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 Whitehall School Board voted Friday afternoon to not reconvene onsite instruction for the last 20 days for the 2019- 2020 school year from May 7 to June 4. Prior to the vote, Superintendent Hannah Nieskens shared the results of a survey sent to parents asking for their input on if school should continue. Nieskens reported they had 211 responses with 64.5 percent saying they would not send their child back to school and 35.5 in favor of returning to school. In a release from the district,...
Lorie Steerman describes the Whitehall Library as the heart of the community. A member of the Friends of the Whitehall Community Library, she recently discussed the importance of the upcoming June 2 mill levy election. The Jefferson County Library board is seeking an additional nine mills, an approximate cost of around $141,534. According to Steerman, the increase at current value would annually cost county taxpayers an additional $12.15 on a home worth $100,000; $24.30 on a home worth $200,000...
With the cancellation of sporting events across the county, ESPN has really had to get creative to fill content not only on their network but as well as on their web site. One thing the network has always done well at not many people know about is their documentaries and "30 for 30" series which is high-quality television. They have also captivated viewers and earned big ratings the past couple weeks for the documentary "The Last Dance" which details the final world championship run of the...
The Montana High School Association announced last week spring activities would be cancelled for the 2019-20 school year. The announcement came shortly after Governor Steve Bullock issued a reopening plan for the state that allow districts to determine if they would return to school May 7. "Because of the previous MHSA Board action, resumption of spring activities depended on our student's ability to return to in-person instruction without restrictions by May 4th and if in-person instruction...
A major event scheduled for June in Whitehall will not take place until next year. Tara Price of the Montana Longears Association announced last week the 36th annual Montana Mule Days event scheduled for June 12 to 14 would be postponed until June of 2021. The event has taken place the past three years in Whitehall with spectator numbers over a thousand as well as over 100 classes. "We have continued to monitor the COVID-19 situation, and it is out of great concern to the health of our Montana...
Whitehall High School Principal Melissa Robbins connected with senior classes officers last week to discuss graduation for the class of 2020. Robbins said because timelines and opportunity to make a virtual production is limited, they have agreed to move forward to ensure something formal is completed and available to everyone pending the health situation at the end of May. "We have the opportunity to do something that does not impose any health risks to our community or graduates by a...
I was sitting at the drive-in window at the A&W/KFC in Whitehall last when a memory I had blocked out for good reason resurfaced and I really wish it wouldn't have. As I sat waiting for my Papa Burger, I was reminded of my first job interview and it instantly made me want to roll the window and spew. This is probably the first time I had thought about this wretched 15 minutes of my life since I had interview number two. I was a 15-year-old sophomore in high school and was encouraged to get a...
Local school officials are unsure of what is going to happen for the 2020 graduation ceremonies. Three Forks 6-12 Principal Greg Heys said he has been tossing around ideas with the staff and other administrators in the area to come up with the best-case scenario for students who are scheduled to graduate May 24. Ideas discussed by Heys include hosting "drive-in graduation at a nearby field, changing the date to June and hosting it on a football field, and a virtual ceremony. "None of them are...
My older sister lives in Los Angeles and probably has some of the best dining options in the country. She can experience the cuisine of so many different cultures, plenty of fresh seafood, lots of healthy options and of course can anytime go to In and Out Burger. Despite all the choices offered in California, her pallet has not completely changed since her days in high school in Rock Springs, Wyoming. She has not lived in her hometown for around 30 years, but one of her first stops is always to...
I am a true-crime junkie. It does matter if it is a book, television series, podcast, website, or documentary, I will check it out. To some, it certainly may sound like a macabre past time learning about serial killers or the mob, but I just cannot get enough of it. I usually spend at least some of my weekends working covering sports or other community events but this hasn't been the case for the past few weeks. This has allowed me to binge-watch a few television shows. I've always known people...
In June of 2019, Thomas Elpel of Pony led a small expedition down the 2,341-mile length of the Missouri River from Three Forks to St. Louis. During this five-month journey, Elpel shared his story with local residents in weekly columns that appeared in both the Whitehall Ledger and Three Forks Voice newspapers. Late last week, Elpel announced his book about the journey "Five Months on the Missouri River: Paddling a Dugout Canoe" had arrived from the printer. The full-color book features 270 pages...
I spend a lot of time cooking and take pride in the dishes I create. I would like to think they are generally pretty satisfactory but every once in a great while, it can be a real disaster. Unfortunately, this has been the case a few times too many lately. I absolutely love pizza and have tinkered with various homemade recipes over the years. I've always found that the biggest issue is getting the crust just right and believe I finally have this down. A few weeks ago, I decided I would make...
The show went on March 14 for the annual Black Tie Blue Jeans fundraiser in Whitehall. According to Kristi Wilson of the Whitehall Chamber, organizers are very thankful the event was not a day later as they would have had to shut it down. "It was nice to forget what we all knew was coming for one last evening and come together for the betterment of our community," she said. As far as attendance, Wilson feels COVID-19 did affect the final attendance of the largest local fundraiser of the year. "W...
Five Whitehall basketball players were recently recognized for their efforts during the 2019-20 season. The good news for Trojans fans is each of the players was an underclassman and will return next season. For the girls, Brynna Wolfe was named to the 5B District All-State team and was also selected first team all-conference. The sophomore was second in scoring in 5B with 14.7 points a game, second in free throw percentage at 78.4 percent, and second in three-pointers made with 26. Head Coach...
It is always important for residents of a small town to shop locally and to eat at local restaurants. This is even more important right now. While dining rooms at restaurants across the area are currently closed, they are still offering take-out and delivery options and people really need to think about supporting them as much as they can during this time. Having a dining room closed is such a big deal for a small-town restaurant and it is time for the community to band together to go and pick...
On Thursday of last week, Governor Steve Bullock declared a state of emergency to exist within the state of Montana related to the communicable disease COVID-19 novel coronavirus. In an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19, later Bullock announced Sunday a two-week closure of public schools in the state from March 16 to March 27. The directives announced by Bullock also included limited visitation at nursing homes, and public guidance regarding social distancing. Jefferson County Public Health...
A high-level Barrick Gold official is optimistic about the planned TSF 1 Tailings Reprocessing project at the Golden Sunlight Mine near Whitehall. Patrick Malone, Vice President of Closure and Governance for Barrick North America, told Community Transition Advisory Committee members last week the company is very excited about the project. He added the TSF 1 project would keep the site open for another ten years with the potential for much longer with the proposed TSF 2 project. "I'm extremely...
American Legion Post 24 in Whitehall has a new post commander. Kristian Richardson was elected into the position January 7 and feels his new role is an important responsibility. "I feel like I have an opportunity to make change in the community which I'm really excited about. One of my main goals is to bring in a new generation of military Veterans into the American Legion here in Jefferson County. There needs to be a new lifeblood in the organization if we want to be able to affect future...
A little over five years ago Melissa and I went to go watch a UFC fight card in Las Vegas that featured Conor McGregor as well as many other well-known MMA fighters. It was a glorious time and I still think fondly on it often. Although most of the trip went smoothly with a lot of smiles, there was one hiccup that has also been remembered. We knew it was going to be a very long night of the fight card, so we made sure to stop and get a big meal at Wolfgang Puck's restaurant in Caesar's Palace....
I have so many fond memories of my childhood spent with my Grandpa and Grandma Smith. The two were a huge part of my life and we spent many days attending the University of Wyoming football and basketball games and many fun-filled vacations to places like Jackson Hole and Salt Lake City. There were numerous days spent at their house with countless hours spent in their backyard playing with my cousins. As many games as we would go to, there were always the ones we did not make and for those we...
The Whitehall High School girls basketball team did not go down without a fight at last week's Southern B Divisional Tournament in Billings. Although they were eliminated after a loss Saturday 47-40 in the consolation semifinals Saturday morning against Forsyth, the Lady Trojans showed a great deal of heart and promise for the future at the tournament with a 61-51 play-in win Wednesday over Huntley Project and a 43-38 win Friday over conference rival Three Forks. Whitehall fell in the...
The Whitehall High School boys basketball team showed the heart of a champion in a March 4 loss at the Southern B Divisional Tournament. The Trojans shined throughout the night on defense but ultimately fell 36-34 in a play-in game heartbreaker against Columbus. "Those kids played their hearts out for themselves, for each other, and that is what it's all about. They battled, they battled, they battled. They did a great job," Head Coach Zach McLean said following the game. The Trojans were paced...
Want to test your trivia knowledge in a fun and laid-back atmosphere? The K Bar and Grill in Whitehall is the place to go. Each Wednesday starting at 6:30 p.m., K-Bar offers a "Trivia Night" where teams battle it out testing their knowledge on a variety of topics. The weekly event started in October of 2019, and Bill Brown of the K Bar has been very pleased with the turnout that packs the bar portion of the establishment located at 13 W. Legion. "It's been crazy," Brown said of the turnout. "It...
Say the magic words "pizza party" at a school and chaos will ensue. There will be yelling, screaming, and the happiest group of kids you could possibly find outside of a birthday or Christmas morning. Kids love pizza and they like it even more when they can have it at school. As a kid I would also get very enthused when a teach mentioned pizza, in fact I would get pretty darn excited anytime anybody mentioned pizza --- and still do. During my elementary years, I would go just about every Friday...
It will be a win or go home game March 4 for the Whitehall High School girls basketball game. The third-seeded Lady Trojans (13-7) will be opening the Southern B Divisional Tournament in Billings with a play-in game against the third seed from the 4B District Huntley Project. The contest is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the MetraPark Arena. The winner will advance to the double-elimination tournament with a matchup against Colstrip, the top seed from the 3B District. Whitehall Head Coach Kelly...
