by Gretchen Langton
Potlucks for Purpose, at the Rocky Mountain Grange (RMG#116) in Hamilton, is finishing its fourth season with a bang on Valentine’s Day, February 14 with a special appearance by The Big Sky Mudflaps. Anyone who loves music in the Bitterroot has likely experienced the dulcet grooves of The Big Sky Mudflaps, the beloved local band which has been performing here since 1975. This year, The Flaps are celebrating 50 years of making music in Montana and beyond, and the local Grange is proud to be hosting them.
Maureen Powell, a founding member of The Big Sky Mudflaps, remembers how the band came to be. She had a classmate from Hamilton High School, Steve Powell. “We were on the speech team together and members of a hiking club,” recalls Maureen. “When he came back from college, we found ourselves on a hike alone and the rest is history.” Steve and Maureen were married for 40 years, and played in the band together until his death in April of 2013. Steve met fellow musicians David Horgan and Dexter Payne in college at Stanford and told his friends that they should come to Montana, which they did. The musical magic was born.
Then – Big Sky Mudflaps in 1975, l to r: Dexter Payne, David Horgan, Steve Orner, Beth Lo, Maureen Powell, Steve Powell.
Maureen had already been singing with a friend she’d met at the University of Montana, Beth Lo. Once Beth and Maureen and Steve and David and Dexter started jamming, they formed a band that a mutual friend of theirs said should be called The Big Sky Mudflaps. Paul Stanton told them, “You will have free advertising on the back of every 18-wheeler in the state!” Eventually, Beth and David fell in love and married. We’ve been together for 40 years,” David states proudly.
The band started small, playing around the valley at the Sawmill Saloon in Darby, Haigh’s in Hamilton, the Lumberjack up Highway 12. They played a mix of jazz, and rock, and swing, and Latin, familiar tunes that people would know and dance to. They became popular throughout the Bitterroot Valley, then Missoula, then the Northwest, and eventually the East Coast. The Flaps were featured on the Today Show twice in their 80’s heyday, as well as Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keiller.
Now – Big Sky Mudflaps in 2025, l to r: Chuck Florence, Beth Lo, Jim Rogers, Maureen Powell, David Horgan, Rich Brinkman.
When asked how a band manages to stay together for 50 years, David says, “We all get along. We try to be nice to each other and respect each other’s feelings and opinions.” Maureen adds, “This region, Western Montana, is a happy and productive place to be an artist.”
You can dance to the Big Sky Mudflaps and support Rocky Mountain Grange #116 and its current ADA Project on February 14 at 6 p.m. for the potluck and 7 to 10 p.m. for music.
Rendering of the proposed ADA Project at the Rocky Mountain Grange.
Potlucks for Purpose (PFP) was born out of the post-pandemic idea that musicians and non-profits were struggling. Citizens were suffering too, due to social distancing efforts. The idea was to have a potluck, hire a band, and raise money for a worthy local non-profit, all at the same time. Since its inception, PFP has benefited over 20 different local organizations, raised thousands of dollars for their causes, supported musicians, and encouraged Bitterrooters to break bread and get together. RMG#116 is proud that this model is being duplicated by other Granges around the US.
Since it began, the National Grange has been committed to helping underdogs. The Grange was initially established to push back against the railroads that were fleecing farmers and ranchers in the late 1800s. Farmers and ranchers gathered and realized that their power depended upon organizing and offering a united front. The Grange continues to lobby for those involved with agriculture on a national level. On the local level, Grange halls became a hub of community activity. RMG#116 has been the place where 4-H/FFA events, weddings, funerals, birthdays, retirements, fundraisers, and graduation parties have taken place since the 1950s. RMG#116 continues to be a space for the Bitterroot community to gather.
RMG#116’s latest goal is for the hall to become ADA accessible, to build a ramp on the south side of the hall that will allow folks in wheelchairs or who have trouble getting up the stairs to enter the upstairs on the south side of the building, and have an ADA bathroom upstairs. RMG#116 is raising money to do just this during the last Potlucks for Purpose and considers itself lucky to be hosting a legendary Bitterroot band to help the cause.
The Big Sky Mudflaps are playing several other local gigs during their 50th Anniversary Tour, including Bitterroot Brewery on Saturday, June 28 and Tuesday at 12 on July 1.