Grandma Olga Ezi was a Dena’ina matriarch and a leader in the Dena’ina community. She was born in 1875 in the Tyone Lake and Copper River regions. She married Simeon Ezi, chief of the upper Cook Inlet, including Anchorage and the Matanuska Valley, and they lived in the village of Eklutna with their five children and orphans they took into their care. The idea to honor her with a statue was of her descendent, the Alaska artist Joel Isaak who designed and worked on it for two and a half years. Isaak incorporated many historical and cultural artifacts of the Dena’ina people in this sculpture and depicted Olga as an elder, strong woman dressed in traditional working clothes. The dedication took place in American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage History Month in 2018. It was a historic day, as it is the first statue of a real woman in Alaska and in particular the first to honor an indigenous woman. The statue stands near downtown Anchorage. Next to the sculpture are informative signs about Grandma Ogla’s life and contributions to the Dena’ina people. Read more...