JKT is Rare Leader
Dear Editor: I never believed in superheroes – those action figures who leap tall buildings to battle evil—at least not until I met Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins. But now I believe. Jonathan is a super hero for Alaska in general and Southeast in particular. He has literally and figuratively climbed, if not leapt, over tall mountains the past two years to achieve his goals and make Alaska a better place. His energy and passion for Alaska and its people is superhero if not superhuman in scope and proportion.
Jonathan is a rare political leader in these times of partisan politics. He works overtime with anyone who shares his commitment to making Alaska a better place and has built powerful coalitions to achieve that goal. During his first term in office Jonathan organized within the Bush Caucus to unite the remote and often under-represented Alaska fishing communities.
That caucus included staunch Republicans and liberal Democrats, legislators who found themselves working together for the first time. He then moved resolutions through the caucus that recognized the importance of halibut and salmon to Alaska’s fishing communities and called for trawl bycatch reductions to protect these valuable resources. He then attended fishery management meetings to testify in support of the resolutions on trawl bycatch and other important fishing issues, and then traveled to Washington, D.C., to ensure Alaska’s message was heard and understood. In fact, Jonathan is the first Alaska legislator in recent memory to attend and testify on Alaska fishermen’s behalf at the North Pacific Fishery Management Council. He is as at home on the back deck of a fishing boat as he is in fishery management forums or on the Hill in D.C. In short, Jonathan can, and does, do it all for Alaska.
Linda Behnken, Sitka
9-11 Remembrance
Dear Editor: ‘‘Never Forget’’ are two words that are echoed throughout every fire department in honor of the 343 New York firefighters who lost their lives in the line of duty on Sept. 11, 2001.
Unfortunately, in a recent survey conducted at Boston University very few young people know the significance of 9-11. Over 3,000 American citizens lost their lives that day. However, the community of Sitka did not forget.
The Sitka Fire Department would like to extend a special appreciation to the Americorp crew for hosting a special ‘‘fun night’’ for all the emergency responders and their families at the
Blatchley gym and pool. They too did not forget.
Also, for the second year, a special thank you to the Pellet family for allowing the Fire Department to utilize the tallest building in Sitka.
Lt. Dani Snyder personally took on this duty and this year was no exception. Saturday, Sept. 13, 10 firefighters from the Sitka Fire Department climbed six stories of the Cathedral Arms building 20 times in honor of the fallen New York firefighters. Fire Chief Dave Miller attended the 9-11 ceremony in Anchorage and represented the community of Sitka.
Father Mychal Judge served as chaplain to the New York City Fire Department and knew firsthand the dangers of a firefighter’s job. He told the firefighters in a sermon, ‘‘If you want to make God laugh, just tell him what you expect to do tomorrow.’’ Father Judge was one of the 343 who died in the line of duty that day.
Sitka is fortunate to have a dedicated, skilled team of emergency responders. Our EMTs, firefighters, divers and search-and-rescue personnel respond to our citizens’ calls at the worst times of their lives and do their best to help in a professional caring manner.
I for one am proud of our brave men and women of the Sitka Fire Department, and this year, like every year, we did not forget.
Al Stevens, Assistant Fire Chief,
Sitka Fire Department
Thank You, Sitka
Dear Editor: I want to take a minute to express my deep gratitude to all of the community members who came to Sitka High School this weekend to act as judges in the Sitka High School Drama, Debate, and Forensics meet. Our community happily volunteered a couple of hours of their weekend to watch and give feedback on speeches, drama pieces, and debates. The students from around Southeast Alaska were thrilled to have gotten such thoughtful, thorough feedback from you all.
Hosting a meet requires a huge number of community volunteers, and Sitka was more than generous. We managed to fill all of the 100+ required volunteer slots and each of you volunteers came with a great attitude. I cannot imagine a better community to call home; you all make Sitka a pretty magical place to live.
Thank you for your continued support of our kids.
The Sitka High School
Drama Debate and Forensics Team
