ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – David Honeycutt expected one of his appliances to be repaired — not a complete home renovation.

Members of the Home Depot Foundation’s Operation Surprise campaign have spent days working to improve Honeycutt’s home.

Honeycutt said he sustained a spinal injury during his Army service, resulting in a permanent disability that prevented him from navigating his home safely for years. A friend and fellow veteran reached out and nominated Honeycutt for some outside help.

“I was in getting in a bad place and they realized that,” Honeycutt said. “And they’d given me hope.”

Visiting with the team before they began working in his home, it became clear Honeycutt’s house was inaccessible and inconvenient for its owner.

Eric Rangel, district captain for Team Depot — Home Depot’s volunteer force — said when they first met, they were mostly concerned about difficult-to-use appliances.

“Well, that very quickly grew, and we wanted to give him something a little bit more,” Rangel said.

Initial plans to deal with appliances then turned into a multiple-day project; team members built a 12-by-12 woodshed outside Honeycutt’s back door to give him access to firewood, repaired his deck to keep him safe getting in and out of his vehicle, added doggy doors for Honeycutt’s companion Misty, grab irons throughout the house, and installed new stairs for Honeycutt to exit his sunken living room without hurting himself.

Before the changes, Honeycutt said his life was heading in a dark direction. Even traversing the stairs in his home became impossible, preventing him from sleeping in his own bedroom for two years.

Honeycutt said he ruined his own couch by sleeping on it rather than trying to get to bed.

“It became my pit, kind of hard to get in and out,” he said. “Kind of, ‘Do I bother hurting myself getting out again?’ … The house got worse. I got worse.”

Following the repairs, Rangel believes they’ve turned some things around.

“He can navigate his home, and be the independent veteran that he’s been his whole life.”

The improvements to Honeycutt’s home were made by employees at the Home Depot in Kenai, who said they’re motivated by knowing they’re helping those who served the country.

“Just, like, ‘Wow, I helped this gentleman,’ I feel so happy,” one volunteer said as the large group huddled in the soon-to-be complete kitchen they were working on. “It makes me want to just keep driving forward and help out the community.”

The team installed an entirely new kitchen and accessible cabinets, which Rangel said will give Honeycutt the ability to cook for himself once again — a passion Honeycutt is looking to share once everything is complete.

“I won $1,000 for my chili in a chili cookoff in Oklahoma,” he said. “So I am gonna make them — the Home Depot Store — five gallons of my special chili.”

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The Justice Department has reached a settlement with a former federal prosecutor who filed a whistleblower complaint alleging that she was retaliated against by leaders of the US attorney’s office in Alaska after she reported sexual misconduct by a federal judge.

The whistleblower, who clerked for US District Judge Joshua Kindred in Alaska before joining the US attorney’s office in Anchorage, had alleged in a complaint with the Office of Special Counsel that she was denied a permanent job as a federal prosecutor because she informed supervisors in the fall of 2022 of sexual misconduct by Kindred.

Details of the settlement weren’t made public in an OSC release posted Wednesday. Special Counsel Hampton Dellinger, who leads the agency, in a statement thanked the whistleblower “for her incredible courage in speaking up about sexual misconduct by her former boss.”

Dellinger also said he appreciated the work of the Justice Department to reach a settlement, which was over a separate Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint from the former prosecutor. That agreement led to OSC closing its investigation, according to the release.

“No attorney, indeed no one, should have to deal with sexual misconduct in the workplace,” Dellinger said.

Kevin Owen, an attorney with Gilbert Employment Law representing the whistleblower, said in a statement that his client’s treatment at the US attorney’s office “underscores why survivors of workplace harassment and assault do not come forward.”

“Yet she continued to fight, at great personal risk, and it is thanks to her courage that the federal judiciary is a fairer and safer workplace today,” Owen said. “We are pleased to have reached an agreement with the Office of Special Counsel, and it is our hope that this can be a signal to all survivors that justice and accountability are possible.”

The whistleblower had also alleged that she was initially denied a detail to another office within the Justice Department, despite telling a supervisor she was afraid of Kindred and didn’t want to work in the same building as the judge.

The complaint didn’t seek specific relief, but asked that OSC — an independent federal agency that investigates federal sector whistleblower claims — open an inquiry into the alleged retaliation.

The US attorney’s office in Anchorage has been under scrutiny as part of the fallout from the findings against Kindred. US Attorney S. Lane Tucker, appointed by President Joe Biden, is likely part of Justice Department reviews of that office, according to former DOJ officials.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) said in September that DOJ’s Office of Professional Responsibility, which examines potential misconduct by government attorneys, has opened an investigation stemming from the Anchorage office’s conduct.

Dozens of cases have been flagged by prosecutors for potential conflicts with Kindred, spurring motions from defense lawyers to revisit some prosecutions. Alaska federal prosecutors last month asked to throw out a criminal conviction in a case where Kindred didn’t recuse himself, as the judge had received nude photographs from a senior prosecutor on the case.

Kindred resigned from the federal court in Alaska in July, days before a federal judiciary order said that he had subjected the former clerk-turned-prosecutor and others in his chambers to an abusive, sexualized, and hostile work environment. Bloomberg Law hasn’t been able to reach him for comment.

According to that order, Kindred defended his actions to the judiciary panel investigating his conduct, and contended that the sexual encounters with his former law clerk — which he initially denied entirely before admitting to them — were consensual. He hasn’t publicly commented on those findings.

The federal judiciary has certified a referral to the House for Kindred’s potential impeachment, citing the former judge’s “reprehensible conduct, which has no doubt brought disrepute to the judiciary.”

The settlement was announced the same day as the federal judiciary published its first annual report into workplace misconduct issues. US District Judge Robert Conrad, director of the Administrative Office of the US Courts, said at a press briefing Wednesday that the handling of the internal judicial complaint against Kindred “is a pretty robust example” of how the judiciary’s procedures for handling such cases works.

—With assistance from Ben Penn and Suzanne Monyak

Driving from Anchorage to Seward, I was in awe of the mountainous views and glacial blue lakes as we drove south toward the Kenai Peninsula. I was on my way to stay at the Kenai Fjords Wilderness Lodge on Fox Island in Resurrection Bay.

Marketed as off-the-grid and all-inclusive, I couldn’t wait to get to the resort. I knew I was in for a treat when I heard I would stay in a cabin steps from the water, overlooking Halibut Cove, while seals and sea otters frolicked in the waves. I wasn’t sure what to expect, though – would there be heat, running water, and a flushing toilet? Would I be able to text my husband?

I’d been dreaming of visiting Alaska, and when Pursuit Collection invited me for a hosted stay at their wilderness lodge, I jumped at the chance. Here’s how to get there and why I would go back.

Getting to Fox Island

To get to Fox Island, you have to take a forty-minute ferry from Seward. This small town sits on the coast between the mountains and Resurrection Bay. People come from all over the world to visit because of its proximity to Kenai Fjords National Park.

I boarded a white ferry with blue trim, named the Glacier Explorer, to Fox Island on a misty day in early June. I had no idea I would see a humpback whale spouting within twenty minutes of the ferry ride. It was the first of many days on my five-day trip to south central Alaska, where I would see incredible marine wildlife.

The Glacier Explorer dropped us off on Fox Island, and I walked along the dock until I reached the shore. The shoreline was covered in beautiful black rocks, some of which were even heart-shaped. I was greeted by the lodge’s naturalist, who immediately pointed out the seal splashing in the cove — likely peeking to see what all the human noise was about.

The main lodge is breathtaking

As I arrived, it was cold and raining — typical of the early summer maritime climate. A group of us meandered down the coastline towards the lodge. Walking through the entrance of the lodge, I was blown away by the inside. It was all wood, warm, and welcoming. I immediately felt at home as the staff greeted us with big smiles.

The main lodge has an area like a living room with couches, chairs, and tables. There’s a woodstove and giant windows overlooking the bay. There’s also a bar. The dining area opposite this space is decorated with beautiful wood furniture, soft lighting, and delicate flower bouquets.

I couldn’t wait to see the cabins after seeing this place. But first, the staff served lunch – a gourmet Caesar-inspired salad, a side of fruit, and a hand-crafted cocktail.

The waterfront cabins are cozy

After lunch, I wandered over to my private cabin, Kittiwake, tucked inside the tree line. I walked up the wooden stairs to the porch and opened the sliding glass door. Inside, I found a red leather couch, coffee table, bed, and a small bathroom with a shower. I was so happy when I realized there was a flushing toilet and on-demand hot water.

Though the property is off-the-grid and not connected to public utilities, the eight guest cabins have propane heaters and battery-powered lights. Since there are no electrical outlets in the cabins, bringing a power bank for your cell phone is essential if you plan on using it to take photos.

There was also no cell phone reception at my cabin. The main lodge did have a place to charge a few cell phones, though, and I could send my husband texts from there.

The food is excellent

The property has a chef and wait staff on location. The chef decides on the menu based on local ingredients and seasonal availability, so the food selections are always different. Over three days and two nights, I was treated to halibut, steak, soups, fresh vegetables, and salads for lunch and dinner.

Before breakfast, I loved the coffee service, where staff brought coffee directly to my cabin around 7 a.m. Breakfast included dishes like eggs and crab cakes or eggs Benedict.

Tea and pastries were served in the afternoon, followed by happy hour and charcuterie before dinner.

I’m gluten-free and appreciated how the chef easily accommodated my dietary needs. You just have to inform the property before you arrive so their team can plan.

Things to do while you’re there

A two-night minimum is required to stay here. Along with relaxing on the porch and watching for wildlife, you can go sea kayaking, enjoy s’mores around a fire pit, or get warm in the wood-fired sauna.

On the second day, I took a half-day guided kayaking tour around Fox Island with Sunny Cove Kayaking. I had so much fun spotting sea otters and puffins. It was my first time seeing a puffin in the wild.

That afternoon, I rested and recharged in the Scandinavian-inspired wood sauna. The sauna is steps from the sea for those brave enough to cold plunge after getting warm and sweaty. Since I visited during the summer, it was still bright outside at 10 p.m., and we could fit all these activities in during the day.

On the third day, after breakfast, we packed our bags and left for an eight-hour boat tour of Kenai Fjords National Park. Viewing whales and the epic glacial landscape made for one of the most beautiful trips I’ve ever taken.

Being pampered at the wilderness lodge while enjoying the outdoor activities was the perfect way to complement visiting this part of Alaska.