The Alaska Humanities Forum is proud to announce Duty Bound, a special initiative that draws on the power of the humanities to bridge the military-civilian divide and promote deepened understanding of the experiences of those Americans affiliated with the armed services, whether active-duty, reserve, National Guard, retirees, or veterans. This initiative launches with $10,000 in dedicated funds for projects that 1) promote discussion and deepened understanding of those affiliated with the armed services, 2) tell the stories of Alaska’s veterans and military communities, and 3) support the infusion of the humanities into transitional or therapeutic programming for veterans and their families.
It knows you’re here long before you see its black silhouette against a stone. Tracks wide as three human hearts; its five toes sharp as crescent moons in snow. Your boot startles September dogwood, red fan of leaves beneath the spruce. It looks up, maw dripping crow berries, black, bitter, winter and waits. Makenzie DeVries was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. She received her BA from Millsaps College in Jackson, MS and is currently studying for her Master of Arts in Teaching at UAA.
Duty Bound Grants at a glance Grant Award Amount Up to $2,000 Funds Available $10,000 in 2016, with the possibility of renewal or expansion in future years Deadline August 15, 2016 with rolling decisions
tattoo art WAR INK poetry ENCOUNTER memoir ONE LAST TRIP film HUNTING IN WARTIME
i n s id e
Lean into it. Late brush thick around your knees, gold, folding you into the ridge. The icy river at the crook of the valley stares up at you with one sure eye.
161 East 1st Avenue, Door 15 Anchorage, Alaska 99501
By Makenzie Devries
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duty bound
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Encounter
FOR more information CONTACT Megan Zlatos, Grants Officer, mzlatos@akhf.org 907.272.5373
49 Writers
Joel Booth Jeff Moore
War Ink photographs by Johann Wolf
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
DUTY BOUND
The Alaska Humanities Forum is proud to announce Duty Bound, a special
initiative that draws on the power of the humanities to bridge the military-civilian divide and promote deepened understanding of the experiences of those Americans affiliated
Front cover: Jeff Slater
with the armed services, whether active-duty, reserve, National Guard, retirees, or veterans.
Telling to Live
The stories behind the Duty Bound initiative
By Catkin Kilcher Burton
I first learned about war from my parents, who escaped Europe on the eve of World War II to build a new life in Alaska. This new state was a popular place for war veterans, who took priority when staking a claim to 160 acres as new lands opened for homesteading. I grew up on a homestead outside Homer without electricity, running water, or television. Though isolated, my family stayed connected to the wider world through stories: stories from the newspaper, stories from our house guests, and stories from our old transistor radio hooked up to a tractor battery. I remember many WWII veterans visiting our family homestead in those days, including Clem Tillion, Bill Wakeland, and Rod Mariott. Some were eager to tell their stories; others preferred silence. When my brother Atz was drafted at 19 to serve in Vietnam, the war came home for me. I wrote to him every day. On his return, Atz carried painful stories, but also stories in song. I knew my letters meant something to him when I heard him sing, “I’d rather walk through rice paddies and get my boots all full of clay than to come back in and get no mail.” I carried his songs with me when I joined the Marine Corps. I carry those songs with me now, seven years into retirement. My transition to civilian life is still a work in progress. “Instant obedience and discipline… are but reflections of inner core of strength… submerging self for Cause and Greater Good,” wrote my mother, Ruth Mariott, in her poem, “Arlington,” that is displayed in at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. In the military, I strived for that submerged self and clear sense of purpose; now I must work to find myself again and define a new direction. As I explore this
wide open world of possibility, I return to the stories of my youth, the stories of my family and friends, the stories of our common humanity. These stories help us understand ourselves and one another. These stories bind us. Alaska has a veteran population of more than 73,000 men and women, constituting nearly 10 percent of the total state population. In Alaska, the military community is our community. I believe that veteran-civilian connections support healthy post-service transitions and a wellinformed, civically-engaged citizenry. This is why I am proud to announce the Forum’s Duty Bound initiative, which draws on the power of storytelling and the humanities to promote deepened understanding of American military experiences. In February, we supported our first Duty Bound program, organized by Lt. Col. Matt Komatsu and 49 Writers, a local organization devoted to supporting the artistic development of writers throughout Alaska. The writing workshop, Danger Close: Alaska, brought together military and civilian writers to explore experiences of war and military service. I’m pleased to share two pieces from that workshop, one by a veteran and one by a civilian. “One Last Trip,” by veteran Mark Riley, offers a raw and powerful exploration of war’s aftermath. The poem, “Encounter,” by civilian Makenzie DeVries, evokes the heightened sensory awareness often associated with PTSD. We hope these writings kindle conversation, and spark yet more stories that bind us with understanding. Catkin Kilcher Burton, Retired Col., U.S.M.C., is President and Chair of the Alaska Humanities Forum Board of Directors.
HUNTING IN WARTIME HOONAH’S CLASS OF 1966 The film still and archival photo at right are from the 2015 award-winning documentary Hunting in Wartime, directed by Alaska Humanities Forum grantee Samantha Farinella and filmed on location in Hoonah, a Tlingit village in Southeast Alaska. With Hoonah’s population hovering around 700, the village sent 26 local men to serve in the military during the Vietnam War, including every male graduate from the town’s high school class of 1966. In Hunting in Wartime, Hoonah combat veterans share their stores of going to war in distant Vietnam, and how they struggle to reintegrate to civilian life before finding peace. The film provokes conversations about the experiences of war across cultures and generations. The Alaska Humanities Forum supported the production of Hunting in Wartime with a 2012 general grant.
above: Victor Bean in Vietnam, as photographed by fellow Hoonah veteran Richard Hall. left: Flags fly in Hoonah on the Fourth of July. PhotoS courtesy of Samantha Farinella
War Ink
SEE THEIR INK. HEAR THEIR STORIES.
Larry Milan
The War Ink virtual exhibit is a partnership between the Contra Costa County Library, a collective of California’s major library systems, and Jason Deitch, a former Army media and military sociologist. War Ink features tattoos of returning combat veterans, recognizing how veterans use the striking visual medium of tattoo art to document experiences, memorialize fallen comrades, and express emotional response to coming home. Photographs by Johann Wolf. warink.org
Victoria Lord