When: Monday, November 6th, 6:00 PM Where: St Peter’s by Book the Sea Episcopal Church - 611 2022 Tide Lincoln St Southeast Alaska
Tours, Rentals, Sales, & Service www.sockeyecycle.com
Skagway Shop 381 Fifth Ave Skagway, AK 99840 907-983-2851
Boat-to-doorstep seafood, focused on community, quality and traceability. www.sitkasalmonshares.com 216 Smith St B Sitka, AK 99835 salmonsupport@sitkasalmonshares.com
Photo by Freddy Muñoz
Haines Shop 24 Portage St Haines, AK 99827 907-766-2869
info@seacc.org | www.seacc.org | (907) 586-6942
Front Cover
Land Acknowledgement
This land that we stand on, the forests that we wander, the waters that we fish from, are the unceded lands of the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian peoples who lived here among the tides and trees for time immemorial. We respect, honor, and acknowledge their Indigenous sovereignty, knowledge systems, and stewardship of Southeast Alaska. From SEACC, Gunalchéesh, Háw’aa, Nt’oyaxsn, and thank you.
In the following pages, Southeast Alaskans describe what differences they’ve seen during their lives here, and what brings them hope in sustaining their communities for future generations. SEACC is grateful to everyone who contributed their experience and knowledge to this tide book. We hope you can get to know your neighbors by reading their stories. Those in the communities of the panhandle, from Yakutat to Metlakatla, rely on the web of life woven through the water and the land to support their lifestyles and livelihoods. Our way of life continues to be threatened by extracting these resources that sustain us without care for the natural balance that enables this lush environment, impacting our forests, rivers and oceans. Thank you for picking up the SEACC 2022 Tide Book! We hope this information will assist you in planning your Inside Passage adventures, whether you are beachcombing rocky shores, kayaking with humpbacks, or harvesting wild Alaskan seafood. If you don’t see your community’s tide pages, please see the tidal corrections.
Trixie Bennet Ketchikan, Alaska “In my lifetime, I’ve seen the fish dwindle from literally being able to, like people say, walk across the creeks and the lakes to a lot of creeks not having any fish anymore… That’s what we do here in Ketchikan and over in Wrangell, [we go for drives and] go look out over the creeks all the time, from the time we were younger… I’ve seen the fish disappear. …That’s what I want. I want us to have fish. I can’t imagine Southeast Alaska without salmon. I don’t think anybody can… We see a lot of people holding up what they find at the beach- their catch, their harvest, their salmon- and I’d just like to see more people standing up for salmon and our other relatives… We all deserve to live and work here but not at the cost of what’s most precious. Clean water, fish. We all love it.”
Trixie is Tlingit of the Kaach. ádi clan. Her father’s side is Tahltan from Telegraph Creek, and her mother’s side is Shtax’héen Ḵwáan from Ḵaachx̱ aana. áak’w (the area known as Wrangell). After spending her childhood there, Trixie has spent the last 29 years in Ketchikan where she and her husband raised their family and she became a grandmother. Her career has been spent working for the Tribe, and she is currently back in school to get her business degree. Trixie’s hope is to use all these different tools to continue sharing her passions of plant medicine, traditional foods and food sovereignty with her community.
Bill Shattenberg Juneau, Alaska “You know, the winters are milder than they used to be. [ ] That’s not a function of the last forty years, that’s a function of the last eighty years, I think. Cause I can remember as a kid, growing up in Poulsbo we’d have a foot and half or two feet of snow, and they haven’t had over six inches of snow there in years and years. So it’s all the coastal areasall the coastal areas are slowly getting warm. It’s just now we’ve finally become aware of it and we’re looking at the possible ramifications from it which seem very real to me… It’s not a question of if [the environment’s] gonna change, it’s a question of how far it’s gonna go.”
Bill first arrived in Southeast Alaska in 1981, after answering an ad in the Seattle Times. He and his wife tuned up their old 1940 wooden yacht that summer and sailed to Juneau, where they harbored up in Douglas to experience one of the worst winters Southeast Alaska has ever had on record! Yet they made it through, and now couldn’t imagine being anywhere else. Bill is finally closing down shop on his company Anchor Electric, which has helped electrify towns and businesses throughout Alaska. Growing up on the water in Washington state, Bill is excited to continue retired life next to the ocean, focusing on his lifelong passion of restoring wooden boats.
Derek Poinsette Haines, Alaska “Fishing, subsistence fishing, sport fishing and commercial fishing is what the culture and the community here revolve around. Those are the things that all life [here] really is attached to and it’s been that way for centuries and centuries, and to see that threatened by a big thing like climate change. We have small challenges too- development and industrial development, a potential mine. To see centuries upon centuries of history facing what could be the end of a culture of fishing, and of fish, and of subsisting off local food resources— it’s heartbreaking that you might be that generation that just sees that stuff come to an end.”
Derek has spent the last 14 years of his life living in Haines, along with his wife Dawn and their very large dog, Hindi. Majoring in Fish & Widlife Biology in college, Derek and his wife were drawn to the Chilkat Valley due to its thriving ecosystem, which he learned firsthand were becoming harder and harder to find. As the Executive Director of the Takshanuk Watershed Council, Derek has seen in both his professional and personal life what a healthy watershed provides for these communities. Derek fights to protect these watersheds so he and his family can continue to enjoy what made them fall in love with Haines in the first place- connecting to the land through fishing, hunting, and being
Honalee Elkan Juneau, Alaska “[Our region’s current fish stocks] are at around 10% of what it was pre-industrial fishing. I mean that’s just mind blowing— we’re a whole generation that has grown up not knowing what that looked like... The only things that should be going outside of our region should be surplus… being a fish monger or deck hand is hard and dangerous work, and not always worth it now because the returns are so terrible... [To use these resources responsibly], comes down to quality over quantity and to scale back [unsustainable methods of harvest] to allow the resources to heal. People need to be able to eat, most importantly locally. We can make a beautiful cyclical relationship between the healthy preservation and management [of our resources] on a realistic level, but its gonna take a shift in the mindset.”
Honalee has called her spot in North Tee Harbor home-base since birth. Her parents arrived to Juneau on their yellow trimaran in the 1970s, and she and her siblings helped build their family home from the ground up. She spent her childhood fishing off of breadline bluff, gathering berries and chasing off porcupines from their gardens. Honalee is now a biologist, with a goal of using science to help preserve our incredible environment which she knows is vital for her community’s wellbeing. She currently works at UAS as the chemistry tech, and has enjoyed wandering in the Southeast Alaskan bush supporting Fish & Game’s bat research program. When not working, she spends her time on her family’s farm caring for their many animals- including dogs, goats, chickens and a donkey!
Naomi Michalsen Ketchikan, Alaska “When I was a young child on Prince of Wales Island, getting out with my family to get sea cucumbers (we call that yein in Tlingit), black seaweed, ribbon seaweed, all sorts of different fish and abalone, on and on. Those were absolutely some of my most favorite memories…. These foods have always been here for us, and this place provided for us in much abundance... [Last night an elder said to me,] “the mission of the Tlingit people is to create a balance”… That’s what I try to bring out when we do get together and connect [through Kaasei]. When we think about these things, when people start to taste them again or when we learn about the powerful foods, nutritional value and wonderful taste of the plants,... [we want] to take care of the place that we’re [in and to] share with our friends and the elders.”
Naomi has called Ketchikan home for over 30 years, the ancestral lands of the Taánta kwaan and the Saánya kwaan people. It is where she raised her five children, and the land on which she continues to bond with her nine grandchildren. Naomi’s Tlingit name is Kaasei, and she is Wooshkeetaan, Eagle/Wolf of the Shark House. Naomi founded Kaasei Training & Consulting, where she works with people throughout Southeast to help strengthen their connection to the land— and ultimately within themselves— by learning how to gather, harvest and prepare the incredible edible bounty the Inside Passage provides.
Luann McVey Juneau, Alaska “Well for me, [what I want to preserve is] wildlands and old-growth forests— the trees that connect with each other and the trees that shelter so many creatures, it’s all really important and valuable and it helps to give. In terms of healing, it gives us so much peace to be in that kind of natural environment. That’s valuable to me and I hope my grandchildren get to experience that as well…I really love walking fish streams and just seeing clean, silt-free gravel and thinking about the fish that can eventually spawn there and then the baby salmon that find their way into the little pools that have overhanging moss and old dead logs that they can hide under. It’s all part of a wonderful interconnected world that needs to continue for all of us people, but [for] all of the creatures as well.”
Luann grew up in Juneau, after her parents brought her here in 1957 at the ripe-old age of 2 years old. Growing up in the home of a fisheries biologist, Luann followed in her father’s footsteps working for Fish & Game for many years on their land use projects for the fisheries division before becoming a teacher through the University of Alaska system. Now retired with her fellowteacher husband, Luann recently became a grandmother and spends most of her time bonding with her two new grandbabies. Luann is passionate about supporting groups like SEACC and the Sierra Club to ensure our community and its environment remain intact so her grandkids can grow up with the same
Matt Hamilton Ketchikan, Alaska “I work at Community Connections [a youth organization in Ketchikan, and] a lot of my stuff is taking kids out, experiencing going out in the woods or going to the beach, fishing, clambaking, all those kinds of things… I want them to be connected to the land and that’s what I hope to keep doing with my kids. There’s something primitive about it, something that’s very basic about it, when you crochet your own hat you have a value that builds on that hat. If you lose that hat, your heart is broken. It’s that IKEA affect— if you build it yourself, then it hurts more when it goes away. So, I’d like for that to be the mindset of my kids and my friends and my family… I like to incorporate the food off of our beaches into our meals and I just want our kids to be able to see that and educate other people.”
Matt is a life-long Ketchikan resident— seventh generation, according to his mom. He continues the family tradition of being rooted in the water by living right on the ocean with his two kids, where they go explore the tide pools of Ward Cove almost every day. Matt wants to make sure that his kids have an appreciation and understanding of these areas that have fed his community for generations upon generations. They like to share the rich bounty of our shores with the world by making Tik Tok videos together titled ‘What’s Under the Rock?’. Matt is an artist, and describes his style as “pop culture meets Alaska.” He does shows throughout Southeast Alaska under the name Creative Hustler Company.
Swarupa Toth Juneau, Alaska “What gives me hope [ ] is the utter unfailing resiliency of nature and spirit. The second you give nature a chance, it recoups, you know. It comes back, it grows, [like] the flower through the cement. Nature teaches us everything, that is really true… [when] a tree [has] fallen over and you see what comes out of it, you know, it’s amazing! [Nature has] its own system and healing. It’s filled with vitality, and humans have sort of cut ourselves off by being extremely individual, especially in the United States where we’re rugged individualists. The beautiful thing about Alaska is that we, especially in Gustavus when I moved there and there was no internet, you know we depended on one another and no matter what you believe about the environment or guns or sexuality and gender, if you were stuck out somewhere and the tide was coming in- [if] somebody could help you they would, they would no matter what. [As in nature], it always came back to our connectedness and our ability to help one another.”
After living in an ashram in upstate New York for over 12 years, family loss caused Swarupa to take a new direction with her life. She wasn’t sure where she would go, but she knew she wanted to find another place that valued inner peace, authenticity and community connection. Feeling unsure of her next steps, she accepted her friend’s invitation to help assemble a yurt in Gustavus. She took the ferry up and upon setting foot in Alaska, realized she had found her home. Swarupa has now lived in Southeast Alaska for almost 20 years, first in Gustavus and then in Juneau working for AWARE, Inc. She loves getting outside to connect with nature through hiking and kayaking, or just relaxing in her home overlooking Gastineau channel with her partner Saralyn and their two cuddly cats.
Sustaining Donors Southeast Alaskans know that protecting a lush and healthy future for the Tongass and Inside Passage Waters requires collective action, combining each person’s skills and strengths to work together towards one goal. Members of the SEACC community work towards these shared goals by volunteering for our events, signing petitions online, or donating what they can! In the following pages you’ll meet a few of our Sustainers! These donors give everlasting life to our work as their steady, monthly donations enables SEACC’s work for decades to come. Some give $3 a month, and in a year donate $36. Some give $25, and in a year give $300. SEACC’s Sustaining Donors know that just as every drop of rain fills the surging river, giving every month keeps SEACC’s work swelling and rushing forward.
Deb Gravel Haines, AK
Deb first arrived in Ketchikan in 1976 after a long journey north in a 63’ VW bus with her dog, two cats, and husband in tow! Since then, they have raised their three children there, originally supporting her husband during his 12-year-long career as a commercial fisherman before becoming a librarian for the city. After retirement, they moved to Haines which they have called home for the last 8 years. She has been a supporter of SEACC since she first joined the Tongass Conservation Council in the early 1980’s, especially motivated after seeing firsthand the effects of the pulp mill on Ketchikan’s air quality. Now, she sees her current home, Haines, under threat from risk of developing the Palmer Mine. Deb continues to support SEACC’s work throughout Southeast Alaska because “if we take away what gives us our quality of life, [if] we take away what makes this a beautiful place where you can hunt and fish and gather berries, where you can raise your garden, raise your children safely… it’s just not worth high paying jobs.”
Hayden Kaden
Logan Smith
Gusatvus, AK
Colorado Springs, CO
Once Hayden finished law school in Texas, he and his wife first moved to Alaska in 1967 to work for our young state before buying land in Gustavus, building their dream home and raising their family amongst the magic of Glacier Bay. Hayden then wanted to use his entrepreneurial spirit and love of this land to start Alaska Discovery, one of the first wilderness guiding companies of its kind with a mission to show people throughout the U.S. why the Tongass forest and Inside Passage was special and needed to be protected. Hayden’s guiding days are now behind him, but he and his family still do all they can to preserve their home. Just like Hayden made sure his business had as much positive impact as it could, however small, Hayden still believes in that philosophy today. “[My business] was small but it made a difference in the big picture, and the same I think applies to pledging to give money to SEACC on a monthly basis where it really doesn’t matter how much money one gives as long as you can… you know all the money that comes in from pledges is money that’s used to protect our homelands… things like that will make a major difference in how the Tongass is governed and used.”
Growing up in Colorado, Logan and his family have always been connected to the outdoors. As an architectural engineer with a brother in the forest service, he knows that ensuring a balance between new development and a healthy forest must be maintained not just to for the wellbeing of the environment, but for the communities that call that place home. Logan was inspired to begin supporting SEACC as a monthly donor a few years ago after hearing about the danger’s posed to the Tongass rainforest as the threats to repeal the roadless rule became more concrete. “I saw something a few years ago where the Roadless Rule was put under scrutiny [ ] and they were deciding to try and throw it out the window... it just struck me as something that I needed to take action on. You know there’s only so much I can do from Colorado so I wanted to at least donate for it… I mean there’s just so much that the rainforest has to offer… I think that [ ] with monthly donations you’re getting the money a lot sooner and more often and smaller donations have a chance to make more of an impact… It’s important to me to be able to do it more often than not, rather than doing it yearly [as] I feel like they make a bigger impact.”
Take SEACC’s mission is to protect the Tongass National Forest and Inside Passage Waters for future generations. We know that thriving communities come from responsible stewardship and sustainable use of the land which has always provided for us. Hearing from those in the community about what they think are the most pressing issues is invaluable to our work, to ensure all communities in Southeast Alaska are preserved. On the following pages, we have space for you to give us your input on what you think SEACC needs to know about environmental issues facing your community. We look forward to hearing from you!
Action What are the greatest environmental concerns facing your community? ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________
We want to hear from you! How can SEACC better support your community’s environmental concerns? ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________
Has SEACC ever visited your community? If not, what resources can we bring that would be the most helpful? ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________
We want to hear from you! How has over-exploitation of our natural resources created injustice in your community? ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________
What changes have you seen in your ecosystem in the last several years? ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________
We want to hear from you! Is there anything else you want SEACC to know about risks to your community and its environment? ________________________________________
Thank you for taking the time to give us your thoughts. We cannot do our work without
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the input of community member’s from
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throughout Southeast.
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You can email us your answers, and any other thoughts or comments, at
info@seacc.org Or, you can mail us your written response directly from the book! Our mailing address is on the next page.
Love Southeast Alaska? Become a Member Today! There is an incredible history of philanthropy in Southeast Alaska. We look out for each other by knowing what we give helps us all. Donating to SEACC is a way to directly ensure the future of a healthy Tongass and a clean Inside Passage by strengthening our position with policymakers and supporting our grassroots organizing. Start with a gift of $35 a year, or consider a monthly donation of $5. You’ll receive our Ravencall twice a year and be given the tools to make a difference in protecting this special place. Donate Online at www.seacc.org/donate or clip and send to: 2207 Jordan Ave, Juneau, AK 99801 (907)-586-6942
[ ] I want to set up a monthly, recurring donation: o $10/mo o $5/mo o $50/mo o $25/mo o $______ o $100/mo [ ] I want to make a one-time donation of: o $50 o $35 o $250 o $100 o $1000 o $500 o $_______ Card # _____________________________ Expiration date _______________________ CVC Code___________________________ Name______________________________ Email______________________________ Address_____________________________ City__________________ State__________ Zip _____________ Phone(_____) _____ -_________(required for card payments) SEACC is a 501[c]3. Your contribution is tax deductible to the extent allowable by law.