SB 144-ESTABLISH JUNE 7 AS WALTER HARPER DAY    3:42:49 PM CO-CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS announced that the next order of business would be SENATE BILL NO. 144. "An Act establishing June 7 of each year as Walter Harper Day." 3:43:20 PM CO-CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS opened public testimony on SB 144. 3:43:29 PM MIKE HARPER testified in support of SB 144 as the grandnephew of Walter Harper. He added that 30 living family members of Walter Harper support the proposed legislation as well. He expressed his appreciation for the effort. 3:45:12 PM BILL GORDON testified that his father told him the story of Walter Harper and Episcopal Archdeacon [Hudson] Stuck when they were in Fort Yukon; his father piloted planes to the villages. Harper and Stuck were "friends, mentors, and benefactors" to each other. His father stressed the importance of Walter Harper to Alaska's history. He maintained that Harper was a "gift" to early Alaska's relationship to the Alaska Native people. Even when discrimination was rampant in the Territory of Alaska, Harper and Stuck gave a blueprint to future generations to follow that still serves the state well. He expressed his support for special days and statutes to tell the stories to visitors and to Alaskans. He mentioned that passage of SB 144 would help in the effort to erect a statue to Walter Harper, which is to be dedicated on Walter Harper Day 2021. 3:48:22 PM KATHERINE TRITT testified that she is a Gwich'in Alaska Native and expressed her concern that the other Alaska Natives who assisted with Walter Harper's ascent of Denali are not being recognized. 3:50:01 PM JUDE HENZLER testified that three young Alaska Natives were involved in the ascent [of Denali] - Walter Harper, John Fredson, and Esiais George. Both George and Harper died young; John Fredson was the first Alaska Native to graduate from a university - [Sewanee, The University of the South, an Episcopal college in Middle Tennessee]. He stated that Fredson was the author and creator of the Venetie Arctic Village 1.4-million- acre Indian Reservation. He was the informant for noted linguist Edward Sapir for the Gwich'in language and authored a book of 52 Indian stories. He was the father of Lu Young, first wife of U.S. Congressman Don Young. Mr. Henzler expressed that his intention is not to detract from Walter Harper, but to recognize the two other young men who were involved. 3:52:50 PM JENNIFER HENZLAR testified that her mother is the niece of Esiais George. She stated that she fully supports SB 144 honoring Walter Harper and his amazing accomplishments; there is a serious dearth of Alaska Native heroes and heroines who are included in public school education and who are in public view; [Walter Harper Day] would help to alleviate that. She said that she would be amiss by not acknowledging John Fredson's accomplishments. She expressed the importance of recognizing Walter Harper but believes that the other two young Alaska Native men should be recognized as well. It is not known what Harper and George would have been able to accomplish having died so young. 3:54:26 PM MARY EHRLANDER testified that she spent most of her life in Alaska; she wrote Walter Harper's biography, [Walter Harper, Alaska Native Son]; and she supports the proposed legislation. She maintained that being the first person to summit Denali was just a part of what made Walter Harper noteworthy. His ability to achieve that feat and to contribute so centrally to the success of the expedition were due to the skills and character traits that made him the great Alaskan he was. His superb subsistence skills, developed as a young person and honed during his years on the trail and river with Episcopal Archdeacon Hudson Stuck, along with his stellar character and his remarkable ability to navigate comfortably in both his Athabascan birth culture and mainstream Western society, were admirable. She continued by saying that his capacities and qualities, especially his strong sense of identity and purpose, are equally admirable today. She said, "So designating June 7, the '1913 summit day' as Walter Harper Day will ensure that Alaskans will know of this great young man, and perhaps most importantly, it will mean that young people will learn of him and many will see him as a hero." She maintained that having strong role models can make all the difference for young people as they find their way in life. She offered that she can hardly imagine a more appropriate hero and role model for a young Alaskan than Walter Harper. She urged the committee to consider the value of designating June 7 as Walter Harper Day. She added that she agrees that there should be more recognition of admirable and heroic Alaska Natives for young Alaskans to respect and admire; the proposed legislation is not meant to take away from other people deserving of recognition. She maintained that the statue [erected] will clarify the roles of all the participants of the expedition, and her biography describes the contribution of all key members of the expedition. CO-CHAIR KREISS-TOMKINS closed public testimony. REPRESENTATIVE SHAW relayed that his experiences on mountains gives him an appreciation for the accomplishments of the expedition team. He said, "All efforts in mountaineering are team efforts, and generally the recognition is given to the first to summit. Walter Harper was the first man to summit this mountain ever, and so the recognition to Walter Harper ... definitely takes nothing away from the team that supported him." He reiterated that from a historical perspective, all the individuals will be noted through the biography and the statue. 4:00:38 PM CO-CHAIR FIELDS moved to report SB 144 out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying zero fiscal note. There being no objection, SB 144 was reported from the House State Affairs Standing Committee.