By Sandi Gerjevic
Daily News Reporter

(Published December 10, 2000)
Normally, residents of Adak would be expecting Christmas goodies in the mail
about now. The remote Aleutian settlement, 1,300 miles southwest of
Anchorage, likes shopping by mail -- especially just before the holidays.

But those waterproof L.L. Bean galoshes and Hickory Farms nut logs will have
to wait.

"It's very quiet," said Don Tollenaar, a postal clerk at the Adak contract
post office. "Basically I'm doing a lot of thumb twiddling."

This week, Reeve Aleutian Airways dropped all scheduled flights and it
appeared the airline would file for bankruptcy. For Adak, a community of 160
on a wind- and rain-blasted island 600 miles from Alaska's mainland, that
meant commercial air connections with the outside world were severed.

Reeve Aleutian flew to Adak twice a week. Its last flight was Monday. The
suspension of service, announced Tuesday, left islanders surprised and
scrambling for solutions to travel plans, Christmas shopping and securing
basic needs like medical supplies, groceries and mail.

Tollenaar called the community's current mood philosophical.

Normally, about 5,000 pounds of mail arrives at the island each week, he
said. Another 200 to 300 pounds goes out. People are still bringing their
packages and letters to the post office, he said, but so far, they're not
going anywhere.

"I think probably the children are the most excited," he said. "Because they
know Christmas is coming."

Jeff Williams, a wildlife biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
might not get those paints and woodworking supplies he ordered for his
Christmas projects. And he's mildly worried about paying his credit card
bill.

"Most people here pay everything by credit card," he said.

The day of Reeve's news, a few shoppers stopped in the general store to
purchase basics like bread and flour. It wasn't exactly a run, said Pete
Blakeslee, store manager. The main problem will be keeping dated items like
milk, he said, which costs $6.89 a gallon.

The price of some items may go up if the community does not find a solution
soon. But Blakeslee isn't worried. Not only is his storeroom full, he
expects a load of frozen food to arrive by freighter within 25 days.

"Everyone out here is pretty upbeat," said Cynthia Galaktionoff, a member of
the Adak community council. "We're just taking it as a little bump in the
road. We've had lots of them."

Galaktionoff described a meeting in which key community members discussed
what they need and how they can work together. Solutions might include
hiring an air charter or finding other businesses interested in their tiny
corner of the global market.

The island was the site of a former U.S. Naval station, but the military
began clearing out at the end of the Cold War. Adak is slowly developing as
a city, poised to attract interests in the fishing industry and marine
research. It also has potential as a refueling station.

"We're trying to pool all the resources," Galaktionoff said.

Sandra Moller, president and CEO of the Aleut Enterprise Corp., said rumors
about Reeve had been floating around for a while but islanders were
surprised by the abrupt flight cancellations. She lauded the community
effort to work together and make good decisions during the transportation
crisis.

"It takes certain types of people to live there," she said.

Blakeslee, a longtime Bush resident, agreed. He was on his way to Oregon
this week to visit his daughter and grandchild but was left holding a
ticket.

"I live in Alaska," he said. "I've chosen to live out here, and you have to
take the bitter with the sweet."