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Everything you could possibly want to know about fish, from their biological characteristics to the commercial fisheries that harvest and sell them to the governmental entities that regulate them, is available through the University of Alaska Southeast applied fisheries program. Catering to high schoolers, recent graduates and seasoned professionals alike, the school’s online and in-person programs prepare students for jobs in the industry. Applied fisheries is a workforce development program housed in the UAS career education department in S...
Between the holiday wreaths adorning Front Street shops and the tall tree next to Elks Lodge, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. But for some, the season may look a little leaner this year as residents and local businesses feel the costly effects of inflation during the holiday shopping season. The current price hikes are the worst that City Market assistant store director Matthew Strickland has seen in his 10 years of retail experience. Large 20-pound bags of rice that cost roughly $25 a year ago are now sitting around $42. Many p...
Every year on Dec. 1, the internet is flooded with variations on the same video - a high school senior sits at their laptop surrounded by a crowd of onlookers who are anxious to discover whether the student has received a full ride to an elite college through the Questbridge program. The student opens their status letter and the crowd goes wild. The student is smothered in hugs. Tears are shed. When Wrangell High School's Nikolai Bardin-Siekawitch received his Questbridge email, his response...
From deadly toxins to dangerous explosions, the risks of pressure canning make this vital home skill sound like a stunt straight out of the "Mission: Impossible" franchise. But, armed with knowledge from Sarah Lewis of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Extension Service, Wrangell residents learned that food preservation can be safe, simple and fun during a series of classes hosted by the Wrangell Cooperative Association last week. Their mission, should they choose to accept it? Turn raw meat an...
From the subtle shifts in an ocean current to the play of light and shadow on a snow-topped mountain, the work of Wrangell artist Brenda Schwartz-Yeager captures the ever-changing landscapes of coastal Alaska. The painter, who was born and raised on the island, will be displaying her work at a pop-up shop in the Stikine Inn throughout the month of December. "It feels really nostalgic to be back in this space," she said. "I think it's been like 20 years or something since I've been exhibiting...
If your smartphone screen is cracked, your tablet is on the fritz or your laptop won’t stop generating pop-up windows after you clicked on a suspicious link, Tyler Riberio of Tydi Creek Tech might be able to help. His new tech repair service assists Wrangell residents as they navigate the intimidating world of computers, whether he’s fixing minor cosmetic issues or performing total rebuilds. Riberio moved to Wrangell with his wife in July. After taking on a few pro-bono tech repairs, he “noticed that there was a need in the community” and dec...
The borough assembly is moving toward lowering the asking price for the former Wrangell hospital by almost half and hiring a real estate agent to sell the property. The assembly at its Nov. 22 meeting accepted an ordinance to reduce the asking price and set a public hearing on the ordinance for Dec. 20, at which time members could vote on the proposal. The Bennet Street lot has been vacant since the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium’s new medical center opened in February 2021. The borough has been looking actively – and unsuccessfull...
After a boating accident near Point Baker last week, former Wrangell resident Kelsey Leak spent 24 hours on West Rock before being rescued by a fishing boat. Her boyfriend, 27-year-old Arne Dahl has not been found and is presumed dead. The morning of Nov. 27 was bright and clear. Leak and Dahl set out from their Point Baker homestead at 11 a.m. to collect firewood aboard Dahl's old wooden fishing vessel, the Randi Jo. The pair had been living off-grid at Point Baker, where Dahl was raised, since...
Next year, Wrangell will become the first community with access to Tidal Network, the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska’s new broadband internet service. And thanks to a recent influx of federal funding, other communities across Southeast won’t be far behind. On Nov. 17, the Central Council announced that it had received a $50 million grant for broadband infrastructure. The funds were awarded through the Tribal Connectivity Program, which increases access to affordable internet on tribal lands as part of the 2021 fed...
Sen. Lisa Murkowski has requested $490 million for more than 130 Alaska projects in congressional appropriations bills under consideration in Congress. None of the money would be headed to Wrangell, though the community could benefit indirectly from statewide programs. Congress is working this month to approve spending on projects and government operations for 2023. When Murkowski visited Wrangell on Sept. 11, Borough Manager Jeff Good gave her a tour of the borough’s ongoing capital projects. They visited the water reservoir dams, Public S...
Residents will gather for a “Christ-moose” potluck at the Nolan Center at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 18 to celebrate the holiday season through food and fellowship. All are welcome to the free event, which will feature moose meat prepared by Jake Harris of the Stikine Inn. Attendees are encouraged to contribute their favorite side dish to the spread. The potluck is the first of its kind in three years, explained event organizer Lovey Brock. A similar event was held in 2019 — before pandemic fears hit — and boasted around 150 attendees, plus a wide array o...
Former Wrangell residents Kelsey Leak and Arne Dahl were involved in a boating accident late Sunday afternoon. By mid-afternoon Monday, Leak had been picked up by a nearby fishing vessel. As of Tuesday morning, Dahl had not been found. The couple was boating near Point Baker and Point Protection, roughly 40 nautical miles west of Wrangell. Leak, who survived the accident, spent Sunday night on one of the West Rocks, in the area around Point Baker and Point Protection. "That was a feat by...
Next month, Sarah Lewis of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Extension Service will help Wrangell residents develop the skills they need to ride out the dark winter days, from preserving delicious foods to reducing those shocking seasonal energy bills. From Dec. 8 to 11, she will teach a wide variety of home skills and food preservation classes in collaboration with the Wrangell Cooperative Association, the nonprofit RurAL Cap and the federal Tribes Extension Program. Lewis, a licensed architect with a master’s degree in social work, has m...
Wrangell vessel owners who already shuttle passengers and freight around southern Southeast said they would be willing to contract with the borough for service to Petersburg and Coffman Cove, rather than see the borough subsidize a return of the more expensive Inter-Island Ferry Authority. Zach Taylor, who operates the 38-foot catamaran Island Cat, and Eric Yancey, who operates the 75-foot landing craft Rainforest Islander, have expressed their willingness to contract with the borough to provide regular service between the communities. “If Wran...
Despite recent rate hikes, the borough’s user fees are still insufficient to fully cover future big-ticket infrastructure costs, according to the audit of last year’s municipal finances. At a Nov. 15 assembly work session, Finance Director Mason Villarma and Joy Merriner, of the audit firm BDO’s Anchorage office, suggested that the borough conduct “comprehensive rate revaluation and reserve modeling” annually, to ensure that rates keep up with inflation and generate enough money to maintain essential infrastructure, like vacuum trucks, t...
Next year, Wrangell will be home to a hot new tourist attraction — public restrooms. Portable facilities will appear downtown in the late spring to meet tourist demand and to reduce the strain on area businesses. “We’re looking at doing some sort of mobile trailer type of restroom,” said Tom Wetor, director of the Public Works Department. The trailers will sit at the intersection of Campbell Drive and Front Street, near 56º North and Angerman’s. Facilities will include four private stalls, complete with sinks. Two of the stalls will be wheelch...
In the Oct. 4 municipal election, Wrangell voters authorized the borough to sell or lease the 6-Mile mill site, a 39-acre parcel of land on Zimovia Highway. As they explore options for developing the land, borough officials will seek community feedback at an upcoming public forum. The forum represents an effort to “look at what the community would like to see out there,” said Economic Development Director Carol Rushmore. How does the community think the property can best be utilized for its benefit, she asked. At the Oct. 19 meeting of the bor...
Soon after Carol Rushmore stepped into her role as economic development director in 1993, Wrangell’s economic landscape changed forever. The sawmill, which had been the borough’s economic mainstay since the mid-1950s, shut down, setting off a chain reaction of job losses and business closures that affected the entire community. “We lost 20% of our workforce overnight,” Rushmore said. “It was extremely bad for a good 10 years.” But 29 years and countless grant applications, public forums and infrastructure projects later, Rushmore is planning...
Renewable energy advocates will try again at next year’s legislative session to win approval for extending the life of the state’s Renewable Energy Fund and creating a “green bank” to help finance clean-energy projects. The Renewable Energy Fund (REF) provides grants for renewable energy projects via a competitive process. The fund was established in 2008 with an initial investment of $100 million, plus additional deposits over the years. The program ends in 2023, unless extended by lawmakers. Legislators convene in Juneau on Jan. 17. Over 10...
Though you might not find four calling birds, three french hens, two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree in the rainforest ecosystems of the Tongass, there can be no doubt that counting birds is a quintessential Christmas activity. On Dec. 17, Wrangell’s avian enthusiasts will participate in Audubon’s 123rd annual Christmas Bird Count. Over 20 countries and thousands of volunteers contribute to this early-winter bird census, which runs from Dec. 14 to Jan. 5 yearly. Each community’s bird count is conducted on a single calendar day w...
After Wrangell voters chose not to take on debt to finance repairs to the Public Safety Building last month, the facility’s future is uncertain. Borough officials are racing against time to identify alternative sources of funding before the building, which houses essential government services, becomes unsafe for workers. At the Oct. 4 municipal election, the community approved $3.5 million in bonds for school repairs but voted down the ballot issue that would have approved $8.5 million to repair the Public Safety Building, which would have b...
Ethel Aanwoogex' Lund, a pioneer of tribal health care, died in the early morning last Friday at the age of 91. She was instrumental in improving the quality of care for Alaska Native people and received national recognition for her contributions. Lund was born in Wrangell in 1931, where she witnessed firsthand the challenges that rural and Native Alaskans faced when trying to access health care. After tuberculosis devastated her community - and put her in the hospital for two and a half years...
On the second day of the Wrangell Cooperative Association's new Tlingit language program, instructor Virginia Oliver stood next to a whiteboard nearly twice her height, covered in Tlingit words and phrases, and introduced herself to her students. "Virginia you xat duwasáakw." My name is Virginia. "Wáasáiduwa sáakw?" What is your name? She worked her way around the packed classroom, helping each student introduce themselves and rewarding correct pronunciation with an enthusiastic "yak'ei!" Oli...
Last Thursday afternoon was dark and drizzly, but the children and parents of the I Toowú Klatseen running program braved the inauspicious weather to complete a 5K, demonstrating the program’s values of physical and spiritual strength. I Toowú Klatseen, which translates to “strengthen your spirit,” is a 10-week afterschool running program that teaches children in the third to fifth grades about Tlingit values. The curriculum uses traditional stories, Tlingit language lessons and culturally relevant games to instill respect for land and communit...
After a recent fire put the Ketchikan harbor department at risk of a lawsuit for not requiring boat owners to carry insurance, the Wrangell Port and Harbors Department is considering issuing an insurance requirement for vessels, though the decision-making process is still in the early stages. At the Ketchikan harbor, the owner of a boat damaged in the fire aboard a nearby vessel has threatened legal action against the city for losses. According to Wrangell Port Director Steve Miller, the borough harbor department is weighing its funding needs...
