Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
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The rain did not stop people from participating in cleaning up Thompson Falls for the annual Beautification Days. Thompson Falls Schools got their cleaning done early. Diane Hedahl from the elementary office said they knew the rains were coming on Friday so the students did their cleanup around the campus earlier in the week. The high school students cleaned up their areas of sports fields and campus on April 16. Joni Mosher, coordinator of the Beautification Days project, reported that this...
Students from Thompson Falls Junior High were given etiquette lessons and experienced hands-on training during the annual luncheons held in their honor. Last Wednesday, the seventh graders were greeted at the door by hostess Brandie Rich who was filling in for Melissa Wilson, the junior high secretary. Rich welcomed them to the Blue Hawk Cafe and directed them to their tables with place tags. Students were instructed by junior high teacher Doug Padden prior to entering the Cafe to remain...
When learning about the fundamentals of aerodynamics, it helps to have first-hand experience. That's what a group of Plains High School students got at the Penn Stohr Field of Plains Airport last Wednesday when Plains resident Randy Garrison took the students for an airplane ride. Garrison used his Cherokee Piper airplane to help reiterate classroom information from science teacher Brooks Sanford and have fun at the same time with their field trip over Plains. Nine seniors and one junior from...
Last week, volunteers throughout Thompson Falls were busy sprucing up the town. Leaves were raked, bushes pruned, parks cleaned and new signage installed at the mule pasture trail system. It was a community effort known as Beautification Days that has been an April tradition for more than 20 years. At the transfer station on Saturday, tons of electronic waste was loaded up to be recycled in the annual e-waste event, helping keep those items out of the landfull. Various groups, businesses and individuals volunteered their time to give Thompson...
I once golfed with a pastor who did well until the 13th hole. Then, the wheels came off. On the 16th tee, he put a drive so far out of bounds, he should’ve been called for a foul. He turned and said, “I know what I’m doing wrong. I just can’t stop it!” I asked how many parishioners confessed that very thing to him. He laughed so hard, he got his game back. That’s golf. Winter has (almost) ended, and to keep their minds off politics, skiers have turned to golf. Not all, but a significant percentage of schussers have transitioned to cussers. If...
6 YEARS AGO FEBRUARY 27, 1919 SUCCESSFUL TELEPHONE MEETING AT WHITEPINE A great deal of interest was shown in the telephone meeting at Whitepine Saturday evening. Fred Foote reported that he had secured 17 signers for the telephone in the vicinity of Belknap and Big Beaver. Four people from across the river are also ready to put in telephones. The report of the committee was followed by a lively discussion in which various ideas were presented. A motion was made, seconded and carried that a co-operative phone company be organized. After more...
Ambulance: T. Falls, 7; Plains, 6; Hot Springs, 5; Trout Creek, 2. Monday, April 22 Assist miscellaneous, Hot Springs. Civil attempts, Plains. Civil attempts, Plains. Animal bite, Plains. General animal call/complaint, Hot Springs. Assist miscellaneous. Business contact, Hot Springs. USFS campground check, Paradise. Assist motorist/citizen. Tuesday, April 23 Intoxicated subject, Plains. Theft, Noxon. Assist other agency. Forgery, T. Falls. Fire, T. Falls. Abandoned vehicle, T. Falls. Property lost, Plains. Fire, Plains. Theft, Plains. Fire,...
Montana Highway Patrol Madeline Connelly, 30, speeding in a restricted zone, $85. Chad Henning, 52, seatbelt violation, $20. Renee Fast, 49, speeding in a restricted zone, $95. Megan Connor, 41, speeding in a restricted zone, $95. Coby Guenzler, 23, day speeding, $20. Jacob Hutchins, 17, speeding in a restricted zone, $95. Annaka McClelland, 21, speeding in a restricted zone, $85. Scott Paulson, 42, speeding in a restricted zone, $85....
Appearing before Judge John W. Larson on Tuesday, Nicholas Ray Needles changed his plea to guilty to one count of incest, pursuant to a plea agreement between the parties. After some discussion regarding the agreed upon sentence and parole restrictions, Judge Larson set this matter for sentencing on July 30, 2024....
Plains High School held its "mock interview" curriculum to help students get a jump on jobs after high school. The program must be working because Justin Richards of Rehbein Transportation Incorporated gave out three applications to students of the mock interviews. It was all part of Business Essentials, a class that helps prepare seniors for applying for work once they graduate. A dozen local business men and women volunteered their time last Monday in the school's gymnasium to provide a...
Wild turkey, moose stew, wild boar and sauerkraut, and venison meatloaf were part of an exclusive cuisine at the Clark Fork Baptist Church last week. They were all part of the specialties offered at the annual event Friday evening, when over 60 men and boys gathered for the Wild Game Dinner, hosted by Pastor Kim Earhart and his wife, Denise. Visitors also had the opportunity to try Hungarian partridge, elk roast and gravy, wild turkey queso, pepperoni deer, and barbecue pulled cougar - "the...
Members of the Plains Wood Carvers Club are looking to show their most recent work at the Montana State Wood Carvers Show in Missoula this month. "I'm a little nervous since this is my first show," said Scott Johnson, one of the club's newer members. He's working on a sculpture of a vulture that stands about four inches tall. He's one of eight club members that'll be competing in this year's show, which the Montana Woodcarvers Association will have at the Missoula County Fairgrounds May 3-5....
Shirley Jean Porath Miller passed away peacefully on April 11, 2024, at the age of 91, surrounded by her family and husband Jerry Miller. She was one of six children born to Frederick and Elizabeth Anderson Porath in North Dakota on August 16, 1932. When she was very young her family traveled west and settled in Kootenai, Idaho, at the original Hidden Valley Ranch. They ran a dairy farm there, which oddly enough resulted in Shirley having a lifelong aversion to milk. She attended elementary... Full story
January 28, 1966 - March 9, 2024 Michael Edward Needham left this world too soon on March 9, 2024. He passed away at home after suffering a cardiac event. While his heart would finally give out, all who knew Mike would tell you it was that same heart which made him the kind, caring, gentle and generous soul we will all profoundly miss. He was always putting others before himself. His loved ones already miss his off-beat humor and terrible dancing. An avid and accomplished home chef and baker,... Full story
Pastor Patricia Harant will be installed as pastor of First Lutheran Church of Plains and Our Savior’s Lutheran Church of Thompson Falls on Sunday, May 5. The installation service, led by Pastor Brenda Frelsi, assistant to the Bishop of the Montana Synod of the ELCA, will take place at 3 p.m. at First Lutheran, 604 S. Fifth Avenue in Plains, with refreshments following. Pastor Patricia served congregations in Berkeley, California, and Roundup, Montana, and most recently was an interim Pastor at Redeemer Lutheran in Great Falls.She and her h...
Sanders County road district employees went back to school last week to learn more about road graders. Eighteen men from the county's three road districts attended the Caterpillar Motor Grader class. The morning session was held at the courthouse in Thompson Falls. In the classroom they watched a slideshow conducted by Jacob Lauderdale Western States Equipment Company out of Liberty Lake, Washington which sells Caterpillar equipment. They learned in-depth handling and maintenance of a road grade...
The Thompson Falls Lady Hawks took on the Bonner Ferry Badgers last Thursday taking the win 14-2. They then saw the Powell County Lady Wardens and the Anaconda Copperheads Saturday in a double header. Bonners Ferry was able to get on the board in the top of the first inning, scoring two runs. The Lady Hawks were able to answer back with three runs in the bottom of the first inning to take the lead early. Both teams would go scoreless in the second inning, and Thompson would keep the Badgers to...
The Blue Hawk golf team competed in two tournaments last week, traveling first to Canyon River in Missoula on Monday, then St. Regis on Thursday for a tournament at Trestle Creek Golf Course. Theo Nygaard earned an 86 at the Canyon River course, finding 11 fairways, six green in regulations, and 29 putts. Cael Thilmony scored a 93, finding six fairways, four green in regulation, cardingfive pars and keeping his putts to 36. Braxton Dorscher scored a 114, finding nine fairways, three green in regulation, and 40 putts, Blake Shusterman scored a...
Thompson Falls, Noxon, and Plains hit the road Saturday taking on the Whitefish A.R.M. invitational for a full day of track and field with 13 other schools. But first three Sanders County athletes took to Missoula to compete among the best of the best at the Top 10 meet. They included Ricky Willams from Noxon, and Marina Tulloch and Alexis Deming from Plains. Williams took third place in the high jump, clearing 6 feet, 4 inches, a new personal best for the junior. Tulloch took eighth place in the 3200 meter run with her time of 12 minutes,...
The Plains Junior High School track team nearly dominated the track and field competition on its own home turf last week, taking first place with the Boys A Division and first in the Girls A Division. Eighty-seven boys and girls participated in the Plains Junior High School County Track Meet, which involved Plains, Thompson Falls, Noxon, Hot Springs, and Dixon. Trout Creek was not there. The competition involved 15 different events for the A Division (eighth grade) teams and B Division (sixth...
Men’s leagues at River’s Bend kicked off the 2024 season last week. The Tuesday and Wednesday leagues started with a team scramble. On Tuesday, the MT Best Builders (Kevin Sparks, Nathan Snead, Tom Holleran, Mike Thilmony, Doug Czerwinski and Gary Potts) combined for a low score of 32. Sparks (No. 4), Snead (No. 7), Mike Tessier (No. 5) and Dave Petteys (No. 9) each had a chip-in in their first league round of the year. Rusty Haggard sank the long putt on No. 3, Arthur Potts was closest to the pin on No. 5, Charlie Hooten had the long putt on...
One of my favorite things about the Plains community is seeing kids walking to the river with fishing poles, often barefoot, children who have not lost their connectedness to nature. They play in the dirt. They eat dirt as babies and pile themselves with the sand on the beach or in leaves in the fall. As we grow older we are taught that that is not something we should do. “Going barefoot is unsanitary!” or “Eating dirt will give you worms!” While eating dirt may not be good for your gut, experiencing it could be. Walking barefoot grounds...
What a gorgeous April! The market has brought a lot of price reductions, a few lingering bidding wars and some new listings, as spring usually brings. The market is still tight, but the balance is shifting. While Sanders County has dropped slightly into a buyer's market, Trout Creek and Plains remain slightly sellers markets. On the whole, the pricing has stabilized through 2023 and 2024. The days on market is climbing, price reductions are quite prevalent, while the number of listings is still...
The Thompson Falls Blue Dingers continued their undefeated record after claiming a 23-4 victory over the Plains Beasts in minor league play at the Amundson Sports Complex in Plains last week. "They played fantastic," said Jon Haun, head coach for the Blue Dingers. Haun said that he even sent in two boys - Louis Hannum and Elliott Susic - that had never pitched to the mound and they did well. As of last Tuesday, the Blue Dingers had three wins and no losses, with the exception of an exhibition...
The Noxon-Thompson co-op baseball team had two home games this past week, first taking on the Ronan Chiefs falling 20-6, then seeing the Frenchtown Broncs sinking 12-2. Ronan was able to get on the board in the top of the second inning after an error allowed two runs. The Red Devils were able to take a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the second inning after Kade Hill and Lars Gerhard each popped a single to allow RBI’s. Both teams would remain scoreless in the third inning, until the Chiefs were able to score seven runs on three hits to take a 9-3 le...
