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MONTANA - While daily newspapers are shifting their content to digital platforms, weeklies have been slower to move away from print. They have statistically done better at maintaining their print subscribers but as more and more readers demand digital access, the weeklies are taking different strategies to keep their publications relevant. Much of this is done by focusing on hyperlocal coverage and community-centered journalism. Weekly newspapers in Montana fared better than average in maintaini...
MONTANA - Nationwide data from the Pew Research Center shows newspapers’ print circulation decreased over 45% in the last decade. With a sample set of Montana daily newspapers showing an average decline of nearly 40% over the past 10 years, publications from around the state have had to alter and expand their business model to maintain their markets. In this article two Montana newspaper publishers will share their experiences with adapting to a new market. According to Sworn Statement of Circulation reports, daily publication, The M...
MONTANA - Newspapers around the country have seen sweeping changes in their structure within the last decade. Declining print numbers have forced publications to adapt to new markets and adopt new strategies. According to a 2021 article titled, "22 US Newspaper Circulation Statistics You Should Be Aware Of" from Letter.ly, an online job board for journalists, weekday print circulation decreased from 63.3 million copies in 1984 to 28.5 million in 2018. The current U.S. newspaper print...
SEELEY LAKE - Thomas Boelman will bring his years of carpentry experience to Seeley-Swan High School's art and industrial arts classes this year. Boelman graduated from ITT Technical Institute in Indiana with an architectural engineering degree in 1979. He then graduated in 1984 with a B.A. in liberal arts with an emphasis on theater from Hope College in Michigan. He got his master's degree in scenic and lighting design in 1997 from the University of Montana. He taught scenic and lighting...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Community Council resumed their monthly virtual meetings Monday, Sept. 13. There, attendees listened to representatives from the Seeley Lake Ranger District and Seeley Lake Sewer District talk about their groups’ upcoming plans. Seeley Lake Ranger District recreation manager Matt Walter announced that Lake Alva and River Point Campgrounds will be closed by Oct. 1. Seeley Lake Campground is already closed and Big Larch remains open year round but there are no services and the roads will not be plowed. He said t...
SEELEY LAKE - New Seeley-Swan High School science teacher Gretchen Watkins hopes to keep her students engaged for the 2021-2022 school year. "I try to be as interactive as possible," she wrote in an email. "I find most students learn science best if they can be a part of ... doing the activities that we are learning about." She will be teaching all grades in earth and space science, biology and chemistry classes. Watkins has a broadfield certification for secondary science in Montana. She also r...
SEELEY LAKE - New Seeley-Swan High School math teacher Melissa Lapka is excited to kick off the school year and engrain herself in the school and community. "I'm just looking forward to incorporating myself into this new school and [getting] to know all the kids, the families, [as well as] going to see all the extracurriculars," she said. Lapka will teach Algebra 1 and Geometry classes. She graduated from the University of Montana with degrees in secondary math education and psychology. She...
MISSOULA COUNTY - Signs that read "Please be patient - We are short staffed," "Now hiring" and "Closed due to short staff" have become common for customers to see when entering local businesses this summer. The fluctuating spread of COVID-19 has upended countless aspects of daily life, especially in the business world. Over the season, employers around the U.S. experienced a widespread workforce shortage resulting in delayed material shipments, restricted operating hours and longer wait times....
SEELEY LAKE - A new bear-resistant structure was recently erected near The Filling Station in order to prevent bears from scavenging through their dumpster. The materials were funded as part of a $15,000 grant from the Missoula Resource Advisory Committee. Other portions of the funding went towards an electric fence at The Ice Cream Place. It was completed earlier in the summer. Blackfoot Challenge Volunteer Vance Russell was contracted to do the labor. He began Tuesday, Aug. 24. First, he insta...
SEELEY LAKE - A large male black bear was captured by a culvert trap and euthanized by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) earlier this month. FWP Bear Specialist Jamie Jonkel said they were confident that this was the same bear that had broken into at least 10 trailers causing “severe damage” to at least two of them. The bear broke into a couple of campers and garbage sheds around Elaine’s Way before he broke into a garage at the Seeley Lake Ranger Station. There, he was able to get some dog food. Jonkel said they knew the bear would retur...
POTOMAC - The Iverson family received praise from various Missoula County organizations following their reception of this year's Land Stewardship Award. The award was presented at their ranch in Potomac Monday, Aug. 23. According to a press release, the award is intended to recognize landowners and residents who exhibit "excellent stewardship work on their land" and make efforts towards improving the conditions of local land, water, forests, wildlife and communities. Some of the Iverson family...
SEELEY LAKE - Local artist Janeen Mauldin offers Seeley Lake Market patrons a selection of glistening beaded suncatchers every Sunday at her stand, Janeen’s Rainbows. Mauldin started making her suncatchers three years ago after a bird collided with a window at her home. She originally used CD-ROMs to refract light and divert birds away from windows but they were not weather resistant. She then began making her own suncatchers. After some time, her children suggested that she begin selling t...
OVANDO - Ovando residents and local agencies hope to spread the word on bear safety in order to avoid incidents similar to the fatal grizzly bear attack that occurred in downtown Ovando in early July. Representatives from Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks (FWP), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) held an open house in Ovando Thursday, Aug. 5. There the representatives and residents had a public discussion on what communal and individual methods could be taken towards mitigating...
SEELEY LAKE - For 23 years Alpine Artisans, Inc. has used their Loon and Fish Festival to offer around 25 Seeley Lake, Ovando and Lincoln artists a space to showcase their work in an organized format. This year AAI Program Manager Jenny Rohrer said she thinks that this year's iteration was "the best festival we've ever had." "The purpose of the Loon and Fish Festival is to show ... the diversity of artwork of our artists and the variety of work that is being created in our community," she said....
SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley Elementary School Board unanimously approved the 2022 school budget during their monthly meeting Tuesday, Aug. 17. They also unanimously approved the appointing of Sara Lamar as a new trustee as well as curriculums for music and U.S. history courses. This year’s main fund will be $391,940.32. District Clerk Heather Mincey said this year their total mills are 76.89 which is lower than last year’s figure of 88.35. Mincey said this is because the district tax base has increased resulting in a tax bill reduction and...
SEELEY LAKE - The Blackhawk Disc Golf Course near Seeley-Swan High School received a string of renovations this past year. SSHS teacher Trace Stone said while he has done some work on the course in the past, this year is the most they have done at one time. Stone said former teacher Brian Bennion was enthusiastic about the project and helped him organize with the student council to work on redoing the course, installing posts and putting in dirt tee pads. Much of the work dealt with reviving...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Elementary School Board unanimously approved revisions to their School Reopening Plan revision during their monthly meeting Monday, Aug. 16. In addition they also unanimously approved the student handbook and reviewed the 2022 fiscal year budget. Superintendent Josh Gibbs said many of the changes in the reopening plan resulted from how they adapted at the end of the last school year. Since it was passed in May, masks will be optional unless the Board votes to mandate them or they develop some sort of metric. Face...
SEELEY LAKE - Mountain Berry Bowls food truck offers a selection of organic fruit bowls on the go this summer in Seeley Lake. Co-owners and sisters-in-law Leigh Zell and Shannan Bogner have been franchisees of the truck since July 9. The overarching company is based out of Whitefish, Montana with other trucks located around Montana, Idaho and Colorado. They said they were drawn to the company for its locality and health-focused approach. "We wanted to do something together and something healthy,...
SEELEY LAKE - Seeley Lake Farmers Market merchant Owen Tyler of Potomac has had a passion for knifemaking for around three decades. He began making them as a hobby after a man had given him a Centennial knife for fixing his car in the mid-1970s. "I got to looking at it and it's not even straight," he said. "It was a $100 knife. I thought, 'Well, I can make a knife better than that.'" He uses 440C stainless steel for the blades and antlers or desert ironwood for the handles. Some of them are...
MISSOULA COUNTY - At their Aug. 10 meeting, the Missoula County Public School Board of Trustees approved their reopening plan and voted 6-3 in favor of approving their face covering guidelines for all K-12 public school students in the county including Seeley-Swan High School. The trustees will review the guidelines at their first meeting in October. Superintendent Rob Watson made a presentation on MCPS’ reopening plan. He said their COVID-19 mitigation strategies from last year will shift this school year. Watson told the Board there were s...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Cemetery District is celebrating 25 years of preserving the honor of the area's deceased residents this year. The conception of a cemetery in Seeley Lake came during the late 1980s and early 1990s when a group of residents met at the home of Allen and Mildred Chaffin and began working on gathering enough signatures so that development could be placed on a ballot. According to Chaffin in the article "Plum Creek land donation helps long-sought cemetery goal" run in...
OVANDO - Residents and visitors enjoyed camaraderie, food and live music from Helena band Copper Queen at Blackfoot Challenge's third annual Summer Block Party in Ovando Wednesday, Aug. 11. Sara Schmidt, Blackfoot Challenge communications manager, said they were excited to bring the event back this year after taking last year off due to COVID-19. She said, "It's really just a celebration for all of our members and partners who are working to steward the Blackfoot Watershed and an opportunity to...
SEELEY LAKE - Residents and guests showed their stuff at Loving Hearts' annual Brunch and Fashion Show at Mission Bible Fellowship Saturday, Aug. 14. Loving Hearts Manager Mary Newpower was proud of how the show turned out. "I think it went very, very well," she said. She said they had a similar turnout compared to last year but they were still able to raise nearly $2,700 in total revenue, almost $200 more than their intended goal. The show acts as the main fundraiser for Loving Hearts'...
POTOMAC - The Potomac Elementary School Board unanimously approved a series of Montana School Board Association (MTSBA) policy updates on both first and second readings during their monthly board meeting Monday, Aug. 9. During the meeting the board also approved their 2020-2021 trustees’ financial summary and budget as well as reviewed their Return to School Plan. The required updates approved on second reading dealt with student immunization, administering medication and prevention of disease transmission. The recommended updates touched on f...
SEELEY LAKE - Jesse and Chuad Johnson of Johnson's Homegrown sell whatever crops they can grow on their farm west of Missoula every Sunday at the Seeley Lake Market. Jesse said they mostly sell vegetables but they sell fruit whenever they can. He estimates they offer anywhere from 50 to 60 crops including golden beets, broccoli and green onions. Some of their most popular products include kohlrabi, sugar snap peas and carrots. "We try to give a good mix of everyday items and unique items that...
