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From Wikipedia: Thelma Garcia Buchholdt (August 1, 1934 November 5, 2007) was a Filipino American community activist, politician, historian, public speaker, cultural worker, and author. She was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives for four consecutive terms, from 1974 through 1982 Her life was one full of "firsts": She was a founder of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Alaska (1966). she was the first female to be elected President of the Filipino Community of Anchorage, Alaska, Inc. (1973) She was the first Asian American elected to the Alaska State Legislature (1974) She was the first female Filipino American elected to a legislature in the United States (1974) She founded and coordinated the Filipino Heritage Council of Alaska, Inc. (1975) She initiated funding (1980) and was a founder as well as the first president of the Asian Alaskan Cultural Center, the first cross-cultural center of its kind in Alaska (1983) She was the first Asian American elected to serve as President of the National Order of Women Legislators (1987) She founded the Alaska chapter of the Filipino American National Historical Society (1994)