February 20, 2014

www.turnagaintimes.com
Health Watch
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page 3
Mountain News
page 8
T U R N A G A I N
VOL. 17, NO. 4
TIMES
Serving Indian, Bird, Girdwood, Portage, Whittier, Hope, Cooper Landing & Moose Pass
February 20, 2014
Small cut nearly costs Girdwood man his leg
Doctors battled severe infection of invasive group A strep
By Paddy Notar
Turnagain Times Correspondent
Ken Smith/Turnagain Times
Shawn McLeod, a resident of Girdwood, recovers from a severe case of invasive
group A streptococcus at Providence Alaska Medical Center. Doctors stayed ahead
of the spreading infection to avert a leg amputation.
Wood bison are on the move
By Scott Michaelis
Special to the Turnagain Times
The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center
handled over 50 wood bison earlier in the
week, and introduced the young bulls onto the
new 165 acres of U.S. Forest Service property. Handling is done periodically to ensure
that the wood bison that will be reintroduced
into the lower Innoko River Reserve in 2015
are disease and parasite free and as pure as the
driven snow.
The wood bison that were moved onto the
new Forest Service acreage will have the opportunity to begin living a life that resembles one they can expect once re-introduced
in 2015. By removing the human element 14
months in advance, wood bison will capture
innate instincts depended on in the wild.
The initial opportunity was presented when
the Forest Service provided 138 acres of pristine pastures for wood bison.
Wells Fargo Bank and the National Fish and
Wildlife Foundation then awarded a $75,000
grant for the construction of three-and-a-half
PRSRT STD
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
ANCHORAGE, AK
PERMIT NO. 353
ECRWSS
Postal Customer
Girdwood resident Shawn McLeod thought a small cut on
his right knee was nothing to worry about. Approximately 40
hours later the small cut had become severely infected, and
doctors fought to save his leg from amputation.
“I was cleaning out my old place at 1 a.m. on January 30,
and working along the floorboards, when all of a sudden, I
twisted wrong on my knee and scratched it on something,” he
said while being interviewed from his hospital bed at Providence Alaska Medical Center. The cut was so small that he
didn’t bother to put a bandage on it. “I went to bed at about
1 a.m. without cleaning or applying any antibiotic ointment,
and woke up to go to work at 8:30 a.m. At around 3:30 p.m.
I reached down to feel where my leg had been cut and that’s
when I noticed a little knot like a golf ball below my knee.”
What McLeod was feeling, and not realizing, was the
beginning of an aggressive group A streptococcus (GAS)
wreaking havoc on his body. GAS is a type of bacteria that
can often be found in the throat and on the skin. For the most
part the GAS bacteria may cause strep throat, but in rare
cases it can cause necrotizing fasciitis – also known as “the
flesh-eating bacteria” – and streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS). Both are invasive forms of GAS disease that
can sometimes be life-threatening.
McLeod, 40, left work and went home and waited for a
friend to bring his truck over to help move some larger items.
His friend planned on showing up at 7:30 p.m., but before
See Back Page, Girdwood Man Battles Group A Strep
Cooper Landing’s
historic Hamilton’s
Place has a new
owner with a vision
But selling liquor is not
part of the business plan
Photo courtesy of AWCC
Over 50 wood bison were recently
prepared by the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center for re-introduction to
a newly established 165-acre property
owned by the U.S. Forest Service.
miles of fence line. ConocoPhilips donated the
drill pipe that compiled the 750 fence posts,
making the fencing possible.
With a herd of wood bison occupying the
new pasture, and the support coming from the
community,
reintroduction
into
the
wild
is
on
the horizon.
Inside this Issue
Alaska Mining and Diving
Moose Passings........................4 Supply generously donated
Hope Happenings .....................5 three new snowmachines. The
Lively Arts .................................6 Ski-Doo 600HP ACE “EcoPowder Hound ..........................6 Friendly” snowmachines will
Cooper Landing News ...............7 herd bison for the next year
In Memory ................................7 and with little impact on the
FVCS News ...............................9 largest land animal in the
Trooper Report ........................10 Western Hemisphere.
By Susanna LaRock
Turnagain Times
Cooper Landing Correspondent
In the community of Cooper Landing with a population
of less than 300 people, especially in the winter, when something new happens everybody hears about it. Hamilton’s
Place, one of the oldest businesses in town, located at mile
48.5 of the Sterling Highway, sold at the beginning of December, and there was a lot of talk among locals as to what
would happen to the business.
The new owners are Brenda Crim and an anonymous
partner, who bought it under the business name of Grizzly
Ridge LLC. Crim is the founder and executive director of
Alaska Missions and Retreats, a faith-based nonprofit organization with headquarters in Anchorage.
Hamilton’s Place had been for sale for years, and there
was hope in the community that somebody would buy it and
fix it up. The business has 2.45 acres of river and highway
frontage that includes a long list of services: a restaurant
See Page 11, Hamilton’s Place
Page 2
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
The Girdwood Scene
By Paddy Notar
Turnagain Times Correspondent
Well, Valentine’s Day happened and was quickly followed by President’s Day.
Ironically, when George
Washington had a sweet tooth,
he favored cherry pie. Chocolate candies, the way we know
them today, just didn’t exist
back then.
If you’re still in the mood
for something sweet, check
out the Young Dubliners at the
Sitzmark on Feb. 21 and 22.
Doors open at 9 p.m. and the
show starts at 10 p.m. Tickets
are $20 and that’s a sweet deal.
Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.
Absolut Trivia is going on
Feb. 25 from 7-9 p.m. at the
Sitz. Bring a team of friends
and get entered in the raffle for
your chance to win a Snowcat
trip.
On Feb. 28, it’s the “Vertical Challenge” on the mountain. Compete to see who can
do the most laps on any chairlift in one day. The competition starts at 10:30 a.m. and
ends at 9 p.m.
With all the rest you’ve
had sitting on the lift, you’ll
be ready to dance the night
away with Rebel Blues. Great
vocals and keyboard should
bring the crowd to the Sitz’s
dance floor from 10 p.m. to 2
a.m. I didn’t see any cover but
double check the website as
the show gets closer or call or
just pay at the door if there is
one. You’re an adult so figure
it out.
Military Monday is happening on March 3. There
will be free lift tickets, deals
on rental packages, deals on
lessons and more deals! So
bring your military I.D. and
come on down! I just fulfilled
my dream of pretending to be
on a local car commercial.
On Feb. 28 the Silvertip Grill is having the silky,
key-lime lathered vocals of
Jon Dykstra at 9 p.m. The
day after, on Mar. 1, Melissa
Mitchell will be coming in to
the Tip at 9 p.m. Her shows
are always a good time and
can lift you out of any funk
you think you might be in.
On March 7 Steve Norwood
will be gracing the Silvertip
stage at 8 p.m. He’s not just
one of the Photonz, he’s also
his own show and the vocals
and guitar are excellent. Grab
a couple of sliders, a beer and
relax while enjoying some of
the best music in Girdwood.
If you’re heading into town
absolutely make your way
to Crossbar Sports Restaurant on C Street and Benson
Blvd. It’s technically 2830 C
Street but you’ll see the sign
high in the sky. It’s where the
old Boston’s used to be. They
have eleven big screen TVs
showing all kinds of sports
but the main focus is hockey.
The inside is wide open
compared to the separate bar
area and restaurant that Boston’s used to be. The best part
about Crossbar is the menu.
They have gourmet food at
pub prices. For instance, there
is a dish of two porter braised
lamb shanks. They’re served
with roasted garlic polenta
and roasted root vegetables
and porter jus. For only $22 it
rivals what I’ve had in restaurants that charge $30 or more.
They also have fresh potato
Ken Smith/Turnagain Times
Brock Lindow, co-owner of Crossbar Sports Restaurant, along with Kenny
Ryther, opened the new sports bar three months ago with a hockey theme in
midtown on C Street. The two new restaurateurs revamped the old Boston’s
bar and restaurant that used to occupy the space with an emphasis on NHL
hockey and good food and a friendly staff. Lindow and his wife have a Girdwood
connection too; they own a cabin in Glacier City. You might also recognize
Lindow as the lead singer for the band 36 Crazyfists.
crusted Ling Cod with roasted
vegetables and garlic jus for
the same price as the lamb.
Their fish is always fresh
and perfectly cooked. If you
want a great sandwich try the
roasted lamb dip. It’s sliced
leg of lamb on toasted baguette with horseradish mint
aioli and au jus. For $13 it’s
a steal. They also have a great
kids menu and even offer seasonal organic infant purees for
three dollars.
Crossbar makes everything
on the premises from their
breads to their house cured
pastrami. They have a full bar
with a nice selection of local
brews. Speaking of which,
there is a black bean and spent
grain burger that they make
utilizing the grains that are
left over from the local breweries after they’ve been used.
The patty is served with local
sprouts, tomato and a nice
house feta spread. I’ve had a
lot of black bean burgers but
this one is definitely unique
and the grains really stand out.
You will want it again once
you’ve tried it.
If you like salads, they have
ones you probably wouldn’t
see in most sports pubs. The
organic beet and fennel salad
is excellent with sweet onion,
arugula, and goat cheese and
is another bargain at seven
dollars.
There’s even a pinball
game and an old school
hockey game. Remember
those things, the ones with the
plastic dome over the top? I
love that game. Even though
Toddo, from Essential One, is
one of the best foosball players
in the state I don’t think he’d
beat me at this game. He’s lost
his touch over the years.
Crossbar is delicious, affordable and fun so make the
The Turnagain Times is
published the first and third
week of each month by
Midnight Sun Communications,
LLC, Girdwood, Alaska.
By Mail:
P.O. Box 1044
Girdwood, Alaska
99587-1044
extra effort to get there.
I’m not sure if the Firetap
Alehouse in Anchorage is
sold out of their six course
beer and food tasting that is
on Feb. 23, beginning at 6
p.m., but it’s worth a phone
call to find out. The phone
number is 561-2337 and for
$50 it costs a lot less than
what you probably spent on
Valentine’s Day flowers and
candy and I can assure you
this will taste much better.
If they are sold out get six
different pizzas to go, head
out of town, go to La Bodega
in Girdwood, get six growlers of beer, go home and have
your own little party.
Well, that’s it for me. My
fingers are swollen from
pounding the keyboard and
all of this talking about food
is making me hungry. Daylight savings time is just
around the corner and I’ll
remind you in the next issue.
You’d just forget if I brought
it up now.
Drive safe. The roads have
that tiny bit of ice that you
can’t see until you feel the
wheels give out. By then,
you’re in trouble so go slow
and be three minutes late.
Staying alive is more important than being punctual.
Take care.
Publisher & Editor
Ken Smith
Production Artist
Matthew Bailey
Serving Indian, Bird, Girdwood, Portage, Whittier, Hope, Cooper Landing & Moose Pass
By Phone:
(907) 783-1135
By Fax:
(907) 783-1136
By Email:
[email protected]
© 2014 Midnight Sun
Communications, LLC
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Page 3
Opinion
PADDY WAGGIN’
Prisons and jails in this
country are looking more and
more like dumping facilities for those who are mentally ill rather than places of
reform and punishment. The
U.S. Dept. of Justice reported,
through the Bureau of Justice
Statistics that 56 percent of
state prisoners, 45 percent
of federal prisoners and 64
percent of jail inmates have a
mental health problem. Close
to 75 percent of state prisoners and local inmates who
had a mental health problem
qualified to meet the standard
for drug abuse and addiction.
Think about how high those
numbers are for a minute.
In addition, 24 percent of
mentally ill inmates have been
physically or sexually abused.
Women are no exception and
they even outrank men by 15
percent by meeting mental
illness criteria.
While the rest of the country
seems to be wondering how to
best to deal with this situation,
the city of Anchorage has gone
and taken its own steps to help
treat those who need a little
more help rather than your everyday social retribution that
we’re famous for providing.
The Anchorage Coordinated
PADDY
NOTAR
Resources Project (ACRP)
was created in 1998. It was developed for people with mental
disabilities who have committed misdemeanor crimes.
Instead of putting them in jail,
as is usually the norm, they are
put into community treatment
programs. Wow! What a crazy
concept – treating people’s illnesses so they get better and
don’t have to become repeat
offenders. If we’re not careful
we may start better utilizing all
taxpayer dollars. Before you
know it we’ll have a balanced
budget and people feeling good
about the direction our country
is going in. Even though we
know that’s a long shot, I think
the ACRP is providing a vital
role to help Anchorage and
the people within it become a
better place.
People are referred to the
Health Watch
By Ken Waugh
Special to the Turnagain Times
I love medicine, and I love
taking a stream of seemingly
unrelated complaints, matching it with personal history,
social circumstances and
family medical history to
arrive at a pathogen or disease
process that fits and provides
a plausible explanation of
symptoms. I think I’m pretty
good at it.
I have no idea of my percentages, but I’m right far
more times than I’m wrong.
Certain facets I could do
without, and I really hate the
cost of health care. I know
that many would agree and I
have seen comments that care
should be provided for free,
but until a building is donated
that is maintenance free with
all utilities paid for, health
care supplies, equipment and
labs provided, then free health
care is just not possible.
But a reduction in your
expense for health care is
pretty easily obtainable. I
won’t argue politics in this
column, nor will I discuss
health care systems or what
the up sides versus the down
sides of the provision may be.
In fact, it is too early to really
tell how all this will affect the
delivery of care in this country.
In a recent poll of MDs across
the country 84 percent stated
they did not understand nor
could they explain the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
I have attempted to read
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA),
which is made up of the Affordable Health Care for
America Act, The Patient
Protection Act, health care
related sections of The Health
Care and Education Reconciliation Act, The Student Aid
and Fiscal Responsibility Act
along with various riders and
amendments to other acts. I
think I understand most of it.
Some of it has already been
repealed, some has been
delayed, but many things directly affecting most all of us
become law this year. Here’s
the Dick and Jane version.
You have to have coverage
or it’s gonna cost you. While
corporations and small business continue to get deferments
– you do not. In 2014, all U.S.
citizens and legal residents
are required to have qualifying health coverage or you will
face a tax penalty. This year it
is not too bad $95 bucks but
next year it goes to $325 then
$625, or 1 percent of taxable
income for 2014, 2 percent in
2015 then 2.5 percent in 2016,
whichever amount is greater.
After 2016 the increase will be
tied to the federal cost of living
adjustment. There are exclusions available but you will
ACRP by lawyers, the police,
family members, judges, court
staff and community behavioral health providers. The legal
team, from the two judges
to the prosecutor, defense
counsel, case coordinators and
clerks are all trained in the area
of mental health. Since the
mentally ill are more likely to
serve three or more incarcerations, this seems to be a reasonable approach.
The case coordinator helps
with all the assistance to meet
the individual’s needs and
attends all of the court hearings. Basically, this person is
there throughout the process.
The case manager and court
come up with a treatment plan
that includes hands-on monitoring of the patient and any
post-sentencing hearings that
may occur.
What I especially liked is
that the court can adjust the
plan or implement non-jail
types of sanctions to keep the
individual in line. It isn’t one
of those systems that require
people to fall in line or suffer
the repercussions. There are
individuals that need that type
of approach but those with
psychological problems don’t
fit in that category. With the
ACRP plan, going to jail is a
last resort.
The Bureau of Justice Statistics also showed that 25
percent of those with a mental
disorder are brought back time
and time again. They don’t get
better, they just get tossed onto
the street and then arrested
again. The worst part is that
within twelve months of being
admitted to prison 33 percent
suffer from major depression.
I’m sure your average
person would become depressed by having to sit behind
bars but imagine someone
whose brain is sick having to
do the same. After only a few
months of being incarcerated
35 percent have feelings of
worthlessness and 38 percent
being to have something called
psychomotor agitation.
Did you ever see someone
walk in circles, pick at their
own skin, or tear their clothing? That’s what it means.
What I found interesting is
that 11 percent of those with a
psychological disorder attempt
suicide. While that may not
seem like a high number,
think about what you have to
go through to attempt suicide
in prison when you’re most
likely already under suicide
watch because of your existing
behavioral issues. You have
to be pretty intent on ending
your life to be one of those 11
percent. These aren’t people
that are trying to get attention,
they want out of prison that
bad.
The ACRP is a good idea
and its time has come. It’s a
program that seems to make
so much sense that it mainly
goes overlooked. Then again,
something tells me that our
government doesn’t want to
completely fix the problem
of keeping people out of jails
and prisons, regardless of their
mental state.
In the U.S., building prisons
is a boom industry. Even
though we make up only 5
percent of the world’s population we incarcerate 25 percent
of the world’s prisoners.
There is no quick fix but
there are programs, like the
one being implemented here in
Anchorage, but isn’t it time we
starting taking the steps nationally to address this issue and
decriminalize mental illness?
I think American poet and
author Charles Bukowski
stated it best when he said, “I
had noticed that both in the
very poor and very rich extremes of society the mad
were often allowed to mingle
freely.”
have to jump through some
hoops to prove them.
If you are young, talk to
your parents, you may be able
to be added to their health care
plan up until 26 years of age.
It probably won’t cost as
much as you think. There are
income credits that subsidize
the cost of your insurance.
To be sure, there are limits,
but they are pretty generous.
The premium credits are tied
to income and go up to 400
percent of the Federal Poverty
Limit. That’s a maximum
$57,400 of income in Alaska
for one person.
The scale is adjusted
upwards for each additional person. For instance, a
family of four having an
annual income of $117,760
receives credits that subsidizes any premium cost above
9.5 percent of income. That’s
roughly a premium of $900 a
month for the whole family,
plus that gives the kids dental
and eye care as well. Lifetime
limits and exclusions for preexisting conditions have been
eliminated as well.
It’s not as bad as you think.
The website is not perfect but
it does seem to be working.
A few intrepid friends have
signed up by themselves and
even had a report from one
guy who said he signed up
on his iPhone. I chose to go
through Enroll Alaska, spent
30 minutes on the phone, set
up my account, looked over
the plans, asked a few questions and got coverage (at a
savings of about $300 bucks a
month from what I had been
paying).
Time is running out. March
is only a few weeks away and
the last day to enroll is the 31st
to avoid penalties. After that
you will wait until the next
enrollment period, which is
currently slated for Nov. 15
through Jan. 15, 2015. But
stay tuned, as with many
things associated with the
ACA, it is an ever-changing
landscape. There are individual special enrollment provisions, but most of those have
been tied to life events such
as a move to a new state or a
change in family size.
If you have further questions then go to HealthCare.
gov or call Enroll Alaska at
(907) 770-5100. They can
help you figure out what you
qualify for and mentor you
through the entire process, but
if you don’t have health care
insurance, don’t put it off any
longer and enroll in a plan.
Ken Waugh works as a Physician Assistant at the Girdwood Clinic and is a longtime
ski patroller and resident of
Girdwood. He specializes
in emergency medicine and
orthopedic care.
Page 4
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Moose Passings
Compiled by Willow Hetrick
Turnagain Times
Moose Pass Correspondent
Moose Pass
Sportsman’s Club
Elizabeth Holloway has
stepped up to take the Secretary Position for the Moose
Pass Sportsmen’s Club, She
will also be in charge of
the Moose Pass Messenger.
Please send anything that you
would like posted to her [email protected].
Seward Ranger District
Winter Trail Updates
The Seward Ranger District’s Kenai Lake Work
Center Trail technicians continually provide winter trail
updates that will be in winter
issues of the Turnagain Times
so read bi-weekly for the latest
updates on the Chugach trails.
By Irene Lindquist
February 13 Update
A few flurries here and
there but it’s still not a happening place to be for snow
on the Seward Ranger District. In the past week we have
received enough snow to sort
of halt ice skating, though it’s
easy to skate through, there
are many cracks in the ice that
are now hidden and waiting to
catch your blade and send you
flying.
The next Federal Land
Manager to the West of us
has areas of very good iceskating at the moment. Take a
look at last week’s trail report,
it’s much the same story
today. One change is that the
super slick glare ice roads of
last week are less slippery,
however they are still icy, and
walking our trails still require
the aid of ice cleats. Backpacking across Resurrection
Pass Trail is the name of the
game from Cooper Landing to
Hope, though you will want
to carry snowshoes as there is
snow predicted in the next few
days. Grant Lake mine road
has been clear of fallen trees.
Grant Lake had 15 inches of
ice on it two days ago. There
is skiing to be had on SRD,
check the Seward Nordic Ski
Club link, better yet, go to the
site, become a member and
updates on latest conditions
will be automatically sent to
your email.
Alison Rein from Glacier
Ranger District has a more
promising report, at least for
those of you who like to crosscountry ski: Portage Valley is
back to more normal winter
conditions with wonderful ontrail skiing and 12-16 inches
of fresh light snow, parking
areas plowed, continued light
snow and cold temps (highs
of 20s at most) should keep
the conditions in great shape!
Don’t delay, ski portage today.
Borough Assembly
Meeting Report,
February 11
By Sue McClure
Our first meeting day of
February began at 3:30 p.m.
with a report from RBC
Public Funds Service on the
Chapel of Our Lady of the Snows
Borough’s investment portfolio. It seems we are doing all
right, with an emphasis on the
long term. Our 6 PM regular
meeting began with a presentation by Linda Swarmer, Executive Director of the Kenai
Peninsula Food Bank. Serving
from the Central Peninsula to
Homer and Moose Pass, she
reported that 1 million pounds
of food is distributed. They
also have a warm lunch served
every weekday. In his report,
Mayor Navarre applauded the
16 new Fire Fighter 2 certificate recipients from Moose
Pass, Bear Creek and Seward
volunteer fire departments.
He also spoke at the Board of
Fisheries meeting in Anchorage, and may request action
regarding the negative effects
on our borough from some of
their decisions. At the meeting
he requested that their next
meeting be held locally.
Two ordinances were
scheduled for public hearing.
Ordinance 2014-01, which
authorizes the release of the
deed restriction on the property in Seward on which Spring
Creek Correctional Facility is
located, was passed by unanimous consent with no public
testimony. The second also
was passed by unanimous
consent with no testimony.
This makes changes in Title
20, the subdivision code.
There were a number of
resolutions on the consent
agenda. Resolution 2014-011
selects the Peninsula Clarion
as the newspaper for the publication of the 2014 tax foreclosure and other lists. Resolution 2014-013 establishes
the federal legislative priorities for fiscal year 2015 for
the borough. These include
elodea eradication, Cook
Inlet beluga whale research
and endangered species act
listing, PILT and Secure
Rural Schools payments,
federal fishery management
Photo courtesy of Irene Lindquist
The ice ornament race for kids featured a decorated
tree that kids had to select an ornament, climb a ladder and put it on the trees in the garden area at the
Community Hall. Next they had to put snowshoes on
and run to get the ornament.
of king salmon, and the continuation of the spruce bark
beetle program. Resolution
2014-014 requests Alaska
DOT to design and construct
a 5-lane road between Mile
2.8-8.1 on the Kenai Spur
Highway. Resolution 2014012, although removed from
the consent agenda and discussed, was approved 8-1.
This supports the requests
from the Central Area Rural
Transit System to the State
DOT.
Five ordinances were advanced for public hearing. Ordinance 2013-19-27 appropri-
At home
in Girdwood
invites ALL to visit for
Silent Prayer/Adoration
First Monday of each month
7:30 - 8:30 PM
370 Northface Road
Please join us, bring the children,
you are most welcome.
Thank you to the Girdwood Community for
supporting the Chapel of Our Lady of the Snows
and Meadow Creek Community Center.
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ates $30,000 in supplemental
funding for Bear Creek Fire
Service Area for operating
costs for their new station, as
it is being completed earlier
than anticipated. This will be
heard at our Feb 25 meeting.
Ordinance 2014-09 would
amend borough code to allow
borough employees to also
serve as elected officials on
service area boards, and it
will have a public hearing on
March 18. Our next meeting
will be February 25 at 6 p.m.
In addition to Ordinance
2013-19-27, there are four
other ordinances up for public
hearing at that time. Among
these, Ordinance 2014-04
would amend borough code
to change the term of one seat
on the Central Peninsula Hospital board from a one-year to
a three-year term.
Ordinance 2014-05 would
change the residency requirement for residential property tax exemptions from
183 to 185 days per year, to
align them with the PFD requirements. And, Ordinance
2014-06 would amend code
to provide that ordinances
other than code amendments
would be heard at least 13
instead of 25 days after introduction. As always, I can
be reached at 224-6784 or
[email protected].
ak.us. The borough’s website
is www.borough.kenai.ak.us.
Information about borough
business can be obtained
in Seward at the Seward
Annex Office or the Flood
Board Office, both located in
SeaView Plaza.
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Page 5
Hope Happenings
By Shyla Malone
Turnagain Times
Hope Correspondent
Things seem to be looking
a bit more normal in Hope
with the recent snow cover
and regular winter temperatures returning. According to
weather.com, by next week
it’s supposed to be raining
with temperatures nearing 40
degrees.
One year and counting
for The Hope Clinic
By Valerie DeFrance
One year. It does not seem
possible and yet here we are.
The Hope Clinic, a satellite
clinic of the nonprofit Girdwood Health Clinic, Inc.
(GHCI), has been open for one
year as of the end of January.
And what a year it has been.
Like most things in Hope,
we started out slowly as the
residents got accustomed to
having a clinic right out their
back yards. Then in the spring
and summer we had the influx
of tourists also needing minor
and urgent care. Predicting a
major slowdown in the winter
months it was surprising that
this was not the case.
And it was not all injuries
and illness; it was – and is –
also an emerging preventative
trend. Fulfilling to be a part of
for us locals working at the
clinic.
Citing numbers and types
of patients utilizing the facility equals bone-dry reading.
Much more interesting is the
effect on daily life and well
being of our patients; observing residents who can once
again contribute to the welfare
of the community as a whole.
We now have the pleasure
of seeing our patients obtain
preventative care – such as
vaccinations and tests – subsequently reducing emergencies. Watching with awe as patients who now obtain regular
clinic check-ups, maintenance
and support, lead to changes
that greatly improved their
quality of life. We love patients not having a risky long
distance drive to obtain evermore expensive emergency
room care.
All of this enhanced as
we continue to get all of the
telemedicine equipment and
training in place. To be able to
obtain a 12 lead EKG of the
heart and possibly prevent a
heart attack is priceless. For
the GHC clinicians to be able
to hear what we hear through
the stethoscope can help pinpoint problems and solid interventions. An injury or
East High Fine Arts presents
illness picture that is worth a
thousand words.
Hope Clinic is thankful
for the GHCI staff, starting
with advanced nurse practitioner, Kerry Dorius, providing
service with her many years of
experience, physician assistant, Ken Waugh, who loves
working with joint and bone
problems, and family nurse
practitioner, Jennifer Swift,
who has extra experience with
family medicine, and Lenore,
Melissa, and Jill who expertly
guide us through every imaginable paperwork challenge.
The Hope Clinic would not
have been possible if not for
the support in our community,
the staff and board members
of both GHCI and Hope
Clinic, and our State of Alaska
legislators. We are excited for
the growth and progress that
our little hometown will make
in 2014.
Valerie DeFrance works
at the Hope Clinic and has
nearly 30 years experience in
EMS response.
School News
In “Battle of the books”,
the junior high team came in
sixth place out 14 teams. The
Elementary rankings haven’t
come in yet, but they only
missed winning by one question. The books for next year’s
competition come out at the
end of the school year. The
school will try to get them
before the end of summer, so
the kids will have them to read
over the summer.
The Hope School Talent
Show and chili dinner was
Wednesday, Feb. 19, hope you
could make it and I will have
a write up about it in the next
issue.
The Hope School will start
skiing today Feb. 20. The children have been waiting for
this all school year; not only
is it fun but a way for them to
blow off a little energy.
Jason Skaaren is teaching Physical Education on
Monday through Wednesday
and Friday. He is making PE
fun while making it constructive as well.
There is open gym on
Tuesday, Wednesdays and
Thursday at the school. Drop
by and join a game or just to
see what’s happening.
Dorinda Carner is the new
Librarian at the Hope School.
Every Friday morning at 8:30
a.m. she has a breakfast and
reading group for the kids.
They read Alaskan literature,
and are currently reading
“Colony Kids”, a book about
the children of the first homesteaders of Palmer.
Church News
Church service is every
Sunday at 3 p.m. The food
bank is on Thursdays from
noon to 1 p.m.
The ladies of the church
have volunteered last month
and this month at the Hope
School to provide a hot lunch
to the children. The Kids and
staff at the School want to say
thank you for your time and
providing a delicious meal.
Library News
The library’s hours are
noon to 3 p.m., open most
days. Come sit by the fire
enjoy a hot cup of cider or
coffee and a great book. Our
community library has more
new books and movies, which
have been reorganized.
Recipe of the Month
Here’s a recipe for a child’s
Birthday party or summer barbeque: Cake in a Cone, just
top it with ice cream, no need
to frost it.
Mix up your favorite cake
mix according to the directions, (store bought or homemade).
Fill each ice cream cone
with about 2 Tbsp. of batter.
The batter should come to
the lower inner rim of the ice
cream cones. Do not fill all
the way to the top, or the ice
cream cones will topple.
Bake ice cream cone cupcakes 20-30 minutes. Check
at 20 minutes. When a knife
inserted in the center of the ice
cream cone cupcakes comes
out clean, they’re done.
Check it out at http://www.
Budget101.com/ for thousands more fantastic money
saving ideas and tips-n-tricks.
2014
OUTBACK
Wednesday - Saturday, February 26th - March 1, 2014 at 7pm
e ts
ic k
Al l T 10
$
East High Auditorium
Fe at
E a st H u r i n g
ig
A m e r h's o w n
i
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Adr ia a n Ido l
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Go bigger. Climb steeper. Roam farther.
From hockey to hiking, the Outback is just as prepared
as you are to pack it all up and go. And with its ample
passenger room and new adjustable roof rack system,
it’s smartly equipped to load the gang and the gear
easily, intelligently and securely.
4025 E. N. Lights Blvd.
Read the Turnagain Times online or
download a PDF of the printed version:
www.turnagaintimes.com
Find Useful Stuff like Ferry, Railroad
and Tunnel Schedules, Road Conditions,
Local Weather and more.
Advertised prices are valid thru February 28, 2014. Photo
may vary from actual vehicle. MPG: Based on 2011 EPA
mileage estimates, reflecting new EPA fuel economy
methods beginning with 2008 models. Use for
comparison purposes only. Do not compare to
models before 2008. Your actual mileage
will vary depending on how you drive
and maintain your vehicle.
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INTERNATIONAL & OLD SEWARD • ANCHORAGE • 563-2277
Page 6
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Lively Arts
By Ron Holmstrom
Turnagain Times Correspondent
It isn’t often that one would
attend a performance of a high
school play and expect anything near professional quality
performances. I remember
once, many years ago, when
on location with a film in San
Juan Bautista, Cal. when a
local schoolteacher cajoled
me into seeing a student production of The Hobbit. The
youngster playing Gollum
blew us away. To this day, the
best portrayal of that character I have ever seen. So, you
never know.
Something similar will
be happening beginning this
month at East High. Under
the direction of Jill Bess, a
professional actress herself
and director of many plays
and musicals, East High
Fine Arts will be performing
Little Shop of Horrors starring none other than Alaska’s
own singing American Idol,
Adriana Latonio.
Unless you slept through
a good deal of last year, you
will remember that Latonio
was a finalist on American
Idol, getting into the last top
20. I am sure every television in Alaska was tuned in
to see this talented young
woman go head-to-head
week after week with the top
singers gathered from around
the entire country. My other
employer, FOX-4 Coastal
Television here in Alaska,
covered every step of her
journey on our network. I
had the great pleasure to in-
terview her for my entertainment news segment at that
time. What a terrific girl! And
what an amazing voice!
Latonio will be playing
the lead role of Audrey in the
production. I had the good
fortune to be able to speak
with director Bess this week,
who tells me, “She is wonderful singing this role and turns
out to be a dynamite actress
as well.” Bess added, “East
High has always had some
great talent.”
And this school year
appears to be no different. I
have to say that I attended a
production of Blithe Spirit
at the school some years ago
and was very impressed with
the students handling the
talky Noel Coward classic.
No easy feet, so I am not surprised that the rest of the cast
of Little Shop are holding
their own with Latonio.
I caught up via phone call
Bess while she was working
on the finishing touches of
one of the puppetry devices
which will portray the voracious plant, Audrey II, so
named by the hero of the
play, Seymore, after the love
of his life, Audrey, (Latonio.)
If you have never seen a
production of this show, here
is a chance to see a perennial
favorite in the capable hands
of a fine director and a talent
who will doubtless go on to a
wonderful career. You will be
able to say, “I remember her
when…” I wouldn’t miss this
one, if I were you. I certainly
won’t. Little Shop of Horrors:
East High Auditorium, 4025
E Northern Lights Blvd.
Wednesday through Saturday, Feb. 26 through March
1 at 7 p.m., tickets $10 at the
door.
Be sure to tune in for my
Feb. 20 television coverage
of Little Shop of Horrors on
the FOX-4 Thursday Night
News at Nine.
Also, continuing around
town are some of the shows
we covered here last issue.
UAA’s Night of the Iguana,
tickets are at www.uaatix.
com or call 786-4TIX.
Tickets for Rush at Everlasting at the Sydney Laurence
and Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes at Cyrano’s
may be had at centertix.net or
purchased at the box office at
the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts downtown. To
see the last column on these
shows, visit the Turnagain
Times website at www.turnagaintimes.com.
There will be auditions at
Cyrano’s this Saturday, Feb.
22 at 11 a.m. for a play to be
directed by Dick Reichman
to open on April 24. There are
six characters, three men and
three women. This production will also be a main stage
production at The Last Frontier Theatre Conference. For
More Information contact:
cyranosproductions@gmail.
com or call 274-2599.
Lastly, there is a feature
film being shot in Seward
next month. Sugar Mountain
will begin filming on March
3 and continue through the
second week of April. There
are some supporting roles
Photo courtesy of Jill Bess
Adriana Latonio and Chris Hawk in a 2013 production
of Once Upon a Mattress for East High Fine Arts.
available to Alaska actors and
some work as extras, production assistants and more. If
interested, email me at [email protected]. If you
are looking for acting or extra
work, please attach a photo
and a resume if you have one.
I will have more to report on
the filming of this picture over
the weeks to come.
As always, thanks to each
of you for supporting your
local arts and artists.
Powder Hound
We all struggled though a long month of high pressure following a copious amount of rain, but we knew
winter would come around sooner or later. So now that
the season is back underway we are noticing two types of
skiers/riders.
1. The person who had faith and really took their down
time lately to get ramped up for the snow. This entails
getting their boots dialed, core shots repaired on their skis/
snowboards, keeping those quads in shape and maybe
even booking a hut to venture into for the spring or taking
an avalanche course to get dialed in on snow safety.
2. The second type, who decided to write off the season
for a bit to take care of other matters. These are the folks
that are now amped once again that it is snowing with
colder temperatures but need to figure out a new pair of
boots, new set of pow skis or even some skis that their
little ones will be able to use now and through next season.
Whether you fall into category one or two, it matters
not. But what does matter is that you get after it as much
as possible since we missed a small portion of the season.
With spring coming up there is no better time to improve
on technique and stamina.
Nothing can compare to skiing fresh snow in a blizzard under the lights here at Alyeska. It’s been very refreshing to see all of the big smiles and energy back at
the tram during night skiing. Maybe you’ve picked up a
new hobby during the drought and need to push back into
shape, night skiing is a great way to do this.
This is also about the best time possible to accumulate
the new gear you’ve been looking at all season. Ski shops
usually still have an ample amount of gear before spring
break and the sales usually start in February. So whether
it’s that new pair of rockered sticks or a boot that is actually the right size, get in and get set up so you can enjoy
them for the next two-and-a-half months of the season.
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Page 7
Cooper Landing News
By Susanna LaRock
Turnagain Times
Cooper Landing Correspondent
Winter Is Back
Kenai Lake is refreezing
with a pretty thick layer of
ice on top. Temperatures have
dropped down to teens and
single digits. Folks here in
Cooper Landing are dusting
off their winter gear and shivering in the cold. The sun is
shining in the dark valley of
Cooper Landing, and residents here are enjoying more
of it every day.
According to forecasts we
should be in for more snow
and more winter, which is
welcome here, as residents
have not even begun to enjoy
the wonders that a Cooper
Landing winter has to offer.
EMT 1 Bridge Class
ETT-EMT 1 classes will
start Friday, Feb. 21 at the
Cooper Landing Emergency
Services Hall and continue on
weekends through March 29.
The hours of classes will be
Fridays from 5 to 9 p.m. and
Saturdays and Sundays from 9
a.m. to 6 p.m. Cooper Landing
Emergency Services is in need
of some new volunteers, so if
you are interested in attending
this training be sure to inquire
with Sue Sloan.
Book Club Meeting
The Friday Night Book
Club will meet at the Cooper
OTC
Landing Community Library
Friday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m.
The book to be discussed is
The Light Between Oceans
by M.L. Stedman. All are
welcome to join in the discussion; bring a snack to share
and your favorite drink and
enjoy an evening at your local
library surrounded by books
and neighbors.
Snowshoe Softball
Cooper Landing Emergency Services with the vision
and organizing skills of Charlotte Osowiecki and local
AmeriCorps member Kristin
Fuller will be presenting the
3rd Annual Snowshoe Softball
game Saturday, Feb. 22 at the
ball field on Bean Creek Road
next to the Community Hall.
This event promises to be a
day filled with winter fun.
There will be a handyman
auction to start off the day’s
events at noon and the seveninning game will start at 1 p.m.
There will also be a snow fort
building contest, with snow
forecasted for that day, there
may actually be some materials
for people to work with.
All participants signed up
for the fun game of softball in
snowshoes are encouraged to
wear costumes, so there will
be a costume contest as well
with prizes announced after the
game. This is a fun event for the
whole family and proceeds go
to Cooper Landing Emergency
Services.
Web Design
907.382.0456
www.otcwebdesign.com
General Dentistry for the Entire Family
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Corner of Huffman and Old Seward
Susanna LaRock/Turnagain Times
Mountains hover over Kenai Lake as a thick layer of ice forms under a thin layer
of snow on top.
In Memory
Michael Gerry Henman
December 27, 1970 ~ January 22, 2014
Michael Gerry Henman,
43, of Girdwood passed
away January 22, 2014 in
Anchorage due to complications from abscessed teeth
resulting in heart failure.
Michael was born December 27, 1970 in Angeles City,
Pampanga, Philippines. He
arrived in the United States
in 1974 with his parents
Michael B. Henman and
Alejandra Russell and his
little sister Michele.
Michael came to the Anchorage area in 1976 and
graduated from Service High
School in 1990. He worked
at various places in the Anchorage area before marrying Jessica Clark and moving
to Alabama. He then served
as a Specialist in the Army.
Their daughter Natasha
was born in 1994 while in
Alabama, and Michael later
returned to Anchorage after
leaving the military. He
settled in Girdwood in 2003
and while working as a carpenter, volunteered as a ski
instructor for Challenge
Alaska. He loved his work
helping the disabled of all
ages learn to ski and enjoyed
the long winter on the slopes.
He is survived by his
daughter Natasha Henman;
his
mother
Alejandra
“Sandy” Russell and father
Michael B. Henman; His
three sisters Mary “Gina”
Hutchins, Michele Carroll,
and Amanda Russell; as
well as his brother Matthew
Russell and many wonderful
friends.
His grandparents on both
sides, Aunt Regina, Uncle
Ramon, and Uncle Jerry preceded him in death.
The family would like
to give special thanks to
the Adult Critical Care and
Renal Care Units, Environmental Services, and
Laundry Departments at
Providence Alaska Medical
Center, as well as a huge
thank you to the staffs at
Challenge Alaska and the
Silvertip Grill for organizing
and planning his Celebration
of Life.
Michael’s unique personality and infectious
smile will always stay with
his family and friends. His
family encourages donations
in his honor to Challenge
Alaska in Girdwood to help
support a cause that was very
dear to him.
A Celebration of Life was
held on February 15, 2014 at
the Challenge Alaska Chalet
located on the Alyeska slopes.
Page 8
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Mountain News
By Ben Napolitano
Special to the Turnagain Times
Alyeska Resort is
OPEN for Skiing
and Riding
February is rolling, the
snow has arrived in Girdwood
and the skiing and riding conditions are getting better every
day with snow being measured
in feet over the past couple
weeks. Alyeska’s snow safety
and ski patrol crews have been
doing an awesome job of mitigating the avalanche risk and
making sure the terrain that
is safe to ski is open for all
of us to play in. GREAT JOB
TEAM!
Next, Alyeska is currently
operating on a seven day a
week schedule for skiing and
riding for the rest of the season
with new zones to open as
conditions allow. Alyeska has
almost 95 percent of inbounds
terrain assessable, 600 acres
of skiable terrain for guests
to play on and 2,500 vertical
feet from the top of Glacier
Bowl Express to the base.
Night skiing operations are in
full swing Thurs- Sat from the
Aerial Tram, Ted’s Express
and Bearcub Quad. Come out
and enjoy all the fresh snow,
Alaskan mountains, sunshine
and great vibes at Alyeska.
How Much Vertical Can
You Ski in One Day?
The annual Alyeska Vertical Challenge is back and
taking place on Friday, Feb.
28! This year’s event will
have a slight twist added to
the event’s normal format. In
previous seasons, skiers and
riders would have competed
to log as much vertical feet
on Alyeska’s North Face as
possible using only the tram
to get them to the top and the
North Face zone to get them
down. This year’s event will
allow skiers and riders to
claim as much vertical as they
can on any chair or the tram
and utilize the entire mountain
to rack up the vert from 10:30
a.m. to 5:30 p.m. What’s your
strategy? Combinations of
laps on Ted’s Express and
live music
#holysitz
ALYESKA RESORT | GIRDWOOD, ALASKA
FEBRUARY 21 & 22
Young Dubliners
Celtic rock’s hardest working
band is back!
$20
FEB. 28 & MAR. 1
The Rebel
Blues Band
A blues band with a funk addiction
$5
Glacier Bowl Express are
the safest bet. The contest
will utilize Alyeska’s vertical
tracker system with the RFID
gates making the event open
to season pass holders and
10x Powder Pass holders only.
Those who are interested in
participating will need to preregister at the ticket office.
The event is FREE and open
to all ages.
Young Dubliners return
to Rock the Sitzmark
The dates of Feb. 21 and 22
have been circled on the calendar for a lot of local music
fans. This weekend is featuring Young Dubliners at the
Sitzmark for two solid nights
of Irish rock. The band is
looking forward to coming
back to Alyeska Resort.
The local favorite Young
Dubliners are coming back
to Girdwood on Feb. 21 and
22. Young Dubliners are quite
possibly the hardest working
band in Celtic rock. They play
hundreds of shows every year
across the USA and Europe.
Although the Young Dubliners tend to fall into the genre
of Celtic rock, that title can
sometimes be misleading
because the band pulls inspiration from so many other
influences. Their sound is intended to be a hybrid of good
old American rock n roll
mixed heavily with Irish rock
and classic Celtic melodies.
Young Dubliners performed
two sold out shows at the Sitzmark in 2013 and are sure to
pack the house in 2014 given
their popularity within the
local Girdwood and Anchorage concert going community.
Channel Your
Inner Yogi
Given the popularity of
the yoga classes offered
at Alyeska, the resort has
decided to add another session
to its current schedule. The
new class will take place on
Sunday evenings at 7 p.m.
and will not be replacing
any of the other classes. The
yoga classes offered consist
of a 75-minute Vinyasa flow
yoga sessions. Vinyasa flow
links breath and movement,
strengthening and opening the
body while calming the mind.
Photo courtesy of Ben Napolitano
A sunset at the top of Mt. Alyeska.
Photo courtesy of Ben Napolitano
Skiers ride the chair lift through fresh falling snow.
Expect the unexpected in
this fun and creative practice!
Explore the breadth of poses
and sequencing that are part
of this broad and diverse style
of yoga, including twists, inversions, arm balances and
restorative poses. The first
Sunday evening class will be
Sunday, Feb. 23. As of Feb.
23 the class schedule will
be Sunday mornings at 9:30
a.m. and Sunday evenings at
7 p.m. Tuesdays at 6:30pm
and Thursdays at 6:30 p.m.
All classes take place in the
Summit Room on the 8th floor
and cost $15 with punch cards
available. Contact the Spa to
sign up at 754-2550.
Final Trivia Block and
Final Town League at
the Sitz
The current Absolut trivia
block is heading into the final
round on Feb. 25 at 7 p.m.
MARCH 6, 7 & 8
Mother Hips
Original California soul since 1991
$15
Read the Turnagain Times online or
download a PDF of the printed version:
www.turnagaintimes.com
BEERS ON TAP / 21 & OVER / FOOD ‘TIL LATE
full schedule & advance tix online @ thesitzmark.com : 907-754-2275
Find Useful Stuff like Ferry, Railroad
and Tunnel Schedules, Road Conditions,
Local Weather and more.
at the Sitzmark. Teams have
been competing in the local
pub style trivia league for the
past four weeks and this block
is going into the final round
for the big prize giveaway of
a scenic flight for three people
from Alpine Air Alaska. Individuals are entered into the
drawing for the helicopter trip
by showing up to participate
at the weekly event and also
by purchasing Absolut drinks.
Winners must be present to
win the helicopter trip. Great
prizes donated by Odom Corp
of Alaska will be up for grabs
including branded skis and
snowboards and a $100 resort
gift card for the nightly first
place team.
Thursday, Feb. 27 is the
final round for the Town
League Race Series brought
to you by Coors Light. Local
racers have been competing in nightly race series for
six weeks and the seventh
week marks the final race
when division winners will be
crowned. One of the crowd’s
favorite local bands, Eternal
Cowboys will be starting the
after party at 7:30 p.m. for a
FREE SHOW!
Non-racing patrons can
enjoy dinner and drink specials and Town League
racers will have an onslaught
of prizes raffled off and/or
thrown in their direction as
race results are posted and
recaps are played. Swing by
for good food, drinks and
tunes.
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Page 9
Summer Grants available from Kenai MountainsTurnagain Arm National Heritage Area
By Kaylene Johnson
Special to the Turnagain Times
Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm
National Heritage Area summer grants
are available for communities and organizations interested in projects that
recognize, preserve, and interpret the
historic, scenic, cultural, and recreational resources of the Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area.
The Kenai Mountains-Turnagain
Arm (KMTA) Corridor Communities
Association was incorporated in 2000
and the KMTA National Heritage Area
was established to recognize, preserve,
and interpret the historic resources
and cultural landscapes of the Kenai
Mountains-Turnagain Arm transportation corridor.
The Association fosters planning
and partnerships among the communities within the corridor, as well
as among individuals, businesses,
borough, state, and federal agencies,
to promote the public enjoyment of
these resources. The association also
receives and administers funds, appropriated by Congress and other sources,
to support communities in developing
projects that recognize, preserve, and
interpret the Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm’s rich and scenic heritage.
Committed to protecting and promoting the cultural, historical and natural
assets of a region, National Heritage
Areas play a vital role in maintaining both the physical character and the
cultural legacy of the United States.
In March 2009, President Obama
signed into law a bill that designated
the Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm
as a National Heritage Area. The bill
was sponsored by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Sen. Mark Begich, and Rep. Don
Young. The Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area is
one of 49 Heritage Areas across the
nation and Alaska’s first.
FVCS News
By Briana Sullivan
Special to the Turnagain Times
Alyeska Snow Classic
Winter made its comeback
and now we can feel normal
again. Snow, sunshine, and
Olympic events combined to
lift our winter spirits in the air.
With daylight returning strong
and snow accumulation covering our grounds again, an exciting event is back during the
month of March: The Alyeska
Snow Classic!
2014 will be the 2nd annual
Snow Classic, a split-the-pot
fundraiser for Four Valleys
Community School. Surely
the Nenana Ice Classic is no
foreign concept to readers,
while many are just becoming
familiar with the Snow Classic.
Here’s how it works: the
Snow Classic guessing game
is not a prediction of time,
rather the snow depth in feet
and tenths and hundredths of
a foot at elevation 1,096 feet
on Mt. Alyeska on April 27,
2014. Players purchase tickets
during March for $2.50 each
or a book of 10 for $25 at
local Girdwood businesses,
fill out their hopeful guesses,
and drop tickets into a Snow
Classic container. Tickets are
on sale March 1-30.
Fifty percent of the monies
raised will support FVCS and
the remaining 50 percent will
be distributed to the winner(s)
who will be announced no
later than May 20.
Now that you know the
basic rules, get out and make
your predictions. You can purchase tickets at many businesses around Girdwood;
for a complete list go to our
website: www.alyeskasnowclassic.org, and then why
not “like us” on Facebook.
The Alyeska Snow Classic is
an important opportunity to
support FVCS in its continuing mission to provide high
quality educational, cultural,
and recreational programs for
our community.
Recreation Programs
Nordic skiing for youth and
kindergarten started Feb. 11
and so did the snow. Kids are
anxious to ski and with a few
practices left, there’s time to
come out and glide. The new
Nordic trails and Girdwood
Nordic Ski Club are providing great conditions for this
season. Coaches volunteer
their time and talent to have
fun on the trails with the kids.
Need activity for your adolescent on Friday nights?
High School gym games are
every Friday until May 9,
8-9:15 p.m.
Girls’ volleyball is underway every Wednesday from
4:30-6:30 p.m., grades 6-8,
through April 23.
Guitar
lessons
begin
next week Monday, Feb. 24
through May 5 for both group
and private lessons with
Bobby!
Preschool and Tween
yoga are midway through
the session and drop-ins are
always welcome. Romp and
Snore Mondays until May 5
has room for those bundles of
energy under age 6.
Yoga for adults is Monday
and Wednesday evenings, so
choose which night works
best and be present. Also just
for adults is Basketball, Wake
up with Weights, Pilates,
Kung Fu, and the following brand new class: Circuit
Training with Billy Crumm
Wednesday, Feb. 19 through
May 7 from 7:45-8:45 p.m.
2013 Grant Highlights
Other Completed Projects
The dedication of the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center “The Point”
Boardwalk: designed and built and interpretive panels were installed along
a boardwalk overlooking scenic Turnagain Arm and Cook Inlet.
Launch of KMTA NHA High
School Curriculum: Kenai Peninsula
School District Secondary Education
Principals received a copy of and presentation about the new KMTA high
school curriculum. Matching minigrants are available for field trips to
sites within the KMTA NHA. The curriculum is free and available online at
www.kmtacorridor.org.
Publication of Memories of Old
Sunrise: In partnership with the Hope
and Sunrise Historical Society and
Cook Inlet Historical Society, KMTA
re-published Memories of Old Sunrise:
by Albert Weldon Morgan.
• Hope Social Hall - Historic Site
Work
• Lindgren Cabin Interpretive Program
• Seward Mural Lighting Project
• Manitoba Cabin restoration
• Seward Mariners Memorial,
Compass Rose
• Alaska App (Phase II)
• Old 557 Steam Engine Restoration
(boiler repair)
• High school and elementary school
field trips
• Museum Development Grants
• Seward High School Mural
For grant information and to complete the online application, please
go to: http://www.kmtacorridor.org/
grants/. Application deadline is May
5, 2014. For further questions contact
Kaylene Johnson at kaylene.johnson@
gmail.com.
at the school gym and every
Sunday through May 4 from
5:15-6:15 p.m. in the community room. Great for cardiovascular workouts.
Both cozy and constructive,
the creative Glacier Valley
Quilters meets Wednesday
from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. until
May 7.
Feeling
overwhelmed
trying to schedule this condensed list? Punch Pass time
for you and your family.
Debbie Cropper contributed
to this article.
Scholarship Notice
The Girdwood Forest Fair
annual scholarship application is open until March 1 and
the 2014 Craig Tufts’ Youth
and Nature Essay Contest is
due Feb. 28. Better get on it.
Application can be a fabulous use of time, energy, and
worthwhile reward for youth
and community members.
Alaska Geographic and
FVCS present the 2014 Youth
Habitat Restoration Expedi-
tions through Chugach Children’s Forest. Three high
school students to be nominated will participate for free this
summer in a 10-day local kayaking expedition. To nominate
or for more information, visit
us at: www.fourvalleys.org.
Lastly, Four Valleys has a
board position open. If you
or someone you know would
like to donate time to benefit
the FVCS community, please
contact us at 742-5317.
Page 10
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
TROOPER REPORT
The Alaska State Troopers
reported the following incidents. Any charges reported
are merely accusations and
the defendants are presumed
innocent unless and until
proven guilty.
Driving While
License Suspended
MILE
99
SEWARD
HWY—February 6 at approximately 6:10 p.m., troopers conducted a traffic stop
on a green 1996 Subaru
station wagon for an equipment violation near mile 99
of the Seward Highway. An
investigation revealed the
driver, Mark Smith, age 56 of
Tyrone, Pa. was driving with
a suspended license. Smith
was issued a misdemeanor
citation for Driving While
License Suspended and a citation for the equipment violation. Smith was released at
the scene. The vehicle was
released to a licensed driver
from Anchorage.
Motor Vehicle Crash,
Damage
MILE
99.5
SEWARD
HWY—February 7 around
1:22 p.m., troopers responded
to a non-injury motor vehicle
crash involving a single
vehicle striking the guardrail
near mile 99.5 of the Seward
Highway. The crash investigation determined Jessica
Moore, age 37 of Girdwood,
was operating a mid-2000’s
station wagon passenger car
traveling southbound when
her vehicle lost traction on
the ice covered pavement and
struck the guard rail end. The
vehicle sustained more than
$500 of disabling front-end
impact damage and had to be
towed from the scene. Moore
and her passenger were
wearing seat belts and were
not injured. Alcohol was not
a factor.
DU, REDDI
MILE
85
SEWARD
HWY—February 7 at about
8:17 p.m., troopers stopped
a white Chevrolet pickup
near mile 85 of the Seward
Highway after receiving a
REDDI complaint on the
pickup. An investigation revealed the driver, Shayne Bar-
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Girdwood Service Area
Road Maintenance Department
To report a road problem please call:
343-8374
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Email: [email protected]
Tel: 783-1135 • Fax: 907-783-1136
P.O. Box 1044, Girdwood, AK 99587
All classified ads must be paid in advance either by including payment when placing the ad or charging it to a
VISA or MasterCard. Please mail, email or fax your order
with payment.
Firewood for Sale: $100 Qtr / $175 Half / $295 Full, plus
10 percent fuel surcharge. Free kindling, plus delivery fee
for Girdwood and surrounding areas. We can haul 2 cords
at once. Call Best Split Firewood at 727-5928.
Furnished apartments for rent in Whittier: Studio
$900, 1 BR $1,100, 2 BR $1,350, 3 BR $1,700. Utilities
included. Call (907) 472-2398.
Girdwood Lots for Sale: All utilities, in flat, sunny locations with best views. $10,000 below city appraisal. Call
Tim at 632-8467.
Fuel Delivery Driver: Whittier, Full time / permanent,
Competitive wages and benefit package. Drug testing
required. For more information and to apply please visit
our website: www.shoresidepetroleum.com. Equal opportunity employer.
Recovery of Human Remains
On Feb. 9 at about 10:54 a.m., troopers at the Girdwood Post received a call from a hiker
who reported finding a human skull while hiking around a wooded area off of Boretide
Road in Indian.
Troopers responded to the area and initial assessment of the location and of the skull resulted in finding clothing that belonged to a female. An investigator with the Alaska Bureau
of Investigations Special Crimes Investigation Unit were contacted and responded to the
scene, along with an investigator from the State Medical Examiner’s Office.
As a result of the investigation, the remains are presumed be those of Nichole M. Millsaps, a resident of Wasilla, who was 26 years of age at the time of her disappearance. Millsaps was reported missing in late May of 2010.
The Medical Examiner’s Office took possession of the remains and positive identification of the deceased is still pending, although spokeswoman Megan Peters said, “They
were certain enough about the identification that they released the tentative I.D.” The next
of kin have been informed of the discovery. An investigation continues.
inger, age 49 of Anchor Point,
was driving under the influence of narcotics. Baringer
was arrested for DUI and remanded to Anchorage Jail
with bail set at $500.
DUI
MILE
90
SEWARD
HWY—February 7 at approximately 9:23 p.m., troopers stopped a 1990 Honda
Accord for an equipment violation mile 90 of the Seward
Highway. The driver, Joseph
N. Dodd, age 37 of Anchorage, was found to be driving
while under the influence of
alcohol and was arrested for
DUI. Dodd was later transported to the Anchorage Jail
where he was remanded with
bail set at $1,000.
No Valid Operator’s
License
MILE
104
SEWARD
HWY—February 6 around
3:27 p.m., troopers stopped
a blue Mercury Villager for
a moving violation near mile
104 of the Seward Highway.
The driver was identified as
Edward Counts, age 24 of
Soldotna, by his Idaho identification card. A records check
revealed Counts did not have
a valid license. Counts was
issued a Misdemeanor Citation for Driving Without a
Valid License and released.
The vehicle was towed from
the scene of the stop.
Marijuana Possession
MILE 100 SEWARD
HWY—February 14 at approximately 3 p.m., troopers stopped a 1987 Lincoln
Town car for equipment violations near mile 100 of the
Seward Highway. Two occupants, Ben D. Ramoth, age
49 of Seward, and Branden J.
Read the Turnagain Times online or
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Ramoth, age 19 of Seward,
were found to be possessing marijuana. They were
each issued misdemeanor
citations’ to later appear in
court for misconduct involving a controlled substance 6th
degree and released on scene.
Motor Vehicle Collision
MILE
86
SEWARD
HWY—February 15 around
7:16 p.m., troopers responded to mile 86 Seward
Highway for the report of a
single vehicle crash. An investigation revealed Jeffrey
Graham, age 49 of Homer,
was traveling southbound on
the Seward Highway driving
a Ford F250. Graham attempted to pass another
vehicle traveling southbound
when he lost control of his
pickup and struck the southbound guardrail. Alcohol was
not a factor and Graham was
wearing his seat belt. Graham
was issued minor offense citations for traffic infractions.
Graham’s vehicle was towed
from the scene.
Motor Vehicle Collision
MILE 80.5 SEWARD
HWY—February 15 at approximately 10:20 p.m., Soldotna Public Safety Communications Center received a
report of a motor vehicle collision involving a commercial class DOT plow truck
based out of Girdwood DOT
and a Subaru sedan, driven
by Joseph Linden, 58, from
Anchorage. Troopers responded to mile 80.5 of the
Seward Highway where an
investigation revealed the
Subaru was southbound following the DOT plow truck
when it attempted to pass
the plow truck while visibility was obscured by blowing
snow. The Subaru struck the
DOT truck on the front plow
then lost control and entered
the southbound ditch. Both
drivers were wearing seat
belts and neither was injured.
Alcohol was not a factor. The
DOT plow truck was drivable
while the Subaru had to be
towed from the scene. Linden
was issued a citation and released from the scene.
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Page 11
Hamilton’s Place
Continued from page 1
with a dining room overlooking the upper Kenai River, a
bar, convenience store, liquor
store, auto shop, wrecking
service, gas station, riverside
R.V. camp, and guest cabins.
The previous owners had
been running the gas station
and
convenience/package
store with some regularity, but
the restaurant and bar were
not open last summer and in
years past only operated sporadically. So when Hamilton’s
Place sold and locals started to
see some changes to the convenience store, people grew
curious.
Over the past few months,
with rumors floating around
town about the future of Hamilton’s Place, the dust has
cleared and the new owner has
started to share her vision for
the business.
The first and most noticeable change to the convenience store are that a public
restroom has been added, the
walls have some fresh paint,
the signs telling customers
where to go for public restrooms have been taken down,
and all of the liquor and
tobacco has been removed.
Crim first came to Alaska
from her home state of Texas
in 2004 on a short-term
mission trip. She fell in love
with the state and decided
to make it her home. Crim’s
nonprofit organization has
taken her all over Alaska from
Anchorage to Nome, and to
many villages in the bush,
with programs that organize
volunteers running day camps
in Anchorage, summer camps
in Bering Sea communities,
and repairing homes in remote
villages.
Crim brings over 1,000 volunteers each year to Alaska,
and needless to say, she is a
very busy woman with what
seems like endless amounts of
energy.
Hamilton’s Place is her
newest project on her already
long list of duties, including
all of the projects her nonprofit undertakes each year, and
she’s also acquiring a doctorate degree.
When Crim first bought
Hamilton’s Place and locals
heard about her nonprofit
business, there was a bit of a
panic in town that there would
be a mission started where
Hamilton’s Place used to be,
and that Crim would be inviting homeless people to live on
the property.
But Crim maintains that her
vision for Hamilton’s Place is
separate from her nonprofit.
She eliminated the business
of liquor and tobacco sales,
and is in the process of selling
both the package store and
the bar liquor licenses. This
is a concern to some locals
as there are very few liquor
licenses in Cooper Landing –
Wildman’s does a great busi-
ness with its package store,
and the Sunrise Inn and the
Kenai Princess Wilderness
Lodge are the only other bars
in town that serve liquor.
Crim is able to sell the licenses out of the community,
but she said she would rather
sell them within the community. She said she has a buyer
for the package store license,
but declined to name the
buyer or whether it was being
sold locally, however, the bar
liquor license is still for sale.
“I would like to sell them
locally, but I am very motivated to get them out of my
name,” she said. And while
the Grizzly Ridge business is
separate from her nonprofit,
Crim said she has to honor
that part of her life. “I have
50,000 churches behind my
nonprofit. I can’t be running
a liquor store and a bar here.”
She sees the potential of a
business located on the Upper
Kenai River in the beautiful community of Cooper
Landing, and wants to run it
while honoring her morals.
Meanwhile locals are watching with great interest to see
where this Grizzly Ridge
business goes.
Mary Louise Molenda, a
long-time resident and owner
of the Sunrise Inn, said, “I
don’t think the sale of Hamilton’s Liquor Licenses will
affect local businesses one
way or the other.”
The consensus in the community seems to be that Hamilton’s Place had not been
doing much business over the
last few years anyway. The
prices in the package store
were too high to compete with
Wildman’s liquor store, and
the bar was only opened periodically.
Andrew Brown, another
longtime local and volunteer
fireman said, “I am interested
to see if they bring any jobs
for locals.”
Susanna LaRock/Turnagain Times
Hamilton’s Place is now under new ownership. Brenda Crim and an anonymous
partner bought the business in December and have big plans, but that doesn’t
include selling liquor anymore at either the general store or restaurant.
In a town where local work
is scarce this is a legitimate
concern. There is certainly potential for many jobs to open
up if Grizzly Ridge fulfills all
aspects of the business plan.
But Crim is taking it one
project at a time, and right
now she is working on the
convenience store and the
gas station. She has brought
her niece, Macy, from Texas
to help her run the store and
gas station while she works
on moving in and getting the
living quarters in order.
When asked if she plans
to open the restaurant in the
summer, Crim replied that she
hopes to be able to do that, but
she does not want to “throw
everything open at once and
fail.” She added, “I want to
get one thing figured out at a
time.”
Crim also has future plans
to replace the old gas pumps
with new 24-hour pumps,
and her goal right now is to
develop “a service model and
get it aesthetically pleasing
and functional.”
Crim is not certain of what
she plans to do with the restaurant, but she has definite
plans to run a fishing guide
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out of the business, something that had not been
offered by Hamilton’s Place
in the past, and she plans to
bring in a fishing guide from
out of town.
Crim describes herself as
community-minded and has a
vision of Grizzly Ridge being
a place that serves the community, just not a place that
serves the community liquor.
Page 12
Turnagain Times
February 20, 2014
Girdwood Man Battles Group A Strep
Continued from page 1
he arrived, McLeod knew something
was wrong. “I wasn’t feeling right,”
he said. “I could tell I had a fever and
my body was sending all of my energy
towards my leg.”
After moving some of the furniture
with his friend, McLeod told him he
wasn’t feeling well and asked if they
could finish the move the next day.
McLeod ate dinner and went to bed. A
little after midnight, on Jan. 31, things
started to go downhill fast.
“I woke up and reached down to my
leg and felt a lump the size of a big
grapefruit,” he said. “When I looked
at it, my leg was red and really hot to
the touch. I decided to raise it up and
apply ice. I also felt really dehydrated
so I drank two big glasses of water and
went back to sleep. When I woke up at
7 a.m. it was scary – my leg was three
times its size. The skin was so taut
that I was afraid to move it because
I thought it would split open. That’s
when I got on the phone and sent out
some S.O.S.’s.”
When a friend came over around
noon he told McLeod that he had to get
to the emergency room right away. He
attempted to help McLeod into the car
but the pain in his leg was too severe
and he almost passed out. That’s when
they called 911.
While he waited, McLeod realized
that he was becoming even more dehydrated. As his body fought the infection in his leg, it depleted the water
in his tissues.
Girdwood paramedics soon arrived
and took McLeod by ambulance to
Providence Alaska Medical Center.
On the way to the hospital, paramedics began re-hydrating him with
two liters of fluids. The paramedics
explained that not only were the fluids
necessary to help his body fight off
an infection, there was also concern
for his kidneys shutting down due to
severe levels of dehydration.
As McLeod arrived at the emergency room, doctors immediately
put him at a Level 2 status, admitting
him straight to emergency treatment.
McLeod received 8 liters of fluids to
counter the dehydration and the staff
took blood samples for cultures. It
would take approximately four days to
grow the bacteria and identify it. In the
meantime, McLeod was immediately
administered multiple broad range antibiotics.
“They carpet-bombed me with the
strongest stuff they had,” he said. The
doctors quickly worked to determine
whether the infection was housed in
his soft tissue or in the joints of his
knee and McLeod was put in a semidrug induced coma in order for surgeons to undergo back-to-back surgeries within 24 hours.
After the initial surgeries, doctors
ruled out necrotizing fasciitis, but
McLeod said the doctors were surprised that the bacteria was acting in
a very similar fashion as its deadly
counterpart.
“The bacteria weren’t responding
to the drugs,” McLeod said. “My leg
was not getting any better. Even after
the first surgery it kept getting worse. I
wasn’t sure if I was going to keep my
leg. They were concerned that the bac-
teria could be getting into my bone.”
Three days after arriving at the hospital, the blood cultures revealed that
McLeod contracted invasive group A
streptococcus and was immediately
put on the antibiotic penicillin.
McLeod would undergo five more
surgeries as doctors cleaned infected
tissue to prevent the bacteria from
spreading. They were also constantly
monitoring the movement of the infection to make sure it did not spread any
further down his leg or go directly into
the joint area of his knee.
It should be noted that this reporter had contracted necrotizing fasciitis
last January and survived, thankfully
with all limbs still attached.
According to WebMD, and this
reporter’s own personal experience,
doctors are well aware of the repercussions of not treating a patient immediately with necrotizing fasciitis, and
McLeod’s invasive strep A, although
not classified as STSS or necrotizing
fasciitis, was causing relative concern.
As reported on the Department of
Health and Human Services Centers
for Disease Control website, “About
9,000-11,500 cases of invasive GAS
disease occur each year in the United
States, resulting in 1,000-1,800 deaths
annually. STSS and necrotizing fasciitis each comprise an average of about
6-7 percent of these invasive cases. In
contrast, there are several million cases
of strep throat and impetigo each year.”
A nurse at Providence Alaska
Medical Center said his ward has
seen GAS first hand and even he is
surprised at how aggressive it has
become. “Some of the cases have been
pretty nasty,” the nurse said.
An invasive case of group A strep,
by state regulation, is required to be
reported to the Alaska section of epidemiology.
“In 2013 there were 63 reported
cases of invasive group A strep and
that number is preliminary because we
are still reviewing our January cases,”
said Brian Yablon, M.D. of the Alaska
section of epidemiology.
Beginning in 2007, invasive GAS
has been a reportable infectious
disease in Alaska and Yablon said that
the 63 reported cases last year is right
in between what was reported in 2011
and 2012.
“In 2011 we had 73 cases, and 2012
we had 50,” he said. “It’s typically
about five percent of the ones reported
to us that are necrotizing fasciitis.”
In this reporter’s case, the medical
staff believed that picking an ingrown
hair near my pelvic bone might have
let the strep A bacteria enter my
femoral artery where it then invaded
my blood stream. One of the doctors
told me, after my third surgery, “Make
no mistake about it, when this bacterium gets into your blood stream, it
wants to do one thing – kill you.”
In McLeod’s case, he has fought off
the infection with his leg still intact,
and though he has a long road of physical therapy and possibly more surgeries ahead of him, he has kept a positive
outlook.
“Every day I’m twice as strong
as the day before,” he said, “and I’m
lucky to have friends that are genuinely concerned about me. It makes me
feel good to know that they are there.”
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