Northern Light Legacy is composed of the Meader family, friends and supporters, who have pledged to preserve the heritage and vision of the Meader family's wilderness life in arctic Alaska. Northern Light Legacy (NLL) actively works to carry on this heritage by rebuilding the wilderness cabins by hand, recording the Meader’s oral history, working to protect the surrounding wilderness from commercial development and environmental threats, and re-distributing the Year of the Caribou film so others can experience the beauty of this wilderness. |
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HISTORY
For nearly two decades the Meader family lived in an isolated arctic valley. Beginning in 1959, Fred, Elaine, and their son Dion Meader, made a life off the land, hunting migrating bands of caribou and making their home, furniture and much of their clothing from the materials of the land. In 1968 Jay Russell, at age 11, was welcomed into the family. In the 1970s the Meader family produced a film, entitled, Year of the Caribou, to share the beauty of the arctic and express their vision for living in harmony with the community of the wild. |
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After the deaths of both Dion and Fred Meader in the mid-late ’70s, Elaine Meader returned to Northern California and raised her young daughters, Heather and Dawn, in Northern California. Wanting to join a healing profession, Elaine pursued her education and became a psychologist. You can hear Elaine speaking about her life in the arctic, thanks to the University of Alaska Fairbanks Project Jukebox at: http://uaf-db.uaf.edu/jukebox/gatesn/html/2705-1.htm This wilderness has continued to be home to friends who sought the wilderness experience and to the Meader women who returned several times over the years. Now as adults, Heather and Dawn are inheriting this wilderness way of life and working with friends and supporters to continue and expand their parent's vision. |
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In 2006, Heather returned to live in her arctic home. After a year and a half she decided to split her time between both Alaska and California. You can read some of her journals from her time there at www.northernlightlegacy.blogspot.com Heather has also fallen into the Meader tradition of seeing the world through a camera lens and dedicates much of her energy to expressing her experiences through photography. You can visit her website at: www.hmmphotographs.com. |
JOIN US!
We invite you to join with us in our vision of continuing this legacy and sharing the message of life in connection with the wild. NLL News & Events: Be a part of our email list and learn the latest on our work and upcoming events. You’ll receive email updates on average no more than 1-2 times a month and rest assured we will not sell or give your email address to anyone. It's easy to sign up, just enter your email into the form below: Donations: Financial contributions to Northern Light Legacy help us to continue our public education and cabin preservation work. Your gifts also help fund the epilogue for the Year of the Caribou that will help us bring this legacy into the dialogue of our time. We offer our heartfelt appreciation for all donations. We do not, at this time, have 501c3 status but be assured that all donations will be put towards these visions and goals. Volunteers: We also welcome donations of time and expertise. If you are interested in volunteering, please email Northern Light Legacy at: info@northernlightlegacy.org Join us on Myspace! Our profile can be found at: http://www.myspace.com/northernlightlegacy |
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Donations can be mailed to: Join Us! |
YEAR OF THE CARIBOU
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Copyright 2008 Northern Light Legacy |
Site designed by Neil Wolfe www.coyotephoto.net |