Legislators expect state surplus to keep shrinking

Montana state governments official $287 million projected surplus could easily continue to shrink and likely will require frequent adjustments as the upcoming legislative session progresses, two Flathead lawmakers said last week.

Cleanup crew finds spilled fuel in Flathead lakebed

Meetings scheduled to address Montana 35 truck traffic

Idell H. Johnson, 84

Idell H. Johnson, 84, died Dec. 8, 2009, at Whitefish. Idell was born in Missoula on Nov. 8, 1925, to Harry and Ida Jones; she attended Paxson Grade School and graduated from Missoula County High School in 1943. Idell was baptized, confirmed and married at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Missoula. She married her high school sweetheart, Robert C. Johnson, on May 12, 1944. Idell was an active member of Missoula Women s Bowling Association for 30 years, serving five years as president and five years as treasurer. She was elected to the Missoula Bowling Association Hall of Fame for meritorious service. She enjoyed many years of league bowling and the many fun tournament trips with team members. She organized the Bitterroot 600 Club and served as their president for several years. Besides bowling, she also enjoyed golf, knitting and crossword puzzles. She and her husband of 65 years enjoyed weekends at Flathead Lake golfing with friends from Missoula and Polson. The often elusive hole-in-one was made by Idell on a very rainy day in September 2000 on the Whitefish Golf Course. Idell and Bob danced many a night to the big band sounds of Glenn Miller and took many weekend dates to enjoy their passion of playing golf. They resided in Missoula until Bob s retirement in 1985 and moved to Whitefish, where they continued to golf and bowl. Idell was preceded in death by her parents; and her best friend and sister, Dorothy McLaughlin. Surviving her are her husband, Bob; son, Doug, and wife, Cyndi, and their three children, Jarrod, Alyssa and Ashley; sister-in-law, Delores Criswell, and husband, Ted, and their children, Steve Criswell and Lucy, and Julie Ulrich and Ron. She is also survived by a niece, Susan Anderson, and her children, Michela and Erik; and nephew, Gary McLaughlin, and wife, Dixie. Memorials may be made to the Alice Ritzman Golf Tournament, which will provide an award in Idell s name for Top Female Youth Golfer. This will be awarded to schools throughout the Flathead Valley every year; donations may be made at the Whitefish Credit Union under Idell s name. Idell s family will host a gathering to receive friends from 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday at Austin Funeral Home in Whitefish.

Louise Robinson, 81

Louise Robinson passed away peacefully at her home on Oct. 10, 2010. She was born Martha Louise Redd in Hamburg, Iowa, on July 6, 1929, daughter to Garrison and Leta Redd. She traveled to Montana with her parents and sister, Lois, in an old Model A Ford pickup truck, with all their belongings strapped on back to look for adventure and land to homestead. She was raised in Ferndale and Swan Lake communities and traveled throughout the West as a young woman when her father was in the service during World War II. She attended Swan Valley School, as well as Flathead County High School. Louise married Jason Lapp in 1945. They resided in Kalispell with their four children until their divorce in 1968. She married Donald Robinson in 1970 and they continued to live in Kalispell until they moved to the sun of Phoenix, for many years. She returned to live in Kalispell with her children and grandchildren close by, until her passing. Louise was an adventurous woman who greatly loved her family, the earth, Mother Nature, the notion that extraterrestrial beings might exist, and Ronald Reagan. She and her family had multitudes of happy times exploring the Swan Mountains, the rivers and lakes of the Flathead, snorkeling in Mexico and gazing over the Grand Canyon. She was friend and companion to her father and best loved flying over the Bob Marshall and Schafer Meadows with him in his Cessna. She was kind and gentle, and generous beyond words. She was independent, valiant and brave to the very end. Louise was preceded in death by her parents, Buster and Leta Redd; her sister, Lois Ault; her husband, Donald Robinson; her daughter, Cindy Rupp; and her granddaughter, Leslie Rupp. She is survived by her children, Joyce, Gary and Richard Lapp; daughter-in-law, Libbie Lapp; grandchildren, Hunter and Ellie Lapp, and niece and nephew, Shannon and Don Ault. A celebration of her life will be hosted at 6 p.m. on Saturday evening, Oct. 16, at the Mountain View Mennonite Church, 795 Mennonite Road, Kalispell, with a pork roast and side dish potluck. We would like to invite any friends that would care to share in this celebration to join us. Buffalo Hill Funeral Home is caring for the family. To send condolences to the family, please go to www.buffalohillfh.com

County to intervene in salvage logging lawsuit

The Flathead County commissioners agreed to intervene in a timber lawsuit on Thursday, saying they want to "send a message" in support of local sawmills.

Report favors fairgrounds for new Agency on Aging building

A 2-acre tract of county land north of the Flathead County Fairgrounds is the best option for construction of a new Agency on Aging facility, a preliminary architectural report has recommended.

COLUMN: Pursuing whitefish in the Flathead River

One of the most popular fisheries in years past was the annual Lake Superior whitefish bite that happened in late summer. These hard-fighting, tasty members of the Salmonid family would stage up shallow as they would seek out the young of the year yellow perch before beginning their spawning run up the Flathead River.

Flathead Valley group gets Capitol experience

Off in a splash: Local swimmers kick off season at Kalispell Invite

Sophomore Nate Burnham won the 200 freestyle and freshman Jessica Loyda turned in the fastest time in the 50 freestyle to lead the Glacier boys and girls at the Kalispell Invitational swim meet on Saturday at The Summit.

Familiar foes Flathead, Glacier meet again

Glacier and Flathead have encountered each other quite a bit this season, and not just because the two schools are only separated by five miles.

Bravettes bounced

BOZEMAN - Quick, subtle, deadly.

Oil boom's ripples reach far

The hundreds of Flathead Valley residents journeying across the Hi-Line to find jobs in the North Dakota oil patch aren’t so different from the pioneers who settled the desolate prairie well over a century ago. It is a promised land whose harsh terrain and climate stands to make or break folks.

Dam operators keeping more water in Flathead Lake this spring

The operators of the Séliš Ksanka QÍispé Dam got the go-ahead in March to keep more water in Flathead Lake this spring in an effort to avoid a repeat of last summer’s low water levels.

AA soccer: Wolfpack tips Braves, 1-0

Glacier may have had tired legs, but it was a head that made the difference in its crosstown soccer match with Flathead at home on Thursday.

LETTER: Vote against Holmquist

If only I could single-handedly vote Pam Holmquist out of office in the same way she is almost single-handedly turning Kalispell and our beautiful Flathead Valley into a commercial blight.

Gustafson and Alexander

Ivy Grace Gustafson and Joseph James Alexander were married July 22 at the bride’s family lake lot on Echo Lake in Bigfork.

FVCC math instructor receives leadership award

Flathead Valley Community College instructor Fred Longhart recently was honored by the Montana Council of Teachers of Mathematics for his significant contributions to the teaching and learning of mathematics in the state of Montana.

AA volleyball poll: Glacier at No. 3, gains ground on Billings pair

Glacier earned a first-place vote and the power atop the Class AA coaches’ poll shifted this week.

Student musicians picked as best in state

Thirty-three Kalispell students have been selected for the 2011 Montana All-State Music Festival.

Class AA Football Flathead rides 'championship culture' to title game

By KATIE BROWN