Eagle River-based Alaska Fine Arts Academy finds itself in transition

The Alaska Fine Arts Academy – Chugiak-Eagle River’s longtime homegrown destination for local arts and music lessons as well as theatrical performances – is now currently homeless.

Late last month, volunteers spent weekend afternoons sorting through what the nonprofit would keep and what it would give away.

No longer able to afford its former home above the Alaska Industrial Hardware store off the Old Glenn in Eagle River, the academy, its board of directors and its die-hard core of volunteers are now figuring out how to continue its mission without a brick and mortar existence.

“Until further notice, the Academy will operate without a permanent venue. But that doesn’t mean you won’t see our name around town, doing pop up events and classes,” Lailani Cook, executive director, explained in an email.

On Oct. 21, as she spent the afternoon coordinating with volunteers who were transporting items being kept to storage, Cook kept a positive outlook on the financial situation that is pulling the academy away from a performance space and classrooms for teaching.

She complimented a couple of kids for doing a good job of hauling chairs out to a waiting vehicle. She thanked a volunteer for sorting through boxes of documents and music.

Her smile and sunny outlook – a noble attempt to keep up morale – could not hide the fact that the non-profit is out of money. The painful reality of moving was evident everywhere as boxes in various stages of being filled covered the foyer floor.

She concedes Oct. 21 was a gloomy one for the AFAA. But that doesn’t mean its mission will end, she said.

Her focus is “moving” rather than “closing.”

“While this was a hard decision, it really is the best thing for us,” she said. “For years, we had been operating on a deficit of financial resources and community support. It was time drastic changes.”

Arrangements to continue art classes and the AFAA’s Children’s Choir at the Sleepy Dog Café and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Eagle River have been made through at least December.

Music lessons are continuing through private arrangement between contracted instructors and students regarding where and when.

And Cook has begun the process of creating partnerships with other theater groups in the Anchorage Bowl.

“You could say that we will be on sabbatical while we work to rebuild the foundation of our nonprofit,” Cook said.