Author: Ed Ronco

The Coast Guard is considering a number of biomass heating projects in Southeast – using wood from local sources as fuel to heat facilities in Sitka and Ketchikan. The plans have been in the works, but were brought up again as part of a larger discussion on whether wood from the Tongass could be part of a more widespread energy industry.

Nationwide this year, the U.S. Postal Service expects to handle 16.6 billion cards, letters and packages between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. In other words, it’s going to be busy. KCAW’s Ed Ronco visited the Sitka post office and asked for tips on how you can make sure your packages get where they need to be, when they need to be there.

The yearlong lease for the Hames Athletic and Wellness Center is not a done deal. With one key supporter absent, a minority on the Sitka Assembly opposed to funding the facility was able to delay signing off on the lease for at least another week.

The past weekend’s wild weather in Sitka and the surrounding area was no fluke. In fact, meteorologists were waiting for the right combination of cold air and warm ocean temperatures to meet and produce frozen rain, snow, wind, and thunderstorms. KCAW’s Robert Woolsey spoke with Joel Curtis, the warning and coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Juneau, about the right conditions for “thundersnow.”

Across the country, people turned out Friday (11-27) for the annual day-after-Thanksgiving shopping ritual known as Black Friday. It’s called that because it’s the day retailers can switch from red ink to black ink on their balance sheets. In Sitka, plenty of people hit the streets to shop, in part because of a sales tax holiday, which was held Friday and Saturday.

The afternoon before Thanksgiving, we asked Sitkans to tell us what they're thankful for this year.

Federal wildlife managers have closed doe hunting on Northeast Chichagof Island for the rest of the season. The federal subsistence board issued its decision on November 10th. It extends the 60-day closure authorized by the Forest Service district rangers in Sitka and Hoonah in mid-September. A proposed permanent December closure for does for urban hunters will be considered by the Board this spring.

The Sitka School Board met Monday (11-23) with the Sitka High School student council. School dances, cheerleading and the pep squad were discussed, along with security cameras in the high school. The meeting is an annual tradition, and a chance for district and student leaders to hear from one another.

NPR's All Things Considered recently ran a story mentioning a government Web site that allows people to track distribution of the $787 billion federal stimulus money. Reporter Martin Kaste searched for stimulus projects in a ZIP code near his Seattle home. KCAW reporter Ed Ronco thought he'd give that a try using Sitka's ZIP code. Here's what he found.

Alice Pung's parents fled the Killing Fields of Cambodia and landed in Australia. Her memoir of resettlement in Australia -- as seen through the experiences of her family -- came out in 2007. "Unpolished Gem" catapulted the young attorney to literary prominence in her family's new home. Pung, and Island Institute co-director Carolyn Servid, joined KCAW's Robert Woolsey to discuss "Unpolished Gem" and other recent work.