Yellowstone County News July-24-2015 complete issue download
Aug242015
Aug172015
July 17th, 2015 complete issue (.pdf)
Aug102015
July 10th, 2015 complete issues (.pdf)
Aug32015
July 3rd, 2015 complete issue (.pdf)
Jul282015
Photos from July 28th Billings Mustangs game
Click any photo to enlarge:
Jul262015
June 26, 2015 complete issue (.pdf)
Jul242015
Worden educator named “AgriScience Ambassador” by DuPont NATAA
Robert Yates (above), agriscience teacher, and Jo Ann Pfeiffer, NATAA facilitator, demonstrate how solar energy can be used to pump water to irrigate crops in remote locations around the world.
WORDEN – Robert Yates, an agriscience teacher at Huntley Project High School, successfully completed the 13th annual DuPont National AgriScience Teachers Ambassador Academy (NATAA) at the company’s Chesapeake Farms in Chestertown, Md. Upon receiving the certificate of completion, Yates became an “Ag Ambassador,” joining the other 322 outstanding teachers from across the country who have attended NATAA and earned that designation. read more
Jul242015
Kitchens completes four-year post as manager at Pompeys Pillar
POMPEYS PILLAR — Jeff Kitchens is going to enjoy Clark Days, from the early morning pancakes to the embers glowing in the evening campfire as he tells one last ghost story.
It’s his last day as manager of Pompeys Pillar National Monument before his next post as field manager in the BLM’s Prineville District in Oregon.
Kitchens loves working in the Bureau of Land Management because of the collaborative relationships it requires.
“What makes the job, and the BLM, so unique,” Kitchens said, is the land pattern — while Forest Service land usually has a contiguous boundary BLM land usually evolved from several sources and can form a checkerboard or atypical pattern. read more
Jul232015
A new Master Plan for Shepherd School District 37
Dear Editor:
A new Master Plan for Shepherd School District 37: After several years of building facility assessments, community meetings, and space programming, the Shepherd School District has settled on a course of action, and plans to run a mail-in ballot, for bond election, this coming fall.
The process began in August of 2008, with a Building Assessment report, performed by MGT of Washington state. The information gathered in this report outlined each of the district facilities, and listed ADA concerns, structural stability, energy efficiency, and useful life of the building systems. read more
Jul232015
Sindelar charged in Ballantine shooting death of son
Yellowstone County sheriff’s deputies, Montana Highway Patrol troopers and emergency medical personnel responded to the home of Wesley Brian Sindelar on Thunderstick Road in Ballantine Monday evening after his father, James Sindelar, called 911 to report he had shot his son with a handgun. (Jonathan McNiven photo)
BALLANTINE — A Ballantine man was charged in Yellowstone County Justice Court Wednesday afternoon with negligent homicide after he allegedly went to the home of his son, where he shot and killed him Monday night.
James Douglas Sindelar, 73, allegedly told a sheriff’s detective that he shot his son, Wesley Brian Sindelar, after struggling with him over a handgun at his home on Thunderstick Road off Highline Canal Road. read more
Jul192015
June 19th, 2015 complete issue (.pdf)
Jul142015
Obituary: Drena Dawn (Heath) Chord
Drena Dawn (Heath) Chord
Drena Dawn (Heath) Chord “A Prayer Warrior” at the age of 54 passed away Saturday, May 30, 2015, at Colorado Blood Cancer Institute in Denver. She was born Sept. 1, 1960, at Cardston Alberta, Canada.
After a six-month battle with blood cancer, she joined her Lord. Drena always said there is only one way “Jesus.” She had planned to become a chaplain to give back to God and her community.
Drena loved music and was a talented piano player. You always laughed when you were with her. She enjoyed many crafts and arts, a passion that she shared with her husband Paul. Drena was a daughter, mother, wife, grandmother, sister, friend and nurse, and will be forever missed and loved. We will miss your loving smile, and all the joy you brought to our lives. We were all blessed and better people to have known you. We thank all of you who gave so generously in love, prayer and support during her fight with cancer.
A celebration of life in honor of Drena will be held July 25 from 1 to 3 p.m., at the Harvest Church Heights Campus. Desserts and beverages will be provided. Please come join us in celebrating who Drena was, is and always will be!
A memorial in honor of Drena (and a way to give forward to others as given unto her) has been set up at the St Vincent Healthcare Frontier Cancer Center. Donations can be sent to One Cancer Fund Attn: Drena’s gift; In care of Angela Slade, 1106 N. 30th St., Billings, MT 59101 Phone: 406-238-3603.
Drena also had a passion and love for orphans and impoverished families in Uganda. A memorial in Drena’s name may be sent to Hope 2 One Life, Inc. www.hope2onelife.org, P.O. Box 21112 Billings, MT 59104.
Jul122015
June 12th, 2015 complete issue (.pdf)
Jul92015
County officials continue compensation board work
by Evelyn Pyburn-originally posted in the Yellowstone County News Newspaper
BILLINGS — Two more hearings have been set for the Yellowstone County Elected Official Compensation Board. Following their rejection of the Board’s earlier recommendation Yellowstone County Commissioners are asking the board to reconvene to make another recommendation.
The board met Monday and will meet again at 2 p.m. Tuesday, July 21, at the Yellowstone County Courthouse in the Commissioners Conference Room on fourth floor.
The commissioners also re-appointed the read more
Jul52015
June 5th, 2015 complete issue (.pdf)
Jun302015
Accounting error in State Audit ???
“In my fourteen years on Audit this is the first time the financials for Montana shouts of incompetency within the department.”
Guest Article – by Senator Dee Brown, Legislative Audit Committee
The financial audit for the State of Montana revealed some disturbing problems today in front of the Legislative Audit Committee in Helena. The audit detailed that the Department of Administration does not have adequate internal controls to ensure accuracy of our finances, nor are they properly reviewed or issued in a timely fashion.
Some of the examples include: transportation expenses overstated by about $220 million, capital grants and contributions for Natural Resources understated by $445 million and transfers of about $47.8 million which were omitted entirely.
The hundreds of millions of dollars not accounted for properly are huge red flags for anyone reading the audit, but the one that made my eyes bulge was the overstatement of approximately $1 billion of accumulated depreciation related to infrastructure. Yes, that’s with a ‘b’ as in billion.
The errors have been read more
Jun292015
County labor negotiations nearing conclusion
BILLINGS — Yellowstone County is negotiating with two unions to renew labor contracts. The negotiations have been going on since March and have gone smoothly, according to Dwight Vigness, the county’s human resource officer. He told county commissioners in a discussion on Monday that they are coming closer together and he expects a conclusion relatively soon with the MPEA (Montana Public Employees Association) and the county attorneys.
Vigness explained that he hopes to get four-year contracts with both read more
Jun242015
Rep. Tom Richmond assailed by critics at Pachyderm lunch
Tom Richmond
Also calling Richmond to task for some of his positions was Barry Usher, who was a contender to fill the House seat to which Richmond was appointed following the resignation of Jonathan McNiven. Usher said that Richmond was appointed based upon his answers regarding his positions on several issues. Usher claimed that Richmond’s voting record was not in keeping with those answers.
About expanding the state’s Medicaid program to reach an additional 70,000 recipients, Richmond said, “I was in a box on this. I pledged not to advance Obamacare,” but this bill helped people who could not afford insurance, and it still required that they pay a premium. The legislation created the HELP program, which, he said, “isn’t read more
Mar202015
Honcoop nominated for Goldwater Scholarship
Aubree Hancoop works with MSU-B associate professor Tom Lewis on biochemical research. (courtesy photo)
MSU BILLINGS — Aubree Honcoop has accomplished more than most people her age.
She has graduated from high school, has three years of college under her belt and, most recently, was nominated by Montana State University Billings for the nationally competitive Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship.
Honcoop, who is from Huntley, is 17.
The Goldwater Foundation seeks scholars committed to careers in science, math or engineering who are planning careers in read more
Mar172015
Former Yellowstone County Museum director admits to stealing at least $30,000 from museum
Billings – The former director of the Yellowstone County Museum has pleaded guilty to felony theft in Yellowstone County District Court.
Charles “Chas” Weldon was the museum’s director from 2008 to 2013.
In a plea agreement negotiated between prosecutors and defense attorneys and approved by District Judge Ingrid Gustafson, Weldon admitted to stealing more than $30,000 beginning in read more
