Meet Gregg Brelsford

Born with a gift to inspire others, Gregg Brelsford has dedicated his life to mentoring young leaders, strengthening Alaskan communities, and serving others. Gregg’s passionate leadership has brought out the best in people for 50 years.

An energetic and inclusive leader, his passion and drive inspire everyone he engages. Driving change through teamwork and determination is his trademark.

Gregg drove the Alcan Highway to Alaska in 1972. Most recently, he served as a no-nonsense, get-it-done, do-it-now, Manager of the Bristol Bay Borough and as an Interim City Manager of Dillingham, Alaska. These are the largest local governments in the Bristol Bay, Alaska, and the heart of the world’s largest, red salmon industry - generating revenues of approximately $1 billion annually.

In the 1990s, Gregg campaigned in a Republican primary election for the Alaska House and upon losing helped his opponent beat the Democrat candidate and win the general election. He also helped a Republican in a state house primary election in the 2020 election.

Gregg moved to Alaska from Colorado after visiting his parents in Anchorage on a college break. He is an avid skydiver (starting in Girdwood in 1983) with 660 skydives, camper and cross-country skier. Gregg is also a member of the NRA and the Matanuska Valley Sportsmen shooting range, where he stays proficient in target practice.

While working full time, Gregg attended the University of Alaska, Anchorage at night. This included work with troubled-teens in Anchorage, and in a remote Alaska Native village. Later, he served as the founding Health Director of the regional tribal-governing body for the Chugach Region, and then as an Acting Executive Director of the Anchorage Neighborhood Health Center.

Gregg then served as the Executive Director of the Aleutian/Pribilof Islands Association and the Aleutian Housing Authority. At APIA, he helped secure U.S. Congressional compensation for the internment of the Aleuts during WWII, and served on the Alaska Federation of Natives Board of Directors.

Following this, Gregg completed Harvard Law School and served as a law clerk for the Chief Justice of the Alaska Supreme Court. He then briefly practiced in a prominent international law firm in Seoul, South Korea, where he met his wife, Puyong.  Returning to Alaska, Gregg practiced law in Anchorage and then in senior attorney positions in NASDAQ and NYSE-traded global technology companies elsewhere.

Gregg and Puyong have been married for over 30 years and have a daughter and son, and a Tlingit granddaughter. (A deceased son is buried in his mother’s Alaskan village.) They now live in Anchorage, and spend their time camping, and reclaiming the time with family that was interrupted by Covid-19.  Gregg continues to skydive when time allows it and jumped  most recently in November 2021.