Peter Twitchell

by Peter Twitchell I am happy to report I made it to another special day – “Mother’s Day”, just recently recognized in Eskimo Country. By the term “Eskimo Country” I’m thinking of all the Native […]

by Peter Twitchell When I was a boy I walked in the woods all day sometimes from sun up to sun down. Poor Mom, what I must have put her through. I know in my […]

by Peter Twitchell I’ll be 70 years old tomorrow. I was born April 25th, 1950 in a makeshift hospital Quonset after the Bethel Hospital burned to the ground. I was born to David & Sarah […]

by Peter Twitchell As a child I heard stories told by our elders of the flu epidemic, tuberculosis, which took the lives of so many of our Native people. Today our generation is experiencing the […]

by Peter Twitchell Remember when we used to have carefree days when we were a lot younger long ago? We got up in the morning and got ready for school. All of us knew it […]

by Peter Twitchell I like the concept of the letter “V” formation geese and other migrating birds fly in. Someone told me once that the reason geese fly in a “V” formation is so they […]

by Peter Twitchell Until this period of time since the emergence of the COVID-19 virus have I really appreciated the cell phone. It was like taking my family and friends for granted until now. Every […]

by Peter Twitchell I, Peter Adams Twitchell, wish to set the record straight once and for all. I write this being of sound mind and body. I was born April 25, 1950 to Sarah and […]

by Peter Twitchell You ever look in the mirror and see a fake smile? A smile comes from the heart where love, peace, and the joy of God reside. Are you truly happy? Being happy […]

by Peter Twitchell Congratulations to Dee Dee Jonrowe dog musher extraordinaire. She has come a long way against all odds. She lifted the institution of dog mushing and racing to heights above the expectations of […]

by Peter Twitchell I’ve received gifts and bought items with labels stuck to them that I need a magnifying glass to read the fine print. It tells you where the item was made and which […]

by Peter Twitchell For the last month I’ve pondered a question I believe man has pondered. It is truly amazing to me how a chicken can have eggs, any bird for that matter, and the […]

by Peter Twitchell I have always believed that music unites us! No matter who we are on this planet we have that in common. It is one common denominator we share in our journey through […]

by Peter Twitchell The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Wisdom and knows everything, knows what we say, do, think. The Holy Spirit speaks to us all the time. Every wonder where your good thoughts […]

by Peter Twitchell I was invited by Mary Walker to join her and Carl Jack at the Anchorage Folk Festival 2020 on January 19, 2020 at the Wendy Williams Auditorium Stage that evening at 7pm […]

by Peter Twitchell I’m just going to repeat a story I was told recently, and then comment on it. Three men were out in the field not too long ago. They were tracked and stalked […]

by Peter Twitchell Where is the child support? The way I see it, mothers of young children are not seeing their child’s support payment each month consistently. The child or children are being neglected by […]

by Peter Twitchell As we begin down the road in 2020 help us to follow you. Open our hands and our hearts to receive this day as a special gift from you oh Lord. You […]

by Peter Twitchell For a hundred years before I ever heard about a deep sea fishery our salmon population was strong. After half that time since the 1970s our salmon fishery has dwindled to what […]

by Peter Twitchell Merry Christmas and remember Jesus is the Reason for the Season. Give thanks everyday we’re here. As I look back to my childhood, I was disappointed in man. I sat on Santa’s […]

by Peter Twitchell I spoke with old-timer David Kawagley who grew up in the village of Akiak, Alaska. He was my dad’s good friend growing up in Akiak together. David shared with me stories Dad […]

by Peter Twitchell It’s time to face reality. I know some people who play hide and seek with their disease of alcoholism. It’s a self-defeating attempt to try and deal with your disease on your […]

by Peter Twitchell Twenty-three years ago a doctor in Bethel told me that I had arthritis on one of my spinal discs back of my neck. I called is a stroke of Bad Luck. I […]

by Peter Twitchell As a boy I never worried or gave much thought to my future. Grandma Hannah and Mom always reminded me to help others and especially Elders. We lived in the moment. “The […]

by Peter Twitchell Domestic violence is real, it’s also scary. The violence we see in our homes is fueled by anger, resentments, and fear. Most of us grew up in one room dwellings with nowhere […]

by Peter Twitchell First I believe that congratulations are in order here to Bethel residents and Bethel’s latest Mayor Perry Barr. His success in life has brought him here to deliver the will of the […]

by Peter Twitchell As young parents, we do our best following in the footsteps of our parents. Mom and Dad never really lectured us on proper parenting skills. I believe back 100 plus years ago […]

by Peter Twitchell I really appreciated my friend Chief Gary Harrison of the Chickaloon Village Traditional Council  NAY’DINI’AA’NA at the close of the 2019 AFN for telling Native Country of Alaska that we have been […]

by Peter Twitchell It is that time again, to prepare for winter. We’ve put our winter feed of dried, canned, frozen salmon and moose, caribou, deer and bear stored. Time to fit our kids and […]

by Peter Twitchell If God didn’t pay for all our sins He didn’t pay for any of our sins. If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me, Deuteronomy 4:29. Delight in […]

by Peter Twitchell Webster’s definition of humble is “destroy the power or prestige of.” The reason I looked this word up is because one day this past summer I saw a middle-aged native man holding […]

by Peter Twitchell There were two signatures I liked when I was a boy growing up, and that was Mom and Dad’s. When Mom went to the B.I.A. School in the 1920s the teacher was […]

by Peter Twitchell 100-200 years ago Mother Nature was our friend, it provided for our food and heat. You didn’t need much else – our Native people back then weren’t money driven, but they cared […]

by Peter Twitchell When I was a boy of 3, 4, 5 years old I remember being taught Love, and realize now, it was the foundation on which the Yupiit People began their day, each […]

by Peter Twitchell Most of Yup’ik People it is said go to K-12 and don’t go any further in higher learning. A few go on and climb the ladder of success. We are tested. Some […]

by Peter Twitchell In the days before tools and colonization, the Yupiit People buried their deceased loved ones above the ground for it was not possible to dig up the frozen tundra. When the human […]

by Peter Twitchell On July 1957 I was walking along the Kuskokwim River just a half a mile upriver from the Old Airport across the river from Orutsararmiut of Bethel as the Moravian missionaries named […]

by Peter Twitchell The State Fair is fast approaching and we, The Pilot – Steve Willis of Wasilla, and Bread – David Chanar, Louise Leonard, Michael Angaiak, and yours truly Peter Twitchell will be performing […]

by Peter Twitchell A message from Creator God to His children: My child – you may not know me but I know everything about you (Psalm 139:1). I know when you sit down and when […]

by Peter Twitchell There are three types of people in the world. Let’s personalize this and say – in your life. First, there are those who help you in your difficult times. Let’s take the […]

by Peter Twitchell Imagine how isolated we were in Alaska before colonization. There were no roads, trains, airports. Not until steamships started sailing north did we have people and goods. Even tools, dry goods, and […]

by Peter Twitchell I worked as a substance abuse counselor and my last two years at YKCC I was the Psych Ed Coordinator. Jesus of Nazareth put me in that position for His purpose. I […]

by Peter Twitchell In the Bible, God’s Holy Word, it says “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” That is His Promise to us. Although we (I) have left Him in my past. I […]

by Peter Twitchell I have permanently moved from Anchorage to the Valley for one reason only – the earache the jets have been causing and the irregular sleep patterns last and this summer. There are […]

by Peter Twitchell In reading the June 5, 2019 Delta Discovery Newspaper I found the writers and commentators to be diverse, provocative, informative, caring, self-expressive and interesting. Perhaps the paper leads us to self discovery […]

by Peter Twitchell When I was a boy about 8 years old I was walking to the Civil Aeronautics administration compound. I had a sense that there was something out there in the trees watching […]

by Peter Twitchell I remember growing up in the village of Bethel. My parents David and Sarah Twitchell lived on the upriver south side of Bethel. Back in the 1950s life seemed simple. There was […]

by Peter Twitchell When it comes to policing in a village community I can only imagine how challenging it must be to be a police officer where you know everybody and you’re related to them. […]

by Peter Twitchell When we were boys not too long ago, and we were going out to play we were given instructions by our mom and dad and grandparents, “Ilaten ata kenkurluki piurqina.” Meaning, “Love […]

by Peter Twitchell I met Carla Maxwell recently here in Anchorage who told me about her death in a traumatic car/van accident. She died bewildered, not sure what was going on around her. Her state […]

by Peter Twitchell The fair City of Bethel, Alaska is not a thriving community with unlimited municipal funds like Barrow, for example. I don’t believe the Bethel City Council members should be paid public servants […]

by Peter Twitchell While I was growing up in Bethel in the 1950s, money was scarce this time of year. The money dad made the summer before at Bristol Bay was spent, and there was […]

by Peter Twitchell I have a friend who is terminally ill. It’s never easy to lose a friend. To tell you the truth, I was overcome with anger when I found out. Due in large […]

by Peter Twitchell Queen the rock band from the 1970s recorded “Bohemian Rhapsody”. I wasn’t aware of the values “good thoughts, good words, good deeds” as being joined to each other. We were taught these […]

by Peter Twitchell I come from a long line of musicians, including mom and dad. When I was born mom already had a pump organ that she and her husband had shipped up from Seattle […]

by Peter Twitchell Congratulations to Pete Kaiser, our 2019 Iditarod Sled Dog Race Champion! You have set the course for future generations of Yup’ik mushers! A Yup’ik by birth Pete’s ancestral roots go deep into […]

by Peter Twitchell There was a test putting a vehicle in a middle class neighborhood to see what would happen to it. After a week or so the vehicle was untouched. And then part of […]

by Peter Twitchell Who doesn’t want to live forever? I think that we all do, to a certain extent. I believe I’m starting to accept the fact that death is an integral part of life […]

by Peter Twitchell It’s good to see high school, college-age parents and grandparents fill up the dance hall at Carpenter’s Hall in downtown Anchorage, where the young and old mingle. I never see kids running […]

by Peter Twitchell All of us have prepared ourselves, if not consciously, by our teachers, cohorts, parents, and the efforts of those closest to us for the world stage. My Grandma Hannah shared her values […]

by Peter Twitchell Just a couple schools of thought. My relative David Chanar reiterated the return of vinyl records! They are here so are the phonograph record players! Available in every major store and pawn […]

by Peter Twitchell Tonight 3-4 bands will play at the Carpenter’s Hall following a potluck. It will be a sober event where families gather. Activities here in the biggest village in Alaska are a little […]

by Peter Twitchell Two weeks already into a new year, it’s time to lighten our load of excess baggage! Let’s get rid of resentments, jealousy, hatred, envy, anger, blame, temper, even our great BIG ego, […]

by Peter Twitchell “It’s times like these we need a savior” just popped to mind – the Holy Spirit at work. I do miss our leaders, like Eddie Hoffman, William Lomack, Axel Johnson, Nora Guinn. […]

by Peter Twitchell I awoke from a wonderful dream of Mom’s old house in Bethel. In my dream it was full of my grandkids. Kids have always been and still is our family connection in […]

by Peter Twitchell Christmas in the 1950s was a special time in Bethel. Students were getting ready for Christmas by making rings out of cray paper. Mrs. Fancher helped us cut strips of colored paper […]

by Peter Twitchell My cousin Joseph Adolph Woods Jr. and I were like brothers. We grew up together in Bethel. We hunted together with our cousins Joseph “Manny” Evon and Henry Kohl. We were successful […]

by Peter Twitchell The earth is like a sleeping giant, when it awakes it is uncontrollable. In my 67 years walking the tundra, the land has been friendly. I experienced my first earthquake November 30, […]

by Peter Twitchell I had the great pleasure, first of all, to play my bass guitar in David Chanar’s “Pilot Bread” Fiddle Band, then on top of that to perform for the Elder’s of Wasilla’s […]

by Peter Twitchell Judo is fun! As in all sports a strict set of rules governs competition at all skills ensuring safety from club to national tournaments to Olympic games. Judo is best known for […]

by Peter Twitchell My friend Harry Nicholai became a man of God, he was a humble man, a quiet man who would not retaliate if you said anything to him. He listened to what you […]

by Peter Twitchell I’m not one to believe that I should vote for a candidate for Governor because he wants to give me $3,000.00 for something he voted against giving me in the first place. […]

by Peter Twitchell If you are a late teen and in your 20s, it’s your duty to get out and vote and hopefully you are a registered voter! It’s our duty to listen to your […]

by Peter Twitchell Today marks the day of the 2018 Alaska Federation of Natives Convention held at the Dena’ina Center in Anchorage. The Elders and Youth Conference begins today (Oct. 15th, 2018) – we celebrate […]

by Peter Twitchell On October 10, I got to see one of my favorite rock-n-roll icons from 1968. Suzi and I shared the excitement at the Wynn Encore Theater in Las Vegas on our way […]

by Peter Twitchell Our children should be learning about Aerospace, the next step to the stars and other intelligence. We’ve learned all we possible could about our world, but have we really? Let’s take the […]

by Peter Twitchell I know good lawyers and good judges, and I’ve known some lousy ones. Unfortunately not every lawyer is as good as some I’ve had to deal with. Not every judge is as […]

by Peter Twitchell In 1968 a dream was hatched to build a transAlaska oil pipeline. On November 16, 1973, President Nixon signed the Line Bill. This started our nation, the United States of America, to […]

by Peter Twitchell It intrigues me that people of Bethel and most of them are outsiders who came to live there find displeasure with the name “Louse Town” referring to the area of Urucararmiut, the […]

by Peter Twitchell Monday, September 3, 2018 was a gorgeous sunny day at the Palmer State Fair, finally. I walked down from the red gate to Dena’ People’s Stage where I saw Native arts and […]

by Peter Twitchell Here’s a motto I saw recently on the cap of someone who used to work on the North Slope: “Survival – Learn to Return”. I believe the same holds true for our […]

by Peter Twitchell Bethel needs thinkers and planners who can let the wheels of school buses bring our children safely to and from school. Kusko Cab has a new fleet of suburbans, and they have […]

by Peter Twitchell Lift up the face of your people (LUTFOYP)! You can do this by furthering your education, maintaining your job, raising a healthy family, being a good aunt or uncle, stewarding on land […]

by Peter Twitchell The Native Village of Eklutna celebrated its Biennial Dena’ina Athabascan Potlatch/Powwow July 28-29, 2018. As I shared in the Athabascan cultural event, it became a personal moment for me. My uncles Timothy […]

by Peter Twitchell For decades Yupiaq people of the AVCP-Calista Region were considered by the western world as being poor. Still today they say 25 percent of our people are living in poverty and unemployment. […]

by Peter Twitchell I guess maybe I was lookin’ a little down when a black gentleman walked up to me and asked me, “how you doin’ friend?” Deep down I had feelings that were connected […]

by Peter Twitchell The medical profession is not too far from fulfilling this promise. No longer do I go to dental to have them pull my teeth. There are really other alternatives to ignoring our […]

by Peter Twitchell It was pointed out to me the other day that our daily lives are based on money. Isn’t that the truth though? Some people will not do anything for you without seeing […]

by Peter Twitchell Live life with gusto! Live it to the fullest. Have sober fun with your sober friends doing sober things like finishing Elementary, Jr. High, High School, going to college or Job Corp. […]

by Peter Twitchell Thank you for those friends, John D., John S., Edward B., and others who have shared some of their bounty from the Great Kuskokwim River! This reminds me of our Grandfathers and […]

by Peter Twitchell I wanted to recognize 32 year Bethel, Alaska resident Craig Rogers. A man, in my opinion, who has served the people of Bethel beyond the call of duty. He, for example, was […]

by Peter Twitchell There’s something about singing, I’ve been singing since 1966. Before that, I was singing along with everyone in church. You can say I’ve had a song in my heart for 68 years! […]

by Peter Twitchell Some values shared by Natives including my tribe, the Yupiat/Yup’ik people of southwest Alaska is “The Earth is our mother, care for her.” Too often in life we have taken her for […]

by Peter Twitchell I was very pleased to see that our State Legislature passed a bill restricting smoking in taxi cabs. Thirdhand smoke is very unhealthy for passengers who use these cabs of Taxi Cab […]

by Peter Twitchell Today, May 13, 2018, was Mother’s Day and I learned a lesson from preacher Dr. Jerry Prevo of the Anchorage Baptist Temple. Jerry, in my opinion, is a down to earth guy […]

by Peter Twitchell Just recently a few days ago there were hunters outside of Nome on the Bering Sea who were trapped in ice floe when the weather closed in. Water started spraying the men […]

by Peter Twitchell I have been observing how men push their trucks in and around smaller weaker cars. These men are aggressive even in traffic using their powerful 8 cylinder stepped up trucks. When the […]

by Peter Twitchell Anchorage has given me even more options what to do to help people. I have been going to 3 job fairs and everyone wants to hire someone for the busy summer months […]

by Peter Twitchell Growing up in Bethel was a great time in the old days when Bethel was quiet. We woke up to birds like robins singing, welcoming the new day. The sun was warm […]

by Peter Twitchell When work and job opportunity comes knocking don’t ignore it. Only you can reach your full potential. As summer is quickly approaching, start planning on what kind of work you’d like to […]