Hazel Englund celebrated her 100th birthday this Saturday among 30 family members and friends who came from Skagway to Arizona to celebrate her big day. Family of Hazel’s who made the trip included great granddaughter Kyrstin O’Daniel, grandchildren Cari and Kolin O’Daniel, Valerie Zimbrich, Darren and Brett Englund, and Mikki Chandler (with husband Donny and their daughter Shelby). Other family members were Hazel’s daughter Jo Kauffman, nieces Glorianne Anderson (with husband Chris and their son Gus), Maria Matthews and Dr. Cindy Phillips and her partner Dr. Eileen Stretch. Friends included Lynn Cameron and Sue Fredricks, Eileen Enright and her partner James, Ron Hedger, Charlie and Betty Teague with son Chuck, and Mikki’s friend Teresa.
Former Haines resident Trudy Herbert also rang in her 100th birthday this week. She was born on a farm in Manton, Michigan, on September 20th, 1916. Trudy and her husband Hans lived in Michigan until August 1948. That was when they bought a flatbed truck, loaded up their three young sons, and drove the Alcan Highway to Haines. They raised their children in a house Hans built out Mud Bay. Trudy and her husband became missionaries in the ‘70s, traveling to Bangladesh and Malawi to build medical facilities. Though Hans has since passed away, the couple celebrated 72 years of marriage after moving to Leisure World, a private retirement community in Mesa, Arizona, in 1998. If you want to send a birthday card to Trudy, you can mail it courtesy of her son, Dennis Herbert, at 1915 N. Lynch/Mesa, Arizona, 85207.
Haines yoga instructor Sarana Miller married Aaron Davidman in Williams, California, on Saturday. The wedding took place at Wilbur Hot Springs resort, which is on a secluded, 1,800-acre nature preserve. The hostel is run on solar power and features campsites, cabins, hiking trails, a Japanese-style bathhouse, sauna, and an outdoor pool. 85 guests were present for the nuptials, including 12 from Haines; Bruce Blake, Andrew Cardella, Marnie Hartman, Tim and Melina Shields, Beth MacCready, Gregg Bigsby, Rob Goldberg, Kathy and Tim Holmes, and Sarah and Chorus Bishop.
Giovanni Stella, 19, left Monday morning on the ferry to return to his small hometown right outside of Venice, Italy; after a two-month sojourn in Haines. His extended stay included rafting on the Chilkat River, both salmon and halibut fishing, logging, jewelry crafting, volunteering at the fair, and working for Steve Anderson rolling pizzas at the Klondike. It also involved a three-week trip to Flathead Lake, Montana. When asked what he thought of Haines, he stated (among other things), “Here, the Queen is nature.” Upon his return to Italy, Giovanni will find a job prior to attending university next year to become an aerospace engineer.
The fifth edition of a series of dessert bake-offs, Cookie Wars, was held on Sunday. People brought their entries to organizer Melissa Ganey’s house, where she divided them up into anonymous samples and delivered them back to the bakers for judging. Scoresheets were then tallied to determine the winners. First place winner was Corrie Suh Stickler’s handmade samoas. While there are no prizes, it’s really more about the baking (and sampling!) process anyway, said Suzanne Newton. Tammy Jobbins, Taylor Ganey, Lexie DeWitt, Sadie Anderson, Avery Williamson, Abby and Melissa Blaine, Tracey Harmon, and Mariah and Alexis Morris were other bakers who participated.
Stuart DeWitt shot a moose an hour and a half after the season opened on Sept. 15. Along on the (brief) hunt was his cousin Tina Turnbull, in town from Las Vegas. After the field dressing was done, they hauled the moose back to camp, and then drove back to town where they turned it over to Fish and Game to ensure the legality of the kill. When all was said and done, Stuart was able to make it back in time for parent night at the preschool that evening.
Brian Harmon and Alisa Beske recently were in Minnesota, where they held a second wedding reception in for family members and friends who couldn’t make it to their wedding in Haines earlier this summer.