Friends from Haines and Skagway partied into the night together after Knikki Cinocco tied the knot with John Briner of Skagway at Skagway’s Jewell Gardens Sept. 22. Niki Bunting of Skagway officiated. Attendees included Cinocco’s parents Don and Ingrid Cinocco of Denver, Colo., children Brook and Klover Cinocco, sister DawnRenee Cinocco and wife Maryellen Murphy of Portland, Ore., and John’s brother George Briner and wife Audra of Nashville, Tenn. Tod Sebens shuttled Haines guests to Skagway on his boat, Taz. “It really meant the world to me to have my community present for me,” Cinocco said. More than 30 Haines guests attended. The ceremony included a “handfasting,” in which the couple crosses hands and guests tie them together with ribbon and make a wish. Performances included one by the Eternal Flames, the Haines candle-dancing group of which Cinocco was an original member. Kim Sundberg, Jackie Ruggirello, Alissa Henry and Susie McCartney placed Cinocco and Briner in the center of the “intensely gorgeous” light show Cinocco described as “magical.” Guests feasted on potluck sides, tri tip steak and salmon Cinocco caught herself. Danielle Burnham of Skagway made four cakes, and Charlotte Jewell of Skagway presented the couple with a platter after a glass-blowing demonstration. Guests made donations using a chair-lift themed, honeymoon board made by Raymie Etanough of Skagway. The couple and guests capped the night by setting aloft floating lanterns. They are planning a January honeymoon skiing in Japan. The wedding was preceded by a bachelorette party at Cynde Adams’ house, where Bart Henderson served as chauffeur.
J.R. Myers, a Lynn Canal Counseling behavioral health clinician, is now president of the Alaska Counseling Association, the Alaska chapter of the American Counseling Association. Myers was elected Saturday during a teleconference meeting attended by members throughout the state. As president, Myers plans to help strengthen the Alaska chapter by creating a more visible presence in the communities, getting involved in the state legislature, increasing the use of teleconferencing throughout Alaska, providing statewide education and promoting licensed professional counselors, who, he notes, provide most of the state’s mental health services.
Jill Lombardi of Helena, Mont., and Sydney Fleischer of San Francisco spent a week with Jake Bell and Macky Cassidy, where they “ate like kings off of caribou and salmon and blueberries,” Fleischer said. Other highlights were listening to KHNS throughout the week and finding “ink caps” while mushroom hunting. The guests, who went to college with Bell, spent the month in Alaska. They also visited Denali and visited Fleischer’s extended family, the Cranors, in North Pole, where they went on a moose hunt.
Tanya Carlson walked 60 miles in Seattle, where she and more than 1,200 others participated in the Susan G. Komen three-day walk, which raises money for breast cancer research. Carlson walked with sister Jennifer Carlson of Seattle. The sisters have an aunt who is a breast cancer survivor. Tanya raised more than $2,300 at a fundraiser held at the Pioneer Bar in August. Highlights included receiving thanks from breast cancer survivors and the sight of the Seattle policemen dressed in “everything pink,” including tutus, mohawks, tights, and raccoon tails.
It wasn’t until reading a Facebook message from Dani Leazier that former resident Kaci Keffer-Ahmuty learned of her appearance in the August issue of cooking magazine Allrecipes. Leazier was flipping through the magazine when she spotted her former Mosey’s co-worker and daughter Riley. A photo spread showcasing members included a selfie that Keffer-Ahmuty took during a family hike in Wyoming. “It was probably my mom. She likes to do stuff with pictures,” Keffer-Ahmuty said. Keffer-Ahmuty, who left Haines last year, now lives in Bend, Ore., where she runs a rafting company with husband Michael.
Bob and Sally Lix’s son Jack and wife Kristen “loved” their recent visit so much that they’re searching for a house to buy in Haines. The Tualatin, Ore., couple spent their eight-day visit fishing, hiking and exploring town, talking to the many friendly people they ran into, Sally said. This was Kristen’s first visit. The couple’s son Joshua has deckhanded here. The couple especially enjoyed Sally’s fish bisque soup. “They made me freeze it so they could take it on the plane with them,” she said. Give Bob and Sally a call if you know a house the couple might like.
Joanne Waterman and Phyllis Sage returned from an action-packed, six-day trip to Las Vegas, where Waterman celebrated her birthday. They attended the three-day Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction. In addition to gambling, the women went to Carlos Santana and Elton John performances and to a production of “O” at Cirque du Soleil.
A recent moose hunting trip went awry, leaving Wayne Walter and Shel Scarrott stranded near Tok. Walter, Scarrott, Basil Borkert and Terry Nielsen were on their way home from an unsuccessful hunt between Chicken and Tok when Walter’s pick-up truck broke down. Borkert and Nielsen continued on in their vehicle, unaware of the mishap. After hitchhiking approximately 25 miles to Tok along the Taylor Highway, Walter and Scarrott spent five days waiting for replacement parts to arrive. “We got to know Tok a little bit,” Walter said. He added that the unsuccessful hunt was a good thing. “What would we have done with all the moose meat?”
Former resident Tom Lang was in town visiting his “gang,” including Bart Henderson, Lenise Henderson Fontenot, Tim Shields, Leigh and Greg Horner, Cynde Adams and Joe Ordonez. He and Ordonez went on an eight-day road trip from Whitehorse, Y.T., to Mount Vernon, Wash. Lang worked at Chilkat Guide for 20 years. He lives “mostly” in Bali, teaching yoga instructors public speaking. “I have the greatest job,” he said, adding that people come to Bali from all over the world to practice and study yoga. Lang will be back in the states next year, as he was chosen to be a featured speaker at the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act convention in Albuquerque, N.M.
Longtime Skagway resident Boyd Worley died Sept. 27. A memorial will be held 2 p.m. Saturday at the Skagway School.