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Goal: Owner Todd McNutt says whether trimming hooves or shoeing horses and mules, he takes his time with each one at every visit. He tries to make it a positive learning experience and to build a strong foundation of trust with each animal he services. History: In 2001, McNutt began shoeing horses while he was working as a guide for Swan Valley outfitters. When they were 20 miles back in the wilderness his horseshoeing skills were invaluable to the outfitters when a horse or mule lost a shoe....
SWAN VALLEY - American Legion Post No. 63 held their 26th annual Chili Cook-Off Saturday April 30 at the Swan Valley Community Hall. Nearly 50 people participated in tasting and choosing their favorite among 18 entries. Swan Valley resident Katie Wright gained the most votes with her mom's secret white chicken chili recipe. She took home the traveling Chili Champ trophy and $150. Wright said she called her mom, Heidi, in Indiana and gave her the good news. She said her mom was delighted. "This...
SWAN VALLEY - Swan Valley Connections (SVC), formerly Swan Ecosystem Center, has bear resistant garbage containers that can be placed on Swan Valley residents’ property to lessen the chance of bear conflicts. The bears have emerged and are searching for food. Since there have been bear sightings reported in the Swan and near Seeley Lake, it is a good idea to make sure attractants are properly stored or located far from the house. According to Fish Wildlife and Park’s (FWP) Be Bear Aware website, bear attractants include: • Bird Feeders • Hou...
SWAN VALLEY - Three candidates running for two vacant Swan Valley Community Council (SVCC) seats spoke and responded to a question during the SVCC regular meeting Tuesday, April 19. The Swan River’s eligibility to become a Wild and Scenic River under the Wild and Scenic Act of 1968 was also discussed. Candidates Elda (Ellie) Greenough, Lacey McNutt and Henry S. Westra spoke about why they were qualified to win a seat on the SVCC. Greenough moved to the Swan Valley in 1978 from the Midwest where she was raised on a farm. She has held many j...
SWAN VALLEY - Neil Meyer, longtime Salmon Prairie resident, said that making a living as a logger in the early days was hard work in the Swan Valley. He shared stories about how logging was flourishing and was unhindered by regulations and big business as it is now. He said the pace was slower, many residents had their own small sawmills and the tools of the trade were less expensive and complicated. Meyer grew up in Ferndale, Mont. He worked with his father farming and cutting firewood with...
SWAN VALLEY - Members of the Swan Valley Regional Plan Committee (SVRPC) began revisions on the Swan Valley Regional Plan (SVRP) draft at their April 13 meeting. The SVRPC discussed and approved edits and comments submitted by Missoula lawyer Colleen Dowdall, local journalist Suzanne Vernon, Missoula Community and Planning Services (CAPS) planner Mitch Doherty, residents and those in attendance. The committee also heard an alternate plan submitted by Swan Valley resident Harry Blazer. The SVRPC voted to accept Dowdall’s edits to the f...
SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley Regional Planning Committee (SVRPC) decided how they would review and assess the public’s comments at their March 23 special meeting held at the Swan Valley Community Hall. This round of comments ended March 16. The committee members agreed to divide and reread the comments to become familiar with them as they work through the draft’s wording at the next meeting. The SVRPC also agreed to project the plan draft on a screen at following public meetings as they edit the draft so it is visible to all in att...
SWAN VALLEY - Unsolved Mysteries in the Swan Valley was the topic March 11 at the Swan Valley Museum. Upper Swan Valley Historical Society (USVHS) president Steve Lamar told the stories with the aid of projected photos to a group of more than 60 people. Mysteries in the Swan include persons that did not return home, some who avoided the law or the unknown location of gold mines. Unknown Gold Mines Hall Peak, seen behind the village of Swan Lake, is named for a prospector who in the early 1900s...
SWAN VALLEY - Karen "Queen Nur" Abdul-Malik from Willingboro, New Jersey is an award winning, nationally known storyteller of West African culture, African American history, folktales and mythology. She was a part of the 2 Valleys Stage Concert Series and performed a public concert March 20 as well as worked with the students in the schools. She has recorded two CDs. Her stories were accompanied by a drum beat and audience participation. Pictured above Queen Nur sang a song about pulling up the...
SWAN VALLEY - Quick Response Unit (QRU) Medical Chief Dan Maloughney and Swan Valley Volunteer Fire Department Fire Chief Randy Williams spoke about their critical need for volunteers and commented on the Swan Valley Regional Plan (SVRP) draft at the Swan Valley Community Council (SVCC) meeting March 15. Kascie Herron and Rick Potts from Montanans for Healthy Rivers coalition also told attendees that local rivers and tributaries are eligible to be designated “Wild and Scenic.” “We are in a crisis situation right now,” said Maloughney. He said...
SWAN VALLEY - Swan Valley residents commented on the Swan Valley Regional Plan (SVRP) draft at the Swan Valley Regional Plan Committee (SVRPC) meeting March 9. Deadline for comments from residents was March 16. Several of the nearly 20 residents present at the meeting asked questions and voiced their opinions on the plan draft to the SVRPC. Questions asked are in bold. Responses from the SVRPC follow the question. What is a rough percentage of the community that gave input [during the envisioning process]? Out of 650 residents, 183 answered the...
Have you ever read or heard descriptive words when used together seem to make no sense or seem to be set in opposition with each other? Sometimes printed on a shoebox are the words "single pair". At first glance that seems contradictory. How can a pair be single? On second thought it could mean there is one pair of shoes in the box. The words "single pair" is an oxymoron that uses words that have seemingly opposite meanings together. Oxymorons can be used to point out two qualities that occur...
SWAN VALLEY - Swan Valley residents commented on the Swan Valley Regional Plan (SVRP) draft at a public hearing March 2 held at the Swan Valley Community Hall. According to SVRP committee chair Cilla Moseley, there will be more public hearings on the draft in the future. Moseley encouraged residents to follow the plan through all stages of approval with Missoula County Community Planning and Services (CAPS), the Missoula County planning board and the Missoula County Commissioners. The SVRP is an update of the 1996 growth plan developed by the...
I thought about how people leave a legacy after I read Heather Layman’s article in her Cowgirl Ramblings column entitled “Leaving a Legacy.” It was thrilling to read her words about the inductees in the Cowboy Hall of Fame. She said, “.... the commonality was all of these people were and are tough as a new bride’s biscuits.” Layman went on to describe how tough they were tending livestock in the worst of weather, cut trails, built barns, rode rough horses in even tougher country all so they could provide for their families, community a...
SWAN VALLEY - The entire student body of Swan Valley Elementary School (SVE), 28 students in kindergarten through eighth grade, performed in the Montana Children's Theater (MCT) production of "Rapunzel" Friday, March 4. "Performing builds confidence and teaches skills [the students] can use all their lives," said SVE Supervising Teacher Susan Bracha. Physical Education aide Todd Townsend, who was in drama in high school, added that performing takes the kids out of their comfort zone and at the s...
SWAN VALLEY- Missoula lawyer Colleen Dowdall, recognized in the state of Montana as an authority on land use, along with several residents presented their comments on the Swan Valley Regional Plan (SVRP) draft at the Swan Valley Community Council (SVCC) meeting Feb. 16. The public meeting regarding the draft plan will be held March 2 at 7 p.m. at the Swan Valley Community Hall. Swan Valley resident Harry Blazer asked Dowdall to be present at the meeting. Blazer offered to pay Dowdall and the committee agreed to review her comments along with...
SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley Elementary School (SVE) board discussed the Swan Valley Regional Plan (SVRP) at their monthly meeting, Tuesday, Feb. 9. They addressed how the SVRP will impact the school. They considered how the board will respond to the SVRP committee with comments on the school’s needs, growth and future along with other improvements to the SVRP before the public comment meeting March 2. The SVE board members agreed with board chairperson John Mercer that the SVRP Committee did a phenomenal job addressing the protection of sceni...
SWAN VALLEY - Swan Valley resident Ray Yates said he applies patience and time to transform rough gemstones into polished, multi-sided or faceted, light-catching creations worthy to be set in jewelry. He cuts and polishes semi-precious and precious gemstones including garnets, amethysts and sapphires with the aid of a faceting machine. Since he was a young boy, Yates said has been interested in geology, the study of the earth, and how gemstones are formed underground. Yates has found sapphires...
SWAN VALLEY - During the afternoon of Jan. 31, Swan Valley resident Tony Hulett thought his horse Trav and mule Mitzy would surely die. They both fell through the thin ice after following an elk trail to the confluence of Meadow Creek and Alder Creek that flow into a pond on his property. With help from neighbors and the Swan Valley and Swan Lake Volunteer Fire Departments, they were able to rescue both animals. "Just the horse's head was showing above the ice but the mule had his front legs...
SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley Elementary School (SVE) received a $2,500 matching grant from Missoula County Park and Trails. Superintendent Chris Stout applied for the grant on behalf of SVE school board to help fund the interpretive trail, part of the students’ community forest project, located on the school’s property. The students want the trail to be used by the community to enjoy and to gain knowledge about the site’s trees and vegetation. In 2013, the SVE junior high students created their plans for the community forest project using...
Goal: Gary Freyholtz, owner of Swan Valley Log Crafters, LLC specializes in handcrafted log home shells, pole buildings, railings and stairs. His goal is to create a log structure that is a lasting, well built home that the customer can enjoy for years to come. History: Freyholtz said he originally learned how to build a log house at Rustics of Lindbergh Lake in Condon when he started in July, 1984. He worked for two other log home businesses in the 1990s. In 1998 he started Swan Valley Log...
SWAN VALLEY - During the spring and summer of 2015, Seeley-Swan High School sophomore Iriey Anderson traveled with her family and five horses all over the state to participate in Montana High School Rodeo Association (MHSRA) rodeos. This year she will compete in five events which she hopes could lead to a full ride scholarship in college rodeo. "I have wanted this since I was little. It's all part of chasing my dream," said Anderson. "We have been to almost all the rodeo arenas in the state and...
SWAN VALLEY - Swan Valley resident Wes Kesterson started logging with his father Buck Kesterson when he was around 12 years old. After spending nearly 15 years, as a logger in the Swan Valley, the biggest change Kesterson has seen in the industry is that logging equipment is more efficient and has made logging safer. Kesterson learned how to log on his grandmother's property located on the Swan River at Salmon Prairie. He helped his father with salvage logging jobs around the Swan Valley with th...
SALMON PRAIRIE - On Dec. 22, six Salmon Prairie students in grades kindergarten to eighth grade presented their own production of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." Parents, friends and community members filled the one-room schoolhouse to attend the traditional Christmas program, enjoy fellowship and indulge in holiday treats. Starting after Thanksgiving, the students worked together to write their script based on the story "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." They changed the location of the story...
SWAN VALLEY - Thursday, Dec. 10, the Swan Valley Elementary School (SVE) students from preschool to eighth grade presented their Christmas program entitled Holidays Around the World. Music teacher Kaytee Ambrozich, who replaced retired SVE music teacher Bob Green, told the audience that her students had learned a lot about music, worked hard and some were willing to learn a new instrument when the music required it. Contemporary and non-traditional Christmas songs sung and played by the SVE...
