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Michael S. Lockett

Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire This photo shows boats moored at Don D. Statter Harbor on a recent sunny day. According to statistics recently release by the U.S. Coast Guard, boating accidents were down in Alaska in 2021.

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Boating fatalities trending down for 2021

Numbers met expectations, said safety instructors

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Reef Shark replaced the USCGC Liberty as the cutter for Sector Juneau earlier in June, stationed at Don D. Statter Harbor. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)

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Reef Shark replaces Coast Guard Cutter Liberty in Juneau

The new cutter has big boots to fill, but brings the enthusiasm to do it

In this April 11, 2018 photo state Sen. Dennis Egan, D-Juneau, walks out of the Senate chambers and to a reception to honor him and Sen. Berta Gardner, D-Anchorage, at the Capitol. Both were retiring from the legislature. (Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)

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Dennis Egan, former state lawmaker and Juneau mayor, dies

He fought hard to keep the capital in Juneau

Michael S. Lockett / capital city weekly Gigi Monroe welcomes guests to Glitz at Centennial Hall, a major annual drag event celebrated every Pride Month, on June 18.

Life

Packed houses, back to back: GLITZ a roaring success

Sold-out sets and heavy-hitting headliners

Sherry Patterson, president of the Black Awareness Association in Juneau, looks out as the group sells sweet potato pies as a fundraiser for a college scholarship fund during a Juneteenth celebration on June 19, 2022 in Juneau, Alaska. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)

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Juneteenth celebrated with food and friendship in Juneau

The event was a celebration and a fundraiser for a college scholarship fund

Project Gabe, named after a young man who died of an opioid overdose, aims to bring overdose kits to the fisheries industry in the Southeast. Volunteers assembled 150 kits on Friday, June 10, 2022. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)

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‘This is stoppable’: Program works to bring opioid overdose kits to seafood industry

The project began with a tragic death, but proponents hope it can prevent more

An Alaska Army National Guard aircrew flying a UH-60 Black Hawk aided in the rescue of a mountain biker with a possible spinal injury from the wilderness near Cooper Landing on May 30, 2022. (Alejandro Pena / U.S. Air Force)

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National Guard rescues injured biker near Cooper Landing

The biker had a possible spinal injury, requiring aerial medevac

Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire Local Tlingit beader Jill Kaasteen Meserve is making waves as her work becomes more widely known, both in Juneau and the Lower 48.

Life

Old styles in new ways: Beader talks art and octopus bags

She’s been selected for both a local collection and a major Indigenous art market

Jordyn Ortega walks the runway during an Alaska Fashion Week event on May 7, 2022. (Courtesy photo / Sydney Akagi Photography)

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Alaska’s (fashion) capital brings fashion week back

Designers, models and attendees from across the continent came to Juneau for the show.

Anne Sears, the new lead investigator for the federally-funded Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Initiative, speaks during the annual rally at the Alaska State Capitol on May 5, 2022. (Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire)

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Hundreds gather for missing and murdered Indigenous people

More and more attention is being paid nationwide to the staggering violence rates.

Dana Zigmund / Juneau Empire File A Carnival Cruise Lines vessel similar to one due in Juneau following a COVID outbreak aboard steams past Douglas in 2021.

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City contacting ship on way to town following COVID outbreak

The ship, due to arrive here Saturday, experienced an outbreak enroute from Miami to Seattle.

A phone screen displays a message warning that a suspicious email may be an attempt at stealing personal information. Cybercrime rose to new heights in 2021, according to FBI data, but there are some steps people can take to be safe, according to local law enforcement. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)

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Cybercrime on rise nationwide

A few good practices can neutralize common scams and crimes

Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire This photo shows “Old Woman With Berries in Her Lap,” a poetry collection by Wrangell writer and poet Vivian Faith Prescott. She recently released two books, the second being “My Father’s Smokehouse,” a combination of recipes and stories.

Life

Southeast author releases ‘foodoir’ and book of poetry

The prolific author and poet has been working for years on the two books

Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire The Norwegian Bliss arrives Monday in Juneau, the first cruise of the 2022 season.

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2022 cruise season begins in Juneau

Visitors and Juneau locals alike were excited for the arrival

A Forest Service fire crew gets brief during an operation. Fire crews from Alaska are frequently deployed to the Lower 48 to help combat wildfires that are growing larger and closer to urban areas in many cases. (Courtesy photo / Parker Anders)

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Into the fire: Alaska’s wildlands firefighters eye coming dry season

Alaska’s wildlands firefighters lend a hand where needed nationwide.

Michael Patz, raised in Juneau, stands on the ice in front of the icebreaker S.A. Agulhas II next to a sign showing the location of the wreck of Ernest Shackleton’s vessel, the Endurance, in this March 2022 photo. The ship was rediscovered March 5, 2022, by searchers aboard the icebreaker. (Courtesy photo/Michael Patz)

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‘My interest was in the adventure’: Man from Juneau talks role in finding long-lost ship near Antarctica

Cold ice, clear water and lots of sealife.

Elin Antaya, a Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé senior, was awarded the Hoffman-Greene Ocean Youth Award by the Alaska SeaLife Center for work supporting and stewarding the ocean. (Courtesy photo / ASC)

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Making waves: Juneau teen wins statewide award for ocean stewardship

Her involvement with the ocean ranges across all aspects of her life.

AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, walks to meet Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., on Capitol Hill, Monday, April 4, 2022, in Washington.

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Murkowski announces support for confirmation of Jackson to Supreme Court

She joins two other high-profile Republican senators who said they would support Jackson

Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire Rep. Geran Tarr, D-Anchorage, center, speaks as state lawmakers and children’s welfare advocates attend a Blue Shirt Day event at the Alaska State Capitol, honoring the beginning of Child Abuse Prevention Month on April 1, 2022.

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Juneau recognizes Child Abuse Prevention Month

Blue Shirt Day is a national day for child welfare advocacy

Michael S. Lockett / Juneau Empire The deadline for the Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend, which comes from the fund managed by the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation, is coming up fast, landing on March 31.

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Deadline approaching to apply for PFD

This year’s payout is still being decided.