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Episode 26: Lee Heinmiller; A Lifelong Haines Local Explains How A Community Gets Built

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2560124/fan_mail/new] A town can start with a big dream, but it survives on unglamorous details: heat that actually works, water that keeps running, and neighbors who show up when the plan falls apart. We talk with lifelong Haines resident Lee Heimiller, president of the Port Chilkoot Corporation, about the unlikely chain of events that helped turn Fort Stewart from a postwar military site into the heart of Port Chilkoot. Lee shares the inside story of veterans trying to buy surplus equipment, the scramble to finance a fort purchase, and what it meant to build a community in Southeast Alaska when money was tight and winter was not forgiving. From there, the conversation opens up into a deep, practical history of Haines and Tlingit cultural work through Alaska Indian Arts and the Chilkat Dancers. We get into how scouting, statehood-era promotion, and federal manpower training programs helped launch artists and carvers, and why the value of a totem pole is measured in hours, risk, and responsibility as much as dollars. Lee also tells stories about shipping major carvings, projects that ended up across the country, and the way cultural pride grew when public performance was not always welcomed. We also take on the question people argue about the most: Fort Stewart’s barracks buildings. Lee breaks down why “save it” can mean $30–$40 million, how landmark rules shape what’s even allowed, and why a seasonal tourism economy makes big redevelopment plans so hard to sustain. If you care about Haines Alaska history, Fort Stewart, Port Chilkoot, Alaska Native art, and what preservation looks like when budgets get real, this one is for you. Subscribe, share this with a friend who loves local history, and leave us a review telling us what part of Haines you want us to record next.

Episode 25: Sean Brownell; From Ski Bum To Heli Ski Pioneer In Southeast Alaska

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2560124/fan_mail/new] A fishing boat flips in the dark in a 60-mph blow, and a 23-year-old stays calm enough to get everyone into a life raft. That same steady nerve shows up again and again in our conversation with Sean “Sean Dog” Brownell, a longtime Haines resident and one of the old-guard voices in Alaska heli skiing. We go back to where his winter obsession starts, how the Juneau ski-bum years turn into early heli days, and why those rough beginnings eventually demand real avalanche education and professional guiding systems.  From there, the story widens into what it means to build a heli ski operation in Haines, Alaska over decades: weather windows, pricing by the run, loyal “core” clients, and the constant push and pull of permits, land ownership, and borough-managed maps. Sean talks candidly about competition between operators, how small boundary mistakes can change an entire run, and why he’d rather see a stable status quo than another round of high-drama rulemaking.  We also dig into Powdah Mountain, Sean’s DIY local ski hill built from a driveway, grooming, and a whole lot of sweat equity, plus the new Powdah Mountain Ski Club effort to get organized for insurance, fundraising, and grants. Add in homestead-scale gardens, cold-room food storage, and the “heli homestead” lifestyle, and you get a picture of adventure tourism that is grounded in community and day-to-day work, not just glossy footage.  If you care about backcountry skiing, heli skiing in Alaska, the economics of outdoor recreation, or how small towns manage big terrain, you’ll get plenty to chew on here. Subscribe, share this with a friend who loves the mountains, and leave us a review. What part of Sean Dog’s story hit you the hardest?

Episode 24: Stuart DeWitt; From Trapping Lines To Fishing Grounds In Southeast Alaska

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2560124/fan_mail/new] He grew up in Haines, Alaska with a bike, a beach, and more wilderness than rules and it shaped everything that came after. My guest, longtime local Stuart DeWitt, walks me through the moments that built his edge: early hunting trips, learning to trap from old-school mentors, and the kind of outdoor freedom that turns into real capability when things go sideways. Then we get into the working life. Stuart shares what it really takes to survive in commercial fishing in Southeast Alaska, from gillnet salmon to Dungeness crab and halibut fishing under the IFQ quota system. We talk about why diversification matters, how risk decisions get made, and the wild chain of events that led to buying a 45-foot boat in Hawaii, building a cradle, barging it to Seattle, and driving it back north. It’s a masterclass in timing, relationships, mechanical problem-solving, and being prepared when luck shows up. We also don’t dodge the hard parts: viral encephalitis as a kid, the brutal reality of hospitals full of sick children, the politics of fisheries management, allocation pressure, hatchery economics, and what happens when prices crash. On the personal side, Stuart reflects on coaching youth basketball, building confidence through small wins, and what he hopes his kids remember about work ethic, reliability, and family. Subscribe for more conversations rooted in Haines and Southeast Alaska, share this with someone who loves fishing or small-town stories, and leave a review if it hits home. What’s the biggest risk you’ve taken that ended up changing your life?

Episode 23: Kim Larson; Eight Kids, Nine Hours, Zero Quiet

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2560124/fan_mail/new] A licensed daycare in a small town sounds simple until you hear what it actually demands: nine-hour days, strict ratios, constant trust from parents, and almost no margin for error. We sit down with Kim Larson, a longtime in-home child care provider in Haines, Alaska, to trace how she got here and why her work has quietly held up families for decades. From Kansas roots to growing up in Anchorage, Kim’s path is full of grit, humor, and the kind of consistency that kids and communities depend on. Then the story turns. Kim walks us through the December 2020 storm and the Haines landslide that took her daughter Jenae. We talk about the chaos of those first hours, the community search, and the strange ways grief shows up later: songs that stop you cold, anniversaries you try to spend out of town, and the exhausting reality of living near reminders that never get fixed. Kim also shares how Jenae’s Playground came to life, turning love and loss into a space built for kids, joy, and memory. We also get practical and political about the child care shortage in rural Alaska: why home-based care can be more reliable than a center, how staffing rules can shut programs down overnight, and how a federal food reimbursement program can fail the “last provider standing” because nobody will travel to do an inspection. If you care about child care, community resilience, disaster recovery, and what real support looks like after trauma, this conversation stays with you. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs it, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway.

Episode 22: Thom Andriesen; What Does A Small Town Owe Its Volunteers?

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2560124/fan_mail/new] A Disney crew, a Gold Rush story, and a tiny Alaska town that had to pull off big-league logistics in the dead of winter. We’re joined by longtime Haines resident Tom Andriesen, a familiar face to anyone who’s spent time around town, and he walks us through how White Fang ended up filming entirely in the Chilkat Valley and what it took to make it happen day to day. Tom shares the behind-the-scenes reality of movie production in Southeast Alaska, from scouting and paperwork to moving trailers, tents, restrooms, security, and keeping sets safe in remote locations like Chilkoot Lake and Nataga Creek. Along the way, we hear about meeting actors, housing animal trainers, and why film workflows looked so different in the 35mm era. We also zoom out into the fuller Haines story: growing up between Seattle and Alaska summers, his family’s Alaska-made art and gift shop hustle, and the fairgrounds accident at age 12 that led to 13 surgeries and later changed his career path after an engineering degree. Tom talks candidly about decades as a volunteer firefighter and EMT, the strain of middle-of-the-night calls, and why small towns depend on people who keep showing up. If you love Haines Alaska history, White Fang filming location stories, volunteer EMT life, or the real mechanics of tourism in Southeast Alaska, you’ll find a lot here. Subscribe for more local conversations, share this with a friend who loves Alaska stories, and leave a review if you want to help the show grow. What’s one moment in your life that changed everything without warning?