HOUSE BILL NO. 246 "An Act naming certain bridges." HOUSE BILL NO. 248 "An Act naming the Al Wright Airport at Minto." HOUSE BILL NO. 249 "An Act naming the Koyukuk Station Veterans' Airport at Koyukuk." 2:12:25 PM Co-Chair Stoltze explained that HB 248 and HB 249 would be merged into HB 246. Co-Chair Thomas MOVED to ADOPT the proposed committee substitute for HB 246, Work Draft 27-LS0921\B (Wayne, 2/10/12). There being NO OBJECTION it was so ordered. KACI SCHROEDER-HOTCH, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE BILL THOMAS, explained that HB 246 named 15 bridges and 2 airports in the city of Cordova. The city had requested that 15 of its bridges be named after some of its "finest" residents. First, the city requested that the bridge over the Eyak River be named after Marie Smith Jones; she had been a community elder who worked to preserve the Eyak language and had left one of the most comprehensive records of any aboriginal language upon her death. Second, fourteen of the city's bridges would be named after each of the young men that had been lost in World War I, World War II, and Vietnam. The names were as follows: World War I: James Bennet, William M. Jones, Steve Green, Lucian Platt, Matthew Anderson, W.H. Mumby, and John W. Jones World War II: Patrick B. Burchett, Norman D. Osbourne, and Leonard F. Olson Vietnam: David Henry Elisovky, David Allen Lape, Warren Allen Paulsen, and Michael Dean Banta Ms. Schroeder-Hotch elaborated that naming the bridges after the residents was the least the city could do to thank them for their service and sacrifice. CYNTHIA ERICKSON, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE ALAN DICK, read from the HB 248 Sponsor Statement (copy on file): Al Wright was born at Tanana Crossing on April 26, 1925 to Arthur and Myrtle Wright, missionaries in the Minto Flats area. Arthur Wright was Athabascan Indian and Myrtle was white. Mrs. Wright was one of the first nurses in the villages. In 1930 the family moved to Minto. The Wright family lived a subsistence lifestyle. In Minto his dad tried to start a school. He had a hard time because the kids had to go back to seasonal subsistence camps. Each child would bring a stick of wood as tuition. When the wood ran out that ended the school day. When Al was nine, they moved to Nenana where his father started work in the shipyard. His family also cut and sold wood for $8.00 a cord with a Sears&Roebuck wood saw. They dragged the wood with a model-T vehicle back to the village to sell. Al was 15 when he started in construction on defense projects all over Interior Alaska. He had no formal training and learned as he went along. His skills were in high demand on the defense projects; however he wanted to join the Army. The only way he could leave his job was to quit the construction work and get drafted. When he got out of the Army, he found out he could get his pilot's license with the G.I. bill. He originally started for fun, but never got away from flying. His first plane was a 65 Taylorcraft. One day a man asked to charter him to pick up furs. He said, "boy, this is the way to make money." From then on he started hauling trappers and developing a business. His first charter was $20.00 an hour with fuel, plane and pilot. He taught himself to fly with floats. With no formal training, his first flight was to pick up a dying man in a Minto fish camp. He flew about 200 hours before he was forced to get an official float rating. He had trouble getting ratings and licenses, because he had little education. He struggled his whole life because he never learned how to read well, write or spell. He quit school after the sixth grade as he took on more seasonal work with the family. Al started Wright's Air Service in 1950 which continued to grow in Interior Alaska. His focus was on maintaining high standards with maintenance and with his employees. He was the critical link for scheduled mail and charter flights to about 20 villages. Wright's Air today is a well-known charter operation in the Interior, supporting government surveys, seasonal camps, firefighting, land surveying and hunting expeditions. In 1983 Al sold his airline to long-time friend and pilot, Bob Burcell. Bob continues to run the airline with the same old time values, kindness and respect Al had for his people and villages. 2:18:01 PM Co-Chair Stoltze appreciated having information about the individuals on the record. He noted that the bridges were all currently either unnamed or had generic designations. Co-Chair Thomas agreed. Representative Gara wondered whether the names moved with a bridge when it was moved as a result of a washout. Co-Chair Thomas replied often times bridges were rebuilt and not moved. He added that Cordova was currently in the middle of a disaster conference; therefore it was unable to call in to testify. Co-Chair Stoltze had been moved by the participation of Cordova residents in 2006 when the Vietnam Veterans Moving Wall had come to town. He believed that Cordova was one of the communities that had paid the highest price in its contribution to war. Ms. Erickson read from the HB 249 Sponsor Statement (copy on file): The original village of Koyukuk, primarily all Koyukon Athabascan Indians, was established around 1867. It used to be called Koyukuk Station, because a military telegraph line was constructed along the North side of the Yukon, and Koyukuk became the site of the telegraph station. In naming the airport, the residents also wish to honor the many Native military veterans who have served their country. Koyukuk is located on the Yukon River, 30 miles west of Galena and 290 air miles from Fairbanks. It is adjacent to the Koyukuk and Innoko River Refuges. The Russian traders were a big influence in this area, opening a trading post around 1880. Roman Catholic Missionaries also had a major impact on the Athabascans. The first school was constructed in 1939, this resulted in the Koyukon people living in the village year around. Up until then, the Koyukon Athabascans lived a subsistence lifestyle, moving among seasonal fish and game camps. They moved as the wild game migrated. Most of the people who settled here were from up the Koyukuk River, as far as the Dolbi River, which is close to Huslia. Even when people settled in Koyukuk they continued to travel up the Koyukuk to winter trapping camps and returned in the spring. The Native name for Koyukuk is, Meneelghaadze T'oh. Meneelghaadze is the name of the mountain at Koyukuk. Madeline Solomon, now deceased Elder from Koyukuk, had said the mountain was named Meneelghaadze, because long ago, the Koyukon people used to go get clay at the mountain and mix with bird feathers to make clay pots. Eliza Jones an Elder from Koyukuk said that in Athabascan, "T'oh" would be added on, meaning at the base of the mountain. Meneelghaadze T'oh means, "at the base of the Koyukuk Mountain." Today Koyukuk people are still living a subsistence lifestyle. The main employment is the local government, clinic, school, store and any firefighting and construction seasonal jobs. 2:23:38 PM Representative Guttenberg remembered Al Wright and told a story related to the individual. Co-Chair Stoltze referred to a proclamation from Cordova that supported the bill (copy on file). He asked whether there was support from other communities. Ms. Erickson replied in the affirmative. Minto and Koyukuk had both vocalized support for the legislation. Co-Chair Stoltze requested that the communities' support be officially added to the record. Ms. Erickson noted that Minto had already created a sign with the new name. ANNETTE KREITZER, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE ALAN DICK, noted that Al Wright was not the Wright brother who had run for office. 2:26:27 PM Co-Chair Stoltze understood how important it was for a community to publicly appreciate a member who had made a significant contribution. He referred to street names that had been named for members of his family. Co-Chair Thomas MOVED to ADOPT Amendment 1: Page 2, Line 23 Before Al Wright Insert Minto - Co-Chair Stoltze OBJECTED for discussion. Co-Chair Thomas explained that the amendment inserted the word "Minto" before "Al Wright" on page 2, line 23. There being NO further OBJECTION, Amendment 1 was ADOPTED. Co-Chair Thomas spoke to the names included under the legislation. He explained that Marie Smith Jones had been the last fluent Eyak speaker and deserved the tribute. David Henry Elisovky, David Allen Lape, Warren Allen Paulsen, and Michael Dean Banta had all been killed in Vietnam; Cordova had experienced the highest per-capita loss in the state. He discussed the soldiers' families and told a story about the involvement of other soldiers in the Vietnam War. 2:32:24 PM Co-Chair Thomas MOVED to report CSHB 246(FIN) out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal note. There being NO OBJECTION, it was so ordered. Co-Chair Stoltze referred the fiscal impact note. CSHB 246(FIN) was REPORTED out of committee with a "do pass" recommendation and with a new fiscal impact note from the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. HB 248 was HEARD and HELD in Committee. HB 249 was HEARD and HELD in Committee. 2:34:09 PM AT EASE 2:35:58 PM RECONVENED