Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Forum Podcasts

Bill Popp served as President & CEO of the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation for 16 years until 2023. Before joining AEDC, after a job change took him to the Kenia Peninsula, Popp and his family spent 25 years becoming engrained in that community.  He served as special assistant in the Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor's office from 2002-2007, focusing on oil & gas and mining policy under mayors of both parties. He served on the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly from 1996-2002, and as Assembly President in 2000. Popp also worked for 25 years in the private sector as a business owner, and for small, regional and national corporations. Popp came to Anchorage when his family moved to Elmendorf Air Force Base in 1968, and he graduated from East High School. He and his wife, Nicole, have been married for 44 years and have a son, Daniel, and a daughter, Rachael. Popp has served on boards and committees too numerous to mention; a list of nearly three dozen can be found on his website.

Website: https://poppforanchorage.com

Chris Tuck served seven terms as a member of the Alaska House of Representatives from 2008 to 2023. He was twice elected Majority Leader of the House, leading a bipartisan House coalition for four years between 2017 and 2023. He previously served on the Anchorage School Board. Tuck is a product of Anchorage public schools. After graduating from Dimond High in 1984, he went on to an apprenticeship with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) and became a journeyman electrician. He also attended Arizona State University. He is a board member of the Alaska Joint Electrical Apprenticeship School, where he was an instructor for over 20 years. He served for over 20 years as Business Representative for the IBEW Local 1547 and recently started his company, Tuck Electrical Services. He is a member of Change Point Community Church and Anchorage Youth Court. In 1999, he won the Yukon River Championship Sled Dog Race, and he continues to enjoy outdoor activities, coaching youth soccer, racquetball, and music.

 tuckformayor.com

Paper titled "The homelessness plan for a better Anchorage" that Chris Tuck had available at AUUF - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/f1rra6tn2xvp9wywb1lzm/HomelessnessHandout_Tuck.PDF?rlkey=cpbm5q11aljhyiwxa24gt7tqh&dl=0

Dr. Lawrence Matsuda was born during World War II in the Internment Camp at Minidoka, Idaho, where his family was incarcerated after forced removal from the West Coast.  He grew up to attend the University of Washington, earning his Ph. D. while serving in the Army Reserves.  He devoted 27 years to education as a junior high school language arts teacher and Seattle School District principal and administrator, creating the first Asian American history course in Washington state. An award-winning poet and writer, he memorialized the Japanese Internment experience in many of his works, including the poems in A Cold Wind from Idaho.  He co-edited the textbook, Community and Difference: Teaching, Pluralism and Social Justice, which won the 2006 National Association of Multicultural Education Phillip Chinn Award.  His passion for social justice extends beyond his writing to his work in securing the apology and reparations for World War II incarceration and his involvement with the Asian Coalition for Equality and the Japanese American Citizens League.

AP article about Lava Ridge wind farm - https://apnews.com/article/minidoka-idaho-pilgrimage-japanese-americans-incarcerated-wind-505960bd4f634633ef373e1bde447570

The video used by Dr, Matsuda in his presentation  can be found here - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ckdtjfj616mq6za/Minidoka%202%281080p%29.mp4?dl=0

Dr.Cal Williams is a community activist and historian. Born in Monroe, Louisiana, he graduated college, served in the United States Air Force during the early 1960s, participated in the historic March on Washington, and was affiliated with the Congress of Racial Equality. In 1965, he moved to Alaska, seeking job opportunities, racial integration, and a better life. He has served as President of the Alaska Chapter of the NAACP, was a delegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention, and ran for the Alaska House of Representatives. Cal served as the Filipino choir director at St. Anthonys, Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus at St. Patrick's, and American Legion Post 34 chaplain. He helped exhibit the late George Harper collection, documenting the history of African Americans in Alaska. Cal collaborated with UAA associate professor of history Ian Hartman, Ph.D., in writing Black Lives in Alaska: A History of African Americans in the Far Northwest and on many related presentations and events. For his invaluable contributions, UAA awarded Williams an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters in fall 2022.

Suzanne LaFrance represented South Anchorage on the Anchorage Assembly from 2017 to 2023. She served as Assembly Chair from 2021 to 2023, and was Chair of the Assembly’s Budget and Finance Committee and Co-Chair of its Health Policy Committee. She also served on the board of the Alaska Municipal League. In 2020, she narrowly lost the race for a seat in the Alaska House of Representatives. She has 24 years of experience in financial analysis, capital budgets, management, project management, marketing, and telecommunications, including working as an area manager for AT&T. LaFrance is a lifelong Alaskan. After graduating from Palmer High School, she earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Portland and her master’s from Purdue University. LaFrance has also been active with Great Alaska Schools Anchorage, the Rabbit Creek Elementary PTA, and the Boy Scouts. She and her husband, David Hemstreet, have three children, all students in the Anchorage School District. They enjoy outdoor activities and sports.

www.votesuzanne.com

Terrence Kelly, is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Alaska Anchorage, a member of the Alaska Ethics Center, and author of Professional Ethics: A Trust Based Approach.  He earned his Ph.D. in Philosophy at St. Louis University. He has published and presented on various professional ethics and social justice topics and teaches biomedical and professional ethics courses. He conducts ethics training sessions for professional organizations as well as governmental entities and is a long-serving member of the Anchorage Municipal Board of Ethics.  Terry lives with his wife, son, and three dogs in Anchorage, Alaska. 

Slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/s58do6k2feaok15vyee04/TrustworthyProfessional.pdf?rlkey=5xeobbkuuw9afnkvdphcnkh36&dl=0

Indra Arriaga is the Strategic and Operational Director for the Alaska Institute for Justice. She works across AIJ's different programs and on multiple grant development and operations aspects. Prior to joining AIJ, Indra served as the Language Assistance Compliance Manager for Alaska’s Division of Elections, and under her direction the program expanded to language access in 14 languages and dialects.  Indra has spent more than two decades working directly with rural and remote communities in Alaska in various capacities, including elections, community development, and demographic and social research projects. Indra holds a BA and MA in Political Science from St. Mary’s University in Texas. She has worked in finance, management consulting, research, and analysis and sustains an artistic practice. As an immigrant, a woman, a person of color, and an LGBTQ person, ensuring that all voices are heard equally is a priority for her personal and professional life.

Note that there is a 3-second period of "noise" at about 1 minute 25 seconds that replaces several minutes of "technical confusion."

Slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/cxghmw90prz1vd6ujm515/AIJ-2023-highlights.pdf?rlkey=5u4gbx7qpsb0ct95gwfgdw53k&dl=0

Tim Troll is the Executive Director of the Bristol Bay Heritage Land Trust, a non-profit he helped start in Dillingham in 2000. In 2022 he completed a journey, many years in the making, to sail a restored 1936 Bristol Bay commercial fishing sailboat from Homer back to its historic home in Naknek. That same year, with help from partners, foundations, and many donors, the Land Trust raised 20 million dollars to protect 44,000 acres of critical salmon habitat on Lake Illiamna. The land trust now owns or holds conservation easements on 58,400 acres in Bristol Bay and has facilitated the protection of another 21,320 acres in the Wood-Tikchik State Park.

Slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/y5lxc3bvr9jtt83t9yo7x/Sail-Back-UU-Presentation.pdf?rlkey=1vigq68cxkw8oi0uice4n4wxz&dl=0

Movie (PDF page 100) - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/vv1izxb2agdvj5c6opsdd/Sailboat_Naknek_7_31_22_1080p.mp4.mov?rlkey=k60oa8vtcc1cdzo6ykcfavhdm&dl=0

We Alaskans - When sailboats ruled Bristol Bay by Tim Troll
Updated: December 2, 2017 - Published: May 21, 2017 - https://www.adn.com/alaska-life/we-alaskans/2017/05/21/when-sailboats-ruled-bristol-bay/#

Howard Weaver, a boy from Muldoon, was probably the most important figure in Alaska journalism. He led the Anchorage Daily News to two Pulitzer prizes—the Gold Medal for Distinguished and Meritorious Public Service, both times. ADN recently went on to win this award for a third time. Only three other newspapers in the 100+ year history of the Pulitzer prizes have earned that honor more often, and the paper’s continuing great work is, in part, a significant reflection of his lasting impact on journalists throughout Alaska today—whether they ever knew him or have even heard of him.  At today’s Forum, we heard from dozens of Howard’s colleagues and friends from Alaska and around the country—many of the best journalists Alaska has known.  They shared their personal and professional memories of Howard with one another. They gave the rest of us insights into a remarkable man engaged in public service journalism as a writer, editor, leader, role model, and inspiration, as well as us a window into some of the most exciting and vital times in journalism.  After leaving Alaska, Howard shared all he had to offer to editors and writers across America as Vice President for News of one of the country’s leading news organizations. 

You can find more about Howard in his memoir, “Write Hard, Die Free” (Epicenter Press, 2012), or in the definitive profile of him published upon his death by author and journalist Tom Kizzia: 
https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2023/12/15/howard-weaver-editor-who-led-anchorage-daily-news-through-transformative-years-dies-at-73/

You can also listen to a podcast of Howard’s June 17, 2018, presentation to the AUUF Forum entitled “Living in a Post-Truth World” here:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1965762/episodes/10577494

A reformatted PDF of the Zoom Meeting chat can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/zxg857o31ddr1wtrng80e/20231217_0900_RecordingChat.pdf?rlkey=zgxstk0zvzwdycl1ic4oumm1a&dl=0

Michael Jeffery served as the first full-time Alaska Superior Court judge in Utqiagvik, formerly Barrow, from 1982 until his retirement in 2014.  A California native, Judge Jeffery received his undergraduate degree from Stanford University in 1966 and his law degree from Yale Law School in 1969. After spending five years in India, much of it in an ashram under the tutelage of a guru, he moved to Barrow, where he has lived since 1977.  He organized the first Alaska Legal Services Corporation office there and served as its supervising attorney until his appointment to the bench. The special interest he developed in understanding fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and dealing with FASD issues in the justice system that informed his legal career remains a focus of his continuing public service on state and national governmental and nonprofit committees, councils, and boards. He is active in Rotary, a drummer in an Eskimo dance group, and in summer, he fishes a commercial set net site in Bristol Bay with his family. He and his wife Esther, who met singing in their church choir, have three adult children and two grandchildren.

2022 Quyaana performance of the dance group - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qkq2OgaJF0

Slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ffhzzmjn75ga6ior26gif/JusticeandCommunityUtqiagvik.pdf?rlkey=t9wdixbh09d15uhlvexhh8vua&dl=0

Duke Russell is a lifelong Alaskan and an artist well known for his "street-level" art style that captures the essence of modern-day life in Anchorage. His work has been exhibited in the Anchorage Museum, the airport, galleries throughout the state, and trendy local spots like the Spenard Roadhouse. His iconic "Spenardian" painting characterizes one of the city's most famous/infamous neighborhoods.  Russell has immersed himself in Anchorage's local art scene. He is dedicated to fostering Alaska's next generation of creatives and artists, offering drawing and painting courses where he encourages his young students to nurture their talents. Russell also advocates for the city's vulnerable, unhoused population. He has recently inspired others to join his efforts, from assembling volunteers to coordinate access to essential care and services, food, and shelter to providing daily soup kitchens at Anchorage's Centennial Park and elsewhere. In 2022, the Rasmuson Foundation recognized Russell's art and activism and awarded him its prestigious President's Award.

Tim Huffman moved to Alaska from Oregon in 1984. His many jobs have included state employment, commercial fishing, remote sport fish guiding, high school and college volleyball officiating, golf course employment, and rearing angelfish for local aquarium supply stores.  In 2018, Tim began keeping bees in backyards across Anchorage and has been the beekeeper for 49th State Brewing since 2020. Tim wants to break Alaska's dependence on imported California bees by developing a sustainable beekeeping community in which local beekeepers use modern methods and gear to replicate his success.  He shares local beekeeping information on his YouTube Channel, Anchorage Backyard Beekeeping. He is one of many experienced beekeepers who post information and answer questions on the Facebook Midnight Sun Bee Club Forum page.

Slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/zl3rmav8tahm82nho44ug/Farm-Bureau-Presentation-2023-11-11.pptx.pdf?rlkey=tacnffu9ncx8riie30d5urwtm&dl=0

Randy Kimpton is the president of The Last Frontier Honor Flight, a nonprofit organization that takes Veterans from Alaska to Washington, D.C., to see the monuments constructed in their honor.  Anchorage has been his home since early childhood, besides the two years he spent serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and Glasgow, Scotland.  After returning from there, he married his best friend, with whom he will celebrate their 44 anniversary this month. He is retired after working 30 years at JBER, followed by a stint with Allen and Peterson.   Randy keeps himself busy with hobbies, including restoring or working on collector vehicles—pretty much anything with wheels—and traveling. Still, most of his time is spent serving our veterans through working with The Last Frontier Honor Flight.

Ron Travis was a founder and first president of the Last Frontier Honor Flight program.  He was raised in rural Washington. Immediately upon graduation from High School in 1961 at age 17, he joined the Navy, following in the footsteps of his dad, a WWI vet, and brother, a Vietnam Vet. He attained the Machinist Mate 3rd class rank, spending most of his tour in the Far East and Vietnam. After he was discharged in 1964, he earned a degree in Social Work from the University of Eastern Washington.  He headed to Alaska in 1976 to find his fortune, working as a mechanic during the Pipeline days. From 1989 to 2000, he worked as a probation and parole officer for the State and then another five years as a Security Officer on the Pipeline in Valdez. Ron has been active with the American Legion in Wasilla for 20 years, serving as Adjutant for eight years and past Commander three times. Ron and his wife Lynda have been married for 43 years and have four children.

KTUU's Last Frontier Honor Flight story & Videos  - Video © KTUU Channel 2/Alaska's News Source.  Used with permission Note that the two specific clips used in today's Forum presentation come at “Day 5" -  the one that has the caption “Last Frontier Honor Flight makes journey back to Anchorage” and the one that has the caption “Last Frontier Honor Flight receives rousing homecoming at airport” - https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2023/10/31/last-frontier-honor-flights-17th-mission/

Website - https://www.lastfrontierhonorflight.com/

Speaker photos - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/8d1ff8p888o1l9cc7bj9k/RandyRon-Tiffany.jpg?rlkey=h95urrs28u7qsiwzvn98nxum0&dl=0

Dr. Diane Hirshberg is the Director of the Institute of Social and Economic Research and a Professor of Education Policy at the University of Alaska Anchorage. She also serves as Vice-President Academic for the University of the Arctic. Her research includes education policy analysis, indigenous education, circumpolar education issues, and the role of education in sustainable development in the Arctic. She has studied the boarding school experiences of Alaska Native students and teacher supply, demand, and turnover, including the cost of teacher turnover in Alaska. She co-edited the book Education, Equity and Inclusion: Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable North, published this year. Her current work focuses on education and knowledge sharing in self-determined sustainable development in remote villages and supporting community efforts to build energy security and sustainability in northern and Indigenous communities. Dr. Hirshberg teaches in the Master of Public Policy Program at the UAA College of Business and Public Policy. She has a Ph.D. in Education from UCLA, a Master of Public Administration from Columbia University, and two bachelor's degrees from UC Berkeley.

Dr. Hirshberg's slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/cxe0jt97ilx8o53dcabob/HirshbergUnfinishedHistory.pdf?rlkey=z0skuyk87nw28244mbctxpyho&dl=0

The Helen & Lee Gorsuch Public Policy Forum: Public Education Funding in Alaska (7 December 2023 UAA) https://iseralaska.org/2023/10/the-helen-lee-gorsuch-public-policy-forum-public-education-funding-in-alaska/

Fresh out of law school, Meg took a job in Anchorage, sight unseen, representing Alaskans experiencing disabilities. This job brought her to Alaska, let her travel throughout the state, and gave her valuable experience working on systemic issues.
 
As an elected member of the Anchorage Assembly, Meg has been instrumental in expanding the Municipality's work around behavioral health and homelessness, including improving overall public health and safety and the well-being of vulnerable people. Meg has joined the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness to apply her experience and expertise. Meg enjoys spending her free time with her husband Zach, their daughter Zelda, three dogs, a cat, and four chickens.

Anchorage Assembly PoV on Homelessness

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/0x28fcl8qbbjfq6624ugn/Unitarian-Housing-Presentation-MZ-AnchAssemblyPOV.pdf?rlkey=fmgwn3i1qmg3cuy78bj62zhpi&dl=0

An Overview of Homelessness in Anchorage and Alaska

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/w198plx24q0lths9d0piw/Community-Presentation-2023-MZ-_-ACEH.pdf?rlkey=yt9zadeta0jnj2zcikz1i9b12&dl=0

Housing Action Week Events  (October 30-Nov. 4)

https://www.anchoragehousingaction.org/events

Housing Action Summit  (Friday, Nov. 3)

https://www.anchoragehousingaction.org/    

https://www.anchoragehousingaction.org/events/haw-summit

Doug Baily was the Attorney General of Alaska from 1989 to 1990 under Gov. Steve Cowper. Before that, he served as administrative assistant to Governor Jay Hammond and as a trustee of the Alaska Permanent Fund.  Before becoming a lawyer in 1965, Doug engaged in oil exploration in Alaska. From 1968 to 1971, he was the U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska and was responsible for designing and conducting the state's legal case against the Rebecca and her captain in 1968. The Exxon Valdez oil spill on March 24, 1989, occurred during his tenure as AG.  After the spill, Attorney General Baily filed multiple court cases against Exxon Corporation and the Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. Doug now lives in Homer with his wife, Landa, after moving back to Alaska from Oakland, Oregon, where they maintained the Old Baily Heritage Farm, raising rare breeds of American Livestock, including Myotonic Goats, Dexter Cattle, and American Guinea Hogs.

Tankers Full of Trouble, the Perilous Journey of Alaska Crude -https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/tankers-full-of-trouble-the-perilous-journey-of-alaskan-crude_eric-nalder/1111321/#edition=410297&idiq=90105 (may also be available at Title Wave)

Clark and Dawe - The Front Fell Off (comedy sketch) -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3m5qxZm_JqM

Doug's slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/nbko1zqoayb076q819uro/Baily-TheTankerRebeccaIncident.pdf?rlkey=osxq0lnp1ntghpl5njxmftdzn&dl=0

Bill Oberly is retiring from the Alaska Innocence Project, where he has worked, first as the Executive Director and more recently as the Legal Director.  Bill was the first Executive Director at Alaska Innocence Project, where he handled all aspects of the innocence work done by the Project, including casework, education, and legal reform.  Before AKIP, Bill was a solo practitioner for eighteen years, with a general civil and criminal defense practice, handling cases at all levels of the Alaska Court System and all over the State of Alaska.  He is a former President of the Alaska Trial Lawyers Association.

Alaska Innocence Project website - https://www.alaskainnocenceproject.org

Lise Adams Sherry is the settled minister for the Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship.  She grew up in Oregon as part of a blended family.  Her main interests growing up were dancing and theatre--she performed a lot!  Another highlight was learning French and spending her junior year of college in France. Lise is married to Nelson, and together, they have two boys (Kennen and Derek) and a daughter-in-law, Maria.  They've lived in Alaska, British Columbia, Oregon, Illinois and Massachusetts.  Lise received her M.Div. from Meadville Lombard in Chicago.  Her religious life is informed by nature, Buddhism, and the Judeo-Christian tradition.  Her favorite parts of ministry are social justice, multi-generational worship services, and pastoral care.  Lise also enjoys hiking, bicycling, reading, gardening, movies, traveling, and learning about other cultures. 

Proposed Revision to Article II - Purposes and Covenant - https://discuss.uua.org/t/proposed-revision-to-article-ii/842 There are a LOT of links from this page!

John Sharify is one of the most honored broadcast journalists in the country.  A 79-time Emmy award winner, he received the 2021 DuPont Columbia Award, the broadcast equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize, for his Death with Dignity documentary Bob's Choice. Sharify is the Atwood Chair in Journalism and Public Communications at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Sharify has been honored with nine National Edward R. Murrow awards, including four National Murrow awards for writing, and was twice selected as the National Press Photographers Association Reporter of the Year (ROY) for his work at KING 5 News in Seattle. Sharify is a graduate of Princeton University.  He has a Master of Fine Arts degree in film directing from Columbia University, where he studied under Oscar-winning film director Milos Forman. His passion for storytelling has taken him around the world as he presents workshops on the craft of video storytelling in newsrooms and other venues, like his 2012 Ted Talk about his documentary, Climb of a Lifetime.

Beth Rose is co-founder and Board Chair of the Alaska Eating Disorders Alliance. She is a lifelong Alaskan with over 30 years of non-profit management, fund development, public relations, finance skills, and strategic planning. She is passionate about her work with AKEDA and its outreach to partners around the state to improve awareness of eating disorders, support for individuals and families, and access to evidence-based treatment. Beth is an active member of the Collaborative for Eating Disorders Organizations and is involved with the national advocacy group Eating Disorders Coalition. Her career before co-founding AKEDA included serving as the Alaska Community Foundation Vice President of Philanthropy and Communications and the UAA Assistant Vice Chancellor for Development. In addition to serving on the board, Beth is an avid photographer.

Beth's slides can be found here - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/5gsht7y79j0mg1u6n916s/20230925_AKEDA_presenentation_AUUF.pdf?rlkey=oepkiz3bdf0d20hwpgrdgnut7&dl=0

Beth recommended a video, which can be found here -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3qc6QjfJyc

The link to the AKEDA website (Alaska Eating Disorder Alliance) is https://www.akeatingdisordersalliance.org/

The link to a film AKEDA has produced featuring local Olympic athlete Holly Brooks is: https://www.akeatingdisordersalliance.org/videosathletesanded