Bitterroot Star - February 21, 2024

Co-op touts reliable power supply

by John Dowd

Early this year, western Montana was hit with a record cold spike that strained the area in many ways. One such way was the impact on the power supply, according to representatives from Ravalli Electric Co-op. The cold spike brought to light future power concerns, highlighting the issues that could result from decisions about the area made by federal and environmental groups.

According to Mark Grotbo, the general manager of Ravalli Electric Co-op, many people may not truly be aware of where their power comes from, and how it gets here. For example, over 85% of the power that comes into the Bitterroot Valley is produced by hydroelectric dams. That hydroelectric power comes predominantly from the Snake River dams in the Columbia River basin.

During this year’s cold snap, the area’s power production relied on power from those dams, as the other options just could not keep up. “If those dams weren’t there, it would have been cold and dark for a lot of people,” said Grotbo. According to the co-op’s manager of operations, Kyle Kearns, the county came very close to a blackout. To explain this, Grotbo

then it would always shut down at those times.

The concern for the future of area power stems from a consideration by the current administration and environmental groups to close down and remove the dams in the basin. Coop representatives believe this to be a very short-sighted idea, though perhaps with good intentions in mind.

With such a high percentage of power being purchased by the co-ops in northwestern Montana produced by hydroelectric dams, removing those dams would put that weight of production onto areas that just are not there to pick up the slack. Part of this has to do with the nature of the area. As Grotbo explained, peak sea-

spoke on the matter, saying “the thing many people don’t understand about power is that it has to be made as it’s used.”

In other words, the way electricity works on a large scale, it cannot be stored. It would be like having a system of pipes with water fowing through. According to Grotbo, in the hypothetical system, water is piped out to homes in the area. The pressure and fow rate are even comparable between the two services. However, unlike water, when an area loses efectiveness, the power does not trickle. It stops completely. To get it started back up again takes more power than it did to sustain it in the frst place. Individual areas then need to be brought back online, one at a time, terracing back up to regular output. This last cold snap brought the system right up to that peak edge.

According to Kearns, “The system has to be built out to handle those peaks.” Even though their system may seem like overkill, he said that if it is not built to handle the worst of times,

son for the co-op is the cold and dark of winter, when people are heating their homes and using more lights.

According to Grotbo, this is also the time of year when alternative power sources, such as wind and solar, are signifcantly less productive. In dry southern desert-type environments, this is not an issue, as there is a much more consistent source of solar and wind, even in the winter months. In Montana, where the nights are longer, and the wind less active, these cannot be relied upon, according to Grotbo.

When speaking on the afordability and feasibility of these alternative energy sources, Grotbo said the cost is exorbitant and not at all practical in this area yet. As for clean energy, Grotbo also expressed that “we’re the envy of the rest of the nation,” when it comes to a low carbon footprint energy. According to Grotbo, there is virtually no waste produced from hydroelectric, unlike nearly every other form of power production. The only other clean solution could be nuclear, but the co-op representatives said that

Monday, February 26th ~ 6:30 pm

Bitterroot River Inn

Dr. Philip Ramsey will speak on the proposed Sheep Creek Rare Earth Mine and the efects of rare earth mining on water quality, fsh, wildlife and humans.

Hosted by Ravalli County Fish & Wildlife Association & Bitterroot Trout Unlimited.

form of power production just does not have a strongly established infrastructure in the area. The other issue is power storage. As Grotto stated, power storage is not practical on the scales they are dealing with. To give an example, Grotbo said a one megawatt battery, that would store and put out enough power for just four hours, costs well over $4 million. A single of the co-op’s substations was measured putting out roughly 10 megawatts during the peak of the cold spike early last month. The coop operates seven substations. “Think of how many batteries you would need to cascade, going forward there,” said Grotbo.

To put that into perspective regarding times of high use, like this last cold spike, Kearns and Grotbo spoke about the power they consume and send out to customers. The co-op typically pays $40 per megawatt hour, wholesale, and generally consumes about 18 megawatts on average. During that cold snap, it cost their power provid-

er, Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), $1,400 per megawatt hour to meet the demand. In that period the co-op peaked at 55 megawatts. “We were pretty fortunate during that cold snap,” said Kearns. “Once it gets cold, it tests your system,” added Grotbo.

On top of all that, the need for power is only rising. Kearns said that this year the co-op was up 23% from last year on total power consumed during this cold snap, which was an all-time high. Co-op manager of communications, Melissa Greenwood, attributed that to “more people, more demand on the system.”

To meet that growing need, Kearns added that the co-op is working to expand the Grantsdale substation, and will then work on expanding the one in Stevensville, among other improvements and maintenance.

In fact, according to Kearns, a lot of what they do is maintain. Their state of the art system allows them to see issues in real time on monitors in the ofce. The system will automatically notify them of areas that are down, about to go down, or displaying other issues. These notifcations can be seen by any of the linemen and the team in the ofce, allowing them to stay on top of the maintenance before systems shut down. “It is always better, faster and cheaper to stay ahead of an outage,” said Grotbo. However, Grotbo also pointed out, “You can’t build a gold-plated system.” The co-op tries to keep their costs down for their members. That is why they operate with a board, which has to approve everything. “They are my bosses,” said Grotbo.

Fortunately, the co-op is not alone

See POWER, page 4

Mark Grotbo, Kyle Kearns and Melissa Greenwood stand in the Ravalli Electric Co-op lobby. Photo by John Dowd.

Kyle Kearns looks at the digital map in the Ravalli Electric Co-op ofces, searching for issues in the power grid. Photo by John Dowd.

POLICE: Stevensville Police Department gets a clean slate

Continued from page 1

of for whatever reason.” She said this regarding former ofcers and chiefs, though in further interviews with ofcers, this was not their understanding of the reason the former chief, or any other ofcers, left the Stevensville PD. Barker expressed concern that Boe may be unprepared for the weather, having lived mostly in the southern United States. Boe said the weather would defnitely not be a deterrent for him.

Another question posed by newly appointed council member Wallace Smith was about Boe’s plans for engaging with the community. Boe said that he would frst need to look at the resources at his disposal, and go from there. However, Boe also said he believes he will have have a hands-on approach similar to that of the former chief, Mac Sosa. Boe plans to get out onto the streets, learn the problem areas and communicate with community members. He will be taking the state ofcer transition class, hosted by Montana Public Safety Ofcer Standards and Training (POST), in order to better familiarize himself with the Montana system. He has also been studying the Montana code.

Smith also brought up the fact that the cost of living is much higher in Montana. This was an important point, as on top of the cost of living being more, when Boe retired from Chattanooga, he left a position paying more than double what he would be making in Stevensville.

However, Boe seemed unconcerned.

Boe was voted into the position unanimously. He was also in the process of going through his background check, psychological and physical checks, all of which are required by state law prior to hire. Boe expressed his thanks for the position, saying, “I feel grateful for the opportunity.”

In an interview with Boe after he was pledged in, he spoke further about how he ended up in Stevensville. After applying, and beating out several other candidates, he was the only one in the fnal group to call back. He believes it will be a good change for him, and is excited to get started and to meet more of the public. He has already worked to get out into the community and to meet people.

Boe talked about how he has a strong background in ofcer training, and feels that will be a huge asset for him in Stevensville. It likely will, as he is entering the job with very little guidance. A week prior to Boe’s acceptance into the position as chief, the former interim chief, Todd Schafer, along with ofcer Trevor Frandsen, both turned in their two-week notices. According to Michalson, their resignation notices were turned in Feb. 7 and stated that they would be leaving Feb. 16.

According to Schafer, they submitted their notices before the town council meeting on Feb. 8. Breaking with town tradition, the ofcers were notifed over that next

weekend, by email, that they should not plan on returning the following week to fnish out their time. This was very unusual in that historically, Stevensville ofcers, and ofcers of most other departments in the U.S., will stay on to train incoming ofcers about the area, and possible concerns. This means neither Schafer nor Frandsen will be available to aid Chief Boe in the transition. Additionally, neither ofcer was even aware of Boe in general, until the special meeting to vote on the mayor’s appointment on Feb. 14 was announced.

On top of that, the police department clerk recently resigned, and the last remaining ofcer, Cassie Kopsa, is attending the police academy until some time in March. This leaves a completely vacant department for Boe to step into.

The ofcers leaving will be taking on positions with the Hamilton Police Department. According to Schafer, “They’ve got a good group of guys, so I’m excited to get in there with them and help out.” Though the ofcers would not comment further on their departure from the Stevensville Police Department, the town has a history of paying their ofcers the least in the area, along with the longest period to reach retirement.

Some light on their decision may be shed by a previous article published by the Bitterroot Star last October. In the article, Schafer mentioned a raise the Missou-

la Police Department gave to their starting ofcers. The article stated, “making in some cases over $30 an hour. The lowest he [Schafer] has seen in the area, including other town and city police in Ravalli County, is around $26-$28 per hour. According to town ofcials during the meeting [Stevensville Town Council meeting], Stevensville ofcers receive somewhere in the ballpark of $20 per hour, and a 30-year retirement. This is nearly $10 under the pay other departments are issued, and nearly all other departments have a 20-year retirement.” Schafer was not alone in his concern, as the former Stevensville mayor, Steve Gibson, in his fnal address as mayor, said that the police need to be paid more. Otherwise, he said, he did not believe they should be expected to continue to put their lives on the line.

Mayor Michalson told the Star that the town is addressing this concern, having found some money to give offcers a raise to $23 per hour.

Another unusual note is that the recording of the Stevensville Town Council meeting on Feb. 8, which is supposed to be recorded and posted for the public to view, has a major portion cut out from the beginning. This cut portion includes the section that should have contained the police report. However, according to Michalson, there was no discussion during that meeting on the police ofcers’ resignation notices. He explained that the internet

cut out during the recording and so the beginning was lost. Only ten minutes of that meeting can be viewed on the town’s Youtube channel, where they post their public meetings. It was the mayor’s decision to make, he explained, and he decided that the transition would be cleaner if he simply asked the ofcers to leave early. The offcers were paid until the date they gave as their last day.

However, despite the apparent animosity, Schafer spoke during an interview after Boe’s appointment, and said, “We appreciate all the support the public has given us the last few years. We hope they forward that to the next chief.” The Stevensville Police Department has been holding several events for the public in order to give back to their community and maintain their positive presence. It is unclear if this will continue under the new chief, as everyone who organized these events is now gone, including the police clerk. Boe plans to immediately start looking at hiring more ofcers and he is already looking at applications. He may also need to reach out to the county for support in area coverage until Stevensville gets its staf back up to regular numbers. Boe is getting help from former Deputy Joe Marble, who has been brought on with the Stevensville Police Department for 30 days to help transition Boe into the department. Marble has also completed the required checks on Boe.

POWER: REC concerned about future of power in valley

Continued from page 3

when big issues like the cold snap happen. They have mutual aid agreements with all the co-ops across the state, of which there are 25 in total. This means anytime they have a big issue and get overwhelmed, help is not far away.

Ravalli Electric Co-op was the frst electric co-op in the state, and services 1,346 miles of line in the valley. Their purpose was to get power to the rural areas, as prior to their existence only the big proftable areas like major towns and cities were receiving power.

In order to get electricity to farmers and ranchers on the fringe without costing an exorbitant amount, the coop was created.

As for where that electricity comes from, the co-op does not make its own power, which again comes from the hydroelectric dams further west. NorthWestern Energy brings in the power through major transmission lines. This is called wheeling the power. This power is then picked up and sent out into the various areas of the county to the co-op’s substations and from

there it goes out into the community. NorthWestern Energy covers the main towns and cities in the area, and everything else in the valley is powered by the co-op.

The co-op moved into a new building at Bell Crossing in 2019, which they explain has been a godsend. “We’re very fortunate with the way it all worked out,” said Grotbo. He described how they got moved into the new space right before the pandemic, which kept their building costs down and allowed them the space for everyone to continue to come to work. It has also landed them with a massive state of the art

facility. They say it streamlined their process, and has created room for other improvements in the way they interact with customers.

One of these improvements has been customer access to their SmartHub, which is an app and online portal that allows customers to see everything about their account. They can view info about maintenance, their power usage and bill tracking. According to Greenwood, “it’s a complete home energy analysis.” Customers can also go online to view planned outages, message concerns and time estimates as well as view a map of outages.

The Ravalli Electric Co-op maintenance warehouse, where they store many of the parts needed to keep the power grid up. According to representatives, ordering out for parts takes too long. Photo by John Dowd.

Getting back on the wall- an exercise routine

Something a lot of people may not know about me is that I used to be really into rock climbing. Unfortunately, it’s been a while since I have hopped onto a wall. Climbing is also one of those activities where the phrase, “use it or lose it,” really holds a profound meaning. This is because there are a lot of muscles that get used heavily in climbing that never see the same use in average everyday life. With the weather making most outdoor activities difficult, it has seemed like a no brainer for me to get back into the sport to keep active.

to be. For anyone looking to get into climbing in general, here are some of my exercises that may help them out.

by John Dowd

Indoor climbing is a much more enjoyable workout, for me, than the alternative of something like running on a treadmill. Throughout the process, I have been developing a workout regimen to help me get back to where I want

The first exercise is the most obvious. Pull-ups are a fantastic arm and shoulder exercise, and as most might assume, these are definitely dominant muscles used in climbing. I try to vary my pull-ups, widening and shallowing my grip and performing chin ups. Doing this helps me to work different sections of my arms and shoulders. Additionally, there are a lot of moves in climbing that require a person to transition from one muscle group to another, and one traditional movement to another, such as going from a pull to a push. The seamless movement from one thing to another often relies upon strong muscles from all the different groups in the body involved. Holding at the top of a pull up and letting down slowly also simulates the work required of

many muscles during a climb.

The second exercise is one only climbers can really grasp the importance of: finger exercises. Pun intended. Climbing necessitates strong fingers, but this goes beyond grip strength. Being able to hold onto tiny or insufficient surfaces relies on having strong fingers. Grip is achieved by the muscles in the forearm, but fingers each contribute to the climber’s ability to hang and even perform tiny controlled movements. For these, I will do finger pull ups, using only a couple fingers. I will also lean on a wall and try to pull myself up with my fingers. This differs from a pull up in that I am literally using my fingers to pull my body up slightly, and not just holding on with my fingers and pulling up with my arms. This is where climbers need to be careful, because it is extremely easy to damage the tendons in the fingers. I know this, personally.

I was doing a pretty hard climb in a gym once, where there was a hole the climber needed to hold their entire body up with that could only fit a couple fingers. I tried the climb several times, and actually did it a couple. However, one of my subsequent attempts ended poorly, and I spent two months not climbing after nearly tearing the tendon in my right ring finger. Proceed exercising fingers with care.

Another area most people do not think to exercise for climbing is their legs and feet. Climbers wear special shoes that are pointed and made from materials that grab at the wall. These shoes narrow the surface of the shoe to a small point, shrinking the surface area in contact with the wall. This inversely increases the power that can be applied in that tiny area. A climber’s ankles and toes need to be strong to support hanging from toes in certain climbs. These body parts also come into play constantly while being another stable support for the climber, or even a major functioning limb moving the climb -

er up the wall. There are also a lot of advanced moves, like heel-hooks, that employ a climber’s feet in interesting and unconventional ways.

To exercise my legs and feet I will do a lot of squats and toe-raises to help build those muscles. It also helps to do low down body-weightonly squats. The best way to do these is by using only one leg, using something like a chair for support. Going down, then back up again with just that one leg simulates a number of climbing moves.

Lastly, the core of a person’s body is probably the most important tool besides the arms for climbing. I will do a variety of core exercises, like crunches, sit ups, Russian twists, leg raises, planks and much more. A climber needs core strength in all directions, not just in a traditional folding direction. All of these core exercises tone the stomach, and bring that connective strength between the upper and lower portions of the body into play.

Me, back when I was in much better shape doing a lot more climbing. Photo by Chris Carroll.

Mill Creek Canyon, a popular Bitterroot Valley climbing destination. Photo courtesy US Forest Service.

Suing over funding for special needs students is a new low

It takes a lot to surprise me anymore when it comes to politics or government. But suing to block funding for special needs kids to get an education that works for them?

That’s a new low.

In case you missed the news in January, a lawsuit has been fled seeking to overturn the 2023 Legislature’s House Bill 393. HB 393 would allow parents of students with disabilities to have Education Savings Accounts that would reimburse them for education services obtained outside of their local public school. The intent of the bill is very simple: if a special needs student’s local school can’t provide them with the unique individualized education that they need to be successful, their parents can get reimbursed for sending them somewhere that better fts their needs.

Vinton, a Republican from Billings. She’s uniquely suited to legislate on this topic as the parent of a child with special needs. As Rep. Vinton told the Legislature and the media, her son beneftted from a great special needs program at his school when he was a student.

by Jason Ellsworth

But she knows other parents and kids in the special needs community who haven’t been as fortunate with their education opportunities. Those are the Montanans that HB 393 is meant to help.

I applaud Representative Vinton and her family for having the courage to share their own story so publicly and for having the conviction to pass a bill to help other special needs families.

HB 393 was sponsored by House Majority Leader Sue

I also agree with her that it is infuriating that the people behind this lawsuit are claiming that she, or any of us serving in the Legislature, had anything other than the best interests of special needs Montanans in mind when

we passed the bill.

Upper Seven Law, the law frm representing plaintifs in the case, fred of a press release announcing the lawsuit in which they accuse HB 393 as being a “concerted efort to privatize education” and “masquerading as aid to students with disabilities.” Infammatory, ofensive, and untrue.

Upper Seven is a nonproft law frm founded and run by stafers of former Governor Steve Bullock. After being voted out of power in the 2020 elections, these members of the Bullock Administration created the law frm to try to continue controlling state policy through the courts. The homepage of their website is dedicated to fundraising tax-deductible contributions from liberal donors to fund their positions and the lawsuits they fle.

These are the people suing to keep special needs students in education environments that don’t serve their needs.

On one side of this lawsuit are special needs students, their parents, and the Republican Legislature that Montanans elected. On the other side are unelected Democratic political staf lawyers determined to keep education a “one-size-fts-all” system that doesn’t serve students’ individual needs.

We’ll see who the courts side with.

Sen. Jason Ellsworth, R-Hamilton, is the President of the Montana Senate.

Setting record straight

Over the last two days, I have received several calls from my friends and supporters who were appalled by the comments Ms. Kathy Love made about me at the North Bitterroot Pachyderm Club meeting held on the afternoon of Friday, February 2. I was not at the meeting, as I was recovering from surgery on a broken leg I sufered recently while on ofcial state business as part of my duties as a member of the Montana House of Representatives. In my absence, my primary opponent, Ms. Love, made the false and baseless assertion that I did not care about following the Constitution in executing my legislative duties. Not surprisingly, she couldn’t cite a single example supporting this allegation.

and Constitution of Montana. When I take an oath, I take that oath seriously as a bond to duty solemnly sworn to Almighty God.

This goes to the heart of my character and to the heart of my faith as a Christian. My character, my faith, and my fdelity to this sacred oath are unwavering.

by Michele Binkley

I am calling on Kathy Love to have the courage to admit her mistake, apologize to me personally and publicly, and to apologize to everyone who attended that meeting and any other meeting where she has made her false allegations against me or any other resident of Ravalli County.

I will not stand by while Ms. Love makes these serious, desperate, and nasty attacks on my record of service to the people of Ravalli County and Montana, my allegiance to the Constitution, my character and my faith.

When I took my oath of ofce, I swore to support, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States

For Kathy Love to engage in this type of cowardly character assassination behind my back in front of a Republican Party educational organization is the lowest type of political dirty trick. She may think these types of sleazy attacks will fool some people, but she will learn that this brand of gutter politics has no place in our County.

Rep. Michele Binkley, HD 85. Hamilton.

Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Calendar continued

Montanans for Life

Montanans for Life will hold their monthly meeting on the frst Thursday of every month at 6PM at More to Come Fellowship, 330 3rd Ave., Victor. For more information call (406) 407-1254.

Stevi Tax-Aide

AARP Tax-Aide will be ofering free tax preparation services for low to moderate income taxpayers of all ages. Tax preparation is held at the Stevensville Senior Center on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. The Senior Center WILL NOT schedule those appointments. Call 406-201-5734, leave your name and phone number, and a volunteer will call back to schedule your appointment.

Florence American Legion

Florence American Legion Post 134 is having a free pancake breakfast on the frst Saturday of each month from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Florence Rural Fire Hall.

North Valley Dems

Join the North Valley Democrats for “Politics and Pals” on Thursdays from 5 to about 7 p.m. at Fireside Pizza, 3885 North U.S. 93. This is due west of the Stevensville Super 1, on the southbound side of the highway. Meeting room is in the back of the restaurant. Check RavDems.com or fnd them on Facebook for info and or changes. The newsletter is at RavDems.com/newsletter.

Bitterroot Celtic Society

The Bitterroot Celtic Society meets every 3rd Thursday at 6 p.m. at BJ’s restaurant in Hamilton. The Bitterroot Celtic Society is a passionate group of volunteers, dedicated to keeping the Celtic culture, heritage, and history alive in the Bitterroot Valley. Their biggest event is the Bitterroot Celtic Games and Gathering, held every third weekend in August at the Historic Daly Mansion. They also host a Burns’ Night supper, St. Andrew’s, St. Patrick’s, and Tartan day events. The BCS is a non-proft organization. The public, new members, and the curious are always welcome to attend. For any time changes or additional committee meeting info, follow their Facebook page for updates.

NV Library events

Read to Dogs—Monday, Feb 26 at 4:30pm

Certifed Therapy dogs are at North Valley Public Library and listen to your child’s favorite book from home or one from our shelves. Great for early readers or kids who just love dogs. All canines are certifed, constantly accompanied by their Pet Partner handlers and ready to listen. Registration required.

Science Squad for Ages 8-12 –

Wednesday, Feb 28 at 2:30pm

Explore the universe, both micro and macro, and learn the science

mysteries behind the natural world. Expect fun activities with Legos®, paper planes, experiments, and more. Registration required. The Steampunk Genre…and Craft!

–

Thursday, Feb 29 at 6pm

Ready to break out of your reading or movie-viewing rut and try a new genre? Travel the gas-lamp lit alleyways of a Victorian era London that never was, or fy through the ether aboard an airship, all made possible by the Steampunk genre. Related to but distinct from science fction, with some historical fction, fantasy, and mystery stirred in, steampunk is a popular genre of literature, flm, and art that combines retrofuturistic technology and modern dilemmas with Industrial Age machinery and aesthetics. This interactive program concludes with a steampunk craft. Registration required.

Square dance lessons

Solo Starts winter square dancing lessons and dances will be held at the Lolo Community Center starting in January. Lessons are from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m.; dances 7:45 to 9 p.m. on select Fridays. For cost, dates and information, contact Butch Suttey, 208-5030551 or Tim Casey, 406-218-8677.

Accordion Club

The Accordion Club will hold music jams at the Missoula Senior Center from 1 to 4 p.m. on the following dates:

February 11th and 25th

March 10th and 24th

April 14th

April 28th, Annual Meeting, 12-4 p.m.

May 12th, Mother’s Day

Everyone is welcome. $6 fee at the door. Polka, swing, waltz and 2-step dances. Good dance music and fun for all. For more info, contact Helen Steele, 406-369-1839.

Our Savior Lutheran events

Our Savior Lutheran Church and Preschool invite friends and neighbors to Lenten services to prepare for Good Friday and the joys of Easter through scripture readings, meditation, prayer and song.

Lenten services start on Thursday, February 15th. Lenten Matins services will meet every Thursday at 9 am. Lenten evening services at 7 pm, preceded by Soup and Whatever Suppers at 6:15. Join us, with or without food to share, to make church fellowship less complicated after work.

The Holy Week service schedule follows. Please note, no suppers are shared during this period. On both

Good Friday and on Easter, each service is diferent.

Palm Sunday service —March 24 at 9 am.

Holy Wednesday—27th at 7 pm.

Maundy Thursday—28th at 7:30 pm.

Good Friday—29th at 3 and 7:30 pm.

Easter Vigil — Saturday the 30th at 7:30 pm.

Easter day services—7 am and 10 am, with breakfast in between

services. Our Savior, afliated with the Lutheran Church––Missouri Synod, is located at 184 Pine Hollow Road, south of Stevensville of the Eastside Highway. Call 406-777-5625 Monday through Thursday mornings for more information.

Poets in the ‘Root

Nature in nearly all manifestations has inspired poets since there were poets! And at least since the Roman poet Horace wrote Ars Poetica or the Art of Poetry in 19BC, literature, including poetry, sought to both instruct and delight.

Poets in the ‘Root combines these two aims in an uncommon but simple way. One person reads a favorite poem or part of a poem that uses an element of nature to convey its message. Then, the same or another person gives an explanation (5 minutes max) of some aspect of that nature element. The explanation focuses on nature interpretation, not literary interpretation. Listeners get a bit of poetry and a bit of natural history.

Free and open to the public.

The program will be held at the Teller Wildlife Refuge in Corvallis, on Saturday, February 24, at 1 p.m. There will be refreshments, including cofee, tea, wine, and snacks!

Bitterroot Audubon, Teller Wildlife Refuge, and the Montana Natural History Center are sponsoring this event.

Questions? Contact Micki Long at mickilong@gmail.com Sign up to attend at https://www.tellerwildlife.org/ events/2024/2/24/poets-in-the-root Republican Women’s Club

Ravalli County Republican Women’s Club will hold its monthly meeting and lunch on Tuesday, February 27 at 11:30 am at BJ’s Restaurant in Hamilton. All candidates for Senate District 44 are invited including incumbent State Senator Theresa Manzella. Forum debate style, each candidate will be asked the same questions. Ravalli County Republican Women meet the fourth Tuesday of each month.

Bitterroot Quilters Guild

Bitterroot Quilters Guild will meet on Wednesday, February 28 at Daly Leach Community Room, 1010 W Main, Hamilton. Doors open at 6 pm for socializing and shopping; the meeting will come to order at 6:30. Carpooling is recommended and encouraged; please reach out to a board member if you prefer not to drive.

There will be a Fat Quarter Drawing, 50/50 Pot, bargain sales at the Ugli Bin as well as member show and tell. The program for February is a game called ‘Name That Block’.

Bitterroot Quilters Guild is a non-proft organization, and contributes hundreds of quilts annually to organizations in the Bitterroot Valley like Ravalli County First Responders, S.A.F.E., Headstart, Hospice and more. The group also funds an annual scholarship to high school seniors, as well as an annual grant to deserving organizations. To fund these activities, the Guild sponsors a Boutique at the

Ravalli County Fair, and will hold a Quilt Show on June 8 – 9, 2024 at Bitterroot Furniture. Membership in the Guild is open to quilters from beginner through advanced. Annual dues are $20. To keep abreast of activities, please visit the Bitterroot Quilters Guild on Facebook.

Garden Club

Stevensville Garden Club’s monthly meeting will be Wednesday, March 6, at 1 p.m. at Our Savior Lutheran Church, 184 Pine Hollow Road.

“Gardening Advice from a Pro” is the program topic of local author and master gardener Molly Hackett. For more info see the SGC Facebook page.

Rapp Family Foundation Grant Applications

The Rapp Family Foundation is in its 33rd year of supporting non-proft organizations in Ravalli County.

All organizations that have an IRS 501(c)3 letter qualify. Churches are automatically considered 501(c)3 charities, as long as they meet the criteria required by the IRS and continually adhere to 501(c)3 requirements. Public Schools tax-exempt status under 501(c)3 is not required in order for such organizations to qualify for private foundation grants. Government entities are also eligible to apply.

The Regular Quarterly Grant has a maximum of $5,000. Qualifed organizations may request an application by emailing rappapps2024@gmail.com.

The deadline for the return of completed applications is March 8, 2024. Application questions for 2024 have changed so be sure the application you submit is #02102024.

If you have questions email rappapps2024@gmail.com

Montana Junior Duck Stamp 2024

Student Artists, Art Educators, Mentors: The 2024 Montana Junior Duck Stamp Contest is receiving entries now up until March 22, 2024. Entries can be mailed or hand delivered to Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge at 4567 Wildfowl Lane, Stevensville, MT 59870 (406 777-5552). The art image should be of a live, native North American waterfowl species that measures 9” x 12” in a horizontal layout. Artwork

can be drawn using ink, paint, pastel, crayon, or pencil. Entries should not be matted, drawn with a border, signed, initialed or lettered, computer-generated, photographs, or copies or tracings of published art. Entries placing frst through honorable mention will be publicly acknowledged and will receive ribbons and awards.

The Junior Duck Stamp Contest is an active participatory art and science program designed to teach wetland habitat and waterfowl conservation to students in kindergarten through high school enrolled in private, public or home schools. The curriculum (www. fws.gov/juniorduck/) guides students using wildlife observation principles to draw or paint a waterfowl species in appropriate habitat. Approximately 27,000 students from across the country enter the contest annually. The Best of Show from Montana will compete in the National Junior Duck Stamp Contest in Washington, D.C.

Bitterroot Quilt Guild

Scholarship available

Applications are being accepted for the Bitterroot Quilt Guild 2024 Scholarship. A $1000 scholarship will be awarded by the Bitterroot Quilt Guild. This Scholarship is for a graduating Stevensville High School Senior who plan to continue their education either through trade school, technical college, community college or fouryear college or university.

Application guidelines can be obtained from Stevensville High School Senior Counselor. Applications need to be received or postmarked by April 15, 2024. Applicants do not need to be a quilter to qualify.

Calendar postings are free to non-proft groups.

Submit by emailing to: editor@bitterrootstar. com

Sports

by Scott Sacry Sports Editor

Florence teams 3rd at Districts

The Florence boys and girls basketball teams came home with matching 3rd place trophies from the District 6B tournament in Deer Lodge on February 15-17. Both teams qualifed for the Western B Divisionals, which are in Pablo February 22-24. In Divisionals, the Florence girls play Thompson Falls on Thursday at 8:15 p.m., and, to make things symmetrical, the Florence boys also play Thompson Falls on Thursday, but at 9:45 a.m.

Florence Boys

The Florence boys took 3rd in the 6B District tournament in Deer Lodge by upsetting Arlee in the consolation game on Saturday, Feb. 17th. Coming into districts, Arlee was Class B’s 6th ranked team (406mtsports.com) and had beaten the Falcons in both regular season games by double digits.

But the Falcons were clutch in this game. After a back and forth frst half, Florence ended the third quarter on a runner and led 56-42 going into the 4th quarter. Arlee struck back with a 15-2 run to start the fnal frame and Florence’s lead was cut to 58-57 with just over three minutes left in the game. But the Falcons settled down and controlled the game down the stretch to get the satisfying 68-60 victory and the 3rd place trophy.

In their frst round game at Districts, Florence few past Deer Lodge on Thursday. After a mostly even frst quarter, Florence exploded in the second, outscoring Deer Lodge 28-12 to take a 47-26 halftime lead. They kept their foot on the gas in the second half and won 80-46.

Florence had a true team performance with eight players scoring. Brody Duchien continued his strong play and led with 16 points. Trapper Oster had 11, Quintan Monaco had 10, Tyler Abbott, Bridger Alexander and Jake Schneiter each had 9, Ethan Alexander and Kade Anderson added 8.

This sent them to the semi-fnals where they played the state’s #1 ranked Class B team (406mtsports.com) Missoula Loyola on Friday afternoon and lost 31-84.

Loyola is one of the best boys basketball teams in the state and are the favorite to win state. While Florence didn’t play their best in this game, in all honesty, Loyola is going to be tough for anyone to beat this year. For reference, they beat Anaconda in the district championship game by 48 points.

With this loss, Florence went to the loser out bracket where they faced their Bitterroot neighbor Darby on Saturday morning. Florence wasted no time and jumped out to a 49-26 halftime lead and cruised to an 80-50

victory. For Florence, Tyler Abbott led the scoring with 16 points. Trapper Oster had 13, Ethan Alexander had 12, Quintan Monaco had 10, Jake Schneiter and Kade Anderson each had 6, Mose Smith had 5, Bridger Alexander had 4, Wes Potter and Brody Duchien each had 3, and Preston Exstedt added 2.

This win sent them to the consolation game where they defeated Arlee on Saturday afternoon for the 3rd place trophy.

Florence Girls

The Florence girls fnished 3rd in the 6B District tournament in Deer Lodge by easily defeating Deer Lodge in the consolation game on Saturday, February 17th. Florence raced out to a 29-11 halftime lead and soared to the 49-24 victory. Florence’s Taylor Pyette led with 9 points. Maggie Schneiter had 7, Emory Ralston and Kenzy Pickering each had 6, Kendyl Meinhold had 5, Shelby Crocker had 4, Alyx Monaco and Taryn Appelhans each had 3, and Lexi Danczyk, Jaden Fisher and Madigan Hurlburt each added 2.

Florence played Arlee in their frst game of Districts on Thursday. The Lady Falcons overpowered the Scarlets and won 82-22. Florence was up 30-7 after one quarter, so they were able to rest their starters and get the bench players some gametime.

Kenzy Pickering, Lexi Danczyk and Madigan Hurlburt led the scoring with 10 points each. Maggie Schneiter had 9, Emory Ralston had 8, Kendyl Meinhold, Shelby Crocker and Jaden Fisher each had 7, Taryn Appelhans and Alyx Monaco had 4, and Olivia Coulter and Taylor Pyette each added 3.

This win sent them to the semi-fnals where they faced Anaconda and lost 38-47. This was a close, competitive game but Florence just couldn’t put it all together against the #7 (406mtsports. com) Lady Copperheads.

For Florence, Maggie Schneiter led the scoring with 16 points. Olivia Coulter and Kenzy Pickering each had 6, Kendyl Meinhold had 5, Madigan Hurlburt had 3, and Emory Ralston added 2.

This loss sent them to the loser-out bracket where, much like the Florence boys, they met their Bitterroot Valley neighbor Darby on Saturday morning. And also like the boys, the Lady Falcons dominated the Lady Tigers, winning 63-20.

For Florence, Kendyl Meinhold led the way with 14 points. Emory Ralston had 10, Kenzy Pickering had 8, Maggie Schneiter, Taylor Pyette and Jaden Fisher each had 6, Alyx Monaco and Lexi Danczyk each had 5, Shelby Crocker had 2, and Madigan

Victor falls in Districts

The Victor basketball teams played in the District 13C tournament in Frenchtown on February 15-17. Both teams lost their games and concluded their season.

The Victor girls were the 5th seed and played 4th seed Seeley-Swan on Thursday. The Lady Pirates ran up against a solid Blackhawk squad and fell 23-68. This sent them to the loser-out bracket, where they

Hurlburt added 1.

This win sent them to the consolation game hours later on Saturday afternoon where they defeated Deer Lodge for 3rd place.

Darby Boys

The Darby boys were the 6th seed in the 6B District tournament and played 3rd seed Anaconda for their opening game on Thursday, February 15th. The young Tiger team didn’t have an antidote for the Copperheads’ biting play and fell 18-72.

For Darby, Payton Ehmann led with 6 points. Jordan Browning had 5, Ben Martin had 4. McCoy Townsend had 2, and Brad Reasor added 1.

This loss sent them to the loser-out bracket where they faced their Bitterroot neighbor Florence on Saturday morning. The Tigers fell short against the Falcons, losing 50-80, thus ending their season. For Darby, Jordan Browning had a big game with 16 points. Leif Nelson had 10, McCoy Townsend had 8, Payton Ehmann had 6, Ben Martin had 5, Braydon Lundgren had 3, and Brad Reasor added 2.

played Lincoln on Saturday morning and lost 17-42. This loss ended the girls’ season.

The Victor boys were the 5th seed and played 4th seed Valley Christian on Thursday. The Pirates played well, but eventually fell 41-65 to the Eagles. This sent them to the loser-out bracket where they faced Seeley-Swan on Saturday morning and lost 27-42. This loss ended the boys’ season.

Darby Girls

The Darby girls were the 5th seed in the 6B District tournament and played 4th seed Deer Lodge in their opening game on Thursday, February 15th. The Lady Tigers played tough, but couldn’t make it over the hump and lost 35-48.

For Darby, Hadley Heiland had a big game with 15 points, Georgia Fisher was solid with 10, Kimmie Berry had 4, and Natalie Anderson, Paige O’Donnell and Sierra Reed each had 2. This loss sent them to

the loser out bracket where, much like the boys, they faced their Bitterroot neighbor Florence. The Lady Tigers battled hard, but just didn’t have the guns to match the Lady Falcons and fell 20-63, thus ending their season.

Florence’s Quintan Monaco dribbling the ball up the court. Monaco and the Falcons took 3rd place in the 6B District tournament in Deer Lodge on February 17th. The Florence boys play in the Western B Divisionals in Pablo on February 22-24.

Photo by Stephanie K Geiser Photography.

Florence’s Emory Ralston going up for a layup. The Lady Falcons took 3rd place in the District 6B tournament in Deer Lodge on February 17th. The Florence girls play in the Western B Divisionals in Pablo on February 22-24. Photo by Stephanie K Geiser Photography.

Sports

by Scott Sacry Sports Editor

Western A Basketball

Boys play-in games

The Corvallis boys went to Frenchtown on Saturday, February 17th for the second Western A play-in game with a trip to Divisionals on the line. Corvallis fought tough and had their chances against the Broncs. The game was tied 31-31 at halftime, but the Blue Devils were outscored by nine points in the third quarter and were never able to get all the way back into the game. They did get within four points late in the 4th quarter, but they just couldn’t make that game-changing play, and lost 61-69, ending their season.

The Corvallis and Stevensville boys faced of in Corvallis on Thursday, February 15th in the frst Western A Divisional play-in game. The Blue Devils started strong, leading 21-5 after one quarter. The ‘Jackets played tough, but didn’t have enough weapons to compete with Corvallis and fell 32-70.

For Corvallis, Cameron Whiteley had a big game with 17 points. Ryan Hutchison had 10, Bennett Boelman and Dillen Potter each had 9, Drew Lewis had 6, Logan Avery and Derek Criddle each had 5, Camron Dela Rosa had 3, and Aydan Mayn added 1.

For Stevensville, Kaeden Gum led with 7 points. Angus Trangmoe had 6, Kaden Wyant had 5, Jake Gavlak had 4, Easton Hollis and Gage Bierer each had 3, and Treyton Patzer and David Djokic each added 2.

Girls play-in games

The girls basketball teams from Corvallis and Stevensville played in Corvallis on Saturday, February 17th in the second Western A Divisional play-in game with a trip to Divisionals on the line.

The game was evenly matched throughout. Corvallis led 23-17 at halftime, but Stevensville chipped away at the lead in the second half. Both teams had a chance to win at the end but Corvallis prevailed 42-40. The diference was Corvallis’ clutch free throw shooting down the stretch.

In the frst Western A Divisional play-in game, Stevensville traveled to Butte Central to take on the Lady Maroons. The Lady ‘Jackets played their most complete game of the season and defeated the Lady Maroons 3420. Butte Central beat Stevensville in both games during the regular season, but Stevensville put it all together in this game and won their frst game of the year in convincing fashion. For Stevensville, Addi Drye had a big game with 13 points. Cheyenne Sannar had 6, Holly St. Germain had 5, Shilo Lampi and Lexi Perez each had 4, and Haylie Tolley added 2.

Western A Divisional Preview

The Western A Divisional tournament for both the boys and girls takes place at the Butte Civic Center on February 22-24. There are three Bitterroot Valley teams competing: the Hamilton boys, the Hamilton girls, and the Corvallis girls.

The Hamilton boys are the top seed from the Western A and face Ronan, the 4th seed from the Northern A, on Thursday at 10:30 a.m. The winner faces either Dillon or Columbia Falls in the semi-fnals on Friday. The Broncs are one of the top teams in the state and are a favorite for the divisional title. The feld is stacked with fve of the top six teams in Class A in the feld in Frenchtown, Browning, Dillon, Butte Central and Hamilton. Then there’s Columbia Falls who Hamilton beat by only one point at the start of the season. Needless to say, the Broncs need to be at their best to advance to state.

The Hamilton girls are the 3rd seed out of the Western A and face Browning, the 2nd seed out of the Northern A, on Thursday at 12:00 p.m. The winner faces either Ronan or Frenchtown in the semi-fnals on Friday. The Lady Broncs have a strong and solid team, but have some stif competition at Divi-

sionals and will need to play their best ball of the year to advance to state.

The Corvallis girls are the 4th seed from the Western A and get to face Bigfork, the #1 ranked Class A team in the state, on Thursday at 8:00

p.m. with the winner facing either Dillon or Columbia Falls in the Semis on Friday. The Corvallis girls are a scrappy bunch and hope to pull of the upset against some of the giants in this year’s Western A Divisionals.

Posting Date February 19, 2024

Corvallis’ Bennett Boelman (#1) reaches for the ball over Stevensville’s Easton Hollis (#3) in the frst Western A Play-In game in Corvallis on Thursday, February 15th. Corvallis won the game then lost to Frenchtown in the second Play-In game on Saturday. Photo by Scott Sacry.

Obituaries

Evelyn Fifeld

Evelyn Harrington Fifeld, 94, passed away after a short illness on February 14, 2024 at the Beehive homes in Hamilton, MT.

Her parents came from Ireland and met and married in Butte where Dennis Harrington worked in the mines, and Mary Buckley Harrington worked in the home. Dennis wanted a change and moved the family to a ranch in Stevensville where Evelyn was born, February 7, 1930, the youngest of eight siblings.

She loved the ranch/farm and carried that love throughout her life. Evelyn attended the Old Curlew School and then graduated from Stevensville High School in 1948. By this time, her parents moved to a small farm north of Darby.

On September 9, 1950, she married Charles Fifeld and they raised four children on the farm they purchased from her mother. Charles worked in the sawmills and Evelyn tended a large garden, raised chickens and sold milk to dozens of families in the area. She was active as a 4-H leader and taught many Darby kids how to cook and sew. She was an excellent seamstress and good cook. When we would sit down to a meal she loved to say, “Everything we are eating today came from the farm.”

Evelyn served as President of the St. Francis

Catholic Parish Council and was instrumental in the planning and building of St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church in Darby.

She and Charles traveled the United States and cruised to Alaska, but her dream trip was a two week tour to Ireland where she met relatives and was able to retrace the steps of her father..

After losing Charles in 2006, she stayed on and kept up the farm until moving to Hamilton in 2016 and learning to be a city girl. Evelyn was excited to be a ‘pink lady’ at the hospital and enjoyed her time helping people navigate through the corridors. She also worked with the 4-H foundation. Evelyn cared for her home and raised beautiful fowers in the summer and nurtured her African violets throughout the house.

Evelyn was preceded in death by her parents and seven siblings and siblings-in-law, her husband Charles and daughter Cindy Fifeld.

Survivors include daughters Julie (Tom) Long, Susan (Paul) Jensen and son Bob (Karen) Fifeld, granddaughter Nikki Jensen, and grandsons W.C Fifeld and Rob (Donna) Fifeld and great granddaughter Locea Fifeld. She left many nieces and nephews and friends, especially Janice Heiland.

Funeral services will be held Friday, February

Bonnie Ruth Hofmann Leifer

Bonnie Ruth Hofmann Leifer died Saturday, January 27 as a result of colon cancer. Her life was lived to the fullest in all respects. She believed that travel was her calling and she lived that calling up to the end. “Life is a journey and travel should be what teaches us what life is about!”

She loved meeting new people and kept in touch with friends near and far most diligently. Her friends and family were the glue that began and ended every trip of her journey.

To her, “We are always halfway to somewhere.” It was never really the destination that was important but the travel/journey along the way.

Bonnie’s love of both travel and learning will be carried on through all those whose lives she touched and infuenced throughout her life. Her chosen feld of work was as a health educator, the frst in western Montana. She not only enjoyed her work, she was incredibly good at it.

She never failed to express her opinion and believed that it was most important to be “straight on” with people if asked and even once in a while when not asked!

She leaves behind an indomitable spirit as well as a loving husband and soulmate Tim; children Tifany and Todd; grandchildren Jasmine, Jordyn, and Tyler Jette, and Bjorn and Ari Leifer; sisters Lois and Mari; son-in-law Jeremy (JJ) Jette and daughter-in-law Jonnie (Egeland) Leifer; sister-inlaw Nancy Leifer and brother-in-law Skip Leifer.

A memorial gathering and celebration of her life will be held in Missoula this spring with location and date to be announced. Also, one for friends and family in California this summer.

If you wish to remember Bonnie in some way, she would be pleased if you supported Partners in Homecare, partnersinhomecare.org

Bethany Ann Hyun Jin Andersen

Bethany Ann Hyun Jin Andersen, 39, passed away peacefully due to aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage early in the morning, Tuesday, February 13, 2024, at St. Patrick Hospital in Missou-

la. The Celebration of Bethany’s life will be held Sunday, March 3, 2024, from 1 to 3 p.m. The remembrance service of sharing and fellowship with family and friends will continue to 11 p.m. at

23, 2024 at 11:00 am at the Daly-Leach Chapel with a reception immediately following in the funeral home’s community room. Interment will take place at Lone Pine Cemetery in Darby following the reception. Condolences may be left for the family at www. dalyleachchapel.com.

Robert F. Sizer

Robert F. Sizer died at Bitterroot Living Center in Stevensville, MT on Tuesday, January 30, 2024. Bob was born April 7, 1925 in Victor, MT. He was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers and his wife, Lorraine.

In Bob’s own words:

Seeing that I have no close relatives, I will write my own obituary. I graduated from Victor High School in 1943 and enlisted directly into the Army. Ironically, I stayed for the next 26 years. I served in World War II (Europe), the Korean War (three times) and Vietnam. I loved the camaraderie and adventure of being a soldier. I didn’t like the

needless deaths, the blood and the sorrow. I was a medic in World War II (Battalion Aid Station) and an artillery ofcer in Korea, and for the rest of my service.

After I was released from active duty, I went to college and earned a couple degrees, and taught school for eight years.

I have met so many memorable people over the years. Homeless people in post-war Europe and Korea, hallowed monks in Japan, and KSC’s (Korean Service Corps), who chugged (backpack) supplies in Korea under fre and have all been remembered countless times.

It’s been a good ride. There were bumps, mud holes, and rough patches, but there were also lots of spring fowers, soft rain, autumn leaves, falling snowfakes and colorful sunsets.

I have known some good dogs, some prissy cats, and a raccoon whom I’m sorry I have to leave. All have been my family.

Interment will be at the Veterans Cemetery in Missoula with my wife. I am survived by friends and acquaintances.

--- Goodbye. Condolences and memories may be shared at www.whitesittfuneralhome.com.

the First Interstate Building at the Ravalli County Fairgrounds. Memories and condolences may be shared with the family at www.brothersmortuary. com.

Tactics and fies for late winter, early spring

One nice thing about fshing this time of year: you’re not likely to fsh in a crowd. You might see a couple of others, and like you, they probably value their solitude as much as you do. You tend not to bother each other; the social exchanges are apt to be quiet, pleasant, and brief before you go your separate ways.

The solitude you’ll fnd when it’s not quite spring is reason enough to get out and fsh.

by Chuck Stranahan

Another nice thing is that despite the cold water temperatures that lull the trout into a semi-comatose state, they still have to eat. The bad news is that they don’t eat as much and they don’t eat as often. You have to fsh deliberately, patiently, and persistently.

Done right, it’s methodical and pleasantly engrossing. When the fshing becomes repetitive, it’s almost a form of meditation. The mind escapes the boundaries of self-consciousness and is free to wander, free to take in whatever is there that is balm for the soul.

More good news is that the trout eat best during the most pleasant part of the day. If it’s cold in the morning, have a second cup of cofee or an early lunch. As the day begins to chill of when you’re out on the river, less than you might notice if you’re sitting indoors and looking out the window, it’s time to go home.

The thing that keeps a lot of hopeful-but-hesitant anglers of the river these days I not knowing how to prepare. You do have to specialize, but it’s not too hard.

We know about changeable weather in our part of Montana; you need to dress for it with layers enough to handle sudden and unforeseen changes. Fingerless gloves or mitts and a hand warmer tucked into an inside pocket can make the diference between misery and pleasantly chilly. That nice 14-incher may take more time to revive than you think, and your hands can get cold!

Dark polarized and UV’d sunglasses are a must. So are lugged instead of felt-soled wading boots. Felt soaks up water and can freeze without warning.

Besides, you won’t do much wading anyway.

The trout will be holding of the main current, in water moving no more than two feet per second, and you won’t need to get more than ankle-deep.

To fnd them, comb the water out in a grid pattern. Start close, make sure you get a good cast in, repeat it once more, and then move your next cast out just a few inches.

Repeat until you hook up. When you’ve located where the fsh are holding, continue to focus on that type of water as you move along the stream. The grid becomes narrower as you concentrate on the productive water.

The temptation to bounce a #8 heavily weighted

rubberlegs nymph along the bottom might pan out, or it might not. Ditto for a single nymph under an indicator.

I fnd that too much splish-splash in my approach works against me. Sometimes you need weight to get down and nothing else will do; but it’s more likely in low, cold, clear water that you don’t need too much. Cast further upstream with a lighter nymph and let it drift naturally through the feed zone.

I often fsh with a #14 or #16, sometimes #18 nymph tied of behind a #8 stonefy nymph.

Trout are seeing stonefy nymphs all the time. They’re in the system for two, three, or four years before they hatch. They’re beginning their migrations toward shore to crawl out

and hatch in succession.

The smaller bugs, baby stonefies, caddisfies and mayfies are more numerous, and the slightest change in current speed can knock one of a rock and set it adrift in the current. A little bit of rain is all it takes. Those smaller bugs are far more numerous than the bigger stonefies, the trout see more of them and eat them all the time. The smaller fy might get you more trout on any given day.

You might try one behind a #6 or #8 wooly bugger, brown or olive, fshed on a slow, very slow retrieve.

Or fsh that small nymph by itself, with a small split shot just a handspan above the fy and with very little or no indicator. Keep a slightly tightened line, and fsh until a gentle tug interrupts your reverie.

Small nymphs like these can take more winter trout than big ones. Photo by Chuck Stranahan.

Booked for the season

“If You See Them: Young, Unhoused, and Alone in America” by Vicki Sokolikc.2024, Spiegel and Grau

$30.00 336 pages

You’ve looked everywhere.

In the closet, beneath the sink, in the corners of drawers and storage areas. You’ve opened totes, then taken your search outside, turned the garage upside-down, and checked every square inch of the back yard. Nothing. That confrms it. As author

Vicki Sokolik says in her new book “If You See Them,” America’s teens may be afected by a hidden problem.

Vicki Sokolik loved to volunteer.

Growing up in a household of means in a palatial home, she knew she was lucky. She never went without and, years later, neither did her teenagers, both of whom were taught generosity and the spirit of giving. It was a good lesson, then when, as they were delivering holiday meals to families near their Florida home one winter, Sokolik met a woman who reluctantly revealed that she was employed but couldn’t aford permanent housing on her salary.

Sokolik was touched. She swung into action, befriended the woman, taught her fnancial basics, and helped her fnd housing. Eventually, the woman asked Sokolik to move on, to fnd someone else to help.

And so she did: Sokolik’s son was a compassionate soul. He worried about a classmate who seemed to have little-to-nothing and again, Sokolik seized the chance to help. Alas, it didn’t work out but the experience taught her and her family something important.

Some teens in America are in crisis.

Ofcially, they’re called “unaccompanied homeless youth,” but the reality is harsher: they’re kids who were

kicked out or chose to permanently leave home for a variety of reasons. Because they weren’t removed by

social workers or the state, they’re not eligible for welfare or any other assistance programs. They stay with

by Terry Schlichenmeyer The Bookworm Sez, LLC

friends or distant relatives that will have them, or they sleep on park benches. They get by, and they fall through the cracks.

Few people notice them, says Sokolik, because they do a good job at staying hidden but she knew those kids were out there. And she was going to do something about them...

For as long as there’ve been kids, there have been kids without a place to eat, shower, or lay their heads at night. The thing, says author Vicki Sokolik, is that those she writes about in “If You See Them” don’t want you to see them.

That seems odd until you know their reasoning, and Sokolik helps with that. She shows readers how this nationwide issue happened and what’s being done about it, through memories of her own life, work, family, and essays written by the “kids” she helped who are now adults. Dip in, and see how easy their tales are to read, even despite that many of them will make you wince. Still, without spoiling things, you can expect happy endings among the sad stories.

You can also expect your heart to be shattered.

This book is a gently urgent call to arms, a plea for attention, and a good read altogether. When you care about kids, “If You See Them” is a book to look for.

email your ad to: editor@bitterrootstar.com or call 406-777-3928 Deadline Monday at 12 noon for Wednesday Publication

er service. Limited time ofer - get $50 of on any new account. Use code GIFT50. For more information, call 1-877-324-0193.

FRESH EGGS from Howell’s Happy Hens are back! $4.00/doz. Pick up at Bitterroot Star ofce, 115 W. 3rd, Suite 108, Stevensville.

MCNAB PUPPIES FOR SALE.Hamilton Mt. 805-801-6986. Black and white with short hair. Owners own both the male and female. Very versatile dogs with great intelligence.

ALASKA, EUROPE, HAWAII plus dozens of other popular trips! Starting at $1649 per person (double occupancy req’d.) YMT Vacations plans everything, leaving you to relax and enjoy. Call 1-833658-1230 for more details. Use promo code YMT2024 for $250 of. Limited time only.

Connect to the best wireless home internet with EarthLink. Enjoy speeds from 5Gand 4G LTE networks, no contracts, easy installation, and data plans up to 300 GB. Call 855-419-7978.

SWITCH AND SAVE up to $250/year on your talk, text and data. No contract and no hidden fees. Unlimited talk and text with fexible data plans. Premium nationwide coverage. 100% U.S. based custom-

SWITCH TO DISH and get up to a $300 gift card! Plus get the Multisport pack included for a limited time! Hurry, call for details: 1-855-995-3572

WANTED m&m Trailer Hwy 93, Stevensville 406-728-1000 • www.mmmissoula.com

GRAPHIC DESIGNER - part-time, newspaper-specifc work. Experience required. Call Victoria for details, 406-207-8793 or send resume to victoria@mullennewspapers. com.

K-8 MONTANA

CERTIFIED TEACHER at School District 64 for 2024-2025 school year. Contact Jerry Hofer 406336-2638 or jerryhofer73@ gmail.com.

PLANER SETUP

PERSON. Seeking a fully qualifed planer setup person. Min. two years experience operating, setting up and performing maintenance on planer machine required. This is an industrial environment. Must be safety minded, self motivated with good attendance. Wage D.O.E. Benefts. Medical. Dental FSA, 401k, Paid Holidays and PTO. See complete job description and application here: https://thompsonriverlumber.bamboohr. com/careers/49 or call 406-827-4311 #224

Lowest price trailer in MONTANA Lowest price trailer in MONTANA Equipment Trailer 10,400 gvw with 14,000 gvw tires & free spare reg. $7495 sale $4975 plus surcharge on parts Built by Veterans Made in Montana

POLE BUILDING SPECIALIST

SALE DAN ARCHIBALD

WANTED TO BUY: Old Car, Truck, Motorcycle, also old signs and license plates, gas station items or dealership items. Call 406270-8630 any time.

FUND DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR

Looking for the Bitterroot Star? It’s FREE on more than 100 newsstands from Lolo to Conner. Or call us at 777-3928 and we’ll let you know where the closest stand is.

Crossword Solution © Feature Exchange

Seeking reporter. Hamilton city council and school board coverage a must! Please call (406) 7773928 for information.

•bobcat work •small concrete work •fencing •garages

cover letter and resume in one combined PDF document to Deb Dillree at: ofce@blackfootchallenge. org Deadline: February 26, 2024, or until position is flled. Start Date: Immediately Position Description: The Blackfoot Challenge is seeking a full-time fund development coordinator to support the organization’s fundraising and donor stewardship. Responsibilities include managing donor NOTICES JIM WERST • 406-381-7337 • HAMILTON

•garage doors •carports •decks

SHOP AT... HOME OFFERING FREE Pierce Flooring & Design (406) 543-8224 / 1906 Brooks St, Missoula www.pierceflooring.com

JIM SAMPSON

PROFESSIONAL CONSULTATION MEASUREMENTS ESTIMATES Call to set up an appointment with Dan or Jim for their next trip to Bitterroot!

BELL MCCALL COMPANY New 2023 Ford Escape Platinum AWD 2023 Ford F150 STX Supercrew 4x4

Stranded, Accident, Locked Out or Flat Tire?

MONTANA LIVESTOCK AUCTION Ramsay, Montana www.montanalivestockauction.com

2.0L ECO BOOST, Auto, A/C, Leather and Heated Seats, Premium Technology Pkg., Tow Pkg., MoonRoof, and Much More... 0% APR/OAC, Plus $1500 Rebate 2.7 V6 EcoBoost, Auto, Tow Package, FX4 Of Road Package, Extended Range Fuel Tank, and Much More... 1.9% APR/OAC plus $750 Trade In Rebate

Classifieds Everything Real Estate 30 years experience working for you. Bitterroot Native 406-369-0210 bobp@windermere.com bobp.withwre.com

Bell McCall 300 W. Main • Hamilton • 363-2011 Competitive Prices - Hometown Services

Bob Pauley & Company Ranch • Land • Residential • Commercial Kootenai Garage Since 1980 CAR • TRUCK • RV • REPAIR & MAINTENANCE FOREIGN & DOMESTIC VEHICLES 406-777-2705 4027 US HWY 93 N • STEVENSVILLE, MT WWW.KOOTENAIGARAGE.COM

Outstanding in his fieldMerle Unruh reedrealestatemt.com

998 N. First Hamilton Mt 363-4050

For consignment and pick-information please call: Thad Lechner at 406-961-3323 Regular Sales are every Tuesday & Special Feeder Sales are Friday Talk to Merle for all your Real Estate Needs! Hamilton 363-4700

Rate 25 words - $20 25¢ each add’l word Need Help? We cover the entire valley! -- Stranded, Accident, Locked out or Flat Tire? • Prompt • Courteous • Professional

REQUEST FOR PRO-

POSALS

ASPHALT SEAL COAT

The Ravalli County Board of Commissioners is soliciting Request for Proposals for 2024

ASPHALT SEAL COAT

MT 59840, or fled with the Clerk of the above-entitled Court.

DATED this 8th day of February 2024.

/s/ Sara Essick, Personal Representative BS 2-14, 2-21, 2-28-24.

PUBLIC NOTICE

The Darby Planning Board will hold a public hearing on March 5, 2024 at 6 PM at the Darby Town Hall, 101 East Tanner Avenue to hear comments on dividing 415 South Water Street into two single family lots. For more information visit Darby Town Hall or call (406) 821-3753.

BS 2-21, 2-28-24.

PUBLIC NOTICE

The Darby Planning Board will hold a public hearing on March 5, 2024 at 6 PM at the Darby Town Hall, 101 East Tanner Avenue to hear comments on a variance request for height regulation of 24 feet for the skyboxes at 200 Rodeo Road. For more information visit Darby Town Hall or call (406) 821-3753.

BS 2-21, 2-28-24.

ANNUAL SCHOOL ELECTION PETITIONS of Stevensville School District No. 2, Ravalli County, Montana for the Election of two (2) trustees for a (3) year term for the

The

Chris

INVITATION TO BID

MAGNESIUM CHLORIDE

The Ravalli County Board of County Commissioners is now accepting proposals for the delivery of 2024 Magnesium Chloride Supply. Sealed proposals will be received by the Ravalli County Clerk & Recorder at the County Administrative Center, 215 South

Fourth Street, Suite “C”, Hamilton, Montana, 59840, until 4 P.M. MST on Friday, March 1, 2024. The proposals received will be publicly opened on

Tuesday, March 6, 2024 and read aloud at 10:00 a.m. MST by the Board of County Commissioners in the Commissioners Conference Room located at 215 S. 4th Street, (third foor), Hamilton, MT. Contract documents may be examined or obtained at the Ravalli County Road & Bridge Department ofce at 244 Fairgrounds Road, Hamilton, Montana, 59840. Questions relative to the standard and special provisions may be directed to the Ravalli County Road Department at (406) 363-2733. Questions relative to the bid process may be directed to the Ravalli County Commissioners Ofce at (406) 375-6500. No proposal may be withdrawn after the scheduled time for the public opening of proposals, which is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. MST on Tuesday, March 6, 2024. Ravalli County reserves the right to reject any or all proposals received, to waive informalities therein, to postpone the award of the contract for a period of time not to exceed sixty (60) days and to accept the lowest responsive and responsible proposal determined to be in the best interests of Ravalli County.

Chris Taggart, Administrative Assistant Ravalli County Commissioners Ofce BS 2-21, 2-28-24.

INVITATION TO BID

EQUIPMENT RENTAL

The Ravalli County Board of County Commissioners is now accepting proposals for the delivery of 2024 EQUIPMENT RENTAL. Sealed proposals will be received by the Ravalli County Clerk & Recorder at the County Administrative

Center, 215 South Fourth Street, Suite “C”, Hamilton, Montana, 59840, until 4 P.M.

MST on Friday, March 1, 2024. The proposals received will be publicly opened on Tuesday, March 6, 2024 and read aloud at 11:30 a.m. MST by the Board of County Commis-