April 2001 NEWSLETTER
Coordinator Nancy M. Mendenhall
P.O. box 1141 Nome, Alaska 99762
(907) 443-2455
nfnmm@yahoo.com
mailing instructions: <www.uuff.org/chukotka.htm>
If you would like to be on our list to receive this newsletter by e-mail, send a message to e-mail address above.
Brief News, 5 April 2001: Things are going better in Chukotka
with regard to support to aid organizations from the new governor. He is
supporting the Hope Race, an international dog team race including some
Alaskan mushers, in Chukotka this week. He has made transportation of groups
and aid packages easier. He
is also continuing on with his own aid from his private foundation,
especially for kids. He has strongly encouraged reduction of retail
prices in Anadyr. But I am not aware of any changes he has been able
to make in the economy itself yet, and that is not surprising. That
will take major work and time.
We completed our mailing to another village, Kaiettyn, in February,
and began on three more: Vankarem, Konergino and Uelkal, starting with
10 fish net webs
and clothing to each. The webs can be cut in half. The funds
for webs and postage came from the American Friends Service Committee.
We have been receiving
boxes of donated stitchery materials and yarn which the women had requested
too, and a large donation for wool sox, something we are always short of.
A Quaker
group in Maine is knitting quilts for the orphanage kids in Anadyr.
We received thank you letters or messages for the first time from
these villages: Chuvanskoe, Nunligran, Neshkan, and several from Yanrakinnot
and
Anadyr (Tavaivaam). These were all for shipments sent last fall
that apparently got there in early February. We alerted the families who
had sent the boxes if they
had not heard, but some had already gotten thank you's.
We also heard belatedly that Neshkan and Omolon had a complete failure
of their heating systems this winter and that an emergency federal helicopter
went into
Neshkan to bring aid of some kind. We did not hear how it was
resolved at Omolon.
Better news came from the Chukotskii region that Mikhail Zelensky was
appointed administrator for the region by the governor.. He is a
very able and dedicated
humanist who will do the best possible for his people. Another man
was also appointed to the Providenskii region, but his name escapes me;
people from there
thought he would do well.
I will keep this short, but thanks again to all of you who have
contributed time, money, materials, and ideas to this project. It has been
very productive and
appreciated, and will be still needed for a time to come. It
will be even more productive with a cooperative governor.
(If you browse these other newsletters, come back to this page by using the "Back" button on your browser)