Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 925
What is Alaska 211? Alaska 211 is United Way's statewide help line for information, referrals and assistance finding vital, available health and human services, community resources, government, and tribal assistance in the callers' communities. How did 211 come about? The first 211 in the United States launched in 1997, a joint effort of United Way Worldwide (formerly United Way of America) and the Alliance for Information and Referral Systems, or AIRS, in Atlanta. Three years later, the...
With the Seeing AI app, users can hold their phone up to an individual, and it will audibly describe what the person looks like, including their hair color, estimated age, and emotional state. By pointing the phone towards a product, users will receive a description of the product, its expiration date, and other relevant details. The app can also read documents and recognize various structural elements, including paragraphs, headings, and lists. The Ava app transcribes spoken words into text,...
Even if you lose at the Alaska International Senior Games, you win. "If you like to laugh and you like to have fun," said Diann Darnall, the president of the Alaska International Senior Games board of directors. "This is for you." The AISG are coming up Aug. 8-17 in Fairbanks. And though the early-bird registration ended June 30, there is still time to enter. A qualifying event The AISG is a qualifying event for the National Senior Games, which this year takes place July 24-Aug. 4 in Des...
From July 1 to Oct. 31, low-income seniors in Alaska can access fresh, locally grown produce through the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program. The program is funded by the USDA and administered by the Food Bank of Alaska. Participants will receive a QR card or a QR code through an app that will automatically load with $40 on July 1, 2025. To be eligible you must be 60 years old (as of September 30, 2025), living in Alaska, and have income below 185% of the federal poverty level or you are...
The Alaska SeaLife Center (ASLC) admitted three more harbor seal pups to the Wildlife Response Program in late May and early June, marking a busy start to the 2025 season. One of the pups was born prematurely, one was found severely malnourished, and another was rescued after it was found alone, likely due to maternal separation. These cases follow the recent admissions of another premature harbor seal pup and an orphaned northern sea otter pup, all requiring intensive rehabilitation and...
Midnight Sun Home Care and Alaska Dinner Factory are having the fourth Senior Fun Day from noon to 4 p.m. on July 19 at Eastchester Park at 900 E. 20th Ave. in Anchorage. Food, games and family fun are in store. The event is the brainchild of Eden Lovejoy, the owner of Midnight Sun Home Care. The first one, in 2021, was to mark the 20th anniversary of Midnight Sun Home Care, and it’s continued every year since. The company employs 28 people, most of whom are professional caregivers helping s...
ACoA estate planning webinar slide deck and recording An estate planning webinar held in June with attorney Chelsea Riekkola is available as a recording. You can watch the recording here: http://bit.ly/4k3UtV8. If you need a copy of the webinar transcript to read, please email us: doh.acoa.info@alaska.govdoh.acoa.info@alaska.gov. Other free webinars are in the works. Elder listening sessions in Nome, Shishmaref and Unalakleet July 8-11 Alaska Commission on Aging's Program Coordinator will be traveling to Nome, Shishmaref and Unalakleet July...
Marijuana use among older adults in the United States has reached a new high, with 7% of adults aged 65 and over who report using it in the past month, according to an analysis led by researchers with the Center for Drug Use and HIV/HCV Research (CDUHR) at the NYU School of Global Public Health. https://www.cduhr.org/ Their findings, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine in June, also show that the profile of those who use cannabis has changed in recent years, with pronounced increases in use by older...
Laurel Downing Bill is early for a coffee date. She announces that she has already had two cups, even though it's only 9 o'clock. She takes a seat and waits for her less caffeinated companion. But it's not coffee that keeps Bill cranking out books about Alaska history. She brims with her own stores of energy and innate curiosity. Her secret? Listening to true crime shows while she writes. "I don't pay attention to it. But words come flowing out. Murder works." Last spring, Bill published her...
Amid the "No Kings" signs at the June 14 protests across the country were many seniors marching and holding signs about Social Security and Medicare. Bill Hall was one of them. "I worry they are going to reduce or destroy it," Hall said about Social Security. He lives in senior housing in Anchorage. "Everyone there is worried because everyone depends on Social Security." Others held up signs defending Medicaid, a program that supports adults with low incomes, older adults, people with...
The Pew Research Center conducted a survey in 2024 that found 79% of U.S. adults said Social Security benefits shouldn’t be reduced in any way. But the program, which marks its 90th anniversary this year, faces multiple challenges. Most significantly, the trust fund that helps pay retirement benefits is forecast to run out by the end of 2033. The Trump administration also has made staff cuts to the Social Security Administration, the independent agency that manages the program. Those cuts reportedly have left the agency struggling to serve m...
July 1-31 Nationwide National Ice Cream Month July 1-31 Nationwide Disability Pride Month July 4 Nationwide Independence Day. You can read the Declaration of Independence here. Events across Alaska, from parades to fireworks to baseball games. July 6 Worldwide Islamic holiday Ashura, which begins at sundown on Saturday, July 5, and lasts through the evening of Sunday, July 6. July 11 Homer The Pratt Museum in Homer has an exhibit that runs through Sept. 26 by artist Sharlene Cline. "Connected" i...
Anchorage bird feeders came down this April heavy with uneaten seed and unresolved questions. Throughout the winter, local birdwatchers remarked on the absence of small passerines-an order of perching birds that includes more than half the world's avian species. Where were the redpolls, the pine grosbeaks, and white-winged crossbills? Last year these birds mobbed feeders and fir trees across the city. How could the flocks vanish like so many melting snowflakes? Science offers important clues....
Wildland fire danger is growing across Alaska. A warm and dry winter has put fire officials on high alert and prompted residents in zones where wildland meets urban development to take precautions. "The wilderness surrounding us presents a significant fire risk," said Anchorage Mayor Suzanne LaFrance at a recent town hall about fire prevention efforts across the Municipality. "Our beautiful green spaces, while cherished, also mean that the risk of fire is ever present, even in our urban core. We...
-Sign up for text alerts by texting “Anchorage” to 67283. In Fairbanks, you can text FPDALERTS to 67283. -The Municipality recommends bookmarking trusted sources’ information outlets via website or social media. These organizations are committed to providing timely, accurate information to the public: Anchorage Police Department Anchorage Fire Department Municipality of Anchorage Office of Emergency Management Anchorage Health Department: https://www.muni.org/Departments/health/Pages/default.aspx State of Alaska: https://rea...
Firewise Alaska Alaska Interagency Coordination Center Municipality of Anchorage Comprehensive Emergency Operations Plan (available in several languages) Anchorage Fire Department Wildfire Division Alaska Wildland Fire Information A comprehensive website with regular updates on fire activity. Wildland-Urban Interface Community Action Team Organizations like Access Alaska offer specialized emergency preparedness information and toolkits tailored for individuals with disabilities and seniors. The "Get Ready! Toolkit" includes checklists and...
David Washburn received the 2025 Ron Hammett Award from the Municipality of Anchorage Senior Citizens Advisory Commission on May 7. Washburn, the long-serving editor of the Senior Voice who retired in March, was singled out for his service over the course of a three-decade career at the Senior Voice. The award was presented during Older Americans Month in May. "My community work has been your community work," Washburn said in receiving the award at the Anchorage Senior Activities Center. In 2005...
Statistics published by the American Cancer Society in 2025 suggest that one of every eight men (12.5%) will experience prostate cancer during their lifetime. And the incidence rate has increased by 3% each year since 2014. Men who are 65 and older are experiencing the highest rates of prostate cancer. Yet with intervention, the survival rates for prostate cancer are high at 97.7%. Since cancer goes into remission and never really goes away, the question “What future can I expect when living with prostate cancer?” has many answers. The pro...
The Alaska Legislature has passed the fiscal year 2026 operating budget with a $2.5 million increase for senior community grants, half a million less than the $3 million increase the House originally proposed. This funding is meant to strengthen critical senior services such as Meals on Wheels, transportation, and caregiver support. Funding for an additional Assistant Long-Term Care Ombudsman position was included in the budget to address the growing needs of Alaska's aging population. The state has experienced a significant increase in...
Alaskans are more likely to lack health insurance, according to Census Bureau data. They are also racking up more medical debt. Alaska showed a 32% increase in medical debt from 2020-23, with the percentage of residents in medical debt growing from 4.90% to 6.48%. Where one lives can determine what kind of medical coverage you can get and also influence the cost of health care. Iowa had the greatest number of residents falling into medical debt, while Delaware was able to reverse medical debt the most of all states. An analysis of government...
The 42nd annual First Alaskans Institute Statewide Elders and Youth Conference will take place at the Dena’ina Center in Anchorage, Oct. 12-15. Elders and Youth is open to all who want to learn and immerse themselves in a gathering that centers Elders and youth in Native ways of knowing and being. The Elders and Youth Conference is not open to the public the way the annual Alaska Federation of Natives Conference is. EY Council representatives each register and agree to the rules that help keep the conference safe for Elders and youth. First A...
The Alaska Legal Services Corp. is welcoming a summer intern at its Fairbanks office. The intern is part of the Rural Summer Legal Corps (RSLC), a partnership between LSC and Equal Justice Works. Each summer, law student fellows join LSC-funded legal aid organizations to support clients in underserved rural areas. RSLC training started in late May with interns from across the country. From helping survivors of domestic violence to advocating for veterans and seniors, these fellows will provide legal assistance this summer. Many rural...
Many of us as children may have wondered what's going on inside the mind of an animal-what are they thinking and feeling? Most animal researchers study science because of their fascination with animals, but for a long time scientific norms made it impossible to even raise the question of animal consciousness without losing scientific credibility. Fortunately, those days have ended, thanks in large part to pioneering work by scientists such as Donald Griffin, who argued from the 1980s to his...
WASHINGTON—The U.S. House approved the “big, beautiful bill” on May 22 that Republican leaders spent months negotiating with centrists and far-right members of the party—two distinct factions that hold vastly different policy goals—over intense opposition from Democrats. The 215-214 vote ships the package to the Senate, where GOP lawmakers are expected to rewrite much of it, before sending it back across the Capitol for final approval, a process likely to stretch through the summer. President Donald Trump, who said he backed the House version,...
Women LISTEN is an Anchorage-based group of women dedicated to the mission of supporting women living with cancer by focusing on sharing information, offering emotional support and practical ideas while advocating for people with cancer, and connecting women in meaningful ways. Those who are new to the cancer journey, as well as longtime survivors, celebrate courage, give voice to fears, provide helpful tips and help smooth the path for women who have experienced the trauma of hearing the...
