Fairbanks police officers start sewing beaver hats with elders at Denakkanaaga

Three Fairbanks police officers sat down with Alaska Native elders at Denakkanaaga on Tuesday to start sewing their own beaver fur hats, the newest group in a program called Caps for Cops.

Detective Lane Bonham, Officer Kent Zheng and Officer Dylan Howard will make the hats under the elders' direction. When they're done, the hats can be worn on duty.

Miranda Wright (Koyukon Athabascan) led Tuesday's lesson, with help from Edith Thomas (Gwich'in), Deanna Houlton (Koyukon Athabascan) and Lolly Carpluk (Yup'ik), the department said. The afternoon started with lunch from Denakkanaaga, and Executive Director Sharon McConnell told the group how the police department first brought the idea to the elders several years ago.

The program began in 2023. The department has said it gives elders a chance to share their culture and traditions and get to know the officers who serve their community. Denakkanaaga said Tuesday it is "pleased to be able to meet and teach" officers "about our Native traditions and cultures."

The sewing takes some learning. Some officers in the first group had never touched a sewing machine, the department wrote at the time. Cutting the fur to match the patterns "takes patience and a steady hand," it wrote in January, when Chief Ron Dupee joined three officers and went "a little rogue," making an otter hat instead of beaver.

The connections tend to outlast the hats. Sean Lai, now a sergeant, was in that first group. In 2024, he stopped by a later session to get a hug from his former teacher, the department said.

Last November, the elders held a celebration for the finished hats, as is the program's tradition, and former participants came wearing their own beaver hats. Lai brought his baby, who arrived in traditional baby slippers made by one of the "grandmas" in the room, the department wrote.

Denakkanaaga means "Our People Speak" in Koyukon Athabascan. The nonprofit describes itself as the voice for Native elders of Interior Alaska.

The department said it will share photos of the new hats once the officers finish.