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In addition to his duties as activities director, Mike Hoyt will now also serve as the new Indian Education Act director for the school district after the resignation of DaNika Smalley on Feb. 29. Schools Superintendent Bill Burr confirmed that Hoyt started on March 11. Working in cultural education has been Hoyt’s focus since 2011. He worked as a teacher in Nome for five years, and before that worked at culture camps operated by Goldbelt and Sealaska Heritage Institute in Juneau. “He’s got background in writing grants,” Burr said. “And he...
High school student Cody Eastaugh has worked part time for almost two years at the Bay Company, known as BayCo, which specializes in marine sales and service at its Front Street location. While trying to decide on his senior project, his boss Dave Powell came up with the idea that Eastaugh could assist him with volunteer efforts for two fundraisers and cleanup and repairs at the shooting range. "I thought, that's a terrific idea and I should do that," Eastaugh said. First, he helped Powell with...
After three days of challenging games on the court, the Wrangell Wolves boys varsity basketball team's loss to the Unalakleet Wolfpack on the morning of Saturday, March 16, left them in sixth place at the state Division 2A championship in Anchorage. The Petersburg Vikings took the title for the first time since 2017. The Metlakatla Miss Chiefs won the girls tournament. Wrangell head coach Cody Angerman posted on Facebook after the game: "As disappointing as our last (tournament) game was, it...
The Wrangell Little League is preparing for a new season on the baseball diamond. But first, they need a few more volunteers. Little League player agent Kaelene Harrison said that while they’ve found almost all their head coaches, there are still a few open spots. “We just need to decide who’s coaching what,” she said last week. The season runs April 1 through June 15. In addition to coaches, the league was looking for volunteers to fill openings for assistant coaches, umpires and scorekeepers, as well as field maintenance and concess...
Despite a rocky start at the regional tournament, the Wrangell boys varsity basketball team defeated Metlakatla in their final game Saturday to take second place in Southeast, earning a spot at the Division II state tournament. Head coach Cody Angerman felt that one goal for the team all season was to work toward being at their best at regionals. "I think that as the season went on, we got better," he said. Entering the tournament in Sitka as the No. 3 seed, the Wolves lost their first game on...
After filling the job in the past in a temporary capacity, Tory Houser officially accepted the position as U.S. Forest Service Wrangell District ranger on March 4. "It feels great, and a lot of responsibility," she said. Houser has spent 21 years with the Forest Service, including eight years in Wrangell, mostly as recreation officer, although she has filled in before from time to time as acting district ranger. She said that while those previous experiences prepared her in some ways, "I'll need...
High school senior Sean McDonald has a lot of history with the Wrangell IGA supermarket. "I've worked at the store since October of 2022," he said. "I'm really closely related with the owners. They grew up as a big part of my life, and I've known them for a long time. And then, before they owned it, my grandpa also worked in the store for over 30 years, so I really grew up with the store and I'm familiar with it." It was that familiarity that led to McDonald's decision for his senior project to...
The Lady Wolves’ struggle through a difficult season ended at the Southeast basketball tournament at Sitka. The game last Wednesday was a tough loss to the Haines Lady Bears, 43-42. Then on Thursday, Wrangell lost to the Craig Lady Panthers, 37-31, and was eliminated from the tourney. The Metlakatla Miss Chiefs won the tournament, with Haines taking second place. Both are headed to the state championships in Anchorage this week. In the first game, Wrangell trailed Haines at halftime by eight points but bounced back to take the lead in the t...
Wrangell eighth grader Kourtney Barnes earned the top spot in her weight bracket for the second year in a row at the state's biggest middle school wrestling tournament. It was the third time in three years that she faced Jordynn Colby of North Pole in the finals. Two of Kourtney's schoolmates placed second and fourth at the tournament. "We had a capstone weekend to our wrestling season," said head coach Jack Carney, who added that the wrestling community considers the Tanana Invitational...
Participants in last year’s Toughman Triathlon in Wrangell will have to step up their game if they want to join the challenge of running a 100-mile ultramarathon at the end of June. Former resident Nicholas Howell posted on the Wrangell Community Group’s Facebook page last month that they “will be changing it up this year” for the annual Tongass Toughman by presenting a new challenge: a 100-mile run around Wrangell Island. According to his Facebook post, he announced the news “so individuals have something to train for.” Howell also stated in h...
The Wrangell school district is proposing to draw down about half of its reserves to balance the upcoming year’s budget, and Schools Superintendent Bill Burr warns that the solution is not sustainable for the long term. The school board at its Feb. 26 meeting reviewed with district business manager Kristy Andrew the first draft of the budget for the 2024-2025 school year. The budget shows general fund revenues of approximately $5.2 million — of which about 60% is from the state foundation funding formula — and expenses of more than $5.8 milli...
For Dorthea Rooney, her appeal to the borough assembly was born out of a personal tragedy. She requested some form of animal control that could provide euthanasia for pets in cases of illness or injury. Her sister's large, 13-year-old dog Lilly, who served as their mother's emotional support animal, had become unable to move her back legs. "She was basically paralyzed," she said. The house where Rooney's sister and mother lived had 40 stairs, and with Lilly's size and 100-pound weight, it was im...
As Ken Hoyt prepares for the Tlingit canoe paddle making workshop at the high school shop room Friday through Sunday, March 8-10, he explained how there are two different types, depending on its intended use. "Real canoe paddles ... never have relief carving," he said. "They don't have inlays. They don't have anything ornate. They're utilitarian. People will sometimes be disappointed when they see old canoe paddles have a lot of geometric designs, straight lines, way different from the...
High school wrestler Keegan Hanson, a state champion in the Division II tournament this past December, chose for his senior project to help grade school kids in the Wolfpack Wrestling program with Parks and Recreation as an assistant coach. "Basically, just helping the kids out with their technique and break down the moves, step by step," he said. He's been volunteering, coaching elementary school and middle school students in wrestling throughout his high school years. "In Craig, my freshman an...
Sandra "Sandy" Churchill didn't expect to get her first paid position in 1998 at the Head Start program as a teacher's aide/cook. "There's hardly ever any openings here," she said. "I was so surprised when I got in." She also didn't expect to still be working at Head Start over 26 years later as lead teacher. "My goal was for 25," she said, laughing. Churchill will retire at the end of the school year. "It's a whole new chapter for me," she said. "I wonder what's it's going to be like,...
Wrangell firefighters will join the 33rd annual stairclimb competition in Seattle next month to raise money for the fight against leukemia and lymphoma. Clay Hammer, Dustin Johnson and Steve Prysunka are taking part in the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Firefighter Stairclimb on Sunday, March 10. It’s the world’s largest such event where the climbers breathe through their airpacks. The contest will be held at Seattle’s tallest building, the Columbia Center. All 2,000 participants are career, volunteer or retired firefighters from all over th...
Alicia Armstrong's senior project is unique in that it could change the timing of future senior projects, which are a requirement to graduate from Wrangell High School. She wants to make the concept more structured and planned so that students can start preparing for it in their junior year. "The idea would be to meet with the counselor that first semester of junior year to go over the expectations of what a senior project is ... what it looks like," Armstrong said. "And then, you would then...
The Wrangell varsity girls split against Craig in tight games last weekend, ending their nine-game losing streak in the second game. The team ended the regular season with a 3-and-9 record. Craig hosted Wrangell on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 23 and 24. In the first game, the home team beat the visiting Lady Wolves 52-48, but Wrangell came back on Saturday to defeat the Lady Panthers 49-41. Both games were tight contests. The first one could have easily gone in their favor, but it was in the second game’s fourth quarter where Wrangell steadily p...
The Wolves varsity team scored decisive victories in their final regular-season games this past weekend as the visiting team against the Craig Panthers. It makes three wins in a row for Wrangell, now at 6-6 for the season. Craig hosted Wrangell on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 23 and 24. In the first game, the varsity team won 73-52, and the Wolves scored another win the second night, 76-63. The junior varsity team also earned double wins against Craig, winning their game on Friday 36-12, and the Saturday game 29-19. “The lead always felt c...
Jared Becker was new to Wrangell when he and his wife, Destiny, arrived from St. Louis Park, a suburb of Minneapolis, at the end of September. "We're Jehovah's Witnesses, so we like to help out with Bible education work," he said. "So that's what brought us here. We were just trying to find a way to sustain ourselves once we got here." As he talked with residents over the next few months, he saw there was a need in town for auto repair services. "So, I decided to give it a try and see where it...
The Parks and Recreation Department has a healthy list of work projects it wants to complete by June, including maintenance on the Mount Dewey trail, repairs to public restrooms and reinforcing the fire pit at City Park. Replacing more trash bins with new ones better able to withstand curious bears is also on the list as the department looks ahead to people using the parks, trails and green spaces come summer. The alder removal process is ongoing in various parks and trails, cutting back excess vegetation that encroach on fencing and other...
KSTK is accepting donations of artwork for its annual fundraising auction, set for Friday evening, March 22, at the Nolan Center. “We have artwork from all kinds of different artists from around Alaska,” said KSTK Development Director Kimberly Ottesen, adding that past auctions have showcased a wide variety of artwork. Any medium will be accepted, including photography, paintings, sculptures and crafts. Ottesen said it all began in 2000, when the station invited residents to compete with their favorite chilis. Around 2002, an over-the-air art...
What began about a year and a half ago as a side project for high school student Spencer Petticrew would eventually evolve to become his senior project: the livestreaming video setup at Wrangell High School for events, including all sports games, musical concerts and graduation ceremony. "Basically, if it takes place in the gym, and people want to watch it, I'm the guy that handles the livestreaming of it over platforms like YouTube," he said. Petticrew credits the high school's former IT...
After five years, a once-popular community gathering place may finally make a comeback. Georgianna and Richard Buhler, founders of the nondenominational TouchPoint Alaska Ministries, recently purchased the old Church of God property, which has been shuttered for the past five years. Although one of their long-term goals is to eventually have a day care center at the Bennett Street property, their first priority is to bring back the adjoining roller rink. "There's a lot of memories in this...
Jackie Hanson has resigned as principal of Wrangell High School and Stikine Middle School, effective at the end of the school year. Hanson started with the Wrangell district in August. She was the third principal for the schools in the past three years; each served just one school year. She responded via email that she was offered a position as superintendent for the Craig City School District. Since most of her family lives in Craig, her parents are getting older and she already has a house there, she decided to accept. “I plan to finish the s...
