‘Bang, bang, bang’ the hammer drives the nail into the 2x4. Hunched over and smothered with fine white dust covering my new duck brown carhartts, I stand up reaching for the sky to release the tension in my sore vertebrae. I take a deep breathe and ponder over what delicious concoction of a meal I’ll make for dinner tonight….will it be the mac & cheese or the remnants of last nights sour dough pizza….. Suddenly my focus is broken by a deafening cacophony of power tools roaring in the background and by the miscellaneous pings and thuds that pierce my ears. Drops of sweat shimmering on my cheek and streaks of black mud scarring my forehead, I glance furtively behind me only to see my colleagues camouflaged in the same fine white dust-and they’re hard at work brandishing power drills setting up sheet rock.
This construction scene is the site of the new MCC office for the Northern Rockies region. Soon the regional office will leave its former abode in Glacier building situated in downtown Kalispell just off Main street to its new spacious home cradled in the new Gateway Community Center appropriately neighboring socially conscious agencies like the ‘Boys and Girls Club’, ‘United Way’, ‘CASA’ and even a ‘Meals on Wheels’ Cafeteria that has been the talk of the town. New personal offices, a new and improved area for the tool cache, a room equipped with a computer for crew members-even a shower and bath and ample amount of space for much more are many of the luxuries provided by the new headquarters.
Yes, MCC is growing! How fortuitous that I find myself in the midst of MCC’s expansion- embarking towards great new things. This is the biggest season yet for the Northern Rockies region- a record breaking 16 crew leaders! Armed with young eager environmentally friendly troops yielding Pulaskis and shovels, and revitalized with a new mission statement (Montana Conservation Corps inspires young people through hands on conservation service to be leaders, stewards of the land and engaged citizens who improve their communities), MCC is setting itself up for a monumentally huge season seeking to connect young people with local community members. They’re marching in unison towards an epic journey seeking to make a huge contributions and positive change in Kalispell and the surrounding Flathead County.
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