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Former Alaskan U. S. Senator Ted Stevens died in a plane crash in Alaska. “Uncle Ted” to Alaskans, was elected in 1968, and was the longest serving Republican senator in US history. At one time, he was Senate Pro Tempe, third in line to the presidency. He was always a friend to Alaska and to John Smelcer. As a high school senior, Sen. Stevens nominated John for a cadet appointment at West Point. When that did not materialize, he helped John win a four-year Army ROTC scholarship. In the mid-to-late 1990s, Stevens helped John secure grants for his research in Alaska Native languages and cultures and tried to help him obtain funds to build a museum. In 2006, Sen. Stevens generously provided a back cover blurb for John’s The Day That Cries Forever. He will be missed.