Klukwan School teacher Laura McIndoe reports that students learned about animal tracks, snow crystals, measuring snow, and types of snow in Tracy Wirak-Cassidy’s Snow School. The students also participate in a Winter Sports for Life class weekly that includes skiing and snowshoeing. With Justina Hotch, students monitor the weather and Chilkat River conditions through a citizen’s science program called Stream Team. Cory Grant teaches students the Tlingit language daily and elder Joe Hotch visits weekly. Volunteers Tommy and Sandrine Thompson are growing mushrooms to introduce the idea of sustainable food production.
Lee Close was in town to celebrate his 61st birthday with friends on March 4. His visit included a backcountry ski at the Haines Pass with Thom Ely and brat roasting in the wood stove at The Green Shack, followed by a dinner, cake, and a pizza party at the brewery. He headed home to Mount Lorne, Y.T. Sunday after a brunch gathering at The Old Field Kitchen.
Heather and Chip Lende spent two weeks in Ocala, Fla. visiting Chip’s mom Joanne, 90. They hadn’t seen her since before COVID-19. Joanne’s house is a busy place as Chip’s sister Karen O’Connor and her husband David O’Connor operate an equestrian training center there and students and staffers drop by regularly. Chip and Heather enjoyed long, daily bike trips on country roads and also met up with former Haines resident Steve Neidhart and his wife Brigid for lunch at the new World Equestrian Center in Ocala. Ocala recently made news as the center for Olympic speed skating in the United States, and team coach Renee Hildebrand was featured on local TV. In Juneau, the Lendes caught up with daughters J.J. Hinderberger and Eliza Dorn and their families.
Do you need electrical fencing to keep bears away from your garden, livestock, or berry trees? Residents are eligible for grants to make such equipment available through the Secure Agriculture and Wildlife Project. For more information, look under the “projects’’ tab at chilkatvalleyhistoricalsociety.org. The assistance is made possible by funding through Alaska’s Rasmuson Foundation.
Neil Allen recently surprised his leap-year-baby daughter Janine Allen with an art birthday cake made by Rebecca Kameika, with a frog on top. The cake appeared at the brewery on Feb. 28, where European heli-skiers serenaded Janine, singing “Happy Birthday” in French. Janine and Neil made a three-week trip to Spain last month, visiting the Dali Theatre and Museum in Figueres, a surrealistic building adorned by giant eggs that include the crypt of Salvador Dali and “Rainy Cadillac,” an art installation that pours water into the interior of a Cadillac after a euro is deposited into a slot.
Haines School art teacher Giselle Miller hosted a pottery sale at the distillery last weekend. Cups and mugs she and her students made sold out in 30 minutes. Proceeds will benefit an upcoming school art club trip to Seattle.
Jeanne Kitayama, Jenn Allen, and Sandy Barclay skated Tuesday at Chilkoot Lake, reporting good conditions and glassy sections in coves. By Wednesday, skaters were crossing its three-mile length.
New Hope Fellowship Church at Mosquito Lake raised $2,400 toward its scholarship fund at its pulled-pork dinner and dessert auction fund-raiser last weekend, said Denise Sherman-Stickler. The scholarship program is now in its fifth year. Haines High School seniors and graduates are eligible to apply.
The Haines Sheldon Museum is soliciting locally made artworks for its Six-Week Spotlight exhibit series. The deadline for the call for art is May 1. For more information, email [email protected] or phone 766-2366.
“Alaska Ninja” Nick Hanson is back in town, leading a mini-week program on Native Youth Olympics at Haines High School. Competitions at the gym include a one-legged high kick and ear-pull. Mini-week is a week-long curriculum offered while much of the student body is away at the regional basketball tournament. Other week-long courses included Fundamentals of Beading with Nancy Keen, Radio Journalism with Marley Horner, and Wilderness First Aid with Julie Anderson and Patty Brown.