RJ & BARCLAY

KOPCHAK

An insight into community resilience

Story by Anna Mattson

Photos by Haley Justus

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An ornate and enchanting house sits perched upon a large hill in downtown Cordova, Alaska. Its vibrant colors and intricately carved wood railing rests proudly among neighboring buildings, crafting a brilliantly colored landscape. The living room overlooks a shimmering bay and holds everything from envelopes plastered to the ceiling to porthole windows- all kept inside hand painted walls.

 

The time capsule-like dwelling is owned by RJ and Barclay Kopchak, the most intriguing entities inside the fairytale home. These two have been making positive impacts in the area for years and have helped establish various nonprofits in Cordova.

 

RJ discovered the quaint town through a simple bulletin board posted in a Eugene, Oregon, laundromat in 1974. Written on a note was a phone number and a call for a halibut crew. “I called the guy up and he said sure enough,” RJ recalled. “I came here to check it out and fell in love with Cordova. I just stayed.”

 

Barclay felt similarly about the small town in her journey after moving to Anchorage from Boston in ‘82. “It was blue skies and sunshine for a week,” she said. After a short visit, Barclay felt adamantly about growing some roots in Cordova. Both recalled something alluring about the place and its people, and felt the peculiar Cordova feeling that convinces its visitors to become residents.

 

Throughout the couple’s time in the secluded town, they have seen both the recovery process from the Exxon-Valdez oil spill of March 24, 1989, and the depletion of thousands of years of local glacial ice. After establishing nonprofits to help the causes --such as the Prince William Sound Science Center and the Chugach Tribal Center-- both can attest to the waves that these issues have made in the tight-knit community.

 

As RJ was working towards establishing the Science Center downtown with a few colleagues in 1986, an Exxon Valdez oil tanker lost over 11 million gallons of crude oil along the pristine Prince William Sound only three years after. The spill was horrific and slaughtered several species of sea life on the coast. “We saw sea lions, seals, and otters up on rocks trying to get away.  It was the most disheartening thing I've ever seen,” Barclay said. “More people began to soon realize that Exxon was an enemy, and that nobody was helping.”

 

Alyeska, the association that runs Exxon and several other Alaskan oil operations, assumed responsibility through monetary assistance and labor. The EPA mentioned that Alyeska and the U.S. Coast Guard used burns, mechanical cleanups, and chemical dispersants to remove oil from the water and shores. Exxon ended up spending more than $3.8 billion in fines, restoration, and compensations, CBS reported.

 

However, according to RJ, Exxon was actually less than helpful in the attempt to relieve the town and its imperative fishing industry when the incident took place. The urgent response needed was not met by the company. “We chartered a plane two days after the oil spill with a friend and flew over the sound,” RJ said. “Exxon was telling us that there were twelve skimmers out there. We saw two.” Additionally, RJ said that the herring and fishing population suffered because of the oil, and the finances necessary to compensate that loss was not met. Constant news coverage aided Cordova in gaining global attention, which raised awareness of the spill across the world.

 

Though remnants of oil pockets still linger on the shores, there have been some positive changes to the town in regard to spill protection, environmental conservation, and education. The couple has seen the community rise to the occasion and recover from the intimidating damage. Their local nonprofit, the Copper River Watershed Project, was especially helpful in recovery from the spill with collecting grants and funds. “They have provided tangible environmentally forward-looking improvements to town,” said RJ. “From culverts, to invasive species reduction, to educational seminars, to bringing youth from the upper Copper down here.” At the time, the spill seemed daunting and irreparable. The town and its people are still working towards recovery from the economic and ecological loss.

 

The melt endlessly flowing from nearby glaciers may also soon pose a concern for the community of Cordova. Since his time in the area, RJ has already seen the Columbia Glacier retreat at least 18 miles from its original location in a span of only 38 years. “We are the last of the last ice age here,” said RJ. “The Bering Glacier and that ice field that surrounds this place is, basically, the last remnants of that push.” What the future holds from the inevitable dissipation of glaciers remains unclear. It is speculated that sock-eye salmon rates will increase temporarily from the new freshwater influence, which is a critical economic piece for the town. However, that benefit is one that is not sustainable. The economic and ecological issues will present themselves once the freshwater influence from glacier melt is gone, when there is nothing left to melt.

 

The community of Cordova is prepared for the known and unknown changes that will occur to the region. This town, which relies on adaptation, is full of driven and hopeful individuals that want nothing more than a functioning and healthy community. “Hopefully, the Science Center and the EVOS (Exxon Valdez Oil Spill) legacy is going to help contribute that toolbox to the next deal,” said Barclay. The geography of melting glaciers will be a new hurdle that takes effect on Cordova and the community, either positively or negatively. It is critical that the rest of the world take an initiative to prepare in cohesion with the changing environments globally. “It’s the same story everywhere. It’s all local, it’s all regional, it’s all global,” Barclay said.

 

An ornate and enchanting house sits perched upon a large hill in downtown Cordova, Alaska. Its vibrant colors and intricately carved wood railing rests proudly among neighboring buildings, crafting a brilliantly colored landscape. The living room overlooks a shimmering bay and holds everything from envelopes plastered to the ceiling to porthole windows- all kept inside hand painted walls.

 

The time capsule-like dwelling is owned by RJ and Barclay Kopchak, the most intriguing entities inside the fairytale home. These two have been making positive impacts in the area for years and have helped establish various nonprofits in Cordova.

 

RJ discovered the quaint town through a simple bulletin board posted in a Eugene, Oregon, laundromat in 1974. Written on a note was a phone number and a call for a halibut crew. “I called the guy up and he said sure enough,” RJ recalled. “I came here to check it out and fell in love with Cordova. I just stayed.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Barclay felt similarly about the small town in her journey after moving to Anchorage from Boston in ‘82. “It was blue skies and sunshine for a week,” she said. After a short visit, Barclay felt adamantly about growing some roots in Cordova. Both recalled something alluring about the place and its people, and felt the peculiar Cordova feeling that convinces its visitors to become residents.

 

Throughout the couple’s time in the secluded town, they have seen both the recovery process from the Exxon-Valdez oil spill of March 24, 1989, and the depletion of thousands of years of local glacial ice. After establishing nonprofits to help the causes --such as the Prince William Sound Science Center and the Chugach Tribal Center-- both can attest to the waves that these issues have made in the tight-knit community.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As RJ was working towards establishing the Science Center downtown with a few colleagues in 1986, an Exxon Valdez oil tanker lost over 11 million gallons of crude oil along the pristine Prince William Sound only three years after. The spill was horrific and slaughtered several species of sea life on the coast. “We saw sea lions, seals, and otters up on rocks trying to get away.  It was the most disheartening thing I've ever seen,” Barclay said. “More people began to soon realize that Exxon was an enemy, and that nobody was helping.”

 

Alyeska, the association that runs Exxon and several other Alaskan oil operations, assumed responsibility through monetary assistance and labor. The EPA mentioned that Alyeska and the U.S. Coast Guard used burns, mechanical cleanups, and chemical dispersants to remove oil from the water and shores. Exxon ended up spending more than $3.8 billion in fines, restoration, and compensations, CBS reported.

 

However, according to RJ, Exxon was actually less than helpful in the attempt to relieve the town and its imperative fishing industry when the incident took place. The urgent response needed was not met by the company. “We chartered a plane two days after the oil spill with a friend and flew over the sound,” RJ said. “Exxon was telling us that there were twelve skimmers out there. We saw two.” Additionally, RJ said that the herring and fishing population suffered because of the oil, and the finances necessary to compensate that loss was not met. Constant news coverage aided Cordova in gaining global attention, which raised awareness of the spill across the world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Though remnants of oil pockets still linger on the shores, there have been some positive changes to the town in regard to spill protection, environmental conservation, and education. The couple has seen the community rise to the occasion and recover from the intimidating damage.

 

Their local nonprofit, the Copper River Watershed Project, was especially helpful in recovery from the spill with collecting grants and funds. “They have provided tangible environmentally forward-looking improvements to town,” said RJ. “From culverts, to invasive species reduction, to educational seminars, to bringing youth from the upper Copper down here.” At the time, the spill seemed daunting and irreparable. The town and its people are still working towards recovery from the economic and ecological loss.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The melt endlessly flowing from nearby glaciers may also soon pose a concern for the community of Cordova. Since his time in the area, RJ has already seen the Columbia Glacier retreat at least 18 miles from its original location in a span of only 38 years. “We are the last of the last ice age here,” said RJ. “The Bering Glacier and that ice field that surrounds this place is, basically, the last remnants of that push.” What the future holds from the inevitable dissipation of glaciers remains unclear. It is speculated that sock-eye salmon rates will increase temporarily from the new freshwater influence, which is a critical economic piece for the town. However, that benefit is one that is not sustainable. The economic and ecological issues will present themselves once the freshwater influence from glacier melt is gone, when there is nothing left to melt.

 

The community of Cordova is prepared for the known and unknown changes that will occur to the region. This town, which relies on adaptation, is full of driven and hopeful individuals that want nothing more than a functioning and healthy community. “Hopefully, the Science Center and the EVOS (Exxon Valdez Oil Spill) legacy is going to help contribute that toolbox to the next deal,” said Barclay. The geography of melting glaciers will be a new hurdle that takes effect on Cordova and the community, either positively or negatively. It is critical that the rest of the world take an initiative to prepare in cohesion with the changing environments globally. “It’s the same story everywhere. It’s all local, it’s all regional, it’s all global,” Barclay said.