HELENA (AP) – Republican presidential candidate John McCain has picked Montana Lt. Gov. John Bohlinger to serve as chairman of the presidential candidate’s campaign here in the state. Bohlinger, a Republican who ran on what was billed as a split ticket with Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer in 2004 and is doing so again for 2008, […]

After far too long a wait (waiting for me, mostly), long-time Columbia Falls High School sports photographer Randy Bocksnick has agreed to become contributing sports photographer for the Beacon’s Columbia Falls page. Bocksnick has been a fixture in Columbia Falls since the early 1960s, welcoming clients into his barber chair and talking high school sports […]

HELENA (AP) – Ron Paul supporter Terry Frisch found it was fairly easy to secure one of the limited spots that gets a direct vote in the state’s upcoming Republican caucus. Now he hopes other supporters of the presidential candidate will do the same. Hundreds of Republican precinct positions are still open in Montana. They […]

As a freshman at Columbia Falls High School, Sarah Marcille found her last name on the brackets of the Girls A State tennis tournament – not once, but twice. It was Marcille’s first time at state and her doubles partner happened to be her sister, Kate, who was a junior at the time. “I was […]

HELENA (AP) – Montana’s unemployment rate rose to 3.4 percent in November. That’s up from 3.1 percent in October, and continues a slight upward trend since the state saw the nation’s lowest unemployment rate at 2 percent earlier in the year. The national unemployment rate remained steady at 4.7 percent in November. Overall, the state’s […]

KALISPELL (AP) – Police are looking for two suspects in an armed robbery early Sunday at Papa John’s pizza parlor in Kalispell. Police say the robbers used a gun and a cattle prod, and got away with $1,300 in cash and checks. A Papa John’s employee had locked up for the night, shortly before 2 […]

MISSOULA (AP) – A Canadian scientists says a coal mine north of Glacier National Park would make it more difficult for large animals to migrate through the region. Researcher John Weaver presented his findings at a meeting last week in Kalispell. The mine aims to dig coal from the Flathead’s headwaters in southeastern British Columbia. […]

HELENA (AP) – Vu Tran of Calgary, Alberta, figures he saved about $14,000 when he recently bought a new car at a Montana dealership. After driving the 400 miles back to Calgary, he told family and friends about the deal and ended up coming back — to help them buy cars. “What a bonus I […]

Skiers got just what they wanted for Christmas. Snow. Gobs of it. With 30 inches dumping last week and six inches of powder greeting Christmas Eve skiers, snow piled up enough to bump open the local ski areas – alpine and Nordic alike. At the same time, heavy snowfall turned the backcountry into an avalanche […]

It seems like only yesterday that folks in Columbia Falls were thrilled at the miraculous recovery of Brynn Shay from her car accident. Brynn’s survival was no accident: She wore her seat belt. Every time I see her or her grandmother, Columbia Falls Lions Club member Gladys Shay, I’m reminded of the wild swing of […]

HELENA (AP) – The Montana wildfires that raged around the state this past summer was picked as the top news story in Montana for 2007 by members of The Associated Press. Montana had 1,763 fires this past summer that burned about 740,000 acres. The cost surpassed $100 million for the first time in years, and […]

Twice a year, Karen Ulmer’s jazz bands fill the cafeteria at Columbia Falls High School on a friday evening concert called “Jazz Cafe”. The Jazz Cafe includes snacks, refreshments, cafe-style seating and lights, and of course, the music of CFHS’ three jazz bands: The Columbians, Jazz Factory and Jazz Band George. Jazz Cafe outgrew the […]

On a busy weekend of CFHS activities, the Wildcats took on a big Sentinel Spartan squad at home, but came away a bit short, 79-66. The loss drops the Cats to 3-3 for the season. Chase Grilley (33) weaves between two defenders before passing off to Grant Getts (44). Getts goes to the hole, finds […]

There are many ways to get the Beacon in C-Falls. You can pick one up at Mike’s, Super 1, Smith’s and a number of other locations. If you’re a little bit “geeky”, you might use Google Reader or another RSS reader to get your dose of news as it happens. Now, there’s an even easier […]

BOZEMAN (AP) – Mecklen Davis scored 18 points to help lead Montana State to an 80-48 victory against Great Falls on Friday night. Casey Durham scored all of his 14 points in the first half. Branden Johnson added 13 points and a career-high nine rebounds for the Bobcats (6-5). Great Falls kept it close for […]