Franki Gablehouse said she “made the difficult decision to withdraw my name from the school board race,” according to an announcement she posted on the Wrangell Community Group Facebook page at about 8 p.m. Monday.

“Right now, Marlee needs me, and my 100% focus needs to be on her — her education, her growth and supporting her in the ways she needs most,” Gablehouse said, referring to her young daughter.

“Because I’m withdrawing late and ballots have already been printed, my name will still be shown on the ballot,” she said of the Oct. 6 municipal election.

She added, “Please do not vote for me. If I were to win and then decline the seat, the school board would need to appoint someone to serve until the next election in October 2027.”

In deciding to drop her bid for a seat on the school board, Gablehouse endorsed one of the two remaining candidates: “Please vote for Jayme Howell for school board.”

Howell and incumbent John ReDuyter are the two remaining candidates in the race for a three-year seat on the board.

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Mechel Meek, who lives aboard a 48-foot motor yacht at Wrangell’s Heritage Harbor, has met boaters of all kinds. She says she believes those connections make her well suited to serve on the local port commission.

Meek is running for a three-year term against incumbent Antonio Silva in the Oct. 6 municipal election.

Here’s Meek on her prior political experience.

I’ve never done any public office. I’ve never even thought of it before. But this is such a small community, and I love it here, and I wanted to be more invested in this community.

The nearly 51-year-old moved to Wrangell in the summer of 2024, when her husband Gene Meek took a job as the Wrangell Police Chief.

They had been living in Soldotna, on the Kenai Peninsula, before moving here. Having lived in an RV there, Meek says her family had no issues transitioning to boat life. They found a boat in Douglas, then motored it to Wrangell to set up their new liveaboard home.

In Soldotna, they owned land where she had a small Japanese quail farm.

She continues to keep quail in Wrangell out on her son’s property and sells the eggs at the monthly community markets.

Meek says that community participation and listening are important for public officials.

She says that there are some small projects that could easily be tackled at Wrangell’s harbors. For example, she says the parking lot at Shoemaker Harbor is just a giant mud pit. Her opinion is that scraping it up a bit to flatten things out would be the easiest way to fix it.

We can make our harbors better without throwing a ton of money at them. I think that we can be fiscally responsible and make them better at the same time.

She also says that one of the handicap parking spots at Shoemaker is directly in front of the oil disposal container, making it unusable.

Little things can make big changes for the people who use the harbors. I know I’m not the only disabled person who uses the harbors. There are quite a few.

Meek says the community is what she loves most about Wrangell and that she’d like to see the community take care of the harbor together.

Adapted from original article by Larry Persily for the Wrangell Sentinel

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Antonio Silva was appointed to fill a vacancy on Wrangell’s Port Commission in February 2025, then elected that fall to a one-year term. He is now seeking election to a three-year term, running against Mechel Meek in the Oct. 6 municipal election.

Silva says he’s running for the port commission because he wants to stay involved in planning for the downtown harbor rebuild. He also says he wants to continue speaking up for all fishermen who depend on the town’s harbors and marine services.

Silva says he wants to support sport and subsistence fishermen in addition to commercial harbor users. Here he is from his fishing vessel via WhatsApp.

My goal is to continue to encourage the ports to not forget about the little guys.

Now in his 13th year as a commercial fisherman,  the 40-year-old participates in multiple fisheries. They include halibut, pot shrimp and Dungeness crab, and trolling and gillnetting for salmon.

This is his first full year on his 46-foot gillnetter, the Danegeld. It’s his fifth boat; Silva started out with a 30-foot wooden troller “and then slowly moved up.”

When he joined the commission, Silva says he learned that it is an advisory council to the borough assembly. The commissioners make suggestions on actions they think the borough should take, although he says he feels that their suggestions are taken seriously.

Silva says he wants to stay involved in the borough’s plans to dredge and rebuild the Inner Harbor and other downtown floats, some of the other big port-related projects coming up in Wrangell.

I think Wrangell is on a great trajectory right now, making some fantastic decisions … with JAG coming in and the 6-Mile property getting put to use there, I think all of that is just fantastic.

He also supports the ongoing effort to push boat owners to ensure their vessels are operational, and to remove derelict vessels to make room for more boats.

He says that his time on the port commission has given him a better understanding of the cost of maintaining Wrangell’s port and harbors.

It’s interesting to see the budget and understand where money is coming and going.

Much of the Port and Harbors’ facilities were built with grant money and will eventually need work. He says any heavy maintenance or replacement could be costly and the borough needs to have sufficient reserve funds built up to cover the costs.

Adapted from original article by Larry Persily for the Wrangell Sentinel

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Wrangell Mayor Patty Gilbert is running unopposed for a third two-year term. She brings 16 years of public service experience to the mayor’s seat.

Gilbert is 78 years old. She previously served six years on the then city council and six years on the borough assembly before stepping into the mayor’s office four years ago. A former educator, she spent 23 years teaching math, physics and chemistry in Wrangell schools.

Here’s Mayor Gilbert.

My approach is when there’s a problem, you face it head-on, no matter how difficult it is. I have always lived by the motto that every problem has a solution.

She says a central priority for her remains aging infrastructure, particularly failing underground water and sewer lines that break too often. She says her guiding policy has been tackling at least one road a year.

Beyond road repairs, Gilbert says the borough has completed some street and sidewalk rehabilitations, public stair replacements and generator upgrades at the power plant. Repairs to the Public Safety Building and school building roofs are next on the work list.

Economic diversity also anchors her platform. She says she advocates supporting established merchants, creating steady employment and investing municipal funds safely to generate interest on bond and grant proceeds.

Gilbert points to livestreamed assembly meetings as proof the administration has expanded public transparency, along with redesigned online resources and regular updates from Borough Manager Mason Villarma.

We have a skilled and dedicated municipal workforce. They are problem solvers. They could MacGyver their way through anything. I’ve seen them in action.

Looking ahead, Gilbert says she wants to ensure the town’s future is guided by the people who grew up here. She says she regularly encourages younger residents — including many former students who now run businesses and raise families in town — to step into civic roles on the assembly, the port commission and the planning and zoning commission.

Adapted from original article by Jonathan Dawe for the Wrangell Sentinel

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School Board President John DeRuyter was originally elected to the school board three years ago after spending two years on an advisory committee. Over the past year, he stepped into the president’s chair formerly held by David Wilson.

DuRuyter is now seeking reelection to another three-year term. He is one of three candidates competing for a single open position on the ballot.

He says his platform is centered on academic achievement, expanded vocational opportunities and strong fiscal stewardship.

Here’s DeRuyter on the school board’s recent wins.

I am very excited about moving forward with the significant successes we’ve had this last year. We have a superintendent who is so engaged with our community, our students, and our faculty, and who sees academic excellence at all levels as the goal.

DeRuyter says some of those wins include the district’s high 2025 statewide testing scores. Including district students ranking first-place statewide in mathematics and sixth in reading. The tests covered grades three through nine.

As his first term draws to a close, he says he wants to keep the momentum going.

He credits a collaborative school culture for helping produce those outcomes, praising the administration, teachers and families for working together toward higher academic standards.

According to DeRuyter, a major factor behind those improvements has been aggressive pursuit of grants, led by Superintendent Joshua Garrett.

He says the grants provide resources to strengthen foundational courses in mathematics, science and language arts. While also allowing them to introduce new classroom tools like emerging artificial intelligence technologies.

A comprehensive public education must support students aiming for four-year degrees as well as those pursuing creative arts or career technical fields, he says.

DeRuyter says he also wants the district to establish stronger bridges into vocational trades. This could help students graduate as certified electricians, welders or qualified candidates for regional apprenticeships.

Our community has a reservoir of skilled tradesmen.

Explaining that connecting experienced craftspeople with student vocational training will help expand specialized coursework and overcome staffing limits.

Adapted from original article by Jonathan Dawe for the Wrangell Sentinel

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S.R. Privett the third, better known as Reme, is making his first run for public office. The business owner has run Rayme’s Bar for about 20 years. He is now one of the four candidates seeking election to two available three-year terms on the borough assembly. The top two vote-getters will win.

Privett says he’s been approached about running in the past, but this is finally the year he gave in. Here he is at his bar on Front Street.

I guess it was just time to throw my hat in the ring.

The Privett family has been in Wrangell for generations; both Reme’s father and grandfather spent time as mayor, among other public seats; and his mother was the school board president for a time.

After graduating high school, Privett says he left Wrangell under the direction of his father to stay away for a minimum of a year. After that year of school in Anchorage, he dropped his classes and headed home.

43 years old.Born and raised here. Probably gonna die here.

Back in Wrangell, he went to work for his family driving gas and diesel trucks. He says an allergy he developed to the chemicals in the fuels forced him out of the industry. Not wanting to leave town again, he started his own business. At 24 years old, he bought a bar, and Rayme’s opened on the opening day of moose season in 2007.

Privett says he isn’t running on any particular platform, but wouldn’t mind seeing another harbor added to the island. For the most part, he says he just wants to get in the door and go from there.

If I win, I’ll go in,  fully in. But no, no ads, no gimmicks. Nothing like that. Just if you think I’m the guy to do it, vote for me.

Privett says he’s excited for the future, with more businesses coming to town and more young people sticking around than he’s seen in the past.

Disclosure:

In the interest of transparency, Reme Privett is the brother of Jill Privett, who works at KSTK. Jill is not part of the newsroom and is not involved in producing news.

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Jayme Howell is running for a seat on the school board in next month’s municipal election. The 36-year-old has two children attending school and more than a decade of involvement in childcare and volunteer work.

Last year, Howell had an informal write-in campaign after neighbors and friends urged her to join the board.

People asked me to put my name in and said they were going to write me in whether I wanted to or not. A lot of people gave me a hard time for not having my name on the ballot sooner.

This year she’s officially on the ballot as one of three candidates looking to fill a single open three-year term school board position.

Having lived in Wrangell since 2007, Howell works as an Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles agent by day. She previously served four years on the Parent Teacher Community Club, including two years as chairperson.

She decided to step back from the club to focus entirely on school governance without dividing her attention.

The School Board,there’s a lot of time that should be invested in looking into the agenda packet to know what you’re voting on.

A driving priority for her, she says, is boosting transparency and encouraging broader participation from families. Attending recent board meetings, she says she was often the only parent in the audience.

And that’s kind of disheartening, especially when it comes to pretty important things. I mean, it’s our school, it’s our kids’ education. People have a lot of things to say, but they don’t show up to those meetings.

She also says she believes communication between school leaders and the borough assembly needs improvement. She points to instances where discussions took place with municipal officials before the full school board was informed. While she acknowledges some matters require privacy, she wants general deliberations to remain as open as possible.

Addressing district finances will be another key challenge. She’s looking to bring a collaborative problem-solving approach to upcoming fiscal cycles.

She says she hopes her deep ties to families, teachers and students will help her serve as an approachable bridge between the community and district leadership.

Adapted from original article by Jonathan Dawe for the Wrangell Sentinel

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DJ McConachie, who was appointed to the port commission to fill a vacancy in June, is running unopposed in the Oct. 6 Wrangell municipal election for a two-year term.

He says his experience dealing with different people with different needs — whether it’s a boater who needs five gallons or a big yacht — serves him well on the port commission.

Here’s McConachie.

Yeah, and I guess you know it’s something I think that I would have relevant information with because I see a lot of people, I get to interact with fishermen and all walks of life.

McConachie was born and raised in Wrangell and didn’t start out working toward a career on the waterfront. After high school, he spent two years at Kenai Peninsula College in Soldotna, where he earned his pipe-welding certificate and a U.S. Coast Guard aluminum welding certificate.

My main intention was to try and get up on the North Slope, but yeah, sometimes it just doesn’t work out. But you know what? It really did in the end because I like where I’m at, and you know I wouldn’t have it any other way.

He has now worked with Petro Marine for nine years.

Though he has been on the port commission just a few months, he says he is impressed with the work underway for the port and harbors. He says that there are a lot of good projects in the pipeline that he would like to see get done.

The expansion of the Marine Service Center is a big priority for McConachie. He says that it’s maxed out and needs more space. He is aware that rates are going up for the Marine Service Center, port and harbors, noting that the facilities need to pay their own way, which includes saving for replacement equipment and repairs.

Dredging the downtown harbor is also high on his list.

I think it’s definitely a huge priority because, on these big minus tides, the inner harbor, let’s say. If you have a big minus and you have, you know, decent sized gill netter, you’re gonna be, you know, you’re gonna have to really watch it if you want to get out of there, you know, if at all.

Other goals include expanding the downtown waterfront and the borough’s effort to attract private investment in a shipyard at the former 6-Mile Mill property.

Adapted from original article by Larry Persily for the Wrangell Sentinel

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Phillip Mach, 35-years old, was appointed to the borough assembly to fill a vacant seat at the beginning of last year. At the end of his appointment in October, he ran for a single-year term and won. Now, after a year and a half on the assembly, Mach is one of four candidates looking to fill one of the two three-year positions on the assembly.

Here’s Mach on some of the things he says the assembly has accomplished during his term.

Really positive things, you know. We’ve got contracts out for redoing the siding and the roofs of the schools and the Public Safety Building. I think those are huge.

Originally from North Seattle, Mach followed his dad into the fishing industry. He worked on their family operated boat out of Bristol Bay for about 15 years.

After graduating from Seattle Pacific University with a degree in business finance, he took a position at a Trident Seafoods plant near Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands. Then, in 2023, he moved to Wrangell to manage the Trident plant that was reopening.

I think for me, the main big thing that I really get excited about is just economic development. I think Wrangell just has a lot of opportunity and it’s exciting to see that.

He says the goal of economic development is tied directly to supporting local businesses that are already established, in addition to attracting new ones.

He’s a father of an 8-month-old and says his other priorities are schools and childcare. He says these are important to support current residents and to attract new ones, and that he’d really like to see more childcare options for the community.

I think that’s a big deal, and make sure our schools are well funded. And it’s very important when people come to town, they look at schools, they look at childcare, they look at opportunities in town.

On attracting new residents, Mach also brought up the need for new housing options in Wrangell. He says he was excited that they were able to get the new Alder Top residential subdivision approved during his time on the assembly.

Mach is one of the youngest members of the assembly.

I know Dan Powers has a large family too, but just kind of the importance of our younger generation and making sure that Wrangell is here to stay and not slowly, you know, population going down.

He says, while he respects the collective knowledge of the assembly, he brings a different perspective and generational focus to the group.

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LaDonna Botsford worked in the Wrangell Ports and Harbors office for 17 years before moving on to the Alaska Marine Highway System for 13 years. The 60-year-old is recently retired and is now one of four candidates running for two available three-year term seats on the borough assembly.

Since retiring, Bottsford says she now has the time to help address issues she’s been seeing in her town, which led her to run.

If you see a problem, you have to be willing to be part of the solution to make the changes. And then the project at the 6-Mile Mill is definitely something that I think I could be an asset to.

She says that as a natural deepwater port, she thinks Wrangell would be a great fit for such a shipyard.

The daughter of a logger, Botsford grew up in Wrangell and only left for a period in her 20s when she spent some time in Washington state. She says she raised her kids in Wrangell and that they, and most of her grandchildren, are still living here.

The only thing I know is I am Wrangell, born and bred. I have a heart for my home. I know I know what its core values are, and I know what’s good for our community and what might not be good for our community.

She says that between growing up in Wrangell and her time with the Port and Harbors Department, she knows practically everyone, which she says has given her a good understanding of what her home needs.

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