Wes Young’s sweater was among the oddest if not the ugliest at the Alaskan Hotel and Bar’s ugly Christmas sweater and clothing drive Saturday, Dec. 15, 2018.(Ben Hohenstatt | Capital City Weekly)

Wes Young’s sweater was among the oddest if not the ugliest at the Alaskan Hotel and Bar’s ugly Christmas sweater and clothing drive Saturday, Dec. 15, 2018.(Ben Hohenstatt | Capital City Weekly)

Bad sweaters and a good cause

The Alaskan held an ugly sweater party and a clothing drive

The sweaters were ugly, but the cause was not.

The Alaskan Hotel and Bar hosted an ugly Christmas sweater party Saturday night that doubled as a clothing drive.

“Juneau is a small community, and you should give back,” said Angie Erickson, bar manager.

Erickson said any gently used clothing collected during the night was destined for Aiding Women in Abuse and Rape Emergencies (AWARE), Juneau’s gender-inclusive shelter for survivors of gender-based violence.

As the event wore on, bags of donated clothing stacked up behind the bar.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

Eric Bleicher, a friend of Erickson’s, dropped off some shirts he hadn’t worn in a while and hoped would help someone in need.

“I had to run home for something, and it dawned on me it’d be a good way to make sure it went to a good use.”

The idea for the first-ever ugly sweater party and charity drive was a a group effort, although Erickson predominantly credited bartender Amara Enciso with the idea.

“We decided to throw something people could come out and do,” Enciso said. “The weather is getting to everybody.”

A sub-freezing temperature outside and windy blasts of snow whipping across Franklin Street underscored her point.

Inside the bar, Christmas music played over the speakers, Christmas lights twinkled and both staff and customers wore appropriately unseemly seasonal sweaters.

“You have to go out and hunt,” Enciso said.

She wore a sweater decorated with a moose, a Christmas tree and animal tracks while tending bar. “This is vintage. I got it in the Valley. The senior section is the best.”

Wes Young came to the party wearing a secondhand find that Enciso dubbed “epic” and a Santa hat with Grinch-colored feather trim.

“It’s the ugliest setup of a sweater,” Young said.

Young’s shapeless, ribbed burgundy sweater displaying the hindquarters of a reindeer with a stream of jingly ornaments emanating from beneath its tail.

Young said the back half of the deer seemed to just be felt someone affixed to the sweater.

“It’s kind of got a weird smell to it,” Young said. “It’s nothing a shot won’t fix.”

Not everyone’s getup was secondhand.

Josh Fortenbery came wearing a specially bought ugly sweater, a Green Bay Packers cardigan. Fortenberry also dropped off a bag of items for the clothing drive.

“It’s a cool idea,” Fortenberry said. “There’s a lot of ugly sweater parties in town. It’s nice there’s one where you can have fun and do something good, too.”


• Contact arts and culture reporter Ben Hohenstatt at (907)523-2243 or bhohenstatt@juneauempire.com.


Josh Fortenberry shows off his ugly Packers sweater after dropping off clothing at the Alaskan hotel and Bar’s ugly sweater party and clothing drive Saturday, Dec. 15, 2018. (Ben Hohenstatt | Capital City Weekly)

Josh Fortenberry shows off his ugly Packers sweater after dropping off clothing at the Alaskan hotel and Bar’s ugly sweater party and clothing drive Saturday, Dec. 15, 2018. (Ben Hohenstatt | Capital City Weekly)

More in Home

Tesla Cox (left) explains the damage done to her home and possessions by a record flood to a delegation of local and congressional leaders on Sunday, Aug. 11, 2024. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
Flood protection at top of Juneau Assembly’s legislative project funding list

Second Douglas crossing, wastewater plant rank next; some members concerned civic center is low on list.

2022 Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé graduate Brooke Sanford (5) reacts with teammates during a Regis University Rangers home volleyball match this season in Denver, Colorado. (Regis photo courtesy Makayla Salter)
Former JDHS volleyball star Brooke Sanford discusses college adjustments

Local 2022 graduate takes game to higher court while pursuing education degree in Colorado.

An empty classroom at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé. Juneau is one of four districts federal education officials said was underfunded by the state during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Lisa Phu/Alaska Beacon)
Four Alaska school districts, including Juneau, move on without federally promised money

$17.5M pandemic funding dispute wth state ends; Juneau wasn’t counting on its $90K share.

A firefighter carries a hose toward a Mendenhall Valley house still experiencing flareups hours after a fire started early Saturday morning. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
JPD: Fire that destroyed home deliberately set by man who died from cause ‘not related to the fire’

Relative suffered life-threatening burns reentering house trying to find man, according to police.

Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé hockey players and Bartlett High School hockey players work for a puck during the Crimson Bears 10-6 win over the Golden Bears Saturday at the Treadwell Ice Arena. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire file photo)
ASAA concerned incident in JDHS hockey game not reported

Visiting Bartlett High School player had to be restrained and escorted from ice.

Hundreds of residents and cruise ship passengers visit the Juneau Maritime Festival at Elizabeth Peratrovich Plaza on Saturday, May 4, 2024. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
Juneau’s younger population dropping fast, older residents increasing rapidly, latest state count shows

8.3% drop in residents under 35 between 2020 and 2024, 21% increase in residents 65 and older.

(Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
Suspicious package in mail leads to drug bust at downtown hotel

$42,700 of suspected illegal drugs and more than $2,000 in cash seized, JPD reports.

Village of Wrangell (Ḵaachx̱aana.áakʼw in Tlingit) in 1868 on present day Front Street. (Photo by Eadward Muybridge)
Plans taking shape for Saturday’s Army apology for 1869 bombardment of Wrangell

Program starts by retracing steps of Shx’atoo, the Tlingit man hanged by Army after the 1869 attack.

An aerial shows the footprint of the test well drilled in the mid-1980s on land owned by the Kaktovik Native village corporation within the 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)
Trump wants oil drilling in Alaska. A lease sale in ANWR just flopped.

No bidders for 400,000 acres offered; some Alaska officials said Biden actions ensured failure

Most Read

You're browsing in private mode.
Please sign in or subscribe to continue reading articles in this mode.

Juneau Empire relies on subscription revenue to provide local content for our readers.

Subscribe

Already a subscriber? Please sign in