 By Bill Hupe January 09, 2007
Tundra Tom was our Host for the evening, and brought a slightly more somber note to the festivities than is normally seen. This was appropriate as The Ketchikan Homeless Shelter is running on the budgetary edge because of the extremely high heating oil prices, and this Grind's proceeds were being donated to the shelter. Nearly $1000 dollars from this evening was raised by the Arts Council.  Photo by Susan Batho & Bill Hupe
The Tongass School Carolers followed, a group of eleven young singers performing several Christmas carols. Their director let us all know how much time and effort the children had put into their preparation for the performance, and it showed. Their parents had every right to be proud, and this was evidenced by the multitude of flashes and video recorders running. Recent emigree to Ketchikan from Seattle in his first Grind performance, David Reynolds, accompanied himself on acoustic guitar, singing his own compositions, displaying his considerable talent as a songwriter and a performer. Hopefully we will see him again at future Grinds. The D-6, renamed the D-4, Dance group followed David, performing a dance they called "The Snake", which was well-received by the audience, leading to the real reason we all came: The Dessert Break, featuring the fabulous concoctions laid out on the tables around the Clan House. After the break, the Lutheran
Church Choir took to the stage, giving us a taste of the Choral
Concert scheduled for the following day, performing both reverent
and lively Christmas hymns, including one in Latin. Peggy, Tom,
and Cherry (and guest) followed with a set of acoustic songs.  Photo by Susan Batho & Bill Hupe
The final act, and my pick for the evening, was Muskeg Sally, featuring newlyweds Christy and Joseph Rauwolf, as well as Christy's parents and others. Starting out with a slow rendition of "Moon River", they quickly picked up the tempo to some good old toe tapping rock and roll on an original tune by Christy, and closed with an original song by Joseph. And all too soon, it was time to fold up the chairs and return them to the storage room until the first Monthly Grind of 2007. The next Monthly Grind featuring live local talent is scheduled for Saturday, January 20, at 7pm in the Saxman Tribal House. Tickets are $5 per adult and $1 for kids. Bring a homemade dessert to share and get a refund. Interested performers/groups should contact thet Ketchikan Arts and Humanities Center, at www.ketchikanarts.org, or call 225-2211.
Bill Hupe is a resident of Ketchikan and Faulconbridge NSW, Australia. Most of his writing is with Susan Batho (also a resident of both places). Known by most people as "The Twins", they are a writing and photographic team specializing in photography of Alaska and Australia. Their website www.beaustud.com features some of their work, and they can be reached through susan_and_bill@hotmail.com Publish A Letter on SitNews Read Letters/Opinions
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