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From a “beary” pie contest to a cub-o-war, art workshops, live music and a usually sold-out dinner, BearFest is returning for its 14th year. The activities start July 26. The popular educational and cultural event celebrates bears and the surrounding environment. Along with the activities, educational opportunities and symposiums and a bear safety session are planned. One of the more popular features of BearFest is the dinner and fundraising auction held at the Stikine Inn and Restaurant, which will begin at 6 p.m. July 28. Tickets went on sal...
The Irene Ingle Public Library has been guided by a distinguished line of library directors, from Helen Hofstad, who ran the library when it opened in 1921, to Irene Ingle, Kay Jabusch and Margaret Villarma. Now that Villarma has retired, former Assistant Librarian Sarah Scambler is stepping into the role of library director to continue the facility's over 100-year legacy. Her official first day was June 26; Villarma's last day in the office was June 27. Wrangell's library has been a part of...
From towering Christmas trees to black light Halloween parties, Wrangell goes hard for the holidays. With the community's most spectacular celebration - the Fourth of July - just around the corner, event organizers are putting the finishing touches on the event schedule. Here are some of the highlights that attendees can look forward to: The festivities kick off with a picnic and pie-eating contest at 1 p.m. Saturday outside the Irene Ingle Public Library. On Sunday, kids will fish at City Dock...
The borough has cut the salary of the Irene Ingle Public Library’s head librarian as it seeks to replace outgoing Library Director Margaret Villarma. At its May 23 meeting, the assembly voted to reduce the position’s salary by roughly $10,000 a year, depending on where the employee falls on the pay scale. The change will make the library director Wrangell’s lowest paid department head. The job’s duties, responsibilities and qualifications have not changed — only the compensation. Villarma plans to retire this summer and though the pay cut will...
The Irene Ingle Public Library has undergone countless changes in the past three decades, from the digitization of its catalog to major building renovations to the advent of e-books. Library Director Margaret Villarma has guided the facility through it all, offering support to elders and fostering a love of reading in generations of Wrangell youth. Now, after 34 years, she is ready to retire. "I'm just grateful for the job I had here," she said. "I really am. I enjoyed it. I couldn't have asked...
Every spring when the eulachon spawn, the Stikine River flats are flooded with thousands of migratory shorebirds. And each year, the town responds in-kind with the Stikine River Birding Festival, filling the radio airwaves with bird songs and holding an array of avian-themed events. This season, the festival will run for three weekends between April 21 and May 6. It will feature movies, crafts, workshops and more. “Birding is such a nice welcome to spring,” said Corree Delabrue of the U.S. Forest Service, who helped plan the festival. She lov...
National Reading Month is in its final week, and some of the community’s literature lovers are sharing their favorite books for anyone who wants to add to their list — this month, or any month. The month was first celebrated in March of 1994 to commemorate the contributions of author and illustrator Dr. Seuss, who helped foster enthusiasm for reading in American youth by producing children’s books that were engaging despite their simple language. Every year in March, readers celebrate by picking up their favorite novels, visiting their local...
Armchair historians and amateur genealogists rejoice — the entire Sentinel archive will be digitized and easily searchable online. The Friends of the Library has received a $17,000 Rasmuson Foundation grant, which, combined with community donations, should cover the estimated $24,000 project. The Irene Ingle Public Library is partnering with Alaska Resources Library & Information Services (ARLIS) at the University of Alaska Anchorage to digitize, assemble and upload the entire catalog of Sentinels going back to its founding in 1902, and even m...
During his presentation to young readers at the Irene Ingle Public Library on Jan. 14, Alaska author Paul Greci shared the formula that helped him produce his first novel, "Surviving Bear Island" - experience plus imagination equals story. Inspired by his personal outdoor experiences, he imagined the gripping narrative of Tom Parker, who is stranded on a remote island after a sea kayaking accident separates him from his father. The middle-grade adventure story was chosen as the Alaska Center for...
In today’s interconnected world, internet access allows people to connect with loved ones, stay updated on current events, access essential government services and more. But in Alaska, not all communities have access to reliable, affordable internet. Late last month, Alaska Municipal League representative Alicia Hughes-Skandijs met with seven representatives from the library, borough, Wrangell Cooperative Association and others to discuss challenges with the Wrangell community’s internet access. The meeting was an early step in the fiv...
The entire Wrangell family — consisting of parents, kids, siblings, elders, community members and more — is invited to the Family Resilience Fair at the Nolan Center next month. BRAVE, a domestic violence prevention organization whose name stands for Building Respect And Valuing Everyone, is hosting the fifth-annual fair on Nov. 19 from 2 to 4 p.m. The event will feature prizes, family-centric games and informative booths from social service organizations in the area. The upcoming fair is “a way for … agencies to connect with the communi...
When the days get chilly and the nights get longer, nothing says fall like curling up with a good book. Last Friday, for the first time in three years, Wrangell children were able to enjoy story time together at the Irene Ingle Public Library, instead of at home through Zoom rectangles. Sarah Merritt, library services support and designated storybook reader, shared four autumn tales filled with pictures of colorful leaves and plentiful harvests as kids and their parents listened. Near the end...
The Irene Ingle Public Library would like to thank all of the individuals, businesses and organizations who donated prizes for the Summer Reading Program. We appreciate your continued support in assisting us by encouraging children to read during the summer and improve their reading skills. We would also like to thank; First Bank, for the funds to purchase Adidas Sackpacks for all those who completed the program; Alaska Airlines, for the funds to purchase prizes; the city and borough of Wrangell; Jeff Angerman for his ongoing support; and...
What to do with someone's property when they die can be a complicated task involving beneficiaries, a ton of paperwork and the court system. But it doesn't necessarily have to be. Liz Smith, a Juneau-based lawyer specializing in estate planning, gave a presentation last Wednesday to help clear up the often confusing world of wills, asset protection and long-term health care decisions Twelve people of various ages attended the presentation at Irene Ingle Public Library, listening as Smith gave a...
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...
With names like delicious milky, hawks wing, chaga, puffballs and fairy farts, mushrooms found throughout Southeast are diverse in shape, color and edibility. Some can be used as fabric dyes, and some can kill a person if eaten. Over the course of last Friday and Saturday, field mycologist and author Noah Siegel educated resident foragers on which mushrooms are safe and which should be avoided. For about 90 minutes last Friday evening, Siegel, of Royalston, Massachusetts, spoke to a group of...
Downpours sure to quell any blaze didn't stop kids blazing a trail to the Irene Ingle Public Library for the final Reading with a Ranger story time for the summer. About 20 children joined U.S. Forest Service staff and Smokey the Bear last Friday during BearFest, listening to stories about bears. The kids listened to intern Claire Froehlich as she read from three different books, "How Do Bears Sleep?" "I am a Little Bear" and "Smokey the Bear." The first book talked about the hibernation habits...
From Wednesday through Sunday, the schedule for BearFest is loaded with something for all ages, whether games and art workshops or food and educational symposiums. Since the event is focused on bears, there will be bear safety classes, a look at the new Anan Wildlife Observatory for bear viewing, a history of bears in national parks, and bear conservation among other bear-related topics. BearFest organizer Sylvia Ettefagh said in an interview earlier this month that the mission of the five-day...
It's summer break, but some kids are only taking a break from the writin' and 'rithmetic portions of school. There are 158 who are immersed in the readin'. The Irene Ingle Public Library summer reading program, which kicked off in June, has about two weeks left before wrapping up with a pizza and pool party for those who earn 10 points or more. According to Margaret Villarma, head librarian, children grades kindergarten to ninth read accelerated reader books. Before starting the program, kids...
The Friends of the Library recently received a $950 donation from the Juneau Community Foundation toward our ongoing effort to digitize every page of the Wrangell Sentinel, 1902 to present. The plan is to put the easily viewed images online for researchers, family members, students and all the curious people who want to look through the community’s history. The project started several years ago and received a big boost in 2019 when the Wrangell Cooperative Association contributed to the effort as it secured an $8,250 grant for the work from t...
Pickling and fermenting, pressure-canning and freezing were among the topics covered over three days of courses last week as members of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service taught food preservation classes in Wrangell. Wrangell Extension Days were held from May 24 to 26 and offered nine workshops and a Certified Food Protection Manager exam. Attendees at each workshop varied in skill level, with some just beginning their preserving journey to others who have been...
Wondering if that cluster of mushrooms found on the roadside are safe to pick and eat? Odds are they're OK, and so are others. To that end, the Friends of the Library is holding an event Sept. 9 to 11 at the Irene Ingle Public Library to inform foragers what mushrooms can be eaten again and again, and which ones should not be eaten even once. Kitty LaBounty, a Sitka-based professor with the University of Alaska Southeast, is scheduled to share her knowledge on safe versus unsafe mushrooms when...
Summer is more than just playing outdoors for children — it can be about reading books and winning prizes, including a pool and pizza party. The Irene Ingle Public Library’s summer reading program is open to children entering kindergarten through the freshman year of high school in the fall. Almost 100 children completed the reading program last year, Margaret Villarma, library director, said last week. Children need to come into the library or call 907-874-3535 to register in advance; the reading program starts June 1 and runs through Jul...
The annual Stikine River Birding Festival has a busy first weekend planned. It starts up Friday with a 1 p.m. virtual storytime at the Irene Ingle Public Library, then continuing the educational fun agenda with a Birding 101 class at 6 p.m. Friday at the Nolan Center, led by Bonnie Demerjian. The library event will present an Earth Day theme, with activity kits available for pickup at the library. The meeting ID for the Zoom event is 935 4298 0052, passcode 8743535. There are three events on Saturday’s calendar. A community cleanup is p...
The police department is putting together a plan to hire a tow truck company from Petersburg to come over in the spring and haul to the borough's impound yard vehicles that have been abandoned for too long in port and harbor parking lots, and elsewhere throughout town. The vehicles are piled up in parking lots at Heritage Harbor, Shoemaker Bay and in the right of way on Zimovia Highway, making it difficult for snowplows to do their work. Others are leaning against derelict boats next to a bed-an...
