Montana does the holidays differently. There's something authentic about how we celebrate here—parades down Main Streets lit by thousands of lights, community gatherings where everyone actually knows each other, tree lightings that feel less like events and more like traditions. Whether you're in a bustling college town or a quiet mountain village, the holiday spirit feels genuine, unhurried, and deeply connected to the place. We've spent years exploring Montana's holiday celebrations, and...

Kate Stephens is a fourth-generation wheat farmer from Montana and the founder of Kate’s Ag, a platform dedicated to bridging the gap between farmers and consumers through storytelling, fashion, and education. Through her YouTube channel and social media, she advocates for family farmers by sharing authentic stories from rural America and highlighting how agriculture connects to both what we wear and what we eat. A senior at Cornell University studying International Agriculture and...

When Shirstie Gaylord walks through downtown Great Falls now, she sees it differently than she did eight years ago. Back then, she was hauling a six-foot table to the farmers market every weekend, selling Hometana's Montana t-shirts that she'd printed with her last few hundred dollars. She'd look around at the Mighty Mo Brewing crew, the Enbär group, Electric City Coffee (businesses that were saying downtown is cool) and think, I want to be one of them. Now she is. Today, Hometana occupies a...