SHS Shop
Dear Editor: It was great to read the story regarding the expanding vo-tech facilities at SHS and a big “thank you” to all that are involved. The foresight on this project will pay forward in more ways than I can put on paper. Vocational education facilities across the U.S. are rapidly and foolishly being dismantled; most new construction schools do not have these facilities at all.
The push for high tech has trumped the need for what I’d call hand tech. SHS and the visionaries of this new facility are trend setting in that they incorporate both technologies. A simple analogy is our district has and continues to give our students more tools for their future. As a high school student in the ’70s, myself and friends would not have graduated had it not been for the vocational programs.
We were good at academics; just better suited for vocational. It was the only classroom environment where everyone from the hoods in the woods to the elite upper crust found common ground. Likewise our services were open to the public, building bridges between community, schools and generating revenue. I type this letter from our house on Verstovia Ave., constructed in 1979 among several others built by the SHS shop class.
The view from our backyard is of the new SHS addition under construction. For my eyes, it is as aesthetic of a view as Verstovia Mtn. While doing an add-on some 8 years ago, the siding removed revealed pristine-condition inner walls, framing stout and secure.
The contractors and I concluded our humble home should withstand a significant hurricane as the roofing and flooring plywood are secured with several thousand metric tons of 8 penny nails. I imaged the young men and women building our home in ’79: multiple pneumatic nail guns, unlimited source of nails, lots of neat noise equals hurricane proof. I am good with that and I am sure they were too.
The Sentinel article perfectly painted the value of these programs and facilities as we have workers and educators who are alumni of these very courses. While much of the U.S. has lost its vision and value of skilled professional labor, we here in Sitka are going the other way, and that is good for us and most specially for our youth attending our schools.
Thanks, again, to all of you who make this happen – money and time well spent indeed.
Eric Van Cise, Sitka
Call for Volunteers
Dear Editor: What could be more heartbreaking than to know some of our school kids are hungry on the week and when there is not school and thus no school lunches. All us mothers are called to respond.
Blessings in a backpack, the wonderfully named outfit that leads the effort to provide bags of food for the backpacks on Fridays. I applaud this work.
Any of us who are able should step up and help. I think I could help by making tamales and selling them by the dozen (frozen) as a benefit for the Friday bags of food. I have a problem with that: I barely know how to make a tamale, though I can struggle through. I do know how to make the meat (beef), sauce, masa. I have a nice supply of good masa, good sauce, good husks that are wide enough. What I lack is SKILL.
I would love to put together a tamale-making party, probably at the See House where there are plenty of long work tables. I know there are Sitkans out there who know how and want to help, I would be ever so pleased to hear from them. And together we could plan tamale making for a good cause. I have a steamer to cook them.
We do know that Sitkans really like tamales. When we have done this in the past – at the St. Peter’s Christmas Bazaar – we sold out of a huge number of bags in just a few minutes, leaving many people disappointed.
If you care about our hungry kids and know how to make tamales, I urge you to jump in a help. Call me at 747-3670 or email me at JudyZC@gci.net and we can together plan a time and place to work.
P.S. Spanish speakers are welcome!
Judy Johnstone, Sitka
Mandarin Chinese
Dear Editor: “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” – Nelson Mandela
China is the most populous nation in the world, with over 1.39 billion people. One fifth of the planet speaks Chinese. Mandarin Chinese is the mother tongue of over 873 million people, making it the most widely spoken first language in the world. Plus some Asian countries, like Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, etc., speak Mandarin Chinese too.
As the world’s fastest growing major economy, China recently surpassed Japan in 2011 to become the second largest economy in the world after the USA. China is one of largest trading partners of the United States as well.
China is now Alaska’s number one partner in trade. Alaskan exports of seafood and natural resources to China have risen from just $103 million in 2000 to a record of $923 million in 2010. “This ten-year period of sustained and dramatic export growth to a single nation is unprecedented for Alaska,” Greg Wolf said. “It reflects the dynamic growth that is leading China to be the world’s largest economy by as early as 2016.” The business opportunities and developments in China are more significant than ever.
It has been claimed that “those who do not speak Chinese are not ready for the 21st century.” Mandarin Chinese is the most useful business language after English. Many employers and companies across the globe are seeking to establish relationships and develop key business links with China. Mandarin Chinese has indeed become a very valuable and highly sought skill in today’s world. Furthermore, the Chinese have a rich culture with over 5,000 years of history. Learning Mandarin Chinese can open you up to totally new sights, sounds, tastes, and experiences. The benefits of learning Mandarin Chinese far outweigh those in any other languages.
“U.S. schools that are home to Mandarin immersion programs come in all shapes and sizes and are scattered across the nation,” Elizabeth Weise said, “These programs’ numbers keep growing. As of November 2013 there were 147 schools in the United States that offered Mandarin immersion programs to K-12 students. The vast majority of them are elementary schools.” It is much easier for young children to start learning Mandarin Chinese. It will allow them to become proficient by high school.
Do you feel it is urgent to start the Mandarin Chinese for your children in Sitka?
Summer Mayo, Sitka
Backpack Blessings
Dear Editor: Thank you so much for the generous donations to Blessings in a Backpack. This non-profit program is all set to feed up to 60 students in need at Keet Gooshi Heen and Baranof Elementary Schools this school year. The Easter Group, the White Elephant, Sitka Rotary, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, and several individual Sitka residents generously donated to the program.
We are part of a national non-profit and 100 percent of these donations are used to purchase supplemental food for Sitka students who may otherwise have little or no food to eat on weekends during the school year. We were also blown away with the great response from multiple new volunteers who thought packing bags of food sounded fun. We packed a months’ worth in record time. A special thank you goes to Americorps Volunteers Cliff and Kara for distributing the bags to each classroom. If your child would like to be part of this program, please contact one of the school counselors. All participants of this program must be eligible for the free and reduced lunch program or homeless.
If you are interested in supporting this program please contact Kathy at 747-8710 or go to www.blessingsinabackpack.org and make your donation on line. Be sure and note Sitka Schools so your donation is directed to our students.
Kathy O’Gara, Sitka
