Acknowledgments

This and other oral narratives published by the Tununak Folklore Project are the result of a collaborative effort involving traditional elders of Tununak, students and staff of Paul T. Albert Memorial School, the Yup'ik Studies Department of the Lower Kuskokwim School District, the Bread Loaf School of English, the Alaska Humanities Forum, and various individuals in the community of Tununak. Deserving particular recognition are Elsie Hooper and the students of her middle elementary bilingual education classes during the school years of 1986-1987. who did the first draft transcription and translation of many of the recorded oral narratives herein, Pauline Haas, Roseanne Walter, Peter Angaiak and Irma Hooper put in many tireless hours proofreading, transcribing and translating, as did Anna Angaiak. Donna Murphy, the Tununak principal, was invaluable in bringing the funds and resources of the school to bear at an especially critical moment and giving direction and inspiration when it was most needed. Former Tununak principals Ian Parks and John Kaufman provided much support for the project during their tenures. We were especially fortunate to have the illustrating talents of Xavier Lincoln and Ira Menegak, both of Tununak. Irene Reed of the Alaska Native Language Center spent the better part of the summer instructing us in the Yup'ik orthography and she and Anna Jacobson spent many months helping to proofread the final manuscript, and for this we are deeply grateful. Finally, none of this would have been possible were it not for the elders who told these stories and consented to share their knowledge of the traditions and oral literature of the community. In particular we wish to thank Jents Flynn Dick Lincoln, Mike Angaiak, Jack Angaiak, and Theresa Hooper who assisted us in the translation. There cooperation and expertise were invaluable.
Throughout the project we received generous grants of support from Mr. Bingham's Fund for Charity at the Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College, the Alaska Humanities Forum, and the Bilingual Department of the Lower Kuskokwim School District. In the final stages of this publication, the Yup'ik Studies Department of the Lower Kuskokwim School District agreed to pay the salary of one of the translators, thereby speeding and expanding our work considerably, and for this we wish to extend our thanks to the Lower Kuskokwim Regional School Board, Superintendent Sue Hare, Assistant Superintendent John Weise, Director of Instructional Programs Glen Mordine, Yup'ik Studies Coordinator Charles Kashatok, and Yup'ik Studies Director Joe Slats. The generosity and support of the above is deeply appreciated.
At last, we wish to thank our publisher, the Alaska Native Language Center, its Director Michael Krauss, and Editor Tom Alton for their assistance in preparing the manuscript and bringing all this to light.
As the compilers and translators of this present volume, we alone are responsible for all errors and inaccuracies that have come about in the production of this book.
-Eliza Cingarkaq Orr and Ben Orr compilers and translators.
Cost: $18.75

Information about the resource can be found at:

ANKN Clearinghouse P.O. Box 756730 Fairbanks, AK 99775-6730 Tel: (907) 474-5897 or email: ANKN Clearinghouse

Charles Kashatok Yup'ik Curriculum Specialist P.O.Box 305 Bethel, Alaska 99559 Tel: (907) 543-4853 or email: Charles_Kashatok@fc.lksd-do.org

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