The South Kenai Peninsula Hospital Service Area Board will hold its regular monthly meeting virtually via ZOOM at 6:30 p.m. tonight, Thursday. The ZOOM link is available on the Kenai Peninsula Borough website kpb.us. The South Kenai Peninsula Hospital Service Area Board is an elected board that oversees local tax dollars for a healthier community.
Homer High School Class of 1975 will be hosting an outdoor barbecue/reunion. The class will meet from 5-11 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 8 at the Slidehole Pavilion on the Beach Access Road in Anchor Point. Due to COVID-19, please bring your own food, drink, utensils, condiments, paper plates, etc. Also, don’t forget your mask and bug spray.
Homer Alaska Suicide Awareness and Prevention will host a Ride and Drive for Suicide Awareness and Prevention at 1 p.m. this Saturday, Aug. 8. The ride and drive will go from Homer to Anchor Point. Meet at 1 p.m. at the Chevron gas station in Homer. The ride starts at 1:30 p.m. and ends at the VFW Post 10221 in Anchor Point, where there will be grilled burgers and sides for $12 a plate. All proceeds go to the VFW. For more information, email homersapr@gmail.com and find the group on Facebook.
Kachemak Emergency Service Area Board will be holding their regular monthly board meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13 via Zoom. The public may listen in by the link below. If you have any questions please call 235-9811. Join Zoom Meeting at https://zoom.us/j/8136649908?pwd=ZUpEN3BXVDFUM2MrUnJUeExobmU5UT09; Meeting ID: 813 664 9908.
The Anchor Point Fire & Emergency Medical Service Area Board will hold its next board meeting at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 19. This meeting will be via Zoom. Further information will be released at a later date.
Kachemak Crane Watch asks you to report fledgling sandhill cranes. Sandhill crane colts are practicing their flying skills. It takes 60-70 days from hatching to fledgling. Please report any crane colts fully flying (fledged) to Kachemak Crane Watch. Let them know where and when the colts were able to fly off with the adults. Include your specific location and other information you care to share. If the colts you have been watching have disappeared or died, please report that as well. If you know how they died, please include that information too. Successful fledgling and mortality reports help Kachemak Crane Watch determine nesting success for the year compared to previous years. Your citizen science reports are vital to KCW monitoring of the nesting season. Send reports to reports@cranewatch.org or call 907-235-6262.
The Kenai Peninsula Borough Solid Waste facilities are now open Sundays. For more information contact the KPB Solid Waste Department at 907-262-9667 or check their webpage at https://www.kpb.us/swd-waste/about-solidwaste.
Kenai Peninsula Votes tidbit:
In cooperation with the Friends of the Homer Library, Kenai Peninsula Votes sponsors a writing contest to promote the idea of why voting is important. Can you convince us that your vote matters? In 300 words or less, write a non-partisan explanation of why your vote matters. Alaska residents ages 12 to adult can enter. Cash prizes are offered, with adult winners receiving $40 for first place, $30 for second place, $20 for third place and $10 for fourth place. Student winners receive $30 for first place, $20 for second place adn $10 for third place.
The deadline is Aug. 7. To enter, include your full name, phone number, email address and mailing address, and send submissions electronically to info@friendshomerlibrary.org or mail them to Friends of the Library, 500 Hazel Ave., Homer, AK. 99603.
Anchor Point Senior Citizens
The Anchor Point Senior Center on Milo Fritz Avenue serves take-out meals on Thursday evenings with pickup from 5-6 p.m. Helping Hands Thrift Store is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and donations can be dropped off any time. The office staff are at work and available by phone for addressing needs. For information, call 235-7786.
Friendship Center
Friendship Center Adult Day Services is closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Call 235-4556.
Homer Senior Citizens
All activities are canceled and the Homer Senior Center is closed to the general public during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Homer Senior Citizens congregate lunch is closed, but meals can be picked up at noon from Monday-Friday. You must call 907-235-7655 by 10 a.m. daily to reserve your meal.
Hospice of Homer
Hospice of Homer requests that anyone who needs to borrow or return medical equipment or to pick up disposable personal care items, call the office. Staff will check availability and arrange a time for pick up.
Anyone needing access to grief counseling or other services should also call to talk with a staff member. Staff will be available Monday-Thursday at 235-6899.
Support Group meetings have been canceled.
Hospice of Homer has had an unusually high demand for medical equipment recently and are in great need of many items. Anyone wishing to help can go to Smile.amazon.com.
Select Hospice of Homer as your charity then select Charity List and choose any of the items on our List of Current Needs. All donated equipment is loaned out free of charge to anyone who needs it in the Homer vicinity and a percentage of the purchase is donated to Hospice of Homer.
Kachemak Bay Campus
Full-time, part-time and potential Kachemak Bay Campus students: Kachemak Bay Campus has seven local scholarships and you can apply for all of them with one application. The deadline is Friday, Aug. 7. Call 235-7743 for information on how to apply.
The college and campus directors will be available for a general information session via Zoom to answer questions and provide updates at 2 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13. The Zoom link is: https://alaska.zoom.us/j/94681988485.
Have some extra time this fall? Why not learn a new skill or update one you already have? Kachemak Bay Campus can help you revise your resume and work on presentation skills, or understand marketing and business management, and basic investing. High school students can take college classes with reduced tuition. School starts on Monday, Aug. 24, so register now. Let the campus advisors help find the right path for you. Call 235-7743 for details.
The Kenai Peninsula Borough Homer Annex is closed to walk-in traffic during the COVID-19 pandemic at its location at 638 East Pioneer Ave. in the Homer Borough Maintenance building east of the Homer Volunteer Fire Department. The office is staffed for help by phone or email. For more information call 235-9837 or email Tamarron Baxter at tbaxter@kpb.us. Forms for property tax exemptions or appeals are available outside on the door, and a dropbox is available for completed forms.
Pratt Museum
The Pratt Museum’s summer hours through Aug. 31 are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
These hours are subject to updates in compliance with CDC State/Federal Public Health Guidance.
For the safety of guests, members and staff:
• Face masks required for entry.
• Visitor log sign-in required upon entry.
• Social distancing guidelines include maintaining 6 feet of distance at all times.
• Capacity limited to 10 guests in the museum at one time.
Face masks and capacity limits do not apply to outdoor spaces including gardens, forest trails, and Homestead cabin; however, staff do request that visitors respectfully comply with social distancing guidelines.
Join the Pratt Museum for “Postcards from Unprecedented Times: First Friday Kickoff” from 5-8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 7.
The Pratt is committed to collecting and sharing the stories of Kachemak Bay, from both the past and present. This year, residents have faced dramatic changes to their way of life, and undoubtedly the world will continue to shift. The staff want to document this present moment with your voices.
On the evening of Friday, Aug. 7, join the Pratt to send a postcard to the future documenting and reflecting on our present times. You may write a letter, draw, collage, or whatever else strikes your fancy. Staff will scan your submission to be included in the museum’s digital archives and become part of the story the museum tells about this moment.
The Pratt Museum will be collecting submissions of your “Postcards from Unprecedented Times” throughout the summer.
Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitor Center
The Alaska Islands & Ocean Visitor Center operations are temporarily suspended following guidelines from the CDC and recommendations from state and local health authorities. Updates will be posted to the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge website and social media channels. The Beluga Slough Trail and other outdoor areas on the refuge will remain open to provide healthy options for recreation and relaxation. A reopening date has not been determined at this time.
Updates about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s response to coronavirus will be posted at https://www.fws.gov/home/public-health-update.html. Please check with individual refuges or facilities regarding the change of operations or postponement of events and programs.
To reach refuge staff call 907-235-6546 or email alaskamaritime@fws.gov.
South Peninsula Hospital
Homer Medical Center is offering free physicals for high school students involved in fall and winter activities by appointment only at a one-day clinic from 9 a.m. to noon this Saturday, Aug. 8. Appointments are required, and exams are offered free of charge by our providers to students needing a physical for participation in school sanctioned sports and activities.
Parents are asked to complete the History Form and if applicable the Special Needs Supplemental form and bring the entire document with them to the clinic. The forms are found at www.homermedical.org. All students must bring or wear loose fitting shorts for the screening.
If students are unable to attend, they can make an appointment for an annual wellness exam and a sports physical form will be filled out as part of the wellness exam. In most cases this will be at no cost to a patient with insurance. Those without insurance and who do not make the free sports physical day can make a sports physical appointment on a regular clinic day, the cost after discounts will be $35.10 if paid at time of service.
Please contact Homer Medical Center at (907) 235-8586 to make an appointment or for additional information.
