Life

Nick Varney

Unhinged Alaska: The little tree that could

Each year I receive emails requesting a repeat of a piece I wrote years ago about being away from home on Christmas.

 

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Minister’s Message: The opportunity to trust

It was a Friday night when I received a disturbing text from my son that every parent dreads — especially when you’re 4,000 miles away.… Continue reading

 

Map courtesy of Kerri Copper This map of Tustumena Lake was created in 1975 by John Dolph as he planned an Alaska adventure — and delayed honeymoon — for himself and his wife, Kerri. On the upper end of the lake, Dolph had penciled in two prospective camping sites.

The 2 most deadly years — Part 5

AUTHOR’S NOTE: The two most deadly years for people on or near Tustumena Lake were 1965 and 1975. This series discusses the tragedies of those… Continue reading

 

Virginia Walters (Courtesy photo)

Life in the Pedestrian Lane: A Little cheese with the whine?

No matter which side of the political fence we stand on, as a generation we are intolerant of pity parties

Virginia Walters (Courtesy photo)
Photo by Clark Fair, 1990 This is the cabin on Pipe Creek, along the north shore of Tustumena Lake, where Harold Galliett sought shelter after surviving a commercial airlines crash in the lake in September 1965.

The 2 most deadly years — Part 4

The two most deadly years for people on or near Tustumena Lake were 1965 and 1975

Photo by Clark Fair, 1990 This is the cabin on Pipe Creek, along the north shore of Tustumena Lake, where Harold Galliett sought shelter after surviving a commercial airlines crash in the lake in September 1965.
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Minister’s Message: Living out the incarnate love of Christ

Jesus showed the compassionate love of God to all He met

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A butterfly rests on a hand in this undated photo. (Photo by Meredith Harber/courtesy)

Minister’s Message: Whispering our dreams into the world

Maybe that’s precisely what we need — to place our hope, our wish, our dreams — in something altogether impossible

A butterfly rests on a hand in this undated photo. (Photo by Meredith Harber/courtesy)
Harold Galliett, the sole survivor of a 1965 Cordova Airlines crash into Tustumena Lake, is seen here raking his lawn in 1958. (Photo courtesy of the Galliett Family Collection)

The 2 most deadly years — Part 3

The two most deadly years for people on or near Tustumena Lake were 1965 and 1975

Harold Galliett, the sole survivor of a 1965 Cordova Airlines crash into Tustumena Lake, is seen here raking his lawn in 1958. (Photo courtesy of the Galliett Family Collection)
This is the 42-foot Aero Grand Commander, owned by Cordova Airlines, that crashed into Tustumena Lake in 1965. (Photo courtesy of the Galliett Family Collection)

The 2 most deadly years — Part 2

Records indicate that the two most deadly years for people on or near Tustumena Lake were 1965 and 1975

This is the 42-foot Aero Grand Commander, owned by Cordova Airlines, that crashed into Tustumena Lake in 1965. (Photo courtesy of the Galliett Family Collection)
Nick Varney

Unhinged Alaska: A butthead named Baster

Time now for the Baster saga that took place a few years ago

Nick Varney
Virginia Walters (Courtesy photo)

Life in the Pedestrian Lane: Let’s give thanks…

Thanksgiving has come to mean “feast” in most people’s eyes.

Virginia Walters (Courtesy photo)
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Minister’s Message: What must I do to inherit?

There’s no way God can say “no” to us if we look and act all the right ways. Right?

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Jane Fair (standing, wearing white hat) receives help with her life jacket from Ron Hauswald prior to the Fair and Hauswald families embarking on an August 1970 cruise with Phil Ames on Tustumena Lake. Although conditions were favorable at first, the group soon encountered a storm that forced them ashore. (Photo courtesy of the Fair Family Collection)

The 2 most deadly years — Part 1

To newcomers, residents and longtime users, this place can seem like a paradise. But make no mistake: Tustumena Lake is a place also fraught with peril.

Jane Fair (standing, wearing white hat) receives help with her life jacket from Ron Hauswald prior to the Fair and Hauswald families embarking on an August 1970 cruise with Phil Ames on Tustumena Lake. Although conditions were favorable at first, the group soon encountered a storm that forced them ashore. (Photo courtesy of the Fair Family Collection)
In 1954, David Nutter (right) and his younger half-brother Frank Gwartney were ready for their first day of school in Sitka. (Photo courtesy of the Nutter Family Collection)

Finding Mister Nutter — Part 6

Chasing down the facts about Warren Nutter was never going to be simple

In 1954, David Nutter (right) and his younger half-brother Frank Gwartney were ready for their first day of school in Sitka. (Photo courtesy of the Nutter Family Collection)
Mary Nissen speaks at the first Kenai Peninsula history conference held at Kenai Central High School on Nov. 7-8, 1974, in Kenai, Alaska. Photo provided by Shana Loshbaugh

Remembering the Kenai Peninsula’s 1st history conference — Part 2

The 1974 event inspired the second Kenai Peninsula history conference, held in April, 2017

  • Nov 8, 2024
  • By Shana Loshbaugh For the Peninsula Clarion
  • LifeCommunity
Mary Nissen speaks at the first Kenai Peninsula history conference held at Kenai Central High School on Nov. 7-8, 1974, in Kenai, Alaska. Photo provided by Shana Loshbaugh
Photo provided by Shana Loshbaugh Dena’ina writer, translator and ethnographer Peter Kalifornsky speaks at the first Kenai Peninsula history conference held at Kenai Central High School on Nov. 7-8, 1974.

Remembering the Kenai Peninsula’s 1st history conference — Part 1

Kenai Peninsula history gathering 50 years ago remains relevant and rousing

Photo provided by Shana Loshbaugh Dena’ina writer, translator and ethnographer Peter Kalifornsky speaks at the first Kenai Peninsula history conference held at Kenai Central High School on Nov. 7-8, 1974.
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Minister’s Message: My upstairs or your upstairs?

The question challenges us to consider our own eternal destination and relationship with Jesus

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This photograph shows hunter/trapper Warren Melville Nutter near the lake at the foot of what was almost certainly Skilak Glacier, circa late 1930s. (Photo courtesy of the Nutter Family Collection)

Finding Mister Nutter — Part 5

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Warren Melville Nutter spent the final 32 years of his life on the Kenai Peninsula, working mainly as a trapper, a mail carrier… Continue reading

This photograph shows hunter/trapper Warren Melville Nutter near the lake at the foot of what was almost certainly Skilak Glacier, circa late 1930s. (Photo courtesy of the Nutter Family Collection)
This photo of Warren Melville Nutter, holding a dead juvenile bald eagle that he shot for the bounty, appeared in the May 1938 edition of The Alaska Sportsman Magazine. The photo was probably taken near the mouth of Hidden Creek on Skilak Lake.

Finding Mister Nutter — Part 4

Nutter had two trap-line cabins

This photo of Warren Melville Nutter, holding a dead juvenile bald eagle that he shot for the bounty, appeared in the May 1938 edition of The Alaska Sportsman Magazine. The photo was probably taken near the mouth of Hidden Creek on Skilak Lake.
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Minister’s Message: Being able to hear God

We need to open our eyes, and listen deeply to how God is speaking to us

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