Columns
The drive from Big Sandy to Great Falls is awfully familiar to our family. Jon drives those 70-some miles twice a week as he travels between our farm and the Senate. Often we drive together — for farm parts, haircuts, you name it. The drive is second nature. But lately, it has taken on a new meaning. Because in early spring of this year, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I found the cancer as many women do, with a lump. But I had a bit of a head start: breast cancer runs in my family – both my grandmothers had breast cancer, and my grandmother on my mother’s side, my mother, my sister, myself, and my daughter all have the same breast cancer gene. The knowledge that...
For 28 years, we had the great honor of serving Montana as Superintendents of Public Instruction. In that time, we increased funding for Montana’s public schools, improved graduation rates and defended our public education system against those who would privatize it. Unfortunately, the current offic...
We enthusiastically support Gerry Browning’s candidacy for Montana House District 12. Some past local representatives were polarizing and seemed to use their elective offices as mere stepping stones to other offices. We are confident that Gerry will reach across party lines in the Legislature and will ...
There is one week set aside each year to salute newspapers for the important role they have played in our nation, a role that goes back to the beginning of these United States. This year, however, waiting until Oct. 4-10 and National Newspaper Week has been difficult because the coronavirus pandemic...
We now have 10 T-Mobile Wi-Fi hotspots available for a seven-day checkout with a North Lake County Public Library card. The hotspot project is funded in part with Library Services and Technology Act funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the Montana State Library. Ho...
Now more than ever, it is imperative that voters participate this Election Day. Our nation is not just facing the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic but also significant unemployment, which means that millions of people are temporarily depending on federal and state programs and support. As we look for better d...
The work of the 2019 legislative session has come full circle on two bills vetted in the Senate State Administration Veterans’ Affairs Committee, which I chaired. One was SB 275 by Sen. Al Olszewski (R-Kalispell) and HB 524 by Rep. Marvin Weatherwax (D-Browning) that brought attention to needs for reco...
This month we are highlighting two displays. Our library received the “Rightfully Hers” popup display from the National Archives in celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment and the women’s suffrage movement. This display is in our library atrium along with a selection of b...
Plastic! Yeah, it’s everywhere ... not just in grocery store aisles and department stores and every other commercial outlet you can think of, not to mention your own cupboards and closets and trashcans, but on the grass and on the sidewalks, in the landfills, in the lakes and rivers, in the oceans. And...
These are tumultuous and troubling times. Many of us are struggling to keep peace and hope alive in our hearts and minds. Even though our small valley has not experienced the extremes of the pandemic, severe natural disasters or violent riots, we are all affected by what’s happening in the rest of the ...
