OK Gang - so, it's time for a party!!! We're back in Kodiak for our Great-Nephew's graduation and we are really excited. Morgan is one of the coolest kids you will ever meet and when we were here for his sister's graduation we promised him we'd be back for this event. It was a commitment we really meant and I can tell you - we are totally delighted we are able to be here again!! As we talked about earlier, we had all been given our assignments for 
chores in preparation for the graduation party celebrating Morgan's completion of Kodiak High and - believe me - his mom is a task-master you really don't want to disappoint!!! Fortunately for us our jobs were more along the line of .... go with Matt to do this .... or ... help Regan do this ... etc. So - we managed to finish our work in a timely way and were able to kick back and watch the real masters do their stuff!! 
One of the things I had looked forward to helping with was putting up the decorations. Morgan's Mom is probably one of the best in the world at decorating for a party and her ideas are always the best. Last time we were here for a graduation event, we made a huge 'heart' to mount photographs of the graduate on and it turned out pretty 
well. This time we wanted to mount a bunch of photos but we decided to do them in a way that would pay a special tribute to Morgan's "outdoorsman skills." So ... we decided to 
mount his photos on some of his memorable friends!!! Since he has managed to capture some of the most sought-after trophies on the planet we thought we would use some of his very favorites. Morgan's friend Eleanore - who is a spectacular artist and a 'soon-to-be' engineer helped with the drawings and I was beginning to think we would have to wind up exhibiting her work in a gallery somewhere. She 
is one of the most charming people you will ever meet and we fell in love with her - and her family - right away. Believe me - you will hear more from these young folks in the not-too-distant future. And it will very 
likely have something to do with Kodiak Island or the state of Alaska in general. Their love for their state - and community - is infectious and we are extremely proud of them. I can tell you one thing for sure ... if you can be around these wonderful young women and men and not get excited about the future they will build - you don't have any imagination!!! In talking to them, hearing their 
plans, dreams and expectations - as well as their concerns - you get a clear impression that our world can definitely come out OK if we are willing to give them our trust and support. And then ... there is Kimberly!!! As we mentioned in our opening post, our niece from Washington state had come back to 
Kodiak (where she grew up) to join in the festivities. It was truly an extraordinary treat for us to have these two beautiful sisters together with us for a while and it could have only been made better if their younger sister, Courtney, had been able to join us. All three of these ladies are "world-class" and I cannot begin to tell you how much they mean to us. Each one of them is smart, strong, beautiful, shrewd in 
business, devoted to their families and simply some of the best, most loving people you could ever hope to meet. But - that's where the irony comes in!!! As sharp and unique as our nieces and their families are, the friends they have are the stuff of legend. Their circles of friends - every 
one of them - are some of the most devoted people you could hope to encounter on this planet. I'm not going to try to recount examples from each one but let me tell you - straight up - I have never ... never ... seen people so willing to go to extraordinary lengths to help friends like those we met in Kodiak and those we have gotten to know in the other places in the "lower 48 where these remarkable ladies live." The other 
thing that struck us as remarkable was the clear respect the adults had for the young folks at this gathering. I know it is traditional to be "upbeat" and positive at an event where kids are celebrating the end of their high school years. But this was very different. It was clear from the very beginning of the party that the young 
people who were here had special and unusually positive relationships with the adults. Over the course of the evening their coaches from baseball, volleyball, track and other sports were there but, more importantly, the adults they had spent time working with on fishing vessels, equine training centers, retail trades, machine trades and many 
other fields clearly showed that they had developed relationships - and respect - that would last a lifetime. It was simply spellbinding to eavesdrop on the wide-ranging conversations taking place. They covered the gamut from big-game hunting in the frozen tundra of northeast Alaska to the plains of Africa; fishing from the coasts of California and Mexico to the Bering Sea; cross-country journeys from the tip of Alaska to the Keys of Florida; to fantastic plans for future 
education opportunities in every one of our fifty states and virtually every country on the planet. Remarkable!!! But - I've gotta tell you, as far ranging as the conversations were, there was never a moment when the reason for this 
celebration was forgotten. The young folks were the main attraction and we all reverently acknowledged that this was "their day." Of course, this was just the "warm-up" for the big event that would take place on Saturday and, as big as this celebration was, it was clear that until the "caps and gowns" were donned it wouldn't seem quite 'real.' So - we would celebrate tonight, get things cleaned up from this wonderful party and then start getting ready for our return visit to Kodiak High for the graduation of the Class of 2016. Come on back to join us for that wonderful event. See ya!!
chores in preparation for the graduation party celebrating Morgan's completion of Kodiak High and - believe me - his mom is a task-master you really don't want to disappoint!!! Fortunately for us our jobs were more along the line of .... go with Matt to do this .... or ... help Regan do this ... etc. So - we managed to finish our work in a timely way and were able to kick back and watch the real masters do their stuff!! 
One of the things I had looked forward to helping with was putting up the decorations. Morgan's Mom is probably one of the best in the world at decorating for a party and her ideas are always the best. Last time we were here for a graduation event, we made a huge 'heart' to mount photographs of the graduate on and it turned out pretty 
well. This time we wanted to mount a bunch of photos but we decided to do them in a way that would pay a special tribute to Morgan's "outdoorsman skills." So ... we decided to 
mount his photos on some of his memorable friends!!! Since he has managed to capture some of the most sought-after trophies on the planet we thought we would use some of his very favorites. Morgan's friend Eleanore - who is a spectacular artist and a 'soon-to-be' engineer helped with the drawings and I was beginning to think we would have to wind up exhibiting her work in a gallery somewhere. She 
is one of the most charming people you will ever meet and we fell in love with her - and her family - right away. Believe me - you will hear more from these young folks in the not-too-distant future. And it will very 
likely have something to do with Kodiak Island or the state of Alaska in general. Their love for their state - and community - is infectious and we are extremely proud of them. I can tell you one thing for sure ... if you can be around these wonderful young women and men and not get excited about the future they will build - you don't have any imagination!!! In talking to them, hearing their 
plans, dreams and expectations - as well as their concerns - you get a clear impression that our world can definitely come out OK if we are willing to give them our trust and support. And then ... there is Kimberly!!! As we mentioned in our opening post, our niece from Washington state had come back to 
Kodiak (where she grew up) to join in the festivities. It was truly an extraordinary treat for us to have these two beautiful sisters together with us for a while and it could have only been made better if their younger sister, Courtney, had been able to join us. All three of these ladies are "world-class" and I cannot begin to tell you how much they mean to us. Each one of them is smart, strong, beautiful, shrewd in 
business, devoted to their families and simply some of the best, most loving people you could ever hope to meet. But - that's where the irony comes in!!! As sharp and unique as our nieces and their families are, the friends they have are the stuff of legend. Their circles of friends - every 
one of them - are some of the most devoted people you could hope to encounter on this planet. I'm not going to try to recount examples from each one but let me tell you - straight up - I have never ... never ... seen people so willing to go to extraordinary lengths to help friends like those we met in Kodiak and those we have gotten to know in the other places in the "lower 48 where these remarkable ladies live." The other 
thing that struck us as remarkable was the clear respect the adults had for the young folks at this gathering. I know it is traditional to be "upbeat" and positive at an event where kids are celebrating the end of their high school years. But this was very different. It was clear from the very beginning of the party that the young 
people who were here had special and unusually positive relationships with the adults. Over the course of the evening their coaches from baseball, volleyball, track and other sports were there but, more importantly, the adults they had spent time working with on fishing vessels, equine training centers, retail trades, machine trades and many 
other fields clearly showed that they had developed relationships - and respect - that would last a lifetime. It was simply spellbinding to eavesdrop on the wide-ranging conversations taking place. They covered the gamut from big-game hunting in the frozen tundra of northeast Alaska to the plains of Africa; fishing from the coasts of California and Mexico to the Bering Sea; cross-country journeys from the tip of Alaska to the Keys of Florida; to fantastic plans for future 
education opportunities in every one of our fifty states and virtually every country on the planet. Remarkable!!! But - I've gotta tell you, as far ranging as the conversations were, there was never a moment when the reason for this 
celebration was forgotten. The young folks were the main attraction and we all reverently acknowledged that this was "their day." Of course, this was just the "warm-up" for the big event that would take place on Saturday and, as big as this celebration was, it was clear that until the "caps and gowns" were donned it wouldn't seem quite 'real.' So - we would celebrate tonight, get things cleaned up from this wonderful party and then start getting ready for our return visit to Kodiak High for the graduation of the Class of 2016. Come on back to join us for that wonderful event. See ya!! 
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