Levi Samuel Ford was born 12:29 a.m. Aug. 15 at the Juneau Birthing Center to parents Jennifer and Simon Ford. He weighed 9 lbs. and measured 21.25 inches. Siblings are Michael, 19, Jack, 17, Amber, 15, Dawson, 13, Naomi, 11, Bethany, 8, Noah, 5, Caleb, 3, and Ryan, 1. Grandparents are Mary Sutherland of Puyallup, Wash., former resident Sharon Ford of Bellingham, Wash., and David Ford of Tenino, Wash. Simon flew into Juneau that day to celebrate the couple’s anniversary, and just hours later, Jennifer went into labor. “It was perfect,” Jennifer said. Levi is doing wonderfully, she said. “He’s a happy little boy.”

Finley and Ruby Edwards of Greenville, Miss., are in the final stretch of their three-week stay. The couple has been visiting Haines since 1998, staying at the Fort Seward Condos. They proudly displayed their Ole Miss banner on the front porch, attracting cruise ship tourists from Mississippi, including a couple who live just a couple blocks away from them. Finley and Ruby took their new friends to see bears and to the American Bald Eagle Foundation.

Judy and Luis Garcia of Glenview, Ill., spent 12 days in Alaska with daughter Karen Garcia. The trio made their way around the Golden Circle, beginning in Haines. They also went on a day boat glacier tour in Gustavus, shopped in Juneau and visited the Mendenhall Glacier. Judy went whale -watching in Juneau and rafting with Chilkat Guides in Haines. She especially enjoyed seeing many bears throughout the trip. Kerry McIver’s farewell beach bonfire on Mud Bay Aug. 9 was a highlight for Luis.

Violet Cashman of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, visited high school friends and former soccer teammates Kerry and Eileen McIver. Despite getting a spur in her foot during a pick-up soccer game on day three, Cashman’s 17-day stay in Haines included hiking Mount Riley and Moose Meadows, kayaking, seeing bears catching salmon in Chilkoot River, canoeing to Davidson Glacier with Alaska Excursions, picking blueberries with Lori Webster, catching shrimp and crab with Lori, Kerry, Eileen and Michael Carter aboard Michael’s boat and playing “Dutch Blitz,” a card game the friend learned from Tia Heywood. Violet, Judy and Luis Garcia were aboard the same flight out of Juneau Monday, and the same connecting flight to Chicago. The three became acquainted, including getting lost together in the Seattle airport.

“A Late Summer Night’s Dream” concert and reception at the Chilkat Center Saturday was “wonderful and had a fun theme,” said Annette Smith, secretary/treasurer of the Foundation for the Chilkat Center for the Arts. The four-person concert consisted of: pianist Nancy Nash, violinist Steve Tada of Juneau, oboist Allan Vogel and flutist Janice Tipton, both of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and friends of Lorrie Marks. The musicians chose pieces to complement the theme and Kim Sundberg’s ballerinas entertained as fairies in the forest-decorated lobby during the reception. Sara Chapell organized the young dancers. A fundraiser for the Chilkat Center, the event raised an estimated $2,000.

Lori Webster spent a couple days in Gustavus visiting Jenty Fowler, who’s spending the summer working on Tod Sebens’ whale-watching tour boat, Taz. Aboard Taz, Lori got to listen to whales sing and talk to each other on the boat’s hydrophone. Lori and Jenty made spruce tip jelly and harvested fresh lettuce from the community gardens.

The Chilkoot Tribal Youth Program wrapped up its 10-day smoked salmon fish camp Aug. 14. Tribal member Duane Wilson led the group of seven pre-teens in working with the fish. “I was impressed with the kids’ ability to focus and do really complex cuts with knives…I thought it would be a little more of a hackfest, but they actually did a good job,” tribal youth program manager Jake Bell said. Haines participants included Lilianna BenassiDante LightMarirose Evenden, and “all-stars” Alissia RogersRhani Kochergin and Dylan Chapell, who put in many hours at the camp. Participants got to take home different types of fish including kippered collars, smoked bellies, smoked jarred strips, nayadi, candy strips, and dry fish.

Former resident Frankie Jones was in Haines for three weeks, in time for the Southeast Alaska State Fair. Daughter Grace and son Aaron also made the trip from Redmond, Wash. They stayed with Frankie’s father-in-law Stan Jones and wife Kathy. They visited Frankie’s mother, Linda Palmer, daughter Margarette, who has been living with Linda and working in Skagway, and daughter Abby, also in Haines this summer and working in Skagway. Frankie also visited daughter Kendra Beth Knight and husband Alex, their son Evan, and Frankie’s son Nathan Jones, his wife Samantha, and new daughter McKinley Grace. “It was really fun. We did a lot. We wore ourselves out,” Linda said. The family’s visit included spending time at the fair and picking blueberries and raspberries.

Jessica Adkins was recently in Haines nine days, visiting parents Gary and Cathy Keller. Highlights included visiting her family’s place at Chilkat Lake and meeting up with Haines High School classmates. Jessica lives in Portland, Ore., and manages a “Babies R Us” store in Klackamas. Husband Francis Adkins manages a “Toys R Us” store. Cathy said Jessica’s 3-year-old son Tyler gets to test drive all the new toys.

Phyllis Sage said she and Joanne Waterman showed Haines’ first outdoor movie Aug. 11, during the warm spell. They used a video projector and a movie screen set up in the back yard of their Fort Seward home to watch the recent movie “The Avengers.” Guests found spots on their deck and lawn and tucked into sleeping bags for the show. “It was like a drive-in,” Sage said.

Matt Davis is on crutches this week but says he’ll be good as new in eight weeks. The Haines High School math teacher underwent surgery in Juneau last week for damage to knee cartilage he suffered while twisting his leg aboard his fishing boat six years ago. “They cleaned up the meniscus, scraped and vacuumed and smoothed it out,” Davis said.

Thom Ely and cousin Bill Closs of Westfield, Mass., spent five days on Siberia’s southern Kamchatka Peninsula, “the Holy Grail of fly-fishing,” hooking 20-inch rainbow trout with ease, Ely said. The cousins are lifetime fishing partners, inspired in part by “Eastern Rises,” a video shown at a recent Takshanuk Watershed Council film festival. The trip included a four-hour flight from Anchorage to Siberia and a flight in a Russian military helicopter accompanied by tour guides packing AK-47s for bear protection. “It was amazing, the best fly-fishing of my life,” Ely said. The landscape resembled western Alaska, but with larger deciduous trees and mountains.

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