Dear Friends,

December is the month full of holiday celebrations and gatherings, marked by the Winter Solstice and its heralding of increasing daylight. With all the activities and navigating that winter asks of us, please remember to take care of yourself and reach out for support as we don’t do this alone. 

As this year comes to an end, we look forward to welcoming the many new faces at the Alliance. Melvin Captain joined us on December 18 as the Wellness Coalition Specialist/ Program Coordinator, so you will soon get a chance to meet him at either our virtual or in-person meetings. In addition, you will get to see the new faces of our Weaver team, new Regional Co-Chairs, and our Co-Chair Builder. We've included short introductions for these folks in the Announcements section below—please feel free to reach out to say hi and welcome them to The Alliance!

Our offices will be closed in observance of the holiday. We will be closed on December 22nd, 25th, and the 29th. We will also be closed on January 1 in observance of the New Year. As an administrative update: Tiffany is currently out on maternity leave for the next few months, and Sara Platt and Joan Fisher will be filling in. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions!

Activities and meetings coming up: 

  • January 11: All-Alliance meeting, hosted via Zoom from 1:30-3pm.
  • January 18: Alliance Open Space Session, hosted via Zoom from 1:30-3pm.
  • March 5-6: Alliance Strategic Planning Session, to be hosted both virtually and in-person. Please stay tuned for more details regarding this event's location and times.

All Work Group meetings will reconvene after New Year. Feel free to email the Workgroup Weavers, Melvin, or myself to request meeting times.
Thanks to all of you for the work you do, and make sure and celebrate your 2023 successes! Feel free to send us your news and updates for next month's newsletter via the submission link below.
Happy Holidays,
Marlene 
We will always do our best to publish upcoming events in a timely, regular manner for our newsletter subscribers. We also keep an event calendar through the Recover Alaska website that allows our partners a secondary means of sharing their event news with our community. We welcome your submissions!
Examining FASD Diagnosis ECHO | Launching Jan - May 2024

The Examining FASD Diagnosis ECHO is a virtual learning network that will explore the necessity of establishing a holistic system of care to support those impacted by prenatal alcohol exposure. The series will feature the expertise of those with lived experience and professionals in screening, assessment, and evaluation, as well as treatment integration.

This is a Zoom event that is free to attend and is intended for interdisciplinary, multi-sector clinical and non-clinical experts who provide support and services to individuals impacted by prenatal alcohol exposure. This ECHO series is sponsored by the Department of Health, Office of Substance Misuse and Addiction Prevention and hosted by University of Alaska Anchorage, Center for Human Development, Project ECHO. Free continuing education credit will be offered and more information will be available.

Session Dates in 2024:


  • January 12
  • January 26
  • February 9
  • February 23
  • March 8
  • April 5
  • April 19
  • May 3
  • May 17
Communications Workgroup—Join Us!

The Communications Workgroup will resume meeting in January, and we're hoping you'll join us! We will be implementing the Youth Underage Alcohol Use Prevention campaign, working on The Alliance website updates, and providing outreach to current and potential network members through the monthly newsletter and perhaps a new Facebook page! If you're interested in joining the workgroup or being updated more regularly on activities, please email Communications Workgroup Weaver Faith Ozer Green (fozer@alaska.edu) and Kelby Murphy at kelby@walshsheppard.com.
Nominations for Spirit of Youth Open Through December 31st

Do you know a teen or youth group doing something positive in your community? Nominate them for Spirit of Youth Recognition! Award categories include: Role Model, Innovator, Phoenix, Life Saver, Humanitarian, Discovery, Dreamer, and Visionary.

Spirit of Youth knows that good things are happening in our state and young people are often at the heart of them. For 26 years, Spirit of Youth has empowered Alaska’s youth through statewide, media-based youth recognition programs.

Spirit of Youth relies on community members to let youth know they matter by making a nomination for recognition. Nominations help create opportunities for youth leadership and allow teens to share their voices and get recognized for their contributions.
Of the nominees, eight youth or youth groups and eight runners-up are selected to receive Spirit of Youth Awards—including a scholarship. All Alaskan youth ages 12-19 are eligible.

The deadline to nominate youth is December 31. For more information, email: info@spiritofyouth.org.
Affordable Connectivity Program

The Affordable Connectivity Program is a Federal Communications Commission program that helps connect families and households struggling to afford internet service. This new benefit provides a discount of up to $75 per month toward internet service for eligible households. Eligible households may also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers.

Eligible households can enroll by visiting www.getinternet.gov.

You can learn more about the benefit, including eligibility and enrollment information, by visiting www.fcc.gov/ACP, or by calling 877-384-2575. Additionally, you may contact Stephanie Stillwell, Affordable Connectivity Program Coordinator with Qizhjeh Heritage Institute at sstillwell@kijikcorp.com.
Join The Alliance as a Regional Co-Chair!

We're on the lookout for dedicated individuals to become Regional Co-Chairs across the state, specifically in the Copper River Delta, Rural Interior, Northern, Northwest, and Yukon Kuskokwim regions of Alaska.

As Co-Chair, you'll play a vital role in bridging the gap between your region and The Alliance, fostering real-time communication and collaboration. Recognizing the significance of local relationships, we invite those with a passion for recovery and community empowerment to take on this meaningful role. If you or someone you know is ready to make a positive impact, reach out to Stephanie Stillwell at stephanie@mindbloomalaska.com.

Stephanie is the current Gulf Coast Regional Co-Chair and the Co-Chair Builder for The Alliance. Join us in building a stronger, more connected recovery network in Alaska!
Upcoming Survey: Member Experience/Feedback for The Alliance

In the new year, as part of our annual evaluation, the Alliance evaluation team will be sending out a survey to all members to learn about your experience in the network. Your feedback will help our network continually improve and work towards our shared goals. If you have any questions please contact Hanna Menefee (hanna@stellargp.com).

Interested members are also invited to participate in the Evaluation & Learning Workgroup.
About The Alliance

The Alliance is a collaborative effort of multiple and diverse partners across Alaska who recognize the impacts of alcohol misuse on individuals and communities. We are personally and professionally committed to working together to address this complex problem in our state.

Our primary goal is to connect and engage communities as partners — increasing protective factors, reducing risk factors, and changing social norms — to prevent underage alcohol use and eliminate adult misuse in Alaska.

Alliance Materials


Get Involved

Between starting new work and sustaining our progress, there are many opportunities to participate in The Alliance! All current workgroups are open to any member who would like to join. You can always read more about our workgroups and their purpose on the Get Involved page of our website. Our network practices an emergent strategy, and we update information based on our network's needs.

  • The Communications/Social Norms Workgroup will be supporting the social norms campaign and The Alliance's various other internal and external communications needs.
  • The Data and Learning Workgroup will be supporting data equity conversations and practices.
  • The Evaluation and Learning Workgroup is building out quarterly measures for the network to support grant reporting but also to increase real-time evaluation across the network so we can track and respond to improvement needs more frequently.
  • The Strategy and Design Workgroup builds structures and processes for the network to work in alignment with our values and theory of change.

You are welcome to reach out with questions about those workgroups or to ask to join any of them.
If you would like to submit content for The Alliance newsletter, please email Marlene at madams@recoveralaska.org and Erin Torgerson at erin@walshsheppard.com.