The People's Paper November 2021 by The Peoples Paper

Contributed by Ailis Vann The Greater Palmer Chamber of Commerce is excited and feeling festive as we prepare for our annual holiday event, Colony Christmas! Our theme for 2021 is Hometown Holidays and we have all kinds of hometown fun planned. Join us the weekend of December 10th, 11th, and 12th in Palmer for a myriad of contests, games, and activities. This spectacular celebration of both our winter holidays and our rich heritage is sure to bring a warmth of spirit that even a cold Palmer wind can’t beat! Stroll through our delightful winter garden of light, warm up with a hot meal at one of our fine local eateries, and take care of that pesky holiday shopping list with unique local gifts purveyed at our renowned craft fairs or any one of our amazing small businesses. A variety of family friendly activities will be hosted throughout Palmer to entertain the young and the young at heart. Crafts? We have you covered. Concerts? You bet we have them! We’ll even have a 5ishk so you can get your exercise in and justify all of the delicious holiday sweets you’ll find. And don’t miss your opportunity

with Santa and some magical ponies. Both will be in attendance, so don’t miss your chance to get a photo with either. Looking for a new event? We have you covered there too! We are excited to bring the Arctic Olympics to Palmer. This feat of strength and skills will include a taffy pull, sled races, and our smoosh races. The team of 4 with the lowest score will win some fantastic prizes. Are cookies or other baked goods more your speed? Have no fear, we have something for you too. Our ever popular Gingerbread Contest, brought to you by Alaska USA Federal Credit Union will be a great opportunity for you to show off your baking skills. If cookies are more your speed, bring your delightful treats to My Favorite Realty for judging! Craft fairs are a huge part of holiday festivals, and we have added a THIRD venue to our craft fair lineup and expanded the craft fairs you know and love. You can find artisans at the Palmer Train Depot on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday; at the MatSu Borough Gym on Saturday and Sunday; and NEW this year: the Palmer Senior Center!

We are so excited to have three venues full of handcrafted goods sure to bring a smile to everyone on your list. When you purchase crafts and products from local businesses, you support hopes and dreams and there’s no need to worry about things being stuck on a boat out somewhere.

Live-Edge Epoxy River Tables

MORE ON PAGE 6 OF MAKE A SCENE MAGAZINE

COMMUNITY Contributed by Marie Dryden AARP Foundation Tax-Aide is now recruiting for volunteers for the 2022 season. Free tax preparation is an important boost for individuals and families in Alaska working to improve their financial stability. Sometimes a higher refund means keeping the heat on or helping with rent for our most vulnerable residents. Becoming a volunteer tax preparer is easier than you think. No prior tax experience is necessary, and all the training materials are provided. Volunteers should enjoy talking to people and feel comfortable asking questions, have basic computer literacy, and be willing to refer to resource materials for tax law. Training is free and starts in December. You will use your own computer for training and, once you are certified,

Contributed by Ailis Vann Have you ever heard the quote, “when you support a small business, you’re supporting a dream”? If not, we can promise it’s true. People who start businesses are passionate, community-minded, and hardworking. The life of a small business owner is a never-ending roller coaster of emotions - constant ups and downs, good news, bad news, great sales days, and not so great sales days. What helps these entrepreneurs, more than anything, is your support. Looking for a way to help? Here’s how!

AARP will issue you a laptop for tax preparation. Bi-lingual volunteers are needed. Tax-aide sites are located in several communities around the state and the volunteer hours are flexible. Due to the COVID-19, new models of delivering service to taxpayers are being created and more details will be released by the end of the year. If you have questions about becoming a volunteer, please call 907-631-1456 or send an email to alaskataxaide@ gmail.com. Visit aarp.org/taxaide to learn more about the program or fill out a volunteer application. Thank you for making a difference! Marie Dryden, Mat-Su District Coordinator AARP Foundation TaxAide Program

Do your part to support the dreams, and our local economy this holiday season: shop local and shop Palmer! For more information, please visit www. palmerchamber.org

building science academy and multiple other training courses that included residential building inspections, indoor environmental consulting, moisture intrusion management and remediation oversight.

When I started this company, I wanted to assure my clients that I was had the experience they could trust, and I wanted to expand my level of expertise. I attended a professional

In February 2022, the MatSu Food Bank will hosting their annual event, HEARTS4HUNGER. This event offers silent/live auctions, music, delicious food and of course socializing! This year’s event is focusing on raising awareness for the need to buy our new warehouse. Our community has grown rapidly these

Remember your donations of food and money are really needed this time of year. We are truly grateful for all the resources available to help our wonderful community. Remember: No One should go hungry! Please take a minute to visit our web page https://www. matsufoodbank.org. You can also follow us on Facebook, https://www.facebook. com/MatSuFoodBank. See the many ways you can contribute, by volunteering and making donations, help us help our community. Please contact us at (907)357-3769 to schedule time to volunteer, or for more information concerning donations… Thank You for all your continued support, we deeply appreciate our community!

On December 20, we will gather up the cards and do a drawing for $1000 worth of Palmer Bingles.

Here’s how it works: Come to Palmer to shop between November 20th & December 20th. Every time you spend $10, you get a stamp. There are 10 blocks on the Shop Palmer

My parents were career public safety and judicial service employees and being raised in that environment naturally led me into public safety as my first career choice. Once that tenure was completed, I decided to start my own business and I knew I had to do something to benefit from my years of experience with Investigation’s and report writing experience, and it would have to include my passion to help others.

The Holiday Season is once again upon us. Families in our community are struggling with food insecurities and Holidays are difficult for many of them. The MatSu Food Bank is blessed that we have so many businesses and individuals who donated throughout the year to help us assist with providing nutritious food so that we may help our community during this time of need. If you or someone you know is seeking food for this Holiday season, please contact our Food Pantry or schedule a visit, to see how we can help.

past few years and the need for a larger warehouse is in demand, so that we may house all the donations properly. Tickets for this even will be available within the next couple weeks, be sure to get yours quickly, as seating is limited.

From there, you can continue to fill cards - there’s no limit on how much you can support our local businesses! We will be doing weekly drawings on Wednesdays, rotating through the dropboxes of each participating business for great prizes.

Haven’t heard of Palmer Bingles? It’s a Palmer-only currency that can be used at more than 40 businesses in the Greater Palmer area. They’re a guaranteed investment in our community, which means it’s a win for you and a win for our small businesses.

If you were not able to read my first article in last month’s “The Peoples Paper”, please do so to assure you are reading this as part of a series from where we were when I start in this industry to where we are now.

Contributed by Lauralynn Robison

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card. When you complete the card by spending $100, you can drop your card in a box at a participating business of your choice.

The Greater Palmer Chamber of Commerce works hard to promote and highlight our small businesses. One of the ways that we do this is with our “Shop Palmer” event. 2021 is the fourth year of this four week-long event.

Contributed by Patrick Hartshorn

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Originally, I was primarily focused on being an existing home inspector wanting to help people make informed decisions about their home purchases and other real estate related investments. Within a few months in I found myself discouraged by the lack of knowledge about the procedures necessary when a home, or any building, was determined to have an indoor environmental issue, such as mold growth. I could see there was unintentional misrepresentation throughout the real-estate industry by all types of service providers involved with the process. There even was, and still is, a fair amount of ignorance by many who are entrusted by clients to provide direction and be the voice of support and reasoning with good, sound, and credible advice. The recommendations provided are often incorrect with common statements such as “bleach it & paint it” or “kill it with this or that chemical”, which are not appropriate responses to these situations and have

no credible support in this industry! Over time, I became aware that the leading cause for all the confusion was not just because of misleading marketing, or ignorance, but that there was a severe lack of education for those involved with the real estate transactions, to include contractors trying to help and clients trying to understand. While I was aware that in 2003 there was an industry standard published specifically for professional mold remediation, the knowledge of its existence was sparse and those that did know about it, for the most part, were ignoring it! Jump ahead to today and it’s been over 17 years of working with indoor environmental projects where parties involved battle over following the standards-based procedures or doing it “the other way”, referencing methods promoted by marketing, social media, individual opinions, and junk science. I can’t count the number of times I have heard the ever so popular phrase “I’ve always done it this way”, but it’s been a lot. Some of what I have learned is that 1. marketing is typically word smithed for financial gain, 2. social media is a platform for spewing falsities, 3. individual opinion is becoming a common pathway to litigation, 4. junk science is largely based on a pre-determined outcome.

And then there is that “I’ve always done it this way” problem, which is ignorance towards learning the correct way. None of these mentioning’s are backed by independent science, are peer reviewed or are credible and therefore, are strongly discouraged. In the remediation industry, only industry standards are peer reviewed, credible, and therefore, defensible. As I explained in last month’s article, in an industry where you are contracted to serve clients with professional services, your obligation is to follow applicable laws, codes, manufacturer recommendations and/or industry standards. If none of these exist for the type of service being provided, then industry guidelines, industry norms and/or best practices would be used. There are no local laws, codes, or manufacturers recommendations that I am aware of for mold remediation, but there are industry standards recognized worldwide and applicable to Alaska. Next article will be about the steps to take once you realize an indoor environmental issue exists and the following month will be the process of staging a property to be properly remediated. Feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions. Patrick Hartshorn, IH, CRMI 907-232-1007 info@advancelookak.com

COMMUNITY ton and shipped to the Lower 48 to be recreated into various recycled paper products. Yes, no matter what condition, moldy, dirt encrusted, out of date or pristine, they are shredded!

Contributed by The Bright Lights Book Project Look out, free books! Yes, that’s what we said. Free books! It’s happening now, including the Festival of Books, coming the 20th of November, 10am to 4pm at Palmer’s Turkey Red! Have you ever wondered where books go when they’re not passed along like you hope they would be, rejected as a gift, purged after sitting on a shelf for years or they’ve out lived their useful life? Well, many end up in thrift shops. Their next destination . . . a recycling center or landfill. Here in the Mat-Su Valley, the Valley Community for Recycling Solutions (VCRS) ends up with tons of books, magazines and catalogs every year. This year it’s estimated to have collected close to 12 tons. What is done with them? They are shredded. Then, packaged by the

Contributed by Ryan Wilson My name is Ryan Wilson and I’ve had autism pretty much my entire life. It affects me in ways that the normal person probably wouldn’t understand. I have a harder time focusing and get distracted pretty easily. I also struggle with communicating with other people. In particular, I may not know what to say right off the top of my head, I may get distracted before finishing a sentence, or may not want to speak at all. With all these troubles I face with autism, you may find it understandable why I chose to be a member of a group that actively works on improving one’s speaking skills. Working with Palmer Toastmasters has helped me to not only improve my speaking skills in public but to be more comfortable around other

But wait! There is hope for these orphaned tomes and texts. Enter, Alys Culhane — founder of the Bright Lights Book Project. Alys, an avid reader, writer and an educator, with a MFA in Creative Nonfiction writing and a PHD in Composition and Rhetoric, specializing in the composing process of writers and literacy studies, recognized the injustice inflicted upon these publications. Having observed this phenomenon at the recycling center, Alys got a bright idea — thus, the Bright Lights Book Project (BLBP) was born! Over the past two years, she’s been combing the VCRS bins gathering and sorting salvageable materials dedicated to inform, educate, entertain and create an overall enjoyment of reading. Along with her husband, Pete Praetorius, and friend Bill Schmidtkunz, they comb the “Gaylords” (large metal containers) every Saturday at the recycling center — sorting books, magazines and pamphlets. Later, they are cleaned and genre sorted, waiting for the next request from a village, school, non-profit organization or business in need. Books have been shipped all over the state. On average, close to 1,000 pounds of materials are saved on a weekly basis. By the end of this year it is estimated 50,000 pounds of hardbacks and paperbacks will have found new homes! Since the project is locally based, the

people. When I first started going to Toastmasters meetings with my family, it was just a thing I did to give me something to do, since I hardly get out of the house. I didn’t really care much about the speeches or anything at the time. It was just something I did to pass the time. Being autistic, I’m usually more interested in things than people. I don’t really talk to other people due to shyness and a lack of willingness to. However, that doesn’t mean I don’t try to have a conversation with someone else. When I’m in the mood, I can spend a decent amount of time holding conversation and talking about things that interest me. I gained the motivation to join Toastmasters after seeing two family relatives of mine become members themselves. I wasn’t completely sure how to feel

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majority of the books come from VCRS. However, schools, libraries, bookstores, other businesses and organizations, and individuals donate their unwanted books to the cause. The Friends of the Homer Public Library recently donated six boxes of books, all containing firstperson accounts of the 1964 earthquake. The first taker was the Tsunami Warning Center. Along with the books, BLBP supplies the bookcases! You’ll find them around The Valley: the Native Health Center in Sutton, the Sutton Library, the Valley Hotel, Turkey Red, Koslosky Building on all three levels, Sunrise Grill, M-Bar-D in Wasilla and the Mat-Su Borough Building. There’s more! Converted and handpainted newspaper boxes, donated by The Frontiersman, reside at the Palmer Senior Center, the Sutton Post Office and the Sutton General Store, filled with books. The demand is growing. For full information on the Bright Lights Book Project, go online to the MidFebruary issue of The People’s Paper (makeasceneak.com). You’ll enjoy Alys’ article about the project and her passion for books. It’s no wonder there is excitement announcing November 20th as a kickoff event, furthering literacy for the community — the 2021 Palmer Festival of Books. Lovers of books from the surrounding community are coming together to share the knowledge, prose, poetry and fun these survivors of landfill and shredder hold. The reading begins at 10am, sharp! You’ll find them in the Turkey Red Banquet Room in the when I actually got my membership, nor was I certain I’d be willing to put in the work I’d need to progress through my pathways. Being a part of this club has allowed me to challenge myself in ways I didn’t normally think about. It’s forced me out of my usual comfort zone and made me work diligently when writing speeches. I would encourage anyone who has any sort of communication problem to consider joining Toastmasters. It worked for me and it just may work for you. In Toastmasters, we learn how to challenge ourselves by practicing speaking in a non threatening environment. Discover more about Palmer Toastmasters at our website: palmer.toastmastersclubs.org. Join one of our meetings in person on the 1st and/or 2nd Tuesday of each month in the conference room at Turkey red (550 S. Alaska Street in Palmer) at 6 PM or online via Zoom every Tuesday night at 6 PM. We start on time.

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Palmer Plaza. Excerpts from all genres will be recited. And, if you like what you hear, you may have it! Take it home and enjoy. Then, share it with someone else. Christmas craft books and cookbooks will be highlighted. Including goodies to sample and their recipes provided. Yes, there will be boxes of treasured books for you to mull through and have. Kids books too! A children’s hour will be held from 12pm to 1pm. Our final reading ends at 4pm. The majority of the Festival of the Book Readers comprise our growing volunteer staff. You may be familiar with some: Mary Ann Cockle, owner of Fireside Booksellers, Bill Schmidtkunz, Hillary Saffran, Pete Praetorious, Alys Culhane, Lois Liebing, Bea Adler, Sheila Aay, Cam Potts and Nan Potts. We think you’ll agree, literacy is imperative. What better than to recycle and recirculate discarded books to people with the love of reading. Our collective goal is to get books into the hands of readers. The BLBP is looking for businesses, organizations and individuals who wish to support this “circulation” of books and magazines by requesting and providing a space for a bookcase (“A space for a case”) — we supply the books and maintain the shelves to keep the flow in motion. What a great event to include in your Holiday celebrations and shopping! Come join in the fun and you’ll catch an ear-full, or more!

For the Zoom link, visit the meeting directions tab at our club website: https:// palmer.toastmastersclubs.org/. We are a friendly group of positive valley people who meet to help each other grow and have fun together in the process. We invite you to get to know us better by joining one or more meetings as a guest.

COMMUNITY Contributed by Danielle Sherrer Enjoy a pancake breakfast (pancakes, hash browns, sausage & beverage). Get your photo with Santa, and a small gift with ticket purchase! ONLINE ADVANCED TICKET PURCHASE REQUIRED.

Submitted by Lauralynn Robison, Board Member The Holiday Season is once again upon us. Families in our community are struggling with food insecurities and Holidays are difficult for many of them. The MatSu Food Bank is blessed that we have so many businesses and individuals who donated throughout the year to help us assist with providing nutritious food so that we may help our community during this time of need. If you or someone you know is seeking food for

Contributed by Dori Cranmore RN Elderberries (Sambucus) have been a folk remedy for centuries in North America, Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa, hence the medicinal benefits of elderberries are being investigated and rediscovered. Elderberry juice was used to treat a flu epidemic in Panama in 1995. Elderberry has been used for its antioxidant activity, to lower cholesterol, to improve vision, to boost the immune system, to improve heart health and

This event is a very limited capacity due to the high numbers of Covid. Everyone who comes to this event MUST have purchased ticket with time slot before entering. MUST attend at your specific purchased time slot. Due to Covid, Santa will also be socially distanced, but children will still be able to speak and engage with him. Photo

this Holiday season, please contact our Food Pantry or schedule a visit, to see how we can help. In February 2022, the MatSu Food Bank will hosting their annual event, HEARTS4HUNGER. This event offers silent/live auctions, music, delicious food and of course socializing! This year’s event is focusing on raising awareness for the need to buy our new warehouse. Our community has grown rapidly these past few years and the need for a larger warehouse is in demand, so that we

for coughs, colds, flu, bacterial and viral infections and tonsillitis. Bioflavonoids and other proteins in the juice destroy the ability of cold and flu viruses to infect a cell. People with the flu who took elderberry juice reported less severe symptoms and felt better much faster than those who did not. With a cold, flu or any other virus, drugs only have the ability to mask or treat symptoms, but they cannot eliminate the virus itself. Only the immune system can do that. Viruses, which are very small infectious agents that replicate inside the body, only cause illness in the first place if the immune system fails to do its job.  When the immune system fails, try elderberries  When the immune system fails to do its job, there is one natural remedy that has proven to be among the most effective for battling viruses. Elderberries, which happen to be a very powerful antioxidant, have been used for centuries in other countries around the world to treat colds, influenza, wounds (when applied topically) and has even

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op will be made to accommodate these restrictions. *We will NOT have Santa hiding behind plexiglass!* We will have handmade ornaments created by athletes, their families and friends as well as Special Olympics Alaska Mat-Su Community merchandise for sale. All proceeds raised from this event will benefit Special

may house all the donations properly. Tickets for this even will be available within the next couple weeks, be sure to get yours quickly, as seating is limited. Remember your donations of food and money are really needed this time of year. We are truly grateful for all the resources available to help our wonderful community. Remember: No One should go hungry! Please take a minute to visit our web page https://www.matsufoodbank.org.

shown to be effective against the herpes simplex virus. A 2001 study published in the U.S. National Library of Medicine stated that elderberry extracts are “natural remedies with antiviral properties, especially against different strains of influenza virus.” Another 2004 study published in the NLM commented on reduced duration of flu symptoms when using elderberry: “Symptoms were relieved on average four days earlier and use of rescue medication was significantly less in those receiving elderberry extract compared with placebo.” University of Maryland Medical Center writes “Elderberry may have anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and anticancer properties” and “one study suggested that elderberryy could kill the H1N1 virus.” Why exactly are elderberries so effective? It is hypothesized that black elderber-

Contributed by Kimberly Kellar In Alaska, 86,970 people are facing hunger, and of those, 28,160 are children. When you break that down, its’ an average of 1 in 8 people who face hunger in our beautiful state. (SOURCE: FEEDING AMERICA) A broader picture of hunger is that those who are affected by the lack of it, cannot gain important nutritional benefits to keeping themselves healthy due to the costs of food, loss of income within the household, medical costs vs food cost choice, etc. Valley Charities, through its turn-Aleaf Thrift Store, will be collecting nonperishable food items throughout the entire month of November to help ‘Stock the Cupboards’. You can drop off your items inside the store entrance, and we’ll deliver everything collected

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Olympics Alaska Mat-Su Community program. Money raised helps us rent venues, purchase/provide equipment for athletes and unified partners at no cost to them, host competitions and other social events. www.myalaskatix.com/events/ breakfast-with-santa-12-18-2021

You can also follow us on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/MatSuFoodBank. See the many ways you can contribute, by volunteering and making donations, help us help our community. Please contact us at (907) 357-3769 to schedule time to volunteer, or for more information concerning donations… Thank You for all your continued support, we deeply appreciate our community!

ries may include a specific compound, which coats viruses and keeps them from penetrating and infecting healthy cells. The truth is science cannot always pinpoint the exact reason mother nature’s remedies work as well as they do. There are unknown molecules in nature which work in mysterious ways with the body. The human body and its mysterious abilities to heal and overcome sicknesses cannot always be identified or quantified by science. The body and mind are amazingly complex and that complexity works especially well with nature in its unaltered form. So, the next time you want to keep viruses away or have a cold or flu, try black elderberry. Making your own Elderberry syrup takes about an hour and is quite easy. Find the do-it-yourself package at All About Herbs in Wasilla.  This information is for educational purposes only and not intended to diagnose, cure or treat diseases. Dori Cranmore RN is the owner of All About Herbs, inc. 376-8327 on a weekly basis. We hope that you consider joining us in this effort because nothing you give, be it small or large is ever wasted, it’s needed. You really can make a difference…ONE CAN AT A TIME. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FIND FOOD IN ALASKA | Statewide Resources | Food Bank of Alaska Pledge to Volunteer in Alaska | Volunteer Opportunities at Your Local Food Bank | Feeding America Become an Advocate | Campaign to End Hunger | Feeding America Thanks so much! Kimberly Kellar Marketing Director | Public Relations 400 N Yenlo Street | Suite 104 | Wasilla, AK 99654 (p) 907.376.5733 | (e) Kimberly.Kellar@valleycharities.org

COMMUNITY by the furniture maker, Greg Klassen, credited with creating the river table. Greg is based in the Pacific Northwest and sends his creations all over the world. The river table is inspired by natural landscapes and topography. The name comes from the idea that it looks as though a river is flowing through two natural pieces of wood that resemble riverbanks. Contributed by Clayton Allison Alaska Resin Supply Co. Live edge epoxy river tables are sweeping the globe in popularity! These stunning tables are extremely desirable as a DIY hobby—and a rapidly growing enterprise for some entrepreneurs. Epoxy river tables are a type of hybrid indoor furniture constructed from natural wood—typically live (rough) edge slabs with epoxy resin flowing through the middle. The live edge of the wood is turned inward so that it simulates the contours of a river. River tables have exploded in popularity since 2019. They appeal to a wide range of people—especially wood furniture lovers and people who prefer the striking modern style. Each table is unique and customizable to a wide range of tastes and colors. Epoxy river tables sell for between $1,000 up to $10,000 depending on the wood used, the size of the table and other factors. These tables were first made popular

DIY enthusiasts all over the world now create these River Tables in their home garages and shops. There are several important factors to consider when choosing the supplies needed. You will need two different epoxies to complete your table: (1) Deep Pour or Casting Epoxy will be needed to create the river. Deep pour epoxy can be applied in a much thicker layer than standard epoxy. (2) A topcoat epoxy is needed to provide a final coat over your tabletop. Once your epoxy river table has been cast and cured, applying a final topcoat provides a valuable protective layer. The Topcoat Epoxy needs to be durable and scratch resistant once cured. There are a few things to look for in an epoxy resin. UV inhibitors will help prevent your resin from ambering (yellowing) from sunlight exposure. Resins that emit no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) will produce less odor. This is sometimes referred to as 100% Solids Epoxy. This means that no solvents were used in the product—that reduces VOCs. A resin that is self-leveling will automatically level itself out once poured. This is useful for river tables.

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The standard method for pouring a river table requires a dam or mold be constructed. This keeps the deep pour epoxy from running out when poured— an expensive mistake to fix! Constructing the dam or frame must be done carefully to ensure the epoxy table can be removed after the epoxy is cured. One method is to apply Epoxy Mold Release Tape to your surfaces to ensure the epoxy won’t bond to it. Press the tape inside around the entire dam. The tape should stick up at least a half-inch.

hardens and becomes unworkable. Epoxy should be poured in a room maintained at 70°F - 75°F. Refer to Product Instructions.

One continuous piece of tape may be difficult to achieve but aim for as few seams as possible. You will also want to caulk your seams between your boards to keep epoxy from flowing out. You can use clear silicone caulking for this to allow for easier removal later on.

You can pop any bubbles after pouring by lightly using a torch or electric heat gun across the surface.

Your mold or dam can contribute to heat retention in your epoxy. The deeper an epoxy pour is, the more heat generated. Molds made from thick lumber can retain heat and make overheating and cracking more likely to occur. Try to use materials that shed heat easier like Melamine Board, HDPE Plastics or Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF). Look for other ways to shed heat like elevating your mold box and using a fan to generate airflow underneath and around it. Tips: Carefully READ all Product Instructions before starting any epoxy project. Pay attention to the product’s pot life or working time. Once mixed, this is how much time you have before the epoxy

POLITICS & OPINION Contributed by Wes Keller This world seems really harsh right now and from what we hear in the news, there is only uncertainty about a bright future. News media can be turned off/ tuned out, but if you have recently lost your job; are crushed by the thought of national, state, or your personal debt; if you have Covid; lost loved ones; or any number of other challenges – feelings of thankfulness may seem harder to come by than they once were. To elicit thankfulness, we often remind each other to make a list of the things we ARE thankful for and focus on them, but sometimes saying we are thankful does not make it so. An analysis of the anatomy of “giving thanks” helps us generate the real thing. It is an honorable deed to encourage your friends and family to BE thankful when we sit down to eat our traditional thanksgiving dinner! While nobody wants to be preached at about a responsibility to be thankful, most people appreciate the reminder. At its root, being thankful is an emotion, not a duty to be performed. Websters 1828, explains “gratitude” is an agreeable emotion of the heart initiated by a favor or benefit received from some benefactor. It is as natural as happiness generated by sunshine or birds singing.

“Thanksgiving” (giving thanks), on the other hand, was defined in 1828 as an expression of gratitude…an act of will, an action spawned by gratitude. I cannot help but wonder why these nuances are now almost lost and the two terms, gratitude and thankfulness are used as merely synonyms. I suspect one reason is because emotions (gratitude, happiness, sadness, peacefulness, etc.) can all be disingenuous and we aren’t sure whether to trust their veracity, even in ourselves. We like feelings of gratitude but are reticent to trust them just because they are expressed, even if we are the ones expressing. For another thing, there is an implied “debt” to a benefactor involved, even if it may have nothing to do with the benefactor’s motives. We naturally want to do good things in return as part of the gratitude we feel. Children feeling gratitude are evilly exploited until they get “street smart” (wisdom on the nature of man), mature feelings of gratitude generate profound expressions of thanks. We also naturally resist the humbling reality we may “need” a benefactor in order to feel gratitude. We may set out to humbly promote and grasp every inclination toward gratitude we feel in ourselves and determine

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Ensure your workspace is dust, dirt, and insect free. Apply a thin layer of epoxy to all your wooden surfaces to seal it first. This is referred to as a seal coat and will reduce bubbles when you do your thicker Deep Pour layer.

If you are pouring layers of epoxy AFTER your recoat window has expired (see Product Instructions), lightly sand the epoxy surface before you apply the next coat. This will help it to bond better with the previous layer. Let your project fully cure for at least 72 hours to keep the surface from being scratched easily. Never mix epoxy with nor apply it on an oil-based product. Remember PPE: Safety Glasses, Disposable Gloves, Protective Clothing, Respirator or Mask Contact us today to learn more about your options. We have a full epoxy resin line available for DIY projects. Call us at (907) 671-9900 or visit us at 201 E. Swanson Ave. Suite #1, Wasilla. MAT-SU VALLEY, ALASKA

to express them joyfully as a way of sharing our delight, but thinking about the “benefactor” and the “humbly” puts some damper on us! We don’t want to feel indebted to anybody (even if it is not the “givers” intent) because we want no strings attached to our autonomy. We also want to feel self-sufficient. If we avoid looking at the nuances, we avoid a deeper look at expressing gratitude. (Giving Thanks). We must manage and control all our emotions, including gratitude. Part of the management of gratitude is to be able to answer related philosophical questions: Can you even feel gratitude if something good hasn’t been done for us? Does lack of gratitude reveal pride or callousness? Beware! You will encounter life’s most basic question: “Does God exist?” If He does, is the “Divine Providence” referenced in the Declaration something that generates gratitude? Having a national Thanksgiving ‘holy-day’ is certainly a wonderful event spotlighting godly thinking without establishing religion. Back to the warm feelings of the traditional thanksgiving holiday. Expressing our thanks to/for other beings is the catalyst to generate more gratitude. A person who denies “Divine Providence” as referencing a benevolent God must limit expressions of gratitude to fellow human beings. Great Hymns, poetry, and music are expressions

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of gratitude primarily to God. I have never heard significant expressions of gratitude to an impersonal benefactor. Gratitude for life sourced from a formula (time + chance + natural selection) does not elicit the emotion of gratitude toward the formula. That would be ridiculous! Gratitude for created life sourced in the “I Am” of ancient Scripture is profound. Choosing to “offer thanks” in any case is an honorable thing to do – in spite of the fact we may or may not feel appropriately grateful. If you deem yourself rebellious to God, you do still have valid things to be thankful for starting with your loved ones and family, but I suggest you are missing a much broader dimension. Atheist comedian Ricky Gervais promotes the opposite; “Atheists have more to live for because they’re not spending their lives anticipating what comes afterward. So they want to make the most of what they have.” For me, if what we see is what we get, it is much harder to accept covid deaths and suffering; covid masks, mandates, and over-reactions to them; shocking inflation; staggering debts; crimes; and wars. Trusting God offers a bigger picture AND promises ultimate solutions. Happy Thanksgiving! Wes Keller WesKeller.com

POLITICS & OPINION Contributed by Edna DeVries THANK YOU, THANK YOU, if I could speak and/or write “THANK YOU” in every language on earth, it wouldn’t be more heart-felt that what I am saying at this time in English. You all are amazing, loving, and supportive. The results of the election are overwhelming; I thank you for your confidence in me and showing that confidence at your polling place. My swearing in, and that of the newly elected Assembly members, will be in a public ceremony held in the Mat-Su Borough Assembly Chambers at 5:00 pm on Tuesday, November 16, 2021. Please plan to attend. This is your victory also. You are the ones who posted lawn signs, waved signs on street corners, addressed envelopes, gave financial support, talked to your neighbors, prayed for me, asked questions, did your research, and held me accountable to uphold my message of individual freedoms, conservative values of life, second amendment support, following the US Constitution,

Contributed by Paul Robbins Jr., USMC I wrote to our Senators and House Representative, as a result of my reflections from Veteran’s Day, to ask that they live up to the words I have heard over the years in their messages. They have repeatedly expressed their admiration and devotion to our active duty service members and veterans. But their service in Congress makes them complicit in the betrayal of veterans’ sacred oaths and the voluntary sacrifices they’ve made. Since the War Powers Resolution of 1973, the authority and responsibility of Congress to declare war has been

Contributed by Marilyn Bennett Those who have never had children think they know it all, just as those of us who have had children once thought that we knew it all. Having the responsibility of bringing up children makes even the slowest of us Grow Up. Since every child is a separate individual it takes someone who knows them and loves them to understand how to help them make the right choices. Normally speaking, the best person to make those decisions for their child is the parent. That is not to say that the parent is always right, but certainly, he or she will make a better decision than a bureaucrat who lumps all the children into groups that have been predetermined by “Intellectuals” Thank God, parents are beginning to wake up and realize what their children are learning. It is important that the parents understand what is being taught to their children. This doesn’t

Contributed by Paul Mitchell Johnson From day one this is what the Citizens of the United States and the rest of the World have seen from the Harris – Biden Administration. Anwar, the Keystone XL Pipeline and any other Drilling, Fracking and/or Exploration on Federal Lands were halted. At the same time this Administration green lighted Russia’s Nord Stream II Pipeline supplying Germany and the EU. A market the U.S. could have supplied and profited from since we were the World’s leading producer of Oil before Biden’s Executive Orders gutted our Energy Industry. Now his Administration is begging Russia and Saudi Arabia to pump more Oil to help reduce the cost of the Energy Crisis they created. Are you happy now? To detract from the outrage over destroying our #1 in the World Energy Sector, America’s Back decided to do just that with our Southern Border, turn his back. All he had to do was nothing and to allow the Wall to be completed.

State Constitution, and local ordinances and statues, and most importantly of all, continuing to fight for this great country founded by God with liberty and justice for all. I will take office on November 22, 2021 and will have an office in the Borough building at 350 East Dahlia Avenue in Palmer. Please stop by, it is your building and the staff is paid for by your tax dollars, but I thank you in advance for always being respectful to each other as fellow human beings. I will be out in the community attending Community Council meetings, and other public and private meetings to which I am invited. I am the Mat-Su Borough Mayor for all the residents of this Borough. My personal cell phone number has been very busy during this campaign, and I will continue to use and answer that number. My Borough office phone number, as of November 22nd, will be 907-861-8682, and my email will be edna.devries@matsugov.us. I do not yet have a Borough cell number. The Borough Assembly has an active

eroded. Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 of the U.S. Constitution grants Congress the power to declare war, yet our elected representatives have not debated and declared war since World War II. Instead, Congress has abdicated their responsibility and the power to make war to the President, resulting in numerous undeclared conflicts and the ongoing “War on Terror.” Generations of Americans have suffered due to our representatives being unable or unwilling to face their most difficult duty: determining when our troops should be sent to war. Instead, Congress has put forth disastrous resolutions like the Authorization for Use of Military Force, signed three

mean the parents are necessarily correct when they object to a particular lesson. However, it is incumbent upon the school to be respectful of the concerns of parents and be willing to make accommodations for children to be removed from learning subjects that are problematic to the parents. It is not easy being a parent in this age of the internet and schools which seem to be unconnected to the concerns of the community. I am really glad more parents are becoming aware of what is going on in our schools. Education does a lot in determining moral values, appearance, and the future role of citizens. So parents are understandably concerned when they see such things as “white privilege” and “critical race” doctrines like the 1619 Project and “gender identity” theory being taught in their child’s school. It probably was a good thing when the schools went to remote learning during

MAT-SU VALLEY, ALASKA

agenda for the next few months, and then in April the annual budget meetings will be held in Palmer, Wasilla, and in the northern part of the Borough. Some of your questions during the campaign were regarding the Port, and the Borough Manager will be requesting the Assembly hold a special meeting on January 11th to update the Assembly and the public on Port operations. The International Association of Maritime and Port Executives has been under contract with the Borough to prepare a Strategic Action Plan for Business Development for Port MacKenzie. I would appreciate your thoughts and input; I am not in favor of another study being placed on a shelf (physically or electronically). This plan will need to be a “working document” or will need to be adjusted to our citizens and investors’ concerns to become a working document that benefits the Mat-Su Borough and its citizens. Now that our voters have passed the 2021 Transportation Infrastructure Package by a large margin, and

days after 9/11. Not only did this halfeffort fail to name an enemy, but it also left the geographical scope undefined, no time frame, and no clear conditions for victory. Because of this, the 2001 AUMF has been used to justify U.S. military action at least 41 times in 19 countries (Congressional Research Service). And our nation’s longest war has cost an estimated $8 trillion and killed nearly a million people (Brown University’s Cost of War Project). All but the most junior members of Congress are to blame for this continued betrayal of our troops. The Constitution demands appropriation for war shall be for no longer than two years, which means an opportunity for debate and

the pandemic as it gave parents a look into wha twas happening at the school. The education system may need some huge changes as they seem to have forgotten their mission. They should get back to teaching writing, reading and arithmetic and stop propagandizing our children. We now have leaders who think the average person should have no say in his or her life choices, or those of their children Case in point is the Governor who didn’t think parents should have any right to question teachers about their children’s education. It is unbelievable that school boards are trying to wield such power over parents. We have to be very careful in our Local Elections. The “Crazies” are taking over many of our communities because we have not been paying attention. Children are told that they should be able to make their own decisions no matter what their parents think. Children are being taken from their parents because the parent won’t let them have surgery or take meds to change their sex. Adults

But that was a Trump program and that just wouldn’t do. Instead he, actually We the People, paid contractors Five Million Dollars a day, NOT to Build The Wall. As of the end of October there have been over 1.7 Million known illegal Border Crossings documented by CBP. That does not include an estimated ¾ s of a Million Got-A ways. Human Trafficking, Sex Trafficking, Phentenyl & other Drugs, Guns, Gang Members and even known Terrorists on the Terrorist Watch List have come across our Southern Border in numbers not seen since our Government started keeping track over forty years ago. A Caravan of 20 to 60 Thousand more are headed this way as you read. Are you happy now?

came off of the plane. No one bothers to mention the other 20 plus personnel seriously wounded with missing limbs and TBIs. This Administration left nearly 85 Billion Dollars of some of our best Military Equipment over there for the Taliban to seize, along with hundreds, if not thousands, of our Afghan Allies and American Citizens. Private Organizations are still pulling out Hundreds a week as others and their families are tortured and beheaded. Intelligence estimates that within 6 months to 2 years, Al-Qaida will have the ability to conduct another 911 type attack on The American Homeland. Biden turned his back again. Are you happy now?

Then along came the disgraceful, humiliating, disgusting and tragic Surrender and Retreat from Afghanistan, with 13 of our Brave Men & Women paying the Ultimate Sacrifice for this Administration’s mistakes, while Biden checked his watch, as the Caskets

Just in time to distract from the Afghanistan debauch all, another surge of 15,000 Illegal Immigrants crossed the Southern Border. When a news drone started showing the magnitude of the problem, this Administration immediately grounded the drone for

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the $10M for Mat-Su pavement rehabilitation is available from the state, we need your input on the prioritization and calendaring of these projects. On December 14th, the Assembly and School Board will hold a joint meeting. Tentative agenda items include an update from the Mat-Su Borough School District on their annual budget, an update on COVID-19, an update on the Houston High School construction project, and a joint resolution in support of healthcare pricing transparency and the AllPayer claims database. I will chairing my first Assembly meeting on December 7th. Please stay in touch, and if you are not already, please become familiar with Borough’s website matsugov.us and the Borough’s Facebook page. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones. If you, or someone you know, are in need of food or provisions, many of the non-profit organizations and churches in our area are reaching out to our community with offers of assistance. Let’s not let anyone go without this Holiday Season.

proper declaration has been avoided every two years since September 18, 2001. It is past time for all members of Congress to recommit themselves to the intent of our founding fathers, their defined powers and responsibilities under the Constitution, and their solemn duty to the men and women who volunteer to place themselves in harm’s way in defense of the American people and this Republic. I am asking our Alaskan delegation to lead this effort. For every Veteran we honored this day, and for every veteran to come. Semper Fi, Paul Robbins Jr., U.S. Marine Corps Veteran

are told that teachers should have more rights over what to teach the children than the parent who dearly loves this child. This is backwards from the way life has been lived for thousands of years. It bothered me at the way the Federal Government decided to sic the FBI on parents whose only faults were being super concerned about their children. This is totalitarianism at its worst. It doesn’t even matter what the parents are upset about, they should be given a respectful hearing. Certainly, if the parents do something illegal at these meetings, the local police should be called. To send the FBI out after these parents is wrong no matter how rowdy they get. We must all be willing to go out to School Board meetings even when the government is calling us terrorists. We have to stand up and stand out, or who is going to do it? ARTICLE CONTINUES ONLINE: thepeoplespaper.news/marilynbennett

Security Reasons, even though the same drone had been flying the Border for over two months. It took a Court Order to get the drone back in the air but by then many of the illegal’s had been bussed off and flown off to destinations of their choosing. This practice continues to this day and happens primarily in the dark of night. There’s nothing to see here. Please move along. Are you happy now? That’s when the Cargo Ships started piling up at Anchor off of all of our Coasts. A Supply Chain Crisis that this Administration didn’t see coming. As a Heavy Equipment Operator & Oil Field Worker, I saw this coming 30 years ago. That’s when CDLs started being required for people who had done those jobs, along with Trucking for decades. Around the same time you had to Pee in a Cup to get a job anywhere, not just High Risk jobs. ARTICLE CONTINUES ONLINE: thepeoplespaper.news/mitchellj

POLITICS & OPINION Contributed by Sharon Aubrey On Christmas Eve of 2018, my brother, Julian Eddie Myers, was brutally killed by his son in Wasilla. Known by family as Eddie, it was a horrific shock to us to learn of his sudden death. When details unraveled in the case, I learned from Troopers, Eddie was shot eleven times at point blank range by his son, Mark. His other two sons were also present and served as witnesses against Mark. A few days later, I went with a dear friend to clean up the scene, hoping spare my nephews the agony of seeing once again the blood stains in their home. When I arrived, much to my dismay I saw my brother’s handwriting on the wall, “I have nothing left to give.” The heartache in Eddie’s final words tore my soul in two. Later learn of his extreme frustration working out of town only to find his money squandered and bills unpaid. It seemed so senseless that he’d spent his whole life pouring into this children, only for it to end so tragically. After 6 hours steam-cleaning blood out of the carpet, it had to be cut out. I also cleaned blood off the walls and doorways and spent hours with a magic eraser trying to remove those terrible words from the wall…but they remain permanently

Contributed by Doug Ferguson I just finished reading well-known economist and social commentator Thomas Sowell’s memoir, “A Personal Odyssey” that he wrote in 2000 about his chaotic life that shaped him from a poor black kid from North Carolina into what many feel is one of the true great intellectuals of the our generation. His description of life in the stateside Marines during the period in the 1950’s, when the Korean War was just starting, reminded me of my experiences in Basic Training as a Reservist in the Army at Fort Dix, New Jersey in 1961 after the Korean War was over. There were similarities and also differences. Reading it inspired me to write about these and how I chanced to see some true unsung American heroes during my training. The main difference was that when Sowell was in the Marines stateside, many of the cadre and officers he came in contact with were “peacetime” soldiers and had never been in combat. Few combat veterans had yet returned

etched in my memory. Originally, Mark told our family that the gun misfired. It had been new to him, bought second hand, and he realized only afterwards that someone must have filed down the firing pin so it shot automatically. He stated he hadn’t meant for it to go off like that, but the State Troopers proved otherwise. There was nothing wrong with the firing pin. Ballistics proved the gun operated as it should for a semiautomatic. Mark indeed pulled the trigger eleven times. Our family, like most Alaskans, are no strangers to guns. From the time we were young all of us, including Eddie’s boys, were taught gun safety and the proper handling of firearms. We did not blame the gun for Eddie’s death, we laid blame where it was due, on Mark. As more details came out, our family learned of Mark’s intention to kill Eddie texted on a cellphone and told to more than one person. So it was no surprise when the Grand Jury found Mark guilty of Murder in the Second Degree as well as having Extreme Indifference for his crime. To date, Mark has not apologized for his crime to our family. In spite of the convictions by the Grand Jury and the testimony of Mark and his brothers to the loving and caring status

from the Korean war and were active stateside. As a result his account of military life after basic training was more critical as it reflected the bureaucracy of the peacetime military. Despite that, his Marine traditional basic training was far more difficult than mine in the Army as a reservist. When I was at Fort Dix in 1961 virtually all my basic training cadre were either Black or Hispanic Korean War combat veterans and career soldiers. As a result, these guys knew what it took to survive in combat and what really made good soldiers. I came to respect these war veterans and after re-living my military experiences while reading Sowell’s memoir, vowed to write more about them. With Veteran’s day being held this month, it seems a good time to do it. Our Platoon Sargent was a tall, lanky black guy, originally from a farm in North Carolina who had been injured by shrapnel in combat. He had been returned back to Fort Dix to join the

erased by cheap illegal labor, the dream of the elitist billionaire traitors who fuel this insanity. Contributed by Larry Wood The recent passage of the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Bill seems to be viewed by Alaska’s congressional delegation as something beneficial. Further, this bill did not even include $25B to complete the border wall to end the invasion by migration that is part of the Democrats’ ClowardPiven strategy to destroy this country’s sovereignty and economy. Letting this violation of Article 4 of the Constitution remain shows that they forget their oaths to that Constitution and allow the suspension of the rule of law by the Biden Administration to continue unabated. The failure to stop the Biden agenda threatens the middle class, which will be

Inflation from the excessive spending will be like a gas fire, burning hot and destructive, insuring that there will be no recovery, encumbering future generations in debt and slavery. One has to wonder why at this time it was necessary to give the Democrats victory for any part of Biden’s communist agenda? Why did they buckle at this time when Pelosi and Biden were on the proverbial ropes, without a hope of victory? Senator Lisa Murkowski’s support for Biden was a given, she is a RINO. Kelly Tshibaka is the hope to end her reign. The Congressional Budget Office had yet to produce a report estimating the impact of this bill upon the economy and the American people.

MAT-SU VALLEY, ALASKA

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of their father, Mark continue to play the victim and plead not-guilty. The District Attorney eventually informed our family that Mark’s attorney was planning to take a slanderous tactic against Eddie’s character. They would paint him as a constant violent man requiring Mark to use deadly force. That lie infuriated me beyond comprehension, as it would anyone who truly knew my brother. My other nephews didn’t want to relive that event again, for a second time in trial court, and our family didn’t want to see Eddie slandered either, so the District Attorney called for a meeting in which we were informed based on statistics, Mark had a 99.7% chance of be found guilty at trial. But the stress in waiting for trial and the trial itself would be extremely emotionally difficult.

justice, but the DA hoped it would send a clear message: You are responsible for the death of your father. The message wasn’t received.

For the sake of Eddie’s other two sons, the DA offered a plea deal. We were told Mark refused the deal twice. When COVID delayed the courts, the DA informed us he had been instructed to reoffer the plea deals, despite Mark’s previous refusals and was pending trial. We were not happy.

Apparently, having killed Eddie while SB-91, a heinous piece of legislation, was still technicaly on the books allowed Mark the right to apply for early parole this year and potentially early furlough next year, something the District Attorney assured us was not supposed to happen. Yet, it has.

The deal was for aggravated manslaughter, 15 years with 5 suspended, leaving 10 to serve throwing out Murder 2. However, with “Good Time” a third of the sentence would be erased, leaving Mark a little over six years to serve. It was not truly

On October 19th, our family met on Zoom with the Parole Board in Mark’s case. Having never participated in such an event, I had no idea what to expect.

Basic Training staff there. He walked with a slight limp due to his injuries. Our Field First Drill Sargent was a tough and well built Puerto Rican man with a slight moustache and a stern jaw who could bark out commands in classical “Field First Drill Sargent” style! He had completed his tour of combat duty and had returned to the stateside army. He re-enlisted for five years while we were in training. I remember his emotional return to our barracks the evening he did. Both were career soldiers, having joined when they were very young. Each had small private rooms at the end of the barracks building where our platoon bunked in traditional “open” Army barracks style. During our eight weeks of basic training there was virtually no time when one of them was not there looking after us. The rest of our training cadre all had been in combat, were mostly made up of minorities and were all career soldiers.

At sentencing, I employed the judge to ensure mental health treatment for my nephew, but Mark and his attorney fought against the requirement. Thankfully, the judge agreed with me. With Mark’s sentencing in June, I hoped things would emotionally calm down for the next four years or so while Mark served his allotted remaining time. You can imagine my family’s surprise when we received notice in September Mark was requesting early release on parole in October. We felt utterly betrayed by the system tasked with providing justice for my brother’s violent death.

ARTICLE CONTINUES ONLINE: thepeoplespaper.news/sharonaubrey

City, exceptions being me and another guy from Upstate New York. I found out later that such training companies were nicknamed “Goldstein’s Army” by the cadre because the Reservist Recruiting officer in New York City’s name was Goldstein! Our platoon housed in our barracks building consisted of about half of this company. I had heard the term, “City Hicks” before, but as our training progressed, I got to see how accurately this applied to this group! Most of them had never driven a car in their life nor had lived anywhere other than in an apartment with their parents! Their outdoor experiences in nature were restricted to Central Park or the beaches of Fire Island. Yet they thought they were really “hip” and tough! To them the whole territory between Newark and the Los Angeles was a wasteland, excepting only Chicago, as having any modern civilization! That included us rural “hicks” from Upstate! On our first bivouac march through the “piney woods” of Fort Dix at coastal New Jersey...

Virtually all of the members our training company were reservists from New York

ARTICLE CONTINUES ONLINE: thepeoplespaper.news/dougferguson

2022 is not that far off in the scheme of things political.

passed, the rest of Biden’s term was going to be very adversarial, given his plummeting political and popular support. He was down to 38% approval.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was failing time and again to gain enough support to pass Biden’s coup de gras to the Republic that contained in his agenda. The President was frustrated and expressed his frustrations by going to Congress to speak with the Democrats in the House several times before the vote with no success in gaining the support he needed. This showed the fractured Democrat majority. The Nov. 2 vote in VA and elsewhere rattled the Dems in Congress who could see the outcome of 2022 all too clearly. That unease meant the House majority was no longer at the beck and call of the Speaker. As the clock wound down for this session of Congress, the blood was on the ground, given that Biden was getting weaker with each failure and each new poll. Had the infrastructure bill not

Such a failure would have ended Pelosi’s political career and sidelined her before 2022. Where were the Republican wolves who should have harried and tired the wounded Democrat hyena that is the Biden Administration? The blood was on the ground, the signs clear, the beast was dying, screaming in frustration and anger at its failures, mortally wounded as demonstrated by the poll numbers. Instead of finishing the beast, 31 Republicans gave the wounded beast succor and new strength. Fools. 2022-2024 would have been a nightmare scenario for Biden were the Republicans to gain the House and Senate in 2022. ARTICLE CONTINUES ONLINE: thepeoplespaper.news/larrywood

disagree with the people who are the face of that platform? Contributed by Linn McCabe Political decisions are not really made by the majority, but by the majority of those who participate. “We The People,” is not “They the People,” or even “You the People.” We get the government we deserve; thus if we are not engaged in the process, we are affecting the outcome of elections and the ensuing results. Doing nothing is doing something! Staying out of the fray because we “don’t like politics,” or we don’t like such and such party, is allowing others to control outcomes and set our course. Just as the construct and steerage of the rudder, and the

power applied, control the direction and speed of a ship, so too does the size and shape of the input, affect the course of our government. The ship of government is headed somewhere and if we are not at the helm, most assuredly, someone else will fill the void and direct the course. Over the past several months, as the reality of what WE have allowed to transpire, whether it be through apathy or complacency, has become clear, people have begun to show up at meetings and engage in the dialogue. Many of these newly-engaged Alaskans are fearful about current

events and they know they need to “do something,” but they are unsure what that something looks like. They are drawn to like-minded individuals, and organizations with which they can align, in order to make a difference. There is an almost feverish fervor in their demeanor as they begin to recognize the seemingly insurmountable problems presented by the past apathy of conservative Americans and Alaskans. Perhaps you are one of the large numbers of conservative Alaskans who abhor party politics. Do you disagree with the party platform, or do you

There is a difference. Many of us more independent thinkers ascribe to the live-and-let-live philosophy and reject the party, choosing to be Undeclared or Non-partisan, just as I was a few years ago. We conclude that while we are out in the wilderness of non-conformity, none of what happens within the party, or in the political realm, can be ascribed to us. Again, however, doing nothing is doing something. The people who are elected were put there by participants. ARTICLE CONTINUES ONLINE: thepeoplespaper.news/linnmccabe

COMMUNITY

MAT-SU VALLEY, ALASKA

Those were just a few of the trick or treaters that could be found at the 3rd Annual Houston Trunk or Treat this year. After the wind had felled trees and knocked out power to many residents, volunteers from the Houston Fire Department, Public Works, and the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission turned out to host the Trunk or Treat event.

Contributed by Katie Stavick Smoke from a nearby campfire hung in the air, the skies dappled grey, and a chill lingered through the forested grounds. Remnants of Mother Nature’s wrath littered the ground after she had

Contributed by Jaclyn & Carolyn Mae at Talkeetna Gifts & Collectables Once in a Blue Moose Gift Shops. Cama’i (Hello, good to see you) Alutiiq/ Yupik greeting November here in Talkeetna started out a little gloomy, dark, cold, no leaves left on the trees, summer visitors gone and then… a light beautiful snow descended upon our little town and transformed it into a beautiful snow globe. Now it feels like a quaint little Alaskan winter village. We are still here and very much open! Although, not as busy as summer, it is a wonderful place to be. This Morning, a couple came in traveling all the way from Georgia, Lori & Grayson. Upon asking them why they

whipped up a windstorm the prior evening. And as darkness loomed, pirates, mad scientists and a kraken were just a few of those laid in wait, ready for the inevitable onslaught. Soon, there hidden from the highway trolled ghosts and goblins, pirates and...unicorns?

decided to travel to Alaska in November, Grayson immediately responded, “I just love Alaska, I’d come anytime!” Today, they are planning a flight seeing tour to Denali and then a Dog sledding trek with Dallas Seavey’s outfit. Later Grayson remarked, “I think Talkeetna is a great place to be. This little town is what I thought all little Alaska towns would be like.” Though we’ve arrived into our winter months, there is still plenty to do in our quiet little town. We have great food, great drinks, nice gift shops, flight seeing tours, snowmachine adventures, fat tire bike rentals, snowshoeing & cross-country skiing! Beautifully groomed trails for all the snow seeking adventurists. We know you’ll have a wonder-filled time! In the evenings, a

What makes this event different from other Trunk or Treat events is that theirs takes place in the Little Su Campground. Children and families have room to really go all in when setting up their spaces, they have options to keep the late October chill at bay by having a campfire (small and supervised of course), and more opportunity to interact. In coordination with Public Works and the Houston Fire Department, Houston has carved out a different experience. Instead of a parking lot, the city takes advantage of a much safer, more unique, and sometimes muddier setting to provide children and families a unique Halloween experience.

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What began three years ago as a response to no trick-or-treaters coming by, the City of Houston Parks and Recreation reached out to the residents and hosted the event. The first year, the Trunk or Treat had families from Houston, nearby Willow and Big Lake, and some from as far as Caswell come out and planning began that very night for the next year. Although COVID-19 pandemic response and protocols hampered the expansion ideas, volunteers still came out in true Alaskan fashion, bearing the 13-degree chill. So many families attended that some had even run out of candy! The number of attendees nearly doubled, and Parks and Recreation knew they had something. This year still provided obstacles from the windstorm that Halloween weekend that had knocked out power for many residents in the Houston, Nancy Lake, and Willow areas. Organizers decided to go forward and the families enjoyed having an opportunity to get out and have some holiday fun, and plans are underway for next year with hopes to expand the event and bring more families out to Houston.

glowing fire burns brightly on the deck of Denali Brewing. Locals and visitors alike gather around with contentment, sharing laughter and stories. Mimi’s Haus of Cheese is a new, unique and comforting place to find freshly roasted coffee, delectable cheeses and a fine assortment of other tasty goodies. Don’t forget to stop in to see Lori at the Patchwork Moose, where you’ll find yourself in fabric heaven with the possibility of becoming a quilter/crafter yourself! Around the corner, you’ll find Aurora Dora with her spectacular gallery of the Northern lights! Here at Talkeetna Gifts & Once in a Blue Moose, we are offering a 10% discount during the months of November & December when you bring a nonperishable food item(s) in support of our Upper Susitna Food Pantry. We are also having a fun 40% select items for Small Business Saturday. Carolyn, Diana & Jackie can’t wait to see all of you!

May you gather laughter and stories with your visit to Talkeetna! Cama’i (Hello, good to see you)

COMMUNITY Contributed by Kelleigh Orthman Hi I’m Arrow! I’m a total sweetheart! I am so handsome with a soft-ascashmere coat in white with tabby accents that are adorable. I am about 2 years old. I love my people and love to be cuddled. I enjoy my humans with all my heart, just as I really love my cat friends. I am a great family cat, as long as there are no dogs. I am afraid of dogs and will not do well in a home

I am very much in need of a cat companion who will love me, play with me, and race through the house with me! I am ready to finally be with a great family in my forever home. To meet me, please call 907-9808898.

Using booties is best, but many dogs refuse to walk when wearing these. We have all seen hilarious videos of dogs “dancing” to remove these uncomfortable things from their feet.

Winter can be a very dangerous time of year for your dog. There are a variety of weather-related issues that can cause major problems for your canine family members. At a minimum, exposure to the cold, dry air, icy rains, sleet, or snow, can cause chapped paws and itchy, flaking skin. I f your home has dry heat, you may want to use a humidifier and towel dry your pet’s paws, so that they do not cause skin and paw problems. More seriously, chemicals from ice melting products, when licked off paws can cause intestinal problems

Contributed by Sally Ontiveros Last month The Musk Ox Farm in Palmer welcomed a new member into their herd of over 80 musk oxen. A baby bull named Uno was transferred to the farm from colleagues over at The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC) down in Portage. The Musk Ox Farm and the AWCC have had a longstanding relationship being two of only four musk ox facilities in the state, right alongside the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Large Animal Research Station (UAFLARS) and the Anchorage Zoo. The curator of the AWCC thought that Uno would not only thrive among a healthy captive herd, but that he could also be a great addition when he comes of age to breed. She had this to say, “We’re excited to place Uno with [The Musk Ox Farm] for a nice long life, and to help the genetic diversity of [the] herd. Not to mention, it’s always wonderful to work with fellow faculties involved in animal care and welfare!” Uno was born May 13th of this year to two of their resident musk oxen. The herd manager of The Musk Ox Farm, Jamie, has been extra patient helping Uno feel comfortable and safe in his new home. He has become quite the explorer, and now feels right at home roaming around his pen. Even though Uno had a late start comparatively

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where they live. However, I love my feline buddy and spend a lot of time snuggled next to him, grooming him, and being groomed by him.

that can become quite serious. After going for walks, wash and dry your dog’s feet and stomach to remove ice, salt, and chemicals, checking for cracks or redness between toes. Rub petroleum jelly onto these paw pads to protect theses sensitive areas.

Contributed by Angie Lewis

MAT-SU VALLEY, ALASKA

Be mindful of “frozen” lakes which are not necessarily completely frozen. Many dogs have run out onto a lake that they assume is completely frozen. Often, the areas that are closer to shore are not frozen solid and then these dogs go under or get caught up in log jams. Shaving your dog down to his skin takes away the protection that a longer coat provides. You can trim his fur to minimize clinging ice balls. Shorthaired dogs can benefit from wearing coats or sweaters. Bathe your dog only when absolutely necessary during cold weather. Frequent baths can remove essential oils, adding to the discomfort of already

to our calves, Jamie believes that he is right on track to becoming a well socialized member of the herd. She reports that he has been steadily gaining weight and has already grown a new coat of qiviut in preparation for his first winter. Uno spent his first weeks on the farm in quarantine, and once cleared, moved in with the “Golden Girls”, the resident group of female musk oxen ages 18-27. He was even spotted cuddling with the oldest musk ox in the herd, Georgeann, who is 27 years old. Recently, Uno was moved into a different pen with two adult males and two yearling bulls, Loki and Trebek. This was a huge first step for him as he finds his place in the herd and learns from his new pen mates how to be a big muskie man. Uno is currently accepting visitors, and if you would like to come meet this little man, you can book a tour today at www.muskoxfarm.org/farmtours. The farm is open through the winter and masks are required for all visitors. Be sure to check the website and Facebook page for the most up-todate information on winter hours and holiday closures. There are also some great events happening this month at the farm, so be sure to check out the November event schedule below! “Luna’s Big OXcident” Book Signing & Reading with author P.T. Custard Nov. 26 12-4pm

dry, flaky skin. Use a moisturizing shampoo if bathing is necessary. Antifreeze is a lethal poison, so be sure that your dog does not have access to this. Clean up in the vicinity of your vehicle and try to use products that are less harmful – propylene glycol, instead of ethylene glycol. Do not leave your dog outside in your car, as this is like a refrigerator and holds the cold in, potentially causing dogs to freeze to death. Dogs use extra energy just trying to stay warm, so you might consider increasing the amount of food you provide to them. Give your dog a dry, warm place to sleep inside your home, away from drafts. Offer him a warm blanket or cushion. Some people are convinced that dogs are meant to live outside; nothing could be further from the truth. If it is too cold outside for you, it is too cold for your dog. KEEP HIM INSIDE. Dogs are very social animals and they thrive when they are treated as family members. Angie Lewis – Alaska Animal Advocates

SALE: Shop Small Saturday 30% OFF all MODC qiviut products Nov. 27 9am-5pm & Nov. 28 11am-5pm SALE: Cyber Monday 25% OFF all MODC qiviut products, Nov. 29 11am5pm

COMMUNITY Contributed by James Embree

and 26-28).

This year you will once again be able to kick off your Christmas shopping at The Alaska Vintage Holiday Market at the Alaska State Fairgrounds. After being forced to move last year’s markets outdoors due to covid concerns, and therefore moving it to September to avoid freezing, the Market will be back indoors this year and back to a proper Holiday time of the year (Nov. 19-21

For the first time Alaska’s trendiest market will cover two weekends this year, including Thanksgiving weekend. That means you can do your Black Friday shopping and your Small Business Saturday shopping at the Market. We will have over 100 small businesses all gathered in one place for you to enjoy. From handcrafted woodwork, to hand made jewelry, to upcycled furniture,

MAT-SU VALLEY, ALASKA

to original works of art, most of our vendors design and make the products that they sell, so this is truly the apex of shopping small and shopping local! There are so many of these great local businesses that they can’t all fit at once into the two buildings at the Fairgrounds, so those who come both weekends will find a new mix of great vendors each weekend. The Holiday fun will also include live

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music, sleigh rides, reindeer petting, and pictures with Santa and Mrs. Claus. Some of your favorite food trucks will also be at the Market serving up freshly made goodies. The Vintage Holiday Market will also be a collection point for Alaska Airlines “Pack the Plane” canned food drive supporting the Food Bank of Alaska. Cost is $5 at the gate on Fridays and Saturdays, free on Sundays. Hours are Fridays 2-8; Saturdays 10-6; and Sundays 10-4.