A Nobel Peace Prize laureate has local ties to Alaska.
Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was honored for her advocacy of women's rights and shares the Nobel Peace prize with two other women.
Sirleaf's nephew, Dr. Estrada Bernard practices neurosurgery in Anchorage. He says his 72 year-old aunt has devoted her life to the needs of the Liberian people and is especially a role model for women in Africa.
Sirleaf became Africa's first democratically elected president in 2005 and is running for a second term on Tuesday. During a civil war in Liberia that spanned two decades, she worked with the United Nations and other international organizations to maintain stability in the country.
"Coming out of a civil war with 20 years of turmoil and the entire infrastructure of the country being destroyed, her presidency over the past six years has been marked by peace and stability," said Bernard. "She's been an advocate of maintaining stability in Africa and has helped countries to try and ensure that peace is being promoted."
Bernard says he heard the good news through texts and emails. He says his family is thrilled and elated for Sirleaf, and he hopes to be in Stockholm in December for the Nobel Prize ceremony.
