Jon King

I don't normally step out of the newsroom and write stories for comic relief, but some comments on this Amazon.com listing for Haribo Gummy Candy, Sugarless Gummy Bears, 5-Pound Bag left me in stitches. WARNING! if you are sensitive to off-color humor (poo-jokes) do not continue reading.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced today its proposal to acquire 652 acres of land around the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument.

Every year, the National Cherry Blossom Festival takes place in Washington D.C. to celebrate the Mayor of Tokyo's gift of Japanese cherry trees to the United State in 1912. The real goal of the festival is to celebrate the special friendship Japan and the United States share and to promote cultural exchange between the two countries. Communications Officer for the Montana State Society, Stephanie Samford, tells us about some of the activities at the festival and announces Montana's princess this year.

As of January 30, 2012, more than 380 million dollars is available for fire departments nationwide. The money is available through the Safer Act Grants, which were put in place by the Department of Homeland Security. SAFER is an acronym that stands for Staffing for Adequate Fire & Emergency Response. The goal of the SAFER grants is to ensure that fire departments have enough staff members to respond

he now famous Jesus statue on the top of Big Mountain in Whitefish will be the subject of an upcoming legislative hearing. The House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands will discuss a proposed land exchange between the Whitefish Mountain Resort and the Federal Government. The land exchange

Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks is trying to alert all hunters to some key changes in the 2012 preseason calender. One of the biggest changes is that the deadline for residents and nonresidents to apply for deer and elk permits has been moved up to March 15. Drawings for those permits will now occur in mid-April instead of July. A complete list of important dates is included below.

Homeword is set to celebrate the grand opening of their new, mixed-use building on the corner of Broadway and Russell. The building, known as Solstice, sits on a riverfront parcel which was donated by the Missoula Community to the Homeword sustainable housing project. The unit includes 34 apartments, office spaces, solar panels, an underground parking lot, and even re-purposed bowling lanes.

For ten years, visitors to Yellowstone National Park were not able to use the cabins near Old Faithful. After a new environmental assessment, the park is thinking about changing course. Spokesman for Yellowstone National Park, Al Nash tells us what the plan is.

A man was found dead in the 200 block of west Pine Street near the Mountain line bus station. The man was found by an acquaintance and although the man's name has not yet been released, the police know his identity. Missoula Police Detective Sargent Travis Welsh explains the situation.

Missoula County plans on applying for a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Grant. The grant, known as the Brownsfields Multi-Purpose Pilot Grant is meant only for "community based organizations" and requires those organizations to conduct community notification before submitting a request. According to the E.P.A.'s frequently asked questions site, which you can read here, only one project per region will receive the grant and a total of $550,000 is possible for cleaning up the chosen site. The Missoula County request would be used to help clean up asbestos at the Missoula County Courthouse.