Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
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As the Plains Woman's Club prepares to celebrate its 100-year anniversary, the group has elected a new president. Jamie Schmidt, a Plains resident since 2019 and a club member for the last year, was installed as the club's new president at their September meeting. "Current members thought that it would be helpful to have a new face as president. I have been pretty active in the short time that I have been involved, so I think that it may have come natural to think of me as the new prospective...
The year 1924 was a big year for Walt Disney, who released the first cartoon from his own studio. Macy's Department Store had its first Thanksgiving parade and the Ford Corporation opened its first dealership in Plains. Wade Rehbein and his staff at Rehbein Ford celebrated a century of Ford in Plains in October, the month it opened with the Rehbein name. "I am very proud of where we are today. A lot of the credit goes to everyone that works here. Nobody is more important than the next one. We...
The spirit of Halloween was widespread in Plains this year from the Clark Fork Valley Hospital to Fred Young Park and by baby Ledger Erickson dressed as Elvis Presley to 65-year-old Kim Bay as a pirate skeleton. Festivities began with the school's "Trunk or Treat" and from there spread to another old school, the 138-year-old one-room log schoolhouse run by the Plains Woman's Club, where Debbi Kirschbaum, dressed as a "dead bride," Janet Branden, LeAnn Hafner, and the club's new president, Jamie...
A gathering at Plains School last Thursday wasn't just to gather educational materials, it was to gather goodies. More than 200 kids participated in the school's Trunk or Treat event behind the school on Halloween afternoon. Eight local organizations, along with volunteers representing each class from kindergarten to sixth grade and the school cafeteria staff took part in the event, including the school's front office administrators, who were dressed in "Minions" T-shirts. This was the school's...
Who would have thought that professional musicians from Georgia would have two Plains High School students open their act? Senior Keegan Huffman and sophomore Stanley Decker did just that. The two Plains residents each performed a solo number for the group, the "Jazz Legacy Project" at the Paradise Center on Friday evening. "I thought the students were stellar. If they remain passionate about their music, they could certainly play professionally someday," said Karen Thorson, the Paradise...
Students of Plains Elementary School showed their support for healthy eating by simultaneously chomping down on an apple in the school cafeteria last week. "It's a day of healthy eating from Farms To Schools," said Superintendent Dr. Kathleen Walsh, who joined the 120 kids of kindergarten through third grade to make the statement. A dozen teachers also took part. Walsh said that it was a celebration of National Farm To School Month, local producers and nutritious foods. Before the first bite,...
Pickleball is closer to becoming a bigger reality in Plains with the construction of two outdoor courts at the Amundson Sports Complex. TW Fencing of Trout Creek spent three days last week placing 270 feet of fencing around the two future courts. Kelly Altmiller, president of the Plains Pickleball Association, said they hope to have the courts ready for play once they get the court surfacing and nets in place in the spring. "The members of the PPA are extremely excited that we were finally able...
It's sometimes scary to go to school and last weekend it was especially scary when a vampire from Transylvania came to visit. The Plains Drama Club gave two performances of "Dracula" in the school's multipurpose room and gymnasium Saturday and Sunday. Nearly 120 people attended the Saturday evening show and almost 75 people showed up for the Sunday afternoon performance. "Broadway has come to Plains High School," said Dr. Kathleen Walsh, the school superintendent, who thought it was a great...
A former Plains High School student has found herself back in school and the subject English was the culprit. English was the favorite subject for Alexis Kunzer and now she's teaching English. The 2010 Plains High School graduate was unanimously voted as the newest addition to the school staff and will be teaching English for grades seven through seniors. Kunzer will work until January, at which time she will determine if her teaching hours will accommodate her caring for her infant daughter. Ku...
It looks like the Bean Bug Cafe doors are closing, but another door is opening for owner Suzy VonHeeder. VonHeeder and co-owner Emmalie VonHeeder, her daughter-in-law, started the Bean Bug in December of 2020 and it was a prosperous enterprise, but Emmalie wants to be a stay-at-home mom with her 3-year-old son, Jaxx, and Suzy has been in the food service business for 25 years and wants to try something else. The Bean Bug's last day was Friday and one of its coffee specials during its final week...
The Plains Horsemen finished the football season the same way they started it - with a big victory. The Horsemen defeated the Warriors 19-14 at Arlee on Friday afternoon. The game had been scheduled to be a night game, but because Arlee has no football field lights, it was moved to the afternoon. The game started slow for both teams. Neither could score in the first quarter. But three minutes into the second quarter, Warrior senior Isadore Mitchell caught a short pass for a touchdown. The...
It might smell the same, but it now has a better look and is dust and mud free. The Plains Refuse District - the "town dump" - received a major facelift in October with a new shack delivered to the site on Saturday. Von Construction of Plains did the bulk of the project over the course of about three weeks, finishing the paving portion two weeks ago. Doran VonHeeder, owner of the construction company, said the project was done in three phases, starting with placing several truckloads of gravel a...
Another summer has gone by and the Forest Service’s Big Hole Lookout rental cabin is closed up for the winter, thanks to volunteers from the Wild Plains Back Country Horsemen. John Errecart and Cheryl Burt took their horses and mules up the two-and three-quarter mile Trail #368 to the lookout at the 6,922-foot level last Tuesday to secure the lookout for the winter. It will reopen next June, also by members of the horsemen club, which adopted the lookout when it became a rental cabin in 2021. T...
There was a place last weekend where parents could go and let their kids roam and play and not worry because it was a family friendly place. It was called the Fall Festival" and it was at the 76-acre Waterway Ranch 15 miles west of Plains along Highway 200 and for the third consecutive year it was put on by owners Mark and Elizabeth Riffle. And this year it might have the biggest crowd yet with more than 800 people over the two days from babies to seniors in their 80s, said Elizabeth. The event...
The Plains Town Council unanimously voted to seat John Dossett on the council as a replacement for Councilwoman Connie Foust, who recently resigned and moved to Nevada. The town held a special council meeting on Friday morning to choose between the two candidates who applied for the Ward 1, Seat 1 position - Dossett and Charles W. Bickenheuser - to fulfill the two years remaining on Foust's term. The 64-year-old Dossett was born in New Zealand, but has been a Plains resident for 38 years and...
Members of the Plains Farmers Market had a good year and to thank the community they decided to make a donation to the Plains Paradise Senior Citizens Center. Market coordinator Linda Wilson presented a $1,000 check to Linda Bursell, the senior center's secretary and treasurer, at Fred Young Park on Friday, the last day of the season for the market. "I think this year was a huge success. I think next year will be even better," said Wilson. "We had a nice sum at the end of the year, so we were...
A group of Plains High School science students aimed high for a good grade in their physics class last week. Thirteen seniors and one sophomore built model rockets and fired them into the sky throughout the week to learn how to calculate the average velocity, drag and thrust, said Brooks Sanford, the science teacher, who uses fun activities to illustrate classroom lessons. "The kids enjoyed the project and it certainly helps reinforce learning in the classroom," said Sanford. "This is the third...
More than 200 soccer players gathered at the Amundson Sports Complex Saturday for a day of competition for the Annual Randy Baker Memorial Soccer Tournament and when it was finished, Thompson Falls and Plains teams were the victors. Four teams from Thompson Falls, Plains, and Trout Creek competed with each other in the U14 Division, playing two games apiece, said Alan Hafner, the tournament director. Adam Franklin's Thompson Falls team had one win and one loss. The Trout Creek kids, coached by...
The Sanders County Fairgrounds had its first train wreck when it ran into a truck last week, leading to bystander injuries and two women running into each other on bikes. Response time by several emergency services vehicles was quick and all 10 injuries were treated. However, since there are no railroad tracks at the fairgrounds, it must have been a drill. The county's Emergency Management Department, headed by Bill Naegeli, put on the "Fair Hazmat Exercise," which involved more than 30 men and...
For actors that tend to be on the shy side, the play put on by the Paradise Players last weekend was perfect for them. All were behind partial or full masks for "The Works: A Grass Menagerie," a comedy about life on the farm from the animals' perspective. The play, written by Robb Willoughby of Ohio, was one story, but divided into eight segments, all related to the central theme. Chickens, cows, pigs, sheep, crows, horses, dogs, cats, and even wolves are the stars of the two-hour long play,...
The Plains Horsemen finished homecoming week with a big win against the Troy Trojans. The Horsemen stampeded their way to a 47-24 victory Friday at Plains to keep the Trojans from getting their first win of the season. "A homecoming victory is always sweet. It has been awhile," said Mike Tatum, head coach for the Horsemen, who thinks that this homecoming win might be the first one for this senior class. The Horsemen now have two wins and three losses. Troy has five losses. The first quarter...
The Thompson Falls soccer teams both had their first triumph at Plains and both games were shutouts. "It really is historic. This is the first time the high school soccer team has ever won a game in Sanders County or at Thompson Falls High School. I think it really speaks to the quality of the girls program that they got the win first," said Lady Hawks head coach Nick Lawyer. The boys and girls soccer teams faced the Browning Indians and Lady Indians at Amundson Sports Complex at Plains last...
The veteran suicide rate continues to grow but that doesn’t stop one veteran in Plains from his objective of getting the word out about the troublesome issue, just as he did last month for Suicide Awareness Month. Starting on Aug. 31, each night Ed Foste and a volunteer added 22 American flags to the display — representing the 22 veterans who die by suicide each day. Foste and Bill Beck of Plains added the final batch to the display last Monday evening. This is the seventh year for the Vet...
The people of Plains and Paradise came together to help raise funds for a local family that recently lost their home to fire and is now battling the insurance company. Horse Plains VFW Post 3596 hosted a Campbell Family Fundraiser on Saturday for Plains residents Prentiss and Nawatha Campbell, whose home was destroyed in late July. The post had a special dinner and a silent auction of nearly 30 items, raising $6,487. "I thought it was pretty great. I find it hard to ask for help. I was just...
Wearing a coat of pollen, a bumble bee moves from one pollen filled flower to another at the Wild Horse Lavender Farm west of Plains. According to Montana State University's Bee Identification Guide, bumble bees can buzz-pollinate, which MSU said is important for plants that require vibration to release pollen. Bumble bees continue to be active throughout October. MSU notes that there are 45 bumble bee species in North America and 28 in Montana. Eleven-year-old John McNamara plants numerous...
