Duly Noted
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TweetThe high school’s annual holiday food drive continues through Friday. Drop non-perishable food in bins under the tree at the Haines School’s main entrance.
Haines High School senior and class president Jacob Weerasinghe reports that the class earned more than $500 during its annual Christmas tree sale. Sixty trees, a mix of Noble firs and Nordmann firs, were sold. The proceeds will help pay for flowers and caps and gowns for next spring’s commencement exercises. With 20 expectant graduates, the class is large for recent years.
Lydia Andriessen will spend the first half of next year in Madrid, Spain, studying engineering there at Universidad Carlos III. Lydia is a sophomore in mechanical engineering at University of Alaska-Fairbanks. She’s participating at an international exchange program through UAF. Her classes at the Spanish university will be in English but she’ll be living with a Spanish-speaking family.
About 60 people turned out for the Haines Arts Council’s Northern Lights Showcase at the Chilkat Center Sunday. Acts included Jojo Goerner, Tyler Erlich, Matilda and Maddox Rogers, Joe Altman-Moore, Crystal and Nate Miller, Norah Zimmerly, John Minoya, and Gordy Julian, Joel Stuk, and Betsy Shiner. Musician David Hertel was on the original bill but was delayed on a logging job in Hoonah. Council co-president Tom Heywood said another showcase of local talent will be held in the spring.
Roger Schnabel, Jim Wilson and Debra Schnabel finished in the upper third of about 30 bridge players participating last week in the annual Christmas tournament of the Whitehorse Bridge Club. Roger teamed up with former Haines resident Rob Miller. The tournament was the first since COVID-19 pandemic.
Swimmers Norm Smith and Suzanne Vuillet-Smith recently donated $500 to the Friends of the Pool. The group helps support pool infrastructure and lifeguard staffing and training. It has a bank account at Tongass Federal Credit Union.
Klukwan’s Jilkaat Kwaan Heritage Center is closed for the season but a holiday opening for tours is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 17. The center’s gift shop will be open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and a garage sale will be held during the same hours in the building’s conference room.
Jaiden Davis was sporting a navy blue beanie this week she knitted from wool purchased at Wildhaven Wools. Julia Billings opened the Main Street store at the former office of Alaska Arts Confluence Friday. Besides wool, Julia offers children’s rain and snow suits and colorful, handmade merino wool jumpers for youngsters. Extendable sleeves and cuffs make the jumpers fit for years.
Kelly Mitchell worked as a bus driver and tour guide last month when Shannon Donahue of the Great Bear Foundation led an educational field course on polar bears at Churchill, Manitoba. Polar bears numbering as many as 900 sometimes match the human population at Churchill. It’s the first place for the sea ice to freeze on Hudson Bay. Polar bears hibernate on land there in the summer. Shannon has been leading trips to Churchill for 15 years.
After three years as the Haines Borough’s firefighter/EMT, Brady McGuire is heading off to work as a field service coordinator and search and rescue employee in Antarctica. The borough is advertising the position.
Open gym will be held under a revised schedule for the holiday break. Lisa Shove will proctor adult recreation on from 8 to 10 p.m. on Monday and Wednesday, Dec. 19 and Dec. 21, and again Tuesday and Thursday, Dec. 27 and Dec. 29. The regular schedule returns Jan. 4.
