Montana
Montana Painters Alliance Visiting Whitehall, Will Present at Black Tie & Blue Jeans
From June 13th through 15th, the Montana Painters Alliance (MPA) will hold its 2024 Spring Paint Out in and around Whitehall. Artists will work in Whitehall and the area outside of town, and the community will be welcome to stop, observe, and meet the artists at work.
On Saturday, June 15th, the MPA artists will meet and display their work in their “Tailgate Salon” at the Whitehall Community Center. While their display will be part of the Whitehall Chamber’s annual fundraiser, Black Tie & Blue Jeans, the Tailgate Salon will be open to all – no BTBJ ticket is needed to view these wonderful Whitehall pieces.
The Montana Painters Alliance has 23 artists who work to hone their skills as professional artists by getting together twice a year to paint in different locations around the state. Sharing painting ideas and techniques happens naturally as artists paint together, and doing so in beautiful locations around the state is the icing on the cake. The artists work in various mediums outside or “en plein air.”
Plein Air painting is like boot camp for artists, as one is constantly challenged by the rigors of outdoor painting-the changing light, rain, heat or cold, bugs in one’s paint, and the Montana wind. One must find the essence of the subject, simplify, and paint quickly-all great exercises and inherent lessons for the working artist.
Let it also be said that there is much camaraderie around the campfire in the evenings, with good food and drink and good music (by our illustrious Chuck Fulcher and sometimes others as well). Of course, many tall tales are shared!
As a result of their paint-outs, the MPA has organized shows in museums and galleries across the state. Individual name recognition is a by-product of these shows, related magazine articles, workshops, and group advertising.
About twenty years ago, artist Tom English and a small cadre of like-minded painters who regularly got together to paint outdoors began to discuss forming a larger group of artists. Artists could get together twice a year and paint to pursue further development of their outdoor painting skills while exploring new Montana locations. At each paint-out they would share their insights, socialize, and use their organization to broaden the knowledge and appreciation of plein air painting in the public sphere. Thus, the MPA was formed.
Artist members of the MPA: Rob Akey, Marcia Ballowe, Diana Brady, Nate Closson, Todd Connor, Thomas English, Chuck Fulcher, Laurie Stevens, Mimi Grant, Jerry Inman, Patrick McClellan, Jennifer McClellan, Jake Gaedtke, Diana Mysse, Terry Nybo, Steve Oiestad, Greg Scheibel, Deb Schmit, Robert Spannring, David Swanson, Ron Ukrainetz Shirle Wempner, and Ken Yarus.
For additional information contact Rob Akey at 406-270-4177 or Tom English at 406-799-2881.
ROUNDUP, Mont. —
The Rehder Creek Fire is burning 16 miles southeast of Roundup has grown to about 5,000 acres, prompting evacuation orders for residents in the Bruner Mountain Area/Subdivision.
The fire started Feb. 26, the cause is unknown and containment was at 0%.
Evacuation orders are in effect for all residents in the Bruner Mountain Area/Subdivision. The Musselshell County Sheriff’s Office is coordinating the evacuation orders, and 911 reverse calls have been sent out to advise people in the area.
A shelter is opening at the Roundup Community Center. Residents were told to contact Musselshell County DES for further information.
Firefighter and public safety remain the top priority. The public is asked to avoid the Fattig Creek and Rehder Road area so emergency personnel can safely and effectively perform their work.
Fire resources assigned to the incident include 40 total personnel, 11 engines, one Type 2 helicopter, three tenders and two dozers.
Montana
Escobar, Jayapal, Members of Congress Call on Camp East Montana to be Shut Down – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16) – joined by Representative Pramila Jayapal, the Ranking Member of the Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee, and 22 other Members of Congress – sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons calling for the immediate closure of Camp East Montana in El Paso. They cite urgent humanitarian concerns following multiple deaths in custody, documented unsafe conditions, and serious deficiencies in medical care.
This marks the fourth letter Congresswoman Escobar has sent to DHS and ICE leadership. The previous three letters have gone unanswered.
The letter can be found in its entirety below and here.
“Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons:
We are urgently calling on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS or the Department) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to shut down Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas.
Camp East Montana has been operational for six months, and at least three people have died at the site since December 2025: Francisco Gaspar-Andres, Geraldo Lunas Campos, and Victor Manuel Diaz. The El Paso County Medical Examiner has officially ruled Lunas Campos’ death a homicide, citing “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression.”
Camp East Montana was constructed in a matter of weeks and opened before construction was complete and it does not have enough federal staff on-site to provide adequate oversight. Over the last several months, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, in whose district this facility is located, has sent multiple letters to DHS and ICE regarding concerns about the conditions at Camp East Montana, and has received no responses.
According to detainees, there have been constant and consistent problems at the facility since it opened, beginning with the facility’s poor construction and poor ambient temperature control. Upon opening, the drinking water at Camp East Montana tasted foul and made some detainees sick. Detainees continue to be served inadequate meals, including food that is rotten or frozen; last fall, the facility was also consistently failing to make dietary accommodations for detainees. Detainees have shared that they have sporadic access to outside spaces and recreational areas, and that their dormitory pods are cleaned only once every eight days, despite pods housing up to 72 people at a time. Laundry services are not consistent, and people are washing their clothes in the facility showers. Additionally, the facility experiences flooding and sewage backups when it rains, leading to stagnant water.
One of the biggest concerns with the Camp East Montana facility is the inadequate medical care being provided to detainees. Our offices have heard that only the most ill detainees are referred to the medical unit and that there are inconsistencies as to how soon after arriving detainees are able to undergo initial medical screenings. Detainees with chronic health issues who rely on regimented medications for their health have had difficulty accessing necessary medications, including blood pressure medication and insulin.
At least one of the deaths that occurred in ICE custody, the death of Francisco Gaspar-Andres, appears to partially be the result of poor medical care by staff at the facility. According to ICE’s own account, Gaspar-Andres sought medical attention from facility staff for increasingly serious symptoms, but was only transferred to an area hospital once his condition had severely deteriorated.
In addition to our concerns about poor medical care, we are also aware that detainees have experienced irregular access to their legal counsel, including instances of detainees having only two minutes allotted per phone call every 8 days, which is contrary to ICE’s Detention Standards on access to counsel, and that the belatedly created law library lacks adequate resources for the amount of people currently held at the facility. In January 2026, ICE announced the on-site death of Geraldo Lunas Campos “after experiencing medical distress.” ICE opened an investigation into the death, but did not provide a cause of death. However, The Washington Post later reported that another man detained at Camp East Montana had witnessed guards choking Lunas Campos when he refused to enter a segregated housing unit. Weeks later, the El Paso County Medical Examiner ruled that Lunas Campos had experienced “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression” and ruled his death a homicide.
Lunas Campos is the first detainee to die at Camp East Montana as a result of a use-of-force incident, but we are strongly concerned that he will not be the last if ICE is allowed to continue operating Camp East Montana.
ICE was given $45 billion in taxpayer dollars in the reconciliation bill, $1.2 billion of which were awarded to Acquisition Logistics, LLC, a company with no previous experience managing immigration detention facilities, to build and oversee Camp East Montana. However, in the wake of three deaths in custody so far, continued concerns about conditions at the facility, and ICE’s apparent disinterest in responding to oversight letters from Congress, we do not believe Camp East Montana is being run professionally or responsibly.
Camp East Montana must be shut down. For the safety of everyone at the facility, for an end to abuses to detainees, and for fiscal responsibility to the American people, the site cannot continue to operate. We are calling on DHS and ICE to move to immediately close operations at Camp East Montana.
We look forward to hearing from the Department promptly on this matter.
The other co-signers include Representatives Yassamin Ansari, Nanette Barragán, Yvette Clarke, Lloyd Doggett, Maxwell Frost, Jesús “Chuy” García, Sylvia Garcia, Daniel Goldman, Jimmy Gomez, Henry Johnson, Stephen Lynch, Seth Moulton, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Delia Ramirez, Andrea Salinas, Janice Schakowsky, Darren Soto, Rashida Tlaib, Paul Tonko, Lauren Underwood, Gabe Vasquez, and Nydia Velázquez.
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