Valley Views

valley views Library announces June events

The Library Music Series kicks off on First Friday, June 3 with Doug Trost on guitar at 3:30 p.m. Enjoy acoustical tunes in the library atrium. Watch for more music in the library every First Friday afternoon. Also on June 3 is the beginning of the Friends of the Library Book Sale, which will take place on Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. in the library meeting room.

Join us on Saturday, June 11 at 10 a.m. for a Mystery & Suspense Authors Panel at the library. Montana authors, Leslie Budewitz, Christine Carbo and Gwen Florio will do readings and talk about their books and genres. You will have an opportunity to get books signed following the program.

It’s here – the annual Summer Reading Program starts June 13 and it’s better than ever. Register at northlakecolibrary. readsquared. com or stop in on or after June 13 to pick up a paper reading log. More reading means more free stuff from local businesses and more entries to win prizes. We have many great programs tied to the “Oceans of Possibilities” theme. Dillon Tabish with Fish Wildlife and Parks will present on June 16, “Adventures of Bull Trout;” Karen Dunwell of the Polson Flathead Lake Museum will tell us about the history of the “Flathead Lake Monster” on June 23; and The Maker Truck will be here on June 30. All June programs will be held in the library meeting room. Visit our website for further details.

In celebration of the official first day of summer, Angela is presenting, “Life’s a Beach Read” at 11 a.m. on June 21. She will give the backstory of the “beach read,” explain the library’s genre-based shelving system and help you find your next great read using the library’s online catalog. With Angela at the helm, this is certain to be a fun, informative and entertaining program. Summer beverages provided.

Tech Tuesday takes place June 28 at 2 p.m. in the library meeting room. Our Technology Librarian, Sierra, will present a program on Digital Photography Basics. She will go over how to use a DSLR camera, including getting your settings right for the perfect photograph. If you have a DSLR camera, bring it with you.

Mother Goose continues throughout the summer on Mondays at 9:15 a.m. for the littlest library patrons (ages infant to 3 years) and their parents or caregivers. Each week Felicia chooses a new theme with stories, rhymes and songs. After the program, kids are welcome to enjoy some free play time.

There will not be a Story Time on June 9 in preparation for the Summer Reading Programs, which replace Story Time throughout the summer.

Our Teen Advisory Board (TAB) is starting a book club for the summer. Meet on Monday, June 13 at 10:30 a.m. in the library meeting room to get your book and get to know each other. The book pick is “The Mysterious Benedict Society” by Trenton Lee Stewart. The book club is geared toward middle and high school aged kids and will be facilitated by the library’s TAB. The book club will meet every two weeks on Mondays through August. Interested in joining the TAB? Contact Felicia at the library.

Are you a teen interested in babysitting this summer? Get certified online through the Babysitting 101 Class from Universal Class. Go to: libbyapp.com or download the Libby app. You will find a link under “Extras.” Through June 30, teens 13-18 who bring in a screen shot or printed copy of their completion certificate will get a free coffee card.

The Library’s hours are Monday–Friday from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Curbside

pickup is available for everyone during open hours. Please call us at 406-883-8225 or email us at: polsoncl@polson. lib.mt.us with questions View from the or to request curbside pickup.

Library Abbi Dooley,

North Lake County Public Library District

Animal shelter needs assistance

As one of the founders and a driving force of Mission Valley Animal Shelter for over 30 years, I am not hopeful about our future. The problem of stray dogs and dog packs in our area has worsened significantly and MVAS, as a small, privately-operated animal shelter, does not have the facility or funding to be a solution to this problem alone. Our kennel space is limited and we are at or over capacity all the time, unable to handle the large number of stray dogs, I fear a real tragedy in the making. Dogs are killing animals, biting children, and attacking people. For several years, we have suffered from understaffing at both the animal shelter and the thrift store. Currently, we have closed the shelter to the public because of staffing issues and are open only by appointment.

We need reliable employees and volunteers at both facilities but currently especially at the animal shelter. We basically are operating the animal shelter with three long-time employees, and that is not sustainable. The dogs and cats in our care require 7 days a week of attention. Volunteers have always been a vital part of our operations, and we need them now until the labor market improves.

While we have worked endlessly and successfully over the years to

Valley Views Sharon Hawke Mission Valley Animal Shelter Board Member

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LETTER POLICY

Letters to the editor are welcome. The content is the opinion of the letter writer and not the newspaper. The decision to publish letters is made by the editor.

Letters must be 350 words or less. A writer will only be published twice per month.

Letters may be edited for content or length, or may not be published if considered libelous, in poor taste, spiteful, self-promotional or of limited interest to the general readership. Space limitations also dictate when or if letters are published.

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Opinions expressed in this section are not necessarily those of the newspaper.

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obtain funding for our operations, we have now reached the point that such funding is insufficient to handle the escalating problem of stray dogs, and does not send people to our doors who need a job and want to work with animals. We need reliable people to care for, feed and exercise the animals and maintain a professional atmosphere. We have advertised for help frequently and raised our starting hourly rates but for several years have failed to find qualified applicants, if we even have applicants for a job opening.

We are proud of the thousands and thousands of dogs and cats we have been able to help and to provide with a better life over 30 years. If the animal shelter were to cease operations, the animals and people in our community suffer. Is there a feasible option for these animals? What happens when a tragedy occurs because of the stray dog problem that currently exists?

Unless some people in our community who are committed to our mission step up and come forward to help us solve our staffing problems, the very existence of the Mission Valley Animal Shelter is in jeopardy.

Please call us at 406-883-5312 or send an email to mvas@ronan.net if you are willing to help.

vj

letters

Think about the words

Editor,

With all the talk about the 2nd amendment, you’d think there might be more about what the words actually mean. Do they mean one thing to legal scholars and another to most Americans? “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

Was the 18-year-old Texas kid who murdered the school children and two teachers in Uvalde part of a “well-regulated militia?” Do folks who walk up to gun counters all over the U.S. and purchase semi-automatics capable of pumping out bullets at a rate of 30 rounds in 18 seconds, belong to well-regulated militias? I don’t, and I own several firearms, and have for most of my near 80 years. What do these words mean?

Is the first part of the phrase really connected to the second? Have guns in this country really helped with the security of the U.S.? Tell me how? I’d say they threaten the security of this country on a daily basis, not the other way around. Why aren’t we talking about this “security” issue, as the framers obviously intended to create a secure state and most of us would prefer living in one. When I was growing up in the ‘40s and ‘50s, it seemed quite secure. I didn’t have to wear a bullet proof backpack to class, didn’t have to train what to do if a killer got onto our school grounds. It was never even thought of. That’s the way it should be. We can turn it around and make it the way it used to be by electing people to congress and our state legislatures who will properly regulate the kind of arms sold. Period.

Eugene Beckes St. Ignatius

Find a solution

Editor,

It’s time for those of you who are responsible gun owners to help find a solution for the problem of mass shootings in this country. Instead of focusing on what we do or do not have the “right” to do, let’s focus on responsibility. Let’s focus on the “well-regulated” part of the Second Amendment.

A gun-owning neighbor and I found we could agree on 3 points to resolve the problem of massacres of innocent civilians. 1) There should be a national database listing people who should not be allowed to own guns. 2) The purchase of body armor and bulk purchase of semi-automatic weapons and ammunition should be prohibited. 3) The age to purchase guns should be raised.

We all want our families to be safe in schools and shops, but we have different strategies for achieving it. Let’s set aside fears and kneejerk reactions and get to work reducing gun violence in America. If two neighbors can discuss this issue amicably and productively, Senators ought to be able to.

Mary Hodges Charlo

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