About Michael
Brief history,
My father, Robert Sheldon, was born in Wrangell in 1925, and his father, Clyde Sheldon, was born in Everett, Washington. My dad's mother was half Tlingit from her marriage to Clyde Sheldon.
Rose Ann Cooday Sheldon was born in Alaska in the village of Kake. My mother is full-blooded Tlingit, and she lives today at the age of 94. Our heritage goes back for thousands of years in history by my mother's side, and that has helped me understand Alaska by the hands-on experience of my founding parents and their education passed down to my children and me.
My education began in my hometown of Petersburg, Alaska; after attending the local high school in the 70's, I traveled down to Peninsula College in Port Angeles, Washington, where I learned the highly skilled trades of Automotive Mechanics and Welding. Being educated and skilled in the welding trade, I had the opportunity to put these skills to work in Alaska's oil fields. I joined the 302 Alaska Operating Engineers, working in several camps such as Coldfoot, Dietrick, Isabel Pass, etc., using my skills as a mechanic and putting my welding skills to use on the Alaska Pipeline.
After working for years on the pipeline, I returned to my hometown in Petersburg and purchased my first commercial fishing vessel. It was time to start my first business in one of the most challenging and dangerous careers a man can take up in the unforgiving Alaskan waters: the commercial fishing industry. I have been fishing the waters of Alaska since I was a teenager and have owned my boats for the past twenty-two years. As an owner and operator, I decided it was time to retire, giving up my sea legs and spending days and nights on the waters of Southeast Alaska. I travel to Bristol Bay as a side adventure to gillnet when available. After planting my feet back on land in 1998, I found retirement wouldn't last long before I put my skills back to work for the Alaska Marine Highway System as a ticket agent in Petersburg. After spending some time there, I eventually settled into my second business of the last ten years as a handyman, serving my community and helping Alaskans.
Being born in Petersburg, Alaska, will help me make sound judgments about my fellow residents of the Last Frontier. I've been a Conservative Republican for the past 45 years, and I believe that we should be fair to all Alaskans as equal members under God's eyes and our National and State Constitutions. I hope to receive your vote in the primary election on August 16. Thanks, Mike Sheldon
