For a third consecutive year, the Alaska turkey bomb has ensured remote Alaskan families’ Thanksgiving despite living off the grid. Esther Keim, a pilot based north of Anchorage, flies a small plane to deliver frozen turkey to isolated communities.
With 80% of Alaska lacking road access, residents often rely on planes or snowmobiles for transportation during winter. Keim began this tradition after hearing about a family with little to eat for one Thanksgiving. Using a plane she rebuilt with her father, she dropped them a turkey, which has continued since.
This year, she distributed 32 frozen turkeys to families in south-central Alaska, but by Tuesday, unpredictable weather had delayed the last two deliveries. Among the recipients were Dave and Christina Luce, who live along the Yentna River 45 miles northwest of Anchorage. Keim, who has known them since childhood, delivered a 12-pound turkey for their Thanksgiving. “I’m 80 years old now, so we make fewer and fewer trips,” Dave Luce said.
Keim funds her mission through donations and social media outreach. Volunteers sometimes join her as” turkey “droppers, tossing turkeys from her plane. Wrapped in plastic bags, the turkeys remain frozen in her truck bed until delivery. She buzzes home to alert recipients before dropping the turkeys to ensure accuracy.
Keim plans to extend the Alaska turkey bomb project into a nonprofit to reach more remote families nationwide. Her vision includes delivering stuffed animals for children in villages, adding joy to future missions. The gratitude Keim gets from families makes it all worthwhile for her. Her goal is to spread holiday cheer in Alaska’s wilderness.
