Business Bites: News and Brews; Thursday night markets at new city pool; kite festival; The Music Man; Cushing Terrell acquires engineering firm; veteran commendations; games at the library; Paris Gibson Square gift; swim lesson registration; junior rangers
News and Brews
The Electric is hosting the next News and Brews at Magpie at 5:30 p.m. July 10, joined again by Tom Wylie and Ryan Gamboa of KRTV for an informal chat about local news.
Farmers’ Market at Lions Park
The Great Falls Farmers’ Market is adding a Thursday night market at the new city aquatic center in Lions Park.
The Thursday night market runs July 11 through Aug. 29 from 6-8:30 p.m. with local produce, crafts and more.
Kite festival
First Peoples Buffalo Jump State Park is hosting the kite festival 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 13-14.
Bring your own kit or purchase a kite kit for $10 and decorate it.
The event also includes traditional native game stations to learn and play.
Music Man
The Great Falls Theatre Company is opening their summer production of The Music Man on July 11.
The show runs July 11-13 and July 18-20 at the Great Falls High School Davidson Family Auditorium.
Show time is 7:30 p.m. for all dates and the box office opens at 6 p.m.
Doors open 45 minutes before the show.
Purchase tickets here.
Cushing Terrell
Cushing Terrell has acquired Eclipse Engineering, a structural engineering firm, with offices in Colorado, Oregon, Montana and Washington.
“Cushing Terrell and Eclipse Engineering have been working on projects together for two decades,” Cushing Terrell President and CEO Greg Matthews said in a release. “Through this partnership, our firms have found a beneficial alignment in how we work, our approach to client relationships and projects, and our overall values and company cultures. With the leadership of both companies expressing a desire for strategic growth and a deepened engineering portfolio, this merger is the perfect fit.”
Cushing Terrell’s design disciplines currently include a structural engineering team, acquiring Eclipse Engineering adds experience in traditional structural engineering as well as specialty services in material handling, tilt-up concrete, mass timber/CLT, structural insulated panels, and seismic analysis and retrofits. This move supports elements of Cushing Terrell’s strategic plan and ensures both firms can confidently continue to grow — pursuing new clients and projects in diverse locations — while maintaining a commitment to exemplary client service, according to the company.
Movie in the park
Great Falls Park and Recreation and the Gibson Park Snack Shack is hosting the next free movie in the park on July 12 after being postponed due to weather.
This week’s movie is “Ghostbusters-Frozen Empire.”
The movie will begin around 9:30 p.m., as soon as it’s dark enough, in Gibson Park near the bandshell.
The movie is free and attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets for a movie night under the stars.
The family friendly event also includes kids activities such as face painting from 7-9 p.m.
“In Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the Spengler family returns to where it all started – the iconic New York City firehouse – to team up with the original Ghostbusters, who’ve developed a top-secret research lab to take busting ghosts to the next level. But when the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an army of ghosts that casts a death chill upon the city, Ghostbusters new and old must join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second Ice Age,” according to Sony Pictures.
Shakespeare in the Parks
Montana Shakespeare in the Parks has kicked off their 52nd season with free performances of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and The Winter’s Tale, June 19-22.
The tour will be in Great Falls Aug. 7 with a performance of Hamlet at 6 p.m. at the Gibson Park bandshell.
In the case of inclement weather, the show will move to the Mansfield Theater.
The show is free and seating is first come, first served. MSP asks that tall chairs sit further back to allow those on blankets and in short chairs to see.
“Hamlet tells the story of the young prince of Denmark who returns home following the sudden death of his father. The most famous ghost story ever told, Hamlet grapples with the weight of his responsibility to avenge his father’s death, to out-maneuver his traitorous uncle, and ‘to be, or not to be.’ With some of Shakespeare’s most memorable lines and iconic characters, audiences won’t want to miss this tale of love and loss, duty vs desire, and the power of performance,” according to MSP.
This summer, the company performs in 65 communities across five states including Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, North Dakota, and Washington, serving the largest number of communities to date.
Most events will feature pre-show performances by local artists and audiences are encouraged to bring a picnic to enjoy an evening together under the Big Sky among friends and neighbors.
Games at Library
Beginning July 28, the Great Falls Public Library is hosting free monthly board game sessions from 3-5:30 p.m. in the Cordingley Room in the basement of the library.
The library is hosting the game sessions the fourth Sunday of the month.
A library staff member will be on hand to participate and go over the rules to start for anyone who has never played the games before.
The event is open to adults, families and teens.
The July game is Ticket to Ride.
AAUW book donations
The local chapter of the American Association of University Women is accepting donations for its annual book sale.
The group is holding their donation days behind the library in the loading dock area from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Tuesday through October, when they hold their annual book sale.
AAUW accepts used books, CDs, DVDs, games and puzzles in good condition.
Veteran commendations
Gov. Greg Gianforte will present the 2023 Montana Governor’s Veteran Commendation to four Cascade County veterans at the Montana Veterans Memorial at 9:30 a.m. July 9.
The “award recognizes outstanding Montana veterans who have selflessly served our country in uniform and positively impacted their community. In 2023, 36 veterans received the award,” according to the governor’s office.
The recipients are:
- Joesph Gusik
- Roger Hagan
- Eric Peterson
- Carlos Diaz
Spay-neuter clinic
The Humane Society of Cascade County’s next low-cost spay/neuter clinic for low-income pet owners is Aug. 24-25.
The society is starting to schedule appointments now.
If you have only dogs or both dogs and five or fewer cats, call 406-231-4722.
If you have only cats, and five or fewer, call 406-452-7729.
If you have more than five cats, whether they are wild or tame, call 406-781-6219.
Put the phone number into your contacts so you will answer when we call.
Pet owners are asked to call only once as it takes volunteers time to return all the calls.
” These clinics are for low-income pet owners, or people with a large number of cats,” according to organizers. “These clinics fill up fast, so don’t delay in calling. There is a staggering number of homeless dogs and cats in Great Falls, please be part of the solution and don’t allow your pets to breed.”
Paris Gibson Square gift
Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art has received a gift to its permanent collection from the personal collection Rick Newby and Liz Gans.
The Rick Newby and Liz Gans collection of artworks was collected over a 40-year period and represents a range of artists in Montana.
“This outstanding gift to The Square consists of paintings, prints, drawings, and an extensive collection of ceramic works by celebrated Montana artists and significant figures of the world ceramics community who participated in artist residencies at the Archie Bray Foundation. Over the years gifts from their private collection have also been allocated to the permanent collection at The Holter Museum of Art, as well as to the Montana Historical Society in Helena, Montana which was contributed via the auspices of Joe Freeman Gans (1920-2020), Liz Gans’ father who was a vibrant artist, creative businessperson, and avid art collector,” Nicole Maria Evans, curator of collections and exhibitions, said in a release.
Visual artists represented in this collection of work include James Todd, Josh DeWeese, Richard Swanson, Robert Harrison, Freeman Butts, Jon Lodge, Stephanie Frostad, Pheobe Toland, Jerry Rankin, Nan Parsons, Jim Poor, Dale Livezey, Kurt Weiser, David Shaner, Chris Antemann, Matt Metz, Akio Takamori, Steven Young Lee, Nancy Blum, Doug Herren and Gail Busch.
The exhibition Collecting Montana: Gifts from the Collection of Rick Newby and Liz Gans, “provides an example of strong collecting habits, and evidence of a healthy Montana contemporary cultural community that is worthy of celebration and support,” Evans said in a release,
The Square is located at 1400 1st Ave. N.
Visitor hours are Tuesdays 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesdays through Fridays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Admission is free and donations are appreciated.
Visit the website or call 406-727-8255 for more information.
Junior Rangers
First Peoples Buffalo Jump State Park is continuing their Junior Ranger Programs during the month of July. after a hiatus for the July 4 holiday.
The program will continue on Thursday mornings at 10 a.m. to noon July 11, 18 and 25.
Registration is required. To sign up for July classes, call the park at 406-866-2217 with the children’s names and ages for each class.
Classes are capped at 25 students and parents or guardians must accompany their children for the classes.
July 11: Native and Invasive Plants: Join Ranger Kimmy as she teaches Junior Rangers about the differences of native and invasive plants. She will describe the effect they have on our ecosystem. Junior Rangers will have the opportunity to plant and take home their very own native wildflower to care for.
July 18: Yucca Soap: Rub, a Dub, Dub, Yucca in the Tub. Learn about and make soap from Yucca Root. Join Ranger Karlene on a fun filled activity of creating soap from the Yucca plant. This plant has been used for generations to create soap on the plains of Montana.
July 25: Solar Smores: Join Ranger Fel as he shows how the power of the sun can be harnessed for a variety of purposes. Junior Rangers will be able to create their own solar oven and make smores.
The park is 3.5 miles north of Ulm, just off Interstate 15 at Exit 270.
Swim lessons
Great Falls Park and Recreation swim lesson registration opened July 8.
Classes will be available in the mornings and late afternoon/evenings.
Classes are $65 for an eight 30-minute class session for Great Falls or Malmstrom Air Force Base residents. There’s an additional fee for those who live outside the city limits.
Sign Gypsies
Sign Gypsies is opening a franchise in Great Falls, by Karen Schaefer.
Sign Gypsies is a yard greeting company and Schaefer will be holding a ribbon cutting with the Great Falls Chamber on July 22.
“Sign Gypsies of Cascade County is partnering with Great Falls Public Schools to bring celebration and joy throughout the school year,” according to Schaefer.
Got a business bite? Email it to jenn@theelectricgf.com with ‘business bite’ in the subject line and include the details in text form.
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