Some Valley residents soar, others play dirty in 2011

MAT-SU -From uplifting news like the Wasilla high-schooler who saved a little girl's life to capturing the flavor of the Alaska State Fair to inspiring stories of individual triumph, features give any good community newspaper a personal, hometown flavor.

These are people many of us know and their stories can be surprising, humorous and uplifting. Some are off-the-wall while others may bring you to tears. In 2011, we published features on dozens of local folks and organizations, including a Palmer man who raises carnivorous plants, a bakery cooking up a 100-pound cinnamon roll and one man's efforts to battle youth depression.

As the year closes, the Frontiersman looks back at some of the more memorable Valley Life and people features published in the first six months of 2011. Look for Part II in Sunday's Frontiersman.

Where Eagles soar (Jan. 18)

PALMER - Zachary and Spencer Bloom have a healthy sibling rivalry.

Spencer, the elder brother at 17, is a competitive swimmer, third-degree tae kwon do black belt and a local Geography Bee champion. Bloom, 14, also swims, is a third-degree tae kwon do black belt and a top Geography Bee competitor.

After Zachary finished a project in October, the brothers have another accomplishment in common - Eagle Scout.

Spencer earned his Eagle Dec. 17, 2009, at age 15 and Zachary was only 13 when he became an Eagle in October, one of the youngest to earn the prestigious rank in the Boy Scouts of American, said father, Rick Bloom. Since then, Spencer has gone on to earn a Silver Palm, the highest honor any Eagle Scout can earn.

That's one accomplishment he has over his younger brother - at least for now.

Carry the Cure (Feb. 4)

PALMER - Bill Pagaran recently found himself walking through an Anchorage mall feeling sorry for himself.

"Am I doing any good?" he recalled thinking. "Am I really making that much of a difference?"

While embroiled in his self-pity party, a young Alaska Native girl who was with a couple of friends stopped Pagaran.

"Hey, you're that guy," she said. "You came to my village. I was suicidal and you gave me that $20 bill."

She pulled the crumpled, battered bill from her purse and said, "I'm keeping this forever. It made all the difference in my life."

At a time when his faith was tested, Pagaran was shown his life's work does affect others in ways he doesn't see every day.

"I walked away in tears and I realized that, wow, that really made a difference in her life," he said.

Born to ride wild (March 4)

BIG LAKE - Had late-1960s rockers Steppenwolf been from the Valley, the band's iconic theme of rebellion may have developed differently.

"Get your motor runnin' ... Head out onto Big Lake ... Lookin' for adventure ... And whatever comes our way."

"Born to be Wild" is more than a classic rock anthem, it's an attitude, one shared by adventure-seeking snowmachine racers and Valley-based Alaska Ice Racing.

"Snowmachine racing is a longtime Alaska tradition," said club president Josh Estes, who has been racing snowmachines for about 15 years. "Locally here in the Valley, we decided to bring it back. A lot of guys like to do it, and we try to be very versatile."

Trail doc trades scalpel for brushes (March 13)

PALMER - A veterinarian, gold prospector and talented artist, James Leach embodies the romantic ideal of a true renaissance Alaska man.

To most who know him, however, Leach is simply the "Trail Doc."

More than 35 years after moving his veterinary practice to the Last Frontier from Jacksonville, Fla., Leach has cared for thousands of animals in some of the most remote places in the state. He's treated moose, reindeer, bears, llamas, alpacas and enough family pets to give Noah a run for his money.

These days though, the Trail Doc spends most of his days painting, teaching art classes and enjoying the natural beauty of the 49th state.

He and wife Annie finally sold their practice in 2000, but still respond to emergency animal welfare calls. As for his catchy nickname, "That's actually a Frontiersman thing," Leach said.

"There was a man who was a reporter at that time, probably 1974 or maybe 1975, who talked me into doing a weekly column on sled dogs, dogs in general and pet care," he said. "He said, ‘We ought to have a title for this column. I know, how about Trail Doc?' And it stuck."

Under his spell (March 25)

BUTTE - Can you spell diathermy without looking it up? How about supercilious or archaebacteria?

Don't worry - this reporter couldn't either. He had to ask Hunter Park, an 11-year-old Butte Elementary School fifth-grader and winner of this year's Alaska State Spelling Bee.

Diathermy, which is a medical technique, was the word Park spelled correctly to qualify for the upcoming Scripps National Spelling Bee, slated for June 1-2 in Washington, D.C. When he's not spelling words - and he admits that since his state win people throw words at him all the time - he's like any other fifth-grader.

He likes recess, playing outside and wants to be an archaeologist when he grows up. He also recognizes he has a talent for spelling, and is willing to work to develop it.

"I probably noticed (I could spell better than most) in first grade," he said. "I've been a good speller as long as I can remember. I don't know why, probably it's because I just work hard, learning what I need to learn and keep on track."

A boy's best friend (March 27)

MEADOW LAKES - In many ways, Willie Koonce is like most other 8-year-olds. He loves music (Lady Gaga is a favorite), television, swimming and jumping on the trampoline.

That he's fed through a tube and can't verbally communicate doesn't slow down the Meadow Lakes Elementary student. Affected by Down syndrome and autism, Willie can't tell his family or teachers what he's feeling and can become frustrated.

"At the same time, he's a normal 8-year-old boy in so many respects," said his mother, Carmi Koonce. "In so many ways, he's just a regular little boy. He's happy in his own little world. I would like to see him be able to increase his independence. He wants to go run and play, and he wants to do things and he doesn't want to have to hold mommy's hand everywhere he goes. But because of his other issues, most of that has been denied him."

If she and husband Joel have their way, Willie may have more freedom to be a kid. The family is raising money to get him a service dog, a companion specially trained to help soothe his mood swings, frustrations and even track him down when Willie wanders off.

Prison leads the way for earning GEDs (April 3)

PALMER - Goslin Price doesn't want to be a statistic.

As an inmate at Palmer Correctional Center, Price is counting down the days in the final six months he has left to serve of a two-year sentence for selling heroin. By the numbers, within three years after his release, Price has a 66 percent chance to wind up behind bars again.

Those are the odds the Alaska Judicial Council says offenders have of turning their lives around - 1 in 3. While the council shares those statistics in its 2007 report "Criminal Recidivism in Alaska," the latest numbers available for the state, Price and others at PCC are working to improve their odds.

Of the 1,798 offenders the judicial council followed in its study, two-thirds were re-incarcerated within three years of their release by either committing a new crime or violating their probation or parole.

"That's not for me," Price said. "When I came in, I was just a young man off the streets. I had sold drugs my whole life. Now when I leave, I have a plan, and that's to never come back here ever again."

Teen bowls perfect game (April 19)

WASILLA - Nana Rita would be proud.

That's what 16-year-old Steve Ehrhart was thinking as he entered the 10th frame Friday in the first day of competition at the 2011 Alaska U.S. Bowling Conference Youth State Tournament at North Bowl. Competing in doubles with partner Wayne Gore, Ehrhart had already rolled nine balls down lucky lanes 17 and 18 - all strikes.

"At the 10th frame, I just though to myself about her, I asked her for help," Ehrhart said about his grandmother Rita Delgado, who passed away not too long ago.

"Him and her were really close," explained Ehrhart's father and coach, Steve. "It was just out of the blue and I thought that was cool, asking my mom for help."

With or without any extra help, Ehrhart needed only three more balls to topple the last 30 pins and score his first perfect 300 game.

String and a prayer (May 15)

PALMER - Tak Omega loves to be told to go fly a kite.

The president of AlasKiters kite-flying club, Omega was all smiles Saturday watching dozens of veteran, amateur and first-time kite-fliers dot the greenbelt behind Rusty's at Dahlia Street in downtown Palmer. Sunny skies and breezy conditions made the weather perfect for the club's first Alaska Kite Festival, he said.

"One issue in the Valley is you get really strong winds, but they shift a lot," Omega said. "Some people consider it too windy, but it's a good, strong wind. Today, this is great, and it's awesome to see a lot of people having a good time."

He admits to being one who welcomes an admonishment that would put others off.

"When I'm told to go fly a kite, I say, ‘OK,'" Omega said. "I'm usually doing that at the time anyway, so it works out."

Tree-mendous find (May 27)

PALMER - Ever misplace something and forget about it, only to find it years later?

Perhaps you came across some treasured family mementos while cleaning the attic, or found a long-lost ring while gardening? Maybe that pesky missing wallet finally turned up after you reported it stolen and canceled all your credit cards?

But imagine the surprise of staff and students at Mat-Su College when a long-forgotten, 3-acre, cold-weather pine arboretum was rediscovered a stone's throw from the campus.

"I remember coming out here about 20 years ago or so with my family and coming across the trees," Mat-Su College Director Talis Colberg said. "They were all in rows, which seemed unique at the time."

What Colberg remembered turned out to be a unique experiment begun by Ted Berry when the college had more of an agriculture emphasis. Over more than 35 plots of land mapped out in the arboretum, various types of cold-weather pine trees not normally indigenous to Alaska were planted.

There are Norway pine, white and blue spruce, Siberian fir, Scotch pine, jack pine, lodgepole pine, Douglas fir and many other species.

Jay's day (June 3)

MAT-SU - Even if you've been living under a rock, it's hard to miss the influence Jay Nolfi has had on the Mat-Su Borough. And if that rock happens to be the large boulder at Fish Creek Park in Big Lake, the large plaque proclaiming the area as "Jay Nolfi Fish Creek Park" makes that inescapable.

The Mat-Su Borough will officially dedicate the park to Nolfi, a longtime borough political presence and tireless volunteer, on Saturday. For the feisty 89-year-old woman, the designation is confirmation that her decades of community service have not gone unnoticed.

It's a long way removed from where Nolfi thought her future would take her when her husband, Adrian, returned from a tour of duty in Alaska during World War II. They both had grown up in Pennsylvania coal mining country, and his skills were needed in the Last Frontier.

Hundreds play dirty at mud volleyball tourney (June 19)

BIG LAKE - They don't apologize for playing dirty.

In a scene resembling spring break meets a frat party while tailgating, more than 300 players and hundreds more spectators, families and friends kicked off their shoes and kicked back Saturday to knock back some suds and knock around a few volleyballs. With temperatures in the mid-60s, 32 teams loaded up their trucks with sunblock, favorite tunes and cases of cold beer for the 23rd annual Big Lake Lions Club Mud Volleyball Tournament.

Along with bragging rights and the coveted championship T-shirt, teams also seemed to be in top trash-talking form.

"We're here to take home the championship!" boomed Cole Christianson of the Swamp Donkeys, an Anchorage team making its third appearance at the tourney. "We're going to get muddy, and we're very dirty. It's prison rules."

See Sunday's Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman for Part II of "People We Know," a retrospective of feature stories published in 2011.