05.17.19

Sullivan Honors Alaskan of the Week: Anchorage Police Officer Angie Fraize

WASHINGTON, DC – During National Police Week, U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK) recognized all of the law enforcement officers across Alaska, including Officer Angie Fraize of the Anchorage Police Department (APD). Officer Fraize is passionate about her job and about finding creative ways for the police department and the public to interact. She’s also a strong advocate for people with special needs. As APD Chief Justin Doll said, “She is the epitome of the public servant ideal that is the foundation of our relationship with the Anchorage community.” Senator Sullivan recognized Fraize as part of his series, “Alaskan of the Week.” 

To watch Senator Sullivan’s floor remarks click the image above.

TRIBUTE TO ANGIE FRAIZE:

Mr. President, as I mentioned earlier, it is Thursday afternoon, and it is the time I get to talk about an Alaskan who has given of themselves in order to make my State the great place that it is. We call this person the Alaskan of the Week.

I like to come down to the floor--and I am not going to take a poll, but I think it is the pages' favorite speech of the week--because I get to talk about Alaska and somebody who has really made a difference for the community, the State, or maybe even the country.

I like to talk about what is going on in Alaska because I love to encourage people to come and visit our great State.

Right now, what is going on in Alaska? Well, sunset time is approaching midnight in many places across the State. In Anchorage, the Sun officially rose at 5:06 a.m. and will set at 10:42 p.m., but twilight starts at 4 a.m. and ends at midnight. So the Midnight Sun is burning bright all across Alaska. In the summer, we are hit with this frenzied energy because of this beautiful Midnight Sun in the sky. You will find many of us up late playing softball, doing yard work, fishing, painting houses, talking to our neighbors. So it is a great time to be in Alaska. I urge everybody here in the Gallery to come on up.

The Presiding Officer also has a great State to visit, the State of Florida. So go down to Florida, and then you can take the 4,000-mile trip to Alaska. You will have a great time. Make your travel plans now.

As you know, what makes my State or your State truly great is not the hours of Sun it gets--and the Presiding Officer's State does get a lot of Sun too--or its glorious mountains or sparkling seas, all of which we have in Alaska in spades; it is the people who help build strong families, strong communities, strong cities, and a strong State.

The person I want to honor today is Anchorage Police Officer Angie Fraize, our Alaskan of the Week.

I think it is very appropriate that we are celebrating our police forces across the country, all across America. There were many thousands in DC this week because they are a force for good in our communities who often go unappreciated.

I got to speak last Friday at the Anchorage police memorial ceremony, and it was a very somber event. We have a big memorial there of all the first responders and law enforcement officers who have been killed in the line of duty in Alaska over the last 100-plus years.

As I mentioned, all jobs are important, no doubt about it, but there is something special, something noble, and something even sacred, I would say, about a job that entails protecting others and putting your life on the line to keep your fellow citizens safe.

This week, I thought it would be fitting to honor Anchorage Police Officer Fraize. She is one of more than 400 sworn police officers, brave men and women who keep the 300,000 residents of Anchorage, AK--my hometown--safe. Let me tell you a little bit about Officer Fraize, what makes her so special, and why my friend and fellow marine, Anchorage Police Chief Justin Doll, recommended her.

Officer Fraize was raised in Butte, in Palmer, on 12 acres of land. She did not have an easy childhood. She grew up in a house with no running water and no electricity. Her father was an alcoholic who died in a motorcycle accident when she was just 12 years old, so her mom raised her and her brother by herself. Her mom was a tenacious, hard-working mother--a characteristic she clearly passed on to her daughter. She worked her way through college with her two young children to support and at the age of 40 got her degree in education from the University of Alaska in Anchorage.

This is Officer Fraize's mom. You see where she gets her good genes.

Times were tough. Money was tight. They often had to shower at the university. Their car was always breaking down. They were always struggling to make it, but they always did make ends meet--a family struggling and barely making it.

None of that dimmed Officer Fraize's dream of catching the bad guys--a dream she had since seventh grade. She graduated with honors from high school and was able to attend the University of Washington when she was only 16 years old--very smart. Her first job out of college was as a residential youth counselor working with adolescent sex offenders who had mental health issues. So right away, she was in the law enforcement area.

When her husband was offered a job with the Anchorage PD, she decided at that time that she, too, wanted to be a police officer.

Officer Fraize has had various duties in the 12 years she has worked as an Anchorage police officer. She has been a police officer, a coordinator for the academy, and now she is a recruiter particularly focused on recruiting young women and spreading the word about how great APD is. So if you want an adventure and you want to come to Alaska and you like law enforcement, give her a call.

All the jobs Officer Fraize has had require empathy. She said her life experiences have given her that empathy. Chronic alcoholics, she said, don't wake up every day choosing to drink. People who act badly don't wake up wanting to be bad people. The trick, she said, is to listen to people, to find a connection, and to see the humanity in each individual.

She is also incredibly passionate about connecting police officers with the people they protect, so she chairs a group called Anchorage Cops for Community, where the police officers interact with the public in positive ways at coffee shops, community council meetings, and public events throughout Anchorage. This gives the community a chance to interact with officers in a positive way. It also gives police officers a chance to get their fresh perspectives from community members.

On Tuesday, for instance, the cops and firefighters got together for an eating relay at a local barbecue restaurant in Anchorage. Members of the community came out to cheer their favorite police officer and fireman. The proceeds went to Special Olympics Alaska, which is another passion of hers.

Officer Fraize is a great champion of advocating for those with special needs. She and her husband have two daughters: Italia, who is 14 years old, and Gianna, who is 10. Gianna has Down syndrome and, according to Officer Fraize, is the most popular girl in her fourth grade class. That is no surprise.

Officer Fraize is the chair of a local group that advocates for individuals with special needs, and she is also involved in the Special Olympics Law Enforcement Torch Run, which is a great event that so many in our community get behind. She was one of 50 police officers in America chosen to carry the torch at the 2019 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Abu Dhabi. She brought the torch home to Alaska, and she is giving it to Special Olympics in Alaska this weekend at the 2019 Alaska Law Enforcement Torch Run and Pledge Drive. This is going to be a great event.

Anchorage Police Chief Justin Doll said:

“We are so proud of Officer Fraize's work at the APD, and I believe the rest of Anchorage should be as well. She is the epitome of the public servant ideal that is the foundation of our relationship with the Anchorage community. I am genuinely honored to have her at APD upholding our most cherished traditions of community service.”

That is the Anchorage police chief.

We are also proud of all our police officers and first responders in Alaska. We are so grateful for the work they do to keep us safe. We want them to know that we honor their jobs and their commitment to our community. We also honor their families. These are very tough jobs, and it is hard on supportive families when a wife or husband goes off every morning to a job that could involve risking their lives.

We want them to know, not just in Alaska but here in the Senate, we have their backs.

To Officer Fraize, thanks for all that you do. We are so lucky to have officers like you in Alaska, looking out for us. Thank you for being our Alaskan of the Week.

I yield the floor.

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