CAMPERS FROM YESTERYEAR

When people talk about their time spent at Montana Farmers Union’s Arrowpeak camps, they speak about fun activities and dancing, sure. But more often, they speak about friendships that have long outlasted their summer days spent at the mountain retreat.

“Camp was like a second home to me because I spent most of my summer there. And those other campers and counselors became like family to me,” Maggie Spicher said.

Spicher, who attended and worked at the camp for a total of 16 years, said she has kept in touch with many of the people who she met through the camp. One fellow camper was a bridesmaid in her wedding.

“I loved being up there,” said Spicher, who was the third generation of her family to attend MFU camps.

“It was always good memories up there. It’s got a special place in my heart,” she added.

For more than 60 years, campers from across the state have headed into the Highwood Mountains to enjoy MFU camps at Arrowpeak.

Dartanion Kaftan has spent the past several months preserving historical photos of those decades at the facility during his internship with MFU.

When he worked as a counselor at the camp, he didn’t know much about the facility’s history –that it burned down in 1963, what it looked like before the Rec Hall was built or the Handicraft donated, or that the field was farmed at one point.

“Going through all of the old photos we have of camp is kind of incredible because you really get a full scope of just how much history we have up there. I mean, we still have the negatives from the day Farmers Union bought the Lodge all the way back in the fifties. This camp has seen campers go up every year for the last four or five generations, and I’ve gotten the chance to see parts of that,” Kaftan said.

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Montana Farmers Union is excited for the formation of the Rolling Plains Cooperative headquartered in Circle.This new cooperative will address the logistical needs of small and medium local producers looking to expand into markets further away and more populated. The strength in numbers provided by the cooperative will allow negotiations of larger value-added contracts, cost dispersion on transportation, and strength in buying larger bulk inputs, such as seeds and fertilizer.

Rolling Plains helps create a more vibrant economy in northeast Montana, driven by supporting value-added products by connecting our consumers directly with our agricultural lifestyle. As a resilient memberowned business, they want to bring together northeastern Montana farmers, ranchers, and value-added producers to bolster their economic success and provide consumers easy access to our remote areas’ ag products. Rolling Plains Co-op values pride in community and educating others on how Montanans live and work.

Rolling Plains has a strong Board of Directors comprised of Kacie Sikveland, Josh Johnson, Brittany Allestad, Maggie Johnson, Darlis Nordhagen, and Daren Nordhagen. Their experience is priceless to informing the producers’ needs and ensuring the cooperative grows while addressing logistical issues and providing streamlined avenues to get products of all varieties to larger markets. The cooperative worked with the Montana Cooperative Development Center (MCDC) to ensure a strong foundation and bylaws which will support growth and expansion over time. MCDC’s oversight was instrumental with following systematic business incorporation procedures and providing necessary guidance on Montana’s laws for a newly formed cooperative.

They believe in the cooperative model to empower local communities to be strong economically, as individuals and businesses, through the quality products available to make financial impacts to their region. The Rolling Plains Cooperative strives to allow for diversity in the types of products that members have available. They will work very closely with consumers of products grown in northeastern Montana. Ultimately, they strive to remove barriers and ensure access to quality marketing opportunities that benefit all members of the cooperative.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach us at rollingplainscoop@gmail.com.

-MONTANA FARMERS UNION-