Sorted by date Results 1205 - 1229 of 1297
Scores of families came to the gym at Evergreen Elementary School Saturday morning for this year's Wrangell Early Childhood Coalition – Best Beginnings Children's Fair. "It's going very well," said Krissy Smith, the coalition's executive director. Manning the door, by midday she figured it was rivaling last year's turnout. "It's been too busy to count them at the door," she said. Later in the day, she was able to calculate that 364 participants of all ages had attended. In addition to handing o...
Officer positions were decided at the Wrangell Medical Center Board's monthly meeting Oct. 15. Present were Judy Ellen, Barb Conine, Bernie Massin, Cori Robinson and Dorothy Sweat, while among those teleconferencing in were members Woody Wilson and Terri Henson. Wrangell Medical Center's executive Marla Sanger presided over the meeting to begin with, while the board elected its new officers following the Oct. 7 election. Henson nominated herself to again serve as board president, which was unanimously approved. Massin was nominated and elected...
Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) confirmed Tuesday that the 2014 moose harvest was the second-best on record for the Wrangell-Petersburg area. “The harvest of 104 moose this fall ranks as the second highest on record for the local RM038 moose hunt,” ADFG biologist Rich Lowell reported. Of this year's harvest, 36 were killed near the Stikine River, its highest harvest since 1990. Another 35 were taken on Kupreanof Island, which Lowell explained tends to see the largest numbers in the area. Thirteen were also harvested on Mitkof Isl...
Wrangell's wrestling Wolves did well at the 2014 Petersburg High School Invitational and Round Robin last Friday and Saturday. "We took the region," said the team's coach, Jeff Rooney. He figured Saturday's tournament to have been among the biggest this season, featuring 15 teams from multiple regions and divisions. "This one here was pretty big, with 170 kids," Rooney added. "We got to see a lot of great competition." For the 1A-3A on Saturday, Wrangell's team of 11 wrestlers accumulated 133.5...
Wrangell's Lady Wolves volleyball team performed well last week, as the borough hosted this year's High School North Seeding Tournament. "Things went without a hitch," Wrangell Public Schools Superintendent Patrick Meyer commented. There were no problems to speak of, and visiting players found places to stay among local families for the three-day tournament. "This community always opens up their arms," he said. Preceding the varsity tournament on the evening of Oct. 16, the Wolves' junior...
The Wrangell School Board scarcely had a quorum at its Monday evening meeting when it reappointed its officers following the results of the Oct. 7 local election. Susan Eagle was re-elected by voters, and after a unanimous 3-0 vote was reinstated as board president. Board members Rinda Howell and Tammy Groshong were named as vice-president and secretary, respectively. The three then decided to appoint Aleisha Mollen to replace Krissy Smith who resigned last month from the school board. Mollen had run for the same seat as Eagle during the...
Wrangell's public radio station KSTK began its annual fall membership drive Monday, with hopes to raise $18,000 by Saturday. The fundraiser is one of two the station holds each year, raising a total of $36,000 for its yearly operating budget. The rest of KSTK's approximately $290,000 budget comes from public funds, with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) making up the largest share along with Alaska Public Broadcasters. “Without these funds we can't rely on the CPB or Alaska broadcasting money,” station manager Cindy Sweat exp...
There was a good turnout for the Southeast Beasts' first-ever Alaska Day five-kilometer fun run and half-marathon Saturday morning, with around 65 participants. It was an almost perfect Alaska morning, with swiftly drifting clouds a creamy hue, a pair of ravens chasing after each other overhead, and not a drop of rain to be seen. Runners lining up at the starting line shuddered slightly as they were reminded of the season by a hearty gust. They seemed relieved when the air-horn finally sounded,...
Tuesday's Regular Borough Assembly meeting was preceded by a public hearing on Ordinance 887 being proposed, an amended section of the Wrangell Municipal Code largely dealing with the control of animals within City and Borough limits. The revised ordinance has already been sent back to the Ordinance Review Board before for retooling, and this latest appearance would be its second reading. A number of the island's residents showed up to express their concerns that the wording of several sections...
Members of the Wrangell Borough Assembly met Monday at a special midday session to formally approve election results certified by the Borough Canvass Board on Oct. 9. The official results included votes cast at the Nolan Center on election day, Oct. 7, as well as assisted and absentee ballots cast prior which were counted by the Canvass Board. For one 2-year term as Mayor, David Jack received 304 votes and Kipha Valvoda received 75. For two 3-year terms on the Assembly, Mark Mitchell received 27...
The middle schoolers in this year's Girls on Track program gather round the finish line by the park at Shoemaker Harbor Saturday morning after their final five-kilometer run of the year. "It went really well. We had a great season," said coach Becky McIntyre (back row, right of center). Despite a solid downpour, 20 runners joined GoT's six girls for the 5K, including parents and younger siblings. McIntyre enjoyed this first attempt at the program aimed at a middle-school audience, which is an...
It appears to have been a successful month for moose hunters as the season came to an end yesterday. As of Tuesday morning, Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) biologist Rich Lowell reported it likely to be the second-best season on record. A total of 97 bull moose were harvested from the Petersburg-Wrangell area, better than last year's 92. The highest recorded figure was 109 moose in 2009. Of this year's harvest, 36 were killed near the Stikine River, its highest harvest in 24 years....
After several years of remaining unchanged, fee rates for using Wrangell’s Parks and Recreation facilities may soon see a readjustment. At its monthly meeting Oct. 1, the Parks and Rec Advisory Board examined a new fee schedule being developed. Explaining the proposed rates, board member Haig Demerjian said the current rates were last adjusted in 2010. Looking at rates for other communities in Southeast Alaska, he found that Wrangell’s rates tended to be considerably lower than the regional average. “We’re kind of toward the bottom,” he said....
Staff members at Wrangell Medical Center last month were awarded the 2014 Hospital Quality Award by Mountain-Pacific Quality Health Foundation, which supports healthcare groups in Alaska, Hawaii, Wyoming and Montana. The awards were presented at the annual Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association Conference in Girdwood on Sept. 11. WMC was one of six Alaska hospitals recognized for its dedication to ensuring high-quality care in seven national quality project areas. It was also one of...
The unofficial results of Tuesday's local elections in Wrangell saw 312 ballots cast, considerably fewer than at last year's election. Of eight open positions there had been only two contested seats, one two-year term for mayor and a three-year term on the school board. Additionally, there were no measures or items on this year's ballot. For the mayoral position, incumbent candidate David Jack regained his seat with 242 votes. The other candidate, Kipha Valvoda, collected 59. For the school board, incumbent Susan Eagle collected 207 votes;...
Women in Wrangell are encouraged to focus on their health during Breast Cancer Awareness month this October. Throughout the month, Wrangell Medical Center will be offering reduced-rate mammograms for locals, lowering the cost by more than 30 percent. Ann Kramer, head of the Imaging Department at WMC, described the mammography process in a release: “Women age 40 and older may self-request a screening mammogram by calling the WMC Imaging department at 874-7128 to set up an appointment. Then, at the given time, check in with the receptionist at th...
As the third week of this year’s moose hunt came to a close this past Sunday, the current harvest is still slightly ahead of last year’s numbers. According to Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologist Rich Lowell, a total of 72 moose were reported killed for the Petersburg-Wrangell area, compared to 71 last year. With a few more reported taken Tuesday, the number stands at 74. Twenty-five have so far been taken on the Stikine River, and another 27 on Kupreanof Island. There were also six harvested on Mitkof Island, five at Thomas Bay, thr...
The ladies at the Wrangell Art Gallery on Front Street will be celebrating half a century of making artwork together this weekend, hosting an open house with refreshments on Tax Free Day which is Saturday. "It's a good time to celebrate 50 years of painting together," said Olga Norris, one of the group's founding members. "It started just as a friends' get-together," back in 1964. "We've been at this a long time," said Joyce Phillips, another original member of the group. At first, the group...
Wrangellites will be able to save a bit on sales on Saturday during this season’s Tax Free Day. For one day only local businesses will be exempt from the Borough’s seven-percent sales tax, so a number of shops will be offering special discounts and sales to coincide with the day. “It promotes our local economy,” said Cyni Waddington, manager of the Wrangell Chamber of Commerce office. “The Chamber of Commerce petitions the city twice a year,” she explained, “asking for a day of no tax.” This particular Saturday will coincide with other even...
Local businesses and educators will have the first of three opportunities to brush up on their ‘e’s’, as Wrangell School District and the Chamber of Commerce host a pair of technological experts to come to improve people’s e-commerce and e-marketing skills. The specialists are part of a $23,000 grant through the Association of Alaska School Boards, the organizing body for schools across the state. Called the Consortium for Digital Learning Initiative, the program strives to enable modern entrepreneurial methods in school districts around...
Wrangell High School's cross-country season came to a good finish, as six of its runners made it to the Cross Country State Championship hosted by Bartlett High School in Anchorage on Saturday. "The kids did really well at State for cross-country," said Jack Carney, activity director for Wrangell Public Schools. He said Bryce Gerald beat his personal record from the regional meet in Ketchikan by taking eighth overall in the 1-3A race at State, with a time of 17:22.8. This climaxed a streak of...
There was a good turnout at the Parks and Recreation public information meeting at Wrangell City Hall Monday night, with about two-dozen residents coming to hear about and discuss the department's proposed trail projects. "We've got a big public meeting," Borough Economic Development Director Carol Rushmore noted. "We don't normally have this many people." Parks and Rec Director Amber Al-Haddad is looking toward a Nov. 15 deadline to submit applications to a Recreation Trail Program grant...
Wrangell High School's cross-country teams did very well at the Section V Regional Championship in Ketchikan on Saturday, with the girls' team taking first in the 1A-2A meet and runner Bryce Gerald coming in second place for the boys. A bear at one point appeared on the course, putting a temporary stop to the race. It was rerun later that day. "Our girls handled it like champs and didn't let that stop them from competing at their best," said Jenn Davies, the team's coach. Reyn Hutten finished...
Students at Wrangell High School are lacing their trainers as the new wrestling and volleyball seasons started Monday. It's already looking to be a big season for the school's sports program, with the girls cross-country team heading to State after taking first at last weekend's Region V in Ketchikan, and Wrangell hosting this year's Region V wrestling tournament Dec. 5 and 6. "We're going to have a lot of people coming," said Jack Carney, Wrangell High School's new athletic coordinator. He...
The United States Forest Service announced that its Tongass National Forest Sustainable Cabin Management project details are now available online. The environmental assessment, maps and appendices are located under the Project Documents – Analysis tab at http://go.usa.gov/WQEk. The Forest Service is proposing the removal of nine cabins, and the conversion or replacement of three others with survival shelters. Wrangell Ranger District will be affected by the plan. “We’re going to remove one cabin,” explained Ranger Bob Dalrymple, head of the...
