The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980
The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980
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*The headline of this story has been updated March 10, 2022 to better reflect the fact no revitalization plan exists. The original headline may have created or exacerbate that misperception. A Feb. 18 event aimed at re-introducing Envision Lincoln to the community and restarting conversations around downtown revitalization efforts drew a surprising turnout for a Tuesday gathering at mid-day, suggesting there is still significant interest in the economic and quality-of-life...
Grand presumption (not permission) supports the family of Richard Geary in composing for public consumption the following notes on his life. Born April 2, 1947 to William Geary and Lois Evans Geary, R.N., Dick grew up on the family ranch in Helmville. There, through seventh grade, he attended a one-room, coal-heated school with his siblings and cousins. Living the academic year in Deer Lodge, he graduated high school in 1965. Much later in life he would graduate from the Unive... Full story
Editor's note: As some of our readers may know, Dick Geary passed away early last week. Dick's recollections of Helmville and the Blackfoot Valley he knew growing up, as well as his accounts of his time Brazil, provided a perspective on both the culture of our area and his own personal foibles. Dick's columns have been a popular feature in several Montana newspapers over the years, and we began running them in 2016. A look through our rather limited archive of his articles...
Every February, Lincoln School librarian Joanie Templeton organizes the Read It program for students up to 6th grade to encourage reading activities throughout the month. Working with teachers to set goals for each class, Templeton coordinates prizes with local businesses and organizations to reward students who meet their goals. The program culminates each year with a Read It Night celebration for students and their families. This year, Templeton expanded the program to include preschoolers, so eight grade levels are...
With the annual Fireman's Ball Fundraiser a little more than a month away, the Lincoln Volunteer Fire Department is reaching out to Lincoln and surrounding communities, seeking donations for their live and silent auctions, as well as for their bucket raffle. All donations are tax-deductible. The event, scheduled for Saturday, March 21, at the historic Lincoln Community Hall has been a family favorite for several years. This year's festivities include a steak dinner, auctions,...
A 2015 discovery about the ownership of the original Mike Horse Creek Road has added a new wrinkle to the ongoing restoration of the Upper Blackfoot Mining Complex. Steve Opp, the U.S. Forest Service coordinator for the UBMC cleanup project, attended the Jan. 21 meeting of the Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council to begin a discussion with the community on the future of the road. Opp explained that until 2015, the Forest Service was certain the road was part of the...
Envision Lincoln, the community revitalization effort begun in 2017, has been flying below the radar for the past several months, but organizers are working to invigorate the movement with an open house at the Lincoln Community Hall Tuesday, Feb. 18 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. "It will be an introduction to getting Envision Lincoln going again," lead organizer Karyn Good said at a Jan. 10 meeting of several of the core members of the Envision Lincoln group. "We had a break, but we...
With the filing deadline for Lewis and Clark County Boards approaching, a new law may come into play for Lincoln’s elected boards. All five elected boards in Lincoln will have positions up for election on May 5, 2020. The Lincoln Fire District is electing two trustees to three-year terms. The positions currently held by Richard Birkholz and Gary Weisner are up for election. The Lincoln Hospital District is electing five trustees (the entire board). There are two one-year terms, two two-year terms, and one three-year term u...
The heavy snowfall in the last couple of days came too late to save the 4th Annual Skijor Lincoln. Late last week, faced with minimal snowpack, icy conditions, an uncertain forecast and a deadline to make the call, the Lincoln Valley Chamber of Commerce decided to scrap the event that had been scheduled for Jan. 18 and 19. "Even though it's snowing, the ground underneath is solid ice," LVCC President Laurie Richards said Monday. "The day we made the decision, the forecast...
We have a Christmas party for our seniors the first Thursday of December to get everyone going. Thank you to all the seniors who paid their membership – way to go and get’er done! We had 50 seniors show up at our party. Bushwacker’s paid for all the senior’s dinners this time, and to top it off, gave them coupons for a lunch at Bushwacker’s. Way to go Dan (owner) and Sarah (manager) for being so wonderful. Our roast beef for the dinner came from the Putt Putt fundraiser, thank you Bonnie. Denny (Senior’s President)...
The Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council has been meeting in Lincoln for well over a decade. Composed of seven elected members, the Council serves in an advisory capacity to the County Commissioners, giving Lincoln residents an opportunity to bring their concerns and opinions to the county. Lincoln has had a community council since the early 1990s. The current council replaced the original Lincoln Community Council in 2007, which was suspended in 2006 following the resignation of most the board. It was reborn as the...
Editor's Note: In 1949, Robert Fisk of Lincoln produced a small pamphlet with a deep green cover, a greeting from the Blackfoot Valley for the holidays. Seventy years later, to bid farewell to 2019 and welcome 2020, we've reproduced it here in coordination with the Upper Blackfoot Valley Historical Society. To recount the story of the Big Blackfoot, the chronicler would have to dig into many ponderous tomes in order to cull out the data both before and after the taking over...
An important portion of The Corps of Discovery's journey occurred in southwest Montana. On July 19, 1805, Lewis and his men were struggling up the Missouri between present-day Upper and Lower Holter lakes. "from the singular appearance of this place I called it the gates of the rocky mountains." The next day, searching for "the three forks of the Missouri," they entered the first of southwest Montana's big valleys – Helena's Prickly Pear Valley. Arriving at the meeting of t...
As the holidays near, Christmas lights are going up around Lincoln and along Main Street, the lights at several businesses will be coordinated to music. Aaron Birkholz, owner of Coyote Coffee, has been working on synchronizing the lights at his business and home to music for the last couple of years. This year, he's working with other local businesses to try to light up the entire Main Street. A few years ago, Birkholz started noticing elaborate Christmas light displays and...
A suggestion by Lincoln's new librarian Kate Radford could improve the safety at the crosswalks near Lincoln School. At a meeting of the Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council two months ago, Radford suggested improving the school crosswalks with the use of a button that could activate the flashing warning lights as needed. The crosswalk lights are currently timed to activate at the start and end of the school days, when students are most likely to be crossing the highway....
The 21st annual Santa's Workshop hosted more than 60 children and their families in the Lincoln School gym Saturday, Dec. 7. Volunteer organizations including the Community Bible Church, American Legion Lincoln Post 9, the Blackfoot Valley Bible Church, and the Optimists Club, as well as numerous individual volunteers, took part in this year's kid-centered event. Jill Frisbee with Lincoln Council for the Arts organized the event, and Laura Butler greeted the volunteers as...
The Lincoln Valley Public Lands Proposal took a step forward last week as the Lewis and Clark County Commission unanimously approved a resolution in support of the plan at their regular Dec. 5 meeting in Helena. Commission Chairman Jim McCormick applauded the community involvement in the proposal as he announced the board's action during the Dec. 6 Lincoln Government Day Meeting at the Lincoln Library. "The group of folks have been working for years to bring the whole Lincoln...
The Lincoln Branch of the Lewis & Clark Library is teaming up with Story Corps to bring awareness and provide resources for The Great Thanksgiving Listen. According to the Story Corps website, the Great Thanksgiving Listen is "a national movement that empowers young people-and people of all ages-to create an oral history of the contemporary United States by recording an interview with an elder, mentor, friend, or someone they admire using the free StoryCorps App." "It's a way...
With Christmas fewer than 40 days away, Lincoln is preparing for the holiday season, bringing local art, shopping and activities to town with several events Saturday, Dec. 7. To get things rolling, The Lincoln Council for the Arts will be hosting Santa's Workshop, now in its' 21st year, between 10 a.m. and noon at Lincoln school. The event offers school-aged students the chance to make gifts for friends and family, along with the opportunity to wrap their presents. The event i...
Nancy Irene Wilson Bickel Ramburg Heaven gained another beautiful angel Nov. 22, 2019. She fought a long, hard, painful battle trying to beat Myelodysplastic Syndrome (Pre-Leukemia). Unfortunately after five years, the cancer returned to Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Nancy (58) was born in Great Falls on a bright and sunny morning to Robert V. Wilson and Frances L. Rae, becoming the sixth child of seven. She was raised in Cascade and Lincoln, Mont. Nancy grew up surrounded by her br... Full story
Lincoln's newest service club, the Blackfoot Valley Optimists Club, made its first contribution back to the community with a $400 donation to the Lewis and Clark County Heroes & Helpers, program. Heroes and Helpers is a nationwide program that pairs needy kids with law enforcement officers to help kids buy gifts for their families during the holidays. "We take 120 kids shopping every year," said Deputy James Turpin, the Sheriff's office D.A.R.E Coordinator. who accepted the...
Leon Morris Copenhaver, 89, of Missoula, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his loving family on Nov. 6, 2019. Leon was born April 9, 1930 in Missoula and was the seventh child born to Moody and Elizabeth Copenhaver. Leon's early years were spent at the family ranch near Ovando, Mont., where the family's main occupation was outfitting in the Bob Marshall Wilderness. He and his sister were homeschooled by the neighbor until 7th grade, when he then went to school in... Full story
The Lincon Valley Chamber of Commerce Hosted the 45th Annual Lincoln Community Benefit at the community hall Saturday Nov. 2. This year's benefit featured the annual performance by the Lincon Community Players, who put on their version of the TV classic western Gunsmoke. 'Gunsmoke: A Fractured Fairy Tale' was a mashup of Gunsmoke and Snow White tells the tale of a group of gold mining dwarves and their money-hungry boss, Snow White, upsetting the peace in old Lincoln. Stu...
After two months as the new executive Director of the Blackfoot Challenge, Seth Wilson is settling into the role that brought him back to the Blackfoot Valley. Wilson, who served as the first Wildlife Coordinator for the Blackfoot Challenge from 2001 to 2014, took over the position Sept. 3 and has been re-acquainting himself with the watershed and the organization's partners. "As I get a bit more settled in as executive director, I am grateful to our amazing Board of...
A Blackfoot Valley Dispatch subscriber told the BVD Monday that they had received a call from our phone number requesting payment for a subscription. The caller claimed the subscription had expired and requested payment information. The call did not originate from the BVD; instead the call came from a scammer who spoofed our phone number. The BVD will not call subscribers requesting payment information. Instead, we send out reminder cards for subscription renewals. If you’re uncertain about your subscription’s expiration dat...
