Alaska Interior
Alaska Mission Trip
by Tim Lundeen, Volunteer
Two teams left Minnesota, July 17, to host VBS in four different villages in Alaska. One team consisted of Rev. Timothy Lundeen and Nia Johnson, Erskine; Geri Aanerud, Waubon; and Deb Schandelmeier, Luverne, MN. This team went to Ambler and Kivalina. The other team, Marilyn Malmanger, Fosston; Suzanne Weik, Mentor; and Lynn Jacobson, Fertile; went to Shungnak and Point Hope. Ambler and Shungnak are 250 miles NW of Fairbanks on the western foothills of the Brooks Mountain Range, and accessible only by airplane. Kivalina and Point Hope are out on the Arctic Coast 100 and some miles north of the Arctic Circle. I will be sharing most about our time in Ambler and Kivalina.
We arrived in Fairbanks at midnight on July 17, under full sunlight to begin our first leg of our journey into the villages. We were met there by our longtime friend and coordinator, Dan Treakle, who flew the Lutheran Indian Ministries’ mission airplane 
until he retired a couple of years ago. On our arrival, we headed for our usual first stop, “The Furthest North Denny’s in the World” for an early breakfast.
The next morning, Monday, we were up early and headed for the cargo section of the Fairbanks Airport to board the airplanes that would take us out to the villages. We contracted with the Mission Aviation Repair Center (MARC), and with Dave Rue, a bush pilot, who has flown in Alaska for most of the past 30 years. We were heading for Ambler and Shungnak.
We were greeted in the villages by old friends who have greeted us many times over the past years. Pastor Tim, Marilyn, Suzanne and Lynn have been in these villages before and are well known by the some members of the communities. But, there is no time for visiting. There is work to do. We load what we could bring on the airplanes on to four-wheelers and into small trailers and take the mile long ride from the landing strip into the village, to the cabin, where we will be staying for the next four days. Once in the cabin, we get out the VBS supplies so we can plan for our first day of class, which will be in a couple of hours. Getting the cabin ready for our stay can wait until the first day of class is over. There is plenty of time as the day will not end as the sun does not set.
In Ambler, we registered 43 children for our VBS. We shared the story about Joseph, his brothers and his many colored coat; then about Jesus fishing for men, and on the last day about the death and resurrection of Jesus. We had two class sessions a day, about an hour in length. The kids love to see us. They wait at the doors of the church or at the door of our cabin for us to appear and get things ready for class. Our VBS class is typical of most classes. We have time for gathering; work on the lessons; finish the allotted time with songs and then a snack. Any time we are out of the cabin, there are kids around us, sharing stories, asking questions, and retelling what they hear from us in VBS.
While in the village, we walked and visited with the villagers and listened to them share what life is like in the village. We stopped and visited a couple who showed us how they make birch bark baskets and other Eskimo crafts that are sent into Anchorage and Fairbanks and sold for additional money. We ate Caribou stew with another family, and received a portion of fresh Shea fish from a couple who were fishing.
On Thursday afternoon, we loaded up our supplies for the move to the Arctic Coastal town of Kivalina. Our hosts from Ambler gave us a ride back up to the landing strip where we waited for the plane, Bering Air Service, to land. It was time to say goodbye to Ambler and the children. When the plane landed, the three VBS team members from Shungnak were already on the plane. We were all meeting together for the night in Kotzebue, the regional center for the NW Arctic Borough, a town of about 3000 people nestled on the northern edge of the
Kotzebue Spit. When we arrived in Kotzebue, we were greeted at the Bering Air Hanger by Pastor John Forrester, pastor of the First Baptist Church. He hosted us that evening at the church.
Friday morning, we were aboard airplanes again as we all headed out for the coastal communities. The three women who were in Shungnak headed out for Point Hope. Pastor Tim, Geri, Nia and Deb headed for the Kivalina. Kivalina is located on a sandbar about 100 miles or so north of the Arctic Circle. The sand bar is less than a ¼ mile wide and except for breaks in it where rivers dump into the ocean, there is a constant line of sand for more than 100 miles along the coast.
In Kivalina, we started the same routine as we did in Ambler. We found our boxes we had shipped in, worked through them to get our VBS supplies out and get ready for the first class. As before, the kids camped outside our door waiting for us to come out and get ready. In the villages, life is at a slow pace, and so anyone new in town is of much interest. The kids knew this time that the guests in town were there for them, so they did not want to miss a moment with us.
In Kivalina, we worked the same schedule as we did before. This time however, we had more children, 68 registered. The children really love coloring the pages we bring them, working the puzzles and doing the lessons. We tell them the Bible Stories again, and then sing our songs, share a snack, and send them out the door so we can get ready for the next class. In two hours, we do it all over again.
To go for a walk in Kivalina is a walk along the beach. The area the village sits on is so narrow that even walking through the middle of the village is a walk along the beach. As we walk, we see people in boats coming and going as they head up the coast in search of caribou, whale, seal, bear and their favorite fishing location. We are never alone as we walk. We have these young guides with us who seem to love to tell the stories of their village from as much of what their young memories can recite.
On Sunday afternoon, we walked down to the beach to investigate the activity around the fuel barge that was off loading gas and fuel oil for the village store. Winter is coming soon to these parts and the seas will be too rough for bringing in fuel long before the snows arrive. While down by the barge, we used our chance to wade in the Arctic Ocean. Brrr. While taking pictures of ourselves shivering in the water, a Beluga whale stuck its head out of the water. We watched it for a while, and then the village came alive. Last year, no whales came close enough to shore for the village to get one. They had gotten one during the Spring. And, now, here was a whale, in the lagoon, exciting for the village; not so good for the whale. Before the day was over, the village whale hunters had gotten two Beluga whales.
The whaling parties who get the whale, have the honors from the village, and privilege of butchering and dividing up the whale for every household, there are 82 in Kivalina. There is much excitement as most of the whale is used. The skin and blubber is cut away first, then the head and tail. The flukes of the tail are cut in thin strips given to the children. “Eskimo gum,” they call it. It is not possible to describe how it tastes. The easiest way to describe it is to share this much. “It is OK to chew on it and eat it while there, but we are glad that we do not have to bring it home!” Then the meat is cut from the whale, divided out 82 times. The hunting parties who get the whale get first choices and extra portions from the tail, lungs and heart. Then the elders get next, and finally the rest of the households.
“We are blessed that you are here,” they told us many times. “No one remembers a time when the whales came in so close or in the lagoon!”
We finished the day with “Evening Praise and Worship” in the church. The village gathered and sang for two hours. Many groups got up and sang welcome and praise songs, just for us. We are there to teach VBS. We keep reminding ourselves of this. But, we find that we are there for much more. The joys, sorrows and the sharing of life and story in the village becomes part of why we are there as well. We were blessed to be invited into this ministry. Our prayers of thanksgiving and hope are that someday, some of you will find yourselves on the same mission journey.