Leon Hall: Still thriving in its second century

On the second Wednesday of each month, the lights are on at Leon Hall as members of the Leon Club gather for a happy half hour and potluck dinner at one of the Mission Valley’s first schoolhouses, built in 1914.

On Dec. 14, their regular meeting was usurped by a Christmas party and a rousing auction that featured everything from books to a quilt to local honey to “a collection of all kinds of female stuff.”

The good-natured crowd of around 20 people was coaxed and cajoled by auctioneer Dave Bunnell. “It’s for Leon – be cutthroat,” he counseled as a bidding war ensued for the honey.

Altogether, Leon’s coffers increased by a few hundred dollars before the excitement subsided and members gathered for a game of dice.

Leon Schoolhouse, built by landowner F.H. Lee on land north of his house (hence the name: on Lee land became Leon), served as a grade school and high school for students in the area east of Charlo and north of St. Ignatius until 1928. It was part of School District 28, which went as far south of Arlee. The district superintendent, S.R. Logan, had an office in the schoolhouse and visited his sprawling territory on horseback.

In a history of the Leon community, authored in 1976, Fern Cary recalls arriving to teach students there in 1924. “When I go into the cheerful clubhouse now I always think of the first time I entered the building and saw the gray walls and black blackboards,” she wrote. “I really was tempted to turn and run away it was so dreary.”

Thanks to the dedication of generations of local volunteers, Leon is now the antithesis of dreary. The thriving community center is home to all manner of festivities, including weddings, reunions, dances and birthday parties. The bulk of its workforce, the 30 or so members of the Leon Club, are mostly well-over retirement age and cite their affection for the hall and the people who gather there every month as reason to stay involved.

Duane Olsen, who grew up across the road from Leon, said his dad attended school there through seventh or eighth grade. “I’ve basically been involved with it since I was born,” he says, recalling monthly dances where he’d fall asleep on the benches that still circle the hall, as the grownups sashayed into the night.

Improvements have been made over the years to help the aging hall survive into its second century. When it was sagging in the late 1960s, the neighbors gathered with long poles and a truck to push it vertical and stabilize the foundation. A kitchen was eventually added and water was piped in from the Olsen place across the road.

More recent renovations have included a new roof and replacing the double-barrel wood stove with a furnace. Caroline Myhre recalls starting fires in the old stove in the 1970s to warm the building enough for the evening meetings of the Leon Ladies Aid. Those caretakers eventually morphed into the Leon Club, the nonprofit organization that owns and manages the hall.

“It’s a beautiful old building – I have loved it all these years,” says Myhre, who moved to the area in 1973.

She recalls elaborate Christmas parties organized by a small crew of volunteers, when parents would don antlers and become reindeer, or Santa burst in the back door leading his llama, or a dragon appeared to personify the tale of “The Little Dragon.”

A photograph in the Mission Valley News from that era shows about a dozen little kids, with Mr. Claus in the middle. “Good sport Santa was miraculously reintroduced at Leon Clubhouse last week after photographer arrived late. Delighted with the return, small fry scrambled back to the legendary lap, hoping for another shot at the candy bag,” reads the caption.

More recently, the now defunct Ninepipe Arts Group (NAG) hosted its gala Valentine soirees at Leon. The annual affair crowded the hall with attendees from as far afield as Missoula and Polson enjoying an evening of auctions, desserts and music, with proceeds supporting art and culture in the Mission Valley.

Martha Hyvonen, who lives a mile away on the same place where she grew up, has been part of the Leon Club and its predecessor, the Leon Ladies Aid, “pretty much my whole adult life.” Fellowship and community spirit keep her engaged.

She points to the framed quilt squares that line the walls, and remembers the women who made those quilts. Covering almost the entire eastern wall is a nostalgic mural, showing a vintage bus rumbling along Hwy. 93 and the old Post Creek Store, gone now at least 40 years.

“There’s a lot of history on these walls,” says Becky Olsen.

Her husband, Pic, grew up nearby and frequented Leon as a kid (he and Duane Olsen are cousins). The couple has been coming to the clubhouse since they married in 1966 and brought their children to those long-ago Christmas parties.

Now, they’re in charge of renting the hall – a major income source. Rentals cost $100 a day, with a cleaning deposit of $100, for access to the well-equipped kitchen with a side-by-side refrigerator and two dishwashers, three restrooms (one is handicapped accessible), the spacious community room with its polished dance floor, a large parking area and a grassy field. The club charges $30 for a meeting, without the use of the kitchen.

Many of the members speak fondly of former president Connie Plaissay, who died last spring. “He was the most irrepressible personality I have ever met in my life,” says Bunnell.

The big-hearted and charismatic former florist, who retired to the Mission Valley with his wife, Diane, began showing up at Leon shortly after the couple moved to the valley, and soon took charge.

“He was this brassy New York guy,” remembers treasurer Joanne Ploskunak. “He just started doing everything no one else would do. He was that kind of a guy.”

“We really miss Connie,” says Becky, adding that his death “just took the wind out of our sails.”

Still, even without their beloved captain, the Leon Club sails on, and members hope they can recruit some younger crewmates soon. Membership costs $10 a year, and visitors are encouraged to drop by on the second Wednesday of each month for BYOB drinks at 5:30 and the potluck at 6 p.m.

Bernadette Bigley, who retired to the Mission Valley a decade ago with her husband, Giles Gordon, appreciates the way the couple has been welcomed into the community. They come every month for “the great food, amazing cooks and lots of laughter.”

Myhre invites “young people especially” to drop in, but quickly adds, “even if they’re old they can join. We’re old and we get things done.”

For more information about Leon Hall, located at 35980 Leon Road, visit its Facebook page or call 406-871-3348.