DONNELLSON — The Donnellson Public Library will celebrate the 106th birthday of a Lee County man who went to live alone in the hostile Alaskan wilderness and became an icon of that state. 

The public is invited to Richard Proenneke's Birthday Bash from 4-6 p.m. Wednesday at the library, 411 S. Main St. 

"There will be refreshments, cookies, including Richard's mother Laura's sugar cookies, hickory nut cookies, cupcakes, one of Richard's staples, 'dynamite sticks,' punch, and Richard's favorite tea, 'Kobuk Samovar Tea," said Brie Anderson, curator of the library's Richard Proenneke Museum. 

Kobuk Samovar tea is a black, herbaceous blend from Anchorage. 

The celebration, including children's activities, also will mark the release of a newly published, handwritten journal from one of Proenneke's earliest trips to Alaska, with a DVD, "Alone at Twin Lakes - 1965." 

The DVD is narrated by local folk singer and musician William Whitmore, whose grandmother, Edith Tweedy, corresponded with Proenneke for 20 years and visited him in the 1980s. 

"Richard shot film throughout the entire stay at Twin Lakes, which began on Aug. 8, capturing on film the people we have come to know through reading Richard’s writings," Anderson said. 

"In our collection of film taken by Richard and (his brother) Raymond Proenneke was film labeled '1965 Twin Lakes.'  After 56 years, Richard’s first handwritten journal has found its way back to his film. They are reunited once again." 

Proenneke, who grew up on a Primrose farm, at the age of about 51 went to live in solitude at Upper Twin Lake in his hand-built, Alaskan bush cabin for 30 years with just his tripod-mounted camera. 

In 1977, ABC News sent a crew to interview him for a segment on the Harry Reasoner-Barbara Walters program. 

Proenneke's spiral notebook journals, films and photographs have been compiled into award-winning books and documentaries shown on public television.

They also can be seen on YouTube or ordered through Amazon or the Donnellson library's museum. 

During the summers of 1967 and 1968, Proenneke filmed himself building his cabin using simple, hand-held tools and local materials like spruce logs, beach stones, foundation gravel from the lake's bottom, and sod and moss for the roof. 

His cabin and homestead are maintained by the National Park Service.

Tourists visiting Lake Clark National Park to see Proenneke's cabin, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, marvel at his craftsmanship. 

A commenter on "At Home in the Wilderness" on YouTube said he'd visited the cabin, and added, "Like so many I was amazed at the detail to the handy work of all of Dick's projects and builds."

Back home, fans continue to honor the man who seemed to be able to make anything he needed. 

The Donnellson museum houses a replica of his log cabin and displays actual furnishings, including the Grizzly he shot in 1950 at Kodiak; his red flannel shirt, black vests and fur-lined mittens; his writings, and more, including a homemade pan he used to pan for and find gold. 

Proenneke died in 2003 at age 86. He often credited his Iowa farm upbringing with giving him the skills to hunt, fish and fend for himself.

"He may have lived in Alaska for nearly 50 years, more than 30 years in his hand-built cabin at Twin Lakes, but his roots are solidly planted right here in Lee County," Anderson said. 

To learn more, visit donnellson.lib.ia.us, or call (319) 835-5545.