Molly Ames

1941 - 2013

Molly Ames
Accomplished and dedicated Athabascan leader Molly Ann Ames passed away March 28, 2013, at Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium Mount Edgecumbe Hospital in Sitka, at age 71.
Born in Fort Yukon on July 6, 1941, to proud parents Albert Lee Ames and Nina Henry Ames, Molly soon would grow to become a driven Athabascan woman with aspirations to succeed academically and professionally to effect change for the betterment of her Alaska Native people.
She graduated from Sheldon Jackson High School in Sitka in 1960, and continued on to earn her bachelor's degree at University of Alaska Fairbanks in Native law and a master's degree in ancient literature.
Her achievements academically earned her respected and pivotal roles within the Alaska Native community. Molly served as a judge for the Tanana Chiefs Tribal Court; she was dedicated to serving and protecting Native children.
Molly was honored with an adoption by Tlingit clan leader Howard H. Gray Sr., into the T'akdeintaan clan of Hoonah/Glacier Bay.
She spent the final years of her life continuing to make a positive impact in the Alaska Native Community by serving selflessly as a caregiver for the elders in her hometown of Nenana.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Albert Lee Ames and Nina Henry Ames; brothers, Daniel Lee Ames and Robert Allan Ames; and sister, Pauline Ames.
She is survived by her daughters, Denise P. Gray and Julie C. Jackson, of Hoonah; and siblings, Albert Norman Ames, Paul Henry Ames and Geraldine Ruby Ames.
At her request, there will be a small private memorial held in Hoonah - date yet to be determined - and another memorial held in Nenana, at a later date.