Missoula in Bloom & The Power of Place: May Newsletter

This image captures a scenic, wide-angle landscape of Waterworks Hill in Missoula, MT. Landscape Features Flora: The foreground and middle ground are covered in a vibrant field of purple shooting stars, which are mentioned in your newsletter. The grass is a fresh, bright green, indicating the early spring "high season." Terrain: A dirt path or trail winds along the left side of the frame, leading the eye toward the rolling hills in the distance. Several large, light-colored rocks are scattered along the trail's edge. Mountains: In the far background, snow-capped mountain peaks are visible under a clear, expansive blue sky. Atmosphere and Lighting The Sky: A deep blue sky dominates the upper half of the image, with thin, wispy cirrus clouds stretching horizontally. Lighting: The bright, direct sunlight suggests a clear day, highlighting the "returned light" you celebrated in your text. The overall mood is peaceful, open, and characteristic of Western Montana's natural beauty.It is my favorite time of year in Missoula. The air is sweet with the fragrance of lilacs, mock orange and fresh earth. Graduation is right around the corner and it’s high season for free things left behind in the alleys of the University District. The shooting stars are popping up on Waterworks Hill, along with Arrowleaf Balsomroot while the Lupine are already starting to make an appearance. Fires haven’t darkened the sky yet, and it’s not oppressively hot. The Farmer’s Market has begun, and the light has returned. Hallelujah! Happy Spring, y’all!

A huge thank you to everyone who stepped up to support live storytelling during Missoula Gives!

This image is a wide promotional banner designed to thank donors following the Missoula Gives event. Key Elements & Text Central Message: Large, bold white text across the middle reads "THANK YOU!" Below it, in a slightly smaller font, is "MISSOULA GIVES". Brand Identity: * The top left features the tagline: "connecting community, one story at a time". The top right displays the Tell Us Something logo ("Your Story Matters"). An orange Missoula Gives bee icon is shown "flying" across the text, leaving a dotted trail. Visual Background: The left side shows a black-and-white, out-of-focus image of an audience listening intently. The right side features a blurred person on stage with their arm raised, suggesting a live storytelling performance. A vibrant green audio waveform graphic runs along the bottom, symbolizing sound and storytelling.

We are thrilled to share that 51 generous donors invested a total of $5,920 in Tell Us Something. If you missed the initial window, it’s not too late to be part of this success—the giving portal remains open until Saturday, May 9th. You can still make an impact by donating at the MissoulaGives portal. Thank you for keeping our community’s stories alive!

Kinky Bingo

 

his is a promotional graphic for an upcoming event called "Kinky Bingo," which serves as a fundraiser for the organization Tell Us Something. The image features a dark blue, slightly textured background with several key elements: Key Event Details Host: Rosie La Secco Presents Main Title: Kinky Bingo (displayed inside a retro-style pink and blue neon sign) Entertainment: Burlesque, Drag, Bingo, and "Titillating Treasures" Date: 05.23.2026 Beneficiary: A fundraiser for Tell Us Something, an organization with the tagline "Your Story Matters." Website: tickets + info: tellussomething.org Visual Elements Featured Performer: On the right side of the frame, a woman (Rosie La Secco) is dressed in Western-style attire, including a brown and tan cowboy shirt, a wide-brimmed cowboy hat, distressed blue jeans, and white boots. She is wearing a leather holster and gun belt. Typography: The layout uses a mix of fonts, from a whimsical script for "Rosie La Secco" to a bold, blocky neon style for the event name and a clean sans-serif for the date and URL. Logo: The "Tell Us Something" logo is centrally located, featuring a speech bubble design with a vintage microphone icon. Note: The photo credit for the image is attributed to Chris Wooley.
If online giving isn’t your speed but you still want to support Tell Us Something, why not trade your screen for a night of sequins and sensuality? Kinky Bingo is back and naughtier than ever! Hosted by the incomparable Rosie La Secco, this wild evening is a high-energy collision of Burlesque, Drag, and Bingo. It’s an unapologetically sex-positive celebration where you can win spicy prizes and enjoy dazzling performances, all while supporting a great cause.

Best of all, this “Kink for a Cause” directly benefits our mission. A portion of the proceeds helps us continue empowering storytellers and connecting the Missoula community through transformative personal narratives. So, dress up, bring your dollar bills, and get ready to play dirty for a good cause! Your ticket includes your bingo cards and a dauber, with extra cards available for purchase at the show.

Get Kinky (Bingo Tickets)

Call for Storytellers

Scene: A natural landscape featuring a river in the lower right and a forested hillside in the background. Foliage: The left side and foreground are dominated by dense, green leafy branches (likely willow or similar riparian vegetation). Environment: The river appears calm with visible rocks on the bottom near the shore. The background shows a steep hill covered in evergreen and deciduous trees under an overcast, slightly purple-toned sky. Text and Graphic Elements Branding (Top Left): A logo for "TELL US SOMETHING." The word "TELL" is in a yellow box, "US" is in a white box, and "SOMETHING" is inside a teal speech bubble. A small black-and-white icon of a vintage microphone is positioned to the left of the speech bubble. Below the logo is a small black bar with the text "• YOUR STORY MATTERS •". Main Headline (Top Right): White capital letters that read: "CALL FOR STORYTELLERS ON THE THEME:" Theme (Center): Large, bold white capital letters that read: "THE POWER OF PLACE" Contact Information (Bottom): "CALL TO PITCH YOUR STORY: 406-203-4683" (Large white text). At the very bottom: "OUR DEAF FRIENDS CAN PITCH VIA EMAIL: info@tellussomething.org" (Smaller white text).
Do you have a story that’s been living in your head, just waiting for the right moment to be told? We invite you to pitch for our upcoming event, “The Power of Place.” Sharing your story on the Tell Us Something stage is more than just a performance; it’s an opportunity to find your voice, process a lived experience, and build a profound bridge of empathy with your neighbors. Whether your story is a hilarious mishap or a poignant turning point, your unique perspective helps weave the fabric of our community. By stepping up to the mic, you empower others to share their truths and help us all understand one another just a little bit better.

How to Pitch
It’s simple! Give us a call at 406-203-4683 and leave a recorded version of your story pitch. We aren’t looking for perfection—just your authentic voice and a glimpse into the narrative you want to share. Don’t let your story stay a secret; give us a call and let’s see what we can build together!

GET TICKETS!

This image is a promotional graphic for a live storytelling event. It features a textured, oil-painting background of a landscape under a vast blue sky with light clouds, overlooking rolling green hills and a single purple allium flower in the foreground. The text and branding elements are organized as follows: Event Information Main Title: "LIVE STORYTELLING on the theme 'THE POWER OF PLACE'" in large, dark grey sans-serif capital letters. Date: "JUNE 16" centered in the middle of the frame. Location: "BONNER PARK BANDSHELL" centered below the date. Artist Credit: In the bottom left corner, small white text reads "artwork: David Wilson." Organization Branding In the bottom right corner, there is a white line-art logo for an organization called "TELL US SOMETHING." The logo features speech bubbles containing the words "TELL US SOMETHING." It includes a small microphone icon. The tagline "• YOUR STORY MATTERS •" is centered at the bottom of the logo graphic.

There is something truly special about gathering under the open sky at the Bonner Park Bandshell to hear our community’s voices. On June 16th, we’re bringing “The Power of Place” to the park, and you won’t want to miss the chance to witness these raw, local stories in such an iconic outdoor setting. Tickets for Tell Us Something often go quickly, and securing yours now ensures you’ll have a front-row seat to the magic of live storytelling under the Missoula sun (and stars!). Grab your tickets, pack your picnic blanket, and get ready for an evening that celebrates the deep connections we have to the places we call home.

Event Details
Theme: The Power of Place

Date: June 16, 2026

Location: Bonner Park Bandshell, Missoula, MT

GET TICKETS

Reminder: We’ll have ASL interpretation available, making sure these stories are accessible to everyone in our community!

We are grateful to the Montana 250th Commission for their support in helping make the June “Power of Place” live storytelling event possible!

Update on Monthly Storytelling Workshops
We hear you when you say you want more opportunities to hone your craft, but the timing for our monthly, non-event-specific workshops hasn’t quite hit the mark this year. Because we haven’t seen enough registrations to move forward with the May session, we have decided to suspend all non-event workshops for the remainder of 2026. We want to ensure that when we gather, there’s a full room of voices to make the experience truly collaborative. We will revisit the idea of monthly workshops in 2027 if there is renewed interest. In the meantime, we will continue to focus our energy on our mainstage events and the curated workshops for our selected storytellers. Thank you to those who did sign up and support the experiment!

Alumni Spotlight

Ever wonder what happens to our inspiring Tell Us Something storytellers after they take the stage? The Alumni Spotlight is where we catch up with our storytellers and see how their storytelling journeys have unfolded.

Emily Farrell shared a story in January and has been ramping up her cleaning business. 406 Dreamhouse Cleaning offers 2,000 sq ft cleans and 2-day turnarounds. She offers post-construction cleanup, move-in ready detail, and reliable scheduling. From debris to detail, she can take care of that for you! Learn more at 406 Dreamhouse Cleaning.

This image is a highly stylized, maximalist promotional flyer for 406 Dreamhouse, the business owned by Tell Us Something alum Emily Farrell. The aesthetic is heavily inspired by "Barbiecore," featuring a vibrant pink, glittery, and rainbow-filled theme. Visual Composition & Branding Business Name: The top left features the logo "406 Dreamhouse" with a heart integrated into the numbers, set against a blue ribbon and a sparkling rainbow. Featured Professional: A circular headshot in the top left shows Emily Farrell smiling, wearing a white beanie. Her name is written below in a pink, cursive font, followed by her phone number: 406-310-9044. Central Imagery: The background features a large, multi-story pink "Dreamhouse" mansion with a slide leading into a heart-shaped pool, surrounded by palm trees and tropical flowers. The "Dream Worker": In the bottom right, there is a silhouette of a woman wearing a tool belt, filled with a pink glitter texture. Services Offered The bottom left contains a checklist framed in a lighted marquee style, listing construction and maintenance services: Finish Work Sanding Staining Tile Grouting Construction Site Cleanup Yard Care Various colorful tool icons (hammer, drill, screwdriver, wrench) are scattered around the list.

You can watch Emily’s story here.

We love good food over here at Tell Us Something. Joyce, a Tell Us Something storyteller alum and founder and owner of Joy!ce of Tile worked at the Missoula classic restaurant Perugia and helped open The Silk Road. There is another Tell Us Something alumni joining the Risho restaurant family. Sasha Vermel is part of the team working to open Sumac in The Florence Hotel. The entry will be from the alley, just like the old Red Bird, and they’ll be open soon!

This image is a screenshot of a news article from the Missoulian, a local Missoula newspaper. It features a group portrait of four people who are opening a new culinary venture in the city. Visual Content & Text Headline: "Sumac: New restaurant in downtown Missoula planned by former Silk Road chef, others" Byline: David Erickson The Subjects: Four individuals (two women and two men) are seated together on what appears to be a tan or golden-colored leather banquette. The woman on the far right is Sasha Vermel, the Tell Us Something alum mentioned in your newsletter. They are all posed playfully with their hands to their chins in a "thinking" or "philosophical" gesture. Branding: The "Missoulian" masthead is visible at the top in white text on a dark background.

Listen to Sasha’s story here. (She’s the first one on this episode).

Hope to see you at Kinky Bingo on the 23rd! And remember to pitch your “Power of Place” story!

The image depicts a smiling man wearing a fedora, with the background showing the sky. There is text in the image, which reads: "In gratitude and in story, Marc Moss Executive Director Tell Us Something"

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