-
Rock League Week 1 schedule
Click the links below to see the schedules and roster for the first week of the Rock 3 on 3 Youth Basketball League.
The league begins play next Sunday, Oct. 18, at the Maroon Activities Center. Play will run each Sunday through Nov. 25. Games will be played from 2 to 4 p.m. each Sunday.
Scores, standings and the next week’s schedule will be posted each week at ButteCast.com.
Third-fourth Week 1 schedule/rosters
Fifth-sixth Week 1 schedule/rosters
-
KC basketball schedule
Following is the Knights of Columbus Athletic Club’s four-man basketball schedule for the week of Oct. 12.
Monday
7 p.m. — Jellyfam vs. Hoopballas
8 p.m. — Poi Time vs. Blue BallsTuesday
7 p.m. — ButteSports vs. Rosary Rattlers
8 p.m. — Jellyfam vs. Washington GeneralsWednesday
7 p.m. — Blue Balls vs. Rosary Rattlers
8 p.m. — Someday Starters vs. Washington GeneralsThursday
7 p.m. — Someday Starters vs. Hoopballas
8 p.m. — ButteSports vs. Poi Time
-
Episode No. 389: Peyton Meyer
This special Saturday Night edition of the ButteCast does not have a whole lot to do with the Mining City.
But it is a story you definitely want to hear.
Tonight’s guest is Peyton Meyer, a freshman on the East Helena High School golf team. A few weeks ago, I wrote about Payton after he sent me a letter thanking me for putting his name in a story about the Beaverhead Invitational golf tournament.
It is very rare for a sportswriter to get such a thank you note from a young athlete. It is rare enough to get one from a parent. So, Peyton’s note was touching. It made me think that Peyton must be one remarkable young man.
I had no idea just how remarkable.
On June 12, 2025, Payton was involved in a serious bicycle accident. The front tire fell of the electronic bike he was riding. Peyton went over the handlebars and hit his head. The force of the crash cracked his helmet from front to back, and Peyton was knocked unconscious.
He spent more than a week in the children’s intensive care unit at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
Before the injury, Peyton was a football player. He played quarterback, and he had dreams of playing college football. Suffering a traumatic brain injury, however, did not end his dreams of competing in college sports. It just shifted his focus from football to golf.
Over the last year, the straight-A student poured all his extra time into golf. He played a lot of golf. More importantly, he practiced all the time. He went from shooting in the high 90s to playing with a single-digit handicap.
His family moved from Seattle to the Helena area in February, and Peyton tried out for the East Helena golf team. He was one of 19 golfers to try out, and he earned one of the five varsity spots.
This season saw him finish in the top five at a tournament three times. He posted five top-15 performances.
Unfortunately, he did not play well when the Eastern A Divisional tournament was played at his home course, the Fox Ridge Golf Course. He missed qualifying for the Class A State tournament.
But his hopes are still high as he heads into an offseason in which he plans to continue his devotion to the game of golf.
Instead of watching football in the rain today, I drove to Helena to meet with Peyton at the Fox Ridge Golf Course for a fun conversation.
Listen in to hear him tell the story of his accident and his recovery. Listen how he simply shifted his focus to football to golf. Listen in to hear why you want to be cheering for Peyton as he moves forward with his high school career.
Today’s episode is presented by the Jewelry Design Center. Let Brian Toone and Co. be your jewelers for life.
-
Bulldogs rout Braves, 35-7
Broncs stop Maroons at Tech
Make that back-to-back victories for the Butte High Bulldogs.
Butte High led wire to wire Friday night, trouncing the Flathead Braves 35-7 in a Western AA football game at Naranche Stadium. (Stats)
Four different Bulldogs scored touchdowns as Butte High improved to 3-4 overall and 2-3 in league play with the Senior Night win, which came one week after a win at Helena High.
Miner Lee got the scoring started with a 13-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. Butte High made it 14-0 after receiver Ryan Bache hit Hudson Steele for a 15-yard score on a trick play.
Early in the third quarter, Troy Samson found a wide-open Brady Walsh for a 33-yard scoring strike.
After the Braves got on the board, Jaeger Hansen put the game away with touchdown runs of 2 and 6 yards.
Hansen also had a huge game on defense. He registered three tackles for a loss and picked off a pass. He returned that interception, which came deep in Butte High territory, for 24 yards shortly before his second score.
Finn Wortham led the Dogs in tackles with 13, five of which were solo. Raeder Grey added eight, while Reece Cunneen added six and Colt Stenson joined Hansen with five. Steele got in on three.
Gray and Koda Schleeman picked off passes. Schleeman’s pick stopped a Braves drive before halftime.
Grey ran for 95 yards to lead the Bulldog offense. Lee finished with 90 yards.
The Bulldogs are back at home Thursday Night against Missoula Hellgate. Butte High will close the regular season Oct. 23 at Helena Capital.
Butte Central, meanwhile fell 35-12 at home to Frenchtown in a Southwestern A game. Frenchtown led 14-6 at halftime.
Butte Central will celebrate Senior Night next Friday at home against Hamilton. The Maroons will close the regular season Oct. 23 at Dillon.
Bruce Sayler will have a full story and stats of the BC-Frenchtown game at ButteSports.com.
-
Episode No. 388: LOUD
Somewhere between Butte’s Greeley Elementary School and graduating high school in Rigby, Idaho, Daniel Michalsky became LOUD.
That is not a commentary on his volume. LOUD is his stage name, and he has been performing hip-hop music since he was in middle school.
You can catch him perform during the Twiztid Tuesday performance next Tuesday, Oct. 13, at the Covellite Theatre. (Click here to buy tickets.)
The show will be headlined by Blaze Ya Dead Homie. It will also include LOUD and fellow Butte artist the UnaBomba, who is also known as Corey Gransbery.
LOUD might have graduated from high school in Idaho, but don’t let that fool you. He is all about his home town, representing the Mining City as he makes his way around to perform more than 50 times a year.
He has a long catalog of songs, and he is known for his ability to freestyle. You will hear a little bit of that in this episode, which was recorded earlier this week upstairs at the Knights of Columbus Hall.
Like with the last episode featuring the UnaBomba, this one is a little different than what you might be used to hearing on the ButteCast. This conversation isn’t with Daniel. It is with LOUD. There is a difference. At least, I think there is a difference.
This episode also illustrates why we started the ButteCast in the first place: to better get to know some interesting people and characters of the Mining City and beyond.
I have never been much into hip-hop or rap. To me, a good rap song is the Super Bowl Shuffle. But I plan to go check out the live show at the Covellite.
Hopefully, you join me and make sure to clap a little harder for the Butte boys who take the stage.
Today’s episode is presented by Leskovar Honda, home of the non-commission sales staff that always has your back.
-
Real, Houchin lead Dogs at Tracy Logan
HELENA — Sophomore Jason Real ran the fastest time of Butte runners competing in the Tracy Logan 7 of 7 cross country meet Thursday at the Bill Roberts Golf Course. (Results)
Real finished the 5-kilometer course in 18 minutes, 51 seconds to lead the Bulldogs, who were once again shorthanded with injury and illness. Real placed 13th in the No. 5 race.
The event has seven ranked races for girls and boys, with one runner from each team eligible to compete in each race. The individuals are ranked No. 1 through No. 7 on their teams.
Tylor Neil of Bozeman won the boys’ No. 1 race with a time of 15:27. Ben Bird of Hardin took second at 15:43. Milo Kauffman of Helena High placed third in 16:15.
Butte Central eighth grader Ryan Byrne placed 36th in the No. 3 race. He finished in 19:55.
Bulldog junior Kai Schuler took 21st in the No. 4 race with a time of 19:03. BC senior Joe Bradshaw also ran that race, finishing in 21:30.
Central freshman Roman Terry ran the No. 5 race as well. He finished in 22:14.
Butte High junior Jack Taylor and Central junior Connor Kachmarik ran the No. 6 race. Taylor finished in 21:22, and Kachmarik crossed in 23:10.
Lyric Haston, a Butte High junior, ran the No. 7 race in 20:22.
Addison Kegel of Billings Central won the No. 1 girls’ race in 17:03. She beat second-place Phoebe Maixner by 21 seconds. Kallie Clayton of Billings Skyview took third at 18:06.
Butte High sophomore Sophia Houchin, who missed the first part of the season with an injury, ran the No. 2 race on the girls’ side. She placed 16th with a time of 20:37.6. She missed her season-best mark by four tenths of a second.
Penelope Luebke ran the No. 3 race, finishing in 21:23. Fellow Bulldog junior Wakely Burelson ran the No. 6 race in 22:54.
Central sophomore Ashley White ran the No. 4 race, finishing in 24:18.
Butte High and Butte Central will each have one final tuneup before the Oct. 24 MHSA State meet in Billings. Butte High will run Oct. 15 at a meet in Bozeman, while Central will go to the Western A Classic Oct. 16 in Bigfork.
-
Highlands Cycling Club set to host free screening of ‘Ride to Resilience’
The Highlands Cycling Club will host a free screening of a new movie, “Ride to Resilience,” on Thursday, Oct. 29, at the Montana Tech Library Auditorium.
This film is billed as much more than a mountain bike movie. The Highlands Cycling Club is hoping to see as many first responders, members of the 15-90 Search & Rescue, medical professionals, counselors, athletes and other non-profit organizations involved in providing support in the community.
You do not need to be a mountain biker or first responder to find relevance in this movie.
Gina Evans is a member of the Highlands Cycling Club board of directors and the organizer for the film screening.
“It’s a way that Highland’s Cycling Club can be ‘Outside the lines.’” Evans said. She added that the club aims to “bring awareness on topics that unfortunately don’t get discussed or supported as much as they should in addition to bringing all walks of life together to watch a phenomenal movie.”
“Ride to Resilience” was released in September. With the explicit goal was to remove all financial barriers so that any community group, first responder organization, or mountain biking club worldwide could freely access, share, and screen the film to spark vital conversations around mental health, PTSD, and peer support. The film’s creators, Steve Vanderhoek and Kelsey Toevs, deliberately chose to release the feature-length documentary on YouTube for free rather than licensing it to a traditional streaming platform.
Click here to read more about the movie.
-
Dogs, Maroons back on home gridirons
For the first time in three weeks, we will have Friday night lights in the Mining City.
Butte High and Butte Central will both be playing at home this week for key conference games.
It is a busy home week for volleyball, too. Butte High will play a pair of home conference matches, and Butte Central will host the Blocktober Classic at the Maroon Activities Center and Butte Civic Center Friday and Saturday.
Also, cross country runners from both schools take another step toward crunch time in the Capital City, and Butte High’s soccer teams will honor their seniors. We will look at all that in this week’s lap around the Butte sports scene.
Braves come to Naranche
The Bulldogs are looking like a team ready to go on a run.
After a couple of near misses, the Butte High punched in a victory last Friday, beating Helena High 29-27 in a Western AA football game at Vigilante Field in Helena.
This Friday, the Bulldogs look to make it back-to-back victories when the Flathead Braves come to town for a Western AA matchup. Kickoff is an hour earlier than usual at 6 p.m., and Butte High will be celebrating Senior Night.
The Braves come to town at 3-3 overall and 1-3 in conference. They are trying to stop a three-game losing streak. That skid came after Flathead opened the season at 3-0 with non-conference wins over Great Falls High and Billings Senior and a conference rout of Missoula Hellgate.
Flathead’s last three games include a 31-30 home loss to Helena High, a 45-25 beating at Missoula Big Sky, and a 20-17 home loss to Helena Capital.
Senior quarterback Bear Baker leads Flathead to town. He is completing 60 percent of his passes and averaging 229 yards per game. He has a 2-to-1 touchdown to interception ratio, tossing 16 TDs on the season.
Senior Oliver Rosenberg leads the way with 20 receptions. That includes a pair of touchdowns. Seniors Ben Reichter and Dillon Wink and juniors Leum Saisbury and Kellen Mouat have also hauled in three TDs apiece on the season.
Saisbury leads the Brave’s running attack. He has amassed 689 yards on 116 carries. He has run for seven scores.
Flathead beat the Bulldogs 23-22 last Oct. 10 in Kalispell. That was Kalispell’s first win over the Bulldogs since coach Kyle Samson led the Braves to a season-opening win over Butte High Aug. 24, 2018 at Naranche Stadium.
The Bulldogs (2-4, 1-3) stopped a three-game slide with last week’s win in Helena thanks in large part to their running game.
Behind offensive linemen Maxximus Pearston, Konner Hanni, Sawyer Casey, Karter Hall, Mason Swanson and Colton Nasheim, Butte High racked up 237 yards on the ground in Helena. Senior quarterback Raeder Gray ran for 119 yards and a score, and classmate Miner Lee racked up 118 yards and two touchdowns.
Grey also completed a super-efficient 12 of 15 passes for 117 yards and score, which went to Lee. The running back is averaging 5.0 yards per carry. Lee has seven total touchdowns on the year, and he leads the Bulldogs with 671 all-purpose yards.
Senior Brady Walsh, who is second with 557 all-purpose yards, had a big game in Helena, catching eight passes for 84 yards. Sophomore Ryan Bache continued his strong season with three grabs.
After a review of the game film, seniors Brady Doyle and Jaeger Hansen were credited with eight total tackles, which was one more than classmate Finn Wortham.
Wortham leads the Bulldogs with 52 total tackles, which is six more than Hansen.
Senior Evan McEwen, Casey, Grey and Bache were each credited with four tackles. Senior Reece Cunneen, Lee and juniors Kodye Kjersten and Hudson Steele each get in on three. Hansen registered two tackles for a loss, and McEwen added one.
Boyle, Grey and sophomore Cooper Carter each recovered a fumble. Junior Tegan Duffy kicked a 27-yard field goal.
The Bulldogs will honor their seniors and their parents before the game. The seniors are Doyle, Brayden Giop, Koda Schleeman, Beau Henderson, Blake Wadas, Lee, McEwen, Kasen Snyder, Grey, Tyce Snow, Walsh, Wortham, Hansen, Cunneen, Swanson, Pearston, Jace Michlig and Nemo Becker.
Butte High will play its last regular-season home game at 6 p.m. next Thursday, Oct. 15. They will close the regular season Oct. 23 at Helena Capital.
Maroons host Frenchtown
If it seems like it has been a while since the Butte Central football team played a home game, that is because it has been.
When the Maroons take on Frenchtown Friday in a 7 p.m. Southwestern A game, it will be BC’s first time stepping on the Bob Green Field since its 54-0 Homecoming win over Ronan on Sept. 11.
That is four weeks between home games.
The Maroons had the week of Sept. 18 off. They then dropped a tough, 25-20 decision at Corvallis before pummeling Stevensville 55-7 last week in Stevensville.
Sophomore quarterback Noah Sutton had another huge game for the Maroons in the win over the Yellowjackets. He completed 18 of 31 passes for 287 yards and fourth touchdowns.
Two of those scoring strikes went to junior Jaxon Hiatt, who hauled in eight passes for 161 yards. Junior Treigh Hollow and senior Joshua Sutton also caught touchdown passes in the win.
GG Fantini, who grabbed four passes for 25 yards, ran for a touchdown. He also returned a punt 75 yards for a score.
Sophomore Henly Mansanti added a rushing score for BC, and Joshua Sutton picked off a pass and returned it 60 yards for a touchdown.
The Maroons led 35-0 at halftime as they evened their league record at 1-1 and improved to 2-3 overall.
Frenchtown is 3-2 and 1-1 after last week’s 21-20 home loss to Hamilton.
Sophomore quarterback Cody Forthofer ran for 117 yards and two touchdowns in the loss. Junior Brett Kleinsmith booted two field goals.
Frenchtown was playing without star receiver Cooper Michaud, who missed the last two games with injury. He scored four touchdowns in Frenchtown’s first three contests.
Junior Jake Forthofer leads the team with 352 yards rushing. He averages 5.2 yards per carry.
BC is tied with Frenchtown, Dillon and Corvallis at 1-1 in league play. Hamilton tops the standings at 2-0.
Friday is the start of a crucial three-game stretch to close the season for the Maroons, who will host Hamilton next Friday. They close the regular season Oct. 23 at Dillon.
Time for Blocktober Classic
The Mining City will be volleyball central Friday and Saturday as Butte Central hosts the 15th Annual Blocktober Classic at the Maroon Activities Center and Butte Civic Center.
The tournament will see 26 teams compete in the event. Click here for the schedule, brackets, rosters and results.
Last week, the Maroons dropped a pair of matches. They fell 3-0 last Thursday at Dillon before dropping a non-conference 3-0 match Saturday at Missoula Loyola. Stats for those matches have not been posted.
BC is hoping their home tournament will be an igniter as the team heads to the homestretch of the season. After Blocktober, BC only has five matches left in the regular season.
The Maroons play host to Frenchtown Oct. 15 before going to Corvallis Oct. 17 and Stevensville Oct. 22. The Maroons play host to Hamilton Oct. 24 before closing the regular season Oct. 27 with a Senior Night battle with Dillon.
Butte High volleyball home for two
The Bulldogs will also be home this weekend as the Butte High volleyball team takes on the Kalispell schools at the Ross J. Richardson Memorial Gymnasium.
Butte High will play Flathead at 3 p.m. Friday. Note the change in start time. The Bulldogs will battle Glacier at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
The home contests come after the Bulldogs split matches with the Great Falls Schools. Butte High fell 3-1 to Great Falls Russell on Thursday, but rebounded with a 3-0 win over Great Falls High Saturday in the Electric City.
Against CMR, Butte High took the first set 25-21. The Rustlers, though, battled back with wins of 25-17, 25-21 and 25-18 for the victory. (Stats)
Junior Gia Field led the Bulldog attack against the Rustlers with 11 kills. Senior Allie Becker added seven, while junior Stella Callaghan spiked six. Senior Cadence Graham served five aces, while collecting 12 digs.
Sophomore Elli Graham led the backcourt with 15 digs, while senior Ellie Yates dug up 13, and Becker added 12. Elli Graham also set 31 assists.
On Saturday, the Bulldogs won 25-23, 25-9 and 26-24 against the Bison. (Stats)
Callaghan’s 11 kills paced Butte High that day. Becker spiked seven kills, while Cadence Graham and Field each spiked six.
Becker served three of Butte High’s aces. Junior Kalee Wright added two.
Cadence Graham led four Bulldogs in double figures in digs. With 18. Becker dug 17, while Elli Graham and Yates followed with 12 and 11. Callaghan dug nine.
Elli Graham served up 29 assists.
With Butte High currently sitting in sixth place in the Western AA, each match is crucial as the Bulldogs look to lock up a playoff berth down the stretch.
Bulldog soccer set to honor seniors
Butte High’s boys’ soccer team got on the board Saturday with a 3-1 home loss to Flathead.
Senior Johan Thieszen scored Butte High’s first goal of the season. It was assisted by classmate Tim Revenaugh.
That match came after Butte High dropped Friday’s home match with Glacier 8-0.
Butte High’s girls also battled with Flathead, but the Bulldogs dropped a 4-0 decision. They lost 10-0 the day before.
Butte High will play the Helena schools this week, starting with Thursday’s match against Helena High in the Capital City. The girls’ varsity team plays at 3 p.m. The Boys play at 5.
Butte High will close out its home schedule Saturday against Helena Capital at Bulldog Memorial Stadium. The boys play at 11 a.m., and the girls take the field at 1:30 p.m.
Butte High will honor its seniors and their parents before the matches.
Seniors on the Bulldog girls’ team are Alaina Grochowski, Madi McGee, Rylee Radcliffe, Elly Richards, Tyla Roberts, Rory Trafford, Ava Williams, Elizabeth Blacklock, Anell Chavez, Klara Andrejcakova and Key Key Worth.
The seniors on the boys’ squad are Thieszen, Revenaugh, Jaziel Cardenas, Brace Gratton, Kato Kuusisto, Aiden Maeser, Eddie Panisko and Liam Tauscher.
Butte High will wrap up the season Tuesday at Missoula Hellgate.
Runners head to 7 of 7
Butte High and Butte Central will be among the 58 teams competing in the Tracy Logan 7 of 7 cross country meet Thursday at the Bill Roberts Golf Course in Helena.
The day begins with an 11 a.m. walkthrough, followed by the junior varsity girls’ race at noon.
The meet features seven varsity races for the girls and boys, pitting the No. 1 runners from each school against each other. The No. 2s face the No. 2s, and so on.
The No. 7 boys’ and girls’ races start 1:45 p.m. The No. 1 race closes the day at 4:55 p.m.
Formerly known as the Capital City 7 of 7, the race is named in honor of race originator Tracy Logal.
The event will be the second-to-last warmup before the MHSA State meet for Butte High and Butte Central. The Maroons will compete at the Western A Classic Oct. 16. Butte High will head to a meet in Bozeman on Oct. 15.
The State meet is Oct. 24 in Billings.
-
Episode No. 387: UnaBomba
Today’s episode is different than any of the previous episodes of the ButteCast.
We are talking with the UnaBomba, a new-to-the-scene hip-hop artist who will be rapping during the Twiztid Tuesday performance on Tuesday, Oct. 13 at the Covellite Theatre. (Click here to buy tickets.)
The show will be headlined by Blaze Ya Dead Homie. It will also include the UnaBomba and fellow Butte artist LOUD.
The man behind the UnaBomba is Corey Gransbery, my longtime friend who ran the New York City Marathon for Mariah’s Challenge with me in 2009. He also ran for the same cause in 2010. Corey is also the guy who made my ButteCast logo. He is an award-winning artist who is never afraid to try new things. The UnaBomba, who has been festering inside Corey for decades, is his newest passion. It is his newest outlet.
Last night, I met with the UnaBomba and Corey upstairs at the Knights of Columbus Hall for a fun and interesting conversation. Listen in as Corey talks about growing up and how he eventually turned into the UnaBomba, which he says is in no way paying respects to the Unabomber.
Later this week we will bring you a conversation with LOUD, who is also known by Daniel Michalsky. Like the UnaBomba, you do not want to miss what LOUD has to say.
Today’s episode is presented by Casagranda’s Steakhouse. Eat where the locals eat.
-
Don’t mistake me for the Bill Foley who game money to Aaron Flint
My name was never original.
When I sat down for Christmas dinner, I would sit next to my Grandpa Bill. At the other end of the table I would see my grandma’s brother, whose name was also Bill.
When I first signed up for a handicap at the Highland View Golf Course when I was 11 or 12, I had to be listed as “Bill Foley Jr.,” even though my dad is not named Bill. That was because we did not want anyone to think my grandpa was a sandbagger.
When I ran the New York City Marathon in 2009, I was one of three guys named Bill Foley competing in the race. While I was happy to take 14,406th place out of more than 40,000 runners, I was disappointed to finish a very distant third in the Bill Foley category that day.
If you mention my name in Ohio, people will assume you are talking about Bill Foley of the Bill Foley Band. Not only is that Bill Foley a great head man for a cover band, he is a hero. Really.
When Mohamed Barry launched an Al-Qaeda-inspired machete attack at a deli in Columbus, Ohio in February of 2016, musician Bill Foley fought him with his bare hands — Rob Roy style — to save the lives of many.
Then there is me, a writer and podcaster who often gets confused for the billionaire Bill Foley who owns the ultra-exclusive Rock Creek Cattle Company near Deer Lodge and the Vegas Golden Knights of the NHL.
Even though my Twitter bio says that I am not the rich Bill Foley (yet), I occasionally get mentioned in tweets aimed at the rich Bill Foley.
One time, a woman went after me because one of the other NHL teams signed a player with a history of domestic violence. She wanted me to condemn the signing.
While I would never sign someone who mistreated women if I owned any sports franchise, I responded to the woman like this: “Lady, a goon is goon.”
More recently, an editor for the Missoulian skipped past my bio and tweeted his congratulations because my Vegas Golden Knights won the Stanley Cup. You would think that a guy whose job is to edit copy would be more astute.
“Hey pal,” I responded. “You’re not getting free tickets.”
I have also been mistaken for Nick Foles by some angry Philadelphia Eagles fans, but those tweets are too ugly to put in this column. My Twitter handle is @Foles74, so I can see where that mistake was made.
It was pretty fun getting mistaken for a quarterback with a Super Bowl ring, even if it was after he had a bad game. I almost always enjoy being in the middle of such a mix up.
Recently, though, I saw something that was not fun at all. My name appeared on the donor list for Republican House candidate Aaron Flint.
No, it was not me. It was the billionaire Bill Foley who gave $125,000 to the Flint campaign for Montana’s First Congressional seat.
I do not point that out to disparage the billionaire. I do not know a much about him personally. I just know he is a successful business man who owns a really nice golf course that I will never get to play, even though I can drive to it in less than an hour.
I also know that he does not like people hunting or fishing on his land — as if a man should ever really be allowed to own a mountain or stream. That does not affect me because I do not hunt or fish. But it sure does tick off some of my relatives and friends who do.
Billionaire Bill Foley seems to be a pretty good NHL owner. His Vegas Golden Knights played in the Stanley Cup Final three times, including their inaugural season of 2017-18. The Golden Knights hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2023 and took Carolina to six games this past June.
The fact that he is a billionaire kind of makes me lean toward disliking him. I would like to think that if I had that kind of money, I would give a ton of it away to worthing people and organizations. I don’t think anybody should have that much money when so many are going hungry.
However, I do not know how much of his money he actually gives away, so I will reserve judgement on that for now.
But seeing billionaire Bill Foley’s name as a donor for Flint, who has made a career by preaching hate toward the LGBTQ+ community on the radio, is very unsettling.
Sure, the billionaire Bill Foley does not seem to be all-in on Flint, judging by the donation size. While that might seem to a lot of money to you and me, it is not to the billionaire. It would be like if I gave a fraction of a penny to the Flint campaign.
For the record, I would not give Flint a fraction of a penny because he pushes hate.
All you have to do is see his despicable anti-trans commercials that dominate our television when we try to watch the news or any sporting event. They are disgusting, to say the least.
As I pointed out in a column a couple of weeks ago, trans-people do not bother anyone. You are probably 10 million times more likely to see your daughter attacked by a frat boy from an Ivy League school than you are to see her hurt by any transgender person.
In fact, every transgender person I have ever meet has been quite friendly and extremely happy. That is because that person is finally living in the identity that fits him or her the best. We should all be so lucky.
I do not understand why they chose that lifestyle, but I also cannot understand how any person can ever cheer for the Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys.
Also, transgender athletes are not competing against your daughter. I know that commercial with the big, ugly man dressed as a woman running against the young girl looks scary, but it is not real.
Even if it was real, any girl over the age of 7 is going to beat that guy in a race the way he was running, but that’s beside the point.
The commercial makes those drag performers look mean and ugly, too. Again, they are not real.
Out of curiosity, my wife and I went to a drag story hour a couple of years ago. We did not see any ugly, scary drag queens trying to indoctrinate children. Rather, we saw some nice people reading books that taught the children — and their parents — that love is love.
Really, that is a beautiful message.
As Walt Whitman wrote, we should be curious, not judgmental.
That was a message comedian Jason Salmon, a recent ButteCast guest, told the audience Friday at the Covellite Theatre. His dad told that to him, and he realized his dad was quoting Whitman when he watched Ted Lasso.
Unfortunately, Whitman, Salmon and Lasso are not on the ballot. But a guy who wants us to hate one and other is, and a guy who shares my name gave him $125,000 to push that hate.
So, please, if you are going to mistake me for another Bill Foley, do not let it be the guy who would do that. I would much rather you mistake me for the Bill Foleys who beat me by about an hour in the 2009 New York City Marathon.
Better yet, mistake me for the Bill Foley of the Bill Foley Band.
Not only is he a hero, he can really belt out a tune.
— This Bill Foley, a hundredaire, can be reached at foles74@gmail.com. Follow him at twitter.com/Foles74 or Bluesky at @foles74.bsky.social. Listen to him on the ButteCast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
