Dear Reader:

I came to Alaska in 1982, but it was not my first choice. I was fresh out of Harvard School of Public Health and on the fast track to be hired in an extraordinary program at the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Unfortunately, Reagan was elected president just before I was hired, and he cut that program in half. I was bummed out and desperate for work. A job in Alaska materialized a few weeks later. I interviewed, was hired, and drove from Boston to Anchorage to work at the Alaska Health Project, a small, private nonprofit set up to strengthen job health and safety education in Alaska.

Despite the fact that the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) had become law 12 years earlier, there was little occupational health and safety expertise in the state at the time but there were very high rates of job-related injuries and deaths. I was enthusiastic to start the new job. On my first day at work I discovered that our little run-down office building only had four small suites, and the Health Project was one of them. The building itself shared a large parking lot with the Rescue Mission.

I knocked on the door and was greeted by the executive director who showed me around. The main room was empty except for the secretary who had a desk and chair. The executive director was using the walk-in closet as his office. He had a chair with a board across the arm rests, and a phone precariously perched on the board. He proudly announced that I had my own office, the only other room in the suite.  He opened the door in a grand, sweeping gesture, and there was ... absolutely nothing. The room was completely empty. My first piece of furniture in the office was the camper bed from the back of my pickup truck.

The accommodations were not so good but the people were great. My favorite person was Dan Middaugh (no relation to the Alaskan epidemiologist). He came up to Alaska in the 1960s to work construction. He was a highly skilled pipe fitter, and a proud member of his union. He had hurt his back in a serious construction accident, had been through a lot of pain and suffering, and ultimately lost his home to debt. When I met him he was on the board of Alaska Health Project and was passionately committed to working for safe jobs for Alaskan workers. For much of the time I worked at the Health Project, I was executive director and Dan was president of the board. He was my mentor in many important ways, and we became close friends over the years.

Dan eventually overcame his back injury and was able to go to work again in his trade as a pipe coverer. He periodically mentioned to me that as a pipe coverer he had been exposed to a lot of asbestos, and he was certain he would die from it. It was hard to imagine. Dan was compact, built like a 55 gallon drum, and incredibly strong. Then, a few years ago, he began to get sick. The asbestos had caused plaques in his lungs, and the impaired lungs affected his heart. Sometimes he would feel better and could work for a few weeks, but as time went on, he could work no longer. He lost weight, became frail, and could no longer walk or maintain his apartment. A few months ago, his family moved him to an assisted living facility in Anchorage. The people there were really nice to him, and were good cooks. He liked being there. His was a small room, but it had a window that let in light and gave him a view of the outside. His mood improved greatly, but his illness did not.

Dan passed away November 14, 2010. He was 62 years old. I dedicate this issue of Alaska Health Policy Review to him and to his struggle for a safe and healthy workplace for all Alaskans.

Lawrence D. Weiss PhD, MS

Editor, AHPR