Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
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The Jefferson Valley Community Foundation (JVCF) has begun the evaluation of grants that have been applied for and have met the deadline and the grant standards. Every year the JVCF awards monetary grants to nonprofit organizations that have worthy projects and need financial help for completion of their project. The grant deadline has come and gone and grant applications have been submitted. Last year, the following nonprofits received grants: JV Sportsmen, JV Search and Rescue, Whitehall Food Bank, Whitehall Chamber of Commerce, Town of White...
As Montana gears up to enter another respiratory illness season, the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) encourages Montanans to take precautions to help protect against severe symptoms from COVID-19, influenza, pneumococcal pneumonia, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections. The number of people ill due to respiratory viruses, including COVID-19, influenza, pneumococcal pneumonia, and RSV, is currently low across most of the United States but has increased in recent weeks. Montana has already begun seeing...
Every year, 2,100 North Americans are killed or seriously injured when they engage in unsafe behavior around tracks and trains. Montana Operation Lifesaver is joining Operation Lifesaver Inc. (OLI), Operation Lifesaver Canada, and the Mexican Association of Railroads (AMF) from September 18-24 to observe Rail Safety Week in North America and urge the public to help #STOPTrackTragedies. "Rail Safety Week focuses awareness and education activities around the country into seven exciting days....
Montana is facing a growing housing crisis, driven by an influx of out-of-state home buyers and telecommuters. This is pushing up prices, making it difficult for Montanans to find affordable housing, and increasing residential property taxes. A solution I propose for consideration is to change the way property taxes are calculated for vacation homes and short-term rentals. Currently, all residential properties are taxed at the same rate, regardless of whether they are owner-occupied, rented out long-term, rented out short-term, or vacation...
Dear Editor, This is a story about THE SIGN and so much more. It started pretty much like any other day, then took an unexpected turn. Or maybe, not so unexpected. On the road to Butte, headed up the pass, I pull into the rest area. A familiar shade of green is illuminated by the sunlight. Woah! What? I was kind of shocked - laying in the mud, half of it suffocated beneath the trash dumpster was THE SIGN. JESUS CHRIST 2020 is all that was visible, but I knew what the hidden words under the...
The ongoing project of the Whitehall Murals Restoration is still alive and vibrant! This year the murals at the Rocky Mountain Bank and the Billsgary Center (K-Bar) buildings will be replaced this fall. It is expected that both murals will be replaced before the good weather ends either in late September or early October. The new murals will be very similar to the previous murals although some changes have been made to make them more historically connected to the Lewis and Clark Journals and more vibrant in color. One change from the original...
The uppermost switchback on the Bright Angel Trail in Grand Canyon National Park is eight feet wide. Yet the last time I hiked out, I was stymied by a group of young hikers walking down shoulder to shoulder, tapping on their phones. Even when I said, “Ahem, excuse me,” I was unceremoniously nudged out of the way — not on the cliff side, but still. It shouldn’t need mentioning, but while walking on a rocky trail where one may fall to one’s death, it is best not to be watching one’s phone. And in case you were wondering, uphill has the right of w...
The annual Bill Baycroft and Bob Casagrande Memorial Rod Run during Frontier Days was a huge success, bringing in nearly 80 gorgeous vehicles to Legion Park. The following awards were given. • Bill Baycroft Award: Tom Walund of Butte. • Bob Casagrande Award: Terrie Casagrande of Whitehall. • People's Choice Award: Dale Olson of Butte. • Truck Award: Kelli Thennis' 56 Chevy truck. • Rat Rod Award: Ric Pestel's 29 Nash Sedan. • Long Distance Award: Jim Tebay's 52 Plymouth Coupe. Top 10 Entries:...
State and local health officials are reporting the first West Nile Virus (WNV) detection of the year in mosquitoes sampled from Blaine County. No humans or horses have tested positive for WNV yet this season. Infected mosquitoes can transmit WNV when they bite, and the increased risk of WNV transmission to humans and horses is expected to continue through October – or as long as mosquitoes are active in the state. While no human cases of WNV were reported in 2022, in previous seasons Montana has reported over 50 human cases in a single s...
A spectacular picture recently appeared on social media of a young lady in Arizona. She was poised on the edge of a cliff emblazoned with sunset colors. Immediately her online followers clamored to know where the picture was taken, so “I can get one just like it.” Turns out that it was taken on an off-trail route at the end of a potholed dirt road on the Navajo Nation, and required a permit to even enter the area. Also, I bet she did not climb to that precarious perch on that cliff wearing those fancy shoes. A local guide lamented that the are...
Dear Editor, It's too bad the town of Whitehall isn't as enthusiastic about controlling mosquitoes as it is about controlling traffic with dubious four-way stops. Joe Dillon Whitehall, Montana...
State and local public health officials are reminding Montanans to be aware of the risk of exposure to rabies as summer approaches. The risk for potential encounters between humans and wild animals increases during spring and summer because of the time spent hiking and engaging in other outdoor activities. On June 13, 2023, DPHHS received the first report of a rabid animal this year. A striped skunk in Powder River County tested positive for rabies. In 2022, 13 animals submitted for rabies...
Did you know that stress, in one form or another, is the cause of 80-90% of chronic diseases? Think of stress like the layers of an onion. There are layers made up of physical stressors. These include dehydration, poor nutrition, lack of movement and sunlight, poor sleep, and exposure to toxins and radiation. Then there are the mental, emotional, and spiritual layers. These include financial strain, traumatic events, toxic relationships, family stress, work or school stress, and loneliness. We a...
The Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) honored Montana Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel from White Sulphur Springs, Great Falls, Whitehall, Bozeman, Miles City, and Anaconda during an awards ceremony at the Capitol Rotunda Wednesday, May 24. The event included an address by Lt. Governor Kristen Juras to representatives from the Meagher County Volunteer Ambulance, Montana Medical Transport of Helena and Great Falls, Jefferson Valley EMS, Gallatin County Dispatch,...
Following the successful creation and placement of the beautiful mural at Jefferson Fresh Foods the Whitehall Mural Restoration Project is moving forward strongly in 2023! At this point, it is expected that this year the faded murals at Rocky Mountain Bank and the Billsgary(K-Bar) building will be removed and new vibrant murals will replace them. This repainting and reconstruction is currently underway and progress has been dramatic. The Murals Project would like to sincerely thank Mayor Mary Janacaro-Hensleigh and the Town of Whitehall for...
Dear Editor, We have been reading and hearing about the issues of the Whitehall Saddle Club and the Town of Whitehall. So just show the real reason the town is pushing this. There are so many rumors being floated around. Rumors are that the town will be getting a substantial amount of money for the development of the recreation area. Rumors are, developing an RV area? (There is already parking in the park for that, also the town would be competing with other local RV parks in the area). That is...
Dear Editor, Montana is a beacon of fiscal responsibility; it's time to apply it in DC. The state's budget surplus this year is a clear indicator that Montana is doing something right economically. We've seen this money be put to good use by reducing our tax burden and smart spending on programs that will boost our economic prosperity and bring growth and opportunity to the state. Representative Matt Rosendale has brought that same mentality to Congress. It's clear that Democrats have overspent...
Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) officials are reporting a recent increase in the number of cases of chickenpox reported in school-aged children. And, at least half of these infections were acquired from an adult family member with shingles. Chickenpox, or varicella, can be a serious illness and is easily preventable with vaccination. “The best way to protect yourself and your child from chickenpox is vaccination,” says Jessica Lopeman, a registered nurse and epidemiologist with DPHHS. In 2022, there were 23 reported cas...
Although I’ve lived in a small Western town for 30 years now, I have never known much about one of its fundamental institutions, the service club. Many small-town residents still center their lives on Lions, Elks, Rotary, or similar organizations. Not me: I’m not a joiner. Yet as our national culture moves farther away from such settings for broad discussions, I worry that I’m part of the problem. A while ago when I was asked to speak at our local Rotary Club, I hesitated, picturing white guys networking with each other and complaining about...
The Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) will begin conducting Medicaid and Healthy Montana Kids (HMK) eligibility redeterminations on April 1 for the first time in three years. Federal requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic led to the suspension of annual redeterminations, in order to keep every individual enrolled in Medicaid covered throughout the pandemic. However, last December’s federal omnibus spending bill directed states to resume evaluating the eligibility of Medicaid enrollees on April 1. Beginning in April a...
Experiencing pain in some form is a fact of life on earth. Unfortunately, many people experience chronic daily pain and come to accept it as part of the “human condition.” But have you ever asked yourself why we experience pain? Pain is a teacher. It comes when we need to make a change, whether it be physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, or relationally. Some of us avoid pain by silencing it or covering it, and some of us surrender to it as our forever reality. When we take these act...
At 12:55 AM on February 3, 1943, a torpedo from German U-Boat 223 detonated on the starboard side and well below the waterline of the USTT Dorchester. The former coastal luxury passenger liner converted to troop transport, carrying 904 servicemen, civilian workers, and crew, sank in only 27 minutes, taking 672 souls to the bottom of the freezing North Atlantic. It was one of the worst shipboard disasters in US naval history. The first Sunday of each February is designated Four Chaplains Sunday, commemorating the sacrificial service of...
Krista Glaus, RN, has been named a recipient of a School Health Mini-Grant Award from the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS). She has received $1,000, which will contribute to staff CPR and first aid training in the Whitehall School District. Glaus provides nursing services to the Whitehall School District, where she works with students and their families to ensure students' health and well-being. She is among a select number of school nurses awarded grants by the DPHHS...
"Lions and Tigers and Bears, oh my!" is a famous line turned into a cliché from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz used to express fear. In the 2020s, the fear of "Lions and Tigers and Bears" has been replaced with the fear of "climate change and anti-vaxxers and Article V of the US Constitution," which are strange bedfellows indeed. Oh my! There has been the same banter going on back and forth around a resolution that has been trying to get passed through our legislature since 2015 to add Montana...
The Whitehall Murals Project, spearheaded by the Whitehall Chamber of Commerce, is excited to announce that it has received a tremendous, helpful grant from the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation. The grant consists of an immediate grant of $5,000 and a matching grant of $2,500. The matching grant has, of course, a stipulation. The stipulation for the matching grant is that an additional $2,500.00 will be granted to the project by the Washington Foundation should there be contributions of...
