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High school prank prompts evacuation
A recent incident at Homer High School raises some questions and some eyebrows when a crudely made fake bomb prompted school officials to evacuate the school, but no call was made to 911.
Homer High students hardly had time to get comfortable Thursday morning before they were evacuated from the building after school administrators found what they thought might be a bomb.
According to Homer Police Chief Mark Robl, a teacher first saw the device in the stairwell around 8:15 a.m. and thought it might be a …
Refuge installation honors historic 70-year-old battle
One of the countless heroes of the World War II battle in Alaska will get some much-deserved recognition this summer as his efforts during the bloody Battle of Attu 70 years ago are to be commemorated with a plaque on Attu as part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge.
The plaque will tell the story of Pvt. Joseph P. Martinez, who attempted to clear a mountain pass by charging into enemy fire, an act for which he was posthumously awarded a Medal of Honor for his …
Farmers Market set to ring in 2013 growing season
Back in early March, Christina Castellanos took some advice from Bethel’s gardening guru Tim Meyers and threw some seeds in the ground in her Diamond Ridge high tunnel when the first few inches of soil warmed enough to thaw. The seeds germinated slow and grew slowly for the next two months, despite frequent nighttime temperatures that dropped below freezing. Using plastic and row covers, Castellanos kept the plants alive. It all paid off when the temperatures started to climb a few weeks ago. All of a sudden, …
Chris Story on what makes Alaska matter
Grandma Billie Watkins probably had no idea just how much she would impact her 7-year-old grandson’s future when she bought him a Walkman.
“It wasn’t fancy. It only had a radio,” said Chris Story, real estate and radio … . “I loved it, and was fascinated with how it could open up a whole other world for me.”
Story said he decided then that he wanted to be involved in radio somehow. He just wasn’t ready yet.
Along came Bay Realty, where Story started his career in real estate. …
Tumbledown House brings ‘Speakeasy’ music to Homer
Billed as “Modern Speakeasy Music,” the Tumbledown House musicians, Gillian Howe and Tyler Ryan Miller, are traveling to Alaska from their home in San Francisco again this month for their fifth Alaskan tour, with four performances booked in Homer.
On their web page they write: “As the days grow longer and the temperatures begin to climb, we begin preparing for our fifth Alaskan Tour. We can’t wait to see all of our Alaskan friends, play with some of our favorite musicians and perform …
Blues reigns at Alice’s Champagne Palace this weekend
Alice’s Champagne Palace is bringing blues guitarist Rick Brooks to town Friday evening and the harmonica man Gary Sloan (more Alaska bluesmen) Saturday night.
Brooks accompanies himself on acoustic guitar as he sings blues, rock and classic songs and more. He says he took his first guitar lessons at age eight in Oxford, Mississippi. His father wanted him to be Johnny Cash and his teacher favored Chet Atkins but he took more interest in blues, jazz, classical and folk music. In the late 80s he played …
Sports Briefs – May 22
A 10-pound halibut currently sits atop the Homer Jackpot Halibut Derby leaders’ board, thanks to the angling aptitude of Janet Baldauf. And, while she’s not exactly expecting her fledgling fish to remain in the top spot, it certainly doesn’t hurt that the little guy was also wearing a tag!
The Homer Derby started May 15, and already, two other tagged fish have been landed.
“We had one tagged fish caught prior to the derby’s start, and one that didn’t want to buy a derby ticket,” said derby organizer Paula …
Lady Mariner relay team takes gold at State meet
After weeks of complaining about winter’s tenacious grip on Alaska’s spring season, perhaps another reference to the unorthodox and unneighborly May snows of 2013 would be redundant.
Still … blowing snow and 18 degrees at a track meet? That’s just wrong.
“It certainly was freezing cold, but we’ve been competing in conditions like that all year,” said Homer Track Coach Bill Steyer of a freezing Fairbanks. “We worked to find a way to reframe the frigidness as a positive thing.”
Homer softball undaunted by first losses of season
The Homer Lady Mariners kept fairly busy last week, cramming six games of softball into four days in an effort to getting some playing time in before the regular season ends.
The Lady M’s started with a 8-0 Northern Lights Conference win over the Soldotna Stars last Wednesday. The victory extended Homer’s winning streak to eight games.
Hannah LaRue pitched the entire game for Homer, striking out six SoHi players. McKi Needham went 2-for-2 to lead Homer, while teammate Maggie LaRue picked up two runs and a triple. …
Baseball opens home season on Wednesday, closes it Thursday
The Mariner baseball team held their 2013 home opener against the Soldotna Stars last Wednesday. They played their last home game against Kenai the very next day.
Some might call it a short season.
Homer gave up three runs to SoHi in the first inning of the conference game, but those would be the only runs pitcher Zach Haning and the Mariner defense were willing to give up.
The M’s answered with four runs to take the lead in the bottom of the first, thanks to hits from Zac Bynum, …
Chamber hires board member as executive director
Come August 15, Homer Chamber of Commerce board member Jim Lavrakas will be switching roles as he moves from giving direction to the executive director, to becoming the executive director – and working for a board he once served on. It may be the first time the board has hired one of its own.
Current executive director, Monte Davis, announced in March that he would be resigning after two years as he and wife JoAnn are moving to Fort Worth, Texas to be near her sister and …
Safety first, then beautification for Old Town
Before proceeding with the construction of the proposed “People’s Garden” envisioned by the activists, called “Old Town Neighbors,” working on the renovation of Old Town, the city is being asked to do some work to improve safety.
The Old Town renewal team recently met with representatives of the Homer Planning and Public Works departments to discuss these needs. The goals for East Bunnell Avenue and Beluga Place include installing speed bumps on the roads to slow traffic, widening the pavement on both streets and adjusting …
More News
Community News – May 22
Geocache for trash A traveling band of geocachers from around SouthCentral met in Homer over the weekend to cleanup Karen Hornaday...
Community News – May 15
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