This month’s Beyond the Exhibit, presented by the Kenai Chamber of Commerce Cultural Center, explores the Russian timeline of the Russian Orthodox Church in Kenai. The lecture took place on Friday, Feb. 21.
For February, retired KPC professor Dorothy Gray gave a presentation at the center, providing insights into several historical artifacts on display in the exhibit and her knowledge of the Russian Orthodox Church.
She states that there are 50 National Historic Landmarks in Alaska, which are recognized as the highest designation of any historical building.
Seven are related to the Russian Orthodox Churches, and two are located in Kenai.
However hundreds of buildings and pieces of land are on the National Historic Register, but Gray says they are a “step down” from being a National Historic Landmark.
She mentions that the Church is an important part of Kenai’s history and is closely tied to the city’s economic tourism picture.
“We’ve had great support from the city of Kenai over the years and all the efforts that we’ve put into restoring the church.” Gray said.
Gray highlighted a few of her favorite artifacts from the exhibit, one of which is the bell from the original schoolhouse in Kenai from the 1800s.
The Kenai Cultural Center Coordinator, Danielle Lopez Stamm, organizes the exhibits each month and arranges and coordinates with the upcoming guest speakers.
“We really keyed in on the church history, especially here in Keani, because that is so important to long-term residents of Kenai. We have a huge Russian Orthodox community here, so I really wanted to focus on the church itself and the history that the church established here.” Lopez Stamm says.
Every month, the Cultural Center will rotate the exhibit with other artifacts that have never been on display. The exhibit will then be accompanied by a corresponding lecture series and a guest speaker discussing a topic related to the era in question.
March’s guest speaker is Dr. Jeff Meyers Jr., professor of history at KPC, who will be giving a lecture on Later Kenai from 1800AD to Present on Mar. 20 at noon.
For more information or to view upcoming events at the Kenai Cultural Center, please visit kenaichamber.org.
