AUUF Podcasts

Steve Lindbeck ran as a democrat in the 2016 Congressional election against Rep. Don Young. In 2015 Steve retired as CEO and General Manager for Alaska Public Media, after a 30-year career in journalism and public affairs.

Hayden Neville was introduced to Unitarian Universalism in the 1980s, when he kept seeing the same UU faces showing up for pro-choice rallies and gay pride parades. Soon thereafter, as a young college student, he joined the UU Church of Baton Rouge. He is a former congregational board President of the UU Fellowship of Fairbanks, and he is the current President of the Pacific Northwest District of the UUA. Hayden is a veterinarian by profession and a transgender activist by avocation.

Gary Holthaus has served as the called minister for our Fellowship since 2012. 

Gregory and Maleika Jones have been married for 31 years, and have eight children and 10 grandchildren. They have opened their Wasilla home to neighbors and coworkers and it has become an unofficial community center where food, comfort, interfaith dialogue and after school functions are offered. Gregory, 50, was born in Washington, D.C.  He is a Master Electrician and certified engineering technician. He has a long history of community activism and volunteering. He works with the NAACP, the Anchorage Police and Fire Chaplain Association, and the Alaska Democratic Party.  Maleika is a social welfare and interfaith activist working for the betterment of the people of Alaska. She is passionate about counseling and community service and offers assistance to the homeless and runaway youth at MY House Homeless Teenage Shelter.  She is also a representative of the United Muslim Christian Forum-Alaska chapter. Through this organization she organizes faith-based discussions bridging gaps and dispelling misconceptions about Islam.  Gregory and Maleika Jones have recently been in the news as the result of remarks by MOA Assembly member Amy Demboski on her radio show.   

Prof. Steve Haycox has taught Alaska History at the University of Alaska Anchorage since 1970. He is an American cultural historian, focusing his work on how the notion of frontier has shaped American thinking. Dr. Haycox has published widely in professional journals and in popular publications. His subjects include Alaska Native history, Alaska environmental history and the nature of northern settlement. University of Washington Press published his new history of Alaska, Alaska: An American Colony in 2002, and Oregon State University Press published his analysis of the relationship between economy and environment in Alaska, called Frigid Embrace: Politics, Economy and Environment in Alaska, the same year. He has often worked with Anchorage School District teachers, and has traveled throughout the state.

Chris Tuck will be the 30th Alaska State Legislature House Majority Leader for the new coalition beginning January 20, 2017. Tuck has represented the 23rd District in Anchorage since he was elected to the House in 2008. From 2013 to 2016, he served as the Alaska House Minority Leader for the Independent Democratic coalition. Previously Tuck served on the Anchorage School Board. Originally hailing from California, Tuck moved to Alaska as a teen in 1972. He graduated from Dimond High School and completed an Electrical Apprenticeship. He worked as a Business Representative and Organizer for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1547. He has also served on the Boards of the Alaska Joint Electrical Apprenticeship Training Trust; Alaska Process Industry Careers Consortium; and Putting Alaska Resources to Work.

Gary Holthaus has served as the called minister for our Fellowship since 2012. 

Bill Sherwonit is a free-lance nature writer who lives in Anchorage. He’s authored more than a dozen books on topics ranging from the Iditarod to Denali National Park. His most recent books include "Animal Stories: Encounters with Alaska's Wildlife" and "Living with Wildness: An Alaskan Odyssey." A former columnist for The Anchorage Times, Bill has contributed stories and photos to a wide variety of national publications, including Orion, National Wildlife and Backpacker. His essays have appeared in several anthologies, including Best American Science and Nature Writing, Best Travel Writing, and The Last New Land: Stories of Alaska Past and Present. 

Hilary A. Morgan is the CEO of YWCA Alaska. She is nationally recognized as a leader in the fields of homelessness, housing, diversity and women’s issues. No stranger to the for-profit world Morgan spent her younger years on Wall Street and founded several businesses, the latest being Resourceful Results, LLC, a program and systems architecture company specializing in transformational solutions to persistent social justice challenges with clients in New York, Washington, DC and Alaska. She currently is spearheading EconEquity, an initiative to eliminate the gender pay gap in Alaska by 2025.

Gary Holthaus is the Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship's Called Minister.

Rev. Beatrice Hitchcock has spent over twenty years in UU ministry, serving three congregations in Alaska and two Outside, as intern, organizing, transitional, or interim minister; she was ordained by AUUF in 1997. She lives with her spouse at the base of Sheep Mountain and is now working with an emerging congregation in the Mat-Su Valley.