Here is the press release from Vets 4 Vets Stand Down for their upcoming event. E-City Beat supports our vets and Gold Star Families.
For Immediate Release:
Our VETS4VETS Group in Great Falls, Montana will be holding our Stand Down on September 5th and 6th. Location for this event will be at the Great Falls Fair Grounds. The opening ceremony will begin at 10:00 am on Thursday.
This year our Stand Down is dedicated to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, Gold Star Mother’s/Families. Our guest speaker will be Jill Stephenson, Gold Star Mother. Jill is the mother of Ben Kopp, Army Ranger. The Book ” Heart of a Ranger” is Ben’s and Jill’s Journey by Bill Lunn.
If you know of any Gold Star Families we would be “HONORED” to have them attend so we can show our appreciation of their service members and families sacrifice for our country. Please feel free to pass this on to any Veterans Associations, Organizations and Families so we can reach them and show them they are “NEVER FORGOTTEN”.
If you would like an advance interview with Jill Stephenson, please contact Melony Butler.
Thursday morning, August 15th was when I first learned about a gun control rally scheduled for Saturday, August 17th in Great Falls at the band shell in Gibson Park, starting at 3:00 PM. The rally was sponsored by ‘Moms Demand Action’ and was in conjunction with other rallies nationwide.
The first thing that concerned me about this event was the way it was being spun as a ‘gun safety’ rally, as if firearm safety was the mission of ‘Moms Demand Action’. It isn’t. MDA is a political organization that advocates and lobbies for much stricter gun control legislation, including a ban on many semi-automatic firearms.
No one is fooled any longer when groups like MDA try to hide their real agenda by using the now transparent tactic of saying “no one’s trying to take your guns away, we’re just trying to promote gun safety”. If that were the case they would be supporting the longest standing gun safety organization in America, the NRA.
The other thing that caught my attention about their rally was that Great Falls city commissioner Bill Bronson would be the main speaker. And of course there were other local politicians there supporting gun control.
By Thursday evening I had decided to organize a pro-2nd Amendment rally. Within less than 48 hours we had a sizable group of folks gathered on Saturday afternoon, exercising our 1st Amendment rights of free speech and to peaceably assemble in order to express our unapologetic, unequivocal support of our 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear arms.
We started at 2:30 PM on the steps of the Civic Center and walked down to Gibson Park with signs to show our solidarity and support of our constitutional rights. All of this in spite of the rumor being spread by some that our rally had been cancelled due to lack of interest. As the turnout proved, nothing was further from the truth.
We proved that pro-Second Amendment folks aren’t a bunch of “crazed gun nuts”.
We don’t hate anyone. We didn’t threaten anyone. We didn’t confront anyone with rude behavior. We didn’t come bristling with big scary guns.
We were civil, organized (on very short notice), peaceful and respectful. That’s because we are not “the other” – we are your friends, co-workers, neighbors, and family members.
We love our community, our children, and our great country.
That is why we will never compromise or equivocate in our unapologetic support for our constitutionally guaranteed right to keep and bear arms, which SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED, regardless of the whims of politicians or the current direction the winds of public opinion are blowing.
We did what we came to do and finished our rally in the park at at about 3:20 PM in order to allow the MDA sponsored gun control event to proceed with their main program unimpeded.
I didn’t organize our rally to gain media attention, or to be a ‘big 2nd Amendment hero’ as one of the gun control advocates put it. And I certainly didn’t expect fair local media coverage.
I organized the rally so that those of us who cherish our constitutional rights had an opportunity to stand together in celebration of those rights.
(Editor’s note: thanks to Lynne Pitts, Pittstop Photography, and Jonah Shirley for photos.)
“Billings Public Library Director Gavin Woltjer said he isn’t aware of any other stabbings at the library in the almost three years he has been in charge of the public facility.
Woltjer said he had been told that the individuals involved were transients. He noted that the stabbing took place outside of library business hours and said that during all hours of operation there are security personnel at the library. Security patrols also take place on the grounds once the library is closed, Woltjer said.
Woltjer credited library security for helping increase response time to the stabbing.
“We do our part to ensure a safe and welcoming environment,” he said.”
Some of those commenting on the piece I wrote Tuesday and on my Facebook page assured me that there’s nothing to worry about here and that transients camping out in public places is “no big deal”.
Well, that kind of thinking is unwise in my opinion, especially if we want want our public areas to be safe, welcoming places for the citizens who pay for them.
Don’t we want our children to enjoy the wonders of our library and parks without having to worry about witnessing a stabbing, or worse?
An old saying come to mind: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
I went to the Great Falls Public Library on a Friday afternoon and encountered several people camped out on the lawn next to the fountain. Two of them were literally ‘camped out’, asleep in sleeping bags in the middle of the afternoon.
A friend of mine who lives downtown recounted to me how he is approached while coming out of his apartment by ‘street folks’ either panhandling or offering to sell him drugs on a regular basis.
A young local woman told me yesterday that she no longer feels safe jogging in Gibson Park at any time of the day because of the indigents living there. She also related that she could smell human feces in one area of our public park.
A totally naked man is photographed wandering around in front of the Civic Center and downtown in the middle of the day. The pictures have been widely shared on public social media sites.
I’m aware that these kinds of things happen ‘everywhere’. But I don’t live ‘everywhere’, I live in Great Falls, Montana and I’m becoming increasingly concerned about what’s happening in our hometown, as are many others.
Great Falls seems to be experiencing all of the added social problems associated with a city that’s growing and developing but with none of the benefits – like an expanding tax base and higher wages etc. Here are the U.S. Census Bureau numbers released in February of this year.
I’ve talked to many folks who will no longer allow their children to go to the park or the library because they are afraid of whats going on in the bushes, in the public restrooms, and quite frankly, right out in the open.
Because I object to some of our Great Falls public areas being used as campgrounds for the homeless doesn’t mean that I don’t have compassion for those with mental health and addiction problems. It simply means that our public library and public parks should not become unsafe, unwelcoming places for the public.
There are other solutions to addiction, homelessness and mental health we should be exploring, including perhaps providing a single, public space for homeless folks who are willing to seek help for addiction and mental health problems from the many available resources here and, for those who are physically able, to find work.
But let’s not kid ourselves – not all of the homeless and less fortunate we see on our streets have mental health or addiction issues. Some of them are just lazy, irresponsible bums who are perfectly capable of working, like the rest of us have to, but who simply don’t want to follow the rules of society, like the rest of us have to.
Those are the ones that hide behind those who have actual mental health and addiction problems.
Those are the ones who do far more damage to the cause of helping the less fortunate than those of us who bust our butts working to help pay taxes for public assistance and who insist on clean, safe streets and public areas, especially for our children.
Am I concerned about the less fortunate in Great Falls? Certainly. I’m just as compassionate as those who try so hard at times to establish their moral superiority by saying I’m not, and I have a decades long record and history of volunteering and giving to help the less fortunate here in Great Falls. But I’m more concerned about the hardworking, taxpaying citizens who are trying to live and raise their kids in a safe, clean community.
Let’s all be compassionate, but let’s none of us be naïve.
A couple of weeks ago I posted the following question on my public Facebook page:
What does, or what would, make Great Falls unique in terms of being a destination hot spot for tourism, business, and new residents?
There are currently 389 responses. Here I am continuing this regular series of blog posts on E-City Beat highlighting some of the great ideas coming from the taxpaying citizens of our wonderful community. You can read Part One of the series here.
I’ve heard variations of the theme suggested in the following comments many times over the past couple of years.
A little innovation and thinking outside the box would go a long ways towards revitalizing our town.
Here’s some more excellent ideas to chew over in the comments below. What can we do better to make Great Falls a real destination spot?
One of the major criticisms I hear most often of our current ‘leadership’ in Great Falls is that they don’t really listen to the citizens of our community when it comes to ideas and suggestions to pull us out of our funk. As far as I can tell, the BEST ideas come from the ‘bottom’ up, not the top down.
Stay tuned for more, lots more. Feel free to contribute your ideas to the comments section on this blog or on our Facebook page.
The recent behavior of Great Falls mayor Bob Kelly and the other commissioners on our city commission is unacceptable and should be alarming to every citizen in our community.
The mayor and commissioners seem to think that scolding and lecturing taxpaying citizens and not answering our questions is just fine. They do so behind the pretense that they can’t discuss issues that aren’t on the agenda and that public comment time is only for comments, not questions. Hogwash and flapdoodle.
The mayor and commissioners have been dodging, ducking and lying about this issue long enough now, time to DEMAND answers and accountability.
Because of technical glitches in the City of Great Falls video of the June 4, 2019 city commission meeting resulting in some of the audio being garbled and video being disjointed, some of the comments from citizens were missed. Following are the comments at the meeting given by Pam Hendrickson and Jeni Dodd.
Pam Hendrickson comments:
“Once again I am asking Commissioner Robinson to remove himself from all discussions related to a potential partnership with the Maclean Animal Center and the City animal shelter. As past president of the Animal Foundation there is no reason in the world to believe that you have no vested interest in assisting Maclean in their lengthy and ongoing efforts to talk the City into paying their bills.
And I am asking Commissioner Moe to recuse herself due to her duplicity in this matter, and to provide documentation about where these huge cost savings are coming from.
I am asking Commissioner Bronson to stop worrying so much about the supposed integrity of these two people and start looking at the facts of the matter.
Lastly I am asking the Mayor to stand up for transparency in City government, and to allow taxpayers to participate in discussions they have interest in.
In closing I would like to respond to the lectures from Commissioners Bronson and Moe about those of us who are “holding on to grievances of the past.” Do the hairs on the back of my neck go up when I hear about the City talking with Maclean? Absolutely. But this isn’t sour grapes. It is justified alarm at the prospect of spending more tax funds than we already are.
It’s about my objections to bailing out a nonprofit that always assumed the City would step up and therefore failed to plan appropriately for the long-term. And maybe more than anything, I am determined to stop the smoke and mirrors that seems to be so prevalent with this particular City Commission.”
Jeni Dodd comments:
“I feel Commissioners Moe and Robinson are misleading the public about the potential partnership between the Maclean Animal Shelter and the city.
Moe mentioned visiting Heart of the Valley Animal Shelter in Bozeman and that Bozeman and other area communities contract with Heart of the Valley for animal services. She stated, “I believe if we contracted with the Maclean under the same circumstances, we would save half a million dollars a year.”
That may be true, but that’s not what Moe and Robinson are proposing. The “Joining Hands” proposal she authored doesn’t even come close to the contract between Heart of the Valley and Bozeman. Bozeman pays $10,850 dollars a month to the Heart of the Valley. That figure is from an article in the Bozeman Chronicle and it appears that’s the all-inclusive cost of sheltering impounded animals for the city of Bozeman.
That is a far cry from what Moe and Robinson are proposing for our city/Maclean partnership. It clearly states in Moe’s document that our city would be responsible for all services in its responsibility areas regardless of location. Those responsibility areas include retrieving stray animals, providing medical care, providing temporary housing and care and facilitating successful adoptions. Also included as city expenses are the insurance and legal services for the Maclean and insurance for the Maclean director. Looks to me like that’s the bulk of running the cost of the Maclean, as well as the current city shelter.
In addition, in an email between Moe, the Maclean folks and Robinson, Moe states, “My notes for next steps are: How to do the lease?”
So its sounds like, in addition to our city paying all expenses related to animals in both facilities and other Maclean costs, the city would also pay rent to the Maclean.
Either Moe and Robinson don’t understand what they’re proposing, which makes me question their intelligence, or they know exactly what they’re doing, which makes me question their integrity.”
Editors note: the following is an article we received today from a Great Falls resident who for obvious reasons has asked to remain anonymous.
Thirty years ago when I bought my home and was head of the youngest family on our block, the old-timers living nearby imagined, and some so-stated, “There goes the neighborhood!”
Fast forward to June 6, 2019, all those former community members are long gone, some of them, first to rest homes then, finally, deceased. My home is by far the best groomed, nicest home on our block although we have three other neighbors who do pretty well maintaining their domiciles.
Presently one of our neighborhood homes is vacant, neglected since its forfeiture by foreclosure in December, last year, the third home on our block to be foreclosed upon; another is vacant and neglected for more than a year now. A third has become a Federal Transport rental, I mention their name only because the poor quality of their rentals and their management of them is so well known.
Thirty years ago you couldn’t have convinced me that, today, we’d have homeless people living in cars on our street, that other vehicles, long abandoned to our avenue, are unlicensed, filled with trash, and vacant. Presently, and since last Thursday, a homeless female, probably between forty and fifty years old, and her pet cats, has been living in an old, tan, unlicensed Pontiac van, first next to our home at the vacant foreclosure next door, now in front of the rental on the corner. Both tail-lights are broken out of her van, and one of the headlights.
Using an assortment of dirty blankets and tarps, she shelters herself from the sun during daylight hours, from the cold at night.
She has no formal restroom but utilizes the street, leaving her “toilet paper” where she drops it. she has no facility for food storage or cooking, and no trash service or, as already mentioned, indoor plumbing.
The Great Falls Police Department knows she’s there and does nothing, claiming they can’t do anything about her vehicle, even though it’s unlicensed and uninsured, unless it stays in the same spot for more than 72 hours at a time. This law is actually to the woman’s benefit: First of all, she’s legally granted a place to park for 72 hours at a time; secondly, it prompts her to move as her toilet and bidet overflow!
Frequent visitors to our block are Montana Department of Corrections Parole Division employees, evidently checking on some of their wards living in the rental on the corner. Apparently, through them, members of the Great Falls Police Department then visit this residence upon contact. Ducking their new prisoners’ heads into the back seat of patrol cars, they make arrests but, since our under-staffed local jail and prison population presently and for some time now exceeds its legal head-count, a bondsman returns them to our neighborhood where they stay until their next arrest and re-release.
Drug paraphernalia is carelessly strewn around our neighborhood, much of it in the alleys behind our homes but some out front as well…
…our trash dumpsters overflow with hoards re-deposited weekly; adults, mainly males, openly and visibly urinate daylight and dark, on lawns, in alleys, and on the sidewalk. So much for Great Falls City “code enforcement,” and not because local code enforcers are unaware of these problems: they’re brought up-to-date more often than weekly yet do nothing.
Some of our local policemen and women, when confronted with the situation in our neighborhood, tell us, “You do something about it; it’s your neighborhood,” almost as if they’re part of a plan to make sure our community fails. Others, and I’ve heard this several times recently, believe our police-men and women are afraid and, therefore, avoid this type of situation.
For us….and we’ve loved our home, our business, our church and our town….the obvious thing to do is to move to live elsewhere. This isn’t what I planned when I bought my home those many years ago. It was going to be the last place I lived but things change.
Recently I posted the following question on my public Facebook page:
What does, or what would, make Great Falls unique in terms of being a destination hot spot for tourism, business, and new residents?
Not surprisingly so far I have received 376 comments and ideas coming from a wide variety of Great Fallsians. Or is it Great Fallsites?
Either way I’m going to do a series of posts on E-City Beat highlighting some of the responses and a few of my thoughts as well. So here we go, some great ideas from the people of Great Falls. That’s where the real solutions are.
The first comment here is spot on. Our leadership can’t be afraid to look at what other state and regional towns and cities are doing to be successful. And then we need to be nimble and humble enough to adjust, adapt and adopt.
The ideas about a racing/motorplex are interesting because that idea plays into what our strengths are in Great Falls.
We are a blue collar, working class town and motor sports fit right into our sweet spot.
I love this. We need to think outside the box here and come up with new ways of doing things, because a lot of the same-old-same-old just doesn’t work anymore and hasn’t for a long time.
I would add that the fairly recent issue of a Great Falls park tax is a prime example of what I mean when I say our city commission hasn’t exactly been dealing honestly with us.
I believe the evidence is clear that the city commissioners intentionally left the Park District 1 fiscal impact language off the ballot in an effort to deceive voters, making it more likely they would vote “yes”. You can find a more detailed account of this issue here.
Stay tuned for more innovative ideas and suggestions coming from ‘average’ citizens, who are not so average after all, on how to build some new glory days for Great Falls. Feel free to contribute your ideas to the comments section on this blog or on our Facebook page.
Recently, I wrote about hosting a series of events this summer for our teens. Well, the first date has been set! I am working with Kevin Bray and The Alumni to host an All Ages Night!
The Event will definitely be happening on June 9th to celebrate the start of summer. For $10, all students with a current student or state issued ID showing 7th grade through 18/19 years old are invited!
There will be pizza and soda included with the cover charge, and of course music, dancing, and other activities that our teens will love.
I know what you’re thinking – “Dropping your kids off at a BAR for the night?” The owners and staff have decided that it will be a DRY night and no one older than 21 will be admitted except into the casino.
This is only the first of what we hope to be many events geared towards giving our youth a night life all their own. There are some really awesome ideas for these events. The biggest being the way that these events give back to our community.
Even more than that, Kevin Bray is hoping to use any profits from these events to go towards scholarships for students wanting to pursue an education in music.
Mark your calendars, save the date, and let’s give our teens one amazing summer!!!
Editors note: due to a technical issue this is a re-post from a story originally put up on 5/21 but later deleted.
Someone recently sent me a link to an organization I had never heard of called ‘Forward Montana’. Ostensibly, the groups mission is to get young folks involved in the political process and registered to vote. Sounds good, right?
However, after scrolling through their website and Facebook page I have to agree with one of the reviews on their FB page:
“I respect what they do to get young people to vote but make no mistake about it folks……they also want to indoctrinate young people. They want to “educate” young people on leftist causes yet claim they are “non-partisan.” That is false. They are a leftist organization bent on only caring about partisan issues. I encourage young conservatives when approached by Forward Montana folks to tell them you are conservative. See if they still want to register you.”
I suggest that folks do the research and check it out for themselves before buying into the ‘we’re non-partisan’ nonsense ‘Forward Montana’ tries to sell.
What’s wrong with just coming out and saying “Hey, we’re a left wing Democrat organization committed to progressive causes and we want to get young people to the polls to vote for liberal candidates and policies.”?
Now here’s whats really interesting and relevant to Great Falls locals – Forward Montana is in a partnership with Great Falls Rising to bring their advocacy in a big way to our community leading up to the 2019 and 2020 elections.
From the Forward Montana: Great Falls Rising Facebook page:
“Join Forward Montana, Great Falls Rising, and our host committee to learn about Forward Montana’s plan to make our work even bigger and better and how YOU can help.
Host Committee: Bill and Carol Bronson Shelley Fagenstrom Ben Graybill and Laura Weiss Turner Graybill and Jessica Crist Marisa Graybill Jim and Jane Weber Gary and Nancy Zadick Larry and Nancy Anderson Tammy Lacey Gerry & Chuck Jennings Jim & Justine Zadick”
Take a good look at that list. Recognize any names? Any public officials?
The Great Falls Host Committee list not only reads like a ‘Who’s Who’ of progressive liberal movers and shakers in Great Falls, but also reveals the partisan political proclivities of a few of our ‘non-partisan’ elected officials. And it reveals some of the old money elites and good ol’ boys and gals who really control much of our local government.
Is it any wonder there has been such an emphasis on government, non-profit organizations and social services in our local policies and decision making?
If you don’t know what I mean just Google some of the names on the list and look at their professions and affiliations etc.
I have no problem with anyone’s honestly held convictions. In fact I have a near equal number of ‘conservative’ and ‘liberal’ friends and loved ones. But let’s stop pretending that Great Falls Rising, Forward Montana and the Great Falls Host Committee are anything other than progressive, liberal Democrat organizations.
Two final points, if I may. First I find it hilarious that Claire here thanks Forward Montana for giving her the tools to “challenge white supremacy”. Really? I would challenge Claire and anyone else who entertains such a naive notion to look at the Forward Montana Board of Directors – all eleven of them are white yuppie looking dudes and dudettes.
And the Great Falls Rising Host Committee look to be all upper-crust beneficiaries of ‘white privilege’ as well.
Finally, I respect the efforts being made by these groups to push their agenda and get young folks involved, both sides should be doing more of it. The GOP in Great Falls could learn a lesson or two from Forward Montana about this kind of advocacy, but they’ve been too busy calling each other ‘RINO’s’ and ‘swishes’ and fighting among themselves to notice.
