In the age of social media and the internet, instant digital connectivity can paradoxically make us feel very isolated. “People are a lot lonelier than we realize,” said Alison Darcy, the founder and CEO of Woebot, a virtual therapist that will talk you through a panic attack at 3 a.m. Woebot is among multiple new Read More…
With the apex of cherry season just weeks away, cherry growers along Flathead Lake are taking stock of the fruit on their trees and picking the varieties that ripen early. “So far this year the weather has been cooperating,” said Bruce Johnson, president of the Flathead Lake Cherry Growers Association. “We’ve been pretty dry for Read More…
Environment Montana, based in Missoula, released a report on Wednesday claiming that Montana is lagging behind adjacent western states when it comes to solar and wind energy production. Skye Borden with the Environment Montana Research and Policy Center referred to a recently released report called ‘Renewables on the Rise’. “Despite the fact that Montana has Read More…
The Montana Healthcare Foundation and the state have launched a new program aimed at reducing drug and alcohol use in pregnant women, new mothers and families. The three step plan provides support and care throughout a women’s pregnancy, and includes screening, counseling or higher levels of care, if needed. Care coordinators can then address social Read More…
Keen and clever Pike is in search of his happily forever after. He is currently living the good life in a foster home, learning all kinds of good habits and even working on being around other dogs! Pike’s wonderful foster mom will be moving soon and he is worried he will end up back at Read More…
The 2018 Last Chance Stampede and Fair kicks off Wednesday with a performance from country music star Dustin Lynch. Lynch’s performance at the Lewis and Clark County Fairgrounds will round out the first night on Wednesday followed by three days of 4-H and other competitive exhibits, a parade for kids, a carnival and daily entertainment Read More…
ROUNDUP — Ian Hanson spent weeks teaching his Hereford pig Harper — named for his grandfather, Wilbur Harper — how to play tag and fetch. But all that porcine activity almost cost Harper a slot in Friday’s livestock show at the Musselshell/Golden Valley County 4-H and FFA Youth Fair. Weighing in at a svelte 208 pounds, Harper had Read More…
The Fort Peck Reservation this week is a case study in the inter-jurisdictional issues that shadow the medical marijuana trade. Lt. Patrick O’Connor of the Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office was trying to clear up enforcement questions for a Wolf Point dispensary owner. At a meeting with Fort Peck Tribal Council members Thursday, he got his Read More…
Sen. Jon Tester spent the morning touring Red Oxx, the Billings-based travel gear company, ready to talk taxes. But what caught Tester’s attention after arriving at the Red Oxx company store Friday morning was the vintage Yellowstone National Park service van parked out back. “Does it run?” Tester asked. “We drive it every day,” said Read More…
The National Weather Service in Great Falls issued a Red Flag Warning Friday afternoon and Saturday for the potential of critical wildfire weather. The Red Flag Warning is in effect until 11 p.m. Friday and on Saturday for noon to midnight due to low relative humidity and wind. The affected areas include the central and Read More…
With winds subdued and air resources pounding its flanks with water and retardant, the Reynolds Lake Fire didn’t grow at all on Thursday, remaining at 1,068 acres. If firefighters can manage to keep the fire from spreading Friday afternoon, when an expected small cold front could bring 20 mph winds to the scene, Bitterroot Forest Read More…
A businessman facing federal indictments in two states pleaded not guilty to wire fraud charges in a Montana courthouse on Thursday. Larry Wayne Price Jr. appeared in U.S. District Court in Billings and entered his pleas on six counts of wire fraud. Prosecutors allege that Price took $13.9 million in business investments and funneled them Read More…
A well-timed tip led to the late-night rescue of a 75-year-old Stevensville woman who had been missing from her home since morning. Ravalli County Sheriff Steve Holton said a deputy and member of the county search and rescue organization found the woman shortly after 10 p.m. on the Glen Lake trail about a mile and Read More…
HELENA — Montana’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dipped one-tenth of a percentage point to 3.8 percent in June, the lowest rate in nearly 11 years. The state’s unemployment rate was 3.7 percent in July 2007, before the mortgage and banking crisis. The Department of Labor says there was an increase of 400 payroll jobs in Read More…
HELENA — Montana’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dipped one-tenth of a percentage point to 3.8 percent in June, the lowest rate in nearly 11 years. The state’s unemployment rate was 3.7 percent in July 2007, before the mortgage and banking crisis. The Department of Labor says there was an increase of 400 payroll jobs in Read More…
Landowners hoping to keep the public locked out of Hughes Creek lost an appeal to the Montana Supreme Court this week. But that doesn’t mean the gate that’s barred access to the upper reaches of the Hughes Creek road for 40 years will come down anytime soon. “The gate is still up,” said Ravalli County Read More…
‘America Divided’ film and discussion Join author, musician, and civil rights lawyer Amir Whitaker (AKA Dr. KnuckleHead) for a special reading, music, a film screening, and community conversation at LaPa Grill 5:30 p.m. Sunday, July 22. In his book readings, Whitaker combines live music, hip-hop, poetry and soul music with his storytelling. A visual presentation Read More…
Domestic abuse is frightening and dangerous and can lead to terrible acts of violence. But there are resources available for those who need it. Becca Averill is a crisis response advocate at The Friendship Center, a shelter in Lewis and Clark County that serves Broadwater and Jefferson counties as well. According to its website, it Read More…
Strong winds pushed a fire burning in Ravalli County along the Montana-Idaho border to over 1,000 acres Wednesday. “We are in full-on suppression on this fire,” said Bitterroot National Forest spokesperson Tod McKay. “We are throwing everything we have at it.” There are currently 80 firefighters, including two Hotshot crews and three helicopters, assigned to Read More…
Two workers were exposed to dangerous chemicals and the unincorporated community of Norris, 36 miles east of Bozeman, was in danger of a lab explosion. The Madison County Sheriff’s Department evacuated the unincorporated town of Norris Tuesday while federal, state and county officials removed potentially explosive chemicals from Norris Labs. Two bottles of chemicals were Read More…
Two workers were exposed to dangerous chemicals and the unincorporated community of Norris, 36 miles east of Bozeman, was in danger of a lab explosion. The Madison County Sheriff’s Department evacuated Norris Tuesday while federal, state and county officials removed potentially explosive chemicals from Norris Labs. Two bottles of chemicals were so volatile they could Read More…
In the age of social media and the internet, instant digital connectivity can paradoxically make us feel very isolated. “People are a lot lonelier than we realize,” said Alison Darcy, the founder and CEO of Woebot, a virtual therapist that will talk you through a panic attack at 3 a.m. Woebot is among multiple new Read More…
With the apex of cherry season just weeks away, cherry growers along Flathead Lake are taking stock of the fruit on their trees and picking the varieties that ripen early. “So far this year the weather has been cooperating,” said Bruce Johnson, president of the Flathead Lake Cherry Growers Association. “We’ve been pretty dry for Read More…
Environment Montana, based in Missoula, released a report on Wednesday claiming that Montana is lagging behind adjacent western states when it comes to solar and wind energy production. Skye Borden with the Environment Montana Research and Policy Center referred to a recently released report called ‘Renewables on the Rise’. “Despite the fact that Montana has Read More…
The Montana Healthcare Foundation and the state have launched a new program aimed at reducing drug and alcohol use in pregnant women, new mothers and families. The three step plan provides support and care throughout a women’s pregnancy, and includes screening, counseling or higher levels of care, if needed. Care coordinators can then address social Read More…
BUTTE – The Montana East-West Shrine Game is five days away from kickoff, and the West team is starting to jell. They are practicing at Montana Tech’s Bob Green Field in Butte all this week. It was a rain-filled Tuesday morning for the West squad, but these players couldn’t be happier for the opportunity to Read More…
Grab your lightsabers and your picnic baskets. And get ready to travel to “a galaxy far, far away.” This Saturday, the 15th Annual Symphony Under the Stars celebrates the epic space opera music of “Star Wars” by renowned composer John Williams. Sit back and enjoy the annual free concert 8:30 p.m. Saturday, July 21, on Read More…
The Montana State Crime Lab is now testing more than double the number of drug samples it did six years ago, and has cut in half the turnaround time on test results. The state crime lab tests and analyzes forensic evidence, including firearms, DNA and blood samples. While it took an average of 60 days Read More…
Today is Community Volunteer Day at Spring Meadow Park Montana State Parks and the Montana Conservation Corps’ Veterans Green Corps invite the public to join in on a Community Volunteer Day Thursday, July 19, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Work will include restoring and re-painting the mews (raptor housing) at FWP’s Wildlife Rehabilitation Center; Read More…
JEFFERSON CITY – Montana Department of Transportation will begin construction on I-15 to replace a culvert and rebuild the roadway south of Jefferson City starting the week of July 23. MDT intends to keep at least one lane open in each direction throughout the construction process, but drivers should plan ahead to allow extra travel Read More…
WASHINGTON — A survey of school districts around the country finds that less than half test their water for lead, and among those that do more than a third detected elevated levels of the toxin, according to a federal report released Tuesday. That number could be even lower in Montana, where the large majority of Read More…
Broadwater, Jefferson and Meagher counties are three of at least 24 counties in Montana that joined in a class action lawsuit seeking to recover back payments from the federal government’s Payment in Lieu of Taxes program. The suit seeks to recover monies over a three-year period when the program wasn’t fully funded by Congress. According Read More…
Rob Farris-Olsen plans to resign from his position as a Helena city commissioner to become a state legislator, leaving the city commission to select his replacement. On Tuesday, the Lewis and Clark County Central Committee chose Farris-Olsen to replace House Minority Leader Jenny Eck on the November ballot. Eck previously filed for re-election to House Read More…
On Sunday, Helena Industries’ assets will go to public auction. The nonprofit, which employed more than 60 people with disabilities in Helena, closed its doors in April after 40 years. It had offices in Helena, Butte, Anaconda, Great Falls and Bozeman and provided career development and workforce training services to more than 900 people across Read More…
HELENA — The Montana Supreme Court has ordered a new trial in a Billings homicide, ruling the defendant was wrongly denied the opportunity to question whether a key witness could accurately recall the details of the shooting because she may have been under the influence of methamphetamine. Joseph Polak II, 36, was convicted of deliberate Read More…
The 2018 swim season marks the sixth year Choteau residents and visitors have enjoyed the new Choteau pool facility. The operation of the pool would not be possible without donations. The Choteau Lions Club trip-of-the-month fundraiser is the group’s primary source of funding for the pool. The Choteau community swimming pool is owned by the Read More…
Lightning started two fires Tuesday in remote locations on the West Fork Ranger District in the Bitterroot Valley. The largest is the Reynolds Lake Fire, which measured 11 acres Wednesday morning but grew substantially due to gusty winds in the afternoon. The fire is burning on the border of the Bitterroot and Salmon-Challis National Forest Read More…
Approximately 40 people gathered at the Choteau Cemetery July 11 to honor the memory of Thomas A. Dellwo, a Choteau High School graduate and Vietnam War veteran who died in 1971. Among them were both young and old, from fellow West Point classmates who traveled across the country, to local children who know him only Read More…
The family of a man shot dead by Livingston police in 2016 after officers say he threatened them with a knife has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city and members of its police department. In the complaint filed last week, Sean Patrick O’Brien‘s widow and child accuse the defendants of wrongful shooting, use Read More…
The National Weather Service in Great Falls is cautioning about the potential for critical fire weather on Wednesday for lower elevation grasslands. Upper level ridging will build in over the Northern Rockies during the day on Wednesday. As this occurs, westerly winds in the mid- to upper-levels crossing over the Continental Divide will lead to Read More…
The 72nd annual East West Shrine football game will be held in Great Falls on July 21 at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff for the game will be at 7 p.m. This game, which features top athletes from around the state, is a fundraiser for the Shriners Hospital for Children in Spokane, Washington. Griffin Lee, Fairfield, will Read More…
There’s still time to sign up for four “Play-A-Round” summer day camps, being offered by the Choteau Playground Committee as a fundraiser for updating the playground equipment in the Choteau City Park. The Choteau Playground Committee has been raising funds to improve the playground in the park for the past two years. Brooke Richins and Read More…
A home burned down in East Helena early Tuesday morning. East Valley Volunteer Fire Department Chief Dave Sammons said the fire was reported around 3 a.m. after a homeowner woke up to the smell of smoke and a crackling noise. Sammons said the homeowner immediately woke the rest of his family and their pet and Read More…
KALISPELL — Firefighters are attacking an apparently lightning-caused fire in northwestern Montana as the state is coming off a record fire season. The Zulu fire started Sunday in the Kootenai National Forest north of Libby and had expanded to 20 acres (8 hectares) by Tuesday. Forest spokesman Willie Sykes tells the Flathead Beacon about 80 Read More…