Brown Bear Trust and Alutiiq Museum Receive Foundation Largess this Week

Members of the Kodiak Community Foundation present a giant check to the Alutiiq Heritage Foundation during the third Giving Tuesday.  Amy Steffian photo

Jay Barrett/KMXT

December is the Kodiak Community Foundation’s “Month of Giving,” and yesterday the group presented its fifth and sixth grants.

The Kodiak Brown Bear Trust received $1,000 toward the replacement of the Madsen Family Bear statue, which was created by Jonas Brothers in 1955. The group would like to replace the aging fiberglass statue with a bronze bear sculpture by Stan Watts, which will cost an estimated $75,000.

KCF’s Advisory Board Chair Ginny Austerman said the project will, like the old Madsen Bear, bring enjoyment to both residents and visitors alike.

The Alutiiq Heritage Foundation was given a grant of $896 to develop new informational material for the Alutiiq Museum, including a new brochure and a cross-platform web app that will feature an interactive 360-degree virtual tour of the museum. 

A total of seven grants will be awarded by the Kodiak Community Foundation this month. Last month Threshold Services and the KANA Elder Assistance Program were recipients, and on December 1st, the Kodiak Girl Scouts and Baranov Museum Arts and Crafts program received grants. The final grant recipient will be named next Tuesday.