Page 38 - Flathead Beacon // 12.31.14

38 | DECEMBER 31, 2014 BUSINESS MONTHLY PEOPLE IN BUSINESS
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road ties for the James Hill railroad that stretched from Chicago to Seattle.
Over the years, Sliters has added a full service building supply in the town of Bigfork and a hardware store in near- by Lakeside.
With three locations in somewhat less populated areas, they have a long history volunteering and providing fi- nancial support for the communities in which they operate. Kids’ athletic pro- grams, civic groups and local schools all benefit.
Sliters has annually been involved with building unique themed playhous- es that are displayed at the Flathead Home and Garden show. The playhouses are raffled off with all proceeds benefit- ing “The Nurturing Center,” a family re- source center which provides programs and services to support the needs of families.
The town of Somers is one of the Flathead Valley’s oldest towns, and Tom Sliter has been very dedicated to pre- serving the town’s history. Through his volunteer efforts with the “Somers Com- pany Town Project” they have been rais- ing funds to restore a historic steam lo- comotive and pavilion to house it.
BENEFIT RAFFLE OF ORIGINAL NANCY DUNLOP CAWDREY PAINTING
A benefit raffle was launched De- cember at Nancy Cawdrey Studios for a $5,500 silk painting titled “Young at Heart“ to help local Bigfork woman Deborah Shannon help defray medical expenses. Deborah was gallery manager at Nancy Cawdrey Studios for five years and has worked for years at the Bigfork Summer Playhouse. Derek Vandeberg of Frame of Reference, Bigfork, donated the framing costs.
Raffle tickets are $25 each, five for $100 or 30 for $500 and checks (with phone number) should be sent directly to Deborah Shannon, PO Box 501, Big- fork , Montana 59911. Deborah will write your name and phone number on the raffle tickets and the winning raffle winner will be drawn on Valentine’s Day, 2015.
REALTORS DONATE TO SPARROW’S NEST
Realtors April Russell and Natasha Ostrem presented a check for $1,251 to the Sparrow’s Nest NW MT, to help the organization refurbish the teen home- less shelter in Kalispell. The funds were raised by the local Realtor Association’s YPN (Young Professional Network) at the annual Realtor Holiday Mixer.
WHITEFISH CREDIT UNION’S JOAN CUFFE TO RETIRE
After nearly 13 years with Whitefish Credit Union, JoAn Cuffe is saying good- bye as the manager and loan officer in the credit union’s Eureka location.
Cuffe has spent almost 40 years in the financial sector of Northwest Mon- tana. Her start came in June 1975 as a loan secretary with a bank in Libby. Cuffe’s first assignment with Whitefish Credit Union was opening the financial cooperative’s newest location in Eureka in 2002.
In 2002, Cuffe was considering em- ployment in another field when then Whitefish Credit Union President and CEO Charlie Abell convinced her to give the credit union a chance. When Cuffe thinks back on her favorite Credit Union memories, the leadership and credit union philosophy of Abell are often in- tertwined with them.
Zoe Gustafson, Whitefish Credit Union’s senior vice president of opera- tions, said the credit union will be losing a passionate advocate when Cuffe retires at the end of December.
“She’s enthusiastic and cares a lot about her community and the Credit Union,” explained Gustafson. “JoAn is a very recognizable face in Lincoln Coun- ty. She’s made us a strong presence in the Eureka community, and we’re thankful to her for that.”
After retirement, Cuffe plans to trav- el with her husband, Mike, a member of Montana’s House of Representatives.
PLUM CREEK CONTINUES ITS TRADITION OF GIVING TO SEVEN AREA FOOD BANKS
For the seventh year in a row, a dona- tion by Plum Creek will help local food banks meet the ongoing needs during the holiday season. The company is pre- senting a total of $35,000 in checks to seven community food banks that serve northwest Montana: Columbia Falls Food Bank ($7,500); Flathead Valley Food Bank ($12,500); Libby Food Pan- try ($2,500); North Valley Food Bank ($4,000); Northwest Montana Veterans Stand Down and Food Pantry ($4,000); Tobacco Valley Food Pantry ($2,500); and Westshore Community Assistance Program ($2,000). Plum Creek em- ployees also pitched in, collecting food and donating more than 140 turkeys to the food banks.
“Plum Creek is pleased to support lo- cal organizations in northwest Montana through donations and volunteerism,”
said Tom Ray, vice president, Northwest Resources and Manufacturing, Plum Creek. “The food banks are a vital re- source to families and others struggling to make ends meet, and we are happy to support their critical mission. We hope our donations will mean a happier holi- day for many community residents.”
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY CELEBRATES COMPLETION OF HOMES
Habitat for Humanity of Flathead Valley will be held a special home dedi- cation ceremony to commemorate the completion of the 13th and 14th of 16 to- tal Habitat homes in Columbia Falls that are being constructed in the Mitchell Way development.
Progress can also be seen on the two final townhouses in the develop- ment that broke ground earlier this fall at 1 and 3 Mitchell Way with plans to be completed by March 2015. All families for these homes have been selected and are currently investing sweat equity into their homes.
Construction began on the project in May 2011 and will be completed in March 2015. By using volunteer labor, homeowner “sweat equity,” and dona- tions from local and national building material suppliers, Habitat for Humani- ty is able to keep the cost of construction low. Three thousand hours of volunteer “labor” are required to complete a Habi- tat home.
Habitat for Humanity holds build days every Wednesday, Friday and Sat- urday from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. No building experience is necessary to help out on a build site and Habitat’s professional construction site supervisor is on site to assign tasks and supervise all construc- tion. For those interested in volunteer- ing, additional information can be found by calling the Habitat for Humanity ad- ministrative office at (406) 257-8800.
WHITEFISH SCHOOLS RECEIVE FUNDING FROM NC FOUNDATION
Whitefish Public School District Su- perintendent Karen Orozco accepted a check from NC Foundation Board Trea- surer Jane Kollmeyer to support the schools’ Student Assistance Program, a comprehensive, primary prevention and early intervention program for grades K-12.
The $3,000 grant continues a rela- tionship that began in 1999, in the wake of Whitefish High School graduate Nate Chute’s suicide and his classmates’ ini- tiative to raise awareness of the mag- nitude of youth suicides in Montana. Within a short time the NC Foundation materialized as a charity in Whitefish with a mission “dedicated to suicide pre- vention among young people in Mon- tana.”
The funds will provide stipends to compensate school staff who go beyond their regular daily duties. In a relaxed group, and beyond classroom struc-
tures, a small group of the Whitefish School District’s faculty, administra- tors and student co-facilitators train students in active listening by example. With their special training, they aim at promoting positive peer-to-peer inter- action and focusing on the development of better, nonjudgmental listening skills in student participants.
In accepting the NC Foundation check, Superintendent Orozco said, “I believe in the Student Assistance Pro- gram’s peer-to-peer approach. I am con- vinced that this peer-to-peer program leads to better communication and sup- port between and among our students. The SAP program creates a kinder, more inclusive learning environment, and I see the program making a difference in our school culture already. We are truly grateful to the NC Foundation and their generous support.”
NC Foundation President Terry Chute said, “SAP is exactly the kind of program that supports our mission in that it provides young people with life skills they can use now and in the future to address issues as they arise. We are grateful to the organizations and com- munity members who sustain us for al- lowing the NC Foundation to support the SAP Program and other youth initia- tives in Whitefish.”
LITERACY CENTER RECEIVES $25,000 DONATION
The Literacy Center of Northwest Montana in Kalispell was selected as one of 36 nonprofit organizations across the country to be a recipient of this year’s Halliburton Charity Golf Tournament. The Literacy Center received $25,000 at the tournament held earlier this year in Houston.
“Being a good corporate neighbor is embedded in our company’s culture– it’s part of who we are,” said Dave Lesar, chairman and CEO of Halliburton. “The annual Halliburton Charity Golf Tour- nament raises millions of dollars in do- nations each year through our sponsors and participants to help charities that work diligently to fill the gaps in our communities. The charities we support through the tournament are the true champions.”
Since 1993, the Halliburton Charity Golf Tournament has given more then $11 million to nonprofit organizations.
The Literacy Center, formerly known as Literacy Volunteers of Flat- head County, has been providing free literacy services for adults and families in the area for 26 years.
SLITERS RECEIVES DISTINGUISHED DEALER AWARD
Sliters Lumber and Building Supply received an award for outstanding and distinguished service to the building material industry.
Sliters was founded by Everit and Neils Sliter in the railroad town of Somers in 1924. The town produced rail-