Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana

Articles from the February 21, 2024 edition


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  • Bushilla Fire Fund: Can You Help This Local Couple?

    KATHRYN SACRY, Whitehall Resident|Feb 21, 2024

    Dan and Erlinda Bushilla awoke early at 5 AM on Monday, February 5, 2024, to discover a fire had engulfed their shop, which was only eight feet away from their home. Erlinda ran for her cell phone in her car to call 911. Unfortunately, the 911 respondent could not understand Erlinda's English so she had to run the phone to Dan to get the message for help to be sent. The Whitehall Volunteer Fire Department arrived in time (with the help of some neighboring units) to prevent the fire from...

  • Whitehall Drama Competes At State Level, Will Present THE CAVE CAT in Whitehall March 8 & 9

    ELIZABETH PULLMAN, Whitehall Ledger|Feb 21, 2024

    Whitehall Drama took THE CAVE CAT, written in 1976 by Ford Ainsworth, to state competition at the Montana Thespian Festival at the University of Montana in Missoula over the weekend. WHS competed against schools from across the state, including Hellgate High, Great Falls, Sentinel, Hardin, Big Sky, Capital High, CMR, Plains, Helena, Billings Senior, Gallatin, and Bozeman. This was the first time in fifteen years that WHS Drama has competed at festival. Eleven students and two chaperones took in...

  • Dear Editor: I Hope You Can Do Better Than This

    ROBERT JUMP|Feb 21, 2024

    Dear Editor, I just read your story regarding Tactical Civics (Ledger - 6/9/2021), why the softball? Had you gone to the website, you'd have read something far different than the hooey spouted in the story. "This republic of sovereign States, founded in the Name of Jesus Christ and blessed for centuries, is now under Communist occupation by D.C., Beijing, and many state palaces. The massive fraud in the 2020 election, combined with the criminal COVID-19 hoax was the work of criminals in the...

  • Dear Editor: Guess What? You Owe More Money!

    JAN LOMBARDI|Feb 21, 2024

    Dear Editor, Well, the next step in your residential property tax increase is happening. Banks are sending updated "mortgage bills" to homeowners. Guess what? You owe more money! Recently, a young friend reached out, concerned about his $100 monthly mortgage increase and he didn't know why. That's a lot of money - $1,200 a year. Drumroll for the explanation. Since the bill comes from the bank, it's the lender's fault, right? Nope. By law, a residential mortgage statement must show the escrow...

  • Dear Editor: We Must Manage Our Public Lands Better

    Feb 21, 2024

    Dear Editor, Hunting, angling, and ranching are the cornerstones of our communities in Southwest Montana. As such, our public lands should be managed to support these activities, which are significant economic drivers for our local economy. However, most of the public lands in Beaverhead and Madison Counties are still available for oil and gas leasing. This is surprising, given that there's very little history of drilling in our counties. According to BLM, the industry has never drilled "a...

  • Thought Provokers: 2/21/2024

    Feb 21, 2024

    Everything that comes out of the human body smells bad. Sneezing while driving is very dangerous. Addictions are normally accepted if you generate revenue from them. Naming children after dead relatives is very common, but naming a pet after a past dead pet is incredibly weird. All firearms are a sophisticated way of throwing rocks at each other. Everyone’s an idiot and only smart people are willing to admit it. It’s unfathomably easy to ruin your entire life. Finding a dollar in the 1800s must have been so exciting. People are much more int...

  • Our Town 125 and 100 Years Ago: February, Part II

    ARLENE WEBER, Jefferson Valley Museum|Feb 21, 2024

    8 Years Ago - February, Part II: Depending on who you were, February 1898 was either a good or a terrible month. Things were getting tough for cotton mill owners and workers as the fourth week of a strike moved into the fifth. French Canadian workers from those mills were moving back to Canada causing a potential labor shortage. Heavy rains in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and western Montana caused many mudslides and negatively affected railroads, especially the Northern Pacific. Yale...

  • Robert "Bob" G. Lack, 76

    Feb 21, 2024

    Bob passed away Tuesday, February 13, 2024, on his beloved ranch in Whitehall, Montana alongside his beautiful horses he cherished more than anything. Bob was born in Woodlake, California on August 15, 1947, to Robert Glenn Lack and Velma Jean Burns. He was an amazing bull rider in his earlier years and he also had the love of doing hair in Tri-Cities, Washington. He worked many jobs but his love was being a cowboy and the ranch life, He loved working on so many beautiful ranches up the Whitetai... Full story

  • Scott Eugene Juhnke, 61

    Feb 21, 2024

    Scott Eugene Juhnke passed away at home on Sunday, February 11, 2024, at age 61. Scott was born in Shelbyville, Illinois to Charles "Bill" William Juhnke and Leola Jenell (Pfeiffer) Juhnke on May 4, 1962. He attended school in Shelbyville, Illinois, and Windsor, Illinois graduating high school in 1980. He spent years farming on his family's farm and other various jobs. In the early 90s, visits to his older brother Chuck's home in Montana made him fall in love with the mountains. In 2005 he... Full story

  • Hank King, 88

    Feb 21, 2024

    Hank King, 88, passed on February 15, 2024. He was a beloved member of the Whitehall Rotary Club, everyone's favorite school bus driver, and a Whitehall resident everyone enjoyed. His obituary and services information will be released at a later date.... Full story

  • 9 Ways to Support Mental Wellness

    STATEPOINT|Feb 21, 2024

    When it comes to overall wellness, focusing on mental health is critical, especially for older adults, according to experts. “As people age, they may experience stressors such as serious illness, losing close friends and family members, managing life on a fixed income, and coping with concerns about their mortality. While seniors may show resilience to these dimensions of vitality when they’re compounded, these losses and stressors can result in a myriad of behavioral health issues, including depression, anxiety, stress, and insomnia,” says...

  • Tech Questions? Get The Answers: 2/21/2024

    TIM SCHOBER, White Hat Tech Solutions|Feb 21, 2024

    Common Computer Security Myths Debunked In an era dominated by digital advancements, the importance of computer security cannot be overstated. Unfortunately, misinformation often circulates, leading individuals and businesses to adopt practices that might not be as effective as believed. Let's debunk some common computer security myths and shed light on the reality behind these misconceptions. Myth #1: "I Have Antivirus Software, So I'm Fully Protected." Reality: While antivirus software is a...

  • Whitehall Rotarians Help at District Basketball Tournament

    ARLENE WEBER, Whitehall Rotary Club|Feb 21, 2024

    Members of the Whitehall Rotary Club volunteered their time during the District Basketball tournament held at the Manhattan Christian Event Center in Churchill on February 14th through the 17th. More than 65 combined volunteer hours were worked staffing the tournament admission desk, helping with attendance count, and selling tournament programs. Joan Jones, Libby McBride, Karen Burtch, Arlene Weber, Pod Moriarty, and Terry Ross worked in pairs during the tournament putting in at least six...

  • Whitehall Chamber Corner: 4 Ways You Might Be Sabotaging Your Business

    Whitehall Chamber of Commerce|Feb 21, 2024

    Teddy Roosevelt is credited for having said, “If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn't sit for a month." And so it is that we are often our biggest impediment to success, especially as business owners. We spend hours helping customers and often don’t show ourselves the same assistance (Oh, doctor, heal thyself.) If you’re wondering what this advice has to do with your “top employee,” you need this article more than you realized. In a time of rising costs and increased concerns over mental he...

  • Trojans Basketball Take on Districts, Girls Come Up Just Short for Divisionals

    406 MT SPORTS|Feb 21, 2024

    The Whitehall Trojan men took on Lone Peak in the first game of the District tournament on Wednesday, February 14th. Lone Peak took home the win, 41-38. Whitehall led 25-22 entering the final eight minutes. Campbell Smith was a one-man show himself for the Trojans with 20 points. The loss brought the Trojans to play on Saturday, February 17th against Jefferson. The Panthers fell behind by 14 at halftime and then overpowered the Trojans in the second half, winning 67-63. The Whitehall Lady...

  • You're Not the Boss in Wilderness

    JOHN CLAYTON, Writers on the Range|Feb 21, 2024

    When my friends and I encountered the fresh grizzly bear scat, we were deep in Wyoming’s Teton Wilderness, 20 miles from a trailhead. I’d seen grizzlies before—from the car. But this experience was on a whole other level. I felt vulnerable, nervous. I also felt fully alive. That feeling owes much to the Wilderness Act, which became law 60 years ago, in 1964. When President Lyndon B. Johnson created a nationwide system of wild landscapes “untrammeled by man,” it gave physical expression to an unusual attitude toward land. The attitude could be...

  • Shaw Announces Candidacy for Senate Seat 35

    RAY SHAW, Montana Senate Seat 35 Candidate|Feb 21, 2024

    My name is Ray Shaw, a proud Vietnam Vet, and I am excited to announce my candidacy for Senate Seat 35. This district encompasses Madison, Beaverhead, and parts of Jefferson, Gallatin, and Silver Bow Counties. As a fifth-generation resident of the Ruby Valley, I come from a ranching background that runs deep in our community. Southwest Montana boasts a wealth of opportunities, from our thriving agricultural sector to our abundant natural resources, outdoor recreation, world-class fly fishing,...

  • Rosendale Removes Self As Senate Candidate

    ARREN KIMBEL-SANNIT, Montana Free Press|Feb 21, 2024

    Montana Congressman Matt Rosendale, who just last week announced a highly anticipated run for U.S. Senate, is dropping his campaign after former President Donald Trump - the ultimate kingmaker in modern GOP politics - endorsed his primary opponent Tim Sheehy last Friday, shortly after Rosendale's announcement. "I have long been a supporter of the President, and remain so. But I have been forced to calculate what my chances of success would be with Trump supporting my opponent," Rosendale said...

  • New Hunting, Fishing and Conservation License Year Begins March 1

    MORGAN E. JACOBSEN, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks|Feb 21, 2024

    The new license year opens March 1, which means that is the day you can buy your 2024 hunting, fishing, and conservation licenses and begin applying for permits and special licenses. The deadline to apply for deer and elk permits is April 1. Applications for most species – deer, elk, antelope, deer B licenses, elk B licenses, antelope B licenses, moose, sheep, goat, bison, bear, and turkey – can be made beginning March 1. A new online feature this year is the option for applicants to reapply for the same offerings as last year with just a simpl...

  • FWP Announces Changes to Reservation Process at State Parks

    MORGAN E. JACOBSEN, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks|Feb 21, 2024

    Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will implement changes this year to the reservation process for state park sites. The changes will create more opportunities for recreationists to enjoy state parks and comply with legislation passed by the 2023 Legislature. Starting this year, visitors will have up to three months prior to their planned arrival date to make campsite and lodging reservations or purchase tour tickets. This is a change from the six-month booking window in the past. Visitors need to be aware that the maximum stay per site changed...

  • FWP Reopens Public Comment Period for Draft Grizzly Bear and Wolf Management Plans

    MORGAN E. JACOBSEN, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks|Feb 21, 2024

    Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is reopening the public comment period for the 2024 Grizzly Bear Management Plan and Montana Gray Wolf Conservation and Management Plan to ensure Montana counties, Tribes, and state and federal agencies have a chance for input. The new deadline is March 9. The extension will ensure that the Montana statute requiring FWP to notify county commissioners of opportunities to comment on management plans for grizzly bears, wolves, and other large carnivores has been met. It will also allow for additional time for tribal...

  • RECIPE OF THE WEEK: Deep-Dish Peanut Butter Pie

    Feb 21, 2024

    Math-lovers rejoice each March because they get to celebrate a particular irrational number and mathematical constant that is the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. Known more casually as pi (¹), this infinite decimal is typically shortened to 3.14. What does pi have to do with cooking, one may ask? Typically nothing, unless a person is calculating the size of a circular food. However, because the symbol is pronounced with the long "i" (as in eye), it is a homonym for pie, which...

  • Just Ask Georgia: 2/21/2024

    GEORGIA|Feb 21, 2024

    Georgia, I have a question, I got a new neighbor. She came to say hello and in the same sentence said she was getting a privacy fence and asked if I would pay for my side. I looked at her and laughed. I thought she was messing with me. Woman was dead serious. I told her that’s not how that freaking works and I shut my door in her face after she told me I had no choice. She’s been living in the neighborhood for a week. Am I in the wrong for thinking if she wants to put up a fence she should pay for it herself? Don’t Want a Fence Dear Don’t Want,...

  • Jefferson County Sheriff's Report: Week of 2/11/2024

    JEFFERSON COUNTY SHERIFF DEPT.|Feb 21, 2024

    SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 11 07:22:19 911 Open Line: Pipestone Rd 07:56:48 Medical: N Division St 08:39:40 Traffic Stop: N Whitehall St 12:36:33 Citizen Assist: S Brooke St 15:01:18 Medical: W Viella St 16:42:23 Traffic Stop: E Legion St 08:31:29 Agency Assist: Hwy 55 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12 10:05:35 Transport: Lower Rader Creek Rd 10:35:03 Agency Assist: I-90 11:25:44 Larceny/Theft: E First St 12:39:01 Agency Assist: N Division St 15:20:00 Traffic Stop: Yellowstone Trl 15:34:33 Traffic Hazard: Hwy 2 E 15:59...

  • CONNECTING POINT: Expired & Worn

    BILL LANES|Feb 21, 2024

    I recently found myself digging through the fridge to grab some milk, I was looking forward to enjoying a rare bowl of cereal. Disappointment set in as I took a whiff and squinted to read the expiration date on the milk container. Dina, my wife, pointed out a small amount of heavy cream in the fridge door so I watered that down to enjoy the rather rare bowl of cereal since the expiration date was safe. In Luke 5 we read of Jesus describing two parables: new and old patching of garments and new and old wineskins to make a point, all the...

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