September 22, 1998  NR 25-1998

University of Alaska President Mark R. Hamilton is on his way to the nation's capital this week for meetings with members of Alaska's Congressional delegation who will host a reception Thursday evening, Sept. 24, to introduce the university executive to other members of Congress and to directors of federal agencies involved with Alaska issues.

At noon on Thursday, Hamilton will attend a luncheon where The Congressional Families Action for Cancer Awareness will be honoring four prominent Americans, two of them Alaskan, by awarding them 1998 Cancer Awareness Awards. The two Alaskans being honored are University of Alaska Regent Mary Jane Fate of Fairbanks and Nancy Murkowski, wife of U. S. Senator Frank Murkowski. They join Sam Donaldson, ABC News White House correspondent, and Sue Ann Thompson, wife of Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson, as this year's Cancer Awareness winners.

Hamilton is also scheduled to meet with Dr. James Baker, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and with representatives of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an institution with which the University of Alaska has a partnership to promote the development of high-technology jobs for people who live in remote areas.

The reception honoring Hamilton and his wife, Patty, will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Phoenix Park Hotel at 520 North Capitol Street in Washington, D. C.'s northwest section. The Hamiltons will return to Fairbanks on the weekend.

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For More Information: Bob Miller, 907-474-7272