Olga (Arrsamquq) Michael (February 3, 1916 – November 8, 1979), known as Saint Olga (Arrsamquq) of Alaska, was an

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...

priest's wife from

Kwethluk Kwethluk ( ; esu, Kuiggluk) is a city in Bethel Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the 2010 census the population was 721, up from 713 in 2000. Geography Kwethluk is located at (60.802332, -161.418556). It lies at the confluence of th ...

village, on the

Kuskokwim River The Kuskokwim River or Kusko River ( Yup'ik: ''Kusquqvak''; Deg Xinag: ''Digenegh''; Upper Kuskokwim: ''Dichinanek' ''; russian: Кускоквим (''Kuskokvim'')) is a river, long, in Southwest Alaska in the United States. It is the ninth l ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

.Fr. John Shimchick.
MATUSHKA OLGA MICHAEL: A Helper in Restoring the Work of God's Hands
'

Diocese of New York/New Jersey (OCA). Retrieved June 6, 2017.

Life

Matushka Olga known among the locals as Olinka, was a Native

n of

Yup'ik The Yup'ik or Yupiaq (sg & pl) and Yupiit or Yupiat (pl), also Central Alaskan Yup'ik, Central Yup'ik, Alaskan Yup'ik ( own name ''Yup'ik'' sg ''Yupiik'' dual ''Yupiit'' pl; russian: Юпики центральной Аляски), are an I ...

origin. Her husband was the village postmaster and manager of the general store, and later archpriest, Father Nikolai Michael. Serving her community not only as a priest's wife, but also as a

midwife A midwife is a health professional who cares for mothers and newborns around childbirth, a specialization known as midwifery. The education and training for a midwife concentrates extensively on the care of women throughout their lifespan; co ...

, Matushka Olga gave birth to and raised several children, many of whom she gave birth to without the aid of a midwife of her own. Matushka Olga was known for her empathy and caring for those who had suffered abuse of all kinds, especially sexual abuse. While her family was poor, she was generous to those who were poorer, often giving away her children's clothes to the needy. She was also known for her ability to tell when a woman was pregnant, even before the woman herself had missed her period. When Matushka Olga

died Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

, many people from miles around wanted to come to her funeral, but since it was November, the winter weather made it impossible. But a wind from the south brought warm weather, thawing the ice and snow to make the trek to Kwethluk possible. When the mourners exited the church to take her body to the graveyard, a flock of birds followed. The ones who dug her grave found that the ground, too, had thawed. The evening after her funeral, the normal harsh winter weather returned.

Glorification

Olga receives veneration in the region in which she lived her earthly life, and personal veneration from many Orthodox women touched by her life story. It is said that she has appeared to those in need of healing, sometimes alongside the

Mother of God ''Theotokos'' (Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are ''Dei Genitrix'' or ''Deipara'' (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations ar ...

. On November 9, 2023, the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church in America announced her formal canonization, with her feast day set for November 10.

References

External links

Saint Olga of Alaska: Northern Light of God's Holy Church
Facebook Page includes updated information. {{DEFAULTSORT:Michael, Olga 1916 births 1979 deaths American midwives Christians from Alaska Native American Christians People from Bethel Census Area, Alaska Russian Orthodox Christians from the United States Yupik people 20th-century American women