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Sheriff /Coroner Vern L. Burdick started in 1995. He had held a variety of positions before he became the Sheriff of Chouteau County in 2006. There are two deputies, who were hired for the Big Sandy area, an under-sheriff Larry Ophus, and five other deputies for a total of nine in the Sheriff's office. Their salaries are determined in the statue. Deputies get 90% of the Sheriff's salary, under-sheriff gets 95% of the Sheriff's salary. When a raise is given, it is given to all county employees....
The County Clerk of Court, the County Superintendent of Schools, and the County Surveyor is Rick Cook. He is running again, and this will be his 4th term. He started working in the County Clerk of Court in Dec 1999 as a deputy clerk. The Chouteau County Clerk of Court provides the primary administrative function for the District Court of the 12th Judicial District Court. According to Rick Cook, "We are the keeper of court records." The types of cases they keep records on are criminal, civil, pro...
The Mountaineer usually finds out about local news from a resident. In this case, I was eating lunch at Pep's and heard they were going to close the elevator. I went over to CHS and asked. Shane Cline told me on Tuesday, to contact Keith Schumacher the general manager for any furhter information on the closing of the Big Sandy Elevator. CHS has three full-time employees, Sue Knight, who has worked at the elevator for 27 years. Shane Cline who has worked there 14 years, and Chris Dixon who has...
Steve Gannon is originally from the south of Sun River. He moved to Big Sandy and worked with Tom Sheehy on defense work. While he was in Big Sandy, he lived in the country south of Sibra's. Steve grew up in the country and loves country living. "I miss Big Sandy, but Fort Benton is a great town. He was elected to Chouteau County Attorney in 2003, which means he has served for 17 years. Each time Steve is elected, it is for four years. He is currently in this period for two years. Steve was...
On Saturday, January 25th, a diesel pickup was outside The Grocery Store. The owner left it running while he ran in. It was right outside the front door. He was inside the store for less than five minutes and when he went out his pickup was gone. It was kind of a luck of the draw, because there were three cars parked outside The Grocery Store. The Grocery Store has camera’s so when they watched the camera’s footage they saw a pickup was driving down the street, stopped briefly, let a guy out, he walked over to the pickup, and drove it awa...
It was a beautiful day in the '50s, and I noticed Louis and June Beirwagen were eating lunch at the Bear Paw Coffee Shop & Deli, their daughters Cherie's deli. I had always wanted to interview them, and I immediately thought, "It's Valentine's Day month." Now it would be a good time. I started with a quick question for Louis. "When, were you married? He laughed and said, "Dec 27, 1953. Two days after Christmas." June immediately replied, "I don't recommend that. Too cold, too hard on everybody...
County Commissioner elections are coming up, and a quick look at Chouteau County Government and how it works will be covered in the next few weeks. County Commissioner Darin Schuster said, "It is important for people to know how local and county government works. We all learn about Federal Government in school, but nothing broader than that." A County Commissioner has many roles and wears many hats. The three of them serve to do both the executive and legislative duties. According to Darin, "We...
First Bank opened the Big Sandy branch on January 21st. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the cars parked along the streets until the streets were full. They opened the door and were busy all day. I was told by one of their customers, as we grabbed something to eat at Pep's, that he went into the bank about 3:45 on Tuesday to open an account. He said they stayed open till almost five to support community members opening accounts. Dean Comes, President of the Bank, came into Pep's to pay for the lunch...
It's always fun to watch little kids wrestle. The smallest children grab each other and kind of dance around. Sometimes they just run away from each other in circles. Other times, when they get taken down, they'll lie on their backs without giving any effort to getting up. Respect is taught on the mat with each wrestler, shaking hands before and after each competition. After it is over, they are trained to go over to shake hands with the other's coach before returning Havre, Fort Benton, and...
Board of County Commissioners are Clay Riehl, Bob Pasha, and Daren Schuster. We should know what our County Commissioners do. I looked up the various Chouteau County Department. The commissioners are responsible for setting up budgets. For those who do not have elected officials, the commissioners do have oversight responsibilities. The various departments are Chouteau County Assessor & Appraisal, Chouteau County Attorney, Chouteau County Clerk & Recorder, Chouteau County Clerk of Court, Choutea...
Internet Open Opportunities for High School Students I interviewed Chris Brumwell on her birthday. She told me her age in a mathematical equation. Chris has been the math teacher in Big Sandy for many years. She also serves as the academic counselor for the students as well. Chris told me the students have an opportunity from Montana Digital Academy to select from 13 subject matters with several courses in each subject. This allows them to take classes that are not taught in a classroom or will...
Jane Nelson was the winner of a new Bernina Sewing Machine. A prize worth $3,400. She may be retired from teaching, but the new machine opens up a whole new world of creativity and rewards. Jane and Bob brought with them to the interview, small projects they had experimented with. Bob brought a fish he had embroidered from a design he got off of the internet. Jane brought in a quilting spiral design. Bob explained, "The machine has a lot of build-in design, and then you can add your designs from...
I have, in the last six months, received several requests for the paper. I want to address these comments. People want more pictures. Legally I have the right to take a picture of anyone in a public arena, but I always ask. Some are wonderful; they don’t want their photo taken but allow me to anyway. For those of you who have graced the pages of the Mountaineer, I thank you very much. It is true; everyone wants pictures! However, if a person is reluctant, I don’t take their photograph, and I respect their decision. One of the most sig...
According to Megan Bartel, First Bank Loan Operations Manager, "The First Bank branch opening will be January 21. The employees at First Bank of Montana have been hard at work training and getting prepared to open the First Bank of Montana Big Sandy location on January 21. The same familiar faces will be greeting you on Tuesday morning. Demra Brown is the branch manager of the Big Sandy location, both she and Nicole Allderdice will be providing customer service and new account opening, Gloria...
At the monthly meeting of the Big Sandy Council, every council member was present. Mayor Shaud Schwarzbach was sworn in first, and then he swore in the rest of the councilmen, including Rich Jesperson, who is a first-term councilman. Rich believes, "We have lived in Big Sandy for 33 years, so I guess it's about time I serve on the City Council and give back to what has become my home town." Although there were several guests at the meeting, there was no public comment. The engineers present said...
Larry Jappe was chosen as head coach for the Red Team 6-Man All-Star Game. Wyatt Colvin from Jordon was chosen as the Head Coach for the Blue Team. Assisting coach Larry are Assistant coaches: J.R. Johnson, Westby-Grenora; Mitch Ward, Shields Valley; and Jim Lawson, Hot Springs I caught Larry at home, before he went out into below zero weather to feed cattle. He said he believed he was chosen for the honor because of the quality of the Pioneer football players. He believes they go to Highwood...
"I never do that!" Surprisingly that was the response most of the time when I asked if they had a New Year Resolution. One said, "Yes, I'm going to. One that has a low bar and easy to accomplish." Another said, "I used too.", or "No, I have a big enough goal that I'm already working on now!" Another wants to read more, realizing the library downtown as a lot of great books. A couple said, "Read the Bible in a year." One woman only has one thing on her mind. She's getting married this year, and...
January 2--The third annual Big Sandy American Legion Coyote Derby was to be held on the 4th through the 6th. January 9--The Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, a new farm bill, has increased the USDA's Farm Service Agency's abilities for loans and has also increased the direct farm ownership loans to $600,000. Reggie Jappe retired from Big Sandy's Medical Center. Leah Grubb, CEO of BSMC, says, "She will be missed." January 16- The Booster Club looks forward to some incredible opportunities....
Recently all teachers have been certified on-line and have practice using Reflex Protect a self-defense spray. It is a new tool in the safety box to help keep students and teachers safe. It is often used for riot control by police. Reflex Protect is an effective non-lethal spray. The Reflex shoots 15 feet and has a direct spray. Most pepper spray product has a single stream, this has two. It also has a patented design making it less likely to be accidentally deployed. "you don't want to be...
For the second year, the Sunshine Snippers 4-H club has chosen a project to help children in the area. They put a Christmas tree up at the grade school and decorated it with stocking hats, mittens, and gloves. This year they added a second tree at the Big Sandy Library. Interviewing children is difficult. I tried to visit with them, at the Christmas Stroll, while they were sitting wrapping presents for donations. They all said the same thing. "We wanted to help kids who didn't have anything."...
Christmas is more than a family gift-giving holiday. When my mother passed away from cancer close to Christmas, my fear was Christmas would never be magically again, but as I pondered the birth of Christ that Christmas was more powerful than any other. These lyrics by Andrew Peterson from Labor of Love tell the real story! "It was not a silent night. There was blood on the ground. You could hear a woman cry in the alleyways that night on the streets of David's town. The stable was not clean,...
The 4th Annual Big Sandy American Legion Coyote Derby will take place January 3rd through January 5th at the Jerry Martin Memorial Hall. The early registration deadline is Friday, December 20th. Be sure to be entered so you can be in the drawing to win your entry fee back. You do not have to preregister; they will be taking entries up until 8 pm on January 3rd, 2020. Cost is $40 a person up to a 4-man team. There are a Calling Class and an Open Class with $1000 added to each pot. 75% of the...
All city councilmen, including Big Sandy Mayor Shaud Schwarzbach, were present except Colby Baumgarn, who was sick. Three city employees and Officer Dennis Hale were also present. There were five guests present. "A crowd," according to Mayor Schwarzbach. The pool repair is halfway done. The weather hasn't cooperated, but the pool deck is cut, and they need to run the pipe. Dennis Hale had nothing to report. It was noted the pivot area needs to have soil samples done. The City Council is working...
Peace It was like most days. I am driving to work never really at the same time. It de3pends on when I wake up and how do I want to move that day. Living 25 miles from town, or how we say it in Montana, "half an hour out." I live between the Missouri River and the Bears Paw Mountains. So there are a few hills. The shadows in the morning are beautiful, with the sun getting up. Usually, the sun is brilliant, with a wide variety of gold, pink, and orange. But some mornings, the sun is still...
Thanks to the Big Sandy CSI organization for another Christmas celebration. It started early. Santa waited patiently for his first visit at the Mint. When I got there, the place was packed. After I took a picture and I went down to the Bear Paw Coffee Shop and ordered a coffee. A small child came in, and I asked if they wanted to see Santa, they asked where and I told them at the Mint. They said, "The bar?" Yes, it has Big Sandy flair! Vendors started carrying their wares shortly after 8:00, at...
