Bitterroot Business News
406-363-2400 - fax 406-363-2402 105 East Main - Hamilton MT 59840 QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER -- October 2013 IN THIS ISSUE
Letters from Director ........................... Page 2 Letter from the President ..................... Page 2 MicroBrew Festival .......................... Page 3 Leadership Bitterroot .......................... Page 3 Committee Updates ............................. Page 4 New Members ..................................... Page 4 Calendar of Events .............................. Page 5 Gift Certificates.................................... Page 6 ABC Clinic .......................................... Page 6 Chamber Choices ................................. Page 7 Membership Directory ........................ Page 8
Sprinkle Pink
The kickoff for the Sprinkle Pink campaign, which will begin on Friday, October 4, is to create awareness for Breast Cancer. This campaign will run all through the month of October. All monetary donations to the Aid for Mammography fund during the Sprinkle Pink campaign are matched dollar for dollar by Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital. The Aid for Mammography fund provides Ravalli County women in need with the resources to get annual mammograms and other necessary related procedures at the Hospital. When you support the aid for mammography fund you are potentially saving a local woman’s life. For more information or to make a donation to the Aid for Mammography fund visit www.mdmh.org. There will be several events during the month of October to help raise awareness as well as funds for this project, as well as the annual Mammo Man Contest. Plan on attending one or all of the events during the month of October and help women in Ravalli County to stay healthy. Special thanks to all those who are working on the committees to put on these events and special thanks to Amy James-Linton for her commitment and drive to continually see that all the programs are successful in bringing awareness to Ravalli County . . . Thank you Amy!
15th Annual Chamber BBQ
The 15th Annual Membership BBQ was held at the Darby Park on Main Street. We had approximately 85 people in attendance this year, the weather was perfect and everyone seemed to have a great time ... thank you Ambassadors for putting on this event! This year we honored Cindy Beck, manager from Albertsons, who started this event 15 years ago and has retired. Chamber honored her with a life time membership in the Bitterroot Valley Chamber for all that she has done throughout the years. The Chamber’s Annual Membership BBQ, is to thank all of our Chamber members for their continued support throughout the year.
The Chamber would also like to thank the following who contributed to our Annual BBQ: Albertsons, Bitter Root Brewing, Blacksmith Brewing, Cindy Beck, Coke, Frito Lay, Franz, Hamilton’s Market Place, Nabisco, Pepsi, People’s, Summit, Super One and Safeway. Also the winners of the 50/50 drawing were a group of bikers who stopped by for the BBQ. They graciously donated their half back and all the money raised, was given to the Darby Museum. If you have not yet attended one of our BBQ’s, plan on attending next year, it will be held in Florence. Every two years we will move the location to a different community.
Letter from Director . . . Al Mitchell
Greetings and Welcome to Autumn! This year is flying by; and as we get closer to Halloween and Turkey Day we certainly have lots to be thankful for. Though we had a few smoky days in the valley this summer, it wasn’t nearly as brutal as some years. As a result, we saw a significant increase in the number of visitors at both of our Lost Trail Visitor Center and at the Hamilton office. Pat Easley, our volunteers, and Chris Teeples, our resident Lost Trail information guru, did a great job this summer! Special thanks to our volunteers Bert, Marvin, John, Myrna, Mary Kay and Lorene. Our summer Microbrew Festival was once again a huge success! Many thanks go to our dedicated committee members led by Steve Weber and Justine Morris. This committee along with sixty plus volunteers, work feverishly to put on the greatest and one of the best attended events of the year. Our event sponsors and the City of Hamilton help to make this all happen. Proceeds from this festival go to our general fund budget. We then use the money wisely to promote tourism and your business to locals and visitors alike. As we move into Fall, our Ambassador group is gearing up with many ribbon cuttings and Business After Hour events on the horizon. Do not miss out on those chances to network and showcase yourself and your business to other business owners, It is a great opportunity to meet new people, share and possibly win a door prize or cash. The benefits of these gatherings are many in addition to being a lot of fun. I believe we all want to be successful and have our businesses grow. These after hour events are a proven way for you to expand your circle of friends and increase business opportunities for you in our beautiful Bitterroot Valley. Join us and reap the benefit of these get togethers! Best wishes for a happy upcoming holiday season. We are looking forward to a successful finish to this year and a strong start to 2014! –Al Mitchell, director
Letter from our President ...
Rosie Huckstadt
Greetings to you all from your President, I write this on the first day of Fall. My what a marvelous summer we all had, not near as much smoke as some summers during all of the busy events we had up and sown the valley, some - but we have seen worse. As I write I wonder how many of our members have gone to our new WEB page ...Greg Carter and the Board worked hard on it with K Design updating us and getting us back on board. Please go to it and let us know what you think. You can advertise on our web page for a nominal fee. Please call Pat and she will get you set up. And while we are at it...would you go on our Facebook page and “LIKE” us please and make a comment? Every little bit helps and we would appreciate it. Recently we had the Annual Appreciation BBQ at the Darby City Park. It was quite successful with 85 people in attendance. Harry June worked hard in the heat making all of the hamburgers and hot dogs. Dominic and Amy and several others saw to it that we had tables and chairs. Donations from so many of our members for the other food we had. We honored Cindy Beck who retired from Albertson’s after 38 years of service. She received flowers and a Life Time Membership to the Chamber that was presented by Board Members Andy Polumsky, Mike Sadowski, and Dixie Dies as well as a cake with her photo on the top. Cindy is the one that got our Appreciation BBQ’s started many years ago and has supervised it year after year after year. We have held the BBQ in Stevensville and the Mansion several years in a row and next year we will have it in Florence. We also had 6 visitors on motorcycles stop by. They joined us in the 50/50 raffle and said that if they won, they would donate the monies back to the Museum in Darby...and low and behold, THEY WON! It was exciting and the museum received $122.00. Hurray! The Bitterroot Rodders were also some of our guests that came and parked their cool classic cars out front. Thank you to all that attended
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and helped in some way. It sure was fun. The Brew fest committee had a record breaking Brewfest this year under the direction of Co–chairs - Steve Weber and Justine Morris. The organization of the committees and flow of the event was ‘spot on’ this year and the Board of Directors are so thankful. It is the main fundraiser of the year, for the Chamber and we count on those monies, to pull us through each year. If this event was not successful, we would be in trouble. Thank you again. I look forward to the Scarecrow Festival in the North part of our valley as well as our Apple Festival coming up for the Museum in Hamilton. There have so many great events to go to - so watch for the Special Events that Pat Easley sends your way and watch the marque at the Fair Grounds. Some of you may not know that Pat is the one responsible for all of the things that we read on that reader board, at the Fairgrounds. Thank you Pat. I cannot get to all of the events, and meetings but I try to get to a lot of them. This valley amazes me with all of the things going on with free admittance to a lot of them. There is no reason to be BORED when you live in the Bitterroot, that’s for sure. I say it every newsletter....”you don’t HAVE to join the Chamber, but you get to!” If you wonder ? “What does the Chamber do for me? “ That tells me you are NOT involved. You get out of it - what you put into it. There are so many experts and marketers and people willing to help you with your business in this Chamber. GET INVOLVED ...come to a Business After Hours and or a Ribbon Cutting and meet others that are in business. Call Al Mitchell or Pat Easley with questions and they will direct you to the right avenue for assistance. If we don’t have the answer, we will find someone that does. One more thing, take a look at our nice clean buildings, thank you Al for going out there and single handedly cleaning up the outside of our building in the August heat. What a guy?! Thank you Job Corps for the beautiful job you did painting our facility and the rental next door. We sure appreciate you. This is Rosie signing off till the next meeting or event that we are at. See you there. It is a privilege to serve as your President this term.
Leadership Bitterroot . . .
The Leadership Bitterroot class began its nine month session with Orientation at Linda Olson’s residence. The first session was on History and Culture and was held on Wednesday, Sept. 25, beginnng at St. Mary’s Mission in Stevensville. We traveled down the Bitterroot making stops at Bitter Root Brewery, Ravalli County Museum and ending up at the Daly Mansion. We also had various speakers throughout the day giving the class information on the Bitterroot Valley, Montana and Salish/Kootenai. Leadership Bitterroot is a nine month course in which we focus on giving each individual participant a personal insight into every business operation we visit. They will learn about each businesses history, what they produce or the services they provide, what that business contributes to the community in terms of payroll and number of employee’s, what the tough issues are that the business now faces or for see’s facing, why they are located in the Bitterroot, what local and state issues have an impact on their business, what their future plans for growth are, and finally….what can the Chamber do better in representing them? This along with a wide range of topics on various issues regarding the communities in which we live. Developing effective leaders to take Bitterroot communities into the future involves a strong focus on a forward vision, a mix of values and determination of our past pioneering spirit and our heritage of independence. Our ability to evolve and embrace change will give us a blueprint for a brighter economic future. Fear of change and being complacent has no room in a future plan of economic vitality and we hope that each and everyone taking Leadership Bitterroot will begin to take an active part in their communities by getting involved and making a difference.
2013 Microbrew Festival
One of the best events in the Bitterroot Valley this year was the Chamber’s 19th Annual Microbrew Festival. We had a record crowd with lots of great entertainment as well as brews, meads, wines and ciders, and of course, great food vendors. The committee members under the guidance of Steve Weber and Justine Morris, did an excellent job in putting this event together. Other committee members included: Amy James-Linton, Cindy Beck, Jason Goeltz, Jean Schurman, Pat Easley, Tim Bozik, Tom Swartz, Troy Robertson, Al Mitchell, Deborah Lay, Dirk Beyer, Steve Fain, Jim Lloyd. We would also like to thank all of the sponsors who contributed to this event and continually help make it so successful:
Those taking this year’s class are: Marci Almond, owner of Serendipity Boutique; Kyla Blaine, Property Enterprises, LLC; Chris Edwards, Ravalli County Bank; Amy Fox, Bitterroot National Forest; Robyn Hegland, Youth Homes of the Bitterroot; Traci Henderson, D.A. Davidson; Hunter Kashdan, USDA Forest Service; Sonja Kearney, First American Title Co.; Dan Mitchell, Paper Clip; Jimmie Rude, Bitterroot Job Service; Henry Silverio Jr, Discover Montana Realty; Trista Smith, Bitterroot Public Library; Bella Stoltz, Prudential Real Estate; and Jennifer Wood, Farmers State Bank. If you would like more information regarding Leadership Bitterroot, please contact Pat at the Chamber. The Mission To prepare and encourage a diverse group of community members to assume leadership roles to build effective communities. “Helping Community Leaders Become Effective Leaders”
2nd Street Sushi Albertson’s Alpine Granite Allegra Print & Imaging Andy Kehmeier DDS Balance Wellness Chiropractic Banque Club Barnings Chiro Big Sky Eye Care Bitterroot Brewery Bitterroot Drug Bitterroot Laundry Caffe Firenze Dowd Construction Family Pharmacy First Security Bank
Ford’s Hamilton Polaris Higher Ground Brewery Massa Home Center Merc Market Molly Gannon DDS Paper Clip Quality Motors Ravalli Republic Red Barn Bicycles Rocky Mountain Bank Rod’s Auto RR Conner SS Staffing Sunelco Taco del Sol US Bank Zip Beverage
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Committee Updates . . . Ambassadors Committee - Donna Larson/-Shulund & Rosie Huckstadt Hello, from the Ambassadors, we are all excited to get together for our first meeting of the 4th quarter of 2013. We will meet at First American Title at noon on Wednesday, Oct. 2, bring your own lunch and plan on stopping by and seeing what we are all about. We will be meeting at First American Title for the rest of the year… Thanks to all the Chamber Members who came to the Bar B Q in Darby, a wonderful time was had by all. I would like to take this opportunity to express gratitude to the Ambassadors for a job well done and thanks a million for all your help not only at the Bar B Q but all year long… Oct 3 we have our first Business After Hours in Florence. If you would like a Chamber Business After Hours or a Ribbon Cutting
Leads Committee - Jane Foster, Foster & Foster Financial Services
Happy Fall from the Leads Group of the Bitterroot Valley Chamber of Commerce. Leads is the Chamber Group that dedicates itself to networking with, referring to, and learning about our fellow businesses throughout the Valley by building business relationships and understanding the services provided by our fellow members. We are comprised of representatives of businesses in the Chamber and are limited to one representative in each major business category. There is a waiting list for duplicate businesses wishing to participate in Leads. Each business has an opportunity to present a brief, focused one minute elevator speech at the start of each meeting as well as an in-depth 20 minute presentation detailing their business about one time each year. Each meeting allows for one-on-one networking time. We are a vibrant and well represented group, however, there are many categories that are still in need of representation! If building your business locally and getting to know who is out there that may be of service to your client base is something that you need in your business [and who doesn’t need those things?] please consider coming to one of our meetings to see if this group is a good fit for you. We meet the second and fourth Tuesday of the month in the Conference Room at Big Sky Builders in Victor from Noon to 1 PM. No lunch is served, but you are welcome to bring your own.
COMMITTEES . . .
* Agri Business - promoting better understanding of agriculture * Ambassadors - promotes new businesses and hosts Business After Hours - The Banquet - Membership BBQ * Leads - supplies qualified leads to other Lead members - helps promote them with marketing & advertising ideas * MicroBrew Festival - fundraiser for the Bitterroot Valley Chamber with a variety microbews, food and music *Tourism/Marketing - promotes tourism as an industry for further economic development through implemention of projects to encourage reasons for visitors to stay in the Valley
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Ribbon Cuttings & Business After Hours
Memory Lane at the Remington of Sapphire Lutheran Homes, has one- and two-bedroom apartments and studios for seniors with memory impairment. All staff have dementia care training. The philosophy of care is to provide a homelike setting giving residents as much freedom as possible.
Newest Members . . . HARRELL PETERSON Primary Phone: (406) 203-4163 Website: http://www.harrell.acndirect.com Email: harrell@acninc.net TRIPLE PEAKS CAFE 2424 Meridian Road Victor, MT 59875 (406) 642-6000 Email: 1davekaiser1@gmail.com
Fall Calendar Events OCTOBER October 2 ABC Clinic held at the Bitterroot River Inn in Hamilton October 4 First Friday in Hamilton with the kickoff of ‘Sprinkle Pink’ campaign. October 4 Stevensville First Friday and their kickoff of their Scarecrow Festival, with Living Statues. October 5 Daly Mansion has a Ribbon Cutting for their Grand Opening of their Butterfly Garden at 1 pm. 363-6004 October 5 The Biggest Bake Sale Under the Big Sky will be held at the RC Museum from 9 am to 3 pm. October 12-31 RC Museum will will be doing their Ghost Tours Oct. 12, 19, 26 and 31 from 10 pm to 3 am. Check their site at www. brvhsmuseum.org from previous ghost tours or call 363-3338. October 12 Hamilton’s Final Farmers Market October 16 The office of the Commissioner of Securities and Insurance (CSI) Montana State Auditor will explain the tactics used by financial fraudsters and explain the one thing every investor should do before investing. Come to this free lunch and learn more. Sponsored in partnership with the Bitterroot Financial Education Coalition (BFEC), a project of the Bitter Root RC&D. Due to space limitations, registration is required by Friday, October 11 at MSU Extension Office, 375-6611 or katelyna@montana.edu to reserve your spot!
October 24 Sprinkle Gumption Show and Party at the Roxy Theater in Hamilton. All proceeds go to the Aid For Mammography Fund. Tickets are $25. Call 363-2400. October 25-26 Hamilton Players Murder Mystery at 5 pm at the Daly Mansion. 363-6004. October 31 Halloween Parade, line up at the Hamilton Post Office. Parade begins at 4 pm with Hamilton Merchants handing out treats. October 31 Harvest Festival at the First Interstate Center. Call 363-3411. November 1-2 Montana Arts Council at the First Interstate Center ... call 363-3411. November 1-3 Hamilton Players present ‘Return to the Forbidden Planet’ - call 375-9050. November 1-3 Holly Jolly Craft Show at the Daly Mansion. Call 363-6003 ext. 3. November 2 Lady Eagles Flea Market from 9 am to 3 pm at the Eagles Hall in Hamilton. 3632763. November 5 Election Day November 7 Free lecture at the RC Museum at 6 pm. Poker Joe of the Nez Perce with Philip Burgess. 363-3338. November 8-10 Hamilton Players present ‘Return to the Forbidden Planet’ - call 375-9050. November 11 Veterans Day Observance at the RC Museum. Call 363-3338. November 11 Veterans Day November 15-17 Hamilton Players present ‘Return to the Forbidden Planet’ - call 375-9050.
November 16 Bitterroot Bounty Show at the First Intestate Center. 363-3411. November 21-December 2 A Montana Thanksgiving at Triple Creek Ranch. 800-654-2943. November 22-23 BR Art Guild Holiday Show at the First Interstate Center, 363-3411. November 28 Thanksgiving Day November 29 Hamilton’s Christmas Kickoff. Tree lighting at 6 pm December 2 Victor Chocolate Tasting Party at Victor Heritage Museum. December 6-7 Stevensville Christmas Kickoff. 777-3773 December 6-8 Sports Connection Gun Show at the First Interstate Center. 363-3411. December 21 Community Christmas Party from 11 am to 4 pm at the Daly Mansion. Call 3636003 ext. 3. To list your events Please call the Chamber 363-2400
Professional Investment Advice
Serving the Bitterroot Valley since 1981 363-0266 x fax: 363-0241 x 1711 North First x Hamilton
Jim Moerkerke, CFP®, CWS® Senior Vice President, Financial Consultant
John Passuccio, CWS® Financial Consultant
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Chamber Meetings
AGRI-BUSINESS meets the 1st Thursday of every month at 10 a.m. at the Chamber office. AMBASSADORS meet 1st Wednesday of every month at 12-noon. Call for location. No meetings in July and August.
CHAMBER BOARD OF DIRECTORS meets 3rd Tuesday of every month at 5 pm. LEADS meets 2nd and 4th Tuesday's of every month at 12-noon - Call for meeting place. MICROBREW COMMITTEE meets 1st Tuesday of every month at 5:15 pm. LEADERSHIP BITTERROOT meets September through May the third Wednesday of every month - all day sessions. Civic Club Schedules CORVALLIS CIVIC CLUB meets 3rd Monday of every month at 7:30 pm at the Corvallis High School lunchroom. Tonia Bloom 363-3485. SOUTH VALLEY CIVIC GROUP meets the 4th Thursday of every month at 6:30 at the Darby Library. Al Milton 821-3226. FLORENCE CIVIC CLUB meets 1st Tuesday of every month at 7 pm at Fire Hall in Florence. Ann Bethea 403-6491 STEVENSVILLE CIVIC CLUB meets 2nd Thursday of every month at 12-noon at St. Mary's Mission Visitor Center. Robin Holcomb 777-7804.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS President - Rosie Huckstadt - Old West Gallery, Gifts & Antiques Past President - John Stevens - Caffe Firenze President Elect - Sherri Williams - First American Title Treasurer - Scott Henderson - First Interstate Bank Laura Reichart - RC Electric Victoria Howell - Bitterroot Star Andy Polumsky - By-Owner/Polumsky Properties Greg Carter - Greg Carter Inc. Dixie Dies - Public Information Officer Ann Bethea - Florence Ace Hardware Ken Schultz - Hidden Legend Winery Mike Sadowski - Ravalli Services Corporation Al Mitchell - Director Pat Easley - Office Manager
Assistance For Business Clinic
The Assistance for Business Clinics are designed to assist new and established employers, accounts, bookkeepers, human resource professionals and lawyers to pro actively prevent unnecessary claims and/or charges by providing updated reporting of state withholding, unemployment tax requirements, minimum wage laws, overtime laws, safety and tax incentives. This clinic is offer through the Bitterroot Chamber of Commerce and will be held on Wednesday, October 2 at the Bitterroot River Inn in Hamilton. Cost for this clinic is $45 for Chamber members and $50 for non members. You can register by contacting the Chamber at 363-2400. Registration fee covers all your information and includes lunch. Enrollment may be limited, so please contact the Chamber as soon as possible. Clinic Schedule: Registration from 7:30 to 8:00 am Opening Remarks & Agency Presentations 8:00 - 5:00 Lunch break may vary slightly, but usually is around 11:30 am
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Regular Luncheon Meetings KIWANIS - Wednesdays at 12-noon at BJ’S Restaurant LIONS - Tuesdays at 12-noon at BJ’s Restaurant ROTARY - Mondays at 12-noon at BJ’s Restaurant SOROPTIMISTS - Thursdays at 12-noon at BJ’s Restaurant
Chamber Gift Certificates
If you are looking for the perfect gift to give for birthdays, weddings, holidays, thank you’s or any occasion, the Bitterroot Valley Gift Certificates are your solution. We have over 50 different stores where they can be redeemed and what better gift than to give local to help keep our businesses here strong and healthy. Stop in at the Chamber office to purchase your certificates or call ahead and we will have them ready for you. Remember to buy local and one of the best ways is to purchase Bitterroot Valley Chamber’s Gift Certificates.
Ravalli Electric Co-op
Corvallis, MT - (406) 961-3001 - wwww.ravallielectric.com A Touchstone Energy Partner
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month This month has been designated as an international health campaign to raise awareness of Breast Cancer and raise funds for research into its cause, prevention diagnosis, treatment and cure. This month also reminds women to be aware and remember that early detection is important. There are various factors that affect your risk of getting breast cancer. In fact, the causes of breast cancer are not fully known. However, researchers have identified many risk factors associated with a person’s chances of getting the disease. A risk factor does not cause the disease but may put you at a higher risk. Some risk factors include: being a woman, getting older, a family history of breast or ovarian cancer, and never having children, to name a few. Some ways to offset these risk factors is to make healthy lifestyle choices. A few examples of healthy lifestyle choices are to maintain a healthy weight, add exercise to your routine, limit alcohol intake, limit postmenopausal hormones and breastfeed if you can. Physical activity not only burns calories but helps lower your risk of breast cancer. Breast self-awareness is also extremely important. It is important to know your own risk factors. Make sure you get screened on a regular basis. There are two types of breast cancer screening tests. The first is a Mammogram. A Mammogram is recommended for women age 40 and older once a year. The other screening test is a clinical breast exam which is recommended for women age 20-39 at least every three years. (www.komen.org) Montana Chamber Choices is a big supporter of prevention practices. That is why we offer many preventive benefits to our members. Chamber Choices provides 100% of the allowable fee on preventive screens such as mammograms and colonoscopies. So be aware this month and go and get your screening! October is an important month to be aware of what is going on with Health Care Reform and the ACA (Affordable Care Act). Please refer to the details below. Health Care Reform (aka the Affordable Care Act) includes a mandate that most employers will find they need to comply with: The Notice of Exchange requirement. This Notice must be given to ALL of your current employees no later than October 1st and will need to be given to new hires within 14 days of employment. * On September 11, 2013 the DOL announced that it will not penalize employers that do not provide this notice. However, for legal reasons, we suggest the notice should be sent. The Notice informs employees that the Health Insurance Marketplace (Exchange) is another option for health coverage and that it will go live on October 1st for effective dates as early as January 1st. Here are some facts about the Marketplace:
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Membership Directory Information ~~
Coming soon in the mail you will be receiving your verification form, which lists all of your current information - such as mailing and physical address, email, web site, phone number etc. Please check this information to make sure it is current and correct. If changes need to be made, please make the changes on the sheet and send back to the Chamber so we can make the adjustments, not only for our Chamber Director but the web site as well.
Valley View Estates Valley View Estates is hosting a Holiday Bazaar and
we are accepting donations for the following gently used items: Jewelry - Scarves - Hats - Belts - Ties - Purses and Wallets. Please drop off at Valley View Estates at 225 N. 8th St. or call 363-1144 to arrange pick up of items
Trapper Creek Job Corps Trapper Creek Job Corps has been busy this summer working in the Hamilton area. Below are pictures of the two Chamber buildings that they came and repainted for us. If you remember the building that Chuck Stranahan rents from us, used to be white ... look at the remarkable job the painters from Trapper Creek Job Corps did! The Chamber building also got a new coat of paint and clean up around the building. We would like to thank the crew from Trapper Creek ... Douglas Belstad, Savannah Gallup, Jeff Landrey, Bill Roberts, Timothee Rouse, Cindi Walters, Brandy White and Dan Smith as their supervisor for the project.
Thank you Trapper Creek Job Corps
Fall Photos by Patrick Chaplin Page 8 - Newsletter