Kodiak’s 34th annual ComFish will host a first-time visitor to Alaska when National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Assistant Administrator for Fisheries Eileen Sobeck arrives in April for the three-day fisheries event.

Sobeck, who was named to the top position at the National Marine Fisheries Service on Jan. 15, will attend with Sen. Mark Begich on April 17, said coordinator Laine Welch.

“That’s really exciting to have her come here for her very first visit,” Welch said.

Sobeck and Begich are scheduled to speak that afternoon.

ComFish is a three-day fisheries gathering that includes forums and a trade show, as well as related events throughout the community. This year, the theme is “The Business of Fishing,” and it’s scheduled for April 17-19.

Welch, who has been involved in ComFish since 1990, said she invited Sobeck to ComFish at Begich’s suggestion.

“If she wants to see a working waterfront, this is the place,” Welch said, noting that Kodiak has top federal and state fisheries scientists, several processing plants, the nation’s largest Coast Guard base and one of the largest fishing fleets.

Read the full story at the Alaska Journal of Commerce>>