Sorted by date Results 326 - 342 of 342
Jim LaBelle entered the Wrangell Institute in 1955 at the age of 8. Over the next 10 years, he would lose his hair, large portions of his memory, and the ability to speak Inupiaq. He has spent his life trying to understand what happened, and he will tell his story Saturday morning at the Sharing Our Knowledge conference. For LaBelle, storytelling is an essential part of the healing process. As one of the keynote speakers at this week’s Sharing Our Knowledge conference of Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian tribes and clans, LaBelle will relate his e...
Last Thursday, the port commission unanimously voted down a motion that would have recommended the borough lease a portion of the 6-Mile mill property to Channel Construction. Commissioners said they need more information before forwarding a recommendation. Juneau-based Channel Construction, which is owned by William “Shorty” Tonsgard Jr., requested to lease a parcel of waterfront property at the former sawmill site for scrap metal recycling. According to its application, the company seeks to establish a “prominent recycling yard” at the loc...
Ever wanted to bend light? Build a wall-climbing gecko robot with air-suction toes? Control a bipedal, ultrasonic droid using your smartphone? These activities may sound like the work of a mad scientist, but thanks to the Irene Ingle Public Library, Wrangell youth don't need a subterranean lair and an army of minions to explore the wonderful world of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, also known as STEM. Starting in early 2020, the library began offering STEM kits for kids and families...
Beginning Sept. 7, the annual Sharing Our Knowledge conference of Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian tribes and clans will be held in Wrangell for the first time. This five-day event will take place at the Nolan Center and will feature a film festival, a panel discussion and a wide variety of research presentations on subjects ranging from Indigenous history to art. Organizers expect an estimated 200 people to arrive in town for the event. Because the anticipated attendance exceeds the capacity of Wrangell’s hotels and bed and breakfast rentals, conf...
Hannah's Place is situated in a cheerful yellow house, filled with natural light and enough baby supplies to care for a small army of infants, which is exactly what the organization's executive director, Nedra Shoultz, has spent the past 11 years doing. "What we are here for is really education and support," she explained. Along with prenatal and parenting classes, the center distributes clothes, books, diapers and other baby essentials to parents in need. "If someone found themselves in a...
In less than five weeks, voters will decide whether the borough should borrow $12 million to repair the schools and Public Safety Building. On Aug. 23, the borough assembly unanimously approved placing two questions on the Oct. 4 municipal election ballot that will ask voter approval to cover the renovation costs. One of the ballot issues would approve borrowing $8.5 million to repair the water-damaged Public Safety Building, while the other would approve borrowing $3.5 million to help fund repairs at the elementary, middle and high schools....
After their last Christmas concert in December 2019, members of the community chorale packed up their music stands and filed away their songbooks, unaware that they would not be meeting again the next year. But now that two Christmases have gone by without this treasured community tradition, Bonnie Demerjian, the group’s longtime musical director, has decided it is time to bring the chorale back. For Demerjian, restarting the community chorale is “a responsibility as well as a pleasure.” She has guided the group through 23 years of conce...
On election day in five weeks, Wrangell will vote whether to give the borough permission to sell or lease all or part of the former 6-Mile sawmill property, which the borough purchased earlier this summer in hopes of spurring economic development in town. Sale or lease of borough property valued at over $1 million requires approval from a majority of voters. The borough paid $2.5 million for the 32-acre parcel. The assembly Aug. 23 voted unanimously to put the question on the Oct. 4 municipal election ballot. Assemblymember David Powell...
The SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium’s expansion of its long-term care unit at the Wrangell Medical Center remains on target for construction completion at the end of 2022. In June, SEARHC broke ground on an 1,800-square-foot addition to increase the unit’s capacity by four beds. According to Lyndsey Schaefer, director of marketing and communications at SEARHC, the additional beds will be available for use in early 2023. Spots in the 14-bed long-term care unit are “hard to come by,” said Schaefer. Once construction ends and the new...
The SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium will switch its food service contractor for the Wrangell Medical Center from NANA Management Services (NMS) to Aramark Corp. The switch in providers, according to SEARHC marketing and communications director Lyndsey Schaefer, was a “business decision.” SEARHC will officially transition from NMS to Aramark on Oct. 1. All 20 current NMS employees in Wrangell will be offered jobs with Aramark, Schaefer said last week. NMS is an Alaska-based, Native-owned company that provides food and security ser...
At noon on Sept. 30, business-minded residents will gather in the Nolan Center classroom to discuss the economic future of Wrangell. The chamber of commerce will host the economic forum, where speakers will present research on the challenges facing the Wrangell economy and discuss possible solutions. The chamber aims to create a space for engaged citizens and key players in the business community to exchange ideas. For Jeff Good, borough manager, the forum will be an opportunity to listen to the community and better understand its needs....
Every year, the Wrangell Cooperative Association reminds the community about the recycling and waste disposal options available in town. The initiative, said Kim Wickman, who coordinates the effort, is about "giving people the information they need to make better choices." Wickman believes that most people want to lessen their environmental impact, but don't always know how. "Making (recycling) simpler for people makes them a lot likelier to do it," explained Wickman. The WCA's 2022 disposal gui...
While the twinkling lights, bright colors and resounding explosions of the Fourth of July fireworks put the community in a celebratory mood last month, they have also put a dent in the pockets of the chamber of commerce. Though chamber Executive Director Brittani Robbins declined to release the exact amount of money she will need to raise before the chamber can afford next year’s fireworks, she called the sum “significant.” A variety of factors contributed to the chamber’s financial straits, including a lean year for royalty fundrai...
A line of parents and students stretched across the Wrangell Cooperative Association parking lot last Friday, waiting for the doors to open at 10 a.m. Some families arrived a half hour in advance to ensure that they would be among the first to enter the building. But it wasn't a rock concert or a new iPhone that drew this substantial queue downtown. They came for the free backpacks, filled with school supplies, that were being distributed by WCA. Before the beginning of each new school year,...
Election day went smoothly in Wrangell on Aug. 16 despite the transition to ranked-choice ballots. Voters interviewed left the polling place with a largely positive impression of the new system. This was the first election in Alaska with the new voting system, which allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference. The system, adopted by voters in a 2020 ballot initiative, is intended to reduce political polarization and negative campaigning, though critics argue that it could complicate the voting process unnecessarily. Alaska is one...
For those looking to explore or just zip around town, a few businesses in Wrangell are offering a new way to take a ride - e-bikes and e-scooters. E-bikes are powered by rechargeable batteries that allow users to move farther and faster per pedal stroke. E-scooters, on the other hand, require no physical exertion. Powered by a small electric motor, they can reach speeds of around 15 mph while riders stand comfortably on their decks. Both Wrangell Extended Stay and Breakaway Adventures began...
Correct spelling is the law for newspapers. Especially for unusual names. And especially for my first week on the job as the Sentinel's new reporter. I grew up in Salt Lake City, a fact which explains the weird spelling of my name - Utah parents love to get creative, and in a state filled with Madysens and Saydees, my version of Caroline is relatively tame. After graduating from high school, I moved to Connecticut to study English at Yale. Though I loved to read and discuss brick-thick...
