Alaska Media Link

P.O. Box 102156, Anchorage, AK 99510
(907) 274-7896 -- fax (907) 274-5465

Rachel D’Oro

(c) ANCHORAGE DAILY NEWS

02/17/98

   Looking for help?

   No matter what type you need, no matter where you live in Alaska, chances are you can find the answer in minutes with your computer or your phone. Just call up the AK Info Network.

   United Way of Anchorage is developing the Internet web site at www.ak.org as a statewide clearinghouse of services and resources available from all levels of government, community groups, nonprofit organizations and whoever else wants to join up at no cost. The service is 2 years old, but just got a $180,000 donation from the Arco Foundation to make it better, said project director Jeanne HuangLi.

   People who don't have computers can get the same help by calling (800) 478-2221, a weekday hot-line that will go 24 hours, seven days a week, in late March.

   “We're putting together a lean and workable resource center everyone can use,'' she said. ''Finding what you want is easy. Any way you want to slice and dice the information, you can.''

   The page now lists nearly 1,800 resources offering a wide selection of services. Finding what you need is as simple as typing in a topic and hitting a search button.

   There are too many listings to name them all, but they include groups and agencies that provide shelter, food, clothing, transportation, day care, job training and psychological counseling. There's help for drug and alcohol abuse, as well as for victims of rape and domestic violence.

   There's information about grants, scholarships, Alaska statistics and volunteer opportunities.

   The list goes on and on, but there's always room for more, HuangLi said. She expects to double the number of listings by the time the page is fully in place by late March.

   ''People should bookmark this site but continue to watch it because there are going to be a lot of changes,'' HuangLi said.

   The Arco Foundation awarded the money to United Way in December, said Alan Kajikawa, an Arco Alaska computer operations analyst who helped launch the AK Info project. The donation, to be used for equipment and staffing, is the foundation's largest single cash award to a charitable organization in Alaska, Arco officials said.

   And it's money well-spent, as far as Kajikawa is concerned.

   ''It provides a single place of access to all programs that exist to help people all over the state,'' he said. ''It's a method for communities to reach pretty much anything and everything that's out there.''

   Even Alaska's official computermeister welcomed the outside help. All state departments have had to maintain home pages since 1994, but the AK Info web site is the first central information and referral system for all kinds of help, said Andy Kline, special telecommunications assistant to Lt. Gov. Fran Ulmer.

   ''It's a fantastic service,'' Kline said. ''This shows the power of the Web.''

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