Dealing with Drift
Dealing with drift Montana’s organic farmers face limited options for compensation Story by Jenny Gessaman | Staff Writer Photos by Gabby Friedlander | Staff Photographer ON A BREEZY May day in 2008, Daryl and Linda Lassila were doing what they do most spring days: yard work. The Lassilas are farmers, so once the snow has …
Life is harder than combat
Life is harder than combat Veterans battle suicide epidemic the way they fought insurgents in Iraq: together Story by Ryan OConnell | Staff Writer EVERY JULY, when the weather is warm and perfect for hiking, Ashley Slack walks across the close-clipped lawn of the Western Montana State Veterans Cemetery and places a green can of …
Return of the Buffalo
Return of the Buffalo The Blackfeet Nation is reasserting its identity on the Rocky Mountain Front. STORY AND PHOTOS BY LOUISE JOHNS | PHOTO EDITOR A JOURNEY of redemption and restoration is rising out of the foothills of northern Montana’s Rocky Mountain Front. Tribal nations in the U.S. and Canada see a connection between the …
At the Crossroads
At the Crossroads Violence behind the bars of Montana’s only private prison Story by LJ Dawson | Staff Writer WHEN William Allen returned to the Crossroads Correctional Center (CCC) in 2009 from a California prison, he was shocked by what he found: religious restrictions on sweat lodges and retaliation for speaking out against prison administration. …
On the line
On the line Wildland firefighters learn to survive in the era of megafires Story by Keith Szudarski | Staff Writer Photos by Reed Klass | Staff Photographer ON JULY 18, 2017, a storm rolled through Seeley Lake, Montana. The clouds churned and lightning flashed, momentarily illuminating the peaks of the scenic Swan Mountains east of …
College in an education desert
College in an education desert When it comes to higher education, geographic isolation and inadequate internet access have left millions of Americans at a disadvantage. Here’s what one high school is doing about it. Story by Hannah Kearse | Staff Writer STUDENTS pour into the halls of Thompson Falls High School every 45 minutes, seven …
Halfway home
Halfway home Year six of Missoula’s 10-year plan to house its homeless. STORY BY KEITH SZUDARSKI | STAFF WRITER ILLUSTRATIONS BY HALISIA HUBBARD On a brisk November morning in 2017, the Missoula Fire Department, paramedics and law enforcement responded to an unresponsive male near the 600 block of Owen Street. Responders began CPR on Timothy …
Becoming a Dreamer
Becoming a Dreamer From Mexico to Missoula, Nereyda Calero’s journey led her to help fellow immigrants. STORY BY SAMANTHA WEBER | MANAGING EDITOR WHEN FORMER U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program would be rescinded in September 2017, 30-year-old Nereyda Calero, a Mexican immigrant and DACA recipient, …
It happened to #MeToo
It happened to #MeToo Q&A with Denice Rice STORY BY LJ DAWSON STAFF WRITER DENICE RICE endured sexual assault from a supervisor when she worked in California’s Eldorado National Forest as a United States Forest Service (USFS) firefighter in 2009. His abuse, which lasted almost two years, included circling one of her nipples with the …
Locked out
Locked out: Key moments in Montana’s labor past A timeline of Montana’s labor disputes STORY BY HANNAH KEARSE | STAFF WRITER IMERYS TALC AMERICA INC. locked its doors to 35 International Brotherhood of Boilermakers union employees in Three Forks, Montana, on August 2, 2018. Randy Tocci, the talc mill’s lead warehouse worker, stood next to …
Foster care by the numbers
Foster care by the numbers BY RYAN OCONNELL | STAFF WRITER 50%Caucasian36%American Indian/Alaskan Native7%More than one ethnicity/undertermined6%Hispanic1%Black In January 2018, Montana’s Department of Public Heath and Human Services launched the First Years Initiative to reduce child abuse and neglect in Montana. Although Montana’s foster care population only increased 1.4 percent in the first half of …
Enforcing the law
Enforcing the law Opinion | Montana’s legislature must restore funding so FWP can protect our natural resources By Jenny Gessaman | Staff Writer MONTANA’S landscape is inseparable from its identity. Mountain ranges young and old texture the state’s prairie, while rivers and creeks wind their way into three different watersheds. This is our amazing Big …
“I have to follow the law”
“I have to follow the law” Release of convicted murderer shocks victim’s family Story by Maggie Dresser | Staff Writer When Kari Covers Up learned from a passerby in Crow Agency, Montana, that her brother’s killer was going to be released early from prison, she felt old wounds reopening. Not only was Quinton Birdinground Jr., …
Mussels be dammed
Mussels be dammed Quagga and zebra mussels could cost tribes millions Story by Heather Fraley | Senior Editor Illustration by Mollie Lemm | Web Editor THE RUMBLE of the turbines inside the inner workings of Séliš Ksanka Ql’ispé (SKQ) Dam is so loud, it’s hard to hear anyone speak. Brian Lipscomb raises his voice above …
Unlocking Public Lands
Unlocking Montana’s Public Lands More than three million acres of Montana’s public lands are landlocked and inaccessible to the public. For Mike Meuli and Trenton Kris access to public land is important for livelihood and lifestyle. This project examines the role of public land in their lives and it examines the issue and scope of …
Ranching
Leased for Livelihood One family ranch relies on public land for success Mike Meuli left the ranch twice: once for college and once to spend a year winning over his soon to be wife. “I’ve lived here in the Proctor valley all of my life other than a brief time away for college and a …
Unlocking Information
Locked Out: Inaccessible Public Land Landlocked Public Land in Montana More than 3 million acres of public state and federal land in Montana is considered landlocked, which means that the public can’t access those acres without crossing through private property. Unless they own a helicopter or have express permission from a private land owner, it …
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