2014 in Mineral County

Jan. 8

James Myers appears in court

SUPERIOR – On December 18, James Myers, former Superior youth probation officer, was arrested for alleged sexual abuse of children.

Myers’ initial appearance in Missoula County Justice Court was on December 20, 2013. According to the court summary, on January 2, 2014, the case was transferred to Missoula County District Court.

According to Missoula County Justice Court complaint and affadavit, Myers has been accused of “traveling within the state with the intention of meeting a person…believed to be a 12 year old child to engage in sexual conduct.”

Jan. 15

Tester comes to Tricon

ST. REGIS – Mineral County was honored with a special visit from United States Senator Jon Tester (D-Montana) as he took a tour of Tricon Timber’s facilities.

As the tour began, Tester was eager and excited about the prospect. He had the air of a kid in a candy shop as he was led around to see the operation. He appeared especially fascinated by the computerized systems used to tell the machinery how to cut logs into studs.

“[It was] incredibly interesting,” said Tester of the mill tour. “Unbelievable, high tech equipment. Very impressive set of workers and amazing technology.”

Jan. 22

Myers death confirmed

SUPERIOR – Last week, the Mineral County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the death of James Myers, a Superior resident allegedly involved in a child sex abuse sting in Missoula.

A family member found the former juvenile probation officer’s body in his home. According to Mineral County Sheriff Ernie Ornelas, there was no evidence of foul play and the cause of death is still under investigation.

“A lot of people are saying [it was] suicide, but we have no evidence of that right now,” said Ornelas.

Jan. 29

Weather does not hinder Winterfest

ALBERTON – The children of Alberton went wild in a display of organized chaos Saturday, as they enjoyed the first ever winter festival at the Alberton Community Center.

The festival was put on by the Promoting Excellence in Alberton-area Kids Foundation as a way to get the community’s kids outdoors together. The new organization wants to set up events to bring the community closer together and provide ways for kids to get together to have fun.

“I think it’s good for a community to support their kids,” said Laura Acker, one of the event’s organizers.

Feb. 5

Student pearly whites shine bright

SUPERIOR – The smiles of county students were made a little brighter last week as local dentists came to Superior Elementary School and St. Regis School to do free cleanings.

The Make a Smile event was put on by the Mineral County Department of Health with the Sealants for Smiles, a statewide group that works to promote oral health and fight tooth decay in children. According to Bridgett Schrampfer, program coordinator of the group, the team will go to elementary schools all over Montana over the remainder of the school year.

One classroom in Superior Elementary School was converted for the dentist’s use. All the tables were pushed to one wall while equipment was set up by the room’s sink. As each child’s turn came up, they lay down on a table as the dentists looked their teeth over.

Feb. 12

Application for Montana land grant signed by commissioners

SUPERIOR – A grant has become available through the state for counties who map local cemeteries. The way of getting these funds was discussed over several meetings of the Mineral County Commissioners.

Tim Read, county planner and sanitarian, informed the commissioners of the Montana Land Grant. The grant is part of an effort to collect information about different areas for public record. Part of this includes mapping cemeteries and recording who is buried where.

Read compared it to the website findagrave.com, where people can look up where someone is buried and find public information about them. He said approximately 85 percent of the headstones in the Superior cemetery were on the site.

Feb. 19

Superior High students sing out in all-state

SUPERIOR – Earlier this month two Superior High School students joined over a hundred kids from across three states for an all-star choir performance in Missoula.

Senior Heather Kelly with junior Sienna Faydo joined singers from across Montana, as well as Wyoming and Idaho, for the performance. The group performed at the Dennison Theater on the University of Montana campus in Missoula.

The performance was on Sunday, Feb. 9. The kids gathered for the whole weekend as Friday and Saturday saw a crash course of rehearsals. The girls carpooled to Missoula for Friday night and all day Saturday rehearsals. A final dress rehearsal Sunday morning brought a close to the intense practice sessions.

Feb. 26

Grant funds child care classes

ALBERTON – A grant was recently issued by the Mineral County Community Foundation, which will help fund babysitter and child care assistant training programs around the county.

Dess Werst, the recipient of the grant, is a psychiatric nurse and former American Red Cross instructor. She wanted to provide the county’s kids with an opportunity to learn important skills and possibly earn more money with their own babysitting business.

To this end, she requested a grant of $500 to fund classes for people ages 11 to 22 with a focus on Red Cross CPR, first aid and child care training. Werst’s goal is to arm area youths with the skills needed to care for younger kids.

March 5

Avalanche shuts down Interstate 90

HAUGAN – On Monday, March 3, both directions of Interstate 90 were shut down from St. Regis to Lookout Pass after an avalanche blocked the interstate. Montana Highway Patrol Sergeant Roman Zylawy said the snow hit west of Haugan around mile marker 13. “It was a cut into the mountain to make the highway go there,” Zylawy said. “There is no vegetation or trees to hold the snow there.” The interstate was shut down indefinitely. Zylawy said there was still snow on the slope, which was in danger of falling. Road crews were working to trigger the rest of the snow before they began clean up efforts and reopened the road. Zylawy said the cleanup would not take long and the big delay was triggering the avalanche safely. There were no injuries and the slide does not appear to be human caused. Zylawy said the highway department was looking into possible changes to make the area safer and reduce the risk of future avalanches. “They have a couple avalanche specialists who can survey the area to find a better way to run the highway,” Zylawy said.

March 12

County kids receive free vaccinations

MINERAL COUNTY – In an effort to nip serious illnesses in the bud, the Mineral County Health Department administered a cocktail of vaccinations to students of the Mineral County schools.

The health department nurses mainly administered Tdap vaccines. These are vaccines against Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. If someone was due for a booster, they also had meningitis vaccines available. There were two types of vaccines available. One was a vaccine provided by the state and the other was a private vaccine, which would be charged to an insurance provider.

March 19

BPA State brings wins

MINERAL COUNTY – All three Mineral County schools sent teams to the Business Professionals of America State Leadership Conference in Billings and all three earned the chance to send someone to the national competition later this year.

Superior High School did very well in the events and had an additional special honor for one of their members. McKenzie Stager was named BPA secretary for the state of Montana.

“They only choose six kids, so that was a pretty big honor there,” Jamie Toivenen, BPA coordinator for Superior, said.

March 26

Balenger no longer member of Sheriff’s office

SUPERIOR – Mineral County Sheriff’s Deputy Jim Balenger is no longer a member of the force at the Mineral County Sheriff’s Office.

Balenger was involved in a controversial investigation to determine whether he used excessive force with a prisoner at the Mineral County Jail.

The investigation was related to an incident on Sept. 20, 2012, where Balenger hit and tazed then inmate D.J. Bass. Balenger and Deputy Tony Lapinski removed Bass from his cell after an outburst to put him into a restraining chair in the booking room. Bass allegedly began struggling as he was locked in, prompting Lapinski to put him in a headlock. Balenger struck Bass before removing his taser and using it on the inmate.

April 2

Wanda James cleared of all charges

SUPERIOR – After over a year of investigation by the Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, Mineral County Justice of the Peace Wanda James has returned to duty on the bench.

James officially started working again on Friday, March 29. She entered voluntary administrative leave in late July 2013, while the investigation was under way.

According to the press release from DCI, James was under investigation for a connection to the theft of approximately $9,250 in bond money from traffic tickets. This was the first time the amount was specified. Previous updates did not include a specific figure and only said the investigation was about missing court funds.

April 9

School asks for $3.9 million

SUPERIOR- This year’s harsh winter revealed something to Superior Public Schools Superintendent Scott Kinney - the junior high school should be torn down to preserve the safety of students.

The weather combined with the aging buildings of the school district have resulted in a $3.99 million bond proposal to update existing buildings.

February and early March brought record levels of snow and rain in northwestern Montana, resulting in the flooding of the junior high school.

April 16

Forest Service answers questions

SUPERIOR - Millworkers and worried citizens packed a basement floor meeting room in the Mineral County Courthouse eager to hear from representatives of the U.S. Forest Service.

Regional Forester Faye Krueger and new Lolo Forest Supervisor Tim Garcia were on hand April 11 to answer questions regarding forest restoration projects in Mineral County, which have been put on hold for some time. Superior District Ranger Tawnya Brummett was also in attendance.

April 23

Tricon Timber looks to the future

ST. REGIS - Tricon has been producing timber in Mineral County since the early 1990s, and would love to continue that strong community tradition.

However, Tricon isn’t sure it can without the help of The U.S. Forest Service.

The Forest Service has been under scrutiny for some time in Mineral County, even more so recently after a visit by Regional Forester Faye Krueger earlier this month at the Mineral County Commissioners meeting.

April 30

Local thespians hit the stage

SUPERIOR – Despite having only one week to learn their lines, the performance of Cinderella by Superior Elementary went off without a hitch.

The April 25 show was produced by Missoula Children’s Theatre, a traveling stage show that comes to any school or organization and teaches kids how to act and even direct for a week.

Ethan Kelsey, Elle Streeter and Emily Larson filled the student assistant director positions for the week, working closely with MCT.

May 7

Trooper retires after investigation

MINERAL COUNTY – Richard Hader, a Montana Highway Patrol Trooper who had been with the agency since June 1995, retired abruptly May 1.

Hader was put on paid administrative leave by MHP. The incident was related to an investigation into his job performance, said Anastasia Burton, spokesperson for the Montana Department of Justice.

Trooper Hader is not subject to disciplinary action now that he has opted for retirement, Burton said.

“On April 14, MHP placed Hader on administrative leave pending an investigation into job performance issues,” said John Barnes, director of communications for the Attorney General’s Office.

May 21

Alberton seniors bid farewell

ALBERTON – Thirteen Alberton seniors graduated May 18, and were welcomed to the real world by teachers, staff, parents and other spectators.

The school gym hosted the emotional ceremony as tears of joy and sadness were shed.

Many of the graduates have yet to know life outside of Alberton, as shown in a slideshow of each student growing up from an infant to now.

The tight-knit group that spent most of their high school career either being involved in sports, or providing service to the community, must now go their separate ways although Alberton will always be home.

May 28

Balenger fired for misconduct

MINERAL COUNTY — Jim Balenger had a history of misconduct including excessive force and neglect of duty prior to joining the Mineral County Sheriff’s Office, according to documents released by the department.

Mineral County Sheriff Ernie Ornelas cited an “incapacity materially affecting (Balenger’s) ability to perform official duties” as a primary reason for the firing in a March 14 letter to Balenger. The letter goes on to cite four instances where Balenger violated the Mineral County Personnel Policy, specifically the portions of the policy dealing with falsifying records and negligence.

“Your past misrepresentations and false swearing have rendered you materially incapable of testifying in a court of law, where you are sworn to tell the truth, when it has been documented that you have sworn falsely and misrepresented information in the past,” Ornelas wrote in the letter. This rendered his credibility as a witness “absolutely nil.”

June 4

Singer still belts out the tunes

SUPERIOR - Ever since she was a young girl, Nyla Prosser has been singing along with her sister Rita.

Together, the two have been singing duets as part of the Sweethearts of Harmony since the 1930s.

That is until Rita died at the age of 97 in early April. Since then, Prosser has been forced to sing solo for the first time in her life.

Prosser grew up in North Dakota living in a log cabin with her two brothers and three sisters.

She didn’t come from a musically challenged family. Her father used to play the fiddle and accordion. She said no one in her family ever had special training; they just practiced balancing out harmony with each other.

June 11

Primary election concludes

MINERAL COUNTY – The people have spoken as a new Mineral County Sheriff was elected, and two justice of the peace candidates will move on to the general election in November.

Tom Bauer won the sheriff’s candidacy with 383 votes, or a 42 percent margin out of a total of 921 voters. Robert Larson was second with 229 votes, Adam Cole was third with 203 votes and Michael Toth brought in 106 votes.

Doug Sharkey and Dale Magone will face each other in the November election to determine their candidacy for the justice of the peace position.

The justice of the peace candidates are the only ones in the election who have to move on because it is nonpartisan.

June 18

Training covers drugs, choppers

SUPERIOR – With an ever-increasing drug problem in the county, Superior’s first responders were educated about different types of prescription drugs and were also given the chance to look over MedStar’s new helicopter.

During the second portion of their monthly training, the ambulance staff along with sheriff’s deputies and health staff listened to a presentation focused on the abuse of prescription drugs.

“We have a fairly big drug problem here,” Angie Coleman said.

Coleman is involved with both the hospital and the Superior ambulance team.

June 25

Kids become everyday heroes

SUPERIOR – A group of kids recently took on the goal of improving the Superior community by providing a positive experience to anyone who is interested.

After getting in trouble at school for drugs, the group decided to turn their focus around – better themselves and their community.

The kids have established a H.E.R.O. Club, a club focused on providing positive activities for kids in the area. H.E.R.O. stands for help, encourage and reach out.

The club offers organized activities and hopes to grow in coming months.

July 9

Train derails, planes fall

SUPERIOR - A train carrying airline parts and other materials derailed at approximately 4 p.m. on Thursday 18 miles east of Superior sending airplane fuselages plummeting into the Clark Fork River.

The Clark Fork River and the rail line were temporarily closed Thursday and Friday as crews removed the damaged fuselages from the river, cleaned up other debris from the tracks and repaired the rail line. Montana Rail Link Public Information Officer Lynda Frost did confirm there were no injuries as a result of the accident.

“There were seven cars carrying aircraft components and three of those went into the river,” Frost said. “There were a total of 19 cars that derailed. There were three cars of soybean that derailed and three cars of denatured alcohol. The other six cars involved in the derailment were empty.”

July 16

Historians search for the original Mullan Road

SUPERIOR - One local historian is trying to raise awareness of a historically significant aspect of Mineral County and in the process give the man who helped build it the recognition she thinks he deserves.

Mineral County Museum Secretary Kay Strombo along with 13 other residents interested in the county’s history trekked up past the Lookout Pass Ski area on Wednesday to see what used to be the Mullan Road as well as the St. Regis or Sohon Pass.

July 23

MRL responds to county

A representative from Montana Rail Link was in Superior on Friday July 11 to answer Mineral County Commissioner’s questions about why it took them nearly three hours to notify county officials about a train derailment.

The train carrying airplane fuselages derailed at approximately 4 p.m. on July 3 sending three of the aircraft down an embankment and into the Clark Fork River. MRL Public Information Officer, Lynda Frost, said at the time it was unknown which emergency services had been notified and when.

MRL Chief Security and Safety Officer Pete Lawrenson said their dispatch services did have a protocol for notifying local officials and emergency responders in the event of an incident. However, he did say the process of notifying those at the county level went through another agency instead of directly from MRL.

July 30

Commissioners start work on budget

MINERAL COUNTY - The arduous task of deciding how much money Mineral County will have in the next fiscal year and how the money will be spent began last Friday during the county commissioner’s meeting in Superior.

The process, which will take several more weeks to complete, began with commissioners examining last year’s budget and making adjustments to paperwork regarding how much money was actually spent in each category.

While county department’s requested budgets have been received, Commissioner Roman Zylawy said the process will take time. Zylawy said the delay in working on the county budget was due to the wait from the state as to how much Mineral County is actually worth.

August 6

Mineral County turns 100 years old

SUPERIOR – Mineral County turned the ripe old age of 100 this week and ironically, approximately 100 people turned out on the county courthouse lawn on Sunday, August 3 to celebrate the milestone.

Despite early concerns that interest in the event was light, Mineral County Museum Secretary Kay Strombo said she was pleased with the turnout. Strombo said the turnout reinforced, in her mind, that people still care about the county’s history.

August 13

School and parent group ask for help

SUPERIOR – A group of parents in Superior and local school officials want the public to support a measure that will prevent students from having to spend any more time than necessary in a middle school that is facing structural integrity issues, prone to plumbing problems and affected by mold.

A parent group called Superior Community for Kids and the Superior School District Superintendent Scott Kinney said, while they understand some people are reluctant to vote for a levy to build an add-on to the high school to replace the aging middle school, the alternatives are undesirable.

August 20

Heavy rains lead to mudslides

SUPERIOR - There were no reported injuries or damage to private property after two separate mudslides struck near Superior Thursday night sending tons of mud, rocks, trees and other debris plummeting down hillsides.

One mudslide, at some points 15 feet wide and over three feet deep, narrowly missed striking a home off Pardee Creek Road approximately two miles west of Superior at approximately 9 p.m. on Thursday. The slide came within 50 yards of the unoccupied home before spilling out onto the road.

August 27

Fire danger lowered after heavy rain

MINERAL COUNTY – After days of heavy rains in Mineral County, the fire danger in the area was reduced to high on Saturday, Aug. 23, by the Forest Service and the Stage 1 fire restrictions were lifted allowing people to once again have campfires.

The measures were in response to heavier than usual rainfall in the area that has reduced the likelihood of a fire to start and spread despite hundreds of lightning strikes that accompanied the storms. Lightning is always a concern, according to F.S. officials, but this time there was simply too much rain for it to have much effect.

September 3

DeBorgia gets a post office

DEBORGIA – Residents of DeBorgia and Haugan will not have to drive all the way to St. Regis for their mail after a local woman took on the responsibility of operating a post office after a brief period of uncertainty regarding the future of postal services in the area.

Bonnie Raucher of DeBorgia will be the new postmaster for the area after she took up the contract vacated after the death of Russ Bogard. Raucher said she decided to take on the job to help out the community and allow herself to spend more time at home.

September 10

Plugging the brain drain

SUPERIOR – As other rural communities across the country experience a phenomenon known as “rural brain drain,”when 18 to 25 year old residents leave their hometowns for higher education and never return, Mineral County is experiencing exactly the opposite in one case.

Brain drain is a well-known socioeconomic term that refers to the migration of educated people to places that pay higher wages resulting in the loss or “drain” of skilled people in the place they came from.

September 17

Service member returns home

SUPERIOR – One local Superior resident, born and raised here, has returned after spending over 20 years away in the U.S. military to take over the reins of a local business that provides an essential service to the community.

After serving his country in the Air Force for 20 years, Alec McKinney has come back to Superior to serve a community he called home as a young man. McKinney will be taking over for his stepdad, George Mattfeldt, running the only automotive repair shop in Superior after the closing this year of the only other such facility in the area.

September 24

Bomb scare in Superior

SUPERIOR – A package set off a brief bomb scare at the post office in Superior Monday, Sept. 22 at approximately 8 a.m. after postal employees alerted local law enforcement to what they considered suspicious markings on the outside of the package.

Mineral County Sheriff Ernie Ornelas was the first to respond and confirmed that the package was indeed suspect at which time the building was evacuated and an Explosive Response Unit from Missoula was called in to handle the situation.

October 1

Prescribed burns in Mineral County begin

MINERAL COUNTY – As the 2014 fire danger season winds down in Mineral County, Forest Service personnel are transitioning into a different role in forest management and this one actually has them setting fires, albeit controlled ones.

With cooler temperatures and periods of precipitation in the past few weeks, the conditions for prescribed burns were right so crews were sent out to predetermined locations to reduce the amount of dead debris left over from logging operations in previous years.

October 8

Her wish was their command

SUPERIOR – Montana’s own brand of the Make-A-Wish Foundation was in Superior last week to make one little girl’s wish to visit DisneyWorld come true.

President Richard Hader, of the Montana Hope Project, along with Montana State Trooper, Sean Gaston, visited the Superior Elementary School on Tuesday, Sept. 30, to see Amber Salter-Sparks who suffers from a number of serious health problems.

According to Hader, Salter-Sparks has a hyperthyroid condition and hormone deficiencies among other health issues. Salter-Sparks, along with her mother and grandmother, arrived in Florida on Sunday, Oct. 5 and according to Hader, were already busy enjoying some time away.

October 15

Forest Service burns CC Divide

MINERAL COUNTY – The Forest Service has been waiting years to burn a site measuring approximately 800 acres near St. Regis and last week the conditions were finally right to treat the area with a controlled, prescribed burn.

The site, near the CC Divide, was too rugged to be treated by traditional methods such as staff on the ground with drip torches so the Forest Service had to use what they refer to as a heli-torch. The heli-torch is essentially a 50 gallon drum filled with accelerant which hangs underneath a helicopter and drips flame on the intended site.

October 22

SVFD trains on vehicle extrication

Superior – The Superior Volunteer Fire Department will be better prepared than ever if they are faced with having to extract a victim from a car accident after they recently trained on the latest extraction techniques and technology.

A majority of the volunteer force showed up recently to train on how to safely take apart a vehicle to remove a victim with as little movement as possible to limit safety hazards. SVFD Fire Chief John Woodland said the annual training was critical to maintaining his staff’s knowledge of how and in what order to remove parts of a vehicle so a victim can be treated.

November 12

Health care workers of tomorrow visit MCH

SUPERIOR – The potential next generation of health care workers took a tour of the Mineral Community Hospital last week to see what they may be in for if they decide to pursue a career in a growing field that needs qualified employees.

Mostly comprised of sophomores from Superior, St. Regis and Alberton high schools, students donned scrubs before entering the operating room, CAT scanned a turkey and participated in a variety of other activities designed to introduce them to the experience of working in a hospital.

November 19

Art teacher in Superior receives award

SUPERIOR – Art students at the Superior High School have the distinction of being taught by the best fine art educator in the state after their teacher was recognized by the Montana Art Education Association.

Frances Kelly, who has taught art in Superior for 16 years, was recently awarded the Montana Art Educator of the Year Award. Kelly said she was pleased to be recognized by the prestigious organization.

November 26

St. Regis students learn about robotics

ST. REGIS – Students at the St. Regis schools were introduced to two very different types of characters at an assembly last week designed to introduce them to a growing technological field of study.

One type was a human. The other types were robots. Together they formed a team that put on a show about robotics including several designs that were able to navigate, stand up and dance under their own power and perform other feats that amazed the enthusiastic crowd.

December 3

Cedar Thom timber project moving forward

MINERAL COUNTY – A timber project nearly a decade in the making entered a new phase recently and while it’s the phase that involves possible objections to aspects of the project, supporters remain confident logging will return to Mineral County.

The Cedar Thom project, which could produce approximately 20 million board feet of lumber and take years to complete, moved into the objection process according to Montana State Extension Agent Kevin Chamberlain. He said, while there could be some issues raised about specific elements of the planned logging and forest management project, he does not expect them to prevent it from moving forward.

December 10

Crash results in fatality in Mineral County

MINERAL COUNTY – A traffic accident Sunday evening near Superior resulted in one fatality after a tractor-trailer ran off Interstate 90 westbound and crashed into a housing development.

The driver was declared deceased at Mineral Community Hospital and his identity has not been released pending notification of next of kin.

December 17

Program teaches life skills

Superior – Superior High School students took a break from their regular classes last week to learn some skills they would not have the opportunity to be exposed to during course of the regular school curriculum.

As part of Life Skills Program, students had the opportunity to take part in a wide variety of activities including cooking, knitting, animal care and welfare, self-defense and one that demonstrated what it takes to make it as a river rafting guide on the Clark Fork River.

December 24

Superior students witness trial

Missoula – A group of Superior High School students traveled to Missoula recently to bear witness to a court case that made national headlines last week after Markus Kaarma was convicted of deliberate homicide in the shooting death of German exchange student Diren Dede.