Happy Friday, Beacon readers! Lauren Frick here, and having never lived in a wildfire-prone area before moving to the Flathead Valley, I’ve learned a lot about fire in the last couple of weeks. In addition to the Watch Duty app and iqair.com now being in the daily rotation of my screentime, I’ve come to learn that there’s really no sense in planning any outdoor activity more than 24 hours (maybe even 12 hours) in advance.
For example, a couple days ago, some friends and I made plans to hike to the summit of Big Mountain after work tonight, making sure to collect as many huckleberries as possible along the way. With the faintest scent of smoke infiltrating the newsroom as I write this newsletter, I don’t think that will be happening. The good news, however, is getting my huckleberry fix won’t be too hard to do this weekend.
The 37th edition of the Whitefish Chamber of Commerce’s Huckleberry Days Arts Festival commenced today, running through Sunday, Aug. 9, in Depot Park and other locations around Whitefish.
The free admission event, which in past years has included more than 100 artists and food vendors, highlights handcrafted items and includes activities with an emphasis on huckleberries, including a pancake breakfast at the Whitefish Moose Lodge #642 with freshly picked huckleberries courtesy of Whitefish Boy Scouts Troop #1936.
The artist and vendor fair in Depot Park, 510 Railway St., will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Activities in the park include: an art project courtesy of Stumptown Art Studio (until Saturday at 4 p.m.); a living statue; face painting; and musical performances. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks will also be in the park from noon to 4 p.m. on Friday and Sunday to provide bear education.
Activities around town include:
Glacier Bank today is serving up free Huckleberry Ice Cream at both Whitefish locations from 11 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 7, until it’s gone
The Wave will be hosting Swim the Fish on Saturday, Aug. 8, with a 1/2 mile, 1 mile, and 5k options
The Whitefish Moose Lodge #642 will be hosting the annual Huckleberry Pancake Breakfast on Saturday at 230 W 10th St.
In other Whitefish news, I wanted to make sure to drop a reminder that the Great Fish Challenge, which this year will feature 89 nonprofits, is slated to start next week.
Whitefish Community Foundation’s Great Fish Community Challenge is a charitable giving campaign in which donors can choose to give to multiple Flathead Valley nonprofit organizations with a single transaction. At the end of the campaign, Whitefish Community Foundation awards a percentage match on $25,000 raised by each participating organization. That match is made possible by Circle of Giving donors, the core group of donors who give $5,000 or more annually to support the grant programs and mission of the Foundation, as well as donors who designate their gift to the Great Fish Match Fund.
Since 2015, the Great Fish Community Challenge has raised more than $43 million for Flathead Valley nonprofits, including $8.1 million for 85 nonprofits in 2025, a 21% increase over the previous year.
This year’s campaign will kick off with the Great Fish Launch Party on Tuesday, Aug. 11, at 5 p.m. at Glacier Bank Park, home of the Glacier Range Riders. The free event will feature free food and beverages, family-friendly activities and the opportunity to learn about the nonprofits raising funds in this year’s Challenge.
There’s no cost for nonprofits to participate in the Challenge. Whitefish Community Foundation underwrites the cost of hosting the campaign with support from title sponsor BNSF and additional sponsors First Interstate Bank, Glacier Bank, Glacier Guides & Montana Raft, Harris Financial, Iron Horse Foundation, JCCS, Park Side Credit Union, Stockman Bank, Summit Beverage, Three Rivers Bank and Whitefish Credit Union.
The community foundation will award incentive grants to nonprofits throughout the campaign. Donors will have numerous opportunities to help their favorite nonprofits win an incentive grant ranging from $1,000 to $2,500 between Aug. 11 and Sept. 11.
Of the 89 nonprofits invited to participate, six are new to the campaign: Bear Grass Performing Arts, Columbia Falls Academic Foundation, Girls on the Run Western Montana, Glacier Aquatic Club, Whitefish Community School, and Whitefish Songwriter Festival. For a full list of participating nonprofits, click here.
Historic Preservation Specialists Volunteer to Complete Wheeler Cabin Restoration on Glacier’s Lake McDonald
Built in 1942 by U.S. Sen. Burton K. Wheeler and his wife, Lulu, the cabin is nearing its final stage of a multi-year, $1.5 million transformation into the Waterton Glacier International Peace Center
The Annual Flathead Waters Cleanup Hits the Banks on Saturday
For the sixth year in a row, conservationists and community members will come together to celebrate the local waters, just in time for the 50th anniversary of the Flathead River’s Wild and Scenic designation
Flathead Valley Rotary Clubs present the Great Bear Festival! Join us at the O’Shaughnessy Outdoor Amphitheater for a sunset concert and community event. The Great Bear Festival returns with family fun, local sounds, and a new headline show by Tommy Edwards and Man & The Box. Bring a blanket or lawn chair and settle in as the sun goes down.
WCC Film Series is proud to present a 5-part summer series with the theme, Born in Montana. These unique cinematic experiences will feature actors or directors that were born in the state of Montana. Viva Knievel! features ruthless drug smugglers plotting the cold-blooded murder of celebrated motorcycle daredevil Evel Knievel as he tours Mexico. They aim to use his truck to sneak a consignment of narcotics back across the United States border. When Knievel learns of this appalling scheme, he hatches a daring and spectacular plan.
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