Last month at the Alaska Federation of Natives 2001 Convention in Anchorage, CIRI President and Chief Executive Officer Carl Marrs was recognized as the 2001 Citizen of the Year, an award that is bestowed upon an individual who is an all-around supporter and champion of Alaska Native culture. In addition, CIRI Historian Alexandra J. McClanahan was presented the Denali Award, an honor bestowed upon a non-Native who has been a friend to the Native community.
These awards are among the highest honors bestowed by AFN and are selected by the Federation's board of directors. AFN Co-Chairman Roy Huhndorf and AFN President Julie Kitka presented the awards on the opening day of the convention.
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"Marrs was nominated for demonstrating an unwavering commitment to the betterment of the Alaska Native community. He has become a statewide leader promoting business endeavors, policies and programs that have a positive impact on all Alaskans, Native and non-Native alike. And he has never forgotten his roots in Seldovia and deserves honor both for his leadership and the fact that he is truly a man of the people," said Gloria O'Neill, president and chief executive officer of Cook Inlet Tribal Council and an AFN board member. |
Although Marrs devotes his considerable energy to many issues, he deserves special recognition for his efforts to improve educational opportunities for all Alaskans, but Alaska Natives in particular. Whether fighting for subsistence on the governor's subsistence task force, overseeing five social service organizations in the Cook Inlet region, lending his time and energy for the betterment of education as a trustee of Alaska Pacific University, or lobbying for Alaskans in Washington, D.C., or in Juneau, he has proven himself to be a tireless and resourceful citizen.
McClanahan is known for researching and editing the newly released "A Reference in Time, Alaska Native History Day by Day," a useful reference supporting the history of Alaska Native people and Alaska history, and last year's "Growing Up Native in Alaska."
Stephen Haycox, a history professor with the University of Alaska Anchorage, believes "A Reference in Time" and its database of historical information are extremely important to Alaska history. "Alaska Natives are not a separate part of Alaska history; they are integral to it, as they have been integral to everything Alaskan," said Haycox.
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Since working for The Anchorage Times in the early 80s, McClanahan has become a true historian of the Alaska Native people and the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. In 1985, she authored her first book, "Our Stories, Our Lives," which recorded the stories of 23 Alaska Native elders of the Cook Inlet region. From 1986 to 1991, she was at the helm of Alaska's only statewide Native newspaper as president and publisher of The Tundra Times. |
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Aside from reporting, the newspaper led a statewide effort to review state laws regarding requirements for autopsies in rural Alaska and McClanahan and the paper also led a statewide effort to promote sobriety within the state.
"AJ is truly a consummate historian of Alaska Native culture with her research and authorship of many oral histories, articles and books. She continues to foster a greater understanding of our Alaska Native cultures and history," said Marrs.
