Press Room: Archives - Ted Stevens Foundation

Official Portrait of “Alaskan of the Century” Unveiled in U.S. Capitol

U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, and Congressman Don Young, all R-Alaska, today joined in celebrating the life and legacy of the late Senator Ted Stevens and his contributions to Alaska and the nation. The Alaska Congressional Delegation joined members of the Stevens family, friends, congressional colleagues, and former staff at a ceremonial unveiling of a portrait of Senator Stevens, which will be hung in the U.S. Capitol. At the time he left office, Senator Stevens was the longest-serving Republican U.S. Senator in history.

The portrait, sponsored by the U.S. Senate Commission on Art, will be part of its Senate Leadership Portrait Collection, which honors past Leaders and Presidents Pro Tempore. The portrait recognizes Senator Ted Stevens’ service as President Pro Tempore of the U.S. Senate from 2003 to 2007. It was painted by Dean Larson, a former intern of Senator Stevens from 1980-1981, who grew up in Palmer, Alaska.

PHOTOS: Click here for high-res photos of the unveiling.

VIDEO: Click here for video of the unveiling.

“Every American should know who Ted was and why he so clearly deserves this honor. Ted dedicated his life to public service, spending more than six decades fighting for the state and country that he loved. Ted was a World War II veteran, he helped Alaska achieve its dream of statehood, and in his forty years in this chamber, he was both a leader and a force to be reckoned with,” said Senator Murkowski. “I hope this portrait of Ted will be a daily reminder for those of us who serve here – that we can work together, even on the hardest of days; that if we do, we can achieve great things for the American people; and that sometimes, that just might require us to say ‘to hell with politics’ – just do what’s right.”

“The spirit of Ted Stevens lives with us in Congress, throughout the country, and certainly in Alaska. And now we have this beautiful painting in the Capitol—created by an exceptional Alaska artist—to reflect that spirit,” said Senator Sullivan. “Senator Stevens’ service to our country and our state is an example to all. His whole career was spent fighting for our country and for those across the globe who shared a thirst for freedom. But his true love was Alaska, and his true passion was the‘Alaskan Dream’— a dream of an Alaska with promises of the 21st century ‘springing up from the Arctic.’ An Alaska where our federal government works with us, not against us, to achieve our destiny and to develop our resources. An Alaska that lives up to the potential the country saw in it when Congress voted to allow the territory to become the 49th state. Ted Stevens brought us closer to that dream and calls on each of us to carry on his legacy and fight for the state we all love.”

“Senator Ted Stevens was my colleague and my mentor, but most importantly he was my friend. Our families were very close. We would hunt and fish together, and when we were both in Washington, D.C., we were legislative partners focused on getting things done for our great state and its people. Ted’s life was one of service to Alaska and service to his country. Ted was a quintessential public servant — he fought for our country in World War II, would go on to serve in the State Legislature, and spent the remainder of his career standing up for Alaskans in the United States Senate. He was a force to be reckoned with but was also a man of great faith and dedication to family. The day we lost Ted was a dark one for our state and country, and not a day goes by where I don’t think of my friend and his legacy. However, Ted’s family and friends can rest easily knowing that his fingerprints continue to be felt across Alaska, and his deep love of our state lives on in our young people,” said Congressman Young. “Today’s portrait unveiling is a special day for all who knew him. It is my great hope that future generations of Alaskans can look upon this portrait and be reminded of a man who gave his all to our state and country. I would like to thank everybody who worked hard to make this possible – particularly the Ted Stevens Foundation. I know Ted is looking down and is proud of everyone continuing the good work he did here on earth. May God bless Ted Stevens, his family, and all those who have been and will be inspired by Alaska’s ‘Uncle Ted.’”

Stevens devoted more than six decades of his life to public service. He served as a pilot in the Army Air Corps during World War II, flying missions in the China-Burma-India theater in support of the Flying Tigers. He later worked at the Department of the Interior, under then-Secretary Fred Seaton, as his point man in the push for statehood for Alaska. After arriving in the Senate in 1968, Stevens went on to chair five committees and served as a member of Republican leadership for nearly a decade. His legacy includes an incredible number of measures that built Alaska and bettered America, including legislation to settle most Alaska Native land claims, enable the construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, and protect and sustain America’s fisheries.

Stevens was a staunch proponent of national security and traveled the world to visit our military men and women. As a longtime leader on the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, he worked tirelessly to ensure those who serve our country in uniform had the best equipment, better pay, and needed care.

As an appropriator, Stevens secured federal funding that allowed thousands of rural Alaskans to gain access to basic water and sewer infrastructure, telemedicine, bypass mail, and essential air service. He was a strong supporter of Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act, which provides equal opportunity for women to participate in sports, and authored legislation to create the U.S. Olympic Committee.

In 2000, Stevens was voted Alaskan of the Century. The Anchorage International Airport is named for him, his beneficial impact can be seen and felt all throughout the 49th state, and Alaskans celebrate his legacy each year on Ted Stevens Day—the fourth Saturday of July.

Ted Stevens resisted the idea that the airport named for him should also bear his likeness when he was alive, his daughter Lily Stevens Becker said. He didn’t care much for the fanfare.

After his death, it took years for the family to get comfortable with the idea of seeing his life-size image cast in bronze.

“But now I think it’s time,” Stevens Becker said.

On Saturday, hundreds surrounded a 631-pound statue of Stevens as it was uncovered at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. Some watched from a balcony above. Stevens, who served in the U.S. Senate for 40 years, is depicted seated and relaxed, as if inviting conversation with passers-by at Alaska’s largest airport.

“There’s an expression I tried really hard to capture that is like speaking but almost smiling,” said Joan Bugbee Jackson, the Cordova sculptor who created the piece.

Karina Waller, executive director of the Ted Stevens Foundation, which oversaw the privately funded project, hopes the statue’s high-traffic location will capture attention and educate people about a giant figure in Alaska history. She declined to say what it cost.

“It’d be nice to have something in the airport, not only for Alaskans but for travelers who say, ‘Well, who’s Ted Stevens?’ ” Waller said.

To many Alaskans, Stevens needs no introduction. His decades in the Senate, which began in 1968, made him one of the 10 longest-serving senators in U.S. history. He championed Alaska transportation and infrastructure projects, supported construction of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline, protected Alaska commercial fisheries and played key roles in legislation that shaped the state. He was widely known as “Uncle Ted.”

In his farewell speech on the Senate floor in 2008, Stevens said he treasured every moment.

“I feel the same way now that I did in 1968,” he said. “I really must pinch myself to fully understand that I’m privileged to speak on the floor of the United States Senate.”

Stevens died in a plane crash near Dillingham in 2010.

*A crowd gathers for the Ted Stevens statue unveiling. (Marc Lester / ADN)*

*Family and friends of Ted Stevens unveil the statue at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. (Marc Lester / ADN)*

When the statue project got underway about two years ago, deciding which Stevens to portray proved a challenge, Waller said. Stevens was famously mercurial, by turns charming and serious, and sometimes Incredible Hulk combative.

Waller, a member of Stevens’ staff from 2002 to 2009, said she originally favored a strong and serious pose of the man she still refers to as “the boss.” Bugbee Jackson said she was captivated by the intensity of a lost-in-thought pose she had seen in a photograph.

Both say they were swayed by the input of Stevens’ widow, Catherine, who suggested an approachable posture for an engaging personality. That input changed the project’s direction.

“I think at the end of the day, you’ll see she was right,” Waller said days before the statue was unveiled.

The statue took about a year and a half to create, Bugbee Jackson said. Her other bronze sculptures in Alaska include the Veterans Monument on the Delaney Park Strip in Anchorage, the Alexander Baranov Monument in Sitka and the Joe Redington Memorial at the Iditarod headquarters in Wasilla.