Flathead Electric Co-op awards about $30K in Roundup for Safety grants in March

Flathead Electric Cooperative’s Roundup for Safety Board awarded $29,818 in grant funds supporting nine community safety projects March 14.

The grants included $900 for members of the Glacier View 4-H Club for their outdoor survival project slated for the summer months. The group plans to treat noxious weeds in the Bob Marshall Wilderness while perfecting their wilderness survival skills. 

Part of the project work will include water safety, as travel to the project area will be via boat. These two components require each participant to obtain a high-quality life vest. The group requested $900 in funding toward the overall $1,220 expense.  

The group’s project is also being supported with a grant from the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to fund the noxious weed treatment. Space blankets, stock support and cooks for the trip are coming from the Cabinet Backcountry Horsemen and K-L Outfitting is donating the boats. Glacier Park International Airport contributed bear spray while the Flathead Conservation District donated digging trowels and gloves. 

The project also has support from individual donors. 

Group members and their families are expected to cover most of their food and the travel costs associated with the wilderness weed pull.  

Organizers hope the project will instill a passion for water safety, noxious weed control, wildlife and watershed conservation, and community service in the youths. 

Other March awards include: $1,175 to Flathead Lutheran Bible Camp for an AED and First Response Rescue Bag; $1,650 to the Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation for bear-resistant panniers and axe safety; $5,000 to the Libby Elementary School Parent Council for playground safety; $7,700 to Logan Health for bicycle helmets; $1,500 to Big Sky Bible Camp for an AED; $4,575 to the Columbia Falls School District for sensory room equipment; $2,700 to the Flathead Food Bank for a deadbolt, AED, first aid supplies and cameras; and $4,078 to the Flathead K9 Foundation for first aid supplies. 

Roundup for Safety funding comes from participating Flathead Electric Cooperatives members who allow their monthly electric bills to be rounded up to the nearest dollar. The program costs each member about $6 per year and has provided over $4.9 million in funding since 1997.