Chilkat Valley News - Serving Haines and Klukwan, Alaska since 1966

To cheer people up during the town shutdown, Cambria Goodwin was treating residents to free slices of pizza at her restaurant on Main Street from 1-2 p.m. this week. She said about 30 people stopped by Monday. “It was pretty special. I’ll continue to do it during the opening days. I hope it helps somehow.”

George Campbell and John Nettleton treated youths to a Family Fun Day snowmachining at 25 Mile on Tuesday, March 17. George’s wife Lynette said about 20 youngsters showed up and George provided four “kid-friendly” machines for them to ride on. Nettleson supplied hot dogs for a barbecue at the new picnic circle at the memorial shelter there. The ride was the first snowmachine experience for some who turned out, Lynette said.

Dwight and Nancy Nash have returned from five weeks in New Zealand, where daughter Nori Nash now lives. Nori joined them on a layover on Maui, Hawaii. The trio flew to Wellington, where daughter Amelia Nash joined the group, along with Nori’s husband Brian Pindel City highlights included a tour of the studio that created effects for Lord of the Rings and Avatar movies. Side trips included touring wineries in Martinborough, a climbing Castle Point lighthouse, visiting the Southward Car Museum, and daily ocean swimming.

After digging down through about four feet of snow, Kate Saunders learned this week the garlic has sprouted in her Mud Bay garden. Apparently, the winter’s heavy snows insulated her beds. “It doesn’t look like it froze very solid.” Bitter, snowless winters have sometimes claimed her garlic bulbs, foxglove and Shasta daisies. “I’m sure flower bulbs will be up soon, too.”

Sheri Loomis is heading up Southeast Alaska Mask Makers, a volunteer effort to provide homemade masks to health care workers and institutions in the panhandle. The group’s Facebook page includes directions on how to make the masks, and Joanne’s Fabrics is Juneau also is donating and sending kits for making them. “They’re not surgical masks, but they’re better than nothing,” Loomis said. “People can make them out of their own materials.”

With classes canceled, Haines School art teacher Giselle Miller has posted a grid of art activities to enrich students and adults during confinement. Topics include art contests, museum tours, art games, digital art, art education and art at home. Additionally, Giselle is posting “drawing prompts” daily as a challenge to students or others. Activities are available on her Facebook page.

Krystal Lloyd has set up a Facebook page, “Haines Got Talent,” aimed at showcasing family-friendly activities for and by young people and families in the Chilkat Valley while stuck at home during the corona virus shutdown. She’ll soon be posting a fashion show featuring the six youngsters in her care. She welcomes 40-60 second videos of “PG-rated” performances, including instructional and funny videos.

Chilkat Indian Village Tribal Council President Kimberley Strong said Klukwan is doing “what everyone else is doing” to guard against spread of the coronavirus, including closure of the school and library. A semi-annual tribal meeting set for April 15 has been cancelled and the village store may be limited to call-in service only for villagers, she said. The village’s demographics – as many as half of villagers are age 60 or over, she estimates – has her concerned. “We want to make sure our most vulnerable citizens can stay at home and have people shop for them.” She’s shopping for brother Jack Strong, quarantined after recently returning from Washington State. “There is a lot of house cleaning, sewing projects, baking and TV watching,” Strong said of recent goings on in Klukwan. “I do see people on the riverbanks fishing for trout.”

Friends Sue Waterhouse and Neil Einsbruch were cheering up friends this week by making conference calls around town. Three-way calling costs $2.35 per month through the Haines phone company. You can phone in a service order. Instructions on how to use it can be found on page 11 of the phone book.

Stacie Turner posted on Facebook photos of a “very healthy looking” brown bear that went rummaging in the snow near her Mount Riley Road house about 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Stacie and husband Donnie Turner have lived in the house five years and have never seen a bear out this early in spring, she said. With dark paws and legs, the bruins looked like one of two twins spotted last year.

Marirose Evenden said it’s too difficult to say which was her favorite of 12 ski areas she and Carver Culbeck visited during their recent 10-week road trip through Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Utah. They lived out of a Subaru Outback and ate a lot of camp-stove quesadillas. “There’s a lot of cool stuff out there,” Marirose said. Visits included to Carver’s grandparents Susan and Joe Culbertson in Salt Lake City. Marirose and Carver were joined by schoolmates Brennan Palmieri, Dylan Chapell and Isaac Miller during spring break. The friends spent time in the Utah desert, including at Capitol Reef National Park.