Kachemak Bay State Parks is currently recruiting for members for the Kachemak Bay State Parks Citizens Advisory Board. This advisory board provides Alaska State Parks with recommendations and input on management issues in Kachemak Bay State Park, Eveline State Recreation Site, and Diamond Creek State Recreation Area. Board members meet the second Wednesday of the month September through May from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitor Center in Homer. If you are interested in applying for this advisory board please fill out an application at http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/misc/boards.htm under State Park Advisory Boards. Please mail or e-mail your application to Alaska State Parks, 95 Sterling Highway, Homer AK, 99603. Applications are due by March 31, 2020. For more information please contact the Southern District Ranger Jason Okuly at 435-7595 or Jason.Okuly@alaska.gov
The Seldovia Fish and Game Advisory Committee will be holding a public meeting at the Seldovia Multi-Purpose Room at 260 Seldovia Street at 6 p.m. tonight, Thursday. Agenda topics will include statewide shellfish proposals, and proposed changes to personal watercraft use in Kachemak Bay. For more information contact Michael Opheim at 907-435-3247 or ADF&G Boards Support at 907-267-2354.
Alice’s Champagne Palace will be holding a benefit for community member Annie Bradley at 7 p.m. this Friday. There will be live music with Burnt Down House and The Los Holy Santos Gang, food and a silent auction. The cost is $20 at the door and all the proceeds from the evening will go to Annie and Paddy. Donations for the auction can be dropped off at Alice’s Champagne Palace. If you have any questions please feel free to email jeannine@salmonfestalaska.org.
The Central Peninsula Fish and Game Advisory Committee will be holding a public meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 20 at the Ninilchik School Library. Agenda topics will include Upper Cook Inlet finfish proposals. For more information contact ADF&G Boards Support at 907-267-2354.
The Kenai Peninsula Borough Homer Annex has moved to its new location at 638 East Pioneer Ave. in the Homer Borough Maintenance building east of the Homer Volunteer Fire Department. The annex door is to the right of the double garage doors. For more information call 235-9837.
Kenai Peninsula Votes tidbit:
The women’s right to vote was a monumental battle. One-hundred sixty years ago in Seneca Falls N.Y., the women’s suffrage movement began. Seventy-two years later, white women won the right to vote, when the 19th Amendment was passed in 1920. Finally, in 1965 the Voting Rights Act was passed and discriminatory voting practices were federally outlawed so that all women could vote.
Women’s history (as well as all oppressed people) should never be taken lightly. It should be celebrated and retaught to younger generations to come.
Ultimate Frisbee group meets from 7-9 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays at the SPARC. Contact: Sunny at 441-0314.
Kenai Peninsula Borough Solid Waste facilities will be closed on Sundays for the winter through April 26, 2020. For more information contact the KPB Solid Waste Department at 907-262-9667. Due to a change in its recycle market, Kenai Peninsula Borough Solid Waste facilities will no longer accept D grade plastic film, including plastic shopping bags. Also, they are only accepting #1 PETE beverage bottles with twist tops for recycling.
Anchor Point Senior Citizens
The Anchor Point Senior Center on Milo Fritz Avenue, is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 9 a.m. to noon Friday.
The center serves Thursday night dinners starting at 5 p.m. Everyone is welcome.
Bingo is at 6:30 p.m. with doors opening at 6 p.m. on Friday nights. The Helping Hands Thrift Store is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Exercise sessions are at 10 a.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays. For information, call 235-7786.
Friendship Center
Friendship Center Adult Day Services is open 9 a.m. to 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
The Caregiver Support Group meets 2-3:30 p.m. the second and fourth Thursday in the senior center conference room. Call Pam Hooker at 299-7198 or Robbie Fuller at 235-4555.
Homer Senior Citizens lunch is open to seniors and guests and is served noon-1:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. Lunch costs $7 for seniors age 60 and older, and $15 for those under 60. The lunch menu for this week is: today, walnut crusted pork roast; Friday, shrimp scampi; Monday, shepherd’s pie; Tuesday, honey dijon chicken; Wednesday, pork shoulder; and next Thursday, baked ham.
Strong Women classes are 1:30-2:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday at the Homer Senior Center.
Zumba Gold classes with Maria are 11 a.m.-noon Tuesdays and 1:30-2:30 p.m. Thursdays at the Homer Senior Center.
Tai chi classes are Thursdays at 3 p.m.
Duplicate Bridge meets at 1 p.m. Thursdays. Call Robbie Fuller at 235-4555. Duplicate Bridge is $3 for members and $5 for non-members.
Strong Women, Zumba and Tai Chi are $5 for members and $7 for non-members.
Hospice of Homer
Widow’s Support Group meets every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. at Hospice of Homer. The group is for women who have lost a spouse or a family member, or partner and seek support from practical matters like insurance to emotional support. For more information, call Marsha Graham at 235-5925 or Marcia Lowe at 435-0403.
Living with Loss, a weekly walk-in conversation about loss and bereavement, is on Tuesdays from noon to 1 p.m.
Kachemak Bay Campus
There will be a Public Square with Jonathon Ross at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 20 in Pioneer Hall. The Kachemak Bay Campus Public Square Series invites you to observe Alaska Civil Rights Day with Salamatof Tribal Leader Jonathon Ross in a conversation about the Dena’ina people of Tikahtnu (Cook Inlet) and their traditional territory, and the importance of place names within the context of civil rights in Alaska. Free event. Refreshments provided. Call 235-7743 for details.
Weekly Tibetan Meditation with Chökyi Ösel Rinpoche/Ellen Chambers is at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesdays in room P219 of Pioneer Hall. These free classes will include meditation instruction, 20 minutes of sitting meditation, and a short teaching followed by discussion and questions.
Japanese Calligraphy: Nature takes place from 5:30-7:30 p.m. every Thursday in February, running Feb. 6-27. Join Shizue Olson and learn the magic of kanji, the characters of Japanese calligraphy, and how to translate them onto paper. You will receive your very own calligraphy set including three brushes, black ink and rice paper which you will use to craft beautiful characters that describe nature. Register by Jan. 30 for $49, which includes supplies. Late registration is $69.
Alaska Islands and Oceans Visitor Center
The Alaska Islands & Ocean Visitor Center is open Tuesday – Saturday from noon to 5 p.m.
Naturalist-led program “Creature Feature” will take place from 1-3 p.m. Saturday in the lobby. Visitors of all ages are encouraged to stop in and discover a new featured creature each week.
Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges will hold their monthly meeting with featured speaker Kristine Sowl on “Adventures with a unique Alaska shorebird: the Bristle-thighed Curlew” from 5-6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 21 at the visitor center. Studying this elusive bird took her to the remote Andreafsky Wilderness of the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. Over the course of three summers she experienced many frustrations and satisfactions in studying this rare bird. All are welcome.
South Peninsula Hospital
The inaugural Project Homeless Connect in Homer (the event happens annually on the central Kenai Peninsula) community will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 29, at Homer United Methodist Church. This is a one-day event for homeless or near-homeless individuals and families to connect with resources, assistance and supplies to help them on their journey to stability. Free transportation, free haircuts, free meals and food-to-go, free childcare and free winter supplies are just a few of the things available that day.
The intention is to have regularly scheduled bus transport from outer lying areas (Fritz Creek, Ninilchik, Anchor Point) as well as an in-town shuttle. A transportation schedule will be available soon, as well as specific details on what assistance will be provided that day.
Project Homeless Connect is part of the Kenai Peninsula Project Homeless Connect and Kenai Peninsula Homeless Coalition. It is organized locally by numerous non-profit agencies. Visit sphosp.org for more information, or Facebook at Project Homeless Connect Homer.
