The 2002 Arctic Small Business Gathering took place in Kotzebue last week. It was highlighted by crowded workshops on Small Business Planning, wonderful presentations by highly successful Native artists, and enlightening presentations on incorporating our culture into our economic development.

The Arts and Crafts competition, which has become a regular feature of the Business Gathering, was very popular as well. A Spring Pungowiyi charcoal drawing, entitled Inuit Laughter, earned Highest Honor in the Graphic Art category and was also voted as Best of Show. She started her drawing over two years ago and was inspired to complete it in time for this competition. The drawing depicts four elder ladies in whole-hearted laughter and touched the hearts of all who admired it.

Other category winners included Lowell Ward for his Loon Spirit Mask, Kathy Ward for her doll, and Willie Goodwin for his ulus. Beatrice Lizbourne had the winning entry in Parkas. Helena Jones won the basket competition with a perfect set of nine birch bark baskets. Top honors in mukluks and atikluks went to Sophie Cleveland. A beautiful sheep horn jewelry box took top honors for Jon Ipalook in the jewelry category. In the final category, carving, I was flattered to earn highest honors myself for birch log carvings. I plan to dedicate much more time to artwork after I retire in a few years.

Highly successful artist and special guest Ron Senungetuk played a substantial role in this year's Gathering. He was a keynote speaker, panelist on the subject of Entering Art Shows, and also made a slide presentation of much of his work.

Susie Silook was our other featured guest last week and was equally active. In

addition to presenting a keynote address, she shared a slide show entitled Arctic Inspiration that we all enjoyed very much.

It was especially gratifying to see all the interest in small business development workshops. The morning sessions attracted from 18 to 20 participants each day. A presentation by Fish and Game concerning the sale of antlers and other wildlife products stimulated lots of discussion.

It should be clearly understood by all residents of our borough that it is illegal to sell any antlers unless they are naturally shed by the animals. Antlers from harvested animals can only be sold if they have been converted into handicrafts that substantially increase their value. For additional details on this state law, you may contact our office at 442-2500 or 1-800-478-1110.

The Borough would like to thank all the people and agencies that contributed to this year's Business Gathering. They included Maniilaq Association, NANA, the State Department of Commerce and Economic Development, and the University of Alaska. And a very special thanks is due to Jack Dalton, who entertained and educated both our conference attendees and our local students with his storytelling performances.

Over 200 people visited the four-day event, which was very well coordinated by Siikauraq Whiting of our economic development department. Plans for next year's gathering have already begun!

Natchiq won Highest Honors in the Carving Division.

Katherine Cleveland won Special Recognition for her birch bark basket entry.

Donald Ferguson won Special Recognition in carving.

Kotzebue Lady Huskies: 2002 Region Champions

Kotzebue High School's girls basketball team capped what was likely the best season ever for the Lady Huskies with a 52-50 victory over Mt. Edgecumbe last Friday at the State Tournament in Anchorage.

Although sandwiched by losses to Valdez and Petersburg, the win was monumental achievement number two for Kotzebue this season.

The first came with the Regional Championship two weeks ago in Barrow. It not only earned Kotzebeue its first berth at State since 1992, it was the first time the Lady Huskies had won the Regional title since 1975.

Friday's victory at the Sullivan Arena was reportedly the first time the Lady Huskies have ever won a game at State.

Head Coach Jake Stoops says the team should be pleased with the success, but not satisfied.

"Ideally, this was just a stepping stone," said Stoops. "We had the ability to compete for the state championship this year, but it was new to the entire program. We weren't quite ready."

Stoops noted the balance of the eight-team field and said he felt every team could have won it all. For example, Nikiski, the eventual champions, survived a two-point win over Mt. Edgecumbe in the first round.

"It will take a lot of work, a full year of commitment, but we have the pieces to win it all next year," said Stoops. "The girls need to decide if they are willing to make the sacrifices it will take. They may choose not to, but at least they have the option."

In the opening round Thursday, Kotzebue met Valdez, the defending state champions. The Buccaneers aggressive man-to-man defense flustered the Huskies early and by the time Kotzebue got its feet under them, it was too late.

"Valdez was huge," said Stoops. They start a 6' and 6'2" front line and at 5'8", their point guard was as tall as our biggest girl. It was like we were defending the Alamo, but the walls were only five and a half feet high. When we settled down, got our composure and blocked out, it was an even game."

14-3 and 14-5 first and second quarters were the difference. Over the final 16 minutes, Valdez outscored Kotzebue just 23-21.Allison Conwell hit for a game-high 20 points on 8-19 shooting.

The loss put Kotzebue into the consolation bracket against Mt. Edgecumbe. The Braves featured 6'2" Ella Morris and the potent guard combination of Prema Warren and Melanie Beans.

Trailing 9-5 after the first quarter, the Huskies man-to-man defense was exploited by Warren's quickness and dribble penetration in the second period. Kotzebue went to the locker room down 29-14 and seemingly out of the tournament.

However, the Huskies answered the bell after intermission with a new game plan and renewed effort.

"We switched to zone, something we haven't played much of at all this year," said Stoops. "But it eliminated the dribble penetration, took (Morris) out of the game and allowed us to rebound much better. It also jump-started our transition game."

If the Kotzebue running game were a car, Allison Conwell would have been the ignition and Mildred Sampson the gas peddle. After hauling in rebounds, Conwell repeatedly fed a streaking Sampson, who converted every lay-up attempt.The Huskies erased the 14 point deficit with a 37-21 second half.

Sampson and Evelyn Conwell shared team-high honors with 15 points each, Allison Conwell added 6 rebounds and 6 steals and Gladys Woods finished with 9 points and 4 steals.

The win advanced Kotzebue to the 4th/6th place game Saturday morning versus Petersburg. After opening the season with a loss to the Vikings at Sitka's Holland America Tournament, the Huskies had nearly come full circle for the rematch.

Although the Huskies controlled the game until the final two minutes of play, the redemption was not to be and Kotzebue fell 39-33.

The Huskies led by 4 at the half and 2 points after three quarters, but went cold from the field in the fourth period and were outscored 14-6 over the final 8 minutes.

Evelyn Conwell led the Huskies scoring column with her second consecutive 15 point game and despite foul trouble that limited her playing time, Allison Conwell finished with 7 points, 5 rebounds and 5 steals.

In the tournament's closing ceremonies, Kotzebue was honored with the Team Sportsmanship Award. Sampson and Josie Jones were named to the Good Sport Team and Allison Conwell was named to the All Tournament Team.

Stoops also wanted to point out the great attitudes of Hilary Upickson and Gladys Woods.

"I once heard attitude is the key to effort and effort is the key to success. If that's the case, Gladys and Hilary are going to be rock stars," said Stoops.

Week of March 4

The Northwest Arctic Borough hosted a Joint Assembly Meeting with the North Slope Borough in Kotzebue on February 27. Our cooperative effort reflects a commitment to working together on issues of common concern and importance. In working together, we can all be stronger and more effective.

The guest Assembly members from Barrow were Molly Pederson, Michael Aamodt, Charlotte Brower, Charles Hopson and Ray Koonuk, Sr.The meeting took place at the Alaska Technical Center library.

The major action items for review included our Joint Borough Action Plan, the Summit 2002 Budget and the theme for that Summit, "Preserving Values in Changing Times."

Our proposed Joint Action Plan includes the following proposals:

1) develop policies to incorporate the use of Traditional Knowledge to mitigate the impact of economic development projects;

2) establish a formal stakeholder process to provide information that will ensure a public process for local residents affected by projects;

3) conduct an analysis study to identify the skills that are needed to support anticipated economic development. Identify the resources and strengths that local entities will bring to any economic development effort;

4) form a collaborative effort between industry, agencies and educational facilities to look at options;

5) the hire of a consultant to determine how to lower the cost of fuel for residents of both boroughs;

6) continue efforts to generate support for the opening of ANWR for oil and gas development;

7) identify appropriate studies that need to be conducted to determine the effects of the DeLong Mountain Project and Western Arctic Coal Project on the economy and resources of the region;

8) and ongoing support for the Alaska Gas Pipeline Port Authority and its role in developing Alaska natural gas and a southern gas pipeline route.

Our guests were entertained at a dinner at the National Guard Armory on the evening of the 26th. The crowd of almost 100 ate sheefish, watched a large group of our Native dancers, and listened to the singing of Kathy Ward and Toni Evak, who is working for the Borough as Public Services Coordinator.

The 2002 Arctic Summit will be held in Kotzebue this year, on September 25, 26 and 27. We look forward to lots of public participation in both the work sessions and evening social events.

Week of March 11

A representative of my Economic Development Department traveled to Noatak on March 4 and 5 to acquaint the village with our small business loan and arts marketing programs. Lee Stoops, our ED Director, came back with a glowing report from the community.

One feature of his trip was a presentation to the high school freshmen, who showed great interest in traditional arts and crafts. At the request of school principal, we will arrange for a small group of carvers to visit Noatak School soon to conduct a one-day workshop in antler, ivory and woodcarving. I will look forward to providing the woodcarving instruction myself, as I have been an avid carver for many years now. As I often hear about how much our students would like to have regular classes in traditional arts and crafts, I hope our Regional School Board will consider making such classes a part of school curriculum. If any of the local Advisory Boards feel that such instruction would be valuable to preserving our culture and maintaining interest of the students, they may want to consider making that sentiment known to the Regional School Board as well.

Noatak seems to do an exceptional job of maintaining an excellent environment in their school. They have done an excellent job in retaining many of their teachers, who have in turn become a valued part of the community. And even without the benefit of a Village Public Safety Officer at this time, the village does a great job of enforcing the evening curfew for the young people. That may have much to do with the success that so many of their students are having in the classroom.

Another special aspect of Noatak is the large number of residents who utilize employment at Red Dog to support their families. It is not easy to hold a job that requires being away from family and friends for weeks at a time, but those who have managed to cope with that inconvenience are assets to their village. The income that they bring home goes a long way toward improving the quality of life for not only their immediate families but the village in general.

I'd like to convey my gratitude to Alice Adams, the Resource Specialist in Noatak who hosted my staff representative. The Resource Specialist position in each village is jointly funded by NANA Regional Corporation, Maniilaq Association and the Borough.

For information about our grant and loan programs and arts marketing, village residents are encouraged to visit their Resource Specialist, who can answer questions, provide applications, and serve as your local Borough representative.

I hope you are all enjoying the warm weather!

Week of March 25

The Regional 1-3A basketball tournament was a major success on many fronts - all but maybe the weather front that prevented the Hooper Bay teams from getting to Barrow to compete and delayed the return for those teams and supporters who did attend.

For the young Kotzebue boys' team, it was a valuable learning experience and the team Sportsmanship Award. For the Husky girls, it was their first Regional championship in recent memory.

The true stars of the weekend were the special Barrow residents who organized and ran the tournament, the enthusiastic fans that attended the games, and the outstanding school staff. By all accounts, the visitors enjoyed just amazing hospitality.

A special example of that hospitality came courtesy of Oliver Leavitt, who treated our girls' team to lunch and gave up four hours of his Sunday to drive the girls on a personalized tour of Barrow. And that was AFTER our Huskies had defeated the Barrow girls on consecutive nights by identical two-point margins!

Last year when our girls traveled to Barrow, Oliver took them on a guided tour of the local museum. He's a great ambassador for the North Slope.

The school staff provided great meals and excellent security in the facility. They also gave teams bottled water on the benches, free video production of their games, and information about other tournaments being played around the state.

All in all, it's been a great year for 3-A basketball in the northern part of our region. On the girls' side, Kotzebue, Barrow and Nome finished first, second and third. On the boys' side, it was Barrow and Nome as the top two.

The state tournament will have ended when this report is printed, but I know that our area will be well represented. High school basketball was a big part of my life growing up, and I know how much it means to all the players, their families and their whole communities.

I am thankful that we have good gyms in most of our villages and I will be even more grateful when they all have them.

Again, I'd like to tell Barrow that we truly appreciated their hospitality. Best wishes to all of you.

Art Work For Sale

Artwork Currently FOR SALE at the Northwest Arctic Borough Office
(Located on the 2nd floor of the National Guard Armory in Kotzebue)
For Telephone Sales, contact Lee Stoops or Martha Whiting at (800) 478-1110 (toll free in Alaska) or (907) 442-2500 M-F 8:00-4:30

4 lbs 1.2 oz Scrimshawed Ivory Tusk with Caribou Antler Display Stand by Vika Owens ($790.00).

3 lbs 15.2 oz Scrimshawed Ivory Tusk by Vika Owens ($750.00).

2 lbs. 7.6 oz Scrimshawed Ivory Tusk by Vika Owens ($580.00)

Ivory Fisherman by Donald Ferguson ($520); Ivory & Baleen Eskimo Dancers by Donald Ferguson ($300); Ivory, Baleen & Jade NYO High Kick by Donald Ferguson ($190.00) and Caribou Skin Mask with Beaver & Fox fur trim by Mabel Berry ($65 or $95 in shadow box).

Whale Bone Mask with Mammoth, Ivory & Baleen inlay by Joe Swan ($225); Caribou Antler Spirit Mask by Lowell Ward ($85) and Loon Mask with Ivory, Baleen, Duck Feathers and Drift Wood by Lowell Ward ($325).

Northwest Arctic Borough Staff Directory

Mayor's Department
Ross Schaeffer Sr., Mayor
Valarie Romane, Assistant to the Mayor
Jake Stoops, Information Coordinator

Finance Department
Tula Lie, Comptroller
Judy Hassinger, Finance Director

Planning Department
Noah Naylor, Director
Charlie Gregg, Deputy Director

Public Servies
Tom Bolen, Director
Toni Evak, LEPC/PSC
Angela Joule, Receptionist/DMV

Economic Development
Lee Stoops, Director
Martha Whiting, Program Coordinator

Borough Clerk's Office
Helena Hildreth, Borough Clerk
Geri Jones, Deputy Borough Clerk

Northwest Arctic Borough P.O. Box 1110 Kotzebue, AK 99752 (907)442-2500 (800)478-1110 Fax:(907)442-2930

(c) 2001 Northwest Arctic Borough All rights reserved