
Raised between a small town in Iowa and Kotzebue, Grace ‘Igluguq’ Graves grew up with her grandparents, Richard and Grace (Wells) Graves. Her mother hailed from Noorvik. Igluguq, named after her Auntie Mildred Sampson, now resides in Waterloo, Iowa, with her husband of 19 years, Mike, and their beloved cats, Sassy and Sunny, affectionately called “The Girls.”
In her leisure time, Igluguq enjoys golfing in the spring and fall, reading, and learning to crochet. She takes pride in being a “professional aunt,” finding immense joy in watching her nieces and nephews grow into successful adults, who now have their own children calling her “Aana.”
Her professional journey began in high school when she was waitressing at the Nullaġvik Hotel during a tourism boom in Kotzebue. After high school, she moved to Anchorage to work as an accounts payable/receivable clerk for NANA Development Corp. In 2001, she accepted a position with NMS as a Billeting Clerk at Red Dog Mine. She collaborated closely with General Managers Brian Corcoran and Matt Thaman, who became her career mentors there. She eventually advanced to the general manager position, a role she held for seven and a half years, accumulating nearly fourteen years at Red Dog Mine.
After leaving for a few years, Igluguq returned to Alaska in 2018 and accepted the Operations Manager position at Prudhoe Bay, leveraging her prior experience and gaining new insights into the oil field. After four years, she transitioned to a trainer role, working with Anthonie Martini to implement a new food service inventory program across various remote sites. She played a crucial role in creating “How to Manuals” for the culinary software program, assisting teams in providing accurate product usage and cost information.
In October 2023, Igluguq was asked to cover the Operations Manager position at Alpine, a role she continues to hold. Working with Todd Whited and her alternate, Eric Hallingstad, she has gained valuable knowledge in managing and navigating the unique challenges of the ice road season.
Igluguk finds it amazing that all NMS sites offer the same services to different clients, yet each camp is unique and fascinating. She appreciates the guidance from her new alternate, Eric, who has a much different management style than she’s experienced and is learning a lot from him.
She also appreciates how every day is different on the job. One day, there are two new hires; the next day, they have to run eggs out to one of the other camps, and another day, they head out to a conex trailer to get food trays in the middle of winter. It’s never a dull moment!
Grace says the best part of the job is getting to work with some great people every day and having the joy of learning about different cultures while sharing part of her own Iñupiaq culture.
During her career with NMS, Igluguk has always told her crews that they are the first line of defense to keep the oil field running. “We are the most visible company at every site, seen first thing in the morning and last at night. When the residents return to their rooms, we ensure they know the camps have been sanitized, their rooms are clean, and the food is delicious!”