From homesteader to lawyer to big band leader

MAT-SU — Through the rebuilding of a state, the growth of a community and the evolution of music, the heart must remain in the right place.

This is the lesson of Bill Tull, an attorney, volunteer and musician who has witnessed much after homesteading here in 1957.

Tull was a fresh college graduate playing tennis at the Germantown Cricket Club in Germantown, Pa., when a friend broached the idea of Alaska.

“He had heard about streets paved with gold and all that,” Tull said. “So I said, ‘What the heck, why not?’”

Tull’s drive up from the Lower 48 ended near what is now Meadow Lakes. He found himself a piece of land and set about making the necessary improvements to qualify for homestead status. Eventually, he named the lake the property fronted.

“I wanted to name it after my wife, June, but they said I couldn’t name it after a living person. So, I told them I homesteaded in June,” Tull said. “Good thing her name wasn’t February.”

Tull found work at the area’s only bank, Matanuska Valley Bank, then took over as director of what was then Palmer Community College. As the director, he said he led the effort to get the college included in the University of Alaska system.

Tull left for law school in New Mexico only to return right after the 1964 Good Friday earthquake. He started working for a federal housing and urban development program that provided funding for communities hit by the earthquake.

“We used the concept of urban renewal to renew these towns after the quake. We actually moved the town of Valdez,” Tull said.

Tull left that job in 1971 to open the private law practice in Palmer he still runs. He deals with mostly commercial cases, but it’s what Tull does outside the court that gains him the most recognition.

“I’m from Philadelphia. It doesn’t get any bigger than that. I like the small- town atmosphere and thought I might be able to make a difference,” Tull said. “It’s volunteers that really keep the system going.”

Following this sentiment, Tull has worked with public media outlets, agriculture boards, both the Wasilla and Palmer chambers of commerce, the state fair, Kiwanis, Lions, Rotary, the Elks Lodge and other community groups.

“I’m not in all of them now, partly because some meet on the same day,” Tull said.

Asked if he feels like he has made a difference over his 40-plus years of service, Tull said he thinks some of the projects he has been associated with have done good.

“That’s what I hope for,” Tull said.

Those familiar with Tull through one of the groups or committees know of Tull’s other passion. Tull’s pride and joy, Bill Tull’s Big Band, has provided entertainment for many local fund-raisers and functions.

For an idea of the band’s longevity, Bill Tull’s Big Band played at the opening ceremony for the Palmer Public Library 25 years ago. To commemorate the anniversary, the band performed at the celebration in January.

Tull said the band started as a way to pay for his college. With little formal training, Tull taught himself the tenor saxophone and clarinet and formed a big band group with other musicians.

“It used to be a 13- or 14-piece band. With that, you could take a big band tune from a record and pretty much recreate it,” Tull said.

Continuing the band in Alaska, Tull said he played gala dinners for ConocoPhillips, Nordstrom and the Alaska Medical Association, among others. Now, with gigs fewer and further between, Tull said the price he charges has dropped along with the numbers in his band.

Tull said he finds himself playing with quartets more often, which is fine given the current trends in music. Everything is more driven by rhythm now, he said, and nobody should dream of playing in Alaska without knowing some country standards.

“I would have never thought I would be playing ‘Tequila,’” Tull said. “Do I like the changes? That can’t be a question if you want to play.

“But I’m not changing that much,” he added. “You play a good rendition of ‘Stardust’ or ‘Dancing in the Dark’ and people will like it.”

This idea of keeping true to what works applies equally to Palmer, Tull said. The city is not anti-business as many people think; rather, it is pro-community.

“It depends on how you want to live,” he said. “I think Palmer is doing well. … There have been a lot of changes, but it still has it’s heart,.”

Contact Todd L. Disher at todd.disher@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.