A group of Haines quilters attended a weekend quilting retreat in Haines Junction, Y.T. April 24-27. The gang included Linda Axsom, Diann Ahrens, Becky Gonce, Delayna Doleshal, Sandy Wratten, and Rocki Rostad. Joyce Carson of Pocatello, Idaho, was in Haines teaching quilting, and also attended the retreat. Ruth Headley of Whitehorse, Y.T., organized the event, which included catered dinners. Most of the women spent nights camped out in the convention center. Days were spent “sewing like mad,” Rostad said. Breaks included “quilt bingo,” played on a fabric board, which consisted of various colors and patterns, rather than letters and numbers.
An exhibition of the paintings of Haines artist Alexandra Feit is up at the Yukon Art Centre in Whitehorse, Y.T. in May. The show ends May 30.
Harley Denio of Portland spent a few days in Haines last week visiting former high school classmate Greg Podsiki. They hadn’t seen each other since their 1970 graduation in Rochester, N.Y. Denio, who was in Anchorage on business, contacted Podsiki via their high school’s Facebook page. Highlights included barbecuing with the Podsiki family on the beach, listening to wolves howling, and watching the aurora borealis.
Michelle and Nate Webb and cat Indy have arrived in Fairbanks. Michelle and Indy made the drive April 26. Nate hit the road in a U-Haul on Friday, sharing the road with friend Jedediah Blum-Evitts, who drove Nate’s car. Michelle works for the Fairbanks North Star Borough, and Nate is a customs and border protection officer at the Fairbanks airport. In Fairbanks, Blum-Evitts received news that his grandmother died, and made an unexpected trip to Allentown, Penn., to attend the funeral. On his return, he caught up on sleep during a long layover in Seattle at the home of Lindsey Moore’s parents.
Irma Morgan left her Tavares, Fla., home and is back in Haines for the summer. It’s her 23rd summer in Haines. This summer, she plans to volunteer at the Sheldon Museum, teach vacation bible school at the Presbyterian Church, and catch up with friends.
Cornelia (Henry) Devlin was in town visiting friend Joan Snyder. In 1956, Devlin was a student at Haines House, the boarding school run by the Presbyterian Church from the late 1800s to 1960. She lives in Clinton, Wash., on Whidbey Island, with her husband. During her three-day visit, Devlin connected with former Sheldon Jackson High School schoolmates David Land, Jeff David Jr., and John Hagen Sr. The group attended the Sitka school in the 1960s. Devlin is the previous owner of “Cornelia Marie,” one of the fishing vessels featured on Discovery Channel’s “Deadliest Catch.” She sold the boat and retired from the fishing business last year. She last visited Haines four years ago and plans to come back next year.
Gershon Cohen spent Earth Day in Washington, D.C., where he and other Great Whale Conservancy members planted a life-sized, 90-foot inflatable blue whale on the Ellipse between the White House and Washington Monument. Cohen is the co-founder and co-director of the conservancy, which is working for adoption of alternate shipping lanes on the California coast. Cohen said commercial ships and oil tankers are killing endangered blue whales that feed on krill blooms in the summer. The Coast Guard is on board, as moving the lanes would also be safer for ships, Cohen said. The rally included oceanographers Dr. Sylvia Earle and Dr. David Guggenheim. The group turned in a petition that included nearly 120,000 names. Go to www.greatwhaleconservancy.org to learn more.
Summer residents Chris Denker and Nichole Lasich were married May 2 during a small ceremony in Boise, Idaho, that included Nicole’s parents Bob and Patty Lasich, and officiator Judge Lynn Norton. The newlyweds are planning a party in Haines this summer. They’ll also have a big reception in Portland, Lasich’s hometown, in September. She is an instructor at Boise State University’s College of Health Sciences. Denker is a project manager, raft guide, and boat driver.
Tracy Cui and Krista Kielsmeier traveled to Beijing, China, for three days as part of a two-week vacation, where they saw giant pandas; visited Tracy’s alma mater, Peking University; walked the Great Wall of China; and attended a flag-raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square. Tracy then continued on to her hometown farther north in China to see more relatives, while Krista headed to Hangzhou to stay with college classmates Sam and Becca Hartman-Pickerill. Sam is a biomedical engineer and Becca is a freelance editor and writer. The trio also toured the French Concession in nearby Shanghai. Next, Krista flew to Dubai, where she skied at an indoor ski resort in a mall and saw the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. Then, she stopped in Madrid, Spain, and visited another college classmate, Joseph Lyons, who teaches English there. Her trip included two days in Iceland, a nation that reminded her a lot of Haines.
At the Hospice rummage sale on Saturday, April 26, a small boy, perhaps four years old, left his savings at the check-out for a toy he didn’t take home. The boy had brown hair and wore orange pants with a stripe down the side. Call Diana LaCourse, 766-3703.
A friend of Duly Noted who collects stamps has found several unopened personal letters, including ones containing checks, in the discard bin at the post office in recent months. Postal officials say that postal customers who find personal mail addressed to others in their post office box should deposit it into the local mail slot at the post office.