Ventures Thanks
Dear Editor: On behalf of the director, teachers and children of the Ventures Afterschool and Summer Program, we wish to give a warm and heartfelt thank you to Blossom Twitchell and Melanie Boord of the Sitka Tribe of Alaska.
Through their generosity, we were able to purchase new furniture, toys, paint and STEM materials to give our program a much-needed makeover.
We would also like to give a big thanks to Summer and Michaela at True Value for their help with getting together the paint and supplies.
We greatly appreciate the parents and community who believed in us throughout the years.
Marjean Ragsdale, M. Ed.
Ventures Coordinator
Award
Dear Editor: For a winning smile, attend Colgate!
Haugland equals wundebar!
Jeff Kinnan, Sitka
Community Garden
Dear Editor: I’ve been wanting to write this letter for a very long time, but I’ve been holding back. But I also notice the desire to share my thoughts and feelings keeps returning again and again. As a matter of fact, every time I drive past the backside of Blatchley Middle School, the same feelings come up.
And what are those feelings?
Well, they include anger, frustration, and a deep sadness. Once upon a time, and it really wasn’t that long ago, there was a flourishing, vibrant, nourishing garden behind Blatchley Middle School. Butterflies, hummingbirds, children and adults all enjoyed being there. Everyone who visited marveled at the beauty, and felt inspired by the myriad of living things growing and providing food for people.
There were dozens of garden plots there, containing all manner of food, including carrots, cucumbers, squash, lettuce, arugula, beans, peas, spinach, potatoes, and so much more. The fruit trees were healthy and abundant, providing apples and cherries. There were beautiful, big local berry bushes. There were flowers galore. There were even gardeners trying to grow experimental foods in our tricky climate. There were dozens of people attending to these plots. You get the picture.
Now when I look upon that land what I see is rubble, gravel and weeds. Those of us who had garden plots there, were told that the kids were going to create gardens for themselves. Many of us wondered, “Why don’t they just join us in our gardening, and we, the happy gardeners, can help mentor them?”
We were told we had one more season to wrap it up and get off the land. Gardeners dug up and hauled away the heavy, precious soil that they had been building up over the years.
The ‘‘plans” went ahead, and those plans included bringing big machinery on to completely destroy all of the garden plots that were there. In a time when organic food prices are so expensive, and so is getting counseling or therapy, didn’t it make such wonderful sense to let people get their garden therapy and grow food at the same time? I think so, and I am not alone in feeling that way.
I hope this disappointing situation can be turned around soon.
Auriella Hughes, Sitka
