Help Nunam Iqua

Update, April 25, 2009: Ann is no longer receiving and distributing boxes for a very good reason.

She has a list of families that still need help until the breakup in late May.  These families will need help more than ever now because school will be out and the children who are eligible for free breakfast and lunch programs at school will not be receiving it.

Also, the village is out of heating fuel/stove oil so people will have to buy more gas to go to Emmonak to buy fuel there.

If you would like to help, e-mail Ann. She has a list of families with specific needs and can tell you just what to send directly to them that will be most appreciated.

Thanks everybody!! If you had told me in January we would still be doing this in late April, I wouldn’t have believed you.

Jane

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If you would like to lend a helping hand to rural Alaskans forced this winter to choose whether to feed their families or heat their homes, there are several ways to help.

We have been working with Ann Strongheart in the village of Nunam Iqua, AK.  Her village is one of many that need assistance.

First contact your representatives in Congress  and tell them we’re watching!

Help a community with a monetary donation:

Call SPAN Alaska Sales, toll-free, at 1-800-367-9833. This company specializes in shipping food and supplies to rural Alaska.  Ask for Efton, and tell him you would like to make a donation to a Village Aid account. They can take credit card info over the phone. They will mail you a receipt for your payment, with the account name on it, for your tax records.

This whole effort started because of a blog post  Ann Strongheart, Food Drive Director/Coordinator in Nunam Iqua, left on a blog we follow. We started an account for her and she is SPAN Alaska’s contact in her village. She orders from the account and distributes food and supplies to the the neediest families.  If you would like to make a donation to her village, be sure to specify the Nunam Iqua Village Aid account.

Since we started this effort more struggling villages have come to light. The LA Times ran a story about the Village of Tuluksak and reporter Kim Murphy set up a similar account with contacts she made while in the village.

When other villages out in the Tundra provide a contact/distributor to work with SPAN Alaska, additional accounts like these will be set up. Call Efton at 1-800-367-9833 to make a donation or set up an account for another village.

Donate mony for fuel

Emmonak, the village that first came to the local media’s attention as a struggling village, is able to take donations by credit card to earmark for fuel. Other villages, including Nunam Iqua can accept checks for fuel cost donations. We will post more information as it becomes available.

Donate to tha American Federation of Natives

The Alaska Federation of Natives, a very reputable, long established organization in Anchorage has set up a relief fund to help all rural Alaskan Villages suffering from the fuel price and fishing crisis. They have dedicated a bank account that is being used strictly for this situation. If you have questions about the AFN’s program you can speak directly to Gladys Charles, who is co-ordinating the fund collection. Her # in Anchorage is (907) 274-3611. Checks should be made payable to AFN/ Village Relief Fund and mailed to Gladys Charles. AFN. 1577 C st. Suite 300 Anchorage, Alaska 99501

Buy and ship food and supplies

SPAN Alaska

SPAN Alaska is a company based in Washington that specializes in supplying groceries to rural Alaskans, They ship groceries utilizing virtually every method of transportation available including parcel post, bypass mail, airfreight, truck, rail, barge, steamship and UPS. Shipping is included in the price of non-refrigerated items. Their website has an online catalog and an easy shopping cart interface. http://www.spanalaskasales.com/pp-home.html. There’ a $100 minimum purchase requirement.

JB Bush

Another less expensive option is JB Bush, a freight expediter based in Anchorage. They don’t have a website so it isn’t as convenient, but you’ll get more for your money with a little extra effort. They purchase and ship anything available at the Anchorage Costco and ship it to rural Alaska for the purchase price + 17% + actual shipping cost. Order via email to jbbush@gci.net. JB Bush’s phone numbers in Anchorage are 800-478-7234 or 243-7233 and the fax # is 243-5744.

Fill a box and send it

Pick up a free flat rate box at the Post Office. The postage on the regular sized box is $10.35, the large is $13.95. Then check Ann’s list of requested basic needs and fill the box.

Whatever you can fit into the box travels all the way to Alaska as domestic mail from anywhere in the United States, at the predetermined cost (between $10.35-$13.95), regardless of weight. The box must close completely or it may be returned to you.

An experiment with flat rate shipping from Houston, TX in January found that goods shipped on Tuesday were in the village of Nunam Iqua the following Friday.

I sent two boxes that would have cost of $83 to send from Miami to Alaska as regular  priority mail. With the flat rate boxes the total was $29.20! They were mailed on Monday and got to Nunam Iqua on Thursday.

Tip: Remove excess packaging and use small flexible items such as individually wrapped non-chocolate candy instead of packing material.

Caution: Flat rate boxes have to close — the flaps must touch.

Update: Ann is no longer receiving and distributing boxes for a very good reason.

She has a list of families that still need help until the breakup in late May.  These families will need help more than ever now because school will be out and the children who are eligible for free breakfast and lunch at school will not be receiving it.

Also, the village is out of heating fuel/stove oil so people will have to buy more gas to go to Emmonak to buy fuel there.

If you would like to help, e-mail Ann. She has a list of families with specific needs and can tell you just what to send directly to them that will be most appreciated.