Glacier Country News

Forestry students at the University of Montana are busy preparing for the 106th Foresters’ Ball, a traditional event and fundraiser for students in the W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation. The event will take place at UM’s Schreiber Gym, transformed into an old logging town with wooden facades of various buildings like a saloon and chapel.

The ball, themed “Tankers Dumpin’ & Crews a Jumpin’,” pays tribute to firefighting crews in the state. It is open to the public on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 31-Feb. 1, with tickets available online. Additionally, there will be a Community Forestry Day on Saturday before the ball.

Koson Verkler, a senior forestry student and leader of the Foresters’ Ball Committee, stated that this year’s event was inspired by past and present fire crews. A replica smokejumper aircraft will be part of the display.

An exhibit honoring those who died in the 1949 Mann Gulch Fire will be featured upstairs in Schreiber Gym. Verkler emphasized its importance: “People will be able to walk up there and understand more about who they were.”

Mike Ryan, a UM alumnus and Forest Service firefighter familiar with Mann Gulch, expressed his appreciation for this commemoration: “Even if they are not directly remembered by name, the lessons that came out of Mann Gulch will stay with the firefighting community forever.”

Verkler plans to join land management efforts after graduation while working with other alumni on conservation projects. He noted growing support for UM’s forestry college through initiatives like “Treasure Montana: Cultivating Our Tomorrow,” aiming to raise funds for new research facilities.

As he prepares for his final Foresters’ Ball as a student, Verkler reflects on revitalizing it post-COVID-19: “I think the ball is in a really good spot right now... I’m just lucky to be able to do what I do and be a part of this history.”