December 11, 2017

Photo for the CBC Yukon Facebook Feed and banner shot for the blog for the month of December sent by Marty Samis. Visit samisphoto.com
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Haines Junction Community Report CBC – December 11, 2017
 
Good Morning! From beautiful Dakwakada-Haines Junction! Wow – what a week! This crazy warm weather has had us all slipping and sliding all over the place. We’ve had a number of road closures that have left people stranded in town here or in Haines and a few people got stuck in Burwash last week when out for Bingo. Luckily, for those who found themselves with an extended stay here in Haines Junction, we had an incredible Mountain Festival on this weekend. We had a couple hundred people attend the mountain festival and big well deserved thank you to the presenters, organizers and venue staff for their exceptional hospitality.
 
The hockey season in Haines Junction is in full swing. The Minor Hockey Program here runs 4 days a week (Mon-Thurs) with occasional games and clinics on the weekends. We currently have over 65 registered players, an active 8 member board, and a long list of volunteers (including 12 coaches) who help make our program successful. Haines Junction Minor Hockey would like to thank all their volunteers, the village of Haines Junction staff,  as well as Lotteries Yukon's and Dakwakada Capital Investments for their ongoing support.
 
Minor Hockey is also looking forward to hosting the ATOM Yukon Championships from January 12-14 at our incredible arena here in HJ.
 
And speaking of sports – Haines Junction has some exceptional soccer players. Our youth were in Whitehorse this weekend for a soccer tournament and its sounds like everyone had an absolute blast. Upcoming for soccer, and for those who like to plan way in advance, there will be a Futsal Fun Tournament on Sunday, March 19th at St. Elias School Gym for kids aged 8 to 14 from 10am to 4pm.  20 girls are coming out from Whitehorse so far and we have 30 kids from Haines Junction. Call Martin Jahr 634-5193 for details!
 
The Church of St.Christopher - the log church on the Alaska Highway in Haines Junction - will be hosting their annual Christmas Carol service at 7 pm on Sunday, December 17.  The service will get people in the Christmas spirit with familiar carols and readings.  But the big news is that there will be live musicians and singers, including the international singing sensations the Squirrel Camp Sopranos!  For more information about the carol service at 7 pm on Sunday, please call Mark Ritchie at 634-2943
 
Also at the church, the community Thrift Shop is open from 2-6pm on Thursday, Dec 14, 2017
 
We have a couple upcoming holiday open houses:
 
CAFN – December 14 from noon to 2pm at the Main Admin Building
RCMP Open House – December 15 in the morning
Village of Haines Junction Open House is on– Friday starts at 4pm
Community Nursing Open House – Thursday, Dec 21 – 1:30-3:30pm
 
Another delicious way to get into the holiday spirit… CAFN is hosting a Gingerbread House decorating contest – meet at the Home Ec Room at 3pm on Monday, Dec 18 at the St. Elias Community School.
 
The Annual Christmas Hamper Community Donation drive is now underway. Donation jars are available at the “Little Green Apple”, “Top Spot”, and “1016 pub”. There are also donation bins for non-perishable food items there is a bin at the Little Green Apple and Top Spot. Hamper delivery is scheduled for December 15th this year. Email Kelly at kellyinyt@hotmail.com if you would like to contribute.
 
The Village’s annual Christmas Light’s Contest takes place on December 20th this year. This year’s categories:
 
Griswold Award: Spectacular light, motion or music
Charlie Brown Award: Simply Decorated but full of Christmas cheer
Nostalgia Award: Traditional Decorations for Holidays past, reminding people of their childhood
Children & Youth Categories:
Frosty the Snowman Award: Creative front yard snow creation
Snoopy Award: Decorate something other than your home
Inside-Out: Indoor displays that can be seen from the road
 
And the finish off the holiday season, CAFN Da Ku will be hosting a Family New Years Eve with activities December 31, 7pm-12am
 
Trails!
The Village of Haines Junction is facilitating a community conversation and planning exercise around local trails – how people use them, which ones are most important, and how to maximize the benefits they bring to everyone. The project will wrap up this Spring.

The idea of mapping, sharing, and planning trails for both residents and visitors has been discussed in Haines Junction for many years. This phase of trail planning comes to us by way of the 2015 Recreation Implementation Plan which asked the Village of Haines Junction to create an interconnected trail network – connecting residences and neighbours and people to the places that matter most.
 
The planning team will be working to gather input from Haines Junction residents and community groups involved with trail recreation in a variety of ways – including meetings, online surveys, and public events - from November 2017 to January 2018. We are just wrapping up the initial phase to determine what people see as key opportunities and issues, and understand what the planning team should consider when designing a meaningful engagement process in the New Year. 
 
And last but certainly not least…
Stop by the nursing station for a flu shot!