A celebration of mothers, sisters, and daughters
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An Ode to My Mother
Girls. Girls Girls. I am the oldest of three and the mother of two. But that doesn’t make me an expert—by no means! With a complexity that’s been joked about since the beginning of time, women are still as labyrinthine as ever (and I like it that way)! Naturally, our first women’s issue is bursting at the seams with tales of epic ladies: business owners, creatives, and trailblazers. And as amazing as they all are, the greatest woman I’ve ever known has been my mother, who has loved her daughters and now granddaughters so faithfully. While the following ode I’ve dedicated to her, I find it fitting for any woman who finds themselves contemplating the juxtaposition of their magnificent nature. So without further ado… Mama, I love you so much. Happy Mother’s Day. This one’s for you (and for the rest of our inspiring women of the Flathead too).
What kind of tree is she?
Perhaps an oak, sturdy and strong. Or like the willow, with grace to say when she’s wrong. What kind of waterway? Such that carves canyons so deep?
Or a stream for a wanderer, where weary feet sleep? Is she a storm sweeping down with good rains?
Or is she the sunshine that warms the great plains?
She’s the wild taste of berries to savor and prize, Yet yarrow for healing, to lull grievous cries.
She is “both and”—a vastness of nature, A rapid heart or poised soul, whatever the feature. Her intricacy ends where her love does, I swear. And that ends in a place that is simply nowhere.
SUMMER ZALESKY, EDITOR @FLATHEADVALLEY.CITYLIFESTYLE
May 2026
PUBLISHER
Greig Fahnlander
Greig.Fahnlander@CityLifestyle.com
EDITOR
Summer Zalesky
Summer.Zalesky@CityLifestyle.com
STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Nicole Macias | Hello.NikityNak@Gmail.com
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Marko Capofferi, Kate Heston, Sydney Ludden
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
Allison Weis, Eva Goodwin, Forrest Mankins, Nikity Nak Creatives
Corporate Team
CEO Steven Schowengerdt
President Matthew Perry
COO David Stetler
CRO Jamie Pentz
CoS Janeane Thompson
AD DESIGNER Evan Deuvall
LAYOUT DESIGNER Kelsey Ragain
QUALITY CONTROL SPECIALIST Brandy Thomas
3:5-6
inside the issue
Rhinestones and Rapids
Brooke "Minnow" Hornbeck sprinkles rafters with
Spirit of the Frontier
Savoring wildly local sips at Spotted Bear Spirits
Leanna Klaus expands family-driven realty in the valley
"Minnow" Hornbeck
city scene
NEIGHBORS CAN SEE AND BE SEEN
business monthly
Physio Whitefish Welcomes New Doctor of Physical Therapy
Please welcome Weston O'Conner to the Physio Whitefish team! A former collegiate swimmer, Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist, and Certification in Applied Functional Science, Weston brings a performance-based mindset to rehabilitation. Her clinical interests include sports injuries, balance impairments, deconditioning, hypermobility, vestibular conditions, and headaches. Whatever the diagnosis, Weston’s goal is to create a supportive environment for her patients and to celebrate both the big milestones and the small wins along the way.
Mobile Car Detailing Available May to October
Montana roads are hard on your vehicle. Gravel, UV, and harsh winters add up fast, but the team at Stumptown Detailing brings high-quality products and processes to keep your car looking sharp. Stumptown Detailing is available for mobile service May through October, so why wait?
Goodbye Winter Grime!
May is the month of renewal, and the team at Shinehaus Montana is already in high gear. Don’t let winter’s grime fog up your windows. Get those jaw-dropping Montana vistas back with expert interior and exterior cleaning, gutter care, and pro-grade pressure washing. The calendar is filling up fast so secure your spot today before the summer rush begins!
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ARTICLE BY KATE HESTON PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALLISON WEIS AND EVA GOODWIN
RHINESTONES and RAPIDS
Brooke "Minnow" Hornbeck sprinkles rafters with glitter and grit
Brooke Hornbeck’s first year raft guiding was roughly seven years ago, when the 15-year-old welcomed a group of Girl Scouts onto her raft.
At the time, Brooke was the only female guide at her company in the Adirondacks of New York state. What was a day of laughter, stoke and fun on the water turned into a meaningful experience for the new raft guide: the notion that women deserve to be celebrated outdoors.
A few weeks after Brooke took the middle school girls out on her raft, she received a stack of letters in the mail, written ramblings of the joy they had on the water and their admiration for her trade. Some claimed they now wanted to guide themselves when they grew up. It was empowering, she reflected.
“Feminine energy and softness can also be strengths,” Brooke says. “Teaching younger girls, like the Girl Scouts, to be who they are in their femininity while embracing their strength at the same time… bringing those two things together has been really cool.”
Seven years later, Brooke — nicknamed “Minnow” — is still showing people the waves, rapids and spirit of American waters in a way that she hopes empowers her guests.
When Brooke first arrived in West Glacier, she was the second “Brooke” guide in the group. The first Brooke boasted a tall stature; the guides nicknamed her trout. When Brooke came around, minnow was an easy comparison nickname. Years later, it continues to stick.
She often received mail addressed to Minnow, business emails referring to Minnow, and more. It’s a testament to the personality and livelihood one can have on the water.
Out east, Brooke grew up rafting with her family and friends. She guided every summer she could throughout high school, falling in love with the sport.
“The biggest thing that drew me in was that it made me feel fully present,” she says. “I think I dealt with a lot of getting caught up in my own head, but when you’re rafting you have to be right there.”
After attending the University of Vermont, Brooke knew she wanted to continue guiding. She googled waters out West and quickly stumbled across Glacier National Park. She applied to Glacier Raft Company, got the job, and moved out West without knowing a single person.
While an affinity for the ever clear and blue waters of Montana keeps bringing Brooke back, so does the community of Glacier Raft Company guides and the greater West Glacier ecosystem. Coming from a company where she was the only female raft guide, Glacier Raft Company has exposed Brooke to more comradery.
Last year, Brooke attended the “Ladies Upper” trip, an annual occurrence through Glacier Raft Company. Together, a group of female raft guides hikes seven miles into the wilderness to begin a multiday raft trip on the upper middle fork of the Flathead River. It was magical, Brooke said.
Over time, Brooke channeled that magic into her daily life on the water. Known as the girl with the glitter, it’s common to see
The biggest thing that drew me in was that it made me feel fully present... When you’re rafting you have to be right there.
Brooke’s entire raft — men and women alike — with glitter on their cheeks. Nowadays, if Brooke is on the water, her glitter is close by.
“I’m kind of superstitious about it,” she laughs.
Glitter has become a popular commodity in outdoor recreation. Brands like Adorn, Brooke’s personal favorite, use biodegradable materials in order to make the glitter safer for the environment. In a place like the Flathead Valley, one will likely see glitter adorning the faces of many people on the mountains, on the trails and on the slopes.
It’s just one aspect of femininity that makes rafting fun, a concept that Brooke at 15 would have been ecstatic about. Looking back now, there is a lot that 15-year-old Brooke would be proud of, she says.
“If I could tell my younger self anything, it would be to be louder,” Brooke says. “Not just verbally. I think I shrunk myself to fit in because I was intimidated… I didn’t feel like I could speak because I didn’t know what the other employees knew. But I am so loud now as a person. Once you finally open up, others open up too.”
Of all the rivers she’s floated — including a recent month-long trip in the Grand Canyon on the Colorado River — the Flathead is easily her favorite. It’s pristine in nature, brings life to so many important fisheries and provides memories that are worth a lifetime. She’s had life altering conversations on the boat, as well as some of the funniest moments she can remember.
Brooke is currently in Utah for the winter, working in crime scene investigations and also part time at a ski resort. But, like every year so far, her return to Montana in mid-May brings excitement.
Of all the things she could look forward to — massive peaks, clear waters, a staff of coworkers that has turned into family — Brooke said that this year, she hopes to find more glitter colors. And, of course, plenty more people who will wear it proudly.
If I could tell my younger self anything, it would be to be louder...Once you finally open up, others open up too.
Spirit of the Frontier
Savoring wildly local sips at Spotted Bear Spirits
For the intrepid Montana adventurer, a trek to Spotted Bear Ranger District ought to be at the top of any list. Fifty miles of washboard will get you to this little haven tucked between the Swan and Lewis mountain ranges, where the South Fork of the Flathead River spills clear from the glaciated heights of the Bob Marshall Wilderness.
“It’s one of my favorite little pockets,” says Lauren Oscilowski, owner and managing partner at Spotted Bear Spirits, a distillery in Whitefish that just celebrated its tenth anniversary. “It made sense, around a campfire one night, to bring that name into it.”
When reflecting on what Lauren wants Spotted Bear Spirits to provide for the community, the campfire is also a perfect metaphor.
“It’s just become a gathering place and a place of celebration,” she says of their tasting room on Railway Street, “a really inclusive place that welcomes everyone. We see a lot of familiar faces. I really love that sense of community.”
Inclusivity and community-building extend beyond the walls of their tasting room or production facility. It’s in how Spotted Bear Spirits shows up for their neighbors.
ARTICLE BY MARKO CAPOFERRI
PHOTOGRAPHY BY FORREST MANKINS
“We’re able to do ‘cocktails for a cause,’ month-long donations to nonprofits that align with our company ethos,” Lauren says. “We’re currently doing one for Whitefish Legacy Partners and we’ve also adopted a portion of a trail where we go and do trail maintenance. Integrating into the community felt important to me.”
This integration is something that’s at the heart of Spotted Bear Spirits. They make it a central aspect of their business to source locally, to make Western Montana an essence in their product.
“We want to offer cocktails that are rooted in place, so we work with local farms for some of our cocktail ingredients and also some of our product ingredients,” Lauren says. “For example, for our Mountain Mint Peppermint Schnapps—which is similar to Rumple Minze but way better—we work with a farmer in Creston who’s a third-generation mint grower. I think it really brings this great flavor profile to the product and, again, it really roots us in place.”
The list of local growers and crops that give Spotted Bear their bonafide “made in Montana” stamp is rather extensive: hinkelhatz spicy peppers, an heirloom variety they use in their tequila-adjacent agave spirit; sugar beets from Eastern Montana for their vodka, and locally sourced huckleberries.
Anyone who’s spent more than a little time in Montana knows that we take care of each other in a particularly unique way. Lauren and Spotted Bear Spirits have leapt headfirst into this network of mutual support that sets Montanans apart.
Hand-in-hand with the communities of care that sprout here organically is also a spirit of fierce independence, and as Lauren says, that
helps a lot as a woman-owned business in an industry that’s very much dominated by men. Up until two years ago, Spotted Bear was the only woman-led distillery in the whole state, out of 20-some distilleries.
“You have to have a thicker skin,” Lauren says. “I can’t tell you how many times, if I’m standing next to Bo [Spotted Bear’s head distiller], it’s Bo’s distillery. Or, if it is mine, they’ll say, ‘oh, and your husband.’ There’s definitely a lot of that you bump up against, but I think it can kind of be your superpower.”
Lauren and the team have, as she says, “leaned into the feminine a little more.” Their upcoming whiskey line will feature “strong frontier woman” imagery on the label, as they seek to tell the stories of the ‘trailblazettes’ that paved the way.
“I’m proud of it,” she says of the business she started a little over ten years ago. “I think it takes a little more grit and determination to build a business as a woman in a male-dominated industry.”
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From Homemaker to Realtor
LEANNA KLAUS EXPANDS FAMILY-DRIVEN
REALTY IN THE VALLEY
ARTICLE
BY KATE HESTON PHOTOGRAPHY BY NIKITY NAK CREATIVES
Leanna Klaus measures success by looking back at how far she’s come. Now a Flathead Valley realtor, Leanna has one word to describe the career she’s built: thankful.
Leanna is not only thankful for the life she’s built but also for the women who came before her, the women who will come after her and the women she gets to meet through work today.
“Don’t let fear stop you,” says Leanna, responsible for expanding Live in Montana Real Estate in the Northwest part of the state.
Leanna and her family are the force behind the expansion of Live in Montana Real Estate - Flathead, a branch of the already established Live in Montana Real Estate based out of central Montana. It’s a career she’s recently delved into, rooted in a passion for homes, for families and for real estate in general.
Prior to moving West, Leanna grew up in Illinois, graduating from Illinois State University with a degree in elementary education and a piano teaching certificate. She was always interested in teaching from an early age, she says, and was drawn to learning in any form.
After marrying her husband in 1991, Leanna chose to stay home to homeschool their five children and teach them music. It paid off, she laughs, reminiscing on the many nights the family would play together, Leanna on the piano and her daughter on the fiddle, among other instruments.
The family spent 20 years in Sanders County, with their fair share of buying and selling homes over the years. Real estate was always a love of Leanna’s, she says, but the timing never seemed right to dedicate her career to it.
When Leanna and her husband decided to sell their ranch on the Rocky Mountain Front and move
to the valley a few years ago to be closer to their kids, her gusto for real estate found a purpose. They found a broker named Lynn Kenyon, with Live in Montana Real Estate, who blew Leanna away. Her energy, professionalism and knowledge were endearing, Leanna says, and she asked Kenyon to be her mentor.
“I’ve been waiting for that direction that [Lynn] helped give me,” Leanna says. “I had all these ideas circling around in my head and it’s finally being put together.”
Leanna loves that real estate empowers her and other women to put themselves and their families first when it comes to looking for a home. For her, she says, it’s all about the seasons and timing of life. She chose to put her family first and it paid off, she says. When she works with women who are buying or selling, she is able to relate to them well, she says, by understanding what one may look for in a home.
Even better, Leanna says, she’s embarking on her realty journey in the Flathead alongside family members. Her husband is a master plumber and a Montana state inspector; her son-in-law, a fifth-generation Montanan, has an extensive background in construction. Together, they are building a home base in Kalispell, which will feature a barn for the group to operate out of.
“I just want to expand this company here in the valley. I think the team I’ve put together is full of so much different knowledge... It goes beyond an average agent,” she says. “We’re bringing a lot of knowledge to the table and what we have to offer is spectacular.”
Moving forward, Leanna is excited to build out this new sector of Live in Montana Real Estate, all the while encouraging others to take the risk, follow their passions and live with thanks.
I think the team I've put together is full of so much different knowledge... It goes beyond an average agent.
THE MAIDEN'S MARK
ARTICLE BY SYDNEY LUDDEN PHOTOGRAPHY BY NIKITY NAK CREATIVES
There’s a moment, if you’ve ever walked into a tattoo studio and felt immediately out of place, where you quietly talk yourself out of it. Maybe the music is too loud. Maybe the energy is too sharp. Maybe you just didn’t feel like you belonged there. Sammy Connell knows that moment well, because she lived it herself.
The art of sisterhood at Original Skin Tattoo
We want to drop the pretense and the ego... Focus on each other and the art, and let that blossom here.
“I found my style because I worked in very male-dominated spaces that were grungy,” she says. “Dragons, barbed wire. I wanted to make tattoo art that was different and felt more like me.”
That instinct — to create something softer and more welcoming — became the seed of Original Skin Tattoo & Piercing, the all-female studio tucked into the basement of Kalispell’s historic KM Building. And what a space it is. The original 1894 brickwork lines one wall, left intentionally exposed.
“We wanted a grounding energy since we don’t have windows,” Sammy explains. “It became one of the defining aesthetics of our space.” It feels, somehow, both ancient and fresh. Which, it turns out, is a pretty good description of everything Original Skin is doing.
Sammy started tattooing in 2018, drawn in by her love of art and the creative freedom the craft offered. She and her husband Tucker eventually
went all-in. Tucker, who had been selling advertising at a radio station, was diagnosed with M.S. and lost his job. They splurged on a tattooing machine and didn’t look back. After a short apprenticeship in a culture that didn’t fit and a couple of years working out of an improvised space, Original Skin officially opened in 2022.
She wasn’t planning to build a team. But when she found herself working seven days a week, she put up a posting, and Lucy walked through the door.
Lucy Yoes had been working in Glacier National Park, originally from Hawaii, looking for a way into an industry that hadn’t exactly been rolling out the welcome mat. “When I saw Sammy was the sole owner, and I looked at her art, I was attracted to this place,” she says. “I’ve always felt very supported in finding my own style. Sam encouraged me to be more creative — to expand out of the traditional thick-line, sheet-art approach.”
Then came Emily Moran, who had moved from Washington to Polson and spent years in the beauty industry before realizing she needed something more. She’d gotten a tattoo from Sammy, loved the experience, and asked if there was room for her. There was. “I grew up a dancer,” she shares. “I took a hiatus and got into painting because I still needed a creative outlet.” That creative restlessness found a home here.
“You don’t want to have the same tattoo as anyone,” says Emily. “We don’t repeat our flash designs. Even if it’s a similar design, we change it. I always want to make the tattoo unique to you.”
Now Jill Zick is apprenticing, a Montana Conservation Corps transplant who nearly never entered the industry at all. “As a woman, a lot of shops just don’t want you there,” she says plainly. “Original Skin is creating a space specifically for women to come into something that was typically not for us.”
What Sammy has built — with Tucker managing scheduling and filtering out what he charmingly calls “the pains” — is less tattoo parlor, and more sanctuary. Their clientele is roughly 95% women between 17 and 40, though they also see older women, dads, grandmas, and lots of families coming in for piercings. They are, by every measure, not your typical studio.
“We want to drop the pretense and the ego,” Sammy says. “Focus on each other and the art, and let that blossom here.”
This May, Original Skin is hosting a Mother’s Day flash event — a fitting celebration for a studio that, at its core, is about making people feel good in their own skin. If you’ve been sitting with an idea, now’s the time, because somewhere in that basement on Main Street, there are four women who would very much like to hear your story.
ARTICLE BY KALI KASORZYK
PHOTOGRAPHY PROVIDED
BECKY HILLYARD
From Side Hustle to Style Empire
The power of taste, trust, and the courage to “just start.”
She didn’t have a business plan, a media budget, or even a name anyone could pronounce. What Becky Hillyard had was taste, a young family, and the instinct to just start. Today, her lifestyle brand Cella Jane commands an audience the size of Vogue’s, she’s nine collections strong with Splendid, and she’s built it all while raising three kids — refusing to sacrifice one for the other. In an exclusive conversation for the Share the Lifestyle podcast, Becky shares what it really takes to build a brand, a career, and a life you love. Read the highlights below, then scan the QR code for the full conversation.
Q: WHEN DID YOU KNOW CELLA JANE WAS MORE THAN A HOBBY?
A: Two moments. Women started emailing me saying they bought something I recommended and felt amazing — asking me to help them find a dress for a wedding. That felt incredible. Then I looked at my affiliate numbers for one month and realized I could cover our mortgage. I thought, I can actually do this. I never set out to build a business. I started it because I genuinely loved it.
Becky in Splendid x @CellaJaneBlog Spring 2026 Collection
Q: WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST RISK YOU EVER TOOK WITH THE BRAND?
A: Designing my own collection. It’s easy to point at items on a website and say I love these. But to create something from scratch, put your name on it, and wait to see if people connect with it — that’s terrifying. I had an incredible partner in Splendid, and women loved the pieces. It was the biggest risk and the biggest accomplishment.
Q: HOW HAS INFLUENCER MARKETING CHANGED SINCE YOU STARTED?
A: When I started, brands didn’t know whether to take it seriously. Now it’s a legitimate line item in their marketing budgets — sometimes bigger than TV. Because what we’ve built is trust. People trust a real recommendation from someone they follow far more than a commercial. There’s no question about it now.
Q: YOU’RE A MOM OF THREE RUNNING A FULL BRAND. WHAT DOES YOUR DAY ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE?
A: I try to get up at five and not hit snooze — that first hour before the house wakes up is the most productive, most peaceful hour of my day. Then it’s all hands on deck with the kids and school drop-off. After that I work — planning content, connecting with my team, editing. After pickup, the day shifts completely and it’s all about them. I’ve learned to protect both halves fiercely, because both matter.
Q: WHAT WOULD YOU TELL SOMEONE WHO WANTS TO BUILD SOMETHING OF THEIR OWN BUT KEEPS WAITING?
A: Don’t wait. Don’t wait for the perfect camera, the right strategy, or enough followers. We find every excuse to stay comfortable. Just start, be consistent, and be authentically yourself. The right people will find you — and they’ll stay.
This conversation is just the beginning. Becky goes deeper on the risks that almost stopped her, the design process behind her latest Splendid collection, and what she’d tell her 2012 self today. Scan the QR code for the full, exclusive City Lifestyle interview on the Share the Lifestyle Podcast.
“Trust is the only metric that actually compounds.”
— Becky Hillyard
FEATURING BECKY HILLYARD
GET INSPIRED EAT & DRINK SHOP LOCAL
A SELECTION OF UPCOMING LOCAL EVENTS
MAY 2ND
20th Annual Paddling Film Festival
O’Shaughnessy Cultural Arts Center 7:00 PM
Flathead Rivers Alliance and Montana Kayak Academy come together to present and celebrate 20 years of international paddling filmmaking. Epic films will honor the men and women who brave these wild waters. Proceeds from tickets will go towards supporting both organizations.
Doors will open at 5:00 PM to enjoy refreshments and good paddling conversation. Tickets are available at FlatheadRivers.org/Events.
MAY 9TH
Kalispell Summer Flea Market
Flathead County Fairgrounds | 9:00 AM
It’s that time of year again! The flea market is back with dozens of vendors selling antique, vintage, collectable, and handmade items ranging from housewares like furniture, glassware and tools to unique items like vintage 70s style clothing and deer mounts. Get your thrift on!
MAY 9TH & 10TH
2026 Montana Spartan
Trifecta Weekend
6850 Highway 35, Bigfork
After a two year hiatus, the “hardest obstacle course on the planet” is returning to the Flathead! Run solo, as a team, or just come as a spectator for this epic race and maybe even earn bragging rights!
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MAY 9TH & 10TH
Mother’s Day Tea and Tour
Conrad Mansion | 11:00 AM
Pinky’s up! Celebrate the special lady in your life by exploring the beautiful Conrad Mansion. After, enjoy tea and treats, and maybe give a toast to mom! Choose from four ticket times: Saturday 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM, and Sunday 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Tickets are available at ConradMansion.com/Events.
MAY 22ND - 24TH Bigfork Whitewater Festival
Downtown Bigfork | 12:00 PM
Come cheer on whitewater competitors as they make their way through the “Wild Mile,” a class IV section of the beautiful and scenic Swan River. Downtown Bigfork comes alive in this historic event.
MAY 29TH - 31ST Kalispell Tattoo Expo
Flathead Count Fairgrounds, Expo Building | 1:00 PM
Come enjoy free raffle giveaways and live tattooing all weekend by up to 60 award winning tattoo artists! Whether you prefer realism, traditional, new school, black and grey, or color tattoos, there is an artist here for everyone. 05-29-2026 1:00 PM to 10:00 PM, 05-30-2026 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM, 05-31-2026 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Managing Your Residential & Commercial Site Work Needs
