Scientists return to continue studying wildfire smoke impacts SEELEY LAKE - The University of Montana, in conjunction with the Missoula County-City Health Department, is returning June 5 and June 26 to continue the smoke impact study they started in October 2017 following the Rice Ridge fire in Seeley Lake. Seeley Lake residents are encouraged to participate whether they have in the past or not. The study will take place Wednesday, June 5 and Wednesday, June 26 at the Seeley Lake Community Hall (3248 Highway 83) from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Those i...
Single- vehicle rollover claims life of local man
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – Three men were involved in a single-vehicle rollover car accident May 5 around 8:15 p.m. on Golf View Drive near Double Arrow Golf Course. Passenger Michael Haley, 48 of Seeley Lake, was ejected. He was transported to Missoula but later died from his injuries. The other two in the vehicle sustained non-life threatening injuries. The accident is still under investigation. According to investigating Highway Patrol Trooper Wes Whitlatch, an Audi sedan was northbound on Golf View D...
Offering healing and hope in the wake of destruction
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – "Once [Cheri Thompson] mentioned the idea to me, it was like, yeah, this is what we need to do for our congregation and for our community to help them heal," said Reverend Carrie Benton, pastor of Mountain Lakes Presbyterian Church. "[The banners] will remind them that there is hope, this devastation is not the end of the things and through God's power we can get through devastating times." Thompson felt led by God to make a visual art piece to bring healing to her congregation f...
Vietnam veteran still struggling with aftermath of war
Betty Vanderwielen, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
OVANDO – Dave Miller joined the U.S. Army for altruistic reasons. As he explained, "I was reading and watching the news and stuff and I just thought Vietnam needed some help in their independence." Miller was pretty sure he knew what war would be like. He had watched the TV segments. He was ready to face the hardships, and even possible death, for the sake of helping another country gain its independence as the U.S. had fought and gained its own independence. Instead he found his sense of right...
Big Larch Campground open for firewood
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
SEELEY LAKE - Big Larch Campground opened May 3 to firewooders with a $20 firewood permit. The public is invited to cut anything on the ground. It will remain open until May 12....
Monday’s Seeley Lake Community Council promises a full agenda for their May 13 meeting. It will start out with Donny Pfeifer, Montana Department of Transportation Missoula District Preconstruction Engineer, who will talk about plans for Highway 83 and other projects that might be of interest to the Seeley Lake Community. Karen Hughes of the County’s Community Planning and Services will follow Pfeifer. She will introduce Climate Ready Communities, which is a county-wide resiliency planning process led jointly by Missoula County, the City of Mis...
Cakes for Canines boasts largest crowd to support shelter animals
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – Pop's Place opened their doors after their month long spring break for the annual Cakes for Canines donation pancake breakfast May 1. The free breakfast included pancakes, bacon and eggs, great conversation and an opportunity to support the Paws Up Safe Home Animal Shelter in Potomac. Paws Up Operator Hazel Tyler said it was the best turnout they have ever had for the event. There are currently 26 dogs, a feral cat colony and five cats at the shelter. They adopted out two horses l...
FWP seeks review of biennial access rule for The Nature Conservancy lands
May 9, 2019
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) is seeking public input on its proposal to renew a biennial rule that provides recreational access on The Nature Conservancy (TNC) lands in Missoula and Powell Counties. This biennial rule, which provides public recreational access on 163,883 acres of TNC (including former Plum Creek Timber Company) lands, was first established by the Fish and Wildlife Commission in 2015 and renewed in 2017. The rule establishes public use regulations and allows for yearround access. The current proposed renewal of this...
Embracing the reality of wildfire, mitigating the risk
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – Around a dozen property owners participated in this year's Community Wildfire Preparedness Day, May 4. Local fire agency experts assessed properties for defensible space and structures for wildfire risk. They offered landowners suggestions on how they could improve the structures' chances of surviving the flaming front and ember shower produced by a wildfire. Volunteers with the Clearwater Resource Council also provided information regarding fuel mitigation grant opportunities thro...
Students participate in AARP's biennial speech contest
Swan Valley AARP|May 9, 2019
SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley chapter of AARP sponsored its biennial speech contest for fifth through eighth grade students at Swan Valley Elementary on May 2. Participants presented speeches in one of three categories: a demonstration, an original speech or a memorized work of someone else. In the seventh and eighth grade demonstrations category, Trista Alexander placed first with the speech How to Make a Fighter Jet; Nakira Morgan placed second with Animal Care and Christopher Auchenbach...
Destination Seeley Lake this Fourth
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – The Fourth of July is known to many as the biggest event in Seeley Lake drawing thousands of visitors who come to enjoy the lakes, the mountains and the annual parade and community-sponsored fireworks display. The Seeley Lake Area Chamber of Commerce looks forward to continuing these traditions again this year. They are looking for a parade manager and other volunteers to help the celebration run smoothly. A little history… The first time the Seeley Lake parade was ever covered was in the first year of the Valley Times. They repor...
Courtroom drama takes center stage
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley-Swan High School drama class took to the stage May 2 where they presented "12 Angry Men," a play written in three acts by Sherman L. Sergel, adapted from the television show by Reginald Rose. The play was staged in a jury room following the trial of a 19-year-old for allegedly fatally stabbing his father. The 12 jurors were tasked with the decision to acquit or condemn. However the question of guilt quickly turned to reasonable doubt about the young man's guilt as J...
Local writer places first in age group in Missoula Writes
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 9, 2019
MISSOULA - The 11th annual Missoula Public Library's annual writing contest - known as Missoula Writes - announced their winners April 28. There were 36 finalists - from children and teens, to adults -in the areas of fiction, non-fiction and poetry writing. Among the top writers was Seeley Lake Elementary seventh grader Clara Kyrouac who placed first in the ages 11-14 non-fiction division for her essay "Take Action." In 2014 as a second grader, Clara placed third in the Missoula Writes...
Community Briefs
May 9, 2019
Music Galore VI – A Salute to America, May 14 SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley-Swan Mountain Bells, a local community handbell choir, invites you to enjoy an evening concert of Americana music performed by a variety of local talents Tuesday, May 14 at 7 p.m. in the Seeley-Swan High School Auditorium. The selections include patriotic songs, beloved American folk tunes, Barbershop and Bluegrass. The songs will be performed by local friends and neighbors. You’ll enjoy Bluegrass with banjo and guitar, a Barbershop ensemble, accordion, cello and per...
Cost climbs for construction engineering
Nathan Bourne, Pathfinder|May 2, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Sewer District Board learned at their April 24 meeting that Missoula County’s inability to perform the construction engineering for the collection system is adding $759,400 to the project’s estimated cost. The board also discussed agency review of the collection system design, User Agreements, water test results and other business. The District’s former manager, Missoula County Public Works Director Greg Robertson, committed the county to performing the construction engineering in order to cut costs of the project...
National push for shared stewardship, more treatment
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 2, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – "There is a [National Forest] crisis right now because of increased wildfire and increased diseases and more people moving in to the Wildland Urban Interface," said Daniel Hottle, US Forest Service press officer with the northern region. "[The Forest Service] has not been operating on the scale that we need to." With the 2015 Farm Bill, 2018 Omnibus Bill and the 2018 Executive Order 13855 from President Donald Trump, the Forest Service has expanded authorities to prioritize f...
Students perform at Celebration of the Arts
Ashly Alexander, Pathfinder|May 2, 2019
SEELEY LAKE - On April 24, the students of Seeley-Swan High School presented their pieces of art and performed for community members at the annual Celebration of the Arts. The drama class, school band, creative writing class, choir and juniors who wrote persuasive speeches entertained parents and community members. The students from the art class displayed their artwork across tables, allowing viewers to examine their hard work with decorations. The audience enjoyed a variety of treats...
Is your home prepared for wildfire?
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 2, 2019
SEELEY LAKE - Local fire agency experts will be available to conduct free wildfire home risk assessments during the Seeley Lake Community Wildfire Preparedness Day May 4. This is an educational opportunity for homeowners to speak with fire professionals and discuss ways to reduce their wildfire risk. In Montana, May is designated as Wildfire Awareness Month. The Seeley Lake Community Wildfire Preparedness Day will help kick off Wildfire Awareness Month. It is designed to build community...
Lawmakers round out final week with budget, missing persons legislation, AIS funding and sex crime penalties
Shaylee Ragar and Tim Pierce, UM Legislative News Service University of Montana School of Journalism|May 2, 2019
HELENA — On the final day of the 66th Montana Legislature, lawmakers completed their only state constitutionally mandated task by passing the bill that sets the budget for state agencies. House Bill 2, which spends about $10 billion of state and federal money over the next two years, passed its final vote in House of Representatives 73-25. The bill had moved through the session relatively quickly, passing the House 54-45 for the first time in late March and then passing the Senate 28-21 in early April. The final vote in the House was to a...
Taking steps towards fire adapted communities
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 2, 2019
MISSOULA – The Missoula County Office of Emergency Management is offering more resources to help surrounding communities become more fire adapted. As the new Wildfire Preparedness Coordinator, Max Rebholz’s goal is to create more fire adapted communities, create a picture for what that looks like to mitigate wildfire risks and be prepared before the fire, during the fire and following the fire. Rebholz said there is a nationwide push to implement the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy. The Fire Strategy is a strategic push to...
Bringing balance to business
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 2, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – Bonnie Johnson, EMBA, CPA learned accounting from her father as a child and made a career out of it. After retiring to Seeley Lake, she has opened The Johnson Management Group, LLC to provide businesses and individuals the resources to better manage their finances and free them up to do what they love. She believes financial information provides a story that is very powerful and an important component to all other aspects of a business. Johnson was born and raised in California. H...
SEELEY LAKE - Since its founding in 1993, Clearwater Montana Properties has emphasized community-building as a key component of its company culture. Through its Charitable Giving Program, the company's agents give back a portion of all real estate proceeds to the communities in which they were earned. To date, the program has produced over $510,257 in charitable donations to causes throughout Montana, Idaho, Washington and Wyoming. "Being a positive force locally is at the core of what we do,"...
Reintroducing fire to Horseshoe Hills south of Seeley
Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|May 2, 2019
SEELEY LAKE – Nearly 45 firefighters ignited more than 300 acres in the Horseshoe Hills area April 24-25. The objectives of the prescribed burns included reducing fuels and mitigating wildfire risk south of Double Arrow Ranch and west of Big Sky Lake while also improving winter and transitional range for deer and elk. The Horseshoe Hills area used to be owned by Plum Creek. When Plum Creek put it on the market, many thought it would become the next big subdivision in the valley. According to S...
Annual management reports published for bears and lions in Northwest Montana
Montana FIsh Wildlife and Parks|May 2, 2019
KALISPELL - Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has published three new annual reports for grizzly bear, black bear and mountain lion management in Region 1 (northwest Montana). The reports, prepared by FWP bear and lion specialists, provide an overview of management work, conflict response and prevention, monitoring, mortalities, public outreach and more in 2018. Tim Manley, a wildlife management specialist with FWP in Region 1, prepared the 2018 Grizzly Bear Management Progress Report for the...
Health Department investigating several pertussis cases in Missoula area
Missoula City-County Health Department|May 2, 2019
MISSOULA - The Missoula City-County Health Department is currently investigating six case of pertussis (whooping cough) in the Missoula area and has identified more than 300 close contacts who may have been exposed to the disease. Ages for the confirmed cases range from preschool through teenager, with one case requiring hospitalization. Additional suspected cases are pending laboratory results. There is a mix of unvaccinated and vaccinated children among the cases. The health department is...
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