John Yeager, is one of the four candidates running for two open seats on the borough assembly in Wrangell’s municipal election next month.
Yeager served 16 years on the port commission before being tapped to fill the assembly vacancy after then Assembly Member Michael Ottesen resigned this past June.
It’s certainly been a learning experience for me, and it’s been enough time for me to determine that I want to continue on.
Coming from a rural farming community in Northwest Ohio, Yeager says his hometown was very similar to Wrangell. His career in the U.S. Coast Guard brought him to Southeast Alaska and he retired while stationed in Petersburg before moving to Wrangell in 2004.
After leaving the service, Yeager and his wife owned and operated Alaska Charters & Adventures, until they sold the business last year. He says that his small business experience, along with two decades of living here, has given him a good understanding of Wrangell’s needs and capacity for growth.
The progress has to be a purposeful balance, so that we don’t hurt existing businesses and the things that made Wrangell what it is now.
With his time on the port commission and background as a vessel operator, Yeager says that the port is a big priority for him and the future of its development. But most of all, Yeager just wants to be a part of the potential progress he’s seen come through the Assembly and give back his time to the community.
I’m here to volunteer my time, and I’d like to see good things happen with Wrangell and if the voters feel that I’m the person for the job, then that’s great. But if not, no harm, no foul. I’m just going to keep continuing on and do what I do.
He says he doesn’t necessarily have a specific project or platform he’s running on, but rather wants to focus on helping Wrangell grow in a way that is sustainable for everyone.
