APIA

September is National Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month, and Unalaskans Against Sexual Assault and Family Violence will be holding its annual Make-A-Difference Dinner to acknowledge those affected by suicide, raise awareness and connect individuals to services.

September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, suicide is a major public health concern in the United States. In Alaska, state and tribal organizations report that suicide rates are increasing.

Unalaska’s new Head Start facility opened to children Tuesday, following years of preparation. The federally-funded education program aims to prepare local students under five for primary school, while also passing on Unangax̂ traditions.

Privacy can be challenging in Unalaska, which has 4,254 residents. But when it comes to substance misuse treatment, local behavioral health providers are working to make sure privacy isn’t a barrier.

The Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association will open its new Head Start facility in Unalaska this September, replacing the island's existing Head Start building. The federally-funded program is for low-income families with young children promoting education readiness and it’ll be housed in a much larger building dedicated to the late Maria Turnpaugh.

The Unalaska Health Fair starts Friday, April 21. The focus of the 2023 fair is creating a cultural base for wellbeing, ranging from behavioral health services and elder care to traditional foods. “I really believe that when you tie in a cultural aspect to healthy habits, you’re engaged more,” said Courtney Edwards, health promotion and wellness events coordinator for the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association.

"We know that it’s important for people to be able to get together during difficult times," said USAFV Board Chair Karen Kresh. "We still wanted to offer a way for people to gather and be around their friends and neighbors, especially if they’re feeling sad or lonely right now."

Historians announced Thursday that they’ve uncovered evidence that key details about the teenager who designed Alaska’s state flag have been wrong for more than a century.Benny Benson, a Seward boarding school resident, won the state’s flag design contest in 1927. But he was a year older than previously thought, according to Michael iqyax̂ Livingston, who works for the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association’s community health services.“I've been working for several years with several other family tree researchers focused on Benny Benson's cultural heritage,” Livingston said. “And in the process of that research, we found what we believe were errors in his date of birth and his mother's maiden name.”

Unalaska is once again handing out at-home coronavirus test kits, according to local health officials. The island received its first supply earlier this month, but ran out less than 24 hours after offering them to the public. Iliuliuk Family and Health Services received 400 kits from the state Tuesday, each with two tests per box, said Jennifer Heller, a certified nurse midwife with the clinic.

Unalaska has received its first shipment of at-home COVID-19 tests, according to local health officials. A shipment of 200 tests from the state of Alaska arrived this week and is now available to the community, said Megan Sarnecki, medical director at the Iliuliuk Family and Health Services clinic. The clinic was approved for 1,000 at-home tests – or 500 boxes of two tests each – from the state.