A wall celebrated the 15 babies born in Wrangell in the last year at the third annual Family Resilience Fair, September 26, 2020.
(Sage Smiley / KSTK)

As Wrangell families prepare for the cold weather season after a summer of catastrophic business losses, one local nonprofit is getting the word out about where individuals and families can find financial, emotional and spiritual help.

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The Nolan Center’s gymnasium-like hall seemed almost empty, even filled with tables. A couple of small groups of fair attendees made their way from station to station, following the printed-out arrows placed around the room. To an outside observer, the Family Resilience Fair was a low-key affair. Fair organizer Kay Larson says there were between 60 and 70 people who attended throughout the day. 

A fair attendee examines stickers at the Community Roots table, September 26, 2020.
(Sage Smiley / KSTK)

“I would call it a raging success,” said Larson, who is the lead volunteer with BRAVE–Building Respect and Valuing Everyone–Wrangell’s anti-domestic violence group. “Because we had so many restrictions. And we did write out a very clear mitigation plan ahead of time, there were arrows to follow masks to wear sanitation. And yet, we had 13 booths. And last year, we only had 10.”

The goal of the family resilience fair is to bring together resources for families and individuals in the Wrangell community. Joan Sargent, the head volunteer for the St. Frances Animal shelter, emphasizes that includes the furry family members: “Pets are really, really parts of the family. And that’s what’s been so special about doing this for me is I just meet the most wonderful people and their families.”

The animal shelter is providing assistance to families unable to afford pet food at the moment, along with their usual slough of programs aimed at keeping the pet population fixed and fed. 

Other booths at the fair spread messages of hope, love, and support. 

Chris Ellis with Hospice of Wrangell emphasized that services are still available, even during this pandemic. “Things don’t stop because we’ve got other disasters going on,” she noted.

Other booths included Wrangell’s LGBTQ outreach group, the schools’ Title I coordinator, the chiropractic clinic, and various religious groups from the community.

Door prizes and PPE at the Family Resilience Fair, September 26, 2020.
(Sage Smiley / KSTK)

Joan Sargent with the St. Frances Shelter also works on the economic development committee. In addition to giving out information about help for pets, she manned the booth with information about the Wrangell CARES grant program. 

“If you’ve had any COVID financial trouble, you know, this grant will apply to you,” Sargent said, gesturing to the table full of informational flyers.

Grant applications for families can be found at www.wrangell.com under the COVID-19 assistance category. Wrangell hasn’t published statistics on family impacts from this year’s abysmal fishing season or the COVID-19 pandemic. But a business survey from June paints a stark picture. 

A 53% drop in business revenue. Wrangell businesses having to lay off almost 30% of their employees.

And from the food pantry and other assistance at the Salvation Army, to the loan closet at Wrangell Hospice, the community showed up to remind Wrangellites that there’s support out there. 

While the focus of the Family Resilience Fair was, well, families, Wrangell is offering CARES Act grant funding to businesses as well. Applications are due November 1, and can be found on the city’s website.

Get in touch with KSTK at news@kstk.org or (907) 874-2345.