About 250 people attended the annual Lighting of the Library fundraiser at the Haines Borough Public Library Saturday. Attendees bid on small trees decorated by residents and businesses, including Lizzy Jurgeleit’s “High Tide” driftwood tree and Suzanne Newton’s “Noel,” a mannequin tree with bedecked skirt. Lori Carter’s “Blue Christmas” tree for Alaska Seaplanes fetched the highest bid – $175. It included two round-trip tickets to Juneau. The auction brought in more than $1,800 for the Friends of the Library. Entertainment included performances by the Men of Note and Haines High School Man Choir. Jacque Horn coordinated the event, and Janet Hayes handled children’s crafts. Bill Broste served as master of ceremonies and installed a new sound system for the event; he also organized the cutting and hauling of the giant tree installed in the reading room. Christy Tengs Fowler, Tammy Hamilton and the Head Start preschool each won raffle awards for 100 gallons of heating oil.
Nancy Nash is now a certified Zumba instructor. Nash received her certificate after completing training under teacher Madalene Aponte in Woodinville, Wash. Aponte previously trained Jacklynn Ruggirello, Alissa Henry, Stoli Lynch and Holly Davis. Nash, 66, was the oldest of 35 students in the class, which included women from Jordan and Samoa and a man from Mexico. Nash led her first song on Monday and plans to start teaching Zumba Gold classes, low-impact versions of the popular dance exercise that incorporates hip-hop, samba, mambo and other elements. Nash plans to also fill in for instructors in regular Zumba classes.
Barb and Jerry Blood recently returned from a month-long trip to the Pacific and Atlantic coasts and in between. First, they visited Barb’s brother Rob Willey in Georgetown, S.C., where he recently retired. There, they visited the Hopsewee Plantation and Brookgreen Gardens. They took a train to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where they boarded a ship for a two-week cruise through the Panama Canal, with stops in Costa Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Aruba and Colombia. Highlights included ziplining through a tropical forest and a walking tour through the Walled City of Cartagena. On the way back to Haines, the Bloods spent a week in Brookings, Ore., with Wayne and Lucy Hirsch.
“Britain’s Finest,” the ultimate Beatles tribute band experience, is coming to Haines Junction Jan. 22 and 23. The shows are sponsored by Junction Arts and Music and start at 8:30 p.m. at the St. Elias Convention Centre. Doors and the Abbey Road Gourmet Street Fair open at 6:30 p.m. There will be door prizes for the best Beatles-era costumes. Tickets are $45 before Christmas, $55 after Christmas and $60 at the door.
A handful of Haines residents traveled to the 2015 Juneau Public Market last week to sell their wares at the Christmas expo, which features more than 150 vendors. Melissa Ganey and Kaitlin Combs of 907 Clothing Co., Julie Vance of Arctic Wild Wear and Shyine Designs, Teri Bastable-Podsiki of The Alaska Side, Megan Morehouse, Jim Green, Mark and Julie Cozzi of Second Nature and photographer Judi Rice attended the three-day event.
Russ Lyman was promoted to first-degree black belt in Seibukan jujutsu Monday evening at the Chilkat Center dance studio. Lyman demonstrated proficiency in various techniques including takedowns, pins and defense against various weapons. Students Kerry Cohen, Mori Hays, Kai Hays, Siyel George, Greg Palmieri and instructor Chorus Bishop assisted as partners in the demonstration. About 20 people attended. Lyman also has a third-degree black belt in GoJu karate. He has been practicing jujutsu on and off for five years.
Syerra Braaten recently married Logan Clay during a ceremony in St. Ignatius, Mont. Parents Elli and Donald Braaten, brother Devin, and grandparents Sue and Don Braaten attended the wedding, as did Syerra’s Haines High School classmates Riley Erekson, Sabrina Harvey, TeoLani Lynch and Alisha Young. Natalie Grant was the flower girl, and the couple’s daughter Nevaeh Clay was the “flower baby.” Syerra and Logan live in Juneau.
Carol Tuynman attended the Americans for the Arts Community Vision Forum in San Jose, Calif., on behalf of the Alaska Arts Confluence. The workshop, attended by arts organization leaders from across the Pacific Northwest, focused on what role the arts can play in partnership with other community sectors in keeping towns “vibrant, healthy and equitable.” Shannon Daut, executive director of the Alaska State Council on the Arts, also attended. While in California, Tuynman visited daughter-in-law Lorita Chung and grandchildren Ester and Ezra Fader in Castro Valley. She also caught a “fabulous performance” of Perseverance Theater’s “Sweeney Todd” in Juneau.
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