Wasilla woman wins trip to Hawaii

MAT-SU - With snow steadily piling up outside the Frontiersman office last Friday afternoon, Wasilla resident Trisha Hazelwood-Lewis was sporting Hawaiian leis and a big grin.

Publisher Kari Sleight had just handed her the grand prize for the Frontiersmans Hunt Your Way to Hawaii contest round-trip airfare for two to Honolulu and a six-night stay at the Kihei Bay Vista in Maui.

I dont usually enter contests, because I usually dont win, Hazelwood-Lewis said. You know at carnivals, how everybody always wins something? I never did.

But her luck took a turn for the better Friday when ABC Travel Times Cindy Bettini randomly drew Hazelwood-Lewis winning entry in the contest. The travel company sponsored the contests grand prize.

The Frontiersman publisher called to tell the winner of her prize, but she was out running errands so Sleight left a message on Hazelwood-Lewis answering machine.

I knew today was the day, but I kept thinking, No. I couldnt have won. They must have a question about my subscription or something, recalled Hazelwood-Lewis, who lives just a few blocks from the Frontiersman building. But when she returned the call, Sleight informed her that indeed she had.

I couldnt say anything for a second, she said. Its just overwhelming.

The trip to Hawaii means more to her than just sandy beaches and fresh pineapple. She said she has longed to go to the islands for historical reasons as well.

Ive wanted to go, to see Pearl Harbor and the volcanoes, she said. So Im really excited.

Anyone thinking of volunteering to accompany Hazelwood-Lewis on her trip to Hawaii is out of luck. The other seat on the airplane is already taken, by her husband Walter Lewis.

During the holidays, as Hazelwood-Lewis read over every inch of the newspaper, she said her husband scoffed at her efforts. He never thought she would find all of those clues, much less actually win the contest.

The winner said her husband couldnt talk much on the phone when she called him because he was at work and in meetings, but needless to say he wont turn down a six-night vacation in Maui.

The soon-to-be-tan Hazelwood-Lewis has subscribed to the Frontiersman for a decade. But she admits that the contest had her paying closer attention to the pages as she searched for clues such as the word nefarious and a backward Frontiersman logo.

I really read the paper . . . and learned a lot I wouldnt have otherwise, she said. She said she discovered the Frontiersman had a lot more to offer than she had realized.

I was surprised . . . there were a lot of things I probably should have been reading all those years, she said.

Hazelwood-Lewis has yet to set a date for her trip to Hawaii. But with January bringing chilly temperatures and glacial winds to the Valley, it probably wont be long before she and her husband are enjoying lapping waves under a hot sun.Photo: Trisha Hazelwood-Lewis beams broadly Friday afternoon after being told she is the winner in the Hunt Your Way to Hawaii contest sponsored by ABC Travel Time and the Frontiersman. Hazelwood-Lewis won a six-day vacation for two to Hawaii.

Photo by BILL KELDER.