Yearly honor for Butcher is undecided in Legislature

ANNUAL DAY: The musher will be recognized this year for sure, but perhaps not every year after.

By ANNE SUTTON
The Associated Press

Published: February 27, 2007

JUNEAU -- A bill honoring Iditarod champion Susan Butcher, who died of leukemia last year, appeared at first to have a charmed life.

The measure to establish a yearly Susan Butcher Day in state law -- an honor that has been accorded to only six Alaskans so far -- breezed through the House in a matter of days and passed unanimously.

But that was three weeks ago. The bill has languished in a Senate committee ever since.

On Monday, the full Senate instead passed a resolution that names only March 3 of this year as Susan Butcher Day.

The resolution now must go to the House to take effect.

Though all present voted for it, not every senator was in complete agreement with the change.

Sen. Lesil McGuire, R-Anchorage, said it was important to make sure Butcher was acknowledged in time for Saturday's start of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, but she hoped work would continue to add the recurring date to state law.

She said Butcher was a role model for Alaskans and especially for young women in the state.

"She didn't just fight the elements; she had to fight the system," McGuire said.

Sen. Charlie Huggins, R-Wasilla, whose Senate Resources Committee sponsored the resolution, told the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner that "you can't name a day after everyone."

Indeed, the honor would put Butcher in august company. Though many Alaskans are honored for a single day, only six continue to be honored every year, including pioneer judge and statesman James Wickersham (Aug. 24), statehood champion Anthony Dimond (Nov. 30), territorial governor and U.S. senator Ernest Gruening (Feb. 6), U.S. Senator Bob Bartlett (April 20), the state's first governor, Bill Egan (Oct. 8) and Native leader and human rights advocate Elizabeth Peratrovich (Feb. 16).

Butcher's husband, David Monson, said his late wife was much more than a sports figure. She served as an ambassador for the state and used her fame to promote charitable causes, he said.

While Monson said he is proud the Senate has honored Butcher, he is holding out hope for a more lasting honor for the woman he described as the embodiment of hard work and dedication.

"Instead of a politician awarding another politician, it's just honoring a regular Alaskan who has gotten to the point where you can be the person who represents the essence of Alaska, the essence of living in Alaska," Monson said.