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Tuesday PM
January 07, 2014
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KMC's First Baby of 2014
Parents Loren and Caleb Mickel and their daughter Lene Oralie.
The new family received a special gift basket from KMC caregivers and KMC Auxilliary members
Front Page Photograph Courtesy PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center
(Please respect the rights of photographers, never republish or copy
without permission and/or payment of required fees.)
Ketchikan: KMC's First Baby of 2014 - Five days into 2014, PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center welcomed its first baby of the year. Lene Oralie Mickel, a healthy 6 pound 8 ounce girl, 21 inches long, was born at 11:59 p.m. on January 5, 2014, in the New Beginnings Birthing Center. Mother Loren Mickel and father Caleb Mickel didn’t expect to have the first baby of the year when they were admitted several days into the new year. - More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014
Ketchikan: Ketchikan 2013: A year of moderation in most things By DAVE KIFFER -
In a year in which there was no single overriding story to dominate local interest, it makes sense that a most “moderate” summer weather year would be what people are talking about the most. Indeed, one of the most pleasant summers in the past twenty years seemed to give locals at least a taste of what summer is like elsewhere.
Ketchikan became the new world record holder in 2013 of World's Largest Rainboot Race when certified by Guinness at 1,976 participants
Photograph by Charles Haberbush ©2013
Other than when the temperature hit 85 degrees on June 16, there were no extremely warm days, but with June, July and August having a higher number than normal of sunny days in the upper 60s and 70s, it made for a pleasant summer. Rainfall was also less than normal for those months.
On the other end of the spectrum, Ketchikan enjoyed 50 consecutive days of precipitation between mid January and early March. Yet no arks were built.
When additional heavy rains finally came toward the end of the year, a week like December 10th to 16th in which nearly 16 inches of fell reminded us all that we do indeed live in a rain forest.
And, no, the 27.68 inches of rain Ketchikan received in December 2013 was not a record. In 2006, we got 31.56 inches in December. The all-time highest rainfall ever: 53.85 inches in November of 1917. Quit yer whining.
Overall, the 151 inches of rain Ketchikan received in 2013 was just about average.
There were a variety of other not quite top stories in Ketchikan in 2013.
Two new public facilities opened up in Ketchikan in 2013. The long awaited Ketchikan Public Library building opened on January 2. Attendance was up for most of the year as residents marveled over the $12 million, 16,250 square foot building and its spectacular views of Bear Valley and Deer Mountain.
The Tongass Historical Museum took over the entire Centennial Building, which had been shared with the library for the last four decades. But issues almost immediately arose over to how, or whether, to renovate the Centennial Building to meet the current and future needs. Two small fires and a leaking roof forced the City to move toward some short-term repairs at year’s end.
Advocates of a skate park in Ketchikan saw their decades long wish come true when the Shane White Skate Park opened up shortly before the end of the year. The park, adjacent to Schoenbar Middle School and Ketchikan Creek, was built using $150,000 in Ketchikan Gateway Borough funding and a public land donation as well as private fundraising and a grant from the White family.
The local economy hummed along with the number of cruise passengers hitting a new record at just over 960,000, an increase of 20,000 over the previous record set before the recession in 2008. The sunny summer weather also led to generally higher receipts for local businesses.
The Ketchikan shipyard also reached a milestone when it completed the Arctic Prowler, an 138-foot longliner that was the largest fishing boat ever built in Alaska and the first large commercial fishing boat built in Ketchikan in decades. - More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014
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Ketchikan: Tonjes Named CAO of Ketchikan Medical Center - PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center (PHKMC) announced today that Ken Tonjes has accepted the permanent role of chief administrative officer after serving as interim CAO since August 2013. Ken Tonjes has served the community as PeaceHealth Ketchikan’s chief financial officer for more than 12 years.
Ken Tonjes
Photo courtesy PHMC
“After a nationwide search and interviewing a number of very qualified candidates, we’re pleased to find that we already have the best leader for PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center at the helm,” states Nancy Steiger, CEO and chief mission officer of PeaceHealth Northwest Network, of which Ketchikan Medical Center is part. “Tonjes brings not only his financial and business experience, but also a long history of success at PeaceHealth Ketchikan. His background, knowledge, and already existing relationships within the community ensure a stable transition so we can move forward into the future without missing a beat.” - More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014
Alaska: Alaska Fishermen to Walmart: "Why Didn't You Keep Your Promise to Congress?" - Alaska fishermen are pledging to take further action to hold Walmart accountable for its ongoing failure to keep its promise to revise by the end of 2013 its outdated and misguided policy that is shutting out a large proportion of sustainable Alaska salmon from its stores.
On September 24th 2013, Walmart pledged at a U.S. Senate Hearing to review by end of year its policy to only purchase seafood certified sustainable by MSC, a private European organization that much of Alaska's salmon industry voluntarily severed ties with due to concerns about the organization's increasingly high-priced and questionable business practices.
However, with the end of the year having arrived, the largest grocery supplier in the U.S. has provided no public explanation as to why it continues to refuse to purchase sustainable Alaska salmon—a decision which is placing at risk countless hard-working jobs in Alaska's seafood industry, which contributes an estimated $16 billion to the national economy. As a result, "Alaska Salmon Now", a grassroots collection of fishermen, consumers, and other representatives of the Alaska seafood industry that has advocated for Walmart to do the right thing via public rallies, social media campaigns, and other efforts, is promising further action unless Walmart reverses its policy.
"It is unacceptable for Walmart to make a promise to Congress and then not keep it," said John Renner, Vice President, Cordova District Fisherman United. "Walmart has rightfully praised sustainable Alaska salmon, yet their misguided 'MSC-or-nothing' policy continues to negatively affect real American workers and consumers. Walmart's policy is bad for America, Alaska, and health conscious individuals everywhere. All we want is for Walmart to do what's right and recognize what countless capable and qualified organizations already do: that the gold standard for sustainability is here in Alaska."
Recent decisions by the US federal agency General Services Administration (GSA) and Sodexo, the primary supplier of food services to the US military, to modify their "MSC-only" policies leave Walmart as the only major purchaser of seafood in the US with such a policy. - More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014 |
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Columns - Commentary
 DAVE KIFFER: Never Trust An Elevator, And Other Phobias - Like a lot of people, I have a few phobias.
Most notably I suffer from “lockabladderphobia.” Also known as being stuck in an elevator and having to go the bathroom. Granted it’s a rare one. Just remember, we are all SPECIAL in our own way! And, for those of you playing along at home, your results may vary.
But I also have some more common fears.
I have a slight fear of heights.
Enough of one that I refuse any and all offers to work as the person who changes the light bulb on top of the Empire State Building. Or any light bulb higher than a step stool for that matter.
I am also mildly claustrophobic.
Enough that when friends suggest I spelunk with them at El Capitan or elsewhere deeper than an average molehill, I demure, saying that I have to wait at home for the Publishers Clearing House gang to arrive with my check.
- More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014
 TOM PURCELL: Elegy for the Incandescent Bulb - Farewell, old friend. I am going to miss you.
I speak of the incandescent bulb — the light of my life for all of my years. As of Jan. 1, you have been shut off. That was the mission of a 2007 law that raised energy-efficiency and wattage standards far beyond what you are capable of reaching.
You had a fine run, my friend. Perfected by Thomas Edison some 135 years ago, you stand as one of the greatest inventions of all time.
Your brilliance was in your simplicity. By sending an electrical current through a thin filament, which is sealed in a gas inside a bulb, you produce light.
Several inventors worked on the concept until Edison produced a carbonized-bamboo filament that could last up to 1,200 hours. Thanks to him, the cheap, long-lasting bulb was born.
Oh, how we took you for granted over the years. Because incandescent bulbs are so cheap and plentiful, virtually every home in America has had dozens of them. You walk into a room, flip a switch and, presto, there is light! - More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014
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Questions, please contact
the editor at editor@sitnews.us or call 617-9696
Sitnews reserves the right to edit.
 RE: Howling at the fiscal Moon By Michelle O'Brien - While any and all dialogue from community members is appreciated regarding funding of our local educational system, the recent letter submitted by A.M. Johnson is incorrect in one area: "The issue: The Ketchikan Gateway Borough School board has convinced the Gateway Borough to file a law suit against the State to obtain funding that according to the suit, is guaranteed under the Alaska Constitution." - More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014
RE: What's all the howling about? By Shelley Stallings -
Thanks to Jeff Lund for the thought provoking column in Sitnews Saturday on wolf trapping. Rarely do I read a piece that tries to straddle the fence on this highly charged subject, although Lund's comment about wolves and bear decimating deer populations seems to put Lund on the side of believing killing wolves is overall a positive action. - More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014
Drug Dealers in Ketchikan By Riley Gass -
I don’t know if anyone else has noticed this, but it seems there is a continuous spell of hard drug dealers getting caught in Ketchikan. Nearly every time I open the police reports on Sitnews there are multiple reports of people being caught with mass amounts of heroin, meth, or some other type of hard drug. The positive to this is that the police are doing a great job in taking down these dealers, but the bad is obviously that they are here. It seems like whenever one gets taken down someone else starts shipping drugs onto our island. - More...
Tuesday PM - January 07, 2014
A PROMISE MADE, A PROMISE BROKEN By Gary Wilken -
We Alaskans are proud to live under the creed by Robert Service: A promise made is a debt unpaid. Well, Mr. Service right now wouldn't be very happy with our State and neither should we taxpayers. With respect to State funding of education in municipal districts, the State of Alaska made a promise in 1963 then broke it. In FY 2013 that broken promise will cost the Ketchikan Gateway Borough $4,198,727. I'm hopeful that other boroughs will assist the Ketchikan Borough's bold effort to remedy this breech. It's plain and simple tax relief based on matters of fundamental responsibilities, constitutional validity, fairness, and equity. - More...
Saturday PM - January 04, 2014
Howling at the fiscal Moon By A.M. Johnson - The issue: The Ketchikan Gateway Borough School board has convinced the Gateway Borough to file a law suit against the State to obtain funding that according to the suit, is guaranteed under the Alaska Constitution. That local tax base is being used to fund what in effect is a unfunded mandate by the State. This knowing there exist inequalities due to UN-organized boroughs and other mitigating circumstance. All well and good. So, then comes this bit of educational news. - More...
Saturday PM - January 04, 2014
My Vision For Alaska By Byron Mallott -
There is a special pride that comes from being Alaskan: pride in the fishermen helping feed the world; the oil workers coaxing a national energy resource out of the frozen tundra; the small business owners who are creating new jobs and new opportunities; the public employees providing for essential needs; and teachers and first responders who strengthen every one of our communities. As Alaskans, we have always taken pride in bravely facing the challenges of living in this great state. And this year we have some important choices to make. - More...
Saturday PM - January 04, 2014
Open Letter: Taking money from the veterans By A.M. Johnson - As one of the Senate Republicans who voted to end debate with 60 votes allows what Chief Master Sergeant Wooten expounds. To this add that knowing all of you Senators read ALL the content of ALL legislation before voting, you knew of the results that vote contained. You knew that you were dis'ing our service men and women. You knew. Shame on you, double shame on you. - More...
Monday PM - December 30, 2013
Build the damn Road By A.M. Johnson -
The King Cove road issue as reported in your fine publication reflects the sound of howling banshees. The following three quotes by our elected Congressional officials, who in my opinion, couldn't lead a drunk to a beer hall, all sound so condescending, concerned, and promising to do what they should have done many times over. Makes one ill to hear all the bull feathers they stir up after the fact. Heck, any common sense person who follows this Leftist administration could have told them what the outcome was going to be. But never fear, Senator "Murky" Murkowski threatened to with hold she vote and support for Jewell's confirmation, lot of good that did and more so, each and every time she, and Representative "Foghorn" Young reach over the aisle, they have their teeth and as a result, Alaskan's teeth kicked in. As to Senator "Bagman"Begich, being a good Democrat, again talks out of the other side of the mouth. Yada yada yada. - More...
Friday PM - December 27, 2013
It's never too late to do the right thing By Joseph J. Chadwell -
I would like to thank Senator Murkowski for the Christmas Present she and others on Capital Hill gave to America's retired Military Men and Women. I would like to thank her for cutting their Coast Of Living Adjustments (COLA) to their retired pay. Of all the wasteful spending or lack of any attempt at shared sacrifice (chained CPI COLA) for everyone receiving federal entitlement payments; they instead went after America's Defenders of Freedom. - More...
Friday PM - December 27, 2013
RE: Arrest at Fawn Mountain School By Margaret Cloud - To Heather Morris - The arrest of Jason Simpson was reported in the Ketchikan Daily News on December 14. Are you going to complain about that as well? Such silliness. - More...
Friday PM - December 27, 2013
Pot calling the kettle black By John Suter -
Have you noticed in the ADN 12/24/13 page A-8, Izembek: Road supporters say they don’t plan to give up fight. 3rd column over second paragraph down the governor says, “unconscionable” and another “irrational decision by the federal government that denies Alaskans access – in this case access to emergency treatment.” - More...
Friday PM - December 27, 2013
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