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April 1 was Census Day, but Carol Rushmore wanted to remind everyone that responses can still be turned in until the end of July. Rushmore, Wrangell's economic development director and head of the local census committee, wanted to clear up a few questions she had received from the public regarding the census, and to encourage further turnout. One of the most common questions she has heard about the census was about when people can expect to receive physical packets, she said. Rushmore explained...
The Wrangell Borough Assembly convened electronically on last Monday, April 6, to consider a new emergency ordinance in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The final vote on Ordinance No. 977 was delayed, however, to let city officials gather further information. The proposed ordinance would have mandated a two-week self quarantine for any intrastate travelers coming to Wrangell, allowed for modified quarantine plans for critical workforce, and required that travel safety and modified qua...
With the ongoing spread of COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, many communities across the nation are doing their best to be prepared. This is also true in Alaska. There are only a few confirmed cases of the virus in Anchorage and Fairbanks as of March 17. All across the state, however, communities are taking precautionary measures to keep the virus from spreading further. In Wrangell, many events and facilities have been postponed for the sake of caution. "As a preventative measure to...
The Tlingit and Haida Regional Housing Authority held a workshop at the Nolan Center last week, to cover a variety of topics. The group brought together members of Wrangell's native community, and the wider public, to share information about the census, financial planning, and preventative home maintenance. Esther Ashton, tribal administrator for the Wrangell Cooperative Association, led the discussion on the census. It is very important for the native community to respond to the census this...
The Wrangell Borough Assembly met last Tuesday evening, Feb. 11, for a work session on the borough's future goals. The discussion was meant to ensure that all city employees understood what Wrangell's priorities are, and what they are all working towards. According to the meeting's agenda packet, the borough had a wide variety of goals to consider. Some of the goals laid out in the agenda packet included development of the old Institute and Byford junkyard properties, and cleaning up abandoned...
City officials and other community members came together at city hall last week on Jan. 10 to discuss the upcoming 2020 census. The census occurs nationwide every 10 years, since the government began tracking the nation's population in 1790, according to the Census Bureau's website. The purpose of the census is to see how populations have changed state to state, to make sure that there is fair representation in Congress. According to the 2010 census, Alaska had a population of 710,231, an...
Below is the second half of The Wrangell Sentinel's review of 2019, covering the months of July to December: July July 4 - Wrangell Police Chief Doug McCloskey was recognized for his service to the community at last week's borough assembly meeting. With his retirement at the end of June, McCloskey has closed out 38 years of police work. July 11 - The Fourth of July was a hot and sunny day in Wrangell, but that did not stop many people from getting out and having a good time. Like all previous...
Following is the Wrangell Sentinel's news review for January through June of 2019. Next week the review will include events from July through December. January Jan. 13 - The Fairbanks Arts Association opened their 24th annual statewide poetry contest for submissions this December. Each year, the association picks a new judge for the contest. This year will be judged by Wrangell resident Vivian Faith Prescott. Prescott is the author of numerous works, including The Hide of My Tongue and The Dead...
Members of the Wrangell Fish and Game Advisory Committee and other local organizations met at the Salvation Army building on Dec. 11 to discuss how best to distribute this year's collection of moose meat. As hunters in the area may know, moose are legal to hunt with proper permits, but only certain types of moose are legal to kill. If an "illegal" moose is killed, the meat is confiscated and the hunter is fined. An email from Chris Guggenbickler, with the advisory committee, reported that they h...
The Borough assembly had a busy night during their meeting on Dec. 10. The meeting opened with a report from State Representative Dan Ortiz. Ortiz said he is going around to the communities he represents, ahead of the next legislative session, to give an update on things in Juneau and to listen to the priorities of his constituents. The next legislative session will be opening on Jan. 21, 2020. Ortiz said that the financial situation for Alaska is largely unchanged from the previous legislative...
Past microfilms of the Stikine River Journal, the Fort Wrangell News and the Wrangell Sentinel will be digitally archived using a $8,250 grant that Wrangell Cooperative Association applied for and received from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. About 18,500 images are set to be digitized by APEX Covantage and will meet the same standards as the Alaska State Library's historical newspaper documentation program, according to Tribal Administrator Esther Ashton. Issues from the Stikine...
Rain Coast Data, on behalf of the Wrangell Convention and Visitors Bureau, recently released a document examining the economic impacts of the tourism industry on the community. "Wrangell Visitor Industry By The Numbers 2019" looks at everything from changes to the visitor industry, jobs supported by the industry, how many people visit and by what means of travel, and much more. "Wrangell is a distinct and attractive visitor destination that is growing in popularity as a small cruise ship destina...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association held an award ceremony at Wrangell High School Monday evening, Sept. 30. Tribal Administrator Esther Ashton, along with several members of the WCA board, organized the ceremony to officially give several local organizations a check from the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium's "Healthy Is Here" grant. In total, $10,600 was given to 17 organizations. "The reason we're here today is that we received from SEARHC a Healthy Is Here grant," Ashton said....
While the role of superintendent is always busy, it has been especially so for Debbe Lancaster this past week. Lancaster, superintendent of the Wrangell Public School District, recently attended the Alaska Superintendents Association conference in Fairbanks, from Sept. 25 to 28. The Alaska Department of Education and Early Development also recently released a new website, "The Compass," that lets people more easily compare schools across the state. The ASA Conference was an opportunity for...
A large crowd gathered at the Wrangell Cooperative Association's new building last Friday, Aug. 30. The building, located at 1002 Zimovia Highway, is the new home for the WCA after their move from downtown Wrangell. Two stories tall, the new building offers much more room for the cooperative association to work in. With formline artwork by Steve Brown on the panelling, the building draws attention from people going down the highway. Construction of the building began in April of 2018, according...
August 14, 1919 Either the Admiral Farragut or the Spokane, formerly running from Seattle to Skagway by way of Ketchikan, will be returned to the northern run within a month, according to the announcement made by V. A. Peterson, agent of the Pacific Steamship Company at Ketchikan. “One of the two liners will make a trip as soon as the freight traffic gets heavy,” said Mr. Peterson. “Although the passenger traffic would at times warrant its return before, the San Francisco run is much more congested, and the lack of Alaskan freight traff...
Closing on July 19 last month, the Wrangell Community Prioritization Survey garnered what Ruby McMurren called a surprising number of responses. A total of 482 people responded to the survey, she said. Most of these surveys were completed online, but 49 of them were hard copies. The survey is part of a grant project by the Administration for Native Americans, lead by McMurren and Talea Massin of the Wrangell Cooperative Association, seeking to combat outmigration of tribal citizens and improve t...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association, once again, is helping out with the Tlingit and Haida Central Council's back to school backpack event. Tribal Administrator Esther Ashton said that the WCA partners with the central council every year for this event, which aims to provide backpacks and school supplies to native children across Southeast Alaska. Applications to receive a backpack will close on Aug. 2. "Basically, it's for Alaska Native or American Indian," she said. "You have to reside in...
Sea otters are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act, a federal law that prohibits the harvesting of marine mammals. However, this law does allow for some exceptions. Under section 101 of the act, on page 16, it reads that "... the provisions of this Act shall not apply with respect to the taking of any marine mammal by any Indian, Aleut, or Eskimo who resides in Alaska and who dwells on the coast of the North Pacific Ocean or the Arctic Ocean if such taking-(1) is for subsistence...
Ruby McMurren, with the Wrangell Cooperative Association and project director of the local Administration for Native Americans grant project, wanted to remind everybody in town that the "Wrangell Community Prioritization Survey" will come to a close on Friday, July 19. The survey is designed to get public input on the subjects of economic development, healthcare, and housing in Wrangell, and what people want to see improved or changed. The ANA grant project is designed to help stem the flow of...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association, along with Corvus Design and SALT, a consulting team, held a workshop at the Nolan Center last Thursday, June 13. The workshop was part of the Administration for Native Americans grant project, which has been led in Wrangell by Ruby McMurren and Talea Massin of the WCA. The project was designed to look at ways to prevent the out-migration of the native community in Wrangell. Through several meetings with community and tribal leaders, McMurren and Massin...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association held a "meeting of the association" last Wednesday, May 29. The cooperative association is Wrangell's governing body for tribal citizens. The meeting held a dual purpose: To introduce the public to the new tribal council, and to let the public know about several projects that are in the works. The WCA elected five new members to the tribal council in April. These are Christie Jamieson, Michelle Jenkins, Cori Robinson, Richard Oliver, and Lu Knapp. After introducing the council, and a prayer by Virginia...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association and the Administration for Native Americans will hold a workshop for the community to discuss ways to improve healthcare, housing, and economic development in Wrangell. Ruby McMurren and her assistant, Talea Massin, have been working on creating an action plan tocombat the out-migration of tribal citizens since 2018, thanks to a grant from the ANA. Through a series of meetings with various community members, they determined that healthcare, housing, and...
Members of the Wrangell Cooperative Association and the Tlingit Haida Regional Housing Authority held a short presentation last Wednesday evening on some upcoming home renovations the organizations plan to complete. The THRHA was in Wrangell in January to talk about renovations to about 20 low-income homes in Wrangell they were completing under the Indian Community Development Block Grant. Recently, however, both the WCA and the THRHA were awarded the Healthy Homes Production Grant. This money...
Many people came out the morning of Saturday, April 13, to participate in the Wrangell Community Clean-Up. Both individuals and local organizations participated in picking up trash wherever it could be found. The Wrangell Rod and Gun Club, for instance, drove out to the gun range on Spur Road to clean up trash and bullet shells. One family found a pile of old tires left in a ditch near Volunteer Park, while another group came by with a rusted, old sled. Wrangell Resident Paula Rak and the...