Blessings in a Backpack

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Sitka Community Food Assessment Team thanks those who helped with food security survey

Thank you, Sitka, for taking, sharing, and supporting the Sitka Food Security Survey! Our survey ran from September to the end of October, and we gathered more than 400 responses. This survey is part of a larger effort to better understand food security in Sitka and capture the ways in which we can make it easier for all Sitkans to have access to affordable, nutritious, and culturally relevant food. We are so grateful for the outpouring of support and for each person who took time out of their day to complete the survey.

This work is a result of a partnership between the Sitka Local Foods Network and Transition Sitka, both local nonprofits with a vested interest in food security in Sitka. We are grateful to the dedicated members of those organizations who donated their time to help spread the word about the survey, especially Charles Bingham, Leah Mason, Barbara Bingham, and Toby Campbell. This work would not be possible without the dedicated support and guidance of our steering committee which include community partners at the Sitka Tribe of Alaska Social Services Department, The Sitka Public Library, Sitkans Against Family Violence, Blessings in a Backpack, Sitka Conservation Society, and UAF Cooperative Extension Services.

A special thanks to the organizations and events in town that shared and hosted the survey including the Sitka Sound Science Center, the Sitka Public Library, Indigenous People’s Day, Coffee with Elders, Southeast Alaska Independent Living, UAS Sitka Campus, AC Lakeside, Sitka Homeless Coalition, Sitka Sentinel, and Raven Radio.

Gunalchéesh, thank you for your support in this work! We plan to share results from the survey in early spring. If you would like to be added to our listserv to receive updates, including summary survey results, please email sitkafoodassessment@gmail.com.

In gratitude and service,
The Sitka Community Food Assessment Team

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• Easter Group to auction off painted boots to raise money for the homeless during the Sept. 15 Sitka Farmers Market

The Easter Group will raise money for Sitka’s Project Homeless Connect event when it auctions off several pairs of painted rubber boots during the final Sitka Farmers Market of the season, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 15, at Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall (235 Katlian St.).

The white rubber boots were a donation from Sitka Sound Seafoods, which found them inadequate for its slippery floors. According to Dorrie Ferrell, the unpainted boots were available to Sitka’s homeless residents during the Project Homeless Connect event in January, but only a couple of of pairs were taken. So the boots were given to local artists to paint, and now they will be auctioned off to help raise money for future Project Homeless Connect projects.

The boots will be on display at Kettleson Memorial Library from Sept. 1-14, when they will be moved to a booth at the Sept. 15 Sitka Farmers Market for the auction. The auctioneer will be Brock Bauder. In addition to Project Homeless Connect and other projects to combat homelessness in Sitka, Easter Group also supports the local Blessings in a Backpack program, which sends food home on the weekend with school children whose families need food assistance. For more information, contact Easter Group at info@eastergroup.org.

And don’t forget the Running of the Boots fundraiser for the Sitka Local Foods Network is on Saturday, Sept. 29, at Crescent Harbor shelter, which is a perfect time to wear your newly purchased painted rubber boots. Registration opens and the Sitka Blues Band starts playing at 10 a.m., costume judging is at 10:30 a.m., and the fun run is at 11 a.m.