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The couches and loveseats inside Donna Martinsen's new home all face outward, toward Hungry Point, turned away from the modest flat screen in the corner. Martinsen and her husband, Jim, moved into a rustic blue ranch on N. Nordic Drive in May 2017. For 53 years they had lived in a house on Wrangell Ave. that overlooks their new home. "There was no straw," said Ms. Martinsen, starting into why they moved. "It was just, that house was too big for us." The couple are in their 70s and wanted a home...
As a teenager in California, Wally McDonald watched the community he grew up in become unrecognizable and commercialized, setting the groundwork for his later effort to preserve Petersburg's character. "I've just really appreciated this town over the years," said McDonald, who's owned an apartment complex on Hammer Slough for about 22 years. "And I just want to kind of maintain it for as long as possible." McDonald owns a four-unit apartment complex on Birch Street in the historic district of...
The essence of Theresa and Dan Vick's new house is its inside diversity, between her culture with Native figurines, a totem pole, and his, with an electric guitar shaped like an assault rifle, and Norwegian memorabilia. The almost 30-year-old family pole dominates the living room of the Vicks' new 1,100-square-foot home. Carved into red cedar is a king crab and halibut, with a worm hanging from its mouth. "It hasn't been retouched," she said. "And we've had it since 1989." Mrs. Vick said the...
A hospital administrator from Nome is slated to become CEO of the Petersburg Medical Center. Philip Hofstetter, who's been vice president of hospital services at the Norton Sound Health Corporation in Nome for about six and a half years, was offered the CEO position at the Petersburg Medical Center. He signed a four-year contract, and his salary will be $185,000 annually. Hofstetter has 25 years of healthcare experience, 20 of which in Nome, with the last five in administration, overseeing a...
A Petersburg Samaritan was clipped by an oncoming car on Sunday as he was tending to a distressed man in the middle of the road, who had just swum halfway across the Wrangell Narrows, police say. Sgt. Jim Kerr with the Petersburg Police Department said Jeremy Johnson was floating halfway -- “or a little more” -- across the Wrangell Narrows on Sunday when the dingy he was in sank. Kerr said Johnson swam back to Mitkof Island, crawled up the bank and went into the roadway to seek help. The good Samaritan, Colin Perry, noticed Johnson on Mit...
I’ll keep this brief since a reporter shouldn’t be near an op-ed page. I wrote a few stories for the Pilot over an 11-month period and now I’m leaving, back to my home state, Michigan, where I will be editor of a newspaper. My departure is not because I don’t like the Pilot or the town. This newspaper is full of people with character and grit and love. Petersburg is lucky to have it. I’d like to stay, but this opportunity presented itself. Thank you to those who read the newspaper. You fight the good fight just by glancing at it. Also, to...
For now, the Petersburg Borough won’t choose any state land it’s entitled to, coming after a string of emails that suggest a stunning miscommunication with the DNR. Gov. Bill Walker signed Senate Bill 28 in Petersburg in November, which entitles the borough to 14,666 acres of land. The apparent miscommunication started when Cabrera sent an email in March to the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, saying various maps and legal descriptions that were provided to facilitate the land selection process might have been incorrect. She said cer...
A 23-year-old artist from Wrangell had her first solo show in Petersburg on Friday, where she was stunned by the turn out and support. The artist, Jaynee Fritzinger, was nervous for her first show at Firelight Gallery and Framing in Petersburg. For two weeks before, she had been waking up before 5 a.m., painting about 10 hours a day. "I was nervous that I wouldn't have enough pieces," Fritzinger said, "or nervous that people wouldn't show up, or nervous that maybe my art wasn't good enough."...
Alice Neidiffer, the student body president at Petersburg High School, recently spent a half week in Juneau, researching bills and passing notes in hearings, all while observing those who might not be as balanced and fair as she strives to be. Neidiffer worked as a staff member on State Representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins' roughly six-person team for four days in late March, living with her mom and commuting from the valley to the Capitol building. "Alice definitely has poise, period,"...
March in Petersburg was the fourth driest on record, and meteorologists are predicting the summer could be more of the same. There were 2.74 inches of rainfall in March, including snow water, which is 78 percent less than what is normal in Petersburg and enough for a moderate drought to be in effect along the Southeast panhandle. The snow levels were at 7.1 inches, while 16.9 is normal, according to Sharon Sullivan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Juneau. Snowpack, in the meantime, has been on a gradual decline, with...
A Petersburg High School alumnus was selected to this year's Alaska School Activities Association Hall of Fame for his excellence in basketball. Cam Severson, who graduated in 2008, will be the first high school athlete from Petersburg to be inducted into the ASAA Hall of Fame. "I was kind of surprised," Severson said, adding that the honor was made possible by the support from his family, community, teammates and coach. "I was taken aback." Severson was a varsity basketball player in all four y...
A police sergeant in Petersburg was notified on Wednesday that he has been accepted into the FBI National Academy, a program that roughly one percent of officers in the United States are selected for. Sgt. Randy Holmgrain is looking forward to being one of two Alaskan law enforcement officers at the 2019 FBI National Academy. He's going to be networking and learning from about 240 officers from around the globe. "I was going to apply because I wanted the experience for the application with the...
Currently the Petersburg Police Department is recognizing its dispatchers for National Telecommunicator Appreciation Week. Kelly Swihart, chief of police, said Petersburg dispatchers are a devoted group that often go unnoticed. "It's one of those things," Swihart said, "they never get the recognition. I mean, they're sitting behind the wall." The department in Petersburg has five dispatchers on staff and one supervisor. The team is relatively new -- average time employed about a year -- and each...
A Petersburg man is facing controlled substance charges after police intercepted a package shipped to him that contained about an ounce of heroin. Kelsey McCay, 25, was arrested on Tuesday and charged with second-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance, according to the Petersburg Police Department. McCay was the subject of an investigation after police developed information that heroin was being shipped to him. A search warrant of the package was granted and police discovered just...
The Petersburg School District recently purchased a less invasive way than a breathalyzer to test for alcohol, coming after a few students were hospitalized amid the homecoming dance in February. The Passive Alcohol Sensor appears to be a black flashlight. On the side, though, is a sensor that reads alcohol levels. Petersburg school staff members can administer the alcohol sensor simply by asking a student to say his or her name into the small hole on the side, said Richard Dormer, the middle...
The Petersburg High School track team is gearing up for the season and hoping to offset losing six seniors by using speed, relay races and young additions. More than 30 kids are rostered on the Petersburg Track and Field Team, consisting mostly of younger classmen, coach Brad Taylor said this week. “It’s going to be fun to see what these kids can do,” said Taylor, who’s entering his 36th year of coaching. “There’s some talent there, and they’re just going to have to bring it out.” Losing track members who graduated in 2017, including four-time...
A group in Kake is preparing for a canoe trip to Juneau in part to celebrate its Native culture, but a logistical setback has left them seeking help from the Southeast Alaska fleet. A 13-person crew from Kake is hoping to carry out an eight-day canoeing trip heading north, through Chatham Strait to the Douglas Harbor in Juneau but the safety boat, which follows the crew and holds two cooks, a captain and crew, is unable to participate this year. Nathalie Austin, who’s organizing the Juneau voyage, is looking to contract a vessel owner to be a r...
The forest service in Petersburg was hardset on waiting to decide on a recent controversial guide permit for moose hunting issue, saying on Wednesday it would hold-off until next week, only to change its mind minutes later. A retired forest service employee on Wednesday said the Petersburg Ranger District was close to making a decision on a guide permit for moose hunting in the area, and it was doing so without public input. Jim Schramek, a retired forest service employee of 37 years, told the Pilot Wednesday at about noon that a hunting guide...
Researchers at a lighthouse near Petersburg have been conducting behavioral studies of humpback whales, trying to understand their diverse communication system, and this summer the humans are ready to talk back. Dr. Fred Sharpe, a research biologist with the Alaska Whale Foundation and part-time Juneau Lighthouse Association keeper of the Five Finger Lighthouse in Frederick Sound, gave a talk in Petersburg to about 100 people last Thursday. Sharpe has spent 30 summers at the lighthouse and was...
The CEO of Southeast Alaska’s wholesale power provider stopped by an assembly meeting on Monday to update Petersburg on its projects and financial wins so far this year. Trey Acteson, CEO of Southeast Alaska Power Agency, the primary electric provider for Wrangell, Petersburg and Ketchikan, explained multiple ways on how the organization is cutting costs, mostly from fighting strict regulatory proposals. “As many of you know,” Acteson said, “I’m pretty active in that arena.” SEAPA saved $30,000 annually when the Federal Energy Regulatory...
The Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery closed Tuesday for the remainder of the 2018 season after two days and about 8,300 tons short of guideline harvest level. The Alaska Department Fish and Game closed the Sitka fishery after the roughly 30 boats hauled in 2,800 tons of fish. “The last fishery occurred on March 26,” read a Tuesday press release from Eric Coonradt, area marine biologist with the Alaska Department Fish and Game Division of Commercial Fisheries. “And since then the department has not been able to identify a body of good quali...
A non-profit group's theme for sexual assault awareness month focuses on how to educate and talk about sexual violence in Petersburg. The group, Working Against Violence for Everyone, is using April to engage the community with an "Embrace Your Voice" theme. "Individuals," reads a press release provided by WAVE, "can embrace their voices to show their support for survivors, stand up to victim blaming, shut down rape jokes, correct harmful misconceptions, promote everyday consent, and practice...
The Petersburg Borough is a month into recruiting for a police chief, and about 10 applications have been submitted as of Monday, the manager said. The borough is advertising a salary range from $80,000 to $95,000 for the police chief position, which becomes vacant when Kelly Swihart retires in July. “We may get a really good applicant that just wows us,” said Steve Giesbrecht, borough manager, “who wants more money that is offered, and at that point, I’ll go back to the assembly.” After reviewing about six applicants so far -- none from Pete...
The Petersburg Borough recently installed two emergency sirens in the area while the EMS team is looking forward to a new vehicle. Sandy Dixson, the fire department and EMS director, said the borough is getting a new ambulance in May. One of the two operating ambulances was over 20 years old, and the borough has intended to replace it in the last two budget cycles. Dixson said it will cost about $187,000, which will be paid through the motor pool fund, a vehicle replacement pool that...
A 15-year-old, fading mural in Petersburg is getting about four coats of paint added by volunteers in town. The Our Town mural, which hung above the parking lot across the street from the Wells Fargo bank since 2003, currently sits on the second floor of the Petersburg Indian Association Hallingstad-Peratrovich building. The 40-foot painting is broken into 11 plywood panels, and about 15 volunteers have been working in groups of three or four since January to layer heavy duty paint. Pia...
