Heimo and Edna are out there most of the time. Seldens have a home out near Goldstream. Charlie bounces around more than most. I grew up with Chris and would trust him with my life. Heimo and Edna stay in Fairbanks with their other daughters. Charlie bounces around quite a bit. The Last Alaskan crew is closely tied to Joe Mattie and Alaska Raw Furs. You can see them with those caps in every narrated episode. The funny thing is I bet that their houses in Fairbanks are more rustic and ratchet than their trapline cabins.
I still stay in contact with my former students from Ambler and from Nulato where we were for 5 years on Facebook. It seems like its really rough in ABL right now. However Ambler goes through phases. I hope people who are reading this know this. A good Alaska State Trooper raised right and working right is about one of the best people on the whole planet. However, like everything else, there are some that do not follow the old ways. They are bitter and opportunistic and do the state a disservice. One of my good friends from high school died in the line of duty and I often wonder if it was because of the actions of many of the idiots that they purposely wash out by their two years of bush service. I grew up with Trooper Alexander and Trooper Jeff Hall that were both legends and could take out a whole bar without drawing a gun. I have heard some very shifty things about some of the troopers in rural outposts with a pile of issues in NWAB and in Copper River Basin. I know that many of the Troopers from Fairbanks and from Kenai Peninsula uphold the old ways and I respect them.
I am in pretty close contact with Mike Zibell and his son Wilifried. Wilifried is a Bush kid going through Harvard right now. I am sure that is an education for the many of the ivory towered elites.
Chip I hope you have a very merry Christmas. I would love some frozen uncooked caribou meat dipped in seal oil right now. I like it fresh and do not like it seasoned like a lot of folks do up there.
Best,
Thomas Kennedy
That, right there, is perhaps the biggest downfall of keeping weak or unvetted personnel in the ranks. Sadly, I don't think (m)any within the organization would acknowledge this. But it may ultimately doom them if they don't. I sometimes wonder if Sgt Johnson and Trooper Rich might have suffered the fate that befell them in part due to some of the bad (if deserved) press that shoddy members of the organization incurred. I never met the kid, but I met and talked to Arvin, the dad, a few times, and it wouldn't surprise me in the least if the chips he carried weren't from more than his personal interactions.
I also suspect that recruiting is not made less challenging by closing ranks rather than cleansing them from time to time - a bad apple and all. So they seem to be stuck seeking lower 48 and ex-military 'cowboys' far too often. I hope I'm wrong but I don't think I'd lose much on a bet.
