Olga Michael

Olinka "Olga" Arrsamquq Michael (; née Arrsamquq, – ), known as Olga Michael, Olga of Kwethluk, or Matushka Olga''' , was a Native American Eastern Orthodox midwife, matushka, and saint from Alaska.

Olga Arrsamquq was born in Kwethluk, Alaska to Native American parents of the Yup'ik people in 1916. In 1935, she married Nicolai Michael, a man who would go onto become an Orthodox priest. was born on February 3, 1916 in the village Kwethluk in the Territory of Alaska, in the United States, to Native American parents of the Yup'ik tribe.

Marriage and role as matushka Arrsamquq later married Nicolai Michael on January 7, 1935, as part of an arranged marriage in accordance with local custom. Nicolai would found and manage a general store in Kwethluk, along with starting the village's first US Post Office. Her husband, not particularly religious when they first married, later became an Eastern Orthodox priest, being ordained in 1963, and becoming the first priest from the village of Kwethluk. After her husband's ordination, Olga Michael became a matushka (meaning "mother" in Russian, as a term of respect), She was known for her generosity, which included baking food for neighbors, and making and giving away clothes to others.

Olga and her husband, Nicolai Michael, had thirteen children, eight of whom lived to adulthood.

Work as a midwife, healer, and teacher Michael worked as a midwife in the village, helping deliver newborn infants. She also worked as a healer, and incorporated traditional Yup'ik medicinal practices into her methods. Her input and counsel was often sought after in her community, particularly among women. Later in her life, Michael worked as a teacher, instructing adults in learning English as their second language.

Death On November 8, 1979, she died of cancer in Kwethluk. After her death, people in the region reported what they thought were miracles related to the event. These included stories of ground unfreezing suddenly at her burial, flocks of birds flying over her burial at times when they should have already flown south, and a sudden warm spell allowing river travel to her funeral.

Reported miracles, canonization and veneration

Reported miracles After Michael's death, people began to report seeing her in dreams and visions as a healing figure. An Orthodox priest, Michael Oleksa, who had previously written a book that included details about Michael, reported that in about 2003, a non-Christian woman from New York reached out to him about a vision she had regarding Michael. She had a dream of being healed of her prior sexual abuse by a woman who called herself Olga. According to Oleksa, the characterization of the woman who appeared in the dream fit traditional Yup'ik ways of living, even though the New York woman claimed to have no prior knowledge of Alaska. The woman eventually converted to Orthodoxy, according to Oleksa. The Orthodox Church in America also records numerous miracles, visions, and other phenomena related to Michael.

According to Bishop Alexei, head of the Diocese of Alaska of the Orthodox Church in America, numerous believers, particularly Alaskans and including Oleksa, had been pushing for Michael's canonization for decades. The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America proclaimed on November 8, 2023 that Michael would be glorified (another term for canonization) at a future date.

On November 16, 2024, Michael's grave in Kwelthluk was exhumed in the process of bringing her remains, considered holy relics in the Eastern Orthodox religion, to Saint Nicholas Church in the town, in a religious process known as the uncovering of relics, the last major step before her canonization. The canonization took place on June 19, 2025 at St. Nicholas Church in Kwelthluk, and was presided over by the primate of the Orthodox Church in America, Metropolitan Tikhon. About 300 people traveled to the small village for the ceremonies, including prominent members of the Orthodox clergy. With this canonization, she became the first woman from North America, and the first Yup'ik person, to be canonized saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church.

Icons of Olga often show her wearing a kuspuk, and holding items such as a basin of water and a towel (referencing her work as a midwife), or with northern lights in the background. Many icons painted of Saint Olga also contain words she was reported to have spoken in a dream, "God can create beauty out of complete desolation". Following a request from Metropolitan Tikhon of All America and Canada, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church also decided to formally add St. Olga of Alaska to its liturgical calendar for October 27.