POLSON — Sandpiper Art Gallery is hosting the Native American Art Invitational Feb. 26 through April 5 at the gallery located at 306 Main St. in Polson.

Salish and Kootenai College Art Department faculty and students have contributed work to this exhibit. New SKC Art Department Director Karen Goulet and faculty member Frank Finley are both featured. Native American artists Ben Pease and D.G. House have also been invited to exhibit work. An opening reception will be held at the Gallery on Friday, March 1, from 5-7pm.

For more information contact Sandpiper Art Gallery at (406) 883-5956 or visit our website Sandpiperartgallery.com.

POLSON — Continuing through April 15, AARP tax assistance volunteers will provide free tax preparation for taxpayers of all ages with low to medium income levels. This assistance will be available at the Polson Senior Center- (406) 883-4735, every Thursday; at the Ronan Senior Center- (406) 676-2371, every Friday; and at the St. Ignatius Senior Center- (406) 745-4462, the first and third Tuesdays of the month. Please call for an appointment.

POLSON — North Lake County Public Library invites everyone to join Puff the Magic Dragon for Story Time each Thursday through April 25. This one-hour program for children age’s three to five and their caregivers is held at 10 a.m. and again at 1 p.m.  All are welcome for books, songs, finger plays, rhymes, stories, and fun.

YELLOW BAY — The Yellow Bay Community Club’s 10th annual Flathead Lake Cherry Blossom Festival will be held on Saturday, May 18, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Arts and crafts vendors are invited to apply for space reservations by calling Shari at (406) 982-3437. 

The festival is free and open to the public. Crafters and artisans offer a large assortment of locally produced items and entertainment is provided. There will be raffles and free door prizes. 

RONAN — The Tuesday, April 2, meeting of the Mission Valley Back Country Horsemen will be held at the V.F.W. Hall located on Round Butte Road. The Horsemen meet the first Tuesday of every month: April 2, May 7, June 4, no meeting in July, and Aug. 6. For more information, call (406) 883-5876 or (406) 644-5001.

PABLO — Women 4 Wellness is looking for vendors. Please go to: prevention.skc.edu, for more information. Registration closes April 19.

CHARLO — The Charlo Schools’ drama department is excited to announce their spring production of “Yo…RÕmz and Jules…Eastside Westside,” an urban, modern version of the classic Shakespeare play “Romeo and Juliet.” The show has rap songs, classic love-rock ballads, a mix of traditional Old English, a blend of modern slang and performances by our own Charlo Voices. The production is based on an original script created by former student Spencer Shafter, current student Trinceton Brown and the drama teacher Keith Grebetz.

The show is on Thursday, April 4, at 6:30 p.m. in the Charlo gymnasium. Admission is $3 for bleacher seats or $5 for reserved seating, which includes cheesecake and a beverage during a short intermission break.

For reservations, please call (406) 644-2206. 

CHARLO – The Ninepipes Museum of Early Montana celebrates its 15th season and will open its doors for the 2013 season on April 4 at 10 a.m. The museum will be open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Thursdays to Saturdays through May 24. Starting Memorial Day Weekend and going through Labor Day, the museum will be open six days a week, Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. The museum will offer new exhibits and experiences this season with board members and volunteers looking forward to seeing friends and neighbors as well as visitors from afar.

Please call (406) 644-3435 to arrange for a group tour or for more information.

POLSON — On April 4, a drivers’ safety class will be conducted at the Polson Area Senior Center from 8:30 a.m.-11 a.m. and 1 p.m.-3 p.m. Please call (406) 883-4735 for a reservation.

ARLEE — Hangin’ Art Gallery at 92555 Hwy 93 N. in Arlee, presents the first Killdeer Artisans Guild show of 2013, March 25-June 21. Exhibitors include up to 40 artists from the Jocko and Mission Valleys (with the occasional straggler from Missoula and Frenchtown). They will be open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. A reception will be held on April 6 from 2-4 p.m., (to coincide with the Buttercup Run), is free and will include snacks. Call (406) 726-5005 or check the website for extended spring/summer hours: www.hanginartgallery.com.

ST. IGNATIUS — A fundraiser event featuring Indian tacos and a silent auction will be held April 6 at the St. Ignatius Community Center from 5-7 p.m. The cost is $6 per person or $25 per family. Benefit proceeds will help Austin Durglo, a current MSU student, travel as an international student volunteer to South Africa May 2013. Please come and support our youth. If you would like to make a monetary donation or have a silent auction item to donate, please contact Dan or Natasha Durglo at (406) 644-3373.

PABLO — Women 4 Wellness is looking for vendors. Please go to: prevention.skc.edu, for more information. Registration closes April 19.

POLSON — The Northwest Accordion Association’s regular jams will be held from 2-5:30 p.m. on April 7, May 5 and June 2, at the Elks in Polson.

ST. IGNATIUS — The next monthly meeting of the Flathead Joint Board of Control will be held on April 8, 2013, at 11 a.m. in the JBC conference room. The regular monthly meeting is open to the public. 

POLSON — The next gathering of the “Thyme for Herbs Group” will be Tuesday, April 9, at 7 p.m. at the North Lake County Spring is a great time to be watching for nature’s wonders and April is the time to prepare your planting areas. If you have questions, please call  (406) 319-2446.

RONAN — The American Legion Post 138 of Ronan is meeting April 9 at 7 p.m. All meetings are held on the second Tuesday of each month. The meetings take place at the VFW Hall in Ronan. New members are welcome. For more information, contact Jack Fay at (406) 676-3380.

RONAN — The first ever “Mayor’s Day of Recognition for National Service” will be held on Tuesday, April 9. Ronan Mayor Kim Aipperspach will open the reception at the Ronan City Library at noon to recognize local national service volunteers in the Ronan area. Coffee and cake will be served. There are currently as many as 60 local volunteers serving our community through national service organizations that include: RSVP Volunteer Center, Foster Grandparents and AmeriCorps.

ST. IGNATIUS — Kindergarten roundup at St. Ignatius Elementary takes place on Tuesday, April 9, from 9 -11 a.m. and 12 - 3 p.m.

Your child must be 5 years old by Sept. 10, 2013 to attend kindergarten this coming fall. Guardians must bring the following with them: the child, the child’s immunizations, the child’s birth certificate, guardian identification, and proof of residency.

ARLEE — The Arlee Community Development Corporation is now holding its board meetings quarterly. The next quarterly meeting is Wednesday, April 10, at 6 p.m. in the Arlee High School business lab. The meeting is open to the public. For more information, contact Kelley at (406) 726-5550.

POLSON — The Montana Association for the Blind will meet on April 10 at the Polson Senior Citizens’ Center at 1 p.m. Come early and have lunch.

RONAN — The Ladies’ Auxiliary VFW 5652 will meet on April 10 at 6:30 p.m. at the Ronan VFW Hall, 35981 Round Butte Rd. New members are welcome. For more information, call Marge Fay at (406) 676-3380.

RONAN — The Mission Valley Heritage will hold its annual meeting on April 10 at 2 p.m. at the Ronan Senior Center. Anyone interested is welcome to attend. It’s time to start thinking about the opening of the Garden of the Rockies Museum. We are in need of sitters at the museum. If we don’t have sitters the museum won’t be able to open for the season. Call (406) 676-5451 or (406) 546-4270 for more information.

RONAN — The Mission Valley Heritage will hold its annual meeting on April 10 at 2 p.m. at the Ronan Senior Center. Anyone interested is welcome to attend. It’s time to start thinking about the opening of the Garden of the Rockies Museum. We are in need of sitters at the museum. If we don’t have sitters, the museum won’t be able to open for the season. Call (406) 676-5451 or (406) 546-4270 for more information.

POLSON — Western Montana Addiction Services will be holding a “Responsible Alcohol Sales and Service” training on April 11, from 9 a.m. to noon at WMAS,  802 Main St., suite C, in Polson. The cost of materials for the training is $15. The “Let’s Control It” curriculum is approved as a state-mandated RASS training by the Montana Dept. of Revenue and participants will receive a certificate of completion. For more information or to register, please call (406) 532-9146, (406) 532-9149 or email rwetzel@wmmhc.org. Please register by April 10.

POLSON — Western Montana Addiction Services will be holding a “Responsible Alcohol Sales and Service” training on April 11, from 9 a.m. to noon at WMAS,  802 Main St., suite C, in Polson. The cost of materials for the training is $15. The “Let’s Control It” curriculum is approved as a state-mandated RASS training by the Montana Dept. of Revenue and participants will receive a certificate of completion.

For more information or to register, please call (406) 532-9146, (406) 532-9149 or email rwetzel@wmmhc.org. Please register by April 10.

POLSON — The Masumola Club meeting will be held Thursday, April 11, at the clubhouse. The social gathering begins at 5:45 p.m., the potluck is at 6:30 p.m. and the program is at 7 p.m. The clubhouse is located on Masumola Road. Anyone in the community of Polson and the surrounding area is invited to attend this meeting as a guest or to join the club and enjoy friendship, meetings and interesting programs. The only requirement for new guests is to bring your own utensils and a dish to pass if you wish. For membership information contact Irene Marchello at (406) 883-6184.

POLSON — North Lake County Public Library in Polson is hosting a free Preservation Workshop on Thursday, April 11. Experts from the Montana Historical Society and Montana Memory Project, along with local museums, will present information about preserving our past.  Learn how to identify, preserve and protect old photographs and documents, access the Montana Memory Project, and much more.

The workshop is from 1–3 p.m. in the library meeting room.  Everyone is welcome. Please call or visit the circulation desk to register for the free event. 

The library is located at 2 First Ave. E. and can be reached at (406) 883-8225.

PABLO — On Thursday, April 11, Bob Sorenson will make three presentations of different aspects of the program “Love and Logic.” From 1-3 p.m. in SKC’s Beaverhead Building, room 116, he will present “Developing self-regulation and empathy.” In SKC’s JohnnyArlee/Victor Charlo Theater he will talk about the “Importance of Success in the Early Years of School,” from 4-6 p.m. In the same building, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., he will discuss “Low Stress Parenting for Raising Highly Effective Kids.”  All sessions are free. Call (406) 883-7288 for more information. Childcare is provided and CEU’s are available.

POLSON — A free dinner is offered at Polson Presbyterian Church on April 12. The April Friendship Table dinner is from 5-7 p.m. Polson Presbyterian Church is located across from the Linderman School. We will be serving up some great food and dessert too.   

Come join us; this invitation is open to all.

RONAN — The jazz band dinner dance will be held on April 12 at 6:30 p.m. at Ronan High School Gym with an evening of dinner and dancing. A menu will be published soon. Tickets are on sale now at the Ronan Middle School office, (406) 676-3390 ext. 3400, St. Charo Floral, Coulter Automotive, and from members of the RHS Jazz Band.

The cost is $15.

All proceeds will go to offset the cost of the band tour to Salt Lake City and new band instruments.

CHARLO — The 44th annual “Charlo FUPS Basketball Tournament” will be held April 12-14. The tournament, which is Montana’s longest running town-team tournament, will be held as a benefit for the students of Charlo High School and as a reunion for the players. There are divisions for men’s A, men’s B, women and co-ed. There is no admission charge for spectators and there are numerous events for fans during the weekend. For further information, e-mail: ckain12@hotmail.com or call the FUPS at (406) 396-3488.

RONAN — An evening of dinner and dancing will take place at Ronan High School’s Jazz Band dinner/dance on April 12 at 6:30 p.m. in the RHS gym. The menu for the evening will be published soon.

Tickets are on sale for $15 at the RMS office (406) 676-3390 ext. 3400, St. Charo Floral, Coulter Automotive and from members of the RHS Jazz Band.

All proceeds will go toward offsetting the cost of the jazz band tour to Salt Lake City and for new band instruments also.

POLSON — On Friday, April 12, at the Lake County Pachyderm Club meeting, Steve Stanley, emergency manager for Lake County, will discuss how well prepared we would be if a serious emergency happened right here in our own community. His topic will be “Emergency Management/Disaster Preparedness: where we were and where we are.” Lake County Pachyderm Club meets at the rural Polson Fire Hall on Regatta Road west of Polson. The social time begins at 11:30 a.m.; brown bag lunches are encouraged. The business meeting begins at noon and adjourns at 1 p.m. Everyone is welcome.

RONAN —The University of Montana football Grizzlies will scrimmage on the Laverne Parish Memorial Field turf at Ronan High School on Saturday, April 13. The action begins at noon. Admission is $5 with children age 5 years and under admitted free. Following the scrimmage, the players and coaches and Monte will be available to sign autographs and take photos. 

BIG ARM — Please join us at the Historic Big Arm School for a fun event on Saturday, April 13, at 1 p.m. The Big Arm Association is sponsoring a Magic Show by Ken Avison for kids from 2 to 102. Refreshments will be served. Hope to see you there. For further information, please contact Nancy Foster at (406) 849-5064.

RONAN — On April 13, a Safe Harbor pool tournament will take place at the Club Bar. Games include eight ball, ball in hand, blind draw and double-elimination. Registration and ranking begins at 11 a.m. and the tournament starts at 1 p.m. Contact Bill Steele with questions regarding rules at (406) 890-5911 or at: missionvalleypa@yahoo.com. For pre-registration information call Jolene Schmitz at (406) 253-2463 or email her at: jschmitz@ronan.net.

Large prizes will be given for first, second and third place winners. There will be a 50/50 raffle as well as small prize drawings twice each hour. 

Singles entry fee is $20 and includes one trip to the potato bar. A full potato bar will be available to all for $5.

POLSON — Lake County Democrats invite the public to the 2013 Democratic Convention to elect the central committee that will prepare for the 2014 midterm elections. Join us April 15 from 6:30-9 p.m. at the North County Library. See you all there.

POLSON — North Lake County Public Library in Polson is offering its traditional “Food for Fines” during National Library Week, April 15-20.

Patrons with overdue items or fines on their cards are encouraged to bring one item of canned or packaged food to the circulation desk for each book/CD/DVD, etc. that is late. Fines will be waived. Forgiveness of fines does not include lost or damaged items.

All food contributions will be donated to the Polson Loaves and Fish Food Pantry.

North Lake County Public Library is located at 2 First Ave., E. Please call (406) 883-8225 or go to: northlakecountylibrary.org for further information.

POLSON — The regular school board meeting for Polson School District 23 is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 15, at the district office, 111 Fourth Ave., E.

PABLO — Polson Police Chief Wade Nash and the Lake County Drug Task Force will be featured guests at the Monday, April 15, meeting of the Lake County Republican Women to be held at the Three Wolves Cafeteria on the Salish-Kootenai College campus.

They will discuss the mission and function of the Lake County Drug Taskforce as well as review the status of drug use and traffic in Lake County.

The meeting will begin at 11:30 a.m. with the opportunity to order lunch. The business meeting will begin at noon and conclude at 1 p.m. The speakers’ program will last approximately 40 minutes. Anyone interested in learning about this critical issue is cordially invited to attend.

RONAN — The Ronan community will hold a blood drive on Monday, April 15, from 2-6 p.m. at the Sacred Heart Parish hall. To schedule an appointment or receive more information, contact Adina Fox at (406) 675-3580. 

POLSON — “Louisiana’s Costal Wetlands: Treasure and Tragedy” by Dennis Lichtenberg will be the next evening program of the Mission Mountain Audubon Society on Tuesday, April 16 at 7 p.m. in the Polson Library meeting room. Everyone is welcome.

POLSON — “Louisiana’s Coastal Wetlands: Treasure and Tragedy” by Dennis Lichtenberg will be the next evening program of the Mission Mountain Audubon Society on Tuesday, April 16, at 7 p.m. in the Polson Library meeting room. Everyone is welcome.

POLSON — Enjoy a spring evening downtown with author of “Biting Back,” Claudia Cunningham. Claudia will be enticing us with a reading and book signing at Treasure State Mercantile, 215 Main St. on Tuesday, April 16, at 6 p.m. Attendees beware; bite-size treats and other surprises await. For more information, call (406) 883 8040.

DIXON — On April 16, from 10:35 a.m. to 3:25 p.m., Dixon School will hold a kindergarten roundup. This roundup is open to all students who will be 5 years old by Sept. 10, 2013. Parents/guardians: please bring current immunization records and a copy of your child’s birth certificate. For more information, phone (406) 246-3566.