During a ceremony at the Montana State Capitol on November 15th, Lt. Governor Mike Cooney presented the 2019 Good Neighbor Awards to several Montanans and Montana companies that have demonstrated commitment to community, stewardship, public access and conservation.
Those honored included Jeff Janke of Avon; Barry Dexter of the Stimson Lumber Company in Missoula; the stimson Lumber Company; Kip and Adele Stenson of Hodges; Jamie, Ben, Marie and Bob Lehfeldt and Lehfeldt Rambouillets of Lavina; and the Sunlight Ranch Company of Hardin.
"Today's honorees are outstanding examples of what it means to be a good neighbor", Cooney said. "Being a landowner in Montana is part of a greater community -- one that comes with its own tradition of taking care of that land, helping out your neighbors, and being deeply committed to stewardship, conservation and community responsibility".
The Lehfeldts were nominated by FWP. The nomination letter said, "The future of Montana is brighter because of good neighbors like the Lehfeldts.
They demonstrate daily their cooperation with others, model good land stewardship and conservation ethics, allow neighborly land access, and are involved in community leadership on a local, state and national level.
Their commitment to promotion and modeling healthy diverse rangelands has led to a healthier wildlife habitat. Specifically, their work in the conservation of sage grouse and other upland game bird enhancement in the
area".
The Montana Neighbor Awards is a working group made up of conservation organizations from around the state including FWP; Montana Association of Land Trusts; Montana Farm Bureau; Artemis Common Ground; The Nature Conservancy of Montana and Montana Council of Trout Unlimited.
The Good Neighbor AWards have been given annually since 2006 and are based on four criteria: cooperation, land stewardship/conservation ethis, neighborly land access and community leadership.
Every year, the group solicits nominations of landowners from across Montana. An awards committee, along with the governor's office, reviews the nominations and selects the award-winners. Winners receive specially
printed and framed Montana Neighbor Award certificates signed by the members of the awards committee and by Montana Gov. Steve Bullock.
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