Distinctly Montana Magazine

D I S T I N C T L Y M O N T A N A M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 2 2 10 T HE MORE CHAOTIC AND UNSTEADY CIVILIZATION SEEMS TO BECOME, the more grateful I am to live in Montana. You've probably noticed that our magazine is entirely apolitical, and that's not by accident. Distinctly Montana, like our name- sake, is a safe harbor from the furious chaos of the world surrounding us. Montana regularly sits at the top of lists of the most patriotic states in America. Montanans, regardless of political affiliation, are the most civically engaged people in America. We have the second-highest number of Peace Corps volunteers per capita and the third-highest share of Veterans. It's a great place to live if you love America, and that's one thing everyone who works at Distinctly Montana has in common: we love our country, and we love Montana! If you happen to be one of the veterans enjoying the first issue of their free one-year subscription, welcome aboard! Even a few Korean War vets signed up for our Veter- ans Day subscription giveaway this year. Many of the subscribers served before I was born, and without their service holding the line for future generations, I might not have been so fortunate. Speaking of service, we've also got a great article in this issue on rural policing in Montana. As much as we love our veterans and active-duty military, we also owe our local law enforcement a debt of gratitude for their service in keeping our communities safe. The vast majority of Montana is rural, and Montana is astoundingly vast. You might say it's vastly rural, and the officers who keep order in all this space under the great big sky are special people. Winter has been slow to stumble into Montana this year. As I write this in late November, there's no snow on the ground yet, but that doesn't mean it's not cold. Because it's cold. Very cold. And windy, to boot. As the temperature continues to drop and the snow starts to fall, we hope that your winter is as cozy as the cover of this issue, which we hope you enjoy. Thank you for reading, and happy winter to everyone! A N O T E F R O M T H E P U B L I S H E R P U B L I S H E R CHRIS MUHLENFELD, PUBLISHER chris@distinctlymontana.com ©2002-2022. Distinctly Montana is owned and published by Thunderstruck Media LLC, a Montana company. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in any form, in whole or in part, without our written permission is prohibited. Distinctly Montana welcomes freelance contributions—please contact us to inquire about submitting your work. PRINTED IN THE USA. Published by Thunderstruck Media LLC • 280 West Kagy Blvd, STE D286 • Bozeman, Montana 59715 www.distinctlymontana.com • info@distinctlymontana.com • (406) 600-7660 WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS! The paper content of this publication has been certifiably reforested via PrintReleaf – the world's first platform to measure paper consumption and automate reforestation across a global network of reforestation projects. LEARN MORE AT PRINTRELEAF.COM photo: flickr.com/nicholas_t | CC BY PUBLISHERS Chris & Pattra Muhlenfeld EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Joseph Shelton ART DIRECTOR Robert Rath COPY EDITOR Shannon Page PROOF EDITOR Lindsay Tran SALES EXECUTIVE Larry Sem PRINT MANAGEMENT Pam Koehler, Koehler + Co. fb.com/distinctlymontana instagram.com/distinctlymontana twitter.com/distinctlymt S U B S C R I B E S U B S C R I B E T O D AY T O D AY W E D E L I V E R ! W E D E L I V E R ! SUBSCRIBE TO SUBSCRIBE TO DISTINCTLY MONTANA DISTINCTLY MONTANA MAGAZINE MAGAZINE DISTINCTLYMONTANA.COM/SUBSCRIBE TO SUBSCRIBE BY MAIL, SEND A CHECK FOR $39.95 PER YEAR TO: DISTINCTLY MONTANA 280 WEST KAGY BLVD, STE D286 BOZEMAN MT 59715 OR USE THE ENCLOSED BUSINESS REPLY CARD

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