The Haines Borough Public Library hosted a Literary Haunted House for Halloween. Visitors were greeted by Madox Rodgers, who popped up out of a coffin as Young Vlad the vampire. The reading room turned antechamber was filled with ghosts played by Aurora Alten-Huber, Brandt Alten-Huber, and Cherri Price. Tours were guided by Heather Lende and Lori Dudzick, prepared with wooden stakes, garlic, and other supernatural deterrents. Groups were led through three stops with recitations in character of famous spooky literary greats. John Graves stumbled by as Frankenstein’s monster while a scratchy recording played Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein; Jono Greene played a very convincing Count Dracula; Dave Routh ended with an eloquent interchange between the guide and Edgar Allen Poe. A welcome bowl of candy ended the tour.
Juneau resident and annual Haines visitor David Mirable recently won the grand prize on History Channel’s “Forged in Fire,” a blacksmith competition show. Mirable has been making knives in Southeast for 20 years, and is a yearly face at John and Sharon Svenson’s Extreme Dreams gallery in the spring. The episode that aired Oct. 24 was filmed this summer. It started with Mirable being flown to New York for an initial competition to make a knife that would cut first through chain mail and then a salmon head. Winning that sent him to the final round that would document his five-day process for a “Knights Templar Crusader Sword.” The quality of his work seriously impressed the judges, and he walked away with a $10,000 prize.
Former KHNS reporter James Devereaux recently published a book of ghost stories he collected while working in Haines. The book, “Spirits of Southeast Alaska: The History & Hauntings of Alaska’s Panhandle,” is based on stories Devereaux collected for a Halloween broadcast. The amount of ghostly narratives he encountered ended up being overwhelming, too much for a short radio piece, and eventually became his book. He is currently wrapping up another book based in the same region “The Ghosts of the Gold Rush.”
Doris Ward is back from a too-brief visit to Broken Arrow, Okla. She spent the sunny, 70-80 degree days with family and enjoyed an early Thanksgiving dinner.
After a record six appointments with doctors in Seattle on one day that gave her a generally good health checkup, and a rainy day, whirlwind shopping spree in Juneau, Jan McPhetres is unwinding in her new digs at HAL.
This spring Zack James was awarded a scholarship to Pilchuck Glass School and attended a six week course in glass sculpture. The course made him realize he had a passion and talent for glass blowing. Zack is now attending the American Indian Art Institute in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Aunt Harriet Brouilette visited last month and is happy to say Zack is adjusting well to the high desert.
In celebration of University of Alaska Fairbanks centennial, the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra will perform the world premiere of Scott Hansen’s commissioned work “Centennial Overture.” Hansen is an undergraduate music composition student in the music program at UAF. Parents Scott and Valina Hansen will travel to Fairbanks to visit their son and see the concert featuring his work as a centerpiece with world-renowned pianist Youngho Kim. When Department Chair Dr. William Post was asked to compose a piece for the centennial celebration, he suggested the honor go to Hansen. The concert will be at the C.W. Davis Concert Hall, November 4th at 4 p.m.
At the recent SEARHC Board meeting Kimberly Strong was re-elected Board Chair.