Melody and Jeff Martinsen, owners of the Choteau Acantha, dropped off that week’s edition of the weekly newspaper at their local post office on Tuesday, Jan. 7, right on schedule. Just hours after putting the issue to bed the night before, a local bartender reported a fire at the Acantha’s building. While fire crews put out the blaze, Melody, the editor, drafted a story detailing the incident, which had destroyed much of the publication’s home of 30 years. She had not slept since the fire.
