Community news
Work party
Volunteers are needed to help put up and take down the Holiday Village decorations at Marantette Park in Columbia Falls. The lights at the exhibit will be turned on during the Night Of Lights on Dec. 5. For more information, call Gary Sparr at 751-4752 or e-mail him at gsparr@glacierbank.com. A work party to put up the display will be held at Marantette Park on Nov. 22 at 10 a.m. Bring drills and other tools. Call Carol Pike at 892-2072 for more information.
Class reunion
A planning meeting for the Columbia Falls High School Class of 1975 reunion will take place at the Fellowship Alliance Church on Seventh Avenue West in Columbia Falls on Monday, Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. For more information, call Leah Levitt at 261-6874.
Swim team meeting
The Columbia Falls swim team will hold an informational meeting Nov. 11 and 13 from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the high school foyer. Interested parents and students are encouraged to attend and find out more information and get signed up.
History talk
The Columbia Falls Historical Society invites the public to attend a presentation by Jerry O’Neil on the history of the Old Main building at the Montana Veterans Home in the Montana Veterans Home service building on Tuesday, Nov. 18, at 7 p.m. O’Neil’s presentation will focus on the construction of Old Main and a history of the uses and changes it has gone through. The historical society has a special interest in the building as they continue working towards having it remodeled into a museum for the Columbia Falls area.
Harvest dinner
The Glacier to Gateway Trail will serve up a harvest dinner of local foods at the Montana Coffee Traders in Columbia Falls on Friday, Nov. 14, from 6 to 8 p.m. The event is an educational fundraiser about the bike path project to connect Columbia Falls with Glacier National Park along U.S. 2. The suggested donation is $10 adults, $5 children. Learn about the progress on the bike path from Columbia Falls to Glacier National Park, and support this amazing project.
Church bazaar
St. Richard’s Catholic Church, in Columbia Falls, will hold its annual bazaar on Saturday, Nov. 15, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with craft items, homemade baked goods, religious items and a raffle with a $300 cash top prize. Lunch will be soup, sandwiches and pie.
Art exhibit
The Hockaday Museum of Art, 302 Second Avenue East, in Kalispell, will present its 13th annual Members Salon art exhibit from Nov. 13 through Dec. 27, with more than 100 works created over the past year in glass, sculpture, pottery, textile, photography, jewelry, oil, watercolor, acrylic and dye on silk. A free and public opening reception will be held on Thursday, Nov. 13, from 5 to 7 p.m. Beginning Nov. 13, visitors may vote for their favorite piece in the People’s Choice Awards. For more information, visit online at www.HockadayMuseum.org or call 406-755-5268.
Chamber meets
The Columbia Falls Area Chamber of Commerce will hold its monthly meeting in the Teakettle Community Room, 235 Nucleus Avenue, on Tuesday, Dec. 9, from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. The annual Christmas luncheon will include music programs presented by Columbia Falls High School students and presenting of the Chamber’s First Buck Awards and Community Pride Awards. Luncheon costs $12. No reservation is required.
Library exhibit
A new display at the ImagineIF Columbia Falls library is an exhibit of photos of the Syrian cultural landscape by Maggie Davis, of Lakeside. In the spring of 2011, Syria was experiencing civil unrest throughout the country. Despite the turmoil, Davis continued her trip and documented her experiences along the way. The exhibit will hang throughout November. Local artists of all ages and experience levels are encouraged to apply for future exhibits.
Winter coats
Flathead Valley Community College’s Service Learning and AmeriCorps programs are collecting new and gently-used coats and jackets of all sizes for its One Warm Coat drive. Donations can be placed in the collection box located inside the foyer of Blake Hall on the FVCC campus through Nov. 21. Donated coats will be given to Feeding the Flathead/Community Kitchen and other local community organizations that will distribute the coats at no cost to people in need. Since One Warm Coat was founded in 1992, nearly 4 million coats have been provided to those in need nationwide at no cost. For more information, call 756-3908.
Leadership Flathead
Leadership Flathead is accepting proposals from local 501c3 nonprofit organizations for service projects which will be completed by a team of Leadership Flathead participants between June 2015 and May 2016. Leadership Flathead seeks proposals from local nonprofit organizations for collaborative projects that could be undertaken by the local nonprofit staff, board and a team of five to 12 Leadership Flathead participants. Projects require a minimum of 20 hours and a maximum of 40 hours of service per team member over the course of the 12-month period. Ideal collaborative projects will allow team members to hone their leadership skills. Examples of past projects include assisting the Flathead County Fairgrounds with gathering public input for a master plan; establishing an annual fundraising event for the Columbia Falls Community Garden; mentoring Flathead High School students participating in the Student Entrepreneurship Club; and partnering with Flathead Area Young Professionals to plan and conduct the third Success in the New West conference. For more information, e-mail leadershipflathead@kalispellchamber.com or call 406-758-2810.