Bravo Gold Corp (BVG)

[MUSHROOMKING]

In Petersburg, it takes an entire town to build a gold mining company
The town of Petersburg, Alaska, population 2,300, believes—with its collective hearts and minds—that its future lies in gold.

Author: Dorothy Kosich
Posted: Friday , 07 Dec 2007

SPOKANE, WASHINGTON -

The folks at Petersburg, Alaska, may be the living incarnation of the "grassroots" exploration project.

In a presentation to the Northwest Mining Association, Steve Beardslee spoke of the 70 townspeople, including the local hospital foundation, invested their hard-earned cash, rolling up their sleeves, and putting in a lot of sweat equity to attract mining to their southeastern Alaska town of 2,900 people.

In a region that fostered such mining notables as Kensington, Greens Creek and Eskay Creek, the future hot prospect on everyone's lips may someday be Woewodski Island.

Community involvement was of critical importance to the future precious metals prospects of Woewodski Island. Fishermen, dentists, schoolteachers, and politicians become vital stakeholders and active participants in the venture.

What would the community get out of literally supporting mining at Woewodski? Local residents hope for long-term family supporting jobs, Beardslee explained, along with revenue to support local government services. They also want training for prospective local hires, who appreciate community values; and enough money to endow a local charitable foundation.

Beardslee explained that sweat equity and the start-up capital that literally came out of local wallets and pocketbooks formed the Olympic Resource Group, which has achieved a genuine grassroots program comprising 501 federal claims and three state claims covering 3260 hectacres.

Meanwhile, all that hard work also attracted the interest of Vancouver-based junior explorer Bravo Venture Group (TSX-V:BVG), which entered into an option agreement with Olympic Resources in 2003. This year's exploration program is targeting gold prospects along the western and southern margins of the island and VMS targets in the central and southern portions of Woewodski.

Bravo has become the most popular stock held in Petersburg, prompting the local radio station to regularly quote the daily stock price.

However, there is a dark cloud hovering over Petersburg's possibly golden future, according to Alaska Miners Association Executive Director Steve Borell. A bill approved by the U.S. House of Representatives to reform and pretty much overhaul the U.S. 1872 Mining Law could literally shatter the future of Olympic Resources Group and the folks of Petersburg.

Nevertheless, folks living in the remote postage-sized towns dotted throughout Alaska are known for their toughness and ability to surmount the toughest challenges.

The mining business model of Petersburg has already migrated to Wrangell, the third oldest community in Alaska. Local residents have formed Zarembo Minerals, whose chief geologist is local resident Mark Robinson, who also holds the same position with Olympic Resources.