🌱 MOR Raises $30,000 For Pride + Sapphire Ring Broadband Project

Hey, friends. It's Saturday in Missoula and I'm back in your inbox to get you caught up on all the most important things happening in town.

But first, your local weather:

• Saturday: A stray afternoon t-shower. High: 76 Low: 51.
• Sunday: A shower and t-storm; cooler. High: 64 Low: 44.

From our sponsor:

Today’s Missoula Patch newsletter is brought to you in part by T-Mobile. T-Mobile has invested billions to light up their best network ever, covering 99% of people in America with LTE, which helps to keep communities like ours informed and connected. We thank T-Mobile for their support and for making today’s Missoula Patch newsletter possible.

Here are the top three stories today in Missoula:

1. The local Missoula Organization of Realtors (MOR) has raised $30,000 for Pride Weekend and the Western Montana Community Center. The donation from MOR is a part of the organization's Homes For All initiative, a partnership with Homeward, to help community members more easily navigate the process of acquiring housing. The goal was to double what had been raised last year for the event, $10,000 and MOR is thrilled to have exceeded that goal. (KPAX 8 News)
2. A new broadband project called the "Sapphire Ring" has been announced to connect Missoula, Bitterroot, and the Big Hole Valley area with high-speed Internet. The $12 million initiative has been made possible by funding through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and has come a week after Tester claimed Montana would be receiving $119 million to bring broadband to roughly 61,000 Montanans who are currently without high-speed Internet access. A 137-mile swathe of "middle mile broadband" running along the length of the Sapphire Mountains will support connections in Missoula and Bitterroot but also bring ranches and businesses in Big Hole Valley into its network. (Newstalk KGVO)
3. Missoula's Brooks Street and Central Avenue Starbucks may be the first unionized Starbucks location in Montana as voters take the polls next week. The unionization election will occur on Jun. 23, with organizers estimating that 70 percent or more of the location's employees plan to vote in favor. Pro-union baristas at other Montana Starbucks locations claim that the Starbucks corporation has intimidated workers and undermined unionization efforts in the past. (Subscription: Missoulian)

Today and tomorrow in Missoula:

Saturday, June 17

• Transcendental Express - Missoula Pride At W Main Street and Ryman Street (3:30 PM)
• Live Music - Smooth Sayers At Zootown Arts Community Center (3:30 PM)

Sunday, June 18

• Birdwatching Club - June At Maclay Flat Nature Trail (9:00 AM)
• 2nd Annual Pride Roller Disco At Missoula County Fairgrounds Pavilion (2:00 PM)

From my notebook:

• City-County Health Department officials are extending the public comment period for the bear buffer zone expansion proposal in order to avoid confusion and keep the public informed as to the changes. Locals are asking for clarification on the finer points of buffer zone compliance and also on when the changes if adopted and when will they go into effect. (NBC Montana)
• Summer classes have started at Montana State University (MSU). On Jun. 15 MSU welcomed its first orientation class of the summer! (Montana State University via Instagram)

More from our sponsors — thanks for supporting local news!

Featured events:

• T-Mobile Tuesdays: Fresh Perks Every Week (Jun. 20)
• Add your event

Now you're in the loop and ready to start this Saturday off right. I'll see you back in your inbox soon with your next update!

— Amy Mayo

About me: Amy Mayo is a writer, visual artist, and political scientist, living in the NC Research Triangle. She graduated from the University of North Carolina Asheville with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and has worked in a variety of fields outside of copywriting including policy advocacy, the healthcare industry and pharmaceuticals, and education. She hopes one day to live up to the stringent expectations of her cat, Morty.