Facilitating use of Sondreson Hall
To the editor,
Regarding Donald Sullivan's letter in the HHN 09/24/08 he states, "One can only ponder for whose benefit this new North Fork Landowners policy is intended. It can't be for the benefit of North Fork landowners." Mr. Sullivan, I couldn't agree more. You may recall during the August NFLA meeting I suggested the hall be allowed to be rented for a short two-hour period on a Sunday or Saturday morning for a nominal (cheap) fee as a way to accommodate religious services in the community. This would have permitted the organization to avoid the appearance of sponsoring a particular religious use. Religion and worship is an important component of most communities. A community group should serve the whole community, not just a select few.
After my suggestion the comment was made that Pat Cole (secretary) would have to come and open up the hall for just a two-hour use. That is an excuse. There are lots of ways to facilitate a short two-hour use. They could simply trust you with the key. Or something as simple as a lock box for the key such as is used when houses are on the market for sale could be used. Or there are timed key-code locks that would serve the need.
Unfortunately you have encountered the familiar posturing many of us in the North Fork have encountered with the NFLA. The NFLA presents itself as representing the North Fork Community but, in fact, they represent only a portion of the landowners. For the admirable purpose of bringing people together for worship the NFLA board stands against you. That is unless you give them enough money. It is a sad commentary on the NFLA as a community organization.
You would find there are many more landowners in support of an accommodation for religious service use of the hall than amongst the attendees that stacked the August election meeting. Many North Fork landowners believe what the NFLA is doing is wrong and that the NFLA is out of touch with a large portion of the landowners. Larry Wilson is to be commended for shining the light on the NFLA's board position on this issue.
Greg Puckett
Polebridge
Jordan endorses MacLean
To the editor,
I want to urge all those who voted for me in the June primary, all 1,119 of you, along with all those who did not vote in June, to cast your votes Nov. 4 for my worthy opponent, and primary victor, Brittany MacLean, for Senate District 2.
Brittany has Montana values and deep roots in western Montana, being the daughter of a railroader, a graduate of Whitefish High School and the University of Montana. She holds a Master's degree in urban policy and works now as a grant writer. A widowed mother of four, Brittany knows first hand the real world challenges that working families face every day.
Brittany is committed to improving our economic future while maintaining our quality of life. As your state senator, she will work to make Montana a world leader in alternative energy, improve our schools, protect access to public lands and make health care more affordable for all.
Brittany's opponent talks about fighting in Helena if elected. Given the last session, considered among the most contentious and partisan in Montana's history, we don't need a senator who considers fighting and confrontation to be an asset. We need someone like Brittany MacLean who will work to find common ground to get important things done for all of us, regardless of political party. Brittany knows how to work with others and bring people together for the common good.
Please learn more about this outstanding candidate at www.brittanymaclean.com, and vote Nov. 4 for Brittany MacLean for Senate District 2.
Gil Jordan
Coram
Holm gets endorsement
To the editor,
I only met Mick Holm when he accepted the position of superintendent of Glacier National Park in 2002. I also sat in on Flathead Basin Commission meetings, as a citizen attendee, which Mick served on as a board member. He was a dedicated public servant to us all during these past six years I have known him.
In fact, Mick has been known to go above and beyond his normal duties to help out his community. When I approached him in 2004, while he was superintendent of GNP, and asked for his help in restoring NBC-TV signals after the translator tower on Apgar Mountain was destroyed in those deadly 2003 forest fires, resulting in no TV warning system for residents of the Canyon in case of fires, floods or other events necessitating evacuation alerts, Mick went to work and used his influence to accommodate a fix to the tower's translator. Not many Canyon residents know he was instrumental in making that happen, but he was. His current rival for House District 3 was nowhere to be seen to provide any help during that time period while she previously held this office.
Knowing Mick Holm, I can tell you that he grew up in rural Montana tilling the soil, planting crops and harvesting grain; was educated here in public school and college at the University of Montana; taught school here, as did his wife, Patti; hunted, fished and hiked throughout Montana; and protected the natural beauty of the precious Crown Jewel of The Rockies, Glacier National Park, as its superintendent for seven years, which culminated a 33-year career with the National Park Service, the last 22 years of which were in management-level positions.
Some of the key issues Mick is focused on are: strengthening our local economy; make affordable health care available for every Montana family; guarantee a clean and healthy Montana; adequately fund education at every level for Montanans; and protect our constitutional freedoms.
Mick Holm is a hard worker, is intelligent, works well with others of both political parties, and would represent us well as the Montana state legislator from House District 3, which is Columbia Falls, Hungry Horse, Martin City, Coram, West Glacier, Apgar, Polebridge, Nyack, Pinnacle, Essex and all places in between.
Bill Baum
Martin City
Bear senselessly killed
To the editor,
In the morning of Sept. 19, I heard a loud rifle shot close to my house. My heart jumped because for the last two weeks a small mother black bear and her twin cubs had been eating chokecherries and service berries in our area.
The Game Warden knocked on my door that afternoon and told me someone had shot a bear (only a few yards from my house) in my neighbor's yard. Yes, it was the mother bear. Some thoughtless, gung-ho hunter — who never bothered to get permission from any of the land owners in that area; did not take the time to observe and determine if the bear was female or had cubs; and showed no consideration for the homes and cabins in every direction of where the bear was eating — shot and killed the young black bear, leaving her body to rot in the field. Her two dependent cubs were left to sniff at her body not knowing what to do. Hunters like this are a disgrace and endangerment to us all.
It was the Game Warden's unfortunate duty to eliminate two healthy, motherless cubs because of this idiot's mistake.
Hunters — get permission to hunt on private property! Ask around, especially if you are hunting bear. Land owners can probably tell you if there has been a female bear with cubs hanging around. It breaks my heart and makes me furious to know that healthy animals are being destroyed because of an irresponsible hunter. Check your surrounding areas for homes and out buildings before you pull the trigger. A rifle shot can travel for miles!
If you are unsure if the bear is male or female, don't shoot. Have the guts to pass up a shot if you're unsure.
My thanks and respect go to the Game Warden who cares enough to clean up the mess others make and to enforce our laws.
Nicki McPhee
Ovando
Dupont knows about issues
To the editor,
I moved to the Flathead a year ago to be near family. I am a veteran of World War II, with service in the Army Air Corps. I just celebrated my 84th birthday, and on Nov. 4, I will vote in my first general election as a Montanan.
One of the first people I met when I moved to Kalispell was Jim Dupont. Since then, I have had numerous occasions to sit down with him and chat about his candidacy for County Commissioner.
I'm a gal who follows matters closely and I'm not ashamed to tell you I grilled Jim Dupont on some of the issues facing Flathead County. I was pleased with how much he knows about county government, and his commitment to the citizens of the Flathead. We talked in detail about property rights and about personal and public safety. We also discussed specifics on county roads and the county budget. His solutions are so common sense, it's easy to see why he was elected to four terms as sheriff.
When I cast my very first vote as a Montana resident on Nov. 4, I'll be voting for Jim Dupont For County Commissioner.
Ethel Tippie
Kalispell
'Dust Bunnies' relentless
To the editor,
I wholeheartedly concur with Larry Wilson's opinion (Hungry Horse News, Sept. 11) that North Fork Landowners' Association President Molly Shepherd did an "admirable job" of controlling a potentially raucous business meeting Sept. 6 at Sondreson Hall.
All North Forkers would agree, I think, that the most divisive question up here has been whether to pave the North Fork Road — until recently, that is. One can only marvel how deftly a handful of members of the North Fork Road Coalition for Health and Safety (hereinafter referred to by their common name on the North Fork, the "Dust Bunnies") have, in my opinion, turned a matter upon which everyone can agree- — the need for better maintenance of the North Fork Road — into a pervasively contentious issue.
It is my understanding that the Dust Bunnies were formed because of a perceived failure on the part of the NFLA to address the North Fork Road maintenance problem. Ignoring the possibility that the actions and confrontational personalities of certain people who later founded the Dust Bunnies actually impeded the NFLA from pursuing that issue, let's consider what's happened during the last year:
In September 2007, the NFLA business meeting was "stacked" with Dust Bunnies, who appropriated $500 from the NFLA treasury to fund their highly-touted $10,000 North Fork Road dust study. The action precipitated formation of an NFLA committee that eventually wrote a bylaws amendment that will prevent such treasury raids in the future. The dust study, meanwhile, employed scientific equipment and unscientific methods to produce an inept, biased, perfunctory piece of pseudoscience, not worth its weight in road dust. Since then, it seems to me, certain Dust Bunnies have been attempting to advance their agenda (and thereby salvage their group's credibility) by laying off the work onto the very group they have maligned — by monopolizing NFLA business meetings with one motion/discussion/vote after another about a gravel road that Flathead County simply does not have the resources to maintain adequately. (See the series of stories in the Aug. 19 Daily Inter Lake.)
Meanwhile, under the leadership of Shepherd, the NFLA is pursuing a constructive, reality-based, non-confrontational plan to bring together folks who use the North Fork Road, to work together to reduce the dust.
The Dust Bunnies' campaign promises to be relentless. If you are considering going to the Oct. 4 NFLA business meeting (8 p.m., Sondreson Hall), do so only if you want to witness what in my opinion is the systematic unraveling of the social fabric of the North Fork by a handful of people who are behaving unreasonably over a reasonable concern.
Richard E. Wackrow
Polebridge
Thanks, Dr. Brandeberry
To the editor,
Our family wishes to express our heartfelt appreciation for the kindness and excellent care our daughter, Ashley, received from Dr. Brandeberry. He called to check on Ashley on a Saturday afternoon when she had been ill and into see him the day before.
Also, he put us one step further into checking out her heart murmur. The cardiologist we saw was also very appreciative and grateful to Dr. Brandeberry for his referral. He is the kind of doctor that makes a difference in the lives of patients and their families. Dr. Brandeberry deserves recognition for being a kind, caring and compassionate doctor.
Thank you so much!
The Miller family
Columbia Falls
Support exploitation change
To the editor:
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who took the time to respond to our ad, with helping change the law of Senior Exploitation. To all the individuals who have written to us telling us of their admiration for my sister and I, in our efforts to change and make a better law so the future, families with senior citizens will not have to go through what we have — thank you. We appreciate the support and we will continue to keep working to make this law happen.
We would also like to thank Don Bennett, Rick Reid, John Tremper and all who have testified on our behalf.
For any others that would like to comment or share any of their experiences pertaining to the Senior Exploitation Law please do not hesitate and mail your letters to P.O. Box 141, Columbia Falls, MT 59912. All letters will help us in our efforts.
Debbie Schumacher
Vickie Gove
Columbia Falls