Genny and Harry Rietze, with baby Hugh, were among the crowd of thousands who lined the streets in downtown Whitehorse to greet Prince William and Kate Middleton last Tuesday. Also there from Haines were Laura and Manuel Rogers with their children. The Duke and Duchess’ day in Whitehorse included a trip to the MacBride Museum for a First Nations language lesson, where they used new technology to “tweet” a message with a World War II telegraph. Though taking a selfie with the pair was discouraged by the Yukon tourism department, Genny was still close enough to get a picture.
Mike Borcik just returned from a guided rafting trip in the Grand Canyon. There were 7 rafts with 28 total people on the 15-day trip down the Colorado River. He also did a trip there in April. Mike, who rowed a support boat, said the trip was a way to reconnect with people he used to work with.
Zadravca Jones and her 2-year-old daughter, Isabella, are in Haines for a few days from Juneau visiting grandparents Stan Jones and Kathy Pardee Jones.
Lizi Wirak left Tuesday to spend the fall in Bellingham, WA, where she will take a class through Village Books and volunteer at the Food bank.
Keagan Gudmunson is in Washington, where he has been working on finishing a boat for the past year. He finished the boat early this week, with a day to spare before the start of crab season.
Brian Harman, Alisa Beske, Elizabeth Jurgeleit, Lizi Wirak, and Liam Cassidy jumped in the ocean with Tracy Wirak in honor of her 31st birthday on Sept. 29. The dip was followed by a jaunt at the distillery and then dinner at the Klondike. For Elizabeth and Lizi Wirak, the swim was September’s check for the monthly ocean plunges they have kept up since April.
Erik Stevens, Patti Brown and Jessie Morgan will head to Phoenix this weekend for the 2016 International Conference of Indigenous Archives, Libraries & Museums. They will accept a Guardian of Cultural & Lifeways award on behalf of the library and the Chilkoot Indian Association.
Jan Hill was appointed to the Lynn Canal-Icy Strait Resource Advisory Committee by the Alaska Department of Agriculture, and she was presented her official member certificate at the Haines Borough Assembly meeting last Tuesday. As a member, she will serve a 4-year term and work with the Forest Service and rural communities to come to agreements concerning projects proposed for funding.
American folk rock singer-songwriter duo Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer played at the Chilkat Center last Saturday. The pair is based out of northwest Washington and will play shows in Juneau and Ketchikan before heading to Gold Beach, OR. They have been touring the United States coast to coast since 2010.
The Hiking Club took 14 members on the old mining trail up to Three Guardsman last Friday. Organizer Cindy Buxton said the hike was “beautiful.” The club aims to go on a hike once a week.