Aug302024
Yamaha street bike involved in fatal accident lays in yard of residence off Yellowstone Trail. (Jonathan McNiven photo)
A twenty-eight-year-old motorcyclist was involved in a fatal motorcycle accident on Yellowstone Trail Tuesday afternoon. Stryker N. Miller of Billings was traveling westbound on Yellowstone Trail on his Yamaha motorcycle when the accident occurred just west of Chipper Lane. Responding Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Wilson stated that it appeared that Miller had read more
Aug302024
Shepherd Lions Club will host their 34th Jamboree on September 7, 2024, at the Shepherd Community Center. Being the 34th year, the Lions Club has brought in a few new attractions this year that organizer Rebecca Beddes hope with draw in even more people for this important community fundraiser. The Jamboree contributes a large portion of the read more
Aug302024
In the last week, two major polls have been published, one from Rasmussen Reports and one from the Napolitan Institute.
The Rasmussen Reports poll was conducted from August 14 through August 20 with a sample of 835 likely voters. This poll has Tim Sheehy with a sizable lead of 50% to Jon Tester’s 43%, with 7% undecided. This has been the most favorable poll Tim Sheehy has had yet. The poll is in line with the overarching trend of the race, as late July and early August polls had him up by around just 2 points, and before that Jon Tester led in most major polls. Rasmussen’s poll would suggest that the trajectory of this race has had a somewhat linear and positive trend towards Sheehy.
The Napolitan Institute poll was conducted by RMG Research from August 6 through August 14 with a sample size of 540 registered voters. This poll, with a certain degree of skepticism given the smaller sample size, had incredibly interesting results. The poll has Jon Tester with read more
Aug292024
Here, quality of patch work all along the Yellowstone River bridge near Huntley raises safety concerns from local residents for vehicles and those traveling over the bridge. This photo was taken August 14, 2024 as the rough surface continues to concern passersby. (Gage McNiven photo)
Community members lament the aging Huntley/Shepherd bridge repairs, with many wondering if the cracks were better than the repairs. Walt Houghton, Maintenance Chief of DOT Billings Division, has communicated that repair options are limited, and they are attempting stave off the elements until the bridge’s scheduled replacement in the next couple years.
The Highway 312 Bridge over the Yellowstone River in Huntley was built in 1949, and in November 2023 was nominated for replacement, entering the planning stages. In October this year the Montana Department of transportation (MDT) will meet and decide on its Tentative Construction Plan and whether HWY-312 bridge has found the funding and support needed to make it into the five-year plan. In the meantime, MDT is attempting to read more
Aug292024
Dear Editor,
When we have an issue or problem, we tend to “do it ourselves” creating bigger problems.
We get bombarded with voting records of candidates; their rating is good, the other is bad. Laws are like clothes, one size doesn’t fit all. Passing a law to solve an issue, sometimes creates more issues.
We are told to vote for read more
Aug282024
Dear Editor,
I’m wondering how many of you are as frustrated as I am with many organizations wanting donations.
I’ve tried several of them – including communities “ravaged by floods.” They do not respond to written letters and/or phone calls. If they do and a date and time is set, they do not come or call. In fact, one told me, “We do not want anything old as nobody wants old things and we couldn’t even give it away.” My conclusion is they only want cash so it can be read more
Aug282024
First reported by Lily Meskers of the University of Montana, a Jon Tester affiliated PAC, Montana Together, has been offering collegiate athletes at the University of Montana cash in exchange for endorsing Tester on social media. The group offered between $400 and $2,400 for videos that “inform your audience about Senator Tester’s track record in office and encourage him to maintain his support for these vital policies.”
The irony of this request to athletes has not been lost on many of the women involved in sports at the University of Montana. Senator Tester voted against the 2023 Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act that would have amended Title IX to limit participation in women’s sports to biological women only. Riley Gaines, a former University of Kentucky swimmer who was forced to compete against a biological male athlete in the 2022 NCAA championship, held an event in Whitefish last month criticizing Tester for his vote. Katie Whitehurst, a senior track and field athlete at the University of Montana rejected Tester’s offer, saying, “I stand by read more
Aug232024
4H Worden Riverdale student, Bayley Becker stands with her prized steer, Lamar, which weighed 1381lbs. Also pictured, from left to right, Ethan Heverly (Director of Community Relations) and Holly O’Dell, President and CEO of Montana State Fund (courtesy photo)
Montana State Fund (MSF), Montana’s only not-for-profit workers’ compensation insurance provider, announced its participation in promoting workplace safety through a series of events at the MontanaFair in Billings this year. With Montana historically ranking among the highest in the nation for workplace accidents, MSF dedicated resources this year into focusing to reduce these statistics, particularly within the state’s top industry—agriculture. This year, 4-H was a the angle.
In a press release this week, MSF released the following info. It stated, “Montana State Fund is committed to fostering a culture of safety, particularly in agriculture, and our partnership with 4H and involvement in local events underscores this commitment,” said Holly O’Dell, MSF President and CEO. “We are excited to engage with the community, support local youth, and promote safer workplace practices.”
As MSF insures about 90% of the read more
Aug232024
Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office (YSCO) received a report of a missing person who was reportedly headed to the Yellowstone River with his dogs and canoe on Wednesday, August 14th. George Stewart, age 63, had missed his check in with family, and a search began of the Yellowstone River. His truck was located at the Voyagers Rest fishing access on Road read more
Aug232024
Fire Truck to be sold
Worden Fire Department’s ‘White Whale’ rescue truck will be looking for a new home to anyone who may need a hardworking older truck. The department’s late 80s Spartan Rescue truck has been with the department 4+ years and is now looking for greener pastures. Fire Chief Lance Taylor says the department has little need for the rig as they have a newer rescue truck that can access more areas than the Spartan. The Spartan rescue truck, which the fire department affectionately calls the “White Whale,” rarely finds read more
Aug232024
Carbon County Sheriff’s Office, assisted by Yellowstone County deputies, seize more stolen items hebind this property along Shepherd Acton Road, (drone image by Jonathan McNiven)
Carbon County adds itself to the list of counties seizing stolen items from a property out in Shepherd. On Monday, Carbon County detective Ben Mahoney with the assistance of Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO) conducted a search warrant and seized irrigation pivot arm tires among other stolen items.
The property, 4939 Shepherd Acton Rd., was the subject of another search warrant on August 12, where Golden Valley County, Wheatland County, Meagher County, and Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office seized a variety of stolen property. Additionally, officers serving the initial search warrant on the Aug. 12 were read more
Aug232024
Judy Bovee
Judy Bovee passed away peacefully on August 15, 2024 surrounded by her family.
Judy Kay Richardson was born in Great Falls, MT on March 8, 1954. She was the youngest of four children born to James and Hazel Richardson. Judy grew up in Miles City, MT where she enjoyed being a lifeguard, playing the oboe, and spending countless hours with the Pettigrew family. She graduated from Custer County District High School in 1972 and attended Miles Community College where she met the love of her life, Truman Bovee. Truman and Judy were married on April 20, 1974.
They started a read more
Aug232024
My wife has a card sent from one of her friends with a cover that says, “Kind people are the best kind of people.” This friend happens to be from Minnesota and is obviously one of the ‘Minnesota Nice’ people herself. We have some neighbors down the street who moved to Billings from Minnesota. These folks are also ‘Minnesota Nice’ people.
Our son moved to Minnesota several years ago, fell in love, and married a read more
Aug232024
Jon Tester’s Senate campaign has been making hay out of remarks Republican opponent Tim Sheehy made last year about healthcare.
Semafor obtained an audio recording of remarks Sheehy made at a meet-and-greet in Glasgow in August 2023. “In my opinion,” Sheehy said, “we need to return healthcare to pure privatization.”
He added, “Healthcare worked before health insurance existed. Each town had a doctor that would drive to your house, take care of you and you’d pay him. And guess what? It worked.”
Yes, kiddies, it’s true. Our doctor used to make house calls, and he would give us children plastic action figures if we were good, which we always were. And milkmen used read more
Aug212024
US Senate Candidate Tim Sheehy poses in front of the Yellowstone County News office and sign after taking the time to be interviewed on Wedneday August 14th, 2024. (Even Hood photo)
Last Thursday, August 15, United States Senate candidate Tim Sheehy came to the Yellowstone County News office for a quick interview. He discussed current polling numbers, why he entered the race, why he stands out, and his experience as a veteran and business owner.
Q- Jon Tester has won three statewide elections as a Democrat in Montana despite the state going to Trump by 16 and 20 points. Recent polling has you up by 2%. Can you speak to your level of confidence that the trajectory of the election is going your way and address how you differ from Tester’s previous Republican opponents?
A- The trendline of the election has only gone in one direction. I’m a first-time candidate; I’ve never run for anything at all, so it was to be expected that I was going to start behind, which we did by a lot. But now, obviously, we’ve been ahead consistently in every poll for six months, so there hasn’t been a poll showing us behind since March. If it was an aberration that would be one thing, but it’s been a consistent trendline, and I think what that shows is that our grassroots strategy is working. [Tester] obviously has boatloads more cash than we do, he’s outspent us, pick your month, three to one, five to read more
Aug202024
On Tuesday, August 20, 24 out of 25 Montana Democratic delegates cast their vote for Vice President Kamala Harris to officially become the Democratic candidate for President of the United States at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. The delegation was spoken for by Jon Sesso of Butte and Robyn Driscoll of Billings.
Driscoll is the current chair of the Montana Democratic Party, and had previously served in the State Senate and House from 2005 through 2017 as well as was appointed as a member of the Yellowstone County Commission in Billings in 2016.
Senator Jon Tester is still noticeably absent from the read more
Aug162024
Gerald Dennis Sikel
Gerald Dennis Sikel, 77, passed away Monday, August 5, 2024, doing what he loved. Born on January 12, 1947, in Linton, North Dakota, he is survived by his wife Carol Huffine Sikel of 52 years; daughters Sarah (Shawn) Hando, and Johanna (Justin) Heupel; and four grandchildren, Colt (Tess) Hando, Case, Andee, and Jax Heupel; brothers Allen (Thea) Sikel and Charlie (Jerri) Sikel; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents Ben and Birtha Sikel and two brothers Frank and Jay Sikel and sister Esther Ibach.
Gerald was known for his incredible work ethic, his deep love for his family and the determined need to read more
Aug162024
Kevin Avison
With the upcoming football season and the resignation from Rick Dees as the coach of the Huntley Project High School Football Team, Huntley Project has hired a new head coach to lead the team. Kevin Avison, a teacher at Huntley Project Schools, has been hired for the head coach position at Huntley Project.
With more than fifteen years of coaching experience, Coach Avison is read more
Aug162024
Emerging as an issue for the County Water District Board of Directors is a notice from a Gracepoint Church at 900 Barrett Road that they want to extend their water line under Wicks Lane in order to connect to the City of Billings water system, rather than be a customer of the County Water District.
The District Board is resistant to agreeing to the request because they do not want to establish a precedent.
The District received the notice from Precision Engineering on behalf of Gracepoint Church.
District Board President Doug Kary reported on a legal interpretation of the law as it pertains to the issue from the district’s attorney. There is no read more
Aug152024
Last week, I had the opportunity to talk to several people as they waited in line for the Trump Rally in Bozeman. The energy was palpable with music blaring and the crowd packing the parking lot. We talked about their policy issues of concern, what made them fans of President Trump, and what they thought of the other statewide elections in Montana.
Yellowstone County was well-represented, with several folks hailing from Billings and Shepherd.
Dylan and Rob of Billings arrived in Bozeman at 6 am to stake out their spot for the rally scheduled to start at 4 pm. This was their first political rally. Their biggest concerns were immigration, the economy, and education. On immigration, they expressed great concern for illicit drugs, including fentanyl, coming across the border and causing addiction and overdose in Montana. On education, Rob was discontented with the public-school system’s subpar results and response to bullying. President Trump has run on eliminating the Department of Education and leaving education to local and state governments. Dylan and Rob also hope to see some bipartisan unity, but don’t believe it will come from the left, as Rob and his six-year-old daughter were verbally harassed with a slew of expletives the day before while he was wearing a Trump t-shirt.
Brandon, a veteran from Shepherd, has been a Trump voter since 2016 and cares about downsizing government. He fears high taxes, high government spending, and overregulation have killed our economy. Many economists share the sentiment– high government spending, such as the $1.9 trillion “Inflation Reduction Act”, will either be financed by increased government borrowing that will raise interest rates, leading to a fall in private investment spending and rise in inflation, or by increased taxes, that will cut into the net wages of American workers. On the issue of other statewide races, Brandon had some choice words for Jon Tester, but we’ll leave it at calling him “a career politician.” He lambasted Tester’s Super PAC ad spending, which resulted in his young daughter having to watch several campaign ads while watching YouTube videos made for children. Brandon is planning on supporting Tim Sheehy and would like to see more veterans in office.
Casey and Melissa of Billings arrived at 7:15 am to get their spot in line. They have voted for President Trump since 2016, but have only recently been open about it, citing fear of retribution from the left-leaning companies they work for. Their main concerns were education and care for veterans. Melissa’s son is currently serving in the United States Marine Corps. They called Senator Tester a “flip-flop”.
Many folks at the rally came from all over the American West, and even from out of the country.
I ran into three Canadians, two from Alberta and one from Saskatchewan. The two from Alberta, who traveled for seven hours to get there, said there is a growing number of Trump-type voters in their hometown, with Canadians experiencing a similar case of rising prices for housing, gas, and groceries, which has only been exacerbated by the Canadian Liberal party’s implementation of carbon taxes. They said that the carbon taxes have disproportionately affected the poor and working class, as they are the ones that cannot afford solar panels and electric vehicles. The man from Saskatchewan traveled for nine hours just to see President Trump. He espoused support for the current Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre. His biggest concern in Canada is healthcare, with their publicly funded healthcare system often having obscene wait times and restrictions. He said that many Canadians must come to the United States for treatments, as people cannot always afford to wait months for medical procedures. Interestingly, Bernie Sanders is who got him interested in American politics, having been a “Bernie-bro” until familiarizing himself with Donald Trump back in 2016.
Pamela, from Tri-Cities, Washington, traveled eight hours to get to her second Trump rally. She has been a Trump supporter since 2016. Her biggest policy priorities were the border, support for the police, and inflation. She expressed concern for Kamala Harris’s support for the Minnesota Freedom Fund during the George Floyd riots, as the Fund posted bail for a man charged with the attempted murder of several police officers, a knife murderer, a rapist, and one domestic abuser who then committed a second-degree murder while out on bail, thanks to the Fund. Pamela is discontented with her pair of Democrat senators, but hopes Montana votes “sell-out” Tester out.
While the crowd was clearly nervous about the state of the country, there was still a sense of hope and excitement about the crowd. As the Brick-Breeden Fieldhouse filled and the rally started, chants of “USA”, “Build the Wall” and “Fight, Fight, Fight” broke out. The crowd erupted to State GOP Chair Don Kaltschmidt’s declaring of Montana as “Trumptana”.
