Remember When?

40 YEARS AGO • DECEMBER 20, 1984

NOXON SANTA USES BOBSLED

Santa Claus made his annual appearance at Toby’s Ballroom Sunday afternoon. Almost 100 kids talked to Santa and received a sack of candy.

The weather cooperated this year, allowing Santa to come into town on a horse drawn bobsled. The bobsled, rebuilt by Bull Dog and Chip Fraser and Glenn Weber, originally belonged to Danny Rasor. Lee Rasor dug out the hardware from the sled, which was made in 1906 and used for logging. Four years ago the sled was reconstructed.

Children from under one year old to over 60 enjoyed several trips around town later on the big bobsled.

Santa’s transportation helpers Sunday were Deanne Simmons and Bull Dog Fraser.

After his visit to Toby’s, Santa made a special housecall to a 94-year-young grandmother.

LEDGER LINES by K.A.E. (Doc Eggensperger)

This is the finest season of the year, the weather notwithstanding. It’s a time when we think more of peace, about friends, family members and sharing with others. All of these attributes so universal, The Christian world over, are a reflection of the message brought to Bethlehem more than 2,000 years ago when The Christ Child was born to Joseph and Mary in a stable manger.

As we approach Christ’s birthday, we are thankful for the many friends in Sanders County who help make our job easier and for those who make our community and county a better place to live.

We are thankful for all the help extended to us through the year by Sheriff Jim Doxtater, his dispatchers and deputies, Chief of Police Jack Wakefield and Marshall Clare Mates, to Patrolman Harold Savik, Justice Bob Beitz, to Harold Crawford’s crew at Montana Power who provide us weather data…to Father Mike and Pastor Gaylund Olsen and the other men of the cloth who guide the Christian spirit of our community along with the many fine women…to the Lions Club, the Woman’s Club, the Granges, the VFW, the American Legion and the fraternal organizations for their concern and efforts in behalf of the city…to Gale Jensen and the Chamber of Commerce who seek to improve the community’s economic health…to Jim Cullen and Local 2719 in their concern for fellow workers… to Supt. Gene Ostwald and Principals Ted Kato and Bob Childress and the faculties of our schools for striving to do so much for our youngsters that some parents fail to do themselves…the same goes for their counterparts at Noxon, Duane Scott and Jim Watts, and Supt. Bill Harvey at Plains and their staffs and Supt. Gerald Sowden at Hot Springs…to school staffers Una Schlaebitz, Teresa Kent, Nancy Hammerberg and Joyce Hilt at Noxon…to the fine hard working and courteous staff at the Courthouse who are ever willing to assist and answer questions…to “do-gooders” without portfolio, like Marge Peacock, Jeannette Guldseth, Inez Sullivan, Corrine Gould, Dan Whittenburg, Jackie Akins, Grace Stagg and others who work freely long hours with their organizations and churches…like Kitty and Butch Brauer at the golf course…to Bob Bunch and Coroner Mark Denke for helping us chronicle the passing of county citizens…to Ron Calvert and staff for endeavoring to find jobs in a period of economic difficulty for many of our citizens…to Joyce Bybee and Rodney Arnold and others for keeping alive this area’s heritage with the county museum…to Shawn Riley and Chet Lamoreux for keeping us posted on wildlife activities…to George McCallum for all the help he has provided whenever asked…and to a newcomer, Paul Rapp-Svrcek for the enthusiasm he shows for his new job…to Chris Stobie for his past efforts, too often unheralded…to Ranger Jim Mershon at Trout Creek for superior public information help…to corresponsdents Jan Fraser, Anita Brown, Jay Simons, Lenora Brown, Linda Shaffer, and others for helping us do our job newswise…to Jack Basham, Harold Jensen, Bill Chisenhall, Dirk Fledderjohan, Gene LaBrosse, Mike Jensen, Fay Allen, Fats Brauer, RonTurk and others who add levity to daily life…to all of the postal staffs in Sanders County and especially Bill Saint and Mary Sanders and the congenial crew at Thompson Falls. They’re always eager to help and put up with our feeble jokes…to our advertisers who make this weekly newspaper a viable entity…to our readers and finally to all of those fine people we have failed to mention, but who nevertheless deserve our appreciation, we say…

MERRY CHRISTMAS

From the Ledger Staff

Doc, Gladys, Tom, Bina, Jack, Sherry, Lucile, Jean and Judy and families