Hello, Soldotna readers and Neighbors.

Thank you to those who wondered if I had dropped off the face of the earth. I wanted to take this opportunity to let you all know that I will not be writing this column any longer. It is due to a good thing in my life, though, as I’ve taken a new and different job.

So, I am moving on with my life and am looking forward to reading and seeing Soldotna from a different perspective. It’s been a great 16 months and I want to thank each of you for sharing your lives with me and for letting me share your lives with your other neighbors.

We live in a great area - among really neat people. It remains our job to reach out and find out just who our neighbors are. There are interesting gems just waiting to be mined - from the ones who have been here since before statehood right down to the kindergartener or the cheechako who has just arrived hopint to find a little bit of the heaven we all enjoy - and sometimes take for granted. I look forward to hearing all of those stories and more.

Take care, Soldotna! See you soon.

     15 year old Marisa Skolnick grew up in Cooper Landing where her dad, Steve, is the Postmaster. Her mom, Leah, operated a coffee shop. Leah grew up in Togiak near Dillingham and still goes home to visit family each summer.
     About two years ago the family moved to Soldotna. Steve is still working as Cooper Landing’s Postmaster. Marisa and her older sister, Kelsey used to spend several hours a day on a bus to attend Soldotna Middle School and Skyview High School. The girls would catch the bus at 5 a.m. and not return home until 4 or 5 p.m. Now Steve does the commute
     “Kelsey graduated (early) and moved to Arizona to go to beauty school. She’s only been gone a week, but I miss her,” Marisa told me.
     Marisa is a sophomore at Skyview, but will be missing a bit of school. She is recovering from back surgery for two broken discs she underwent on the 18th. The injury was a result of an injury she suffered while playing hockey.
     “My doctor says I can play again next year if it all heals up good. I miss it,” she told me.
     Marisa plays right wing for KPHA (Kenai Peninsula Hockey Association). She is on an all girls team and told me that theirs is the only girls’ team in the league. “We usually play younger people – bantams – peewees – boys,” she said.
     Her team plays in all girls tournaments in Homer, Palmer and Anchorage. Their home ice is at the Soldotna Sports Center.
     Marisa is a big town girl at heart. When I asked her what she likes about Soldotna she said “it has a lot more friends. We can drive around, go to movies.
     When I asked her what was the one thing she would change about Soldotna, her answer was nearly the same: I would like it to be a bigger town. Have more events – concerts and stuff. My friend’s band – they don’t have enough revenue to have concerts. We need a Sullivan Arena or Egan center down here,” she said.
     I suggested she might want to run for political office in order to achieve some of her wants. “I ran for class president. I was beat by two votes. I’m going to run again next year,” she said.
     Marisa likes math and she enjoyed swimming class taken earlier in the year. She also enjoys language arts at school. Her favorite subject, however, is marine biology with Mr. Marcuson. Working in groups of three, her class recently completed children’s books about marine organisms which were then presented to students at K-Beach Elementary.
     “Mine was about Stuart the Stingray’s birthday party. He got kidnapped and his cousins had to go on a journey to find him,” she told me.
     After high school Marisa told me she plans to look into becoming a chiropractor or neurosurgeon. “Or maybe a physical therapist,” she said.  Heal well, Marisa.