Kruzof Island
Cruise on Tap
Sitka Conservation Society staff and local naturalist Matt Goff will lead a cruise noon-3 p.m. June 27 along Kruzof Island to view the birds that inhabit it.
Tickets for the SCS benefit are $65 per person and are available for purchase at Old Harbor Books with cash or check. This is the second of four boat trips planned.
‘‘We are grateful to Allen Marine for providing these tours at a discount for non-profits, so no further discounts are available,’’ SCS said.
Boarding will begin at 11:45 a.m. at the Crescent Harbor loading dock. Due to COVID-19, Allen Marine Tours is operating at reduced capacity, and heightened cleaning protocols. Masks are required on board except when eating or drinking, the conservation society said.
For more information, contact SCS at 747-7509 or info@sitkawild.org.
Herring Egg Survey
Harvesters Sought
For a survey, Sitka Tribe of Alaska is seeking harvesters who have not been surveyed in the past or those who have been surveyed but haven’t actively harvested in the last four or more years.
Households that participate in the survey will be entered into a drawing for cash prizes of $50, $100 and $200.
‘‘We will not identify your household and information is not used for enforcement,’’ STA said.
For information or to fill out a survey, contact Helen Dangel at 747-7168 or helen.dangel@sitkatribe-nsn.gov or Jeff Feldpausch at 747-7469 or jeff.feldpausch@sitkatribe-nsn.gov.
The survey ends June 11.
‘Signs of Love’
Project on Tap
Community members can paint “signs of love” 1-3 p.m. Saturday, June 12, as part of a community service project.The free event will be at the Sitka Unitarian Universalist fellowship hall at 408 Marine Street.
Adults and teens, and children ages 8 and older with an adult guardian, can participate.
Paint and brushes will be provided. Participants must take their own smooth rocks or smooth, small (less than 8” x 12”) pieces of wood to paint on.
Creations can be taken home or donated to the Sitka UU service project. The entrance to the hall and parking is behind the UU hall on Spruce Street. Those with questions may call Michelle Putz at 747-2708.
Forest Service
Office Reopens
The Tongass National Forest Sitka Ranger District has reopened its front desk to the public. Hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. It is closed from noon to 12:30 p.m.
The office will remain open as long as the community risk levels related to the pandemic allows for safe entry for visitors and employees, the Forest Service said. Visitors who have not been vaccinated are requested to wear masks when entering the building and follow social-distancing protocols.
The office is located at 2108 Halibut Point Road. The front desk phone number is 907-747-6671.
Native Weaver
Laine Rinehart
At SJ Museum
The Sheldon Jackson Museum and Friends of Sheldon Jackson Museum announces Alaska Native artist-in-residence Laine Rinehart, a Tlingit ravenstail and Chilkat weaver, will be working in the museum galleries 9 a.m.-4 p.m. most days between Wednesday and Sunday, June 4-20.
During his residency, Rinehart will offer a ravenstail pendant-making class, which is currently full, and give an artist talk on Sunday, June 20, titled “Time Warp: an Exploration of Time in Chilkat Weaving.”
The presentation will focus on the history of weaving, material preparation, and steps involved in weaving a Chilkat robe. Rinehart will speak to the stillness he experiences as he prepares to weave and weaves a robe and how it impacts his perception of time.
All are invited to attend via Zoom.Seating for a limited number of people is available by calling 747-8981 to reserve a spot. To attend via Zoom, the link is:https://bit.ly/3z78knn; Meeting ID: 892 7010 8636; Passcode: 639808.
Rinehart’s Tlingit name is Neech Yannagut Yéil, of the Teeyhítan clan from Wrangell. He also is a child of the Kagwaantaan through his father’s side.
In the summer of 2010 Rinehart began weaving in Kay Parker’s Ravens Tail class and has since gone on to work with Lily Hope and her mother Clarissa Rizal and many other women he looks to as mentors, the museum said.
He is ‘‘immensely grateful for being allowed to participate in a way of being that would generally be unavailable to men and strives to honor the practices and traditions of Chilkat weaving.’’
For additional information on the Alaska Native Artist Residency Program, a schedule of when artists will be working at the museum, or for information on museum hours of operation, admission fees, and COVID-19 mitigation processes, call the museum at 747-8981.
