Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
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After a year of pandemic cancellations, Fourth of July festivities returned to Noxon. With this year's theme of "Celebrate Freedom," a full day of activities were planned including a parade, turtle races, a pie contest and the annual fireworks show. Noxon's fireworks display attracts people from all over the area every year. According to Larry Wanamaker, coordinator of the fireworks display, 2021 marks the fifth year for the show. After reaching out to the county for help for funding the...
Ainsworth Park was host to Fourth of July activities over the weekend as the Main Street Committee welcomed vendors and entertainment for the holiday. Katie Curry of Billings brought her show pony, Velvet, to the parade on Sunday. Curry rode in a cart with her daughter Adeliah as Velvet pulled them along the walking path at the park. Curry said she was coming to Thompson Falls to visit the Toyias family for the holiday weekend and decided to bring Velvet along when she heard there was a parade....
Independence Day in Plains began with a blast from the colonial past with the reading of the Declaration of Independence by three Plains residents at Fred Young Park. Shawn and Charee Fielders, along with their son, Hunter, donned in his former Army Airborne uniform, took turns reading the 1,337 words of the historic document, which took less than 10 minutes, but the reading received a big applause by more than 70 people at the Independence Day celebration. By signing the Declaration of...
Community Harvest Food Bank (CHFB) continues to reach out with open arms to those in Thompson Falls and Trout Creek who are in need of a little help. While CHFB saw its way through the pandemic without hindrance to operations or food supply shortages, board members are now seeing a decrease in numbers of those they serve. “I think the decrease started in 2019 after COVID hit,” said Hank Smith, CHFB president. “We expected to see more clients coming in with schools going online and loss of unemployment, but that didn’t happen. I think recently,...
Paradise Elementary School was back in session for two days last weekend. Students didn't have any reading assignments and there was no homework, just visiting and reliving fond memories of yesteryears. It was the "First Annual Student Reunion for the Paradise School" - the first one the former school had ever had, said Dave Colyer, who came up with the idea to have a reunion a couple years ago while discussing what events they might have at the Paradise Center, which had been an active school...
The Ledger is always thrilled to see the creation of Little Free Libraries like the one mentioned in our June 17 edition. Our community (and society as a whole) should also be pleased. Why so much hype about such a small thing? The need for and continued use of these small, free, nonprofit book exchanges prove that reading is important. We are fortunate enough to live in a country where we can read what we want. Many of us have access to unrestricted internet and free public libraries. Imagine living somewhere that limited access to books,...
6 YEARS AGO • JUNE 23, 1916 RIVER RAISES FOOT A DAY – TRACKS THREATENED Floods All Over the Northwest – Highest Water Since 1894 – Freak Storm Raises Havoc With several days of extreme hot weather last week when the thermometer reached 90 degrees on Thursday, 92 on Friday and 98 on Saturday, Palouse dust storm on Sunday followed by the big thunderstorm of Sunday night, rain all day Monday followed by a foot of heavy snow Tuesday afternoon and night, nobody, whether he be Eskimo or Mexican has anything on us for variety of weather. The Cla...
Of all the troubling issues that have surfaced in the past year, the idea of private funding of government military operations is close to the top of my list. Specifically, I am talking about a million-dollar gift from Tennessee billionaire Willis Johnson to the state of South Dakota to cover the costs of Gov. Kristi Noem sending National Guard troops to Texas to help “secure” the U.S.-Mexican border. Was Noem acting in accordance with the law in committing her troops to Texas? Yes. States are...
Mary Frasier, Tucson, Arizona - “It is best for the family and parents if it is a longer break in the summer because arranging childcare for two weeks three of four times a year is very difficult.” Eva Burch, Severance, Colorado - “I am for year-round school because it gives the teachers and the kids a break from their routine, and they seem to learn better and retain more with a nine week on, three week off, schedule.” Nancy Haynes, Thompson Falls - “I would say ask the school board or survey the county to find out what families want.” An...
Ambulance: T. Falls, 17; Plains, 12; Dixon, 3; Hot Springs, 3; Noxon, 1; Sunday, June 27 Assault, T. Falls. Animal other, Dixon. Fireworks, Plains. Sexual assault, Hot Springs. Child welfare/abuse, Noxon. Disturbance, T. Falls. Motor vehicle crash, T. Falls. PFMA arrest, T. Falls. Disturbance, Hot Springs. Assist other agency, T. Falls. Motor vehicle crash, T. Falls. Fire, Trout Creek. Motor vehicle crash, Hot Springs. Monday, June 28 Assist motorist/citizen, T. Falls. Welfare check, Plains. Fire, T. Falls. Motor vehicle crash, T. Falls. Fire,...
Montana Highway Patrol Kevin Riley, 27, operating without insurance, 1st offense, $85. Vernon Borntreger, 40, seatbelt violation, $20; failure to yield, $85. Gary Bradley, 17, seatbelt violation, $20; stop sign violation, $85. Chelsea Brown, 29, seatbelt violation, $20. Vernon Ferrel, 60, day speeding, $70. Nathaniel Pilsch, 21, day speeding, $20. Amy Ridgeway, 47, day speeding, $70....
Jeffrey Ball of Thompson Falls appeared in 20th District Judicial Court on Tuesday to argue against a petition to revoke his suspended sentence due to several violations. His attorney, Kirk Krutilla, mentioned to Judge Deborah “Kim” Christopher that their intention was not so much to fight against the violations as to ask for a chance to improve. They asked for a release prior to sentencing for two months to give Ball a chance to prove improvement. Ball was sentenced for this case in March 2016 for driving under the influence. After asking for...
Local youth outdoor camp organization Project ASCENT held its annual Cornhole Festival fundraiser over the weekend. The nonprofit's event included food, drinks, merchandise, live music and a cornhole tournament that brought in people from all over the area. Participants from Spokane to Kalispell, and all over Sanders County partook. The round robin tournament on Saturday included 20 teams with 40 players, and each participant was guaranteed six games. At the end of the day there was an...
On their way to Under the Big Sky Festival in Whitefish, Hogslop String Band will be making a stop at the Rex Community Theater in Thompson Falls. The four-piece band comes straight out of Nashville, touring all over the country, and bringing with them a high energy, southern American sound. Randy Roberts of Thompson Falls helped book the band. “I heard them in 2019 at the Under the Big Sky Festival,” Roberts said. “Out of three music festivals my wife and I went to that year, these guys were the most fun to watch.” While Under the Big Sky Fes...
Thompson Falls - James Franklin Culligan of San Diego, California, and Thompson Falls, Montana, passed away peacefully on Sunday June 27, 2021, in Thompson Falls. Jim was born in Missoula, Montana, on November 4, 1936, to Clifford and Tillie (Muster) Culligan. He was raised on the family ranch in Camas Prairie with his twin brother John (Jack) Delano Culligan. Jim graduated from Hot Springs High School and earned his degree in electrical engineering from Gonzaga University. Though he worked for...
After almost five years, the long awaited Limberlost Brewing Company has opened its doors. Self-proclaimed as brewing the first commercial batch of beer in Thompson Falls since prohibition, the brewery officially opened on Saturday. Limberlost has three beers on tap, with many more on the way, according to owner Zach Whipple-Kilmer. They have a hazy IPA, a light tasting stout, and a golden ale. One of the many plans they have for the establishment is to provide customers with markers to record t...
The extreme hot weather draws people to the Clark Fork River to splash around in the cool water, but sometimes it's just an extra perk when having to work. It was 100 degrees last Wednesday when members of the Plains-Paradise Rural Fire District took to the water for their first training on their new jet skis - rescue watercrafts. The 10 men and two women spent three hours in the river performing various rescue training exercises at the Sanders County Fairgrounds beach. "It was really hard for...
Last week Clark Fork Valley Elks Lodge 2757 donated a wheelchair to local legend Ernest "Krazy Ernie" Franke. Since 1940, Franke has been an active member of the Thompson Falls community and is well known for his interesting exploits. Having had many jobs, from radio-show host to superintendent of numerous sawmills in the area, Franke has made a name for himself. "I've done some stupid things," said Franke, recounting stories of crackpot investments and job snafus that earned him his name. "It...
Stud's Building and Home opened its second location in Sanders County this week. Joel and Wendy Collett said the new location in Thompson Falls was already busy as they announced the opening of the Thompson Falls store. The new Stud's is located at 4879 Highway 200, just west of Thompson Falls, and was previously a tire shop. The company also still operates out of Plains at 103 S. Hubbard. "This is going to make us more efficient and will help us feel more a part of the community" on the west...
Thompson Falls has a new barber. The Barber Pole has re-opened after being closed for several months. Gussie O'Connor, a long-time men's barber from Coeur d'Alene, moved to the area recently and took over the Thompson Falls business. "I didn't pick it, Thompson Falls picked me," O'Connor said. She added that she knows western Montana well, having traveled through most of the area. One day, she said, the opportunity opened up and she was looking to move somewhere more affordable. "I needed a plac...
Shooting the low team net of 65, Kristy Beaty and Danice Toyias jumped into first place in the second half of season play in Women’s League golfing action at River’s Bend Thursday. Chris Gross and Kim Pardee won low team gross honors with a 98 as Pardee shot the low individual gross of 43. Toyias had the low individual net of 29. In hole play, Tina Wheeler was closest to the pin in 4 on No. 2, Laura Ganatos rolled in the long putts on Nos. 3 and 6, Lana Nolen was closest to the pin off the tee on No. 5, and Barb Petteys sent the long drive of...
You read that right, it’s Bary with one “r,” and he’s hoping to lead his Moore Oil team to the promised land of Wednesday Night Men’s League golf. Calculating out the low individual net of 30, captain Bary Moore and his Moore Oil team finished last week’s round sitting in first place in the second half of league play with 26.5 team points. Highlead is currently in second at 24. Led by the almost-scratch golfing of Ryan Ostwald, who shot the low individual gross of 38, Rick Hagedorn, Kelly Kovarik and Bernie Groshong joined forces with Ostwal...
w team gross, Montana’s Best Builders the low team net and Easy Street Autoworks took the second half lead in Tuesday Night Men’s League golfing action at River’s Bend last week. Feed-N-Fuel golfers Ryan Ostwald, Mike Normandin, Kelly Kovarik and Steve Clark totaled 172 strokes to claim the low gross team honors, while Best Builders Sean Kelly, Nathan Snead, Tom Holleran and Brian Foster grabbed low net honors with 144. Ostwald earned individual low gross honors with a 38 and Steve Fairbank posted the low net of 32. Easy Street Autoworks leads...
Don’t look now but high school sports are already sneaking up on us. Back to almost-normal after more than a year of dealing with COVID-19 and the myriad ways it affected prep sports, the Montana High School Association has released official dates for the start of the fall seasons. The MHSA indicates that cross country and volleyball seasons can begin with practice Friday, August 13, while Montana football teams can hit the field beginning Saturday, August 14. The All-State Cross Country State Meet will be held in Missoula October 23, the A...
Unfortunately, my NIL is probably worth nil. This name, image and likeness (or NIL) discussion that is going on with college sports since the Supreme Court ruled in the athletes’ favor and against the NCAA last week has got me thinking: Should I try to profit from my name, image and likeness? Theoretically, I could make out like a bandit, but I will more likely end up more broke and disappointed with myself than I already am. But perhaps I should at least think a little more seriously about this, the potential profit versus the almost c...
