newsminer.com

When Peter Moore was younger, his grandmother told him that he had a special role to play when people died.

He should visit the dead person's family and offer whatever help he could.

"It is not against any statutes or any law to help when there is a death in the community," she would say.

Honoring that request helped Moore, now 76, earn the AFN Public Service award on Saturday, Oct. 25.

Over the last six decades, Moore has voluntarily built caskets for people from the Yup'ik village of Emmonak, where he lives, and several other villages along the Lower Yukon River. He's also helped counsel grieving families for free.

It's a service he'll no longer provide -- too depressing. But Moore is passing on his casket-making skills to younger generations.

It's a big service, because shipping a casket into a Lower Yukon village is no easy feat. The only way they can arrive is by barge or plane, so they're expensive. They cost about $1,500, said Moore's brother, Martin Moore.

Moore has built 161 caskets for people in such villages as Nunam Iqua, Alakanuk, Kotlik, Mountain Village and St. Marys.

"We estimated the value of the services he provided are $200,000," Martin said.

That's about $1,250 a casket.

Moore began making the caskets at age 18. When he hears of a death, he reaches out to the family.

"When you go in there, they're really sad," he said. "(I ask) if any one needs any kind of help I can do for you. I can see their face change right away and cheer up."

The casket-making includes donations of materials from stores and other groups in Emmonak, as well as a lumber company in Anchorage, said Martin.

Most of Moore's caskets are built with plywood, but some are oak. He adds varnish and other preservatives, and has different designs, including one casket with a curved top.

Moore also builds a thick wooden box to protect the casket from the permafrost, which is melting at an increasing pace in the region, Martin said.

Moore won't make caskets any longer in the village of 800, but he's passing the skills on.

"He can't take so much of that depression and sorrow so he's teaching the younger generation to take over his job," Martin said. "But he promises to continue to consult and help the young people when they are in need of design and construction."