Montana residents dig out from winter storm
Jan 14, 2025
LEWISTOWN - Donald Bren has been living in Lewistown for 40 years, and this past weekends snow is some of the most he has seen.Well, there's only one other one that really matches that, I think, Bren said.He has been shoveling since Sunday to get his car out of the driveway. On Monday, he is trying to get over the berm the city plowed for his doctors appointment tomorrow.That's the bugger I gotta get there," he said. "I can't figure out how I'm going to get through that. On the side streets, its even worse.I think I was glad I got groceries on Friday before the storm came, Steven Hamilton said.Jeanette Miller and Hamilton expected some snow, but nothing like this.When I got home Friday night, my sidewalk was clear and there was nothing on my car. And now it's a lot, she said.The progress people have made is a community effort. Its neighbors helping neighbors.It feels good. It's (an) accomplishment of the town. And who lives here, Miller said.While some dig out their homes, others are making the most of the situation. Casey Butcher couldnt get her car out from the snow, but found the snowed-over roads were perfect for winter memories.Well, this was a childhood sled of my own, so I wanted to take my son, who just turned one in our sled and pull him around, Butcher said.For Billy, the freshly one-year-old child, the conditions were a little too good.I think when we go, when we go downhill a little too fast, he gets a little freaked out," Butcher said. "But I think he's having a good time.Downtown Lewistown is quiet, but businesses like Rising Trout Coffee are still open, offering warm beverages to those out and about. For people who want to be here, this is an important time to be open," Jon Milhon, Co-Owner of Rising Trout said. "I mean, you want a cup of coffee, you need some breakfast And we had travelers who were, whose flights were canceled, who couldn't travel, who came and sat down and had breakfast this morning.Its a slow day, but Milhon never considered taking the day off.If they're getting out, they're getting out, to help people," Milhon said. " You know, the bank across the street is closed. And so the normal traffic we get from local people is, is not here. And, yeah, the people are working on getting out of the snow.Montanans are resourceful, and two feet of snow isnt going to stop them.We're just having a good time out in the snow," Butcher said. "That's what Montanans do. They make the most of their weather.