I Ride Seeley Lake

People want to grow old in their community and the home they love, but getting the care they need can be a challenge in our beautiful, rugged, rural corner of the county.  Nationwide, an estimated 3.6 million people lack access to proper medical care due to transportation issues.  Here, in beautiful little Seeley Lake, we are doing something about that. 

Thankfully, in 2016 local folks from the Seeley Lake Community Foundation (SLCF), Seeley Swan Medical Center, Missoula Aging Services, Missoula County Sheriff Office, Seeley Lake Fire Department, and community members came together to take a look at our community's basic needs.  They identified the lack of transportation options to assist seniors or people with disabilities to visit our local medical center or travel to Missoula for medical appointments.  A year later, in 2017, the SLCF launched the I Ride program to help meet the needs of our community's transportation disadvantaged.  Fast forward, and since then we have provided more than 1400 rides, and the demand keeps growing! 

How does I Ride work?

I Ride Seeley Lake provides an option for those who have limited access to medical transportation services in Seeley Lake and Missoula.  Currently, Seeley Lake seniors and people with disabilities are the main clients served by this program.  However, we try to fulfill any medical appointment requests that we receive. We do not ask about income and/or Medicaid status as a prerequisite for being a client. 

New riders must fill out some simple paperwork prior to riding. 

Make your appointment M-F between 10am and 2pm if possible. 

Call 406-916-7860 to request your ride ahead of time. We ask for one week's notice for rides to Missoula and 48 hours notice for rides in Seeley Lake. 

A volunteer driver will get you to and from your medical appointments. 

A wheelchair-accessible ramp van is available upon request. 

Fares are affordable, $2 round trip within Seeley Lake, and $10 roundtrip to Missoula. 

What happens behind the scenes?

This is a logistically complex program and depends on a cadre of fantastic volunteer drivers. The SLCF staff dispatcher Melani Best is the lynchpin in managing all our volunteer drivers and coordinating community member's requests for drives to medical appointments.  We thank all of the drivers who are often volunteering at least 4 hours per trip, although sometimes as many as 8 hours per trip!  Each ride we provide is unique: each medical appointment takes a different amount of time and is in a different location. The number of rides provided fluctuates depending on demand-we don't have a set route or a set schedule for trips, but instead work around the appointment schedules of riders. Caring for our aging and vulnerable community members in a safe manner, while juggling changing doctor's appointments at multiple facilities, requires a lot of practicality and planning ahead, and is complex! The success of our program is due to the investment from community members, those who give important dollars to keep this service going, and those who serve as volunteer drivers, logging thousands of miles each year.

Volunteer Drivers Needed

Can you help us out? Right now, we need more volunteer drivers! Winter is usually our busiest time of year (except for 2022 – the whole year was busy! We provided DOUBLE the rides as the year before). Our vans are on the road to Missoula almost every weekday right now, and our amazing driver team needs some relief! Contact the SLCF to learn more or sign up: 406-677-3506 or info@slcfmt.org 

A recent IRide survey voiced overwhelmingly positive comments:

 "I Ride is so convenient and a very reasonable charge. I have been confined to a wheelchair and can't drive so I am so pleased to have I Ride."  "I LOVE the convenience of your service. I LOVE that you offer this service. I LOVE the friendliness of your drivers who offer good conversation which helps to relax you prior to a doctor's appt!"When asked "Why do you drive for I Ride?", here is what our volunteer driver Gary Niklas had to say: 

 "First of all, I like to drive!  When looking for a volunteer job, it seemed like a good fit for me.  I now help provide a truly wonderful and needed service for this community. Our riders are always grateful for what we do for them and that gives me a good feeling of satisfaction."

Who are I Ride partnerships and funders?

Since 2017, I Ride's success is due to generous funding from community members and to funding and technical assistance from the Missoula Ravalli Transportation Management Association (MRTMA).  We initially utilized a used minivan from Great Falls Transit and one of MRTMA's spare minivans to provide the service. In late 2019, we were able to replace this aging fleet (both vans had 100k+ miles) with two brand-new vans that we now own (one is wheel-chair accessible) thanks to a grant from the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT).

For the last two years, we have received grants from the Missoula County Community Assistance Fund, and in December 2022 we received the program's first-ever grant from the Bill and Rosemary Gallagher Foundation. Fitting all the puzzle pieces of grant funding together is challenging, yet essential to figuring out how to continue to meet demand and make sure this service is sustainable.

Donations from community members make a HUGE difference in filling in the gaps of grant funding and keeping this service operating for the people who need it. You can donate specifically to the I Ride program at the SLCF. 

About the SLCF

The Seeley Lake Community Foundation is a locally driven and locally supported 501c3 nonprofit that strives to be a community resource and a catalyst for innovative approaches to improving the quality of life for this small rural area.  More info on I Ride: https://www.seeleylakecommunityfoundation.org/iride