Stimulus

Whitefish's North Valley Food Bank will help "jump start" the economy with $3,500 in cash donated in $10 and $20 bills that were included in the Christmas food boxes for more than 200 families.

A special thank you for two anonymous donations totaling $1,500, which specified $10 bills be placed in each food box for that little extra this year that the food bank wasn't able to provide.

And to Rick and Dawn Barnes for their yearly Jeep-filled donation of food (930 pounds this year), as well as the added 1,000 envelopes with $20 bills in each.

Surprise, tears and smiles filled the food bank as people were told where the money would go. One senior citizen said, "It's going to help pay my utilities." Others said they would use the gift for personal-need items, gas, etc.

Bee Broadcasting alerts people to what's going on with the North Valley Food Bank and which of the many town businesses are doing their own food drives. We much appreciate them helping get the word out for our community.

My favorite story is of the woodcutter and his boys putting up with a broken-down truck and having to walk out of the woods nine miles for parts before finally selling the load of wood and picking up a box of food with his gift card.

All were wet and hungry. He gets a kettle of beans and ham, and a plate of hot biscuits for supper from his wood-buyer, smiles and says, "It doesn't get any better than this."

It was a great Christmas at North Valley Food Bank this year.

June Munski-Feenan

Whitefish

Nordic thanks

The Glacier Nordic Club would like to express our great appreciation to the merchants and donors who supported the recent Nordic Club fundraiser. Your help supports the maintenance of the winter grooming of the trail system at the Whitefish Lake Golf Club and the Glacier Nordic Team youth ski programs.

Please support these fine businesses that support the Glacier Nordic Club's efforts to provide excellent cross-country skiing right in town: 33 Baker Salon, Amazing Crepes, Arne Boveng, Back Door General Store, Beargrass Gardens, Best Western Rocky Mountain Lodge, Big Sky Specialty Compounding, Bonneli's Bistro, Bonnie Closson, Bookworks, Brenda Winkler, Buffalo Caf, Craggy Range Bar and Grill, Daniel Wright, Debbie Mallams, Flathead Fish and & Seafood, Fondue to You, Ganache, Glacier Cyclery, Glacier Foot and Ankle, Glacier Guides, Montana Raft Co., Glacier Outdoor Center, Great Northern Bar and Grill, Great Northern Brewery, Great Northern Cycles, Grouse Mountain Lodge, Hair Hut, Hammer Nutrition, Hidden Moose Lodge, Imagination Station, Inspirations/Amy Arakaki, Izaak Walton Inn, Jan Metzmaker, Karen Crittendon, Latitude 48, Loula's, Mackenzie River Pizza Co., Mambos, Markus Foods, McGough & Co., Montana Espresso, Montana Hair Studio, Mountain Cinema Whitefish, Mrs. Spoonovers, Nelson's Ace Hardware, Next Level Fitness, North Country Log Works, Outback Ski Shack, Piney Creek Interiors, Purple Frog Farms, Purple Pomegranate, Quickee's, Red Caboose Diner, Remedies Spa, Rocky Mountain Outfitters, Runner Up Sports, Russ Schneider, Sage & Cedar, Sage Spa, Sally's Bakery, Samarah Fine Art, Sappari, Savannah's, Serranos, Sope, Sportsman Ski Haus, Sprouts, Stillwater Mountain Lodge, Stumptown Art Studio, Stumptown Snowboards, Tail Waggers, Terrapin Farms, The Bean Hive Caf, The Bulldog, The White Room, Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork/Jen Elden, Third Street Market, The Toggery, Verona Accessories, Village Shop, Wasabi, Whitefish Lake Golf Club, Whitefish Lake Restaurant, and Whitefish Massage Therapy/Jessica Cooney.

For information about Glacier Nordic Club visit glaciernordicclub.com.

Ellie Johnson

board president

Glacier Nordic Club

Auditorum

Fundraising for the Whitefish Middle School auditorium is chugging along at a healthy clip due to the extreme generosity of our community over the holidays.

Old Man Walking has received checks, cash and updated pledges while trekking through the snow-covered streets of Whitefish, and the total we have raised to date is $85,000. Other pledges and donations have dropped our final debt to just under $450,000.

Thanks to all the wonderful people of Whitefish, Kalispell, Columbia Falls, Bigfork, Lakeside and Somers who have helped to make our fundraising efforts a giant success over the past month.

If you would like to make a pledge to this extraordinary project, please contact Carol or Richard Atkinson at 862-7591.

Richard Atkinson

Whitefish