Sorted by date Results 376 - 400 of 713
Monica Otto Winderl has been introducing Big Sandy students to the fine arts for three years, which has rounded out her 22 year career as an art teacher. Though she isn't from Big Sandy, Monica spent her growing up years visiting family in the area. Her father is first cousins with Ron Otto. An accomplished artist, her work has been on display in galleries around the state, including Fort Benton. Monica didn't set out to go into either art or teaching as a career. She explains: "I fell into it....
This week, I finished reading a biography of Joseph Stalin. I learned a great deal, but the one thing that stood out to me more than anything else in the book was about during Stalin’s early days as an activist before the revolution. The author talked about how Stalin, and many of those he worked with, were aiming to improve the lives of the working class in Russia. The whole purpose of the movement was to raise up the working class. However, Stalin and his co-revolutionaries considered w...
If you're looking for delicious barbecue in the area, you can't go wrong visiting The Public House in Fort Benton. The Public House offers a range of smoked meat options, prepared by their resident barbecue chef, Alex Salazar. Alex has been cooking at The Wake Cup (and more recently at its sister restaurant, The Public House), but he has been smoking food most of his life. I met Alex when he competed in the Big Sandy Church of God Brisket Cook-Off 2 years ago. Then, he was just beginning to...
After 9 years in the town of Big Sandy, my family and I took a major step toward becoming permanent Big Sandy residents by purchasing a house of our own. We feel particularly blessed to have bought the Brumwell's house as they retired and moved closer to their kids. Not only have we bought a neat home, but we are now living in a piece of Big Sandy history. The newly dubbed "Sietsema House" bears all sorts of signs that it is over a century old, from the ornate "old west hinges and moldings, to...
A couple of months ago, I wrote an article about my upcoming participation in the Great Cycle Challenge. I am about a week away from finishing my fourth year of riding in the largest cycling event in the United States to raise money for fighting kids' cancer. I committed to raising $500 and riding 200 miles during the month of September. So far, I am about halfway through my miles and have nearly reached my goal for fundraising. Though I have almost cleared my goal, that doesn't need to be the...
The first pastor I remember knowing was at the church I started attending as a teenager. Pastor Mike was very down to earth. He drove a beat up old car that I remember him having to push start on more than one occasion. When I was 13 or 14, I heard a story about how he was frustrated with ministry one week because he bought diapers for a young woman who came to the church asking for help. After the encounter, he walked out of the store and decided to go back to buy formula as well. When he did,...
I am currently reading a book on speed reading. I have tried to learn speed reading in the past, but have struggled with the discipline and practice elements of the process. An interesting element of the process set for in the book I’m currently reading is the idea of a set of “pre-reading” disciplines. This isn’t like warming up before exercising, but rather is more like surveying the path in front of you. The first is to decide why you are reading the book or article in the first place....
Big Sandy Church of God is preparing for its 100 year birthday celebration, which will be held October 10th at the Church of God. The congregation is planning on celebrating the day by inviting the community to a barbecue with games and activities for families. The decision was made to combine the anniversary event with the annual Brisket Cook-Off. Lunch will feature barbecued brisket, as well as grilled hamburgers and other options. Anyone interested in learning more about the celebration,...
This year marked the 28th year that Chandee Baumgardner has sold Indian Tacos at the Choteau County Fair. I spoke with Chandee while she was cooking flatbread in the deep fryer. It was obvious that she has prepped 3 decades worth of the local favorite, while she answered my questions and engaged customers at the counter. She explained that she could mix and cook the bread in her sleep at this point. When I pointed out that the first time I had ever eaten Indian Tacos, they were from her...
As a child, I lived near the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico at different ages. One of my favorite things to do at the beach was building sandcastles. On many occasions, I remember hurrying to finish our sand fortresses in the afternoon as the high tide moved closer and closer to its walls. With the high tide came the knowledge that the waves would threaten to tear down our hard work and leave the sand exactly the same as it was before we started building. We tried all sorts of strategies...
A few months ago, during our church’s family camp event at Beaver Creek State Park, I had the opportunity to spend a large amount of time studying and reading in preparation for my sermon. Because we were in the mountains, I had no access to email, social media, texts, calls, or anything else that might distract me. I spent 7 or 8 hours a day reading, thinking, writing, and reflecting. It was a unique experience for me, because I rarely have large chunks of time to spend working in a focused w...
Autumn Stauffer, the four month old daughter of Caleb & Hannah Stauffer, underwent a second heart surgery August 23rd to treat a heart condition she was diagnosed with in utero. Most people around Big Sandy are familiar with Hannah, but know her by her maiden name: Hannah Anderson, daughter of Brook and Renee Anderson. Hannah and her family are well loved in our community and have made an impact on the lives of many people. Autumn is Caleb & Hannah's second child and has already been through...
The 2021 Chouteau County Fair drew some of its largest crowds ever after the 2020 hiatus. “It’s been very good. We’re happy to have the fair back again. We didn’t do it last year because of the Covid issue. Everybody seems to be happy to be coming to the events,” explained Shirley Embleton, who has served as the Fair Manager for over 15 years. The 109-year Montana tradition saw its largest ever attendance for Pig Wrestling. “Pig wrestling was better than ever. We had over a hundred people more...
Casten Heppner's 2002 Crown Victoria made an impact on the competition while he represented Box Elder/Big Sandy in the Chouteau County Fair's demolition derby last weekend. "We are at the Mayhem on the Mighty Mo getting ready to wreck some cars," Heppner explained with, what he called, a 'cheesing it' grin on his face in advance of the evening's fun. This was Casten's 12th appearance in the local derby since his debut drive 17 years ago. At the age of 14, before getting he'd gotten a drivers...
While researching the history of the home my family bought this summer, I came across a series of articles by Pastor John Bruington. Pastor John worked in Havre and wrote for our local paper for several years. One article in particular jumped out at me, and I’ve been considering it for weeks. I’d like to take a moment to share my thoughts. ‘The ‘Magnificent Failure’ was the title of his reflection, which detailed his career before moving to pastor a small town church. In the piece, he talks abo...
Big Sandy businesses are feeling the effects of the national labor shortage, particularly the larger employers in the area. The school system, the Medical Center, and Big Sandy Activities are all dealing with staff shortages, which is a particular problem because all three organizations provide services that cannot simply be cancelled. The needs of residents, patients, and students do not take a day off simply because there aren’t enough people to do the work of caring for, treating, t...
With the start of a new year for Big Sandy Schools, there has been a staff change that will be noticed by students and staff at every level: Lianna Ophus Heimbigner is the new head cook for the school system. She takes on the position after Kelly Pursley Owen took a job as head cook for a school in Havre. Lianna is going into her 5th year with the school in Big Sandy. She is following in the footsteps of her great grandmother, Pearl Ophus, who was a cook in the Big Sandy schools during the 60s...
“We have become a nation of thoughtless rushers, intent on doing before thinking, and hoping what we do magically works out. If it doesn’t, we rush to do something else, something also not well thought-out, and then hope for more magic.” Len Holman spoke these words in critique of our culture’s tendency toward staying constantly busy. I think a shorter quote by John Maxwell captures the idea almost perfectly: “The greatest enemy of good thinking is busyness.” The truth is that our culture has...
“It’s like a family. I spend as much time with my nurses as I do with my kids and my husband. They’re part of the reason I want to go to work. Knowing that you have a good crew on at the start of your day, just makes your day start better,” explained Ashley Jacobi, Director of Nurses and Infection Control at Big Sandy Medical Center. Ashley’s praise for the nursing staff was glowing and ongoing. After nearly two years of pandemic restrictions, the trials of the times have refined the nursing c...
First Bank of Montana hosted its first customer appreciation luncheon Thursday afternoon as a way of thanking the community for its support of the new branch that opened in our town. "The whole point of the day is to thank our customers and thank the community for the support they give us. Hopefully, we have a partnership for decades into the future. I appreciate everybody's support... since First Bank of Montana is new to the community in the last two years, and with Covid and all the other...
"Hey community! We need to save this business! Can you give us 5 to 8 hours once a week? One person once a week. That's between $50 and $80 someone can earn. One person once a day. It's just if somebody could give eight hours, it would be amazing," explains Heather Pleninger, Executive Director of Big Sandy Activities (BSA). The organization is facing a labor shortage crisis as it heads into the late summer without enough direct care staff. "I have 5 solid openings. I have reached desperation...
When I wake up in the morning, there is a sliver of time between when I get out of bed and when my children get up and running. In that time, the house is quiet. The kids aren’t talking, arguing, running around, asking questions, singing songs, or doing any of the other things they do when they are awake. The house is peaceful. Every morning, my youngest gets up first, and I can hear him from the moment his feet hit the floor. He is loud. In fact, he is often loud enough to get the others m...
Big Sandy Schools has filled all of the open teaching positions for the upcoming school year. With businesses and other organizations struggling to fill open positions, the public school system isn’t immune from the labor shortage crunch. Kelly Haaland, the superintendent of Big Sandy Schools, replied to my question about how hiring is going with a simple, “We are done.” When I asked how the hiring process was this time around the reply wasn’t sugar-coated, “It was horrible.” Other school admi...
The Big Sandy School gym received a facelift this summer, which has resulted in a longer closure of the facility to students and the public. During the lockdowns of last spring and summer, school administrators were inundated with questions about when the gym would be reopening. This week, I found out that though there is not a start date for the public using the facility again, the time closed has been used well. The floors in both the main gym and the annex have been redone entirely and some...
In his fictional book, The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis wrote a collection of letters from a senior demon to a novice tempter. The book explores the various ways people are led astray, tempted, tricked, and manipulated from their faith in God. The opening chapter describes the most powerful tool the devil uses to keep people from ever asking themselves important questions in life: the ordinary. Everyday life and the boring details that occupy our attention keep us from looking at our lives and...