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Our Sacred Table

by Peter Twitchell When I was in my late 20s, I always looked forward to hunting with my late first cousins, Joe Woods Jr. and Manny Joe Evon. We hunted moose every fall. One moose […]

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Fourth of July past

by Peter Twitchell I remember as a boy in the 1950s Independence Day Fourth of July celebrations in Bethel were spectacular and always fun to attend, they were a lot of games and a lot of […]

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Care for our aging generation

by Peter Twitchell Today is a brand new day and we have a lot to be thankful for when I think about it. I thank The Almighty Creator God for helping our scientists in the […]

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How do you define wealth

by Dave Kutcher Happy Father’s Day! How do you define wealth?  How people define wealth for themselves as opposed to how they define it for others is not at all the same. A Charles Schwab […]

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A Day to Honor our Dads

by Peter Twitchell Today is my day, “Father’s Day.” June 18, in the year of our Lord and Father in Heaven, 2023. As a dad I am reminded of the day and year of my […]

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Dreams like wildfires grow

by Peter Twitchell When we’re out in the wilderness camping, hunting, berry picking let’s all take extra precautions to avoid having a wildfire. It’s summer and it gets hot and dry grass and the trees […]

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Memories from the 1950s

by Peter Twitchell Kids like me grew up in Bethel Alaska – a quiet little town. Throughout the 1950’s we observed many local activities going on around our community. We knew nothing about television or […]

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The Powerful Message of Pentecost

by Tad Lindley This past Sunday marked the Jewish celebration of Shavuot, or the Feast of Weeks. The Greek name for the Feast of Weeks is Pentecost, which means “fiftieth”. You see, the Pentecost occurs […]

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Like the Good Book says

by Peter Twitchell A friend and I saw a man sitting on the ground at the corner of a drive-through in what it looked like a prayer position. People often sit at that location with their […]

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Missing Holiday Discovered in Bible!

by Tad Lindley A 6 hour church service! Imagine a church service that started at 6:00 AM and lasted until noon. The service started with prayer and worship, and then for the next five hours, […]

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The value of life

by Peter Twitchell I believe as a Yupiaq Tribe we really need to start working together to get health aides in all of our villages on the coast, Kuskokwim river, in the Yukon River villages. […]

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Alder Flycatcher Empidonax alnorum

by Frank Keim With its drab olive-green color and white wing bars, the Alder flycatcher seems like an unremarkable bird. It sits almost all day long on high perches in open wet thickets of alder […]

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The benefits of hard work

by Peter Twitchell I’ve never said publicly how proud I am of my two sons David and Danny and my daughters Saranne and Suzi and all their accomplishments at their young ages. They have worked […]

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The wrong side of a 50/50 chance

by Dave Kutcher So, 50/50 chance of winning sounds like a pretty good opportunity to win a prize. Let’s face it, grabbing a few pull-tabs on your way home from work can be fun and […]

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“Safety, Growth and Control”

by Dave Kutcher This has been an overriding motto for me for three decades. Helping pre and post retirees keep their principal safe without giving up the opportunity for market-like returns, all while maintaining control […]

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100% Preventable

by Tad Lindley I was participating in a training session required for all teachers in Alaska. The training was based on a medical condition, and near the end of the training, they dropped this bomb: […]

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The sharing of First Catch

by Peter Twitchell In my boyhood back in the 1950s I was very fortunate to hear the stories of the ancient Yupiat of long ago from hundreds of years ago. Mom and I lived at […]

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Two Beasts in the Bible

by Tad Lindley You have heard of the mark of the beast, and perhaps you have heard the Antichrist referred to as The Beast, but did you know that there are actually two beasts in […]

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The Gift of Life

by Peter Twitchell When I was a teenager through my 50s I didn’t know of physical pain. For one thing I was tireless and for 50 years I worked 3 to 4 jobs in a […]

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Ellam Yua Has a Name

by Tad Lindley Quick Yup’ik Lesson Skip this section if you can already speak Yup’ik, otherwise, stay with me. Ellam is a one-syllable word that rhymes with “thumb”. To pronounce ellam you must realize that […]

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Never fear, the Captain is here

by Dave Kutcher One thing there is no shortage of in our business is client/customer surveys. Financial Services companies are always seeking to keep their thumb on the pulse of the public in terms of […]

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Family Tree connections

by Peter Twitchell It is a fact and unfortunate set of circumstances that the older we get we lose our loved ones to old age and our friends that we grew up with to sickness […]

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For Husbands Only

by Tad Lindley Now that it’s just us men, let me tell you the reason I titled this For Husband Only. I know that if your wife reads this, she is liable to say, “Brother […]

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What’s in your Easter basket?

by Dave Kutcher While many celebrated Easter 2 weekends ago, this past weekend was Easter for almost all who follow Eastern Orthodox theology, which follows the Julian calendar rather than Gregorian calendar. Easter might be […]

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Surfbird Calidris virgate

by Frank Keim With a sandpiper called Surfbird, you’re probably wondering why the name, especially since it only nests in mountain habitats. This is because during the non-nesting season, almost nine months a year, it […]

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Lifetime accomplishments

by Peter Twitchell Life as we all know is stressful even at home. We could be without a job but helping family anyway, we can be doing things for family who come first in our […]

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Mystery #15

by Tad Lindley If you are an avid Bible reader you probably already know that the word mystery appears in the Bible 27 times. You probably also know that the record holder is the Book […]

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Where there is a Will there is a Way

by Dave Kutcher Having been in the business of working with folks at or near retirement for the past 35 + years, we often find people working on their “estate” planning. In general terms, working […]

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Grandma’s Wisdom

by Peter Twitchell Our grandma Hannah Pitka used to tell us kids when we were about seven years old on up, and this included me and my first cousin Joe Woods Jr., not to get […]

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Adam 2.0

by Tad Lindley There are several pivotal events in human history. The first is of course the creation of man, when God breathed the breath of life into Adam and Adam became a living soul […]

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Kinsmen from the Yukon

by Peter Twitchell This is a question I ask Moose Hunters: Have you ever butchered a moose with a pocket knife with a blade no longer than 2 inches? WHAT? The response I usually get. […]

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Let’s get rolling

by Dave Kutcher It is quite often that when we meet people for the first time they have already retired and are seeking alternatives for their employer sponsored retirement plan assets. Some of you reading […]

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Blessed are the Elders

by Peter Twitchell Our lives from childhood to adolescence have depended largely on our parents, and other mature adults including our beloved Elders and our teachers who were there for us sixteen years of their […]

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Where do I go from here

by Dave Kutcher Well, if you have been following us here each week, you’ve heard us discuss safe distribution guidelines before. For years the industry accepted rule was not to exceed 4% of your retirement […]

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Jury duty in the courtroom

by Peter Twitchell The television networks, have been showing law judges trying cases on television that millions of people watch each day. Judges on television hear cases every day about personal injuries, and other legal […]

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Checking the rear-view mirror

by Dave Kutcher You are driving into the darkness, no streetlights, the snow is swirling in the heavy winds and you can barely see ten feet in front of you. Your knuckles are white as […]

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Ancient warnings have come to pass

by Peter Twitchell I saw a newscast just the other day on KTUU Channel 2 Anchorage where my relative Mr. Michael Williams of Akiak testified that he had caught two (2) Chum Salmon last summer […]

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Brainwashed!

by Tad Lindley Conversations like this have been happening for the last 2,000 years now: “Dude, I just scored a few grams, come over and we’ll smoke some bowls and play PubG!” “Nope on the […]

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4th and long…

by Dave Kutcher It is Super Bowl Sunday and I am sitting at my desk considering topics for this week’s article to share with you all. In the spirit of today’s game, I thought I […]

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An epic dream

by Peter Twitchell I had an amazing dream that I was at my fishcamp across from Bethel and the whole Kuskokwim River went completely dry – the entire Kuskokwim a river emptied itself dry just […]

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A Very Dark Personality

by Dr. Lorin Bradbury Question: My husband sits and broods or pouts in the dark—the darker the better. He has no trouble sleeping. He either wants to sleep all the time or just sit in […]

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Where Angels Like to Camp

by Tad Lindley My favorite spot of all the places I’ve ever camped is the North Spit at Goodnews Bay. When we used to commercial fish there, we camped where the Tunt guys camp. They […]

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Cleaning the ten-year window…

by Dave Kutcher The market was quite a ride in 2022. Even folks that manage their investments in what is a traditional mix of stocks (equity) and bonds (debt) likely found themselves with one of […]

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My people, my home

by Peter Twitchell Alaskan Native Elders Group of which I am a member meets every month at the Native Valley Clinic upstairs second floor and you’re always invited to join us for lunch and discuss […]

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Mystery #15

by Tad Lindley If you are an avid Bible reader you probably already know that the word mystery appears in the Bible 27 times. You probably also know that the record holder is the Book […]

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Women need more sleep than men

by Dr. Lorin Bradbury Question: Do women need more sleep than men? Answer: Though ideas have changed through the years as to exactly how much sleep is required to function efficiently, most sleep researchers agree […]

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Angels in the snow

by Peter Twitchell Looking back to my youth I remember my Dad making a snow angel on the ice at the sandbar above our fish camp and property across the river from Bethel. It was […]

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Qasgiq File #293: The Cup

by Tad Lindley I was fairly new in the land of the Yup’ik people, and I didn’t want to be a bad guest, but my body was covered with sweat and I was thirsty. “You […]

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Memories of a great man

by Peter Twitchell When I was a boy of 12 years old I became aware of Chief Edward Hoffman. And whenever I ran into Edward Hoffman outside Northern Commercial Company store or the Alaska Commercial […]

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Revaluating the 4% rule

by Dave Kutcher Trying to figure out how much money you can withdraw each year from your retirement plan investments is a difficult task. There are so many external factors that impact this decision, it […]

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What does risk look like to you?

by Dave Kutcher As people near their retirement age, balancing financial risk in an ever-changing environment can seem like a daunting task. Most people have been relegated to self-funding the majority of their retirement in […]

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Tasty Ramen Salad

by Millie Bentley Greetings. Happy New Year. I hope you had a wonderful holiday with family and friends. One of my favorite meals is a simple salad made by Diana Gamez. It’s a meal in […]

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Timing is everything

by Dave Kutcher Hi, my name is Dave Kutcher. I write articles pertaining to the functional areas of Retirement Planning. Let me tell you, there’s a lot to talk about when it comes to planning […]

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Always with us

by Peter Twitchell I never knew growing up that I would be called to be an alcohol counselor. I became a substance-abuse counselor in 1995 working at the Phillips Alcohol Treatment Center in Bethel, Alaska. […]

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The land sustains us

by Peter Twitchell When I left my home in Bethel I knew I would miss our subsistence way of living and the people of southwest Alaska and the Yukon. I will never forget the land, […]

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We Three Kings of Orient Aren’t

by Tad Lindley Warning: Do not read this article unless you have someone nearby who can give you immediate emotional support. This may be worse than the terrible sense of deception you experienced when you […]

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Becoming a Morning Person

by Dr. Lorin Bradbury What are the benefits of being a morning person, an early riser, one that rolls out of bed by 7:00 A.M.? Are there any benefits at all? According to Charissa Chamorro, […]

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Celebrating Christmas

by Peter Twitchell Worldwide we as a human race have had our share of turmoil and anxiety with viruses, storms, wars, and anger. December is the time of peace and joy when families, tribes, and […]

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Pray, or Be Prey

by Tad Lindley My grandmother used to have a play on words that went like this: “Seven days without prayer makes one weak.” As someone who prays every day, I feel like maybe it should […]

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Christmas Turkey with dressing

by Millie Bentley Greetings. We always had turkey and dressing for Thanksgiving as long as I could remember. Mom cooked the turkey in different ways over the years. The last I can remember is she […]

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Preserve the teachings of old

by Peter Twitchell Our way of life as we knew it has changed drastically in the last few decades. The teachings of our ancestors the ancients, the elders is being forgotten and not practiced anymore […]

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God is a God of Order

by Dr. Lorin Bradbury Crime breeds in chaos. This is one of the tenets of the Broken Windows Theory. If you have a disorderly household, you have a greater likelihood of producing children with delinquent […]

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Snow Bunting Uksullaraq/Kanguruaq

by Frank Keim If you’re out hunting or walking on the tundra, you may see large flocks of Snow buntings drifting like giant snowflakes over open country. If you’re lucky and you stay completely still, […]

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Today is a gift

by Peter Twitchell Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ of Nazareth I believe has a purpose for each and every one of us who are still able. I know Almighty Creator God plays an important […]