Late Wednesday afternoon First Lady Jill Biden and Secretary Deb Haaland flew into the southwestern community of Bethel. When their aircraft touched down at 5:39 on, Biden exited the aircraft first and was followed by Secretary Haaland.

They were met at the airport by Representative Mary Peltola, First Lady of Alaska Rose Dunleavy, and the mayor of Bethel, Rose “Sugar” Henderson. After the First Lady gave each a warm hug, they were greeted by Secretary Haaland.

Biden’s visit marked the first time a First Lady of the United States has ever visited the community of Bethel although she had visited the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium in Anchorage two years prior.

The group then proceeded to the Bethel Regional High School to greet local leaders and learn more about the experiences of those living in Bethel and communities in the Y-K Delta. During her visit to the school, she was entertained by a performance by the Ayaprun Elitnaurvik students.

During her visit, Biden is highlighting the  Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (TBCP) and the $386 million in grants to 21 projects throughout Alaska with $125 million in funding to two broadband infrastructure deployment projects in the Y-K Delta: the Airraq Network and the Alaska FiberOptic Project.

The First Lady’s visit was also a refueling stop as she heads to Japan to meet up with her husband President Joe Biden. He touched down in Anchorage earlier in the day to refuel as he proceeded to Asia.

  Alaska, bethel, broadband, deb haaland, first lady, jill biden, visit