GoLocal Flathead

SPRING/SUMMER 2016

Think , Shop & Buy

guide

LOCAL

go

Local FLATHEAD

t o F L AT H E A D BU S I N E S S E S

A FREE Guide Supporting Locally Owned FLATHEAD VALLEY Businesses

go local FLATHEAD

3

Turns out it’s not such a small world.

CONGRATULATIONS, [DEALER NAME]!

2015 TIME DEALER OF THE YEAR NOMINEE Every year, TIME magazine recognizes the auto dealer who has made the most outstanding contribution to the local community. This year, a member of our community is being considered for this prestigious award. Here’s to [Dealer Name] for all [he/she] has ® The newly redesigned 2016 Subaru Crosstrek. doneRoad-gripping for our community and for being nominated as Symmetrical AWD + 34 mpg*. And it’s a 2015 IIHS Top Safety Pick+ with a 2015 TIME Dealer of the Year. optional EyeSight®. Giving you confidence and the capability to find out how big your world can be.

Love. It’s what makes a Subaru, a Subaru.

Crosstrek. Well-equipped at $21,595.† Subaru, Crosstrek, and EyeSight are registered trademarks. *EPA-estimated hwy fuel economy for 2016 Subaru Crosstrek CVT models. Actual mileage may vary. † MSRP excludes destination and delivery charges, tax, title, and registration fees. Retailer sets actual price. 2016 Subaru Crosstrek 2.0i Limited pictured has an MSRP of $27,990.

LOCALLY OWNED AND COMMUNITY INVOLVED. SS

! C EL E

Y 26

BUSINE

IN

ATING BR

26 SUBARU DEALER LOGO HERE

Nominated as a 2015

EA R S

Visit AllyDealerHeroes.com to learn more.

Visit AllyDealerHeroes.com to learn more.

6219 HWY. 93 SOUTH | WHITEFISH | 862-2571 | www.DonKsubaru.com Just 10 Minutes North Of Reserve OnAlly Hwy. 93 Font: Benton

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go local FLATHEAD

Color: PMS 261

Local Businesses Make This Valley

The Last Best Place

The Flathead Valley is unlike any other place in the world. By choosing to shop local you help to maintain the diversity and distinctive character that makes the Flathead such a special place. You also help keep the Flathead’s local economy strong and growing.

Go Local Flathead launched in 2009, and is now published twice a year. It is produced cooperatively by the locally owned businesses that advertise in it, with the support of numerous volunteers, and with the technical and organizing expertise of the staff of Citizens for a Better Flathead.

This Guide recognizes the value of all businesses in the community, but it is beyond the scope and scale of this publication to include businesses with national/international corporate structures. There are other good resources for those businesses, including Businesses for Social Responsibility (www.bsr.org) YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN YOUR COMMUNITY! Research shows that if you shift a portion of your spending from national chains and the Internet to independent locally-owned and operated businesses, you can have a dramatic effect on your local economy when you take the pledge and commit to shop local.

For every $100 spent locally in independently owned stores, shops and restaurants, $44 to $83 is re-circulated in the local economy. When $100 is spent in national chains, only $14 to $43 stays in the local economy.

Pledge To Buy, Eat, Bank, Play And Stay Local Whenever Possible Best Wishes for Summer Fun in the Flathead From Your Local Business Community Email us at GoLocal@golocalflathead.org or call us at 756-8993.

go local FLATHEAD

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INDEX OF BUSINESSES Bigfork DINE & UNWIND

Fieldheads Coffee Co. .......................................12 EXPERIENCE

Brett Thuma Gallery............................................9 Pick’s Bowling Center ........................................12 Air Therapy Aviation .........................................12

LEARN

Kalispell Montessori Education..........................62

Levitation Nation....................................................48 Woodland Montessori.............................................59 SERVICE

Belton Chalet.....................................................15 North Fork Pizza ...............................................14

Able Body Collision Repair................................60 Calm Animal Care.............................................41 Critter Corral.....................................................66 Evergreen Pharmacy...........................................37 Insty-Prints........................................................46 J2 Business Products...........................................48 McGarvey, Heberling, Sullivan & Lacey, PC......60 Medical Arts Pharmacy......................................66 Montana Sky Networks......................................34 Montana Tile and Marble...................................39 M&C Tire..........................................................47 O’Connoll’s Hay & Grain..................................67 Paper Chase Copy Center..................................34 Pets Plus.............................................................65 Photo Video Plus...............................................42 Sandy O’Connoll PureWest Real Estate.............67 Shorty’s Barbershop............................................47 Tangle Alley.......................................................45 Valley Bank........................................................49

EXPERIENCE

SHOP

LEARN

Bigfork Dance-Whitefish Dance.........................84 SERVICE

Valley Maintenance & Property Management....11 SHOP

Kehoe’s Agate Shop............................................10 The Sapphire Shoppe..........................................11 STAY

Mountain Lake Lodge .........................................9

Columbia Falls/West Glacier DINE & UNWIND

EXPERIENCE

ACBS Big Sky Boats...........................................75 Gary Spetz Studio..............................................70 West Shore Community Library.........................74 GROW

Purple Mountain Lavender.................................70 SERVICE

AirWorks............................................................73 Remedies Lakeside.............................................69 SHOP

Lakeside Ski & Sports........................................70

W h i te f i s h DINE & UNWIND

Amazing Crepes.................................................95 Truby’s Restaurant..............................................89 Whitefish Hostel................................................92 Wrap and Roll Cafe............................................84 EXPERIENCE

Heart of Whitefish................... Outside back cover Montana Wilderness Association........................81 INDULGE

Whitefish Massage Therapy................................95 LEARN North Valley Music School.................................81 Stumptown Art Studio.......................................85 Bigfork Dance-Whitefish Dance.........................84

Bonelli’s Bistro...................................................45 Ceres Bakery......................................................33 Hops Downtown Grill.......................................48 Montana Coffee Traders.....................................35

Amalgamated Sope Company...................... 50-51 Badass Babes......................................................65 The Bookshelf....................................................37 Brix Bottleshop..................................................41 Buckskin Clothier..............................................35 Camas Creek Cottage.........................................34 Gold Rush Pawn................................................39 Flair Boutique....................................................63 Highlonesome Gallery........................................35 Imagination Station............................................37 Kalispell Antiques Market..................................55 Kalispell Kreamery.............................................46 Kettle Care Organics..........................................59 Lower Valley Woodworking................................41 Mountain Valley Foods......................................38 Paint, Metal, & Mud.................. Inside front cover Powderhorn Trading Co.....................................57 Rose Mountain Floral.........................................45 Rocky Mountain Outfitter.................................57 Sage & Cedar.....................................................31 Sassafras/First Choice Decor...............................43 Smith Carpet Center..........................................42 Southside Consignment............................... 28-29 Think Local........................................................98 Western Outdoor...............................................27 Wheeler Jewelry.................................................33 Withey’s Health Foods.......................................46 Woodland Floral................................................33

EXPERIENCE

STAY

Bailey’s Bed & Bale.............................................87 Five Star Rentals of Montana..............................77 Whitefish Hostel................................................92

Crown of the Continent Discovery Center.........14 GROW

Columbia Falls Farmers’ Market.........................23 SERVICE

Freedom Bank....................................................17 Hafferman Engineering Inc. ..............................16 Special Effects RV & Collision Center................24 SHOP

Bad Rock Books.................................................23 Creative Gifts & Montana Memories.................21 Hungry Horse Liquor Store................................21 MJM Handmade Creations ...............................23 The Montana House..........................................16 North Valley Ag Center......................................25 Rocky Mountain Nature Company....................20 The Shops at Station 8 .......................................20 Westerm Building Center...................................24 STAY

The Chalet at West Glacier ................................14 Belton Chalet.....................................................15

Kalispell

DINE & UNWIND

Grace Larson True Montana Stories....................65 Kalispell Culture..................................................3 Kalispell Downtown Association... Inside back cover Meadow Peak Skydiving.....................................30 Noice Studio & Gallery......................................62 GROW

Kalispell Farmer’s Market...................................59 INDULGE

Healing Spirits Massage......................................45

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The Apartment on Main Street...........................58

L a ke s i d e / S o m e rs DINE & UNWIND

Farmhouse..........................................................71 Maverick’s Casino...............................................74 Seven..................................................................71 Somers Bay Café................................................70 Tamarack Brewing Co........................................71

GROW

Center for Native Plants.....................................79 Good Seed Company.........................................79 Potting Studio....................................................89 Terrapin Farms...................................................89 SERVICE

DIRT Rich Compost and Pick Up Service.........89 Don K Subaru......................................................4 Erickson Trucking and Construction..................94 Ford Custom Homes..........................................92 Park Side Credit Union......................................91 SHOP

Bookworks.........................................................77 Copperleaf Chocolat Company..........................87 Crystal Winters..................................................87 Nelson’s Hardware..............................................93 Sprouts Children’s Boutique...............................92 Third Street Market............................................85 The Treasure Outpost.........................................91 Walking Man Frame Shop & Gallery.................85 Whitefish Pottery...............................................77 STAY

F l a th e a d Va l l e y

AERO................................................................79 Citizens for a Better Flathead.............................90 WasteNot Project...............................................61

Cover image by Marshall Noice, Noice Studio & Gallery. Prints are available at www.noicegallery.com.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE bigfork.................... 8 Columbia Falls/ West Glacier............ 13 Kalispell................. 26

The Bookshelf............................................ 36

by Nina Rose Saxenian

Brix Bottleshop.......................................... 40

by Nina Rose Saxenian

Bonelli’s Bistro............................................ 44

by Barb Nelson

Kalispell Antiques Market........................... 54

by Allison Batch

Pets-Plus..................................................... 64

by Linda Jaquette

Lakeside/Somers . . ..... 68 AirWorks................................................... 72

by Linda Jaquette

whitefish................. 76 Copperleaf Chocolate Company............... 86

by Mayre Flowers

Terrapin Farms.......................................... 88

by Chloe Christiana

Flathead Valley Community Calendar............ 96

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS A special Thank You to the volunteers who helped with this issue and without whom this publication couldn’t happen: Jeanne Carlson, Stephanie Daugherty, Sharon DeMeester, Connie Gomez, Dianne Grove, Linda Newgard, Pauline Sjordal, KC Voermans, Nina Rose Saxenian, and the staff of Citizens for a Better Flathead - Linda Jaquette, Mayre Flowers and Allison Batch.

If you are a locally owned business and would like more information about how to be included in our next issue of our “Go Local guide,” please give us a call at 756-8993.

Guides for a Great Summer

by Allison Batch 10 How Local Can You Go?

by Mayre Flowers 18-19 34 Years of Activism to Preserve the North Fork

by Debo Powers 22 Locally Owned Pharmacies: Best for Your Health and the Local Economy

by Mayre Flowers 52 Double Visions at the Hockaday Museum of Art

by Brian Eklund 56 Rooting Down with Native Plants

by Rita Braun 78 Hike Wild Montana

by Kassia Randzio 80 Glacier Park Goes Greener

by Sheena Pate 82-83

WHAT THE LOCALS THINK Columbia Falls

Creative Gifts Montana Memories...............21 Columbia Falls Farmer’s Market...................23 MJM Handmade Creations..........................23

Kalispell

Gold Rush Pawn..........................................39 Sassafras.......................................................42 First Choice Decor.......................................42 Shorty’s Barbershop......................................47 Conrad Mansion..........................................57 Flair Boutique..............................................62 Medical Arts Pharmacy................................66

Lakeside/Somers Seven............................................................70

Whitefish

Five Star Rentals...........................................77 Good Seed Company...................................79 Montana Wilderness Association..................81 The Bailey’s Bed & Bale................................87 Treasure Outpost..........................................91 Ford Custom Homes....................................92 go local FLATHEAD

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Bigfork To Kalispell

Stage Ridge Rd.

35 Holt

Dr.

Commerce St.

N

Osborn Ave.

Electric Ave.

Grand Dr.

Bridge St.

35

To Polson

To Evergreen

35 To Kalispell

83

Hanging Rock Dr.

Holt Dr.

82

Flathead Lake

Chapman Hill Rd

Holt Dr. Holt Dr.

Swan Highway

35 To Polson

8

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83

Bigfork To Swan Lake

Whether you’re visiting or a day or for a week, the Bigfork Mountain Lake Lodge has everything you need to make you feel comfortable, stress-free and most of all

welcome.

406.837.3800 Toll Free: 877.823.4923 mtlakelodge@centurytel.net www.MountainLakeLodge.com 147 Sylvan Drive Bigfork, Montana 59911 go local FLATHEAD

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Your Guide for a Great Summer Make the Most Out of Summer in the Flathead

Summer in Montana is glorious. The days are sunny, the weather is warm, and it seems like the sun never sets. We’ve compiled a list of guides – a guide to guides, if you will – to make it easy for you to find your next adventure and enjoy this fleeting season to the fullest.

STRETCH YOUR LEGS The Flathead Valley provides incredible hiking opportunities outside of the splendor that is Glacier National Park. The Montana Wilderness Association has recently made it much easier to find information about hiking trails on state and public lands – read more about their new online guide in our story on page 80. www.hikewildmontana.org TWO WHEELED WANDERINGS Explore a wide range of routes, from paved shoulders to single track, with this local guide to mountain and road bike trails. www.discoverkalispell.com/cycling/ GO ON A TREASURE HUNT The Flathead has a fantastic selection of antique shops. A print guide is published annually by The Barn Antiques in Bigfork – pick one up at any of the antique stores featured in the guide, or any of the local Chamber of Commerce buildings.

FOWL PLAY Polish your birding skills with this guide to birds found in the Flathead Valley. Find tips for where and how to spot our feathered friends and which birds to look for in different seasons. The list of local birds includes recordings of their song to help you identify the warbling you hear. www.flatheadaudubon.org/birds/ SEE WHAT BITES Check out the Montana Fishing Guide to find angling information for hundreds of local lakes, rivers and streams. The guide provides detailed information on which fish are in which body of water so you know which bait to pack. fwp.mt.gov/fishing/guide/ LOCAL LIBATIONS Take a load off after a long day of adventuring and quench your thirst at one of the valley’s local craft breweries, wineries or distilleries.

New tasting rooms are popping up all the time! Find descriptions and a map to your options here. www.discoverkalispell.com/brews-wines/ (Note: Check back as this guide get updated) GET OFF THE BEATEN PATH Oldtown Creative, a Whitefish-based digital development company, recently released an app that has been deemed the “anti-Yelp.” The app is designed to help you discover new places with local walking tours, points of interest, or unique stops along your way – including a full list of the historical markers found along Montana’s highways so you don’t have to stop the car. Learn more at http://wander.travel/.

—By Allison Batch

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Yogo...

The Great American Sapphire —————Mine Direct—————

The Sapphire Shoppe 570 Electric Ave. Suite A — Bigfork, MT 406.837.2595

Trusted by Homeowners Since 1995

Valley �����������

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Management g

• Long Term Rentals • Vacation Rentals • Home Watching Services

Located in Aspen Grove • 8000 MT Hwy 35 Suite #1 Bigfork, MT (406) 837-6679 • valleymaintenance.com go local FLATHEAD

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fieldheads coffee company kalispell, mt

perfect altitude roasts perfect coffee

ben storest voice 406.261.8206 fax 406.837.3202

www.fieldheadscoffee.com

Family Fun at Pick’s Bowling Center in Bigfork!

Bowling Alley • Sport’s Bar • Casino • Pizza-n-Grill

2849 MT-82, Bigfork, MT 59911 (406) 837-2233 www.picksbowl.com HOURS: Mon. - Thurs. 11am–10pm Fri.11am–12am • Sat.11am–12am Sun. 1am–10pm 12 go local FLATHEAD

C St

B St

2nd St 3rd St

3rd Ave E

1st Ave E

1st St

2nd Ave E

A St

5th Ave E

50%

36%

t

ad S

ro Rail

4th Ave E

COLUMBIA FALLS

6th Ave E

COLUMBIA FALLS/ WEST GLACIER

4th Ave E

7th St

5th St

8th St 9th St

3rd Ave E

1st Ave W

6th St

Nucleus

9th St 5th Ave W

2

2nd Ave W

To Kalispell & Whitefish

3rd Ave W

4th Ave W

5th St

2nd Ave E

4thSt

11th St

Bills Ln To Glacier National Park

2

Glacier National Park West Entrance West Glacier

2 To Essex, East Glacier & Browning

N

2 Coram To Columbia Falls go local FLATHEAD

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W O N EN! OP north fork pizza

Dine In...Or Take Out FREE Delivery!

Tuesday -Thursday 3pm-9pm Friday-Saturday 3pm-10pm Sunday 3pm-9pm Closed Monday

605 Nucleus Avenue, Columbia Falls (406)-897-5000 www.northforkpizza.com

Invites You to Stop in For: • A Tour of our New Geotourism Interpretive Displays • A Latte in our Coffee & Spirits Bar • Horseback Rides & Petting Zoo • Outdoor Apparel & Gear • Boxed Lunches & Food • Old-fashioned Ice Cream Parlor • Best Selection of Made in Montana Products

www.crowndiscoverycenter.com Located 1.5 miles from the west entrance to Glacier Park!

12000 US Hwy 2, West Glacier, MT 59936 Open mid May - Sept 30, 406-387-4405 14 go local FLATHEAD

USA

The Historic

Belton Chalet Since 1910

“Extraordinary Dining with Glacier Park Views” Open fOr Summer SeaSOn may 28th

Belton Dining Room & tapRoom

SeaSonal outSiDe Dining

Montana Raised Beef Gluten Free & Vegetarian Fresh Fish & Seafood

Summer Lodging

Come-as-you-are Dining • local oRganic SeaSonal ingReDientS

• pRivate Dining Room •

•

Historic Lodge Rooms Cottages Adobe House

•

SpeciaL eventS

Nightly Specials Montana Craft Beers Innovative Cocktails Distinctive Wine List

406.888.5000

12575 Hwy 2 E. West Glacier beltonchalet.com

•

Rehearsal Dinners Reunions Private Parties Weddings

Hours: Taproom — Opens 3pm Dining — Opens 5pm

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HAFFERMAN ENGINEERING, INC.

offers all aspects of civil engineering for all public agencies, private developers and industries.

• Civil Engineering Services • Construction Management • Water & Wastewater • Hydrology • Hydraulics • Subdivision Planning • Land Use Planning • Surveying and AutoCad • Floodplain Modeling and Permitting • 40-Hour HAZWOPER Certified • Contact us at w w w. b i l l m aye r.co m • or kurt@billmayer.com or call us at 406-257-8708

HAFFERMAN ENGINEERING, INC. Professional Engineers Licensed in Montana & North Dakota 16 go local FLATHEAD

Serving the Community We Call Home!

SHOP LOCAL. DINE LOCAL. BANK LOCAL. “Freedom Bank supports local businesses, individuals & charities that make our community such a great place to live.”

Don—Bennett - President Don Bennett President

Stanton Lake photo — Sharon DeMeester

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How Local Can You Go?

Columbia Falls is determined to find out!

Freedom Bank President Don Bennett and Cedar Creek Lodge and Convention Center Project Manager Eric Enz at the construction site in May. This structure was built quickly in part thanks to the ability of locally owned Western Building Center to custom build the roof trusses and all of the wall panels over the winter inside their Smartlam plant in Columbia Falls. Because the hotel is locally owned and financed they were also free to add extra quality features such as noise abatement and energy efficiency systems that a corporate hotel chain might not allow in their plans due to cost parameters.

Columbia Falls, Montana, a city of approximately 4,700 residents, is a city in the wonderful throes of a locally generated downtown economic revival. It’s a feel-good story of grassroots community building born out of trust, locals investing locally, hard work, creative out-of-the box thinking, cooperation, sharing, and giving back.

It’s taken years of preparation, but the opportunities are now steadily multiplying as this city grows into its role of a gateway destination – a place to stay, to enjoy great food, to shop, to vacation and play, as well as a great place to live, work and invest – all at the edge of Glacier National Park. When it comes to the question of “How Local Can You Go?”, this city’s answer is demonstrating that going local is the backbone of its economic revival.

18 go local FLATHEAD

Don Bennett, president and founder of the locally owned Freedom Bank in Columbia Falls, has always been a champion of investing locally as a potent way to grow the economic vitality of the city. He notes that, with the recent burst of economic activity in Columbia Falls, the city is “getting lucky.” But he goes on to define luck as “where preparation meets opportunity,” and concludes that he and other community leaders have been preparing for just such a lucky moment for many years.

SOWING SEEDS OF CHANGE Mick Ruis is the entrepreneurial force behind a series of planned and current new projects in Columbia Falls, including the city’s first prominent downtown hotel

and convention center. The Cedar Creek Lodge is scheduled to open in June 2016 (just as we go to press with this issue). The 25,000-square-foot, three-story hotel will include 64 rooms, a 3,000-square-foot convention center, and is modeled after the historic lodges in Glacier National Park.

Yet this grand entrepreneurial vision, which now includes redeveloping the former First Citizens Bank, the Davall Building, the Park Merc Building, and two vacant lots behind the Merc in downtown Columbia Falls, had not even materialized as a daydream when Ruis first met Don Bennett.

Bennett met Ruis in the early 1990s when Ruis was down on his luck; a 27 year old single divorced dad with three kids and not much money, looking for a place to live. Little did either of them know that the trust that Bennett and Freedom Bank showed Ruis back then would be part of the “preparation” that seeded this burst of investment in downtown Columbia Falls today. Freedom Bank first made the decision to believe in Ruis in the early 1990s and loaned him the money to buy the Nord Apartments in Columbia Falls.

It was there, in one of the apartments, that Ruis and his kids lived while he built his first construction company. He would later leave for the west coast where he would establish several businesses, including one of the largest scaffolding businesses in the United States.

This seed of trust and belief would in time lead Ruis and his wife, Wendy, back to Columbia Falls. This time with the ability and a passion for giving back to the city, community, and friends they had made some twenty-five years earlier. This time they say they are back for good, with plans not only for a top quality locally owned hotel and convention center, but with tentative dreams for other locally owned businesses including a pie factory, a candy store, a retail

Terri Feury gives an enthusiastic thumbs up to the zero interest Gateway Pride loan program that Freedom Bank offers businesses who invest in improvements to the outside of their business. Feury is expanding her bakery and opening a new business at the same location. Uptown HEARTH will offer an upscale, open/ flexible kitchen workspace for micro bakery uses, a food studio to test and develop new products, and a fun gathering space rental!

marketplace, an apartment or condominium complex, and a steakhouse sports bar. And they have made a solid commitment, as demonstrated in the hotel construction, to use locally owned businesses whenever possible for their building supplies, design, financing, and construction teams. And of course this commitment to “Going Local” feeds and grows the local economy as a whole.

Bennett knows firsthand the challenges of starting a locally owned business. Freedom Bank began in the spring of 2005. Its first home was in a scrappy, but proud, 14’x70’ trailer house with a playful sign nailed to its side that greeted early bank customers with the message of “Ya Gotta Start Somewhere.”

Today, Freedom Bank is located in its new building that was locally designed, built, and furnished, and serves as a model of a top quality facility that a commitment to going local brings to the character of a community.

Giving back to the community is a practice at which locally owned businesses excel. The Gateway Pride Project is one such example. By offering zero-interest loans up to $5000, Freedom Bank has been making it

changes in what is being called the shared economy as an opportunity to turn her long-time bakery business into a shared multiuse space.

When the renovation is complete her business will offer a much-expanded upscale, open/flexible kitchen workspace, a food studio to test and develop new products, and a gathering space rental! Already this summer, Kendra Hope’s Meadowlark Micro Bakery will operate on Tuesdays in the new kitchen. Terri will be there baking the European old world style breads and specialty items the Finn Biscuit Bakery has become well loved for on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. In the fall, in addition to beginning to offer rental space to test and develop other food products, the shop will offer the possibilities of cooking classes, special brunches, and pop-up kitchen events like a Thai Food weekend. “The sky is the limit,” says Feury.

possible for businesses to make improvements to the outside of their business, which in turn is improving the overall appearance of the community.

A FRESH-BAKED START A recent benefactor of a Gateway Pride loan is the former Finn Biscuit Bakery at 619 Nucleus, which is expanding and re-imagining the possibilities of micro bakeries and other creative food enterprises under the new name of the Uptown HEARTH. Owner Terri Feury was delighted to received one of these loans for new signage, energy efficient storefront windows, and a fresh coat of outside paint. She is also working with Freedom Bank to finance her business expansion.

Locally owned businesses have the freedom to be creative and to think outside the literal box that a chain store finds itself confined within, where key business decisions for box stores are made from afar and often don’t offer any local flexibility. As a local business owner, Feury is capitalizing on the growth in Columbia Falls and

BREWED FOR SUCCESS Opening a new local business is generally fueled by the support of locals who really care about their community. Such was the case for the newly opened Blackslope Brewing located at 1107 Ninth Street along US Highway 2 in Columbia Falls. Owners Darin and Carla Fisher say that an online Kickstarter campaign for start-up capital that raised $15,000 from over 150 people was just the start of friends showing up and pitching in to help with painting, and

— Continued on page 32 go local FLATHEAD

19

...Yogo

The Great American Sapphire —————Mine Direct—————

Rocky Mountain Nature Company Your destination for all things Montana 111 Hungry Horse Blvd. • Hungry Horse, MT

406 - 387- 4079

20 go local FLATHEAD

Hungry Horse Liquor Store

“specializing in locally distilled spirits” 8 9 7 0 H w y. 2 H u n g r y H o rs e , M T

387-5506 10 - 7 p m

June thru September

Go Local for Homemade Goods with a Montana Flair Creative Gifts & Montana Memories “Carrie and her daughter Megan not only are creative artists with one-of-a-kind handmade gifts, but they have created a cozy homemade space in their shop. Every transaction is done with fun and love, and leaves me wanting to go back for more. You have to meet these ladies!”

- Nancy Kimball Kalispell

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Thirty-four Years of Activism to Preserve the North Fork

John Frederick has left a legacy in the North Fork with his decades of activism to protect and preserve the valley from numerous threats. Last July, John retired as president of the North Fork Preservation Association (NFPA) after more than thirty years of service to the organization and the North Fork. NFPA members honored John at their annual meeting by placing a crown on his head that read “North Fork Hero” and peppering him with more appreciations than he was comfortable with.

The North Fork Preservation Association was founded in 1982 to address two threats to the North Fork: (1) a proposal to pave the North Fork Road and (2) a proposed open-pit coal mine in the watershed of the North Fork of the Flathead River. Over a dozen North Fork residents met with John at the North Fork Hostel in Polebridge to start the organization.

In 1982, Rio Algom, a Canadian company, was planning to construct an open-pit coal mine on Cabin Creek in the North Fork six miles north of the Canadian border. Members of NFPA worried that the lagoons to settle silt from the mine were poorly designed and were almost certain to be breached in spring by melt water from the heavy snow load, forcing many tons of silt into the North Fork of the Flathead River. This would trigger extensive fish kills and long term damage to the habitat. NFPA members gathered over 17,000 signatures on a petition against the mine and sent letters to anyone even remotely connected to the project. John went even further.

After purchasing ten shares of stock in Rio Algom Limited, John traveled to Toronto, Canada six times to raise the issue at the annual stockholders’ meeting. While some Canadian newspapers called him a “Mountain Man” and a “Montana Cowboy,” one newspaper depicted John this way: “At the meeting, he stood quietly, Stetson in hand, to describe the beauty of the Rockies and the clear water in the Flathead River where his North Fork Hostel is located.” He was quoted as saying “There are many, many appropriate places for an open-pit coal mine, but this environmentally fragile area near Glacier National Park is not one of them.” The time spent fighting this issue paid off.

The Cabin Creek mine was referred to the International Joint Commission (IJC) comprised of Canadians and Americans to oversee transboundary water disputes. Eventually, after about six years of study and many scientific publications, the IJC decided the mine should not be built as designed and Rio Algom quickly lost interest.

The Rio Algom fight was by no means the last threat to the transboundary Flathead. Other resource extraction activities, including coalbed methane development, gold mining, and

22 go local FLATHEAD

additional coal proposals interested developers until the premier of British Columbia and the governor of Montana signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on February 18, 2010.

The MOU stated that there would be only minimal development in the North Fork on both sides of the border. This was formalized by legislation in both British Columbia and at the federal level in the United States. The U.S. Congress passed the North Fork Watershed Protection Act in 2015.

These days, the work of NFPA is focused on protecting three precious things that make the North Fork a special place: Watershed, Wilderness, and Wildlife. After thirty-four years, the NFPA remains an active conservation organization. The website at www.gravel.org contains up-to-the-moment thinking and action on issues of concern. The name of the website also indicates how NFPA feels about paving the North Fork Road—even after all of these years!

— By Debo Powers

Go Local to Learn the Whole Story Behind Your Food Columbia Falls Farmer’s Market

“Fun Farmer’s Market!

It’s the perfect place to buy that special item and also learn about its growth or production in a relaxed, friendly atmosphere.”

- Sally Thompson West Glacier

Go Local for Handmade Warmth and Comfort MJM Handmade Creations

“We travel a lot, and we love travelling with our Alpaca shawls. They’re lightweight, easy to pack and stylish while still keeping you comfortable through all sorts of climates.”

- Karlene and Frances Khor Kalispell go local FLATHEAD

23

Roger Shattuck

Fiberglass Gelcoat

• FREE Estimates • National Award Recognition • All Work Guaranteed • 27 Years Production Painting Experience • Unexcelled at Paint Matching Repair

Motorcycle Painting

Fiberglass Cap/Panel Repair

BEFORE

AFTER

117 Canyon View • Columbia Falls, MT 59912

406 892 8083

SpecialEffectsofMontana.com • North of Glacier National Airport • Near Glacier Park

24 go local FLATHEAD

North Valley AG Flathead Valley’s Locally Owned Feed and Seed Center Since 1983 Large enough to meet your needs.....

Small enough to care.

Fine Feed & Products for All Your Critters Big, or Small We stock a full line

of Equis Horse Products!

• Fencing • Tack • Pasture Seed • Chemicals • Bagged Fertilizers • Organic Fertilizers 5613 Hwy 2 W Columbia Falls, Montana

Stop By North Valley AG

And Say Hi To Ladelle Reynolds & Mike Davis

“The Good Ol’ Boys”

406-892-2240

Hours 8am - 6pm Monday-Saturday Closed Sunday northvalleyagcenterinc.com go local FLATHEAD

25

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27

An t i q u e s

SOUTHSIDE CONSIGNMENT

Celebrating

26 FabulousYears!

treasures mixing old with new!

Over 6,000 square feet of recycled DECOR & FINE COLLECTIBLES

let us consign your treasures — let the gals help you with decorating ideas

28 go local FLATHEAD

COME DISCOVER SOUTHSIDE CONSIGNMENT II

The place to bring your friends and family!

2699 hwy 93 south, kalispell 406.756.8526 — create your own individuality

go local FLATHEAD

29

Lost Prairie Boogie 2016 August 6 – 14 This will be the 49th annual Lost Prairie Boogie!

MeadowPeak Skydiving is located on 100 acres of private property in the pristine Lost Prairie Valley of Montana. Carson Field, approximately 40 miles west of Kalispell just off of HWY 2, is a private airstrip specifically created with the sport of skydiving in mind.

.S

U

Meadow Peak Skydiving is the only USPA Group Member Dropzone in Montana.

P MEMB OU ER R G

.P

ar a

c hu t e As s o c i

at i

on

Schedule Your Skydive Today!

406-858-2330 www.meadowpeakskydiving.com GIFT CERTIFICATES AVAILABLE

30 go local FLATHEAD

Our newest location in Beautiful

Photos by Valerie McIntyre Photography

Downtown Kalispell

The finest skin care and so much more.

Sage & Cedar

214 Central Ave. 227 S. Main St. pure-natural-organic Whitefish, MT 59937 Kalispell, MT 59901 (406) 862-9411 (406) 890-2299 www.sageandcedar.com (888) 863-9411 Follow us on Facebook & Instagram go local FLATHEAD

31

Maximize your farmer’s market trip Community-based farmer’s markets can introduce shoppers to an array of foods they may otherwise never experience.

Farmer’s markets are great places to find fresh, locally grown foods, and many market customers are happy to know they’re benefitting both the environment and local businessess with every dime they spend.

The following are a handful of ways to maximize your visit to farmer’s markets of all sizes.

• Take time to explore. Farmer’s markets tend to have many of the same fruits and vegetables you can find at the local chain grocery store, but farmer’s markets also are known for offering more than what you may find in the produce aisle. Exploring also may introduce you to new foods you may otherwise never have tried.

• Consider the timing of your visit. The popularity of farmer’s markets has increased dramatically as more and more people embrace the concept of buying locally grown foods. If you love trying new foods, arrive early to the

— How Local Can You Go Continued from page 19 cleaning, and all the first time tasks that getting a new business up and running takes.

“Collaboration is also a key element to success,” they note, pointing to the collaboration that they found when they teamed up with Becky and Jake Sorensen, formerly owners of the Palette Restaurant in Columbia Falls who now run the food side of Blackslope Brewing, offering what is described by patrons as “incredible food.” Great food and beer together with the welcoming community gathering place atmosphere the owners and staff at Blackslope have created make this new business a local favorite.

Bennett points out when it comes to community support, “What goes around, comes around!” noting that both Darin and Carla, like many owners of local businesses, have both stepped up to give back to the community through various leadership positions. Darin Fisher currently serves on the Columbia Falls City Council.

LOCAL BY THE SLICE The synergistic energy created by the investments of other local businesses attracts yet more investment. That was the case for Kim and Russ Sikorsky, owners of the newly opened

32 go local FLATHEAD

farmer’s market before the more unique offerings have been snapped up. Foods that have small yet devoted followings may not be available in abundance, and you may end up leaving empty-handed if you arrive late. If it’s a bargain you want, then visit later in the day when farmers with substantial remaining inventory may be more inclined to lower their prices.

• Know your seasons. Some fruits and vegetables are better at certain times of the year than others. Freshness draws many people to farmer’s markets, and foods that are in-season are more likely to have that unforgettable freshness than those that are out of season or nearing the end of their season.

• Speak with the sellers. If you find the farmer’s market somewhat intimidating, speak with the sellers. Shopping at the local farmer’s market tends to be more intimate than shopping at the chain grocery store, and many sellers would be happy to offer you some tips and make some suggestions

and locally owned North Fork Pizza in Columbia Falls. They say that they see Columbia Falls getting ready to boom. They are excited and hopeful that with all this new local energy in Columbia Falls, they and other new businesses will benefit. They have tailored their menu to offer a selection of six to ten flavors of pizza a day served by the slice, and individual calzones and strombolis that are made fresh daily that people can eat in the restaurant or cook at home. The restaurant offers seating for 25. The chalkboard sign outside their door with menu selections lets one know this isn’t just any pizza shop – without needing to say so directly, its clear this restaurant is locally owned and proud of the unique menu options it offers!

Locally owned businesses are the backbone of the economic revival taking place in Columbia Falls. They add to the unique character and flavor of this growing “Gateway to Glacier ” destination town.

And because they are local, they keep money circulating many times over in the local Columbia Falls economy, making it stronger. Locally owned business can be counted on to shop local themselves for services and supplies. When it comes to the question of “How Local Can You Go?” this city’s network of locally owned businesses – both new and long-term – are demonstrating that going local not only makes economic sense, but is all about building and investing in a town you’re proud to call home.

— By Mayre Flowers

Woodland Floral and Gift is the florist of choice in the Flathead Valley.

While we were established in 1934, our professional designers are up-to-date in all aspects of floral design.

“Going to the Sun” Set with Golden Montana Sapphire & Diamonds

Voted “Best Floral Shop in the Flathead Valley”

go local FLATHEAD

33

Whitefish ............... 67

by Mayre Don KFlowers Subaru ..................................... 7

by Allison Batch Union .................... 82 Whitefish Credit copies@pccopycenter.net The Walking Man Frame Shop

by MayreCamas Flowers Creek Cottage & Gallery ......................................... 69 •Fiber, Yarn, & Roving •Stone Cottage Pottery by•Bear Mayre Flowers •Montana Made Gifts Hugz Collectibles •Robert Mason Studios Whitefish Credit Union .................... 82 338 Main Street Kalispell, MT 59901 406-755-yarn∙camascreekcottage.com

by Mayre Flowers

7 E Oregon St Kalispell, MT 59901 406.752.4944

Full and Self Service Copies Large Format Plans & Posters Invitations, Flyers, Brochures Graphic Design Business Cards Spiral Binding Laminatng Scanning & more......

Flathead Valley Community Calendar 84-85 Flathead Valley Community Calendar 84-85

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are a locally owned business business andand wouldwould like morelike more you areIf you a locally owned information about how to be included in the next issue ormation how to please be included the next issue of the about “Go Local Guide,” give us a callin at 756-8993.

—the 5 “Go — Local Guide,” please give us a call at 756-8993.

Your Extended Office

NETWORKS World Class I.T. and Cloud Solutions Delivered Locally DSL - Fiber Optics - Wireless - Virtual Servers - Web Hosting Computer and Server Builds and Repairs ...

Phone: 406-752-4335 • 8am - 6pm Mon. - Fri. • 1286 Burns Way, Kalispell, MT 59901

www.montanasky.net

34 go local FLATHEAD

MCAM

Montana’s Circle of American Masters

Inducted into Montana’s Circle of American Masters by Montana Arts Council in January 2009 as a buckskin tailor. She designs & distinctively hand crafts vests and jackets for men and women, also purses. Leather remodel and repair considered. Made in Montana since 1975.

540 Country Way South Kalispell, Montana 59901 Studio Visits by Appointment 406.250.1068

to life lost treasures Bof theringing indigenous peoples of the American northern plains using only traditional methods, materials and craftsmanship.

High Lonesome Gallery

Native American Art Reproductions —by Artist John Moffatt

T

he Artist Montana artist John Moffatt’s,s love for the indigenous cultures of America has motivated him to research, study, and add to the preservation of their traditional crafts through his art. His dedication to authenticity in the designs, materials used, and the quality in his work has earned him wide spread recognition.

T

he Gallery The High Lonesome Gallery is a private gallery located near Kalispell, Montana, housed in a log cabin built by the artist himself.

Open to the public by appointment only.

John Moffatt—Artist

P.O. Box 166 Kila, MT 59920 406.755.3411 • ppmoffatt@gmail.com www.highlonesome.us go local FLATHEAD

35

A place for all things literary and bookish

“Books: The best defense against unwanted conversation,” the quote on the chalkboard sign in front of the Bookshelf greets pedestrians walking down Main Street in downtown Kalispell. The store beckons with the promise of “used books and more.” Regular quote postings are just a hint of the passion that this store’s staff and owners have for all things literary and “bookish,” and the attention, care, and great service book lovers will find at the Bookshelf.

Not only is the Bookshelf a great place to find affordable older books that may not be available in the average bookstore, but it is also a good spot to buy new books at discounted prices. The staff can special order books by request, so customers have access to virtually any book they want at prices comparable to those of online bookstores. And as a significant plus, the money you spend is spent in the valley and helps grow our local economy.

The Bookshelf also serves as a unique marketing hub for local writers. The front wall of the store is dedicated exclusively to Montana authors to promote the stories and history that make the Big Sky state so remarkable. The rest of the store is well-organized and set up to make it easy to find and browse a wide variety of genres - new and used.

Have some books you would like to trade in? Bring them to The Bookshelf to get store credit to buy some good reads. Looking for local guidebooks, maps, journals, cards or gifts? The Bookshelf has these too.

Another often-overlooked benefit of a used bookstore is the role it serves as a de facto recycling center. Reselling used books is a valuable form of reuse and keeps them out of our landfill. Any books the shop can’t resell they take to be recycled.

Mary Wolf, the current owner of the Bookshelf, is young, innovative and vibrant. Formally a social worker, Mary was ready

36 go local FLATHEAD

for a change of pace. When she learned of previous owner’s desire to sell the bookstore in 2014, she jumped at the opportunity despite possessing no prior experience running a business.

Mary has always enjoyed books, but since taking over the Bookshelf she has come to appreciate them so much more – especially true, hard copy books, “The smell, the feel of a book incorporates all your senses. It’s more of a full experience,” she explains. To her, there is nothing like the experience of hunting through a bookstore looking for a unique new narrative to consume.

She loves coming up with ideas to attract readers to explore her shop and its many treasures. Sometimes she will turn an obscure looking book’s cover out to catch her customer’s attention and introduce them to something new.

After a visit to the West Coast, Mary brought back another great idea to entice her customers to explore more genres. It’s an opportunity to “go on a blind date with a book.” Mary chooses a book, wraps in it brown paper, and writes a brief synopsis, taking “don’t judge a book by its cover” to a whole new level. Over the holidays, she set a frequent customer up with “blind dates” for her whole family.

For Mary, the very best part of her job is her customers. She has customers that come in weekly, and even a daily visitor who has taken to calling her his adopted daughter. If you find yourself yearning for a good book, the Bookshelf is a fun and relaxing spot to ease your craving. The Bookshelf is located at 101 Main St, Kalispell and it is open 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday and 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. on Saturday. The store can be reached at (406) 756-2665.

—By Nina Rose Sexenian

101 Main Street - Kalispell, MT 406-756-2665

Clean and Organized New and Used Books Local Guidebooks Montana Authors Journals Cards Gifts Maps M-F 10am - 5:30pm Sat 10am - 4pm

go local FLATHEAD

37

ORGANIC FOODS

JUICE & COFFEE BAR

BODY CARE

QUALITY SUPPLEMENTS

Our Organic Grab & Go Deli offers convenient and tasty food for your summer hikes and picnics

Recently awarded the 2015 Montana Family Business of the Year Award by the Jake Jabs College of Business & Entrepreneurship!

Stop in today for a refreshing organic juice, or a warming organic latte!

Our deli cooler is packed with quick lunch and dinner items,

NIC GROC A E G

RY

OR

and our soups are hot for your enjoyment.

25 Commons Way, Kalispell, Hwy 93 (Next to Qdoba) • 406.756.1422 www.mountainvalleyfoods.com • Open 7 - 7 Mon. - Sat. • 10 - 4 Sun.

38 go local FLATHEAD

Go Local to be Treated Like Family Gold Rush Pawn Company

MONTANA TILE & MARBLE • Custom Tile • Sales & Design Consulting

406.752.0043 Find us on Facebook

“The customer service here is the best. All of the staff treat their customers like family. They work hard to meet their customers needs to keep you coming back.”

OPEN

- Jackie and Kathy Smith Kalispell

Locally Owned

7 Days A Week 9-6 Mon. - Sat. 9-5 Sun. 257-7296

Serving the Flathead since 1980 voted best pawn shop in the Flathead Firearms • Fine Jewelry • Prospecting Motorcycle Leathers • Body Jewelry Complete Online Inventory New and Vintage Gifts

go local FLATHEAD

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Tour the World Right Here on Main Street Brix Bottleshop is the accumulation of Karen Sanderson’s dreams to bring her passion for wine and her experiences from her travels to Europe back to the Flathead Valley. Brix Bottleshop imports and sells fine wines, beer and gourmet foods from across the world. Newly situated at 115 S. Main Street in downtown Kalispell, Brix is a great place to find delectable, exotic victuals whether you are hosting a party, sending a thank you gift, or just looking for a bottle of wine or two to complement a family dinner.

Helping people discover the virtues of different beers and wines to expand their palate is one of the favorite activities of Brix employees. The knowledgeable staff is always available to help meet their customer’s needs, and they’re always happy to talk wine! In addition, many bottles are labeled with detailed descriptions of the wine’s attributes such as fullness, sweetness, and acidity, to help customers’ find exactly what they want.

This specialty shop is stocked with quality wine and craft beer of all types from all over the world, so customers will always be able to find something new and unique. The staff is happy, willing and able to special order bottles for a customers’ request. Customers’ will also be interested to know that owner Karen Sanderson advises that the best wine is not necessarily the most expensive.

At Brix, steps are taken to ensure that customers are able to afford great wine at a great price.

Every month Brix features a monthly “6 for $60 Brix Mix” featuring 2 white and 4 red wines, sold for a great price.

One of Karen’s favorite parts of her job is to help people discover new wine. She frequently finds herself going through wine “phases” as she discovers the virtues of new types of wine. Most recently she’s been focused on wines from Spain.

“Many people,” Karen says, “have palettes that are used to certain tastes. For example, here in the Valley, many have palettes that are geared towards thick, full-bodied red wines, such as cabernets.” While Karen personally is not a huge fan of full-bodied wines, she has the expertise and knowledge to easily advise, for example, that Cabernet Sauvignon goes best with a sirloin steak!

Fresh out of college, Karen believed she should “do the responsible thing” and settle down and get a job. Instead she ended up spending two years in Europe where learning about fine wines, beer, and gourmet foods is a quintessential part of European travel. And of course, Europe is where some of the most famous vineyards, brands, and family-run wineries in the world are found.

Upon her return to Portland, Oregon, Karen spent the next fifteen years working as a sales manager for Elk Cove Vineyards, one of Oregon’s oldest and most respected wineries, where she furthered her expertise and love of wines. Meanwhile, she still harbored a dream to bring back to her home state of Montana some of her experiences from Europe and the knowledge she had gained in the fine wine industry in Portland. Eventually, Karen left Portland and moved back to the Flathead where she set to work on opening her own store.

Karen knew it would be hard to specialize solely in beer, wine or gourmet food, so she combined all three ventures, and soon her store was up and running. Since then, Brix Bottleshop has moved from their location at the Loading Docks in Kalispell to Main Street.

Although the move was at times hectic, Karen is very excited about their new storefront.

Although running a business can be hard, Karen couldn’t be more pleased with how her dream has unraveled itself. “I love having all my friends around and sharing my passions with the world.”

Brix Bottleshop is located at 115 S. Main St. in downtown Kalispell, and is open from 10am – 6pm Monday through Thursday, and 10:00am – 6:30pm Friday and Saturday. You can reach them at www.brixbottleshop.com and (406) 393-2202.

—By Nina Rose Saxenian

40 go local FLATHEAD

Specialty Beer, Wine & Foods

Fine Wine • Gourmet Foods • Craft Beer • Accessories Gift Baskets • Event Space • Friendly Staff • Parking in Rear 115 S. Main St. Kalispell, MT • 406.393.2202 Hours: M-Th: 10am-6:30pm • Fri-Sat: 10am-7pm www.brixbottleshop.com

Dr. Barbara Calm Dr. Karen Hartle Dr Meg Gordon

go local FLATHEAD

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Go Local to Shop Creatively in Historic Spaces Sassafras Artist’s Co-op

“It’s so creative. Everything from quilts to tiles. If you have any creative streak, this is the place for you!”

- Irene Buckland, Calgary “The nature of the space is amazing; the wooden pristine ceiling, the brick walls. From an architectural perspective it is a brilliant example of Victorian era retail premise.”

- John Drummond, Calgary

The Wise Old Owl Knows Who To Go To For Carpets and Floor Covering

Smith’s Carpet Center

302 Second Avenue West Kalispell, MT

Qwners Barb & Lance 406-752-4501 • Fax 406-756-1469 smithscarpets406@yahoo.com

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Go Local for Quality Fair Trade Items from Around the Globe First Choice Decor “First Choice Décor has such cool stuff! I love it because they have lots of artsy merchandise that you couldn’t find at any other store in the Valley. I seriously recommend it to someone looking for a fun and original gift!”

- Frankie Williams Kalispell

go local FLATHEAD

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Fresh Mediterranean Flavor from Bonelli’s in Kalispell

Bonelli’s Bistro, located a block east of Main Street on First Avenue East, has been a popular downtown stop for excellent coffee and food with Italian flair for nearly ten years. Bonelli’s warm, inviting atmosphere and convenient location have earned it an enthusiastic local following of weekly and even daily customers.

Bonelli’s changed owners in January of last year. I met recently with new owners Jeff Schuman and Maren Bailey. They each bring a long history of experience in the restaurant business to their new venture, including several years of work at Craggy Range in Whitefish and Jeff’s culinary studies at FVCC and the Western Culinary Institute in Portland.

Although they’ve added a few new menu items, for the most part Jeff and Maren have made it a priority to keep their “regulars” happy by maintaining all the things that have made Bonelli’s popular—great food and friendly service in a welcoming environment.

Stopping by early for breakfast at Bonelli’s can mean anything from coffee in a go-cup, to fresh pastries, to one of their many innovative full breakfast choices. Try the Butternut Sausage Hash, the Quinoa Breakfast Bowl, or one of several of varieties of breakfast wraps.

44 go local FLATHEAD

Lunch is served all day so breakfast customers can pick up lunch to go. Lunch options include a wide variety of soups, panini, wraps, and subs. Those desiring more substantial fare can choose from lasagna, eggplant or chicken parmigiana, and a weekly pasta special. Most menu items can be adjusted to accommodate gluten free or other special diets. There are many options for vegetarians as well.

Jeff and Maren have made it a priority to work with local sources for fresh produce, baked goods, and other supplies. They’ve established relationships with local farmers such as Flathead Farmworks and Raven Ridge Farm, who keep Bonelli’s supplied in season with locally-grown, just-picked produce, organically grown whenever possible. In addition to the baking done inhouse, they work with Luizanne’s bakery for additional freshly-made treats. On the day of my visit, a variety of luscious desserts were on display in the dessert case—a splurge not to be missed.

Bonelli’s also stocks a small but interesting selection of gourmet retail items, such as olive oil from Genesis Kitchen in Whitefish and high quality pastas.

Jeff and Maren are especially excited about their growing catering business.

Catering has been a popular part of Bonelli’s for some time now, and it is growing fast. Jeff and his team deliver imaginative sandwiches, inspired salads, or any other item from their menu direct to your business or party. They can also create special menu items according to your needs and desires. Their warm and welcoming facility is also available for after-hours rental, including birthday parties, anniversary celebrations, weddings and receptions.

Bonelli’s is open Monday through Saturday, 8:00 to 3:00 PM. Breakfast is served until 11:00 AM. Lunch is available all day so customers can pick up lunch-togo on their way to work. Check out their menu on their website, www.bonellisbistro. com. The website is updated frequently with daily and weekly specials.

—By Barb Nelson

Fill Your Summer With Flowers From

Rose Mountain FloRal

ITALIAN • MEDITERRANEAN Breakfast & Lunch Espresso & Pastries Gluten Free

For The Home, Friends, and Loved Ones

Mon. - Sat. 8am - 3pm 38 1st Ave. E Kalispell • 406.257.8669 http://www.bonellisbistro.com/

Ladies Salon & Gentleman’s Barbershop

Lara Middlemas

Master : Barber • Stylist • Colorist

100 1st. Street W. Kalispell • 406-331-1140 • 406-755-4949 http://www.kalispellbarber.com/

16 3rd St. E. Kalispell, MT 406-752-7673 www.rosemountainfloral.com/

www.HealingSpiritsofKalispell.com 690 N Meridian Rd #21 Kalispell, MT 59901 go local FLATHEAD

45

Farm Fresh Cream-on-Top Dairy Products Produced, processed, and bottled right on our local farm.

When you buy milk and yogurt from Kalispell Kreamery you are supporting local food, happy cows, Flathead Valley families, all while enjoying the most wholesome and pure milk you have ever had.

100% Natural means

&

Antibiotic Free GMO Free No Added Hormones Gluten Free

www.kalispellkreamery.com

One of th e Nutr Selecti Larges ons t ition Of al S u p In T he V plemen ts alley

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Go Local for Trend Setting Style That Makes You Feel Great Shorty’s Barbershop “We love coming to Shorty’s! The stylists really know what they’re doing and aren’t afraid to take risks. Coming to Shorty’s is like coming over to hang out with friends – friends that make you feel beautiful!”

- Kim and JayJ Kalispell

STEVE

POSTOVIT

LOCALLY OWNED & SERVING YOUR TIRE NEEDS SINCE 1979!

TARA

POST IT OV

“We sincerely appreciate your business!”

Friendly Courteous Service With Attention To Detail.

1271 North Meridian • Kalispell • 752-9662 • www.mandctire.com

go local FLATHEAD

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48 go local FLATHEAD

your

LOCAL BANK

Valley Bank of Kalispell was originally chartered as The State Bank of Somers in 1911 and was located in downtown Somers.

The conversion to Valley Bank of Kalispell occurred in 1964 when, then owners, Jack Hensley and Jack King moved the charter to the present location in Kalispell.

TODAY, ownership has remained in the Hensley and King families just as it was in 1962 and the Bank still operates upon its founding principles. At Valley Bank of Kalispell we believe that an independently, locally owned community Bank can best serve the Valley’s citizens and economy. The staff and management firmly believe in the products and services they provide, it is the Bank’s objective to keep pace with technology while maintaining the personalized service that has been the foundation which the Bank was built upon.

A Connection To The Past, Banking For The Future (406) 752-7123 valleybankmt.com 41 3rd street west

VA L L E Y B A N K

K alispell, Montana

OF KALISPELL

EST.

1911

go local FLATHEAD

49

Choosing a Locally Owned Pharmacy Is Best for Your Health & the Local Economy

Who’s your Pharmacist? If you don’t know them by name, chances are you aren’t reaping the many benefits of shopping at one of the locally owned pharmacies in the Flathead. Locally owned pharmacies such as Remedies Lakeside:, Medical Arts Pharmacy in Kalispell, Evergreen Compounding Pharmacy, and Bigfork Drug, make it a priority to know you by name and to provide you the friendly, customized, and personalized expert services that only locally owned, independent pharmacies still offer.

Sure, you can now pick up over-the-counter medicine and prescriptions from many big chain retailers, often while you are shopping for groceries or other items. But if you want a pharmacist who knows your name, who will be there for you when trouble calls (often after hours, or by providing home deliveries, or a specially compounded medicine, or who will go the extra mile to make the calls and do the research to get you the best medicine for you personally), then you can’t beat the quality care that the locally owned pharmacies in the Flathead will provide with a friendly smile.

52 go local FLATHEAD

Choosing a locally owned independent pharmacist is good for the Flathead’s economy. A 2008 study by Civic Economics found that for every $100 spent at independent pharmacies, like those we have in the Flathead, $17.20 went to local wages, profits, and goods and services purchased in the local area—compared to $9.70 for every $100 spent at chain pharmacies. Numerous studies have shown that, when compared to non-locally owned businesses, owners and/or employees of locally owned businesses more often hold a leadership role in the business community or civic association, volunteer more, and give generously to community organizations.

Choosing a locally owned independent pharmacist also means that you are investing in a network of independent pharmacists who have banded together to fight for you. They are fighting so that they can continue to provide you the highest quality choices of prescription drugs at affordable prices. They are standing up to large insurance companies, drug manufacturers, and chain pharmacies, who can make serving patients and staying in business difficult for independent pharmacists.

When independent pharmacists go to purchase drugs for their pharmacy, they face PBMs (Pharmacy Benefit Managers) who make large profits by keeping pharmacy reimbursements low, and may even create rules that steer patients to drugs where the PBMs make the most money on manufacturer rebates. In turn, this increases drug costs for patients and insurance plans. Independent pharmacists also have to work to avoid closed preferred networks, which can deprive patients of the personal touch that independent pharmacies can afford them. Independent pharmacist are working together nationally to secure legislation and policies that will curb the rapid increases in prescription drug costs or policies that unfairly favor chain store pharmacies or local independent pharmacies.

You can expect top quality service and care from the independent pharmacists in the Flathead. They are not concerned about competing [with chain stores] on customer service; they know they can outcompete them in that arena. But we all should be concerned about giant pharmaceutical companies getting regulations passed that would make it too costly for locally owned independent pharmacies to be our pharmacist of choice.

Are you ready to Go Local?

Here are some questions you should ask about your current pharmacist.

1. Is your pharmacist both accessible and knowledgeable?

Extensive research by Consumer Reports, a well-known non-profit consumer advocate, in 2015 found in survey results that, as a group, pharmacy chains were rated lower than independent pharmacies.

Customers using independent pharmacies gave their pharmacists high marks for being accessible, taking time to personally discuss prescriptions, and being knowledgeable. Shoppers at chain pharmacies and big-box stores often reported that they weren’t comfortable discussing personal medical concerns at the drugstore and often found or thought the pharmacist seemed too busy to discuss questions they had.

2. Do you often have a long wait for your prescriptions?

Here again research by Consumer Reports found that independents provided speedier service than chain pharmacies and big-box stores.

3. Is your pharmacy often out of a medication?

Once again, Consumer Reports found independent pharmacies ranked higher here in both having a medication in stock, or in getting it quickly.

4. Does the pharmacy you use offer added valuable customer services?

Have you ever known the big chain retailers to offer free home delivery? Better yet, do they offer home delivery at all? Usually not.

However, independent pharmacies do. Other services you can find at most independent pharmacies in the Flathead are blood pressure screenings, prescription compounding, travel immunizations, large supply of durable medical equipment, medication therapy management and a host of other services. Check with your local pharmacy to see what specialty services they offer.

Tips for switching pharmacies Consumer Reports notes that changing pharmacies isn’t difficult, but you need to follow all of the steps to make sure that everyone involved in your family’s healthcare has up-to-date information.

Here’s what they suggest.

• “Let the new druggist handle transfers. Much of the work to transfer prescriptions, including remaining refills, is done electronically these days. Depending on your state laws, refills for controlled substances might not transfer, in which case you’ll need to have your doctor issue a new prescription.

• Do the paperwork. Your pharmacy needs a complete profile of every family member, including insurance information, medical history, and a list of every drug used – prescription and over-the-

counter drugs, herbs, supplements, topical preparations, and even eye drops.

• Notify your doctors. It will save time and confusion later if you call your doctors’ offices and update the pharmacy information in your file.

• Fill all prescriptions at the new store. Chain stores frequently entice customers with discounts and gift cards for transferring or bringing in a new prescription. But once you’ve found a drugstore that suits your needs, it’s safest to fill all of your prescriptions there if you can. Shopping around might save you a few dollars here or there, but it’s bad in the long run because no one place will have a complete medical profile. Your pharmacist can’t alert you to potentially dangerous interactions if they don’t know everything you are taking.”

For more information on locally owned independent pharmacies in the Flathead, see their ads in this guide: Evergreen Compounding Pharmacy, Page 37 Medical Arts Pharmacy, Kalispell, Page 66 Remedies Lakeside, Page 69 —By Mayre Flowers

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Kalispell Antiques Market

A Treasure Hunt Through the Ages

When Rosan VanWagenen was nine years old, she was on a walk with her grandmother in downtown Tacoma, Washington when they came across an antique store. Rosan thought it was a magical place – like a museum, but everything was for sale. Her grandmother bought her an 1891 bible for $1. She felt like she was carrying an ancient treasure in her arms as she proudly left the store with it.

Rosan is one of the three new owner/operators at Kalispell Antiques Market, one of the Flathead’s largest antiques malls located downstairs of Western Outdoor in downtown Kalispell. She shares the day-to-day business operations with co-owner Valerie Purdy, and Janet Hagel who takes cares of the bookkeeping and treasurer side. All three have cultivated a deep love and appreciation of antiques through years of collecting and dealing the found treasures. Before coming to the Flathead, Valerie and Rosan owned their own antique stores in other towns.

The three women had been vendors at the Kalispell Antiques Market for several years when the previous owners announced that they were retiring. Valerie, Rosan and Janet decided to join forces and take over the shop to keep the Market from closing. They felt that it was a unique space where customers could treasure hunt through all sorts of different styles of antiques under one roof in the heart of downtown Kalispell.

“The Market is huge; you can get lost in it. It’s a huge variety, with all the different dealers, there’s something here for everybody. Whether you want to do mid-century modern, Victorian, Cowboy and Indian, or if you’re just looking for dishes or lighting fixtures, or fun vintage remakes… it’s fun!” says Valerie. Even the building that houses the Market could be considered an antique – built in 1896, the beautiful brick storefront was originally the McIntosh Opera House.

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Learning the history of the items that pass through the shop is a major perk for the three owners. Discovering clues to how a piece passed through generations – who owned it, what it was used for, what came overseas on a ship or across the plains in a covered wagon – keeps the business fascinating and exciting. Janet reflects, “Sometimes you’ll come across just a tin of buttons, and it’ll have a little bar of soap from a hotel, or a matchbook, or some sort of souvenir thrown in there with it. And it’s really personal because you can connect with your imagining of what this person was like or who they were, even though you don’t really know.”

Each of the three owners has their own style of antique that they’re drawn to collecting. Valerie’s booth is filled with old west themed antiques.

Janet’s booth has a shabby chic style with a lot of variety, including things for men so it’s “not all grandma.” Rosan specializes in jewelry and books.

All in all the Antiques Market hosts 43 antique dealers, the majority of them being local Flathead collectors.

The three owners share the same philosophy of treating their customers like family. Rosan relates, “We like to hear about their lives and the treasures they have found. We try to have fun, interesting items that people will fall in love with.” As the market is constantly changing, new finds are added every day for people to discover. “I hope that when they come into our store, they think it is as magical as the store I remember as a child,” she adds.

So next time you’re feeling like a treasure hunt, take the stairs down to Kalispell Antiques Market. You’ll enter a world filled with heirlooms from days past to explore and leave with your own piece of history.

Kalispell Antiques Market is located in the same building as Western Outdoor at 48 Main Street in downtown Kalispell. They are open 7 days a week (!!!) from 10am to 5pm Monday through Saturday, and 11am to 5pm on Sunday (during the winter months these hours shorten slightly).

You can reach the Market at (406) 257-2800 or find them on Facebook.

—By Allison Batch

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Double Visions at the Hockaday Museum of Art The Hockaday Museum of Art announces Double Visions, an extraordinary exhibit telling the story of early Montana life through the art of Ron and Echo Ukrainetz, to on display September 15 – November 5, 2016. The opening reception will be held Thursday, September 15, 5pm – 7pm.

This September through November the Hockaday Museum of Art will display Double Visions, an exhibit celebrating the vibrant and exciting days of early Montana life. Renowned artists Ron and Echo Ukrainetz will present a compelling visual interpretation of the unique history of Montana, using their two different perspectives and artistic styles to emphasize the people, events, and land that made it all happen. The exhibition will cover broad themes, from the adventures of explorers like Lewis and Clark, to the thrills of the famous Wild West Shows.

Depicting landscapes, historical figures, wildlife, and lifestyles, Ron and Echo tell Montana’s early stories through imagery and wall text. For example, Echo has created batik portraits of General Custer and Sitting Bull to complement Ron’s oil painting of the landscape where Custer’s Last Stand occurred.

Ron Ukrainetz was born and raised in Great Falls, Montana, and is a life-long artist. His favored mediums include oil, graphite, etchings, and he is a living Master in acrylics on engraved Claybord. During the past thirty years as a professional artist, Ron has illustrated numerous books, flyers, and articles for a wide variety of projects including The Audubon Society, Birders World, Montana FWP, Grounded Eagle Foundation, and the National Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation. He has provided over 150 historically accurate illustrations for the National Lewis and Clark Re-enactor’s Manual.

Echo Ukrainetz is a native Montanan and has been interested in art since her early days in school practicing drawing and design. Over the years of trial, error and experimentation, Echo has mastered the difficult practice of manipulating wax and dye to create intricate batik paintings. Batik is an artistic process of alternating applications of wax resist and colorful dyes on high quality cloth. The sequence of dye application, drying, and wax application results in imparting colors in target areas, and is repeated until the entire piece is covered with wax. A single batik can have well over 30 applications of dye and wax. Echo is inspired by portraits, both contemporary and traditional, and her work has been accepted into fine art auctions offered by numerous Montana museums and is represented by galleries throughout the United States.

The opening reception for Double Visions will be held on Thursday, September 15 from 5pm to 7pm. Admission is free to the event for members, and $10 for non-members. Ron and Echo Ukrainetz will be speaking at 5:30pm. Throughout the exhibit, visitors may learn more about these accomplished artists, their media and techniques by joining one of the docent-guided tours held Saturdays at 1pm (included with guest admission). The Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10am to 5pm.

The Hockaday Museum of Art is located in the cultural district of downtown Kalispell at 302 Second Ave East. It is housed in a 1904 Carnegie Library building that appears on the National Register of Historic Places. The Museum is a private nonprofit organization, open year-round, Tuesday through Saturday from 10am-5pm. The mission of the Hockaday is to enrich the cultural life of our community and region, and preserve the artistic legacy of Montana and Glacier National Park. For more information, please visit www.HockadayMuseum.org or call 406-755-5268.

— By Brian Eklund

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Go Local to Go Back in Time to Discover Kalispell at the Turn of the Century Conrad Mansion Museum “I love that we have the Mansion in our community. It is such a huge part of our history. It is amazing that the Mansion is so well preserved with all of the original furnishings. My son just loved all of the history.”

- Crystal Wendt

CLIMBING • BACKPACKING NORDIC AND BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

Kalispell

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57

The

Apartment

on Main Street

2 24 M a i n S t r e e t

Kalispell, Montana

Luxurious Accommodations for vacation rental Large living room, dining room, three bedrooms and one bath Complete kitchen washer / dryer.

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406-314-4290 www.vrbo.com

WOODLAND MONTESSORI SCHOOL Early Childhood Education for ages 2-6

V E RY ISCO

pire a l o ve of l ea Ins rn ing .

FD

NA TU

O LL

CALL TO SCHEDULE A TOUR AND JOIN OUR WAITING LIST!

gn it e

al if

ng lear n er elo

Introducing our new N I Q F UIRY IT O • T Spanish Immersion PIR S HR L I Program!

RA

..

...I

(406) 755-3824 • www.mtmontessori.com

AMERICAN MONTESSORI SOCIETY education that transforms lives Full Member School

STAR 2

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How to Recycle in the Flathead Recycling in the Big Sky state can be tricky. Here’s how to sort it out locally.

WHY RECYCLE? There are some pretty clear benefits to recycling. For one, we all know that there’s no such thing as throwing something “away” – it must go somewhere. As our population grows, limiting the footprint of our landfill is increasingly important for preserving valuable agricultural and working lands across the valley. The average American creates 4.4 pounds of trash per day. Recycling can help us dramatically cut down on how much of that waste is buried in a landfill.

Recycling also creates jobs. According to the EPA, 10,000 tons of solid waste creates 10 recycling jobs, compared to just 1 landfill job. Our local recycling programs support over 50 jobs in the Flathead alone.

Recycling saves valuable energy and resources. Twenty recycled aluminum cans can be made with the same amount of energy it takes to produce one new can. Recycling one ton of newsprint saves 7,000 gallons of water. Recycling ten plastic bottles saves enough energy to power a 60W light bulb for almost 100 hours.

With these benefits in mind, how can we help support our local recycling programs? Learning to sort our recyclable materials correctly is a key piece in the recycling puzzle.

SORT IT OUT In 2015, city and county recycling programs collaborated to streamline their collection programs. All city and county sites now recycle the same materials, sorted the same way. This is a major achievement that makes recycling much simpler for the Flathead.

All public drop-off sites now accept three categories of materials: Plastic and Metal, Mixed Paper, and Cardboard.

Plastic and Metals include all #1 and #2 plastics with caps removed, aluminum, tin and steel cans. Plastic bags cannot be recycled in this bin as they jam and break equipment used to process these materials for recycling. Instead, plastic grocery bags belong in the return bins inside grocery stores. If you’re not sure what type of plastic you have, look for the triangular recycling symbol with a number inside of it. Plastics #3-#7 should be placed in the trash.

Mixed Paper includes all types of newsprint, magazines, catalogues, junk mail, notebook and printer paper. Windowed envelopes and stapled paper are fine to recycle.

Cardboard bins can take corrugated cardboard, paperboard

(like cereal boxes), and brown paper bags. Do not recycle any waxed cardboard, such as milk or juice cartons.

Proper sorting of recyclables is extremely important for supporting our local recycling businesses. By giving them a clean, wellsorted product, we as citizens can lower costs and increase the market value for these materials, ensuring that these companies can stay in business and continue to serve our community.

WHAT ABOUT GLASS? Target stores across Montana discontinued their glass recycling program on March 1st, 2016, citing high costs as the prohibitive factor. Luckily the Flathead has another option for keeping glass out of our landfill.

New World Recycling has a glass pulverizing machine that turns our old glass into construction and landscaping material.

This recycled glass stays in Montana, used for all sorts of home projects, as garden mulch, or added to cement. Xanterra’s Glacier National Park Lodges used 70,000 pounds of this crushed glass in the construction of the new parking garage for the red tour busses last summer.

You can drop off your household glass at New World Recycling at 4969 U.S. Hwy 2 (just north of the Glacier International Airport).

Glacier National Park Lodges has an additional glass recycling drop-off site at 1014 1st Ave W in Columbia Falls.

EXPLORE YOUR OPTIONS We are fortunate here in the Flathead to have so many great recycling businesses to choose from. As discussed above, our county and city public drop-off sites are a great way to recycle, and by sorting your materials you help ensure that local governments and recycling businesses can afford to keep these sites open. The new improved drop-off sites are offering residents clean and wellmanaged locations for both residential trash and recycling. The new Lakeside site will be re-opening later this fall.

Curbside recycling as a fee-based service is also available in the three cities and some areas in the county. New World Recycling (406-2575899) and Flathead Green Machines (406-755-8112) are local curbside recycling businesses that pick up from residences and business across the county. North Valley Refuse will provide curbside pickup for residents of Whitefish (406-862-4381).

For a full list of drop-off sites and recycling centers, please visit our website at www.WasteNotProject.org.

The WasteNot Project is a consumer education program that seeks to heighten awareness about solid waste issues while promoting ways to reduce the volume and toxicity of our county waste stream. Learn more at www.WasteNotProject.org.

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Kalispell Montessori

Go Local for Fun, Surprising Gifts That Make You Smile Flair Boutique

• Individualized Learning • Low Student To Teacher Ratios • Art, Music & Theatre Enrichment • Educating Children Grades 1-8 349 Willow Glen Drive Kalispell 755-3826 www.kalispellmontessori.com

127 Main Street • Kalispell • (406) 755-5321

6)

“Flair is full of ridiculously awesome gifts! The selection varies from quirky to classy. I always find unique and special gifts here.”

- Anne Reid Kalispell

127 Main Street • Kalispell • (406) 755-5321

755-5321

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GIFTS JEWELRY HOME

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Pets-Plus:

We stay when you’re away While vacations are meant to relax us, the act of travelling can be stressful.

This is especially true for our pets, who many times can not come with us on our worldly adventures. Local pet sitting business Pets-Plus attempts to alleviate some of the stress and guilt that comes with leaving your furry friend at home. Pets-Plus specializes in pet sitting at your home, so you know your pets are in a safe environment and your four-legged family can stay where they’re comfortable.

Animals are Pets-Plus owners Connie and Dennis Gomez’ best friends, which inspired them to start the business in 1997. Bonded, licensed and insured, Pets-Plus is a full service complete pet care business, serving the Flathead Valley by providing pets the security and comfort of staying in their home when owners are away.

Former Beagle breeders with four-legged kids of their own, Connie and Dennis have lived with dogs, cats, birds, hamsters, a salamander and even nursed an injured dove and footless lovebird to health. Connie says, “We will care for mammals, fowl, or amphibians as well as horses, sheep, and pigs.” You name the animal; they’ve probably fed, watered and played with one.

Before beginning a new job, Connie or Dennis meet with clients at their home to go over the animals’ particular special requirements and to become familiar with the homeowners and house rules. There is no charge or obligation for this initial visit. Pets-Plus services include transporting your pets to the veterinarian and groomer.

Connie and Dennis understand a pet’s needs and diet. Administering medications are part of their service. Polly, Connie’s senior beagle and certified therapy dog has health issues and special needs. Polly has taught them a lot about the sensitive care that such animals need. Connie and Dennis are also First-Aid Certified for the unlikely event of an emergency.

“As the owner of Pets-Plus, my greatest satisfaction is knowing my services allow pets to stay in the comfort and security of their surroundings when Mom and Dad are away,” explains Connie.

Besides tending pets, Pets-Plus will house sit for ‘snowbirds’ or vacationers, man the lights, open and close drapes, bring in the mail and newspapers, and make sure homes look occupied.

Making new four-legged friends is Connie and Dennis’ favorite part of operating the business.

“The ‘Plus’ part of our business is receiving love, licks, and kisses from my grateful animals. Caring for animals and spending quality time with them in their home is exciting to me. Clients’ animals are like extended family, ” Connie said.

For advice on preparing a pet to stay home while you’re on a trip, or for pet or house sitting reservations, contact Connie and Dennis of Pets-Plus at 406-257-7155. You may also find them on Facebook.

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Pet, Home-Care & Senior Help All pets, including livestock Overnights Available

Services Offered: Medications Pet Exercise Supply Delivery Pooper Scooper Exotic Pets Care

Polly & Connie

Connie & Dennis • Bonded & Insured 406-257-7155 www.facebook.com/petandhomesittingflatheadvalley

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Go Local for Community Leaders Medical Arts Pharmacy Pharmacist Josh Stillo, of Medical Arts Pharmacy in Kalispell, was recently elected by his peers to the board of the Montana Pharmacy Association. Serving on this board allows Josh to bring the perspective of independent locally owned pharmacies across the state to the association’s mission to advance public health and to maximize positive patient outcomes. “We’re just a little bit proud of Josh and the leadership role he is taking on. We just had to give him some kudos! ” said Holly Ford, owner of Medical Arts Pharmacy, locally owned and established in 1972.

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• FREE DELIVERY

• Drive-Thru or, Walk-In • Conveniently Located • Accepting All Major Insurance Plans, Medicare & Workman’s Comp • The Fastest and Friendliest Service in Town • New Customers Always Welcome Hours: Mon. - Fri. 8:30am - 5:30pm Sat. 9:00am - 1:00pm

752-2492

209 Conway Dr. • Kalispell AmEx, MasterCard, Discover, VISA Fax: 752-2494

My Montana Lifestyle ... Let Me Help You Find Yours!

INTERNATIONAL REAL ESTATE

Sandy O’Connell ~ Broker

PureWest Real Estate 406-270-7541 http://purewestrealestate.com/

OPEN 8-5 MON. - SAT. CALL ON WEEKENDS 250-4535 or 261-3548 randyoconnell@centurylink.net go local FLATHEAD

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Lakeside/Somers To Kalispell

th

ea

d

La

ke

For res Ro t Hill ad

To Bigfork School Addition Rd

Fla

To Kalispell

Somers

Adams St. Flathead Lake To Lakeside Stoner Loop

Lakeside

Ben Williams Ln

N

Blacktail Rd

Redfield Ln

To Polson

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69

212-5626

Hours: July and August

By Appointment Only http://www.purplemountainlavendermontana.com/

Somers Bay Café

Located in Beautiful Downtown Somers

Serving Breakfast & Lunch 7 Days a Week • 7am to 2pm

857-2660 http://www.somersbay.com/blog/

Phone: 406.844.2188 Mobile: 406.270.2927 www.lakesideskisports.com contactssports@gmail.com

7212 Hwy 93 S. • Lakeside, Montana

Located behind the Spinnaker Bar. Look for the Water Sports sign on the west side of HWY 93.

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Go Local for Fine Dining with a Farm to Market Twist Seven Lakeside “We love going to Seven for special occasions and celebrations.

The menu is always changing depending on whats in season so there’s always something new and delicious to try. Plus you know it’s fresh since the ingredients are coming straight from our local farms and ranches!”

- Allison Batch and Aaron Siems Kalispell

TAMARACK BREWING COMPANY Tamarack Lakeside is home to Tamarack Brewing Company, where we brew and package our craft beer, as well as Tamarack Alehouse and Grill, where we serve delicious pub fare in a family friendly atmosphere. In the summer, relax with a beer and a burger on our creekside patio; in the winter, sit by the fire with your friends and share a pizza and a pitcher of beer.

It all began with a beer… at tamarackbrewing.com

FARMHOUSE We at farmhouse believe that whole food, seasonally inspired and thoughtfully prepared with locally and regionally sourced ingredients, both supports our communities and nourishes our souls.

Enjoy freshly prepared breakfast and lunch, as well as fresh baked goods, coffee and espresso, and our signature mimosas and Bloody Marys.

Eat more from the earth and less from a box at farmhouselakeside.com

SEVEN Seven is a grill lover’s paradise in Lakeside, Montana. Elk burger? Yes. Buffalo steak sandwich? You bet. Scratch made veggie burger? Bring it on. Seven focuses on made from scratch items, and we use local, organic and sustainably produced ingredients whenever possible. From Montana-raised grass fed and finished burgers, to our locally grown seasonal vegetables used in our sides and salads, Seven celebrates food as is should be.

Eat like you mean it at sevenlakeside.com

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AirWorks

AirWorks Heating and Cooling Solutions has a storefront nestled in Uptown Kalispell, but the majority of their work occurs in the customers’ homes and businesses. Solving problems 24 hours a day is what they do best, and after 20 years in business in the Flathead it’s all in a day’s work. Does it mean an occasional lack of sleep? Probably, but the positive impact of getting a customer’s heat on in a crisis is something they are committed to.

Owners Bill and Diane Yarus met on a blind date some 27 years ago, and the rest is history. Bill got started in the heating and cooling industry in Virgina right after high school 37 years ago with a little prompting from his dad. Apparently working on his tan was not an acceptable answer for what to do on his summer break. Both Bill and Diane have built an impressive resume of schooling, and technical and professional certifications to give them the expertise their business is known for.

The jump from Virginia to Montana was quick. Bill flew out to visit his brother Brian, headed to the park, and went on a hike.

Having never been west of the Mississippi, the jaw-dropping scenery had an immediate impact. The first phone call home was to his young pregnant wife to call the realtor and put the house on the market. Within only a few weeks, with a contract in hand, a U-haul rented, jobs regretfully quit, and packing a newborn by that time and a one-year-old, they headed west. Diane had never been to Montana and was relying on Bills opinion of their new home, the Flathead Valley. Fortunately for him, the outdoor-oriented Diane took to NW Montana like a duck to water as did their three sons.

Running any business is tough, so Diane and Bill share duties.

Diane does the marketing and the books (among a thousand other tasks) and Bill handles the sales and technical assistance for the techs. After twenty years in business, they are both highly skilled and successful as working as a team to solve the toughest challenges that come their way. They have eight employees, many

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Heating & Cooling Professionals

who have been with them for years. “Our top quality staff are the wheels on the ground and definitely the engine that allows the company to thrive,” say Diane and Bill.

AirWorks focuses on service and maintenance of residential and light commercial HVAC equipment. HVAC is in common use in the heating and cooling industry. It stands for “heating, ventilation and air conditioning,” three functions often combined into one system in today’s modern homes and buildings. They excel at helping customers with system upgrades that apply the latest technology to save energy dollars and keep their homes or businesses comfortable. The amount of older equipment in the valley (15-25 years old) is considerable, and the improvements in efficiency and reliability are huge opportunities for customers to upgrade and realize long-term cost savings.

AirWorks is not a large company by any stretch of the imagination, but you don’t have to be real big to effect real change.

Giving back through community service is part of their DNA, whether it is to their customers or the community. On their web site (http://www.airworksmt.com) you can find more about this “Thermo Couple” as they are known by the blog they maintain to answer customer questions. Under the “About” tab you’ll find a of list of just some of the many ways Diane and Bill give back year around. No wonder there hasn’t been a TV in the Yarus home for going on 12 years! Between their business and community work, there apparently seems to be better things to do— including raising kids, gardening, fishing, boating, hiking, raising chickens, sheep, and bees.

Stop by AirWorks at 294 2nd Ave. WN, Kalispell, or give them a call: 406-257-1341. Check them out on the internet at: www.airworksmt.com —By Linda Jaquette

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“We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.”

—Chief Seattle Honor the past, improve the future.

“The MORE that you READ, the more THINGS you will KNOW. The MORE you LEARN, The more PLACES you’ll GO!” —Dr. Seuss

West Shore Community Library An all volunteer non-profit organization serving the communities of Somers, Lakeside, Rollins & Dayton.

Library Hours: Mon. thru Sat., 10am - 4pm NEW - Tues. & Thurs. evenings, 4pm - 7pm

LJ16

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PO Box 107, 100 Bierney Creek Road Lakeside, MT 59922 • 406-844-3917 http://www.wsclibrary.org

Big Sky ACBS 2016 Summer Boat Show Events

June 24-26, 2016 5th Annual Whitefish Woody Weekend

Location: The Lodge at Whitefish Lake Hosted by : The Lodge at Whitefish Lake.

Admission is free to the public June 24 Woody’s Cruising Lake at 8:00 pm June 25 Saturday 9:00 am to 6:00 pm June 26 Sunday 9:00 am 9:30 start of Poker Run. For More Information Contact: Tim Salt, 406-862-5085 or whitefishwoodyweekend@gmail.com

August 6-7, 2016 11th Annual Big Sky Antique & Classic Boat Show Bigfork

Location: Marina Cay Resort, Bigfork, Montana August 6 Saturday 10:00 am to 4:00 pm August 7 Sunday 10:00 am to 4:00 pm For more Information Contact: Alex Berry: alex.b@montanawoodenboatfoundation.org Warrren Davis: bigskymooner@hotmail.com

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Whitefish To Whitefish Resort

Railway St

Miles Ave

1st St

1st St

Baker Ave

7th St

Columbia Ave

Kalispell Ave

5th St

Pine Ave

6th St 7th St

8th St 9th St Ri ve Av rsid e. e

W.13th St

10th St

N

W.15th St

To Kalispell

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Park Ave

4thSt

Somers Ave

3rd St

Spokane Ave

Central Ave

Baker Ave

Lupfer Ave

E. 2nd St O’Brien Ave

To Eureka

Depot St

Go Local to Make Your Move an Easy One Five Star Rentals of Montana “We were fortunate enough to find Jill “Z” at Five Star in our quest to find a rental home before we moved here back in 1998. As we arrived with 5 (yes 5!) cats and 3 dogs we had had no luck finding any rental agency or individuals who were willing to take a chance on us. But Jill has a huge heart and she found us a beautiful place in her client list (she has the best rentals!) and took great care of us. Any problems we ever had (which were few and far between) were always handled promptly and with courtesy!”

Choose From Our Wide Array of Long-Term Rentals & Fabulous Vacation Rentals • Lake Homes • Whitefish Condos • Mountain Retreats • Caretaking • Lodges

- Donna and Jim McKiernan, Kalispell

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Rooting Down Capture the Crown of the Continent Ecosystem in Your Own Landscapes

Spring has sprung and 12,000 new seeds planted last fall are taking root at the Center for Native Plants, Flathead Valley’s only retail native plant nursery in close proximity to the Crown of the Continent Ecosystem.

Andrew Beltz, Greg Gunderson, and David Noftsinger founded the Center for Native Plants in 2007 as an offshoot of their restoration and landscape company, Forestoration, Inc., founded in 2002. During the first five years while working on land restoration projects throughout the Crown of the Continent ecosystem, the team began to appreciate the beauty and broad diversity of native plants, as well as their many benefits.

This passionate team now grows a diverse collection of plants— over 125 different species of wildflowers, grasses, shrubs, and trees— that are native to Montana and the intermountain Northwest. Since the plants are grown, sown, and then overwinter outdoors, they are hardy and well-adapted to local climate extremes.

“This is an exciting time for us,” said Noftsinger. “The Center has been nearly a decade in the making. We purchased the property at our current location three years ago, and just got our business sign out on the highway last fall. We are looking forward to this next phase of being a more established company.”

Growing a company like this takes hard work, foresight, and patience. Years of research and development have shown the team what they can grow—iconic native plants like Indian Paintbrush— as they experiment with different soils and alkaline levels. The team is always looking many seasons ahead, which is why the retail floor now has robust plants that have been growing for years.

Native plants are sturdy and conserve water, as they require little to no irrigation. Other maintenance needs are low—such as fertilization and pruning—since the plants are adapted to the local

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soil and environment.

Not only are these plants hardy, they are beautiful and help keep native pollinators like bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds thriving.

Ultimately, they create a sense of place for homeowners.

Greg Gunderson likens the business to a homegrown project that started at a hobby level and is finally blooming.

“You can only learn things one year at a time,” says Gunderson. “We can observe what hurts a certain plant and improve our techniques. It’s a process—we have moved slowly to learn what works and then apply that knowledge.”

Like a native tree that grows in the forest, Gunderson makes the analogy that during the first several years after a seed has sprouted, little growth is seen above ground while the root system is developing.

“Visible and exponential growth takes off only after several years,” he says. “Because we have made careful observations of natural systems, we’ve focused on the roots of our business. Now we are at that threshold where the growth is about to take off.”

—By Rita Braun

Join us

for a weekend of building and empowering sustainable communities featuring

keynote speaker Mary Berry

Executive Director of The Berry Center

2016 AERO Expo & Annual Meeting What we need is here

Oct 7 - 9, 2016

Kalispell, MT

Photo by Katie Neskey, AERO Board Member & Owner of Awesome Acres Farm, St. Ignatius MT

Red Lion Hotel

“Wild Geese,” by Wendell Berry From Collected Poems 1957-1982 (North Point Press)

Horseback on Sunday morning, harvest over, we taste persimmon and wild grape, sharp sweet of summer’s end. In time’s maze over fall fields, we name names that went west from here, names that rest on graves.

We open a persimmon seed to find the tree that stands in promise, pale, in the seed’s marrow.

Geese appear high over us, pass, and the sky closes.

Abandon, as in love or sleep, holds them to their way, clear, in the ancient faith: what we need is here.

And we pray, not for new earth or heaven, but to be quiet in heart, and in eye clear.

What we need is here.

Go Local for Hearty Heirloom Seeds to Grow Your Garden!

Good Seed Company

“Good Seed Co has the best seeds! Robin has a great variety of unique, heirloom seeds that produce beautiful, flavorful veggies. These seeds are meant to grow in our northern climate so they do really well with our short growing season.”

- Karen Crittenden Whitefish

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Hike Wild Montana Your Online Guide to the Best Trails Under the Big Sky Looking to hit the trail? Look no further than hikewildmontana. org, the Montana Wilderness Association’s new, online trail guide.

Built by more than 70 volunteers, the site includes descriptions, photos, and maps for more than 225 trails throughout Montana.

Plus, the site includes recommendations to satisfy your trail cravings: burgers, milkshakes, pie, and more.

Whether you’re in the mood for spring wildflowers, ancient cedar forests, glassy lakes, or mountaintop vistas, you’ll find what you’re looking for at hikewildmontana.org. Here are a few suggestions to get started:

WARRIOR MOUNTAIN Roundtrip Distance: 10 mi.

Total Elevation Gain: 3500 ft.

Location: Bunker Creek Grizzly Core Area, Flathead National Forest Photo by Lee Boman

With abundant wildflowers and big views, Warrior Mountain offers a stunning glimpse into the heart of the wild Swan Range and into Bunker Creek Recommended Wilderness. From the summit you’ll be looking over some of the most productive wildlife habitat in North America. Wolverines, grizzlies, mountain goats, and elk all call the land before you home.

LINK LAKE AND NASUKOIN MOUNTAIN Location: Whitefish Proposed Wilderness, Flathead National Forest Link Lake Trail #372: Roundtrip Distance: 3 mi.

Total Elevation Gain: 588 ft.

Nasukoin Mountain Trail #375: Roundtrip Distance: 10 mi.

Total Elevation Gain: 3500 ft.

MT. AENEAS Roundtrip Distance: 6 mi.

Total Elevation Gain: 1800 ft.

Location: Jewel Basin Hiking Area, Flathead National Forest Yes, the trailhead is called Camp Misery, but don’t let that stop you.

In just three miles, you’ll be standing on the highest point in the Flathead Range, where you’ll enjoy spectacular views into the lakes of the Jewel Basin Hiking Area and out across the peaks of Glacier National Park.

MUNSON CREEK Roundtrip Distance: 3-6 mi.

Total Elevation Gain: 1250 ft.

Location: Lolo National Forest A hike along Munson Creek offers incredible diversity packed into a relatively short distance. You’ll pass through open stands of Doug fir and ponderosa, larch, aspen, and deep cedar groves, each with its own variety of wildflowers and flowering shrubs. At 3 miles, the trail crosses into open meadows with views of the dramatic Cherry Peak Roadless Area. Or, for a shorter trip, make your destination one of the cedar-shaded stream crossings along the way, perfect places for a summer picnic.

- By Kassia Randzio, MWA Community Engagement Manager

Help Keep It Current!

Photo by Zach Porter

Whether you’re looking for a short stroll or a longer adventure, Link Lake and Nasukoin are the perfect destination. Both trails begin from the same trailhead. Either hike 1 ½ miles to scenic Link

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Lake or continue to Nasukoin Peak. With stunning views the entire way, old alpine larch and whitebark pines, high elevation lakes, and incredible views, the rewards of Nasukoin far exceed the effort.

After a day on the trail, go to www.hikewildmontana.org and click “Add a Trip Report” to share your experience and keep trail conditions up-to-date. It’s quick and easy.

Know some great trails? Click “Add a Trail” to get set-up with simple tools to collect info the next time you’re out on the trail. It’s a great way to showcase all our area has to offer.

https://www.facebook.com/North-Valley-Music-School602168609847922/?fref=ts

Go Local for Magical Memories in Wild Places Montana Wilderness Association

“To enrich our communities through music education, appreciation and performance.”

“Some of my favorite memories and moments have come from wild places. I want my children to have these same experiences. That’s why it’s so important to me to be involved with the Montana Wilderness Association. #parentsforpubliclands.”

- Gail Fassnacht Whitefish

Private lessons in banjo, cello, flute, bass guitar, guitar, harp, mandolin, piano, voice, violin and viola.

Group classes, Music Together®, NV Glee Club, Camp Festival Amadeus “FREE Acoustic Jam, Weds. 6:30 - 8:00.

Open to all ages and skill levels.”

432 Spokane Avenue, Whitefish, MT 406-862-8074 www.northvalleymusicschool.org

ook.com/wild-

Montana Wilderness Association’s 54th Annual Flathead - Kootenai Wilderness Walks Experience nature with all your senses! Each Wilderness Walk is an opportunity to slow down, feel the earth beneath your feet, travel a winding path through the forest, discover a wildflower-filled meadow or reach the top of a mountain. Join an experienced guide on a Wilderness Walk this summer as they share their knowledge and passion for protecting our last wild places.

Register online and find more Wilderness Walks across Montana at www.wildmontana.org - FREE! For more information, contact Amy Robinson, Field Director, Montana Wilderness Association. (406)284-1747 MAY HIKES: Kootenai Country Birding 5/21/2016 Libby, Montana 3 miles Easy Columbia Mountain Evening Wildflower Walk 5/31/2016 Columbia Falls 3 miles Moderate JUNE HIKES: Leigh Lake Yoga Hike 6/4/2016 Libby 3 miles Moderate Bull River Fires 6/11/1991 Troy 3 miles Easy Lincoln County Archaeological Tour 6/18/2016 Libby 1 mile Easy Plein Aire Art Day 6/25/2016 Libby 1 mile Easy JULY HIKES: Three Lakes Peak 7/7/2016 Ravalli 3 miles Moderate Geiger Lakes Excursion 7/9/2016 Libby 8 miles Moderately - Strenuous Coal Ridge Lookout 7/16/2016 Polebridge 6.8 miles Strenuous Old Growth Ecology 7/16/2016 Little Joe 2.5 miles Easy Picnic Lake Wildflowers, Jewel Basin 7/22/2016 Kalispell 6 miles Moderately - Strenuous Rockin’ Geology Day 7/23/2016 Libby 5 miles Moderately - Strenuous AUGUST HIKES: Chapaaqn 8/11/2016 Arlee 5 miles Moderate Moose Peak 8/13/2016 Polebridge 6 miles Strenuous Red Top Mountain 8/21/2016 Yaak 7 miles Extremely Strenuous Wetland Wanderings 8/27/2016 Kila 3 miles Easy

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Glacier Park goes greener Glacier Park Goes Greener with Sustainable Business Practices As we celebrate the National Park Service’s Centennial, we are reminded of the significance of Glacier National Park. The Park predates the formation of the National Park Service. In 1910, President Taft signed the bill establishing it as the country’s 10th national park.

In 1932, Waterton Lakes National Park (Alberta, Canada) and Glacier National Park (Montana, United States) combined, becoming the world’s first International Peace Park, and in 1995 was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Often referred to as the Crown of the Continent or the Backbone of the World, the park’s incredible geographical, ecological, and cultural significance cannot be denied, along with its economic influence.

In 2014, Glacier National Park Lodges assumed Glacier National Park’s concessionaire operations and did not waste any time making an impact. As operators of lodging, camp stores, historic red bus tours, and restaurant services throughout the park, they are the caregivers of much of the park’s historical structural treasures. Visitors often spend a large percentage of their time utilizing Glacier National Park Lodges’ properties and services. Matt Folz, Director of Risk and Sustainability, has been tasked with incorporating sustainable practices and programs in Glacier National Park Lodges’ operations. “High visitor interaction offers the opportunity to educate visitors about scalable sustainable practices, and what better way than to lead by example.,” he explains.

Just a few of the Glacier National Park Lodges’ projects and programs that have had come to fruition include: • Collected over 36 tons of food scraps to be composted with the help of Dirt Rich Compost • Collected over 45 tons of glass to be recycled with the help of New World Recycling; • Used over 120,000 lbs of glass in the foundation and landscape beds of the newly constructed Red Bus Garage; • Installed an electric vehicle charging station at Lake McDonald Lodge; • Spent over $1 million dollars on local and sustainably sourced food and beverage; • Purchased a solar panel as part of the Flathead Electric SUN program; •Added recycle containers to guest rooms, made in Columbia Falls by a local craftsman; • Supported local Earth Day and community farmer’s market events in park gateway communities.

With 14 years remaining in their concessionaire contract we can expect many more innovative projects and programs coming from this group

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Lake McDonald Lodge fuel station., Photo Credit: NPS Archives Office With federal funding as it is, the Park’s vast 1 million acres can be a lot to protect, maintain, and preserve. That is where Glacier National Park Conservancy steps in. Glacier National Park Conservancy is the official non-profit fundraising partner for Glacier National Park. This dream team works tirelessly to assure the Glacier National Park experience by providing support for preservation, education, and research through philanthropy and outreach.

Proposed park collaborative projects are vetted through a rigorous process and, if selected, debuted in the annual Field Guide to Park Priorities. This is where you can step in and become a Glacier Champion selecting specific project(s) to partially or fully support.

Check out Glacier National Park Conservancy’s 2015-2016 President’s Report for a glimpse of how past support has helped Glacier National Park. The 2016 Field Guide to Centennial Park Project Priorities has been posted and features 34 projects, so find your passion project you would like to champion. http:// www.glacierconservancy.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/FieldGuide-9-22-15.pdf Interested in a more active way to support your Park? Glacier National Park Conservancy has partnered with Climate Ride to offer Glacier Ride. Glacier National Park Conservancy’s Amy Dempster remarks, “This bicycle ride explores some of the wildest country in the lower 48 and an ecosystem threatened by environmental degradation and climate change. Your fundraising efforts and participation in Glacier Ride help to raise awareness of the issues facing Glacier and gives you a firsthand view of the Crown of the Continent.”

To learn more about Glacier National Park Conservancy visit www.glacierconservancy.org.

Climate Ride cyclist taking in Glacier National Park’s views from the Going-to-the-Sun Road.Photo Credit: Climate Wise | Glacier Ride In this day and age a price tag cannot be placed on the value of partnerships. Alanna Wulf, Glacier National Park’s appointed Energy Corps member, is working alongside Park staff to develop a community sustainability plan. Alanna reports, “The Park is building off of the Environmental Management System Plan finalized in 2012 by drafting a community sustainability plan that aligns the park’s sustainability efforts with the National Park Service’s Green Parks Plan. The sustainability plan will address energy efficiency, transportation, recycling, and night skies issues in the Park and seeks input from staff, partners, the surrounding community, and visitors.”

Recently, Glacier National Park has joined with the City of Whitefish, local tourism businesses, schools and citizens to form the Glacier Gateway Climate Solutions Partnership. Steve Thompson, Climate.Place and Climate Realty LLC Founder and Partnership Coordinator comments, “This collaborative effort is exploring ways to strengthen sustainable operations in the park and gateway communities, improve energy conservation, and reduce local emissions of the greenhouse gases that are warming the planet and melting Glacier’s iconic mountain glaciers. An economic development committee is exploring opportunities for new and existing businesses to implement innovative green business approaches. The partnership is also looking to address some of the risks that are already evident due to climate change such as water stress, dangerous wildfires and more extreme storm behavior.

Glacier National Park is recognized as an international icon indeed, a poster child - that vividly illustrates the reality and impact of a rapidly changing global climate. Countless visitors come to Glacier with a concern about the disappearing glaciers. While educating visitors and local residents about the risk of climate change, the partnership aims to help them become part of the solution as well.”

Discover more about Glacier National Park by visiting https://www.nps.gov/glac/.

Milky Way over St. Mary. Photo Credit: Ray Stinson-NPS Astro-VIP Jeff Mow, Superintendent of Glacier National Park, has taken note of the trending 20% visitation increase to park. According to visitoruse statistics, the park surpassed 2.3 million visitors in 2015. He recently spoke at the 2016 MT Governor’s Conference on Tourism and Recreation about the importance of highlighting experiences beyond the park’s borders. He stated, “Glacier National Park is the tip of the iceberg, people are drawn to our region because of the park, and to enhance their Glacier experience it is important we share the wealth. Offering visitors experiences beyond the park enhances the visitor experience and relieves pressure on park resources.” Crown of the Continent Geotourism Council is working to promote unique authentic experiences beyond the park and foster leadership and peer support for businesses to operate more efficiently and responsibly to help address this issue. Crown of the Continent Geotourism Council is a regional network of communities, tourism bureaus, conservation and business groups, educators, First Nations, government agencies, and others working together in the region that includes and surrounds Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park in southwestern Alberta, southeastern British Columbia, and northwestern Montana. Partnered with National Geographic, the council promotes regional well-being, advances landscape stewardship, and provides outstanding visitor experiences through the Crown of the Continent Geotourism Project. Offering 18 million acres of breathtaking scenery, the region includes two UNESCO World Heritage sites, including WatertonGlacier International Peace Park and Alberta’s Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, attesting to the region’s 6,000 years of human economy derived from the diversity of the landscape and its wildlife.

Paul Hawken says it best, “Business is the only mechanism on the planet today powerful enough to produce the changes necessary to reverse global environmental and social degradation.” What does the next 100 years hold for Glacier National Park? That is for us to decide. To learn more about the Crown of the Continent visit crownofthecontinent.natgeotourism.com.

—By Sheena Pate, Project Coordinator Crown of the Continent Geotourism Program

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D

ance and Acro All Summer

A N C E

Drop in... Camps...Parades ... Learn to Tumble... All Ages & Skill Levels

Check out our website, Facebook pages & Instagram

from your heart.....your body will follow

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Kelly West

Pete Stecher & Danny Kraus

Andrea Brew

Join us For Whitefish Gallery Nights, First Thursdays May - October

Kelly West

frame shop & gallery www.thewalkingman@cyberport.net www.thewalkingmanframeshop.com

305 Baker Avenue Whitefish, Montana 863-ARTS

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The Best Chocolate, Period! But That’s Not All!

“Best chocolate, period!” is how many customers of Copperleaf Chocolat Company, located in downtown Whitefish, describe the gourmet, handmade, artisan chocolates that this store is well known and loved for. But gourmet handmade chocolate is only one of the unique and top quality items that you will find housed within this specialty shop.

With the same eye to good taste and top quality artistry that shop owner, Susan Schnee, has brought to her handmade chocolate business, she has now grown her shop to include some of the finest lines of jewelry, purses, scarves, women’s jackets and men’s shirts. Nestled among these items you will also find an eclectic assortment of gift items along with Susan’s other passion: books - used and well loved.

The shop recently added a wonderful selection of jewelry by Navajo artist Artie Yellowhorse. As the artist’s website describes, her work blends Navajo culture with a contemporary world, creating timeless jewelry which is only showcased at selective galleries across the United States.

Fans of the Mary Frances collections of handbags and scarves will find these one-of-a kind items here. Her whimsical designs - famed for their color, texture, and unique materials - have earned her international recognition.

Clothing lines include the artistic in nature and rich in color Trimdin collection of woman’s reversible jackets made here in the US. For men, the store features BrãeVal shirts designed for casual business or country for outdoor sporting activities. The clothing lines are evolving as Susan continues to grow the store, so be sure to stop in and explore the specialty lines she chooses to carry.

For now, she is not offering the formerly popular line of upscale consignment clothing, but this may return as she settles into the store’s new location.

Susan has a culinary degree and worked for many years on the west coast as a highly sought after private chef. When in time she became weary of working nights, weekends, and every holiday, she began to let herself imagine a fresh start. Whitefish beckoned to

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her as a great place for this next adventure. With chocolate at the heart of this mission, she made a brief detour to Vancouver British Columbia where she immersed herself in school again to learn all she could about making gourmet handmade artisan chocolates.

She set up her first shop in a one hundred square foot space up the street from her current location, and her business expanded.

She added to the shop: organic espresso and iced coffee drinks, a large selection of quality used books for all ages, clothing, and an amazing eclectic mix of Montana gifts, jewelry, and specialty purses.

Two moves later and today she is just freshly settled in at her new location at 239 Central Avenue, still in the heart of downtown Whitefish. The store’s move allows Susan to diversify and bring in new product lines, which adds to the special uniqueness of this business, but the original Copperleaf Chocolat Company and Voyageur Booksellers remain a core part of her new store.

The selection of classic books at Voyageur Booksellers is sure to please any reader. You will find popular western frontier books, classics in natural history and environmental literature, hiking guides, and a wide selection of fiction.

Though now tucked in the back corner of the store, she still offers a stunning selection of over 100 different chocolates. Embrace temptation and view a long list of the wonderful flavors at her website: http://www.copperleafchocolat.com/copperleaf-flavours.html There are always unique handcrafted chocolate characters and critters to please the little ones as well.

There is a saying that books and chocolate make life bearable.

This store combines these two pleasures and entices you with yet another, that of finding the perfect gift for a friend, or even a self indulgent gift for yourself (which also makes life bearable)!

Copperleaf Chocolat is located at 239 Central Avenue, and is open Monday - Saturday from 10am to 6pm and Sunday from 11am to 5pm. Contact them at 406-862-9659, or www.copperleafchocolat.com —By Mayre Flowers

239 Central Ave. • Whitefish

Go Local to Find Your Home Away from Home The Bailey’s Bed ‘n Bale “In August of 2015, my husband and I along with my cousin and her husband stayed at Bailey’s Bed and Bale – for clearly not enough time, we loved it so much! The cabin is just about three miles out of town which was perfect. Perfect location to go into town and shop Whitefish or Kalispell and about 40 minutes to Glacier. The cows and chickens are sure going to miss me throwing out bread crumbs for them! So much fun. Linda and Dave have a beautiful place and have thought of every single thing you need. Great place for 2-3 couples or family vacation.

Thanks Linda and Dave for a wonderful, beautiful place to stay. We can’t wait to come back!”

- Melodie B Chatsworth, Georgia

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GROWING UP ON TERRAPIN FARM; A Tribute to my Mom, Judy When we first moved to the current farm in the early 90s, to my 8-year-old mind, it felt like we were moving to the end of the earth. In reality, we were only even miles west of Whitefish on Farm to Market Road. We all thought it was funny that we were farmers on Farm to Market Road! It all began by working up the fields and laying out the rows. Next came eight-foot deer fencing. Shortly after that construction of the greenhouse began.

Three hoop houses soon followed and five flourishing acres which eventually grew into eight.

When the greenhouse was overflowing with vibrant starts, we headed off on Saturday mornings at 5 am to the farmers market in Kalispell to wait in line for our usual spot where we were found for nearly 20 years. In those days, the market was at the Kalispell Center Mall. Now Judy can still be found at the Kalispell Farmers Market, not quite so early, in her new usual spot at Flathead Valley Community College, where the market is held Saturdays from 9:00am to 12:30 pm, starting the first weekend in May through the third weekend in October. At some markets, with her granddaughters, her mother and me by her side, you will find four generations of Judy’s family happy to help you.

On warm, bustling, Tuesday afternoons in Whitefish, locals and tourists alike flock to the Whitefish Farmers Market held at Depot Park. In spring when the first Whitefish market starts in late May, look for the iconic white van with the turtle on the side. Judy has many different varieties of bedding plants for early gardeners and the first fresh greens including spinach and spring mix. As we get into summer, the abundance of the farm becomes apparent with lettuces, Napa cabbage, cucumbers, peas, beans, squash, broccoli, carrots and many other vegetables - available until the last market in late September. Tuesdays are exceptionally busy as they are also wholesale days with deliveries to many of the restaurants, health food stores and school districts in the Flathead Valley. Some of our produce even travels by mule to the chalets of Glacier Park.

In addition to the beautiful young starts available for inspired gardeners, Judy is a grower and seller for Triple Divide Seeds, a cooperative of all Montana certified organic seed producers.

Grown only in Montana, these seeds are well adapted to our climate, which we all know can be challenging to farmers.

As the only certified organic and original Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in the valley, Terrapin Farm has established itself as the go-to farm for healthy eating families. With fresh veggies readily available Monday and Friday afternoons for our subscribers, the shares are full of an assortment of nutritious greens, fragrant herbs and mountains of

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Judy’s grandaughters enjoy ripe corn from the garden.

summer squash along with our famous carrots and anything else that we might have room for among the bounty.

My mom enjoys bringing the community to the farm by encouraging farm tours for school groups, internship programs, on-the-farm dinners, the annual spring open house, zucchini baseball in the fall, and plenty of opportunities for volunteers all season.

After long days in the fields, Judy’s evenings are filled with phone calls, paperwork and conference calls for various committees. In 1999, she was an original member, along with organic farmer and now-Senator Jon Tester, of the steering committee that wrote the regulations for the state of Montana’s new Organic Certification program. Currently, she is a board member of the Montana Organic Association and in 2013 was awarded their Lifetime Service Award for her long-term commitment to organic agriculture in Montana.

Sometimes as a kid, I didn’t think it was cool to live on a farm.

It was hard work and away from town and friends. But as I watch “Oma” with my girls, her granddaughters, and I see how much they love the farm, I truly appreciate what my mom gave me as a child and her love for feeding us all!

— Chloe Christiana

DIRT Rich, llc.

325 4th Street EN Columbia Falls, MT 406.212.7535

Open 7 nights a week • 5:00 PM to Close 115 Central Ave. Whitefish, MT

406-730-1575

www.trubysrestaurant.com

Containers of all sizes Hanging Baskets for Home or Business Colorful Garden Design, Planting and Upkeep Succulents and Cactus for Office, Home and Weddings

250-7236

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Got ?

Rocks

Go Local to Explore Beautiful, Ancient Treasures That You Can Take Home!

The Treasure Outpost

We Do !

“It’s neat to be able come into a local shop like this with my daughter and see museum quality fossils and crystals! They really have an impressive collection. It’s a great place for gifts as well.”

- Kristen and Neva Binder Whitefish

Come see our expanded selection of petrified wood, crystals, fossils, jewelry, toys, gifts & more at our new location!

The

Treasure 239 Central Ave Whitefish Outpost 406-890-3790 Open Daily 10-5

WhitefishRockShop.com

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Go Local for Quality Craftmanship Where It Matters Most Ford Custom Homes

“It was a delight to work with Len and his talented crew. Because of the thoughtful design, attention to detail, and quality throughout, all of us have thoroughly enjoyed our wonderful new digs.�

- Roger Sullivan, Kalispell

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Nelson's Ace Hardware

Your "Downtown Hometown" Hardware Store since 1947.

Come down and visit with our knowledgeable staff of local folks.

We've got you covered!

In­Store Services Paint Color Matching In­Store Lock Servicing Glass & Plexiglass Cutting Automotive Chip Keys & Fobs Screen Repair

224 Central Avenue Whitefish, MT 59937 (406) 862­3573 www.nelsonhardware.com helpful@nelsonhardware.com

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Erickson Trucking and Construction Diversified Services...

Superior Quality Work • Road Building • Fire-Breaks, Fire Trails • Fire Control Trucking • Brush/Slash Removal/ Clearing • Logging • Landscaping

CALL FOR MORE INFORMATION 170 Half Moon Rd. Columbia Falls, MT

406-892-2410 94 go local FLATHEAD

Schedule online now! whitefishmassagetherapy.com 406-471-6423

244 Spokane Avenue Suite 7 Whitefish, MT 59937

123 Central Ave Whitefish

862-6002 www.amazingcrepes.com go local FLATHEAD

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FLATHEAD SPRING/SUMMER 2016 COMMUNITY EVENTS Bigfork June 10-12 Bigfork Piecemakers Quilt Show Bethany Lutheran Church, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm 20 Garden Concert with Robin Quist & Friends Laughing Horse Lodge, Swan Lake 6:30 pm July 4 6th Annual Freedom 5K Run/Walk Brookside Yard Cafe 9:00 am – 10:30 am 4 Bigfork’s Fourth of July Parade and Fire Dept BBQ Downtown Bigfork 12:00 pm 13 Savory Summerfest FVCC Culinary Institute of Montana at Flathead Lake Lodge, 6:00 pm 18 Garden Concert with John Floridas Trio Laughing Horse Lodge, Swan Lake 6:30 pm 24 Bigfork Summer Playhouse “Benefit Revue” 7:00 pm 31 Super Hero Fun Day – CASA for Kids Flathead Lake Lodge 1:00 pm August 1 Garden Concert with Fresh Off the Vine Laughing Horse Lodge, Swan Lake 6:30 pm 5-7 11th Annual Big Sky Boat Show Marina Cay Resort 6-7 38th Annual Festival of the Arts Downtown Bigfork 9:00 am – 4:30 pm 28-4 Crown of the Continent Guitar Festival & Workshop Flathead Lake Lodge September 4 Rumble In The Bay Car Show Electric Avenue 10:00 am – 3:00 pm 19-20 Bigfork’s 2nd Annual Chalk ‘n Rock Festival Downtown Bigfork

4 5 10 17 17 17-20 18 19 30 July 4 8-9 8-10 15 15-17 16 16 21-24 27-31

National Trails Day Herron Park Herron Half Marathon, 10K, 5K Race Herron Park 8:00 am Big Night 6 FVCC Arts & Tech Building 6-9 pm 3rd Annual CASA for Kids Golf Scramble Village Greens Golf Course 1:00 pm Great Place Raffle Party Citizens for a Better Flathead Big Sky Weekend 2016 Swing Dance Extravaganza Monster Truck Show Flathead County Fairgrounds Mike Spence Summit Triathlon Foys Lake 9:00 am Plein Air Glacier 2016 Hockaday Museum 5-8 pm 4th of July Parade Downtown 10:00 am Summer Pop Concert at Rebecca Farm 5:30 pm Artists and Craftsman of the Flathead Summer Show Kalispell Courthouse West Lawn DQ Car Show Dairy Queen 6:00 - 8:00 pm 48th Annual Arts in the Park, Depot Park Glacier Rally in the Rockies 2016, Kalispell Flathead Valley Kids Triathlon Woodland Water Park 9:00 am - 12:00 pm The Event at Rebecca Farm, Rebecca Farm Airstream Rally Flathead County Fairgrounds

August 6-14 Lost Prairie Boogie 2016 Meadow Peak Skydiving, 10260 Lost Prairie Rd., Marion 7 XTERRA Flathead Triathlon Foys Lake/Herron Park 17-21 2016 NWMT Fair Flathead County Fairgounds 20-21 24 Hours of Flathead Bike Race

October 31 Halloween Electric Avenue 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

September 9-11 NWMT Arms Collectors Gun Show Fairgrounds 17 Flathead Celtic Festival Herron Park 16-24 FVCC Festival of Flavors Kick-off & Grand Wine Tasting 24 National Public Lands Day Lone Pine State Park

Columbia Falls/West Glacier

October 2 Pink Me Up! 1k/5k Color Celebration, Kidsports 2:00 pm

June 10

Food & Wine Tasting Belton Chalet 6:00 pm

July 4 27-31

Lakeside/Somers

Polebridge 4th of July Parade Heritage Days Columbia Falls

August 6 GNP Conservancy’s Backpackers Ball, Green Valley Ranch

Kalispell June 4

Gene Boyle - A Race to Remember Legends Field 9:00 am

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June 20-24 July 9 10 14 22 August

Gary Spetz NWS Watercolor Workshop Spruce Lodge at Glacier Camp Lakeside 27th Annual Fair Flathead Lakers Poker Paddle Narrows Rd, Polson 12-7 pm Flathead Land Trust North Shore Boat Tour Far West Boat Tours 6-8 pm Wild Horse Island Field Trip, Flathead Aubodon 9:00 am-3:00 pm

FLATHEAD SPRING/SUMMER 2016 COMMUNITY EVENTS 6-7

Montana State Sailing Championships North Flathead Yacht Club 6:30 am - 3:00 pm

September 10-11 Montana Dragon Boat Festival Lakeside Volunteer Park 19-23 Gary Spetz NWS Watercolor Workshop Spruce Lodge at Glacier Camp

Whitefish June 2-4 9 15 18 24-26 25 30-2 July 1-3 1-3 4 11-15 18-22 30

Red Herring - Murder Mayhem Marriage Whitefish Theater Co., 7:30 Birding New Parts of Whitefish Trail Flathead Audobon, Dollar Lake Trailhead 6-8 pm Wild Women Wednesday Stumptown Art Studio 6:30pm 4th Annual Flathead Audobon Birdathon Whitefish Woody Weekend Lodge at Whitefish Lake Glacier Challenge & Whitefish Lake Run City Beach 4th of July Annual Golf Tournament Whitefish Lake Golf Course Whitefish Arts Festival Depot Park femme/VELO 2016 510 Railway St. 4:00 pm Whitefish Lake Fireworks, Whitefish Lake, Dusk Summer Youth Camps, Whitefish Theater Co. Summer Youth Camps, Whitefish Theater Co. 25th Annual Climb Big Mountain Whitefish Mountain Resort, 8:00 pm - 2:00 pm

August 12-14 Huckleberry Days Arts Festival Depot Park 26 Whitefish Trail Hootenanny Depot Park 5:30 pm 27 S.N.O.W. Bus Brewfest Depot Park 3-7 pm October 9 Whitefish Trail Run and Half Marathon Whitefish Bike Retreat 10:00 am

Ongoing Events Bigfork Farmer’s Market, Masonic Temple, Wednesdays 3-6 pm, Saturdays 9:30am - 1:30 pm Bigfork Summer Playhouse presents “42nd Street”, “Shrek,” and “Grease”, Six Nights/Week, June - August Columbia Falls/West Glacier CF Farmer’s Market, Thursdays, Eagle’s Nest, 5-7:30 pm Columbia Falls Community Market, Thursdays, O’Briens Parking Lot 5-8 pm Kalispell Thursday!Fest Thursdays, Museum at Central School,

June 23 - Aug. 25 5:00 - 8:00 pm Picnic in The Park, Tuesdays, Depot Park, 7-9 pm Picnic in The Park Lunchtime, Wednesday,s Depot Park, 11:30 am-1:30 pm Farmer’s Market, Saturdays, FVCC, 9 am-12:30 pm First Fridays & Art Walk, First Friday of the month, Downtown stores open until 8 pm Tasting Room Trivia Night, Mondays Kalispell Brewing Co 6:00 pm Books and Brews, First Tuesdays each month, Kalispell Brewing Co 6:30 pm Senior Tour & Tea Day, 2nd Thursday of the month, Hockaday Museum 10:30 am - 4:00 pm Montana Painter’s Alliance Exhibition, June 30th-August 6th Hockaday Museum Lakeside/Somers Tamarack Trivia Night, Tuesdays, Tamarack Brewing Company 7:00 pm Whitefish Downtown Farmer’s Market, Tuesdays, Depot Park, 5:00 – 7:30 pm Gallery Nights Art Walk, First Thursdays, Downtown First Friday, ages 7-12, Stumptown Art Studio, 6:30 – 8:30 pm Parks and Rec Pickleball League, Tuesdays from July 12th-August 23rd, Memorial Pickleball Courts, ages 55+ 4-6 pm, ages 18+ 6-8 pm Parks and Rec Tennis League, Wednesdays from July 13th-August 24th, Grouse Mountain Tennis Courts, ages 55+ 5-6 pm, ages 18+ 6-7 pm Alpine Theater presents “The Full Monty,” “Rock of Ages,” and Man of La Mancha” July 7th - August 6th Whitefish Performing Arts Center Monday Fun Day! 1st and 3rd Thursday each month, Whitefish Community Center 1:00 pm

For More Event Information Kalispell- www.kalispellchamber.com www.discoverkalispell.com Bigfork- www.bigfork.org/bigfork-montana-event-calender Columbia Falls- www.columbiafallschamber.com Lakeside/Somers- www.lakesidesomes.org Whitefish- www.whitefishareachamber.chambermaster.com go local FLATHEAD

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98 go local FLATHEAD

go local FLATHEAD

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BE Local. BuY LOCAL. Spending dollars locally strengthens our economy and preserves the quality of life in our special town.

Our locally owned businesses provide the soul, distinctive feel, and sense of place that make Whitefish unique.

Thank you for buying local!

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