Northern Soundings: Alaska in Conversation: Recent Episodes
Robert Hannon
This episode, I’m joined by Bil Paul, author of Awaiting the Sun. Paul’s book considers the often-overlooked Aleutian Campaign of World War II. With his father having served in this conflict, he brings a personal connection to the story, viewing it from the service-members perspective. As a seasoned freelance writer, he also drew from historical archives and authoritative sources like Brian Garfield’s The Thousand Mile War.
In the three months following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, the Anti-Defamation League reports Anti-Semitic incidents in our country leapt 360%. Despite the rising tensions and their past experiences of anti-Jewish riots in Libya, my guests this episode, Penina Solomon and Dr. David Gerbi, insist they are hopeful for a more peaceful future. The alternative, as Dr. Gerbi told me, is despair.
My guest this show is University of Alaska Fairbanks historian Tyler C. Kirk. His book After the Gulag: A History of Memory in Russia’s Far North, was recently published by Indiana University Press. Kirk will be talking about the people and policies featured in his book Thursday evening.
Dr. Matthew Wooller – photo by Eric Engman, UAF.You are what you eat. Just ask Dr. Matthew Wooller, a paleoecologist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. The eating habits of a mammoth some 14 millennia ago allowed Wooller and his colleagues to map the animal’s journey across Alaska. Wooller also shares how his concerns for student mental and emotional health stirred him to create a space dedicated to well-being.
Jon Holmgren socializing in his shopI continue my conversation with Jon Holmgren. Besides being an inventor, machinist, geophysicist and mountaineer, Jon is something of a philosopher. So says his friend and colleague Matthew Sturm in his book Finding the Arctic. Jon’s shop is the site for great discussions. To stimulate the conversations, one of the books Jon often hands out to folks is Robert D. Putnam’s The Upswing.
My guest in the next two shows is Jon Holmgren. I’ve known about Jon ever since I first talked with snow scientist Matthew Sturm years ago. Matthew in his book Finding the Arctic describes Jon as a machinist, miner, geophysicist, traveler and arctic philosopher. As you’ll discover, that’s a pretty fair description
As part of this past UAF Summer Session’s Tall Timber series, I spoke with Tom Bundtzen. Many know him as a research geologist as well as an avid mining historian. After retiring as Senior Economic Geologist for the Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Survey (ADGGS), Tom formed Pacific Rim Geological Consulting, Inc. The state mining community also recognizes Tom’s work in the Alaska Miners Association, and a founder, along with others, of the Alaska Mining Hall of Fame Foundation which honors Alaska’s mining pioneers.
Each summer I talk with fascinating Fairbanksans through UAF Summer Sessions‘ “Tall Timber” series. One of those figures this past summer was Wendell Shiffler. Wendy, as he is known, has spent a lifetime relishing life and the outdoors. He’s also spent a good deal of time communicating those passions to young people. In 1981 he was named Alaska Biology Teacher of the Year, and he developed the Fairbanks school district’s Outdoor Experience Program. Even after retirement Wendy didn’t slow down. He volunteered with the Arctic Winter Games doing everything from making beds in the athlete village to serving as Chef de Mission for Team Alaska in 1992, and serving on the AWG International Committee for 20 years as Secretary and Vice President. An avid outdoorsman, the Alaska Trappers Association selected him Trapper of the Year in 2021.
Banning books has a disturbing history in our country. Greg Hill is probably best known locally through his weekly columns in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Parents may know of Greg’s work starting the Guys and Gals Read program in the elementary schools, which engages young readers with books that combine vivid images with exciting plots, keeping the flame of literacy alive. But Greg is a principled and politically adroit champion of the public’s right to access information, as he demonstrated when two censorship issues arose when he directed the Fairbanks North Star Borough Libraries.
On this show I talk with psychologist Stephen Parker. Parker has been a practicing therapist in Fairbanks for decades. More than twenty years ago, in response to a series of coronary troubles including a massive heart attack, he built a series of stone structures on his property as therapy. Perhaps the most striking of these is a spiral labyrinth that coils down into the hillside. While still a work in progress, Parker says he hopes to open the site to the public next summer.
In the summers University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Summer Sessions hosts a series of conversations. It’s called “Tall Timbers” and salutes Fairbanks residents who have made an indelible mark on the community. One of the people tapped this past summer is Terry Reichardt. Over the years she has contributed to Fairbanks in a number of ways. She is a master gardener and teaches classes through the UAF Cooperative Extension Service. Her faith life also led her to social justice issues, including the Northern Alaska Environmental Center and helping to start and then run Love Inc., now called Helping Alaska.
Dr. Gary Laursen was one of the guest speakers at last month’s Fairbanks Fungi Fest. Laursen taught biology and mycology for decades at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He’s traveled the world studying fungi and leads the High Latitude Mycological Research Institute. He has also authored a number of books, including Alaska’s Mushrooms: a Wide … Continue reading Dr. Gary Laursen: Elevating a Kingdom’s Standing
I first met Avis Wanda McClinton on-line. Three times a week a small group of people gather via Zoom and sit in silence and then share concerns and thoughts. For anyone familiar with the Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers, that practice will sound familiar. Avis, who is an African-American Quaker, lives near Philadelphia, PA. … Continue reading Avis Wanda McClinton: Unearthing Disquieting Truths
Olivia Hill’s memoir Travel North Black Girl examines her past in Kansas City and her time in a small Native Village on Prince William Sound. Hill lived in Fairbanks for more than a decade and studied at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Fairbanks author and columnist David James profiled Hill here, and reviewed her memoir … Continue reading Olivia Hill: Portals to Self Discovery
Fairbanks roads are clearing of ice and snow. That means you’ll find growing numbers of bicyclists pedaling alone or in packs around town and in the hills. Summer is bike season, but Simon Rakower, my guest today, and some other hard-core cyclists made a name for themselves by transforming the mountain bike into a vehicle that could handle winter and Alaska’s snow-packed trails: We know it now as a fat bike. Simon is something of a bike guru offering repair classes through the University of Alaska Fairsbanks’ Osher Life Long Learning Institute and Summer Sessions, and he serves as a consultant to the school’s Green Bikes program,
Rev. Dr. Anna Frank photo: University of Alaska Fairbanks
My guest this episode has a long and distinguished life and career. Anna Frank was born and raised in Old Minto. At 15, she left the village for Fairbanks and a 57 year-long marriage with Richard Frank. In 1975, after raising their four children, she worked at creating the first health education department for Tanana Chiefs Conference. Her listening skills and engaging approach with people prompted TCC to train her in counseling. Those skills also attracted the attention of leaders in the Episcopal church, where Anna was ordained: first as a deacon, later as a priest – the first native woman Episcopal priest in Alaska. In 2019, the University of Alaska Fairbanks bestowed on Rev. Frank an honorary Doctorate of Laws degree. Our conversation was recorded last summer as part of UAF Summer Sessions’ Tall Timber series.
March is a busy time at the Birch Hill Recreation Area. This week sees the USSA Cross Country Ski Junior National Championships play out. Then later this month, the Nordic Ski Club of Fairbanks hosts the annual Sonot Kkaazoot, a home-grown equinox event that celebrates springtime’s growing light and warmer temperatures.
This episode I speak with NSCF’s head groomer Tom Helmers. Without the passion and hard work of Helmers and his crew none of the events would be possible.
Also, I dust off part of a conversation I had in 2016 with Bob Baker, who founded the Sonot Kkaazoot.
June Rogers and Sandc CastleJune Rogers was born in Alaska and raised in Fairbanks. Following school, she was an owner of a mechanical contracting company. But her passion, as you’ll hear, has always been music and the arts. Both behind the scenes and in front of audiences she has made an indelible mark, as her Governor’s Award bestowed from the Alaska State Council on the Arts makes clear.
Jo Heckman, photo by Jake Poole
Jo Heckman received two degrees from the University of Alaska Fairbanks: a BA and MBA in Business Administration. She forged a successful banking career in Alaska and, in fact, made history as our state’s first woman bank President and CEO. She was tapped by Governor Sean Parnell to serve on the University of Alaska Board of Regents. She’s now exploring the role food and produce play in Fairbanks.
This show is the second part of a look at the immigrant experience in Alaska and the U.S. It draws on two different conversations. I spoke with Linda Thai, who is an immigrant, but also a Fairbanks therapist and educator who helps trauma sufferers, in 2018. I spoke with historian and bibliographer Ron Inouye back in 2019. He’s the author of Alaska’s Japanese pioneers: faces, voices, stories: a synopsis of selected oral history transcripts.
Linda Thai and her mother I’ve been thinking about immigration lately and our country’s conflicted legacy of welcoming those from other parts of the globe seeking a better life here. This Northern Soundings episode draws from two previously aired conversations with Vietnamese refugee Linda Thai and Japanese American Ron Inouye, who had family members placed in internment camps during World War Two.
Corlis Taylor modeling one of her creations
This week I talk with Corlis Taylor. While many in Fairbanks know her as a gifted fiber artist, she’s also enjoyed a long and distinguished public health career in Alaska that began in 1979 in Bethel as a Vista Volunteer.
Bishop Otis McCormick
At this time of year, I recall Jacob Marley’s words to Scrooge: “Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were all my business.” This week on Northern Soundings I talk with Bishop Otis McCormick whose work in Fairbanks embodies Dickens’ words.
Actors Stephan Wolftert and Dawn Stern of Decruit are back in Fairbanks. I talked with them several months ago, when they were in town, about applying Shakespeare’s texts, modern science and dramatic techniques to help heal veterans and others recovering from trauma. In this longer conversation, we discuss the process by which they create new … Continue reading Therapeutic Theatre
On this show I talk with Shirley Gordon; at nearly 100, she has seen much of Alaska’s recent history, and even participated in it as the wife of William Gordon, the state’s flying Episcopal bishop. A replica of his plane hangs on permanent display in the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitor Center. This episode is … Continue reading A Successful Life: Shirley Gordon
University of Alaska Fairbanks Director of Creative Writing Gerri Brightwell has been on my Northern Soundings wishlist for years. The publication this month of her latest novel Turnback Ridge seemed like the perfect occasion for discussing her life, her work, and her marriage to fellow author Ian C. Esstlemont. Brightwell has penned four novels, three … Continue reading Gerri Brightwell: Emigree and Writer
This is another conversation sprung from UAF’s Summer Sessions‘ Tall Timbers series that saluted individuals who’ve made a difference in our community. Mary Shields was a natural for the list. She was the first woman to finish the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. She’s also penned books for adults and kids and served as an … Continue reading Mary Shields: Musher, Author, Wilderness Advocate
Well, okay, Paul Taylor says he’s an entertainer not a crooner. But the former Green Beret, forensic economist, and dog musher also admits he’s most at home with a microphone in hand and in front of an audience. And I talk to the husband and wife team of DeCruit who recently visited Fairbanks giving workshops … Continue reading From Green Beret to Cabaret
This spring, I happened to run into Sally Smith. Smith has a long track-record of public service. Not only did she represent Fairbanks in the Alaska House of Representatives from 1977 through 1983, when the Permanent Fund was established. She also served as Juneau’s mayor. Additionally, she held posts in both and the Eagan and Sheffield … Continue reading Sally Smith: Permanently Engaged
For the last decade or so, I’ve been lucky to talk with notable individuals who have been shaped by their time at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Those conversations were part of UAF Summer Session’s Legacy Lecture series. This year the program saluted Steve Frank, former UAF basketball star, local banker and businessman, and Alaska … Continue reading Steve Frank: Law-maker, Team Player and Coach
Lydia Violet Harutoonian returns to Fairbanks. That’s a first for this musician and activist who often tours, but hasn’t before returned to deepen the link between her and visited communities. She draws inspiration from the teachings of ecologist and Buddhist scholar Joanna Macy. She will lead a pair of engagements on Friday and Sunday in … Continue reading Return and Revisit
Carl Benson has a long track record with the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Geophysical Institute. He first visited it in 1950, and joining its faculty a decade later. Matthew Sturm came up as a grad student to study with Carl in the 1980s, and is now part of the G.I. During the pandemic, I recorded … Continue reading Geophysical Tales
Last week, the PBS series Nova highlighted University of Alaska Museum of the North Director and paleontologist Pat Druckenmiller’s work on Alaskan dinosaurs. Like most kids, I entered a dinosaur phase where I poured over books and collected toy dinosaurs. Unlike most kids, I never really emerged. In fact, one of my joys as a … Continue reading Northern Bones
On this episode, I talk with botanist Jan Dawe who heads up One Tree Alaska, a program that celebrates the boreal forest in relationship to the humans that live in, on and with it. And painter and art historian Kesler Woodward has long attracted praise for his portraits of birch. Now, he is drawing inspiration … Continue reading The Boreal Forest and One Tree
Last week, a long-time creative icon of the Fairbanks theatre community died. Fairbanks Drama Association Executive Director Peggy MacDonald Ferguson succumbed to complications following a fall. She was 75. To pay tribute to a woman who forged so many vital connections across Fairbanks and Alaska, I’m replaying our conversation that originally aired in 2019. Along … Continue reading Peggy Ferguson: A Vital Link
As we approach the depths of winter, many of us are casting about for a hobby to keep our minds and hands active amidst the cold and dark. My guest this show doesn’t lack for interesting avocations. Bill Angell is a senior mining engineer at Ft. Knox Gold Mine, but he’s also a bee-keeper and … Continue reading Honey, Value Added and Then Some
Charles Mason has been snapping images since he was eleven. In his long career, he has earned international awards, and he’s passed along his knowledge to generations of students at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He continues to explore the limits of his art, even if it means turning back to earlier times with “wet … Continue reading Serendipitous Visions
University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysicists Carl Benson and Matthew Sturm continue their discussions of Carl’s work in Greenland and Alaska. And the late Frank Soos recorded several book reviews earlier this year. This episode I include his look at Rachel Kushner’s The Hard Crowd.
Lydia Violet Harutoonian With divisive politics, climate change and a pandemic to worry about, it is difficult to see a positive way forward. But for musician, composer and teacher Lydia Violet Harutoonian imagination and creative presence offer a dependable ground from which to respond to these and other challenges. Harutoonian draws deeply from the thoughts … Continue reading Singing Truth to Power
Ronnie Rosenberg is known for her volunteer work in Fairbanks and with those in need. She has a number of skills to draw on. Trained as a nurse, she practiced in a war zone, and on the streets of New York. Later, she decided she needed other challenges and went to law school and practised … Continue reading A Broader Community of Life
We often hear about speaking truth to power. What isn’t often spoken is truth to the pain and suffering suicides leave in their wake. When pastor Jim Wisland’s son Erik took his own life Jim went in search of answers. Scripture, of course, but also other ancient texts. He then founded the Arctic Resource Center … Continue reading The Consolation of Words