Barbara Warren
warrenb@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
I’m a small town Alaskan girl. I grew up in Southeast Alaska on Prince of Wales Island in the small town of Craig. I love the outdoors, watching beautiful sunrises and sunsets, animals and spending quality time with family and friends.
I’ve spent the last 4 years living down on the Oregon Coast. February of 2004 I decided that it was time for me to return back to the place I will always call home – Alaska, and Sitka is where I ended up.
I love living in Sitka. There’s so much community pride here, diversity of people and the scenic beauty is awesome. To top it off I really enjoy my job here at Community Schools and feel very lucky to get the opportunity to work with all the neat people that I do. So all in all 2004 has been a good year for me and I’m only anticipating it will get better as time goes on.
Woody Widmark
widmarkw@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
Sitka is my hometown. I grew up here. I love what I do and have the best job in the world. I can’t believe I get paid for doing what I really like to do. I have been with Community Schools for 12 years. My duties encompass all the sports activities for Community Schools. Baseball and sports in general are my favorite pastime. My greatest passion is giving kids an opportunity to participate in something and help them get recognized. I’ve coached and umpired Little League. I am chairman
for the Sitka Tribe of Alaska, a federally recognized tribe, and a board member of the Baranof Island Housing Authority. As an Elk member I helped with their youth soccer program and Hoop Shoot, and I’m an adjutant for the Sons of the American Legion.
Lawrence "Woody" Widmark has been selected by NEA-Alaska as the Alaska Educational Support Person of the Year 2001.
Jane Eidler
eidlerj@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
I was born in Manhattan hospital in New York and grew up in Queens and Forest Park. I came west after college in 1972. After being a Volunteer in Justice through the VISTA program in Southern California, I came to Sitka, Alaska in 1975. I immediately latched onto the Alaskan seasonal lifestyle and worked for the National Parks and Forests in Alaska in my summers and the swimming pool in the winters. I met my husband
when we were both rangers at McKinley (now called Denali) National Park where he was a backcountry ranger and I was an interpretive ranger. We also worked in Glacier Bay National Park a number of summers and finally ended up in Sitka raising three children and managing the swimming pool. I am an avid reader, lean left, enjoy the great outdoors, good food and friends, I knit, bake and try to make the earth a better place for all of us.
Crossing Bridges Coordinator
Eric Matthes
matthese@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
I love my work. I taught science in the Bronx for 4 years, and then spent 13 months bicycling around North America – Seattle to Maine, down to Florida, over to California, up to Fairbanks and then down to Anchorage. I taught math in Manhattan for 3 years, and then moved to Sitka. I taught at Pacific High School for 4 years and loved it. I am currently working on an M.Ed. in Cross-Cultural Education through UAF, with a focus on how to best teach science in Alaska. I enjoy making opportunities for kids to learn and have fun outside of school through Crossing Bridges, and I am very happy to work with the many dedicated folks at Community Schools who make this happen. In my spare time I try to play with the Sitka Mountain Rescue Team and explore the mountains with friends, and kayak the local waters.
Faith Lee
leef@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
I have been with the Sitka School District for over thirteen years just joining Community Schools this fall. I am the mother of four and grandmother of six. My husband and I came to Sitka in 1989 and have never considered leaving. Our family enjoys this great community and participates in many activities and clubs. I enjoy helping others, meeting challenges and often find myself coordinating events and matching needs to means.
Norm Campbell
campbelln@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
An Alaskan since 1982 Norman and his family enjoy traveling, reading, hiking and embracing the gentle rain we all treasure so much in southeast Alaska.
An artist, parent and reader who believes
in community service and that service learning holds one key to an educated, compassionate populace, young and old alike. Recycling questions can be addressed to Community Schools at 747-8670.
Learn & Serve Coordinator
Darlene Dehlin
dehlind@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
After a long career (I’m old) in mapping, graphics, photography, and teaching, my husband and I opted for a major life-style change. We sold our Portland home and moved aboard a cruising sailboat. In 1996 we sailed to southeast Alaska from Oregon. After cruising southeast we discovered Sitka. With its awesome beauty and spark
of creative energy Sitka is the perfect
place to pursue my interests; boating, hiking, beachcombing, bird watching, photography and beading. In 2000 I came out of semi-retirement to work in Community Schools. I love being involved in our Learn and Serve programs and working with our great staff.
Karla Horner
hornerk@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
She has been with the program for thirteen years and supervisor for ten years. She has eighteen years of experience working with children from birth to high school. Karla graduated from Sheldon Jackson College with associates in recreation, a B.S. in Natural Resources, and a B.A. in Elementary Education. She is a graduate from Concordia University with a Masters in Education.
Her education and life experiences have allowed her to create a very remarkable after school program, which combines Kindergarten to fifth grade. Students who attend Ventures have the opportunity to participate in many thematic activates. Her summer program, which runs from June to August, incorporates the community of Sitka
Tobacco Sensation/Peer Helper Coordinator
Ryan Kauffman
kauffmanr@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
I have been the Peer Helpers Coordinator here at Sitka Community Schools for the past three years. I love to hike, surf, snorkel, and walk my dog. I really enjoy working in the community of Sitka. I especially like to work with youth. Not only do young people have amazing ideas and abilities but they also have great senses of humor and they crack me up! I moved to Sitka from Ashland, Oregon where I studied Ceramics and Sculpture. I have been living in Sitka for almost seven years, when I first traveled here I had no intention of staying, but like so many people, I fell in love with this place and now I call it home. If you see me around, don’t hesitate to talk to me about what we have going on with the Peer Helpers, there are usually great opportunities for both youth and adults.
Jesuit Volunteer
Matt Walsh
walshm@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
I am from Westborough, Massachusetts, which is about 40 minutes west of Boston. I graduated with a degree in Sociology in May 2007 from Saint Anselm College, which is in Manchester, New Hampshire. While I am here I am trying to do and see as much as possible. I’m so excited to live in Sitka for a year. My main job here with Community Schools is the After School Tutoring Program at Blatchley Middle School. I am also involved in the recycling program and Advancing Our Community (AOC). I love music and while I’m not working I enjoy reading, hiking with the other JVs, and doing yoga.
AmeriCorps Volunteer
Olivia King
kingo@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
Hello... I’m Livvy. I graduated from James Madison University in 2006, where I studied film, and played lacrosse. I am an AmeriCorps volunteer, and will be here until next August. I have spent the past year working for Fox 45 in Baltimore, Maryland, and working for a real estate company. I grew up in Baltimore, so Sitka is quite a change... but a wonderful place, and I am so excited to be here. I really enjoy being active… I love sports, I play the guitar, and I really hope to start hiking and kayaking while I’m here in Sitka. What a great community this is- wonderful people, and absolutely beautiful! I don’t know how I’m ever going to leave!
AmeriCorps Volunteer
Stacie Bolan
bolans@mail.ssd.k12.ak.us
I was born in Jamaica, immigrated to the United States, specifically New York when I was 13 years old. I’m a firm believer that everyone is a life long learner, that everyone has something to share, and I love interacting with children and animals. I am always looking for an opportunity to learn and share. Volunteering gives me that opportunity, and provides me with the occasion to indulge my 2 loves. That is why I am now a proud AmeriCorps Volunteer. As to how I ended up in Sitka, that is an even longer story, but feel free to ask me about it. I love watching and playing almost all kinds of sports, (only mediocre at all), I am an avid player of board games (willing at the drop of a hat to stay up all night playing), I am open to new experiences, and I read like books are going extinct (book recommendations welcome). My short time in Sitka is enough to know that I am going to love my time here. I look forward to learning a lot, and sharing what I know.
