Fortress of the Bear
Dear Editor: Each year more and more Sitkans are learning what it takes to keep bears in captivity. Every day the staff at Fortress of the Bear revels in the opportunity to do something more for these incredible animals.
Described by many as a labor of love, the relationship between keepers and our charges has grown in ways we never imagined when we started in 2002. There are now literally thousands of people from around the world who have a different appreciation for bears because of what has been done here. We feel this is a good start but we know that it is a job that will never be finished.
We look forward to the day when putting bears back into the wild is more than just a dream. Until then, we continue to build, enhance, enrich and improve the situation for our resident population. There are many disciplines involved in animal care – nutrition, veterinary care, waste disposal, etc., and more people are finding ways to contribute to this process. There are familiar names, people who built this town, and people who may only be here for a few years that are putting their energy into this project because it is the right thing to do.
At this time of year we thank and recognize those who continue to make Fortress of the Bear possible. Nothing happens by accident; few things in Sitka happen that Roger and Mary Hames aren’t a part of. For more than 10 years I have personally had the honor of dumpster diving the Sea Mart bins, recovering sufficient resources to sustain our growing family. Silver Bay Seafoods, Seafood Producers Cooperative, Sitka Sound Seafoods, the Sitka Sound Science Center and Medvejie hatcheries keep us well supplied with fish. Northern Sales and AC Lakeside also contribute to the diet. Samson Tug and Barge supplied us with donated freight.
What would Burgess do? You don’t know until you ask, but he and DVM Vicky Vosberg literally dove in up to their elbows to help ensure that our animals are healthy. Special projects or just a helping hand, rally the Coast Guard, wives, kids and all, they bring tools and plant trees, skunk cabbage, ferns, salmonberry (never mind the bears tore everything up in the first week.) What’s that you say, a little mud never hurt anybody? On time every weekend, the Mormon missionaries, sometimes elbow-to-elbow with kids doing community service, everyone smiling no matter the weather, lending a hand.
Many who don’t have skills, time or energy will quietly slip a check onto the counter or feed “Rockefeller” the donation bear (himself a donation.) Need a specialty tool or forklift? Birch Equipment has donated many hours of equipment time.
Spenard Builders Supply has also been very generous. We ran a fundraiser for our new Black Bear Habitat and received donations from ALPS Federal Credit Union, White’s Inc., Birch Equipment, Coastal Excavation and Davis Realty.
I can tell you, every effort, every word of encouragement, every visit, is appreciated. We still comp in sports teams, school groups and service organizations and try to make each visit a memorable experience for our guests. The bears are now snuggled in for the winter. We hope to have new and exciting things for them to enjoy when they poke their noses out next spring.
Thank you, Sitka, and have a safe holiday season.
Les Kinnear,
Fortress Of The Bear
