Contact Us
Alaska Sports Hall of Fame
11901 Industry Way, STE A-9
Anchorage, AK 99515
info@alaskasportshall.org
Staff
Harlow Robinson, Executive Director
Founding member of the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame. Has been been involved with Healthy Futures since 2006, initially serving as an advisory board member. Prior to his current position Harlow worked with at-risk youth for 15 years as a direct care staff, supervisor and manager. Has served on numerous boards and commissions including the Municipality of Anchorage Parks and Recreation Commission. An accomplished mountain runner, Harlow is involved in organizing numerous Alaska sporting events. Harlow@alaskasportshall.org
Shelley Romer, Development Director
Previous to joining Healthy Futures team she was the Program and Marketing Director of Alaska Cancer Care Alliance and over the past decade she has built a strong resume in planning and business development. Shelley grew up in both rural and urban Alaska being active/enjoying the great outdoors (especially rock climbing, skiing, running and hiking). Being healthy and enjoying our amazing state, especially rock climbing, skiing, running and hiking, is very important to her and she feels very passionate about the Healthy Future’s cause! shelley@healthyfuturesak.org
Matias Saari, Healthy Futures Program Coordinator
Matias loves many forms of outdoor recreation. In addition to helping coordinate events through Healthy Futures, he directs the Mount Marathon Race and Crow Pass Crossing. A former newspaper reporter, he covered the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer (1994) and Vancouver (2010). Matias has written a book about the history of the Equinox Marathon, a race he won six times, and is a board member for Alaska Mountain Runners. He lives in Bear Valley on the Anchorage Hillside with his partner Christie Haupert and their two huskies. matias@healthyfuturesak.org
Kayla Williamson, Healthy Futures Program Coordinator
Kayla is inspired by innovative and responsible solutions to tackle resource inequity. She is excited to raise awareness around social determinants of health and their effects on youth participation in sports and outdoor recreation. As a lifelong Alaskan, she is eager to continue utilizing and developing her skillset with the Healthy Futures team in a meaningful and impactful way for communities across the state. When not in the office you can find her exploring the backcountry of Turnagain or tidepooling the coastal shores of Kachemak Bay, where she grew up. kayla@healthyfuturesak.org
Van Williams, Alaska Sports Report Editor
Van has worked for the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame since 2009, providing daily coverage of Alaska athletes all over the world. He has covered Alaska sports for 30 years and serves as one of the state’s premier sports historians. He’s also Media director for American Legion Baseball in Alaska and the Alaska Airlines Classic basketball tournament. Van turned pro straight out of East High in 1990, signing with the Monroe Journal in North Carolina. He returned to Alaska to work for the Anchorage Times and later the Anchorage Daily News, where he worked for 15 years and served as Sports Editor his final year before leaving in 2008. He is a past winner of the Alaska Press Club Award. alaskasportshall@yahoo.com
Wally Wilson, PLAAY Director
Board of Directors
Jason Metrokin, President
President/CEO Bristol Bay Native Corporation. Former state champion varsity hockey play at Robert Service H.S., graduated in 1990. Former starting defenseman; co-captain and senior year MVP, Massachusetts College. Also serves on the Rasmuson Foundation and Alaska Pacific University boards of directors.
Matt Carle, Vice President
Director of Community Outreach at Seaalaska. Previously the Vice President of Planning and Business Development at Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, and Alaska Native Program Director, Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. Lifelong Alaskan who grew up in the southeast Alaska community of Hydaburg. He played basketball for the University of Alaska Fairbanks from 1997-2000. Selected by the National Center for the American Indian Enterprise Development’s 2015 “Native American 40 Under 40” Award. Matt played in three state championship games during his high school career for Hydaburg and Juneau-Douglas High School, respectively.
Chris Myers, Secretary & Treasurer
Vice President of Investments at Wedbush Morgan Securities. Tenth American finisher in 100th anniversary running of Boston Marathon. Multiple All-Conference and All-Western Region honors for Chico State University Track and Cross Country teams.
Chuck Homan
Charter Member and past President of Benton Bay Athletics Lions Club and UAA Blueliners Hockey Boosters. Former Anchorage Hockey Association Coach. Winner of the UAA Blueliners Brush Christiansen Trailblazer Award. University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolf Hall of Fame Member.
Carrie Jokiel
President of ChemTrack Alaska, Inc. a small, Alaskan-woman owned environmental and construction services business that has been in operation since 1973. Attended the University of New Hampshire on an ice hockey scholarship. During her time there she received a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology, won a national championship, and captained her team her junior and senior year. Received Master of Business Administration from the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA). University of New Hampshire Sports Hall of Fame inductee. Ambassador for Women’s Ice Hockey in the Fast and Female International Program.
Nina Kemppel
CEO of The Alaska Community Foundation. A four-time Olympian in Cross-Country Skiing, Nina claimed a record 18 U.S. National Championships in Cross Country Skiing. She won the Seward’s Mount Marathon race nine times and was inducted into the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. Serves as a Member of the U.S. Olympic Committee Board of Directors.
Eric Ohlson
President APS North LLC. A business development firm in Anchorage, Alaska. APS North helps Corporations and Individuals start small businesses from inception to maturity. An avid adventurer of the outdoors. Accomplished mountain climber and rock climber and lifelong golfer with several accomplishments throughout his career. Father of two outstanding athletes for South High School in Anchorage and WSU Cougars.
Bill Pearson
Counselor at Law and Shareholder of Foley, Foley & Pearson, P.C. Past President of Anchorage International Rotary, Anchorage Estate Planning Counsel and former co-chair of the Anchorage Estate Planning Section. Avid sports fan and middle of the pack race finisher.
Board Emeritus
- Gina Luckey (2007-2020)
- Nicolle Egan (2018-2019)
- Rick Mystrom (2006-2018)
- Jim Balamaci (2006-2018)
- Brad Precosky (2006-2011)
- Reggie Joule (2006-2014)
- Rosie Fletcher (2007)
Selection Panel
Beth Bragg, Panel Chair
Sports Editor, Anchorage Daily News. Sports reporter, sports editor for Alaska Dispatch News and Anchorage Daily News 1986-present. Winner of multiple awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors, the Northwest Society for Professional Journalists and Alaska Press Club. Covered four Winter Olympics.
Bruce Cech
TV broadcaster of local sports in interior Alaska for over 35 years. Bruce has called over 1,000 games for Alaska Nanooks Division 1 Hockey since 1987. He has also covered Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race, Great Alaska Shoot Out and Top of World Classic basketball tourneys, Alaska Gold Kings hockey and Fairbanks Ice Dogs hockey. UAF men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball, World Eskimo Indian Olympics. High school football, basketball and baseball, arena football and youth sports. Bruce is also a baseball umpire and avid bowler. Inducted into the Fairbanks Hockey Hall of Fame.
Lew Freedman
Author of more than 100 books on Alaska and sports. Sports reporter, sports columnist and sports editor for Anchorage Daily News for 17 years. Winner of more than 300 journalism awards, including multiple honors from the Alaska Press Club, the Northwest Society for Professional Journalists, the Associated Press Sports Editors, the U.S. Basketball Writers and the Best Sports Stories series. Enshrined in the U.S. Basketball Writers Hall of Fame in 2018. Currently columnist, sports columnist and outdoors writer for the Cody Enterprise in Cody Wyoming.
Mike Janecek
Longtime sports administrator, organizer and running coach in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley. Michael’s varied interests have nurtured a career involving education, politics, technology, sports, and Alaska’s wilderness. Michael’s passion for sports was seeded playing hockey and baseball with his neighborhood friends in Spenard, AK.
Danny Martin
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner sports editor. Previously a sports writer for the Anchorage Times and Anchorage Daily News and sports editor for the Arlington Times, a weekly newspaper in Washington state. Multiple award winner of Society of Professional Journalists Pacific Northwest Region Excellence in Journalism Contest and Alaska Press Club contest. Served on the national selection committee for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award for college hockey and has been a media voter for the John R. Wooden Award for men’s and women’s college basketball.
Kathleen Navarre
Coached basketball, volleyball, flag football and track over the past 20 years at Kodiak High School and Dimond High School and has guided multiple teams to State Championships. Former Athletic Director at Kodiak High School. Currently the head coach for Dimond Flag Football and Girls Track and Field. Event director for numerous local and statewide high school sporting events. Born and raised in Kenai, Alaska
Keith Perkins
Keith Perkins is a life-long Sitkan and a 3+ decades high school sports official across the sports of basketball, baseball, softball, and volleyball in Region V and at state tournaments. He also recruits and trains sports officials in Southeast Alaska. When he is not on the court or field, he is behind a public-address mic helping create a fun atmosphere for the student athletes. In his “spare time,” he works for USDA Rural Development covering Southeast Alaska.
Mike Sica
Longtime sports reporter and radio commentator in Southeast Alaska. Former Juneau Empire sports editor.
Doyle Woody
Spent 34 years as a sports reporter and columnist at the Anchorage Daily News, where he served as the principal hockey writer covering UAA, the Alaska Aces and all levels of the game. Won ECHL Outstanding Media Award four times and remains only multiple winner of that honor. Briefly a below-average quarterback at Bartlett High. Never finished dead last at Crow Pass Crossing backcountry marathon, but occasionally flirted with that distinction.
Former Selection Panel Members:
- Dennis Egan (2006-2011)
- Joe Floyd (2006-2007)
- Bob Eley (2006-2017)
- Steve Nerland (2006-2017)
- George Houston (2012-2017)