than doubling over the next four days to 669 on November 20. The county also announced that it will no longer be reporting the numbers of hospitalized patients “because of the inability to report on local cases that might be hospitalized out of the County.”
Montana’s ICU and physician capacity In response to the national surge in Covid-19 cases, Senior Research Analyst Adam Johnson at Quoteworks.com looked into the question of ICU bed capacity in hospitals around the nation and, based on examination of both Department of Health and Human Services records and Kaiser Family Foundation data found that Montana has an average of .23 ICU hospital beds and 2.18 certified physicians per 1,000 residents, making it the 2nd least prepared hospital capacity in the nation. [The report can be found at https://quotewizard.com/news/ posts/states-prepared-for-hospitalcapacity ] The analysts found that Wyoming, Montana and Hawaii are considered to have the least prepared hospitals in the nation. They found Montana’s ICU bed capacity to be 77.39 percent full
(as of November 13). Nationally, Over 70% of ICU beds across the country were being used on that date. Although ICU capacity in Ravalli County was considered
to have reached a critical level in early November, the capacity since then has improved, according to Covid ActNow
Happy Thanksgiving
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Wednesday, November 25, 2020
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Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Library adapting to covid constraints The Bitterroot Public Library is getting creative with community outreach. New community librarian Daniel Ray is optimistic for the future of in-person adult programming at the library but right now, in the time of Covid-19 and reduced library operating hours, he has to figure out how to keep the public engaged and the library active in programming. One solution? Take home activity kits. “I really want to engage with the patron base of the library and bring in new contacts, but it’s challenging,” Ray said. “Kits are one solution many librarians are utilizing.” The public can sign up online on the library’s website, Bitterrootpubliclibrary.org, go to the calendar link and register for any of the take home activity kits that are coming available. The Paper Lantern kit includes a small light string, origami paper and directions on how to produce a festive holiday decoration. “The library has always
had a Paper Lantern making class before the holidays,” Ray said. “But in-person classes are not possible. This was our fallback. The origami lanterns are tricky at first, but once you’ve made a couple, it’s really straight forward. And the end product is beautiful.” Once an individual has registered for the take home kit they are interested in, they can pick it up during the library’s open hours or front door service, but supplies are limited. Ray is limiting the kits to one per family. In December, Ray plans on three more take home craft kits, including a Paper Christmas Wreath kit, also a recurring library favorite, a Holiday Gnome kit and a Christmas Garland kit. They will be followed by others in January and February. As with the Paper Lantern kit, all supplies will be provided (excluding a glue gun for the wreath making,) registration is required so the library may track the number of kits going out, and help is available by phone or in
person at the library within the current 30 minute visit limit. “YouTube is really helpful too,” Ray said. “Though all kits will come with instructions.” Online registration is available one week before the event and one week after. If any kits are available after the event closes, they will still be offered for pickup. For more information on these kits, the public can go to the calendar on the library website, to the library’s Facebook page or call the library directly during open hours at 363-1670. New, limited hours are open building: Mon-Sat. 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Front door service: Mon-Thurs 3 to 6 p.m., Fri 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
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SHOP EARLY! SALE StARtS WEd Open 11am - 6pm Wednesday & Friday
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KICK OFF THE CHRISTMAS SEASON with the Parade of Lights, Car Edition
Friday December 4th at 6:30 pm downtown Stevensville
Decorate your vehicle with Christmas decor, play some Christmas music and take part in the parade of lights
No entry form or fees • Everyone is Welcome Businesses are encouraged to participate with decorated vehicles too! CARS WILL LINE UP ON MAIN STREET being led by the Stevensville Volunteer Fire Department & Santa! For More details call Joan at 531-8401
HEY STEVI CITY RESIDENTS! Do you like decorating your yard for Christmas????
of trees Help make Stevensville a magical place this holiday season! Let's decorate the businesses and homes around Main Street. PRIZES AWARDED FOR BEST DECORATIONS IN EACH CATEGORY BELOW! Maps will be printed in the Bitterroot Star for locating those participating in the Holiday decorations. Choose your category(s) below, fill out the entry form and turn it in by November 20th. BUSINESS:
st Decorate teDecorate n o C AY Treeard Storefront ed! endWindow BUSINESS:
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Decorate and display a tree in your place of Business. Trees will be auctioned off and proceeds will be donated. Trees will be provided by A2Z Personnel.
Then Enter the Parade of Trees Decorate your Yard Contest. Entries for the residential yard contest are still open! All you need to do is fill out an entry form, turn it in and decorate your yard!
NO FEES to participate! The public will vote for the best decorated yard
Prizes Awarded!
Let’s Spread some Holiday Cheer
Decorate your storefront windows for all passerbys to enjoy.
___________________________________________________________ Name
RESIDENT:
Decorate Your Yard
Decorate the exterior of your home and/or yard for everyone to admire! Maps will be printed with your address and prizes awarded for best display!
_______________________________ Phone (will NOT be printed)
_________________________________________________________________________________________________ Business Name (if applicable) _________________________________________________________________________________________________ Holiday Theme or Name you would like listed on the Map _________________________________________________________________________________________________ Address for Map
We want this event to be enjoyable for everyone! Please keep all decorations within the seasonal/holiday theme, and appropriate for all ages. Registration deadline is November 20th. Registration forms may be mailed in or dropped off at: A2Z Personnel, 215 Main St. Stevensville., or the Bitterroot Star, 115 W. 3rd St. Stevensville. Please contact A2Z Personnel if you have any questions: 777-1662
Sponsored by:
Page 6-- Bitterroot Star
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Sapphire Lutheran Homes is pleased to announce their
4th Annual Turkey Trot How Does it Work?
The Turkey Trot is Online Give Now Thru Nov 27th www.gofundme.com/272j3sddc Sapphire Lutheran Homes wanted to provide the opportunity for business and individuals to contribute money to their local food bank.
Proceeds go to the • Haven House in Hamilton • The Darby Bread Box • Pantry Partners in Stevensville • Victor Food Bank Indicate in the comments which food bank you would like your donation to go!
406.363.2800 501 N 10th St Hamilton sapphirelutheran.org
YES YOU CAN!!!
HELP WANTED
Do you have expertise or a special talent you would like to share with others? Lone Rock Adult Education is looking for instructors to teach classes that will begin on Monday, January 18– April 9, 2021. The hourly rate is $25.00 per hour, you do not need a degree, and must be passionate about your topic.
POSSIBLE TOPICS OF INTEREST
• Digital Photography • Beginning Computers • Microsoft Office • Sewing/Knitting/Crafts • Yoga • Aerobics/Fitness – Via Zoom • CPR • Cooking/Baking • Intro to IPADS & Tablets • Firearm Safety
• Scrapbooking & Card Making • Intermediate Computers • Smart Phones • Guitar • Wood Carving • Sewing/Knitting/Crafts • Weight Loss • Smart phones • Selling and Buying on eBay/Craigslist • Fly Fishing - Tying
For more information, please contact JULIE BACHMAN at (406) 210. 5129 or email me at: adulteducation@lonrerockschool.org
BUrnt Fork Vet November NOVEMBER IS SENIOR MONTH There are two senior month packages available: $175 Senior exam and CBC/Chem/Electrolytes/Thyroid Panel $275 Senior Exam, Fasted Abdominal Ultrasound, CBC/Chem/Electrolytes/Thyroid Panel
• Become a CNA in 6 weeks • Become an LPN in 2-3 semesters While working part/full time with benefits!
DR. ZACHARY DAMBY
Come Grow With Us!
406-777-5411 • 63 Main Street, Stevensville michael@livingcenter.com
You have a lot on your plate. Worries about cancer won’t be one of them.
We are thrilled to announce Dr. Zach will be joining us full time in November! Dr. Zach will see small animals and will be working with Dr. Niedermeyer to cover our large animal emergencies! Dr. Zach grew up next door to his father’s mixed animal veterinary practice in Lewistown, MT. He's excited to be coming back to Montana after working at a mixed veterinary practice in Idaho for the last year. 3682 Eastside Hwy, Stevensville 406-777-3844 www.burntforkvet.com
KITCHEN REMODELS IN ONLY 2-5 DAYS!
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If you have 15 minutes at lunch, you can get something that’ll help you enjoy more of them — a 3D™ mammogram from Advanced Imaging. Walk-ins are welcome here. Cancer is not.
Thomas Schmitt | Local Owner
406.375.0262
kitchentuneup.com Visit Us Inside Sears Hometown Store:
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Walk-ins welcome. Stevi Junction Plaza (by Verizon Wireless) U.S. Highway 93 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Mon.-Fri.
Each franchise is locally owned and operated.
1 Day Tune-Up • Cabinet Painting Redooring • Refacing • Custom Cabinets
Opinion
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Bitterroot Star Editorial Board Michael Howell Victoria Howell
Message from Corvallis school board By Corvallis School Trustees, Becky Anderson, Tonia Bloom, Shawn Boelman, Jennifer Channer, Mark Fournier, Dan Wolsky, Todd Wyche
With Thanksgiving just around the corner, the Corvallis School District has a lot to be thankful for and a lot of people to thank. We are thankful that we have been able have in-person school for the approximately 1,000 students who have chosen that option. We are thankful that, with the assistance of federal and state pandemic relief funds, we have been able to hire staff to instruct the approximately 200 students who have chosen to receive instruction remotely. And we are thankful that until this week, we have been able to conduct in-person school this fall without interruption, with the exception of one limited closure at the Primary School in October. We owe thanks to Corvallis teachers for mastering a steep learning curve and figuring out how to teach in-person, while simultaneously preparing to move to remote instruction at the drop of a hat. We are grateful for all the custodial and maintenance staff who work tirelessly to keep facilities as clean and disinfected as possible and have worked to upgrade ventilation in all buildings. We thank our administrators, who have dealt with scheduling issues with great creativity and have stepped in to assist an over-burdened county health department by adding contact tracing of potential COVID exposures to their job descriptions. And we thank the food service for figuring out how to feed students both on-site and off-site, so that hunger does not become one of the burdens children and families face. Above all, we owe thanks to our students and families. Students have adapted like the champs they are to altered schedules, moves in and out of remote learning, and the social distancing and mask wearing that is required in school buildings to keep the virus at bay. arents have heroically managed disruptions to school schedules and periodic quarantines, have learned to help their students when learning has to take place at home, and have supported efforts to prevent spread of the virus at school by promptly reporting any illness or possible exposures in their families. However, despite everything that has gone well so far this school year, we know we are headed into difficult times in the winter months ahead. COVID infections are spiking dramatically in the state and in
our community. The good news is that, although more than 1,000 people occupy our facilities each day that school is open, there has been virtually no evidence of virus spread taking place at school. It appears that the precautions that are being taken – sanitation, distancing, and masks – are pretty effective in preventing and limiting spread at school. The bad news is that the school is not an island and is not immune from the impact of infection in the community. The quarantines and closures that have taken place have mostly resulted from illness acquired outside the school setting. But once a positive case has been confirmed among students or staff, any close contacts within the school go into quarantine to stop potential spread to other students and staff. When a critical mass of staff or students are unable to come to school, it becomes impossible to keep schools open due to lack of staff to teach and supervise, as well as the additional strain on staff resulting from the need to teach both those in school and those quarantined at home. These are the reasons a decision was made to close both the Middle School and Primary School until November 30. The virus that causes COVID-19 poses unique challenges for all of us. People who contract it are infectious for several days before they experience symptoms, and some people are infected and infectious without ever showing symptoms. Because of these characteristics of the virus and because community infection rates are currently high and rising, it can be difficult for any of us to know whether or when we have been exposed and if we might be exposing others. But we do know that observing recommended infection preventing precautions (hand washing, social distancing, and wearing masks) as much as possible can go a long way towards reducing infections. There is relief on the distant horizon in the form of possible vaccines and improved therapies. In the meantime, our hope as we head into the holiday season and the colder winter months is that community spread can be limited, that schools can remain open, and that students, families and all community members remain healthy. Best wishes for a happy Thanksgiving!
A call to action: help wanted
Covey Spreader
Since March 22nd, 2020, I have written and posted 24 articles to my blog, Poor Rogers Almanac (https://poorrogersalmanac/) concerning the viral “threat” known as Covid-19, the dread Corona Monster. In addition, I have published numerous letters to the editor in local papers making it clear where I stand on this and have commented countless times in other venues. My opinion is known and can be seen. Today, I am raising the ante. It is time to become more involved. I am working to set up and establish an organization of like-minded people to push back against the lockdown and face mask mandates which have been imposed on society to its detriment. Not only have we been told to stay home, but to close our businesses, to keep an anti-social distance from each other, to cover our faces with a porous scrap of cloth or paper, to act as if we are guilty. We have been told that our work is not “essential,” that we cannot practice our religion freely without interference, that we cannot meet socially with friends or family, that we cannot attend weddings in joy or funerals in grief. And more, all in the name of preventing the spread of what can be proven by data to be nothing more serious than a moderately
Letters
severe seasonal illness. I’m tired of it. I’m doing something about it. I want your help. Together, we can make a difference. Breathe free. Join me. E-mail me: zinsser@protonmail.com Roger Mitchell Stevensville
A true leader
After downplaying the virus for ten months, Senator Daines jumped right up to the front of the line for the vaccine, just to make sure it is safe for Montana. Daines knows real leadership. An average man may have said something like “Put the people I serve first” or “I’ll wait till everybody has the opportunity.” Not Daines, he knows get out there six months ahead. If he has to suffer a sore arm for a couple of days under the best medical care, that’s fine – protect the common folk. When the first vials are available. I expect the Congress to elbow to the front in sacrificial mass to protect the country. Those of us not dead, or on a ventilator, or suffering long term symptoms, well, hope is good. This ain’t no banana republic here. No sir! We got leaders! Scott Butler Stevensville
Bitterroot Star
Office: 115 W. 3rd Street, #108 • Stevensville Mailing: P.O. Box 8 • Stevensville MT 59870 Phone: (406) 777-3928 • Fax: (406) 777-4265 Website: www.bitterrootstar.com E-mail: editor@bitterrootstar.com
die because you didn’t care that without a mask, you may be a Covey Spreader. Diane Thomas-Rupert Stevensville
In Ravalli County it appears there are a lot of people who believe it is OK to be a Covey Spreader. They engage in this behavior under the guise it is their 1st Amendment right. However, I don’t think that right stretches to include doing something to tramp on other people’s right to go safely out in the community. That, by the way, does not help employment or the economy in this county. If people do not go anywhere except the grocery store late at night and the post office they are not supporting the local economy. If you are unemployed due to COVID, thank a Covey Spreader. So is there a compromise solution? Since it seems this whole mask or no mask debate has turned into a political statement, what if everyone wears a mask but those who wish to make a political statement write whatever you want on your mask? Make your statement. Exercise your 1st Amendment rights but in a way that we can all stay safer. Don’t force people to stay home so they don’t get hit with Covey rockets. Everyone’s 1st Amendment rights will have been respected; we will have fewer people getting sick and less deaths. Hospitals are full and the health care workers are stretched to the brink. Please think about the rights of those health care workers and the people you may cause to
Open letter to Montana mayors
Dear Mayors, I hope this message finds you well. I know I struggle to feel any degree of security considering the growing disaster overtaking our country, our state, and our city. As our elected leader, I imagine the devastation weighs even more heavily on you. However, there are steps you can take to ensure our citizens’ safety in the midst of this devastating pandemic. Enforcing a mask mandate inside and outside goes without saying as does closing bars, dine-in restaurants, gyms, and casinos. It’s been said there’s no political will for such measures. The statistics would indicate otherwise. On September 9, there were 40 active Covid-19 cases in Missoula County. As of November 18, there were 2080. Data aside, the most egregious issue with the enforcement of Covid-19 orders in Missoula County is that there is none. In one week alone, I witnessed violations at my doctor’s office, the DMV, the office building at a different doctor’s office, and my radiologist. We desperately need more
Bransby Law Firm P.C.
Publishers - Michael & Victoria Howell Editors - Michael & Victoria Howell Sports Editor - Jean Schurman Advertising Sales Consultants Jean Schurman (239-4354) & Liz Cook (880-2007) Graphic Designer - Deven Monta
The Bitterroot Star is published weekly at 115 W. 3rd, Suite 108, The Bitterroot Star is published weekly at 115 W. 3rd Street, Suite 108, Stevensville, Montana. Subscriptions are $50 per year in Ravalli Stevensville, Montana. Subscriptions are $40 per year in Ravalli County, County, $60 per year out of county, and $70 per year out of state. $50 per year out of county, and $60 out of state. The Postal Service will no longer forward the Bitterroot Star. Address changes to our mailing list are made once a month and can be made by contacting the Star office at 777-3928.
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restrictions in Missoula, but they will be meaningless if there is no enforcement. We are way past the point of a voluntary stay at home order. The people volunteering to stay at home are not the problem, and the health and safety of the people who are unable to stay at home should not be jeopardized because of the negligence of others. If the people elected to protect our state and our country will not make the sane, responsible choices necessary to save our lives, you still can. Please do more to enforce existing Covid19 orders. Increase messaging to community members. Explain why it’s important to wear a mask and how to wear one correctly. Remind people to stay at home, to stop socializing, and educate them on how to safely go out when it’s absolutely necessary. Finally, introduce more orders to stop the accelerating spread of Covid-19 in our community. This may hurt in the short run, but it will pay off exponentially in the long run. It is your right and your responsibility to take the necessary steps to ensure our safety. Thank you for your hard work and dedication. Kim Yaged Missoula
Sadly neither tit nor tat
Jerry Esmay of Stevensville, I hear your pain and frustration. I’m just so very sorry that you believe any of that stuff. It’s true that Nancy Pelosi tore up her copy of the State of the Union Address. It was because she knew from years of experience that the man who read it had no integrity and was neither honest nor sincere. And it’s true that Democrats refused to compromise when it meant significantly reducing the assistance sorely needed by people unemployed because of the pandemic. The Republican option was unworthy of you and me. The pandemic, of course, is not the fault of any one person or country, but if the ostensible leader of our country had actually cared and led, we might well not be up to a quarter of a million deaths in 8-9 months. I believe that you and so many others have been royally conned, and by a man who has gotten away with it for decades because it’s his talent. I’m so sorry and can only urge you to consult more than one source for your news. Mary Fahnestock-Thomas Hamilton
Just the facts
On Friday, November 20th, the United States saw 195,000 new cases of COVID-19, a record of new cases in a single day. More than 12 million Americans have contracted the virus since the pandemic began. More than 250,000 Americans have died. Donald Trump is still the President of the United States. I will not address his efforts, or lack thereof, in leading the fight against COVID-19. I will only address the last couple of days. President Trump attended the first hour of the opening session of this year’s virtual Group of 20 Summit on Saturday, November 21st. Following the opening session, the summit hosted an event on pandemic preparedness. President Trump did not attend the meeting, having left for his golf club when the meeting began. As I write this, our state of Montana has 54,542 total cases of COVID 19, with 15,594 new cases reported in just the last two weeks. 604 Montanans will not be celebrating Thanksgiving with their families this year. Paul Kink Stevensville
Letters Policy
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515 Main Street, Stevensville, MT
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Bitterroot Star -- Page 7
Nurses Assn. urges mask use
The Montana Nurses Association continues to be incredibly proud of the Montana nurses serving our communities during the covid pandemic. As they have done from the start, nurses are heroically serving at the frontlines of the COVID-19 crisis to care for Montanans despite the severe risks to themselves and their families. Nurses working across all health care settings and specialties are essential to combating COVID-19. Unfortunately, nearly 400 nurses in the United States have died due to COVID19, and many others have been infected and hospitalized. Nurses and health care workers (not to mention our teachers and essential workers) are risking their lives, and the health of their own families, to serve their communities and care for their patients and students. Covid is real and it is consuming Montana. These latest covid positive numbers are Nov 14th = 1622 Nov 15th = 1239 Nov 16th = 943 Nov 17th = 1395 Nov 18th = 1232 Nov 19th = 1236 These numbers are appalling and will very soon overwhelm our hospitals. Some Montana hospitals are already overwhelmed. Wearing a mask, hand hygiene, social distancing and limiting the number at gatherings are essential to prevent our local health care systems and our nation’s health care workforce from being overwhelmed. If we do not flatten the curve in the coming weeks and months, it will be more difficult than ever to meet the exploding demand for care from our incredible nursing and healthcare workforce. MNA is asking for support from our citizens to support the mask mandate when in public and recent statewide restrictions announced on Tuesday. Additionally, MNA supports keeping schools closed and learning remotely until after the New Year (schools are closing daily), and a stay at home recommendation until the new year as it will be the only way to flatten the curve. Please, Please, PLEASE wear a mask to protect your health and those around you. Wearing a mask is an evidence based proven method to help decrease the spread of covid. Wearing a mask does not take away your rights. It simply protects each other while we all face this public health crisis. It is no different than wearing a seatbelt and it will/does save lives. There is promising news on a vaccine, however, that will take weeks, and most likely months, for it to become widely available. Getting a FLU shot is extremely important this year if you are able to do so. Vicky Byrd, MSN, RN Chief Executive Officer Montana Nurses Association
Conserving grizzly bears takes self-responsibility
Randy Newberg doesn’t carry a sidearm. Clocking some 100 days every year exploring the unbound—and often bearladen—pockets of the American landscape, Newberg says when it comes to a bear attack, he’d leave his trust in an aerosol rather than a piece of lead. It’s a personal decision, one that is the right of each individual who steps foot in the woods, but for Newberg, carrying bear spray is a no-brainer. Newberg is a hunter who calls Bozeman, Montana, his home. He is the producer of two popular TV shows, “Fresh Tracks” and “On Your Own Adventures,” as well as the Hunt Talk Podcast, where he advocates for sportsmen and public land access. The first time Newberg encountered a grizzly bear at close range, he says drawing a sidearm, aiming, and then placing an accurate shot would have been near impossible. He was on an archery elk hunt in Southwest Montana, full of anticipation after spotting See LETTERS, page 15
Calendar
Page 8 -- Bitterroot Star
Hamilton Senior Center meals
Hamilton Senior Center is preparing meals for take out on the following schedule: Monday, between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. call in to order meals for the week. Thursday, pick up between 12 noon and 1 p.m. For orders and info: 3635181.
AA meetings
Check for local meetings by calling the hotline 1-888-607-2000 or by visiting www.aa-montana. org.
Al-Anon
Due to the ongoing pandemic, the Stevensville Al-Anon Family Group will only meet the first Monday of each month, rather than weekly, until further notice. The meeting is held at 7:30 p.m. at the Stevensville United Methodist Church, 206 College St. Enter the church through the red front door. Masks are required and social distancing is practiced. For more information about the meeting, call Mary at 529-3951. Visit https://al-anon.org for general information about Al-Anon.
Narcotics Anon
Narcotics Anonymous meets every Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at St. Francis Parish Center, 411 S. 5th, Hamilton (north entrance).
Gamblers Anon
Gamblers Anonymous meets Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. at St. Francis Catholic Church, 411 S. 5th Street in Hamilton.
WIC clinics
Ravalli County WIC is a nutrition education program that serves pregnant, post-partum, and breastfeeding women, children from birth to age 5 and women whose pregnancies have ended early. WIC also welcomes dads, grandparents, and foster families. The WIC program is offered In Hamilton Monday through Thursday 8:30-4:30 at 205 Bedford Street, Suite P, District Courthouse Building in Hamilton. The Stevensville clinic is open on Wednesdays at the United Methodist Church, 216 College Street in Stevensville. The Victor Clinic is the second Tuesday of the month at the Victor Nazarene Church. The Darby clinic is open every month on the third Monday of the month at the Darby Library. Income eligibility guidelines: 1 $23,606; 2 - $31,894; 3 - $40,182; 4 - $48,470; 5 - $56,758. For each additional family member, add $8,288. Call 406-802-7180 for more information or see on Face-
book; www.facebook.com/RavalliCounty-WIC. This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
Family Shelter
The Family Shelter of the Bitterroot is dedicated to helping homeless and needy families in the Bitterroot Valley. If you are interested in helping or need help, call Gary Locke for more information, 239-8833.
Shuttle
The BitterRoot Bus runs a 6:30 a.m. Shuttle to Missoula on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Call the BitterRoot Bus at 363-7484 for more information or to schedule your ride.
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
ST. STEPHENS EPISCOPAL CHURCH 203 Stevensville••777-0028 360-2661 203Main MainSt.• Stevensville
Worship at 12:00 p.m. Sunday Worship 11 AM In this Church there shall be no outcasts. In this Church there shall be no outcasts. being collected to help with ongoing regular expenses. For more information, or to pay your current annual dues of $20, contact Tena Chapman, Membership Chair, at 406-381-4755. To keep abreast of activities, visit the Bitterroot Quilters Guild on Facebook.
Three Mile Coffee Fiber Arts Guild meetings cancelled Club Big Sky Fiber Arts Guild, Three Mile Coffee Club meets every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at 1064 Three Mile Creek Road. Everyone is welcome. Good coffee, conversation and get to know your neighbors. All ages welcome. For information call Colleen at 777-3710.
BitterRodders Car Club
BitterRodders Car Club meets the first Thursday of the month at 6 p.m. at BJ’s Restaurant, 900 N. 1st in Hamilton. Everyone welcome. For more information call 961-3136.
Story Time
Are you desperately missing your Library Story Times? Fret no more- you can join Annika from North Valley Public Library for Story Time Live Online! on Wednesdays in June at 10:3010:45 a.m. for this North Valley Public Library online program. Come enjoy fun stories, a quick early literacy activity, and a creative craft idea. Visit the website to register for this event. North Valley Public Library is located at 208 Main Street, Stevensville. For more information visit northvalleylibrary.org.
Quilters Guild meetings cancelled Out of an abundance of concern for both our members and our community due to the rising number of cases of Corona Virus in Ravalli County, the Bitterroot Quilters Guild has cancelled all remaining 2020 general Guild meetings. The Board will consider resuming meetings for the 2021 year at a later date. Membership in the Guild is open to quilters from beginner through advanced; dues are still
Inc. monthly meetings are cancelled until further notice due to the rising number of Coronavirus cases. Members can use the Facebook page by posting a “Show ‘n Tell” to see what each other has been up to and to keep in touch with other members. The Board will reconsider in-person meetings for 2021 at a later date. Annual dues of $25 for 2021 are now due and this also includes a membership to MAWS. For further information and updates check the website at www.bigskyfiberartsguild.org.
lenging you to raise funds for the shelter and compete against other valley businesses to see who can raise the most money during the month of November. The winner will not only receive “bragging rights” but some awesome prizes too! What type of fundraiser businesses host is totally up to them...it can be as simple as putting out a donation jar, merchandise raffles, hosting a one-time event or a month long promotion. Basically any fun thing you can think of! BRHA will assist in encouraging shoppers to visit your business with mixed media promotion and a colorful promotional poster for you to display. Joining in the “Challenge” fun is easy...for more details and registration form go to: www.bitterroothumane.org/events/#30days All proceeds from the “Challenge” will go towards helping BRHA continue to care for all the homeless pets that come through our doors! For more information contact Mary @ 642-3785 or email to dogmommary@aol.com.
Sharing Tree collections
Sharing Tree is now collecting new hats, gloves, socks, coats, boots, snow pants and footed pajamas. All sizes. Tags will be ready for adoption on November 27th at Valley Drug, Victor Merc, Stevensville Super One, Three Mile Mercantile, and Burnt Fork Market as well as the drive-ups at all the Stevensville banks. If you have items to donate, call Linda at 406-214-1839 or Christy at 406-207-7458 to arrange a pick up. For tax-deductible monetary donations, make checks payable to Sharing Tree and send to P.O. Box 747, Stevensville MT 59870. A huge increase in clientele is anticipated this year and the program relies on community support to meet those needs.
online at Bitterrootpubliclibrary. org in the Calendar or call 3631670. Library closes early for the holiday. Thursday, Nov. 26: Bitterroot Public Library closed for Thanksgiving. No programming scheduled. Friday, Nov. 27: No Preschool Story Time today. Contact: Wendy Campbell, Youth Services Librarian; Daniel Ray, Community Librarian at 3631670.
Thurs, November 26 BRHA’s ‘Happy Tails’ holiday online auction
Due to COVID-19, the Bitter Root Humane Association is celebrating the holiday fundraising season just a bit differently this year, but for the same cause...to make it possible for them to care for all the wonderful critters that come through their doors. BRHA invites you to join them in the safety of your own home, start your holiday shopping by visiting the auction...with values ranging from $10 to priceless, we’re sure you’ll find just the perfect gift for everyone on your gift list.. and for yourself too! PREVIEW is open now, with items added up till auction time! BIDDING will open Thanksgiving evening at 6 p.m. and be open for your shopping pleasure all through Cyber Monday at 6 p.m. Your shopping fun is just a click away! www.32auctions.com/ BRHA2020
BRHA business challenge
Calling all businesses! Whether your business is big or small, the Bitter Root Humane Association (BRHA) is chal-
Serving the Bitterroot Valley in the areas of tax law, business and estate planning, and real estate property law.
JOHN MASAR Attorney 406-625-2682 115 W 3rd Street Suite 103 Stevensville jmasar@lionwoodlaw.com www.lionwoodlaw.com Ready to help.
Tasting Party with Silent Auction for this year, 2020. The event, usually scheduled for the first Monday in December each year, cannot be held because the Museum would be unable to meet the requirements necessary to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Museum Volunteers will miss seeing all of you who have been so supportive of the Museum in past years. For more information contact Suzanne Tout, President of the Board of the Museum, at 363-3165.
Child care help available
Are you struggling to pay for child care right now due to the added burdens of the pandemic or a reduction of working hours? You may qualify for child care assistance through the Best Beginnings Child Care Scholarship! Contact Child Care Resources today to see if you qualify at 406-728-6446. Or, visit us online at childcareresources.org.
Model Railroaders
Due to the prevalence of the COVID-19 in the valley and current health directives, the Bitterroot Valley Model Railroaders Club will not host open houses for the public this holiday season as in past years. This is due to the need to limit numbers of people in small indoor spaces. Also, the club will not have their Christmas display in the Starrett Photography Studio window for the same reason. The BVMRR Club is sorry for excluding itself from both events and hopefully will be able to resume entertaining the Stevensville community in 2021.
Bitterroot Public Library November events Wednesday, Nov. 25: Baby and Toddler Story Time, meeting room, 10:30 a.m. Registration required. Limited to 9 participants. Registration available
Wed, December 2 Story Time Live Online!
Tune in to North Valley Public Library’s Facebook Live on Wednesday, December 2, 9, & 16 at 10:30 a.m. for fun stories, songs, a quick early literacy activity, and a link to a creative craft! North Valley Public Library is located at 208 Main Street Stevensville. For more information visit northvalleylibrary.org.
Fri, December 4
St. Mary’s Mon, November 30 Mission nativities
Audubon AdvenChocolate Tasting ‘The River’ movie tures homenight & discussion schooling packets cancelled Join North Valley Public Victor Heritage Museum has Library in the community room cancelled its Annual Chocolate available on Monday, November 30 from 6 In the challenging times we’ve been experiencing during much of 2020, many families have spent more time outside. Many children love being outside, exploring and investigating the rich natural world of Ravalli County, the Bitterroot National Forest, and beyond. If you are homeschooling your children or just want to enhance their education about the world outside, Bitterroot Audubon invites you to get a free Audubon Adventures homeschooling packet. Donors have provided the funding to offer this opportunity to the families of our area. To learn more about Audubon Adventures, see Audubon Adventures.org and click the “About” tab. To order a packet or ask questions, contact Betsy Ballard at 777-7110.
six years and explored the literary genius of Flannery O’Connor. Mary Flannery O’Connor (March 25, 1925 – August 3, 1964) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist. She wrote two novels and thirty-two short stories, as well as a number of reviews and commentaries. She was a Southern writer who often wrote in a sardonic Southern Gothic style and relied heavily on regional settings and grotesque characters, often in violent situations. The unsentimental acceptance or rejection of the limitations or imperfection or difference of these characters (whether attributed to disability, race, crime, religion or sanity) typically underpins the drama. O’Connor’s novel, Wise Blood was adapted to film and directed by John Huston. Register on the library’s calendar and wear a mask in the community room. North Valley Public Library is located at 208 Main Street Stevensville. For more information visit northvalleylibrary.org.
to 7:30 p.m. for a film screening. “The River” is a haunting short story by the American author Flannery O’Connor. It is one of the ten stories included her short story collection A Good Man Is Hard to Find, published in 1955. Much of O’Connor’s work focuses on concepts of pride, sin, and redemption. O’Connor’s work carries a cult following and you can find odd adaptations of her stories on YouTube. She said, “…. to the hard of hearing you shout, and for the almost-blind you draw large and startlingfigures.” Flannery does indeed draw large startling figures. In this short story, a young boy grows up in a home with preoccupied parents. His “sitter” takes him to the river to witness a baptism. Later the young boy returns to the river, seeking something more. Baptism also plays large in one of O’Connor’s novels, “The Violent Bear It Away”. In the film discussion, Bevins will include these themes, comparing and contrasting O’Connor’s works. “The River” was adapted to film by Barbara Noble in 1977. It runs 29 minutes and will be followed by a movie / book / author discussion with Nancy Bevins. Bevins lived in the South for over
In keeping with the annual events of a Country Christmas in Stevensville, you are invited to view the outdoor Nativity at Historic St. Mary’s Mission during the month of December. A virtual Facebook Nativity Exhibit may be enjoyed at HistoricStMarysMission with the premier on First Friday, December 4. This holiday tradition is a gift to the community in the true spirit of Christmas from the staff and volunteers at St. Mary’s Mission and Museum.
Mon, December 7 Mother Goose Sings & Swings Online
Join Annika from North Valley Public Library on Monday, December 7, 14, & 21 at 10:30 a.m. for interactive songs, rhymes, stories, flannel board animals, and maybe even some dancing! This 15-minute program will be held on the Library’s Facebook Live. Mother Goose Sings and Swings is designed for babies to 3 years of age, accompanied by an adult lap. This is a great opportunity to bond, play, learn, sing, and cuddle with your little one. The Mother Goose on the Loose program is designed to promote early literacy skills in the young child. North Valley Public Library is located at 208 Main Street Stevensville. For more information visit northvalleylibrary.org.
Professional & Service Directorytt
Sports
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Bitterroot Star -- Page 9
By Jean Schurman Sports Editor
Fall sport season is a wrap
Well, the fall high school sports season is a wrap. It’s been a season like no other with changes happening each week and to different schools each week. The teams went through quarantining, some illnesses, having their opponents cancel due to COVID the night before a game or even the morning of a game. Through it all, these student athletes made the commitment to practice and try to stay safe in the pandemic.
social distancing and wearing their masks. This was true even in the gyms for volleyball. Changes were made in volleyball where the teams never changed sides during a match. I kind of hope they keep this rule because then I can always be on the right side. Teams no longer shook hands after the game, just a salute to the other team. (This seemed a little strange in football, especially after the two teams
Sports Talk By Jean Schurman
And for the most part, it has been a successful season. For that, I am thankful. Last August, we didn’t know if there was even going to be a football, soccer, golf, volleyball, or cross country season. There was talk of cancelling everything. But the Montana High School Association, the schools and the health departments came up with plans and the practices began. Then there was the quandary about whether there would be fans at the games. Would just home game fans be allowed, and no out of town guests; or would only so many per athlete be allowed to watch. The cry went from ‘we just want them [the students) to be able to play,’ to pleas of ‘we must be able to watch our kids and grandkids play their sports.’ Some were quite adamant about it and staged protests outside venues where they weren’t allowed inside. (None here in the Bitterroot, thankfully.) By the end of the season, it seamed as if this problem had been somewhat solved. Most schools limited the number of fans, depending upon the size of the stands, and it seemed to me, at least here in the valley, that everyone was paying attention to
had been beating the snot out of each other but they couldn’t shake hands, but oh well, at least they were playing.) The Corvallis volleyball team came up with a unique introduction routine. Each player had their own special move from throwing a ‘pretend’ bowling ball to knock down all the players to sighting in an invisible arrow to send off to the sky. They had everyone laughing and enjoying the intros. It was this kind of innovation that was, and is, happening to sports in this pandemic. The idea of ‘we can’t’ has been replaced by ‘how about this?’ Some of these ideas and innovations may become the new ‘normal’ for classes to come. Others will probably go by the wayside, but at least they served their purpose in the fall of 2020. And what a fall this has been. From blistering hot August and September days, to a blizzard and a foot of snow in just a few short weeks. I don’t ever recall seeing so much snow piled up on the sidelines at Victor at a football game. At another football game in Hamilton, the snow was coming in sideways but thank goodness,
By Alex Sakariassen Montana Free Press
But pitched debate over Legislative Referendum 130 never fully materialized. “We saw almost no campaigning for LR-130 until the very last bit,” Curtis said. “We were constantly surprised that it seemed to be flying under the radar until just right before the election, until people started voting essentially, when we started to see some messaging on it and some campaigning for it. But it wasn’t the big public fight that we had anticipated.” In an election year charac-
Victor had to clear the football field of snow prior to the Flint Creek game in October. A week later, the sun was almost too hot at the Hamilton football game. Jean Schurman photo. I had Diane Weeks there to take some awesome photos. Soccer went from hot to pleasant and then typical fall weather for the last few games. That is, until the playoffs, when the really cold weather hit. The same was true of cross country. The teams didn’t have the big meets to test their mettle at. Instead, the runners competed in smaller meets and even co-ed. Coach Mark Albert knew his top female runner, Brynnli Poulson, needed to be pushed, so he had her running with and beating the boys. Innovation again. The state meet, which normally is run all in
one day, was moved to a two-day event with two classifications running each day. However, this was when the arctic blast came through and runners were running in frigid conditions. The seasons came to a close with the Hamilton football team and the Florence football team losing out in the state semi finals. Florence had been in quarantine from their last regular season football game until the first round of the playoffs. Thank goodness they had a bye week in between there to get, or keep, healthy. The Corvallis boys soccer team played their way into post
season and advanced to the semi finals before losing to Whitefish. The Stevensville girls played their way in to the playoffs but lost in the first round. Corvallis volleyball finished fourth at state and Florence made the trip to state. The normal All Class Volleyball tournament in Bozeman at the Brick Breeden Field House was cancelled and individual tournaments were held. In golf, Corvallis’ Macee Greenwood won the state championship. Now we look towards the winter sports and wonder what will happen. We already know the seasons have been pushed back so
competition will begin in January. Basketball practice begins December 7. Those who know me, know I am already wanting to be in the gym at a basketball game, and I know there are many more feeling the same way. But, just like we did in August, we’re going to have to see what this winter season will bring and how the games will play out. Because really, what I, and I think all of us, want, is for these high school athletes to have a chance to play. Now we just wait for the changes, innovation, and games to begin. Happy Thanksgiving, sports fans.
Local control takes a hit with passage of LR-130 As electoral battles were waged across Montana this summer, opponents of a measure to prohibit local governments from regulating concealed carry of firearms kept anticipating a huge fight of their own. Amanda Curtis, president of the Montana Federation of Public Employees, said her organization expected major messaging from gun rights groups and millions in spending by the National Rifle Association.
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terized by Republican landslides, Montana voters approved the measure Nov. 3 by a comparatively narrow margin of 51% to 49%. Proponents of LR-130 framed the issue in constitutional terms, with Montana Shooting Sports Association President Gary Marbut arguing that the right to bear arms is “useless if any city or county may concoct and enforce local gun control.” Rep. Matt Regier, R-Columbia Falls, who sponsored the bill to place LR-130 on the ballot in the 2019 Legislature, did not return messages seeking comment, but he told the Bozeman Daily Chronicle in response to the Election Day victory that the referendum “protects us from entities in the future enacting stricter gun laws than exist at the state level.” For Missoula City Council President Bryan von Lossberg, however, the passage of LR-130 enacts “the most extreme advancement of concealed carry rights that the state has ever seen.” Von Lossberg was the sponsor of a 2016 Missoula city ordinance that expanded background checks on local gun sales. That ordinance inflamed gun rights advocates, sparking a legal battle that ended with the Montana Supreme Court striking down the law. LR-130 now renders moot another Missoula city ordinance, passed in 2018, prohibiting the carrying of firearms at polling locations and in developed city
parks. Von Lossberg notes that particular law was in part a codification of long-practiced prohibitions made at the behest of the Missoula County attorney’s office, and in part a response to incidents of intimidation reported at polling stations located in non-publicly owned buildings. The vote on that ordinance was accompanied by considerable debate and compromise, he said. “When you walk in those doors, it’s posted that there’s a local [Helena] city ordinance that you can’t carry firearms into the Capitol. That no longer will be the case.” “We had what was a very thoughtful, deliberative legislative discussion around the difference between developed parks that have like playground equipment and stuff … versus an open space area” owned by the city, von Lossberg said. “In my mind, the vast majority of the community gets that.” In the wake of LR-130’s passage, the Missoula City Council faces the task of bringing such local laws into compliance with LR-130. It’s not alone. Tim Burton, executive director of the Montana League of Cities and Towns, said he doesn’t have an exact number for local governments with local firearms laws, but he estimated that the figure is in the dozens. By way of example, he cited a sign affixed inside the door
of the state Capitol building. “When you walk in those doors, it’s posted that there’s a local [Helena] city ordinance that you can’t carry firearms into the Capitol,” Burton said. “That no longer will be the case.” Burton’s group opposed LR-130 alongside MFPE, the Montana School Boards Association, the Montana Human Rights Network and others. That coalition challenged the referendum’s language as misleading in a lawsuit before the state Supreme Court last year. The challenge was unsuccessful. The post-election job before the Montana League of Cities and Towns, Burton said, is to offer guidance to local governments on how to comply with LR-130. He anticipates considerable uncertainty. “I think the confusion exists on what’s a local government unit,” Burton said. “How does it affect all local government units, counties, cities, schools? Where does the authority begin and end?” Curtis said MFPE’s interest in fighting the measure was in ensuring the safety of the public employees the union represents. The organization has also long been a proponent of local decision-making authority for school boards and other public institutions. MFPE is “finished with this for now,” she added, but she wonders if voters really understand what they approved.
“I don’t think that Montanans know that they were voting to give up their own local control,” Curtis said. “I don’t think that they would have done that.” Support for LR-130 was geographically widespread in Montana, according to election results recorded by the Secretary of State’s office. The measure passed by wide margins in many rural counties, as well as in Flathead, Cascade and Yellowstone counties. The rural results did contain one exception: Fallon County voted down LR-130 by 37 votes. In the end, only seven counties voted against LR-130 including Missoula, Gallatin and Lewis and Clark. Von Lossberg has a hard time containing his frustration over the way LR-130 played out. He believes his Missoula constituents are less safe today than they were before Nov. 3, and argues that the referendum cuts against the historical grain of local government control in Montana. “The hypocrisy of ranting that the government closest to the people is the best government, blah blah blah, and then the misrepresentations of what we had actually done and implemented, it’s just — oh, I’ve got to be careful — that kind of legislative policymaking is not in the interests of the safety of my constituents,” von Lossberg said.
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Page 10 -- Bitterroot Star
Happy Thanksgiving anyway
Montana Wilderness Association announces 12th Annual Picture Wild Montana photo contest
Flyfishing with Chuck Stranahan
Montana Wilderness Association (MWA) has launched the 12th annual Picture Wild Montana photo contest, with prizes offered for the best photos taken on public lands across the state. The theme of this year’s contest is “The Joy of the Wild.” MWA wants to highlight the joy that Montanans feel while exploring our public lands and waters, so participants are encouraged to submit photos that feature friends, family, or themselves and Montana’s wildlands. Photos should showcase the joy felt exploring our wilderness areas, state parks, national forests, wilderness study areas, and other federal, state, and local public lands. Since 2009, thousands of amateur and professional photographers from across the state have participated in the Picture Wild
Montana photo contest. Last year, nearly 250 photographers submitted over 650 photos. This year, photographers are invited to submit their photos at wildmontana.org/photocontest from 12:01 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 20 until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 20. Contestants may submit as many photos as they’d like, but each photo must be submitted individually. Prizes for this year’s firstand second-place winners include gear from sponsors Mystery Ranch and Obōz Footwear. The third-place winner will receive, in addition to a Mystery Ranch pack, swag from MWA, including apparel, stickers, and more. A complete list of prizes can be found on the contest website. “Public lands and waters
The Stevensville Historical Museum has received $5000 through Humanities Montana’s CARES grant program. This rapid-response funding provides general operating support to cultural organizations in the state that have been affected by the COVID-19 health crisis. The funds are part of the CARES Act passed by Congress in March. The $2 trillion aid package included $75 million for the National Endowment for the Humanities, approximately $30 million of which was sent to fiftysix state and territorial humanities
councils to redistribute to humanities nonprofit organizations in need. The state humanities councils were chosen to distribute these funds because of their well-established relationships with museums, historical societies, libraries, and cultural institutions that are the cornerstones of some of the most vulnerable and hardest to reach communities. Humanities Montana is Montana’s state humanities council with a mission to serve communities through stories and conversation. They offer experi-
ences that nurture imagination and ideas by speaking to Montanans’ diverse history, literature, and philosophy. Established in 1972, they are one of fifty-six councils across the nation that the National Endowment for the Humanities created in order to better infuse the humanities directly and effectively into public life. They produce, fund, create, and support humanities-based projects and programs, eye-opening cultural experiences, and meaningful conversations. For more information, call Ruth Baker from The Stevensville Historical Museum at 777-3201.
confirmed cases in Switzerland used the app to alert their contacts from July to September, that prompted about 1,700 people who had potentially been exposed to call a dedicated hotline for help. And of those, at least 41 people discovered they were, indeed, positive for COVID-19. In the U.S., another nonpeer-reviewed modeling study from Google and Oxford University looking at three Washington state counties found that even if only 15% of the population uses a contact-tracing app, it could lead to a drop in COVID-19 infections and deaths. Abeler-Dörner, a study co-author, said the findings could be applicable elsewhere, in broad strokes. “It will avert infections,” she said. “If it’s 200 or 1,000 and it prevents 10 deaths, it’s probably worth it.” That may be true even at low adoption rates if the app users are clustered in certain communities, as opposed to being scattered evenly across the state. But prioritizing privacy has required health departments to forgo the very data that would let them know if users are near one another. While an app in the United Kingdom asks users for the first few digits of their postal code, very few U.S. states can tell if users are in the same community. Some exceptions include North Dakota, Wyoming and
Arizona, which allow app users to select an affiliation with a college or university. At the University of Arizona, enough people are using the app that about 27% of people contacted by campus contact tracers said they’d already been notified of a possible exposure. Brookins of Microsoft, who created Care19 Alert, the app used in Wyoming and North Dakota, said that offering an affiliation option also allows people who’ve been exposed to get campus-specific instructions on where to get tested and what to do next. “In theory, we can add businesses,” he said. “It’s so polarizing, no businesses have wanted to sign up, honestly.” The privacy-focused design also means researchers don’t have what they need to prove the apps’ usefulness and therefore encourage higher adoption. “Here there is actually some irony because the fact that we are designing this solution with privacy in mind somehow prevents us from accurately assessing whether the system works as it should,” Tessaro said. In states including Colorado, Virginia and Nevada, the embedded privacy protections mean no one knows who has enabled the contact-tracing technology. Are they people who barely interact with anyone, or are they essential workers, interacting regularly with
many people that human contact tracers would never be able to reach? Are they crossing paths and trading signals with other app users or, if they test positive, will their warning fall silently like a tree in an empty forest? Will they choose to notify people at all? Colorado’s health department said it’s issuing thousands of COVID codes a day. As of Wednesday, 3,400 people have used the codes to notify their contacts, it said. An automated system issues codes for positive COVID19 tests even if the infected people don’t have the app, making it impossible to know how many users are acting on the codes. “I have hope that the vast majority of Coloradans will take this opportunity to give this gift of exposure notification to other people,” said Tuneberg. “I believe Coloradans will do it.”
For the past several years Jan and I have spent Thanksgiving with the same small batch of friends, two other couples and whoever else showed up. This year the decision was made to cancel. We all understood – and the announcement was greeted with a mix of mild disappointment and a sigh of relief. We won’t have to worry
about the risk of covid at our Thanksgiving gathering this year. Staying home, by ourselves, won’t be so bad either. We’ll keep it simple, and while we haven’t drawn up any specific plans as yet, I know that we’ll divide our time between the minutes spent on the phone staying in touch with distant family and friends, and time set aside to reflect, with grateful hearts, on our blessings. Every Thanksgiving there are plenty of editorial pieces reminding us to be truly thankful for what we have. The platitudes that are repeated each year remain the same because they’re true: regardless of national circumstance on Thanksgiving Thursday each November, there is much to be thankful for. This year it can get dumbed down by the national pallor wrought by covid, the isolation that can feel like lockup in our homes or behind our masks, the fear of death that hovers
over the most vulnerable among us, the need that we all have for warm and intimate human contact that now seems depressed and screened off, the uncomfortable fact that many of us feel genuinely at risk as tensions mount between people who are divided in their sense of what to do about covid. Tension, isolation, depression – you can feel it when you’re out on the street. Giving thanks requires at least a few moments of quiet reflection. This year, those moments of reflection can get lost in the noise of a contested election and a political climate that strains past the boundaries of what we once accepted as decent, reliable, and trustworthy. Perhaps we took it all too much for granted. Maybe we need to settle in, for a few moments if not longer, on what really matters – to the point of living it out instead of being caught up in the dismal hysteria that changes every news cycle. Through all of it, there Is something that sustains us. I’m not talking so much about being thankful for our “stuff” as I am for some of the less tangible things that are at the center of our being but can be seen and appreciated outside of it; things that are being lived out in the lives of others in ways that touch ours. So much of what really matters – dare I say it – is all about the light of love. It helps to clarify: It’s one thing to say I’m thankful for my wife Jan; it’s another to say that I’m thankful for who she is, and her love that is visible in both the obvious and seemingly intangible ways she expresses it; the list is long. I can say I’m thankful that I live in the Bitterroot Valley, or I can extend that to say I’m touched and rejuvenated in my soul by the grandeur of the mountains and the intimate gurglings of a creek when I hike up Mill Creek or Blodgett
Canyon. I am blessed by the splendor of what I see and the awed humility that fill me when I’m there. And that’s the light of love, too. I’m thankful for the memories that sustain me, places in my mind that I can turn back to, like re-reading a favorite poem or chapter in a book, and re-live in reflection the emotions and
The service, built by Google and Apple and adapted by individual countries, states or territories, either appears as a downloadable app or as a setting, depending on the state and the device. It uses Bluetooth to identify other phones using the app within about 6 feet for more than 15 minutes. If a user tests positive for COVID-19, they’re given a verification code to input so that each contact can be notified they were potentially exposed. The person’s identity is shielded, as are those of the people notified. “The more people who add their phone to the fight against COVID, the more protection we all get. Everyone should do it,” Sarah Tuneberg, who leads Colorado’s test and containment effort, told reporters on Oct. 29. “The sky’s the limit. Or the population is the limit, really.” But the population could prove to be quite a limit. Data from early-adopter governments suggests even those who download the app and use it might not follow directions at the most critical juncture. According to the Virginia Health Department, from August to November, about 613 app users tested positive and received a code to alert their contacts that they may have exposed them to the virus. About 60% of them actually activated it. In North Dakota, where the outbreak is so big that human contact tracers can’t keep up, the data is even more dire. In October, about 90 people tested positive and received the codes required to alert their contacts. Only about 30% did so. Researchers in Dublin tracking app usage in 33 regions around the world have encountered echoes of the same issue. In October, they wrote that in parts of Europe fewer people were alerting their contacts than expected, given the scale of the outbreaks and the number of active app users. Italy and Poland ranked lowest.
There, they estimated, just 10% of the app users they’d expect were submitting the codes necessary to warn others. “I’m not sure that anybody working in this field had foreseen that that could be a problem,” said Lucie Abeler-Dörner, part of a team at the Big Data Institute at Oxford studying COVID-19 interventions, including digital contact tracing. “Everybody just assumed that if you sign up for a voluntary app … why would you then not push that button?” So far, people in the field only have guesses. Abeler-Dörner wonders how much of it has to do with people going into panic mode when they find out they’re positive. Tessaro, the University of Washington computer scientist, asks if the health officials who provide the code need more training on how to provide clear instructions to users. Elissa Redmiles, a faculty member at the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems who is studying what drives people to install contact-tracing apps, worries that people may have difficulty inputting their test results. But Tim Brookins, a Microsoft engineer who developed North Dakota’s contact-tracing app as a volunteer, has a bleaker outlook. “There’s a general belief that some people want to load the app so that they can be notified if someone else was positive, in a self-serving way,” he said. “But if they’re positive, they don’t want to take the time.” Abeler-Dörner called the voluntary notification a design flaw and said the alerts should instead be automatically triggered. Even with the limitations of the apps, the technology can help identify new COVID cases. In Switzerland, researchers looked at data from two studies of contacttracing app users. They wrote in a not-yet-peer-reviewed paper that while only 13% of people with
spiritual charges that I felt then. I remember the joy we both felt when my son Matthew, then four years old, caught his first trout on a dry fly all by himself on the West Fork. There are many other memories connected to people and places and fishing trips here in the Bitterroot: I ruminate through them while I sit and tie flies. Sometimes, I feel a grin come across my face – and that’s the part I’m truly thankful for. The grin is the outward visible sign of an emotional and spiritual uplift that lit up my face when the memory was created. And this Thanksgiving, I’ll thank the people who have brought that light into my life, and for the light itself. That’s plenty to be thankful for. Author and flytyer Chuck Stranahan can be reached at chuck@chuck-stranahan.com or visit his fly shop at 109 E. Main in Hamilton.
People proving to be weakest link for apps tracking COVID By Rae Ellen Bichell Kaiser health News
The app builders had planned for pranksters, ensuring that only people with verified COVID-19 cases could trigger an alert. They’d planned for heavy criticism about privacy, in many cases making the features as bare-bones as possible. But, as more states roll out smartphone contact-tracing technology, other challenges are emerging. Namely, human nature. The problem starts with downloads. Stefano Tessaro calls it the “chicken-and-egg” issue: The system works only if a lot of people buy into it, but people will buy into it only if they know it works. “Accuracy of the system ends up increasing trust, but it is trust that increases adoptions, which in turn increases accuracy,” Tessaro, a computer scientist at the University of Washington who was involved in creating that state’s forthcoming contacttracing app, said in a lecture last month. In other parts of the world, people are taking that necessary leap of faith. Ireland and Switzerland, touting some of the highest uptake rates, report more than 20% of their populations use a contact-tracing app. Americans seem not so hot on the idea. As with much of the U.S. response to the pandemic, this country hasn’t had a national strategy. So it’s up to states. And only about a dozen, including the recent addition of Colorado, have launched the smartphone feature, which sends users a notification if they’ve crossed paths with another app user who later tests positive for COVID-19. Within those few states, enthusiasm appears dim. In Wyoming, Alabama and North Dakota, some of the few states with usage data beyond initial downloads, under 3% of the population is using the app.
have helped many of us endure what has been a really difficult year,” says Ben Gabriel, MWA executive director. “MWA’s Picture Wild Montana contest is a wonderful way to demonstrate our love of Montana’s outdoors with each other from afar.” All winners will also receive a complimentary yearlong membership to MWA. Submissions will be judged by Luke Duran, art director at Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks’ “Montana Outdoors” magazine. First, second, and thirdplace winners will be announced in early 2021. Full contest rules can be found on the website. Questions should be directed to Montana Wilderness Association Communications Manager Keely Damara at kdamara@wildmontana.org.
Stevensville Museum receiveds Humanities Montana CARES Act grant
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123 S. 5TH Corner of 5th & State in Hamilton I am a mother of 2 teenage children. I moved away from Missoula to Stevensville to get away from an abusive relationship. My children are 50-60 miles away and I share custody with my ex-husband. It is difficult to commute to see them with school and also to stay safe. I am looking for a vehicle someone might have that is either free or fairly cheap. I am in between jobs and was just let go from my employer 2 weeks ago because of winter cutbacks. So I also need a vehicle to gain employment. Thank you. Andrea, (406) 370-0605.
LEGAL NOTICES
RAVALLI COUNTY ATTORNEY Royce McCarty, Deputy County Attorney Clay Leland, Deputy County Attorney Ravalli County Courthouse 205 Bedford Street, Suite C Hamilton, Montana 59840-2853 Email: countyattorney@rc.mt. gov Phone: (406) 375-6750 Attorney for Special Administrator MONTANA TWENTY-FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, RAVALLI COUNTY IN THE MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF: JOHN R. BONILLA, Deceased. Case No.: DP-20-127 Department No. 2 NOTICE TO CREDITORS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Ravalli County Attorney’s Office has been appointed Special Administrator of the above-named estate. All persons having claims against the said deceased are required to present their claims within four months after the date of the first publication of this notice or said claims will be forever barred. Claims must either be mailed to the Special Administrator, 205 Bedford Street, Suite C, Hamilton MT 59840, return receipt requested, ℅ Royce McCarty, 205 Bedford Street, Suite C, Hamilton MT 59840, or filed with the Clerk of the above-entitled Court . DATED this 9th day of October, 2020. /s/ Clay R. Leland, Deputy County Attorney BS 11-18, 11-25, 12-2-20. MNAXLP
P.C.
Dustin M. Chouinard MARKETTE & CHOUINARD,
601 South First Street P.O. Box 515 Hamilton, MT 59840 (406)363-1110 Attorneys for Petitioner MONTANA TWENTY-FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, RAVALLI COUNTY IN RE THE MATTER OF: P.S.R., a minor child, TYM MARIE RHOADES, Petitioner, And JACKSON RHOADES & LORRIE HOCKER, Respondents. Cause No. DR-20-138/12 Dept No. 1 NOTICE FOR PUBLICATION NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN PURSUANT TO MONT. CODE ANN §72-1-301(a) that Petitioner has filed a Petition for Permanent Guardianship of the above identified minor child, P.S.R., and a Petition for Protection
Order individually and on behalf of P.S.R. Hearing upon said Petitions will be held on January 6, 2020 at 1:30 p.m. at the Ravalli County Courthouse, Courtroom 1, which is located at 205 Bedford Street, Suite A, Hamilton, Montana 59840, the Honorable Howard F. Recht, presiding, at which time all interested persons may appear and object. DATED THIS 17th day of November, 2020. Markette & Chouinard, P.C. By:/s/ Dustin M. Chouinard Dustin M. Chouinard BS 11-25, 12-2, 12-9-20. MNAXLP Montana 21st Judicial District Court, Ravalli County In the Matter of the Name Change of Sharon Lynn Berglee, Sharon Lynn Berglee, Petitioner Cause No. DV-20-405/3 Dept. No.: 1 NOTICE OF HEARING ON NAME CHANGE This is notice that Petitioner has asked the District Court for a change of name from Sharon Lynn Berglee to Shar Lynn Zeiler. The hearing will be on December 2, 2020 at 1:30 p.m. The hearing will be at the Courthouse in Ravalli County. Dated: October 21, 2020 /s/ Paige Trautwein, Clerk of District Court. By: Mary Fliss, Deputy Clerk of Court. BS 11-4, 11-11, 11-18, 11-25-20. MNAXLP SUMMONS TO SECOND AMENDED COMPLAINT (Citacion Judicial) NOTICE TO DEFENDENT: (AVISO AL DEMANDADO): CHELSEA MARIE LOCATELLI, an individual; JUDITH LOCATELLI, an individual; and DOES 1 through 25, inclusive YOU ARE BEING SUED BY PLAINTIFF: (LO ESTA DEMANDANDO EL DEMANDANTE): EMIL JACOB WEST, an individual NOTICE! You have been sued. The court may decide against you without you being heard unless you respond within 30 days. Read the information below. You have 30 CALENDAR DAYS after this summons and legal papers are served on you to file a written response at this court and have a copy served on the plaintiff. A letter or phone call will not protect you. Your written response must be in proper legal form if you want the court to hear your case. There may be a court form that you can use for your response. You can find the court forms and more information at the California Courts Online SelfHelp Center (www.ccourtinfo.ca.gov/ selfhelp), your county law library, or the courthouse nearest you. If you cannot pay the filing fee, ask the court clerk for a fee waiver form. If you do not file your response on time, you may lose the case by default, and your wages, money, and property may be taken without further warning from the court. There are other legal requirements. You may want to call an attorney right away. If you do now know an attorney, you many want to call an attorney referral service. If you cannot afford an attorney, you may be eligible for free legal services from a nonprofit legal services program. You can locate these nonprofit groups at the California Legal Services Web site ADVERTISING (www.lawhelpcalifornia.org), the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp) or by contacting your local court or county bar association. NOTE: the Court has a statutory lien for waived fees and costs
20-Word Personal $8.50 20-Word Commercial $10.50 Each Add’l Word - 20¢ Includes Posting to Web Page
on any settlement or arbitration award of $10,000 or more in a civil case. The court’s lien must be paid before the court will dismiss the case. ¡AVISO! Lo han demandado. Si no responde dentro de 30 dias, la corte puede decider en su contra sin escuchar su version. Lea la informacion a continuacion. Tiene 30 DIAS DE CALENDARIO después de que le entreguen esta citación y papeles legales para presentar por escrito en esta corte y hacer que se entregue una copia al demandante. Una carta o una llamada telefónica no lo protegen. Su respuesta por escrito tiene que estar en formato legal correcto si desea que procesen su caso en la corte. Es posible que haya un formularios que usted pueda usar para su respuesta. Puede encontrar estos formularios de la corte y mas información en el Centro de Ayuda de las Cortes de California (www.sucorte. ca.gov), en la biblioteca de leyes de su condado o en la corte que le quede mas cerca. Si no puede pagar la cuota de presentación, pida al secretario de la corte que le de un formulario de exención de pago de cuotas. Si no presenta su respuesta a tiempo, puede perder el caso por incumplimiento y la corte le podrá quitar su sueldo, dinero y bienes sin mas advertencia. Hay otros requisitos legales. Es recomendable que llame a un abogado inmediatamente. Si no conoce a un abogado, puede llamar a un servicio de remisión a abogados. Se no puede pagar a un abogado, es posible que cumpla con los requisitos para obtener servicios legales gratuitos de un programa de servicios legales sin fines de lucro. Puede encontrar estos grupos sin fines de lucro en el sitio web de California Legal Services, (www. lawhelpcalifornia.org), en el Centro de Ayuda de las Cortes de California, (www.sucorte.ca.gov) (www.sucorte. ca.gov) o poniéndose en contacto con la corte o el colegio de abogados locales. AVISO: Por ley, la corte tiene derecho a reclamar las cuotas y los costos exentos por imponer un gravamen sobre cualquier recuperación de $10,000 o mas de valor recibida mediante un acuerdo o una concesión de arbitraje en un caso de derecho civil. Tiene que pagar el gravamen de la corte antes de que la corte pueda desechar el caso. Case Number: 19CECG02777 (Numero del Caso) The name and address of the court is: (El nombre y dirección de la corte es): Superior Court of California, County of Fresno 1130 O Street Fresno, California 93721-2220 The name, address and telephone number of plaintiff’s attorney, or plaintiff without an attorney, is: Lenden F. Webb (SBN 236377) (El nombre, la dirección y el numero de teléfono del abogado del demandante, o del demandante que no tiene abogado, es): WEBB LAW GROUP, APC 466 W. Fallbrook Ave., Suite 102, Fresno, CA 93711 (559)431-4888 DATE: (Fecha) 10/26/2020 Clerk, by (Secretario) I. Herrera, Deputy (Adjunto) BS 11-4, 11-11, 11-18, 11-25-20. MNAXLP 37-20 / 932132 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE’S SALE TO BE SOLD FOR CASH AT TRUSTEE’S SALE on March 04, 2021, at 10:00 o’clock A.M. (recognized local time) at the Main Entrance of the Ravalli County Judicial Building, located at, 205 Bedford Street, Hamilton, MT 59840, the following described real property, situated in Ravalli
County, Montana: A tract of land being the NE¼NE¼ of Section 20, Township 7 North, Range 21 West, P.M.M., Ravalli County, Montana, described as Parcel B (Remainder) Certificate of Survey No. 5078. Commonly known as: 454 Living Water Ln, Victor, MT 59875 Hartmut W. Baitis and Inga M. Baitis, as Grantor(s), and Paul Newey, Individually and Brandit Productions LLC, Makers of the Commercial Promissory Note dated July 7, 2020, conveyed said real property to First American Title Company of Montana, as Trustee, to secure an obligation owed to Beth K. Price a married woman dealing with her sole and separate property, as to her undivided One-Half (50%) interest, Darlene Miller and Brenda Ruble, mother & daughter jointly with rights of survivorship, single women, as to their One-Half (50%) interest, as Beneficiary, by Montana Trust Indenture dated July 07, 2020, and recorded July 08, 2020, as Document No. 745817 . The Beneficial interest is currently held by Beth K. Price a married woman dealing with her sole and separate property, as to her undivided One-Half (50%) interest, Darlene Miller and Brenda Ruble, mother & daughter jointly with rights of survivorship, single women, as to their One-Half (50%) interest. Hartmut W. Baitis and Inga M. Baitis, along with Paul Newey, Individually and Brandit Productions, LLC have defaulted in the performance of said Montana Trust Indenture and Commercial Promissory Note dated July 7, 2020 by failing to make the INTEREST-ONLY monthly payment in the amount of $2,685.83 plus an escrow fee of $9.00 for a total monthly payment of $2,694.83 due for the 10th day of August 2020 and a like sum of $2,694.83 due for the 10th day of each and every month thereafter, which monthly installments would have been applied on the principal and interest due on said obligation, and other charges against the property or loan. As of October 19, 2020 there is due and owing on the loan an unpaid principal balance of $293,000.00, accrued interest in the amount of $9,095.04 Plus late charges in the amount of $200.00, for a total amount due of $302,295.04. Interest accrues on the Note at the rate of 11% per annum with a per diemADVERTISING rate of $88.30 after October 19, 2020. Interest continues to accrue. All delinquencies are now due together with any late charges, advances to protect the security, and fees and costs associated with this foreclosure. The Beneficiary anticipates and may disperse such amounts as may be required to preserve and protect the property and for real property taxes that may become due or delinquent, unless such amounts of taxes are paid by the Grantors. If such amounts are paid by the Beneficiary, the amounts or taxes will be added to the obligation secured by the Montana Trust Indenture. Other expenses to be charged against the proceeds of this sale include the Trustee’s fees and attorney’s fees, costs and expenses of the sale, and late charges, if any. Beneficiary has elected and has directed the Trustee to sell the above described property to satisfy the obligation.The sale is a public sale and any person, including the Beneficiary, excepting only the Trustee, may bid at the sale. The bid price must be paid in cash at the time of sale. The conveyance will be made by Trustee’s Deed. The sale purchaser shall be entitled to possession of the property on the 10th day following the sale. The Grantor, successor in interest to the Grantor, or any other person having an interest in the property, at
any time prior to the Trustee’s Sale, may pay to the Beneficiary to the successor in interest to the Beneficiary the entire amount then due under the Montana Trust Indenture and the obligation secured thereby (including costs and expenses actually incurred and attorney’s fees) other than such portion of the principal as would not then be due had no default occurred and thereby cure the default. The scheduled Trustee’s sale may be postponed by public proclamation up to fifteen (15) days for any reason, and in the event of a bankruptcy filing, the sale may be postponed by the Trustee for up to onehundred twenty (120) days by public proclamation at least every thirty (30) days. DATED: October 19, 2020 By: /s/ Rae Albert, Assistant Secretary for First American Title Company of Montana c/o Title Financial Specialty Services PO Box 339, Blackfoot, ID 83221 STATE OF Idaho ) SS. COUNTY OF Bingham ) On this October 19, 2020, before me, a Notary Public in and for said State, personally appeared Rae Albert, known or identified to me, to be the Assistant Secretary of First American Title Company of Montana, who is named as the Trustee in the above described Montana Trust Indenture and executed the instrument on behalf of said Trustee, and acknowledged to me that said Trustee executed the same. /s/ Shannon Gavin Notary Public of Idaho Residing at: Blackfoot, Idaho Commission Expires: 01/19/2024 BS 11-11, 11-18, 11-25-20. MNAXLP NOTICE The second half of the 2020 Mobile Home Taxes are due payable before 5 pm November 30, 2020. We have a Night Drop located at North end of Administration Building in drive through. Mail payments must be postmarked by November 30, 2020 or the payment will be returned for penalty and interest. Please make checks payable to the Ravalli County Treasurer. Master Card, Visa, Discover and American Express cards are accepted. Also accepting online payments at www.Ravalli.us/196/PropertyTax. Paying with Credit/Debit card will include a 2.15% convenience fee and $1.25 Transaction Fee. Ravalli County Treasurer Dan Whitesitt 215 S 4th St Ste H Hamilton MT 59840 406-375-6600 BS 11-11, 11-18, 11-25, 12-2-20. MNAXLP NOTICE The first half of the 2020 Real Estate Taxes are due payable before 5 PM, December 4, 2020. We have a Night Drop located at North end of Administration Building in drive through. Mail payments must be postmarked by December 4, 2020 or the payment will be returned for penalty and interest. Please make checks payable to the Ravalli County Treasurer. Master Card, Visa, Discover and American Express cards are accepted. Also accepting online payments at www.Ravalli.us/196/PropertyTax. Paying with Credit/Debit card will include a 2.15% convenience fee and $1.25 Transaction Fee. Ravalli County Treasurer Dan Whitesitt 215 S 4th St Ste H
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Hamilton MT 59840 406-375-6600 BS 11-11, 11-18, 11-25, 12-2-20. MNAXLP PUBLIC NOTICE BitterRoot Bus and MR TMA of Missoula is applying for our annual 5311 grant from the Montana Department of Transportation. Due to recently enacted federal legislation, BitterRoot Bus is required to develop a community Transportation Coordination Plan. BitterRoot Bus and MR TMA is required to hold public hearings in order to give all citizens the opportunity to review and comment on the proposed plan. Public hearings are set up December 14, 2020 at 310 Old Corvallis Rd. Conference Room from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM. Proposed plans are available for review at: BitterRoot Bus 310 Old Corvallis Rd. Hamilton, MT 363-7484 Ask For: Sharna MRTMA 2820 South Higgins Missoula, MT 327-8707 Ask For: Lyn Any questions call either of the above phone numbers. BS 11-25, 12-9-20. MNAXLP CALL FOR BIDS The BOARD OF RAVALLI COUNTY COMMISSIONERS is calling for bids on the printing of legal notices for the Ravalli County Offices in a local newspaper within the County of Ravalli for the calendar year of 2021. Bids should include the following: • Per folio rate (1-100 words) for the first and each additional insertion. • Information that specifically addresses compliance with Section 18-7-411 and 18-7-201 MCA. Bids must be in a sealed envelope and clearly marked, “LEGAL NOTICE PRINTING BID”. The bid must be received by the Clerk & Recorders Office at 215 S. 4th Street, Hamilton, MT 59840 by Thursday, December 10, 2020 AT 9:00 AM. Bids will then be publicly opened on Thursday, December 10, 2020 at 10:30 AM in the Commissioners conference Room at 215 S. 4th Street, (3rd floor). This bid award for the 2021 Ravalli County newspaper of record for printing of legal notices shall follow the bid openings at 10:45 AM. For further information, contact the Commissioners’ Office at 406-3756500 Chris Taggart Commissioners Administrative Assistant. BS 11-25, 12-2, 12-9-20. MNAXLP CALL FOR BIDS The BOARD OF RAVALLI COUNTY COMMISSIONERS is seeking bids for Display Advertising for our Ravalli County Offices in a local
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Volunteers from the Stevensville Fire Department and the Stevensville Civic Club put up the Christmas lights across Main Street in preparation for the holiday season. Firefighter Lee Henderson organized the effort. Cheryl Burgmeier photo. newspaper within the County of Ravalli for the calendar year of 2021. Please bid the Display Advertising by the Column Inch. Bids must be in a sealed envelope and clearly marked, “DISPLAY ADVERTISING BID”. The bid must be received by the Clerk & Recorders Office at 215 S. 4th Street, Hamilton, MT 59840 by Thursday, December 10, 2020 AT 9:00 AM. Bids will then be publicly opened on Thursday, December 10, 2020 at 10:30 AM in the Commissioners conference Room at 215 S. 4th Street, (3rd floor). This bid award for the 2021 Ravalli County newspaper of record for Display Advertising shall follow the bid openings at 10:45 AM. For further information, contact the Commissioners’ Office at 406-3756500. Chris Taggart Commissioners Administrative Assistant BS 11-25, 12-2, 12-9-20. MNAXLP
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maintaining efficiency of operations,” said Johnson. What will it cost? The sale price of $1,725,000 for the 21.23 acres and the REC buildings was determined by an appraisal jointly commissioned earlier this year by the REC and the Corvallis School District. The voters are being asked to approve a 5-year Building Reserve Levy in the amount of $345,000 per year. At the end of five years a loan to purchase
to complete its relocation to new facilities by June 2019. It offered the school district the opportunity to buy the property before they listed it for sale. “They saw our special interest in the property and they are willing to give us this extraordinary opportunity,” said School District Superintendent Tim Johnson. According to Johnson, district representatives have attended over 15 meetings at various com-
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and PCPs. PCBs are found in the old transformers that were stored on the property. PCPs are compounds found in the preservatives used in the telephone poles that were stored on the site. Johnson @realflavorful said that no indications of PCB Order without credit card @ www.Flavorful.us contamination was found in the soil or the water, but PCP contamiVolume Number 13 nation was detected in top soilXXXIII, at the area where poles were stock-
Coming Soon!
Bitterroot Star -- Page 13
Established 1985 - Locally owned & independent
Sacajawea’s Rest
r r oot e t t i B S t e
Candidate clarification
See CORVALLIS, page 2
We sell
PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID STEVENSVILLE MT PERMIT 89
OUTLET STORE
Corvallis S hopes to b•
By Michael Howell
mun 40 hand to di Voters in the CorvalST icenses also lis School District will have www even the chance this November 7 to For information about the Aid for Mammography fund, visit purchase Montana of 21.23 Begins Covering the Bitterrootapprove Valley the – “Where mdmh.org/AMF or call 406-375-4824. was acres of property that adjoins the school, or not. The property is cur- the p said rently owned by Ravalli Electric Cooperative and the school district inev som has leased 5.69 acres of the land to gr for over 30 years for use as ball prob fields and a portion of the Middle School playground. But REC @realflavorful tee t is moving out and relocating its Order without credit card @ www.Flavorful.us mittee “narrowed the architect The Stevensville School forward with solutions to address expa operation to Highway 93 and Bell suggestions to focus the current Board voted unanimously to aging schools across Montana,” land Crossing. The Cooperative hopes Gay Findley, Secretary/Treasurer of the South Valley Civic Club, was on hand to welcome Volume XXXIII, Number 13 Established 1985 Locally owned & independent bond on immediate needs.” She proceed with bond elections said Trangmoe. “Instead, the curmain to complete its relocation to new the sculpture of Sacajawea and her baby Jean Baptiste Charbonneau to Darby where it will said that “while there are many for both the Stevensville High rent trend is to shift the burden tions facilities by June 2019. It offered grace the entranceway to the town’s new pocket park called “Sacajawea’s Rest.” Michael things that would be nice to add, School and Elementary School to local districts, where school the school district the opportunity Howell photo. this recommendation is near term Districts in May 2018, for leaders and taxpayers can decide price to buy the property before they while other worthwhile projects deferred maintenance, safety how to invest in their individual acre listed it for sale. will have to wait until later in the projects, and renovations. The districts.” dete “They saw our special long-term planning process.” bond proposal for the StevensAccording to School Discom interest in the property and they Board Chairman Greg ville Elementary School District trict Superintendent Bob Moore, the R are willing to give us this extraor• • 777-2822 • summarized • the board PRST STD is approximately $9,300,000, and Trangmoe the elementary bond proposal Dist dinary opportunity,” said School e BySuperintendent Michael Howell US POSTAGE decision when he stated that the the proposal for the Stevensville addresses significant needs for aske District Tim John4039 HWY 93 N PAID ell district is only asking the public High School District is approxithe K-3 building. The current ing R or all your mmunition son. According to Johnson, dislast Wednesday in the back of Ted called Sacajawea Rest was busSTEVENSVILLE By Michael Howell MT Voters in have the CorvalSTEVENSVILLE to cover basic facility needs. mately $13,300,000. If passed, building has exceeded classroom of $ trict representatives attended PERMIT 89 Hall’sunting pick-up truck. icenses eeds tling with activity. lis meetings School District will comhave www.ammoandmorestore.com “Costs will continue to rise for the bonds will address deferred capacity, and a busy computer of fi over 15 at various A crew of specialized helpShawn Jackson’s saw Sacajawea passed through the chance this November 7 to these projects and the state has maintenance, renovations to ers, including carpenters, stone sent sparks flying as he cut the what is now the town of Darby approve the purchase of 21.23 Covering the Bitterroot Valley – “Where Montana Begins!” not shown a willingness to move buildings and grounds, student See STEVI, page 4 masons, metal cutters, engineers, threaded bars that would secure twice on her journey with the acres of property that adjoins the safety, sanitation, building access, and plain old hole diggers, graduthe sculpture into a bed of conLewis and Clark Corps of school, or not. The property is curand parking. ally assembled and before you Discovery. A sculpture destined rently owned by Ravalli Electric See SCULPTURE, page 2 According to a press know it the little pocket park to honor those visits arrived Cooperative and the school district release issued by the District, in We inadvertently has leased 5.69 acrespubof the land the spring of 2017, a 15-20 year lished wrong information forball forthe over 30 years for use as facilities plan was commissioned Stevensville candidate fields andmayoral a portion of the Middle with MMW Architects from MisMark Adams in last week’s Star. School playground. But REC @realflavorful soula. Relying heavily on input 642-3805 Theiscorrect information is on moving out and relocating its At the light in Victor from parents, students, and stakeOrder without credit card @ www.Flavorful.us pageoperation 3. to Highway 93 and Bell holders in the community, MMW Crossing. The Cooperative hopes andindependent a team of contractors and VolumeBy XXXIII, Number 13 Established 1985 Locally owned & Wednesday, October 18, 2017 vides a closely connected commuMichael Howell the cooperative model although to complete its relocation to new construction engineers studied the nity with large front porches for most people are not that familiar facilities by June 2019. It offered entire Stevensville Public Schools greeting neighbors, but offers the It’s been a long time coming with it. It provides the benefits the school district the opportunity facilities and grounds to develop privacy of a detached home with but work is set to begin this fall of home ownership without the to buy the property before they recommendations in the form of private space and gardens. on the Ravalli County Council on demands of upkeep and maintelisted it for sale. a long range facilities plan. From Travitz said because its Aging’s new “pocket neighbornance of the units. He said the “They saw our special this plan, the Board of Trustees unfamiliar, some people are hesihood” development called Rivercooperative model, although new interest in the property and they has identified critical renovaside Crossing. The development is in Montana, provides an additional tant about the tight use of space, are willing to give us this extraor-mitt The Stevensville School tion, deferred maintenance, and If the bonds are passed by voters in the Stevensville School of feeling crowded and wonderimplementing the new and innova- choice beyond rental or condodinary Board votedopportunity,” unanimouslysaid to School sugg meet organizations Gay Findley, Secretary/Treasurer of the South Valley Civic Club, was on hand to welcome the property would be fully paid and held District next May,a this patch of gravel where School SuperinBywas Michaelgrounds Howellprojects that bestmunity ing about privacy. “But that tive small cottage designs of Ross miniums for active adults who are District Superintendent Tim Johnbond proceed with bond elections the immediate educational, stu- of district the sculpture off and the obligationhouse would handful board tendent Bobmeetings Moore is standing willtax eventually four new of Sacajawea and her baby Jean Baptiste Charbonneau to Darby where it will in the old days,” he said. He said Chapin as well as an innovative looking to downsize from a larger son. the According to Johnson, for both Stevensville High dis- said dent safety, and the activity needs grace the entranceway to the town’s new pocket park called “Sacajawea’s Rest.” Michael end. The school district is curto discuss the issue. Theyand haveserve as a corridor connecting the elementary classrooms with the new designs coming outVoters in the Corvalco-operative ownership plan. home and property to something trict representatives have attended thing School and Elementary School of the will Stevensville students. Howell of photo. debt free. ItIfispassed, also broughtschool it up atclassrooms various sports to therently gymnasium. one ofaa myriad lis School District have from architects like Ross Chapin, Paul Travitz, director of maintenance-free, providing time over in 15May meetings various com-this Districts 2018,atfor Board member Cookand other owning homeDetails with a are availevents school functions. projects proposed in thetaxpayer upcoming bonda levy. the chance this November 7 to Cathi the local Council on Aging, said for more enjoyable activities. The whil deferred maintenance, safety stated that the Facilities Com- “A majority value of $100,000 would of review the response able for at Supt. taxable Moore’s office. See HOUSING, approve page 7 the purchase of 21.23 people do seem to be interested in pocket neighborhood model prowill projects, and renovations. The was that it made sense to purchase be expected to pay $35.46 per acres of property that adjoins the long bond proposal for the Stevensyear for the levy. A homeowner school, or not. The property is cur- the property,” said Johnson. He ville Elementary School District with home with a taxable value of said that the school district was rently owned by Ravalli Electric Tran is approximately $9,300,000, and $200,000 would pay an additional Cooperative and the school district inevitably going to grow and at deci the proposal for the Stevensville $70.92 per year in taxes. some point down the line space We inadvertently pubhas leased 5.69 acres of the land distr High School District is approxiPaid for by Brandon Dewey for Mayor . POAccording Box 223 . Stevensville MT 59870 last Wednesday in the back of Ted called Sacajawea Rest was busBy Michael Howell to Johnson, both to grow was going to become a lished the wrong information for for over 30 years for use as ball Renee Endicott, Treasurer to co mately $13,300,000. If passed, Hall’s pick-up truck. tling with activity. REC and the District are comproblem. Stevensville mayoral candidate fields and a portion of the Middle “Co the bonds will address deferred A crew of specialized helpShawn Jackson’s saw mitted to insuring that all parts of Sacajawea passed through “This purchase will guaranMark Adams in last week’s Star. School playground. But REC thes maintenance, renovations to ers, including carpenters, stone sent sparks flying as he cut the the property are safe for schoolwhat is now the town of Darby tee that, when the time comes to The correct information is on is moving out and relocating its not s buildings and grounds, student masons, metal cutters, engineers, threaded bars that would secure expand, building can take place on use. They commissioned sometwice on her journey with the page 3. operation to Highway 93 and Bell safety, sanitation, building access, and plain old hole diggers, graduthe sculpture into a bed of conLewis and Clark Corps of land that adjoins existing facilities, testing of the grounds for PCBs Crossing. The Cooperative hopes and parking. ally assembled and before you Discovery. A sculpture destined and PCPs. PCBs are found in the maintaining efficiency of operato complete its relocation to new See SCULPTURE, page 2 According to a press know it the little pocket park to honor those visits arrived old transformers that were stored tions,” said Johnson. facilities by June 2019. It offered release issued by the District, in on the property. PCPs are comWhat will it cost? The sale the school district the opportunity the spring of 2017, a 15-20 year pounds found in the preservatives price of $1,725,000 for the 21.23 to buy the property before they facilities plan was commissioned used in the telephone poles that acres and the REC buildings was listed it for sale. with MMW Architects from Miswere stored on the site. Johnson determined by an appraisal jointly “They saw our special soula. Relying heavily on input said that no indications of PCB commissioned earlier this year by interest in the property and they from parents, students, and stakecontamination was found in the the REC and the Corvallis School are willing to give us this extraorThecommunity, Stevensville School holders in the MMW soil or the water, but PCP contamiDistrict. The voters are being dinary opportunity,” said School voted unanimously Gay Findley, Secretary/Treasurer of the South Valley Civic Club, was on hand to welcome and aBoard team of contractors and to nation was detected in top soil vides a closely connected commuasked to approve a 5-year BuildByatMichael Howell the cooperative model although District Superintendent Tim Johnproceed with bond elections the sculpture of Sacajawea and her baby Jean Baptiste Charbonneau to Darby where it will construction engineers studied the the area where poles were stocknity with large front porches for ing Reserve Levy in the amount most people arepocket not thatpark familiar son. According to Johnson, disboth the Stevensville High grace the entranceway to the town’s new called “Sacajawea’s Rest.” Michael entirefor Stevensville Public Schools greeting neighbors, but offers the of $345,000 per year. At the end It’s been a long time coming with it. It provides the benefits trict representatives have attended School Elementary School facilities andand grounds to develop See CORVALLIS, page 2 Howell photo. privacy of a detached home with of five years a loan to purchase but work is set to begin this fall of home ownership without the over 15 meetings at various comDistricts in May 2018, recommendations in the formforof private space and gardens. on the Ravalli County Council on demands of upkeep and maintemaintenance, safety a longdeferred range facilities plan. From Travitz said because its Aging’s new “pocket neighbornance of the units. He said the projects, and renovations. this plan, the Board of Trustees The unfamiliar, some people are hesihood” development called Rivercooperative model, although new bond proposal for the Stevenshas identified critical renovaside Crossing. The development is in Montana, provides an additional tant about the tight use of space, ville Elementary School District tion, deferred maintenance, and If th of feeling crowded and wonderimplementing the new and innova- choice beyond rental or condois approximately $9,300,000, and grounds projects that best meet Dis ing about privacy. “But that was tive small cottage designs of Ross miniums for active adults who are the proposal for the Stevensville the immediate educational, stuWe inadvertently pubtend in the old days,” he said. He said Chapin as well as an innovative looking toWednesday downsize from a back largerof Ted High School District is approxilast in the called Sacajawea Rest was busBy Michael Howell dent safety, and the activity needs clas lished the wrong information for with the new designs coming out co-operative ownership plan. homeHall’s and property to something mately $13,300,000. If passed, pick-up truck. tling with activity. of the Stevensville students. Stevensville mayoral candidate like Ross Chapin, Paul Travitz, director of maintenance-free, time help-from architects the bonds will address deferred sch A crew providing of specialized Shawn Jackson’s saw Sacajawea passed through Board member Cathi Cook Mark Adams in last week’s Star. proj the local Council on Aging, said for more activities. The renovations ers, enjoyable including carpenters, stone sent sparks flying as he cut the statedmaintenance, what is now the town of Darby that the Facilities Com- to For information about the Aid for Mammography fund, visit The correct information is on See HOUSING, page 7 people do seem to be interested in pocket neighborhood model engineers, probuildings and grounds, student able mdmh.org/AMF or call 406-375-4824. masons, metal cutters, threaded bars that would secure twice on her journey with the page 3. safety, sanitation, building access, and plain old hole diggers, graduthe sculpture into a bed of conLewis and Clark Corps of and parking. ally assembled and before you Discovery. A sculpture destined See SCULPTURE, page 2 According to a press know it the little pocket park to honor those visits arrived release issued by the District, in the spring of 2017, a 15-20 year facilities plan was commissioned with MMW Architects from Missoula. Relying heavily on input from parents, students, and stakemittee “narrowed the architect The Stevensville School forward with solutions to address holders in the community, MMW suggestions to focus the current Board voted unanimously to aging schools across Montana,” Gay Findley, Secretary/Treasurer of the South Valley Civic Club, was on hand to welcome and a team of contractors and vides a closely connected commuthe cooperative model although bond on immediate needs.” She proceed with bond elections said Trangmoe. “Instead, the cur-By Michael Howell the sculpture of Sacajawea and her baby Jean Baptiste Charbonneau to Darby where it will construction engineers studied the nity with large front porches for most people are not that familiar said that “while there are many for both the Stevensville High rent trend is to shift the burden grace the entranceway to the town’s new pocket park called “Sacajawea’s Rest.” Michael entire Stevensville Public Schools greeting neighbors, but offers the It’s been a long time coming with it. It provides the benefits things that would be nice to add, School and Elementary School to local districts, where school Howell photo. facilities and grounds to develop privacy of a detached home with but work is set to begin this fall of home ownership without the this recommendation is near term Districts in May 2018, for leaders and taxpayers can decide recommendations in the form of private space and gardens. demands of upkeep and maintewhile other worthwhile projects deferred maintenance, safety how to invest in their individual on the Ravalli County Council on a long range facilities plan. From Travitz said because its Aging’s new “pocket neighbornance of the units. He said the will have to wait until later in the projects, and renovations. The districts.” this plan, the Board of Trustees unfamiliar, some people are hesicooperative model, although new long-term planning process.” bond proposal for the StevensAccording to School Dis- hood” development called Riverhas identified critical renovain Montana, provides an additional tant about the tight use of space, Board Chairman Greg ville Elementary School District trict Superintendent Bob Moore, side Crossing. The development is tion, deferred maintenance, and of feeling crowded and wonderis approximately $9,300,000, and Trangmoe summarized the board the elementary bond proposal implementing the new and innova- choice beyond rental or condogrounds projects that best meet ing about privacy. “But that was miniums for active adults who are decision when he stated that the the proposal for the Stevensville addresses significant needs for tive small cottage designs of Ross the immediate educational, stuin the old days,” he said. He said Chapin as well as an innovative looking to downsize from a larger district is only asking the public High School District is approxithe K-3 building. The current last Wednesday in the back of Ted called Sacajawea Rest was busdent safety, and the activity needs By Michael Howell with the new designs coming out home and property to something to cover basic facility needs. mately $13,300,000. If passed, building has exceeded classroom co-operative ownership plan. Hall’s pick-up truck. tling with activity. of the Stevensville students. from architects like Ross Chapin, Paul Travitz, director of maintenance-free, providing time “Costs will continue to rise for the bonds will address deferred capacity, and a busy computer A crew of specialized helpShawn Jackson’s saw Board member Cathi Cook Sacajawea passed through the local Council on Aging, said for more enjoyable activities. The these projects and the state has maintenance, renovations to ers, including carpenters, stone sent sparks flying as he cut the stated that the Facilities Comwhat is now the town of Darby See HOUSING, page 7 pocket neighborhood model pronot shown a willingness to move buildings and grounds, student See STEVI, page 4people do seem to be interested in masons, metal cutters, engineers, threaded bars that would secure twice on her journey with the safety, sanitation, building access, and plain old hole diggers, graduthe sculpture into a bed of conLewis and Clark Corps of and parking. ally assembled and before you Discovery. A sculpture destined See SCULPTURE, page 2 According to a press know it the little pocket park to honor those visits arrived release issued by the District, in the spring of 2017, a 15-20 year facilities plan was commissioned with MMW Architects from Missoula. Relying heavily on input from parents, students, and stakeholders in the community, MMW and a team of contractors and vides a closely connected commuBy Michael Howell the cooperative model although construction engineers studied the nity with large front porches for most people are not that familiar entire Stevensville Public Schools greeting neighbors, but offers the It’s been a long time coming with it. It provides the benefits facilities and grounds to develop privacy of a detached home with but work is set to begin this fall of home ownership without the recommendations in the form of private space and gardens. on the Ravalli County Council on demands of upkeep and maintea long range facilities plan. From Travitz said because its Aging’s new “pocket neighbornance of the units. He said the this plan, the Board of Trustees unfamiliar, some people are hesihood” development called Rivercooperative model, although new has identified critical renovaside Crossing. The development is in Montana, provides an additional tant about the tight use of space, tion, deferred maintenance, and If the bonds are passed by voters in the Stevensville School of feeling crowded and wonderimplementing the new and innova- choice beyond rental or condogrounds projects that best meet District next May, this patch of gravel where School Superining about privacy. “But that was tive small cottage designs of Ross miniums for active adults who are the immediate educational, stutendent Bob Moore is standing will eventually house four new in the old days,” he said. He said Chapin as well as an innovative looking to downsize from a larger dent safety, and the activity needs classrooms and serve as a corridor connecting the elementary with the new designs coming out co-operative ownership plan. home and property to something of the Stevensville students. school classrooms to the gymnasium. It is one of a myriad of from architects like Ross Chapin, Paul Travitz, director of maintenance-free, providing time Board member Cathi Cook projects proposed in the upcoming bond levy. Details are availthe local Council on Aging, said for more enjoyable activities. The stated that the Facilities Comable for review at Supt. Moore’s office. See HOUSING, page 7 people do seem to be interested in pocket neighborhood model proWe inadvertently published the wrong information for Stevensville mayoral candidate Mark Adams in last week’s Star. The correct information is on page 3.
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Making headway at Riverside Bob Anderson, from the Stevensville Masonic Crossing Lodge, stands by foods donated by thetlodge housing projec to the Stevensville Pantry Partners. Traditionally, the Stevensville Masonic Lodge held a Thanks-
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giving dinner to assist the Stevensville Pantry Partners. Entry cost to the dinner was foods which Sacajawea’s Rest could be donated to the pantry as well as a monetary contribution. This year due to COVID, in lieu of a dinner, the lodge provided cups of chili and hot cider in their parking lot. Members drove in, made their donation, and received the chili and cider safely from their vehicle. The Lodge collected and donated to the Pantry over 370 pounds of foods and $1,450.00. For information about the Masonic Fraternity, contact Russ McCormick at 777-3596.
VOTE
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Sculpture of Sacajawea placed in Darby pocket park
BRANDON DEWEY for MAYOR Moving Stevensville Forward
headway at Riverside Helping our Making local businesses grow t stronger forCrossing more housing than 35projec years
Candidate clarification
Stevensvi to place tw
Sculpture of Sacajawea Thank you for supporting local! placed in Darby pocket park
Candidate clarification
BRANDON DEWEY for MAYOR VOTE Stevensville School DistrictNewspaper Community Moving Stevensville Forward Experience Leadership Integrity Making headway at Riverside to place two bonds on ballot 115 W. 3rd . Stevensville Crossing housing project
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Sculpture of Sacajawea placed in Darby pocket park
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Page 14-- Bitterroot Star
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
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Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Letters continued
a herd of cow elk. As he crested a small hill, he came head-on upon a boar grizzly, maybe 12 yards away. Luckily, the boar turned and ran away. Carrying bear spray is one of a handful of behaviors that have become customary for Newberg as he ventures into areas that are home to grizzly bears. Newberg chooses to take these precautions out of a sense of self-responsibility for the conservation of grizzly bears and he hopes other people who find themselves in bear country will consider taking proactive steps as well. Our behaviors and choices all play in to the larger picture that is the future of grizzly bears in Montana. And a future that is bright for both grizzly bears and people depends on the actions of local communities, businesses, nonprofits and individuals. “I’m really proud that Montana is one of the places that grizzly bears have always been. It’s an example of the conservation ethic in Montana,” Newberg says. The essential role of stakeholders is emphasized in the work of the Montana Governor’s Grizzly Bear Advisory Council
and its recommendations for how wildlife officials should manage bears. These recommendations, released on Sept. 8, will provide a starting point for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks as the agency drafts a new statewide grizzly bear management plan that will address grizzly bears as an endangered species and their management after delisting. MT FWP Director Martha Williams says this statewide approach is an important step in continued grizzly bear conservation at a time when bears are beginning to expand into areas outside the original recovery areas. “Regardless of whether the grizzly bear is listed and covered by the Endangered Species Act or not, we all have a responsibility to understand what is needed to help people and bears and take actions to help both,” she says. “We at MT FWP recognize that a robust public engagement process helps inform a thoughtful approach to grizzly bear management. It does not replace science, as science informs and serves as a critical foundation to our actions. Yet, much of grizzly bear recovery centers on conflict prevention, conflict reduction, and information, education and outreach. Those require working with people and communities.”
Thanking you in advance, Travis Gardner, Treasurer Post 94, Stevensville
The following are answers to lies told by the shiny, handsome, well-spoken wizards we call the press or the media. The Maine was not attacked by the Spanish in Havana Harbor. The Lusitania was not an innocent passenger ship torpedoed by German U-boats . The Nazis were never attacked by the Poles justifying their invasion into Poland. Pearl Harbor attacks were no surprise to the higher echelons of Allied power. A single shooter on a grassy knoll is a lie. The Maddox was not attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin. The War on Drugs resulted in an explosion in drug use. The War on Poverty resulted in massive increases in social safety net programs. Iraqi soldiers never threw Kuwaiti babies out of incubators. There never were any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. There never was going to
Your local America Legion Post 94 has received a generous grant from a local anonymous “grateful citizen.” It is a pledge to match dollar-for-dollar up to $10,000 in donations to Post 94’s Veterans Assistance Fund. The donations and the match must be used in that fund only, and for no other purposes. The offer ends Christmas Day. Mostly through our own membership, we have achieved $5,940 in donations so far. Now we are reaching out to you, the citizens in the community that we serve, to help us reach the $10,000 goal. We rarely have an opportunity to double our donations; we would hate to miss out on even part of this grant offer. Our P.O. Box is 795, Stevensville. For more inforamtion call 369-3276.
Parents of home schoolers, American Legion Post 94, Stevensville, is again participating in the American Legion Constitution Essay Contest There are cash awards at the local and state levels. There are two categories: 7th & 8th grades, and high school. We have mailed packages to the local schools. The essays will be due by Tuesday, February 16, 2021. With the current situation, more and more students are being home schooled this year. We do not want a home-schooled student to miss this opportunity. So, homeschooling parents of junior high or high school students, if you wish
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be a smoking gun in the form of a mushroom cloud. World Trade Center Building 7 did not fall into its own foot print due to a fire in the lower levels. Anthrax attacks were not from Al Qaeda. Mercury in tooth fillings is actually dangerous to your health. Khadafi was not brutally killed because he was aggressing against his own people. Assad did not gas his own people. There was no Russia collusion. Roundup (glyphosate) is not safe at industrial scale. Jeffery Epstein did not kill himself. Covid 19 is not a pandemic. Pattern recognition is a critical human skill. From innovation, to survival, to human relations it is foundational. Some of the above you may agree with, some you may not, they are answered in my voice via my education. All the above fit the pattern of media pushed propaganda. These people are not on your side, they do not serve your interests, mountains of bodies and rivers of cash are in the wake of these lies. Break the wizards’ spell, stop believing them! Scott Turner Corvallis
Lies, liars, and you
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to receive a copy of the contest package sent to the schools, please request one from the Post 94 Essay Committee Chairman at DJL0042@comcast.net. Specify Junior High or High, as the requirements differ slightly. Dennis Lenahan, Essay Chair Post 94, Stevensville
To view the council’s recommendations visit fwp.mt.gov/gbac. To learn more about Randy Newberg’s approach to elk hunting in grizzly country, or to learn more about the Governor’s Grizzly Bear Advisory Council, visit https:// grizzlybearcollective.com/livingwith-bears/building_solutions/. Jessianne Castle Marion Jessianne Castle is a freelance writer and founder of the Grizzly Bear Collective.
Bitterroot Star -- Page 15
910 N 1st . Hamilton . 363-1626
WE ARE THANKFUL FOR
Our Community Angela Previte
Bea Paxson
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Bruce Gould
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Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Page 16-- Bitterroot Star
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0% Down, 0% A.P.R. financing for up to 60 months on purchases of select new Kubota RTV-XG850 equipment from participating dealers’ in stock inventory is available to qualified purchasers through Kubota Credit Corporation, U.S.A.; subject to credit approval. Some exceptions apply. Example: 60 monthly payments of $16.67 per $1,000 financed. Offer expires 12/31/20. Terms subject to change. This material is for descriptive purposes only. Kubota disclaims all representations and warranties, express or implied, or any liability from the use of this material. For more information, see Dealer or go to KubotaUSA.com.
7550 Thornton Drive, Missoula, MT 59808 • 542-2200
BIG SKY KUBOTA