Dear fellow shareholders,

Ahtna has fared very well through the pandemic, with record revenues and profits achieved in 2020. This allowed us to return record high dividend distributions to shareholders over the past year. These distributions came at a time when our shareholders needed them most; jobs have been lost, costs continue to increase, and people are stretched thin trying to balance the needs of work, family and self. Ahtna’s Settlement Trust was put in place to allow Ahtna to pay stable, non-taxable dividends to shareholders in perpetuity, but we cannot count on record distributions being paid out every year. Dividend distributions should be received as a blessing, and not come to be expected.

We must be prepared for harder times, as we’ve seen with our fishing seasons. When the season is bountiful, we are able to share our fishwheel catch freely with Elders and those in need. But when the runs are slow, we must be more conservative and rely on our cache of resources. Being prepared with food put away from previous seasons sustains us and enables us to endure hard times. We must all wisely balance the use and conservation of resources available to us.

The Ahtna COVID Reimbursement Program funds being distributed in October are not a dividend. Federal law prohibits Ahtna from distributing these funds as a dividend to its shareholders. The law is very clear, and it requires that the funds be distributed and used to cover necessary expenditures arising from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

You can prepare for future dividend distributions by keeping your contact information updated in the MyAhtna shareholder portal and signing up for direct deposit. By choosing direct deposit, you’ll receive funds a week or more earlier than a mailed check. To stay up to date on the latest Ahtna news and dividend announcements, please follow us on Facebook and sign up via the MyAhtna portal to receive email and text messages.

I would like to thank and recognize the Board and management for their foresight and commitment to Ahtna’s mission of responsible economic growth for future generations of Ahtna people.

Tsin’aen,

Ken Johns, Chairman
Ahtna, Incorporated Board of Directors