Thumbs Up

Ethanol plant proposal

Thumbs up to Paul Rumelhart and the Kootenai River Development Council for moving forward with the possibility of bringing an ethanol plant to Libby.

A quick glance shows that such a facility could have a huge impact on the local economy through utilizing biomass and creating jobs. Rumelhart estimated seven logging crews and plant employees could be hired, which equates to roughly 90 jobs.

Paint it Pink events

Thumbs up to the well-organized Paint it Pink activities that went on locally to bring awareness to breast cancer and early detection opportunities.

As we have seen with comparable efforts, many folks answer the call to come together for the benefit of others. Hopefully, the trend will continue.

Libby boys soccer

Thumbs up to the Libby High School boys soccer team for a thrilling victory in the Class A state championship game. The Loggers defeated Billings Central in a shootout.

Playing on the road and heading into the postseason as a No. 2 seed, the Loggers filled the role of underdog in the big finale. Congratulations to coach Charlie Webster and his players.

Election Day turnout

Thumbs up to the voters of Lincoln County. Based on numbers we received from the county elections office, 72 percent of all registered voters went to the polls on Nov. 4.

The presidential race took on a lot of importance but we also had Montana and Lincoln County issues to settle. And the voters showed up in impressive fashion.

Also, the volunteers who helped make Election Day run smoothly in Lincoln County should be recognized.

Honoring our veterans

Thumbs up to the VFW volunteers who braved poor weather conditions on Nov. 11 as part of the effort to honor veterans.

From Veterans Day programs to putting up and taking down all of those flags, it’s no easy task to pull off such impressive annual displays. Patriotism is a subject that needs to be in the public eye on such occasions to not only honor our heroes, but hopefully have a positive impact on the next generation.

Service to the community

Thumbs up to Libby’s outgoing mayor and District 1 county commissioner. Serving in public office in any town is a tough job. You can never please everybody and you must have thick skin to survive from day to day.

Tony Berget was mayor for more than a decade and deserves recognition for serving his hometown. Windom is another longtime public servant for Lincoln County. We wish the best of luck to Berget in his new job as commissioner and to Windom in her retirement.