A disaster for the Alaska State Archives is in the process of being averted, in part due to a remarkable stroke of luck that helped archivists deal with a flood of water dousing historical records.

In 1943, Eleanor Roosevelt planted a victory garden at the White House, bringing back an idea first pursued during World War I. She encouraged citizens around the country to plant their own victory gardens, partly to help reduce the country’s food needs during wartime, and also as a way to boost morale. She was successful: At their peak, victory gardens supplied more than 40 percent of the country’s produce.

Juneau resident Manuel M. Carillo died Aug. 17, 2009, in Juneau. He was 61.

Helping Hands will hold a dinner and auction this Saturday to raise money to support their community food bank. The fundraiser will take place Saturday, Aug. 29 at the Valley Chapel at 9741 Mendenhall Loop Road. Dinner begins at 5 p.m., and the auction starts at 6 p.m. A $10 donation is requested.

T he trailer for “The Time Traveler’s Wife” hooked me long ago. For crying out loud, every time I saw that preview, whether it was online or onscreen, I wound up crying out loud. I wish I were joking. There has not been a more obvious date-movie to come along in quite a while, unless you are on Sandra Bullock’s bandwagon; she seems to have about four movies coming out in the next few months.

SATURDAY

Local videographers and filmmakers take note: The FILM Juneau Contest, sponsored by the City and Borough of Juneau, the Juneau Arts & Humanities Council and the Juneau Economic Development Council, is now accepting entries of Juneau promotional videos.

The Juneau Student Symphony will perform the music of Leroy Anderson in two concerts on Friday, Aug. 28, at noon at the State Office Building and 7 p.m. at Marine Park (rain or shine). The audience will enjoy familiar favorites like “The Waltzing Cat” with its meowing violins and clarinets and barking percussionists, “Bugler’s Holiday,” “The Typewriter” with a percussion solo on the typewriter, “Jazz Pizzicato” and “Jazz Legato,” among others. The concert will conclude with an out-of-season performance of “Sleigh Ride” featuring Kit Peterson on solo vocals.

Photographer Flip Nicklin will present a whale talk and slideshow Thursday August 27 at 7 p.m. at Hearthside Books in the Nugget Mall.

The school year is fast approaching and already the school bus system is plummeting into the abyss.