Christopher Jim Birch (August 28, 1950 – August 7, 2019) was an American politician who served as a member of the

Alaska Senate The Alaska State Senate is the upper house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It convenes in the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau, Alaska and is responsible for making laws and confirming or rejecting gub ...

for District M in 2019 and the

Alaska House of Representatives The Alaska State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. The House is composed of 40 members, each of whom represents a district of approximately 17,756 people per ...

for the 26th District from 2017 to 2019. Birch was a member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

Early life

Birch was born to geologist Bettijeanne Birch and mining engineer Frank Birch in

Sterling, Illinois Sterling is a city in Whiteside County, Illinois, Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. The population was 14,782 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, down from 15,370 in 2010. Formerly nicknamed "Hardware Capital of the World", the ...

in 1950. His family had a long history in Alaska and he grew up in mining camps near

Fairbanks Fairbanks is a home rule city and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska and the second largest in the state. The 2020 Census put the po ...

and the

Brooks Range The Brooks Range ( Gwich'in: ''Gwazhał'') is a mountain range in far northern North America stretching some from west to east across northern Alaska into Canada's Yukon Territory. Reaching a peak elevation of on Mount Isto, the range is believ ...

. Birch earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in Mining Engineering from the

University of Alaska Fairbanks The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF or Alaska) is a public land-grant research university in College, Alaska, a suburb of Fairbanks. It is the flagship campus of the University of Alaska system. UAF was established in 1917 and opened for cla ...

in 1972 and a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

degree in Engineering Management in 1979.

Career

Birch served as the chairman of the Chugach Electric Association from 1997 to 2005, worked as the senior engineer of environment and planning at

Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport is a major airport in the U.S. state of Alaska, located southwest of downtown Anchorage. The airport is named for Ted Stevens, a U.S. senator from Alaska in office from 1968 to 2009. It is included ...

from 1998 to 2004, and served as the South Anchorage Representative for the Anchorage Municipal Assembly from 2005 to 2014. In 2016, he was elected to the

for District 26. In 2018, he ran for the

Alaska State Senate The Alaska State Senate is the upper house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It convenes in the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau, Alaska and is responsible for making laws and confirming or rejecting gube ...

for District M and won with 58 percent of the vote. In the Senate, he served as chairman of the Resources Committee. Upon his death, Governor Mike Dunleavy nominated Representative Laddie Shaw to succeed him, but Senate Republicans rejected the nomination.

Personal life

Birch married Pamala Gay Bushey in 1978. They had two children, son Logan Thomas and daughter Talitha "Tali" Ann, and four grandchildren. Tali is a lawyer married to fellow lawyer Josh Kindred.

Death

Birch died from an

aortic dissection Aortic dissection (AD) occurs when an injury to the innermost layer of the aorta allows blood to flow between the layers of the aortic wall, forcing the layers apart. In most cases, this is associated with a sudden onset of severe chest or ...

on August 7, 2019.Christopher Birch-obituary
/ref>

References

External links

Chris Birch
at ''100 Years of Alaska's Legislature'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Birch, Chris 1950 births 2019 deaths 21st-century American politicians Republican Party Alaska state senators American civil engineers Anchorage Assembly members Deaths from aortic dissection Engineers from Alaska Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly members Republican Party members of the Alaska House of Representatives People from Sterling, Illinois University of Alaska Fairbanks alumni