Kolton Turner still leads Mack Days totals with 1,468

Kolton Turner of Kalispell remains ahead in Spring Mack Days, with 14 days of catching 100 fish. He leads the Top Twenty category with a total of 1,468.

Legals for April, 17 2025

Horse trading at the expense of Montana taxpayers

After blowing off property tax relief entirely during the 2023 Montana Legislative Session, our senators and representatives are on track to repeat the mistake.

Contractor pleads not guilty to felony theft

A Polson man is accused of accepting down payments for contracting services and doing little to no work. Donald Dean Guthrie, 68, entered a plea of not guilty in District Court in Polson April 9 to three counts of felony theft.

Raymond "Ray" Bick, 86

Raymond “Ray” Paul Bick, 86, died of natural causes on April 9, 2025, at his home in Cherry Creek, Nev. He was born Aug. 4, 1938, in Ronan, the eighth of nine children born to Clarence and Evelyn Bick of Round Butte, west of Ronan. Services will be held April 19, at 10 a.m. at The Lake Funeral Home, 101 6th Ave. E. in Polson, followed by graveside military services at Mountain View Cemetery, 46727 N. Foothills Dr., Ronan.

Polson Seniors: Thank you, AARP Tax Assistance volunteers

The AARP Tax Filing Assistance program has filed nearly 700 individual or joint tax returns over the past 10 weeks for local senior citizens.

Montana Legislators: Don’t bring back smoking indoors

Some ideas are so bad that they’re ridiculous. Like bringing back smoking rooms to Montana businesses.

Births at St. Luke's

Frederick Walter Schmidt was born April 10 at the St. Luke Community Healthcare New Beginnings Birth Center in Ronan. He measured 7 lbs. 7 oz. and 20 inches long.

Rachel Jean Booth, 44

Rachel Jean Booth (Marr), 44, of Plains, stepped into eternal joy in the presence of her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Thursday, April 3. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, April 12, at the Church on the Move in Plains.

Commission seeks resort designation for Polson

The City Commission inched toward putting a resort tax referendum before voters Monday night by seeking Department of Commerce designation for Polson as a resort community.

Legislature hits pause on Public Law 280

The future of Public Law 280, the law enforcement agreement between the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and state and county governments, seems to be on pause – at least at the legislative level.

Blackfeet tribal members sue to stop Trump tariffs against Canada

On Friday in federal court, Jonathan St. Goddard, along with state Sen. Susan Webber, D-Browning, filed a lawsuit in federal court asking a judge for an injunction against Trump’s tariffs on Canada, arguing that it violates the treaty rights of Indigenous people across the nation, and saying that only Congress can approve tariffs, not the president, according to the U.S. Constitution.

Marriages & Divorces

The following marriages and divorces were recently recorded at the Lake County Courthouse in Polson:

Mack Days angler reels in tagged fish worth $1,000

Many anglers participating in Spring Mack Days on Flathead Lake are having great days and big numbers of lake trout entries. An exciting event over the fourth weekend was a $1,000 tagged lake trout that was turned in by Michael Stevenson of Kalispell.

Legals for April, 10 2025

Polson Seniors: Death and taxes

A person who works eight hours a day for five days a week works 2,080 hours a year. One half of that is 1,040 hours. The standard tax form is called the Form 1040, which is, so ironically, one half of 2080. The subliminal suggestion is that half of your wages go towards taxes.

Mission Valley Calendar

Upcoming events and meetings in the Mission Valley

Mack Days anglers haul in more than 20,000 lake trout

The third week of Spring Mack Days ended with a total of 20,211 lake trout entries. Weekend totals were 1,939 on Friday, 1,806 on Saturday, and 1,821 on Sunday.

Legals for April, 3 2025

Polson Boxing Club fighters gear up for regional events

Three young fighters from the Polson Boxing Club are gearing up for a busy April in the ring.