Business Bites: new downtown Mexican restaurant; Towneplace Suites open; pumpkin giveaway; Bootlegger Ball; Halloween symphony; CPR class; and more
Mexican restaurant
Xóchitl Montana, a Mexican restaurant, is opening soon in the former Bert and Ernie’s space at 300 1st Ave. S.
The family owned restaurant also owns a location in Billings and has been renovating the downtown space over the summer.
Towneplace Suites opens
The Towneplace Suites by Marriott in West Bank opened Oct. 14.
The 109-room hotel is located at 525 3rd St. N.W.
The infrastructure for the hotel and other new additions in West Bank were included in a tax increment financing request that City Commissioners approved in 2022 and increased in 2023.
City increases TIF funding for West Bank infrastructure
Great Pumpkin Giveaway
Every first grade student in Great Falls Public Schools will receive a pumpkin Oct. 21-22 as 642 pumpkins are distributed to all 15 elementary schools.
The Torgerson’s pumpkin giveaway started 20 years ago when seven pumpkins were given to the Montessori pre-school class of seven students.
“The next few years we gave 17 pumpkins to the 17 students in one kindergarten class. It just kept growing at this point, the year after we expanded to all first graders city wide in Great Falls. In the next 5 years, we expanded this across our complex. We have given these pumpkins away year after year in our communities where our branches are located across Montana, and our running total to date is over 43,000 pumpkins,” Brett Hatler, Torgerson’s corporate administrative specialist, said in a GFPS release.
The pumpkins are purchased from the Big Stone Hutterite Colony and Torgerson’s uses them to teach agriculture, “helps us to remember the importance of giving to others, however, the number one reason we do this…hands down is the joy and excitement we see in the kid’s faces as we deliver the pumpkins, delivering tons of pumpkins to every elementary school in town requires contributions from nearly every Torgerson’s employee in Great Falls. We do it for the happiness it brings the children,” Hatler said.
Pumpkins are also distributed in the surrounding areas of Fort Benton, Fairfield, Choteau, Augusta, Belt and Centerville.
Bootlegger Ball
The History Museum is hosting its annual jazz night, the Bootlegger Ball, at 6 p.m. Oct. 25 in the museum’s Ozark Club event room, which will be transformed into a secretive speakeasy for the evening.
The event includes food and drink, live jazz music by the John Gemberling Jazz Combo, a six-person band that will play the top hits of the roaring 1920s, and a silent auction.
Costumes are not required, but guests are encouraged to dress up in their finest 1920s attire for a costume contest, with photo opportunities available with a period-appropriate Model T car.
Member tickets are $65 and non-members are $80.
Tickets can be purchased in advance, and guests are encouraged to buy early to secure their spot.
To get into the mood for the Bootlegger Ball, visitors can stop by the museum to see the Spirits of Cascade County: Bootlegging, Bureaucracy, and Breweries exhibition. The museum will also be sharing Prohibition Era-themed content on social media.
The museum is located at 422 2nd St. S.
Author event
Cassiopeia Books is hosting an author event with Montanan Wayne Edwards at 6 p.m. Oct. 23. Edwards will be discussing his three books: one for kids, one for young adults, and one for full adults.\
Spooktacular
The Lewis and Clark Foundation at the Interpretive Center is hosting their fourth annual Spooktacular from noon to 4 p.m. Oct. 26.
The event is usually held at the interpretive center, but due to the government shutdown, this year’s event will be at the Newberry downtown.
The event includes crafts, a movie and costume contest that begins at 2 p.m.
CPR Course
Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine and Great Falls Emergency Services are hosting an AHA Heartsaver CPR AED course on Oct. 26.
This hands-on training is perfect for anyone—no medical background needed—and provides a two-year certification. Register here.
Business Bites: Pizza Ranch hiring; Touch-A-Truck; Skate Jam; Windsor Plywood closing
Halloween Symphony
The Great Falls Symphony Association is hosting it annual free, family friendly concert at 5 p.m. Oct. 31 in the Mansfield Theater.
The performance, conducted by Music Director Emeritus Maestro Gordon Johnson, will immediately follow the downtown trick-or-treat festivities and will feature special performances by dancers from Miss Linda’s School of Dance and members of the Act I Theatre Company will lead the audience sing-along.
The program includes eerie orchestral favorites such as Grieg’s “Hall of the Mountain King,” Mussorgsky’s “Night on Bald Mountain,” and Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries.”
Symphony opens Saturday with first of six maestro candidates
Modern audiences will also enjoy a haunting cello solo of “Paint It Black” from Wednesday, cinematic music from Batman: The Dark Knight Rises by Hans Zimmer, and a rocking Halloween medley featuring Harry Potter, Ghostbusters, Scooby-Doo, and Monster Mash, arranged by Michael Story.
Costumes are encouraged, and fun is guaranteed for the whole family. Candy will also be available after the concert for trick-or-treaters.
Tickets are free but can be reserved here.
Rocky Horror Show
The Great Falls Theatre Company is presenting a live performance of Richard O’Brien’s Rocky Horror Show on Halloween at the Newberry.
The show is a special add on production of the company’s current season and features 14 local community actors and various designers, crew members, and volunteers who have been working on this production since August 2025.
Based on The Rocky Horror Picture Show, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, this 1973 stage musical of The Rocky Horror Show follows engaged couple Brad and Janet on an adventure in Dr. Frank-N-Furter’s castle. With many loved songs such as: “Time Warp”, “Hot Patootie”, and “Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me” there is something for everyone in this wild adventure.
The company is performing two shows, one at 9 p.m. and one at 11:55 p.m.
General admission tickets range from $25 to $50 and are available here and here.
The show is for ages 18 and older.
Doors open at 8 p.m. for the 9 p.m. showing and 11:15 p.m. for the midnight show.
Salvation Army events
The Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary is hosting it’s holiday sale and bake sale at 1000 17th Ave. S.
- Oct. 24: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Oct. 25: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The sale is cash only.
The Salvation Army is hosting the Hoops for Hope basketball tournament Nov. 8-9.
Registration is open for 5th and 6th grade girls teams. Call Gary at 406-453-0391.
Business Bites: “Does anybody know what’s being built…?”
Big Sky Bungee
Big Sky Bungee is hosting an open house 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 1 at 1020 Central Ave.
Try on a harness, jump, fly, and see what it’s about.
They’ll have prizes and giveaways, membership specials and passes and clothing discounts.
Community Foundation Grants
The Great Falls Area Community Foundation awarded $7,452.80 to 14 local nonprofits this year.
These grants support a diverse range of projects and programs that strengthen our community, enhance quality of life, and provide opportunities for growth and connection.
The 2025 recipients are:
- Belt Theater Company: $500 for music and dance outreach
- CASA-CAN: $1,000 for volunteer training
- Cascade County Law Clinic: $500 for office computer upgrades
- Cascade Farmer’s Market: $200 for 2025 live music
- FISH: $250 for purchasing food
- Grace Haven: $250 for building signage
- Great Falls Community Food Bank: $1,000 for Backpacks4Kids expansion
- Great Falls Scottish Rite Childhood Language Disorders Clinic, Inc.: $752.80 for updated testing materials
- Great Falls Symphony: $250 for Halloween matinee
- Montana School for the Deaf and Blind: $1,000 for campus tactile map
- SPARK! Children’s Museum: $500 for van repairs
- Sun River Watershed Group: $250 for community improvements through volunteering
- The History Museum: $500 for an insulation project
- Young Parents Education Center: $500 for program marketing and outreach
Since its founding, the foundation has served as a philanthropic resource, connecting donors and community members to projects that create lasting impact. By pooling resources, it ensures that every gift makes a difference in addressing local needs.
Night Without a Bed
The 3rd Annual Night Without a Bed awareness event is 5-8 p.m. Nov. 20 at the University of Providence student center.
The event is planned and organized by Great Falls students and includes more than 15 partner organizations that serve homeless or those facing homelessness.
The purpose of the event is to educate attendees about the many services available for individuals and families with children facing homelessness.
The students hope to accomplish three goals by holding this event:
- attendees learning more about why homelessness is growing and to understand what local agencies do to help our homeless neighbors
- inspire attendees to work on projects that eliminate homelessness in Great Falls
- educate the agencies who serve the homeless about how individuals view and understand the issue of homelessness so that they are more able to engage the community in addressing the growing crisis.
The event is free to attend and open to the public. Donations will be accepted.
After the event, attendees are encouraged to send in ideas about how to prioritize the ways that homelessness can be addressed.
GFPS softball coach
Pending school board approval, the Great Falls Public Schools Athletic Department is recommending Robb Soltesz as the next head softball coach for Great Falls High School, replacing Don Meierhoff who resigned this spring after leading the program the last six seasons.
Soltesz has long been involved in the local softball scene as a player, coach and parent.
For more than 20 years he has served as a coach of Little League, ASA and high school softball.
For the last four seasons, he’s been the head JV softball coach at GFH.
GFPS moving forward with high school baseball as fundraising group meets first goal
Montanans at Work tour
The Montana Department of Labor and Industry is traveling with its Montanans at Work statewide tour, offering a unique opportunity for local employers, workforce professionals, and community members to connect with DLI experts and resources as part of Gov. Greg Gianforte’s 406 JOBS initiative.
The tour will bring DLI staff and professionals to 15 communities across the state, where they’ll engage with local businesses, educators, workforce partners, and stakeholders to showcase the department’s latest programs and initiatives.
The Great Falls stop is Oct. 23-34 at Great Falls College MSU in Heritage Hall.
On the first day, registration opens at 8:30 a.m. with the program beginning at 9 a.m.
On the second day, registration opens at 8:30 a.m. with the program running from 9-11:30 a.m.
The tour is free to attend and registration is encouraged.
The tour will highlight the 406 JOBS initiative — a comprehensive workforce development framework aimed at modernizing Montana’s workforce system and ensuring every Montanan has a pathway to a career and a plan to achieve it. 406 JOBS focuses on Four Pathways to Work, Zero Barriers to Employment, and Six High-Demand Sectors. During the tour, stakeholders will provide input into specific components of 406 JOBS, ensuring the initiative is community-driven and industry-led.
In addition to showcasing 406 JOBS, the tour will also provide an overview variety of DLI services, including occupational licensing changes, new registered apprenticeship pathways, state building code updates, STARS Act implementation with respect to funding for students to earn industry recognized credentials while in high school, the newly established Office of Reentry Programs, and changes to workers compensation provisions and unemployment insurance programs.
Rock the Trades
The Home Builders Association and NeighborWorks Great Falls are teaming up to bring Las Vegas headliner Patrick & The LVB to town for “Rock the Trades.”
This benefit concert will support the High School House, helping sustain an important avenue for students to explore a career in the trades.
The concert is Dec. 11 at Montana Expo Park. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with music starting at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are $65 and are available at the Expo Park Box Office, HBA office and the NWGF office.
Patrick & The LVB, an Emmy Award-winning band, are known for their Las Vegas residency and impressive touring history. They have performed alongside Bon Jovi, OneRepublic, Matchbox Twenty, Train, The Chainsmokers, Meghan Trainor, Vanilla Ice, and others.
NWGF breaking ground on 46th high school house Sept. 14 [2023]
“The High School House program is a powerful example of how housing and workforce development go hand in hand,” Sherrie Arey, NWGF director, said in a release. “Each home built by these students reflects not only their hard work and skill, but also creates a pathway to stable, affordable homeownership for local families. Events like ‘Rock the Trades’ help sustain this program and ensure that more young people are equipped with the tools, experience, and confidence to succeed in the trades- while strengthening the homes in our community.”
The High School House program is a partnership between NWGF and GFPS that began in 1997 through which students gain real-world, hands-on construction experience. During the duration of the school year, they build a new home from the ground up, providing them with valuable employment skills for a career in the trades.
The 48th High school House is currently under construction.
For more information on the High School House, Rock the Trades, or sponsorship opportunities, call NWGF at 406-761-5861.
Animal shelter award
Laramie Smovir, Great Falls Animal Shelter operations manager, was honored Sept. 20 at Washington–Grizzly Stadium as a recipient of the Community Hero Award, presented by First Interstate Bank in partnership with the University of Montana.
Since stepping into her role about a year ago, Smovir has guided the shelter through major improvements and community initiatives. With her team, she secured a $20,000 ASPCA grant and raised $40,000 locally to expand kennels and play yards, adding 20 outdoor spaces, two large play yards, and two meet-and-greet areas.
The shelter team has grown its annual free rabies vaccination clinic from 77 pets in 2023 to 177 in 2024 and 210 in 2025, expanded its pet food pantry, and organized multiple successful fundraisers.
City animal shelter installing outdoor kennels, play yard for dog
Their coordinated efforts also made it possible to secure grants for critical infrastructure repairs—including a $150,000 sewer line replacement that required temporarily relocating shelter operations—all while continuing to serve the community through challenging circumstances, including dealing with multiple hoarding cases, animal abuse cases, and court cases on top of regular duties.
Renovations to impact city animal shelter operations, animal control
The Community Hero Award recognizes not just these accomplishments, but the lasting impact they create. Smovir emphasizes that these achievements are only possible through the dedication and teamwork of the shelter staff. Together, they continue to strengthen the Great Falls community, making the shelter a resource the entire city can be proud of.
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