Peninsula Clarion, April 21, 2019

Page 1

THE

Spring sports See lineups of peninsula high school teams D Section

Sunday

Champs Redemption MMA is great at state Sports/B1

CLARION P E N I N S U L A

Sunday, April 21, 2019 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska

Vol. 49, Issue 172

$1 newsstands daily/$1.50 Sunday

O’Brien approved as interim school district head

In the news Alaska museum to have new name, look when it reopens in May KODIAK — Officials say the Baranov Museum in Kodiak will have a new name once an extensive renovation of its permanent exhibit space is complete. The Kodiak Daily Mirror reported on Friday that the Kodiak Historical Society’s board of directors voted to change the name to Kodiak History Museum to better convey the broad Kodiak history that is encapsulated at the museum. The Historical Society says the Baranov Museum name misrepresents the museum’s mission and place in the community as it doesn’t focus on Russian history alone. The museum’s $750,000 permanent exhibit renovation began in September. As part of the reopening, the Historical Society will unveil a new bronze outdoor sculpture by Alutiiq artist Perry Eaton and feature a performance by the Alutiiq Dancers. The museum is scheduled to reopen at 1 p.m. on May 4.

Anchorage police lieutenant picked for Fairbanks chief job FAIRBANKS — A lieutenant with the Anchorage Police Department has been picked to be police chief in Fairbanks. Fairbank Mayor Jim Matherly recommended Lt. Nancy Reeder for the job. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports she accepted an employment offer but that she must pass a background check and be confirmed by the Fairbanks City Council. Reeder was a sergeant in the Air Force for four years and a member of the Alaska Air National Guard for two years. Reeder has been with the Anchorage Police Department since 1984. She was an officer, traffic sergeant and detective before being named a lieutenant. — Associated Press

Index Local................A3 Opinion........... A4 Nation..............A5 Police.............. A6 Weather.......... A8 Sports..............B1 Homes............ C1 Community..... C3 Crossword....... C4 Classified........ C5 TV Guide........ C7 Spring Sports Guide.............. D1 Check us out online at www.peninsulaclarion.com To subscribe, call 283-3584.

By VICTORIA PETERSEN Peninsula Clarion

From left, the Caring for the Kenai finalists Akilena Veach and Lindy Guernsey (second place), Austin Cline (first place) and Anna DeVolld (third place) pose for a photo at Kenai Central High School in Alaska on Thursday. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Eco inspiration Winners announced in annual Caring for the Kenai contest By Brian Mazurek Peninsula Clarion

What do butterflies, video games and a parody of “Ice, Ice, Baby” by Vanilla

Ice have in common? They were all part of the presentations and ideas at this year’s Caring for the Kenai contest. Celebrating its 29th year, Caring for

the Kenai challenges high schoolers to come up with original ideas for environmental and natural disaster preparedness and present their ideas to a panel of

judges. Thanks to support from the community, Caring for the Kenai was able to award $8,000 directly to the students who particiSee ECO, page A2

On Thursday, John O’Brien was approved to be interim superintendent by the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Board of Education. In a unanimous vote, the board amended and approved O’Brien’s contract to act as interim superintendent from July 1, 2019, t0 June 30, 2020. “I humbly accept this appointment as Interim Superintendent and am 100 percent committed to work on behalf of the entire Kenai Peninsula community to achieve positive educational outcomes for our students,” Mr. O’Brien said in a press release. “The Board of Education asked me to step up to help our school district through this challenging transition period in our See HEAD, page A2

Trump sours on Mueller report after initial upbeat view By JILL COLVIN Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is lashing out at current and former aides who cooperated with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, insisting the deeply unflattering picture they painted of him and the White House was “total bulls---.” In a series of angry tweets from Palm Beach, Florida, Trump laced into those who, under oath, had shared with Mueller their accounts of how Trump tried numerous times to squash or influence the investigation and portrayed the White House as infected by a culture of lies, deceit and deception. “Statements are made

Attorney General William Barr speaks about the release of a redacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report during a news conference, Thursday, at the Department of Justice in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

about me by certain people in the Crazy Mueller Report, in itself written by 18 Angry Democrat Trump

Haters, which are fabricat- & only given to make the ed & totally untrue,” Trump other person look good (or wrote Friday, adding that me to look bad).” some were “total bulls--The attacks were a dra-

matic departure from the upbeat public face the White House had put on it just 24 hours earlier, when Trump celebrated the report’s findings as full exoneration and his counselor Kellyanne Conway called it “the best day” for Trump’s team since his election. While the president, according to people close to him, did feel vindicated by the report, he also felt betrayed by those who had painted him in an unflattering light — even though they were speaking under oath and had been directed by the White House to cooperate fully with Mueller’s team. The reaction was not entirely surprising and had been something staffers feared in the days ahead See SOUR, page A6

Marine pilots concerned about Royal Princess megaship JUNEAU (AP) — Southeast Alaska marine pilots are concerned about the maneuverability of one of the four megaships cruise lines are expected to bring to the state this sea-

son. The Norwegian Bliss and its sister ship are expected to visit the state, along with Royal Caribbean International’s Ovation of the Seas and Princess

Cruises’ flagship, Royal Princess, CoastAlaska reported Friday. The Southeast Alaska Pilots Association tested the limits of each of the four megaships in virtual

Music in the Park lineup released By VICTORIA PETERSEN Peninsula Clarion

The Soldotna Chamber of Commerce has released its Music in the Park summer lineup. The free, family-friendly concert series was recently awarded the Levitt AMP Grant Award — a $25,000 matching grant from the Mortimer and Mimi Levitt Foundation. The foundation is “a national funder of creative placemaking that empowers communities to inject new life into underused public spaces,” according to a chamber press release. The grant is a dollar-for-

Musician Mika Day performs for market attendees at this year’s final Wednesday Market, on Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2018, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

dollar match from the foundation, with a minimum contribution from

the Soldotna Chamber of $25,000. See MUSIC, page A2

reality. At 68,666 tons, Ovation of the Seas is the largest ship ever to visit Alaska. But it’s Royal Princess that’s concerning marine pilots.

“Overall the simulations (for the Royal Princess) produced serious challenges in wind and current conditions common to Southeast Alaska,” the pilots See MEGA, page A3

Sentencing set for ex-Alaska bank employee who stole $4.3M ANCHORAGE (AP) — A former Alaska bank employee who stole $4.3 million in cash and fled to Mexico is set to be sentenced. Gerardo Cazarez Valenzuela, 33, pleaded guilty to theft of bank funds after he was extradited to the U.S. last year, Alaska Public Media reported Thursday. The former cash vault services manager loaded boxes of cash onto a cart and wheeled them out of a KeyBank in Anchorage in 2011, according to court documents. He had organized an

ice cream social for that day, giving him the opportunity to stay late to access the vault under the guise of cleaning up from the event, according to the documents. He also set measures in place to allow himself to open the vault without another employee present. Valenzuela drove to the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport and boarded a private jet to Seattle. He then bought an AK-47 rifle and a handgun and drove to Mexico. After crossing into See BANK, page A2


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.