Kotzebue Report . • .
By KOTZEBUE
CORRESPONDENT
Kotzebue was stunned by the
recent national tragedy. Memorial
services were held at the Catholic
Church on Nov. 23 at 10 a.m. and
at the Episcopal Church Nov. 25
at 10:30 a.m. All schools, the bank
and most offices were either closed
or had a minimal staff.
PTO meeting scheduled for Nov.
25 was postponed until today when
the new officers will be elected.
The first grades are now on split
shifts and the one group begins
classes at 8 a.m. and the other at
12:30 p.m. Mrs. Schnare. who was
school secretary, now teaches one
group of the first graders. No re
placement has been hired as sec
retary. There will be a meeting of
the advisory school board Dec.
9. Pictures of the BIA school chil
dren (which were taken a month
ago' have arrived and can be pur
chased by the children at school.
Fran Pagenkopf, PUN, is in
Noatak until Nov. 27 for field clin
ic. Dr. Mentzer returned from field
clinic at Koyuk on Nov. 27
Mrs Sam Lauser, head ward
nurse at the PHS hospital, es
corted a patient to Anchorage
Nov 26. She returned Nov. 29.
The Maricopa Club bake sale was
a big success and enjoyed by all.
The Catholic Church bake sale
was cancelled
Mrs. Catherine Boyd of Nome
who is with the Alaska Dept, of
Welfare, spent Nov. 26 in Kotzebue
and went on to Kivalina Nov. 27.
She planned to return Nov. 29.
Dr. and Mrs. Lathrop planned to
leave Point Hope for Kivalina Nov.
27 to continue their dental field
clinic there. They were to have
their Thanksgiving dinner with
the Gillespies at Kivalina.
Mr. and Mrs. Collins Mendenhall
are the proud parents of a baby
girl born Nov. 24.
Joe Walsh. FAA Station Man
a jer, has been in Anchorage the
past week attending the FAA sta
tion manager conference
Mrs. Glenna Nickells, teacher at
Friends High School, who has been
in the hospital for back trouble,
departed Kotzebue Nov. 14 on a
stretcher. She was accompanied to
Whittier, Calif., by Rev. Earl Per
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ishol Mrs. Nickel Is had surgery
Nov 21 at Presbyterian Hospital at
Whittier The doctors removed a
disc and she is getting along very
well and expects to be released
from the hospital about Dec. 1.
Cheerleaders for the Friends
High School were chosen the past
week. Lynn Crump was chosen
leader of the group. Other mem
bers are Walter Sampson, Aggie
Jack. Mary Scott and Dora Godwin.
Friends High School held a
Thanksgiving party the evening of
Nov. 22. It was planned by Juniors
Lee Crump. Willard Outwater and
Henry Harris Jr. A dinner was
served, specialty of which was
caribou roast and fried cornmeal
mush. Everyone was dressed as
pilgrims and Indians, numerous
after dinner speeches were given
followed by games.
First issue of the Igloo Press,
Friends High School paper, was
issued Nov. 27. Dora Goodwin was
winner of the contest for naming
the school paper and the cover
drawing was won by Aggie Jack.
The high school is taking Nov. 29
as a holiday.
The Friends Church had Thanks
giving dinner Nov. 28 at 2 p.m. in
the church, and a special song
service at 7 p.m.
A Thanksgiving feast for Epis
copal Church members was held
at Cudd Hall at 3 p.m. and movies
at 7 p.m. followed by Eskimo
dancing.
Volleyball tournament winners
so far are the Hospital and Wiens
I tied for first place in the men’s
\ games, and the FAA in the wom
en’s games.
Lyle Bowen returned from va
cation Nov. 21, and Rex, Adelaide
and Margaret Brown left for a
two month vacation to Burton,
Wash., Nov. 25.
Sophie Mitchell returned from
Chemawa Nov. 22.
Wiens had several passengers for
Kotzebue Sat., Nov. 23, including
Charlie Barr, Jerome Adams, Ro
land James, Rev. Perisho. Ed Ny
gard, Don Ferguson, Ray Ferguson
and daughter Diane, and Gibson
Howarth who was on his way to
Point Hope.
Mr. Adams and Mr. James, both
with the Geophysical Institute, re
i turned to Fairbanks Nov. 25. Louie
Beltz went to Fairbanks also on
Nov 25 Vernon Richards and
Tommy Goodwin arrived from
Fairbanks Nov. 26.
Edith BullockleftTor Nome Nov.
27. to spend Thanksgiving with
Bill and Stubey Cameron.
Ed Nygard, BIA Land Opera
tions Officer, arrived from Juneau
Nov 23. and plans to remain about
a week He was the reindeer range
conservationist here at Kotzebue
a few years ago.
The City Council met Nov. 21. A
Finance summary was presented
bv Councilman John Schaeffer and
it is thought that the budget for
the new year will enable the city
to continue most of the services
in the past which includes the
city policeman, city clerk and the
sanitation service. The city re
ceived a letter from the Kotzebue
Liquor, Inc., stating that they will
be unable to make any further do
nations to the city until corpora
tion taxes, etc., have been paid.
The Special Forces thanked the 1
city for the use of the Community :
Building for housing troops from !
Nov. 17 to 20, while they were in J
transit from the outlying villages, j
__
Clinton Gregg terminated from
the sanitation service and William
Hensley is taking his place. Del
bert Hess is in charge of the sani
tation service.
The city plans to lease radio
equipment for police vehicles. They
wish one base station and two por
table mobile units. They have con
tacted Communications Electron
ics Corp. for this service.
A letter of appreciation from
the city was sent to Homer Rus
sell, of Kotzebue, for painting thin
ice warning signs which were
placed on the ice in front of town.
The City Council plans to or
ganize city Christmas activities.
Three council members, Sam Lau
ser, Elmer Armstrong and John
Schaeffer, will meet Dec. 4 at 7
p.m. at the library with represen
tatives of the various civic organi
zations and the churches to plan
these activities. It is hoped that
they can bring back some of the
holiday activities of years ago such
as reindeer racing and Eskimo
storytelling, etc. The city will help
financially with the Christmas ac
tivities.
News from Savoonga
By SAVOONGA
CORRESPONDENT
On Friday, November 22, at 7
o’clock, the villagers of Savoonga
came to the Savoonga Day School
to celebrate the birthday of Amos
Penayah, one of Savoonga’s first
residents and now its oldest male
citizen. Beloved by everyone in
the village, Amos was wished a
happy birthday by well over 200
friends and neighbors who came to
join in Eskimo dancing and singing.
Amos himself, now approxi
mately 85 years old, was one of
the drummers, and near the end
of the celebration, put on the danc
ing gloves and danced — to the
delight of his many friends. Short
ly after that everyone sang happy
birthday to Amos while he blew
out the candles on his big, five
tier birthday cake.
Born at Gambell about 1878,
Amos Penayah first came to the
vicinity of Savoonga at about the
age of 22. He and two other Gam
hell boys came with a Lapp rein
deer herder to learn how to herd
the 706 reindeer. They remained at
a camp in the vicinity and returned
to Gambell at the end of the win
ter. The following year the three
boys returned to the same area,
but this time with two Lapps, their
wives, and children.
In 1915 Amos returned to the
Savoonga area for a third time,
but this time to live. The other two
boys had already come to live.
The three set up camps around a
camp already set up in 1910 by
Mayokuk Sheuvkuk’s father. They
decided to name their small vil
lage Savoonga, which means “The
Point Beyond.”
Amos can still speak the Lord’s
Prayer in Lapp, and he often uses
Lapp words and phrases in speak
ing to members of his family.
Known by all the villagers as a
fine storyteller, Amos Penayah has
gone to school once during the fall
to have lunch with the boys and
girls and tell them old Eskimo
stories. He is no stranger to the
Savoonga Day School, having
served as its custodian for four
years, and also having helped in
Nome Sanitary
Service
Dial 2671
P.O. Box 460
the rebuilding of the school after
the first building burned. Now,
however, Aynos is unable to do
much carpentry, or ivory carving
either, because of his growing loss
of sight.
Yaria, Amos’ sister, is Savoonga’s
oldest resident. She is two years
older than Amos. Dressed in a
new, bright-red parka, Yaria was
an honored guest at Amos’ party.
She pleased everyone twice during
the evening by dancing Eskimo
dances. Yaria is now a widow, but
her husband was Tungitoo, by
whom she had five children. One,
Lucille Wongittilin, is still living
and is very active in the life of
the Savoonga Presbyterian Church.
• • •
Shocked by the death of their
President, John Fitzgerald Ken
nedy, the villagers of Savoonga
regretfully and sadly participated
in an evening memorial service
held at the Savoonga Presbyterian
Church. Planned by Edward Golo
gergen, an elder of the Church,
the service included hymns and
prayers.
One in every five American
non-farm families has an income of
$10,000 or more a year.
Polar Bar
"Where All Friends Meet”
Complete Selection of Your
Favorite Beverages
Polar Liquor Store
Call Keilh Hedreen
443-2302
Nome Directory
BERING SEA LIONS CLUB
Jack Carpenter, Pres.
Bob Smith, Sec.
Meeting Every Tuesday
North Star or Polaris — 7 pan.
Northwestern Alaska
Chamber of Commerce
Meet* Every Monday Noon at
North Star Dining Room
Frank Couch, President
ALASKA CHAPTER NO. 1
Order of Eastern Star
Verna Mickelson
Worthy Matron
Bev Morgan
Secretary
Meets First and Third Mondays
Anvil Lodge
No. 140
^ T«mer E. Bohrer, W. ML
Charles Lewis, Act. Secty.
Meets First nd Third Thursdays
Of Each Month
Nome Rotary Club
Don Hoover
President
Virgil Vochoska
Secretary
Wednesday Lunehsos
Pioneer Igloo No. 1
Meets 1st and 3rd Wednesdays
Don Lyle, Pres.
Bill Ullrich, Acting Secty.
Civil Air Patrol
v, Northwestern Group
Nome Composite Sqdn.
1 ChMtas, Commander
Meetings—Each Monday 7:00 p.n
Parent-Teachers Assn.
Meets Last Tuesday of Every
Month at School
Frank Couch, President
,BVa^*Ms2^»helde^• Secretary
MEMBERS only — ^