Arctic Entries

Luz is a first generation Mexican immigrant who has lived in Alaska most of her life. She enjoys traveling with her Fiancé Andy all over the world, embracing different people and cultures. Anaely has spent her days working as a classroom teacher for the last 20 years in the Spanish Immersion Program, while moonlighting with her husband as a competitive amateur salsa dancer and professional chauffeur for her three beautiful anchor babies.

David and Debbie are a cliché: she is a teacher, and he is an engineer. He likes to hunt and fish, and she likes to cook and go to church. They have two kids, a dog, and a mortgage.

Josie grew up in Wisconsin. There may be a food on this Earth more delicious than deep-fried cheese curds, Josie has yet to encounter it. Paul is a first-generation American, autodidact, and Renaissance man. Recently retired from the military, he is using his new-found freedom to experiment with facial hair.

Nick is a father, ski bum, and guide.

Adyson spent her early childhood in Wyoming but moved to Valdez with her family as a teenager. She loves all things outdoors and daydreams of the next adventure. She has one dog named Otter and a stellar husband whom she continuously drags on random explorations.

Ira is the Executive Director of The Atwood Foundation, one of Alaska’s oldest and largest family philanthropies. The foundation provides grants and scholarships for education, arts and journalism projects. A 40-year resident of Spenard, he and his wife Virginia, an avid gardener, live in a picturesque log home surrounded by beautiful flowers. They have two grown daughters, Esther and Sara. The impresario of the Anchorage Concert Association for 20 years and former director of the Alaska Humanities Forum, Perman is a charter member of The Motorheads, Alaska’s Extraordinary Gentlemen Snowmachiners, who each year perform their Motorhead Follies to standing room only crowds in tiny roadhouses in snowy remote corners of our state.

Having grown up in the semi-wilds of New York’s Adirondack Mountains and in the total wilds of 11 siblings, Joe came to Alaska 30 years ago in search of more wild experiences. As a wildlife biologist and park ranger, he has worked in many wild places and has become an aficionado of things like brown bears, Norway rats, sea lion feces, and walrus penises.

Jaron is a web designer and the editor in chief of Lit.cat: The Literature Box of the Internet. He spends his time tilting pinball machines, writing bad jokes, and smelling weird.

Her passion for living shapes how she views and interacts in the world. Her love for learning opened the door for her career as an educator and teacher. Her curiosity about other cultures led her to travel the world, immersing herself in new cultures as she learns new ways of seeing things from every place she visits. She is grateful for each experience and person she has met on her journey.

Forrest Gump is the greatest movie of all time. And that’s all he has to say about that.

Tammy is a lifelong Alaskan and the General Manager at Crowne Plaza Anchorage Midtown. Not your average “Rambolina” but considered a pretty tough lady whom you’d want on your team during a crisis.

When Eve was a child, she was convinced she was a fairy. Her whimsical back-woods Bird Creek upbringing only encouraged this sentiment. When not on the Arctic Entries stage, you will find her frolicking in magical mountain passes.

Molly starred in the 1999 made-for-TV movie Asteroid. Okay, her part got left on the cutting room floor, but her performance riding a bike across the street was Oscar worthy, she promises. When not starring in made-for-TV movies, Molly still rides her bike, and loves the outdoors and her new pup, Champ Bailey.

Charlene is a lifelong Native Alaskan from Kenai. She has lived in Anchorage since graduating from UAA and works as a manager at an Alaska Native regional corporation.

Leyla was born in Hong Kong and grew up across the globe. Seeking adventure from a young age, she pursued an undergraduate degree in what her family calls “professional camping” or what is otherwise known as environmental science and adventure education. Always drawn to the path least taken, she continues to adventure from her home base in Anchorage, where she works as a biologist.

Lucas spends his summers as a wild land firefighter, and his winters chasing snow and adventure both domestic and abroad. You’ll be happy to hear at this time there are no long-lasting physical effects from the incident featured in Lucas’s story. The jury is still out on long-term mental effects.

Jay doesn’t just admit to living in Spenard with a chicken coop and a compost pile—he proudly proclaims it. He’s a husband, a dad, a high school teacher, a community activist and a year-round bike commuter.

Emily is a sophomore at West High. She is described by her friends as a 5’7 and 3/4” ball of fury, with mediocre reflexes and advanced voice projection. Her activities include excessive hair twirling, mispronunciation of common words, and canoeing.

Harry and his twin brother Larry were born in February 1947. Two years later, Larry died due to complications from an experimental Blue Baby Syndrome corrective surgery. Harry knows that Larry has been orchestrating his life from the very beginning. Harry has made Anchorage his home since June 2013. He has been haunted by a speech impediment from early childhood experiences, which is now mostly controlled. Still, Arctic Entries is providing him the opportunity to further confront that Inner Child that can be found inside of us all.

Tami was born and raised in Israel. After working as a journalist and theater director, she became a psychologist. She is currently a provider at the Anchorage Neighborhood Health Center, and is proud to be part of a great team of people devoted to providing quality care. She believes in play, laughter, kindness, and the ability of stories to change the world. If she had to sum up her life in one word, that word would be “Flash.”