Nanwalek

On Wednesday I (Anna) accompanied Cindy on her weekly trip to Nanwalek. As a speech pathologist, she takes a little puddle-jumper 3 days a week to some of the Alaska Native villages that are across the bay from Homer.

Nanwalek is a village of about 200 people, with a combined elementary-middle-high school of approximately 70 students. I got to hang out with Cindy and meet about 5 of her speech students, in between which I explored the village.

Nanwalek feels more like a 3rd world country than anything I’ve encountered in the U.S. People own ATVs instead of cars, live in dilapidated houses, and struggle with deafness and diabetes related to in-breeding, not to mention mental health issues such as depression and alcohol addiction.

I admire Cindy and the other teachers for working there, but I’m not sure I’d be able to do it! It’s a challenging, but rewarding, environment.