By DOUGLAS WILKS
Paradise Montana is nestled in the rugged, mountainous northwest part of the state. It was once the home of a large Northern Pacific Railroad roundhouse, a tie plant, and an elementary school for the children of the railroad employees.
Paradise Elementary School is the only large, three-story building remaining. It was in use from 1910-2013. Several generations of children have passed through the doors of the brick building that rests on top of a hill near the Paradise Cemetery on the eastern edge of town. Declining enrollment and fewer families staying in the very small rural community resulted in the school’s closure. The future of the 103-year-old structure was uncertain.
The historic school building and its newer gymnasium and cafeteria have been saved and are now known as the Paradise Center. Both structures are in the process of being transformed into a visual and performing arts, community, and visitor’s center. In 2013 a group of a dozen senior citizens who were active artists in the Sanders County Arts Council stepped forward to save the building. They shared with county commissioners, Paradise school board members, and many people in Sanders County a vision that the former school buildings could be transformed for such purposes.
They formed a non-profit organization, the Paradise Elementary School Preservation Committee, to apply for grants and raise donations for updating and remodeling.
Many of the old desks and classroom items were kept intact as one classroom would be maintained as a museum and reminder of those who had attended the school. Another former classroom has been remodeled and now serves as an interactive showcase for geological history.
One room contains a 3-dimensional, topographical map of the region showing Sanders County, Montana Highway 200, and the Clark Fork River. The map is very interactive, enabling visitors to press buttons to see current locations of major geological sites, rural communities, lakes, and major rivers.
One informational panel and series of lights indicate how the area was impacted, from Glacial Lake Missoula.
A third-floor classroom has been repurposed as a painting studio and contains 12 large, custom-made easels for artists. Local artist and musician Rudi Boukal and Paradise Preservation Committee member John Thorson made the easels. Several painting classes have been held in this studio within the past year.
The Visual Arts Committee of Sanders County Arts Council has offered classes for adults 18 years and older—drawing, watercolor, acrylics, pastels, color theory, caricatures, airbrush techniques, pottery, and sculpture. Photography and other performing art classes may soon be offered sometime in the not-too-distant future.
The annual Artists in Paradise event will occur at the Paradise Center July 19-21, where a wide variety of art will be available for purchase. Visitors can also win art through drawings as well as speak with local artists from Sanders County. A guided tour of the Paradise Center will also be offered.
Since its opening in 2013, the center has hosted 35 events with more than 3,500 attendees for wedding receptions, art events, plays, and concerts.
To learn more about the Paradise Center, visit www.paradisecentermt.org, email [email protected], or call (406) 826-0500.
Douglas Wilks is a freelance writer and photographer living near Plains, Mont. He was for a brief time a reporter for the Clark Fork Valley Press in Plains. He has had a passion for photography for over 40 years.
