Articles written by Erik Sietsema
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Moon Eyes Coffee Roasters in Fort Benton now open
My wife and I moved to Big Sandy from a community with nearly the same population as the entire state of Montana. The peace and quiet are amazing. Having a tight knit community and the lack of traffic are even better. The one thing we find ourselves...
Where did the Easter Bunny come from?
Over the last few weeks, I’ve been researching questions about the origins of various Easter observances, traditions, and practices. As I’ve progressed, I’ve had folks approach me and add their own curiosities to the list. There is one...
Patching Cracks
Recently, the testing scores for Intelligence Quotient (more commonly known as IQ) have been observed to be in decline. Specifically, scores related to abilities in verbal reasoning (logic, vocabulary), visual problem solving/analogies,...
The Senior Center makes a much needed upgrade
The Big Sandy Senior Center purchased a new oven with the help of a $10,000 grant. The grant also helped with the purchase of several additional items that were in need of replacement and upgrade. I s...
Where do we get the word Easter from
Where did “Easter” come from? This question isn’t about the Christian observance of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Rather, it’s about the name of the holiday. Though some churches call it “Resurrection Sunday” in order to avoid the...
Patching Cracks
During the first few centuries that the church existed, it face a handful of internal struggles on top of persecution from the Roman Empire and hostile neighbors. Most of the struggle, both internally and externally, came about because the gospel...
Why does the celebration of Easter move every year?
Easter weekend is fast approaching, landing on April 9th this year. For years, I wondered why it moved around so much. In addition, when I began to learn more about my faith, I wondered why Easter doesn’t always land during the Jewish Passover....
Patching Cracks
One of the neat features of Facebook that turns up in my timeline every day is the flashback from the same day in past years. Last week, an 11 year old picture popped up. It was my wife in a borrowed coat, holding our 1 year old daughter, in a...
Community enjoys a successfu Fish Fry held by St. Margret Mary's Youth group
Saint Margret Mary's Catholic Church held a community fish fry last Friday for Lent. A steady stream of patrons came through during my time at the event, which is noteworthy as there was a wrestling...
Easter History Continues - Why do we have Easter Eggs?
It is the Lenten season, which is the 6 weeks preceding Easter in the church calendar. Last week, I dug into the origins of fasting or giving things up for lent. In the process of researching the early church origins of the practice, I was surprised...
Patching Cracks
Your time is like water. Water naturally flows from higher places to lower ones. In the same way, everyone has both strengths (higher places) and weaknesses (lower places). We tend to spend less time in our areas of natural talent and more in areas...
Hanson elected and new Presidents of Central MT Stockgrowers
CJ Hanson is the new president of the North Central Montana Stockgrowers Association. The association is an organization that represents the growing needs of North Central beef producers and ag...
A Brief History on the Celebration of the Lenten Season
“What are you giving up for Lent?” For years growing up and as a younger adult, I heard this question bandied about every year. While living in Indiana near Notre Dame, the heavily Catholic community introduced me to Fat Tuesday and the various...
Patching Cracks
The 18th century Danish Philosopher Søren Kierkegaard once wrote a story about a circus performance. With a large crowd out front, the performers were preparing to a start the show, when suddenly a fire broke out backstage. Knowing that the huge...
Local Rock school Students gives performace
The young people from the Big Sandy Rock School played a show at Pep's on Friday evening. The students were divided into two groups based on age groups and played a mix of covers and original music....
Big Sandy Schools welcomes back Alecia Raining Bird
Alecia Raining Bird, Big Sandy Schools' newest teacher, is serving students in the special education classroom with patience, grace, and a heart for teaching. It was her compassion of kids that...
'Tis the Season: Numerous Viruses Hit Big Sandy
“I got the bug that’s going around.” We’ve all heard it more than a few times in the past few weeks as sick season rolls through Big Sandy, as it seems to every year about this time. There’s never any shortage of rumors and theories about...
BSHS FFA is planning for National FFA week
National FFA Week is coming to Big Sandy from February 18th through the 20th. The Big Sandy FFA will be holding various activities and events to celebrate. Due to the event landing during Basketball...
Patching Cracks
While doing sermon prep this week, I came across an obscure quote from a book from the period between the end of the Old Testament and the birth of Jesus. The book of Sirach was written by a Jew who was watching his country struggle to remain...
The Big Sandy Gun Show Honored Duke Pursley
The Big Sandy Gun Show, which took place two weekends ago, featured a memorial display for Duke Pursley. Duke, who passed away last year, was a well-loved neighbor. Keith Hanson, who organized the...
Covered in Dirt, Indiana Sietsema continues his dig into Big Sandy History
A little over a year and a half ago, my family bought a house in Big Sandy. Most folks know it as the Brumwell or the Faber house. Over 100 years ago, it was the Shamrock Hotel. While doing...
The Big Sandy Gun Show brought out a big Crowd
The Big Sandy Gun Show took place last weekend and was deemed a great success by the vendors and organizers. The event typically draws several hundred people into the community over the course of the...
Big Sandy FFA Goes to Texas
The Big Sandy High School Ag Program took 12 kids and 3 adults to Texas two weeks ago to attend the Fort Worth Stock Show. This is nearly double the number of students who are typically able to...
Our Food Bank is Thankful for the Big Sandy Community
The Big Sandy Food Bank has emerged from the 2022 holiday season having served more families than ever before. Between the Angel Tree Basket program, F.E. Miley's Thanksgiving food boxes, and the...
The Big Sandy Booster Club Needs a Boost
The Big Sandy Booster Club makes a significant impact on our student athletes and participants in extracurricular activities. I spoke with Cheryl Strutz about the club’s direct impact on our kids. Cheryl is a member of the Booster Club and the...