+POSITIVELY UTAH GoodNewsUtah.com + Finding Unfindablethe Helping families with missing loved ones find closure + Rising Above the Violence How two former gang members are giving back TheDoctorJob HOW PERSONTRANSFORMINGTESSASENSATIONNATIONALWHITEISCAREERSONEATATIME
mystrongworld.com My Strong World was created to encourage people to “Ask Yourself.” It’s a place that reminds you that everything is inside of you and offers a safe place to come back to your body and find your center. I offer one-on-one coaching, group coaching, workshops, and retreats with a guarantee that when you apply the principles taught, you can create your best life. Li a life lo LET’S GROW TOGETHER
34 Transforming Careers
2022 Contents Feature Storie S
One Person at a Time
BY DANIELLE WAGNER
42 Rising Above the Violence
When Samson Phommabout and Levi Lieske were just young boys, they were lured into a gang life filled with violence, death, and prison time. But with hard work and determination, these two former gang members have turned their lives around by creating successful businesses and giving back to their community.
BY CARRIE SNIDER AND MEGAN PICKETT
BY LORALIE PEARCE
2834 IN EVERY ISSUE p. The6 Bright Side p. Good74 News by the Numbers p. High75 Note 42
Tessa White understands the power of transformation. Having gone from being a struggling single mother to one of the country’s top career experts, she is now helping millions of people to create a career path that is brighter than they could have ever imagined.
28
From skiing and mountain biking to horseback riding and river rafting, the National Ability Center, located in Park City, has been providing adaptive out door recreation programs for decades. But these activities are about much more than empowering individuals of all abilities to have fun. They also build self-esteem, confidence, and lifelong skills.
The National Ability Center: Where “I Can” Lives
Spring/Summer
52 How Adam Nugent Lost 120 Pounds
By a man D a S CH el D t
65 A Sweet Way to Change Lives
48 Helping Pets Through “Ruff” Times When unforeseen circumstances leave a family without a home, some of those hit the hardest are our little friends with fur, feathers, or scales.
56 Choosing Kindness: One City’s Unique Initiative Choosing kindness is in style year round in Pleasant Grove, but especially during February—the city’s official Choose Kindness Month. By m i CH ael y oung
By Carrie Sni D er
60 Helping Families with Missing Loved Ones Find Closure
Since setting a goal to become the first woman to climb the Seven Second Summits—the second-highest mountain on each of the seven continents—Jenn Drummond has literally been on top of the world, successfully conquering Mt. Everest and becoming the first U.S. woman and second woman ever to summit Antarctica’s Mt. Tyree.
By Carrie Sni D er 14 Treehouse ConnectingTalks:Young Adults
From backyard to large venue, Treehouse Talks has grown exponen tially as real people share real stories. Along the way, those listening gain so much of what they’ve been missing— connection and understanding.
By Carrie Sni D er 18 Hope and Healthcare for Those in Need
For most of his life, Adam Nugent turned to food to cope with his emotions, and as his unhappiness grew, so did his clothing size. Here’s how he completely transformed—both physically and mentally. By Jamie a rm S trong
What started out as a pinky swear at a Starbucks has now turned into a place that provides hope to those who would have nowhere else to go. The Hope Clinic provides free healthcare and medical treatment to anyone who can’t afford to pay. By Halen Hu BB ar D
Flourish Bakery gives ex-convicts and those in addiction recovery a chance to rise up through its life-changing internship program. Now that’s pretty sweet. By Carrie Sni D er an D Kier S tynn King
22 On Top of the World
14 22 52
10 Bringing Magic to Kids Who Need Cheering Up A COVID-19 outreach project has turned into something much more for one Utah woman looking to bring smiles—and magic—to children going through hard times.
Two self-professed “tech nerds” with hearts of gold use their unique approach to deploy drones in planned, effective search operations. The result is finding the unfindable.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 2 Spring/Summer 2022 Contents Department S & Column S
Thanks to Ruff Haven Crisis Sheltering, pet owners who are experiencing a crisis can now find a safe place for their beloved animals to stay until the storm passes. By m i CH ael y oung
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 3 COLUMNS 5 The Power to Change When we harness the power to change, the possibilities of transform ing ourselves and our community are endless. By Jamie a rm S trong 8 Living a High-Vibration Life How do we create and then cultivate a life filled with positive, impactful energy? After years of practice, here are my top tips. By t ere S a Collin S 68 3 Keys to Thriving Relationships Spring cleaning isn’t just for your home. Here’s how you can refresh your relationships for healthier, more intentional living. By t i FF any p eter S on 8 68 72 70 Mary’s Fab 5: Local Food Products When it comes to locally produced food, Utah is home to lots of secret gems. Here are five of my favorites. By m ary Cra F t S 72 Resetting Your Personal “Thermostat” Take control of your destiny by resetting your internal “set point” temperature and adding more value to your career, relationships, and community. By Dan Clar K
If you’ve been hurt in an accident, it can often be difficult to know what to do or where to turn. We’re here to help! Call us anytime or visit our website for more 801-222-2222informationLearn More at: SiegfriedAndJensen.com • The bigger and more complex your case the better legal representation you need. • Hiring an experienced law firm with a proven track record is critical to the outcome of your case. • Siegfried & Jensen is a team of eighteen attorneys that has resolved dozens of multi-million dollar cases over the past thirty years.
U
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 5
On our cover, we are honored to feature Tessa White. Once a struggling single mother, she is now a national sensation who is helping millions of people to improve their lives by creating a better career path (“Transforming Careers One Person at a Time,” p. 34).
In this issue, Adam Nugent also shares his weight-loss journey (“How Adam Nugent Lost 120 Pounds,” p. 52). For most of his life, he turned to food to cope with his emotions rather than face the things in his life that weren’t serving him. He was finally able to change when he decided to look inward and face the guy in the mirror.
The Power to Change
P blisher’s n ote
Take the inspiring examples of Samson Phommabout and Levi Lieske—two former gang members who have completely transformed their lives for the better. From the time they were young boys, they were immersed in gang life. After years filled with violence, death, and prison time, they both decided to rebuild their lives to become successful business owners who give back to their community in their own unique ways (“Rising Above the Violence,” p. 42).
P U blisher & C eo Jamie Armstrong e ditors Jannalee MadelineSandauThatcher bU siness d evelo PM ent Val Butcher Contrib U ting aU thors Carolyn Campbell
When we harness the power to change, the possibilities of transforming ourselves and our community are endless.
Jamie Armstrong
As Barack Obama once said, “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” May we find the strength and courage to change our lives for the better, and may we begin best,
TiffanyTeresaClarkCollinsMaryCraftsHalenHubbardKierstynnKingKarenPainterLoraliePearcePetersonMeganPickettAmandaScheldtCarrieSniderMadelineThatcherDanielleWagnerMichaelYoung
Dan
One of the greatest gifts in life is our ability to change. Whether it be a small adjustment or a complete transformation, change is the catalyst for personal growth and evolution, and this issue of Good News Utah is filled with stories about people who are changing themselves and their communities.
d esign and Prod UC tion Hales Creative Kelly Nield, Design Director Anika Meyers, Production Designer Good News @GoodNews_UtahUtahGoodNewsUtah a dvertising/ sP onsorshi P sales@GoodNewsUtah.com a rti C le Q U eries / write for U s submissions@GoodNewsUtah.com sU bs C ri P tions GoodNewsUtah.com or info@GoodNewsUtah.com g ood n ews Utah 61 South 1300 West, Suite A Pleasant Grove, UT 84062
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The idea that “laughter is the best medicine” has been around for centuries. In fact, in the early 1300s, French surgeon Henri de Mondeville used humor as part of post-operative therapy. So, is the old adage true? Health experts say yes. According to the Mayo Clinic, laughter provides short-term benefits such as enhancing oxygen intake, releasing endorphins, stimulating circulation, and aiding muscle relaxation. Long-term benefits include strengthening the immune system, lowering stress, relieving pain, and easing depression and anxiety. It can even improve your self-esteem! So, what are you waiting for? Watch a funny movie or your favorite stand-up comedian and get giggling!
Did you know that Utah native Walter Frederick Morrison invented the Frisbee? The inspiration first came to him in 1937 when he and his future wife, Lucille, were tossing a popcorn can lid back and forth. They soon discovered that cake pans flew better and were more durable, so they started selling “Flyin’ Cake Pans” on California beaches. During World War II, Morrison served as a pilot, which gave him a better understanding of aerodynamics. In 1946, he sketched his design for the world’s first flying disc. After producing a few different prototypes of his invention, he sold the rights to his “Pluto Platter” to the Wham-O toy company in 1957. The company changed the name of the toy to Frisbee upon learning that college students were using that name instead.
Column: Col UM n/ d e P t. n a M e t itle Utah 2022Spring/Summer 6 Fun F a C t S , in S pirational quote S , an D ot H er intere S ting S tu FF
Pluto Platters, Anyone?
The Bright Side
PublishingIngrambylicensed(flower)wikipedia.org;treehouse)(Morrison,
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
—maya angelou
The world’s first surf rescue by drone was performed in Australia in 2018 when two men were swept out to sea. The drone dropped an inflatable device, and the men were able to use the device to float back to shore. Turn to p. 60 to read about a team of Utah drone pilots that searches for missing people free of charge.
“Life is the flower for which love is the honey.”
Fun Fa C t
The Medicine—Seriously!Best
The Korawai tribe of West Papua lives in treehouses deep within the jungle. To learn how young adults are creating connections and Talks,Treehousetheideassharingthroughorganizationturntop.14.
—victor hugo
Fun Fa C t
Tired of the snow? Take a breath of fresh air. Visit the Ashton Gardens at Thanksgiving Point for live music, springtime treats, festival games, and over 250,000 blossoming tulips. Experience the beauty of spring like never before, only at Thanksgiving Point’s Tulip Festival. APRIL 8 - MAY 7 Tickets and details available at www.ThanksgivingPoint.org
The simple goal is to live the life you dream about. We must be open to spending time daily, making progress, and focusing on things that make us feel lifted to our best selves. But openness is also a willingness to My mindsetdaily is to make intentional decisions that are what I call “high vibrations.” They are the fulfilling decisions that ultimately shape our happiness.
TERESA
How do we create and then cultivate a life filled with positive, impactful energy? After years of practice, here are my top tips.
Start t H e Day o FF r ig H t
My daily mindset is to make intentional decisions that are what I call “high vibrations.” They are the fulfilling decisions that ultimately shape our hap piness. It can start with being intentional with our thoughts and feelings and following our intuition that comes from within us. I feel a great sense of joy when I’m following that inner voice because I know that I’m leading from my soul. When you’ve fine-tuned your intuition, you can then practice taking positive action from those intuitive thoughts. My advice for my clients is to give those good thoughts a real chance—just say yes!There is a unique energy you get when you feel confident in your life choices. While there can be a tendency to overthink your choices, there is a great sense of freedom from making decisions that wake up your soul. And it doesn’t need to be complicated— it can be as simple as ordering your favorite drink at lunch or taking some extra time to see a friend. It’s allowing yourself to truly experience and live life.
Living a High-Vibration Life
BY COLLINS
+ page 8 Utah 2022Spring/Summer Ashumans, we are made of energy, and in turn we can create amazing energy. This means that each new day, we have a new opportunity to present ourselves to the world. We get to decide if we’ll show up, and when we determine that we will, we can increase and manifest positive thoughts and energy to transform the way we live our lives.
Column: Per P et U ally Positive
o pen y our Heart When you begin to practice lis tening to your inner voice, you’ll then start to find yourself pre sented with more opportunities to be open to new experiences. High-vibration decisions bring clarity, and with clarity comes a daily intention to unleash our best self into the world. These daily decisions don’t need to be big, and in fact they usually go back to focusing on the basics.
1. Give gratitude. 2. Give back.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 9 say no to tasks or obligations that make us feel out of alignment with our daily or life goals. It’s a simple principle, but it’s easy to forget: saying no is just as important as saying yes. It took me years of being a people pleaser to master this concept.
PublishingIngrambylicensedPhoto
3. Accomplish one goal for the day that you have been putting off. We have the power to raise our energetic vibrations. We can change our focus in order to bring more ease and flow into our lives. And when we inten tionally make higher-vibration decisions, we will experience more peace and happiness. For your daily dose of positivity, follow TeresaCollinsStudio.
C H oo S e Joy I am often told that my energy or vibration is one that people want to be around. I know this energy comes from within me. After experiencing a stroke, I know that I am blessed to be alive, and I choose each day to truly live. I am now actively choosing what I do with my time and attention. I choose where and how my energy is used each day, and I do that by choosing joy. Choosing joy comes from choosing other things: to not complain about the troubles in my life and instead give thanks for all the things that I do have. It comes down to perspective—it’s looking for the great, not just the good. I no longer say, “Let’s have a good day!” or “Let’s have a good meeting.” Instead it’s this: “I’m going to have a great day.”
Believe in y our e nergy I believe strongly in how we create our energy. I believe in making high-vibration decisions from the moment we wake up in the morning. It’s vital to wake up and check our attitude, our thoughts, and our heart. I have my “Top 3” routine that I do every single day. It has become a foundation for me to see ongoing and lasting change.
It’s a simple principle, but it’s easy to forget: saying no is just as important as saying yes.
I’ve found that it’s easier to say no when you remember that you have the power and responsibil ity to determine your life—every single day. It’s vital to live life on your own terms instead of responding to the expectations of others.
tH e t opaz Fairy iS Born Under her new fairy persona, Topaz (named for her birthstone), she sent personalized care packages to Kids Who Need Cheering Up
Bringing Magic to
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 10
A COVID-19 outreach project has turned into something much more for one Utah woman looking to bring smiles—and magic—to children going through hard times. BY CARRIE SNIDER
W hen Sarah Pugliese started her internship helping children of trauma and abuse, she felt that she had found her calling. It was what she had always wanted to do. Unfortunately, like it did to so many things, COVID-19 cut her internship short. Not being with the kids anymore was disap pointing to say the least.
“I missed helping hands on,” Pugliese says. But maybe there was something else she could do. Or maybe something a magical fairy could do.
“I never expected to do very many. I was only going to do them for a few children,” says Pugliese. But clearly there was a need out there for Topaz to spread magic further. She officially started the Topaz Fairy Project and put her magic to goodPuglieseuse.recently passed the one-year anniversary of those first packages, and to date she has assembled and sent care packages to 375 kids in 45 states. Each box of good ies is as unique as the child who has needed them. Be H in D t H e m agi C
much-neededliketheydrawfirstsentPugliesepoem,”says.“Sheapictureofherday.”OtherchildrenpicturesofwhatthinkTopazlooksorjustthankherforthecarepackage.
The Topaz Fairy also includes a personalized, handwritten note to encourage the child. Parents or others who know the child fill her in on what the child is going through and provide special details that will help make the letter more meaningful.“Iwritewhat they need to hear to help them get through a hard time or to boost their confidence,” Pugliese explains. She always includes a self-addressed stamped envelope so children have the option of writing back to Topaz. And many do—about 30 or so have replied once, and about 5 regularly correspond with Topaz. That’s why she always keeps track of what she writes in each letter to keep the conversa tion going.“Onegirl was terrified of going to school in person. I sent her a neck lace with fairy dust on it to keep her safe, along with a
Each box of goodies is as unique as the child who has needed them.
Pugliese has assembled and sent care packages to 375 kids in 45 states.
Utah 11 2022Spring/Summer
a few children who needed cheering up. With the intention of delivering a few boxes to children in her hometown, Pugliese—er, Topaz—got to work compiling packages with items of interest for each child along with a personalized note. She posted a “boxing” video on social media where she showed viewers what went into a very special care package that was on its way from Topaz to a child. That’s all it took for things to blowRequestsup. for more packages came in, as well as donations from generous people wanting to help her continue bringing smiles to others. What had started as a tiny seed of an idea quickly grew.
Using donated funds, she purchases gifts the child would appreciate, depending on their interests. Toys, craft supplies, journals, snacks, and other items make up most of the box, with small filler toys as well.
Once a name has been Pugliesesubmitted,findsoutaboutthechild,typicallyages2–16,fromparentsorthepersonwhonominated
them—things like the child’s favorite color, animal, toy, snack, and hobby.
She always includes a self-addressed stamped envelope so children have the option of writing back to Topaz.
For one child who lost a grandpa, Topaz sent a package with a note saying that Grandpa was watching over them. To another set of siblings who had lost an uncle very close to them, Topaz sent packages with dinosaur fossils inside, along with a note that said fairies can talk to angels like their uncle.
“There are so many sad stories,” Pugliese says. “As long as there is a kid in need, there is a need for magic in the world.”
Utah 12 2022Spring/Summer
“They had been through such loss,” Pugliese recalls. “I just wanted to put a smile on theirAsidefaces.”from personalized packages, Pugliese has sponsored a Christmas party for 80 kids at a justice center and made 100 bags for police officers and justice centers.
While the original internship of her dreams was cut short, she’s been able to keep doing what she has felt called to do. She only ships in the United States, and she likes being the brains behind choosing items for the child as well as writing the personal messages from Topaz. Her creativity and personality come through, as well as her empathy for children going through tough times.Thank goodness for magic. To learn more, follow The Topaz Fairy Project on Facebook.
And many do—about 30 or so have replied once, and about 5 regularly correspond with Topaz. That’s why she always keeps track of what she writes in each letter to keep the conversation going.
Donations can be sent via Venmo to @TopazFairyProject or via PayPal to Sarahbug47@gmail. com.
m a K ing a Di FF eren C e, o ne C H il D at a t ime
Whether you’ve done the before or want whole food recipes for your family, this book will inspire you. Learn more and get started at Whole30.com
Brigham Young University students Hollis Hunt and Mio Cannon, who live south of campus in what’s called “The Treehouse,” opened their backyard for the first-ever Treehouse Talks (THT)
Treehouse AdultsConnectingTalks:Young
BY CARRIE SNIDER
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 14
From backyard to large venue, Treehouse Talks has grown exponentially as real people share real stories. Along the way, those listening gain so much of what they’ve been missing— connection and understanding.
T he pandemic hit everyone hard, but there’s one demographic that it hit in a unique and profound way—young adults. Whether living away from home for the first time, studying online as college students, or starting their first jobs, this group of people keenly felt the effects of being separated from the rest of the world. So, some of them decided to do something about it.
Cannon adds that THT is something that grew out of who they wanted to be—people who help to foster understanding and make the world a better place. Within months, a staggering number of people were attending. And they got multiple requests for people wanting to speak, to the point where they don’t need to go out and find speakers. That’s when they knew they had hit a nerve—when people willingly shared personal experiences with a group of strangers. By then, THT had standing room only, so they found a bigger venue that could accommodate hundreds, and it is free, to boot. They now meet weekly on Thursdays at 9 p.m. at 407 West 100 South in Provo.Nodoubt, the key to their success is the organic nature of the setup. Speakers come up with their own topics and talk from their hearts. And they bring diverse stories that people want to hear. Organizers also bring in local music artists who perform between talks. All in all, it’s a Rather than listening to experts, those coming to Treehouse Talks would be listening to other young adults trying to navigate life. They could learn from each other in ways they couldn’t anywhere else.
Hitting a n erve Young adults kept coming to listen and learn from the talks, of course, but also for the connection to the speakers and the other attendees. The subjects ranged from funny—“Why I Like Crocs,” for example—to more serious talks centered on coming out gay as a BYU student or one speaker’s experience making and selling illegal drugs.
The first meeting was rudimentary. They put up a simple sheet and a projector and some lights. But really, they didn’t need anything fancy. People attended and listened to the talks. They learned and met others and perhaps for the first time in a long time, felt deep connections with others going through similar life changes.
Hunt and Cannon had hoped people would like the concept of THT, but they didn’t realize just how much of a response they’d garner in a very short amount of time. They all liked THT so much that they decided to do it all again. And again. And again. “It snowballed,” Cannon explains. “I’ve learned so much from the speakers already.”
In the course of listening, attendees feel that they are learning about a diverse group of people on a deeper level. And after the talks are done, attendees connect with each other easily and naturally.“These talks are empowering,” explains Hunt, who is an experience design and management student. “You can agree or disagree, and that’s okay. It’s a safe place to come and share.” Hunt’s specialty is networking, and Cannon focuses on social media.
Utah 15 2022Spring/Summer gathering in May 2021. They invited a few people to give PowerPoint talks on a subject of their choice.
The idea was akin to TED Talks, but these talks would be simpler. More vulnerable. Rather than listening to experts, those coming to Treehouse Talks would be listening to other young adults trying to navigate life. They could learn from each other in ways they couldn’t anywhere else.
“I loved the vision,” Bersie says. “I love the way we feel during these conversations. As a col lege student, you’re alone trying to figure things out. We’re not experts, but we’re trying to figure out what makes us tick. This was huge.”
It didn’t take long for other young adults in other areas to come knocking on THT’s door. They wanted to replicate what the original THT Provo did, but in their own cities. THT granted them permission, and so far, THT has expanded to Logan, Salt Lake City, and Laie, Hawaii, with plans to expand into southern Utah and Washington, D.C. Other cities across the country probably aren’t far behind. Hunt says, “We never went outside to recruit. They reached out to us.” That fact is a testament to how much young adults every where could benefit from the connection and understanding from THT. The organization has minimal expenses since they get venues free thanks to the generosity
“I was longing for connection,” he says. A friend from high school told him about THT, and it sounded intriguing. One of THT’s taglines is that you don’t need to bring a friend because you’ll make plenty while you attend. That was the case for Bersie, who attended and met Niemann, who then introduced him to Cannon and Hunt.
“Everything was popping up, like we were supposed to do this,” Hunt says.Michael Niemann, who gradu ated from BYU in information systems, attended some of those first meetings and felt something that he had been missing—connection and“Itunderstanding.wasoneofthe first times that I felt seen,” he says. Niemann quickly met Hunt and Cannon and soon wanted to be part of bringing THT to life each week. He is part of the core organizing group, and his focus is logistics and operations, as well as working with vendors and building up merchandising.ToNiemann, the concept of THT makes sense, especially for the young adult crowd.
m ore t al KS in m ore l o C ation S
Another local resident, Jake Bersie, was working for a company in 2021 that consumed his life. He craved a change in a big way.
“Everyone secretly wants to share their story and be understood. They want to be known for more than just their name and major and work.”
Bersie now fills the role of man aging finances and making connections to local vendors, and he is another key person in THT who helps the organization reach more people.
“I love the way we feel during conversations.theseAs a college student, you’re alone trying to figure things out. We’re not experts, but we’re trying to figure out what makes us tick.”
Utah 16 2022Spring/Summer safe space where people from all back grounds can show who they really are to an open audience.
Key p eople, Key g rowt H THT saw some incredible growth early on, but as each challenge came, such as finding a venue or figuring out better equipment, key people came along, and what they needed showed up.
Utah 17 2022Spring/Summerof others, so the bulk of the expenses is sound equipment and a projector. The biggest input is the organizers’ time, plus the time and courage of the presenters. But finding organizers hasn’t been hard; people are attracted to the vision of fostering understanding.Theoriginal
THT has proved that their frame work works, however they encourage different locations to make it their own, while ensuring safe spaces for young adults to connect with each other and learn from a diverse group of people.
Looking back, Hunt and Cannon, and now Niemann and Bersie, can’t believe how much THT has grown. At the same time, they aren’t surprised. Each of them have been able to bring in their own unique backgrounds to help THT thrive. And while they all currently also have day jobs or college classes, someday they’d love to see THT grow and become their full-time careers—which wouldn’t feel like work at all. Visit treehousetalks.co to learn more.
What started out as a pinky swear at a Starbucks has now turned into a place that provides hope to those who would have nowhere else to go. The Hope Clinic provides free healthcare and medical treatment to anyone who can’t afford to pay.
BY HALEN HUBBARD
W hen they were in medical school, Jane Powers and Monsoor Emam started working at an emergency room. After a while, they started to find themselves helping and treating people in the parking lot because some people—for example, those who were undocu mented or financially insecure—were too afraid to come in. After working with this particular group of patients, Powers and Emam knew that they had to do something to help. In 2005, they worked with the Sonami Foundation to start a clinic. After Emam took a brief hiatus due to a family matter, he returned to Utah, where he met with Powers again to continue their project. However,
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 18
Hope and Healthcare for Those in Need
“I was just barely getting into medicine and the health world. He said, ‘You should really go to this clinic. This is a good place to learn, and it’s a good place to serve people in the community, especially immigrants and refugees.’ I felt like that’s what I should do,” he Pierceshares.moved from filing charts in the back office and interpreting Spanish to doing triage and taking vital signs after he got his medical technician license. “Then I went back to school to become a physician assistant, and as soon as I graduated, I came right back here,” he says. a p ie C e o F t H e p ie The Hope Clinic can’t do everything themselves, but with the help of other institutions in the valley, they are able to provide as much care to their patients as possible. Intermountain Healthcare They started to find themselves helping and treating people in the parking lot because some wereexample,people—forthosewhoundocumented or financially insecure— were too afraid to come in.
one of his roommates suggested that he volunteer at the clinic.
studyingvolunteerhugI’mmorning.trafficyouheavyschool,asks.imagine?”“Canreturn.youPowers“You’reinyouhaveaschedule,anddriveinhorribletogethereintheYou’dbetterbetgoingtogiveyouabigandatreat!”MattPiercehasbeenasince2013.WhilehewasmedicineattheUniversityofUtah,
Medical students make up a big part of the volunteers. The University of Utah and Brigham Young University send students to volunteer at The Hope Clinic to gain experience. After their degree is finished, many of them
Utah 19 2022Spring/Summer to achieve that objective, they swore to keep it simple. They wanted to keep the clinic small, staffed with 100 percent volunteers. By 2009, they began to work toward their goal, and in 2010, The Hope Clinic officially became a 501(c)(3).Afterkeeping it simple for 12 years now, Powers proudly says with a smile, “It works!” a ll Han DS on De CK David George is just one of approxi mately 200 volunteers that work at the clinic. He’s also on the board of directors for the clinic and helps with the accounting and paperwork. But most importantly, he is Powers’s right-hand“Anythingman.that Jane doesn’t know how to do or wants done, she’ll tell me to go take care of it,” he says with a laugh. George claims that Powers does all the “real work” around the clinic, but Powers might claim otherwise. The value of each one of the volunteers is almost palpable as soon as you walk into the clinic. Every single person is treated with the same amount of impor tance because things really couldn’t be done without all hands on deck. “It doesn’t matter your denomination, race, or anything. Everybody just comes here to help,” George says. “If somebody needs something, we are here to help.”
When the clinic was first opened, Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Monsoor’s local imam both gave dedicatory prayers for the well-being and blessings the clinic would bring. The clinic’s patients and volunteers are also racially and culturally diverse.
Utah 20 2022Spring/Summer contributes a lot to the clinic; they’ll donate sup plies and medicine, along with additional services such as MRI scans and other treatments. Even the Astro Burger next to the clinic will hold on to some of the shipments that are sent to the clinic when it isn’t open.
Alhassan has made it her mission to reach out to disadvantaged minority groups in Utah and to educate them about healthcare. She wants to pave the way for other little Muslim girls so they can see that there is representation of them in the medical“Manyfield.girls in my culture aren’t really allowed to finish school,” Alhassan explains. “I had to beg my father for me to finish homeschool. When little girls can see women like me, women of color, they can hopefully see that they can do it, too.”
a p la C e o F m ira C le S Powers says that miracles happen almost everyday at the clinic. Just recently, a woman from El Salvador came to visit her family in Utah, and she had some pretty severe medical problems. She went into the clinic, and they found that she had a colostomy at some point in her life. She didn’t have the necessary bags and equipment to properly treat it, and sadly, the clinic didn’t have them either. Colostomy bags are very expensive, and she and her family are very poor, so many times, she would just use a towel instead of the proper bag. The day after “The beauty of Salt Lake is that we have all kinds of languages here. We interpretershavewho come and speak Spanish or Chinese or Tongan or whatever.”
The doctors who volunteer at the clinic are invaluable.
“Some of the best doctors in the state come and volunteer,” says Pierce. “These are people who I would be put on a year-long waiting list to see. Orthopedics, dermatologists, gynecologists, and even dentists are just some of the many different types of practitioners who will give some of their time to helpOlivehere.”Pharmacy is the clinic’s main supplier of prescriptions, providing medication to patients that they would otherwise not be able to afford. Even over-the-counter medicines that cost just a few dollars are a huge help. And because of the part nerships they have with all of their fellow medical providers, The Hope Clinic is able to refer their patients to other places to receive free healthcare from them. a m e D i C al m elting p ot
Nawris Alhassan is a volunteer who helps with getting patients’ prescriptions refilled, along with following through to make sure that patients are regularly checked up on. “I was a refugee myself, and I came to the United States when I was a little girl,” she explains. “I saw the barriers with healthcare growing up. My mother didn’t speak English, and my father was working two jobs just to stay afloat. As a child, I remember getting frequent ear infections, and my mom didn’t really understand why. So, often times, my mom would do a home remedy to try to heal it, but she was really just making it worse. She didn’t know that she could take me to clinics like this.”
Starting with the founders, The Hope Clinic has always been home to diversity among the patients and volunteers. The three directors of the clinic include a Muslim, a Latter-day Saint, and a Catholic.
“The beauty of Salt Lake is that we have all kinds of languages here,” Pierce says. “We have inter preters who come and speak Spanish or Chinese or Tongan or whatever.” He goes on to say that the clinic has seen such a wide range of patients that almost every single language has been spoken in the clinic at some time.
The Hope Clinic is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and is located at 65 East 6850 South, Midvale, Utah. To volunteer or donate, visit utahhopeclinic.org or follow their Facebook page, @HopeClinicUT.
the woman came into the clinic, one of the volun teers, Miko, found the exact equipment needed to treat the colostomy.
Pierce remembers working with a man from Venezuela. As a lawyer, he just couldn’t make it in the country because of the turmoil Venezuela is going through. Over the course of a year, he made his way to cross the border into Texas where he was detained. After that, he was released and came to Utah where he had a friend. He had some health concerns, alongside serious trauma induced by his journey.
“I don’t know who dropped them off, or where they came from!” Powers exclaims. “And these are usually something that Miko would never use or stock. Things like this seem to fall from the sky whenever we need them.”
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“I remember seeing him for the first time. He came here, and he was really nervous because he just didn’t know how much he could say about his story,” Pierce recalls. “We started working on him and taking care of the things that he needed, and after a couple of visits, I could see the relief in his face. It was really important to me to see him come here and feel heard and seen and taken care of.”
BY AMANDA SCHELDT | PHOTOS COURTESY OF JENN DRUMMOND
“I thought to myself, ‘I’m not putting my life on hold for my kids anymore. I can do both.’”
In fact, it was one of Drummond’s children who challenged her to climb Mt. Everest. “That started this whole Seven Second Summits journey,” she says.
Since setting a goal to become the first woman to climb the Seven Second Summits—the secondhighest mountain on each of the seven continents—Jenn Drummond has literally been on top of the world, successfully conquering Mt. Everest and becoming the first U.S. woman and second woman ever to summit Antarctica’s Mt. Tyree.
On Top of the World
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 22
Jenn Drummond is a force to be reckoned with. After surviving a life-altering car accident in 2018, this dedicated Utah mom of seven is proving that people can accomplish their dreams while raising a family. “Instantly, everything became more clear,” she says of the accident.
“We also practiced a lot of ladder work, which was my first time dealing with ladders on a mountain. Ladders are a necessary part of an Everest ascent, and while originally there was only one ladder to cross for this year’s ascent, the ground shifted enough to require five ladder crossings.” In her initial ascent, Drummond made it to the third of six camps on Mt. Everest. “It was a much bigger challenge than I expected,” she explains.
“Our path consisted of zig-zagging and actually going down in the crevasses instead of simply across them via ladder, like normal years.”
An already difficult journey turned tragic when one of Drummond’s sherpas died after falling into a crevasse between Camp 1 and Camp 2. On Instagram, she said of the tragedy, “Still trying to process it all. Today is heavy with emotion. Events like today are devastating.” Still, Drummond and her team pressed forward. After successfully reaching Everest Camp 3, Drummond descended and flew back to Katmandu for a few days to give her body time to acclimatize, especially since the path up Everest above Camp 3 is far more icy, treacherous, and prone to avalanches.
r ea CH ing tH e Summit
rage D y on t H e m ountain
Drummond returned to base camp, and the remainder of her journey would include several “Still trying to process it all. Today is heavy with emotion. Events like today are devastating.”
t
p reparing F or m t. e vere S t
“Those first days there, we did a great deal of ice field practice, which helped me get accustomed to my crampons on uneven terrain,” she explains.
Mt. Everest, the world’s highest mountain, towers 8,848.86 meters or 29,032 feet in the air. As of December 2021, only 6,014 have successfully summited Mt. Everest, with an average of 700 to 800 people attempting to climb the mountain each year.
In preparation for her climb, Drummond incorpo rated endurance training and utilized her climbs on Ama Dablam, Ojos Del Salado, and Mt. Kenya to train for her Mt. Everest summit push.
Interestingly, Mt. Everest is considered to be a less technical climb than K2, the second-highest summit globally. Drummond aimed to use Everest as a training ground to prepare for her K2 climb—a climb in which one in five people die in their attempt to reach the top. But the experience of climbing Mt. Everest turned out to be much more than a training exercise. For Drummond, it would be a profound and life-changing experience.
Utah 23 2022Spring/Summer
On April 28, 2021, Drummond arrived at the Everest base camp to prepare for her summit climb. She spent her first few days connecting with the other climbers and conducting regular safety training.
On New Year’s Eve, Drummond and her team of four guides began the climb up Mt. Tyree. Then on January 1, 2022, after 18 hours of climbing (much sooner than the expected 24 hours), Drummond became the first American woman and second woman ever to reach the summit of Mt.Tyree. “It was about 5,300 feet of climbing, and we climbed 21 pitches total to reach the summit,” she says. “It was forecast to be –34 °C, yet the sun was out a lot during the climb, so it didn’t feel that cold the whole time. While the ridge was sharp and steep, the views were endless in all directions. It
“Emotionally, you get to the top, and you are filled with gratitude.”immense
“This climb was about teaching my kids that limita tions are a belief system. We are the ones who usually get in our own way. Doing Everest was about showing them what going after big goals looks like—not just talking about it,” says DrummondOnDrummond.May25,2021,andher summit team began the ascent back up Everest by skipping Camp 1 and staying at Camp 2. After spend ing more time than expected at Camp 2, Drummond and her team ascended to Camp 3 on May 29. Then, on May 31, 2021, she summited Mt. Everest. She describes the experience as “surreal,” and one that ultimately made her feel “more connected to the world than ever.” “Emotionally, you get to the top, and you are filled with immense gratitude,” she says. Conquering a ntar C Before traveling to Antarctica at the end of 2021, Drummond had successfully summited three of the Seven Second Summits and had unsuccessfully attempted to summit K2, but she knew that climbing Antarctica’s Mt. Tyree would be a completely different experience. The first new experience was the dramatic difference in daylight hours in the southernmost parts of Chile, where she stayed before continuing to Antarctica. “The sun officially rose at about 5 a.m., yet the begin nings of sunrise in the sky began around 4 a.m. most days. The sunset does not set until around 10 p.m. in Chile, and full nighttime dark doesn’t happen until around midnight,” she explains. After several days in Punta Arenas, Chile, Drummond officially landed in Union Glacier, Antarctica, on December 18, 2021. Unfortunately, it was three days before Drummond would be able to travel to the base camp at Mt. Vinson, Antarctica’s highest mountain, which she would climb in preparation for Mt. Tyree. “We got snowed in at the main base camp multiple times,” she recalls. “Antarctica’s weather is extreme in that it is cutting, abrasive, and unforgiving. You can’t have exposed skin or it will get burned, and layering is a challenge.”Drummond summited Mt. Vinson on December 26, using the climb to better acclimate to the altitude before attempting to ascend Mt. Tyree. “I could feel the lack of oxygen in the air during the Vinson summit,” she recalls. “I wanted to use this climb in hopes that it would absorb in my body and I would have a better time on Tyree.”
Utah 24 2022Spring/Summer more mental and physical challenges. She strug gled with altitude sickness. She also felt homesick being 7,500 miles away from her kids for Mother’s Day, but she stayed focused on what having their mother climb Mt. Everest would mean to them.
“We were still stuck at Union Glacier for about six days with the crew in quarantine,” says Drummond. “However, ‘stuck’ is all a matter of viewpoint. I saw it as still getting to experience Antarctica and all its glory. We took the time to connect by playing board games, going on hikes, and enjoying the time the best we could. It was the ultimate test in patience, waiting for the flight to come and then travel back to Utah.”
“This climb was about teaching my kids that limitations are a belief system. We are the ones who usually get in our own way.”
Utah 25 2022Spring/Summer was fun to see Vinson during the summit of Tyree as well.” a l e SS on in p atien C e After the official summit and descent from Mt. Tyree, Drummond was once again at the mercy of the weather, which determined when she could finally begin her journey home. Drummond and the group were able to fly back to Union Glacier on on January 4, 2022, but they had to remain at that camp until the next flight back to Chile was available. Drummond received the news that the plane’s crew that flies between Antarctica and Punta Arenas had tested positive for COVID-19. Therefore, flights were at a standstill until the crew could return from quarantine.
“Think about the movie The Incredibles or Batman or any of our superhero movies,” she says. “When they put on their super suits, they rise to the occasion. It helps to do the same thing when going after big goals. When my super suit is on, I become superhuman and achieve big things.”
Conquering y our “ p er S onal e vere S t”
Drummond’s next adventure will be traveling to Canada to summit Mt. Logan, another Seven Second Summit, later this spring. She will also make her second attempt to summit K2 this summer. You can follow Jenn Drummond’s journey on Instagram at @boldbravebeautifullife or at her website, boldbravebeautiful.com.
Utah 26 2022Spring/Summer
A big mantra in Drummond’s family is about conquering your “personal Everest”—a big goal you are trying to achieve. Now that she has literally climbed Mt. Everest and is well on her way to conquering all Seven Second Summits, Drummond’s advice to others seeking to conquer their “personal Everest” is to “know your ‘why.’” She advises, “Anticipate your weaknesses and have motivational songs, quotes, and stories on speed dial so you are equipped to knock out any doubts at any time from different angles. Mentally prepare.” When preparing for her Everest journey, Drummond said that she had to come to under stand what type of person it was going to take to make it to the top. She calls this person her “Everest persona” and says that whether you are climbing the literal mountain or conquering your own personal challenge, it is important to identify what that persona looks like to you.
Now that she has literally climbed Mt. Everest and is well on her way to conquering all Seven Second “personalDrummond’sSummits,advicetoothersseekingtoconquertheirEverest”is to “know your ‘why.’”
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page 28 Utah 2022Spring/Summer
The National Ability WhereCenter: “I Can” Lives BY LORALIE PEARCE PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL ABILITY CENTER (EXCEPT WHERE OTHERWISE NOTED)
Utah 30 2022Spring/Summer
n 1985, Meeche White and Pete Badewitz, a veteran of the Vietnam War, started Park City Handicapped Sports Association (PCHSA)—an organization that eventually became the National Ability Center (NAC). They built the organization from their home, and after receiving a grant from the Disabled American Veterans of Utah, they began providing ski lessons for veterans at the base of Park City Mountain. Over the decades, donors both known and anonymous have provided funding, support, and 26 acres of land located at Quinn’s Junction on the eastern edge of Park City. What began as a small outdoor adaptive program is now a world-re nowned organization helping to transform the lives of thousands of people every year. White and Badewitz weren’t the only ones with big ideas and dreams of changing lives by “challenging and expanding one’s notion of ability through meaningful outdoor adventure.”
An Experience for Everyone Danny Glasser is the CEO of the National Ability Center, and he loves his job. In his role, he oversees more than 2,000 acres of trails, an equestrian center, a lodge for short-term stays, a multipurpose facility, an archery range, and partnership pro grams at both Jordanelle Reservoir and Deer Valley Resort. Although his job might be complicated, when asked about the overarching mission of the NAC, he puts it very simply: Our focus is to take a variety of different populations who are usually told, ‘No, it’s too hard to do that, we can’t make that work,’ and we say, ‘Yes!’ We find a way to enable those populations to get out in the outdoors and enjoy what so many of us here in Utah love, which is to get out and about, experiencing the hills, the mountains, the ski slopes, and a lot of other places. Like their motto says, “Whether you are a nev er-ever, an accomplished athlete, or somewhere in between, we welcome you, your family, and your friends.” Most of the NAC’s programs cater to those with a different ability or disability, and many have been designed with inclusion as a first priority.
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“It is transformative to watch our veteran population rediscover that which they were before an injury—to experience the adrenaline rush again,” says Glasser. “It is empowering to watch those who never had an opportunity, because they were governed by a different ability, to suddenly feel the thrill of skiing downhill, mountain biking, or camping and rock climbing with their family. It’s transforming to see them freed by it. To share in that discovery and experience is just wonderful. It’s amazing to see.”
In 1978, Splore founder Martha Ham and Ken Sleight Expeditions partnered up to host the first accessible rafting trip on the Green River. Then, in 2017, Splore and the NAC joined forces in order to provide a wider variety of activities. Today, Splore serves as the adaptive outdoor adventure arm of the NAC, offering a host of activities for people with different abilities, including a summer favor ite: river rafting in Moab.
What began as a small outdoor adaptive program is now a organizationworld-renownedhelpingtotransformthelivesofthousandsofpeopleeveryyear.
But while the focus is simple, the industry has not always been friendly to participants who didn’t fit the traditional mold, which is why Glasser sees his work as vital to the community.
Utah 31 2022Spring/Summer 31 A Community Experience
The NAC’s usual clientele includes a host of dif ferent people. About 30 percent are veterans who often suffer from post-traumatic stress, traumatic brain injuries, wounds from active combat, and amputations. Another third of the NAC’s partici pants are part of the neurodiverse community, who find themselves on the autism spectrum or suffer from ADHD or anxiety disorders. The rest of the group is made up of people who have conditions like multiple sclerosis, Down syndrome, or cerebral palsy. “Often these people struggle with something that inhibits them from feeling comfortable to get out and into the outdoors,” Glasser explains. “The programs that we have are enabling those popula tions to experience different things.”
For many families with a member who is disabled or has difficulty with traditional outdoor recreation experiences, participating in various activities can be daunting, challenging, and expensive, often creating situations where the family has to choose between each member doing something different or simply doing nothing at all. But the NAC proves that isn’t the case. Because their facilities are equipped with state-of-the-art adaptive
physicalmatteranyone—noalmostequipment,thedisability,injury,orcognitiveability—can par ticipate. The NAC’s current suite of gear ranges from monoskis to mountain bikes and everything in between, and if they don’t have it, they’ll get it. Glasser is adamant that the NAC will never turn anyone away. With the financial help of many generous donors, the organization will do everything they can to help provide the means for anyone, anywhere, to participate in their programs.
A Paralympic Dream
One of the best things about the NAC is its training opportunities for Paralympic athletes. Orlando Perez is one such competitor, and he has a very simple message: “The National Ability Center savesPerezlives.”was born and raised in Puerto Rico but found himself a parapalegic at age 19 after an accident during a United States military training exercise. “Serving in the military was something I always wanted to do,” he says. “I felt cheated because it got cut short.”
The National Abilities Center sees about 7,000 people and provides about 37,000 experiences each year, but those numbers aren’t only for individuals who are part of their underserved populations. Because outdoor recreation is usually more fun with friends, Glasser and the NAC make community connections the center of their work, meaning families, friends, teammates, coaches, mentors, and volunteers are all encouraged to get involved.
Something to Look Forward to Since the Paralympics may not be everyone’s goal, the NAC has lots of other programs for people who are looking to get outdoors—people like young Carter Johansen. “It is empowering to watch those who never had an opportunity, because they were governed by a different ability, to suddenly feel the thrill of skiing downhill, mountain biking, or camping and rock climbing with their family.”
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One day, while at the VA hospital, Perez saw an ad for the National Veterans Wheelchair Games and decided to look into them, which resulted in him competing in wheelchair basketball for almost two decades. When he realized that his basketball career was coming to a close, he decided to take up skiing. After a brief stop in Colorado, where he met his wife, he headed to Utah, and after joining the National Ability Center, he made the United States Paralympic skiing team and competed in the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics.
Finding the Right Fit Andrew Haraghey, a two-time Paralympic athlete, has always loved being active. And the NAC has been paramount in helping him achieve his goals and make his dreams a reality. After contracting viral encephalitis as an infant, Haraghey developed cerebral palsy in his legs. With limitations to his mobility, he tried to find a sport he loved, but none of them fit—until he found skiing. He discovered skiing when he was 8 years old and fell in love with it. Over the course of three years, Haraghey worked with his mother to build up endurance in his legs. “My mom would hold up a ski pole and I would hold on to the other end, and I’d drag her down the mountain,” he explains. “I slowly built up my strength, and one day I just let go of the pole and started going. I haven’t stopped since.” This hobby allows him to keep up with his friends. “It’s freeing,” he says. “I don’t feel limited when I Haragheyski.” moved to Utah when he was 14 and began working at the NAC to eventually join the Paralympic ski team, which he made in 2018 and in 2022. The organization helps him train five days a week, provides top-of-the-line equipment, and ensures that everyone stays active.
“Instead of going to physical therapy, I ski or mountain bike,” Haraghey explains. “In the disabled world, not being active can worsen the disability. But getting outdoors or getting into recreation boosts your quality of life.”
When asked what advice he would offer to others, he stated, “There’s always some way to work around a disability and make it a positive opportunity. Not every disability means that there’s a negative outcome. Sometimes it just means that the outcomes are different or that you approach the problems differently.”
Perez also made history as the first athlete to represent Puerto Rico in the Winter Paralympic Games, and he credits his coaches and the NAC with his success. “My coaches and the organization aren’t there for just a job. They really care about helping me individually and as an athlete,” he says. And while Perez knows that it sounds “corny,” he really believes that the NAC saves people. “I think disability brings up fears about anxiety and depression that can lead to people ending their lives, but programs like the NAC help,” he says. “I’ve lost so many friends to suicide. I wish they could have found programs like I found that took me out of it.”
As he grappled with his new reality, Perez became depressed. “You feel less because you’re not able to do the things you used to,” he explains. “You have an idea of what you wanted to be, how life was going to look, but then that completely changes. Instead of me attacking life, it felt like life was attacking me.”
Utah 32 2022Spring/Summer
For more information about the National Ability Center, visit discovernac.org.
Utah 33 2022Spring/Summer
He continues, “There are definitely physical benefits of being on the horse, but the confidence that has come from it is probably the best thing that we’ve seen because there has been so much in his life that has been uncertain. For him to have this outlet where he can go that is about Carter just enjoying being with the horse and the volunteers and staff is just an awesome experience.”Brionsums up the National Ability Center thisPeopleway: who do this kind of work and dream up these types of programs—there’s not enough of them. They’re like angels because there’s so much need that most of us don’t recognize. It’s so easy to become wrapped up in our own lives and not see the need around us. To have people who see and do something about those needs is just phenomenal.
33
It was during one of Carter’s many doctor’s appointments that his parents learned about the NAC, and specifically about their equine therapyBecauseprogram.thegait of a horse mimics that of a human’s, equine therapy helps strengthen the core muscles in those who struggle with both upper and lower body disabilities.
When Carter was a toddler, he was diag nosed with Coffin-Siris syndrome, a condition that causes various degrees of intellectual disability, global developmental delay, and autism spectrum disorders. He also struggled with respiratory infections, plagiocephaly (flat head syndrome), torticollis (which causes a tilted neck), and dysphagia (a condition that makes drinking liquids difficult).
The
Brion Johansen, Carter’s father, remembers the first month being difficult. “Carter loved the horses, but he was very intimidated. They are big animals, and they make big noises and big movements,” he says. But they kept at it, and eventually Carter grew more comfortable around the animals. “Carter doesn’t have the massive anxiety anymore to get on the horse,” says Brion. “Now, his whole week is based on ‘What day is Token Day?’” Much of Carter’s life has been full of poking and prodding, testing, being put under anesthesia, and other procedures that are uncomfortable, scary, and painful. Brion explains, “There are just a lot of things that he doesn’t do well with because he doesn’t understand or know if they are going to hurt. To see how that has morphed over the time we’ve been going to the NAC has really been life changing. I really think that it has helped Carter’s ability to be able to approach things that are unfamiliar, that he might view as difficult.”
providesCenterAbilitiesNationalseesabout7,000peopleandabout37,000experienceseachyear.Additionalphoto
credits: P. 34 (full page) courtesy of Andrew Haraghey p. 35 (top right) courtesy of Brion Johansen p. 35 (bottom right) by Luc Percival p. 37, 39 (skiers—far right) courtesy of Orlando Perez
THE JOB DOCTOR + THE JOB DOCTOR + THE JOB DOCTOR + THE JOB DOCTOR + THE JOB DOCTOR + THE JOB DOCTORDOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHE Transforming FuturesOne Person at a Time
THEDOCTORJOBTHEDOCTORJOBTHETOR
THE JOB
Having gone from being a struggling single mother to one of the country’s top career experts, she is now helping millions of people to create a career path that is brighter than they could have ever imagined.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 35
Tessa White understands the power of transformation.
BY DANIELLE WAGNER
“IF MY ONE VOICE CAN MAKE THIS KIND OF A DIFFERENCE, IT MAKES ME WANT TO HELP OTHER PEOPLE FIND THEIR VOICE, THEIR DIRECTION, THEIR CALLING.”
“People just don’t understand what is really going on,” White says. “Nobody’s talking about it, and there’s a place for it. So I took the leap of faith.”
“I thought, ‘If it’s not now, it’s never,’” she says. “I decided that making a difference in the world is more important to me than money, so I took that trade off.”
As an HR executive with decades of experi ence, White had a 360-degree view of the career stagnation and growth of hundreds of thousands of employees. “I get to see the back-room conver sations. I get to see how the employee feels. I get to see what the manager is thinking,” White explains. Through that experience, White witnessed how a little preparation and knowledge can change the trajectory of careers.
a l eap o F Fait H
“I always thought it was going to be a choice between money and making a difference,” White says of her new career. “It’s not. They are not mutually exclusive. If my one voice can make this kind of a difference, it makes me want to help other people find their voice, their direction, their calling.”
tH e p ower o F o ne v oi C e When the COVID-19 pandemic brought White’s speaking engagements and corporate trainings
White decided to start those critical career conversations through corporate training, public speaking, business advising, and career coaching.
“All of us have this list in our head. We say, ‘When I have time, I am going to do this or I am going to try that,’” she says. For White, that included writing a book and empowering people to determine their career paths instead of letting a company or circumstances determine it for them.
“People thought I was nuts—just absolutely crazy,” Tessa White says, laughing. It was 2018. As an executive working with Fortune 50 companies, White had reached a pinnacle in her career, the height of her earning potential. That’s when she decided to quit her job, reinvent her career, and start an unprecedented venture.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 36 THE JOB DOCTOR + THE JOB DOCTOR + THETHE+DOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHE+TOR
White is passionate about helping others build a career strategy because she has experienced firsthand the difference it can make.
“I always knew if there was an outlet for her to spread her knowledge and give advice, then it would go viral,” says Matthews. “The only thing that surprised me was how many avenues it opened up.” Within one year, White had more than half a million social media followers and had been fea tured by Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, Good Morning America, The Doctors, and countless other national outlets.
Most of White’s followers would never guess that the story behind this put-together, outspoken executive included years of struggle and heartbreak. From death and divorce to helping family through addiction and mental illness, White knows what it feels like to be beaten down and broken.
“That initial $15,000 difference makes a $300,000 impact to that mother’s lifetime earnings,” White explains. “If that money is invested, that difference could jump as high as one million dollars. Add on top of that increased confidence and career satis faction, and that one job transforms everything for that mother and her children.” She adds, “You take one single mother who has gone from, ‘I don’t even know that I can get a job’ to ‘I have a job and I have already gotten a raise’ or ‘I have a career path that will keep food on the table for my family,’ and that will keep you motivated to keep doing what you are doing.”
e mpat H y tH roug H e xperien C e
White found that no matter the platform, people were hungry for career advice, especially during such an uncertain time. “People during the pan demic were really having a hard time with careers and the shifting of industries and how to get a job. So, it was the right idea at the right time that was born,” she says. “It went from being a business to being the way that I can do good in the world.”
“Out of everything I do, I love working with individuals and helping them move their careers ahead the most,” White says. “The idea came to me to form The Job Doctor and to pivot from being a consultant with companies to being a consultant withWhileindividuals.”thenation was quarantining, White was busy building a website and remaking her company.
In the fall of 2020, White launched The Job Doctor, and, at the urging of her daughter Hannah Matthews, she began building her social media presence.“Mydaughter said, ‘You should get on TikTok,’ and I said, ‘I can’t even log in to TikTok,’” White recalls with a laugh. But within 72 hours of posting career advice on this new social platform, White had 10,000 followers.
“There are a lot of ways my life went sideways, so I understand pain and I understand broken
WITHIN ONE YEAR, WHITE HAD MORE THAN HALF A MILLION SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOWERS AND HAD BEEN FEATURED BY FORBES, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, USA TODAY, GOOD MORNING AMERICA, THE DOCTORS, AND COUNTLESS OTHER NATIONAL OUTLETS.
White receives hundreds of messages every day from grateful followers telling her that they received a promotion, had the courage to change their career, or received a raise because of her advice.“You don’t even realize the people you are impacting and changing,” White says. The power of those interactions grows exponentially. White shared a letter from a single mother who was terrified to reenter the workforce after a four-year break. Not only was this woman able to enter a new career field she loved, she was able to negotiate a salary that was $15,000 above her last salary because of White’s coaching and advice.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 37 to a screeching halt, she began to reevaluate her business approach.
“THERE ARE A LOT OF WAYS MY LIFE VERYSIDEWAYS,WENTSOIUNDERSTANDPAINANDIUNDERSTANDBROKENDREAMSVERY,WELL.”
“As a single mom, there weren’t many resources readily available to her, and I think it is amazing that she spends so much of her time giving back to ensure the next generation of women in the workforce are prepared,” White’s daughter Hannah Matthews says. “She taught me feminism without ever using the word. For women, she shows that you can do anything.”
White’s role as The Job Doctor has provided her with a platform to share her message and continue improving the workplace for millions around the world. But this is only the beginning.
aCC ompli SH ing t H e i mpo SS i B le Looking back at what it was like to be raised by a successful executive, Matthews says, “She saw our potential and was always striving to get us there.” White balanced education with fun. Matthews remembers White taking them to Toys “R” Us when she would get a raise, playing Pokemon, and dress ing up in a shark costume to scare her children and neighbors. She also remembers family nights filled with mock interviews and resume building. White admits, “I may not have been the mother who made cookies, but I was the mother who taught my children how to invest in the stock market.”Matthews has seen the ways her mother has taken her own struggles in the workplace and channeled those toward making a better world for her children and for future generations. When Matthews told her mother that she wanted to be president of the United States, White would support her, buy her books, and help her map a plan to get there. When Matthews would change her mind and decide to become an archaeologist, White would again support her, buy her books, and help her map a plan to get there. That drive to help people achieve their potential and forge their own path is what fuels White today.
But White made the sacrifices and defied expectations to build a better life for herself and her family. And she continues to volunteer her time to help future generations.
“I dropped out of school at 19 to get married and raise a family,” White says. “I never anticipated that I would become a working single mother, and I was told I would never have a good job.”
Empowering Women in Utah’s Workforce Women comprise 44 percent of the labor force in Utah. In fact, a higher percentage of Utah women participate in the labor force than the national average. Yet, the median annual earnings for a full-time female worker in Utah is $39,061 compared to $54,845 for men. For both employed and unemployed workers in Utah, women have the highest poverty rates across the board.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 39 dreams very, very well,” she says. “The fact that I came out the other side is what gives me confi dence when I help other people who feel like they can’t rise above their circumstances.” She continues, “I made so many life-altering decisions between the ages of 19 and 23 without knowing the impact it would have, so I have a very sweet spot for helping young people and helping single mothers get started on the right foot and make good decisions.”
White sits on the advisory boards for Utah State University’s Huntsman School of Business, Utah Valley University Women’s Center, and Dahlia’s Hope, a center that helps sex-trafficking victims rebuild their lives.
White witnesses these statistics in action daily in the lives of the women and single mothers she mentors. That’s why White stresses the importance of every woman receiving an education and having access to resources that will allow them to excel in the workplace, no matter their chosen path.
Source: jobs.utah.gov
That’s why White uses social media to reach that demographic in a way and with a message that resonates with them. “They want to get their information fast and furious,” she says. “Social media provides this perfect platform to give them exactly what they need, which is the CliffsNotes on careers. If I could reach out and help every single young person start on the right foot, I would.”
• If you aren’t clear on your value proposition, the company definitely won’t be.
DOCTOR + THE JOB
“Follow your bliss. Find where it is, and don’t be afraid to follow it.”
She says, “I found my bliss, and I am trying to help other people do the same because I do not think life has to be miserable. I do not think our jobs and our careers have to be miserable. I think there’s a better way.”
“I LOVE PROVING PEOPLE WRONG. IF I STEP INTO THE UNKNOWN AND CONTINUE TO JUST TAKE ONE STEP EVERY DAY TOWARD WHAT I WANT TO DO OR BECOME, THE UNIVERSE SEEMS TO SUPPORT IT AND FIND ME.”
• The language of business is numbers. Speak it.
“I am uncomfortable every single day,” White says. “I am finding that personally having my brain always firing and learning new things so fast that I can hardly take it in is incredibly fulfilling.” This new growth has helped White learn to dream bigger at a time when many people are happy to settle in theirButcareers.TessaWhite is preparing to accomplish the impossible. “People telling me that something is impossible has always made me tick. I love proving people wrong,” she says. “If I step into the unknown and continue to just take one step every day toward what I want to do or become, the universe seems to support it and find me.”
DOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHE+DOCTORJOBTHEDOCTOR JOB DOCTOR + THE JOB DOCTOR + THE JOB DOCTOR
• You’re only as relevant as your last accomplishment.
Some exciting developments include White’s recently launched 12-week mentoring courses as well as a new book scheduled to release in the fall of 2022 titled The Lies That Got You Here: How to Reclaim Your Work Satisfaction. These are a few of the many ways White hopes she can leave people “armed with knowledge” and empowered to improve their lives. About the exciting future she has planned for her business, White says, “I have seen so many dreams come to pass over the last year that I am certain that I can get there.”
• Your manager’s perception of you is reality.
The Job Doctor’s 10 Career Commandments
• When you go is when you grow.
• Never be more loyal to a company than it can be to you.
+ THE
• Promises that aren’t in writing aren’t promises.
One certainty about that future is that White will continue to help others build better careers and lives. White loves the Joseph Campbell quote,
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 40
• Results are your greatest currency.
• Your job description isn’t the roadmap to success.
• Money goes to those who ask, not to those who wait.
Rod g e r s & H a m m e r s t e i n' 2022s A Sundance Mountain Resort Presentation in Partnership with Utah Valley University July 21 - A U G SUNDANCERESORT.COM13
Risi ngAb page 42
bove the
Utah 2022Spring/Summer
“I just ignored it. Then they started trying to fight me. I’m like, ‘All right, cool. Let’s go. I’m never going to back down,’” Phommabout recalls.
Despite Phommabout’s best efforts, his friend didn’t survive the ordeal. “His last words were ‘help me,’ but there was nothing I could do.”
“To be stripped from that, a lot of darkness came into my life—a lot of anger and confusion,” Lieski explains. “Every single one of my foster “Every time I fought, I got more respect.”
In an effort to avenge the death of his friend, Phommabout immersed himself in gang life. Even the birth of his son didn’t stop Phommabout from getting more entangled in that world, and he was soon arrested in Iowa for transporting drugs across several states. The case was thrown out because of an illegal search, but the thought of being so close to long-term prison time scared him.
A few years older than Phommabout, Lieski grew up in the 1990s in Ogden, where he constantly got into trouble—to the point that he was placed in foster care. Being taken away from his family and the life he knew was incredibly difficult.
Once the fighting started, it never stopped.
Same g ang, Di FF erent Story
Levi Lieski was in the same gang, but his story is a little different.
Now, the question was, what would he do with his life? Who could he turn to now?
Fig H ting F or r e S pe C t
—samson phommabout
“Not being there for my son was really making me sad and hurt. I got out, and I was like, ‘I ain’t never going back. I’ve got to change. I am never going to have my son see me in jail through the windows again,’” he recalls. So, he told his family and fellow gang members that he wanted out. Thankfully, they respected his decision.
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“Every time I fought, I got more respect,” says Phommabout. Fighting was his way to protect himself and gain friends. Why would he stop? Then the gangs hit closer to home. His sister married a gang member, so Phommabout officially joined the gang when he was 15 years old. The violence continued to escalate. One man in particular started threatening to beat up or kill him. When the time came, Phommabout was ready with a few friends. “I caught him at Valley Fair Mall one day. We beat him up so badly that he ended up in the hospital,” he says.Soon after, rivals came for revenge. Phommabout and his friend were drinking outside near their homes when a van pulled up and started shooting. “I was ducking, dodging bullets,” he remembers. “I could even hear the bullets flying past my ear. Then I turned around, and I saw my friend down. He got shot seven times—six in the chest and one right through the chin.”
See K ing r evenge
“I was like, ‘Man, I’ve got to change my life. I could have been gone for 10 years,’” he says. With outstanding warrants back in Utah, Phommabout went home and turned himself in. After some negotiation, rather than serving three years, he was sentenced to three months in jail.
or Samson Phommabout, the dark part of his life started as early as elementary school. Growing up in the “bad part of town” near Salt Lake City, he was surrounded by gangs. As the only Asian in his school, he was also a prime target for bullies.
C H oo S ing a n ew p at H His fourth day in prison, Lieski witnessed someone get stabbed almost 40 times. “I don’t know how he didn’t die,” he says. Lieski was transferred to Victorville, California, where he was held in a 23-hour lockdown regimen for seven and a half months. He was only allowed one hour outside of his cell, which was a cage outside. During those months, he got into drawing, reading, and meditation—which ultimately helped him change his mindset. When he was released from prison, the now almost-30-year-old Lieski wanted to make a real change in his life. But he encountered obstacles at every turn. “The world isn’t set up for anyone to really succeed once you have ruined your life to that level,” he says. “I was a two-time felon living in California. I got away from my friends because “I started selling drugs to survive. And it was so crazy because deep down inside, I wanted to change my life, but my social group was so sick with criminality.”
Utah 2022Spring/Summer brothers was in a gang, and it wasn’t no ‘Twitter fingers.’ You had to physically fight your bullies. And because of that, I had to man up in a sense. I had to tuck the child away.” Lieski’s foster brothers welcomed him with open arms and provided the love and protection that he craved, so he decided that gang life must be for him. He saw violence, though not quite as extreme as Phommabout, who was younger and joined the same gang eight years later. At age 18, Lieski drove a car while a friend shot a .22-caliber to intimidate some people who had wronged him. Luckily, nobody was hit by the bullets, but Lieski was sentenced to three years in prison for driving the vehicle. When Lieski got out of prison at 21 years old, he had a hard time breaking away from gang life. He dreamed of getting a good job, getting married, and having kids. But he wasn’t sure how to get there. He had made friends in prison, so the cycle continued. “I started selling drugs to survive. And it was so crazy because deep down inside, I wanted to change my life, but my social group was so sick with criminality,” he says. Things turned from bad to worse when Lieski picked up a keg of beer and 100 pills of ecstasy for a party. As he was sitting in front of his house, his parole officer showed up and searched the car. The keg and the drugs, along with a gun that was hidden under the hood, were grounds to charge Lieske with a federal crime.
45
—levi lieski
“At this moment, my whole family had come outside. My sisters were crying, my mom was crying,” he recalls. “I was so egotistical at this time. I was such a hardened criminal.” Lieski was sentenced to seven and a half years at Florence Colorado Penitentiary. That’s when it really hit him—he didn’t want this life.
For a time, Lieske was homeless and sleeping in a car, still refusing to go back to his friends and the old life he had before. Then one day, he passed a homeless man on the corner holding a sign—an experience that changed his life.
Utah 46 2022Spring/Summer that’s what I needed to do, but I didn’t know how to make a change.”
“I caught his eyes, and at that moment, I saw myself in him,” Lieske recalls. “It broke me down. And it was at this vital moment that I learned forgiveness—self-forgiveness. And by forgiving my past, I was able to destroy that table and let go of all that was on it,” he explains. “I broke down crying and said, ‘From this moment on, I am only living with this new table. I’m only going to put things I’m grateful for on it.’”
C H anging tH eir l ive S , t oget H er Shortly after getting out of prison, Lieski ran into Phommabout. They were hesitant to talk to each other because they wanted to let go of their pasts. But Lieski had heard that Phommabout was doing well and had even become a pro mixed martial arts and Jiu-Jitsu fighter.
The two former gang members went to dinner and started making plans for the future—plans to make their lives better. And they followed through.
Shortly after getting out of prison, Lieski ran into Phommabout. They were hesitant to talk to each other because they wanted to let go of their pasts.
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Utah 2022Spring/Summer
To see where their lives and careers take them, follow Samson Phommabout at @union_barbershopSLC and Levi Lieske at @lv1tattoos.
Since that day, they have each made 180-degree turns. Their lives are no longer filled with violence and revenge and worrying about prison. Instead, they have hope. They have since each created their own businesses next to each other in Salt Lake City. Lieski opened a tattoo shop called LV1Tattoos, and Samson opened Union Barbershop. Being so close by has allowed them to support each other as they change their lives for the better. Having someone who knows what it was like, but also is a good influence now, has been essential to remaining committed to their new direction in life. Their new lives have exploded with positivity, and they owe it to their new focus. “I have made the decision to only count my blessings,” says Lieski. “I have reconnected with my family. I have literally traveled the world as a tattoo artist.” In fact, he’s vis ited Indonesia, Italy, Norway, and the UK. He even met famous motivational speaker Tony Robbins. “We went through adversity with each other in our own lives,” Phommabout says, “but we set each other back up, and we continue to change our lives and help other people. Levi changed his life through tattoos, and I changed my life through MMA and Phommaboutbarbering.”even
That’s exactly what Phommabout and Lieski are doing. And the sky’s the limit with the next phase of theirLieskilives.believes in the innate power people have to manifest good or bad in their lives. “If I had the power to manifest something so dark and so hurtful, how high would I have gone with that same amount of energy, but on a positive note? Would I be a multi-billionaire? Would I be an inspiration to the world?” The answer is yes, he adds. That means that he and Phommabout, together, have the power to change their lives—and the lives of others. And they’re both hopeful about what the future holds. “I’m really excited,” Lieski says. “We are both at this turning point in our lives and in our careers.”“I’mvery lucky to have Levi as one of my friends to be here for us to keep on going in positive ways,” says Phommabout. “We want to use our life stories to change other people’s life stories—to give them motivation and determination to keep on fighting through those adversities, through those hard times. We want to motivate others to push forward and stay positive.”
volunteers some of his bar bering time by cutting hair for at-risk youth. During those haircuts, he’s able to connect with them and help them reflect on what they want their lives to be like. He urges them to surround themselves with good people instead of friends who hold them back. “I always tell the kids, ‘You’ve got to move on. Keep yourself so busy that you don’t even have time for them. Surround yourself with people who are going to build you up, give you light, and give you energy to follow your passion.”
“Surround yourself with people who are going to build you up, give you light, and give you energy to follow your passion.”
—samson phommabout 47
BY MICHAEL YOUNG
Ruff Haven Crisis Sheltering is on a mission to help vulnerable animals through difficult times by making sure they have a place to stay. Their slogan is “Keeping pets with their peo ple,” which they achieve by providing temporary foster care for pets while their owners look for new housing. This takes an important responsibility off the pet owner’s plate and assures that the animals will be well taken care of in the meantime.
When unforeseen circumstances leave a family without a home, some of those hit the hardest are our little friends with fur, feathers, or scales. Thanks to Ruff Haven Crisis Sheltering, pet owners who are experiencing a crisis can now find a safe place for their beloved animals to stay until the storm passes.
Helping ThroughPets“Ruff”
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 48
Times
Marissa Hernandez is one of the co-founders of Ruff Haven and the current director of operations. Before Ruff Haven, she owned a boarding facility and had many low-income people ask for help. One of her first clients was a woman with dogs who
Fo S ter v olunteer S Lisa Volungis is a foster volunteer who takes in pets in crisis. She has been a dog lover for many years and has three of her own. “I’ve taken in everything from 5-pound dogs to 150-pound dogs,” she says. “Right now, I’m fostering a senior chihuahua.”
Foster volunteers also sign an agreement to provide transportation to and from appointments, while Ruff Haven coordinates any vet visits that a pet might need during their stay with the foster caregiver.Whilethe pandemic has necessitated mostly online interactions, the organization is moving The pandemic has caused a rise in housing instability due to disruptions in employment, which has likewise led to an uncertain future for many beloved pets.
BecauseapplythoseVolungisadoption.”encourageswholiketheideatotobeafostercaregiver.thepetscomefromestablishedhomes,theyareusuallyhousebroken,trained,andwellloved,whichmakes them much easier to look after. “It’s a short-term commitment,” Volungis says. “And it’s a huge help to people and their animals.”
Utah 49 2022Spring/Summer asked for help taking care of the dogs while she found a permanent place to live.
In January of 2020, Hernandez and the other founders began organizing and then hit the ground running later that summer. “There has been a lot of demand during the pandemic,” Hernandez says. That’s because the pandemic has caused a rise in housing instability due to disruptions in employ ment, which has likewise led to an uncertain future for many beloved pets. Most of the pets taken in are dogs and cats of various breeds, but, depending on the situation, Ruff Haven can also place a variety of other small animals as well. “We once took in a ferret, and my daughter takes in reptiles,” Hernandez explains. “But sometimes it is hard to find vets who can help care for these small animals.”
In order to apply, applicants must simply fill out the online application at ruffhaven.org. A represen tative from Ruff Haven will then reach out within a few days to gather some additional information. They want to make sure they are sending pets that are a good fit for the homes and lifestyles of their foster families. For example, if your health doesn’t permit you to run around with a high-energy dog, they will make sure not to send you one. “They want to make sure you are comfortable with what you are getting into,” Volungis says.
Volungis started fostering pets in January 2021 and has had at least one foster dog about 90 percent of the time—about six or seven in the course of a year. The shortest stay was only three days long while the longest lasted for more than four months. After having a dog in your home for so long, it is easy to grow attached. But Volungis explains, “It is easier to let these dogs go because I know that they have a loving home to go back to. Most of these animals have been with their original owners their entire lives. It is so much better than having to put them up for
Before meeting up with Ruff Haven, Volungis had been working with another rescue operation for homeless pets for more than a decade. During this time, she saw people losing their pets perma nently when they were temporarily unable to care for them. These pets were sent to entirely new homes, causing trauma to both the pet and the original owner. “I didn’t want to rehome pets that already had a good home,” she says. “They only needed to be watched for a month or two so that they didn’t have to go to a new home.”
A typical foster contract is written up for 60 days, but they can extend up to 90 days or even further if the client shows a specific need. Hernandez gave the example of a wheelchair-bound veteran who had to wait for government agencies to approve funding for his housing. “The typical stay is about 30 to 40 days,” she says. “And it has been my experience that people usually do their best to get their animals back.”
er
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While animals are in foster homes, the original owner is assigned an ambassador from Ruff Haven. The ambassador checks in once a week with the “There are tons of places that help you give your pet up for adoption, but I don’t think there is anyone else who is doing what Ruff Haven is doing. There were so many permanent solutions, and I didn’t want something permanent.”
Utah 50 2022Spring/Summer forward
“I ended up on the hundredth page of a Google search trying to find a place. There are tons of places that help you give your pet up for adoption, but I don’t think there is anyone else who is doing what Ruff Haven is doing. There were so many permanent solutions, and I didn’t want something permanent.” She reached out to Ruff Haven as the date when she had to be out of her old house
For those who need assistance, Payne describes the process as straightforward. It usually entails filling out a form on Ruff Haven’s website, but the nonprofit also has representatives monitoring their Facebook and Instagram accounts to respond to emergency messages as well. The application provides them with information about the pet owner and their pets so they can make sure to find the best fit for the animals.
Lexey Payne, a former client of Ruff Haven, now serves on the organization’s board of directors. While living with two beloved cats, Payne expe rienced a personal crisis that resulted in the need to find a new home. While she was between living accommoda tions, she desperately looked for a place for her cats to stay in the meantime. Wondering if there was a shelter who could help her, she combed through the search results on Google.
From Client to Boar D m em B
petforfosterfosterquarterlywithin-personmeetingsforvolunteerstotalkaboutnewopportunities,addressconcerns,andallowcaregiverstomeeteachother.ThecentralofficeinSaltLakeCityisalsoarepositorypetsuppliesandprofessionalsthatfosterfamiliescanuse.
her cats, and a few months later, she heard about an open ing in the Ruff Haven board of directors. They especially wanted to bring on people who had been through the foster experience so they could get their unique perspectives. Staying Conne C te D
To donate, volunteer, or get help, visit ruffhaven.org
Hernandez says that she enjoys the work, but she knows who the real heroes are. “The real heroes are the people who are working hard to get their animals back.”
For those who want to support Ruff Haven, Payne has several suggestions. “Every little bit goes a long way,” she says. “It only takes a few dollars a day to take care of a pet.” In addition to direct donations, she says that they also need volunteers to walk the dogs that are staying at the facility in Salt Lake City or to help clean out the cat facilities there. For those who shop on amazon.com or chewy.com, they have dedicated links that allow a part of your purchases to be automatically donated to Ruff Haven.
“We want to expand to more communities in Utah,” Payne says. She describes the various community outreach programs Ruff Haven puts on throughout the year. These include hosting pet vac cination clinics throughout the state and opening their facilities for people to bring their pets in to be cared for by professional vets and pet groomers. They also visit unsheltered encampments with a vet to help take care of animals living there.
Utah 51 2022Spring/Summer owner, providing any updates and seeing to any needs. The ambassador can relay photos and videos of the pets to the owner, though the identity of both the owner and foster volunteer are kept private. For dogs of the right temperament, owners can come visit their pets at the shelter Dogs All Day in Salt Lake City to help ease the pain of being separated.
a l ittle g oe S a l ong way
For most of his life, Adam Nugent turned to food to cope with his emotions, and as his unhappiness grew, so did his clothing size. Here’s how he completely transformed—both physically and mentally.
How Adam Nugent Lost 120 Pounds
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 52
BY JAMIE ARMSTRONG
I t all started when Adam Nugent was 9 years old.
“My parents noticed that I had been gaining weight, so the pediatrician recommended that they give me a jogger trampoline to encourage me to exercise more,” he recalls. Unfortunately, that gesture only led Nugent to feel self-conscious about his body for the first time in his young life. He developed an increasingly unhealthy relationship with food and continued gaining weight throughout junior high and high school.
Healing F rom t H e i n S i D e o ut
Utah 53 2022Spring/Summer a v i C iou S Cy C le
“Food controlled me, just like alcohol controls an alcoholic. The difference is that you can give up alcohol, but you can’t give up food. You have to have some interaction with it.”
He continues, “I’d look at other people and wonder, ‘How can they stop eating?’ I was even jealous of my kids. They’re like, ‘I’m full.’ But I would constantly eat—even when I wasn’t hungry. And often, I didn’t even realize I was eating.”
After high school, Nugent was able to lose a significant amount of weight. “I worked out like crazy until I was 21,” he says. But then life became more complicated and more stressful. “All of the sudden, I was dealing with the stresses of college and dating. Then I got sick with mono, and I turned back to food to cope. I got even heavier than I was before.”Like countless others who struggle with their weight, Nugent resorted to crash diets.
Fa C ing t H e m irror
“I’d starve myself or go on the HCG diet to get my weight down. But then I’d put it right back on,” he says. “I felt bad about myself, and I would use food to cope and to numb the pain. Then afterward, I would feel even worse. The truth is that I felt like a zombie. Looking back, I didn’t even realize that I was in that cycle.” Nugent compares his past relationship with food to that of other addictions. “Food controlled me, just like alcohol controls an alcoholic,” he says. “The difference is that you can give up alcohol, but you can’t give up food. You have to have some interaction with it.”
Three years ago, Nugent’s weight peaked at 342 pounds.“Itwas hard to look at that person in the mirror. I hated myself,” he says. “I had just gone through a divorce. I was alone, and I didn’t believe anyone could want Nugent’sme.”“lightbulb moment” came after a triggering phone call from his ex-wife. “She hung up the phone, and I just started to eat,” he remem bers. “When I ran out of food, I called DoorDash and ordered even more food. When it was all said and done, I just started crying. I realized how much I was using food as a crutch. I finally reached that breaking point where it hurt so much that I decided I was going to change—no matter how hard it was.”
Nugent recognized that before he could succeed at losing weight, he needed to heal himself from the inside. So, he started seeing a therapist and a life coach. “My therapist asked multiple times, ‘Do you even feel worthy of love?’ and I couldn’t answer
‘You’re so weak. You can’t do it. You’re an idiot.’ But if I wouldn’t say it to somebody else, why on earth would I say it to myself?”
2. m e D itate an D B reat H e. “Guided meditations are great, and it’s easy to find specific ones about weight loss,” he says.
“Meditation helps me release the energy tied to other people so I can get in alignment with myself. It clears the noise in my mind and helps me to focus.”Nugent also does a lot of breathwork— intentional breathing exercises to reduce stress, release emotions, and balance mind and body.
1. aSK your S el F que S tion S an D H ol D your S el F a CC ounta B le. According to Nugent, success starts with becoming more self-aware. “I ask myself questions like, ‘Am I hungry, or do I just want to eat? Is this going to help me? Is this worth it? What else can I do besides eat?’ If I am hungry, then I get to choose with intention the types of foods that I put into my body. We are always in choice,” he explains.
a Complete t ran SF ormation
Nugent also believes that honoring his word to himself is just as important as honoring his word to other people. “If I say I’m going to do something for someone else, I do my best to show up for them,” he says.
“When I get in tune with my breath, I release things that aren’t serving me,” he says.
(Conscious Breathing Workbook by Holly Semanoff is a great place to start.)
3. Keep a D aily gratitu D e J ournal.
“I have a gratitude journal, and I write it every day. It’s one of the quickest and most effective ways to improve my mood,” says Nugent. “I specifically express gratitude for what’s bothering me. It shifts the energy around it and helps give me perspective.”
“Thoughts are powerful. You are what you think you are,” Nugent says. “I used to beat myself up:
Over the past three years, Nugent has lost 120 pounds by gradually and consistently changing his habits and his mindset. “I needed to heal my inside and my outside—they are both connected. It’s the inner work that matters more than anything,” he says. “A lot of us hold on to trauma from our past, and until we release it, it’s going to continue to showSo,up.”what is Nugent’s advice for succeeding on your own weight-loss journey? Here are five habits that have made all the difference for him.
But Nugent was diligent. “As I started this journey of self-discovery, I slowly healed on the inside and really got in tune with my emotions,” he says. “It exponentially enhanced what I was able to do physically. It exponentially enhanced my ability to form a new relationship with food.”
4. Stop t H e negative S el F -tal K an D u S e “ i am” S tatement S .
Nugent has replaced the negative self-talk with “I am” statements that include qualities that are important to him. “I write down ‘I am’ statements “I needed to heal my inside and my outside—they are both connected. It’s the inner work that matters more than anything.”
“Why wouldn’t I show up the same way for me?” Nugent recommends creating a support system and telling others about your goals so they can help hold you accountable. He adds, “Morning rituals are also key. Create one that will set you up for success and then stick with it.”
Utah 54 2022Spring/Summer the question,” he says. “I had a serious lack of self-love, and I didn’t believe that I was enough.”Nugent’s life coach assigned him mirror work—the practice of looking at your reflection in the mirror and telling yourself positive affirmations. “I was supposed to say things like, ‘I am beautiful,’ but it didn’t resonate for me. I couldn’t say it at first, so I’d write it, but I didn’t really believe it,” Nugent shares. “Then I’d look in the mirror and say it. It was so hard that sometimes I had tears streaming down my face.”
Because I know that I am.” 5. Be patient an D give your S el F gra C e. “My weight still fluctuates from time to time, but it’s not a sprint—it’s a marathon,” says Nugent. “Give yourself time. I had to keep telling myself, ‘You spent years getting to this point. It’s not going to be an instant fix.’ It’s a continual effort that comes down to being consistent and being intentional.”Nugentalso encourages others not to dwell on past mistakes. “I’ve learned that I’m not going to be perfect all the time, and that’s okay,” he says. “Like thereeveryone,will bad month. But I don’t hold myself in the past. That was yesterday. Focus on today.”
Continuing t H e Journey Nugent’s journey is far from over, and he is confident that his best days are ahead of him. “I’ve completely transformed my body. I’ve done a ton of work. And the amount of love that I have for myself, I know with certainty that I will never go back,” he says. “I’m excited to take it to the next level and see what else my body can do.” He adds, “All my successes have come when I pushed myself. Magic happens when we’re outside of our comfort zone.” “Thoughts are powerful. You are what you think you are.”
Utah 55 2022Spring/Summer every day, so when I have nega tive theythoughts,mightbe there for a minute, but I don’t let them stay,” he says. “Now, I can look in the mirror and say: ‘I am beautiful. I am enough. I am worthy of love.’
In the heart of Utah County, one city is making kindness a core part of its culture. Choosing kindness in Pleasant Grove is in style year round, but especially during February—the city’s official Choose Kindness Month.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 56
BY MICHAEL YOUNG
Choosing Kindness: One City’s Unique Initiative
I n early 2017, pro basketball sensation Jimmer Fredette was living in China when he became friends with Greg Cook, one of the founders of the essential oils company dōTERRA. As their friendship progressed, Fredette told Cook about some of the anti-bullying initiatives Fredette had helped foster in Provo and Idaho. Cook loved the idea, and the two decided it would be a good time to expand the initiative but with a focus on schools. Together, they gathered school principals, business leaders, and community leaders to form the Choose Kindness organization in Pleasant Grove.
Utah 57 2022Spring/Summer t ea CH ing Kin D ne SS in S CH ool S
“Kindness Club is amazing because it gives me multiple opportunities to spread and teach kind ness in ways that work with my schedule! There are enough activities we participate in that everyone gets a chance to help often. I’ve liked being able “I love how the Kindness Club is so involved with the community as well as the high school! I love going to all the elementary schools and seeing the big smiles on everyone’s faces as we teach about spreading kindness.”
“Each school does things a little differently,” she says. “Usually, they prepare a monthly lesson to promote kindness and have an activity throughout the school year, such as creating a kindness paper chain.”Forthese chains, students and staff write down kind things they have done for people on a slip of paper. They then staple the ends together in a loop that can be added as a link in a growing chain. By the end of the school year, the chain wraps around the entire school. Each school also created an official Kindness Club to help coordinate charitable efforts. Currently, every school in Pleasant Grove is participating in the Choose Kindness initiative. a Community eFF ort Brooklin Burns was Miss Pleasant Grove in 2019 and continued her role in 2020 because of the pandemic. As part of her public outreach campaign, she created a nonprofit organization called The Ripple Effect, which is focused on promoting acts of kindness. (To learn more, visit thepositiverippleeffect.com or follow the.ripple_effect on Instagram.)Burnsteaches a kindness lesson to the high school clubs, and then the high school students teach these lessons in local elementary schools.“The high school kids see the impact they make on these younger kids,” she says. “They are getting those good feels.” At the high school level, the Kindness Club holds assemblies at elementary schools throughout the school year and organizes monthly events. The assembly is called “Kindness Is Our Superpower,” and members of the Kindness Club come dressed up as superheroes. For many of these assemblies, Fredette makes an appearance to inspire the students. The assembly focuses on strategies to promote kindness, such as encouraging students to enlarge their circle of friends and finding lonely kids so they can be Manyincluded.ofthestudents love to be involved. Lydia Gabbard, a student at Pleasant Grove High School, says, “I love how the Kindness Club is so involved with the community as well as the high school! I love going to all the elementary schools and seeing the big smiles on everyone’s faces as we teach about spreading kindness.”
Charlene Day took on the key leadership role of Pleasant Grove’s Choose Kindness organization in 2019 and has worked closely with various schools and their Parent Teacher Associations.
a m ont H o F Kin D ne SS
m a K ing an i mpa C t Day has seen firsthand the impact that these assemblies have had on students.
“There was one girl, Katelyn, who was mute by choice when she came to school,” she recalls. “After Brooklin came to teach lessons, she started to warm up and started to stand by her and started to talk to her. The first time they went to the assembly, she just stood there. The second time, she sang the song they were learning. It helped her to share kindness with others even though it was hard for her. It was a sweet little miracle.” Day adds, “Kindness can impact people in individual ways, and they don’t have to look the same from everyone.”
Burns approached the mayor and Pleasant Grove city council to propose the idea of a month of kindness. They thought it was a great concept, and the mayor made it official. Together, the Choose Kindness organization and The Ripple Effect created several activities surrounding Choose Kindness Month and spearheaded school assem blies to teach students about kindness. There is a different invitation or challenge for each day, which the schools announce on a daily basis. Members of the community can follow along with the calendar posted on the Choose Kindness website.
“We are in such a state of ‘My way is right,’ and having this town focus on just the awareness of being kind has lifted everyone.”
One year, the Kindness Clubs at the high schools collected donated socks for people in need, such as refugees and the homeless. Last year, they made blankets and cards for hospital patients. This year, in conjunction with the organization Housing Connect in Salt Lake City, local schools did a service project for refugees. This entailed putting together packages for refugee families, including personal and cleaning supplies for the adults and books and games for the children. They then bundled everything together in baskets and distributed them to refugees who are trying to get on their feet.
Utah 58 2022Spring/Summer to help with some of our school’s blood drives and even donating in it myself, making a difference to someone whether they knew it or not,” says Alexandra Harding from the Pleasant Grove High School Kindness Club. “One of my favorite memories is when we went to an elementary school and taught about the power of kindness. It was really fun going to different classrooms while wearing superhero capes as we discussed some of the many ways you can be kind. You don’t have to be in a club to be kind, but it’s nice to be surrounded by other people who are being kind!”
Choose Kindness Month begins with a kickoff event for the community. This year, Cosmo the Cougar, the Brigham Young University mascot, made an appearance, as did the local fire department with their fire trucks. At the end of the month, they wrap everything up with a community service project.
“The whole Choose Kindness movement in our town has just been perfectly timed,” says city council mem ber Dianna Andersen. “We are in such a state of ‘My way is right,’ and having this town focus on just the awareness of being kind has lifted everyone.”
Recently, Bountiful High School held a kindness assembly, and afterward the high school launched a kindness week and a program of kindness clips, where students write something nice on a clothespin and then pin it on a backpack of another student. The hope is that this trend will continue to grow, creating not only a community but an entire state that has kindness at its core.
Zeke Perry, owner of Zeke’s Daylight Donuts, saw mountain and created an enormous red heart out of solar lights that shone all month long.
Several local busi nesses and residents have joined in as well.
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Kindness,Hartle,Duringprojectannouncementtheabouttherefugeeserviceandcametoadonationsitewithabigboxofgamesandbooksanda$100bill.ChooseKindnessMonth,localresidentDavidwiththehelpofChoosewantedtomakeavisualreminderthateveryoneintowncouldsee.Together,theybackpackedupthe
Sprea D ing Kin D ne SS The ideas that Pleasant Grove has put into place are starting to spread, and other Utah schools have reached out to ask how they run their program.
Two self-professed “tech nerds” with hearts of gold use their unique approach to deploy drones in planned, effective search operations. The result is finding the unfindable.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 60
BY CARRIE SNIDER | PHOTOS COURTESY OF WESTERN STATES AERIAL SEARCH
Helping Families with Missing Loved Ones Find Closure
A t first, drones were just a hobby for Greg Nuckolls and James Badham. Over the years, the Utah men have honed their skills and put their unique perspectives to work as they use the technology. Now, their drone hobby has turned into much more as they have found meaning in helping others by doing detailed aerial searches for missingNuckollspeople.began tinkering with drones a number of years ago, and in that time he’s become somewhat of an expert on the nuts and bolts of how drones work. Badham’s interest in drones has centered more on aerial photography.
Drones have the potential to offer help in a unique way.
Developing an eFF e C tive Drone Sear CH o peration
The men quickly realized that there was no established triedand-true method for deploying drones and doing a meticulous search in difficult terrain. Even those extremely experienced in searching for missing persons didn’t have a specific way of using drones to aid in the efforts.
The two met a few years ago when a call came for drone hobbyists to assist in searching for a missing person. When the terrain of a search area is extra rugged, it can be difficult for people to search on foot. Helicopter searching can be effective but over time may be too expensive to continue. Drones have the potential to offer help in a unique way—and the two men had the skills to make it all happen. After the men’s initial meeting and search experi ence, Nuckolls asked Badham to join him on another missing person search. At this point in the missing person’s case, the person had been missing for some time, and it was therefore considered a “search and recovery” mission. The two put their skills to the test to try to locate the remains of the missing person and give closure to the family.
Another problem the two noticed was that many times drones would be flying at different altitudes depending on the spot. The variance in height, from nearly 300 feet above the ground to only 50 feet above the ground, made it nearly impossible to use the photo footage later.
“There was no process of using drones on searches,” explains Badham, who works as a systems analyst. “It was like throwing spaghetti on the wall. There was lots of overlap. It was very haphazard. Drones aren’t very good at huge plots of land.”
“There was no consistency of scale,” says Badham. As a result, it would be hard to use a photo to easily direct a foot searcher to a specific spot on the ground. Clearly, they needed to go to the drawing board and create a process that would provide a targeted search. So, Nuckolls and Badham put their heads together. They pulled up their chairs and spent time finding solutions. Their goal? To develop an effective drone search operation.Theirobjectives included a well-researched and preplanned area for the drone to search, based on information from the family, officials, and terrain maps—ensuring searchers are in the right area makes all the difference when looking for missing persons, the men say. Also, success included pre-mapping the drone’s course so it can travel on autopilot while following the terrain at a consistent altitude, all the while keeping discov eries meticulously filed and recording images that areThey’regeotagged.always trying to improve their process, but the men have already helped find the remains of several missing people, offering much-needed closure for the families. Nuckolls and Badham When the terrain of a search area is extra rugged, it can be difficult for people to search on foot. Helicopter searching can be effective but over time may be too expensive to continue.
a n S wering t H e Call
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p rovi D ing Clo S ure
WSAS has grown to a team of seven drone pilots that help plan and carry out operations. They also do several test missions as they continue to develop their drone deployment operation process. The group also has a board member who has experi enced having a missing family member to offer insight and keep the group focused on the main goal at hand. The timing of WSAS helping with a search and recovery mission depends on the case. Sometimes police or other officials ask for the group’s assis tance in locating remains. Sometimes the family asks them directly. Other times, the drone pilots just start searching on their own. After a lot of pre-planning, WSAS meets on site and deploys the drones. Thousands of high-resolu tion photos are taken and saved on a secure server and only shared with specific people involved with the case. It can take hours, days, or even weeks to comb through the footage. Clues are shared with those on the ground. With a geotag, clues can be located within feet.
Utah 62 2022Spring/Summer knew they had something that could become more widespread and hopefully help more people.
“Our motto is, ‘Because it matters to you,’” says Nuckolls. “This isn’t about us. It’s about the families. I can’t imagine the pain they go through, and we have the skills to help bring closure.”
In just a few short years, WSAS has helped locate three people whose remains have been recovered and properly laid to rest. Most importantly, they’ve helped answer the endless questions of the families who have been wondering what happened to their loved one. It’s that closure that keeps them going. Knowing they’ve helped reunite family members is all the thanks they need.
Starting a n onpro F it In 2018, they founded Western States Aerial Search, a 501(c)3 that focuses on using drones to help find missing persons. In some cases, people have been missing for quite some time and are presumed deceased. But the reason they spend hours working on the case knows no time limit.
Nuckolls recalls a time when he participated in an active search and rescue operation for a person who had gone missing. But after several days, the searches halted. “I’ve been there when the last day of search is over, and the family has that look in their eyes like, ‘What now?’” he says. WSAS can be that next step. One such person they’ve located went missing in 2018 in Joshua Tree National Park in California.
“We don’t have the luxury of time in those situ ations,” Nuckolls explains. The group is exploring the idea of developing their process into real-time and combining that with thermal imaging.
Western States Aerial Search never charges a fee for its services. Those interested in donating to the group’s efforts can do so on the group’s GoFundMe page. Learn more at wsasearch.org.
WSAS learned about the case and contacted the family, who offered information as to his lastknown whereabouts, which helped the drone pilots plan and deploy effectively. The team was able to locate human remains, which were later identified as the missing man. The next step, the group hopes, will be to figure out a way to accelerate their drone deployment process. For now, they tend to step in and try to locate people who are presumed deceased, since their current process requires a lot of pre-planning. A newly missing person is a spontaneous event, however, and needs immediate action.
KING
A classically trained pastry chef, Altizer’s long career in the culinary industry took an abrupt turn when she became an Episcopal priest, which eventually saw her working in recovery centers. While recovery work was rewarding, there was something missing. When people come out of jail or recover from substance abuse, total healing doesn’t really happen until the person is integrated into a
T here are two things that Aimee Altizer knows how to do well: bake pastries and help people, which is why the idea of Flourish Bakery was a natural fit from the start.
A Sweet Way to Change Lives
PHOTOS
Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 65
Flourish Bakery gives ex-convicts and those in addiction recovery a chance to rise up through its life-changing internship program. Now that’s pretty sweet.
BY CARRIE SNIDER AND KIERSTYNN | BY BETWEEN THE CANYONS PHOTOGRAPHY
She adds, “There are many parallels from baking to life. You can ask, ‘How did I end up here?’ Baking is organic chemistry that requires balance. Just like in life, you have to figure out why some thing is working or isn’t working.”
To find the right participants, Flourish Bakery does outreach with recovery centers to find individuals who may be interested. Once they apply, interested students interview and meet the team to see if they’d be a good fit. Sarah Vogel, Flourish’s social media coordinator, explains, “We also see where they are in their recovery journey. Based on that, we start the internship.”
Vogel describes the internship as more of a job training skills program rather than a traditional internship.“Whenyou’re an intern here, we do a reflection every day. We all sit down and talk about a given topic, or what’s been going on at the bakery,” says Vogel. “We do weekly workouts with Warrior Strength, which is a recovery-based fitness program. We also work with AAA Fair Credit Foundation to help folks get their financial needs in order, and we provide a variety of other wellness programs.”Flourish also has a chaplain on staff who interns can meet with one-on-one and receive support for a particular issue they may be struggling with. That along with the staff and other participants at Flourish offer a sense of community that participants in the program truly need.
Flourishneedaccountability—theysupport,community.Bakeryiswheretheycanpracticetheirlifeontheirownwhilestabilizingskills.”
Utah 66 2022Spring/Summer community where they can offer part of themselves in return. That’s when an idea hit her. Altizer researched and visited different orga nizations across the country with similar models and came up with the concept of Flourish Bakery, now a nonprofit located in Salt Lake City. It offers a 15-month comprehensive internship program, where participants learn accountability, self-love, and“Ibaking.absolutely love what I do,” Altizer says. “When we are all together, we are more alike than we are different. That’s the gift Flourish Bakery offers. We are all incredibly similar.”
“Those in recovery need
From Jo B S K ill S to l i F e S K ill S
Much like an ER is the first stop for those who have experi enced physical trauma, Altizer explains the importance of the initial recovery process from drug abuse or incarceration. However, if someone doesn’t continue their treatment with physical therapists or others who help them truly heal, then another ER visit is sure to follow.
“Those in recovery need support, accountability— they need community. Flourish Bakery is where they can practice their life on their own while stabilizing skills,” Altizer says. “Many grow to love the culinary arts and continue in that field through the externship and eventual employment, while others move on to other things. Either way, they learn a lot during their time at Flourish.”
“I love seeing the bond between the staff and the interns,” says Vogel. “We all work together and really bond, and we even eat lunch together everyOnceday.”participants complete the internship at Flourish Bakery, they do a three-month “externship,” which helps them gain real-world experience that they can take with them.
Utah 67 2022Spring/Summer Denni S ’ S Story
Visit flourishslc.org to learn more.
Sisneros ended up staying at Flourish for 18 months, and now he is getting ready to graduate—the third graduate from Flourish. He is currently working in the bakery at Grocery,Harmonssomethingheneverwouldhave pictured himself doing only a few years“I’veago.found my passion,” he says. “Everyone at federal court and Flourish believed in me when I was going through a rough patch, and they believed that I could do any thing I wanted to do. I couldn’t have done this without them backing me. I’m really proud to be the third graduate. I wish there were more programs out there for people in recovery because you know, when we go through rough patches, it’s hard. You have to have people who believe in you to make it.”
Baking is working.”balance.chemistryorganicthatrequiresJustlikeinlife,youhavetofigureoutwhysomethingisworkingorisn’t
Flourish has had 24 participants so far, some of them staying a short time and others completing an internship and an externship. When participants “graduate” from Flourish Bakery, it’s always bittersweet. On one hand, the staff and other participants say goodbye. But they also get to experience watching the participant flourish.Oneof Vogel’s favorite memories was when Dennis Sisneros, a recent intern, finished his time up at “WeFlourish.haveachef of the day where this individual presents a variety of baked goods that he had made,” Vogel recalls. “Dennis did the actual physical presentation but then also shared why each recipe was important to him. Just seeing the community surrounding him and supporting him and getting to taste these delicious treats he made, it was really touching.”Sisneros started selling drugs when he was 21. During his time in federal prison, Sisneros learned to bake, and it was the beginning of him turning his life “Theyaround.hada lot of jobs, but I didn’t want to be a cook. I started out as a dishwasher and worked my way up into the bakery,” Sisneros says. “I was in federal prison for six years, and during that time I found out that I loved to bake and became the lead supervisor while I was there. After a while, I learned that making 2,000 cinnamon rolls for people every Wednesday takes talent.” Two years ago, Sisneros was at federal drug court and was asked what he liked to do during his time in prison. Baking came up. “The federal prosecutor introduced me to Flourish and asked if I was interested, and I said, ‘Yeah, I’m interested! Show me the ropes. What do I have to do?’” Sisneros says. “They told me that I had to have sobriety under my belt first before I could apply. I was doing really good; they let me apply. I ended relapsingupand going on the run. When I got back, I wasn’t able to go back to drug court, but I was able to apply for Flourish again.”
Feeling heard and understood is vital for closeness, connection, and trust. It’s like oxygen for the relationship.
I
+ page 68 Utah 2022Spring/Summer Column: Motivation
RelationshipsThriving
3 Keys to
Let’s look at three key strategies to nourish your rela tionships this season:
BY TIFFANY PETERSON
Spring cleaning isn’t just for your home. Here’s how you can refresh your relationships for healthier, more intentional living.
a tH riving l i F e Ha S tH riving r elation SH ip S Relationships are at the heart of everything we do, and with the right tools, you can intentionally invest in thriving relationships with conscious choices that can directly influence the quality of relationships you desire. Whether you’re wanting richer, deeper connections with family and friends or you’re wanting to see your customers and sales grow, the principles I’ll share here will help you thrive in your personal and professional life.
Pro Tip: Start your “nourish ing” with those who’ve been in your life for quite some time. No one outgrows the need to feel appreciated, and old relationships are well fed with appreciation and recognition.
t’s spring—the season of the new! With new beginnings, fresh starts, and nature bloom ing again after a hard winter, spring brings a unique energy of “coming alive” that can’t be replicated during other times of theOneyear.of my deepest passions is helping others to create a thriv ing life and a business they love with a sense of intention. And for all of us, a central, core influence to creating that thriving life is the quality and richness, depth and connection of relationships.
1. Freely show appreciation. Everyone wants to be seen, appreciated, and valued. And while people may not verbalize that desire, this is directly affecting the “thrive” (or, if “thrive” is lacking, the struggle) in yourRelationshipsrelationships.are always personal, and how people feel with us is our ultimate impact, influence, and “business card.” Ask yourself, “Do the people in my life feel important when they’re with me? Do they feel seen? Significant? Appreciated?” If you’re unsure, or if you’re looking for ways to create more fulfilling relationships, know that small but thoughtful gestures go a long way. Taking time to write or verbally express your grat itude and appreciation has an immense power to help nourish and grow your relationships.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer
A thriving life has thriving relationships. By investing in others with intention, our own lives and relationships will thrive. Have a happy spring, my friends—and even happier relationships!
While this line is often applied to sales, it’s a life and relationship mindset that will help you have more success in all of your relationships.Earlyinmy professional career path, I had the oppor tunity to work with the great Stephen Covey on his worldrenowned book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. One of the key habits is known as “Seek First to Understand Before You’re Understood,” and it was the most requested principle to be revisited during trainings. It is a literal game changer in rela tionships, connection, conflict resolution, friendship, trust, and sales.Dr. Covey explained this idea very simply: most people listen with an intent to reply instead of to understand. Usually in conversations, we might be sort of listening. We nod our heads, maybe even make eye contact, but are we really listening? Are we seeking to understand? Are we asking more questions to understand someone’s heart or their challenges at work? Whether you want to help your children or your team at work move forward and make progress, that comes from understanding their needs and challenges and asking more questions to deepen the relationship. Feeling heard and understood is vital for closeness, connection, and trust. It’s like oxygen for the relationship.
2. Listen more and talk less.
While we won’t always agree with one another, if we seek to understand rather than shame or judge, we open space for our relationships to connect and thrive. Practice asking more questions at home and at work. Show up with the intention to understand and create that safe space and watch your relationships grow. 3. Tap into the power of play. Play is a powerful opportunity for creating and nourishing connection in your relationships. Often when I’m coaching a couple or someone in an inti mate relationship, I invite them to commit to playing together on a regular basis. It’s fresh air, new life, and a chance to liberate the connection.Sometimes at home or work, we can get bogged down in the familiar. To break out of that rut, put some play into your time together. Book that staycation or plan a fun date. Take the team Sometimes at home or work, we can get bogged down in the familiar. To break out of that rut, put some play into your time together.
69 out to lunch or to get pedicures together. Mix it up!
StockAdobe
In 1999, I had my first tasting meeting with the International Olympic Committee. They told me that while it was the finest tasting they had experienced, they were dismayed that I didn’t serve them anything from Utah! They then informed me that I had two years to dis cover the state’s hidden gems to serve at the Winter Olympic Games in 2002. So began my journey to discover Utah, and it continues today. In honor of the twentieth anniversary of Salt Lake City hosting the Winter Olympics, here are five of my favorite local food products!
Mary’s Fab 5: Local Products
Beehive Cheese began in 2005 when Tim Welch and Pat Ford jumped off the corporate bandwagon with a dream of making the finest cheddar cheese in the country. With a lot of hard work, they’ve become some of the finest cheesemakers in America. From humble beginnings, they’ve become internationally renowned for the quality of their cheese and their incredible, creative flavors.
Personal Recommendation: Seahive
1. Creminelli Fine m eat S Creminelli Fine Meats has been making artisan salami for centu ries in northern Italy. In 2006, one of the brothers moved to Utah to embrace the freedom from the strict Italian consortiums and create new and exciting varieties of aged meats to please even the most refined palettes. I am always so proud when I’m in the delis of New York and see Utah’s own Creminelli Fine Meats showcased as the top choice for discriminating charcuterie boards. I wouldn’t use anything else!
BY MARY CRAFTS
+ page 70 Utah 2022Spring/Summer Column: Mary’s fab 5
Personal Recommendation: Tartufo
2. Bee H ive C H ee S e
Redmond has been mining salt in Utah for more than 60 years. One of the purest salts in the world, it’s mined deep below the surface of the earth from the ancient sea beds of Lake Bonneville— away from the open sea and pollutants that come from living in a densely populated area. The flavor of Redmond’s salt is very different from other sea salts, and I love how the clean taste makes all my food more flavorful!
Personal Recommendation: All of them!
5. S li D e ri D ge raw H oney Martin James was just 9 years old when he started raising bees with four hives. Today, his honey business has grown to more than 3,000 hives! Located in Mendon, Martin and his sister Karla are known throughout the United States for their beekeeping knowledge, and they are working tirelessly to keep American bees alive and well. Each sale of their products helps fund research to find better ways to keep honeybees healthy and happy.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 71
Personal Recommendations: Honey Wine Vinegar
Personal Recommendation: Dos Rios 4. re D mon D S alt
3. amano arti S an CH o C olate Amano Artisan Chocolate is the innovative creation of Art Pollard, a physicist from Brigham Young University. In the late 1990s, he began to study the production process of chocolate and soon dis covered the fine nuances of using a single-source bean. Previously, fine chocolate used a blend of beans from around the world to mask unique regional flavor in favor of something more uniform, but Pollard blazed a new trail that revolutionized the chocolate scene in the western United States. Found in artisan stores around the world, Amano chocolate is made in Orem!
In order to focus more on the value of our work rather than the work itself, we must ask ourselves, “How do I make myself more valuable, more irreplaceable, to my personal relationships and professional organization? What must I learn today that will make me more qualified to be a better partner, parent, coach, entrepreneur, leader, manager, teammate, co-worker, neighbor, or friend?” The answer is simple: clarify your “why.” Believing that we deserve the best kinds of love and personal intimacy, friendships, job opportunities, income, vacations, and lifestyle brings those desires into our lives. So why is it that so many never achieve this level of suc cess, significance, and enduring happiness? Marianne Williamson explains it best when she said: Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate but that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabu lous?” Who are you not to be? Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. As we let our own light shine, we uncon sciously give other people permission to do the same.
Take control of your destiny by resetting your internal “set point” temperature and adding more value to your career, relationships, and community.
BY DAN CLARK
Anational survey reported that 80 percent of America’s workforce are not working in their dream jobs. In fact, most people dislike their jobs. Often, we find ourselves looking for ward to Friday instead of Monday.
Column: t he l ast w ord
+ page 72 Utah 2022Spring/Summer
C H ange y our i nternal “Set p oint”
Resetting Your Personal “Thermostat”
Achieving this transformationpowerfulcomeswhen we change or reset our personal “thermostat.”Athermostat works by sensing the difference between the actual outside temperature and the desired temperature. It switches heating and cooling devices on and off to maintain that desired temperature. In terms of our human ther mostat and set point, it is always dialed to the level of our selfesteem, sense of self-worth, and degree of personal development.
And while we’re paid by the hour, the real difference in how we feel about and perform at our jobs comes from the value we bring to that hour. Clari F y y our “ wH y”
For us to enjoy the things we want, we must first reset our thermostat to expect more, learn more, and be more so that we are empowered and equipped to do more!
Hamm,wordsvaluableyourselfbeginthermostatyourandtomakemoretothoseinyourpersonallife,organizations,community,country,andtheworld.Andifyouneedinspiration,looknofurtherthanthemydearfriendRegiewhowrotethehitsong“TheTimeofMyLife”
for American Idol champion David AndCook:I’ll taste every moment and live it out loud I know this is the time, this is the time To be more than a name or a face in the crowd I know this is the time, this is the time of my life.
For example, how many times have we seen someone win 100 million dollars in the lottery only to be flat broke three years later? How many people do we know who go on a crazy diet and lose 50 pounds or more, but six months later they have gained all the weight back and then some? Why is this?
It is simply because of their personal thermostat. No matter what happens on the outside with money or our weight, or even our relationships, our inter nal thermostat is always going to try and match our outside world to our internal set point. To find more joy and fulfillment in our lives, or our “outside world,” we must become more on the inside. For us to enjoy the things we want, we must first reset our thermostat to expect more, learn more, and be more so that we are empowered and equipped to do more!
+ Dan Clark is a Hall of Fame speaker and The New York Times best-selling author of The Art of Significance.
To learn more, follow @danclark speak on Facebook and Instagram or visit danclark.com.
Utah 2022Spring/Summer 73
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Fo C u S on Solution S , n ot Symptom S As we work to create a society that is unconditionally loving and mutualdiversity,nonjudgmental—whereequity,inclusion,respect,andsupport are the norm instead of the excep tion—we must keep our focus on the solution, not the symptoms. We must focus on what we can do in the present and the future, not dwell on the past. In my experience, the ones who find reason to complain are usually those who have not dedicated themselves to becoming better today than they were yesterday, hoping instead that someone else will do it for them. French philosopher Pascal explained it this way: “Too many live their lives hoping to be happy, but because they only hope, they never really are.” It’s like waiting to get invited to the prom but never taking the time to learn how to dance!Decide today what you will do to reset
No matter what happens on the outside with money or our weight, or even our relationships, our internal thermostat is always going to try and match our outside world to our internal set point.
Did you know that topaz is Utah’s official gem? In fact, according to the Bureau of Land Management, Topaz Mountain in Juab County is one of the best places in the world to find topaz. Read on for more fun facts!
+ Utah 2022Spring/Summer page 74 g ood n ews by the nUM bers Topaz
600 pounds Wedding anniversaries when topaz is a traditional gift 4th & 19th
To learn how one Utah woman created the Topaz Fairy to help bring cheer to children going through a difficult time, turn to p. 10 StockAdobe(Topaz) 4 feet Height that topaz crystals can reach Weight of the heaviest known piece of topaz
Size of the 9,381carat Ostros Stone, believed to be the world’s largest blue topaz 4"x6" Centuries when imperial topaz, which has a reddish-orange or pinkish-orange hue, was used in the jewels of Russian czars and their families 18th & 19th
Colors of topaz, including blue, white, purple, yellow, green, and pink Year the name “topaz” was given to the gemstone we know today. Previously, the name was used for a variety of yellow stones. 1737 Year that a 1,680-carat gemstone named the Braganza Diamond was mined and set on the Portuguese crown. The jewel has since been identified as a colorless topaz. 1740 Number of years when spellscouldbelievedEuropeansthattopazbreakmagic300 Topaz that reddish-orangefeatureshues less than 1% Chemical formula for topaz
Al2SiO4(F,OH)2
Wedding anniversary when imperial topaz is a traditional gift 23rd 9+
Weight of the largest faceted gemstone in the world, the El Dorado Topaz 31,000 carats Year that topaz was named Utah’s official gem 1996
“Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads.” —henry david thoureau Utah h igh n ote p hoto by Drew Arm S trong | @tr Avel S fromutA h +
