NOAA Preserve America Initiative

Interviewee Collection Sort ascending Description Interviewer Date of Interview Location of Interview Affiliation
Alannah Hurley Women in Alaska Fisheries

Alannah Hurley is the Executive Director of the United Tribes of Bristol Bay in Alaska. She is a Yupik fisherwoman of salmon for subsistence and commercial purposes. She discusses her heritage and how she learned to fish as a child, and historical socio-cultural processes of the Bristol Bay region. She also discusses her experience and knowledge of climate change and the challenges Yupik people face in regard to climate change and their struggle to maintain their identity, culture, and relationship with the environment.

Anna Lavoie, Jean Lee, Kim Sparks , Kitty Sopow, Sean Day Dillingham, AK Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, NOAA Fisheries, Alaska Fisheries Science Center , Bristol Bay Native Association , NOAA Preserve America Initiative
Carol Ann Hester, Meg Anna Schlais and Elizabeth Hester Women in Alaska Fisheries

CarolAnn Hester, MegAnna Schlais, and Elizabeth Hester represent three generations of women fishing in Naknek, Alaska. CarolAnn and MegAnna are a mother/daughter team who commercially fish, and all three women participate in subsistence fishing.  In this interview, CarolAnn, MegAnna and Elizabeth talk about how they got started in fishing, the products they produce and their participation in the subsistence lifestyle, which includes gardening. They also talk about their strong work ethic, and what motivates them to fish.

Kim Sparks , JudyJo Matson Nakenk, AK Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, NOAA Fisheries, Bristol Bay Native Association , NOAA Preserve America Initiative
June Ingram Women in Alaska Fisheries

June Ingram is an elder Yupik fisherwoman from Bristol Bay, Alaska. She has fished salmon (subsistence and commercial) at her family's fish camp site, which has been in her family since the 1940's. In the interview June describes what it's like to fish with multiple generations of her family and how she passes on values and lessons to younger generations through salmon fishing practices. She also discusses her experience of environmental change.

Anna Lavoie, Kitty Sopow Dillingham, AK Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, NOAA Fisheries, Alaska Fisheries Science Center , Bristol Bay Native Association , NOAA Preserve America Initiative
Simuka Smith Women in Alaska Fisheries

Simuka Smith is a fisherwoman living in Dillingham Alaska who has participated in subsistence and commercial fishing for the past two decades. She is a retired commercial fisherwoman and skilled in many trades. She talks about her experiences and adventures commercial and subsistence fishing, and moose hunting as well as her overall life in Bristol Bay. This interview is part of the Alaska Native Fisherwomen of Bristol Bay oral history project, a partnership between NOAA Fisheries Alaska Fisheries Science Center and Bristol Bay Native Association.

Anna Lavoie, Jean Lee, Kim Sparks , Kitty Sopow Dillingham, AK Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, NOAA Fisheries, Alaska Fisheries Science Center , Bristol Bay Native Association , NOAA Preserve America Initiative
Connie Timmerman Women in Alaska Fisheries

Connie Timmerman is a Native fisherwoman of Bristol Bay Alaska who has fished for decades including salmon for subsistence. She discusses her heritage and how she learned to fish as a young woman, and fishing activities with her family. She emphasizes how women, such as herself and daughters, must be skilled for the local lifestyle of fishing and hunting, and the values of family working together. Her bear dog, Maggie, makes an appearance at the end of the interview.

Anna Lavoie, Jean Lee Dillingham, AK Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, NOAA Fisheries, Alaska Fisheries Science Center , Bristol Bay Native Association , NOAA Preserve America Initiative
Rhonda Wayner, Harmony Wayner and Betty Bonin Women in Alaska Fisheries

Betty Bonin (grandmother), Rhonda Wayner (mother) and Harmony Wayner (daughter) represent three generations of Alaska Native fisherwomen in Naknek, Alaska. In this interview, these ladies discuss their family heritage of having strong, female fishers in the family, the physical nature of fishing, and family roles in the fishery. Rhonda participated in a follow-up phone interview where she further discusses her history in the fishery, environmental changes she's witnessed, as well as family bonds that are created through fishing.

Kim Sparks , Kitty Sopow Naknek, AK Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, NOAA Fisheries, Alaska Fisheries Science Center , Bristol Bay Native Association , NOAA Preserve America Initiative
Lewis Lawrence Voices from the Working Waterfront Oral History Project

Biographical Note:
Lewis “Lewie” Lawrence is the Executive Director of the Middle Peninsula Planning District Commission in Saluda, Virginia.

David Caruso Saluda, VA National Working Waterfront Network, National Sea Grant Law Center, NOAA Office of Coastal Management, Maine Sea Grant College Program, NOAA Preserve America Initiative
Sherrie Miller Voices from the Working Waterfront Oral History Project


Biographical Note:
Sherrie Miller is a resident of Panacea, Florida born on December 19, 1961. She works in her family’s restaurant, Posey’s Restaurant, and serves as the Vice- Chairman of the Panacea Waterfronts Florida Partnership.

Anna Hamilton Panacea, FL National Working Waterfront Network, National Sea Grant Law Center, NOAA Office of Coastal Management, Maine Sea Grant College Program, NOAA Preserve America Initiative
William Needelman Voices from the Working Waterfront Oral History Project

Biographical Note:
William “Bill” Needelman is the Waterfront Coordinator for the City of Portland, Maine. He was born in Portland, Maine on April 3, 1964.

Kristen Grant Portland, ME National Working Waterfront Network, National Sea Grant Law Center, NOAA Office of Coastal Management, Maine Sea Grant College Program, NOAA Preserve America Initiative
Laurie Sommers Voices from the Working Waterfront Oral History Project


Biographical Note: Laurie Kay Sommers is a freelance folklorist and historic preservation consultant based in Okemos, Michigan. She has been writing about Michigan history and culture since the 1970’s.

Amanda Holmes Leland, MI National Working Waterfront Network, National Sea Grant Law Center, NOAA Office of Coastal Management, Maine Sea Grant College Program, NOAA Preserve America Initiative