ABSAROKEE — A group of five women in Absarokee are rallying together to a save a nationally registered historic building, the Sandstone School.
In early August, the Absarokee Elementary School Board voted to demolish the building, likely due to safety concerns, as the school opened in 1910.
However, the women aren't giving up just yet.
Learn more about the "Save the Sandstone" committee in the video below:
In 2019, the Sandstone School ceased operations after over 100 years of spreading elementary education to the Absarokee community. Shortly after, Janel Brunckhorst, a former teacher at the school, Afton Lamoreaux, and Jackie Walker, organized a committee, "Save the Sandstone," as a way to preserve the history of the building for the community.
Eventually two other Absarokee women, Shari DeSaveur and Mary Alice Cooper, joined the fight to preserve the historic building.
"I think it's a disservice to erase history," said DeSaveur on Friday. "We're just trying to save it for the community."
Interestingly, just like how a group of women are now working to save the building, it was a group of seven women who founded the school in the early 1900s.
"These women got together and they raised money. They did bake sales. They did craft sales. They put on dances," said DeSaveur.
The original group of women, known as the Mutual Benefit Club, purchased the Absarokee property from the Hawkins family for $1,500 to open a two-room school.
According to DeSaveur, the Sandstone School quickly grew, and the Cobblestone School (sits adjacent to the Sandstone) opened up shortly after. In the 1980s, the Cobblestone and the Sandstone were registered together on the National Register for Historic Places.
Each of the women on the committee are dedicated to preserving the school's history, and are hopeful to bring an educational legacy back to the building.
According to the committee, when the Mutual Benefit Club began building the school, the Hawkins family requested the Sandstone sit along the Earth's axis, which is why it's built at an angle, compared to the Cobblestone.
The "Save the Sandstone" committee are hoping to turn the building into an education center. According to DeSaveur, half of the building would be turned into a preschool and daycare, and the other half would act as a learning center. DeSaveur said she hopes to have alternating 90-day interactive exhibits featured in the building, presented by the Museum of the Beartooths in Columbus.
"I have a lot of great memories here and it was my first teaching experience, so it really was important to me," said President Brunckhorst. "I'd like to see the school maintained because of the historical value of it."
"I don't think you can know where you're going if you don't know where you've been," said DeSaveur.
In all, the committee has been working on the project for five years. All together, they've raised about $400,000 from community donations and grants, including $150,000 from the Montana Historical Grant, $30,000 from the Treacy Grant, and $110,000 from the Braly Family Foundation.
The majority of the building's structural damage is to the roof. According to the committee's treasurer and secretary, Lamoreaux, engineers and architects have inspected the building and deemed most of the interior safe. The committee estimates the entire project will cost around $700,000, however several local businesses and organizations have already volunteered to take care of some of the remodeling.
"First, we got a hold of High Plains Architects, and they had a gentleman there, Randy Hafer, that's worked on a lot of historic buildings, and that was the reason we contacted him," said Lamoreaux.
Even though the team has fundraised enough to pay for the roof's replacement, they're currently at a stand still.
The Absarokee School District owns the property, which is surrounded by a playground. On Aug. 11, the Elementary School Board voted to demolish the building (likely due to safety concerns), even though the board initially voted for the project to begin in June, according to the committee.
To understand the decision to demolish the building, MTN reached out to the school board, the superintendent, and the elementary school's principal, but as of deadline Saturday, MTN had not received any information from the parties listed.
The school board is expected to meet on Monday Sep. 8 at 7 p.m. to discuss the matter further. The members of the "Save the Sandstone" committee remain hopeful the school board will rescind their most recent decision.
"We have not given up by any means. We're still moving forward. We're still applying for grants," said DeSaveur.
Donations to the committee's project can be made through the "Save the Sandstone" account with First Interstate Bank or via mail at Absarokee PO box #472.
