Commission honors citizens, officers
Berl Tiskus
Kyler Lundeen, left, and Kyla Blixt hold lifesaving certificates they received from Polson Police Chief Wade Nash. The girls combined forces to save Blixt’s father from drowning.
Berl Tiskus
Polson Police Detective Juan Maso, center, receives a police medal and a lifesaving ribbon for rescuing a man whose boat pinned him against a rock.
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POLSON — Polson Police Chief Wade Nash presented lifesaving ribbons and medals at the Feb. 4 Polson City Commission meeting.
Citizens honored for a lifesaving act were 12-year-old Kyler Lundeen and 11-year-old Kyle Blixt. Lundeen and Blixt were boating on Aug 3, 2012, when Blixt realized her father and brother were having difficulty swimming. Blixt called 911, “giving the dispatcher valuable lifesaving information,” Nash said. Lundeen jumped into Flathead Lake with a lifesaving vest for one of the swimmers. The swimmers were close to the boat but unable to get back onboard, so Blixt drove closer to shore where first responders could have easier access, as Lundeen gripped the swimmer’s arm, towing him along.
“Your quick thinking, decisive action and ability to remain calm in a stressful situation ultimately saved the life of the swimmer (Blixt’s father),” Nash said
Detective Juan Maso was also honored with a lifesaving ribbon and the police medal, the highest honor possible, for the same incident. Maso “unselfishly” entered Flathead Lake to rescue the drowning man pinned between his boat and a rock, pushing the boat away and rescuing the man. Corporal William Cleveland and Detective Alan Booth both received lifesaving ribbons for the same incident.
Assistant Chief John Stevens and Deputy Clay Schoemacher received lifesaving ribbons for the Sept. 25, 2012, rescue of a female victim in the Flathead River. She was drowning, and the two officers swam to her and pulled her to shore.
The commissioners voted to authorize Polson City Manager Todd Crossett to negotiate contract renewal with Roger Wallace of Link’s Management, Inc., for one year.
Commissioners specified that Crossett negotiate a one-year addendum for possible sale of the city’s liquor license to the company with an option to buy the license back.
After discussion about offering the liquor license to Wallace for “a nominal fee,” Commissioner John Campbell said, “We sure don’t want to give (the liquor license) away.”
In other business, the commission approved Resolution No. 1038 to adopt Lake County’s pre-disaster mitigation plan.
They also re-appointed Christine Ayers to the Polson Park Board as a three-year member-at-large.
The commission’s next meeting will be held Feb. 20 at 7 p.m. at City Hall.
