Community Corner

🌱 Patch AM: How a new kratom ban could change Anchorage gas station shelves

Coming up on the Anchorage Patch calendar: Alaska Creative Economies Benefit w/ HSC!

Patch AM Team's profile picture
Patch AM Team, Patch StaffVerified Patch Staff Badge
Thursday October 8th Patch AM
Thursday October 8th Patch AM (Patch graphic)

Good morning Anchorage! We're back again in your inbox, keeping you updated with what's happening in and around town. ☕️️

🎃 Hosting a Halloween event in Anchorage? Let Patch get the word out for you. Post it to the Patch calendar.

In today's newsletter:

  • How a new kratom ban could change Anchorage gas station shelves
  • Meet the Anchorage 7th grader mowing lawns free to help neighbors
  • How a $2 million grant could open doors for Anchorage students

Also on today's calendar: Candlelight: A Haunted Evening of Halloween Classics and 9 more events.

Today's riddle: What is clean when it is black and dirty when it is white? 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

  • Thursday: Decreasing clouds, with a high of 48 and low of 35 degrees.
  • Friday: An afternoon shower, temps: high: 50, low: 41.
  • Saturday: Rain and drizzle in the p.m., with a high of 49 and low of 39 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Anchorage Assembly to consider ban on kratom and related products (adn.com) — Anchorage Assembly members are advancing an ordinance that would make selling or recreationally using most kratom products in the municipality a misdemeanor, with tougher penalties for sales to minors. Supporters cite rising potency, health risks, and neighborhood complaints about gas stations selling kratom, while exempting unaltered plant use and physician prescriptions. The proposal is expected to be introduced at the Oct. 20 Assembly meeting.
   

2. Anchorage 7th grader combining entrepreneurship and community service to give back (wlky.com) — An Anchorage seventh grader, Charlie Mullaney, is turning his lawn care side business into a way to quietly help neighbors by mowing overgrown yards for free. Between school, sports, and reading, he films his cleanup projects for YouTube and says the work is teaching him lasting lessons about kindness, generosity, and giving back in Anchorage neighborhoods.
   

3. ED Announces Additional $39M for TRIO Grantees (insidehighered.com) — Students in Anchorage could benefit from a new $2 million federal Talent Search grant awarded to the University of Alaska Anchorage to support college access for disadvantaged youth. The funding is part of a broader $39 million boost to TRIO programs nationwide, aimed at helping more low-income and adult learners get to and through college.
   

4. Anchorage 'cartel attorney' gets 20-year prison sentence for drug trafficking (adn.com) — A former Anchorage defense attorney has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for his role in a major Alaska drug trafficking ring that moved fentanyl and other drugs statewide. Prosecutors say he abused his legal position to aid the operation, while his defense cites addiction and mental health struggles; he remains jailed at Anchorage Correctional Complex.
   

5. Bootin', scootin', and paratroopin': JBER soldiers train before sunrise for upcoming competitions (alaskasnewssource.com) — Before most Anchorage residents wake up, paratroopers at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson are pushing through intense Holistic Health and Fitness workouts at Geronimo Gym to build strength, resilience, and stress management. Coaches and therapists tailor training to harsh Alaska conditions and upcoming challenges like the Best Medic Competition in South Korea. Soldiers say the program boosts both performance and confidence under pressure.
   

📸 Around Anchorage

Show off your photography skills and the sights around town! Click here to submit your Photo of the Day to Patch AM!

🗓 Upcoming Events in Anchorage

Add your event to our calendar and newsletter!

★ Featured events ★

Want to see your event featured? Click here!

Other local events

📣 Anchorage Shout Outs!

Want to say something great about someone in town? Click here to submit your Shout Out to Patch AM! It's free!

Have we missed something on our calendar? Add an event yourself! As always, before attending confirm event details to ensure accuracy.

Want to see your business here? Click here to connect with local customers.

💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

  • Update: I'm checking on whether Stevie is up for adoption.
    Maybe not. Stay tuned after they respond. Orig: Come meet Stevie at Alaska Paws (formerly SPCA). She's a beauty queen with her long eyelashes. She's… (Nextdoor Old Seward/Oceanview)
  • Good evening what's for dinner?
    I made chicken fried rice and left over boiled moose bones from yesterday (Nextdoor Abbott Loop South)
  • Southcentral Foundation posted a job opening for Security Officer - Wasilla in Wasilla. Apply here.
  • City of Wasilla Alaska posted a job opening for Sport Center Facility Operator in Wasilla. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Anchorage here.

Ok Anchorage! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: "What is clean when it is black and dirty when it is white?" — A chalk board (Thank you Charlie H. for sending it in!)
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Submit it here!

👉 Help make Patch AM better

We use a combination of real people and machines to tell you what's happening around town. Learn more about Patch AM.

Share to NextDoor     Share to Facebook

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

More from Anchorage