Ashlyn O'Hara

Alaska’s Primary Election is Aug. 18. The top four vote-getters in each race advance to the General Election on Nov. 3.

The central Kenai Peninsula's representatives in the Alaska House of Representatives each face two challengers this election cycle. A University of Washington program that places medical students in five states, including Alaska, gets a $25 million scholarship endowment. Plus, the University of Alaska's newest and largest employee union files a fair an unfair labor practice complaint against the university.

Kenai restricts residential tent camping ahead of dipnetting season. Alaska's minimum wage is increasing July 1. Plus, Denali National Park and Preserve's puppy rangers show off their training to the public.

Kenai City Manager Terry Eubank says the changes are rooted in complaints from city property owners.

On this week's episode of the Kenai Conversation, we're joined by Maggie Winston to talk about ongoing efforts to expand self-directed care in Alaska and Disability Pride.

Derek Berry, 39, was reported missing by family members in early May.

The Alaska Bureau of Investigation is looking into the death of man reported missing from Soldotna last month. The Blood Bank of Alaska reports its worst blood shortage in at least 15 years. A gubernatorial candidate proposes ending the Permanent Fund dividend program in favor of a one-time $10,000 payout per Alaskan. Plus, a cruise line partners with a whale advocacy group while sailing in Alaska this summer.

Stream Watch was started in the mid-1990s by a group of fishermen intent on protecting the Kenai Peninsula’s salmon habitats. The program is jointly run by the Kenai Watershed Forum and the U.S. Forest Service and has an overarching goal of promoting watershed stewardship.

A seasonal mountaineering ranger dies after falling into a crevasse in Denali National Park and Preserve. Alaska's State Board of Education approves a Master's in teaching program for Indigenous languages. Plus, new and existing volunteers with the Kenai Watershed Forum's Stream Watch program attend an orientation in Cooper Landing.

A bill affirming Alaska Natives' right to sell art made from marine mammals heads to President Donald Trump's desk. In Fairbanks, supporters of the Alaska LNG Project rally around high energy prices. Plus, friends and colleagues remember longtime Kenai Peninsula College Director Gary Turner.