Searching for a better life: Family moves to Libby this summer, homeless to a home

They wanted a “forever place” to grow a family, so Christopher and Katelin Johnson moved to the Libby area in July. 

It wasn’t easy, but the couple moved from the Lake Tahoe area and were homeless and camped out near Lake Koocanusa for three months.

The family, which includes children aged 10, 8 and 5, camped out in tents on Dunn Creek south of Libby Dam and then moved to Warland Creek 10 miles north of the dam.

“It was awesome,” said Christopher, 30, who built a flag pole out of driftwood and flew the U.S. and Marine Corps flags.

“We taught the kids how to do archery, fishing, build fires and tell the difference between different animal tracks,” Katelin said. “What better way to experience homelessness than in the summer? We took a horrible situation and turned it into a fun, learning situation.”

The Johnsons were waiting on approval of a no down payment Veterans Administration/Montana Board of Housing loan to close so they could purchase a home. They used most of their money on gas, a U-Haul rental and put their belongings in storage once they got here.

They moved into a house on Main Avenue on Sept. 23.

Christopher served eight years in the U.S. Marine Corps and did two tours in Iraq as a radio operator. He also got to drive around in tanks and land amphibious vehicles and call in an occasional air strike.

When he got out of the Marines in 2014, Christopher attended Wyotech in Fremont, Calif., for four months before the VA sued Corinthian Colleges. Then he went to ITT Tech for several months and the same thing happened, he said.

Having lived in the Coleville, Calif., area before when stationed at the Mountain Warfare Training Center, the couple decided to move back there but Christopher was unable to find work. So he enrolled at the Los Angeles Film School online with plans to get a bachelor’s degree in digital cinematography.

He has continued in that endeavor since moving to Libby and plans to graduate in 1½ years.

He would like to make short independent films but also longer films some day.

He’s currently working on a short film about a Sasquatch who comes out in the summer and has fun.

Christopher grew up in the San Diego area, which is said to have the best year-round climate in the U.S. It’s not worth it, he said, adding that he doesn’t like the people there and how they take care of the town. “If you would take away the internet in California, everyone would just die,” he said, facetiously.

Katelin’s grandmother, Karen Monroe, lives in Libby, and Katelin had fond memories of the city where she spent the first five years of her life, along with high school.

“I’m tired of California,” Christopher said. “I like my wife, pretty much the only thing I do like, so I thought, ‘Let’s give Libby a shot.’”

So they moved to Lincoln County looking for a fresh start. They want to contribute to make Libby a better place to live.

“Everybody here loves this place. Everybody needs to put more into it, otherwise it’s just gonna fall into the dumpsters,” Katelin said, noting she used to frequently see “I heart Libby” bumper stickers before she graduated from Libby High School in 2003 and moved away.

“I want to put life back into the town,” Christopher said, adding that he primarily wants to make it look better.

Caleb M. Soptelean can be reached at 293-4124 or by email at csoptelean@thewesternnews.com.