Interior Alaska Native groups set aside a day to repair elders' homes — and couldn't meet the demand

On July 13, volunteers across Interior Alaska will set out to do something their communities treat as an obligation: care for their elders. Tanana Chiefs Conference, the Interior's Alaska Native tribal consortium, has drawn 20 elders in Fairbanks to receive free home help that day — from grab-bar installation and tech support to yard work, painting, and building wheelchair ramps — and has asked its staff in rural villages to organize the same work close to home.

The effort grew from a coalition that barely existed two years ago. A TCC representative traced its start to a meeting of Denakkanaaga, the Interior's Alaska Native elders' organization, in Galena: "Eugene and other leadership jumped on it right away so that they knew how important it is for us to give back to our elders." The partners now include the Fairbanks Native Association, the Interior Regional Housing Authority, and city and borough government — Native nonprofits and local agencies pointed at the same day and the same purpose.

The need outran the help. TCC said it could not accommodate every applicant this year, encouraged those not selected to apply again, and expects to continue. Staff will contact chosen elders before July 13; volunteers can sign up at tananachiefs.org or through TCC's Facebook page.