The Homer Chamber of Commerce holds its annual Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony from 5-7 p.m. Friday at the chamber visitor Center. Festivities include music, refreshments, a bonfire, crafts for kids and photos with Santa. Bring your own cameras for photos with Santa.
Lina LePage speaks at 1 p.m. Friday for the Parkinson’s Support Group meeting at the Homer Senior Center. LePage works for social services at South Peninsula Hospital and will talk about end-of-life choices and decisions.
The University of Alaska Anchorage Student Nurses hold a Homer Food Pantry Fundraiser Dinner from 4-8 p.m. Friday at Homer United Methodist Church. The dinner features a local harvest menu of moose or salmon burgers, potato salad and coleslaw prepared by guest chef Harrison McHenry. A donation of $10 is suggested, with all proceeds directly benefiting the Homer Food Pantry. For to-go orders, call 399-2300.
The Central Peninsula Fish & Game Advisory Committee meets at 7 p.m. Friday at Ninilchik High School. The agenda includes discussing ways the boards can reduce cost, time and number of proposals along with another request to have the 2017 Upper Cook Inlet fin fish meeting in the Kenai/Soldotna area. For more information, contact David Martin at 907-567-3306.
St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, 619 Sterling Highway, holds a Labyrinth Meditation walk at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. Jan Thurston of Halibut Cove leads the walk. Following the walk, the Rev. Judith Lethin of Seldovia leads a sung Compline service. The meditation walk and Compline service are held each Saturday at 5:30 p.m. during Advent.
Cook Inletkeeper Celebrates 20 years protecting the Cook Inlet watershed at 7 p.m. Saturday at Alice’s Champagne Palace. The event includes music by Burnt Down House and the Robb Justice Band, poetry by fisher poets, and a tribute to Frank Mullen. There also will be pictures and documents tracing Inletkeeper’s history on display. For more information, visit www.inletkeeper.org.
The Homer Public Library presents “Aging to Perfection,” a series of conversations celebrating the challenges of living a long life and loving it. The next conversation is 3:30-5:30 p.m. Saturday in the library meeting room. Conversations are held 3:30-5:30 p.m. every Saturday until Dec. 19. Topics discussed include “When are we old?,” “What’s good about getting there?,” “What are our fears?,” “What inevitably does change?,” “Cultures and Aging” and “Leaving a Legacy.”
Homer United Methodist Church presents Henry Gheon’s holiday play, “Christmas in the Marketplace,” at 6 p.m. Dec. 20 at the church. Gheon’s 1935 play is about a band of wandering Gypsies who present their own version of the Nativity.
The Kenai Peninsula Borough reminds residents clearing snow from driveways that it is illegal to plow snow from private property into roads, ditches and rights of way. Such snow causes more work for borough snow removal crews, a cost incurred by taxpayers, and causes obstruction hazards and sight problems for motorists.
The borough also reminds parents to tell children of the hazard of playing in snow piles and berms near roads. Snow plow drivers may have difficulty seeing children playing in berms.
Anchor Point Senior Citizens
The Anchor Point Senior Center on Milo Fritz Road is open for winter hours 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 10 a.m.-noon Friday. The center serves Thursday night dinners starting at 5:30 p.m. Everyone is welcome. Bingo is at 6 p.m. with play starting at 7 p.m. on Friday nights. The Helping Hands Thrift Store is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Helping Hands Christmas toys will be available from 1-6 p.m. Sunday. Exercise sessions are at 10 a.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays. For more information, call the senior center at 235-7786.
Cooperative Extension
Winter in Alaska provides many opportunities to enjoy the outdoors, or to spend some quality time indoors too. Staying warm indoors while it’s cold outside is a primary concern to most all of us, but there can be unforeseen hazards from the odorless, colorless gas, carbon monoxide. This product of combustion results in deaths each winter across the nation and especially here in Alaska. You can learn about protecting your home from this silent killer in the free publication, “Carbon Monoxide, A Silent Killer,” available from your local Cooperative Extension Service or online at www.uaf.edu/ces/districts/kenai/. Visit the Cooperative Extension Office between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday-Friday at 43961 Kalifornsky Beach Road, Suite A, Soldotna. For more information, call 907-262-5824.
Friendship Center
Friendship Center Adult Day Services is open 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday with extended hours for special situations. Programs are offered daily, including story time, crafts and musical performances. Call 235-4556.
Homer Senior Citizens
Homer Senior Citizens lunch is open to seniors and guests and is served noon-1:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. The lunch menu for this week is: today, roast beef; Friday, shrimp scampi; Monday, glazed Cornish game hens; Tuesday, meatloaf; Wednesday, Cuban pork; next Thursday, pork loin and mashed potatoes.
Strong Women classes are 1:30-2:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday at the Homer Senior Center. The cost is $3 for members and $6 for nonmembers per class.
Zumba Gold classes with Maria are 11 a.m.-noon Tuesdays and 1:30-2:30 p.m. Thursdays at the Homer Senior Center. The cost per class is $4 for members, $6 for nonmembers.
Duplicate Bridge meets at 1 p.m. Thursdays. Tai chi classes are Thursdays at 3 p.m. The cost per class is $3 for members and $6 for nonmembers. Call Daniel Weisser at 235-4555.
Caregiver Support Group meets 2-3:30 p.m. the second and fourth Thursday in the senior center conference room. Call Jacquie Thaute at 299-2924 or Daniel Weisser at 235-4555.
Kachemak Advocates
of Recycling (KARe)
Here are some tips about recycling aluminum:
• The most important thing to know about aluminum is that it’s not magnetic. If in doubt, test with a magnet. If the magnet does not stick, it’s aluminum.
• Aluminum is used mostly for beverage cans and some pet food cans. Again, test with a magnet if you’re not sure.
• Don’t leave food in the can. It does not have to be washed out, but scrape with a spatula.
• Labels can be left on.
• Aluminum baking dishes also can be recycled.
• Do not recycle aluminum foil.
Aluminum can can be recycled at the dump and at the recycling bins at Save-U-More, Anchor Point and McNeil Canyon.
For more information, call Borough Solid Waste at 262-9667.
Kachemak Bay Campus
Registration for winter and spring classes has now begun for community education, job training, recreation or degrees. Classes include Beginning Spanish, Drawing, Creative Writing, Ceramic, Woodworking, Political Science, Business, Yoga, Tai Chi and more. Sign-up Now; pay later.
Check out KBC opportunities at www.kpc.alaska.edu/academics/schedule/?text=&subject=&location=R&semester=201601.
Interested in a degree or training programs for jobs like certified nursing assistant? Make an appointment soon with an advisor at 235- 7743. For GED, ESL and ABE classes, call 235-7743.
KBC will be closed Dec. 24-Jan. 4.
Pratt Museum
Winter gallery hours are noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday through December. Admission is free through December. Business offices are open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday. From 1-3 p.m. Dec. 13 is the annual community recital and the raffle drawing for a locally-made quilt. Enjoy some holiday snacks while listening to featured artists performing for the community recital. This year, musicians from Seaside Singers, the Homer High School Swing Choir and the Harbor School of Music will perform. The 2015 raffle quilt features Latitude 59, Kachemak Bay, with details of salmon, petroglyphs, flowers and otters, and is on display at the Pratt Museum. The bonus quilt this year also is displayed next to the Kachemak Bay quilt. Purchase raffle tickets in the Museum Store for a chance to win the quilt. Proceeds from the ticket sales go to support the programs and exhibits at Pratt Museum. The raffle drawing will take place following the holiday recital on Dec. 13.
Alaska Department of Fish and Game area wildlife biologist Jeff Selinger speaks at 6 p.m. Dec. 16 for the next event in the Pratt’s Bears Art/Science Collaborative Project. He will provide an overview of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Kenai Brown Bear management actions, focusing on 2002-present.
South Peninsula Hospital
South Peninsula Hospital is accepting applications for a seat on the board of directors. Experience in health care, finance, leadership or community service is helpful. To apply, call 235-0325 or visit sphosp.org and clink on “about SPH” for more information.
