Luann Baker-Johnson's art demands participation.

♪ Pati: Luann, this is the very first time that I'm in a glassblowing studio, and it's the very first time that I'm gonna try my hand at it, so I'm super excited.

Pati, voice-over: In 2015, Luann and her husband Mel built Lumel Studios on the banks of the Yukon River.

Now, with the opening of their daughter's restaurant, Gather, in the same building, it's truly a full family business.

We made glasses for--for Gather Café.

I think it helps complete it if you're drinking out of something beautiful and your food itself is art.

Pati, voice-over: Gather's most popular dish is a fish taco filled with Arctic char, a fish that thrives in the freshwaters of the subarctic Yukon, a mix between salmon and trout.

OK, I'm gonna take a bite.

I'm, like, dying right now.

Mmm.

This is incredible.

The fish is so light.

It's got that meaty, delicious, buttery flavor that a salmon does.

Mmm!

Pati, voice-over: OK. Now I can concentrate on my vase... or is it "vahs"?

It could be a vase.

It could be a "vahs."

You don't know how it's gonna end.

I love accents.

I'll take a "vahs" or a vase.

Wow!

Look!

That is so stunning!

Luann: Yeah.

And pull back.

Take this and dip it in that water bucket.

Pat: Oh, my God!

Luann: Ha ha!

Pati, voice-over: What began as a personal project for Luann has grown into a vibrant cornerstone of the Whitehorse community.

You're helping me so much, and I'm so grateful.

No.

I'm talking you through it.

No, I love it.

I love it!

I love it!

It's very much a place for the people of Whitehorse, and they've embraced it, and it would never survive like this without the goodwill of everybody because they see it as theirs.

You know, it's really a gift to the community.

Pati, voice-over: Hilary Crawford moved from Australia and helps with Lumel's community programming.

Luann's true talent is creating a world where anyone, first timers... Luann: you're cradling it as if it's a newborn chickadee.

Oh, wow.

So roll, roll, roll, roll, roll.

Pati, voice-over: or seasoned masters can not only learn the craft but also feel the transformative power of glass.

She's something of a community lighthouse, keeping the doors open to anyone in need of a safe space.

Pati, behind you is a very important man.

Stewart, are you sticking around?

Hola, Stewart!

Pati, voice-over: 6 years ago, she was on her way to the studio on a frigid night when she spotted Stewart on the road in need of warmth.

She brought him inside, furnaces blazing, and they've been friends ever since.

Stewart: When I met Luann, she picked me up in wintertime, and she just gave me some hearts, and I said, "What are these for?"

"I don't know.

Just make people happy."

Pati, voice-over: Now she keeps a jar of glass hearts ready for him whenever he's inspired to share some joy.

Stewart: Pick a color?

Man: Oh, sweet!

Yes.

Of course.

Uh...thank you.

Stewart: You're very welcome.

Luann: People do contact us after.

They will say, "I thought he was going to ask for money, "and he gave me a heart instead, and it was at a moment when I really needed this heart."

Woman: Thank you.

Stewart: Take care.

Stewart has this-- this sense about him, and he will look for people that he feels need the heart.

It makes me feel happy because it makes them happy.

Stewart: Ha ha ha!

Pati, voice-over: The studio has become a sanctuary for every phase of life from moments of joy to deep grief, especially for Luann herself.

Pati: When you're at this moment, what are you feeling?

Yeah.

Totally focused.

Pati, uh, our story is that I became a glassblower when one of my kids died from leukemia.

A year after her death, I went to art school, but glass was my focus, and so this takes me away from everything, and these moments with you are purely joyous, and that's why we teach, and that's why I'm a glassblower.

Thank you.

Thank you for letting me be in here.

Hugging over 2,100 degrees.

I know.

This is very intense.

Luann: It become the in-between space for families that have lost a 21-year-old, families that have lost a 97-year-old, families whose dog just died.

It's OK to cry and cry and cry, and then something happens, and you're laughing the next moment.

♪ Pati: Luann, Why did you decide to do glassblowing?

Was there something more powerful?

Well, you experienced it.

Like, there's a struggle on the bench.

It is 2,100 degrees.

You're feeling that heat.

You're trying to convince it to follow your will, and that struggle-- I really, really needed that struggle as a grieving mom, and together that was stepping towards into healing.

And out of that process, you're coming out with something truly beautiful.

Yeah.

Pati, voice-over: beautiful and unbreakable.

Watch this.

Ready?

[Bang bang] Pati: Whoa!

Luann: So also know-- That is insane!

How are they so resilient?

Glass is so much stronger than you think.

♪ on a frigid night when she spotted Stewart on the road in need of warmth.

She brought him inside, furnaces blazing, and they've been friends ever since.

Stewart: When I met Luann, she picked me up in wintertime, and she just gave me some hearts, and I said, "What are these for?"

"I don't know.

Just make people happy."

Pati, voice-over: Now she keeps a jar of glass hearts ready for him whenever he's inspired to share some joy.

Stewart: Pick a color?

Man: Oh, sweet!

Yes.

Of course.

Uh...thank you.

Stewart: You're very welcome.

Luann: People do contact us after.

They will say, "I thought he was going to ask for money, "and he gave me a heart instead, and it was at a moment when I really needed this heart."

Woman: Thank you.

Stewart: Take care.

Stewart has this-- this sense about him, and he will look for people that he feels need the heart.

It makes me feel happy because it makes them happy.

Stewart: Ha ha ha!

Pati, voice-over: The studio has become a sanctuary for every phase of life from moments of joy to deep grief, especially for Luann herself.

Pati: When you're at this moment, what are you feeling?

Yeah.

Totally focused.

Pati, uh, our story is that I became a glassblower when one of my kids died from leukemia.

A year after her death, I went to art school, but glass was my focus, and so this takes me away from everything, and these moments with you are purely joyous, and that's why we teach, and that's why I'm a glassblower.

Thank you.

Thank you for letting me be in here.

Hugging over 2,100 degrees.

I know.

This is very intense.

Luann: It become the in-between space for families that have lost a 21-year-old, families that have lost a 97-year-old, families whose dog just died.

It's OK to cry and cry and cry, and then something happens, and you're laughing the next moment.

♪ Pati: Luann, Why did you decide to do glassblowing?

Was there something more powerful?

Well, you experienced it.

Like, there's a struggle on the bench.

It is 2,100 degrees.

You're feeling that heat.

You're trying to convince it to follow your will, and that struggle-- I really, really needed that struggle as a grieving mom, and together that was stepping towards into healing.

And out of that process, you're coming out with something truly beautiful.

Yeah.

Pati, voice-over: beautiful and unbreakable.

Watch this.

Ready?

[Bang bang] Pati: Whoa!

Luann: So also know-- That is insane!

How are they so resilient?

Glass is so much stronger than you think.

♪ Pati, voice-over: As I traveled from Juneau to Whitehorse, sister cities sitting across a vast international border in this remote area of the wild Northwest, both Alaskans and Yukoners shared with me their deep struggles, their resilient spirits, and their incredibly generous hearts.

In a land where survival has always depended on community, I found that the toughest places often shaped the kindest people.

♪ Next time on "Pati Jinich Explores PanAmericana," I head to Alberta, Canada... Oh my gosh, this is so much fun!

Pati, voice-over: where Old West traditions collide with vibrant immigrant cultures.

From ranch life with a Hollywood legend... Now I want to go act in a Western.

Pati, voice-over: to a butter chicken odyssey... Mmm.

Mm-hmm!

That's real butter chicken.

Pati, voice-over: and the warrior women reclaiming their heritage.

[Singing in Indigenous language] Pati, voice-over: It's time to grab our boots and hit the trail.