On this Christmas Eve day, many neighbors will be preparing for their own unique Christmas traditions that are carried with them and handed down from generation to generation.

I heard 17-year-old Esther Pherson, who moved to Ninilchik with her family three years ago, reminiscing about her Christmas memories which occurred in a country so different from ours. “Since I grew up in South Africa, we’d never wake up to snow-it would usually be a hot and sunny or rainy,” she said. “On Christmas morning, we’d excitedly open our gifts that were under our fake tree then go to church on Christmas Day, no matter what day of the week it was. At church we would sing our favorite Christmas carols and hear the most important meaning of the celebration-how Jesus was born in a manger in Bethlehem and came to die on the cross for us. We knew that no matter what gifts we got for Christmas, God gave us the best one, His son,” she exclaimed. “After church we’d return home and would be welcomed by the smell of turkey cooking. We’d play Christmas music as we prepared for dinner. After dinner we would call our family in Alaska and Ohio. Now that we live here in Alaska, we have both snow and family for Christmas.” Her eyes moistened as she added, “Even though I love having these, I’ll never forget our Christmases in South Africa or our little old fake tree.”

Ninilchik Alumni basketball game will be held at Ninilchik School gymnasium on Sat. Dec. 29 at 6 p.m. Whether you are young or experienced in years, a player or spectator, all are welcome to attend the annual alumni game. Admission is $4 for adults and $2 for students and senior citizens. Tickets will be sold at the door.

Terri Leman, Coordinator of the Ninilchik Health & Wellness Club invites the community to join the “Biggest Loser Contest” in January. This free event will be a fun way to encourage you to lose fat and gain strength and energy at the Health and Wellness Club located at the fairgrounds. The Biggest Loser Contest will run for three months: from the beginning of January through the end of March, with the Kick-off on Thursday, January 3rd, at 7 p.m. at the fairgrounds. “Don’t worry, we won’t be weighing and measuring in public. All of your information will be kept confidential,” assured Terri.
For more information give Terri a call at 567-3880 or stop by the club. Club hours are Monday-Thursday 7 a.m.- 7 p.m. and Friday 7 a.m. - 2 p.m. Free admission to the club is provided through collaboration between Ninilchik Traditional Council and the Kenai Peninsula State Fair.

Those who are having birthdays this week are Matthew Encelewski today; Steve Vanek and Jess McKellar on Christmas Day; Kristin Klaich and Thomas Vanek on Dec. 27, Nicole Leman and Casey Ogren on Dec. 28 and Linda Painter and Bob Simpson on Dec. 30.

Merry Christmas to all!

One of the most enjoyable benefits of attending a community bazaar is meeting new neighbors. A few tables down from mine at the holiday bazaar this year was a dazzling display of belt buckles and jewelry made from cut and polished rocks and semiprecious stones. I introduced myself to the artisans, Warren and Pat Togni and learned that they moved here in 2005 from Santa Rosa, California. For several years, they spent their summers in a trailer at the Alaska Angler campground and fell in love with our small community. After they decided to move here permanently, they went home and put their house on the market, bought a house on the bluff and moved here– all within a few months. “We have a killer view,” exclaimed Pat. “Our view would cost a million dollars back in California!” The couple agreed that there was no comparison with living here versus the fast paced city life in California. ” I saw Santa Rosa grow from 14 thousand residents to 240 thousand. Living here is like stepping back in time,” Pat said.

Warren is a finish carpenter and cabinet installer, and now that he is retired enjoys his lapidary hobby and sport fishing. Pat worked for a title company and was in real estate until she couldn’t stand the viciousness of the competition. “It was too cut-throat for me,” she said. “Now I have time to do things that I enjoy doing.” She said she especially enjoys canning, gourmet cooking and entertaining. She also likes to get together with the women in the community and is currently the vise president of the Domestic Engineers. She said that being involved with the Domestic Engineers promotes a sense of community and supports some good causes such as Close Up, Christmas care packages, the Easter Basket program and the Ninilchik Community Library. She told me that one event coming up was the Santa’s Store that opens at Ninilchik School where children can buy presents for their parents for 50 cents. If anyone is interested in joining the Domestic Engineers or donating items for Santa’s Store, please contact Pat at 567-7323.

One table near the Togni’s was the Domestic Engineer’s table selling homemade jams and jellies to help support Ninilchik School’s needs. They also raffled a quilted wall hanging with a backwoods theme made by Barb Lamont that Richard Digel won.

Ninilchik School band and music teacher, Lisa Nissley, reported that the annual holiday bazaar and rummage sale was a success. She said that proceeds from the table rentals and the band members’ rummage sale, the band met 50% of their goal of paying for their new band uniforms. Lisa mentioned that she was proud of the 27-member band who poured over catalogs and made a wise choice for their uniforms.

Happy Birthday to Abi Daniels, Carolyn Leman, and Daniel Self, today; Dan Leman on Nov. 20; Jesse Leman on Nov. 21; Willie Morris on Nov. 23; and Delores Lindeman and Brad Drake on Nov. 25.

I would like to encourage you not to forget to exercise your freedom to vote and get out to the polls tomorrow. Our district polls are held at Ninilchik School and will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 8 p.m. I appreciate the faithful workers who attend the polls: Jackie Bear, Ruthi Bauman, Donna Schaetzle, and Ila Treat.

It was fun to see many neighbors at the HEA barbecue held at the Kenai Peninsula State Fairgrounds a few weeks ago. I’m enjoying the free light bulbs that were handed out. Congratulations to Lee Wentworth for wining the door prize– a $50 credit on her HEA bill.

Don’t forget the Ninilchik Community Library’s annual meeting and potluck that will be held this Wednesday, Oct. 3, at the library. The potluck will be at 6:00 p.m. and the meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m.

On Tuesday, Sept. 18, a surprise party was given to honor Doris Kelly on her 75th birthday. To celebrate her special day, Doris thought that she was going out for a quiet lunch with her friend Ethel Pherson, but instead she was surprised with a tea party organized by Suzan Cobb and Joy Pherson at Calvary Baptist Church. Since she was born and raised in Ninilchik, Doris’s knowledge is rich with local history and stories of days gone by. At the tea, her friends enjoyed sharing stories of how Doris has enriched their lives. One friend shared that Doris is a remarkable seamstress and has made countless quilts for her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and children in her church. Ladies who attended the celebration were Terral Anderson, Suzan Cobb, Harriet Covey, Cindy Crabb, Vicky Daniels, Karen Grimes, Betsey Knox, Marian Hostetter, Marilyn Morris, Ethel Pherson, Joy Pherson and Lisa Westergaard.

Mark your calendars now to attend the Kenai Peninsula State Fair’s Annual Meeting that will be held on Saturday, Oct. 13 at 1 p.m. It will start off with a potluck so you are encouraged to bring your favorite dish and come prepared to share your ideas for making the 2008 fair a memorable one.

If you would like help the Ninilchik Lady Wolverines basketball team with a fund raiser to help upgrade the sound system for Ninilchik School and enjoy a great pizza at the same time, 15 inch pizzas made-to-order will be available on Friday, October 5th and 12th at Ninilchik School. Fundraiser organizer, Cindy Schnabl, requests that you call your order in early at 398-9095 or 398-9054.

Congratulations to Ed and Judy Harper as their anniversary is today, and to Mr. & Mrs. Joe Sallee as theirs is tomorrow. Birthdays this week are Bob Jacobs, today; Marla Kvasnikoff, tomorrow, Oct. 2; Susanne Oskolkoff on Oct. 3; and Patty Brown on Oct. 5.

I appreciate all those who are feeding me with news. If there is any news from your club, organization, school, fundraiser or family event that you would like to see printed here, please be sure to send an email or give me a call.

Since the beach ices up during the winter, access to our home on the beach in Happy Valley is difficult, so we don’t have many drop-in visitors this time of year. However, when my son, Caleb, was taking ashes out one evening last week, he heard heavy footsteps approaching in the darkness. When he turned around, two foreboding shadows made his heart leap. A mama moose and her offspring had invited themselves over for a meal of alder and willow branches in our front yard. This duo has been hanging out for over a week now–even bedding down at night a few yards from our house. These visits as well as seeing seals and sea otters playfully floating by on the ice floe have caused a bit of distraction from our daily home-school routine, but we will never take for granted the joys and wonders of living here.

There will be a Fish and Game Advisory meeting this evening at 7 p.m. at Ninilchik School. Voting for federal subsistence proposals is on the agenda.

There will be an EMS-1 training offered at Ninilchik Emergency Services building on Thursday, Feb. 28. For more information, call Mike Chihuly at 567-3374 or Gina Wiste at 252-2196.

12 young people from the Ninilchik area from grades 3 through 11 participated in the Kenai Peninsula district-wide 4-H Public Presentation and Educational Display Contests held at the borough building in Soldotna on Saturday. Willie and Marilyn Morris of Happy Valley went to observe the competition and to provide moral support to the kids. “I was so impressed with their ability to speak and perform under stress,” Marilyn exclaimed. She added, “I wish that I could be a kid all over again and get the 4-H experience of learning by doing and gain public speaking skills while I was young.” Participants were Sarah Cobb, Mattie Cobb, Caleb Daniels, Joanna Daniels, Naomi Hess, Hannah Kelson, Esther Knox, Kody Knox, Misty Knox, Krystal Robuck, David Pherson, and Carla Pherson. Videos tapings of the presentation finalists will be sent to Juneau for the statewide competition.

Argent Kvasnikoff , son of Jack and Marla Kvasnikoff and graduate of Ninilchik School, was elected Capilano College International Student Liaison in February. Argent is a freshman at Capilano in Vancouver, Canada, studying Linguistics and First Nations Studies. As International Student Liaison, he works with students from around the world, assisting them with interpretive needs, host family placement, legal referrals and coordinates twice monthly events to give international students opportunities for touring the local area and meeting with other area students. Marla said that Argent credits his fluency in several languages and his volunteer hours with the International Student committee for his election as the International Student liaison and is thrilled to have the opportunity to meet and interact with so many people from around the globe.

Happy President’s Day! Or should I say, Happy Washington’s Birthday?
In 1879, Washington’s Birthday had become the first federal holiday to single out an individual’s birth date, but the honor didn’t last.
In 1968, the Ninetieth Congress proposed a bill to celebrate Washington’s birthday on the third Monday of February for social and economic reasons, and honoring our first president on his actual birthday was forever lost. In 1971, merchants in Texas renamed the holiday, “Presidents’ Day” in order to expand their sales dates from Lincoln’s birthday on Feb. 12 to Washington’s birthday on the 22. It is unclear why and when Washington’s birthday “officially” became accepted as “Presidents’ Day.”

Recently, home-schooled 10th grader, Sarah Cobb wrote a speech on the United States Constitution and entered the American Legion Oratorical contest sponsored by the American Legion Post in Kenai. Her speech entitled, “Authority, Our Privilege” won her a $750 U.S. Savings bonds and qualified her to compete at the state level in Anchorage on Feb. 23. Sarah will be doing her speech for the American Legion Posts in Ninilchik and Anchor Point in the near future. Sarah is the daughter of Larry and Suzan Cobb.

Marlys Kvasnikoff would like to thank the community for their sympathy and support upon the sudden death of her son, Joseph Kvasnikoff. She said that she is always amazed at how our community comes together to support one another during times of grief and crisis.

Ninilchik Emergency Services is providing an EMT-1 Class on February 28th free of charge, at the NES building on Kingsley Road in Ninilchik. If you would consider being trained to become part of a dedicated crew who volunteer their time to help with emergencies in our community, please call Fire Chief Mike Chihuly @ 567-3374 or EMT Chief Gina Wiste @ 252-2196.

Winners of Ninilchik Community Library’s Valentine raffle were Tim Meyers who won the box of Valentine goodies and Shirley Chihuly who won the Valentine lap quilt.

The Biggest Loser Contest held at Ninilchik Health and Wellness Club is in full swing. Congratulations to Cindy Crabb for losing the most weight last month. Cindy said that working out regularly at Ninilchik’s Health Club and modifying her food portions helped her lose the 10.75 pounds last month and won her a $100 cash prize.

There will be a Quality Schools Institute community meeting at the Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds today from noon -4 p.m. The meeting will continue tomorrow, (Feb. 19) with a subcommittee meeting from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. and an Interested Community meeting from 6-7:30 p.m.
The intent of the meeting is to open a dialogue about the continuation and creation of various safe, supervised, social opportunities for young people in our community.

Happy Birthday to Beth Garrison, Tom Spencer, and Mary Jean Kitchens today; Brenda Jackinsky Feb. 19, Joseph Leman, Tiffany Stoncipher, George Pollard and Tony Amato on Feb. 21; Mandi Patrick and Michael Chapman on Feb. 22; and Jim Pennintton and MacKenzie Lindeman on Feb. 23.

I am aware that many, kind and generous neighborly acts go on in our community that are quietly woven into the unique fabric that makes up our small town. When I observe deeds such as plowing snow for the elderly, sanding icy driveways and taking food to a shut-ins, usually the neighbor who performs the deed brushes it aside and would rather it went unnoticed.

Recently, when I took a group of 4-H members to Nadine Russo’s house in Ninilchik for knitting lessons, I was greeted at the door by a neighbor whom I never met before. After introductions, I found out that her name was Sheri Marrufo who lives off of Resch Road about a mile from my place in Happy Valley. She had stopped by Nadine’s house to get some advice on flooring for the house she and her husband are building, and while there, her dogs, Benji and Benji’s mom, Xena, had locked her out of her car. As she was waiting for her neighbor to bring a spare set of keys, I found out that she and her husband, Joe, are both Teamsters who drive truck in Prudhoe Bay. They bought property here in 1999 and moved from Anchorage in 2001. Sheri said that she is excited about retirement, which is right around the corner for her. She hopes to be able to finish their new house as well as have more time for gardening and for getting into fly-fishing.

I didn’t get to meet Sandy Jazkin, the neighbor who drove the 24-mile round trip on that cold winter day to rescue Sheri, but I’m sure she is just like many others in our community, ready to help a neighbor–at the drop of a hat– in the time of need.

68 people turned out for the Republican poll held in Ninilchik. The votes were as follows: Romney, 34; Huckabee 17; McCain, 10; Ron Paul, 5; and 2 undecided. Democrats in Ninilchik area voted in Soldotna, so I was unable to obtain their results. When I asked Crystal Robuck, 10, a third grader at Ninilchik School who she would vote for, she replied, “I’d vote for Hillary Clinton because she is a girl and wants to help us with health care.”

Ninilchik Invitational Basketball Tournament will be held at Ninilchik School Thursday through Saturday. This is our chance to get out and support the Ninilchik Wolverines boys and girls basketball teams. Concessions will be available at the games. The community is invited to attend the homecoming bonfire held in the lot across from the fairgrounds at 6 p.m. tomorrow.

Willard and Ruthe Bauman’s daughter, Cathy Andrew, flew in from Colorado Springs to surprise her dad, Willard, for his 75th birthday, which is tomorrow, Feb. 12. Other birthdays this week are Mary Ellen Doty, Shyanne Saliee, and Cole Ogren-Butail today; Mechaela Fender on Feb. 12; Michelle Quinton on Feb. 13; Debbie Amato on Feb. 14; and Naomi Deutschle on Feb. 15.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Congratulations to our two local Jr. T mushers, Merissa Osmar of Clam Gulch and Rebekah Ruzicka of Anchor point who competed in the Jr. T dogsled race held in Kasilof on Jan 26. The Jr. T is a 50-mile round trip race in the Caribou Hills for mushers under 18.

I spoke with Rebekah Ruzicka 15, who is home schooled and the daughter of Doug and Debbie Ruzicka, about her experience with the Jr. T. Even though she came in next to last, she said that she had a lot of fun racing and she highly recommends the sport to anyone. She said that she participated in the Jr. Iditarod last year and that her family has been very supportive of her racing. She especially enjoys the quietness while mushing, surrounded by the beauty of Alaska’s great outdoors. She warns new mushers to be prepared with the right clothing in order to stay warm. “It’s always a lot colder than you would ever expect,” she exclaimed. With her lead dog, Kayak, she is planning to race in the Jr. Iditarod held on Feb. 23 this year. Shameka Nelson of Anchor Point is also signed up for the race. The Jr. Iditarod is approximately 145 miles long starting in the Wasilla area with an overnight at Yentna and return for a finish in Willow. Teens 14 - 17 can still sign up for the Jr. Iditarod, but entries must be in no later than February 9. You can get more information at http://www.jriditarod.com

The Ninilchik Community Library will be having a Valentine bake sale in the Post Office lobby on Feb. 9 from 9 a.m.-noon. The drawing for the Valentine goodie box and the lap quilt will be on the same day at the library. Debra Henderson said that there’s still time to get your tickets and that she would like to thank everyone in advance for their support. For information please call the library 567-3333 during open hours.

The next Domestic Engineers meeting will be held on Feb. 23rd at Pat Togni’s home. For the rest of the year, the meetings will be held on second Saturday of every month at 2 p.m. to accommodate working ladies who would like to come. The Domestic Engineers recently donated $200 help with prizes to encourage those who are competing in the “Biggest Loser Contest” held at Ninilchik’s Health and Wellness Club.

Terri Leman reported that there is a new masseuse across the hall from Ninilchik’s Health and Wellness Club located at the Kenai Peninsula State Fairground. Masseuse Mitzi Smith has over 11 years experience and offers Swedish massage, deep tissue massage, reflexology, and trigger point therapy and is available Mon-Wed-Fri. from noon - 7 p.m. Please call the Health Club at 567-3880 for fees and to make an appointment.

Our local dentist, Dr. Zizi Zoubek and her staff are happy to report that their practice, Ninilchik Family Dentistry, has moved to their new location on Aspen Street off of Kingsley Road.

In rural communities such as ours, difficult circumstances often reveal how many lives have been touched by a single individual or, in this instance, by a horse named Nikki. Those who have attended horse camp in Ninilchik during the past two decades got to know the beloved little mustang because she was used to help train young equestrians how to saddle, bridle, ride and properly show a horse year after year. Countless youngsters Peninsulawide got to know her from the horse rides they took while attending the Kenai Peninsula State Fair.

Nikki was born in 1985 and was purchased in 1987 by Pam Rodrigus, formerly of Anchor Point, for her daughters, Aurora Rodrigus and BJ Parr. Shirley Schollenberg, Trail Blazers 4-H Club leader and director of the annual 4-H horse camp said that Nikki was often used over the years by kids who did not have a horse of their own to take to camp. She said that Nikki was unique because her gentle spirit made a novice rider feel safe, yet, she possessed enough spunk to make her pupils earn the right to ride her and obey their commands.

Before Pam moved out of state, she sold Nikki to Sara Martin in Ninilchik. In 2001, Sara needed to move on so she posted an ad on the Ninilchik Post Office bulletin board that caught the eye of Ron Blough who bought the horse for his 12-yr-old granddaughter, Abi Daniels. I was present when misty-eyed Sara handed the lead rope to Abi, but Abi assured her that Nikki would be well loved and cared for. Nikki was Abi’s dream come true and she couldn’t believe that her mom (that happens to be me) really let her have a horse of her very own. Abi learned valuable lessons as she took total responsibility for her horse: feeding, watering, cleaning out the stable, and earning money to pay for feed.

When Abi outgrew Nikki, like previous owners, she was hesitant to give her up, but sold her to Larry and Suzan Cobb for their daughter, Sarah Cobb, another dreamer who longed to own a horse. When Sarah moved on to a more challenging horse, her younger sister, Mattie became the proud new owner. Last summer, when Mattie got a new horse, 10-yr-old Hannah Kelson started using her to learn to ride and took her to beginner horse camp.

It was a very sad day last week, when Nikki fractured her leg, and the vet had to put her down. Suzan Cobb said that her family was so touched by the outpouring of help and support they received. Now that Nikki’s work is over, the last horse camp attended, the last ride on Ninilchik beach, and the last blue ribbon won, she made her final ride home after 23 years of training riders. Several of her pupils have expressed that lessons learned from Nikki helped mold their lives, and, like that special first love, their first horse will never be forgotten.

In last week’s column, a plea was made for information leading to the return of the Jaws of Life extraction tool that was missing from the Ninilchik Emergency Services building. The good news is that it was not stolen, but had been misplaced and was found soon after the notice was put up on the Ninilchik Post Office bulletin board.

I read with interest the Jan. 6th article in the Peninsula Clarion’s Sunday paper written by Ninilchik Emergency Services chief, Mike Chihuly, on the challenges of running a fire department in a small community such as ours. Until I read the article, I never realized the extent of the training and volunteer hours that goes into helping to keep our community safe. If you see a volunteer EMT or firefighter around town, I would like to encourage you to express your appreciation for their time and dedication.

Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds manager, Lara McGinnis informed me that there will be a fundraiser committee meeting on Thurs. Jan. 24th at 6 p.m. at the fair grounds in the teen center. Volunteers and ideas are needed to help make the Kenai Peninsula State Fair successful in 2008. Lara would also like to remind all area teens that there is a Teen Night every Friday from 5 to 10 p.m. Admission is $3 to enter. If you have any questions concerning the teen night or fundraiser committee meeting, call Lara at 567-3670.

Ninilchik Community Library board of directors, Debra Henderson said that a new community cookbook is being planned, and your participation is encouraged. The tentative title will be ” A Ninilchik Christmas to Remember”. Debra further explained, “We would like to collect favorite recipes from our community members to be put in a beautiful spiral bound cookbook. Since each recipe selected will show the name of the contributor, I am sure that friends and family members will especially enjoy this cookbook for Christmas, which could become a treasured keepsake for many years. If you would like to participate, print or type 2-3 of your favorite Christmas recipes and email them to Debra at debra_henderson@hotmail.com. She requests that you include the name of your recipe, and if there are duplicate recipes, the first one received will be selected for the cookbook. Debra said that the recipes should be submitted as soon as possible. The deadline for submissions is Memorial Day so the cookbooks can be printed and made available by Thanksgiving 2008.

There will be public health clinic in Anchor Point on Jan. 23 from 2-4 p.m. at the Seldovia Village Tribe Health Clinic at 34361 Old Sterling Highway located across the street from Anchor River Inn, in the building that was previously operated as a dentist’s office.

Birthdays this week are William Cardwell today, Debbie Cary and Christy Drake on Jan. 24; Kilina Klaich on Jan. 25; and Nick Cooper and Linda Updegraff on Jan. 26.

Special thanks to those who are generously plowing and sanding for our community residents in need.

I’ve seen a lot of neighbors out enjoying the gorgeous snow! Many are taking advantage of snow machining in the Caribou Hills, and I enjoyed joining a group of young people and adults sledding on Knob Hill last week. There were 32 participants from Ninilchik, Happy Valley, Anchor Point, and Nikolaevsk. Steve and Bea Klaich, who live near the base of Knob Hill, graciously opened their home to help warm up the sledding party with hot chocolate, lots of food and games afterwards.

Last week, Shirley Schollenberg had a surprise birthday party in her barn in Happy Valley. Yes, I said barn. Some of the members of her 4-H club, the Trail Blazers, got together and had her lured from her house to the barn where they had prepared a table spread with a birthday cake and finger foods, and decorated with balloons and streamers. I wish I could have been there to see the look on her face when she entered the barn!

Kenai Peninsula Fair manager, Lara McGinnis reported that this year’s theme for the Kenai Peninsula Fair is “Where Pigs Fly”. She said that she would like to see your participation at the fair board meetings that are held on the first Thursday of every month at 7:00 p.m. at the fairgrounds. She is also asking for volunteers to step up to help with the “Celebrity Waiter” fundraiser that will be held in April. Please call Lara at 567-3670 if you can help out in any way.

If you are a junior in high school and interested in the legislative process for local and state government, you may be interested in the American Legion Girls State or Boys State held in Wasilla each year. Alaska Girls State Co-Chairman, Debra Henderson said to keep an eye out for the information packets that will be delivered to your school this month. The dates for the American Legion Girls State will be June 7-13th and American Legion Boys State will be June 14th-20th. Ninilchik’s American Legion Ladies Auxiliary helps to sponsor a young person each year. If you would like any information please contact Debra at debra_henderson@hotmail.com.

The Ninilchik Community Library is holding a Valentine raffle. First prize will be a basket of Valentine goodies and second prize will be a 50″ x 80″ Valentine lap quilt. Tickets are 50 cents each and the drawing will be held on February 9 at the library.

I noticed that on the Ninilchik Post Office bulletin board there is a reward for any information leading to the return of the jaws of life extraction tool that was stolen from Ninilchik Emergency Services. If you know anything about this, please call 567-3374 or leave an anonymous message at 567-3342.

Birthdays this week are Lara McGinnis tomorrow, Jan. 15; Andy Patrick on Jan. 16; Marta Simpson on Jan 17; Dave Cooper Jr. and Stephanie Spencer on Jan. 18; Talya Encelewski and Amanda Fender-Alms on Jan. 19; and Lily Vanek on Jan. 20.

Enjoy the snow!