Anchorage Assembly recognizes four Eklutna youth interns for Elders meal program

Four interns from the Native Village of Eklutna spent the summer fishing salmon and preparing moose and porcupine for Elders in the village. The Anchorage Assembly recognized their work Tuesday, Aug. 4, in a resolution submitted by Assembly members Park and Silvers.

The resolution says the interns were developing an Elders Freezer Meal program over the summer, putting up salmon and preparing moose and porcupine for meals Elders can use through the year. It says they also delivered meals to Elders' homes.

The resolution credits the interns with improvements to the Eklutna clinic, the food bank, the Russian Orthodox graveyard and the playground. It also credits them with research into Eklutna's history and the boarding school once operated there, and with cultural tourism speeches for village guests.

The Rural Youth Services program runs with the Cook Inlet Tribal Council. It is one of four youth programs the tribe and the council maintain each year, providing life-skills and leadership training for Alaska Native and Native American youth. Anchorage and the tribe have held a government-to-government relationship since January 2021.

According to the resolution, AR No. 2026-220, the interns are preparing for leadership on a planned Eklutna Youth Council.