(Senate - July 17, 2012)
Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, it is with a heavy heart that I come before you today to share the news of a profound tragedy and loss of two Alaska Native siblings. Isaac Juneby, a military veteran and former Chief of Eagle, a Han Gwich'in Village in Alaska close to the Canadian border, and his sister Ellen Juneby Rada, who died as a result of domestic violence, were both laid to rest and their lives honored and celebrated with a potlatch in Eagle Village, July 11, 2012.
Ellen Florence Juneby Rada, 58 years old, was the mother of two grown sons. She was found beaten, seriously injured and unconscious in a homeless camp in Fairbanks and was transported to the Alaska Native Medical Center for treatment. Ellen was taken off life support on July 2 and passed away on Sunday, July 8.
Isaac Juneby was born on July 9, 1941, in Eagle Village. He had traveled to Anchorage from Eagle to hold vigil at the bedside of his comatose sister and died in an automobile accident on July 1, 2012. Following Isaac's sudden accidental death another Juneby sibling, Adeline Juneby Potts, flew to Anchorage from Minnesota to join her family and due to emotional stress suffered a heart attack and was hospitalized. Fortunately, Adeline is recovering rapidly.
There are no words to describe the grief this family has suffered due to the heartbreaking events that unfolded over such a short period of time. The loss is felt not just by the Juneby family, but by the entire Alaska Native community. Our State may be small in population, but it is large in community spirit. I think I can safely say the entire State of Alaska is touched by this tragedy.
I would like to say a few words about Isaac Juneby, whose loss will have a lasting impact not only to the village of Eagle, but across the entire Native community. Isaac was one of the few remaining speakers of Han, an endangered northern Athabascan language with only about a handful of remaining speakers left in Alaska and the Yukon, a territory of Canada. He was a man that everyone seemed to know and love. Isaac had an almost tangible joy about him that drew people in and endeared him to many. His nickname ``the Senator'' was well earned. Isaac was always quick with a joke and had an infectious smile that made everyone around him happy. But most of all he loved life and his people.
Isaac was incredibly proud of his family and his heritage. He exemplified a man who could easily navigate both worlds: the traditional and the modern. He had an easygoing and friendly manner that won him many lifelong friends, but he also had a disciplined and serious side. Isaac was an accomplished man who earned a bachelor's degree in rural development from the University of Alaska in 1987. He wrote poetry, published books and recorded language lessons in Han Gwich'in Athabascan to preserve the dialect for future generations. Isaac and Sandi, his best friend and wife of 35 years, were planning to move to Fairbanks so Isaac could complete a master's degree in ethnology. He wanted to learn more about the Han.
Over the years Isaac held a number of important positions for Native organizations, the State, and the Federal Government and remained a resident of Eagle Village even through the very challenging times, like during the disaster of 2008, when a major flood devastated the community. Isaac was also instrumental in completing the essential paperwork that helped Eagle Village become the first IRA village in Alaska, one with a federally recognized tribal government.
People will remember Isaac not only for his good humor but for his great strength and determination. Isaac was proud to celebrate over 25 years of sobriety and was known to say that it was God who freed him from alcohol. The Rev. Scott Fisher, pastor at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church got it right when he said ``Isaac was the last of the good guys. There was a strength and a gentleness running through him. He knew what was right and what was wrong. He was not a cardboard saint.
He was real. He had a rock solid core of wisdom in him.''
Isaac's humor and his positive outlook on life served as an inspiration to so many who had the honor and privilege to know him. With the passing of Isaac Juneby, Alaska has lost a beloved Native elder and chief, a father, a culture bearer, a brother, an honored Army veteran, a husband, an inspirational man, an uncle, and a good friend. On this day I ask that we honor the lives of an extraordinary family and remember them during this time of such profound loss. |
