The Daigle's

The van did make it over on the ferry :). And the camper! Wohoo! Tim hitched a ride with friends the 13 miles back into town to the ferry dock to pick it up. No one had room for the rest of us so we hung back at the church to wait for him to come back. I was happy to spend a few hours with Ann and Pat.

These people were family back when we lived here. Their incredible example of love, selflessness and sacrifice were displayed to us over and over throughout the years living across the bay. Every summer we had them on our side as they worked their set-net salmon fishing sites and lived in their little cabins with their 4 kids. In the winter they moved back to Homer and we were left a little lonelier during the long winter days. But they were so faithful. Every Sunday, without fail, even if it was for just a single person, they would make that trek across the bay to hold church and to fellowship. The only thing that ever held them back was truly terrible weather or if the harbor had frozen their boat in. I meant it when I said they were our lifeline. I often wonder why we didn’t leave after baby one or two to be closer to family and the support they would give. It was this church and their faithfulness that kept us here. That and something that kept us faithful to serving here in the small and sometimes forgotten community of Seldovia. Maybe it was a “call” maybe it was just the love of the adventure of it all… either way, we stuck it out for those 8 years. I’m sure I’ll never know if the Lord ever had any kind of lasting impact on the kids and families here through TIm and I, but the Daigle’s sure made an impact on us.

Pat is from northern Maine and literally learned the fishing industry as he went. Ann is originally from Alaska - which you’ll come to find out is rather unusual if you are not indigenous to the area. Her father was a cartographer. And years ago, he collected Civil War bonds and scouted out various areas of Kachemak Bay. He handpicked a few islands, went to the government with the bonds and said, “I’d like to cash these in on these pieces of land.” I guess they had to say yes. Smart man. Over the years some of his children sold their islands to buy a car or move away, but Ann and Jane held onto theirs. Eventually they bought set-net sites and with their out-of-town husbands, figured out how to make a life out of set-net fishing and life on an island. It is the most inspiring lifestyle I have ever witnessed and if I had the opportunity, I would jump at it.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s a rather grueling line of work, typically with very little profit. It’s not often that they have a really “good year”. And you have to follow the rules of the fish and game industry: nets must be put in and pulled out at particular times of the day which means odd hours and not a lot of sleep. Nets need to be checked regularly rain or shine once they are in to get fish shortly after they are caught to ensure they aren’t damaged by the nets (#1 quality has no marks, pristine condition and make the most money. Fish that have been torn or bruised are sold for less as #2. Seals and other predators can also make a mess of the fish and nets if they are not checked regularly.). Nets also need repair, boat maintenance, etc. And all of this is done no matter what the weather. Often up here it means cold, blustery, rainy weather with choppy seas. But something about really LIVING on the water holds a lot of appeal. Their boats are like cars, the bays as highways, and they live in these quaint cabins wedged amongst trees and beaches, rocks and cliffs, that they have built piece by piece slowly over time as they have been able to bring supplies over from the other side. The off-grid living lends itself to tv-free, phone-free, technology-free, quiet hours that force them to spend their free time with more creativity than I have ever seen.

We spent a few hours up at the cabin Ann and Pat had spent a lifetime putting together. Full of life and fun, they have covered their island paradise with swings, treehouses, zip-lines and more. Sipping tea as we warmed up in the cabin before the boat ride back, I had so many memories rush back to me of nursing a baby and visiting with Ann. These people meant so much to me. It was heartbreaking to leave and it is almost as heart wrenching to be back in it knowing it’s only temporary.

Now their children are setting up life on the island too. Their oldest, Simeon and his wife Naomi, have built a beautiful cabin, still unfinished, on the other side of the island. Their daughter Aspen is planning to build with her husband there too. It’s such a special place.

Little Tutka Bible Fellowship had been meeting for years as a house church at various homes this side of the bay. When Tim and I moved here is 2004, they usually met at Tim and Jane’s (Ann’s sister) island. It was shortly after our arrival that they began to work on the octagonal building that now serves full time as a church building for the bay community. I’m not sure there are many churches that can boast the view those walls of windows provide. It really is amazing to worship is such a naturally beautiful setting. Ann and Pat have given their lives to the call to serve the people of this side of the bay and I’ll never forget that I was one of them.