Good News Utah—Winter 2021

GoodNewsUtah.com + Caring TraditionalforNativeElders One woman’s quest to reduce poverty in the Navajo Nation + 3 Habits to Make 2022 Your Best Year Ever How to do what matters most WalkingAMiracle DAVID OSMOND ON FAMILY, SHOW BIZ, AND HIS BATTLE WITH MS +POSITIVELY UTAH

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2021 Contents Feature

BY JAMIE ARMSTRONG 28 David LookingOsmond:ataMiracle

S

36 Healing the World Through Healthcare Globus Relief, a humanitarian orga nization located in Salt Lake City, is improving healthcare and preventing waste by gathering surplus medical supplies and distributing them to charities throughout the United States and across the world.

Winter Storie

22 Soaring Toward a Dream Brolin Mawejje has his sights set on becoming the first African snow boarder and first Ugandan to compete at the Winter Olympics. But for this former refugee who now calls Utah home, snowboarding is much more than a sport.

BY CAROLYN CAMPBELL

BY KAREN PAINTER

362228 IN EVERY ISSUE p. The6 Bright Side p. Good60 News by the Numbers p. High61 Note

David Osmond was born to perform. But for years, he has been living with multiple sclerosis and the debilitating pain that it brings. Still, he has been able to overcome his darkest moments to live a life filled with positivity and gratitude—all while keeping his fans smiling.

By m ary Cra F t S

Another year is coming to an end. Remember your New Year’s resolu tions? How did you do? For powerful and lasting change, try these three habits instead and make next year your best year ever.

By h alen h u BB ar D 18 Warming Hearts and Feeding the Hungry

In an effort to do good in their community, one Ogden family gathers and distributes desperately needed items to the homeless and to others who are struggling.

One woman’s 30-year quest to reduce extreme poverty and hardship among traditional native elders of the Navajo Nation has grown into more than she could have imagined.  By h alen h u BB ar D 51 Helping the Homeless to Care for Their Pets

By t ere S a Collin S

By r o B Shallen B erger 46 Caring for Native Elders

By Kier S tynn King C olumn S 5 More Than Enough When we practice an abundance mindset and live in gratitude for all that we enjoy, we become inspired and empowered to lift others.

What is true abundance, and how can we tap into it? Here are three tips for creating a fuller, richer life. By t i FF any p eter S on 56 Mary’s Fab 5: Bar Scenes

Department S 11 Do Good Today: One Family’s Mission to Help the Homeless

58 How to Pivot and Rebound: 8 Steps of Resiliency When life gets you down, use these eight steps of resiliency to pick yourself back up.

What better way to connect with friends than at a great bar with amazing atmosphere? Check out my five favorite bar scenes in Utah.

By Jamie a rm S trong 8 Toxic Positivity and How to Avoid It Always looking on the bright side of life can eventually turn a person blind. It’s time we focus on facing true emotions head on rather than casting them aside.

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Six years ago, when a child from Pleasant Grove created an annual tradition to help the needy, his community followed his example and rallied around him. And thanks to his continual efforts, he has inspired neighbors and strangers alike while feeding hundreds of people in the process.

By h alen h u BB ar D 42 3 Habits to Make 2022 Your Best Year Ever

People in vulnerable populations love their pets just as much as the rest of us. That’s why one Utah nonprofit is dedicated to helping them to give their pets the proper care that they deserve.

Utah 2021Winter 2 Winter 2021 Contents Department S & Column S

By Dan Clar K 14 46

54 3 Ways to Activate Abundance in Your Life

By m a D eline t hat C her 14 Skiing into History Throughout his life, 96-year-old Junior Bounous has been a pioneer in the sport of skiing. And hopefully, he’ll soon be gliding his way into the Guinness Book of World Records.

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

EnoughThan

P U blisher’s n ote

Utah 2021Winter 5

From my own experience, I know that practicing gratitude can dramatically shift your perspective, and suddenly the fear of never having enough time, money, or resources is replaced by the assurance that there is more than enough to go around. May we strive to share our abundance this holiday season and in the new year.

Kelly and Elaine Farmer founded the nonprofit Globus Relief when they realized that surplus medical supplies could be collected and distributed to help people throughout the United States and around the world (“Healing the World Through Healthcare,” p. 36). To date, the organization has worked with hundreds of charities in more than 140Wecountries.arehonored to feature the multi-talented David Osmond on our cover. He shares with us what it was like to grow up in show business and talks candidly about his ongoing battle with multiple sclerosis (“David Osmond: Looking at a Miracle,” p. 28). He is one of the most sincere and positive people you will ever meet, and as he wisely said, “No matter our circumstances, we can’t ask, ‘Why did this happen to me?’ unless we also ask the same question about every moment of happiness and joy that comes into our lives.”

Author and life coach Tony Robbins once said, “When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears.” This issue of Good News Utah is filled with people who recognize the abundance in their lives and are working hard to share it with others.

Take the example of young Timmy Hong. At 8 years old, he became distraught when he witnessed people begging on the streets during a family outing to Temple Square. With the help of his family, he created a hot chocolate stand to raise money for a local food pantry, and it has become a beloved six-year tradition for those in his community (“Warming Hearts and Feeding the Hungry,” p. 18).

All my best,

Jamie Armstrong

P U blisher & C eo Jamie Armstrong e ditors Jannalee MadelineSandauThatcher bU siness d evelo PM ent Val Butcher e ditorial i ntern Megan Pickett Contrib U ting aU thors Carolyn Campbell Dan TiffanyTeresaClarkCollinsMaryCraftsHalenHubbardKierstynnKingKarenPainterPetersonRobShallenbergerMadelineThatcher d esign and Prod UC tion Hales Creative Kelly Nield, Creative/Art Director 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

When we practice an abundance mindset and live in gratitude for all that we enjoy, we become inspired and empowered to lift others around us.

More

The Science of Gift Giving

2. Don’t forget about experiential gifts. Unique experiences such as a trip, a concert, or a cooking class are great choices. In fact, studies show that these types of gifts bring the giver and the receiver closer together, even if they don’t experience the gift together.

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”

The Utah Travel Council first began using the slogan “The Greatest Snow on Earth” to promote tourism in 1962, and 60 years later, the famous phrase is still alive and well. So, what’s so special about Utah snow?

PublishingIngrambylicensedPhotos

1. Ask for suggestions. If you think that you need to surprise the recipient, think again. Researchers agree that when someone receives a gift that they specifically requested, that person is more appreciative.

The Greatest Snow on Earth Fun Fa C t Thomas Jefferson loved hot chocolate. In fact, in a letter written to John Adams in 1785, he stated, “The superiority of chocolate, both for health and nourishment, will soon give it the preference over tea and coffee.” To read about how one Utah boy has raised more than $17,000 for charity with his annual hot chocolate stand, turn to p. 18.

hether for holidays, birthdays, or other occasions, gift giving can be stressful. Here are a few scientific tidbits to help you choose the perfect present.

Utah 2021Winter 6 Fun Fa C t S , in S pirational quote S , an D other intere S ting S tu FF The Bright Side

3. It’s the thought that counts—really! Research reveals that even if the gift isn’t exactly what someone had in mind, if they believe that you made a sincere effort, they will appreciate it.

“Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire. It is the time for home.”

—C.S. lEwiS

Fun Fa C t Utah Lake is a remnant of the enormous Lake Bonneville, which existed during the Ice Age from approximately 75,000 to 8,000 years ago.

The snow that falls over Utah is formed from storms coming from the Pacific Ocean. Snow from these storms typically contains 12 percent moisture density, but by the time these storms travel through the arid Great Basin, the snow’s moisture density has dropped to around 8.5 percent. Because these flakes con tain less moisture, they fall to earth at a slower rate, accumulating more surface area. The result is a less com pact, powdery snow perfect for gliding on top of or plowing straight through!

—Edith SitwEll

W

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Always looking on the bright side of life can eventually turn a person blind. It’s time we focus on facing true emotions head on rather than casting them aside.

• “You are a stronger person for going through it.”

When I finally told my mother, she chose not to believe me, which caused additional trauma.

Most of us have experienced real, traumatic hurt—myself included. As a young girl, I was sexually abused by my own father. My “dirty secret” destroyed my self-esteem as a child and caused me to feel like I was “less than.”

I tried to fight through the pain and the anger for so many years. Nothing good came from the abuse I endured. Yet, to this day I encounter toxic positivity remarks as a suggestion on how to deal with my abuse. Imagine being told the following:

+ page 8 Utah 2021Winter

• “You are not the only one in this world who has been abused. Just get over it.” This is toxic positivity. I am not stronger or better from being sexually abused. There is absolutely nothing positive from going through such trauma. We must be very careful and try not to make every experience in our life “positive.” Bad things happen, and it is vital that we allow Simply put, toxic positivity is the belief that no matter what the problem or how difficult a situation is, we should always maintain a positive mindset.

I am naturally drawn to positivity—sign me up for all the positive energy! I am the person who seeks to see the good in any situation, and I believe it makes my life more fulfilling. However, there are times in life that bring ourselves and those we love experiences that are in no way wanted or positive. This is exacerbated by social media, where the trend is to always be positive. “Here’s a beautiful photo of me and my perfect life!” We feel pressured to put a positive spin on everything. And when things go wrong, we should suck it up, deal with it, and be happy and grateful. I’m not talking about trying our best or being thankful for what we have. I’m talking about completely ignoring the bad stuff and pretending that everything is fine when everything is not fine. This way of living is not sustain able. This is not real living. Simply put, toxic positivity is the belief that no matter what the problem or how difficult a situation is, we should always maintain a positive mindset. Fa C ing a ll o ur t ruth

Toxic Positivity and How to Avoid It

BY TERESA COLLINS

• “You were strong enough to take the abuse.”

Column: Per P et U ally Positive

Utah 2021Winter 9 ourselves to grieve and process the hard and seek help when needed. Feeling i t a ll We do not always have to be strong. Mere words cannot take away the feelings we experience after going through something hard, and it’s vital to validate them. We cannot cover up, disallow, or deny the feelings of our human experience. When my husband died of cancer, I stayed in bed for almost two weeks, and I was constantly being told how I should do this and do that. I did not welcome nor want advice at this delicate time. I was told, “Don’t worry! You’re beautiful and will certainly remarry!” I was also told that my husband was in a “better place.” As a new widow, I assure you that this was not the best thing to say. I felt the “better place” was with me and our children. Dying from cancer and leaving this earth and our family was sad, and we were mourning his loss. I called a grief counselor soon after my husband passed away, realizing that I needed help. No amount of pep talks, friends vis iting, or condolence cards made me happy. I had to go through the hard times in my own way and really experience the pain. We must give ourselves the time, space, and grace to grieve and to work through our personal problems without feeling that we have to be happy. n o m ore p reten D ing It is more than okay to have a bad day, have negative thoughts, and to be angry. It is okay to give yourself time and space to pro cess how you feel. We don’t have to pretend that everything is okay when it isn’t. Now, I devote time to meditate and allow myself to process my thoughts and feelings. I have found that by doing so, I allow the feelings and disappointments of daily life to be addressed. I take social media “timeouts” as needed. These practices shift my perspective inward to help me face situations and transform my life. My experiences have taught me to accept whatever genuine feelings come up and to be mind ful of not ignoring or stuffing my emotions. Toxic positivity is an unrealistic expectation of not honoring our feelings. It’s time we acknowledge the good, the bad, and the ugly. For your daily dose of positivity, follow TeresaCollinsStudio. We don’t have to pretend that everything is okay when it isn’t. StockAdobe

G ary Atteberry is tired. The 77-year-old and his wife, Margaret, are the co-founders of a mutual aid group in Ogden called Do Good Today, and for the past several months, almost all of his free time—which he has a lot of since he’s retired—is spent gathering items and delivering goods to the unhoused and other people in need.

“Basically, we collect clothing, food, and hygiene items, and we take it to the poor,” Atteberry explains. “Originally, it was only for those who were homeless, but we’ve expanded.”

Utah 2021Winter page 11

BY MADELINE THATCHER

In an effort to do good in their community, one Ogden family gathers and distributes desper ately needed items to the homeless and to others who are struggling.

Do Good Today: One Family’s Mission to Help the Homeless

Utah 12 2021Winter

p artner S W ith p urpo S e Do Good Today began in July of 2021, and the name was a bit of a fluke—Atteberry’s daughter Joey came up with the name after creating a Venmo account for them. Another friend helped set up the Facebook page, and in the past several months, the page has garnered hundreds of Atteberry’sfollowers.outreach has grown past Venmo donations and cash slipped into his hand (although those kinds of donations are still very much appreciated). With a larger community aware of his objectives and the needs of their neighbors, Do Good Today has begun partnering with several other groups to take care of other vulnerable populations. This includes groups like Your Community Connection, which serves women and children escaping domestic violence; Youth’s Future, which takes care of teenagers and other young people who are part of the homeless community; Utah Harm Reduction Coalition that serves those strug gling and recovering from addiction; and Catholic Community Services, which has been a long-stand ing provider of community aid.

In addition to clothing and warming materials for the homeless, together with Do Good Today, these groups provide additional services such as sourcing furniture for those moving off the streets and into permanent housing, as well as high-pro tein, portable food options.

a p er S onal t ou C h

His expansion couldn’t come at a better time. Statistics from 2020 indicate that Utah has an average of more than 3,000 unhoused people on any given day, and the numbers for those expe riencing poverty are much higher. And with the COVID-19 pandemic causing additional concerns for those without food and shelter security, mutual aid has become an even more important element to caring for local community members.

While many people express a desire to help those they consider less fortunate, they usually don’t know where to start. But for Atteberry, that part was easy. “When we started working with the homeless, we asked them what they needed,” he says. “And that’s how we ended up here.” “Here” is at the municipal park in Ogden, where every Sunday Atteberry, Margaret, and his daughter Mindy, along with a host of volunteers, bring items the people they care for have said that they needed. In recent weeks, this has meant several truckloads along with SUVs packed to the brim with boots, coats, sleeping bags, and other cold weather items intended to help people survive the harsh Utah winter.“All of it is free,” Atteberry emphasizes. “And all of it is from donations or second-hand stores.”

For Atteberry and his family, this outreach is not an abstract concept just for strangers; his daughter Mindy is currently experiencing housing insecurity, and she knows first hand how hard living without a guaranteed place to sleep can be.

o utrea C h the r ight Way

“Right now, I’m living on couches,” Mindy says. “If I didn’t have my parents or other amenities from friends, I would be on the street. It’s why I’m so involved. If circumstances were different, that Statistics from 2020 indicate that Utah has an average of more than 3,000 unhoused people on any given day, and the numbers for those experiencing poverty are much higher.

“We’re all just trying to make a difference,” Atteberry says. “It’s quite a feeling to be able to literally help people live through this ordeal they’re experiencing.”

Caring for so many in need requires a lot of items, which means Atteberry is a regular at stores like Deseret Industries and Savers. Atteberry leverages his 30 percent discount on Tuesday at the latter, and all the purchases he makes comes directly from donations from volunteers, friends, and neighbors.

“It’s so important to bring people ‘into the fold,’ as I call it,” she says. “That way, they feel comfort able getting things from us.” a r elian C e on Community

“We’ll keep doing this until there’s no unsheltered people or I die,” he says. “And I think the second one will come first, but that’s alright.”

To support Do Good Today, donations can be made via Venmo to @Do-Good-Today.

“We’re all just trying to make a difference. It’s quite a feeling to be able to literally help people live through this ordeal

Attebery notes that self-re liance is a great principle, but there are more pressing matters to attend to first.

experiencing.”they’re—GaryAtteberry

There’s a common refrain from those who seek to eradicate poverty but worry about “handouts,” but when asked how he feels about the concept of “pulling yourself up by your bootstraps,” Atteberry had a swift answer: “That’d be great—if they just had some damn boots.”

Utah 13 2021Winter would be Becauseme.”Mindy knows what it’s like to be a person in need, she knows how to interact with the unhoused and vulnerable populations they serve in ways that are genuine and helpful. Her conviction is clear to people who meet her, even if they’re reluctant to engage at first, which is exactly what happened with Dean. Dean arrived at a supply drive, and Mindy saw that he was wearing only a light jacket and shoes with peeling soles just days before the first big snowstorm of the year covered northern Utah. Although he seemed distant, Mindy told him that someone cared.

A few weeks later, this interaction made Dean brave enough to confess that he’d almost frozen to death before the outreach, which made Mindy all the more convinced of the work she’s doing.

“I said, ‘I understand what it’s like to be in your shoes. Know that we’re not expecting anything back from you, but please come find a coat, some boots, and a sleeping bag,’” Mindy recalls. “By the end of the outreach, he was talking and helping us clean up.”

“These people are walking out of their shoes,” he says. “The least we can do is give them something so their feet don’t freeze.”When asked how long he thinks he’ll do this, Atteberry is both optimistic and resolved.

BY HALEN HUBBARD | SKI PHOTOS BY SAM WATSON J unior Bounous was born on August 24, 1925, in Provo, Utah. He was never given an official name—his birth certificate reads “Baby Bounous.” Unofficially, everyone calls him Junior, and there was never a reason to change it. But even though he came into this world without much fanfare, he’s definitely made a name for himself— particularly in the skiing world.

Fir S t t ra CKS

Throughout his life, 96-year-old Junior Bounous has been a pioneer in the sport of skiing. And hopefully, he’ll soon be gliding his way into the history books.

Utah 2021Winter page 14

Skiing into History

In skiing terms, “first tracks” is when a skier is the first to ski an area of fresh snow before anyone else. Bounous has not only had the opportunity to lay down the first tracks on many different slopes, but he has also carved some of the first tracks for the sportHisoverall.loveof skiing started at the young age of 7, when his father made him a pair of skis out of barrel staves for him to first learn on. Bounous took to skiing immediately. While all the other kids

“Powder skiing is floating. You’re not airborne, and you’re not on the ground. You are somewhere in between. There are just so few opportunities in life to enjoy and feel that sensation.”

Today, powder skiing is very popular as modern skis have made it easier to maneuver in that kind

Flying to Floating In 1948, at the age of 23, Bounous started his professional skiing career. And what a career it has been. He’s blazed trails and skied miles upon miles in the Wasatch Mountains and beyond. In 1961, Bounous worked with a very popular ski photographer, Fred Lindholm. It was also the year that the first helicopter came to Salt Lake City to be used commercially. Lindholm came up with the idea to use that helicopter to take Bounous, along with other skiers, up the mountain for them to ski down. After receiving financial support for the proj ect from Ski Magazine, then it was all a matter of finding a place that would work for one of the first heli-ski expeditions in the United States. Bounous was very familiar with Timpanogos and where there was grass, rocks, trees, and open areas that would be great for skiing. So he and Maxine, along with two other skiers, were all dropped off at the south face of the mountain by helicopter, which is now called the Provo Cirque. It was off to the races from there.

Utah 15 2021Winter were sledding on the hills in the neighborhood, he would ski right past them. Then when he turned 10, his mother bought him his first real set of skis. In his later teens, he helped the ski instructors at BYU. He would ski with the better students and demonstrate different techniques to them. During this time of his life, he met a young woman named Maxine. On their first date, he took her ice skating, and on the second date he took her skiing. They were married for 70 years, until she passed away in 2020 at the age of 94. “We survived all those years with an extremely enjoyable relationship and with successful careers. She became one of the top women skiers in the country,” says Bounous.

“The helicopter dropped us off and then just left us,” says Bounous. “We worked up there for several hours skiing and hiking in order to get good shots for finished, we skied part way down the mountain, but we then had to hike four or five miles in our ski boots to where the car was picking us up.” He chuckles, reminiscing about the struggle. When he got home that night, Lindholm called Bounous and said that they needed to do it again the next day because he needed to get more pho tographs. “I said, ‘Absolutely not!’ I would only do it if the helicopter stayed up there and waited for us to be done and then took us back down. I did not want to hike all those miles in my ski boots again,” says Bounous. The helicopter was willing to wait around for them to finish, so they did it a second time the next day. And the skiing firsts kept coming. It was around this time that Bounous was one of the first skiers ever to powder ski. Many of the shots from the first time he went heliskiing are him in the powder.

The record information has been submitted and is now under review for official certification by Guinness World Records. Not only was his attempted world record impressive but so was the fact that this was also his 60th day skiing during the season. His family continues to encourage him and hopes that one day he will ski a day for every year of his life during a season. “They want me to ski 96 days in the season. That’s impossible!” Bounous laughs. But to Junior Bounous, when it comes to skiing, nothing is impossible. “The thing about skiing is that there is no age limit and anyone can enjoy it at any ability,” he explains. When it comes to the sport, there are many challenges—different snow types, weather con ditions, hills, and much more. But unlike other sports, skiing is very broad. People who are at different experience levels can enjoy the thrill of playing with gravity and mother nature. Bounous has learned all this throughout his many years of teaching the sport along with being a director of skiing at Snowbird.

“Can you believe that I had so many years in my occupation with so much satisfaction?” he asks. Bounous worked at Snowbird until he was 89 years old, mainly because his occupation never really seemed like work to him. To this day, he continues to do what he did professionally all those years.

Even with all his success, Bounous remains humble and has become well known as a very com passionate and kind man. His son, Barry Bounous, says that even though at times it was hard to be related to a well-known skier, he is grateful at the end of the day to have a very generous and selfless person as his father. One of the many different life lessons he has learned from him is, “It never costs you anything to be nice. Compassion and a sense of humor will be remembered longer than anything else.”

Utah 16 2021Winter of snow. However, back then, powder skiing was very new with very little technique being taught. Bounous was one of the first ski instructors to teach powder skiing. “Powder skiing is floating. You’re not airborne, and you’re not on the ground. You are somewhere in between. There are just so few opportunities in life to enjoy and feel that sensa tion,” he explains. Still g oing Strong During the middle of the ski season last year, Bounous’s granddaughter, Ayja, saw in the Guinness Book of World Records that they had just recorded the oldest person to heli-ski. She realized that her grandpa was older than the person they recorded, so she asked him if he would want to heli-ski again to beat the record. Thrilled, Bounous agreed. However, because it was already the middle of the season, the helicopter at Snowbird was booked until April. “We were lucky to get a ride in the helicopter because the season usually ends around the 15th of April,” Bounous says. “But they took us to the top of Twin Peaks, and even though the snow was a little soft being that it was spring conditions, I still took my time skiing so that I could enjoy it.”

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Warming Hearts and Feeding the Hungry

BY HALEN HUBBARD

Six years ago, when a child from Pleasant Grove created an annual tradition to help the needy, his community followed his example and rallied around him. And thanks to his continual efforts, he has inspired neighbors and strangers alike while feeding hundreds of people in the process.

I n the Bible, there is a story about a woman named Tabitha who cared for the needy and sick within her community. When she passed away, people were deeply saddened because of the major impact she had made. A group of them found the apostle Peter in a neighboring town and asked him to come raise her from the dead. After she opened her eyes and stood up, the story of Tabitha was spread throughout the region. A lot of us can probably think of a person who, like Tabitha, has served many in their community. However, it is rare when a kid is one of these people. For the past six years, now-14-year-old

Utah 2021Winter page 18

After they have all packed up at the end of the day, Timmy keeps the fundraiser open for a couple more weeks for people who want to donate even if they weren’t able to visit the stand, and he now receives donations from all over the country. “We went up to Temple Square, and there were people asking for money on the street. He just looked at me with tears in his eyes because there were these topeople,unfortunateandhewantedhelp.”

It was a little rough to get the ball rolling on Tiny Tim’s Hot Chocolate Stand the that first year. After a big family project of making posters and putting together the stand, the family set up the stand on the corner of their property. It was freezing cold that winter, which made it difficult to make a lot of money when most people just wanted to stay home.However, the hard work of putting it together was not in vain. The Hongs’ neighbor’s son had passed away right before Christmas, and it was a tradition in their family to give $100 to each child to spend on someone else. So, the neighbor visited the stand and donated $100 in memory of his son to keep the tradition going even after his “Everypassing.year,it seems like we have a story like that where there’s somebody donating in honor of a passed loved one,” Debbie explains. “Another year, a family of 20 from a few towns away heard about the stand and wanted to come support it in memory of their brother.”

Timmy Hong has shown his community that he is truly a modern-day Tabitha. t he h eart o F a Chil D

Debbie has a homemade recipe for the hot chocolate. On the day the stand opens, she is the one responsible for heating it up and transporting it. “We have definitely spilled a lot in the car over the years,” she chuckles.

Heidi Eberly, an employee at Daylight Donuts, has seen the impact that this partner ship has made. “Zeke and Lorraine are staples in this community and are always so generous in helping and giving back where they can,” she says. “They are very fond of Timmy and his family and loved the idea of raising money for the food bank at a time of year when donations are needed the most. Timmy spearheads the annual event, and we just make sure to have enough donuts on hand. We are always happy to help Timmy in any way that we can. He and his family do a lot of good for their community.”

Utah 19 2021Winter

The stand requires a lot of preparation and help from Timmy and his family in order to make it work, especially as it has gotten more and more popular each year.

One day, when Timmy was 8 years old, he came home from school, and his mother, Debbie, could tell that something was troubling him. “They were doing a charity drive at school, and he was upset because there were kids that didn’t have any homes or any coats or socks,” she recalls. “He would just worry about that. Then, we went up to Temple Square, and there were people asking for money on the street. He just looked at me with tears in his eyes because there were these unfortu nate people, and he wanted to help. That’s when we came up with the idea of selling hot chocolate to raise money for Tabitha’s Way Local Food Pantry.”

a t eam eFF ort

Timmy and his father are the first ones to set up the stand and get it ready to start selling. They set up the table, condiments, and signs in the parking lot of Daylight Donuts in Pleasant Grove, owned by Zeke and Lorraine Perry, who are neighbors of the Hong family. Timmy wanted to set up his stand in the parking lot because it was a busy part of town where lots of people would pass by. When he asked them if this would be okay, not only were they happy to allow him to do so but they were also happy to supply one free donut to everyone who purchased a cup of hot chocolate.

“The Utah Food Bank said that their greatest need in Utah was in north Utah County,” Carter explains. “We were surprised by that because it’s a normal, middle-class area. The biggest reason for the need, however, was because there was no food bank in this area.”

t a B itha’ S Way

Utah 20 2021Winter

Because they’re open all the time, Tabitha’s Way also gets to know the people they are helping on a very personal level, and they try to help them in more ways than just providing food. Near the beginning of the school year, they provide back packs for kids, and at the beginning of this school year, they were able to provide 2,400 backpacks with school supplies they donated to the school districts. Not only does this help the children, but it also helps the teachers who would have to pay for these supplies out of their own pockets. They

Between both locations, they are helping between 7,500 and 8,000 people every month. Some of the biggest demographics of people they help are seniors and veterans.

In June of 2010, Wendy and Jody Osbourne founded Tabitha’s Way Local Food Bank in Spanish Fork after Wendy felt that she needed to make a difference in her southern Utah County community. Six years later, in July of 2016, Michael Carter and Al Switzer founded a second location in American Fork.

“It’s amazing how many people get a check for $800 a month from the government, and they have to live on that. Even without a house payment, that is hard to do, but many of them are making a choice between food and rent,” Carter says.

Tabitha’s Way is unique in many ways when it comes to food pantries. Despite being a full-time pantry, they rely solely on volunteers. In Utah, there are more than 150 food pantries, but there are only around 14 that operate full time.

“There was a year when Timmy had been saving up for a big purchase, and he had about $200. We were getting ready to deliver the donations when he brought out all his money and put it in the pile,” Debbie recalls. “We told him that he didn’t need to give all he had, but he said that he already had so much that it felt good giving it to someone who needed it.”

Debbie has created a Facebook page for the stand to help promote the project every year. And others post about the stand on social media, which makes for a widespread audience. Even though the first couple years were tough, there is now a line of cars in the parking lot filled with people eagerly waiting to donate and get their hot chocolate and donut.

Timmy also donates his own money to the cause.

also put

Timmy especially likes to help people load their groceries into their car.

“I think it’s a good lesson for people that this lit tle 8-year-old boy wanted to help, and it was really upsetting to him to see that people didn’t have the things that he had. Even an 8-year-old boy can make an impact on his community,” his mother, Debbie, says. Carter is very appreciative of Timmy, having personally seen the impact that his hot chocolate stand has made on the community. “He is such an amazing young man. He really is a modern-day Tabitha. In our vernacular, he’s doing exactly what she did. She dedicated her life to helping the community. He’s still going to school, and he’s dedicating himself as much as he can to helping his community.”

to say when it comes to explaining the importance of what he is doing.

“Even an 8-year-old boy can make an impact on his community.”

m o D ern-Day a B itha Even with all his hard work and big heart, Timmy contin ues to

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Timmy not only donates the money he makes from the stand but he also spends time in the food pantry volunteering with his family. He helps sort food and gets it ready for people to pick it up, and Timmy and his family are able to actually meet and talk with the people they are helping with their stand.

Tabitha’shelpingbagschildren’stogetherbirthdaythathavetoys,games,tablecloths,cups,andothersupplies.Whenitcomestoadults,Wayalsodoeswhattheycantomaketheirlivesalittleeasierandstress-free.Theywillreferpeopletootheragenciesforjobplacementorhomelessservices.Theywillalso

“It’s interesting because we have companies that come in and donate like Timmy would, but probably every year he’s been one of our top 10 contrib utors,” Carter shares. “It’s just inspiring to see somebody who cares that much at an early age and that really loves other people that much—loves them enough to stand in the cold, sell hot chocolate, and to go out and talk to people and get them involved.”

put together meals for families during Thanksgiving and Christmas so that they can have a nice, home-cooked meal with their families on those holidays. Last year, Timmy was able to raise $5,000, and he has raised about $17,000 to date.

aroundHowever,theandtohebunchstandknow“Ihumbleremainineverythingthathedoes.thinkitisjustgoodtothatthehelpsaofpeople,”says.“It’sfunmakethepostersspendtimewithfamily.”thepeopleTimmyhavealotmore

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SoaringTowa

Brolin Mawejje has his sights set on becoming the first African snowboarder and first Ugandan to compete at the Winter Olympics. But for this former refugee who now calls Utah home, snowboarding is much more than a sport.

By Jamie Armstrong

Photo by Keegan Rice

ward a D r eam

“She had a completely different life. The circum stances did not align, so that led me into the foster careAssystem.”Mawejje struggled to adjust to his new country and his new life, he found himself bounc ing from home to home once again. It was during this time, as an anxious and angry 14-year-old, that he began to find solace in the unlikeliest of places— the snow-covered mountains of Massachusetts.

It would be 10 years before Mawejje, one of seven children, would have the opportunity to leave the country’s violence and instability behind and reunite with his mother in Boston.

All we knew in Uganda was dry season and rainy season,” he says. “Snow and I were not the best of friends, but I really liked being outside, and I was curious about snowboarding. It became a kind of therapy. It allowed me to have confidence, commu nity, and friends.” Life was improving for Mawejje. “I had a great guardian named Susan. She took care of me and helped me to get into prep school. She was a calm, older lady,” he recalls. “But then her husband was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and I needed to find a new place to stay. I had friends who were willing to lend me a couch, but it was my best friend’s family who stepped up to the plate.”

“I’ve known since the eighth grade that I wanted to be a doctor,” he says. “At a young age, I under stood the power of medicine. I understood the power of disease and death and war. I’ve had a lot of family members die from the AIDS epidemic and other diseases that plague Africa.”

Brolin Mawejje is masterful on the slopes—carving through snow and soaring through air with complete grace. Unless you know his story, you would think he had been snow boarding his entire life. But he was 12 years old before he even saw his first snowflake.

A New Life

Mawejje enrolled in Burton’s Chill program—an after-school program that gives at-risk youth an opportunity to develop character and skills through boardsports. “Coming from a tropical country, snow wasn’t something that I’d ever experienced.

At age 16, Mawejje moved to Jackson Hole with his adoptive family and spent the next couple of years sharpening his snowboarding skills. “My compet itive edge came from wanting to fit into my new family,” he says. “To this day, they are some of my favorite snowboarders to ride with.” But becoming a professional snowboarder wasn’t the only thing on Mawejje’s mind. When he graduated from high school, he moved to Utah to pursue another dream—the dream of becoming a physician.

Mawejje won a merit scholarship to Westminster College in Salt Lake City, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and public health. Because he was so close to Park City, he was simultaneously able to further his snowboarding career. “I could be in the mountains in the morning and then come down for class,” he says. But snowboarding is far from cheap. To make ends meet, Mawejje worked three jobs and often slept in his car. He ws also able to pick up some sponsors to help pay for his training and equipment costs. Today, some of his sponsors include Jackson Hole Resort, Bombas Socks, and Burton—a sponsor he is especially proud of. “It’s a dream come true because Burton is like the Nike of snowboarding,” he says.

Born in Uganda in 1992, Mawejje grew up in the outskirts of Kampala. His mother fled to the United States to escape Uganda’s civil war when Mawejje was just 2 years old, leaving him to be raised by his father, siblings, and other relatives.

“In Uganda, there’s a village aspect of raising kids,” he explains. “I come from a big family, so between my father, the aunties, and the grandparents, I just kind of bounced around.”

The Hessler family happily took the teen in. The only problem was that they were soon moving to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. So, “they approached my mother and got permission to legally adopt me,” Mawejje explains.

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The reunion didn’t go as planned, however. “It was like moving in with a stranger,” Mawejje recalls.

From East to West

Representing Uganda Mawejje’s Olympic dreams are set firmly in reality.

“My path to snowboarding was a little bit late—I’m a whole decade behind other competitors. There was never a chance for me to represent the U.S. because I would be competing against 5,000 kids who have been snowboarding their entire lives,” he acknowl edges. “So, why not wear the name of my home country? I know where I come from and where I was born. I’m proud of it.” But, as Mawejje explains, “You can’t just show up in an Olympic year or within an Olympic qualification cycle and say, ‘Oh, by the way, my mother was born in this country.’ There’s so much that has to go into it.” Mawejje’s biggest hurdle was persuading the Ugandan government that they should allow him to create a Ugandan winter sports federation—an important step required by the International Olympic Committee. “I had to convince a whole tropical country that really puts all their dimes into two Olympic medals—which are [Summer Olympics] running medals—to open a whole division and believe in the idea of changing the image of a nation and of a people,” he says. Mawejje’s tenacity paid off. In 2017, with the support of the Ugandan government behind him, he was able to travel to Kazakhstan to compete in the 28th Winter University Games for a chance to represent Uganda in the 2018 Winter Olympics.

RiceKeeganbyPhoto

RiceKeeganbyPhoto

An Uncertain Future Devastated but not defeated, Mawejje jumped back into competitive snowboarding. “I had that hunger from missing an Olympics, so we just hit the ground running at the world championships,” he says. He also took the opportunity to continue his path toward medical school. “I went back and “Snow and I were not the best of friends, but I really liked being outside, and I was curious about snowboarding. It became a kind of therapy, and it allowed me to have confidence, community, and friends.”

In Kazakhstan, Mawejje had a remarkable perfor mance. “I broke so many barriers,” he recalls. “I proved a lot of things to myself, and I was moving up the ranks. I was in sixth place.”

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After conducting further tests at Massachusetts General Hospital, doctors gave Mawejje a clean bill of health. “What happened in Kazakhstan was a misunderstanding of African American anatomy and how my body works,” says Mawejje. But the damage was done—his shot at the 2018 Winter Olympics was gone.

“Throughout the competition, you have checkups. A lot of countries bring their own doctors, but I couldn’t bring my own, so I just ended up getting a general checkup,” he explains. “My heart was beating at such an abnormally slow pace that they thought I was dying. The doctors were telling me that I had a hole in my heart and that they needed me to sign away my organs.”

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He continues, “My whole life was breaking down in Kazakhstan. So, I called my mother. Doctors were shocked when a white lady showed up. That’s where it helped to have dual citizenship—to have a little bit of American power on my side. Long story short, it really put a pause on my life.”

During the last series of competitions, however, Mawejje’s Olympic dreams were suddenly derailed when he landed in the hospital with what doctors deemed to be a life-threatening heart arrhythmia.

More Than a Sport Mawejje won’t know if he qualifies for the 2022 Winter Olympics until mid-January. But whether he makes it or not, he intends to make an impact on the world. “I love snowboarding, but it’s not my only identity, and it’s not everything,” he says. “Snowboarding is more of a tool. It can be my platform for bigger and better things.” One of those “better things” is working with Joy for Children Uganda and Girls Not Brides—nonprof its that work to promote gender equality and end child marriage in Uganda. “I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve this journey I’m on, but I’m always looking for ways to give back and pay it forward,” Mawejje says. He also volunteers at Chill Salt Lake City, a branch of Burton’s nonprofit that helped to spark his own passion for snowboarding as a youth. He is also serving as an official Chill ambassador. “I want people to understand that I’m here to stay,” he says. “I want to be involved in Utah and see what more I can do for this community that has given me so much.”

“I want to show that you can do anything, regardless of where you come from or how far-fetched your dream may sound.”

As Mawejje continues to blaze his trail in competitive snowboarding, he aims to give hope to his fellow Ugandans and others around the world. “I want to show that you can do anything, regardless of where you come from or how far-fetched your dream may sound,” he says. “Maybe I make it to the Olympics. Maybe I’ve paved the way for someone else to pick up the torch. My motto is ‘Train strong, train well, give myself a chance.’ I’m just going to train and compete, and we’ll see where the cards lie. If I don’t make it to the Olympics, I’ll still be proud knowing how far I’ve come. For me, it’s the journey, not the destination.”

MawejjeBrolinofcourtesyphotobottomPandolfi;LaurabyphotoTop

Utah 2021Winter 27 earned my master’s degree in epidemiology. Here we are a couple of years later, and the world is dealing with a pandemic that requires epidemiolo gists. It’s kind of ironic.” COVID-19 has made Mawejje’s future at the 2022 Winter Olympics even more uncertain. “I have created a spot for Uganda, but I still have to go through the qualification—I now have to compete to put my name into that spot,” he says. “It’s hard. A lot of the competitions are getting backed up right before the Olympics, and that’s a huge challenge.”

DavidOsmondwasborntoperform.Butforyears,hehasbeenliving withmultiplesclerosisandthedebilitatingpainthatitbrings.Still, hehasbeenabletoovercomehisdarkestmomentstolivealifefilled withpositivityandgratitude—allwhilekeepinghisfanssmiling.

OSMONDDAVID LOOKING AT A MIRACLE

BY CAROLYN CAMPBELL

page 28 Utah 2021Winter

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ith his easy charm and upbeat spirit, David Osmond is a nat ural connector—through both his music and his innate talent for bringing people together. Take the way he met his wife.

“I was stuck on a couch. I hid out from people,” David recalls. He told himself he would be fine even as he dragged himself across the floor. “They carried me up and put me at the back of the stage. They gave me a guitar that I faked playing.”

A FAMILY AFFAIR

David immediately knew what that term meant. His dad, Alan Osmond—founder of the famous Osmond Brothers singing group—has had his own multidecade battle with multiple sclerosis, or MS.

While waiting for a flight on New Year’s Day, Osmond caught sight of beautiful, blond Valerie McClain on the dance floor at the Las Vegas Hard Rock Hotel. As the two made eye contact, she thought she recognized him. “Are you in my ward?” she asked. (A ward is a Latter-day Saint congrega tion similar in size to a Catholic parish.) “No, but I wish I were,” he replied. The two talked for a while, and afterward, David asked for her phone number. She said no. Later that night, she turned down his request a second time. With his trademark determination, he waited a bit and approached Valerie a third time. “Look, I don’t know if you’re with somebody, but I can’t leave here without your phone number,” David told her. “If you just say it, I’ll memorize it.” He still knows the number by heart. “It took us three months to connect, but as soon as we did, it was game over,” he recalls.

But the pain didn’t stop. Finally, a doctor told him, “This looks like multiple sclerosis.” Multiple sclerosis, meaning “many scars,” is a disease in which the immune system eats away at the protec tive covering of one’s nerves. The resulting nerve damage disrupts communication between the brain and the body. As a result, multiple sclerosis causes many different symptoms, including vision loss, pain, fatigue, and impaired coordination.

David and Valerie had been dating for about five months when he faced a health crisis that seemed to come out of nowhere. Singing in a 2005 Christmas Eve musical performance, David never imagined that he would experience a life-altering challenge later that night. After arriving home, he took off his shoes. “Something’s wrong here,” he told Valerie. He felt crushing pressure—as if a steamroller were running over his feet. Reasoning that he only slept two hours the night before, he hoped that the hurt would fade away. Yet as days—and then weeks— passed, the intense pain remained. First, the pain moved up to his knees. Then it reached his waist and then his chest. “From the chest down, that crushing sensation I felt was everywhere,” he recalls. “My vision was like TV static. I could hardly move my hands.” Despite his pain, it took a while for him to realize how serious his condition was. A doctor who x-rayed him diagnosed him with pinched nerves in his back. At first, David tried to remedy the condition with trips to the gym, but he kept tripping, and then falling. Then he used a cane. Within a matter of months, he was in a wheelchair. “I had paralysis to the point where I couldn’t even move my toes,” he says. Ultimately, his sunny spirit and dedication kept him pushing forward in hopes of proceeding with his incredibly busy life. Preparing for a show where he would be the lead singer with his brothers, he traveled to Las Vegas with Valerie as his caregiver.

Singing in a 2005 Christmas Eve musical performance, David never imagined that he would experience a life-altering challenge later that night.

“In the ’90s, he started tripping and falling. He couldn’t do the things he wanted to, and it became dangerous for him to be on stage,” David recalls. “As his body started to slow down, he struggled.”

At the same time, he canceled some events, thinking, “I’ll just work through this with exercise.”

A DEVASTATING DIAGNOSIS

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David remembers when his dad received a call from a “trash” magazine before he retired from the stage. “They said, ‘Alan, we know that you have MS. You are going to do a story with us.’ They held that over him,” David says. So, Alan called his good friend Annette Funicello, who also had MS. As a famous actress familiar with the tabloids, she suggested that he come out with his story himself because “it would be a strength to other people.” So, he called Entertainment Tonight, and they produced a segment about him and his condition. After his own diagnosis, David watched his brother and his brother’s kids playing together. Then he looked over at Valerie. By then, they wanted to marry and have a family. But could that still happen now?

A NEW GENERATION Thoughts of a family brought warm memories to David’s mind. When he was a little boy, his house was filled with fun things to do and play with, including set pieces from the Donny & Marie televi sion show. “At Christmas, we had all these awesome trees that we would decorate our house with. There was fun stuff in our basement—costumes and instruments,” he recalls. When David was 2 years old, the basement was also where his father constructed a rehearsal hall. “He built it after he saw four of us singing together. We started doing harmony—picking out parts on ourSeeingown.” his sons’ natural tendency for music, Alan taught them four-part barbershop harmony, along with the same routines that he and his brothers had performed on The Andy Williams Show decades before. In the early ’80s, David became the lead singer of their quartet, The Osmond Boys, singing with his three brothers, Michael, Nathan, and Douglas. He was just 4 years old when they began performing full time. “We did talent shows, church groups, and neighborhood things,” he remembers. Soon, Eugene Jelesnik invited the young quartet to perform on Talent Showcase, a TV show on the local television channel KSL. Word of their talent spread, and the boys caught the attention of one very prominent star: Bob Hope. After his own diagnosis, David watched his brother and his brother’s children together.playingThenhe looked over at Valerie. By then, they wanted to marry and have a family. But could that still happen now?

DAVID WITH IS FATHER, ALAN DAVID IN HIS WHEELCHAIR

But despite his struggles, Alan Osmond has taken to heart a phrase that David calls his dad’s “bumper sticker”: I may have MS, but MS does not have me. “He’s very positive and a total optimist,” David says. “He told me personally, ‘My body might have MS, but my spirit doesn’t, and it’s soaring.’”

The Osmond Boys later transformed into a boy band, The Osmonds 2nd Generation, and they toured with other bands like New Kids on the Block. David and his brothers signed with Epic, Sony, and Curb Records and began touring worldwide. “We sang in other languages. I don’t speak Japanese, but I sing it,” says David, breaking into a brief rendition of a commercial his family made for Japan’s Sumitomo Bank. “I don’t know what I’m singing, but it sounds great.”

GROWING UP OSMOND

THE OSMOND BOYS THE OSMOND BOYS PERFORMING WITH BOB HOPE1986

“There were opportunities that I didn’t realize were unusual back then,” he says. “For a while, I assumed that every dad did show business.”

Hope invited them to appear on his national Christmas special. After that, People, CBS This Morning, and Good Morning America all featured them, and their performance schedule was packed.

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Around age 12, David began to notice how different his upbringing was compared to his peers.

Growing up in a world of TV studios and tour buses, it became normal for the family to do two shows a day, six days a week. On breaks, they traveled internationally. And David attended a different high school every semester. Then, at age 18, David was hired to replace his uncle Donny Osmond in the lead role as Joseph in In the early ’80s, David became the lead singer of their quartet, the Osmond Boys, singing with his three brothers, Michael, Nathan, and Douglas. He was just 4 years old when they began performing full time.

In the 1990s, David’s uncle Jimmy Osmond opened the Osmond Family Theater in Branson, Missouri, and David’s family soon followed.

“It was quite a new experience going from living near the Wasatch mountains to moving near the Ozark mountains,” says David. “It was nice to be able to work together. We could do what we loved without having to travel as much.”

DAVID & VALERIE ON THEIR WEDDING DAY

But David is committed to not complaining because pain comes to everyone at different degrees and intensities. He’s grown to understand that while pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.

Utah 34 2021Winter Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat on the national Broadway tour. Playing Joseph in various companies for five years, he also began to receive solo opportunities. After his Broadway debut, David started writing and performing his own pop music. His career led him to the West Coast 16 years ago, where he settled in Los Angeles, and it was there that his MS diagnosis took away his music for a season.

SMILING THROUGH THE PAIN

“No matter our circumstances, we can’t ask, ‘Why did this happen to me?’ unless we also ask the same question about every moment of happiness and joy that comes into our lives,” he says.

Back on his feet—literally—David was grateful to be able to pick up his guitar, to have his voice back, and to stand on a stage and perform music. “I’m able to pursue my dream again with so much more conviction and passion,” he says. But the MS is still there.“Ifeel it every second of every day,” David says. “The pain all over me. The fact that I can ‘hide’ it as well as I can is miraculous though.”

While Alan Osmond’s MS is the primary progressive variety, David’s is what is called the relapsing and remitting type. “It attacks and then goes dormant,” he explains. “It’s like a roller coaster and very unpredictable.”Davidtraveled to a facility in Mexico for treatment. When the doctor there observed his MS antibodies after several MRIs and a brain scan, he said, “Son, you have been through the war. This disease is aggressive, and the damage is significant.”

As a temporary solution to treat the advanced symptoms, doctors administered a steroid drug that halted his overactive immune system, which prevented the MS from attacking David’s brain. Simultaneously, David made dietary changes that included eating a raw food diet and adding supple ments. After staying at the facility for a month, he lost 20 pounds. His toes started to move again, just a little bit. “I will never forget that moment when my toes finally moved again. It was amazing. I wish I could gift that experience to everyone,” he says. Before a month passed, David could get out of his wheelchair and shuffle around with a cane. After the initial steroid wore off, he returned to his wheelchair, and to his neurologist with a hopeful request: “I would like to walk on my wedding day. Is thatThepossible?”doctorprescribed therapy and warned that the medication would wear off again. But in 2007, David achieved a major victory. “I’ve been walking since our wedding day,” he says, smiling gratefully. “If you don’t believe in miracles, I hope you’ll believe in one today, because you are absolutely looking at one.”

A NEW TAKE ON LIFE

Each step that David takes is a constant reminder to enjoy every single moment. Today, he sees the MS as a gift, one of the greatest things that ever happened to him, because of the perspective on life that he has acquired. “If you don’t believe in miracles, I hope you’ll believe in one today, because you are absolutely looking at one.”

AUNTWITHPERFORMINGDAVIDHISMARIE

DAVID WITH CALEB CHAPMAN

“No matter our circumstances, we can’t ask, ‘Why did this happen to me?’ unless we also ask the same question about every moment of happiness and joy that comes into our lives.”

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David is blessed with a boatload of performance memories. He’s sung with incredible musicians such as Stevie Wonder, Steven Tyler, Chicago, and The Eagles. He’s also appeared in unique places, including singing in the Tokyo Dome with 70,000 screaming girls, being on stage at Wembley Stadium, singing for Oprah at Harpo Studios, and sharing a stage with Earth Wind and Fire at The Rose Bowl. He’s particularly fond of his time tour ing as Joseph and loves being the Emmy-nominated host of Wonderama, an interactive children’s variety TV show where kids have a chance to perform and show off their talents. He also hosts KUTV’s Fresh Living on CBS in Salt Lake City each week. In addition to his television appearances, David’s days are packed with a plethora of projects. He performs with his aunt, Marie Osmond. He is the chief relationship officer at Tribehouse, an exclu sive business program designed to build high-level relationships between Utah’s top business leaders. He also relishes his latest music project—an incred ible Big Band, The Osmond Chapman Orchestra, partnering with award-winning bandleader and sax player Caleb Chapman. They create a show filled with a blend of pop, swing, Broadway, blues, American Standards, and rockabilly. And David sup ports MS charities, such as his recent appearance at the 28th Annual Race to Erase MS event in Los Angeles. “MS is a terrible way to meet great people,” he says.David is also looking ahead to a bright future filled with opportunities to spend time with Valerie and their three kids: Saffron, age 12; Azalea, age 10; and Everest, age 6. “The days are fleeting, and I want to spend as much time with them as I can while they still think I’m kinda cool. Ha!” David laughs. “If I can be an example to them like my dad was for me, that is what I hope to do.”

Reflecting on his many roles, David says, “When you serve people and get outside yourself, the abun dance mentality is there.” His secret? “Find those who bring you joy and surround yourself there.”

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By Karen Painter

HealthcareHealingtheWorldThrough Globus Relief, a humanitarian organization located in Salt Lake City, is improving healthcare and preventing waste by gathering surplus medical supplies and distributing them to charities throughout the United States and across the world.

In 2010, Alwassiti and her family moved from Jordan to the U.S. “When I came here, I wanted a change, to live a simpler life,” she says.

Alwassiti was born in Iraq, but as the daughter of an Iraqi general who worked with the United States military, she left the war-torn country when it was believed unsafe for her to stay. She and her U.S. Army husband relocated to Jordan for a few years. She’d lived a luxurious life in the Middle East. She was well off and had an armed escort who went everywhere with her until she attended school in the United Kingdom. Although she lived a privileged life, her parents taught her to love and look after other people.

In 2012, she contacted an old friend who worked at Globus Relief. She volunteered, and after doing various things for them for a few weeks, they hired her. After eight years with Globus Relief, she was appointed as the president of the humanitarian division in September 2021.

As soon as she composed herself, Alwassiti returned to the hospital and threw the medical advisors’ caution aside. “I just started hugging everyone,” she says. When Alwassiti returned to the United States, each of her three daughters placed one of the tiny toys on their Christmas tree. Now, they look forward to placing these special toys on the tree each year. The little toys started another tradition. Every time Alwassiti visits a country for Globus Relief, she gets a small souvenir. Her office bookshelf is lined with these little mementos including a Russian nesting doll, a tiny wooden shoe from the Netherlands, and a small model of the Colosseum in Rome. “I love this work because of the passion and the change that we can bring to someone’s life.” “Don’t touch their hands,” the doctors and nurses warned. “You don’t want to get a disease.”

As the medical staff introduced her to the patients, Alwassiti noticed that many of them had skin diseases. Many were missing fingers. One of these patients presented her with some tiny toys. “For you and your hijos (children), gracias,” he said.

Global humanitarian Shaimaa Alwassiti squared her shoulders and smoothed her dark hair before the medical staff directed her down the small corridors of the elderly Ecuadorian hospital.

As she visited with each patient, her heart ached. She’d come to Ecuador to see for herself how the medical equipment and wound-care dressings donated by her nonprofit organization were helping the people.

Alwassiti’s eyes began to swell with tears. “I had to excuse myself and go and cry in the bus for like an hour,” she recalls. “I was very happy, but I also felt so small because before we’d gone to the hospital, I’d whined about being exhausted and that I’d had to take three flights. These men didn’t have all their fingers, and yet they had taken the time to make something so intricate for me and my daughters.”

“They remind me of the project and people that we have served. It is so rewarding,” she says.

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One of Alwassiti’s favorite memories of how Globus has helped children is of a 2-year-old Haitian girl. The girl had digestive and bacteria issues because of poverty. She went to doctor after doctor, but they could not help her with their limited resources. Globus had access to some protein shakes and sent them.

According to their website, Globus Relief is a medical resource humanitarian organization that partners with charities, corporations, and govern ments to improve healthcare across the world.

Sometimes I get emotional because it is hard to see the people and their heartbreaking circumstances, but then little children approach me and they say, ‘Thank you so much. I’m okay,’ and it is worth it.”

“Eighteen months later, [the doctor] sent me her pictures. She was walking and running,” Alwassiti recalls. “Then the girl’s mother sent me a voicemail, and someone translated it for me. It was hard to understand because the woman was so emotional. She said, ‘I don’t know what to say, but you saved myAlwassitigirl.’”

Over the years, Globus Relief has partnered with hundreds of different charities in more than 140 countries to help people get the healthcare they need.“We have stable donors who continually donate to us,” Henrie explains. “They like what we do and how we do it. We help donors see how their surplus and recyclable resources can help the world. Why would you throw away something you can use? Why send something to a landfill when it can help someone else?”

FAST FACT

Globus Relief has salvaged more than 1 billion dollars in resources.medical

“I love this work because of the passion and the change that we can bring to someone’s life,” Alwassiti says. “I whine sometimes because I have long hours. I travel a lot to meet with sponsors and to see the impact that we are having in the world.

Improving Healthcare Around the World

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Globus can help so much because they have collected surplus medical and pharmaceutical resources in addition to used and barely-damaged medical devices and equipment for many years, says CFO and board member Daniel Henrie, who has been with Globus Relief since 1997.

carried the girl’s picture with her for quite some time. “I loved her,” she says. “She was such an adorable child and such motivation to me. She was beautiful and healthy from something so small that we were able to provide.”

FAST FACT

With administrative and fundraising expenses below 1 percent, Globus Relief ensures that 99 percent of donations go directly to humanitarianprograms.

Globus can help so much because they have collected surplus medical and pharmaceutical resources in addition to used and barely-damaged medical devices and equipment.

“It is super important because if we send a box that says it is gloves and it is actually gowns, then many times countries will deny the shipment say ing that it doesn’t match the paperwork, and then those people are without those supplies,” Alwassiti explains.Afterthe donations are sorted, they go to the processing center to be entered into a special database. Once they are in the database, Alwassiti knows exactly what she has and can build shipping containers for each project, sending surgical, clin ical, emergency, IVs, ortho, airway, and personal protection products all over the world.

Henrie agrees. “Service is a symbiotic relation ship. When you help others, they usually help you more. We help them with healthcare, but they teach us and remind us of what really matters,” he says.Henrie has gone with Globus on missions to Romania and Mexico and has seen firsthand the impact on the people they serve. In Mexico, he recalls watching a kid with a stick rolling an old bicycle wheel while running down the road. He and his friends were laughing and having fun.

40 Serving Millions of People

Utah

2021Winter

“I learned so much from him that day. He reminded me of what really matters,” Henrie says.

A Charity for Charities

When the donations arrive at Globus’s warehouse in Salt Lake City, a team sorts through each box to verify what is inside.

“Everything that Globus Relief provides overseas or here in the States with our local partners touches thousands of lives a day and millions of people a year. The impact is amazing,” says Alwassiti. “We help people’s lives. We can help somebody from dying and prevent all these illnesses and suffering. This is what makes us so unique. It is the trigger for me to wake up in the morning and come to work.”

Helping people around the world has been the focus of Globus Relief, even in the beginning, says Kelly Lee Farmer, a former member of the board of directors.

Everyday Miracles Kelly Farmer passed away on February 12, 2021, at 88 years old. While Farmer misses his father, he says one thing his father always said that will stick with him is that “miracles happen every day.”

“I am a believer that the more you can bring to the table, the bigger the impact will be. The need is everywhere,” says Alwasitti. “We have a variety of partner groups in over 140 countries and add new ones every year. Some of the countries are just very hard to get into, so it can be challenging (especially with the shipping troubles due to COVID-19), but as we unite these partner groups, each one of them can supply us with a different type of service, and then we can supply a developed humanitarian program to respond to the health crisis of the world. I think it will be a great new way of doing things.”

ADRA is just one of the many charities that Globus Relief partners with. They also partner with charities such as Operation Smile, The Salvation Army, Christian Aid Ministries, International Rescue Committee, Free Wheelchair Mission, Mercy Foundation, Nepal Cleft and Burn Center, Baitulmaal, and Human Appeal.

At the end of October, Alwassiti flew to Jordan to meet with The Royal Palace and to see the impact of the shipment sent to serve millions of people in need. Inviting Others to Come to the Table

“I’ve seen so many miracles in my life,” Farmer says. Back in 2005, NPS had a surplus of food that needed to be thrown away, but they decided to hold on to it for just a few days longer. That same week, Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana. They donated nine truckloads of food right away to feed the people there, and they continued to have the resources to do so for two years.

Alwassiti is excited for the future of Globus Relief and has created a new strategic plan. She wants Globus to be able to see a health crisis in a country, fund the project, then gather and unite other charities to “come to the table and help.”

To learn more, donate, or volunteer, visit globusrelief.org.

Worldwide Partnerships

“It was so exciting! I was so happy,” she recalls. “It got cleared because The Royal Palace in Jordan got involved. It is so touching. It stays with me.”

Utah 2021Winter 41

Farmer also feels a miracle happened in the summer of 2020, just after COVID-19 hit.

Farmer says his father was a “detail man,” and he felt that Globus was his greatest mission (besides being a husband and father). Even though he ran a million-dollar company, he was the type of man who would be out there doing the work with his “Ifemployees.therewere people coming through the ware house and it wasn’t clean, my father would sweep it. He wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. He wore worn-out jeans and a dirty t-shirt, and he drove a beat-up old truck. He wanted to be known for serving others, not for his business,” says Farmer.

“There was a real need for PPE (personal protection equipment), and Globus had a lot of it,” Farmer recalls. “We partnered with ADRA, the Seventh Day Adventist group, and we were able to provide this gear to heavily hit areas in the U.S. and the Dominican Republic.”

In October 2021, Alwassiti worked with many charity partners in the Middle East to send 22 con tainers with 440 pallets of items to Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine. The supplies serviced 5 cities with 20 hospitals and dozens more free clinics to help serve the poor people and refugees from Syria, Iraq, Libya, and Somalia.

“My parents, Kelly and Elaine Farmer, started a business that handled recovery supply chain issues (National Product Sales or NPS),” says Farmer. “Part of those issues was market failure. We were getting medical supplies and pharmaceuticals that got lost in the system. At the beginning, we were giving it all to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and doing well. Then we realized that there was a greater need, and we could have a broader reach if we used more charities. We started Globus Relief in an effort to be a charity for charities. That’s what we do.”

• “I was just promoted to a new position at work, but I feel like I can’t keep up with all the demands on my time. I’m trying to be a great mom, wife, and manager, but it’s hard to juggle all my responsibilities and feel like I’m doing well, let alone great. Sometimes, it feels like I’m barely staying above water.”

For powerful and lasting change, try these three habits instead and make next year your best year ever.

Another year is coming to an end. Remember your New Year’s resolutions? How did you do?

Habits to Make 2022 Your Best Year Ever

C an you relate to any of these people and how they feel?

• “I just turned 45, and while I used to love what I was doing, that’s not the case anymore. I feel this dread inside each Sunday night because I know I’m going back to work in the morning,

StockAdobe

BY ROB SHALLENBERGER, BECOMING YOUR BEST GLOBAL LEADERSHIP

Utah 2021Winter page 42 3

•

• Habit #1: Develop a Written Personal Vision

Utah 43 2021Winter and I’ve lost my passion. I’m not going to go through life like this for the next 15 years; something needs to change.”

The three Do What Matters Most habits are:

If you have felt like the people in these examples, you’re not alone!Inour research of 1,260 people from more than 108 different global organizations, 68 percent of them felt like their number one challenge was how to prioritize their time. Yet, at the same time, 80 percent did not have a time-management process more sophisticated than sticky notes or to-do lists to schedule their priorities and do what matters most. So, what is the solution? Do What m atter S m o S t Our new book, Do What Matters Most, brings together three simple yet powerful habits in a way that hasn’t been done before. These three habits will help people to take control of their schedule, prioritize their time, and increase productivity by at least 30 Implementingpercent. these habits translates into increased life balance, improved mental and physical health, less stress, better relationships, and a laser-like focus on your priorities. Isn’t this what we all want?

• Habit #2: Roles and Goals®

Going into the New Year is when people naturally gravitate toward thinking about their priorities and what matters most. Yet, 85 percent of New Year’s resolutions are broken within the first two weeks of the year. So, we invite you to toss out the traditional New Year’s resolutions and apply three habits that will keep you focused on what matters most the entire year (and for the rest of your life)

“I know there are things that will help my physical and mental health, but it’s so hard to make the time to do them. Even though I know many of the things that need to be done, I just haven’t done them. I want to, but I need something to help me take my good intentions and turn them into action.”

• Habit #3: Pre-Week Planning® How many times have you heard people talk about terms such as vision, goals, or weekly planning? Yet, as much as they are talked about, they are rarely being done—especially in a way that sets people up for success. In fact, only 1 percent of people have a written personal vision, written personal and professional goals, and do some form of pre-week planning. These three habits create a chemistry of

In our research of 1,260 people from more than 108 different global organizations, 68 percent of them felt like their number one challenge was how to prioritize their time. Yet, at the same time, 80 percent did not have a timemanagement process more sophisticated than sticky notes or to-do lists to schedule their priorities and do what matters most.

It’s amazing what happens when someone applies these habits, regardless of their starting point. For example, someone who recently read the book and tried applying the prin ciples shared, “After applying the habits for 6 weeks, I lost more than 20 pounds, came off 3 medications, started doing things with my kids I rarely did before, and got to know my employees in a way I never had.”There are few things in the world that you can guarantee will make a difference. But in this case, we can guarantee that nearly every area of your life will improve when you apply the Do What Matters Most habits.

m ore p o W er F ul t han n e W y ear’ S r e S olution S

Our research has revealed that only 10 percent of people have written personal and professional goals. Goals are one of those things that are talked about often but rarely accomplished.

Utah 44 2021Winter excellence and empower someone to lead a life by design rather than live a life by default. What’s exciting about these habits is that anyone can start doing them regardless of age, gender, or background. Most people have thought about what matters most and have the ideas. Now it’s about taking those ideas, writing them down, and making them a reality! Here is an overview of each habit covered in greater depth within the book.

Just like your vision, we invite you to consider your different roles and identify 1 to 4 goals that matter most to you in each role. Think of it this way: how would you measure success in the coming year in each of your roles? Your answer to that question becomes the foundation for your ambitions. Like anything else, this is a skill set, and people need to learn how to word their goals in a way that sets them up for success. For example, never use the words more or better, and avoid using daily goals (pre-week planning takes care of that). Instead, your goals should be the specific milestones toward making your vision a reality. For example, I previously shared my vision in the role of father. A couple of goals for 2022 that would support that vision would be: Finish each kid’s vision board by February 20. Average at least two daddy-daughter dates per month. These are the specific goals or milestones toward doing what matters most and making the vision a reality.

h a B it #2: Set r ole S an D g oal S ® F or the y ear

h a B it #1: Develop a Written p er S onal v i S ion ( B y role) Your personal vision becomes your internal compass. It’s what drives your goals and pre-week planning toward what matters most. Consider the 5 to 7 roles in your life that matter most to you and then develop a vision for each one (e.g., parent, spouse, manager, friend, etc.). Ask yourself what the very best version of you in that role looks like and then use words such as “I am” to describe it. Your personal vision doesn’t have to change the world—it just has to change your world. Once finished, your written personal vision will become the seed of your legacy. If you’re like me, then you like to see examples. My vision in the role of father is: I am an example in thought and deed of what a true gentleman looks like. I am the type of person I want my daughters to marry. I am present with my children, and we constantly develop great memories together. I help them see their potential and how they can make a difference in the world. I am vulnera ble, and I empathize with them.

h a B it #3: Do p re-Wee K p lanning ® Time is our most precious resource, and we at Becoming Your Best Global Leadership consider pre-week planning the most important habit a person can develop! Pre-week planning is the process that will empower people to schedule their priorities rather than prioritize their schedule. It’s where the rubber meets the road at the weekly and daily level. Pre-week planning will make your vision and goals a reality because it’s ultimately what you do that matters.

Imagine how powerful it would be to have a vision for each of your roles! So, what is your vision as a parent, spouse or partner, and friend (to name a few of your potential roles)?

Pre-week planning takes between 20 and 40 min utes during the weekend to schedule your priorities. Your personal vision becomes your internal compass. It’s what drives your goals and preweek planning toward what matters most.

You can review your vision and goals, list your roles, set action items for each role, and schedule a time for each action item. It seems so simple, yet it is one of the most life-changing habits a person can develop. You make time to lead a life by design.

•

In the beginning, we shared some comments from people going through various challenges. Now, read some of the comments from people who made the time to develop their vision, set their roles and goals, and have been consistent with pre-week planning:

Utah 45 2021Winter

A person who does pre-week planning accom plishes an average of 20 to 30 more important items during the week (with less stress) than someone who doesn’t. Over a month, that equates to an addi tional 80 to 120 activities. In a year, that equates to an additional 900 to 1,200 items that are important to you!Onpaper, those are numbers. Yet, every one of those numbers represents a meaningful activity you’ve accomplished in your life. It could represent exercise, a gesture of kindness to your spouse or friends, an import ant activity related to your job, reading, meditation, or invest ing quality time with a child. When people do pre-week planning, they will start doing things that previously slipped through the cracks or just didn’t ever happen. This habit becomes exponentially more powerful when combined with your personal vision and goals. What Can y ou Do t o D ay? It feels incredible to have a vision for each of your roles, to have specific goals and mile stones for the coming year in each role that are aligned with your vision, and to maintain the habit of pre-week planning every week (asking yourself what you can do in each role this week).

• “Our marriage was hanging by a thread. We followed the Do What Matters Most instructions, we each finished our vision/goals, and we’ve been diligent with pre-week planning. The fire in our marriage is back, and we’re making time to do the things that we always knew we should be doing. This process was truly life-changing!”

Do What Matters Most is available on amazon.com or becomingyourbest.com. You can take a free assessment at BYBassessment.com to identify specific areas in your life that you can focus on.

•

A person who does pre-week 1,200(withmoreaverageaccomplishesplanninganof20to30importantitemsduringtheweeklessstress)thansomeonewhodoesn’t.Overamonth,thatequatestoanadditional80to120activities.Inayear,thatequatestoanadditional900toitemsthatareimportanttoyou!

“Pre-week planning provides a great start to a great week. My mind doesn’t feel overwhelmed because I’ve already thought through these items and know there is a time for each one.”

“I’m now making time for my special needs daughter, I’m taking care of my own mental and physical health, and I’m showing up as a leader in my company like I never did before. I knew I could improve in all of these areas—I just didn’t have a process. Now I do, and it’s changed everything!”

The art is in the start, and now is the time to start. The devel opment of these habits will be a journey that transforms every area of a person’s per sonal and professional life. For a more in-depth discussion of the principles we have shared here, we invite you to read Do What Matters Most, follow the steps to develop your personal vision, set your roles and goals, and be consistent each week with pre-week planning. When you do, regardless of what may come up, you will lead a life by design and have one of your best years ever!

BY HALEN HUBBARD

Caring for Traditional Native Elders

Utah 2021Winter page 46

What started out as an inspiration from the award-winning documentary Broken Rainbow has now turned into a bridge of hope between the Navajo people and other cultures around the world. The documentary examines many injustices that the government was forcing upon the Navajo nation during the 1980s, and Linda Myers just couldn’t stand idly by and do nothing about it. Myers decided to create an art piece to sell during the Park City Arts Festival, and the money from the piece went toward sending food to native elders living on the Navajo reservation.

One woman’s 30-year quest to reduce extreme poverty and hardship among traditional native elders of the Navajo Nation has grown into more than she could have imagined.

Utah 47 2021Winter l e SS on S in g iving After selling the piece, she contacted a Navajo woman and asked if she could take her to the grocery store personally and load her car with food to take to the reservation. “So, I picked her up and we went, and at the end she asked, ‘Why are you doing this?’ and I said, ‘I don’t know.’ I just couldn’t let it go,” Myers recalls.

Seven or eight elders came out of the hogan, and the woman told Myers to put the food by their feet. Being very nervous, Myers gingerly put the food by their feet, hardly looking at them. “For the first time in my life, I realized that these people had no reason in the world to appreciate it from me. It wasn’t necessarily rewarding, but the next lesson about giving is that it doesn’t have to be rewarding. It just has to be needed,” she says. After that, Myers mailed a sheet to the elders to mark what their different needs were and what foods they would like. At first, she didn’t get any answers. Many of the native elders didn’t speak English. However, when she got her first letter back, she was thrilled. So, she based her next trip just She contacted a Navajo woman and asked if she could take her to the grocery store personally and load her car with food to take to the reservation.

“So, I picked her up and we went, and at the end she asked, ‘Why are you doing this?’ and I said, ‘I don’t know.’ I just couldn’t let it go.”

Three weeks later, the woman called Myers on the phone and asked if she could meet with her. Myers was at first confused because the woman had seemed very standoffish, and Meyers hadn’t expected to hear from her again. When they met up, the Navajo woman put a turquoise ring on a table and said, “I went to this house, and it was dark. I was lost on the dirt roads. When I got there, the grandma at the house said it was a miracle. She housed three really old elders, and their car had broken down. They were unable to get water or go cook food. I gave them some of the food that you bought, and the grandma gave me this turquoise ring. I’ve looked at the ring for a couple of weeks, and I just don’t feel good about keeping it. It really belongs to you because I wouldn’t have gone to the reservation if it hadn’t been for your donation of food.”After that, Myers put up a sign about donating food for the native elders at her store on Main Street in Park City. People started giving her money just for a few pictures that she had taken. However, she decided that if she was going to take money that she better go down to the reservation and see the impact of what her donations would be. She went and visited the homes of the Navajo people, who live very remotely to this day. Unfortunately, what she saw was broken windows, walls, fences, and more. “I was going to make sure they had their basic needs,” Myers recalls.Through her store donations, she started taking care of 15 native elders. Many of these elders were very traditional and had never traveled more than 30 miles away from their homes. “They know it’s white people who are removing them from their land,” she says. When she first took a truckload of food down to the reservation, one of the ladies asked Myers to step outside while she went inside a large hogan to talk with the elders. Myers stood outside for a while until the woman came back out and said that it was okay for her to give them food. “That had never crossed my mind that it wouldn’t be okay. I mean, it was the first lesson of thinking you’re doing a good thing. In reality, who said it was good? You did. They had the right to accept it or not,” she says. “With me being a white person and with their relationship with the government, they had to think about it. What would it mean if I gave them food? What would it be all about?”

Utah 48 2021Winter on what the one elder marked as needed. The next time she went down, instead of 15 elders, there were a few more.

t he p rogram t o D ay Adopt-a-Native-Elder now visits 13 different areas on the reservation. On a daily basis, volunteers get things ready for their giveaways. They come in and get different boxes together and put them on shelves that are designated by locations. Not only do they put together boxes of food but they also put together boxes with med ical supplies, a “grandma” and “grandpa” box, household boxes, and more. Jeff Dillon, the warehouse manager explains, “Out there, it’s a different way of life. A lot of these folks literally have to plan a day around going to the nearest place to get a

do is donate money for firewood vouchers. It takes about 10 loads of wood to get an elder through the winter since they can only heat their homes with fireplaces or fire pits. New blankets are also in high demand because most of the blankets the elders use get worn and tattered in a year’s time. The program is 100 percent volunteer-based, with all donations and grants going only toward providing the food and supplies for the native elders. “There’s a lot you can get from volunteering at the warehouse, but there’s nothing like being out there on the reservation,” Dillon says. “Being able to interact with these people and see the actual difference that you make in these people’s lives is a really special thing.”

“It was the first lesson of thinking you’re doing a good thing. In reality, who said it was good? You did. They had the right to accept it or not.”

“aD opt m e” Myers started setting up booths at parks with a lady she met at a weaving class. They put together a book to explain what could be done to help the native elders.

During the process of making the book, one of the elders she was working with came to her and said, “Find somebody to adopt me.” So, the book ended up having pictures of each elder and their needs so that people could “adopt” them and provide money and

DillonforadoptedSponsorstoothbrush.”whohavenativeeldersprovidethemthroughorderingthedifferenttypesofboxes.furtherexplains,“Amedicineboxhasstuffinitthatyouwouldusuallyfindinyourbathroommirror.Agrandmaboxhassewingstuffandclothforthemtomakeclothes.Agrandpaboxhasacoupleflannelshirts,ahat,beefjerky—stuffthatgrandpaneeds.”Rightnow,oneofthegreatestthingsthatpeoplecan

supplies.Adopt-a-Native-Elder’s logo was created by the husband of the first woman who Myers had help to load her car with groceries. It has two hands that look like two people sitting together with a feather above them to represent the prayers about bringing the two cultures together. All of this is below a rainbow, which represents the hogans that the elders live in. The next time Myers went down to the reserva tion, one of the ladies took her to a medicine man. He performed a ceremony with the book she had created. He rubbed his hand over each page and said that it would help many people, and it would bring them together. “Well, 37 years later with 850 elders in the program and people supporting it all over the world, he had a bigger vision than I did,” she chuckles.

“You’re just interacting with people and then you begin to realize they’re kind of nice people, and it went from there with her,” he recalls. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the program is not currently assigning new adoptions. However, there are many more ways to help. Visit anelder.org to donate or to shop handmade rugs, jewelry, contemporary art, and other crafts. You can also volunteer your time by visiting their warehouse at 328 W. Gregson Ave, Salt Lake City.

m ore t han v olunteering

Sometimes, volunteer work can seem just like that: work. However, Dillon knows that with Adopt-a-Native-Elder, it’s different. “I’ve been with the program for just over two years now. Even on my worst days when I’m tired or I’m not feeling good, I’ve never had that feeling of not wanting to be here. I’ve never had that ‘go to work’ feeling,” he says. “It’s because no matter what we’re doing in here on a day-to-day basis, you are literally making a difference in thousands of people’s lives.”

It’s kind of fun when you go out to someone’s house, and they are peeking out through their windows when you come up to the door.”

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Ed Keane has been with the program since 1998. He first got into the program because he was an anthropology student with an interest in Native Americans. “I enjoy interacting with the elders, and there are some great people that come down and volunteer their time. They are fun, enthusiastic people to be around. You’re not trying to save the world—you’re trying to save around 850 elders you’re working with,” he says. “I think one of the things that’s important to me is that you can actually interact with the elders on their homeland.

Keane is 89 years old and still makes an effort to volunteer his time and resources to the program. In fact, he met his wife, Gene, while volunteering.

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Utah 2021Winter page 51

I f you find yourself walking around Pioneer Park in Salt Lake City on a Sunday afternoon, you may come across a group of people handing out free supplies for pets and their owners. A nonprofit called Street Dawg Crew of Utah serves pets and pet owners in the homeless community as well as other vulnerable populations, such as low-income veterans, domestic violence survivors, and seniors. Founded in 2017 by Margie Varela, Street Dawg Crew operates solely on donations and volunteer time.

Helping the Homeless to Care for Their Pets

People in vulnerable populations love their pets just as much as the rest of us. That’s why one Utah nonprofit is dedicated to helping them to give their pets the proper care that they deserve.

BY KIERSTYNN KING

Since starting four years ago, Street Dawg Crew has grown exponentially, forming partnerships with Mark Miller Subaru, Walmart, Cargill, Schmidt, and Bjorn’s Brew. In that short amount of time, the nonprofit has been able to accomplish a lot. In 2020 alone, the group recorded record donations,

After a while, Varela switched to doing pop-ups with some friends. It was at the pop-up that she met a man who would come out to the Prospect Park area once a month and deliver burritos. That’s when inspiration hit.

“

• $6,000 in emergency vet services provided • 320 free vaccinations and spays/neuters

Varela also tries to go out and drop off donations to extended hotels whenever possible.

Seeing a n ee D

“People also come to my house. I have bags of food ready to go, and I send off a screenshot and they’ll come and pick it up.” She says. “Or they’ll stop by my work and grab what they need.”

“I noticed that so many people had dogs, and that’s where I got the idea of starting a pet outreach. So, we started hustling on Facebook asking for donations, and that’s how Street Dawg Crew started,” she explains.

ForprovidedVarela,it seemed a natural way to spend her time.“Animals are my passion. They don’t have a voice, and they don’t choose their circumstances, but some of these people don’t choose to be home less either,” says Varela. “For some of these people, their pets are their family, and that’s all they have. People get rid of their pets because they can’t take care of them, and they can’t afford the food or the litter. Our goal is to teach people about being a good animal owner.”

• 3,600 pets received food and medical treatment

r ea C hing o ut Every other Sunday, Street Dawg Crew meets up at Freedom Landing, a low-income housing

p et S a re t heir Family”

“Where I work, we have glass doors, and I would see people on the street corners with their pets,” Varela says. “I would watch people give their last bite of whatever they had to eat to their pets. I started buying dog food, and I would put it in little baggies and start handing them out on my lunch break or when I got off work. When people would walk past my work, I would hand them bottles of water.”

•including:42,000pounds of pet food distributed

Utah 52 2021Winter

Perkins and the rest of the Street Dawg Crew volunteers also go out to Magna and Tooele once a month to do outreach. “We help low-income people out there. They are all housed, so we’re able to deliver and hand out bigger bags of pet food and litter,” she says. “Here at the park, we give people smaller amounts so they’re able to carry it with them.”

“I would watch people give their last bite of whatever they had to eat to their pets. I started buying dog food, and I would put it in little baggies and start handing them out on my lunch break or when I got off work.”

people have begun stopping at one of the group’s other drop-off locations. The team has two in Tooele, two in Salt Lake City, and one in Syracuse.Vicepresident Secret Perkins has been with Street Dawg Crew since the beginning. “There are a lot of people who aren’t as fortunate as I have been, so I’m glad I can get out and help,” she says. “A lot of these people take better care of their animals than they do themselves, and I love being able to help and support their animals.”

Utah 53 2021Winter community for veterans. After visiting Freedom Landing, Street Dawg Crew heads to Pioneer Park in downtown Salt Lake City. At both locations, the crew hands out bags of pet food, toys, treats, leashes, collars, harnesses, pet coats, collapsible bowls, and litter. They also offer what they call “human outreach.”

Hilton-King notes that before COVID-19, they used to do pet outreach every Sunday, but they switched to every other Sunday to try and limit exposure.“COVID-19 has been a real doozy because we’re trying to keep all of our volunteers safe, along with the people we serve,” she says. “A lot of them don’t have access to protective equipment, so that’s been a realAccordingchallenge.”to board mem ber James Hunter, since the pandemic started, the clients Street Dawg Crew serves have gone down by about 50 percent.

“With the Road Home shelter closing and people spread ing to other shelters around the city, people are a lot more scattered than they used to be,” he explains. “We’re still helping as many pets, but not as many come to the outreach to get theirInstead,food.”

“When we first started showing up, people were coming over asking if there was something to eat, and all we had was pet food. So, we started offering bottled water and a few things to eat that people were able to carry,” board member Trachelle Hilton-King explains. “During the winter, we also try to bring socks, hats, coats, and gloves.”

“We have a saying: ‘Together, we can feed them all,’” says Varela. “We just want people to know that we are here to help no matter what and that there’s no judgment. We’re here for them, and they don’t need to go without.”Todonate or volunteer with Street Dawg Crew of Utah, visit streetdawgcrew.org.

n o Ju D gment

Street Dawg Crew holds a yearly free vaccination event at Freedom Landing and Pioneer Park. This year, their free vaccination event took place on August 29. They also offer spay and neuter vouchers whenever possible.

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+ page 54 Utah 2021Winter Column: Motivation

“Abundancevibrancyyou’releast,amazingchallenginghuman—whileattimes—issucharich,beautiful,experienceindiscoveringandlivingthislifejourney.Atitcanbe.Ifyou’relikeme,drawntolivingafullerlifeexperience—tohavingmoreinliving.Thriving,growing,awakening,beingpresent,savoring,loving,living,trulygraspinganabundantlife—howdowemakethathappen?Ourfirstinstinctmaybetolookoutsideofourselvesortoacquiresomethingwedon’tyethave.Buttrueabundancedoesn’tworkthatway.Dr.WayneDyer,internationalacclaimedspeakerandself-helpauthor,offeredthisinsight:isnotsomethingweacquire.Itissomethingwetuneinto.”Justlikethebeautifulnaturethatsurroundsus,abundanceisalreadythere.Itsimplyexists,waitingforustoenjoyit.Yousimplymustpracticetuning

1. g et into the g ratitu D e. Practicing a gratitude mindset is a powerful way to tune into the vibration of abundance. It is the practice of seeing, speaking, writing, singing, praying, and meditating upon the good in your life. What are you grateful for? Do you have a gratitude practice already in your life? Whether it’s part of your daily prayer or perhaps captured in a journal, practicing gratitude in your life aligns you to the abundance that is already there. It can shift your mood and your mindset into the positive space you desire to experience more of in this life. Gratitude is a great magnifier and a potent influence for living more abundantly. One of my favorite resources for practicing gratitude is found at gratitudeseries.com 2. a lign the v i B ration. What does abundance feel like to you? When you’re feeling the love, the gratitude, the sexiness of life and living, tune in and ask yourself what it feels like for you. And then practice feeling this feeling on a regular basis. This might sound strange to some of you, yet we live in a vibrational universe where everything and everyone is energy. When you align with and practice the abundance vibration, you are practicing matching up Ways to Life

BY TIFFANY PETERSON

3

“Abundance is not something we acquire. It is something we tune into.”

into it. Here are three keys to activate and tune into experienc ing more abundance in your life.

What is true abundace, and how can we tap into it? Here are three tips for creating a fuller, richer life.

AbundanceActivateinYour

Abundance”ancreation.intentionalCreate“Activatelistforyourownlifeandidentifytheitemsandactionsthatbringyoujoyandthefeelingofabundance.Somethingswillcostmoneyandsomethingswon’t.Mixitup.It’syourlist,anditcanentailwhateverspeaksmosttoyou.Beginandcontinuecreatingthislisttocultivateandinvitemoreabundanceintoyourlife.Ibelieveinthepowerofintentionandthatwearethecreatorsofthequalityofourownlives.Fromourthoughtsandourwordstoouractionsorinactions,wearecreatingandinfluencingthelifejourneyweareexperiencing.Youindeedareapowerfulcreator.Andwhatyoufocusonexpands.Ialsobelievethatyouareworthyanddeservingofmorelifeinyourliving.Youcanstartexperiencingmorevibrancyandvitalityandbegincreatingmoreabundanceinyourlifejourneyifyouchoosetodoso.

Once you know what abundance feels like for you, go one step further and proactively take actions today that tune into and express abundance in your life.

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If I can help support you further, feel free to reach out to me at tiffanyspeaks.com. I’m cheering you on in your abundant living! with the feeling you desire to experience more of. This practice is sometimes referred to as “acting as if”—you practice your way into the vibra tion feeling of what you desire. You are proactively training your thoughts and feelings to focus on who you want to be and what you’re choosing to attract. It begins in your thoughts, which you can choose anytime, by intentionally thinking and planting the seeds of powerful, positive thoughts of what you choose to believe and focus on. Thoughts activate your feelings. As it’s been said, “You’re feeling what you’re thinking.” So, choose your thoughts with intention. What do you choose to think and then feel today? Let’s lean toward abundance. 3. Cultivate y our l i F e an D Spa C e S W ith i ntention. Think about inviting abundance into your life. We invite it. Align to it. Cultivate it. Once you know what abundance feels like for you, go one step further and proactively take actions today that tune into and express abundance in your life. What brings you joy? What feels like peace and calm? What lights you up? This could be everything from having fresh flowers in your home (one of my favorites), to lit candles, great music playing, time in nature, a hot soak, cleaning out and organizing the refrigerator, getting a massage, or watching a sunrise or sunset on your deck or porch while sipping on a favorite warm beverage. When we give ourselves permission to engage in, cultivate, and receive those experi ences that bring us joy and the feeling of abundance, we are living our lives with

+ page 56 Utah 2021Winter Column: Mary’s f ab 5

BY MARY CRAFTS

After being locked up in the house for so many months and living on their own cooking skills, everyone was sooo ready to be dining out again! However, I realized that it was not just the food we were craving but the social aspect of gathering with people. Laughing and loving with friends was what I missed. I didn’t need so much a good restaurant but rather a great bar and grub where I could stay and talk and dance and feel connected to my world again. So, what are the best bar scenes in Utah? Here are my top five.

Mary’s Fab 5: Bar Scenes

2. Whi SK ey Street an D White h or S e Whiskey Street Cocktails & Dining and White Horse Spirits & Kitchen are sister bars and restaurants located in downtown Salt Lake City on Main Street. I’m talking really great bar food such as pork belly lettuce wraps and hazelnut-dusted calamari, and my all-time favorite, short rib poutine. If you haven’t had poutine, you’re in for a treat with this Canadian creation made with tender pulled short rib, melted cheese curd, mornay sauce, and crispy fries—pure heaven with any beer or cocktail. Both places are great for sampling whiskey, but all spirits, beer, and wine are available. Come for the food, stay for the whiskey, and return for the people!

1. l a K e e FF e C t Lake Effect is probably my favorite bar in town. I love the chic vibe and atmosphere where a little smart outfit is preferred over jeans and flip flops. Located in downtown Salt Lake City, they have super creative cocktails that are also super delicious. For something more feminine, I like the Lacey Lingerie, a blend of rose vodka and rose champagne. For something more aggressive, go for the Dante’s Inferno. The combination of rum and serrano peppers is sure to put some hair on your chest. They serve fabulous food for brunch, lunch, dinner, and late night when a scrumptious char cuterie board is all you need. Live music on the weekends.

This is another fun spot at the south end of the valley in Draper. The food is always good, and the bartenders know what they’re doing. There is dancing on Friday and Saturdays in the pub area. If you want more of a restaurant experience, they have two separate areas, so you can choose your vibe. I personally come here for the outdoor patio with amazing views of the valley. I love to watch a romantic sunset and sip bubbly or dine on the restaurant patio for a completely relaxing evening. A little known fact is that they have a great sushi bar with really fresh fish and talented chefs that make it one of my fab spots for dinner and drinks!

I love the vibe of this old classic hangout in Sandy. You will find me there most Saturday nights dancing my little toes off and loving the DJ and no-nonsense crowd. With free line dancing lessons, Texas Hold’em poker, and live band karaoke, it’s a great place to let your hair down, no matter your age!

5. o.p. ro CKW ell Co CK tail l ounge & m u S i C h all

4. the C li FF D ining pu B

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For a special night out, head to O.P. Rockwell Cocktail Lounge & Music Hall on Park City Main Street. This live music venue has a classy atmosphere and two great bars. Charcuterie boards, desserts, healthy snacks, and specialty coffees are available from Park City Desserts & Coffee, located directly above this subterranean music hall. Preorder, pick up, and bring it with you to the show. It’s best to go online and purchase tickets in advance. They offer a variety of options including general admission, mezzanine seating, and multiple VIP areas. They are open on Friday and Saturday nights, as well as for special engagements throughout the month. If you love craft cocktails, you’re going to love this place!

Located at the opposite end of the valley just off 90th South, Club 90 offers classic bar grub such as nachos, wings, burgers, and sandwiches. The cover charge is only $5 and the drinks are cheap!

3. Clu B 90

Here’s to breaking bread and toasting to you soon at one of these favorite hot spots of mine!

Asa motivational speaker and author, I often coin phrases and quotable quips to consolidate my thoughts into short nuggets of wisdom that my readers and listeners can easily remember. For instance:

+ page 58 Utah 2021Winter Column: t he l ast w ord

3. r ealize that a D ver S ity intro D u C e S you to your S el F. You must stretch before you can strengthen, and all the strength ening occurs in the area past the point of discomfort. You will never know how strong you are until being strong is your only choice.

How to Pivot and Rebound: 8 Steps of Resiliency

“If you are not failing a few times, then it means you are not pushing yourself hard enough.”

4. Begin W ith the “ W hy” in min D . If you begin with the end in mind, it forces you to focus on a destination that’s impressive, to do your best to manage people and reward results—making money, losing weight, getting married. But when you begin with the “why” in mind, you enjoy the journey, manage expectations, and reward effort— creating wealth, changing your lifestyle, and staying married, knowing that “happily ever after” is a day-at-a-time proposition.

BY DAN CLARK

“It is not enough to say, ‘I will do my best.’ We must succeed in doing that which is necessary!” Do you agree with these state ments? Are these not inspirational thoughts that, when believed, can rekindle your passion and recalibrate your mindset? Why, then, do so many remain stuck in their failures, continuously complaining and blaming others, content to wallow in their misery in a victim mentality of “woe is me”? It’s because they don’t know how to stop, regroup, and recover. Being resilient boils down to whether your current beliefs are strong enough, deep enough, and true enough to equip and empower you to respond to rapid change.Thetime is now to pivot and rebound. Here are eight steps to help you do just that.

When life gets you down, how can you pull yourself back up? Here are eight steps to help you become more resilient.

1. aCK no W le D ge W here you are.  First thing on your early morn ing agenda: measure where you are physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, socially, financially, and in your family. It’s like ordering an Uber ride that requires you enter in your current location. Be honest. If you lie about where you are, the directions won’t work.

2. De C i D e to gro W . You are under no obligation to be the same person you were yesterday, last week, last year, or 15 minutes ago. You can change and improve anytime, anywhere. Pain is a signal to grow, not to suffer. Once you learn the lesson the pain is teaching you, the pain goes away. In life there are no mistakes, only lessons, when we believe nothing happens to us, only for us.

No matter what our past has been, we have a spotless future. Hold on! In two more days, tomorrow will be yesterday.

7. Di SC ipline i S to tea C h, not punitoSh. If you or someone else has made a mistake, remember that you cannot increase a

To learn more, follow @danclark speak on Facebook and Instagram or visit danclark.com.

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Aworse.performanceperson’sbymakingthemfeelHumiliationimmobilizesourbehavior.brokenclockisrighttwiceaday.Nevergiveupon anyone—especially yourself. You never lose if you always learn.

+ Dan Clark is a Hall of Fame speaker and The New York Times best-selling author of The Art of Significance.

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8. Fin D S omething that ma K e S you laugh. I’m so old that when I bend over to pull up my socks I think, “What else can I accomplish while I’m way down here?” Ha! Rather than remaining stuck in a funk, let go of the “woe is me” statements and resolve today to make changes. As you take steps to improve your mindset and make better decisions, you will become more resilient, and your life will pivot in the direc tion that you want it to go.

6. S C rat C h W here it it C he S . If you injure your knee and don’t get it repaired, the limp soon creates back pain. When it becomes unbearable, you finally go to a back doctor who can’t take away the pain because it’s a knee injury. We must stop focusing on the symptoms and go to the real source of our pain. For exmple, if your marriage is going south, it’s not a sign of weakness to seek help. The good news is that the therapist doesn’t try to fix the broken marriage. Instead, they “scratch where it itches” and coach you on how and why to fix your individual selves so that you can then collectively decide to repair the marriage beginning from a higher level of communication and deeper level of trust and love.

5. l oo K at every pain an D pre D i C ament a S an in J ury. During my crazy, on-the-edge life, I’ve broken my neck, back, nose, jaw, arm, snapped my patella and Achilles tendons, had seven knee surgeries, two hernias, throat cancer, paralysis, and a hospitalized battle with COVID-19. The significant lesson is that no matter what we have broken in our lives—including shattered dreams, a broken heart, a devastating divorce, the loss of a loved one or a job—when we go through the proper steps of rehabilitation, the part of our body, mind, attitude, and spirit that was broken becomes stronger than it was before we injured it. Our rehabilitation begins and sustains momentum when our foundational belief includes the belief that no matter what our past has been, we have a spotless future. Hold on! In two more days, tomorrow will be yesterday.

Official forms of snow: snowflakes, snow pellets (also known as graupel), sleet, and hail Year when a scientist found two identical snow crystals that fell during a storm in Wisconsin 1998 Snowfall that the town of Capracotta in Southern Italy received in just 18 hours on March 5, 2015 100 inches Freshwater on earth that is frozen as ice or snow— about 12% of the earth’s surface 80% Average number of snowstorms per year in the United States 105 1 septillion Snowflakes that fall in the U.S. every winter— that’s 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000WordsthatScotshavetodescribesnow,accordingtoresearchersatthe

+ Utah 2021Winter

124 feet Height of the world’s largest snowman, built in Donnersbachwald, Austria, in 2020 by the nUM bers

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University of Glasgow 421 People who partici pated in the world’s largest snowball fight, which took place in Saskatoon, Canada, in 2016 7,681 Size of snowflakes recorded in Fort Keogh, Montana, in 1887 15 inches 22,022 Snow angels simultaneously created in 130 locations throughout Nova Scotia, Canada, in 2011, setting a new world record Height of the world’s smallest snowman, made in 2009 by scientists at the National Physical Laboratory in London .01 mm 5,127 Snowmen-themed items owned by collector Karen Schmidt, accord ing to Guinness World Records 1494 Year that Michelangelo was commissioned by Italian royalty to build a snowman in the Medici

To read about a 96-year-old Utahn’s attempt to break the world record for oldest heli-skier, turn to p. 14 4

Year1380courtyardthefirst snowman was documented—in an illustration in The Book of Hours

Ah, winter! The season of sledding, skiing, and snowmen. Not everyone likes the cold, but these fun facts are sure to help you enjoy the next few months a little more.

Snow

“He who marvels at the beauty of the world in summer will find equal cause for wonder and admiration in winter.” —John Burroughs Utah h igh n ote Photo by Dre W Armstrong | @tr AvelsfromutA h +