KMXT 100.1 FM Public Radio in Kodiak, Alaska
Kayla Desroches/KMXT
The Alutiiq Museum just chose an active figure in Kodiak’s museum scene for its 2017 volunteer of the year award.
Alice Ryser has been involved with both the Alutiiq Museum and the Baranov Museum for many years.
“It’s so interesting and I’ve learned a lot.”
According to an Alutiiq Museum press release, Ryser began volunteering with the Baranov in the mid-70s and joined the staff as an archivist in 1983. She stayed in that position for roughly 30 years.
Then in 1999, she joined the Alutiiq Museum’s newly formed Collections Advisory Committee. She’s been a member ever since.
Ryser says she taps into her archivist skills to help the Alutiiq Museum staff with its growing collection of photos.
“They just really got into starting to collect photographs because they had a lot of people come to them asking them for information, and I think that’s what I did a lot of.”
She says she’s also assisted authors in their research and learned how to identify artifacts during her time at the Alutiiq Museum.
