Author: kfskadmin

The state has shipped more doses of the H1N1 flu vaccine to Petersburg and a few more local residents should be able to get a swine flu shot this month.

The national non-profit organization StoryCorps marked the Friday after Thanksgiving as a National Day of Listening, and is encouraged people around the country to spend an hour recording stories with friends and family. Organizers of a local oral history recording project are also hoping Petersburg-area residents will take some time and think about conversations they’d like to record, or stories they’d like to tell. In December, Petersburg’s Public Library is starting up a six-month recording effort called the Listening Project. Similar to the StoryCorps recording project that gathered 14 stories and interviews from Petersburg residents last spring, the Listening Project offers a way to preserve the memories and stories that are important to you. The library this year won a 10-thousand dollar grant to fund the oral history project. Joe Viechnicki spoke with librarian Tara Alcock and project facilitator Julie Hersey about the effort.

Officials with the State Department of Transportation and the Petersburg Indian Association say they still hope to reach an agreement over snow blowing for the Mitkof Highway’s bike and pedestrian path this winter. The PIA is ready and equipped to keep the pavement clear when the snow falls. However, the State has yet to give the green light.

Petersburg will interview three people for the City Manger job. The City Council chose their finalists in a work session Wednesday night.

A newly remodeled physical therapy department at the Petersburg Medical Center was on display this month. The medical center in September completed a $30,000 remodeling project. The work adds 200 square feet of space and gives the physical therapy department two private rooms and a large common area where patients can use exercise and weight equipment. The medical center reports patient numbers have been growing steadily for the physical therapy department over the past decade, and the new space will help accommodate more patients. The medical center says the department handled 1,800 patient visits during the latest fiscal year.
The newly remodeled area also has some new therapy equipment. One new machine will help patients work on strength in their arms and shoulders. The remodeling project cost 30-thousand dollars, with two thirds of that coming from the Rasmusson Foundation. Other contributions came from the local Elks and Emblem clubs, AT&T, and several private donors. Leslie Schwartz has been working as a physical therapist with the medical center since 1988 and says the new space will help.