On Sept. 24 and 25, the Association of ANCSA Regional Corp. Presidents & CEOs met in Washington, D.C. The D.C. meeting provided the heads of Alaska's Native regional corporations an opportunity to meet with Vice President Richard Cheney; Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert; Dept. of the Interior Secretary Gail Norton; Senators Ted Stevens, Frank Murkowski, and Daniel Inouye; and Congressman Don Young.

Pictured with Vice President Richard Cheney (back to camera) are Association of ANCSA Regional President & CEOs Executive Director Vicki Otte; Aleut Corp. President & CEO Vincent Tutiakoff; Chugach Alaska Corp. Chairwoman Sheri Bruetta; Aleut Corp. CEO Dave Jensen, Bristol Bay Native Corp President and CEO Hjalmar Olson, Doyon president and CEO Orie Williams, CIRI President and CEO Carl Marrs, Calista President and CEO Matthew Nicolai, Sealaska President and CEO Chris McNeil, and Koniag President and CEO Dennis Metrokin.

 

Civil rights leader Elizabeth Peratrovich

Native Americans in Public Telecommunications funded a two-minute spot on Tlingit civil rights leader Elizabeth Peratrovich, which will air nationally on public television stations in November. The spot focuses on the culmination of Peratrovich's work on the Anti-Discrimination Act of 1945. The spot was filmed at the Alaska Native Heritage Center with Peratrovich played by Diane Benson and includes Peratrovich's granddaughter betsy Peratrovich. The spot will be shown during American Indian/Alaska Native Heritage month. Viewers will learn that the first civil rights bill to pass anywhere in the United States since the Civil War was passed in Alaska.

The Southcentral Native Educators' Association has formed a committee of community groups and agencies to plan citywide activities to commemorate American Indian/Alaska Native Heritage Month in November.

The committee includes representatives from the University of Alaska Anchorage, Alaska Pacific University, the Anchorage School District, the Municipality of Anchorage, Healing Racism in Anchorage, several federal agencies, the Alaska Humanities Forum, the Alaska Native Heritage Center, First Alaskans Institute, Cook Inlet Tribal Council, CIRI, Alaska Sisters in Crime and Koahnic Broadcast Corp.

In the past, President Bush has declared November "National American Indian Heritage Month" to honor and recognize the original peoples of this land. And according to Bush, November is the month we celebrate the culture and contributions of the first Americans.

This is a first attempt for a single organization to coordinate efforts to create and publicize events to celebrate the contributions of American Indians and Alaska Natives in Alaska. The national and statewide theme for this year's American Indian/Alaska Native Heritage month is "Honoring Life, Honoring Elders, Honoring Heritage." Events throughout the month of November are planned to celebrate Native American life, elders and heritage. The Alaska Native Heritage Center events include Honoring Elders, a Bladder Festival, Intertribal Powwow and a concert by the popular Native group Medicine Dream. The Anchorage Municipal libraries will host youth programs at various branches, while the exhibit "Looking Both Ways" will be featured at the Anchorage Museum of History and Art. A listing of events can be found on the Southcentral Native Educators Association web site, www.scnea.org.

The first "American Indian Day" was declared by the state of New York in 1916, yet a month-long recognition of Native Americans was not achieved until 1990. In that year, President George Bush declared the first "National American Indian Heritage Month" on Aug. 3. His action was based on legislation presented by Sen. Daniel Inouye of Hawaii, and Congressional Delegate Eni Faleomavaega of American Samoa. In each of the four previous years, Congress had enacted legislation designating "American Indian Heritage Week." This consecutive legislation allowed for the establishment of a month-long observance.

The site provides basic Social Security program information on retirement, survivors, disability and Supplemental Security Income benefits. In addition to program information, this new site shows how individuals can conduct business with SSA online and information on how individuals and tribes or nations can contact SSA. The site also offers links to the US Department of Health and Human Services' Administration on Native Americans and Indian Health Service; the Small Business Administration, Native American Affairs; the US Department of Veterans Affairs, Center for Minority Veterans; and Native Web.

The Anchorage RV Park and the CIRI building received recognition for their flowerbed arrangements by the Anchorage City of Flowers. CIRI's "Plant Lady," Lee Ann Hamerski, won first place in the professional design large business category for CIRI's landscaping and her daughter Kristin won first place in professional design small business category for the Anchorage RV Park's summer landscaping.

Lee Ann Hamerski, a National Junior Horticulture Association leader, has been grooming CIRI's indoor plants and planting the outdoor flowerbeds since 1989. The CIRI building was awarded a second place award in last year's Anchorage City of Flowers contest for best business location. Hamerski's daughter Kristin is a National Science Fair winner and was the 2001 Miss Alaska Junior National Teenager. CIRI's summer groundskeeping crew maintains the outdoor landscaping and the flowerbeds at the CIRI building, while Anchorage RV Park employees Joe Craig and Ray Constantine maintained the landscaping and flowerbeds at the RV Park.

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