Spotlight Montana

Montana’s wide-open roads can offer plenty of freedom for young drivers, but a new national study is highlighting the dangers that can come with getting behind the wheel. This month on Spotlight Montana, NBC Montana sits down with Montana Highway Patrol Sgt. Philip Smart to discuss a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study ranking Montana second in the nation for young driver fatalities.

This week on Spotlight Montana, we take an in-depth look at one of the state's most pressing public safety issues: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP). We sit down with Brian Frost, the Montana Department of Justice's Missing Persons Specialist, and Darci Humphrey, who is the Criminal Justice Information Network Program Manager, for a conversation about the ongoing MMIP crisis, the work being done to address it and what Montanans need to know.

Here in Montana, stories are about more than headlines. They're about our neighbors, our families, and the places we call home. I'm Colton Little, and this is Spotlight Montana—a Working For You podcast from NBC Montana. Each episode, we'll sit down with the people closest to the issues shaping our state—from public safety and Missing and Murdered Indigenous People to addiction, recovery, mental health, and the stories of resilience that remind us who we are as Montanans. You'll hear honest conversations, trusted reporting, and perspectives you won't find anywhere else. If it matters to Montana, we'll shine a spotlight on it. Subscribe now to Spotlight Montana, wherever you get your podcasts also availbe with video on the NBC Montana YouTube Channel. Spotlight Montana is proudly sponsored by Recovery Centers of Montana, connecting Montanans with education, information, and recovery resources across our state.

Spring is here, and that means it’s time for young children and their families to celebrate after a long winter dealing with the pandemic. Missoula's annual Week of the Child offers families a chance to do that. The week-long event offers fun activities for families, training programs and events to recognize early childhood champions. Events kick off this Saturday and continue through April 8. In this Spotlight Montana, Healthy Start coordinator Anna Semple shares with us what's planned and talks about the importance of early childhood programs and services designed to meet the needs of young children and their families. Semple also highlights some of the challenges young families are facing. Event information can be found at www.healthystartmissoula.org/woyc and more details about the Bright By Text and LIFTS programs are available at www.healthystartmissoula.org. Catch Spotlight Montana on iTunes, Spotify, YouTube and nbcmontana.com. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The M&M Bar and Cafe in Butte is reopening on St. Patrick’s Day with new sign and a new location 10 months after a devastating fire destroyed the original building. In this Spotlight Montana owner, Selina Pankovich shares with us an update and explains what it took to make the reopening possible. We also talk about the day the fire broke out, the items that survived the blaze and what the future holds for the original site. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.