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Articles from the April 7, 2024 edition


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  • Death notice: Billie Ann Shafford

    Updated Apr 10, 2024

    Billie Ann Shafford, age 57 of Helena, passed away April 3, 2024. Services are pending at this time and will be announced when they're complete....

  • Lewis and Clark County begins planning for updates to Growth Policy

    Roger Dey, Blackfoot Valley Dispatch|Updated Apr 10, 2024

    About every 20 years, Lewis and Clark County tackles the thorny issue of drafting a new, updated policy to plan for anticipated changes as the result of population growth in the county. Later this month, Lewis and Clark County will host a series of open house meetings to gather information from residents on the direction the county should take in develping a new Comprehensive Growth Policy. Since the county adopted its current policy in 2004, the county has seen a population i...

  • FWP accepting applications from landowners for Block Management Program

    News Release, Montana FWP|Updated Apr 10, 2024

    HELENA – Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is accepting applications from landowners who are interested in participating in the 2024 Block Management Program. Application deadline is June 1. Through the Block Management Program, landowners and FWP work together to help manage wildlife and public hunting activities on enrolled lands. Landowners and FWP enter into voluntary agreements that determine how hunting will be conducted on the landowner's property. Items such as per...

  • Letter: Competent and Effective Leadership Matters

    Updated Apr 10, 2024

    Dear Montanans, This is a hopeful time for so many of our students. The future is bright as graduation nears and families beam with pride, anticipating their child walking across that stage. As a legislator, a former classroom teacher and the mom of a high school student, though, I must admit I worry. Are we doing enough to make sure all our students have the opportunities they deserve? That is why I'm running to be your next State Superintendent of Schools. We've essentially...

  • Obituary: Charlotte A Barger Geist

    Updated Apr 10, 2024

    Our beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, surrounded by family, passed away peacefully in her home Feb. 20, 2024 at the age of 88. Charlotte was born on March 20, 1935 in Cadiz, Ohio to Dennis and Mable Mizer. She was the oldest of four siblings. After graduating from Cadiz High School, she attended White Cross Nursing School in Columbus, Ohio graduating with an RN degree. She married Roland "Ron" Barger Oct. 9, 1955. With Ron's Forest Service career, they...

  • Veterans Pancake Breakfast brings veterans together, introduces new services they can draw on.

    Roger Dey, BVD|Updated Apr 9, 2024

    It's well known locally that Lincoln counts a larger than usual number of veterans among its residents, but it's not always obvious, even to other veterans, who they are. Finding a way to let veterans connect with one another was at the heart of the March 29 Veterans Meet and Greet Pancake Breakfast sponsored by Lincoln American Legion Post 9. Nearly 50 veterans and family members turned out for the free pancake breakfast, which was seen as a good turnout, particularly for a...

  • Easter Eggstravaganza

    Roger Dey, BVD|Updated Apr 9, 2024

    Hooper Park once again found itself awash in brightly colored plastic eggs on Easter Sunday as Lincoln Volunteer Fire Rescue once again hosted their annual Easter Egg Hunt March 31. For about an hour, kids ranging in age from Pre-K through sixth grade scoured areas designated by their grade level. For the youngest kids it was a scramble to gather eggs scattered around the main oval at the park, while kids from second grade oan up scattered hither and thither as they searched...

  • A Steller sight

    Roger Dey, BVD|Updated Apr 8, 2024

    A pair of Steller's Jays spent time hunting insects ion the bark of Ponderosa pines East of Hooper park on Easter Sunday, March 31. Steller's Jays are common in the forests of the western US, including Montana. Unlike the mountain bluebird, which spends its time in open fields, the jays can be a bit harder to spot as as their dark blue and black coloring allow them to blend into the shadows of the trees in which they roost. Although they often referred to as blue jays,...

  • Guest Editorial: Lincoln Prosperity Proposal a local effort that needs congressional support

    Zach Muse, Lincoln|Updated Apr 8, 2024

    The Upper Blackfoot Valley, specifically the community of Lincoln, is not just where I live, it is also where I serve. As a native Montanan, I moved to Lincoln 20 years ago and found my place. I was surrounded by country where I could fish, hunt, and enjoy the backcountry whether on a snowmobile or a mule. I first served as a volunteer firefighter, and now serve as the Lincoln Fire Chief and as a member of the Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council. Almost ten years ago, I...

  • Gianforte announces Montana National Guard deployment to Texas border

    Eric Dietrich, Montana Free Press|Updated Apr 7, 2024

    Gov. Greg Gianforte announced Tuesday that the state is deploying a small number of Montana National Guard troops to the nation's southern border, describing the action as an effort to help the state of Texas police cross-border drug trafficking in light of what he described as inaction by the federal government. According to the announcement, 10 Montana National Guardsmen have volunteered for active duty as part of Texas' Operation Lone Star. The Guardsmen are scheduled to...

  • How gas prices have changed in Montana in the last week

    Stacker|Updated Apr 7, 2024

    Gasoline prices are ending the week several cents higher on average than the week prior, according to AAA data. For now, prices have remained relatively stable given analysts' forecast that drone attacks on Russian oil and gas infrastructure might drive prices for oil higher. "Renewed Ukrainian attacks on Russia's oil infrastructure and increasing tension in the Middle East spiked oil prices recently," AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross said in a statement this week. "And with the...

  • Counties with the worst droughts in Montana

    Stacker|Updated Apr 7, 2024

    More than one-fifth of the continental U.S. is currently experiencing moderate to exceptional drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Winter storms brought heavy (in some areas, record-setting) rainfall and flooding to California, offering the state an expected two-year reprieve from widespread droughts, that covered nearly 100% of the state from 2020-22. But in other parts of the country, especially dry conditions continue. New Mexico currently is the state with the...