Jeff Chen, Alaska Public Media - Anchorage

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Exterior image of the Anchorage Pioneer Home.

New facility aims to improve options for Alaskans with memory loss

https://youtu.be/bqE1Xk6h7e4 Caring for someone with memory loss can be exhausting both physically and emotionally. The number of people with Alzheimer’s or dementia in Alaska is set to almost double by 2030. Given the growing need,...
a person holds a sign that reads "abortion is basic healthcare"

Anchorage group rallies for reproductive rights in wake of Supreme Court leak

Roughly 200 people attended the rush hour reproductive rights rally Tuesday in the wake of the release of a draft U.S. Supreme Court opinion that suggests justices are poised to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Her son’s death sparked a mission to save others from fentanyl overdose

Alaska experienced a nearly 70% increase in the number of drug overdose deaths between 2020 and 2021, according to preliminary data from the state health department. That means 245 Alaskans died from an overdose in 2021, including Anchorage resident Bruce Snodgrass. Alaska Public Media’s Jeff Chen brings us a story of his mother who wants to make sure her son is more than a statistic.
A dog licks the face of a man in a jacket

Tempest, who barks at the sparkles in the snow

Tempest is Jessie Holmes’s lead dog. She’s a sweetheart who likes to bark at just about anything, he said. Without a dog like her, he said, “you just can’t pull off what we’re trying to pull off.”
a person delivers pizza to a musher

In Unalakleet, pizza orders from around the world give exhausted mushers a boost

“Nice to be in Eskimo country!” said Iñupiaq musher Ryan Redington. He said his mother was born and raised in Unalakleet, and it’s been nice to visit with the community.
A woman in red with a dog

This trio of Iditarod mushers teamed up to navigate a heavy snowstorm

The trail and the non-trail looked exactly the same on the way into McGrath. The only way to tell the difference: When they stepped off the trail, they sank into hip-deep snow.
a person holds trail mix in a water bottle and smiles at the camera

Here’s what McGrath looks like as Iditarod mushers settle into their 24-hour stop

One musher has regrets. Another is focused on canine appetite. And a third is relieved to have survived the "spiciest" trail.
Two people talking near a dog sled

Iditarod teams navigate rough, windblown trail into Nikolai

Hugh Neff said his 54-year-old arms were exhausted by the constant bumping. “I’ve taken a few Tylenols, let’s say,” he said.
A sled dog team

Aaron Burmeister and his 13-dog team are first to McGrath

For his first-place arrival, Burmeister won a pair of locally-made musher mitts and a musher hat.
A close-up portrait of a man in glasses

Here’s what some of the first Iditarod mushers remember about the early years of the 1,000-mile race

A couple hundred people packed into the basement of Settlers Bay Lodge last week to commemorate the earlier years of the Iditarod. 
a house with an ATV parked out front in snowy and windy conditions

Home is home: finding a way to stay amid a housing shortage in rural Alaska

Overcrowding is a perennial problem in rural Alaska, but the Covid-19 pandemic has made living with it harder. Cramped conditions offer little space to work from home, conduct virtual schooling, or quarantine, and put many multigenerational households at increased risk of infection. Tackling the problem isn’t easy, but, as Erin McKinstry reports for Alaska Public Media, federal COVID funds are offering some relief in the Bering Straits Region.
a thumbnail image of a tea pot, tea leaf, and a person in a Alaska Grown hoodie

How to grow tea at -35°F | INDIE ALASKA

Born in Hong Kong and raised in Alaska, tea connoisseur Jenny Tse takes us on a tour of the world's first geothermal tea farm, hand-rolls a batch of tea leaves, and serves up the freshest cup of hot tea in the heart of winter.
a forklift unloads pallets from a plane

Photos: Operation Santa delivers to Buckland, but weather delays Chevak presents

A camouflaged Santa whirled into Buckland on a funny-looking sleigh this year. As part of its annual Operation Santa Claus, the Alaska National Guard delivered 261 presents to the community in northwest Alaska on December 14. Santa says he'll drop off 360 gifts to Chevak after the holidays and once weather conditions allow.
A sign on the side of the road that reads "Alaska Grown" - courtesy of John Whipple, Alaska Division of Agriculture

State hopes upcoming agricultural land sale near Nenana will bear fruit

Alaska is working on its next big effort to promote agriculture -- a large-scale land auction in the Interior.

Healing together: Alaskans share experiences overcoming trauma

Here's how these Alaskans are confronting intergenerational traumas with different ways of healing.

Climbing COVID-19 case rates are affecting young Alaskans too | Alaska Insight

As Alaska leads the nation in Covid case rates, school districts are struggling to keep staff and students safe with in-person learning. What information do parents and guardians need to help keep their families safe?