Local fire departments remind everyone that a permit is required to burn anything more than a small campfire, and to remember to always attend your fires until they are out cold to the touch. Burn Permits are available at the Homer Volunteer Fire Station from 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday for burn permits inside city of Homer limits. If you are outside city limits, burn permits are available at the McNeil Fire Station-Kachemak Emergency Services, the Fritz Creek Store, from the local Alaska Division of Forestry office on Kachemak Drive and online at forestry.alaska.gov/burn. Follow the directions on the permit and check in daily for burn conditions. For more information, call HVFD at 235-3155, KESA at 235-9811 and Division of Forestry at 235-7734.
Audubon Alaska presents a Cartography Exhibit from 6-8 p.m. Friday at the Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitor Center. The one-night exhibition displays 20 maps showcasing physical, biological and cultural features of the dynamic Alaska landscape. The event will feature maps from Audubon Alaska’s forthcoming “Ecological Atlas of the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas,” due out in July 2017.
The Kachemak Bay Birders’ next birding trip us 8:30 a.m. Saturday, May 20, to Eveline Park, about 17 Mile East End Road. There are many trails in the park, and we expect to find songbirds, raptors and often grouse and cranes in the area — and gorgeous scenery and possibly some flowers, too. Meet in the parking lot at Islands and Ocean Visitor Center at 8:30 a.m. or at the Homestead Restaurant (across from the Fritz Creek Post Office/Store) at 8:45 a.m. to car pool. Bring binoculars, field guide, and scope if you have one. There always is a possibility of mosquitoes and mud at Eveline. All trips are cosponsored by the Kachemak Bay Birders and the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. There is no charge and everyone is welcome. The trip leader is Michael Craig, 235-0631.
The 30th Annual Homer Garden Club Plant Sale is 11 a.m. May 20 on the lawn by the Homer Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center. The plants for sale are both perennial and annual “starts” from club members as well as established perennials from members’ gardens and a special section of plants grown by the students at Paul Banks Elementary School in their greenhouse (those proceeds to benefit their PTA). Don’t miss out, so come early — it’s usually over by noon.
The Homer Storytellers, sponsored by Friends of Homer Library, meet 3-5 p.m. every third Saturday in the Library Conference Room. Storytellers, new or experienced, tell stories, learn techniques and expand their knowledge in two hours of laughter and sharing. Anyone from age 12 up is welcome to attend the story circle. For more information, call 235-3180.
The Homer Native Plant Society meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 23, at the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies. Tania Spurkland presents “Exploration of Kachemak Bay’s Microalgae Biodiversity.” This presentation will touch on the taxonomy, morphology, physiology, ecology, life histories and edibility of species from the mighty, robust kelps, to the finely branched red Pterosiphonia, on to the vibrant sheets of sea lettuce. Spurkland, a longterm resident of Kachemak Bay, is a marine biology educator with an emphasis in marine ecology and microalgae. The presentation is free; light refreshments will be served. For details, call 235-9344 or email jwoodring@alaska.net.
The Kachemak Emergency Service Area Board holds its monthly board meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 25, at the McNeil Canyon Fire Station, 53048 Ashwood Ave. (Mile 12 East End Road). The agenda will be posted at the fire station and at the Kenai Peninsula Borough Annex Building, 206 E. Pioneer Ave. The public is welcome to attend. Call 235-9811 for more information.
Trail’s Day is June 3. Volunteers are needed for trails work and beach clean-ups in Kachemak Bay State Park. Sign up for a guided family hike to Grewingk Glacier or volunteer for light trail work or a beach clean up project in Kachemak Bay State Park. A $20 donation covers the water taxi cost. Volunteers leave the harbor at 7 a.m., hikers leave at 8:30 a.m. and everyone returns between 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Pre-registration by May 26 is required. To register, for more detailed information on projects available or to add your name to be notified of other summer volunteer opportunities in the park, contact Christina Whiting at kbayvolunteer@gmail.com, 907-435-7969, or visit the Alaska State Park office on the second floor, Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitors Center.
Sandhill cranes have arrived. Report sandhill crane sightings to Kachemak Crane Watch at 235-6262 or reports@cranewatch.org. Provide date, time, location and number of cranes. Leave a name and number in case they need more details.
Anchor Point Senior Citizens
The Anchor Point Senior Center on Milo Fritz Road is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 9 a.m.-noon Friday. The center serves Thursday night dinners starting at 5:30 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 from 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.-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 Daniel Weisser at 235-4555.
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, closed for members-only annual meeting; Friday, almondine tilapia; Monday, baked chicken pasta marinara; Tuesday, pork cutlets; Wednesday, chicken pot pie; next Thursday, baked ham and scalloped 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.
Homer Folk School
Homer Folk School offers these upcoming classes, held at Ageya Wilderness Center above Skyline Drive at the top of East Hill Road. To register or for more information, visit homerfolkschool.org or call 299-9117.
• May 20, 1-4 p.m.: Nature Journaling and Drawing. Learn how to heighten awareness of nature by keeping a nature journal; $60.
• May 21, 4-7 p.m.: Indian Vegetarian Cooking. Explore traditional north Indian cooking; $40.
• May 29, 6-8 p.m.: Wild Edible and Medicinal Plants Walk, Bishop’s Beach. In this guided walk, students learn to identify edible and medicinal plants; $15.
Kachemak Bay Campus
Registration for the 2017 Kachemak Bay Writers’ Conference, June 9-13, is being held. For more information, visit http://writersconference.homer.alaska.edu.
A Student Art Showcase opening featuring work from painting class is on display in Pioneer Hall.
Registration for fall classes has begun for general public and degree-seeking students. See the schedule for most classes at www.kpc.alaska.edu/academics/schedule.
Pratt Museum
The museum gallery is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily. Business offices are open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday. Celebrate International Museum Day today, May 18, with free admission.
Artist Argent Kvasnikoff’s exhibit, Qena Sint’isis, is up through May 26. It presents a form of cultural expression that describes a new take on the indigenous culture of the southern Kenai Peninsula.
Historic Harbor Walking Tours begin June 1 at the Pratt wheelhouse at the Salty Dawg on the Spit. From 3-4:30 p.m. every Monday and Thursday from June 1-Sept. 4, a museum docent leads a tour of the historic Homer Harbor docks, with information about boats, fishing and some of the characters who shaped Homer’s maritime history. Admission is $10 a person or $8 when purchased with museum admission.
Artist David Rosenthal’s show, “Art and Science on the Katmai Coast,” opens with a reception from 5-7 p.m Friday, June 2. In July of 2015, Rosenthal was artist-in-residence for Katmai National Park. The exhibit is on display through July 30.
South Peninsula Hospital
Free speech and swallowing screenings are being offered at South Peninsula Hospital’s Rehabilitation Department throughout the month of May in recognition of Better Hearing and Speech Month.
Susan Cates-Blackmon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP, offers this screening for speech, language, swallowing, voice, resonance or cognitive communication. This 15-minute exercise is perfect for adults, children and their caregivers who have concerns about a potential speech or swallowing concern. Call the hospital’s Rehabilitation Department at 235-0370 to arrange a free 15-minute appointment.
