Couple donate $1.1 million to foundation

A lifetime of supporting Whitefish has given way to a generous legacy for the late Mary Jane and Russell Street.

Through a charitable trust, the Streets are bequeathing $1.1 million to the Whitefish Community Foundation.

Mary Jane died this spring; Russ died in 1995.

The couple had a long history of community involvement; now their donation will be placed in an endowment fund to further the mission of the foundation to benefit the community.

The gift is one of the largest to a Whitefish nonprofit, according to the foundation.

The Streets were instrumental in the early development of Whitefish. They opened Street’s Grocery in 1947 on Central Avenue and operated the store for 16 years. During the late 1950s they joined partners to purchase the Bay Point Cabin Camp. The couple also was involved with the development of Big Mountain.

Mike Jenson, who is Mary Jane’s nephew, said they would be happy knowing that they will continue to be part of the effort to build the community through the foundation.

“They had nothing they were more proud of than Whitefish,” Jenson said. “They were big promoters of Big Mountain and Whitefish.”

Gerald Hanson served as the Streets’ accountant beginning in 1974 and lived in one of their cabins for a short time. Over the years he came to know the Streets and helped the charitable trust that provided for Mary Jane until her death.

“They were very community-minded,” he said. “Whitefish was their town.”

According to foundation board President Carol Atkinson: “The faith and trust Mary Jane and Russ Street have placed in our foundation speaks well of our efforts on behalf of our nonprofit community. Simply put, their generosity will help us do even more.”

Mary Jane Bretthauer grew up in Whitefish and graduated from Whitefish High School in 1940. She married Russell Street, who also lived in Whitefish, in 1941. The couple returned to Whitefish after Russ was discharged from the Army.

In a 1994 Whitefish Pilot interview, Russ was modest about the couple’s accomplishments.

“All we wanted to do was be a part of Whitefish — nothing else,” he said. “I didn’t want to be a kingpin.”

During the time the couple owned Street’s Grocery, they developed and marketed a spice product called Alpine Touch. They later sold the business, but the spice remains on store shelves today.

They operated the Bay Point Camp through the 1960s. After buying out their partners, they went on to develop the Bay Point Resort Condominiums and later Bay Point Country Homes.

Russ was deeply involved with Big Mountain Ski Resort.

Besides being a member of its first board of directors, he could be found doing whatever job the ski resort needed: parking cars, delivering food supplies for the restaurant from the grocery and financially helping to keep the ski resort afloat in the early days.

Russ’s Street on Whitefish Mountain Resort is named for him.

Mary Jane was right alongside Russ helping at the ski resort, managing the grocery store, running the Bay Point Cabins and working as part of the original “dirty dozen” planning the annual Whitefish Winter Carnival. She was a member of the First Presbyterian Church and started an endowment fund at the community foundation that continues to benefit the church today.

In 1994, Russ was asked his reason for staying in Whitefish.

“Why? There’s no better place to live than Whitefish,” he said.