Lillian Kasnick
Dies at Age 87
Lillian Kasnick, a longtime resident, died Wednesday at Mt. Edgecumbe Medical Center. She was 87.
Climate Connection: Alaska Heat Smart in Sitka
Heat pumps... the latest and greatest heating, bill-slashing, emissions-eliminating home heating solution. If you are not aware of this exciting new space heating technology, it’s time. Heat pumps are taking the world by storm, being added to homes and businesses at a breakneck pace across the globe. Education and awareness campaigns for heat pumps now run the gamut, from programs offered by your local nonprofit to efforts championed by the White House.
More and more homeowners are aware that the humble heat pump can serve nearly every home and every wallet, and that it will play an oversized role on the global stage in efforts to lower carbon emissions. Juneau non-profit Alaska Heat Smart (AHS) hopes to help Sitkans’ homes and wallets by bringing its heat pump programs to town.
Later this year, AHS hopes to offer Sitkans its free heat pump advisory services. Further, AHS will be bringing its Clean Heat Incentive Program (CHIP) to town, offering generous financial incentives to assist lower to modest income families with home heat pump additions.
AHS has received a green light from the Department of Energy to bring a portion of its CHIP program to Sitka, offering heat pump financial incentives from $1,500 to $3,000. A free AHS home heat pump assessment is a program requirement and acts to ensure that a home is heat-pump ready. AHS hopes that while CHIP is up and running, a Sitka home energy adviser can be trained to carry on the advisory services, both during, and more importantly after, CHIP funds are exhausted.
Alaska Heat Smart is excited to be attending the Sitka Beneficial Electrification Expo on March 18. We’ll have a table at the Expo and will be available to answer any questions that you may have! Please come by to learn more about our advisory services and about our CHIP incentives!
AHS services bridge the gap between the homeowner and the contractor. We strive to eliminate common confusion around heat pumps, educating and empowering home and business owners to make informed decisions about their space heating needs.
Using a combination of home utility analysis, a site visit, and a custom energy calculator, an AHS home heat pump assessment points both homeowner and contractor in the right direction. Our assessments put the homeowner in the driver’s seat. Instead of asking general heat pump questions, the homeowner with assessment in hand will know what systems to pursue and locations where they may work best, have an increased awareness of electrical concerns, and will be able to confidently request contractor quotes.
With clean and abundant hydropower from Blue Lake and associated low electricity costs, along with programs like CHIP and the availability of new federal tax credits of up to $2,000, there has never been a better time to replace or supplement your existing expensive home heating system with a heat pump.
See you at the Expo!
---Andy Romanoff, executive director, Alaska Heat Smart, Juneau. 907-500-500 | www.akheatsmart.org
Lent Calendar
Scheduled at
St. Michael’s
St. Michael’s Cathedral services and activities for the beginning of Lent have been set by the Reverend Father Ishmael Andrew, Dean of the Cathedral.
Tonight, at 6:26 p.m., parishioners and the community are invited to help greet visiting priest the Reverend Father Herman Belt at the Rocky Guiterrez Airport.
On Saturday, Feb. 25, a parish meeting with Father Herman is at 1 p.m., followed by a 5 p.m. Vigil service for the Resurrection with Great Vespers and Matins.
Sunday: 9:10 a.m. Reading of the Hours; 9:30 a.m. Divine Liturgy of Cheesefare Sunday immediately followed by Forgiveness Sunday Vespers.
Monday: 5 p.m. the Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete and Lenten Grand Compline.
Tuesday: 5 p.m. the Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete and Lenten Grand Compline.
Wednesday: 9:30 a.m. presanctified liturgy; and 5 p.m. the Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete and Lenten Grand Compline.
Thursday: 5 p.m. the Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete and Lenten Grand Compline.
Friday, March 3: 9:30 a.m. Presanctified Liturgy.
Saturday, March 4: 5 p.m. vigil service for the Resurrection with Great Vespers and Matins.
Sunday, March 5: 9:10 a.m. reading of the hours; 9:30 a.m. Divine Liturgy for the first Sunday of Lent, Orthodoxy Sunday. Attendees are urged to take an icon from home for the service.
All services and activities will be held in the cathedral. Any questions may be directed to Father Ishmael at 747-8120.
Fiddle Grind
Slated Feb. 25
The Annual Fiddle Monthly Grind will be Feb. 25 at the Sheet’ka Kwaan Naa Kahidi community house on Katlian Street.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the show starts at 7 p.m. Homemade desserts can be taken to share and to enter in the dessert contest.
The grind philosophy remains, in its 28th year, nonpolitical, affordable and family entertainment. Tickets at Old Harbor Books are $5 for everyone, and typically sell out.
‘‘We always welcome people, young and old, who would like to be in the show – let us know,’’ organizers said.
The Sitka Monthly Grind is under the Greater Sitka Arts Council umbrella. Those with questions can call Jeff at 747-4821.
STA Kayaani
Panel to Meet
The Sitka Tribe of Alaska’s Kayaani Commission will meet 6:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 27, at the Tribal administration building located at 204 Siginaka Way.
The meeting is open to the public and participants can attend in person or via Zoom. For more information contact Resource Protection Director Jeff Feldpausch at 747-7469 or email jeff.feldpausch@sitkatribe-nsn.gov.
Stability Class For
Commercial Fishers
The Alaska Marine Safety Education Association will offer a fishing vessel stability workshop 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Friday, March 17, at NSRAA, 1308 Sawmill Creek Road.
It will cover the physics of vessel stability, stability terminology, watertight integrity, operational considerations, damage control, stability calculations and evaluation, stability guide formats, and case studies.
The workshop costs $100 for commercial fishermen, with support from the U.S. Coast Guard, the Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and AMSEA members. It is $175 for all others.
Register online at www.amsea.org or call (907) 747-3287.
Drill Conductor
Classes in Sitka
AMSEA will conduct a fishing vessel drill conductor class 8 a.m.-7 p.m. March 16 at the NSRAA building, 1308 Sawmill Creek Road.
The cost is $125 for commercial fishermen and $225 for all others. It meets the U.S. Coast Guard training requirements for drill conductors on commercial fishing vessels. Register online at www.amsea.org or call (907) 747-3287.
It will cover cold-water survival skills; EPIRBs, signal flares, and mayday calls; man-overboard recovery; firefighting; flooding and damage control; dewatering pumps, immersion suits and PFDs; helicopter rescue, life rafts, abandon ship procedures; and emergency drills. AMSEA’s fishing vessel drill conductor workshops meet the U.S. Coast Guard training requirements for drill conductors on commercial fishing vessels.
The class is an opportunity for commercial fishermen and other mariners to gain hands-on training with marine safety equipment and learn best practices for surviving emergencies at sea. AMSEA is offering this class at a reduced cost to commercial fishermen with support from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Alaska Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development, and AMSEA members.
