Mr. Don Engel with Quilt of Valor .
Photo Courtesy of Jule Mason.
Submitted by Jule Mason
On Sunday May 1 friends, family, members of VFW Post 1548 and Kootenai Quilt Guild gathered to help celebrate the 100th birthday of Mr. Don Engel. Mr. Engel is a WWII Veteran of the United States Airforce. The Quilt Guild presented Don with a Quilt of Valor in recognition of his service.
The Quilts of Valor Foundation began in 2003 with a dream of providing comfort to service members and veterans through quilts. Since 2003 over 300,000 quilts have been awarded.
In addition to the Quilts project, the guild participates in several Community Service projects throughout the year, including making Christmas wall hangings for the Libby Care Center, baby quilts for Families in Partnership and others. They are proud to be part of recognizing the commitment and sacrifice of our veterans.
Montana’s Pretty Mountains
Oh Montana is a pretty state
with its big pretty mountains.
the big pretty mountains are strong and snowy.
I wish I can climb one.
I do not ever want to leave
this pretty mountain state.
Oh the pretty mountains
in this pretty state
are big
and snowy and I
am small
By Ariella Vanderbeck of Libby
2022 Junior 1st Place Winner of 15th Annual Poetry Contest
Lincoln County Library
See More on Page 6
Sturgeon flow augmentation began May 16 at Libby Dam
Submitted by Scott Lawrence
Water managers at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, along with federal, tribal, and state fishery biologists, have determined that spring run-off conditions warrant the commencement of required flow augmentation at Libby Dam, Montana, for endangered Kootenai River white sturgeon downstream in Idaho. The flow augmentation operation includes increasing outflows to provide river conditions that may increase sturgeon spawning success in the lower Kootenai River.
Outflows will increase May 16 as local Kootenai River tributaries downstream of Libby Dam are forecasted to peak. Discharge from Libby Dam will increase to full powerhouse capacity, approximately 25,000 cubic feet per second (cfs), for about three weeks, followed by a week of 20,000 cfs flows. Once the flow augmentation operation is complete, outflows will decrease to a summer flow no less than 9,000 cfs, the bull trout minimum flow associated with Koocanusa Reservoir’s inflow forecast.
The sturgeon flow augmentation operation is part of a collaborative, ongoing effort by regional biologists to enhance migration and spawning conditions for sturgeon in the Kootenai River near Bonners Ferry, Idaho. Increased flows are intended to provide river conditions that may increase sturgeon migration to the reach of river upstream of Bonners Ferry in habitat known to be conducive to successful spawning, egg hatching, and survival of larval sturgeon. While the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho’s conservation aquaculture program has steadily increased the number of young sturgeon in the river since 1992, federal, state, and tribal partners have collaborated in recent years to construct instream habitat upstream of Bonners Ferry intended to provide conditions that will allow adult sturgeon, both wild and those released into the river through the conservation aquaculture program, to successfully reproduce on their own.
The sturgeon operation requires a volume of water to be released from Libby Dam based on the May water supply forecast for Koocanusa Reservoir. The May water supply forecast for April-August inflow volume is 6.74 million-acre-feet, or 111 percent of average, which sets this year’s sturgeon volume at 1.18 million-acre-feet.
The latest projections indicate a minimal chance of exceeding flood stage at Bonner Ferry, Idaho, which is 1,764 feet. The dam’s flow and stage projections are based on National Weather Service ensemble forecasts and are updated frequently during runoff season as weather and conditions change. Forecast modeling includes information on elevations, outflow, and Bonners Ferry seasonal elevation and peak height for the year. To see the latest projections, visit: https://www.nwd-wc.usace.army.mil/nws/hh/www/pend_esp.html
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ primary consideration in operating Libby Dam is to minimize risk to human life, health, and safety, while meeting the dam’s multiple purposes and responsibilities. The Corps will closely monitor Kootenai River elevation in Bonners Ferry during the sturgeon flow augmentation and will adjust operations with the aim of staying below 1,764 feet, the local flood stage.
Annual Opening Day Celebration at The Heritage Museum
Submitted by
Sherry Turner
The Heritage Museum’s annual “Opening Day Celebration” will be held on Saturday May 21, 2022, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the Museum grounds on Hwy 2 in Libby. This year the celebration is also a Roof Replacement Project fundraiser for the Museum’s historical and unique 12-sided log building; work begins Monday May 23 to remove the existing roof. The Museum will remain open 7-days a week all summer through September 17, even during the roof replacement construction.
Indoor Events:
Homemade quilts by the Kootenai Valley Quilt Guild’s will be on display in the Museum’s tower gallery; the quilts will remain in the gallery through June 30. Some of the quilts will be offered for sale; each quilt that is for sale will be price-marked accordingly.
The Museum’s Gift Shop will be open with most t-shirts reduced-priced and most prints reduced by 50 percent.
At 10:30 a.m. Dr. M. Lynn Barnes, dress historian, will present special pieces from the Museum’s historic dress collection in the Beebe Room at the back of the Museum building. Lynn has been working writing condition reports, and properly storing a large collection. Selection of late 19th century underpinnings, 1890s gowns and several pieces from the 1920s and 1930s will be presented and discussed. You may also sign-up that day for a Textile Preservation Workshop to be presented on Saturday, June 25th at 10:30 a.m. Dr. Barnes will guide you through the process of correctly storing your personal historic dress piece. You are welcome to bring a uniform, bridal wear, christening gown, small quilts or flags for your project. At the close of the workshop, you will have correctly stored your personal textile. Your fee includes an acid free storage box, acid free tissue, gloves, and instruction and guidance by Dr. Barnes. Fees will vary depending on the type of box needed. For further information, please leave a message for Laurie at 293-7521 or email heritagemuseum@frontier.com.
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