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Time Capsule: So you want to be a reporter?

BERL TISKUS | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year AGO
by BERL TISKUS
Reporter Berl Tiskus joined the Lake County Leader team in early March, and covers Ronan City Council, schools, ag and business. Berl grew up on a ranch in Wyoming and earned a degree in English education from MSU-Billings and a degree in elementary education from the University of Montana. Since moving to Polson three decades ago, she’s worked as a substitute teacher, a reporter for the Valley Journal and a secretary for Lake County Extension. Contact her at [email protected] or 406-883-4343. | November 20, 2024 11:00 PM

Mission Valley News, Nov. 21, 1979

Ronan Museum gets first donations

The Ronan Museum, long in the planning stage, has finally made a small beginning. Two items have been accepted for the museum.

An organ, originally rescued from a house in North Dakota, has been donated to the museum by Ward Mendenhall in the name of his mother, Mrs. Cary Mendenhall. The organ is in good condition.

A second gift of an old-time cash register has been donated by Mrs. Susie Hanson. The cash register came to the museum through the Missoula firm of the Ax Men owned and operated by Mr. and Mrs. Bud Hanson and sons.

According to Museum President Cal Lindburg, the cash register is very old and along with the organ will be a fine start for the museum.

Facilities for the museum were made available by the school district when the west section of the lower floor of the old elementary school was made available to them.

So you want to be a reporter

I know there are a lot of you out there who think it’s all trench coats and exotic places. You think it’s press conferences with the big pols and free lunches.

Well, it really isn’t., but don’t take my word for it.

My colleagues and I have devised a little quiz to test your understanding of the job. It’s called, “So You Want to be a Reporter?” Good Luck.

My favorite food is:

A. Steak and potatoes

B. Shrimp scampi

C. Lasagna and garlic bread

D. Stale Twinkies and soggy potato chips

I most liked to spend my evenings:

A. Curled up with a good book

B. Watching a first-run movie

C. Visiting friends

D. Going to city council meetings

My greatest recent accomplishment was:

A. Climbing Mt. Washington

B. Winning five raquetball games in a row

C. Reading "War and Peace”

D. Figuring out the school budget

On a sunny fall weekend, I most like to:

A. Enjoy a football game

B. View the foliage

C. Go to county fairs

D. Avoid being arrested while covering demonstrations

Late at night, I enjoy:

A. A glass of wine

B. A Humphrey Bogart movie

C. A warm bed

D. A two-alarm fire

I would most like to write:

A. Romantic poetry

B. Gothic novels

C. A screenplay

D. An analysis of the town’s sewer capacity

To maintain my current level of health, I:

A. Jog daily

B. Eat health food

C. Work out at the spa

D. Smoke cigarettes and drink cold, black coffee

At my present level of salary, my next vacation will be to:

A. The Bahamas

B. Acapulco

C. Mexico

D. The traffic islands

For Christmas this year, I would most like to have:

A. An angora sweater

B. A Ferrari

C. Sporting equipment

D. The day off

Any and all A, B, or C answers indicate wild-eyed dreamers. The D’s have it.



ARTICLES BY BERL TISKUS

Gage Accounting relocates to former law office
December 3, 2025 11 p.m.

Gage Accounting relocates to former law office

Gage Accounting has moved around the corner to a larger space at 15 3rd Ave. E. in Polson.

Shoppers turn out for Shop Small Saturday
December 3, 2025 11 p.m.

Shoppers turn out for Shop Small Saturday

With Thanksgiving dinner gobbled, pie eaten for breakfast, and a day of leftovers behind them, people were ready to get out of the house Saturday and shop. After all, only 27 days remained until Christmas.

“Great communities are built on volunteers”
December 3, 2025 11 p.m.

“Great communities are built on volunteers”

Cars and trucks lined Main Street in Polson to collect Thanksgiving dinners from the Elks Club last Thursday. The drive-through dinner, commandeered by field marshal Tracy Plaiss, served 1,800 Thanksgiving dinners, made from scratch. A few miles south, the Ronan Community Thanksgiving dinner filled a room in the Boys and Girls Club with tables of visiting people and the aromas of roasting turkey and savory dressing.