Whitefish Montana News | Whitefish Newspapers

As a burgeoning landscape artist, East Glacier’s Roger Rink found the perfect complement to his artistic ambitions: construction work.

For years, Rink worked in the building industry, moving around the country from West Virginia to North Carolina to New York. The often-variable construction schedule, two months of hard labor followed by two months off, allowed plenty of time to immerse himself fully in painting.

Some Fourth of July activities are obvious: The classic celebrations like fireworks, community fairs and parades are in abundance in almost every American town, including the Flathead (Find a full listing of these on our “Events” page).

But there are less traditional, and uniquely local, ways to celebrate the Fourth as well. In this section, we aim to highlight some Flathead excursions that we think hold promise for an especially memorable day – whether you’re looking for the valley’s best party spot or family-friendly activities.

Clad in cleats, the offense and defense faced each other on opposite ends of the green, rectangular field. They started toward one another, first jogging, then breaking into a sprint. Scot Blair wound one arm back, bent to his knee and sent the white disc spinning as the opposing team reeled their heads back and watched it fly. As the Frisbee curved back down toward the offense, Fred VanHorn picked up speed and slapped both hands around it for an interception.

At Grouse Mountain fields on a Wednesday night in Whitefish, it was clear that pick-up Ultimate Frisbee had landed in the Flathead Valley.

WHITEFISH – Idaho Timber of Montana says it will close its plant in Whitefish with the loss of 26 jobs.

Sixteen workers lost their jobs last week; and the company says the 10 remaining workers will be let go within the next three months.

For so long, the Tidyman’s building sat abandoned. But last week, with the opening of Super 1 Foods, it sprung back to life. And judging by the long lines, locals were ready for a new grocery store in downtown Kalispell. The 115 jobs are nice too.

Less than a week before Super 1’s grand opening, Safeway in Whitefish opened its doors following a 10-month remodel period. The store provided 125 jobs, 92 of which were new while the remaining 33 were previous employees.

It’s been a good year for the Flathead Attention Home. First the emergency youth shelter moved into a spacious new house in Kalispell in May. Now it’s gearing up for what is expected to be the biggest turnout ever for its primary annual fundraiser: the Glacier Challenge.

The Glacier Challenge is a multi-event endurance race that will cover more than 50 miles this year. Participants run, kayak, canoe, road bike and mountain bike for prizes. The entry fees – $50 for an individual, $100 for couples and $210 for teams of three to seven people – help the youth home cover its operating expenses.

Jane Corwin never fancied herself a concert organizer. A U.S. Department of Commerce employee who works out of Washington D.C., she enjoys live music and putting together the occasional event at her home in Somers.

But when chance gave her an opportunity to bring four extraordinary musicians together, she had to act.

Caitlin Sterchi, from Whitefish High School, has been selected as the grand prize winner of Montana’s Congressional Art Competition for 2009. Sterchi and her parents, Simon and Amy Sterchi, will join Congressman Denny Rehberg in a Capitol Hill ceremony where her artwork will be unveiled and displayed for one year in the Cannon Tunnel along with the artwork of winners from other congressional districts. The Cannon Tunnel is a pedestrian walkway, leading to the United States Capitol building. It is frequented by Members of Congress, staff, and the general public.

Sterchi recently graduated from Whitefish High School. Her painting title "Family Outing" is an artistic representation of a Canadian gose and her goslings. It was selected from among the entries submitted from all across state in the Congressional Art Competition, a U.S. House of Representatives contest which has been held annually since 1982. Sterchi's piece was also the top choice in public voting via the social networking Web site Facebook. It was the first time Rehberg had posted all the entries online for public review and voting to help select the finalists.

As the grand prize winner, Sterchi received airfare for her and a guest to attend the artwork’s unveiling ceremony in Washington D.C. She’ll also receive a $1,000 art scholarship offer from the University of Montana.

Runner-up artists were Thom Bridge, a senior at C.M. Russell High School in Great Falls, and Kinzi Anderson, a senior at Belt High School.