On May 12, the Peninsula Clarion’s Circulation Director Randalee Keaton celebrated her 12th year working with the paper.

“I manage the delivery of the paper to the subscribers, stores, newspaper boxes, and the digital subscriptions. What I do is important because it gets the papers to the readers, in one fashion or another,” Keaton said.

Keaton is originally from Columbus, Ohio. Her family moved to the area in 1987, just before she started seventh grade, to join some extended family already in Alaska.

“My favorite memory of Alaska is flying down from Anchorage that first morning in state,” Keaton said. “We had flown into Anchorage in the middle of the night, so I had not seen anything. Flying from Anchorage, in the tiny Southcentral Air plane, and getting to actually see the beauty was amazing.”

Outside of the Clarion, Keaton touts herself as a comic book nerd, lover of ‘80s hair metal, and a self-proclaimed giraffe fanatic.

“Anyone who know me or is ever around me knows that,” she said. “I only have 19 giraffe or giraffe-related items on my desk.”

And until the world figures out how to make the giraffe a perfect pet, Keaton has the next best thing.

“I have three furry balls of insanity that masquerade as cats, Hobo, Pewter and Priya,” she said.

She also is a yarn hoarder.

“I crochet … a lot,” she said. “I need all of the yarn so I can crochet all of the things.”

Keaton also works on projects that give back.

“Every July, my friends and I organize a benefit concert in Hollywood at the Whisky a Go Go,” she said. This year, her group, Cruefest Hollywood, is celebrating its 18th annual event, each of which raise money for cancer charities in memorial of Motley Crue’s singer Vince Neil’s daughter Skylar. Skylar lost her battle with cancer at age four. For the past several years, the group has worked with Letty’s Angels of Hope in Texas.

“I am passionate about what we do through Cruefest Hollywood. Donating and giving back is a big part of who I am and getting to do that with friends is amazing,” Keaton said.