Dance production success with the spring performance of ‘Swan Lake’

I could not be more pleased with how the Motivity’s Production of “Swan Lake” ballet turned out; we’ve had many wonderful comments from the community.

I want to extend a thank you to all of the cast and crew.

Alison Arima for being my collaborator and a beautiful Swan Queen; Edmund Hubbard joining in and gracing us with his dancing; Collin Trummel for being the most spectacular Prince Siegfried and traveling all the way from Portland; my mom, Jill Berryman, and family for putting up with me during this time.

Thank you to Jimmy Anderson for being a villainous Rothbart and for the kind words in his Homer News letter to the editor.

Thank you to Pat Brennan, Tiana Sullivan and Jean Adams for providing a remarkable costume team.

Kathleen Gustufson, Simon Lopez, Gavin Blackstock and Stu Schmutzler and the crew for being a powerhouse crew team.

Finally, Carla Klinker for her amazing set design; the Palmas and Kristina McGee for the hours of volunteerism; and all of the polished students and amazing adult dancers for working their tales off and dancing so beautifully.

Thanks to the community we were also able to raise scholarship money for dancers Aria Palma to attend the Ailey/Joffrey summer program in NYC, Aurora Springer to attend Sitka Summer Fine Arts Festival, and Isabel Ostler, Hailey Radford, Violet Sullivan, Bodhi Waterbury to help attend Motivity summer/fall classes.

The newly formed Motivity Dance School (more information coming soon) will be a place where kids and adults can train in all forms of dance including: ballet, pointe, jazz, modern and tap from highly trained dancers. Details are still in the works but we hope to get things started as soon as possible. If you or your child might be interested in the School, auditions for the upcoming season will be held May 23, 2 p.m. at The Art Barn. Contact motivitydance@gmail.com for more information!

Thank you,

Breezy Berryman

Thank you, Elks, for your contribution to Paul Banks

On behalf of the Paul Banks Elementary staff, I wanted to thank our local Elks Club for their generous donation of four convertible bench tables. These will be a welcome addition to our outdoor classroom spaces where students can work collaboratively on a science project, have a picnic lunch, make observations of the outdoors in their journals and so much more. We are so fortunate to have such generous individuals and organizations in our community who support Homer’s youth, and the Elks Club is a shining example of this.

Thanks a bunch!

Sean Campbell

Principal, Paul Banks Elementary School

Chapman mural unveiled

I am writing to express Chapman’s heartfelt gratitude to the Bunnell Street Arts Center for sponsoring the Artist in the Schools program. This program is made available through Bunnell Street Arts Center with support from the Alaska Legislature, which funds Alaska State Council on the Arts, thus providing matching support from Rasmuson Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Ulmer’s Drug and Hardware, Kenai Fine Arts Center, and the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District. Because of this partnership, students in our community had the opportunity to engage in artistic exploration with talented local artist, Sharlene Cline.

While participating in the Artist in the Schools Program, Chapman students were able to work alongside Ms. Cline for two weeks to create a stunning mural that reflects the diversity, creativity and spirit of our community throughout the seasons. Through this collaborative project, students not only honed their artistic skills but also learned valuable lessons in teamwork, creativity and an appreciation for their local culture.

The mural, now proudly displayed in our school library, serves as a vibrant reminder of the power of art to inspire, unite and uplift. Through the process of creating the mural, a sense of pride and belonging in our student body was cultivated as this piece of art is the culmination of individual contributions.

Chapman will be hosting a Family Engagement night on May 13 from 5:45 to 6:45 p.m. where the mural will be unveiled. The students and staff at Chapman would like to invite the community to attend this open house. This project has been a testament to the importance of investing in the arts and providing students with opportunities for creative expression and we would love to share it with you. The impact of programs like these extends far beyond the walls of our school, shaping future generations of artists, thinkers, and leaders.

Heidi Stokes

Principal, Chapman School

Pollock trawls and the disturbance of sea beds

I had the habitat seat on the three-member Sustainable Salmon Commission, a joint venture of the Board of Fisheries and the Alaska Department of Fish Game. The other members were chosen by commercial and sports fishing interests and their job was to keep the proposed policy from unbalancing existing allocations of salmon. In 2000, we unanimously agreed on the Alaska Sustainable Salmon Policy, 5 AAC 39.222, which has proven useful and is widely applied.

A problem with habitat destruction of the sea floor bottom where pollock trawlers have dragged is difficult to assess. It is a mystery as yet unsolved about the rearing habitat for emergent salmon fry becoming smolt as they enter saltwater. King and chum smolt may leave rivers in large numbers never to return. Theories, as yet unproven, suggest they die at sea.

Bycatch is part of that but the protuberances to the sea bed are suspected to be the greater killer by destroying food sources. Pot fishing for pollock is much more benign but in the Bering Sea there are catcher-processing ships and other catchers with many miles of trawls dragging the habitat away.

Larry Smith

Kachemack Resource Institute, an ad hoc habitat interest group