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Citizen Voices

Grilled Halibut with Puréed Olive and Garlic Filling

halibut-grilled-w-olive-and-tomato-bell-peppers_n

The opportunity to grill and serve a halibut in the whole doesn’t come along every day, particularly in waters where 50-pound fish are more commonly caught than five-pounders.

But, I could feel the characteristic thumping of a halibut 130 feet below, and I knew the metal jig I was fishing might have found just the fish we were looking for.

Read more.

Homemade Caribou Summer Sausage

summer-sausage

My brother and I had a terrific hunt last fall where we were both lucky enough to harvest a caribou.

Because we harvested big bulls, and it was after the rut, we decided to make most of the meat into sausage.

See the recipes.

Memories of Making Cranberry Hooch

Bog Cranberries (High Bush Variety) Turn Bright Red in Autumn.  (National Archives, 1973.)

In 1968, my handsome, newbie husband Dick spotted an article in the Anchorage Daily News that told how to make different things out of high bush cranberries: jelly, juice, ketchup and hooch.

We decided to try and make some.

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Carrying a Piano Up Chilkoot Pass

In February, 1898 Mike Mahoney aka “Klondike Mike” made a deal with Hal Henry. He would escort the Sunny Samson Sister Sextette and their luggage over the Chilkoot Pass and down to Dawson city.

There was just one problem – the sisters insisted on bringing their accompaniment piano.

Learn more.

Discover Yourself at Clark James Mishler’s Portrait Alaska Exhibition

On a May afternoon while our spring blizzard was slowly melting, I sat in the atrium of the Anchorage Museum eating my sandwich and looking.

I was looking up and around at Clark James Mishler’s portraits of Alaskans. Old, young, tattooed, the local famous and infamous, were all staring down at me and I returned their piercing glances.

More.

Veteran Spotlight: Jim VanOss

Jim VanOss is a U.S. Army Veteran, drafted during the Vietnam War who served as a military police officer and an embassy guard in Saigon during the Tet Offensive.

During his Veteran Spotlight interview, VanOss recalls being 20-years-old when he was drafted into the Army after failing a college class.

Learn more.

The Bird House: A Bar History

Mike Gordon Bird House Excerpt

Although Fairbanks had the Malemute Saloon, Juneau had the Red Dog Saloon and even little Homer had the Salty Dawg Saloon, Anchorage had no bar with an authentic Alaskan theme.

In 1967, some high school friends and I bought the Bird House Bar, a funky Alaskan themed bar on the Seward Highway.

Read more.

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Community Voices

The Power of Urban Gardens

Anchorage Food Mosaic Word Map

The question was simple: why is gardening (in Alaska of all places!) important to you?

The responses were thoughtful, witty, and it quickly became clear to me that a garden represents something different to each person.

It is a small, yet powerful act of self-sufficiency, localism, and in some cases rebellion.

Read more.

Anchorage teens find more than just a summer job on public lands

Chugach National Forest Summer Jobs 1

When Alex Zimmerman was young, she loved the outdoors and told people she wanted to be a “bug scientist” when she grew up.

But her career plans really began to take shape last year when she was accepted into Youth Employment in Parks.

Read more.

Take Action for Early Learning

By

Thread Early Learning

Too many children in the United States arrive at the kindergarten door already behind their peers. But where do we start if we are to make sure our children are ready for school?

Earlier than you think! From the moment of birth, babies start on a path of learning and discovery that determines how confidently they step over the kindergarten threshold and beyond.

Read more.

Summer of Heroes: Honoring Alaska Youth

Summer of Heroes Excerpt

Alaska Communications is happy to announce the third annual Summer of Heroes program in partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs – Alaska.

The program recognizes five young Alaska heroes who are making a difference in Alaska communities.

Read more.

Miracle Months of Summer

Karen Nickoli is a playful 10-year-old from Russian Mission, a small Yup’ik village near Bethel. She woke up with a fever one day and found out she had cancer the next.

Providence houses the only children’s hospital in the state so Karen would be staying in Anchorage for her care. Scared and far from home, Karen and her mom could hardly wait for the rest of their family to join them.

Learn more.

Teri Rofkar Named 2013 Rasmuson Distinguished Artist

Sitka basket and textile weaver Teri Rofkar has been named the 2013 Rasmuson Distinguished Artist.

The $40,000 award recognizes an artist with stature and a history of creative excellence.

Learn more.

Think, Work & Play at Anchorage Community Works

The warehouse that will house Anchorage Community Works in the Ship Creek area.

Anchorage Community Works is a concert venue, art studio, shared classroom and collaborative workspace that is opening in Anchorage this summer.

With a mission to provide a community center for local creatives and small business owners, “The Works” will connect and collaborate with locals who care about art, music, culture, learning, politics, and health.

Learn more.

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Radio Stories

Town Square 49 Radio

Eating Well Aboard a Seward Sailboat

Jack and Barbra Donachy in their boat's kitchen.

Today we’re eating well on the ocean. About three years ago Jack and Barbra Donachy decided to move to Alaska from California in pursuit of a subsistence lifestyle.

Today they are teachers in Point Hope, and spend their summers on a boat in Seward. They named it Bandon.

A “Big Day” Birding in Seward

Clark adjusts his field scope in search of more species of bird.

It’s 5:40am, on Saturday. Way early than I usually wake up. I’m going to try and slip out of here without waking the wife and the dog. Let’s go do some birding.

Our guide today is Zac Clark. He’s doing what birders call a “Big Day.”

Read more.