ANGELINA, ANGEL FROM AK, HEADS TO DC
The least-well-kept secret is out — Angelina Burney, who serves a Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s scheduler, is heading to DC to administrate the Alaska senator’s office.
Angelina, a well known political figure who is also chair of the Midnight Sun Republican Women’s Club, will step down from the presidency of the club in November as she becomes Administrative Services Director and returns to the nation’s capital, where she has worked in the past. Her husband Erick will join her in DC.
“It has been the privilege of a lifetime to serve as President of MSRWC,” she wrote. “When I became involved in Republican politics in 1998, I set a goal to serve as president of a local women’s club. I could not have had a more dynamic, talented, dedicated and energetic group of board members and organization members to work with.”
Angelina joined the senator’s staff in 2013, and has a long career in politics. She is the person who Alaskans would speak with if they wanted the senator to show up at a meeting or to give a speech. She will continue to do scheduling in her new role as office administrator.
Angelina has been on the board of the Midnight Sun Republicans since 2009, was a delegate to the 2008 RNC convention, and has been involved with district politics since at least 2002.
She’s an avid snowmachine sportswoman, and is going to miss Arctic Man. Bet on it.
FATHER ELLIOTT TAKES HIS LEAVE
Beloved to many Alaskans, Father Norman Elliott passed away on Sept. 9, 2016. He was 97.
Father Elliott was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II. He was heading to seminary when he joined the Army in 1942, after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Elliott fought the Germans in France, Luxembourg, Germany, and England. In an interview, he said in 2013:
“I remember good times, I remember bad times. I remember times where I barely escaped by the skin of my teeth. You never forget. I remember, and there are things that I wish I had done, or didn’t do. I hope that as a whole, Alaskans remember what we did, because as a nation, we are losing our remembrance of WWII.”
Returning to the U.S. after the war, he devoted the rest of his life to the ministry through the Episcopal Church. The church sent him to Alaska in 1952, and he dedicated the next 50 years of his life to the Lord’s work, first in at St. Mark’s in Nenana, but also at St. Stephen’s in Fort Yukon, St. Matthew’s in Fairbanks, St. John’s in Ketchikan and All Saints in Anchorage.
Father Elliott was good friends with Sen. Ted. Stevens, Sen. Don Young, and other political leaders. Sen. Stevens worshiped at All Saints in Anchorage, whenever he was in the city. When in 1978 a small jet carrying Stevens and his wife Ann crashed at the Anchorage International Airport, Elliott was rushed to the hospital with a police escort to join his friend’s side. He was the one who broke the news to Ted that his wife Ann had not survived the crash.
Years later, Elliott performed the marriage ceremony for Ted and Catherine Stevens.
KATE AND WILL IN BC, YUKON THIS MONTH
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will visit B.C. and Yukon this month, with stops in Vancouver, Victoria, Bella Bella, Haida Gwaii and Kelowna, B.C. They will also be stopping in Whitehorse and Carcross, Yukon.
Prince William and Kate’s trip will last from Sept. 24 and Oct. 1, according to Kensington Palace. Word has it they will be staying at Marsh Lake in Northern BC at least for some of the visit.
The royal couple last visted Canada in the summer of 2011 as newlyweds. This will be their first trip to BC and the Yukon.