(L) Steven Ugale and (R) Cole McCracken/Photo by Alan Haskins

Two Unalaska City School delegations traveled to Anchorage this weekend for state competitions. There were six students for SkillsUSA Alaska State Leadership and Skills Conference and another six students for the Alaska Science and Engineering Fair.

Steven Ugale is the State Champion for Cabinetmaking, and Cole McCracken is the State Champion for Carpentry. According to CTE teacher Alan Haskins, “This is huge as they beat students from Mat-Su Career and Technical Center, Hutchinson Technical Center, Kenai and many other students from throughout the state. Cole and Steven worked well under pressure, and kept their focus. It was exciting to watch them work.”

Community members gathered at the Senior Center this Sunday for the second Storyteller's Cafe in recent weeks. Featuring Unalaska City School history teacher Jeff Dickrell, the event was an opportunity for local elders and longtime residents to share their knowledge and stories of life on the island in times past. Mr. Dickrell displayed a variety of slides from kayak treks he had taken around the island over the years, investigating the archeological remains of native settlements and following in the footsteps of early record-keepers like Captain James Cook and Ivan Veniaminov, also known as Saint Innocent. Interspersing geological and historical information with humorous anecdotes of alarming run-ins with wildlife and inclement weather, he shared a variety of stories and answered questions from the audience members ranging from children to residents at the center. Several people chimed in when Dickrell mentioned specific villages where their parents or grandparents once lived or talked about.

The event was put on by Unalaskans Against Sexual Assault and Family Violence (USAFV) as a way to promote healthy families. Given the high turnout and favorable community response to both Storyteller Cafes held this year, USAFV Program Coordinator Diane Kirchhofer says she intends to organize more in the future.

Polar Bear Runners, courtesy of PCR

The Parks, Culture, & Recreation Center’s annual Polar Bear Run was held on the afternoon of February 23rd, 2014. The weather conditions this year were possibly the nicest they could have been on the day of the run, with very little snow on the road and clear, blue skies with the sun shining overhead. 59 participants ran in the race, which is a distance of 5K with a 2 mile youth course. Both the adult and youth courses started near Memorial Park on Front Beach Road and ran out past the City Landfill and back.