RED LODGE — For approximately 40 years, on the morning of St. Patrick’s Day, volunteers have gathered in the early hours to paint shamrocks at every intersection and a vibrant green stripe down the center of town. This year, however, the city awoke to a fresh layer of white.
For the first time in any participant's memory, paint rollers and brushes were set aside. Ribbons of green were instead tied to door handles, light posts, and storefronts—an adaptation to Monday's snowy weather.
That was not the only change to the tradition. Not only was it the first year Theresa Whistler was the lead organizer, but Guynema Terry, a Red Lodge resident since 1979 and former music and theater teacher, was absent.
“I don’t want people who move here to think, ‘Oh, we’re just a nice little Western town.’ We’re far more than that,” said Terry, regarding the city's Irish immigrant origins.
At 74, she has spent about 15 years participating in the town’s St. Patrick’s Day ritual.
Her cancer has returned—stage 4, metastatic, and kept her from taking for the first time.
“It’s hard knowing that, like, if it were nice and sunny everybody would be out there painting that street and I’m not one of them anymore," said Terry.
In the face of change, she keeps her diagnosis light, referring to her chemotherapy sessions as “rum rationing days,” a nod to the pirate-themed adventure she crafted around her treatment when she found out her cancer returned.
Though she could not be out with the crowd, Terry remains woven into the fabric of the community. Many of those who now care for her—doctors, nurses—were once her students.
“All the children that I taught are now taking care of me,” said Terry. "When they come in it's like, ‘Oh my gosh, I taught you when you were in kindergarten and now you’re putting an IV in me.’”
Snow may have altered tradition this year, but in Red Lodge, the essence of St. Patrick’s Day remains, as does cherished thespian Guynema Terry.
