Anchorage's contemporary Native American music band, Medicine Dream, composed a song just for graduating UAA students - "Honor Song" - in 1998.

This year, the band is up for three categories in the Native American Music Awards: debut, pop and songwriter. The band travels to New Mexico on Nov. 11 as the only Alaska group asked to perform at the awards.

Two of the band's interesting aspects are that its members won't play in bars and that the nationalities of the group span the globe.

John Field, a UAA natural sciences major who plays keyboard and sings backup vocals for the band is Scandinavian and German.

Paul Pike, who sings lead vocals as well as playing electric and acoustic guitar, keyboard, bass, Native American flute and percussion, comes from the Mi'kmaq Nation on the Island of Newfoundland in Canada.

The two band members' paths first crossed many years ago.

"Paul and I have the same professional music background (rock). I've known him a long time in Anchorage. I listened to the music and believed in the cause of the group," Field said.

Most of the group members also have Native or Aboriginal backgrounds.

Field said being the only non-Native member of the band has always been a positive experience.

"I guess I had my eyes open at first to see how people would treat me. People have always been accepting of me," said Field. "It's a strength of the group that everyone is from different backgrounds. America is like that. Alaska is like that."

Other group members have the following backgrounds: Cea Anderson is from the Aleut Nation in Alaska and has a mix of Lakota and Swedish heritage. George Newton is from the Aleut Nation and is also Inupiaq, Irish, Russian and Danish. Paulette Sierra Moreno is Tlingit, Japanese and Mexican. Gilbert "Buz" Daney, the groups lead traditional vocalist, is from the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. Ralph Sara is Yupik and Sami. Chuck Henman is Apache, Navajo and Mexican. Angela Brown is Mi'kmaq from Canada.

Pike said that there is a unity among Native cultures with other cultures, exemplified in the medicine wheel and the colors of black, white, red and yellow. " The sobriety movement also adopted those colors," Pike said.

The group's goal since its inception in 1995 has been to help people fight drug and alcohol addiction and prevent suicide. "A long time ago, societies fought to death to protect their people and to fight a common enemy," Pike said. "Right now, the enemy is drugs and alcohol."

For this reason Medicine Dream has never played in a bar. Unlike other local bands, their recognition is almost entirely due to community's support of the band's mission, since they don't play regular gigs. The shows the band has played, though, include Anchorage's New Years Eve Bash, the Egan Center, the 4th Avenue Theater and the Alaska State Fair.

"They (AK State Fair) even shut down the beer tent (in 1998) just for us".

Two group members also work in the human services field.

Anderson is the project coordinator for the cultural outreach program at Cook inlet Tribal Council. Daney works for Southcentral Foundation, which works with the Native Community in areas of emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual wellness.

An abbreviated version of the group also visits area high schools, youth centers and even visited a preschool as Medicine Dream 'Unplugged'.

"It's good to see someone doing something positive and to see that what Aboriginal people do is important. We're trying to fight negative stereotypes," Pike said.

Field and Pike said they have a Native elder who helps guide the group in inter-tribal matters. "Walter Austin (Tlingit wolf clan), an elder with a track on the "Gathering" CD usually keeps us in line," said Pike."He's pretty knowledgeable of the tribal customs in Alaska. He always has the right thing to say."

What kind of fans does Medicine Dream attract? "Age, race, styles of music - all different," Pike said.

Field said many of the group's fans plan to attend the awards ceremony in November to give the group support.