Alaska’s First Lady Rose Dunleavy has recognized seven Alaskans with the 2026 First Lady’s Volunteer Award for their extraordinary service to neighbors and communities.
“Alaska is made stronger by the people who show up, not for recognition, but because they care deeply about their neighbors and their communities,” Rose Dunleavy said.
Among this year’s honorees is Keeley Goward of North Pole, whose nearly two decades of Christian ministry have been defined by an unwavering, Christ-centered commitment to Alaska’s youth – particularly those in remote villages facing isolation, grief, and one of the nation’s highest youth suicide rates. A woman of deep faith, Goward views her service not merely as volunteerism but as a calling to share the hope and transforming love of Jesus Christ in some of Alaska’s hardest-to-reach places.
Born and raised in Fairbanks with Inupiaq/Eskimo heritage and family ties to Barrow (Utqiaġvik) and Kaktovik, Goward brings both cultural understanding and biblical conviction to her work. For nearly 20 years she has poured herself into outreach among Athabaskan and other Alaska Native communities, beginning with direct village visits and growing into a central leadership role with This Generation Ministries (TGM), a North Pole-based nonprofit dedicated to reaching young Alaskans with the Gospel.
Goward’s recognition highlights how a Christ-centered life, lived humbly among Alaska’s youth and villages, produces fruit that reaches far beyond any single program or season.
As Assistant Director of Camp Nahshii, meaning “place of healing” in the Gwich’in Athabaskan language, Goward has helped shape a summer camp in the Yukon Flats where youth encounter far more than recreation. Through intentional discipleship, worship, mentorship and teaching, campers are invited into spiritual encounters that address pain, shame, and darkness with the light of Christ. Many leave with renewed purpose after experiencing a camp that focuses on the healing power of God’s love.
Goward’s faith-based approach extends year-round. She organizes Winter Xtreme youth camps, leads village outreaches to communities like Chalkyitsik, mentors young believers, and supports local churches and indigenous leaders so the work of discipleship can continue long after her visit.
While Goward’s work is rooted in faith, she also has an eye to the material needs of those she serves. Fuel barrel campaigns, logistical coordination, and personal follow-up all flow from her conviction that the Gospel must be demonstrated through practical love as well as proclaimed.
Goward is an ordained minister with the Alaska Ministry Network (AMN), the regional district of the Assemblies of God (AG). AMN is a conservative, pro-life evangelical Pentecostal organization that upholds traditional biblical teachings on marriage and sexuality.
Unlike many Alaska public schools and nonprofits, which focus almost entirely on non-religious and materialistic tactics to address mental health issues, Goward writes candidly on her “Beginner Faith” blog about exposing sin to light for healing, processing grief through worship and vulnerability, and giving God full credit for every good work accomplished in young lives.
Together with her husband, Clarence, a musician, rapper and fellow missionary/EMT, Keeley raises support for their shared missionary calling. Their family ministry reflects a holistic belief that faith touches every area – spiritual, emotional and practical realities.
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Colleagues describe her as marked by profound humility and perseverance. She does not seek the spotlight; instead, she consistently points young people toward Jesus as the source of lasting hope and identity. In a state where vast distances and cultural challenges can leave youth feeling unseen, her relational, Gospel-saturated approach has helped countless Alaskans discover encouragement, purpose, and the personal love of Christ.
The First Lady’s Volunteer Award celebrates this quiet, steadfast faithfulness. Goward’s recognition highlights how a Christ-centered life, lived humbly among Alaska’s youth and villages, produces fruit that reaches far beyond any single program or season.
The other 2026 recipients include LeeAnna Chronister of Anchorage, founder of The Workshop Community Center; Lacie Kelly of Soldotna, president of the Kenai Peninsula Racing Lions; Jamie Lytton of Eagle River, a healthcare leader focused on access to care and overdose prevention; Theresa Rodgers of Eagle River, a 30-year volunteer with Covenant House Alaska; Karen Royce of Sitka, longtime EMS and search-and-rescue responder; and Bob Sam of Sitka, honored for decades of humble cemetery restoration.
