Another Great American: Music Educator and Student Advocate

Contributed by Doug Ferguson 

Continuing this series of Great Americans, where some are famous and others you haven’t heard of. These are Americans that I and many others have been influenced by in our lives, and this month I am featuring my old high school band director, Richard Bame.

For my first two years of high school I was a member of the mixed chorus. However,

other kids in the band really liked it and spoke highly of their upbeat and energetic director, Mr. Bame. So at the end of my sophomore year I went in to talk to him about possibly being a member, despite the fact I didn’t play any instrument!

I will always remember the moment he said, “See those four Sousaphones up there?” (mounted in their concert chairs at the top of rehearsal hall) “Would you like to play one of those?” I said, “I guess. Sure, but how do I start?”  He then told me he had played the Sousaphone (A large tuba designed by John Phillips Sousa for marching) in the Ohio State Marching Band and that he would give me lessons over the summer if I decided to switch to the band.

However, this would only be on condition that I attend the “Band Camp” he held every year the week before school started on the shores of Lake Erie. In this camp, the very first of its kind in Ohio that he had started several years before, the band worked out its entire routine for its inaugural performance on Labor Day at the big Canfield Ohio Fair outside of the city of Youngstown just before school started.

I talked it over with my parents and the deal was done! I took lessons at the school that summer with him and attended the Lake Erie band camp, thus starting two wonderful  years with the band and Mr. Bame!

Mr. Bame was only the second director of instrumental music at Boardman High School in Boardman Ohio, the first director having been hired in 1926 when Boardman was just a small farm township south of Youngstown, Ohio.

Bame took over in 1948 after graduating from Ohio State University after he got out of the service after WWII. By that time Boardman was well on it’s way to being a growing post-war suburb of Youngstown. He had served in General George Patton’s 7th Infantry Division and then later played bass in the Army Air Force Band. At Ohio State he played Sousaphone in the famous Ohio State Marching Band where he was given the honor of “dotting the I” in their well known “Script Ohio” formation that the band still features today.

Besides patterning our band’s appearance and style after the Ohio State Marching Band with it’s contrasting cross-belt uniforms and white spats that emphasized the high stepping marching style the band employed, Mr. Bame introduced orchestral string music at the high school level for the first time in Ohio my senior year.

Today Boardman is considered to have the best full orchestra program of any high school in Ohio with several ensembles at different skill levels. Taking a tour of the band room during our 2005 class reunion, we were impressed with the scope of musical opportunities the program provided for any level of student.

He ended up being the band, choral and orchestra director at Boardman 24 years as well as being a school guidance counselor for 10 years and was a private Tuba and Bass instructor before he passed away in 2000. He also played Bass in the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra and later played with the Bob Furney Show Band.

He also was quite a character! One of his favorite words was “Frantic”! “We’re going to have a Frantic time at Band Camp!’ or “That performance was Frantic!” His favorite saying as we left for the end-of-the-year holidays was, “Have a Cool Yule and a Frantic First!” There are also many humorous stories surrounding his foiling attempts to play camp tricks on him during Band Camp!

However, his main outstanding gift was to the students themselves with his outgoing, positive and often humorous approach to musical learning excellence. He encouraged, coached and supported many a “geeky”, untrained-in-music teenager like myself to what turned out to be a life long journey with music that we otherwise would not have had. In fact several of his students ended up being music teachers themselves following the example he set. One of them even came back to teach at Boardman!

Subsequent directors have taken his musical legacy to even higher levels, but to me it was not only his pioneering effort in developing instrumental music education in Ohio, but it was his dedication to each individual student who had an interest in music, regardless of their background, that brands him as a Great American that I was fortunate to have in my life when such a person could do what they did and be appreciated for it!

Doug Ferguson is a retired engineer living in Palmer, AK who has had a life long interest in science, American history, human behavior and music!

Aniak Middle School Former White Alice Site

Contributed by Bruck Clift

The White Alice sites were established in the late 1950s in Alaska by the Air Force for communication with early warning systems during the Cold war. They were operational until the late 1970’s, about the time my parents moved to Alaska. However, many were not demolished, dismantled or cleaned up in any way until the 1990s or later, potentially affecting the health of the local populations. This is about the White Alice site in Aniak Alaska, where I’m from.

 The Division of Spill Prevention and Response lists the site as Aniak White Alice Communications Site or Aniak WACS. The address listed may be surprising as it is the Aniak Middle School. As the WACS, it was operational from 1955 until 1979. The contaminants still of concern are polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and petroleum products. The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) and the Air Force did a cleanup of the PCBs from 1979-1981. The land became property of the State of Alaska at this time. The site would then be used by the Kuspuk School district to house teachers and students, to conduct official business and have parties. I remember an annual thanksgiving event for the school district staff and their families that was always held there. It was the vocational education (Voc-Ed) center for the high school and then became the middle school. My entire generation went to school there. Many of us lived near there and played there. The housing project and Teachers’ Road were within a mile of the property. In 1994, ADEC became aware of the possibility of persistent contamination. In 1996 and 1997, high levels of PCBs were documented to persist in the soil surrounding the middle school. The Corps of Engineers cleaned the inside of the building and covered the contaminated soil in 1998. There are expected to be persistent contaminants to this day.

 The health effects of PCBs seem to have a latency period. They persist in soils and on surfaces and can travel far distances depending on molecular mass so exposure can take place over long periods of time. They can be carried in bodies of water and on the breeze. They also bioaccumulate and persist for many months to years in tissues (fat) where they are bioactive and liver toxic. PCBs can disrupt genes; the endocrine, immune and nervous systems. They have been labeled probable carcinogens by the Environmental Protection Agency as have they been implicated in hormonal, neurologic, skin and gastrointestinal cancers in humans. They may also cause developmental or neurocognitive effects in the offspring of those exposed. Exposure is often through direct contact, inhalation, or consumption of water or meat in which it was bioaccumulated (fish). PCBs can be found in breast milk.

 PCBs may affect steroidogenesis by the adrenocortex and lead to endocrine tumors, diabetes, or thyroid dysfunction. This is of interest to me as my older brother has a rare cancer-adrenocortical carcinoma. He also developed type 2 diabetes at a fairly young age. He lived at the Aniak Voc-Ed center as a fetus/infant, was born in 1980 after my parents moved to Aniak in 1979. They drank the water and used the facilities of the building, unaware it was contaminated. The family moved after several months, but our property was not a mile away when I was born. We played around the then Voc-Ed center as children since there were concrete blocks and other industrial leftovers that were fun for climbing and military artifacts to find. There were definitely old rusty oil drums. It didn’t bother us as kids. We picked berries there and played on the nearby playground. We wandered in the woods behind our house and adjacent to the Voc-Ed daily in the summers. In the spring, Aniak would flood most years- carrying debris from place to place to settle for the next year. It is expected that everybody in Aniak was exposed to the contamination. My concern is that my brother and others from my community may have been adversely affected by the White Alice contamination, even suffering life threatening and life changing illnesses due to exposure during their formative years. The site is still listed as contaminated by the Division of Spill Prevention and Response. It was a devastating spill, with insufficient cleanup in one of the purest parts of the planet, with possible ramifications for years to come. I am seeking and collecting stories from fellow Aniakers who think they may have been affected by the contamination to further our understanding of potential health outcomes from PCB exposure. Contact Brück Clift, MD at PO Box 2646 Palmer, AK 99645 or call 907-746-6686

Valley Board of REALTORS® Offers Two Scholarships

Contributed by Paula Nance

June 1, 2022 – The Valley Board of REALTORS® (VBR) is offering two $1,500 scholarships for continuing higher education. The scholarships are open to the public and require that the school be in Alaska. Deadline for receipt of the application is August 1, 2022

Visit www.valleyboardofrealtors.org – click on ENGAGE and you will find the application listed under Awards and Recognition.

If you have any further questions, please contact the Valley Board of REALTORS®, the voice of REALTORS® in the Valley.

For more information contact valleybd@mtaonline.net

Contact:

Steven Blades

Kiltedak@gmail.com

(209) 602-0686

To Shred or Not to Shred, is the Question?

Contributed by Alys Culhane

To shred or not to shred, this is the toughest question that the Bright Lights Book Project volunteers attempt to answer, now on a near daily basis. This is because in some minds shredding is considered akin to book burning, a practice that has been equated with suppression of historically based information.

The sole commonality between book burning and shredding is this: Gone then, is a single copy of a book, magazine, public document, or private journal, never to again be seen in its original form.

The reality is this: paper-based materials, and this includes those that include the written word, have a set lifespan. In particular, books mold, disintegrate, and fall apart. For instance, much-loved children’s board books are gnawed to the point of non-recognition by children and dogs. Equally loved children’s books become tattered, worn, and often fall apart. Adult books that fall into the bathtub take on the consistency of bricks.

We are fortunate in that Valley Community for Recycling Solutions (VCRS) recycles books. The lifespan of a book that’s burned or sent to the landfill is finite. The lifespan of a book that’s recycled is infinite. At VCRS, hardback books are pulped and paperbacks are sent to the mill as mixed paper. Such books then begin life anew.

The Bright Lights Book Project volunteers salvage, sort, categorize, clean, and distribute books that, in part, are donated to us by VCRS. The above-mentioned question, to shred or not to shred surfaces when salvagers sort through Gaylords (chest high cardboard boxes) boxes, bins, and bags.

The Bright Light Book Project, at its inception, had a five percent save rate. Now, three years later, it has a ninety-five percent save rate.

We initially adhered to absolutes when determining what should be salvaged and what should be shredded. Dirty, torn, marred, crusty, old, out-of-date books were shredded and pulped. However, our categorical imperatives blurred when we began focusing on audience-related considerations.

For example, we asked:

What do you do with multiple copies of young adult books? Back in the days of the project we designated “extras” of these books for shredding. We began sending duplicate copies to villages after teachers and administrators explained to us that they are integral to classroom discussions.

What do you do with general interest dictionaries? With the advent of the Internet and on-line thesauruses, these documents presumably became passe. BLBP volunteer Pete Praetorius saved the day here. He began leaving good quality dictionaries and specialty dictionaries (such as include translation and medical dictionaries) in a box in a hallway at Mat-Su College. In a few days, they were gone.

What do you do with two, three, four boxes of romance novels? The answer to this question surfaced one day as I was making my distribution rounds. My last morning stop on Tuesdays is the Palmer Senior Center. I set out books at noon and talk with Seniors about what I have on hand back at the Church of the Covenant/Meeting House. “I would like Life Inspired romance novels,” one reader declared. Her request was echoed by several other women who were standing close by.

“I have just what you’re looking for,” I said. The following week I rolled my hand cart into the dining hall and put three boxes of Life Inspired romances on the table. The books were gone in an hour’s time.

What do you do with a deceased person’s library, one that contains hundreds of art books, animal books, and Arizona History?

The Mat-Su Animal Shelter took the majority of the animal books, and The Mat-Su College Art Department took the art books. Valley Arts Alliance members also assisted in the distribution of the latter. These were what we call direct placements. The Arizona History books were what we call indirect placements. For instance, the books that we placed in the nonfiction bookcase at Vagabond Blues went to appreciative readers. We still have a handful of these books on hand. Any takers?

We are continuing, when it comes to finding appreciative readers for books, to make imaginative leaps. Thus far, we have hit the mark one hundred percent of the time. We also remain open to suggestions as far as book placement goes. If you know of anyone or any organizations that might want to host a bookcase or would like a specific type of book, contact Alys Culhane at director@brightlightsbookproject.org

Recycling Repeats Itself, Episode 7

Contributed by Randi Perlman

Recycling is picking up speed & momentum, and becoming more main stream every day.  It’s the right thing to do, and makes you feel good when you do it!  But how to start, you might ask yourself?!?  Sometimes a project that seems challenging to tackle in one big chunk is so much easier when you take it in small ‘baby’ steps.  Here are some tips to make recycling a simple part of your life while forming a positive, earth-changing habit.

Before you begin, it’s helpful to know which materials are collected in your area.  Visit Valley Community for Recycling Solutions (VCRS), your local recycling center, or their website at www.valleyrecycling.org for a colorful flyer that lists all recyclable items they collect.  Then, think about the items on that list your household uses most.  Often, people start with one or two of those items, for example cardboard and beverage containers, then add more later.  The amount of space you have available for collecting and sorting will determine what size containers you’ll need.

Where should you store your recyclables until they’re ready to drop off at VCRS?  Wherever works best for you, of course!  Since many items come from the kitchen, perhaps a bin under your sink would work, an empty drawer (hard to come by), or maybe labeled containers in a pantry.  Other ideas more ‘outta sight’ could be a closet, garage or shed.

When it comes to a system, create your own!  Use what you have, which might be old wastebaskets, cardboard boxes, laundry baskets, or paper bags.  You could purchase bins, totes, or self-stacking containers.  They can be labeled, color-coded or clear so you can easily see what’s inside.  Use whatever’s convenient, cost-effective, and easy to handle.  Post a recycling flyer in your sorting area as a guide for all family members and visiting friends.  Labeling helps everyone find the right home for their recyclables.

When your sorted items are ready for drop-off at VCRS, bring them in their original collection container to be emptied (if that’s convenient), or in plastic bags or boxes that can be recycled or re-used.  Use smaller bins for heavy items so they can be lifted easily.  Take a full load, or combine it with another trip to save time and gas ($$).  Keep in mind the Recycling Center is conveniently located adjacent to the Borough Central Landfill as well as Animal Care & Control.  Don’t forget to empty and rinse any drink and food containers before recycling, and discard the caps.

THERE IS NO RIGHT OR WRONG WAY OF RECYCLING AT HOME OR AT WORK.  Do what works for you and keep the process simple.  Once you’ve set up a system, collecting and preparing items should only take minutes a day.  REMEMBER…try to REDUCE the amount you use, REUSE things when you can, and then RECYCLE.  Make it a HABIT!

Together We Are Turning it Around!

Pick up next month’s edition of The People’s Paper/Make a Scene Magazine for Recycling Repeats Itself, Episode 8

Knik Arm

Contributed by Helen Hegener

Only a River…

Visible from most higher areas of the Valley, Knik Arm is the northernmost branch of Cook Inlet, a great body of water which stretches 180 miles north from the Gulf of Alaska and splits at Anchorage into Knik Arm and the more southern Turnagain Arm.

The 25-mile long Knik River, which gives the Arm its name, begins under the Knik Glacier. The word derives from the Inupiaq word igniq, meaning fire; the Denaina term for the river was Skitnu, which means brush river. The Matanuska, Eklutna, and Eagle rivers also drain into Knik Arm, and Wasilla Creek, Peters Creek, and Fish Creek are also major tributaries.

William Bligh, who served as Captain Cook’s Sailing Master on his third and final voyage to Alaska in 1778, thought that both Knik Arm and Turnagain Arm were the mouths of rivers and not the opening to the long-sought Northwest Passage. To be certain, under Cook’s orders, Bligh organized a party to travel up Knik Arm, and they returned to report that Knik Arm indeed led only to a river

Boats of any kind are a rare sight on the silty, churning, tide-wrenched waters Knik Arm today, but in times long past the Arm was traversed by rowboats, freighters, and sailing ships.

George Palmer, a merchant who owned stores in Knik and near the later site of Palmer, frequently crossed Knik Arm, as cited by Valley historian Colleen Miekle:

 “Palmer’s first schooner, the two masted ‘C. T. Hill,’ arrived at Knik Harbor June 7, 1913. Leaving his store in the hands of a clerk, Palmer and crew sailed the schooner from Goose Bay to San Francisco two or three times a summer and brought back merchandise for his store.” And: “In the spring of 1915, Palmer traveled to Seward by dog sled, where he boarded a steamer to San Francisco to purchase a newer schooner named ‘The Lucy.’ Palmer and ‘The Lucy’ arrived at Goose Bay on May 3, 1915.”

George Palmer reportedly made routine trips from Knik to points on the Kenai Peninsula and along the western shore of Cook Inlet. A few others, including the Father of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, Joe Redington Sr., have likewise plied the turbulent waters of Knik Arm. Joe’s boat, the famed ‘Nomad,’ once ferried Joe and his family, his sled dogs, and tons of building supplies, machinery, and other freight between Knik and Joe’s homestead at Flathorn Lake. The historic little craft now sits peacefully in the marshland at Knik, having recently enjoyed a restoration by local carpenters and friends of the boat.

The more recent history of Knik Arm is no less fascinating than its past. After the discovery of oil reserves at Prudhoe Bay in January 1968, a concept for a futuristic city on the west side of Knik Arm was advanced, a planned mega-community of 40,000 residents, with residential, office, recreational and commercial spaces all fitting snugly under a fully enclosed dome at Point MacKenzie.

 Named ‘Seward’s Success,’ features such as climate control, moving sidewalks, a rapid-transit train and an aerial tramway to Anchorage were part of the plan for a car-free community, as detailed in an article, “An Entire City Under Glass,” in the March, 1970 issue of Popular Science. The fate of the city was told in the title to Peter Porco’s November 3, 2002 article for the Anchorage Daily News: “"City of tomorrow a failed dream of yesterday - Thinking big: Domed suburb across Knik Arm was planned in detail.”

More recent plans include the long-discussed, relentlessly controversial Knik Arm Crossing from Anchorage to Point MacKenzie. First envisioned in 1923 by Alaska Railroad engineers looking for a more efficient route to Alaska's interior, the Alaska Legislature created the Knik Arm Bridge And Toll Authority (KABATA) in 2003, to develop a method of construction, financing, design, operation and maintenance of the bridge. In 2018, the Alaska Legislature included funding to restart the project, but the funding was vetoed by Governor Walker, and without funding, the project is effectively dormant for the foreseeable future.

What is not dormant, but vibrant and active, is the port at Point MacKenzie, which moves heavy industrial and bulk materials through Alaska and beyond with a barge dock, a deep draft dock, a 7,000 square foot terminal building, and a rail link to the main line of the Alaska Railroad. From the Port MacKenzie website: “We specialize in bulk commodities such as gravel, coal, wood chips, cement, etc. However, we have also shipped modular homes, oil field modules for the North Slope, logs, and heavy equipment. Most of our exports have gone to the North Slope, South Korea, Japan, and China.”

Photos:

1. Boats at waterfront of village of Knik, Alaska, June 1914. By James Lennox McPherson, a civil engineer for the Alaska Railroad Commission expedition. The A.E.C. had assigned McPherson to research the feasibility of building a branch railroad from Anchorage west to the mining districts on the Kuskokwim and Iditarod Rivers. [Wikimedia Commons]

2. Knik Arm, looking northeast from Point Mackenzie. [Helen Hegener/NLM]

3. “Seward’s Success,’ visionary city from Popular Science, March, 1970

Concrete Moisture Vapor: What You Should Know

Contributed by Clayton Allison

Epoxy flooring is a great solution for residential and commercial applications where a beautiful finish and tough surface are desired. However, excess moisture can cause problems with even the strongest of substances – and epoxy is no exception. Even though your concrete may look dry on the surface, that doesn’t necessarily mean it is dry throughout. It’s important to understand how to properly deal with that moisture.

What is Moisture Vapor Transmission (MVT)?

Concrete is porous by nature and, even though the moisture near the surface of the concrete evaporates as it cures, moisture from below the surface will migrate up through pores, to escape through the path of least resistance. This process is referred to as MVT. This water vapor then breaks down flooring coating systems.

Flooring failures due to MVT costs the construction industry and facility owners billions of dollars each year. MVT problems attack impervious and permeable flooring materials including wood, vinyl, tile, urethane, epoxy, and carpet. The result is disbandment, blistering, pinholes, chipping and pitting, adhesive reversion, cracking, and heaving. If left untreated, it can introduce health concerns associated with Sick Building Syndrome – by aiding the growth of algae, bacteria, mildew, and mold, as well as inducing rot.

Although it may seem as if moisture issues only occur within newly poured concrete, older concrete slabs can also require moisture mitigation. If the concrete was not allowed to cure properly when it was originally poured, too much water was in the mix, or the vapor retardant that was placed underneath the concrete was faulty, a major moisture problem could be hidden within the concrete. For this reason, moisture tests should always be performed prior to the application of any coating system.

What is Moisture Testing or Calcium Chloride Testing?

Professionals can administer several tests to determine the moisture levels in your slab before installing an epoxy floor coating. The Calcium Chloride Test, Plastic Sheet Test, and RH tests are the most common, with the Calcium Chloride Test being the most popular. It is critical that you choose a seasoned professional to administer these tests to ensure that proper steps are taken. 

The Calcium Chloride Test is one of the most well-known tests that measures the moisture vapor levels in a concrete slab. It is the standard test used by the majority of flooring contractors in the United States. The calcium chloride moisture vapor emission test was developed in the 1950s to quantify the volume of water vapor emitting from a 1,000-square-foot area of concrete slab surface over 24 hours. This testing helps you determine if you need a moisture vapor barrier. Per ASTM F1869, test density is required to equal 3 tests in the first 1,000 square feet, with one additional test for each additional 1,000 square feet of the concrete slab surface. Proactively testing the concrete prior to the installation of flooring may prevent the considerable losses attributed to excessive moisture vapor emission and related floor covering system failure.

The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) states that Moisture Vapor Transmission Rates (MVTR) of four pounds per 1000 square feet over a 24-hour period is the maximum rate allowable to successfully cover concrete with adhesives, sealers, or coatings. MVTR can be determined by comparing the weight of the calcium chloride in the test before and after the test time (60 to 72 hours), it indicates not just whether moisture is present, but the quantity and MVTR traveling upwards through the slab.

How do the Professionals Deal with MVT?

Not all coatings for concrete offer the protection that you need to fight MVT-related damage. In DIY epoxy flooring installation projects, refer to your product data sheets to learn the MVTR that each specific product can handle. The suggested test methods and limits from product manufacturers should be adhered to for the best outcomes.

In most situations, the professionals tackle moisture problems in concrete floors by using a moisture vapor barrier primer. The moisture vapor barrier helps reduce the passage of fluids through concrete. It successfully relieves the problems associated with moisture vapor in a concrete slab, keeping moisture from reaching the epoxy flooring system. The thickness of the primer used is based on the amount of moisture present in the concrete. The good news is that newer floor coating products and proper installation techniques will reduce or eliminate water vapor transmission problems.

Concrete failures can happen due to high moisture levels at any time, especially in areas like Alaska. Unfortunately, not everyone is experienced or has the proper equipment to test their concrete. At GH Alaska, LLC, we test concrete for moisture in accordance with ASTM F1869 (using Calcium Chloride Testing). To get the job done right, call our team of experts at 907-414-4941.

Fun Summer Activity For Kids

Contributed by Kiki Kellar

The turn-A-leaf Thrift Store Backyard Birding Challenge starts June 6 and ends on August 14, 2022

Hey kids! We have a fun outdoor activity for you this summer!  Our turn-A-leaf Thrift Store Backyard Birding Challenge. Kids, come into turn-A-leaf Thrift store (in-person) to sign-up for the challenge to receive a goody-bag that has a birding journal, and pair of “pretend” binoculars inside (limit 1 per in-person child).

The activity journal has photos, identification information, and coloring pages of 12 Alaska backyard birds. 

Kids ages 6-12 years of age will look for and find at least 7 of 12 birds to check off when they see them. 

Each child will be given a personalized Certificate of Achievement and Backyard Birding Challenge pin on completion.

But wait, there’s more!

Kids who sign-up will also be given a Raffle Ticket to enter to win National Geographic’s Bird Guide of North America book, and a National Geographic’s Backyard Safari Kit which includes a safari vest, hat, kids binoculars, magnifying glass, field guide and stickers) and National Geographic Bird Guide of North America.  We’ll draw the winners name on the 15th and announce it in-store and on our turn-A-leaf Thrift Store’s Facebook page.

Goody-bag quantities are limited and will only be given out to kids who personally come in-person to sign up.