Foster parents needed in Montana
May is National Foster Care Awareness month. There are currently 4,000 foster kids placed in Montana and even more kids waiting for a foster home.
Foster kids like to play tag, kick a soccer ball, and help make dinner. They wait for the tooth fairy, forget to hang up their coat, and hope for the biggest piece of birthday cake. Unfortunately, they also have adult-size worries. They have experienced significant early childhood trauma â abuse, neglect, exposure to drugs and alcohol, and homelessness. Loss is a common theme â loss of family, safety and the freedom to be a child.
Editor s note
This story is part of a three-day series on the 25th anniversary of Unabomber Ted Kaczynski s arrest in Lincoln on April 3, 1996.Â
It was a typical day at the Independent Record 25 years ago today, when the newsroom began getting questions about a Unabomber suspect by the name of Theodore Kaczynski.
âWe started getting these weird calls: âWhat do you know about this guy in Lincoln?ââ said David Shors, who was associate editor at the time.
Although skeptical that the infamous Unabomber whose mailed bombs killed three people and injured 24 others had been living just 60 miles north of town, a reporter and a photographer headed that way to see if they could figure out what all the fuss was about.
Virtual meeting to look at town s needs
The city of Helena and Lewis and Clark County will have a virtual Community Needs Assessment public hearing at 5:30 p.m. on March 4, to review public assets and to assess challenges in making Helena a better place to live.
The hearing will address housing, economic development, neighborhood revitalization and community and public facilities. Come prepared to discuss current or anticipated projects that pertain to these areas, particularly those targeting low- and moderate-income residents.
There will also be a discussion on prospective funding sources: the Community Development Block Grant Program, the Home Investment Partnership Program and the Treasure State Endowment Program.
The pandemic hit Montana hard.
No effective vaccine was in place. People ignored quarantine orders as state health officials pressured local authorities to close bars, churches, schools and other places where crowds normally gathered.
Doctors and nurses were in short supply and exhausted by the caseload. Some Montana counties had no medical personnel at all. One city required some public workers to wear face masks, but made it optional after receiving complaints that the masks were causing headaches and eyestrain.
No one was immune as even the lieutenant governor became ill. Native American populations were hit hard.
Although this may sound familiar, this is not from 2020, nor 2019.
Montana Museum Is FREE This Weekend
The Montana Historical Society has been giving the gift of FREE entry this holiday season. Today (Thursday,) tomorrow (Friday,) & Saturday will be the final days of free admission for this year. Featured exhibits include Good Beer Here, Montana s Brewing History, & Who Speaks to You? Portraits from the Collection. The director of the Montana Historical Society, Molly Kruckenberg, says We thought FREE admission to our galleries & museum store is a fun way to share Montana s curated treasures with the public. The museum s located at 225 N. Roberts Street in Helena, & open from 9 to 5, Monday through Saturday. Guests age 5 & older are EXPECTED to wear face coverings while in the museum. For more information, please contact Eve Byron at 444 6843, or: eve.byron@mt.gov.