Notes from Teller
By TELLER CORRESPONDENT
Frank Noyakuk brought in a
nice size catch of white fish which
sure helps keep the belly from
rubbing the backbone. Frankie
Keelick is ice fishing and doing
O.K. He is also trying to do some
trapping but the high water from
the strong south wind has ruined
the sets for mink and land otter
for a while.
The Itinerant Public Health
Nurse has been in the village for
several days. It is almost the first
visit since last May and much
needed, as there has been lots of
sickness. Some parents do not take
very good care of their children
as they should do.
Andrew Ozcnna and Roger
Ozenna are learning to carve ivory
and they are doing very well.
Their father is Louis Ozenna and
he is teaching the boys to carve.
Louis is one of the best ivory
carvers in Alaska.
Johnny Foster returned to town
from Sullivan City where he had
been doing some work on Orville
Dickum’s tractor. He reports that
John Larson is doing fine. John
is wintering at Sullivan City.
Two BIA Reindeer Men have
been in town on matters pertain
ing to the reindeer herds in the
area. We have been fortunate this
year that there have been no
wolves around the herds. There
were some wolves last year but
they got cleaned out. There is
a real need for a Slaughtering and
Meat Inspection and Meat Packing
Facility on the Seward Peninsula
to help the reindeer herders mar
ket their reindeer meat. The rein
deer innustry cannot grow unless
the markets are expanded. Nome
is the most logical place to es
tablish such a facility. The BIA
controls the industry, so chances
are nothing will be done to help
the industry.
Mrs. Bob Blodgett is in Anchor
age on business and should be
home this week. “Ricky” and Bob
are bachelors now. Ricky baked
a nice cake.
Mrs. Harry Olanna and her
daughter Joyce were in with their
dog team from Brevig Mission on
business here in town Saturday.
Also, Mr. and Mrs. Elmer Seetot
were in by dog team from Brevig
Mission on business. Elmer is the
U.S. Postmaster at Brevig Mission.
Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Kaloke came
to Teller on business by dog
team last week And Mr. Elliot
Olanna was in with his dog team.
The dog teams were lined up on
the beach in front of Teller Com
mercial Company Saturday until
it looked like mainstreet in a mid
west town on Saturday night when
all of the farmers used to hurry
to town and park on Main street
and sit in their cars and watch
folks walking by.
Johnny Kakaruk who is a mem
ber of our new City Council, is
talking about plans for the Holi
day Festivities. Johnny always has
something good up his sleeve this
time of year.
Pat Cronin and his family are
in town from Anchorage to spend
the winter.
Phillip Kugzruk has been busy
helping Ralph Kugzruk with his
reindeer herd. There has been
quite a little warm weather which
makes it better for the boys who
are doing the butchering.
Johnny Kugzruk has been keep
ing the fires burning at the Lu
theran Mission while our Mission
ary, Miss Bertha Stedje spends a
couple of weeks at Brevig Mis
sion. It may sound strange but
we are short of Missionaries, but
the ones we have are genuine, and
I’d rather we were short and have
genuine ones than to be long on
them and have some imitation
ones like there are some places.
One of our teachers, Mrs. Jim
Rossi, has been ill with an ear con
dition and a cold. We 11 be happy
to see her up and around again,
as we miss her happy smile and
sunny disposition.
Harold and Russ Tweet have
been busy redecorating the house
for their old folks who are now
in their 90s. Imagine wearing one
home out and starting in on an
other one. It must be the water!!
Josie Okbaok is back home from
the M-M-M Hospital and resting
fairly well.
The other day Gilbert Esenituk
saw a large spotted seal on the ice
out on the harbor and he hurried
and got a shotgun with No. 2 shot j
and hurried out on the ice after !
it. Then Edward Kakaruk hurried
out from another direction with
his rifle. The two boys shot the 1
seal together and will divide it.
They didn’t hitch up the dogs to
bring it in but pushed a sled out.
Dave Kakaruk worked as one of j
the dogs bringing it in. Seems to \
me I heard someone telling Dave !
to Gee and Haw. Ha, Ha. That
spotted seal must have been the
Grandaddy of them all.
Mr. Edgar Lee has returned
home from Nome and we are all
happy to see him. Three Lee1
Brothers are here this winter.
They are Kenneth, Albert and
Edgar. They are batching and
take turns cooking. I hear they
flip hotcakes in tune with Chubby
Checker’s rhythm.
Mrs. Clarence Olanna of Brevig
Mission went to Nome, Saturday.
Jones Barr and Bertha Barr came
over by dog team from Brevig
Mission the other day. They had a
nice string of dogs. They reported
that the trail across Port Clar
ence is safe but at times it is hard
to travel, as the dog trails have
not been staked yet. No one has
been down from Igloo yet. We’ll
be happy to see Paul and Johanna
Ablowaluk and Larry and Agatha
Jo when they come down. It’s been
a long time.
CASE LOT GROCERIES — Cash Only
— Village Orders Given Prompt Attention —
» Price Lists Available «
MARTIN’S COLD STORAGE
AIRPORT WAY
BOX 216. NOME PHONE 443-2440
Noorvik News
By NOORVIK CORRESPONDENT
Last Saturday, Dec. 7, Isaac
Smith, George Kagoona and Ray
mond George left Kiana at fi p.m.
to spend the weekend in Noor
vik. The party did not arrive here
until after midnight. Halfway be
tween the two villages a bearing
for the chain drive on their Snow
traveler broke. They had to make
a wooden bearing from their sled
to continue the journey to Noor
vik.
• # •
Paul Outwater, an Eskimo
trapper from Kiana, came down
to see his traps, which he has set
Northwestern
Alaska
News Briefs
out down below Noorvik. Mr. Out
water returned home with four
mink.
• • •
Everybody is getting ready for
Christmas. Nearly every woman is
sewing on new mukluks to wear
on Christmas Eve. A woman
makes mukluks for the whole
family. December is a busy month
for the ladies of our village.
• • •
Mrs. Carmen Perry, primary
teacher, has initiated the first
steps in organizing a Girl Scout
troop. She is seeking adult aid in
the village to act as Scout leader
and on the Scout committee.
Thirty-six girls have enthusias
tically endorsed the effort. This
group includes girls from nine to
fifteen years of age, which en
compasses all of the girls from the
third to eighth grade.
• • •
Paul and Mary Brown have re
turned to Noorvik from Kiana
with their children. Mr. Brown
has been working on the new
school sn Kiana. Isaac Smith has
also returned to Noorvik to be
with his family for the rest of the
winter. He, also, has been work
ing on the Kiana School.
t • •
The Noorvik National Guard
and the BIA School personnel
have combined manpower and
equipment to establish a Volunteer
Fire Brigade. The Guard, under
the direction of NCOIC Sgt. Isaac
Smith, are organizing so that each
member of the unit has an as
signed piece of fire fighting
equipment which he will man dur
ing an emergency. The BIA has
the preponderance of fire fighting
equipment and the only readily
available water supply which,
along with available manpower at
the school, has been put under
the direct command of the Fire
Chief.
If you see a jolly little old fat man with a red nose and
baggy pants around — Let us know ...
One of our pilots answers that description too !
MUNZ NORTHERN AIRLINES
t
POINT HOPE REVIEW
By POINT HOPE
CORRESPONDENT
The new village health clinic
was used for the first time on De
cember 8. On December 7, the
Health Council held a meeting in
the new clinic. Everyone is very
pleased with the clinic. It is
painted inside with several coats
of white paint. It is well insulated
and is very warm even in the
worst weather. There are cabinets
for medicine, an examination
table, a desk, chairs for the wait
ing room, and a curtain for pri
vacy.
• * •
Construction is beginning this
week on a guest room adjoining
the clinic (behind the movie
screen of theater) for visiting med
ical personnel. Also to be bui’t
soon is a storm shed for the clinic
entrance.
The following letter was re
ceived by the Village Council
president:
November 27, 1963
Dear Sir:
I have been informed recently
by Dr. Thomas Harrison of the ex
cellent work you and your people
are doing to better the health of
your people. I understand that a
Community Health Center is un
der construction. This should be
a great asset to your health pro
gram. I agree with Dr. Harrison
that the purchase of a radio for
the clinic would be most benefi
cial.
I wish to commend you, your
council, and your people for their
realization of the importance of
maintaining good health.
If we can be of further help,
do not hesitate to call upon Dr.
Harrison and his staff.
HOLMAN R. WHERRITT, M.D.
Medical Director
Alaska Native Health Area
Director
Anchorage, Alaska
• • •
Point Hope went through the
third bad snow storm of the sea
son on December 5-9. Everyone
was pleased that the mail plane
made it in on Saturday, Dec. 7,
one day late.
• • •
The sun was last seen at Point
Hope on Dec. 4. It is not expected
to rise again now until about Jan
uary 7 or so.
• • •
Daniel Lisboume, Village Coun
cil President, has been nominated
to the State Advisory Committee
for the U.S. Commission on Civil
Rights. He was recommended by
the Alaska Congressional Delega
tion in Washington, D.C. He is
presently president of ANICA and
a past president of ANAC.
• • •
The local primary election for
village officers will be held
Thursday, Dec. 12. Village Coun
cil! members whose terms expire
Dec. 31 are Patrick Attungana,
secretary, and Joseph Frankson
and Elijah Attungana, councilmen.
The regular election will be
held on December 26.
• * •
Mr. John O. Grow, Deputy Com
missioner of the Bureau of In
dian Affairs at Washington, D.C.,
has expressed concern for the
problem of steady electric current
for the Pt. Hope people. In a
letter to Senator Bartlett, he said:
“We are requesting our Juneau
Area Office to look into the mat
ter immediately, and to render all
assistance possible to insure a
continued source of electric power
this winter.”
Only one of the visage light
plants is in operation at the pres
ent and there is concern as to how
long it will hold out.
• • •
A polar bear was killed by
Augustus Kuwanna of Point Hope
the first week of December. It was
killed on the ocean ice a few
miles from Point Hope.
* • •
A new village council office may
be remodeled in an extra room of
the ‘‘Community Building.” The
Council began preparing an office
and eventually took out the jail
cells and turned the whole place
into a new village clinic, owned
and operated by the village. The
Council is now planning to use the
other room for an office but it
will take a lot of work to get it in
condition for an office.
• • •
A few have been getting seals,
but there are only a few hours
of daylight each day now. Some
sti.'l have caribou meat. A few
families are having a pretty dif
ficult time financially. All work
ers at the school construction
have finished now but most of
these will app!<y for unemploy
ment benefits.
At Point Hope, 17 school chil
dren have won wrist watches in
a year-long dental contest. The
Village Council promised to buy
watches for school' children who
had no new cavities on the next
annual visit by the dentist. Only
two school children had no new
cavities last year, so it was a sur
prise that so many children won
watches this fall. The Council was
well prepared, however, for it had
ordered extra watches to be sold
through the Native Store to off
set the cost of the awards. Each
month the children took home
from school a check-off chart to
use each day after brushing their
teeth. At the end of each month,
these charts were used as admis
sion tickets to a free movie pro
vided by the Village Council.
The watches are one-jewel, with
sweep second hands. They were
ordered from West Germany for
about $5 each, including customs
duty.
• • •
At a meeting of the Point Hope
Village Council on December 12,
Daniel Lisbourne announced his
resignation as President of the
Council. He said he was resigning
because of “personal reasons.”
This came as a big surprise to
all the Council members who
urged him to stay on as president.
At Dan’s request, they then ac
cepted his resignation.
Bernard Nash, Vice-President,
is now the Village Council Presi
dent of Point Hope.
Dan Lisbourne will continue his
personal work in behalf of the
betterment of the Village. This
has no bearing on his position as
president of ANICA.
Letter-size and Legal File Holders
Available at the Nugget
Planning A Trip io Seattle
on A Budget?
THE QUEENSBOROUGH
Seattle’s Finest Studio Apts.
Completely Furnished
Daily, weekly or monthly rates
Maid Service — Beautiful Lobby
Elevators to 96-car garage
Spectacular Views City and Sound
5 Minutes Downtown
4 Blocks Opera and Playhouses
Few steps Shops, 2 Busses
Brochure and Rates Upon Request
101 West Olympic Place