Brianna Baarson gave birth to Bodie Reid Baarson and her husband Matt Baarson and mother Kim Phillips were present in the room. Bodie joins big brother Arlo and the family is eager to visit Haines this summer.
The weather was perfect for the second annual Heavy Equipment Day sponsored by the Haines Chapter of the Alaska Miners Association at the fairgrounds parking lot. James Sage and Haynes Tormey headed up the event and heavy equipment was hauled and displayed from local businesses where kids of all ages could admire. “A Volvo A40 haul truck was the biggest piece,” Tormey said. Families enjoyed looking at the side dump, loaders, trucks, excavators and a full range of equipment. More than 200 burgers and 150 hot dogs were served up.
Ben Bard and Katie Dickerson got engaged at sunset on the banks of the Chilkat River on Saturday. The two are from the Midwest but met in Haines and have been dating more than two years. The couple were joined on their engagement with their dog Heení.
Former resident Josh Bentz traveled to Anchorage last weekend along with his daughter Taiya Bentz to watch his brother Chad Bentz get inducted into the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame. Chad was born without one hand and made his Major League Baseball debut in 2004 playing for the Montreal Expos. He is one of only three Alaskans to play and pitched in more than 40 career games. Chad’s parents are Mary and Rob Bentz of Juneau. His daughter Kyla Bentz is a freshman in high school. Chad is the athletic director at Juneau-Douglas High School.
Stuart and Lexie DeWitt along with their children Charlie, Loralai, and Lucas have returned from a week trip to sunny Lake Havasu, Arizona where they visited Stuart’s parents Toni and Charlie DeWitt. They also caught up with Stuart’s aunt, Shannon Willard and family friend Jeanie Ingledue let the clan swim at her community pool. Charlie and his grandpa Charlie spent a day rock hunting for rose quartz and jasper. The kids also enjoyed riding his grandpa’s four wheeler and playing at Rotary Park. On the way home, the family spent a night at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas and got upgraded to a luxury suite on the 62nd floor. The kids enjoyed the wave pool, lazy river and had a memorable dinner buffet experience.
Former resident Mike Rostron has published a novel, “Cape Decision,” now available at the local bookstore. “The story takes place in Southeast Alaska. My wife, Lisa (Kelm), grew up in Haines. We met there in the 1970s. After some travels, including ten years in Skagway, we re-settled in Haines from 1993-2003. We still have quite a few friends up there,” said the author. More information is available at the author’s website mikerostron.com.
Dozens of families took part in Haines Packing Co.’s third annual Easter egg hunt on. “We had over 1,300 eggs this year,” said organizers Genny and Harry Rietze. Highlights included eggs filled with larger prizes as well as a visit from the Easter bunny himself.
“Grow Where You’re Planted,” is the first book by Haines artist Mandy Ramsey. “It’s a visual and poetic journey through the seasons in Alaska, woven with the thread of yoga…I am so excited to share this softcover book with the world,” Ramsey said. Preorders of the book can be ordered at mandyramsey.com and will be shipped late May.
Danny Willard and Lauren D’Agostino Willard recently traveled to Nevada and Arizona. They started the trip in Vegas with three days on Fremont Street then spent a couple days camping on their land in a remote valley between Hackberry, Arizona and Grand Canyon West where they enjoyed playing disco golf and relaxed in the sun. They then headed back to Vegas with more nights on the Vegas strip.