Who is Heimo Korth’s Wife Edna? Children, Tragedy, and Life Beyond The Last Alaskans

When it comes to surviving off the grid in the Arctic wild, few families are as inspiring—or as resilient—as the Korths. Best known from the Discovery Channel’s The Last Alaskans, Heimo Korth and his wife Edna have built a remarkable life deep inside Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. But behind the spotlight on Heimo’s rugged survival skills lies a much deeper story—one of love, loss, cultural strength, and family tradition.

From Edna’s Siberian Yupik roots in Savoonga to the couple’s blended family of four children—Millie, Merlin, Rhonda, and Krin—the Korths have quietly created one of the most unique family legacies in modern Alaska. This article takes you beyond the television cameras to explore the lives of each family member, their roles in the wilderness lifestyle, and what the future may hold for the next generation.

Edna Korth (née Yupik, born January 25, 1954)

Edna is the heart of the Korth family. Born and raised in the village of Savoonga on St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, she is a Siberian Yupik woman deeply rooted in traditional subsistence practices. Her upbringing was shaped by a culture that relied on hunting sea mammals, fishing through the ice, and preserving food for long Arctic winters. Edna’s early life was steeped in resilience—learning to sew seal and caribou hides, prepare traditional foods, and navigate the harsh coastal climate.

Before she met Heimo, Edna experienced personal hardship and loss. She had two children—Melinda (Millie) and Merlin—by different partners. Her fiancé, a Swedish biologist and Millie’s father, died tragically in a plane crash shortly before Millie was born. Merlin’s father, an Inupiaq man from Nome, was absent from his life. As Edna prepared to move into the interior with Heimo, she made the painful but culturally supported decision to leave Merlin with her parents in Savoonga, while Millie split her time between bush life and village life.

Edna met Heimo in 1975, while he was on St. Lawrence Island learning Yupik subsistence ways. The two bonded through their shared interest in traditional living and survival skills, and they married in 1982. Edna moved with Heimo into Alaska’s interior wilderness, far from her coastal roots. Despite this shift in environment, Edna adapted quickly—hunting, trapping, and sewing gear essential for their survival.

She is known for her quiet strength, skilled hands, and unwavering composure. Whether working a trapline in subzero temperatures or raising children in a cabin miles from the nearest road, Edna’s contributions have been foundational to the family’s ability to thrive in isolation. Her handiwork is often visible in the family’s mukluks, parkas, and even the sinew-stitched storage bags inside the cabin.

During interviews and in The Final Frontiersman, Edna emerges as a symbol of cultural endurance—balancing her Yupik heritage with the unique demands of inland bush life. Her soft-spoken wisdom, deep connection to the land, and nurturing presence have left an indelible impact on her children, who continue to carry fragments of her knowledge and values into the next generation.

Millie and Merlin Korth

Millie and Merlin are Edna’s children from a relationship prior to her marriage to Heimo. After Edna and Heimo married in 1982, both children became part of the Korth family. Millie joined her mother and Heimo in the bush for parts of the year, while Merlin remained with Edna’s parents in Savoonga full-time during their early years.

Millie, also referred to as Melinda, was six years old when Edna and Heimo began their life together in the Arctic. Her father, a Swedish biologist, tragically died in a plane crash shortly before she was born. Millie’s upbringing alternated between remote life with Heimo and Edna and the traditional community environment in Savoonga, where she felt most at home. While she did not appear on The Last Alaskans, she is known to keep in contact with the family.

Merlin, born in November 1977, is Edna’s son from a different relationship. His father was a ‘ne’er-do-well Eskimo from Nome,’ though further details about his identity or involvement in Merlin’s life are not publicly available. Like Millie, Merlin spent most of his formative years with Edna’s parents in Savoonga—a common cultural arrangement in some Yupik families. Unlike his siblings, Merlin has kept a very low public profile and does not appear in any television or print interviews related to the Korths. His current whereabouts and occupation remain private.

Coleen Ann Korth (1982–1984): A Tragic Loss That Left a Lasting Mark

Coleen was Edna and Heimo’s first daughter together. Named after the Coleen River, she brought joy into their wilderness life—until tragedy struck. In 1984, while the family was canoeing down to their lower cabin, their boat struck a sweeper (a submerged tree), capsized, and Coleen was swept away by the current. Despite their desperate attempts to save her, they were unable to reach her in time. Her tiny boot was the only item ever recovered.

Each year, Heimo and Edna visit the cross they erected on a ridge above their cabin to honor her memory. The hill, affectionately called “Goroy Mountain” after Coleen’s Eskimo nickname for piglets who eat a lot, was informally named by the family but was never officially recognized by the state. Today, the site remains a deeply personal place of remembrance.

Rhonda and Krin Korth

Rhonda and Krin were born after the tragic loss of their sister Coleen and were raised deep in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Their early years were spent in log cabins built by their parents, learning to trap, fish, snowshoe, and survive in one of the most remote regions of North America. Their appearances on The Last Alaskans offered viewers a glimpse into what it means to grow up in total isolation, where the rhythm of life is dictated by weather, wildlife, and resourcefulness.

Rhonda, born on February 19, 1986, is the elder of the two daughters born to Edna and Heimo, has largely stayed out of the public eye since the series ended. In an episode of The Last Alaskans, Heimo lovingly described her as a ‘terror’ when she was young—playful, full of energy, and always climbing so much that he had to trim the tree branches higher. The episode featured Rhonda showing her son Colleen the place where she and her sister Krin once built a miniature village out of rocks, remarking on the joy and fun of growing up in the cabin. Rhonda picked up her childhood toy gun and handed it to her son, while Heimo reflected on the past, saying, ‘We raised four girls here… those are really good memories.’ In the same episode, Rhonda laughed recalling how her mother used to say, ‘I hope you have a kid just like you’—and added with a smile, ‘Now I do.’ Her story and reflections helped preserve the Korth family’s deep roots in the Arctic, passing on the homestead’s meaning to the next generation. Though no longer in the public spotlight, Rhonda has remained connected to her family and their remote lifestyle, occasionally appearing in past episodes of The Last Alaskans and participating in visits to the Arctic cabin.

Krin, born in June 1989, is the younger of the two. She has remained the more publicly visible sibling and frequently shares glimpses of her life and family online. A trained firefighter, she married U.S. Marine Scott Nelson, and the two welcomed their son, Colby Nelson, on April 17, 2016—sharing a birthday with Heimo. Krin has expressed her desire to maintain her family’s connection to the Arctic homestead and often visits seasonally. Their marriage later ended in divorce, though Krin continues to maintain her strong connection to the Arctic homestead and often visits seasonally.