Kotzebue

Working in Kotzebue, Alaska, is one of those assignments that leaves a mark—the kind you don’t even fully realize until you’ve left. Sure, it was remote, but what made it unforgettable was the way Maniilaq Health Center completely shifted how I thought about OB nursing. It was a style grounded in trust, genuine connection, and […]

Before I came to Kotzebue, I’d never gone berry picking in the Arctic. In fact, it had been years since I’d been berry picking, period. I’d heard people talk about it—how the tundra comes alive in late summer with hidden patches of fruit—but I didn’t really understand what that meant until I was out there,

I recently had the chance to visit another village for smoke alarm installation, and, just like last time, I jumped at the opportunity. Our destination this time was Buckland, another small village nestled in the Northwest Arctic Borough of Alaska. Buckland sits along the Buckland River, with a population of around 500 people, most of

Rebekah and I had been planning a trip to Point Hope for weeks. Point Hope, Alaska, like many remote coastal villages, sits at the tip of a gravel spit along the Chukchi Sea. It’s part of the North Slope borough, though it’s closer to Kotzebue, and therefore it’s serviced by Maniilaq Health Center (the hospital

Thursday morning began under a blanket of clouds. At 8 a.m., we texted the tour company, unsure of what the day held. “Meet at 10:15,” they said. Perfect. At 10:00, they changed the time to 10:30. But by 11:00, we were finally boarding the small plane, where Remy, the tour company’s dog, darted around us,

When the opportunity arose to volunteer in Kivalina, a remote Inupiat village perched on a narrow barrier island at the very edge of the Chukchi Sea, I didn’t hesitate. Visiting these villages is no easy feat—flights are expensive, and access is limited. So, when a chance came for a free trip and to contribute meaningfully