Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
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Nearly 80 people gathered at the old brick schoolhouse for the Fourth Annual Paradise Alumni Reunion Friday and Saturday to talk of old times and look at themselves through lenses of the past. "I've asked many and there is no doubt that the Paradise alumni have a special bond to the former school building," said Dave Colyer, the primary coordinator for school reunion. Between 15-20 former students and their families attended the reunion on Friday, fewer than last year, but more showed up on...
There's a new voice in Sanders County and it can be heard on the airwaves circulating from Plains. Raf Viniard of Plains created Clark Fork River Radio Station as Internet station CFRR on FM 91.9 located in a separate studio building at his Plains residence. "It has no call letter assigned for FM yet, as we are still brand new and operating under construction license," said Viniard, who added that the station was actually "born" at the end of February, but they just completed the Beta test on Ju...
A Plains man is putting the final touches on a monument of artistry with bugs, birds and copper flower power. Several people have worked on the nine-foot tall copper willow tree, including David Williams, who is adding the several pieces to the tree before it is moved to its permanent home at Clark Fork Valley Hospital. The tree has 16 branches from 41-52 inches long with brass, copper and aluminum leaves, cut by JOM member Heather Allen. Williams heads Joint Operation Mariposa, the nonprofit...
If you think Congress members have trouble cooperating with each other today, you really should read up on how one of our most beloved sacred documents was created 248 years ago. It’s a miracle that it ever got done and it’s hard to imagine there wasn’t some kind of divine intervention. Our two primary political parties today are constantly at odds with one another. The only thing they agree on is that the other one is wrong. Try to envision 13 separate entities, some with divisions within themselves, attempting to make a decision that would...
A group of 4-H kids are getting a jump on this year's showmanship competition by getting tips on how to properly present their sheep and goats at the Sanders County Fair. Juli Thurston and Raelyn Cox taught eight 4-H'ers the proper way of showing their animals at the fairgrounds last Tuesday evening. This was the first time they've held a goat showmanship clinic and though they've had clinics for sheep, it's normally held at a private residence, according to Thurston, who heads the 4-H program i...
Fifteen-year-old Parker Lind of Plains was cleaning up weeds near River Road West when he came across a baby praying mantis. Once he posed for a photo with his find, he released it in nearby bushes. The praying mantis is often used to control insect populations in gardens, but might also prey on beneficial pollinators, according to the Montana Field Guide. The eggs of a praying mantis usually start hatching in mid June and has a lifespan of 10-12 months....
More than 300 adults and kids gathered on the tarmac of the old Plains airport on Saturday for the 8th Annual Wildhorse ShootOut 3-on-3 basketball tournament. It was near nonstop action as the crowd cheered for players of the 73 teams that registered for the tournament at the Amundson Sports Complex, including a dozen teams from Sanders County, said Erika Lawyer, who coordinated the tournament put on by the Wildhorse Sports Association. WSA is the nonprofit organization that runs the sports...
The Plains Town Council held a special meeting Friday to discuss the contract for the town's new well, which will be located at the corner of Kruger Road and Upper Lynch Creek Road. Cold Water Drilling and Pumps out of Arlee was awarded the contract for $79,030. The town approved the 180-page contract, which was looked over by Loren Fitzpatrick, the town attorney, and Shari Johnson, the town's contract engineer. Mayor Joel Banham said the contract doesn't state the exact starting date, but he...
A group of 4-H members demonstrated their custom creations in a runway of not so high fashion, but nonetheless unique at their 2024 Fashion Revue and Patchwork Parade. Four girls and two boys participated in the annual 4-H event, which involved an interviewing process, where judges Carla Kinzie and Lara Hagerman questioned the 4-H'ers about their entries. The event was held at the Plains Bible Chapel last Tuesday. The 4-H members were graded on presentation, construction, workmanship, materials,...
The Sanders County Fairgrounds manager plans to make this year's Independence Day a big bash and the evening a bit more bright. Manager Kristy Sheehan announced at last Wednesday's monthly fair board meeting that she has a lot of festivities planned for the fairgrounds first annual "Freedom Festival" starting at noon for the Fourth of July celebration, including fireworks at dusk. Sheehan and her new administrative assistant, Rachel Largent, have scheduled kids' games, pony rides, a bouncy...
The Town of Plains was denied a request for an $87,000 grant that would have enlarged the volunteer fire department building and given the firefighters more space. Town officials were recently notified that the application did not follow the grant requirements, but that they could try again. "We got word about two weeks ago that our project was rejected because the grant was only for maintenance and repair of existing buildings, so the plans to add on with new construction was outside the scope...
Plains Day was extended beyond the town limits this year and went on for a second day with the Sanders County Fairgrounds "First Annual Plains Day Events" of team roping and barrel racing. Chip VonHeeder, formerly of Plains, and Jolene Burke, a Plains resident, held rodeo events on Saturday's Plains Day and Sunday, and the Kelly Hughes Band provided musical entertainment on Saturday night. It was the first time for Burke and VonHeeder to utilize the fairgrounds arena for their competitions....
Seventeen vendors participated in the first Plains Farmers Market at the Fred Young Park Friday, drawing a constant flow of people throughout the evening. "It was a pretty good turnout for the first one," said Linda Wilson, one of the coordinators for the seasonal event, which had a variety of goods - clothing, jewelry, eggs, fruit, vegetables, lavender, herbs, bath products, and jams and jellies. Wilson said they had six first-timers, including Amish bakers Reuben and Martha Yoder of Plains,...
The Town of Plains might have tripled in size Saturday as people flooded in to Plains Day for its annual festival, which took place along Railroad Street, the greenway, at Fred Young Park, the lawn of MT West Dentist, and at the E.L. Johnson Memorial Park. Plains Day this year was again sponsored by the nonprofit organization the Free Americans and coordinated by Blair Blizzard, who introduced new activities and brought back an old favorite, along with traditional ones. Its theme this year was "...
Despite rumors that this would be the last Plains Day festival for the Ryan Family to put on their special potluck activity at the E.L. Johnson Memorial Park, it looks as though it will continue. "It's a great community event that brings people out to have fun," said Jake Ryan of Plains. "It lets kids have a good time the whole evening and that memory will be with them the rest of their lives," he said. Each year, more than a dozen members of the Ryan clan sponsor a potluck, dance and limbo...
The Plains Day parade this year was one of the biggest in recent years with a wide variety of units from a single person to large groups on floats. Mary Halling, the parade coordinator for the fourth year, had 50 registered entries, but believes there were about 20 additional units that did not register, but participated, such as the dozen emergency medical services vehicles - including Smokey Bear - and the Horse Plains VFW Post 3596 color guard, which led the parade. The parade lasted nearly...
The Paradise Center's newest roundhouse opened for the public on Saturday with artifacts continuing to be moved into the building. Volunteers moved an antique velocipede into the mini roundhouse last Wednesday for the Treating Plant bay of the roundhouse. It took several people - Gary Sanks, Jacqueline Colyer, Keegan Hall, Douglas Wilks, and Dave Colyer - to move the 150-pound velocipede from the center's auditorium to its new home in the roundhouse. The velocipede was donated by Charles "Ole"...
It was a bitter disappointment for the Plains High School alumni basketball players, who had the lead against the students until the last three minutes of the game when the Spanish foreign exchange student hit his mark. It was the 5th Annual Alumni Basketball Game in the Plains High School gymnasium Friday evening with a crowd of nearly 75 fans. The alumni team consisted of only nine players from 19-year-old Jayden Weeks of the Class of 2023 to 44-year-old J.J Blood of the Class of 1998. "It is...
It was the final sporting event of the season for Plains School and the kids showed their competitive spunk throughout the day. Nearly 200 students from kindergarten to fifth grade took part in the annual Plains Elementary School Track & Field Day, which included 13 running and throwing events and two activity stations - the parachute game and flag tag - to keep kids busy instead of waiting for openings at the other stations. Teachers, paraprofessionals, title one staff members, and junior high...
People had their three-day weekend with their family picnics and leisure activities, but Horse Plains VFW Post 3596 wants people to know the true reason for the observance - paying tribute to the sacrifice of members of America's armed forces. "As long as two comrades survive – so long will the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States render tribute to our heroic dead. On this day, forever separated from our heroic dead, we are assembled once again to express sincere reverence," said Ron Ki...
It took 13 years of studying, reading, writing, figuring, and testing, but as of Sunday, they are free of high school, although for most of the graduates, the grind of learning continues, and it was a special graduation for a student who missed his time on the stage 52 years ago. Plains High School counselor Tyrel Allen presented Patrick Cleveland with the diploma he should have received in 1972. Cleveland needed only three credits and was only months short of graduation when he quit and enliste...
High school graduation was a historical event for the 24 students who received their diplomas from Plains High School last week, but it was also a different kind of history for graduate Brenden Vanderwall. The 17-year-old Vanderwall is the last student that left Paradise Elementary School before it closed its doors in 2013, when he was merely a first grade student. His older brother, Josiah, attended Paradise School from kindergarten to sixth grade, and older brother Conrad went through the...
A constant chilling rain didn't keep a group of military veterans from recognizing the past service of their fellow comrades in arms by placing an American flag at the gravesites of veterans who have passed away. "I see a lot of names that I knew when they were alive. A lot of good friends here," said Leyland "Butch" Murdock, one of 10 veterans that helped with the flags at Plains Cemetery last Wednesday. Each year, members of Horse Plains VFW Post 3596 place a small U.S. flag at the gravesite...
A Plains man was part of a nationwide observance to remember the lost men and women of the armed forces who gave their lives in the service of their country. Retired Air Force veteran Tom Bushlen participated in "Taps Across America" at the McGowan Grocery parking lot on Memorial Day by playing "Taps" on the euphonium. "I'm doing this to honor the servicemen and servicewomen who sacrificed their lives for our country," said the 74-year-old Bushlen, who served in the Air Force for 17 years, inclu...
Members of the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) gathered at Fred Young Park in Plains Saturday to talk about fire prevention and some were doused in the process. "It's important to get the word out about what DNRC can do for the community," said Jase Sorenson, the department's Fire Adaptive Community Coordinator. Some 40 people showed up for the Wildfire Awareness Month Meet & Greet, where 10 DNRC firefighters met with the public. This was the first time that the...
