Mary Jane Fate

Mary Jane Fate
Fate in 2014
Born	Mary Jane Evans (1933-09-04)September 4, 1933 Rampart, Territory of Alaska
Died	April 10, 2020(2020-04-10) (aged 86) Fairbanks, Alaska
Nationality	American
Occupation	Native American activist
Years active	1962–2020
Spouse	Hugh Fate ​ (m. 1954)​
Children	3
Relatives	Dan Sullivan (son-in-law)

Mary Jane Fate (née Evans; September 4, 1933 — April 10, 2020)^[1] was a Koyukon Athabascan activist. She was a founding member of the Fairbanks Native Association and the Institute of Alaska Native Arts and worked as a lobbyist for the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. She co-founded the Tundra Times newspaper and served as a director of the corporate board for Alaska Airlines for over two decades. She served as co-chair of the Alaska Federation of Natives between 1988 and 1989, the first woman to serve in the capacity, and was the third president and a founding member of the North American Indian Women's Association. Fate has served on various commissions and national studies of issues which affect indigenous people. She was the project manager of a study of women and disability, served as the only indigenous member of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission and was a member of U.S. Census Advisory Committee on indigenous populations. She has received numerous honors and awards for her activism on behalf of Native Americans and was inducted into the Alaska Women's Hall of Fame in 2014.

Early life

Mary Jane Evans was born in 1933 in Rampart, in the United States Territory of Alaska, to Sally (née Woods, later Hudson) and Thomas George Evans, Jr.^[2][3] Her father was a trapper and mail carrier.^[4] After completing her primary education, Evans attended Mount Edgecumbe Boarding School in Sitka, graduating in 1952.^[2][5] She then went on to study accounting at the University of Alaska and simultaneously worked at Wien Alaska Airlines to pay her way through school.^[2][6] On October 29, 1954, she married Hugh Fate, Jr.,^[7] who would become a dentist and Native Americans rights activist. The couple had three daughters, Janine, Jennifer and Julie.^[8] Their daughter Julie married United States Senator Dan Sullivan of Alaska.^[9]

Career

After her marriage, Fate returned to work at Wien Alaska Airlines.^[6] Fate and her husband were part of the founding members of the Fairbanks Native Association which organized in 1962 and 1963.^[10][11] Around the same time, she became involved in the Tundra Times, the first news organization written by and for Native Alaskans, which served not only to inform the community of important issues throughout the state, but the state's congressional leaders of those issues the indigenous population felt were imperative. Fate was on the executive board of the paper and also served as the secretary to the board for the newspaper.^[12]

Recognizing the limited educational opportunities for Native Alaskans, Fate became involved in the Fairbanks Native Association's education committee ^[10][13] in 1962. She worked on a six-year study of the educational system to evaluate the reasons why education was substandard in Alaska. Fate testified at a state congressional hearing on their findings, showing that the majority of rural students either attended no high school or attended at inadequate facilities located long distances from their homes.^[14] The committee pressed for dormitories to be built for student housing in urban areas to enable students from rural areas to attend high schools.^[15] She served on the executive committee of the Native Alaskan Village for the Alaska 67 Centennial Exposition^[16] and worked on the Hospital Foundation of Fairbanks,^[17] before becoming involved in the Alaska Native claims settlement. Provisions of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) for the first time gave indigenous villages both land and capital to invest in education.^[10] The settlement awarded 44 million acres of land and $962.5 million to allow Native Alaskans to establish twelve regional corporations to manage the assets.^[18] Fate became president of the Rampart Village Corporation, established in 1971 as one of those regional entities^[10] and worked to ensure that indigenous people enrolled to share in the settlement.^[19]

Fate was one of the founders of the North American Indian Women's Association (NAIWA) which formed in 1970 in Fort Collins, Colorado.^[20] The organization was the first pan-Indian group of indigenous women to organize with a national platform.^[21] In 1975, Fate became the third president of the NAIWA, succeeding Agnes Dill.^[2][22] and served until 1977.^[23] Concern over the health of Native Alaskans was also an issue for Fate, and in the 1970s, she both spoke at conferences regarding the problems^[24] and with Nancy Murkowski and others founded a Breast Cancer Detection Center in Fairbanks in 1975.^[25][26] She headed a federal program Special Needs of Handicapped Indian Children and Indian Women's Problems which began in 1977, to collect and collate data concerning child abuse, nutrition, physical and mental handicaps, rape, single parenting, and violence towards women. In addition, the program evaluated social service availability to deal with these types of issues, including assessment of the facilities and qualifications required for caregivers.^[27] In 1978, she participated in the national conference of Rural American Women Inc., held in Washington, D. C. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss problems faced by women, but specifically those, like isolation and lack of services, that compounded issues for women not living in urban centers.^[28]

In 1981 Fate was appointed to serve on the Alaska Judicial Council and served until 1987.^[29] She was elected as co-chair with Henry Ivanoff of the Alaska Federation of Natives between 1988 and 1989 and was the first woman to hold the post.^[2][30][31] In 1990, she was named to the Alaska Natives Commission and two years later was elected co-chair of the commission with Perry Eaton. The goal of the commission, part of the joint Federal-State Commission on Policies and Programs Effecting Alaska Natives, was to complete a two-year study and make recommendations for a strategic plan for governmental interaction with native populations.^[2][29] In 1991, Fate served on the transition team for governor-elect Wally Hickel and in 1993, was named to serve on the Board of Regents for the University of Alaska.^[29]

In 1998, Fate received the national Cancer Awareness Award from the Congressional Families Action for Cancer Awareness for her work in health care.^[26] She was named by President George H. W. Bush to serve on the United States Arctic Research Commission in 2001. The commission's purpose, was to establish national scientific research policy for the Arctic region, which was sensitive to residents and natural resources. Fate was the only Native American who served on the commission during her term which lasted until 2006. In 2003, she was appointed by President George W. Bush to serve on the U.S. Census Advisory Committee on American Indian and Alaska Native Populations.^[2] In 2012 Fate was honored by the Alaska Federation of Natives with two President's Awards, receiving both the Public Service Award and the Citizen of the Year Award,^[3] the highest honor the board bestows.^[32] She was inducted into the Alaska Women's Hall of Fame in 2014.^[2]

References

Citations

1. Gardiner 2020.
2. Alaska Women's Hall of Fame 2014.
3. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 2012.
4. The Wausau Daily Herald 1978, p. 16.
5. The Daily Sitka Sentinel 1952, p. 3.
6. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 1962, p. 11.
7. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 1954, p. 5.
8. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 1969, p. 10.
9. Who Is Dam Sullivan's Wife? New Details On Julie Fate Sullivan
10. Strickler 2011, p. 76.
11. Morgan 2008, p. 216.
12. Lueras 1974, p. 6.
13. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 1964, p. 9.
14. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner & December 23, 1968, p. 3.
15. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 1966, p. 3.
16. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 1967, p. 7.
17. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner & February 15, 1968, p. 7.
18. Strickler 2011, p. 77.
19. The San Saba News and Star 1976, p. 3.
20. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 1970.
21. The Lawton Constitution 1971, p. 13.
22. The Albuquerque Journal 1975, p. 24.
23. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner & May 25, 1977, p. 7.
24. Jones 1970, p. 1.
25. Monaghan 1976, p. 9.
26. Miller 1998.
27. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner & August 15, 1977, p. 7.
28. The Great Falls Tribune 1978, p. 10.
29. The Daily Sitka Sentinel 1993, p. 9.
30. The Daily Sitka Sentinel 1988, p. 10.
31. The Daily Sitka Sentinel 1989, p. 1.
32. Lean 2012.

Bibliography

• Gardiner, Alistair (10 April 2020). "Mary Jane Fate, who strove to improve life for Alaska Natives, dies". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, AK. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
• Jones, Tyler (August 19, 1970). "Public seminar scheduled". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. p. 1. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• Lean, Reba (March 16, 2012). "Five Interior Alaska women receive Doyon community service awards". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. Archived from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
• Lueras, Leonard (December 2, 1974). "ALOHA interests Alaska natives". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Honolulu, Hawaii. p. 6. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• Miller, Bob (September 16, 1998). "Fairbanks Regent Mary Jane Fate, Nancy Murkowski Honored Nationally for Promotion of Cancer Awareness". University of Alaska. Fairbanks, Alaska: Office of Public Affairs. Archived from the original on 17 January 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
• Monaghan, Pat (June 22, 1976). "Breast cancer clinic to open". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. p. 9. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• Morgan, Lael (2008). Art and Eskimo Power: The Life and Times of Alaskan Howard Rock. Fairbanks, Alaska: University of Alaska Press. ISBN 978-1-60223-021-7.
• Strickler, Julie (January 2011). "ANCSA Opened Education's Doors". Alaska Business Monthly. Anchorage, Alaska: Alaska Business Publishing Co., Inc.: 76–78. ISSN 8756-4092. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
• "AFN Convention Set in Anchorage". Sitka, Alaska: Daily Sitka Sentinel. December 14, 1988. p. 10. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "AFN Votes to Target Drug, Alcohol Abuse". Sitka, Alaska: Daily Sitka Sentinel. October 23, 1989. p. 1. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Alaskan Native women to attend Tempe seminar". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. August 15, 1977. p. 7. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Baccalaureate Service Held Sunday". Sitka, Alaska: Daily Sitka Sentinel. May 12, 1952. p. 3. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Conference of Indian Women Set at FSIS Campus Today". Lawton, Oklahoma: The Lawton Constitution. June 16, 1971. p. 13. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Doyon shareholders recognized as AFN conference continues". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. October 19, 2012. Archived from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
• "Dr. Fate Is Well Qualified for Post on Regents Board". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. March 8, 1969. p. 10. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Fairbanks Gets Priority in Expanded BIA Program (pt 1)". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. December 23, 1968. p. 1. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com. and "Fairbanks Gets Priority in Expanded BIA Program (pt 2)". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. December 23, 1968. p. 3. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Fates to Return". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. July 12, 1962. p. 11. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Hickel Names Two Regents". Sitka, Alaska: Daily Sitka Sentinel. January 19, 1993. p. 9. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Homemakers attend conference". Wausau Daily Herald. Wausau, Wisconsin. September 28, 1978. p. 16. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Hospital Unit Names 5 Officers". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. February 15, 1968. p. 7. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Indian women meet in June". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. May 25, 1977. p. 7. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Isolation seen as plague of rural women". Great Falls, Montana: Great Falls Tribune. New York Times News Service. February 28, 1978. p. 10. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Mary Jane Evans Married to Hugh Fate, Jr. Oct. 29". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. November 9, 1954. p. 5. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Mary Jane (Evans) Fate". Alaska Women's Hall of Fame. Anchorage, Alaska: Alaska Women's Network. 2014. Archived from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
• "Mrs. Fate helps to organize North American Indian unit". Fairbanks, Alaska: Fairbanks Daily News Miner. August 27, 1970. p. 3. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Native Village Readied for A-67". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. January 19, 1967. p. 7. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Passes Gavel to New President". The Albuquerque Journal. Albuquerque, New Mexico. June 22, 1975. p. 24. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Project Pushed by Volunteers". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. January 31, 1966. p. 3. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Resolution Asks State to Recognize Problem". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Fairbanks, Alaska. October 29, 1964. p. 9. Retrieved 23 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
• "Resolution Asks State to Recognize Problem". San Saba, Texas: The San Saba News and Star. October 21, 1976. p. 3. Retrieved 24 August 2017 – via Newspapers.com.

External links

• photograph