Town Pump

Tim Montana will make his much-anticipated musical return to the Mining City this Friday night and in true Tim Montana fashion, he is doing his part to give back to his town and his neighbors. Tim has teamed up with the Butte Arts Foundation and Mother Lode Theater along with Town Pump Food Stores of Montana to raise food, funds and awareness for Butte's Emergency Food Bank and Butte Rescue Mission.

I was not even a full year in my career with this Butte group of radio stations when the panic button was firmly pressed in our GM's office. It was 2003 and the group in charge of funding the annual 3rd of July Fireworks Show was out of money. There were not funds to cover that summer's upcoming fireworks show on the 3rd of July. It was that day, I believe, that we went on-air and started collecting donations from listeners. Soon local businesses joined in and started challenges with other local businesses in their respective fields. Donations and momentum continued to grow until the final day of the donation drive where we teamed up with our radio friends down the street from the Butte Broadcasting Group and did a citywide bucket drive on the corner of Harrison and Dewey live on all of Butte's local commercial radio stations and wound up getting enough donations to fund the fireworks show for not only that year but for the next three years. After that, Brooks Hanna Ford picked up the bill for a few years. And since then, Town Pump has been the sole sponsor of the annual 3rd of July Fireworks Show

As is customary in Butte, America, any good celebration gets underway a day early. Just look at Christmas Eve or St. Uhro's Day if you need proof. The 3rd of July is almost a bigger deal in Butte than Independence Day itself thanks to an amazing fireworks show and leadup parties. Butte's geography only adds to the intrigue. Have you figured out where you and your family are going to watch the Town Pump fireworks show? If you haven't, here are a few suggestions.

There really is no place in America that celebrates Independence Day the way that Butte, Montana does. Find another place that gets things rocking and rolling around lunchtime. On the 3rd of July. Butte has been doing that for years and with the opening of the Original Mineyard as a public recreation and concert area things are only getting bigger and better Uptown on the third as another major Country artist has been booked for a pre-fireworks concert. A few years back we got Lanco. This year, Bill Fisher and Railway Productions are proud to announce an even bigger pre-4th headliner and it's Rodney Atkins.

For the fifth year, Mainstreet Uptown Butte invites Butte citizens to come see the Copper Star in the County Courthouse and make a wish for the holidays. Between now and noon on December 21st, Butte citizens young and old are encouraged to make a wish for the community of Butte, or for neighbors, friends or families.

Seth Gardiner takes home the week 1 prize package in the Townsquare Media-Butte "Pigskin Pick-10" contest.