Wild Language Festival
Dear Editor: This past weekend marked the Island Institute’s first Wild Language Festival. It wouldn’t have been possible without a whole bunch of collaborators, volunteers, writers, filmmakers, and storytellers. I’d like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude.
Thanks, first and foremost, to the Island Institute members who make programs like the Wild Language Festival possible, and to the enthusiastic audiences who make the programs worthwhile.
Thanks to the Centennial Hall staff for helping our Our Alaskan Stories film screenings go off without a hitch, and to Coliseum Theater for making popcorn possible for the event. Thanks to Paul Fitzgibbon and Cutting Edge News for his relentless support and facilitation of Our Alaskan Stories. Thanks especially to Alyssa Afcan, Andrea Cook, Chad Brown, Michael Martin, and Sierra Felts for your inspiring dedication to the filmmaking process.
Thanks to Ernestine Hayes and Kristian Cordero for their visits to Sitka – I’ve had the immense privilege of watching both Kristian and Ernestine light up rooms during school visits, readings, workshops, and presentations, and I have learned so much from both of them.
Thanks to Merivic and Arsenio Carbonel at Sizzling Chow Cuisine – you have shown visiting writer Kristian Cordero incredible hospitality during his visit this month. Thank you for making Sitka feel like home for him. Thanks too to Deb Corso for hosting Ernestine Hayes in Sitka.
Thanks to the Sheldon Jackson museum and Jackie Hamburg-Fernandez for inviting us to co-present the Alaska Native Poetry Readings, and to Blossom Twitchell, Louise Brady, Ernestine Hayes, Robert Davis Hoffmann and Tuli Aan for sharing poems.
Thanks to the Sitka Public Library for allowing us to use their space, and to John Straley, Carolyn Servid, Robert Davis Hoffmann and Ernestine Hayes for reading there.
Thanks to Artchange, Inc for inviting our collaboration on this latest iteration of Sitka Tells Tales, and to Siraj Sindhu, Tina Bachmeier, Rebecca Himschoot, Jerry Dzugan, and Kristian Cordero for sharing stories. Thanks especially to the Mean Queen for allowing us to use their facility for the event.
Thanks to the organizers of Native American Heritage Month in Sitka for including our events in the NAHM schedule.
Thanks to Thomas Bacon, Louise Brady, and Brenda Campen for volunteering as part of the Wild Language Festival.
Peter Bradley, Executive Director,
The Island Institute
Women in Leadership
Dear Editor:I am extending my sincere gratitude to a group of amazing women who took time out of their busy day to lead a collaborative conversation with Sitka High School students last week. We talked about various career paths, specifically regarding fields which have been traditionally led by men. The group conversed about their challenges, their successes, and their passion for the work they do. I am so fortunate to live in a community that celebrates and supports opportunities to engage in difficult and often inspiring conversations with our young people.
In attendance were superintendents Mary Wegner and Janelle Vanasse (Sitka School District and Mt. Edgecumbe High School), Nancy Douglas (cultural director for the Sitka School District), Rachael Jones (magistrate for the City of Sitka), Angie Bowers (Sitka Sound Science Center), Edith Johnson (Our Town Catering), and AMT1 Kristen Bucci (U.S. Coast Guard). Sitka Police Department Detective Mary Ferguson was unable to attend due to a last-minute emergency. Coral Pendell was also unable to attend, but has been involved in similar conversations in our schools.
I would also like to extend my gratitude for Sitka High School Principal Laura Rogers for encouraging and hosting this event.
Hillary Seeland,
Secondary Learning Support Coordinator,
Sitka School District
Correction
In a photo published in Tuesday’s Sentinel on Page 3, Kenny Winger was identified as being on the left; he was at the right. The Sentinel apologizes for the error.
