Friends gathered on scooters for a Saturday jaunt to 33 Mile to celebrate the birthday of Pam Sloper recently. Ladies rented the scooters in town and moseyed their way out of town, with plenty of stops to check-in with new riders. Pam was joined by Kim Larson, Nancy Schnabel, Tiana Taylor, Lisa Cone, Lisa Schwartz and Marnie Hartman, who rode her own scooter. Pam and Lisa Schwartz took advantage of the sunny day to stop off at the 26 Mile watering hole on the way home.
The Haines Volunteer Fire Department and ambulance crew fed 625 hungry diners at their annual barbecue Saturday. Volunteers slow-roasted 625 pounds of brisket for the traditional Texas barbecue, cooked up 75 pounds of dried beans into baked beans and 200 pounds of potatoes for potato salad, and served four cases of coleslaw and 50 loaves of hot, buttered bread. Ann Chandler planned her visit from San Antonio, Texas, to coincide with the fundraiser, and sent ahead four boxes of patriotic decorations, including flags and red, white and blue table runners, to gussy up the tables. Ann first visited Haines on a cruise excursion in 2009, where she befriended raft guide and EMT Eric Kocher, who encouraged her to come back for the 2010 barbecue. “I literally fell in love with Haines,” said Ann. “I’ve found it to be a very special little town.” Ann pitched in Friday morning, preparing potato salad and buttering bread, and helped serve up the meal Saturday. The barbecue is a fundraiser for the department’s scholarship program, and also funds equipment expenses. With meal sales, T-shirts and the sale of take-home briskets, the fundraiser brought in $9,000.
Doris Ward is hosting her sister-in-law Janie Owen and friend LaJuan McCollough from Tulsa, Okla. Highlights included tracing Doris’ local routines, looking for bears, meeting Heather Lende, making a fast ferry ride to Skagway for a ride on the railroad and celebrating “a real Fourth of July.” They’ll spend a day in Juneau with Jan and Steve McPhetres. For the pair, every day away from Tulsa’s 105-degree temperatures “was a blessing in our beautiful valley,” said Doris.
Aurita Maldonado is leading “Sexy Salsa Sundays” from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Pioneer Bar. Aurita learned salsa from professional dance teams, and will lead you through the moves. No partner necessary.
Haines students traveled to the Washington, D.C. area for the national History Day competition, which took place on the campus of University of Maryland. Students were Dawson Evenden, Ketch Jacobson, Destinee Cowart, Kayley Swinton, Bailey Stuart, and Corinna Hill. Students presented their work to a panel of judges, and answered questions about their material. Alaska History Day organizers also scheduled outings around D.C. and on Capitol Hill. Students toured the Capitol, and met with U.S. senators Lisa Murkowski and Mark Begich. They learned to navigate the underground metro system to get around town, and visited several Smithsonian museums, including the Air and Space museum, and Chinatown’s Spy Museum. They toured George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate, as well as several of the city’s monuments, including the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam Memorial.
The Haines Brownie troop met at Chilkoot Lake to learn about boating safety and kayaking with staff from Rainbow Glacier Adventures Saturday. Ten girls bundled up on the chilly, rainy day and paddled in double kayaks with parents on the lake. On shore, scout leaders K.C. O’Connor and Edie Granger worked on a banner for the Fourth of July parade to celebrate the Girl Scouts’ centennial. The troop will also celebrate the centennial with a display at the Sheldon Museum. Organizers are looking for scouting memorabilia from former girl scouts in Haines for the display. Contact Edie at 766-3576 if you have items to contribute.
Deborah Marshall joined 87-year-old mariner Lucy Harrell on Lucy’s 32-foot Nordic Tug, the Whisker III, for a 12-day trip down the Inside Passage to Washington. The trip was Lucy’s 13th along the Inside Passage with the Whisker III, which she bought 22 years ago when she moved to Haines. Highlights included negotiating the Seymour Narrows through thick fog for more than four hours and a stop at the Bishop Bay hot springs south of Prince Rupert. Deborah, who owned her own Nordic Tug for seven years, describes Lucy as “a master mariner” and a competitive gamer. “She beat me in Boggle every single night.” Deborah disembarked in Bellingham, while Lucy continued to Port Townsend to join the annual Nordic Tug reunion and on to Bremerton, Wash. on her own to visit friends. Lucy has logged an average of 300 hours a year on her boat. Louise “Weezie” Tagg Kanekkeberg wrote from Port Orchard, Wash. last week that she read a feature story about Lucy’s voyage from Alaska to Bremerton, Wash. in the Kitsap Sun newspaper. The first sentence of the story was, “She’s not your average 87-year-old woman.” The story ran on the newspaper’s front page, under the headline, “Alaskan captain, 87, is one tough tugger.” Kanekkeberg grew up in Haines, graduating from high school here in 1958. Her sister is Gale Thompson of Haines.
Troy Sheldon and wife Marty O’Brien of Olympia, Wash. recently spent a week in Haines. They enjoyed crab and salmon dinners, Glacier Bay flightseeing with Paul Swanstrom, and bear-viewing at Chilkoot River. Sheldon is a career trucker who hauls 200-foot bridge girders. “I can show up with 16 axles pretty quick,” he said. Marty works in social services for the state of Washington. Sheldon is Burl Sheldon’s older brother, and the third of four Sheldon boys. Burl was the baby.
Fred Chambers-Piper is undergoing cancer treatment at the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage and the outlook is good. Fred has a great attitude and is doing well, using his time to prepare for fall semester at UAA. Well wishes may be sent to 442 East 24th Ave., Apt. A, Anchorage 99501. Pat “Murph” Murphy also is receiving cancer treatment. He’s in Sutherlin, Ore., where he has family and many friends. He is feeling good and still has his sense of humor. Send greetings care of his daughter, Shannon Grauf, 212 Grayfox, Sutherlin, Ore. 97479.
Frank and Linda-Kay Wicks were honored with a Dalton City potluck hosted by friend Patty Brown on Sunday to celebrate Frank’s retirement from school administration. The Wickses are educators who have lived in Alaska since 1994. They have worked on Kodiak Island, in Haines for six years, and in Cordova. The Wicks are retiring in Oregon to spend more time with their two children and five grandchildren. They are also looking at teaching overseas in the future. “Thank you, Haines, for the wonderful memories here,” said Linda-Kay. “We love you.”

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