Next month we will bid a fond farewell to Coral Pendell, our Course Coordinator. A skilled craftsperson, Coral is leaving AMSEA to co-operate Skookum Canvasworks, a local canvas and upholstery shop in Sitka. She will also be building a house on her island property in Sitka Sound. Coral has done a fantastic job at AMSEA and we will miss her cheerful attitude and attention to detail. We wish her every success in her new endeavors. Her last day at AMSEA is September 8.

As much as we might wish that Coral could stay on with us, her departure gives us the opportunity to welcome our new Course Coordinator, Emma Edson. Emma comes from a fishy family. Growing up, she spent every summer on her family’s tenders, the F/V Cordova and the F/V Kupreanof. As an adult, she has fished in Southeast Alaska in the longline halibut and black cod fisheries and the seine salmon fisheries. She has also fished in the Bristol Bay gillnet salmon fishery.

Emma loves work on the water, but as the mother of a two-year old, onshore work is better fit with current lifestyle. With her extensive commercial fishing background, Emma is a great addition to AMSEA’s staff. Welcome aboard Emma!