In January 2011, when the former Sheldon Jackson College Trustees gifted the Sitka Fine Arts Camp the Sheldon Jackson Campus it was a memorable day. We were excited, after 35 years, to finally have a permanent home for the Sitka Fine Arts Camp.  We were excited to reopen the campus and make it a resource for our community.  We were also awed by the huge project that we knew we would be undertaking, taking care of  20 buildings on 20 acres of land.  With years of neglected maintenance, a defunct central heating system, and one hundred year-old buildings with leaking roofs we understood the only way this dream would succeed would be with the help of many people chipping in.  It was with the belief that our students and community were worth it and faith that others believed strongly in our vision of the value of revitalizing the campus that we proceeded. 

In our first two years, we have invested over one million dollars of donations back into repairing the campus. With this money, we have replaced three roofs on major buildings, installed heating systems in two buildings, reopened the beautiful, historical Allen Hall and made an infinite number of small but essential repairs to the campus. This money was stretched further than could ever be imagined by being matched by over 30,000 volunteer hours of work given by over 500 individuals.

Our first spring, we started a tradition when we launched 100 Volunteers Day- a day in May when over 100 volunteers in our community came to the campus and prepared it for the arrival of our June students.  This weekend, May 4, from 9am to 3pm, we will be holding our third annual 100 Volunteers Day and ask you to join us by coming to the campus to help or by giving a contribution toward the supplies and materials that we use to rebuild the campus. 

There are jobs and projects for all skills and all ages including general cleaning, painting, landscaping/gardening, cleaning a stream, washing windows, light carpentry. By the end of the day, we hope to have finished our spring cleaning, built a fire escape, finished insulating and closing in the walls on the stage of the Odess Theater, and completed an accessibility ramp to our ceramics building.

Lunch is provide by SeaMart and volunteers. Check in at Sweetland Hall starting at 9am.

Thank you for your help,

Roger Schmidt

Director, Sitka Fine Arts Camp

Alaska Arts Southeast