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Willow Ptarmigan Aqesgiq

by Frank Keim Aqezaqezaqezaqezqzqzqzqzqz… Ever heard that sound? Sure you have. Just walk out in the tundra in spring, and I guarantee, if you listen hard enough, you’ll hear it. Enter, two aspiring bird watchers. […]

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Christmas recitations

by Peter Twitchell When we were kids going to Sunday school at the Moravian Church in Bethel, every December we went in front of the church congregation and recited out loud the verses in the […]

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King Herod Kills the Kids

by Tad Lindley Jesus was born in Bethlehem. The place of his birth was actually prophesied about in the book of Micah, As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, seemingly insignificant among the clans of Judah – […]

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Jesus’ Hanukkah Sermon

by Tad Lindley It’s quite possible that you, not having grown up around Jewish people, have never heard of Hanukkah. Hanukkah is a Jewish festival that lasts for eight nights and eight days. It is […]

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Sharing the catch

by Peter Twitchell This coming spring, God willing, one of the Elders wants to take me out to see how they hunt on Prince William Sound! I will see them butcher a seal, get the […]

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How Much is Your Pastor Worth?

by Tad Lindley There is a fair amount of shadow hate speech on social media targeting Christianity. One of those posts that I will try to reproduce here for you goes something like this: The […]

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Belted KingfisherNeqaiq

by Frank Keim If you’ve ever lived or travelled on a river almost anywhere in Alaska, you’ve seen or heard the Belted kingfisher. They’re fast, though, so to get a good look at them you’ve […]

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Ready for the Season?

by Tad Lindley While discussing favorite seasons, one said, “Winter, because snow is easier to deal with.” Another said, “That’s because you’re young, when you’re older, you’ll see it differently.” I said, “My favorite season […]

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Majestic Alaska

by Peter Twitchell I have been living in the Matanuska Valley since June 2, 2019. The very first sound I heard was about nine o’clock in the evening and that was a train blowing its horn. […]

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Uuravik Slough

by Peter Twitchell I didn’t know what to call a part of the Matanuska Valley in my native Yupiaq language so I’ve decided to call it Uuravik, named after the slough below Lower Kalskag on the […]

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A trustworthy jump starter

by Peter Twitchell I am convinced that a truck battery should be replaced every 5 years if it’s running heavy and steady for that length of time. I am amazed how auto technology has come in […]

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Prayer Warriors

by Peter Twitchell Prayer Warriors are people who pray for individuals going through some tribulation in their lives, and it could be poor health or reoccurring health issues, illnesses, relationship problems, money problems, behavior problems […]

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Continue safety

by Peter Twitchell I applaud the doctors who find cures for various diseases and viruses in the world. I heard doctors on television say the COVID virus can cause heart diseases in us, although we were […]

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Filling gaps in retirement

by Dave Kutcher Did you know more than 11,000 people per day reach age 65 in the U.S.? That’s over 4,000,000 people over the next few years. This is a significant change in our make-up […]

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The Electric Era Band

by Peter Twitchell It was at the Cowan Hut, owned by the City of Bethel, we had our “Electric Era” Band play for the community at large. People flooded into Bethel to dance from Tuluksak, […]

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It’s Not Israel I’m Worried About

by Tad Lindley I was saying to somebody, “I’m deeply concerned about the way the current administration is turning their back on Israel.” To which they said, “Israel will come out victorious in the end.” “It’s […]

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Senior Sneak Trip

by Peter Twitchell When I became a freshman at the Bethel Kilbuck School, our class came up with the name. We looked at all the prominent people of Bethel’s history, and our class was chosen […]

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Let’s Make a Deal

by Tad Lindley The younger of the twin brothers was named Jacob, he was a mama’s boy. He liked to hang out in camp all the time. The older twin, Esau, was a nukalpiaq, spending […]

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Road construction appreciation

by Peter Twitchell It has been a busy summer in the Matanuska Valley with millions of dollars pouring into our state to make our highways safer for traffic. I have seen since coming to retire […]

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Everyone Wants Your PFD

by Tad Lindley T he 2024 Alaska PFD is $1,702. Some folks might get angry at me for writing about giving some of their dividend to God. Understand that I stand to gain nothing. Nobody […]

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Strong men and women

by Peter Twitchell There was a time our tribes in Alaska were healthy, strong, always helping one another with love, respect, honor for each other – and we still are. Because that is who we […]

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Aging and Income Planning

by Dave Kutcher Retirement income planning is a crucial aspect of financial planning, especially in the context of aging. Aging brings about several challenges that can impact one’s retirement income, but there are also viable […]

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Early Kuskokwim Memories

by Peter Twitchell I want to share what I used to hear being talked about around our kitchen table when I was a boy in the early 1950s. Mom, Dad and their friends in the Kuskokwim […]

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Crested Auklet Culuksuksaar(aq)

by Frank Keim Similar to its cousin the Parakeet auklet, the Crested auklet is a small chunky sea bird with an ornamental tuft of black feathers hanging down from its forehead, and is seen only […]

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Objects in the sky

by Peter Twitchell I remember when I was a boy between the ages of 5 years old and 10 years old. Every day was a beautiful day on the Kuskokwim River. I loved to go outside […]

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Life Insurance

by Dave Kutcher Life Insurance – one of the most misunderstood financial resources. It is Life Insurance Awareness Month (LIAM) and we are here to shed some light on this topic for you. Depending upon […]

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What does negative sequence of return mean with my investments and how can I mitigate the risk of negative sequence of return?

by Dave Kutcher The “sequence of returns” risk is a concern for investors, particularly if you are withdrawing from your investments, such as when you begin your retirement. It refers to the order in which […]

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Childhood memories

by Peter Twitchell When I was a boy, 7 to 10 years old, my Dad had many friends. One of those was an older man named Oliver Anderson. He lived in one of the Quonset […]

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Plan Your Own Destiny

by Dave Kutcher We have written on this topic many, many times but the importance of proper planning to achieve the retirement you dream of is vitally important. You can’t arrive on the doorstep at […]

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A Memorable Canoe Trip

by Peter Twitchell When I first went to Disney World in Florida, I decided to rent a canoe to go down a narrow creek through Dade County. I was informed by the canoe rental owner […]

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Moving to the Valley

by Peter Twitchell I come from the small community of Bethel Alaska. There was never too many vehicles in the 50s when I was a boy. That would be in the early 50s and you could […]

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The First Mark of the Beast

by Tad Lindley This column is based on a message preached by Rev. Jimmy Toney at the 2017 family campmeeting in Sterling, AK. The second mark: 666 One of the best known passages of scripture, […]

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A memorable circumpolar trip

by Peter Twitchell It was in 1981 I was invited to go to Greenland to meet with the leaders of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference Commission. After I met with the I.C.C. President, and his team, […]

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More gloom and doom

by Dave Kutcher I just read the top 5 articles that popped up in my business email this weekend. Every single one of them is speaking to current difficulties of folks trying to get by in […]

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The Importance of Names

by Peter Twitchell I’m glad I listened to the Chief Eddie, the Chief of everything. My son Danny is a proud Ap’a today, and I am a great and happy grandpa. My great grandson was […]

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Whimbrel Kikikiaq

by Frank Keim What a bird this one is! With its long, down-curved bill and bluish stilt-like legs, it almost looks extraterrestrial. But I assure you, it is an earthling, and an Alaskan through and […]

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Who Would You Die For?

by Tad Lindley I n Helmand Province, Afghanistan on February 9, 2008. Matthew Croucher and three other British Marines were on a reconnaissance mission. While going through a building, they triggered a trip wire grenade. […]

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Stuck in the middle

by Dave Kutcher On one end, older retirees trying to weather the financial impact of rising costs for life’s basic necessities as well as health care and long term custodial care costs and on the […]

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Serving our Tribes

by Peter Twitchell I respect Tribes and appreciate our tribal governments for helping people. When I lived in Bethel Urucararmiut (ONC) used to make fish available and lunches for their elderly tribal members. ONC has been […]

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Parasitic Jaeger Yungaq

by Frank Keim Every time I see these hawkish birds, I remember the first ones I ever saw just outside of Hooper Bay in the spring of 1980. They were performing their aerial mating dance, […]

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Economic stress abounds

by Dave Kutcher I think I’ve seen somewhere that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. We bring this statement up only to spark the idea […]

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Life was quiet and simple

by Peter Twitchell Each year I go back to my childhood and remember how life was in the 1950s. I remember I would go with Dad to the Standard Oil Depot in Bethel, which was […]

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Guns or Butter

by Dave Kutcher In a speech from 1953, President Eisenhower specifically referred to this expression of “Guns or Butter”… “Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, […]

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Keep respecting others

by Peter Twitchell Yupiaqs are told when we’re children that we came from the land. Our ancestors the elders believed in Ellam Yua, meaning the Son of the Universe. Creator God made us from the […]

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Keep active during aging

by Peter Twitchell I remember when I was 18 and somebody mentioned somebody turning 51 years of age. I overheard them and I thought to myself, 51? I’ll never get there, it’s too far! Needless to […]

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Rising tide lifts all boats

by Dave Kutcher What happens when the tide doesn’t change? Let’s substitute interest rates for the tide. Well, the tide rose and brought some boats with it, but staying risen creates problems one might not […]

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When the Disciples Skunked

by Tad Lindley They had fished all night, and they had caught nothing. They skunked. They were probably thinking, “Man, I could have stayed home and slept, but now the sun is rising and I […]

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Rules based money

by Dave Kutcher Those of you who have heard me speak or have met with us about your retirement plans have most likely heard me refer to IRA type accounts as “ruled based money”. Knowing […]

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Work hard for your blessings

by Peter Twitchell In my youth I pushed myself to let things happen in my life, so I asked God Almighty for help for many things. 1. I want to start a rock-n-roll band. 2. […]

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Maybe We Don’t Need Another Grant

by Tad Lindley Sometimes we get into the mindset that if we only had enough money, all of our problems would be fixed. That’s why you may have been in meetings where somebody said, “If […]

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Choosing when

by Dave Kutcher Being in the retirement planning business, the question of when to retire seems an obvious topic for us to address on the regular. The answer to the question is not quite as […]

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A strong generation

by Peter Twitchell Looking back to my childhood I can say Alaska Native Tribes lived healthy lives eating mostly wild foods from the land, rivers, coastal shores, and lakes and streams. Eating fish of all […]

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He Couldn’t Quit Cutting Himself

by Tad Lindley You’ve probably seen them too. People with straight cut marks in locations on their body where people are most likely to see them, like their arms. Since that sort of self-mutilation has […]

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The importance of good health

by Peter Twitchell I’m not a medical doctor but I would like to share what I saw on the news. The ad was for those who took cholesterol meds. The announcer was talking about the […]

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The Values of a Good Life

by Peter Twitchell Today I remember my dad, David Adams Twitchell, who was two days old when his mother died of tuberculosis back in 1924. He was raised by the Williams Family in Akiak, Alaska. […]

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When the Bullets Start Flying

by Tad Lindley I knew what I needed to do, tap-tap, two shots in the chest and one in the head. The front sight dropped down between the rear sights. Forward on the right hand back […]

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Home sweet home

by Dave Kutcher Home ownership has always been an important milestone for folks moving into adulthood. Similarly, moving from the “starter home” to something more substantive is also a sign of folks “moving up” in […]

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Building success

by Peter Twitchell It always lifts my spirit to see our children participating in Alaskan events like the Native Olympics for our youth. I thought it was noteworthy, that we see our youth participating in […]

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The best burgers in Bethel

by Peter Twitchell Don’t ever underestimate the honesty and the ability of young minds to look beyond our own objectivity. “H*** House” was the name us boys called the old pool hall throughout our high […]

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Lessons from our Elders

by Peter Twitchell As most people who saw the “10 Commandments” starring actor Charlton Heston, I will use a word from that great motion picture, which was used by “Moses and the Pharoah” himself. The […]

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What does risk look like to you?

by Dave Kutcher As people near their retirement age, balancing financial risk in an ever-changing environment can seem like a daunting task. Most people have been relegated to self-funding the majority of their retirement in […]

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Radio lives on

by Peter Twitchell In 1971 Mr. Andrew Edge of Bethel was the KYUK General Manager who asked me if I was willing to take the responsibility of being the radio operations manager of our local […]

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Hard times lead to hard decisions

by Dave Kutcher We are aware that there is a certain euphoria stemming from the last quarter stock market returns of 2023 and even a continuation of some positive news in Q1 2024…but, just because […]

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Thick-billed Murre Alpak

by Frank Keim original artwork by Frank Keim Like their lookalike first cousins, the tuxedo-clad Common murres, Thick-billed murres are among the deepest divers of all birds, sometimes foraging for their food as deep as […]

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How is the Bible Organized?

by Tad Lindley The Bible is a collection of writings that spanned 3,200 years. It claims to be the words of God given to a series of at least 36 men (including the heathen king, […]

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Hunting and gathering season

by Peter Twitchell Seal hunters in the greater Anchorage area were successful for the people of the area in getting their quota of seals this month. That’s good to see – our Elders and family […]

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Screenings save lives

by Peter Twitchell This article will be taken out of the Strength Behind Screening from the Bentah Nuutah Native Clinic in Wasilla, Alaska. This is taken out of the monthly medical information, Be the Strength […]