Two Blaine Countians received "Senior Citizen of the Year" awards at the regional meeting of the North Central Agency on Aging's gathering on July 20 at the senior center in Geraldine. "The annual award program," per Karin Roehm, Director of Area III's regional senior centers, "honors volunteers who have made significant contributions at the various centers in our region."

The Area III Aging Council includes senior centers in Blaine, Chouteau, Liberty, Pondera, Teton, Glacier and Toole counties. Award winners received a plaque commemorating their recognition. Area III officials printed a booklet that has a photo and a short biography about each 2018 winner . Award recipients also received a vest to wear at senior functions. Director Roehm said, "It's all about recognizing the support of volunteers by their respective senior centers." The Harlem and Chinook Senior Center members selected the following two people as 2018 senior citizens of the year.

Rose Noel: Harlem Senior Center

Center Director Katy Noel submitted this information

Rose was born to Jerl and Ara Weber in St. Ignatius, Montana, as the 6th of 14 children. When she was around three years old the family moved to Charlo, where they raised, and milked, Holstein cows.

After graduating from high school, she married her sweetheart, Kenneth Noel, in Lewistown. They began their married life running the A&W restaurant in Wolf Point. They made several moves, taking them to Lewistown, Libby, Hamer, Idaho and finally to Kalispell.

In Kalispell they raised their three children: Tammy, Tom and Tracy. Besides being a mother and housewife, Rose worked at several different jobs, including delivering newspapers, taking ice cream orders at a restaurant and acting supervisor at a retail store. Rose has two grandsons and two granddaughters, one great-grandson and most recently, one great-granddaughter, who she hopes to meet soon.

Rose and Ken were very involved in the Kalispell Moose Lodge. The Moose Lodge took Rose all over the state and into Canada for events and conventions. In their free time they enjoyed fishing, camping and traveling.

Rose moved to Harlem in 2012. She started her involvement with the Harlem Senior Center as cook for two days a week. This quickly expanded into cooking all six days that the Harlem Center is open each week. In addition to the regular noon meals, she also prepared the big once-a-month Sunday meals the Center held as a fundraiser for three years. Last August, she officially retired at age 75.

Rose's contributions to the Harlem Senior Center go well beyond the kitchen, where she was a paid employee. She is one of the most faithful and reliable volunteers in every capacity that the Center has. She is always willing to jump in with setting tables, running the dishwasher, sweeping, mopping, gluing puzzles to backboards to be hung up, weeding and watering the flowers in the courtyard, doing janitorial duties when the regular person is gone, running to Chinook to pick up the senior commodities, going on grocery runs and checking on problem situations in the building during late night hours. The list could go on, but I think you get the idea... Rose is a most treasured and reliable volunteer. She is a friend to all who come to the Senior Center and is always very welcoming and inviting to all who know her. The Harlem Senior Center is extremely lucky to have her.

Rose enjoys traveling and has recently returned from a cruise through the Panama Canal. She enjoys her many needlework projects and is steadily producing one beautiful item after another. Counted cross-stitch appears to be her favorite. Life still has much more to offer and Rose is waiting to turn that next page in her book.

Ray Reid: Chinook Senior Center

Former Director Kristy Norby provided information for this story

The Chinook Senior Center's 2018 Citizen of the Year is Ray Reid. In addition to currently being a regular part of the mid-morning coffee group at the center, Ray just finished a stint as the "bingo caller" stepping up at the last minute when a vacancy occurred. A former director said, "When Ray did bingo things seemed to go really well. He's a favorite among our steady bingo players." Ray Reid has been involved in numerous leadership positions for many community groups in Chinook and served a term on the Senior Center Board.

Ray was a high school shop teacher for many years and often brought his "fix-it skills" to play on behalf of the Chinook center doing what he calls "minor maintenance." With an eye to shop safety, he recently provided a ladder for the center's cooks to assure they could reach high places safely in the kitchen. He's served as Commander of the local VFW Post for five years and as part of that group's mission to display the American flag in public places Ray bought and installed a flag at the entrance to the senior center.

A native of Cando, North Dakota, Ray graduated college and started his teaching career in Erdmore, ND where he was commander of the American Legion and a volunteer fireman. He came to Chinook more than fifty years ago to teach industrial arts and was the wrestling coach for 25 years.

Two years ago the Blaine County Fair Board dedicated its 2016 Fair Book to Ray. He began working as a maintenance worker the summer after he arrived in Chinook to begin teaching. He served in various capacities over the years including Fair Manager from 1971-1986 and then as a member of the Fair Board until he retired in 1990. Ray said of his involvement in the Blaine County Fair, "Even as a kid I loved when the fair came to Cando, my hometown."

Locals recall that Ray brought the fair through some tough times. His first year as fair manager followed a very wet fair week with a $30,000 debt to overcome. Ray said, "Locals pitched in and made sure we had a fair despite the debt." Don Richman, the Fair Board Chairman when the dedication was made, wrote, "Ray Reid devoted a third of a century to assure a great Blaine County Fair each year. The board wanted to recognize that service and thank Ray for his many years of service."

Ray is famous for donating to local causes. It's not unusual for him to buy a raffle ticket, win the cash and then donate it back to the cause holding the raffle. He's been a cheerleader in the community for many causes and projects for over a half century. Former Senior Center Director Kristy Norby said of him, "Ray is all about Chinook. No matter the cause, he supports it with his presence and financial support."

Ray Reid is a native of Cando, North Dakota. He moved to Chinook where he taught industrial arts and coached wrestling for many years. For 30+ years he was active working for and directing the Blaine County Fair.

He definitely brought the spirit of his hometown with him to Chinook. Thanks, Ray, for your 'Can do' spirit.