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11/03/2025
The Helena Food Share is seen on Oct. 29, 2025, in Helena. It offers both perishable and nonperishable items, as well as fresh food made in-house. Credit: Lauren Miller, Montana Free Press, CatchLight Local/Report for America
Helena Food Share is seeking community support as the nonprofit anticipates an increase in people needing its services due to federal furloughed employees and the potential pause in benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program resulting from the federal government shutdown.
Oct. 8 marked Helena Food Share’s first full year in its new location at the Community Food Resource Center on the corner of Boulder and Montana avenues. During that year, the organization has seen a 28% increase in the number of new households using its services.
Now, with many federal employees furloughed and SNAP’s uncertain future, the food share noted on its website an increasing “need for food support in our community.”
Throughout October, the program has seen 112 new households sign up for food services. The number of households “shopping” at the food share per day averages about 175, with some days nearing 300, Helena Food Share Communications Director Patty White told Montana Free Press in an email.
“With roughly 6,000 SNAP recipients in our service area, we anticipate these numbers will increase in November when SNAP benefits are halted,” White wrote.
(This report was finalized on Oct. 31. The Associated Press reported Friday that two federal judges ordered the Trump administration to use emergency funds to keep SNAP active. In both cases, judges asked the Trump administration to provide updates by Monday, Nov. 3.)
As of September, Lewis and Clark County alone has about 4,600 SNAP recipients, according to data from the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services.
While the bulk of Helena Food Share’s patrons are from the Helena Valley, its service area includes neighboring Broadwater, Jefferson and Powell counties. The food share also provides food boxes and “kid packs” to rural communities elsewhere in the county.
With the uncertainty of the government assistance programs, it’s up to the food share, along with other food pantries across the state, to find ways to meet the increased need to address food insecurity, White said. The organization hopes the community will step up with food and monetary donations, she added.
The food share’s annual Turkey Challenge — an initiative encouraging residents to donate a turkey or money to help address additional needs during the holiday season — is Nov. 21 at the Lewis and Clark Library.
But even more donations will be needed due to the shutdown, White said. The Helena Food Share has conducted food drives each Saturday last month and will continue at Super 1 Food on Nov. 8 and at Albertsons on Nov. 15 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Additionally, staff created a SNAP resources page on the food share’s website, which provides information for recipients, food share newcomers and community members who wish to help.
Lewis and Clark Public Health Officer Drenda Niemann told MTFP that Montana will fund the federal government’s Women, Infants, and Children Supplemental Nutrition Program, or WIC, during November. After that, funding is uncertain.
“If the government shutdown extends beyond Nov. 30, WIC will also not be funded like these other food assistance programs,” Niemann said.
She added that early 700 families in the county participate in WIC.
Public Notice
Montana PBS will host a “Community Conversation” at Brothers Tapworks, 40 S. Last Chance Gulch, Monday, Nov. 3, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., to discuss updates on the current state of public media. PBS management will additionally share their strategies to address funding cuts, followed by a Q&A session.
Election Day is this Tuesday, Nov. 4, and voters will have until 8 p.m. that day to return their ballots to the Lewis and Clark County Elections Office at the City-County Building, 316 N. Park Ave. Important reminder: It’s too late to mail back ballots. Voters are required to add their four-digit birth year onto the ballot’s affirmation envelope before hand-delivering them to the elections office in order for the vote to be accepted. As of last week, the county has received 6,897 ballots, of which 48 have been rejected, according to election staff.
The deadline to fill out a survey on the city’s hiring process of a new city manager ends Wednesday, Nov. 5. Residents can add comments and fill out a survey here, which is facilitated by CMS, the city’s consulting firm hired to help gather applicants. CMS staff encourage members of the public to attend commission meetings to provide further feedback.
5 Things to Know in Helena
As the city manager recruitment process continues, CMS hosted a public listening session last week for community members to ask questions and provide their input of what they want to see in the city’s next executive administrator. While the meeting was held in the City-County Building, no commissioners were present after the mayor asked them not to attend to avoid “undue influence” during the discussion, Mayor Wilmot Collins told MTFP. About 20 people participated in the session, including members from the Helena Citizens Council, the League of Women Voters and Habitat for Humanity for the Helena Area.
Participants asked CMS managing consultant Drew Geiger questions on how future community input will be incorporated with candidates as CMS and the commission begin to screen applicants this week. Geiger said that a public town hall with a Q&A session will be held for semifinalists, but no specific date was provided. Geiger added that the feedback from the session will be posted on the city’s website.
In a meeting last week, the city commission discussed potentially offering free downtown parking for 12 days in November to promote local shopping, following a petition submitted by business owners to the Helena Area Chamber of Commerce that requested free parking for the months of November and December. Commissioner Emily Dean said that the chamber is interested in partnering with the city and sponsoring the free parking for 12 days. Dean added that 60 days of parking would equate to about $70,000 versus about $15,000 for 12 days. City Transportation Services Director David Knoepke informed the commission that a special parking advisory committee meeting would be held to discuss the idea before presenting a proposal to the commission.
Last week, the Montana Public Service Commission agreed to extend the negotiation deadline with the Helena Valley water and wastewater provider North Star Development after the commission fined it nearly $87,000 for inadequate water services in August. PSC had given the development the opportunity to agree to pay the fines, enter into negotiations or sue in District Court. PSC staff attorney Laura Vachowski, who has worked with North Star in settlement negotiations, requested that the timeline be extended by another 30 days and stated that they feel there has been “notable progress” in those discussions.
Lewis and Clark Public Health was able to provide 60 expectant mothers across Lewis and Clark, Broadwater, Jefferson, Meagher and Powell counties with necessities and toys for newborns through a community-driven baby shower. On Sunday, Nov. 2, mothers and parents gathered at the Delta Colonial Hotel for the shower, following donations collected over the last two months.
“Not every expectant mother or family is lucky enough to have a baby shower,” LCPH Child and Family Health Supervisor Mary Sparks said in a press release. “To the many donors, both large and small, thank you for helping us give these families a happy head start on their new life together.”
The 1888 original governor’s mansion will be closed to the public as it undergoes renovations that began Nov. 1. The restoration includes exterior repairs to the main level deck, front porch and outside railings, all funded through a Governor’s Long-Range Building Program, according to a Montana Historical Society press release. Public tours are expected to resume later this year following the completion of the renovation. Visit the historical society website for updates on the project.
Cutline: An early 1930s view of the original governor’s mansion on 304 N. Ewing St., which was first built by local industrialist William A. Chessman. Credit: Courtesy of Helena As She Was
Might Be Fun
The city of Helena Parks and Recreation Department will hold a Pumpkin Smash Friday, Nov. 7, to reduce the amount of pumpkins that are thrown away each year. Instead, the city is asking residents to bring their Halloween pumpkins to Performance Square on the downtown walking mall at 4 p.m. and smash them. City staff will then compost all gourd remains.
