Every year, AFN honors those who have made outstanding contributions to their families and the Native community.
The Citizen of the Year Award recognizes the contributions of a Native person who has demonstrated strong commitment, dedication, and service to the Alaska Native community and to rural Alaska. This year, the Citizen of the Year Award is bestowed upon two individuals selected by the AFN Board of Directors for exemplary work that has improved the lives of Alaska Native people. The 2025 Citizen of the Year is:
- Rev. Dr. Anna Frank, Minto Flats, Athabascan
Read on to learn more about this year’s awardee.
2025 DENALI AWARD WINNER
Rev. Dr. Anna Frank was born in Old Minto in 1938 to Jonathan and Rosie David, one of 13 children. She was raised living a subsistence lifestyle. She was ordained as an Episcopal deaconate in 1973, and to the priesthood in 1983. Anna was the first successfully ordained Indigenous woman in the world. She retired as Native Missioner from the Episcopal Diocese of Alaska December 2011 a position she held for over 15 years but served as a priest for the diocese for 39 years and still continues her priestly duties to this day.
Anna has been the recipient of many prestigious awards including the Alaska Federation of Natives President’s Award for Public Service for her years of service and prison ministry outreach. She received an honorary humanities degree from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 2019. Anna has many interests outside her formal work on behalf of the Native community. They include bead working, fishing, hunting, sewing, and spending time with her grandchildren.