Sean McDermott

With a statewide backlog in providing SNAP benefits, the state recently reallocated nearly $1.7 million from emergency funds to help alleviate hunger. McBride said the funding will provide some much-needed food assistance for communities around the state.

Here in Homer, Monica Anderson is a patient benefits coordinator at Seldovia Village Tribe’s Health and Wellness center. She has patients who applied for SNAP, Medicaid and Senior Benefits back in September, and are still waiting to hear from the state’s Division of Public Assistance.

The state Division of Public Assistance said in an interview in early March, it’s hired more staff to help address the months-long delay, and is making changes to improve the assistance program. In early February, the federal government took note, and wrote to formally express “grave concerns” at how Alaska was handling SNAP applications. But for now, that is little consolation for Alaskans currently trying to make ends meet without essential food assistance.

Estuaries are ecosystems where salt and fresh water mix, creating diverse habitats for marine life, and supporting the plants, animals and people that call its shores home. With spring around the corner, the waters and shoreline of Kachemak Bay are essential feeding grounds for migrating birds winging their way north.

The Alaska Board of Game will be meeting in Soldotna later this month to consider proposed changes to hunting and trapping regulations around the Kenai Peninsula — including several for the Homer area.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is gearing up for a three-year, multimillion-dollar investigation into potentially expanding Homer’s harbor. The process is just getting underway, but it’s not too early to be a part of the conversation.

KBBI’s Sean McDermott spoke with Therese Lewandowski from the League of Women Voters and Kenai Peninsula Votes — two nonpartisan voting organizations — about what voters should expect from Tuesday's special election for Kenai Peninsula Borough mayor.

Last year in Homer, a warm, dry spring gave way to a very damp, gray summer. For Paul Castellani of Will Grow Farm, handling whatever the weather brings is business as usual. He and his wife Jen have been growing vegetables at their property near Anchor Point for two decades.

Last week, the refrigerated egg section of Homer’s Save-U-More grocery store was lit, but completely bare. Sitting in the deli, manager Mark Hemstreet described a situation that is becoming familiar around Alaska — there simply aren’t any eggs. It’s the result of a nationwide outbreak of avian influenza.

On Wednesday, Homer Drawdown is having its first meeting of 2023 at the Kachemak Bay Campus. The organization is part of a national grassroots movement working to address the impacts of climate change on a local level.