Mentally ill lose a tireless advocate
The Flathead Valley has lost a tireless advocate for those with mental illness.
Boyd Roth, who died Sept. 24 at age 75, suffered from bipolar affective disorder and worked for decades on mental-health issues locally and statewide. In 2004 he joined other groundbreakers in mental-health advocacy as he was named to the Montana Hall of Fame for Leaders with Disabilities.
Roth was teaching math at a junior high school in Washington when he became mentally ill in 1972 and he spent the rest of his life battling the disease. But he never let the affliction get in the way of helping others. He held leadership positions for several mental-health advocacy groups and even opened his own home as a shelter for homeless men.
Roth always credited his faith in God for pulling him through some tough situations as he battled mental illness. Those who knew him best knew how important his faith was to him and how he so effortlessly doled out compassion and kindness, putting others’ needs above his own.
Bravo to local Health Hero
Speaking of leadership, Kalispell Public Schools Food Services director Jenny Montague has been recognized for her efforts to serve healthy meals to our students using locally purchased food. She recently received a Health Hero Award from Eat Right Montana and Action for Healthy Kids for her work to reduce hunger, improve nutrition and serve up Montana-sourced foods and products.
It should be noted that her efforts not only give kids more nutritious meals but also help the local economy. Not including milk, Montague spends more than $70,000 annually for locally produced meat, fruit, vegetables and lentils.
Montague credits her success to her food-service team and Montana FoodCorps service members who helped establish school gardens and run after-school cooking classes for students.
Dam buyback is smart move
NorthWestern Energy’s $900 million proposal to buy back 11 hydroelectric dams in Montana appears to be a logical step to return the old order to the state’s energy situation.
We agree with NorthWestern CEO Bob Rowe that buying the dams is in the long-term interest of customers and shareholders. It simply makes sense for an electricity provider to own such a primary energy resource.
The dam transaction would undo some of the ill-fated deals that followed Montana Power’s deregulation scheme in the late 1990s that eventually led to the demise of Montana Power.
In this age of increased interest in renewable energy, it’s important to remember that hydroelectric power has long been the primary source of renewable power.
Two of the dams — Thompson Falls and Kerr — are in Northwest Montana — although Kerr Dam near Polson is in line to be owned by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes by September 2015.