Sorted by date Results 201 - 225 of 484
In an effort to reduce waste and provide good soil for gardens, the Wrangell Cooperative Association is encouraging people to bring their compostable waste to the community garden, out by City Park. The WCA took over the composting project about a year ago, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic things got put on hold. “In 2018 Chris Hatton (of WCA) completed a solid waste assessment, and in those findings she discovered that 40% of our waste that is being shipped is compostable,” said Kim Wickman, with the WCA. “We had big plans, then COVID happe...
The Wrangell Museum has two projects underway, both dealing with wood. One is a new sign, being carved from a 20-foot-long yellow cedar log. The other is the ongoing effort to preserve and display the 96-year-old retired U.S. Forest Service wooden boat, the Chugach Ranger. Wrangell carver Denny Leak started last month stripping the bark off the log and is cutting his way into the design, which will spell out MUSEUM in large block letters vertically, with an eagle and a raven carved out at the...
Herring eggs much appreciated Wrangell Central Council Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska (CCTHITA) would like to thank Trixie Kalkins-Bennett of the Ketchikan Indian Community and fishermen from Ketchikan, Colleen James-Olson and Esther Reese, Wrangell Cooperative Association administrator, for collaborating with us, and to the people who helped distribute herring eggs, a cherished traditional food of the Tlingits, to the community on April 21. They include Annette Thompson, Jamie and Caleb Stough, Jerry Lee Knapp, Liz Romane of Tribal...
Delilah Roane (left) and Maria Holder look over a hermit crab they caught in a tide pool at the Sea Day event last Friday at Shoemaker Park. The Wrangell Cooperative Association and the U.S. Forest Service sponsored the event for the community's homeschool kids. The day featured arts and crafts, education on the plants and animals that can be found near the water, and a potluck lunch for several dozen homeschoolers....
About 70 people came out for Saturday's Wrangell Community Cleanup, about 10 more than usual, said organizer Valerie Massie. There was no cleanup in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the annual event was brought back this spring, sending volunteers around the city to pick up trash. Massie said participants filled 146 bags with trash in a half-day of work, enough for 10 full dumpsters and four truckloads of large items like metal and mattresses. Organizer Kim Wickman said there was not one...
The Wrangell Community Cleanup, a longtime tradition, is set for Saturday. Volunteers are invited to meet at the covered basketball court by Evergreen Elementary at 8:30 a.m. to help clean up Wrangell. The cleanup occurs every spring, except last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the public spending half the day picking up as much trash around the city as possible. The Wrangell Cooperative Association has been assisting with the cleanup organization for about four years, said Kim Wickman,...
According to unofficial election results, three incumbents were reelected to the Wrangell Cooperative Association tribal council last week and one new candidate was chosen by voters. Tribal citizens chose four out of five candidates to join the council for two-year terms. Turnout for the March 10 election was 128 voters, the WCA reported, compared to 90 in the last election in November. The winners are Luella Knapp (110 votes), Michelle Jenkins (86 votes), Richard Oliver (85 votes) and Jason...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association, Wrangell's tribal organization, and the Salvation Army collaborated last Friday to hand out 50 food boxes to people in need, with a second distribution planned for this Friday. Esther Reese, WCA tribal administrator, said her organization signed up with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to participate in their Farmers to Families Food Box program. It's a nationwide effort to support farmers and families, with the federal government buying the food from...
As part of ongoing efforts to encourage people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, the chief medical officer of the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium stood in front of a Wrangell audience - live and on Zoom - to take questions. The Wrangell Cooperative Association had invited Dr. Elliot Bruhl to town, where he explained how the vaccine works, how it was developed, and answered questions from the public Feb. 4 at the Nolan Center. As of Feb. 4, 680 people in Wrangell had received their...
Fiscal stability, infrastructure and land development are among Wrangell's priorities for the near future. But it will not be easy. "I'm certain that this involves us purchasing a printing press and having a secret room where we come up with the funds we need to do what's necessary," Borough Manager Lisa Von Bargen said jokingly. "As the state continues to face fiscal hardship, as we continue to get downward pressure in a number of different ways, and at the same time the cost of operations is...
Ortiz asks constituents to take budget survey To the editor: This week, the Legislature convenes for session. One of the main obligations of the Legislature is to pass a budget for the upcoming fiscal year. It is also one of our greatest challenges. In order to create a budget that works for District 36, I need to hear from you. This time of year, I typically send out a survey asking for your opinion. This year, in lieu of a survey from my office, I am asking you to take Commonwealth North's bud...
Online sales tax revenues brought in more than $90,000 in nine months last year, with receipts continuing to rise, according to Wrangell Borough officials. While the municipality is struggling with rising costs and decreasing revenues, one bright spot has been the collection of sales taxes from online, out-of-town merchants. The borough is budgeted this fiscal year to collect $1.25 million in sales taxes, projected to be down substantially from last year due to the pandemic-inflicted economic...
July July 2: With recent national attention on racial bias and police brutality, the community met via web conference June 29 for an evening town hall meeting to discuss policing practices in Wrangell. The meeting provided an opportunity for residents to ask questions of Chief Tom Radke and to share their opinions on the Wrangell Police Department. Those who spoke in the meeting, by and large, expressed support for the police and their current practices. July 9: The cities of Wrangell,...
This year marks the 30th year that the weekly Fish Factor column has appeared in newspapers across Alaska and nationally. Every year it features "picks and pans" for Alaska's seafood industry - a no-holds-barred look back at some of the year's best and worst fishing highlights, and my choice for the biggest fish story of the year. Here are the choices for 2020, in no particular order: Best little known fish fact: The state of Alaska's Commercial Fisheries Division also pays for the management...
December 17 Jamie Roberts, with the Wrangell EOC, reported that there are currently no active cases of COVID-19 in the community. Statewide, Alaska’s case count is 41,859 as of yesterday. This is an increase of 3,151 from last week. Wrangell received its first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines Wednesday afternoon, Dec. 16. According to SEARHC, following guidance from the Alaska Vaccine Advisory Council, vaccinations will be given to frontline health workers first, along with first responders, and l...
Minnie Evangeline (Larsen) Kalkins, 88 Minnie Evangeline (Larsen) Kalkins, Yéil Tláa (raven mother), 88. a lifelong resident of Wrangell, Alaska, and member of the Tlingit Shtax'héen Kwáan (Stikine River People) walked into the forest peacefully surrounded by her children on September 7, 2020. Minnie was born in Wrangell on November 20, 1933, to Emma (Shakes) Larsen and Svere Larsen. Following her matrilineal heritage, she represented the Kaach.ádi (Raven Frog Clan), hailed from Kaalch'al aan,...
Ahead of the start of the new school year, the Wrangell Cooperative Association distributed 157 backpacks and Chromebooks. The supplies were part of the Tlingit and Haida Central Council's back-to-school backpack drive, helping ensure native children have the supplies they need for the new school year. Instead of supplies like notebooks and pencils, however, this year the kids received laptops to help them with distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic....
Two weeks ago the Wrangell Cooperative Association provided $86,000 to the Wrangell Volunteer Fire Department which, according to Tribal Administrator Esther Reese, is to help purchase new ambulance equipment. Some of the equipment includes a PowerCot, a PowerLoad system, and a cardiac monitor. "We're really happy to be able to contribute in a tangible way to something that is meaningful in our community, and helping keep our community members and our tribal members safe," she said. The donation...
The Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes is once again distributing back-to-school backpacks across multiple Southeast Alaskan communities this year. Applications for the backpacks are due this Friday, July 17. The backpack distribution is a common occurrence in Wrangell, and in other Southeast communities. However, students can also expect to find new laptops in their bags this year, instead of school supplies. Julie Chapman, program coordinator with the Central Council, said...
After last week's announcement of the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Wrangell, two other cases were confirmed shortly after. Wrangell now has three total cases of the virus. One case has been declared recovered. However, there is some question about the source of the third case. Public Health officials state that Wrangell's third case was a contact with the first case, but the first case said she does not know how that could be. The first case was announced on Sunday evening, June 7. A join...
The Wrangell-Petersburg-Kake Resource Advisory Committee met last Tuesday evening, June 2, to consider multiple projects to recommend funding for. Among these was a plan for a culture camp, presented by Wrangellite Virginia Oliver on behalf of the Wrangell Cooperative Association. The "Kaatslitaan Culture Camp," as the project was named, is designed to be an adult camp for people to learn about traditional native values and the subsistence lifestyle from cultural bearers of the native...
The Southeast Alaska Indiginous Transboundary Commission has been led by Wrangellite Tis Peterman since 2017. Before that, Peterman was part of the group that put the organization together back in 2014, representing the Wrangell Cooperative Association. SEITC has worked to raise awareness of the risks transboundary mining represents to Southeast Alaskan waters since their founding. The organization will be continuing this mission without Peterman moving forward, however, as she intends to...
June 3, 1920 Charlie Olson made a trip to Woronofski Island on Monday, taking with him a party of young picnickers. They took their lunch and spent the afternoon, indulging in target practice on the beach and climbing the mountain. On their return in the evening they were invited to the Coulter home where the day was finished off properly with a dancing party. Those who made up the party were: Misses Margaret Bronson, Irene Coulter, Helen Hofstad, Lillian Kelly and June Elliot; Messrs. John Coulter, Colonel Mason, Harry McCormack, Leonard...
Wrangell's Unified Command participated in their weekly conference call on Wednesday, May 6, to provide organizational updates on COVID-19 developments and changes in respective protocols. The City and Borough of Wrangell (CBW) mayor and manager were joined by Wrangell Medical Center (WMC) and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) leadership, as well as Tribal and Public Health representatives, to discuss Borough Assembly allocations, testing initiatives, and available community resources. Borough...