Alaska Native Heritage Center celebrates 25th Anniversary

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Alaska Native Heritage Center will commemorate its 25th anniversary on Sunday, May 12, marked by the grand unveiling of renovated spaces alongside a series of celebratory events. Admission to the ANHC on Sunday, also Mother’s Day, will be free for all, and the Center will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Following a temporary closure for renovations since February, the ANHC is poised to welcome back visitors as it reveals its first tier of updates to the admissions area and Gathering Place.

 

To celebrate this milestone, guests can enjoy Alaska Native dance performances, cultural demonstrations, a frybread making demonstration, an Alaska Children’s Museum pop-up, a flower painting station, and a 10% discount on all items in the Ch’k’iqadi Gallery (Dena’ina for “things we buy”). As the only Alaska Native-owned and operated gallery in Anchorage, every purchase at the gallery goes toward supporting mission-driven programming at ANHC as well as Alaska Native artists.

 

Sunday’s Mother’s Day Celebration will also commence the beginning of the ANHC summer season, which runs from May 12 to Sept. 15. Visitors can enjoy Alaska Native dance performances and Native games demonstrations, storytelling, updated short films, browse the Hall of Cultures after mid-June, enjoy an assortment of coffee and treats at Café Di’eshchin (Dena’ina for “I’m hungry”), and exciting programming at the Gathering Place stage and the outdoor village sites around Lake Tiulana. The current renovations to the Hall of Cultures will be unveiled later this summer.

 

From June 1 through Aug. 31, ANHC will operate a free shuttle between downtown Anchorage and the Center, with pickup locations including the Log Cabin Visitors Center and the Anchorage Museum.

 

“This year’s anniversary presents an opportunity to reflect on the footsteps that have brought us to this place in time while also envisioning ANHC’s next evolution and chapters,” said Emily Edenshaw, ANHC President and CEO. “We are so humbled to celebrate this anniversary with our community, but we are also using this time to launch a campaign that will honor the legacy of our Ancestors, including preserving and strengthening the traditions, languages and art of Alaska’s Native People for generations to come. ANHC is your heritage center, and we are grateful to work with our statewide community leaders and culture bearers to create a living cultural center that represents the past, present and future of Alaska Native Peoples.”

 

For the past 25 years, the ANHC has been steadfast in its mission to preserve and foster a deep appreciation for Alaska Native culture and traditions through its permanent collections, life-sized village sites and immersive educational programs. To this day, the ANHC remains the only statewide cultural and education center dedicated to celebrating all Alaska Native cultures and heritages and continues to serve as a vital resource in supporting Alaska Native Peoples from birth until Elder.

 

The ANHC was initially created by a unanimous vote of the Alaska Federation of Natives in 1987, which called for the establishment of a statewide Alaska Native culture center. Development of the center began shortly after as a collaborative effort between community members and organizations such as Alaska Native Corporations. The ANHC first opened its doors to the public in May of 1999 and is now recognized as one of America’s Cultural Treasures.

 

The ANHC is excited to once again welcome visitors this summer and looks forward to celebrating its 25th anniversary with the community. To learn more about the ANHC, please visit www.alaskanative.net/. 

 

The Alaska Native Heritage Center is a nonprofit organization that preserves and strengthens the traditions, languages, and art of Alaska’s Native Peoples through statewide collaboration, celebration and education. To learn more, visit www.alaskanative.net.