Midvale Journal | December 2022

This season, high school basketball will add a 35-second shot clock.

Even though the decision was made by the Utah High School Activities Association last January, it has had some schools scrambling to purchase and install the clocks—or even find them amongst supply chain issues.

However, Hillcrest will be ready when the girls host their home opener Nov. 22 against Provo High and the boys, Nov. 30 against Herriman High.

“We had the foresight to install the shot clocks when we built our new gym,” Hillcrest athletic director Scott Carrell said.

Coaches across the state have different opinions about the shot clocks, but girls’ head coach Alyssa Nielsen thinks “over all, it’ll be good.”

“It’s going to be a bigger impact than then people realize,” she said. “It’ll speed up the game, especially on the varsity lev el, and it will be effective to keep the game going at a steady pace and give each team more opportunity to get shots up. As far as the JV and freshman level go, it might be a little bit tricky to get effective shots up in that amount of time, but I think with a little bit of practice and getting used to it, it’ll be just fine.”

Nielsen, who served as interim head coach last year, said that the shot clock will level ball possessions.

“In the past, teams were able to hold the ball if they do have a lead, but with the shot clock, it will make it more even,” she said. “It may favor a quick-tempo teams just because you can get out, run and get effective shots up before the clock goes

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Hillcrest High girls basketball coach Alyssa Nielsen expects strong team defense as seen by seniors Kay Erekson and Abigail Slama-Catron defending a Brighton player’s shot. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

PROVENTION CELIAC DISEASE STUDY

This study is for adults 18 - 70 years, they must have a diagnosis of celiac disease. This study involves the use of a drug called PRV-015. PRV-015 is an antibody designed to block an immune system protein called interleukin 15 (IL-15). IL-15 is made in the small intestine and is one trigger that causes intestinal inflammation followed by death of the intestinal cells. In people with celiac disease, this immune response can be caused by eating gluten, in previous studies, PRV-015 has been shown to reduce inflammation in the intestine and improve the symptoms of celiac disease when used together with GFD (gluten-free diet).

GSK HPV EVE STUDY

This is a study for females 16- 26, The human papillomavirus (HPV) is a virus that commonly affects the skin and the soft tissues (mucous membranes) around the genital area. These infections are common in both men and women and are often transmitted through sexual intercourse or another skin-to-skin contact. Symptoms vary from rashes to warts in the hands, feet, face, and genital area. Some types of can cer, such as cervical cancer are linked to HPV infections. There are more than 100 variants, this study is looking at an investigational vaccine called HPV9, the main purpose of the study is to see whether the study vaccine is safe when given to women aged between 16 and 26 years, in a 3-dose vaccination scheme. In addition to this, the study will look at how safe the study vaccine is compared with an approved (already available for use) HPV vaccine called GARDASIL 9.

This study is for adults 18 and older, who haven’t already received a flu vaccine this year, This study aims to see if a new type of influenza vaccine, called quadrivalent influenza modRNA vaccine (qIRV), is well toler ated and can help the body produce antibodies that may help fight influenza. Hemagglutinin (HA) is a protein that is made by the influenza virus that is important in how the virus works. The influenza virus can mutate the form of HA it makes, which means each year different strains of the influenza virus, making different forms of HA, become widespread worldwide. Each year surveillance is conducted to predict what influ enza strains are likely to be most common that year, and vaccines are then tailored to combat these.

Salt Lake County Library Services to increase tax rate

By Zak Sonntag | z.sonntag@mycityjournals.com

Salt Lake County Library Services is set to bump its tax levy in 2023 in re sponse to inflationary pressure, as well as ad dress delayed maintenance while maintaining and expanding offerings at its 18 branches.

Under the proposal the average Salt Lake County home, valued around $560,000, would see an increase of $30 per year for a total an nual outlay of $149 to support the library ser vices. The hike will be put to a vote on Dec. 6, and if passed will increase the County Li brary budget by 25%.

Library officials say the increase is needed to offset inflationary pressure; the li brary services has seen a compounded 30% increase in expenses since its last tax adjust ment in 2012.

“Every business has to deal with (in flation), and they’ll work through it by con stantly raising prices. But as a municipality, we don’t have that option. Anytime we want to raise more money, it has to be through the Truth in Taxation process,” said Sara Neal,

marketing and communications manager for Salt Lake County Library Services, speaking about the state law that lays out how govern ment bodies can raise taxes.

The library services has absorbed cost increases through new efficiencies like sys tem automation along with staffing changes and deferred maintenance. However, main tenance needs have continued to mount, and leaders say they cannot continue to put re pairs off.

High on the priority list is the West Valley branch, whose derelict boilers have a penchant to leave patrons and staff in the cold, and whose limited facility space fails to meet the needs of a modern library user.

“Their boilers are 50 years old at this point. There not made any more and we can’t get parts for them. If that system failed and we had to replace it the cost is huge. But would you invest that much money in an old building that doesn’t serve the needs of the community anyway?” said Neal, who anticipates a brand-

new West Valley facility is on the way with the help of new tax dollars.

Neal says the county is also looking to replace or renovate older, smaller libraries in its service area, including the Tyler branch in Midvale, the Whitmore branch in Cotton wood Heights, and the Sandy branch. The renovations will help modernize the facili ties in ways that meet community needs.

Neal points to the success of the Gran ite Branch, opened in 2022, which stands in high contrast to the libraries of yore.

“At Granite we have creative space for people who want to explore technology tools that they might not have access to otherwise. They have study rooms that are always being used because people need spaces like that. It’s fun to see how a library can really serve the different needs of people in the neighbor hood,” Neal said.

In this way Salt Lake County has be come home to one of the most popular li brary systems in the nation, with over two-

thirds of the 837,000 people in its service area designated as “active library card us ers,” defined as a patron who utilizes a li brary service during a three-year period.

“There are about 9,000 library systems in North America, and we’re usually about number 13 or so,” Neal said.

According to Neal, the county system circulates 12 million items—close to 80% of them physical items like books and audio books and the remainder digital items like e-audiobooks.

The service’s popularity is driven in part by the county’s expanding population, which has grown by 13% in the last decade.

Some county residents—including those in Murray and Salt Lake City, who have their own city library systems—are not impacted by the county library tax in order to prevent “dual taxation,” even as reciprocal borrowing agreements allow residents to hold cards in all three systems simultaneously. l

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off, and if the other team can’t, then you may have the advantage there.”

Huskies boys’ head coach Brandon Slu ga, who played with a shot clock at the Uni versity of Utah, isn’t sure how much impact the shot clock will have on the high school game.

“It’s still to be determined just how much the shot clock will impact everybody, but I feel like it’s not going to be a really big deal for most high schools,” he said. “From what I’ve seen, players don’t hold the ball a lot. I know that that’s been an argument in the past that with certain programs they would hold the ball in a big game situation, hoping they could keep the possession down and the score down, and maybe give a little bit less talented team a chance to win. I really haven’t seen that in the last few years. I don’t think it would be a big deal on any strategy that we have. We hope to be a lot better program where we might get our opponent deep into the shot clock so maybe that could be to our benefit.”

Most teams, Nielsen said, likely get a good shot off before the clock expires.

“I think the rare occasions would be not hitting the rim or the backboard for it to re set the shot. Maybe it may be when not the best shot was put up, but then you fight to get offensive rebound,” she said. “We’ve done OK as far as getting good shots up within the time frame. It definitely will help with the transition to college ball. I remember playing in college myself (at Colorado Northwestern Community College in Craig), coming from high school with no shot clock. The clock just makes for a faster paced game, so it was a transition for me, for sure. It would help to have it now in high school.”

Sluga agreed most possessions are “sig nificantly less” than the 35 seconds.

“I think the length of a possession in a lot of games in high school is determined by the talent of the team and the opponent they’re playing. So, the bigger the disparity is in tal ent between the two teams, the easier it is to get a shot up,” he said. “One thing I’m con cerned about is from an officiating perspec tive is they’re asking the officials to do more. There might be some situations that could be controversial if someone gets the shot off be fore the buzzer sounds and they wave it off or if they don’t get it off, but they still count it. I don’t know that there’s going to be a bunch of situations like that, but you are adding more to the game than just the end of the quarter now where players need to get the shot off. That can be a factor that’s challenging for of ficials.”

The shot also needs to hit the rim to reset the clock.

“If it hits the rim, that could be anoth er issue for whoever’s doing the timing and determining if they think it hit the rim, but it didn’t hit the rim,” Sluga said. “In the rules, it says it’s the officials call and that could be challenging. It’s not college or the NBA where you can go back and look at video footage.

There could be some challenges there, asking the officials to do more in a critical stressful part of the game with a shot clock.”

There also is training involved for the person running the shot clock, which is the school’s responsibility, he added.

Prior to the season, Sluga said more than 80 boys showed up for open gym and he has 40 who are in his basketball class. They played in a spring and fall league, and also, in three summer tournaments, where there was a shot clock.

“For us, it didn’t make a huge differ ence,” Sluga said. “I think initially for high school, mostly, unless you have very skillful players, you’re going to have a turnover be fore you have a shot clock violation or you’re going to have a shot go up. In most cases for most teams, they’ll get a shot up; it may not be a perfect shot, but a good shot. It may be more interesting in the state tournament. That may be where the shot clock comes into play the most. And I think that’s probably a good thing. Most state tournament games after the first round or two are lower scoring and lon ger possessions. It’s going to be an adjustment at that point.”

Sluga is excited about his program.

“We have a pretty talented senior class, and we have really good players coming in that are sophomores and freshmen. This is the most solid the program’s been in my three years here and we have more talent at more levels through the Bantam program and some

kids moving in from out of state or different schools. We have a stronger foundation build ing into our program now,” he said.

Sluga’s strategy will be both a quick tempo and patience with the ball.

“We’ve really emphasized running the floor this year, but also are trying to under stand and incorporate what a really good shot is for our team,” he said. “Our kids have got ten better at that over the last six months. It’s been a big emphasis for us to run and try to go get easier baskets and then when we don’t have it, playing together on offense, sharing the ball and being patient.”

Nielsen’s team is young, after having most of the starters graduate or move. She has 270 total minutes of varsity-level playing time from this year’s returners, 331 minutes less than the team’s leading scorer last year.

However, “this year actually surprised me quite a bit. I was planning on doing a huge rebuilding year, but from what I’ve seen, and the players coming in, they’ve worked hard, and they’re committed,” said Nielsen, who said they had about 20 consistent players at offseason open gyms.

The team will be led by seniors Abigail Slama-Catron, Kay Erekson, Tiana Brown, Sadie Hutchins and Ashtyn McVey. Nielsen also said they’ll have a group of younger players coming in that will help build the pro gram.

Joining her on staff is Laura Roth and Nikki Orreli.

“Defense is going to be a huge empha sis for us this year; pressing, high-tempo, inyour-face defense is how we’re going to be able to stop teams from scoring more effec tively and that translates into the offense. If we’re able to get steals and stops, then it’ll just be easier for our offense to flow,” she said. “We have the girls and the speed and the ability to do it. I really think anything that they want to do, they can do.” l

Hillcrest High boys basketball coach Brandon Sluga expects both a quick tempo and patience with the ball from his team, seen here beating Stans bury in last year’s home opener. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Words, songs of gratitude by schoolchildren thank veterans

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Schoolchildren across the Salt Lake Valley thanked veterans and active military personnel for their service through school programs featuring students sing ing patriotic songs or sharing special words in apprecia tion of their sacrifice and service.

At many schools, it was the return of in-person as semblies after virtual celebrations or classroom programs. It also meant veterans and those serving were welcomed back into schools to be honored.

Here’s a look at what four area elementary schools did to honor those who are or have served the country as well as two students who wrote essays for the Utah PTA Veterans Day essay contest.

McMillan Elementary, Murray School District

Twenty-two active military and veterans, some in full uniform, stood with the singing of their branch of service during the Armed Forces on the stage of the 68-year-old McMillan Elementary, looking into the audience of firstthrough sixth-grade students.

“That was really sweet,” said McMillan PTA Presi dent Andrea Pili, who has overseen the program the past six years. “They always sing along to it. They’re just real ly proud to stand for their song.”

The ceremony began with a flag ceremony conducted by local Girl Scouts who attend the school; students in each grade level sang patriotic songs including “You’re a Grand Old Flag,” “This Land is Your Land,” “My Country Tis of Thee” and “America the Beautiful;” and featured a slide show of the McMillan students, staff and faculty’s relatives and friends who have served.

“It makes the assembly more special for them, and the kids love to see there are people personal to their teachers,” she said.

Select students shared their own words of thanks to their guests.

Second-grader Isaac Smith’s great-grandfather flew a B-17 bomber during World War II. Isaac shared his story:

“On a bombing mission, his plane was shot down. He parachuted out of the plane and landed in a farmer’s field. The farmer turned him over to the German army and he was taken to a prisoner of war camp. He had to ride in a box car without any seats for four days straight. He was only able to get out of the car for one hour a day. He was in the prison camp for eight months and then the war end ed, and he was freed. He went home and lived a wonderful life. He died in 2013 at the age of 89. My great grandpa’s life-long motto was, ‘Perfect or better.’ He is one of my biggest heroes.”

Fourth-grader James Dunkelberger shared that he “thought about how veterans chose to serve others instead of just themselves” and reflected on ways he could do that now, such as doing his chores and taking care of the fami ly dog, having a positive attitude in class to create a good classroom environment, and obeying the school rules of being respectful, responsible and safe.

“It isn’t always easy to do things for others,” James wrote. “It would be easier just to do whatever I wanted. I am thankful for everyone who chooses to put themselves second in order to create a better place for the members of our community, society and world.”

Fifth-graders Janessa and Galen Bancroft’s grandpa served in the military and their mom served in the Air Force as imagery intelligence. In their essay, they shared: “They fought for our justice which means they fought for the rights we have today and our freedoms. We’re here today because of them and other people who fought for

us. It is important to remember those who served because they fought for us and their freedoms too. When we think of heroes we think of guardians, soldiers, relatives, edu cators, health care workers, and people who keep us safe. We should always remember our heroes and thank them every day.”

Fifth-grader Ava Pili wrote: “Courageous, serve, hon or, brave, protect, and willing. These are all the words that describe our amazing military men and women.” While Ava doesn’t have a family member who is active in the service now, she told McMillan’s guests: “Thank you for the freedoms we enjoy and for showing us what bravery is. Your sacrifice and service should not and will not be forgotten.”

Suzie (last name and grade withheld) said she was grateful to be an American.

“Being an American means to be free and united as one country,” she said. “Because of veterans, we are free. It is our duty to celebrate and express gratitude for the brave men and women who have fought and who continue to fight for our country, the United States of America.”

The assembly concluded with the entire student body singing, “God Bless the USA.”

“The kids are just belting it out, honoring them, sing ing their little hearts out,” Pili said. “It’s a beautiful way to end the program and a great way for our students to express their gratitude through music and words. It’s a very touching tribute.”

Woodstock Elementary, Murray, Granite School Dis trict

Woodstock Elementary students invited veterans in their lives to attend their after-school program that also featured a PowerPoint slide presentation of those who are serving or served in the Armed Forces.

“It tugs at my heart,” said fifth-grade teacher Kate Axtell, who has family members who have served in the military. “When the kids sing the ‘Armed Forces Medley,’ the little old men stand up and are crying. The kids are crying back at the veterans because they can’t believe how much it means to them. Afterward, the kids say it’s the coolest thing they’ve ever done.”

The program also featured songs from World War I, such as “Over There,” “It’s a Long Way to Tipperary” and “Till We Meet Again” and World War II songs, including “Sentimental Journey.”

Sprinkled into the program were some of the 90 fifth-graders sharing their thanks and appreciation to the veterans for the service. Axtell, who has coordinated the program three times, said the students rehearsed for two months, tying it into their curriculum of learning Ameri can history.

“They’ve learned about the different wars, and we talked about the music we sang and what it meant. I showed them where Tipperary is and we talked about it, we talked about the trenches, and they know the history of Armistice Day being the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month when the Great War ended,” Axtell said. “We’re wanting our students to think about their lives and have them understand the sacrifice and service.”

As part of the school’s celebration, third-graders wrote thank you letters to veterans and were sharing them with those in a local veteran’s hospital as well as one in California. The school’s PTA decorated for the celebra tion and provided refreshments.

Channing Hall, Draper charter school

Fifth-grader Dhruv Sinha Ray gave visiting veterans

at Channing Hall a pin he designed to honor their service.

The pin design is an annual school contest; students create designs and one is selected to be turned into a pin for the veterans.

This year’s design shows the silhouette of a soldier saluting with an American flag in the background; below are the words, “Proud To Serve.”

At the assembly, the American Legion Color Guard performed a flag folding ceremony and the 50-member combined school choir and chorus performed the national anthem and the song, “Heroes,” written by school music teacher, Jamie Bunker.

Three speakers shared their thoughts on Veterans Day.

Raj Chowdhary, who served in the Air Force and Na tional Guard and father to two Channing Hall students, worked on F-16 Infrared Cameras and Laser Targeting Systems; and program manager Quinn Good, spoke about the Salt Lake City VA Fisher House that provides living arrangements for families while veterans are getting med ical treatment.

Channing Hall science teacher Jeff Meyers spoke about his service in the Army, including his lead up to and deployment to Afghanistan as a radio transceiver operator.

“I attended several Army training schools familiar izing me with the technology I needed to know to work in the TOC (Tactical Operations Command) in Afghani stan,” he said. “I went with my unit to the JRTC or Joint Readiness Training Center in Fort Polk, Louisiana, where we conducted live action combat and operations training for a month. I found out that my wife, Kim, was pregnant shortly before deploying to Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, my battalion was in the Northern Kunar province, a re mote mountainous northern part of the country bordering on Pakistan. I served in combat there and received the Combat Infantryman Badge as well as several Army Com mendation Medals (ARCOM) and a battlefield promotion. My second son, Brennon, was born 2 weeks before I re turned home.”

Meyers continued his service stateside, graduating from the Army Leadership Academy in the top 5% of the

McMillan Elementary first-grader Amelia Jarman stands alongside her uncles, National Guard Staff Sgt. Christian Davis, on the left, and Marine Corps Cpl. Jonathan Thompson at the school’s Veterans’ Day assembly. (Photo courtesy of McMillan Elementary)

Canyons’ high school students take part in mock drill

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Hillcrest High senior Aiden Reid was slumped in front of a door in a hospital, hearing rounds of bullets echoing from being fired. Semiconscious, he re membered lots of yelling and radio communication.

“I heard people yelling, ‘Get down, get down,” he recalled before he was assisted outside by a SWAT team and medics.

Luckily for Reid, it was a mock shooting drill.

Each year, Intermountain Health Care participates in safety drills to ensure that its caregivers are prepared to respond to a variety of scenarios to ensure the safety of its staff and patients, said Jess Gomez, Intermountain’s media relations director.

“For many of these drills, we work closely with lo cal law enforcement and first responders so that they also have an opportunity to learn and test their preparedness, as well,” he said. “When the opportunity arises, we also include students from area schools to participate in these drills, so they have an opportunity to learn more about safety and what’s involved in keeping our facilities and patients as safe as possible. They have been fantastic to work with and help us add a realistic approach to these drills.”

While this drill was done at Intermountain TOSH or The Orthopedic Specialty Hospital in Murray, Gomez said Intermountain conducts safety preparedness drills at all of its hospitals and tries to involve the community, when appropriate.

Reid said he was surprised at the realism of the sce nario.

“They were firing blanks and noisemaking ammuni tion and that was really loud. Even with earplugs, it was pretty loud,” he said.

Reid, along with four other Canyons School District

class and earning his Expert Infantryman Badge.

“I loved my time in the Army and am proud to have served my country,” he said.

As a school-wide service project, Channing Hall students brought in paper products ranging from Kleenex to paper plates to donate to the Fisher House.

Schoolchildren and staff also brought in photos of family members who served, which were displayed on a bulletin board, in appreciation of their service.

The Veterans’ Day program dates back to the early years of the school’s 16-year history, with this being the first year returning to the assembly after the COVID-19 pandemic, said Annette Mum ford, president of the Channing Hall Par ent-Teacher Organization that organized the event and provided refreshments for the veterans and guests afterward.

Quail Hollow Elementary, Sandy, Can yons School District

Army Master Sgt. Aaron Hilton and Air Force Lt. Col. Mark Hasara were guest speakers at Quail Hollow’s Veterans Day program.

After the presentation of the colors by the Utah National Guard and national an

high school students, were briefed beforehand and provid ed an index card, which gave them individual instructions.

He said the injuries varied from his 4-inch gash above his right eyebrow to an eye injury to a neck wound to another, who was fully unconscious. Some victims had bottles of “blood” to spray around them to look like splat ter from bullets.

The high school students, most who are enrolled in medical classes and drama, spent about 20 minutes getting their injury and wound make-up done.

“It was really good make-up and being a victim was a cool experience, but it also freaked me out a little with how loud the ammunition was,” he said. “They provided us with mental health services in case something did trig ger or something in the activity did harm us. I was very grateful for that.”

Reid volunteered to be part of the scenario.

“I’m glad I got to do this and I’m glad the hospital gets to do it as well. Not only does it train the SWAT on how to handle real-life situations, but it also helps the hos pital workers to know what to do as well,” he said.

Once helped outside, Reid was told to put pressure on his wound.

“There was not a lot of after medical care, the focus was more inside and of the evacuation,” he said.

The scenario also gave him a different kind of look into his possible medical future as Reid, who is enrolled in the medical pathways program, hopes to work in phar macology at a hospital.

As a 4.0 grade-point average student, he is Canyons Technical Education Center’s Health Occupations Student Association president as well as Hillcrest High’s Careers Club vice president.

“It was a good opportunity to go and see TOSH and

them by Liz Longaker, veterans stood to be recognized and waved to Quail Hollow students.

Then, they watched a clip of Col. Gail Halvorsen, known as “The Candy Bomb er,” who frequently spoke to Utah school children about his World War II experienc es dropping candy to children in Berlin. He died this past February.

There also was the recognition of Ma rine Corps SSgt. Darin Taylor Hoover, a nearby Hillcrest High School graduate, who died last year. A moment of silence followed, honoring all deceased veterans.

Relatives and friends who have served and are serving of Quail Hollow students were highlighted in a video after Brighton High sophomore Alexis Schramm played “Taps.”

With the help of volunteers, Melin da Rosevear has coordinated the school’s program for several years, highlighting veterans who have served in different time periods of history.

“It’s important we highlight this and bring awareness to our students the signif icance of their dedication and service and its meaning,” she said. “This brings our community together.”

meet the staff and just give everyone involved a better experience with training in real-life situations,” he said.

While Reid gave his mother a fright, sending her a photo of his injury without explanation—“I feel bad about that”—the service is one he will remember—“I thought this would just be a good opportunity to do some commu nity service because not everyone is up and willing to go volunteer for something like this”— along with a bullet shell casing he picked up as a souvenir. l

Silver Mesa Elementary, Sandy, and Draper Park Middle, Canyons School Dis trict

Two Canyons District students, Silver Mesa’s fifth-grade student Azaylea Olson and Draper Park’s eighth-grader Noa Pack, won the Utah PTA 500-word essay contest, “Why I am Proud of my Veteran!”

Azaylea, who loves playing cribbage with her grandfather who she calls Poppy, wrote her essay about his service in the Navy, starting with boot camp when he was up at 6 a.m., washed his clothes on cement tables, marched for eight hours per day, learned about M1 rifles, put on gas masks before entering burning buildings, then going to bed at 10 p.m.

After boot camp, he was assigned to a naval air station in Alaska when an earth quake struck.

“He climbed a mountain behind his barracks because of a tsunami warning and watched as the tsunami rolled up 40 feet high,” she wrote. “The tsunami took six planes off the runway into the water. They had to fish the planes out of the water.”

Her Poppy went on to have other chal lenges during his military time, including serving in Vietnam.

“I am proud of my Poppy, my grand father, for serving in the military,” she wrote adding that “his job was very im portant as he was responsible for sending top secret information to our troops, so they had all the information they needed to be safe themselves. He is my veteran and my hero.”

Noa’s dad is currently deployed as a member of the Utah Army National Guard, and she now understands why her dad has missed special occasions and family gath erings.

“He has worked long hours, missed many family events, and has even known the hardship of soldiers who have fallen, both on and off the battlefield,” she wrote. “My dad has missed first steps, birthdays, anniversaries, school projects, and boy drama. However, he is still my biggest hero and role model in everything he does.”

In Noa’s words, “being a veteran means valuing safety, not just for us but for our country. That is why my dad goes to work every day, and I am proud of his sacrifice to help keep America protected.” l

Hillcrest High senior Tianna Brown, seen here with a fake neck injury, was one of several Canyons School District students who volunteered to take part in a mock shooting drill at an area hospital. (Photo courtesy of Aiden Reid/Hillcrest High)

Nature’s Virus Killer

Copper can stop a virus before it starts Navigating Grief and the Holidays

By Priscilla Schnarr www.copperzap.com

Scientists have discovered a natural way to kill germs fast.

Now thousands of people are using it against viruses and bacteria that cause illness.

Colds and many other illnesses start when viruses get in your nose and multiply. If you don’t stop them early, they spread and cause misery.

Hundreds of studies confirm copper kills viruses and bacteria almost instantly just by touch.

That’s why ancient Greeks and Egyptians used copper to purify water and heal wounds. They didn’t know about viruses and bacteria, but now we do.

“The antimicrobial activity of copper is well established.” National Institutes of Health.

Scientists say copper’s high conductance disrupts the electrical balance in a microbe cell and destroys it in seconds.

CopperZap® and put it on the market.

Soon hundreds of people had tried it. 99% said copper worked if they used it right away at the first sign of bad germs, like a tickle in the nose or a scratchy throat.

Users Say:

“It works! I love it!”

“I can’t believe how good my nose feels.”

“Is it supposed to work that fast?”

“One of the best presents ever.”

“Sixteen airline flights, not a sniffle!”

“Cold sores gone!”

“It saved me last holidays. The kids all got sick, but not me.”

The EPA recommended hospitals use copper for touch surfaces like faucets and doorknobs. This cut the spread of MRSA and other illnesses by over half, and saved lives.

“I am shocked! My sinus cleared, no more headache, no more congestion.”

“Best sleep I’ve had in years!”

The strong scientific evidence gave inventor Doug Cornell an idea. He made a smooth copper probe with a tip to fit in the bottom of the nostril, where viruses collect.

When he felt a tickle in his nose like a cold about to start, he rubbed the copper gently in his nose for 60 seconds.

“It worked!” he exclaimed. “The cold never happened. I used to get 2-3 bad colds every year. Now I use my device whenever I feel a sign I am about to get sick.”

He hasn’t had a cold in 10 years.

After his first success with it, he asked relatives and friends to try it. They all said it worked, so he patented

As thousands more tried it, some found other things they could use it against, including: Colds, flu, new viruses and variants, sinus trouble, cold sores, canker sores, strep throat, nighttime stuffiness, morning congestion, nasal drip, skin infections, thrush, warts, styes, and ringworm.

The handle is curved and textured to increase contact.

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By Kathie Supiano, PhD, LCSW

The holiday season is nearly upon us. This is the time of year when grieving people often feel dread and sorrow about the very events and traditions that formerly brought happiness.

As every grieving person handles loss in their own way, each one of us observes holidays in our own way in time of bereavement. There simply is no one right way to experience the holidays. Some find meaning in following cherished traditions, and others benefit from avoiding traditions because their associations are now tinged with loss. Some people find great comfort in being with other people, others prefer solitude to camaraderie.

For all of us, how we gather is as important as gathering at all.

Plan ahead for the holidays: The first step in planning is to listen to yourself….what will help you most at this time? You may have strong memories and powerful feelings. Accept this as normal, but prepare for it. Anticipate the pleasures and the stresses of events, and select those you want to participate in. If you expect to be lonely, arrange supportive companionship. If you can’t bear the thought of connecting with the entire extended family, let the family know of your needs. Be creative and accept support by using distance technology.

Accommodate your plans to your new limits: Most grieving people have significantly lowered physical stamina and emotional reserve. Perhaps you can’t get every decoration out this year. Accept these limits as temporary, and good enough for this year. Choose to put your energy into the things that matter most to you.

Accept that the holidays will be different this year: The holidays are often filled with unrealistic expectations that may overwhelm you. You may need to revisit your goals and find a balance between continuity and change. Many people find a special comfort in establishing a new holiday tradition that honors the memory of the person who died.

Recognize that other family members or friends may have struggles, too: Look for opportunities to discuss your feelings and wishes with others who may also be grieving for your family member. Try to respect their choices, if they are different from yours. You all may need to make compromises.

If the holidays have always been hard for you: Use this transition in your life to try something completely new…an untraditional-tradition. Perhaps you have never taken the occasion create a new experience on your own. As challenging as loss can be, it can bring momentum to grow and to try something new.

For all of us, whether the holidays are a time of personal significance or not, it can be a season in which we reflect on what we do cherish as we journey through grief.

Kathie Supiano, PhD, LCSW is an Associate Professor at the University of Utah College of Nursing and the Director of Caring Connections: A Hope and Comfort in Grief Program. Caring Connections is a not-for-profit program that offers clinician-facili tated grief support groups in Utah. 801-585-9522 healthcare.utah.edu/caring-connections

New research: Copper kills viruses in seconds.

Midvale Elementary’s math carnival offers math games, strategies for families

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Often when an elementary student may struggle with math, a teacher will re-teach the subject. With multiplication, for example, it can be taught a number of dif ferent ways so the student can grasp the con cept and use the method that may best work for the individual.

In preparing for Midvale Elementary’s recent Math Carnival Family Game Night, fourth-grade teacher Amanda Kraft realized a session to teach parents several multiplication strategies would be beneficial.

“I thought teaching multiplication a bunch of different ways for parents would be the best way they could support a child at home is they know how we’re doing it,” she said. “When students get home, they may not remember what that teachers showed.”

Kraft said that some of her students still are learning their multiplication facts, so she emphasizes its importance in class.

“When kids don’t understand it, they need a strategy so we teach it many different ways because not everybody learns the same. We still teach the old-fashioned standard algorithm and that works for some students. Once I’ve taught all my students every way, they can pick the one that works best for them,” said Kraft, who has taught at Midvale Elementary for sev en years.

During the math night, she modeled the distributive property, the box method and the tic tac toe method to families as she has done in the classroom for her students.

“It was an amazing experience. my class room was just overflowing all four sessions. Some of our students came to the board and showed parents what we’re doing in class so it was neat to see our parents being taught by their child and the parents’ eyes lit up the same way a child does when they understand,” Kraft

said. “The best part was having parents happy they have a way to support their child at home that they may not have had before.”

Kraft said the idea of including this ses sion in math night came from her open door policy. Last year one parent came several times, and said it was a great to know the methods so she could support her child.

“It’s just really fun and engaging. We have a really good community who are in terested in what their students are learning,” she said, adding that families were provided multiplication packets to help at home.

All 700 students received dice, playing cards, counters and other items in math kits, which United Way Day of Caring volunteers assembled. School PTA and Family Learn ing Center parents volunteered to assemble sack dinners.

In addition to multiplication, there were six other stations with math games, includ ing adding math twists on favorites like a duck pond, Bingo, Snakes and Ladders and Two Seconds—If you blink, you will miss it. Students also practiced their skills on estimation and subitizing—ability to recog nize the number of objects without counting them.

At the end of the evening, there was a drawing, said Heidi Sanger, Midvale Elemen tary Community Schools facilitator.

“We had somebody donate a variety of games that work on math skills, so we wrapped those up as gifts and drew names for those,” said Sanger, who along with other Title I com munity school facilitators recently were hon ored by Canyons School District as student support services professionals of the year. “It’s just a night to learn fun ways to do math that they can practice with their families and have the materials to do it.” l

Throughout the ages, there have been many important advances in mobility. Canes, walkers, rollators, and scooters were created to help people with mobility issues get around and retain their independence. Lately, however, there haven’t been any new improvements to these existing products or developments in this field Until now. Recently, an innovative design engineer who’s developed one of the world’s most popular products created a completely new breakthrough . . . a personal electric vehicle. It’s called the Zinger, and there is nothing out there quite like it.

“What my wife especially loves is it gives her back feelings of safety and independence which has given a real boost to her confidence and happiness! Thank You!”

–Kent C., California

The first thing you’ll notice about the Zinger is its unique look. It doesn’t look like a scooter. Its sleek, lightweight yet durable frame is made with aircraft grade aluminum so it weighs only 47.2 lbs. It features onetouch folding and unfolding – when folded it can be wheeled around like a suitcase and fits easily into a

The Zinger folds to a mere 10 inches.

backseat or trunk. Then, there are the steering levers. They enable the Zinger to move forward, backward, turn on a dime and even pull right up to a table or desk. With its compact yet powerful motor it can go up to 6 miles an hour and its rechargeable battery can go up to 8 miles on a single charge. With its low center of gravity and inflatable tires it can handle rugged terrain and is virtually tip-proof. Think about it, you can take your Zinger almost anywhere, so you don’t have to let mobility issues rule your life.

Why take our word for it? Call now, and find out how you can get a Zinger of your very own.

Families came to Midvale Elementary’s math carnival to learn ways to practice and support math con cepts at home. (Heidi Sanger/Midvale Elementary)

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Canyons School District parents and guardians learned while there may not be an easy answer to being a parent, they learned some helpful hints at a recent par ent night.

With the theme, “Let’s Succeed To gether,” guest speaker Rhonda Brimley outlined ways parents can help their chil dren achieve academic success.

The former teacher, principal, com munication specialist and Alpine School District Assistant Superintendent and Utah Association of Secondary School Princi pals Executive Director said parents need to realize they’re partners in the education of their children.

“When school was taken away (during the COVID-19 pandemic), then we all realize the importance of being together, having social interactions, learning from someone. being able to ask questions and collaborate together,” Brimley said. “Even the students recognize that and they said we want to be in school.”

During the pandemic, she said par ents were engaged more in their children’s learning and discovered how children are not only taught intentionally, but through

observations.

“Our children are watching not just as the other adults and friends and other peo ple in the community. They’re watching. They’re listening, and they’re learning,” she said. “When a child is curious, we should celebrate that, I should respond if I don’t know by saying that and ‘let’s find out together.’ Then we can research togeth er, but celebrate the fact that our children are naturally inquisitive.”

Brimley said that children need to learn to be resilient.

She shared a story that when her daughter had a lemonade stand, nobody came. Rather than let her daughter, who planned the entire “business” herself, face that consequence, she contacted friends and neighbors asking them to stop and make a purchase.

“We have a tendency to be mama bears and papa bears to swoop in and save them. I couldn’t let her not be successful, right? I stepped in to make sure she was going to be successful and feel confident, but she didn’t have the opportunity to struggle, even if it was just trying to sell lemonade. She didn’t have the opportunity to learn

Alpine School District Assistant Superintendent and Utah Association of Secondary School Principals Ex ecutive Director Rhonda Brimley shared with Canyons School District parents ways they can help support their children in school. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

from that,” Brimley said. “We need to al low those opportunities for kids to learn to overcome failure or they will grow up not knowing how to deal with things when they don’t go the way they want them to. When they fall off that bike, we’re going to tell them to keep trying. These kids need to learn how to be resilient.”

She said that parents need to make connections with the school community to help support their children.

“We’ve got to build those relation ships with people and we’ve got to build that trust and as an educational communi ty. All of us have the goal to help your stu dent, to help your child be successful and learn to thrive,” Brimley said.

She suggested volunteering in the classroom, in the PTA or other school committees; making sure to be on email, newsletter and other communication lists; checking students’ backpacks for home work, field trip permission slips or notes from teachers; check Skyward for stu dents’ academic success; and communicat ing with teachers.

“When there are parent-teacher con ferences, meet the teacher face-to-face whether its offered in person or virtually. You might already have communicated by email, but it really is an opportunity to talk about your child, and hear from the teach ers, not just about their scores, but what they have to say about your child, how

they’re interacting, how they’re doing, and are they participating,” she said.

Four break-out sessions followed the guest speaker. Drew Johnson, who has four children at Alta View Elementary and one at Mt. Jordan Middle, picked digital safety so he could learn the latest tips on keeping his children safe while online.

“I want to know some tools that I can use so I can monitor their usage,” he said. “I’ve had two parenting apps that my 15-year-old has hacked into.”

Brighton Principal Tom Sherwood was one of the principals on a panel in the break-out “The Recipe for Student Suc cess.”

“We opened it up as a discussion and talked about students’ success and the dif ferent kinds of supports we have available in the schools,” he said. “Oftentimes, par ents don’t know where to go so they jump to a principal or district administration instead of starting with the teacher. We talked about social-emotional support and resources we have and how we all work to gether so students feel safe and cared for as well as succeed academically.”

Other break-out topics included par ent engagement and an insider’s guide to educational and extracurricular options in the district. l

A FLAVORFUL NEW CAFE COMES TO MIDVALE

Next time you drive down Fort Union Blvd, you might want to take a quick detour to Noemi's Cafe, located just north of700 East. After years of perfecting his craft, head chef Anthony Vega, along with his mother Noemi Bustamante, opened a restaurant where you can find the most delicious empanadas in the valley. Though similar in construction to a hot pocket, the flavors you will encounter in an empanada are quite different. The traditional recipe is comprised of handmade dough filled with ground beef, sauteed onions, hard-boiled egg and an olive. Alternatively, you can also select from meat and potatoes, ham and cheese, seafood, vegan, etc. The menu also offers a selection of other traditional and newly inspired South American desserts, pastries, beverages and entrees. So, in addition, you will find asada frates, tartaletas, flan, lomo saltado, man jar, alfajor, and more. Though Chile is a country seemingly congruent with spiciness, this is simply not the case when it comes to their cuisine. Here you will find food rich and savory but low in heat.

The backstory of this family operation is an interesting one. Noemi's mother had owned a bakery back in Chile. From early on, Noemi was trained in amily moved to the states and eventually settled in Utah. Fast forward to 2008 and we find the grandson, Anthony, downsized out of a job by the Great Recession. Anthony begins to work with his grandmother, putting together orders of traditional Chilean meals for friends and family. This led into catering jobs and based on these

initial successes, he decided to advance his culinary skills at the Art Institute of Salt Lake. After graduation, Anthony purchased a food truck to create additional opportunities. His expanded abilities led to the development of a menu both traditional and imaginative and he quickly became one of the most popular vendors at various locations around the

valley, including Holladay’s SoHo Food Park. Though it was quite successful, Anthony and Noemi eventually set their sights on opening a restaurant together and in October Noemi’s Cafe opened their doors.

Located at 777 Fort Union Boulevard in Midvale, Noemi’s Cafe is currently open Wednesday through Sunday for lunch and dinner. Don’t have time to stay? Grab an empanada or two for the road - they are an easy and delectable meal to eat on the go. And if you have an event that needs catering, the food truck is always ready to roll. Enjoy!

MIDVALE CITY DIRECTORY

City Hall 801-567-7200

Finance/Utilities 801-567-7200

Court 801-567-7265

City Attorney’s O ce 801-567-7250

City Recorder/Human Resources 801-567-7228

Community Development 801-567-7211

Public Works 801-567-7235

Ace Disposal/Recycling 801-363-9995

Midvale Historical Museum 801-567-7285

Midvale Senior Center 385-468-3350

SL County Animal Services 385-468-7387

Communications 801-567-7230

MIDVALE CITY ELECTED OFFICIALS

MAYOR

Marcus Stevenson 801-567-7204 Email: mstevenson@midvale.com

CITY COUNCIL

District 1 - Quinn Sperry Email: qsperry@midvale.com

District 2 - Paul Glover Email: pglover@midvale.com

District 3 - Heidi Robinson

Email: Hrobinson@midvale.com

District 4 - Bryant Brown

Email: bbrown@midvale.com

District 5 - Dustin Gettel

Email: dgettel@midvale.com

WHO TO CALL FOR…

Water Bills 801-567-7200

Ordering A New Trash Can 801-567-7202

Permits 801-567-7213

Court 801-567-7265

Paying For Tra c School 801-567-7202

Business Licensing 801-567-7214

Cemetery 801-567-7235

Planning and Zoning 801-567-7231

Code Enforcement 801-567-7208

Building inspections 801-567-7213

Graffiti 385-468-9769

PUBLIC SAFETY & EMERGENCY CONTACTS

EMERGENCY 911

UFA Fire/UPD Police

> Non-emergency 801-840-4000

Uni ed Police Department

> Midvale Precinct 385-468-9350

Public Works 801-567-7235

Rocky Mountain Power 877-508-5088

In The Middle of Everything

City Hall – 7505 South Holden Street • Midvale, UT 84047

Marcus’s Message

If you’ve ever watched a Midvale City Council meeting, you may have noticed that we often end the meeting and then immediately re-start again. That’s because our city council and I not only serve on the council, but also as board members for the Redevelopment Agency of Midvale City. The redevelopment agency (RDA) is a separate legal entity from our city, which overlaps in many ways, but serves the speci c purpose of sparking revitalization and development.

The State of Utah, with county approval, allows for cities to create these RDA project areas to encourage development in areas where the market has struggled to naturally do so. To help spark development, a project area shifts property taxes from their usual use back into the project area. As an example, on your property taxes, you pay amounts each year to the school district, county, city, public safety, etc., but if you live or own a business in one of our project areas, 60-80% of your property taxes are re-routed and reinvested directly back into the area in which you live or own your business. That property tax is then used to encourage development, revitalization, and support a ordable housing initiatives. While most of the re-routed property tax is used for economic development, 20% must be designated for a ordable housing, which can be used to help build housing units, support rst-time home buyer programs, provide low-interest loans for home improvement projects, and more.

Midvale City has three of these project areas: Bingham Junction, Jordan Blu s, and Main Street.

BINGHAM JUNCTION PROJECT AREA

The Bingham Junction Project Area, which covers most of the northwest of our city, goes from Holden Street to the Jordan River and from about Top Golf to Center Street (7800 S), was created in 2004 after the old Sharon Steel site had gone through years of environmental remediation. Unfortunately, the steel site used much of the western side of our city, near the Jordan River, as a dumping ground for the tailings left over from steel production. Because of this, the ground soil in that area contains poisonous arsenic. The remediation helped to make that area safe by adding in a waterproof cap on top of the poisoned ground, with clean soil on top of the cap. However, just adding in a cap does not make the tailings beneath stable for development on top and a heavy building would sink into that ground, so special techniques must be used when building to avoid this. Further, water and sewer systems cannot be placed into the poisoned area beneath the cap, which means systems that usually work because of gravity now need expensive pumps

CITY NEWSLETTER

By Mayor Marcus Stevenson

to make them functional. So, while the area was remediated, the cost of developing in that area was much more expensive than developing elsewhere, which meant that our city struggled for many years to bring in new growth.

When the project area was created, the agreement was that it would collect property taxes for 25 years. It began collecting in 2009, which means in 2034 those property taxes will shift back to their normal uses. This ability to shift property taxes back into itself has meant that the city has been able to support many of the costs that would not take place in normal circumstances and help make development feasible in this area.

Today, after just 18 years, we have a bustling Bingham Junction with WinCo, Top Golf, Overstock headquarters, and many other businesses that have helped us reimagine that area, which used to be completely unusable land.

JORDAN BLUFFS PROJECT AREA

The Jordan Blu s Project Area, which covers most of the southwest of our city, goes from Main Street to the Jordan River at its widest point and Center Street (7800 S) to our southern border at around 8600 S. This project area was also created in 2004 and is largely still in its infancy but is quickly changing. Most notably, the new Zions Bank Technology Center opened in this area earlier this year and in the last couple of years, we have seen many new housing units go up between Main Street and Bingham Junction Blvd. This project area will also last 25 years and was part of the old Sharon Steel site, having gone through the same remediation process as explained above.

While a private company currently owns all this land that remains empty, our city is continually working diligently with them to ensure that this last remaining piece of land, of about 200 acres, is something that will truly bene t our community. While we can’t

MAYOR’S

From Mayor Marcus Stevenson, Council Members Paul Glover, Dustin Gettel, Bryant Brown, Heidi Robinson and Quinn Sperry, and the employees at Midvale City

In The Middle of Everything

MAYOR’S MESSAGE CONTINUED

force a private company to bring in speci c businesses, through our zoning, we can encourage certain types of residential and commercial uses. We hope to see a thriving, walkable community in that area soon. Luckily, some of that has already started with the active installation of a park that lines the Jordan River.

MAIN STREET PROJECT AREA

I often describe Main Street as a “chicken and egg” situation. Because the buildings on Main Street are mostly privately owned, the city cannot force a building owner to invest in a building and bring in a tenant. As the city has worked to get building owners to start investing in the buildings they own, property owners have been hesitant to invest, fearing they will not be able to have a successful business operate out of the building. The city has tried to make the pitch that if building owners start investing, that will bring in more tax dollars for us to be able to use to help revitalize the public side of the street, such as public art, parking, lighting, and more. In short, we’ve waited for building owners to make the street successful, and they’ve waited for us to do the same. Turning Main Street into a project area gives our city the resources to start investing in the street in a signi cant way, which is why I’m thankful that Salt Lake County agreed to do just that earlier this year.

As you’ve likely seen, our city has been pushing the addition of public art, speci cally murals, on our historic Main Street, which is being funded through the RDA. Adding in art is a way to help make the street safer and get more visitors onto the street. Outside of art, we are working on increasing the amount of parking, adding in better lighting, and working with businesses to increase usable space. As an example, we recently worked with the building owner where Tres Gatos is located to add an outdoor seating area where a parking spot existed. These types of changes help slow down cars and encourage people to spend more time on Main.

In addition to the public side of things, we’ve also created a Main Street small business loan program to help building owners and tenants start the process of revitalizing their own buildings. Recently, through this program, we approved a loan for the Pearl on Main, which is the privately owned historic theater on the street, to help them do needed renovations on both the inside and outside of the building. While this program is already in place, we are actively working on creating another similar program to continue to improve our Main Street that I believe we all want to see be successful.

WRAPPING UP

While the di erences between the Redevelopment Agency and Midvale City may be confusing, I hope this explanation helps clarify how and why this redevelopment began in the last several years. It’s also important to note that we feel the gravity of shifting property tax dollars from essential services like public safety and snow removal to redevelopment. That’s why we operate with prudence and transparency to increase the overall tax base through growth and redevelopment. Lastly, while the goal of redevelopment has largely been achieved in Bingham Junction, we still have a long way to go in both the Jordan Blu s and Main Street project areas. Things are moving in the right direction, but it will still take time to see these areas fully revitalized. In the meantime, I will continue diligently working with private businesses, public partners, and our residents to bring about successful and sustainable development.

LIGHT UP Main Street Event Saturday, December 3

What better way to get into the holiday spirit than with a stroll down Main Street?

Join us as we ring in the holidays at Light Up Main Street on Saturday, December 3, 2022, from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Be one of the rst to see historic Main Street lit up with holiday lights. Enjoy hot cocoa, get your picture taken with Santa, and shop at the Holiday Market. Gather up your family and friends because this is a holiday event you won’t want to miss!

UP L IGHT M I IN STREET ET

Midvale Main Street

S a t u r d a y

D E C E M B E R 3 , 2 0 2 2

6:00 p.m. 9:00 p.m.

Midvale's Historic Main Street 6th Ave to Center St

www.EngageMidvale.com

e First Picture eater in Midvale

By Bill Miller, Director, Midvale Museum

Back in 1906/1907, Midvale’s rst picture theater came to town. The original owners were Joseph B. Wright and John Dunn. The theater was located on Main Street right next to where the old Vincent Drug Store is located. It is now a vacant lot. The theater was called the “The Electric Theatre”. The reason for the name was that the projector was electric-powered, prior to this time the projector was hand-cranked. The theater was one of the only electric-powered theatres in the valley.

The movies were in black and white with no sound. (Can you imagine, no sound?) The conversations of the actors and actresses were ashed across the. Vivid imagination screen as required of the actors and the viewers. When action was needed when a train wreck or an explosion happened the words BOOM, CRASH, BANG, or other exciting words would ash across the screen. To emphasize the action there was a piano at the front of the stage to enhance the action, for the scenes of horror, suspense, wild action, romance, tenderness, or sadness. The piano player was a very

important part of the movie. Show times were between 1 1/2 and 2 hours. The movie lms sometimes came in as many as ve reels. When each reel ran out, it had to be rewound before the next reel could run. So, there was an intermission between each reel.

In April of 1909, Mr. Wright and Mr. Dunn sold the “The Electric Theatre” to The Horn Brothers for $800.00. The price included everything including 200 chairs and all the workings. Later the Horn Brothers sold the theater to Silas Brown. Silas renamed the theater “The Elysium”. He added vaudeville acts and sold magazines, candy, soda pop, and popcorn. There was also a barber shop and grocery store at this location.

The Midvale Museum has items from these businesses in our collection. Please stop by and visit us. We are always looking to serve the Midvale community, as well as looking for volunteers. We are located at Midvale City Park in the back of the Community Center (350 7610 S). Our hours are typically Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday, 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. See you there.

This information was taken from a fact sheet that was written by Harry S. Wright on 05/06/1978.

Winter On-Street Parking

If there are cars parked on the streets, plows can’t fully clear the roads and run the risk of hitting parked vehicles. Residents are not permitted to park any vehicle on city streets where one inch of snow has accumulated. The parking prohibition shall remain in e ect for 24 hours after the snow has ceased to fall, or until such time as the snow has been removed from the street. (Midvale Municipal Code Section 10.16.120). Residents should be mindful of the weather and make arrangements to park o the streets when snow is forecasted

Melting Snow: It’s Stormwater Too!

Cease the Grease this Holiday Season

Often our food around the holidays is heavy in fats, oils, and grease, which come from meats, butter, margarine, lard, food scraps, sauces, salad dressings, cooking oil, and more. It’s easy to assume that the warm grease and fat left over from your holiday dinner would be OK to pour down the sink if it’s washed down with hot soapy water. However, when these substances go down the drain they harden and cause sewer pipes to clog. The reality is that fat and grease quickly cools and solidi es, building up and blocking drains or sewers and causing damage to personal property. It’s not necessarily the people who put the wrong things down the sink who are a ected. The blockage can happen further down the street, so what you do in your home can be causing a problem for your neighbors.

There are several ways to dispose of fats, oils, and grease that won’t impact the pipes in your home, the sewer lines, or the environment.

• Cool it, can it, and trash it. Pour cooking oil or grease into a metal can or another heat-resistant container, let it cool, and then throw it in the trash.

• Before you wash pots and pans, wipe the fats, oil, and grease with a paper towel and toss it into the trash.

Winter snow often puts a pristine white coat over every surface which makes for beautiful photos and lots of family fun. However, it’s not long before the sun comes out to expose a host of issues created by the melting snow. Just like when rain falls the rest of the year, melting snow turns into stormwater runo . Heavy rains sweeping across your yard and driveway carry pollution and high volumes of water into our nearby streams, lakes, and other waterways. Melting snow does the same things. Both rain and snow melt can seriously impair Pennsylvania’s waters when they travel over the land in our developed communities. They can also cause signi cant property damage at your home.

In winter, melting snow actually causes a few unique stormwater problems. Because the ground is often frozen at the surface, melting snow can’t in ltrate into the soil the way light or moderate rain would be able to. So even a small amount of snow can cause localized ooding on your property. When snow builds up over several small storm events without melting in between, it can turn into large winter storm impacts when it nally does meltleading to potential community-wide ooding events. In both cases, standing and owing water on the ground is picking up all kinds of debris, pollutants (especially de-icing salts and chemicals), and litter that will nd their way into nearby streams.

Here are some tips for managing your property for winter stormwater this season:

• When piling your snow after shoveling and plowing, choose locations where the snow will have the most opportunity to in ltrate instead of becoming stormwater runo . Pile your snow in areas where you don’t usually have ponding in the spring rains, on relatively at areas, and away from sensitive areas like streams, ponds, and your private well if you have one.

• Clear your downspouts to allow melting roof snow to ow and not collect at your foundation.

• Make sure your nearest storm drains are clear. Do not pile snow on storm drains and make sure your neighborhood plow is not piling snow over the drains too. Clear away any snow that may have been kicked onto the drains by passing cars.

• Use de-icing chemicals and salts judiciously. Use what you need to make your walkways and driveways safe but try to avoid spreading around sensitive areas like waterways and your private well.

• Pay special attention to places that are eroding during snow melt, and make a plan to improve these areas in spring using plants that can slow and stop erosion, like native grasses and meadow plants or native trees and shrubs

Which schools made the grade?

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

The recently released Utah School Report Card shows public and charter schools that were recognized for excellence, including area schools such as Academy for Math, Engineering and Sci ence in Murray and Beehive Science & Technology Academy in Sandy, as well as how all schools can improve.

Produced by the Utah State Board of Education, school report cards are intend ed to inform parents, educators, and com munity stakeholders to learn more about accountability in schools.

The state report also said, “While no student report card tells the full story of a child, no school report card tells the full story of a school. Education is far more than a single score or letter grade, but it is important that families and communities can see both strengths and areas that need support and improvement.”

The report, which takes into account achievement and growth in core subjects of English/language arts, math and sci ence; as well as English language learners’ progress and post-secondary readiness, and other factors, can be found at: www. utahschoolgrades.schools.utah.gov

AMES received an A or exemplary status.

“It’s nice to be validated by another source other than our own data and our own workings,” said AMES Principal Brett Wilson.

While COVID-19 impacted many schools report cards, and they weren’t is sued during those two years, Wilson said some measures AMES put in place has helped student learning.

“During COVID, we did synchro nous learning, which means our students showed up for every class, every day, only

it was held online, synchronous with their teacher. It wasn’t just all online through Canvas (learning platform) without the teachers there, without some direction and that helped with learning,” he said. “What a lot of schools did is they would put as signments and content up on Canvas and have students watch videos and respond to their assignments. We did that, too, but ad ditionally, we had regular classes on their regular schedule, online via Zoom.”

In addition to making students ac countable, Wilson said it helped with re lationships.

“It helped keep connections and it didn’t let school get too far away. We’re not seeing the really big drop offs in terms of academic knowledge,” said the 11-year AMES principal, adding that the longevity of his teachers and staff have kept consis tency in relationships important.

Wilson acknowledged his faculty and staff already have plans to improve their scores.

“We’ve seen students coming in with lower reading scores and some lower writ ing skills. It’s just not something that any body does very often outside of school,” he said about the diminishing importance of writing or reading for pleasure.

Wilson said AMES students, under the direction of a teacher, can select a ti tle from a choice of three books, then will read and annotate together, predicting the plot and the characters’ actions.

“All that goes into good reading skills,” he said, adding that it will help with the ACT standardized college exam’s reading comprehension and speed test.

For schools that have lower marks, Wilson said that they can rebound.

“Dive into your data and see where

Beehive Science & Technology Academy in Sandy maintained its exemplary status on its report card, which was recently released from the Utah State Board of Education. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

your gaps are. Try to fill those gaps with either teachers that are highly trained for those students, or curriculum or smaller opportunities that you can really direct the learning. We’ve tossed around doing a bet ter reading test for our ninth graders and tracking them better as they move through our four years here, since we’ve noticed that the reading scores are going down — that’s just a small example.”

Beehive Academy also received an A. “We are quite happy that we are still maintaining an A after COVID, especially when so many things have changed,” said school director Hanifi Oguz, who said that the report card is more than an account ability of doing well. “We take it as a tool, an opportunity to see how we are doing and what we can focus on to improve and help our students.”

For example, in English, Beehive’s score has improved through the years.

“Typically English, in the past, was not as good as our other scores, and we have in recent years been working on it and it remains a high priority right now to further improve. It’s what we are working on with interventions, extra programs and support staff,” he said. “We have a col laborative team who work very closely to look at data and set the goals for the year— what we are going to focus on, what we are going to improve and what we are going to maintain. Our teachers are active team members and that makes a big difference because they are working very closely with the students and know how to use strate gies to make those improvements.”

While test scores are indicators, Oguz said he also relies on the teamwork of stu dents, parents and school staff.

“At the end of the day, the teachers and administration set goals, it comes down to the actual student who is learning and do ing the work, and how the students are sup ported by their parents. So, they have to be a partner in that. Much success is shown by

having a strong parent partnership through open communication and sharing the prog ress with parents; I think we have done a good job in that over the years, and we’re continuing to develop and have those close partnerships,” he said.

Oguz said Beehive has added more counselors and services to help the so cial-emotional health of students, which in turn, helps students have a better mindset so they’re ready to learn.

Beehive also introduced more free programs and clubs so students can experi ence learning in other opportunities.

“It makes a huge difference for those kids because it supports and enriches their learning, and it helps students become more well-rounded. It’s engaging students very meaningfully, providing not only ac ademic engagement, but also learning to be part of a team, experience working re lationships, develop friendship, and those positive interactions that you want with their peers,” Oguz said.

Instilling a mentality of success be gins at AMES from the first day, Wilson said.

“We start talking right away about success and college; we set that bar high. We tell them ‘Everybody’s going to grad uate; everybody’s going to have the op portunity if they want to be ready to go to post-secondary school.’ We do that. We’ve got a whole staff and student body who are connected to that mission. That’s the chal lenge, whether you’re 500 students, 200 students or 2,000,” he said. “A lot of peo ple refer to AMES students as nerds and we’re OK with that because that means you’re working hard. Our students aren’t afraid to stay up late and do the work that it takes to get good grades and to learn. We embrace the nerdiness of who we are; we have a whole school of 454 nerds all working together toward a common goal of success and we’ll take that.” l

New blankets sought for Midvale Elementary schoolchildren

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

This winter, Midvale Elementary fourth-graders may be able to cud dle up in a warm, new blanket.

Teacher Amanda Kraft wants to make sure every student in her grade stays warm and dry. She’s hoping to provide about 125 blankets.

“When I do home visits, I have noticed in the wintertime, it’s very cold in our stu dents’ houses,” she said. “With prices and inflation going up, they turn their heat down. That is the first thing that goes because the bills are so high and keeps being harder to pay. So the blanket drive for the fourth grade

is so we can get a new blanket to every stu dent to help them stay warm.”

This month, Kraft is accepting dona tions. If community members or businesses would like to contribute, contact or bring them to Midvale Elementary, 7830 S. Chapel St. New blankets of any size and design are welcome.

This is her fourth year gathering blan kets for students.

“I work with the poorest of children. I see where they live and I want them to suc ceed so I give them what I can,” Kraft said. “It’s hard to learn when you’re cold.” l

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Huskies trained in offseason, ready to compete on the mats

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Heading into the wrestling season, head coach Nick Pappas is happy with what he’s seen of his team.

Senior captain Briona Love, who is ranked first in 5A in her weight classification of 145 pounds, is ready for the season.

“She’s traveled to Fargo (North Dako ta) for a national tournament and recently went to the Western States Tournament,” he said. “She has been competing in the off season and is pretty locked in as far as her dedication.”

Pappas also has other state podium finishers returning on the 12-member girls’ team.

“(Sophomore) Eliza Zimmerman is also state ranked and a returning state placer. (Ju nior) Lilly Hutchings also is ranked in state. All the girls have a good shot at placing at state this year. They’re hard-working,” he said.

Several returning senior boys will lead the 30-member team; Pappas expects to see some compete at state.

“(Senior) Ezekiel Zimmerman was one match from placing last year. (Senior) Isa iah Rayco, he’s got a good shot, too. He was pretty dedicated in the offseason. (Senior) Wesley Tello, he got a pretty good shot, too. There’s a lot more of them, but those three

are the ones who were at the state tourna ment last year,” he said.

Ezekiel Zimmerman likely will com pete in the 130-pound classification; Rayco at 126 pounds and Tello at 144 pounds.

“Our seniors have done an awesome job demonstrating technique during open gyms, Pappas said, adding that he has five girls and seven to 10 boys who are new to the sport.

“We have a decent culture and kids know what’s expected. A lot of the kids talk to friends and bring them out and we have kids walking by the wrestling room while it’s open and come asking about it,” he said.

This year, the girls will compete at the Rockwell Rumble in Herriman.

“It’s a big tournament with teams

from the western states, from Colorado to California. It’s probably the biggest high school tournament in the season that’s put on here in the state. We also take our girls to the Christmas Clash (in Farmington), one of the bigger girls’ tournaments that usually there are 50-plus teams. I want to take at least a few of the boys to the Des ert Storm tournament out in St. George,” Pappas said, adding that Arizona wrestlers likely will compete at it.

The Huskies were expected to open the season away at Taylorsville High, Pappas’s alma mater. Then, during the season, they are set to defend the Battle of the Axe dual against Brighton on Jan. 18, 2023.

Their biggest region competition may come from Payson High.

“Payson will have a lot of returners, and that’s the biggest thing, so that will come down to the wire as it usually does,” he said.

They match up against Payson Dec. 8, before divisionals on Feb. 3-4, 2023 and state, Feb. 17-18, 2023.

“I think this is going to be the best year we’ve had; our region is one of the toughest in state. What you’ll get out of us as a group of kids who are wanting to and will work hard,” Pappas said. “We have a lot of camaraderie on the team.” l

Hillcrest’s wrestling team will open their season at home on Dec. 6 against Olympus before trying to defend their Battle of the Axe title in January 2023. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Hillcrest wraps up fall sports season

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Many of Hillcrest High student-athletes competed in postseason play in sports this fall. Here is a recap of the Huskies’ seasons.

Girls’ tennis

Senior captain Sowmya Paritala gave her all in the state playoffs, playing a match three and one-half hours to reach the quarterfinals that were played an hour later.

“It was tiring after an hour and one-half, and I was cramping up, but I didn’t give up,” she said about her first round win. “I really like that about tennis. It’s a very in-the-mo ment thing. I like making quick decisions. In a match, I try to change my strategy to improve my game.”

Her reward for winning her first round was to play the eventual state champion for No. 3 singles, who she also played at region.

Her teammate, sophomore Fabiana Gon zalez, who was recovering from a wrist sprain, also lost in quarterfinals and teammate, soph omore Camila Andrade lost in the first round. Overall, the team finished tied for ninth place at state.

The singles players along with the dou bles teams won 5A region 7 on the school’s newly installed tennis courts.

“I was happy that I won region individual ly, but even happier when the whole team won; we put a lot of effort into it,” said the Huskies’ former No. 1 player who focused on playing more consistent this year in her new role.

While she may play club tennis, she defi nitely plans to continue playing as a hobby.

“I think walking away, the thing I’ll miss the most is the girls on the team. Even though tennis is naturally an individual sport or played with a team of two, in high school, it really is a whole team effort to help each other grow,” said Paritala, who along with four other se niors, will graduate in the spring and leave Gonzalez and Andrade to lead the team next season.

Head girls’ tennis coach Creighton Chun was impressed with his team.

“I’m so proud of them; I believe we’re the first school team to take a title in this region,” he said. “Our singles players really fought at state, but who knows, maybe we can even

do better next year with more girls coming in. Some of our return players are playing in the offseason now that we have home courts to practice on. I think we’re going to be better and better.”

Girls’ soccer

With a third-place finish in region, the Huskies hosted Timpview High in the state playoffs.

Senior captain Teya Snowder said it was a different feeling heading into that game.

“It was a tough loss,” she said. “We had the home game because our RPI was better and that put a mentality and pressure on that we’re supposed to win this game at home,” she said.

“Still, it was fun that we ended the season on our home turf, and we had a good turnout with the student section and the parents.”

“Home turf” meant the football field be cause all four years Snowder has played, and the year preceding, the school didn’t have a soccer field because of campus construction. The newly installed field should be available for the boys’ team this spring.

The Huskies, who have used East Mid vale Elementary’s playground as a home field, finished with an overall record of 11-5.

“Our record was great. We improved a lot over the season. If you were to compare our first game to our last game, improvement was definitely there and that’s a win in our book,” she said, adding that this year practices were longer and the team worked harder on “passing and getting shots in, so we were getting more

touches on the ball” rather than conditioning.

It was the first season under head coach Brett Davis, who has coached the boys’ team for years.

“Coach Brett has given me a new outlook on soccer for sure. He has helped me learn how to read the game by asking open-ended ques tions and making me figure out what’s best. It helped me make quicker decisions in the game. He has a different style than our previous coach. Coach Brett wanted the exact opposite of what I did last year when I was dribbling so players naturally would mark me so I’d have three, four defenders on me. Under coach Brett, I’d pass the ball and then I wouldn’t have so many defenders clumped on me, so I had more opportunities in the end to take the shots,” said Snowder, who lead the team and region in goals.

While six seniors will graduate, Snowder said that some younger teammates played var sity and have that experience to help the Hus kies next season.

Snowder, who began playing Sandy City recreational soccer at age 4 and then club soc cer, competed all four years on varsity and recently signed to play soccer with Southern Utah University next year.

Volleyball

Senior Isabella Kuburic led the Huskies in aces and blocks this season as the Huskies finished sixth in region.

The team beat Granger, Monticello and Cottonwood (twice) with scores of 3-0, and

outplayed West and Bryce Valley, both 2-0. Overall, the team, under head coach Melissa Guymon, went 6-19 this season.

The Huskies faced the unexpected loss of senior setter Emma Walters, who was practic ing with the team before her first game back from an ACL tear, and suffered a second tear; she was unable to play all season.

The team will be without five seniors when they return next season.

Boys’ golf

Senior Connor Poulsen represented Hill crest at the state tournament as he did last year.

This season, Poulsen shot 85 for his first round, falling short of making the cut by five strokes and therefore, didn’t play the second day.

“He should have made the cut,” coach Dave Richardson said. “His dad is my assis tant coach and he said on the very first hole, he just didn’t hit a very good drive, didn’t follow it up with another shot. He was just nervous. It’s very nerve-wracking, but I’m proud of him. He’s got several college scouts looking at him.”

Richardson had hoped other players or even the team would make state, but that wasn’t the way the ball rolled.

“We had a couple players just miss the tournament by a stroke or two and our team didn’t all play well enough to qualify. We ac tually came really close to winning the tourna ment that Cedar Valley hosts, but when Connor was playing the 18th hole, somebody left a big

Hillcrest senior captain Teya Snowder, who will play next year for Southern Utah University, played soccer all four years on East Midvale Elementary’s play ground as the Huskies’ home field and this season, finished with an overall record of 11-5. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Comcast celebrates the launch of SheMoney’s Spend program

By Peri Kinder | peri.k@thecityjournals.com

When ComcastRISE was launched to support women-owned small busi nesses, Comcast committed $1 billion to programs that would affect 50 million people. ComcastRISE, which stands for Representation, Investment, Strength and Empowerment, helps business owners get access to tools and funding they need to thrive.

In early November, Comcast sponsored the opening of SheMoney’s Spend program, inviting conscious consumerism to support women+ business owners in their wealth creation journey.

SheMoney, a content platform dedicat ed to financial equity, is a sister brand to She Place, a network designed to help members build social capital through resource sharing and opportunities for worldwide collabora tion.

Madison Limansky, COO of ShePlace, worked in the fashion industry and produc tion for 17 years. After receiving a degree in gender studies from the University of Utah, it changed her perception of the fashion world and she revolutionized the way com panies approach representation through me dia campaigns.

Limansky joined forces with ShePlace founder Jacki Zehner to build a program that takes networking to a new level, with a focus on collaborative success.

“We believe that social capital is a cru cial ingredient to financial success. What we want to do at ShePlace is provide digital and in-person space where people can connect in a way that goes beyond industry and socio economic status,” Limansky said. “Research shows when looking at what makes a com

munity vibrant for upward mobility, what’s most important is friendships that connects people across a socioeconomic spectrum.”

ShePlace is a network where individu als and groups can share opportunities and challenges and have the opportunity to coor dinate efforts. Approximately 70% of SheP lace members are based in Utah, but the plat form includes women+ from 28 states and 13 countries. It encompasses nonbinary or gender fluid individuals and is intentionally inclusive of people that don’t identify on the binary spectrum.

The SheMoney brand gives women the ability to learn about and control financial resources. While money can’t buy happi ness, it can help provide resources like ac cess to counseling services, fitness classes, networking opportunities and more.

Through its custom framework called the 7 Money Moves, SheMoney delves into the actions a person can take with money. Whether it’s spending, saving, investing, protecting, giving, borrowing or earning, SheMoney offers women a chance to under stand and control their financial security.

“If we can make a difference in a per son’s financial wellness, that has the poten tial to impact every area of their well-being,” Limansky said. “If you can’t afford a thera pist or live in a home with access to clean water or take time for a spiritual practice, money has the ability to impact all areas of your life.”

Spend is the first targeted focus of the SheMoney platform and brings together 70 small business owners across 10 categories, including business services, art, food, beauty and health. SheMoney hopes to inspire con

footprint in the sand trap and his ball went in there and it took them a couple of hacks to get it out. He should have made par on that hole instead of a triple bogey. If he would have made it in five, we would have won that tournament. We got third by two strokes. That’s how close that one was,” he said.

The team finished sixth in region and will graduate three seniors.

“We’re going to get better,” Richardson said. “We have some good guys coming back.”

Football

“We made some great strides offensively,” head football coach Brock Bryant said. “We averaged about 21 points in re gion, averaging 4.5 yards on the run game and over 150 yards passing. I’m really proud of the kids this year; they never quit. There are four games that we could have won, but it came down to one or two plays.”

The team, which he said was “very undersized; we faced a lot of adversity with four linemen breaking their hands in one game, which was kind of a fluke. They all kept playing, came back and really helped us. I love these kids’ perseverance and they have that great attitude.”

Bryant said that special teams played well this season.

“We kept the ball front of us and we made some big plays; we still got to work on some fundamentals defensively, but we made some big strides,” he said.

The Huskies finished eighth in region and finished the sea son with a record of 0-10.

scious spending and intentional support for women+ owned businesses and create social change.

“We started with Spend because it’s something everyone can participate in im mediately,” she said. “If we spent every dollar in a more intentional way to support women and people of color, that could make a huge impact in the financial landscape of Utah.”

Historically, Utah has been a difficult place for women economically but the Spend experiment could be the first step toward ad dressing change in a healthy, long-term way.

“We hope to be an aggregator of the resources readily available to business own

“I’m feeling really good about the relationship that we’re building with the youth leagues and it takes patience, consis tency and time, but these kids want to keep striving to make Hillcrest a better place. I love the parents here in the communi ty; they’re real supportive and our student fans were great this year,” he said, adding that 10 seniors will graduate this spring.

“I’m excited what the future is bringing.”

Cross Country

Senior captain Sam Timmerman and sophomore Josh Martin finished 69th and 70th in the 5K in 16:48 and 16.48.2, respectively, to bring the boys’ team to a 21st-place finish at the state tournament.

The girls’ team made its return competing at the state, with junior Edith Neslen leading the squad with a 48th individual place finish with a time of 19:59.4. The team finished 24th.

One of the team’s devoted runners, senior captain Kay Er ekson, cheered the team at state from the sidelines alongside coaches Scott Stucki, Shannon Hurst and Alex Mettler.

Erekson, who has practiced with the team for four years and competed for three, runs JV.

“My freshman year I ran in the summer before because my older sister didn’t want to do it by herself, so she dragged me along, but then I didn’t race during the season,” she said. “The next year, I remembered having a ton of fun at practices, so I decided to do it again and my sister and (teammate) Abigail (Slama-Catron) convinced me to race. I’m really glad; I made so many friends and I have found some of my best friends on

ers,” Limansky said. “It’s about economic connectedness among the business owners and accessing resources like knowing which type of capital is most effective for your business, or understanding when is it time to grow and scale your business.

“Comcast not only provided a cash sponsorship for the launch event, they also provided a lot of photo and video coverage for this event. That was such an extraordi nary gift and an asset to us as a small compa ny just getting started.”

Visit sheplace.com and comcastrise. com for more information. l

the team. I liked our summer practices best when we’d run in the mountains so it was worth it to wake up that early and run every day.”

Erekson said that she had only competed in one race prior to her first one in high school.

“My family ran a gobble gobble or turkey trot that was maybe a mile and I walked,” she remembered.

Even though she’s not the top runner on the team, she likes racing.

“I like trying to get better and seeing if I could beat my own time. I like racing myself, not racing everybody else,” she said, adding that she’s looking forward to improving her track race times in the spring. “I can see what I’ve accomplished; my results of my practicing show in my races.”

Region is Erekson’s favorite cross country race.

“We have a big team dinner the night before and, as senior girls, we wrote notes of encouragement to all the other girls. Before the race, we have fun writing words of encouragement on our arms and legs,” she said. “One thing that really helped me was having a mantra this year. My mantra for region, which was my last race, was ‘no doubt, no regret.’ Going into my race, I knew I was prepared, and I had no doubt in my mind that I could do it. Once I finished my race, I had no regrets. I know I gave it my all in the race. It was really good, and I was proud of how I raced.” l

At a launch party in November sponsored by Comcast, SheMoney launched its Spend program to support women+ business owners. (Photo courtesy of The Ahfuas)

Utah becoming more food-truck friendly

By Sarah Morton Taggart | s.taggart@mycityjournals.com

The Salt Lake area isn’t usually thought of as a top food truck destination, but that might now change thanks to a new state law.

House Bill 146 became effective in May and restricts the ability of a city or county to require a separate business license if the food truck owner already has a valid license in an other Utah community. In other words, it re quires food truck owners to obtain a business license from just one city—not every single municipality or county they want to operate in. Communities around the state are gradually amending their codes to be in compliance.

Melissa Anderson from the Community Development Department presented related code amendments to the Sandy City Council on Oct. 25.

“In lieu of a Sandy City business license, mobile food business owners may submit a business license from another political subdi vision in the state,” Anderson said. “The pro posed amendments make it easier to operate a mobile food business in Sandy, consistent with a new state law.”

Among other changes, food truck own ers will also not be required to disclose finan cial information or pay additional fees above the actual cost of processing the neighboring business license. The Planning Commission forwarded a positive recommendation, and the amendments were approved at the Sandy City Council meeting Nov. 15.

“The impact will be big,” said Taylor Har ris, a founding partner and general manager of The Food Truck League, a network of gourmet food trucks in Utah. In addition to organizing events, the League works to promote, lobby and advocate for the industry.

Harris has been part of a four-year-long process begun by then-Sen. (now Lieutenant Governor) Deirdre Henderson and the Libertas Institute to create a “food truck freedom” law to reduce regulations.

“Sen. Henderson brought everyone to the table,” Harris said. “What was happening was every city was doing a policy that made sense in isolation, but the compounding effects—the way we’re organized geographically in Utah— it was just killing trucks and stopping them from being able to run their businesses. So, we came up with a framework, we tried out a cou

ple different things, and that’s evolved over the last several years and we’ve gotten to this place that’s really a happy home where it works for everybody.”

Harris said the original law has been test ed and improved to the point where now it has become a model for other states.

A statement on the Libertas Institute’s website says that the new law is fair since other businesses, including catering companies, are not required to obtain licenses in each city in which they operate.

Though it will take time for every com munity to amend city codes to reflect the law like Sandy has, Harris believes it has already had a big impact in the day-to-day business of food truck owners and operators.

“Most of the cities we work with are working on it,” Harris said. “In practice they’re implementing it and working on formalizing it. I think for cities there’s this balance. They don’t want to lose control over protecting their pub lic, and at the same time, they’re busy. They don’t want duplication any more than we do. They just want to make sure that everything is safe and taken care of, and I think this law ad dressed that concern.”

The Food Truck League held its first pub lic event in May 2015 and has hosted events throughout the valley ever since, including Food Truck Mondays at Sandy Amphitheater Park, 1245 E. 9400 South.

“We work with Sandy to do their event at the amphitheater,” Harris said. “It has been a great event, but this will make it easier to bring a wider variety of trucks in. Now we can pull from all the best trucks Utah has to offer, in stead of just the best trucks registered in San dy.”

The League counts over 300 distinct food trucks in its network. Harris recommends visit ing the League’s site www.thefoodtruckleague. com/food-trucks/trucks/ to find food trucks all year long.

“Anyone that knows restaurants knows that’s a hard business,” Harris said. “They don’t do it for money, they do it for love. So to give them tools to be more successful is really exciting. And this legislation allows the regu latory environment to help our creators get out there and not get shut down due to signing pa per work over and over again.” l

A

Sandy’s Amphitheater Park. (Photo courtesy The Food Truck League)

That Ol’ Christmas Spirit

ven though 2022 seemed to last as long as a 5-year-old reading “Green Eggs and Ham,” the holidays rushed in like a wicked case of intestinal flu. But high grocery prices? Rising inflation? Those things have never stopped Americans from over-celebrating the holidays.

If you’re finding it hard to capture the spirit of Christmas this year, just remem ber the real meaning of the holidays: get ting presents. All those brightly-wrapped packages will bring you hours of tempo rary joy and fulfillment.

I wonder if we have lost our senses, in a very literal way. Maybe if we come back to our senses for the holidays, we’ll stop eating when we’re not hungry, partying when we’re tired and buying a doghouse full of gifts for the family puppy when we’re already overbudget.

Let’s start with the sights of the sea son, like the piles of enticing Amazon box es shoved into hiding places and spilling out of closets. The twinkling lights of po lice cars at the neighbor’s house. The deadeyed stare of a Target cashier and colored globes hanging on the Christmas tree that drops needles when someone walks by.

How about the sounds of the season, like your favorite holiday tunes played by an accordion, or the infinite Mariah Carey

song remix/mash-ups/covers. You’ll hear “Carol of the Bells” so often it becomes part of that nightmare where you’re run ning to get the last LEGO set but you’re wearing furry slippers and keep tripping over elves. And there’s so much jingling!

What does Christmas feel like? A tod dler’s fingers, sticky from a candy cane, leaving pink fingerprints down the hall. Paper cuts from wrapping gifts. Cold, wet toes as you trudge through snowy parking lots and discover a hole in the sole of your boot. Frozen fingertips, runny noses and being bustled by bustling crowds.

The tastes of Christmas include nasti ness like eggnog and fruitcake, but also the sugary sweetness of gumdrops that suction to your molars and must be surgically re moved. Then there’s scalding hot choco late with toasted marshmallows. (Hint: don’t toast marshmallows in the actual toaster. I know that now.)

December smells like cinnamon, cloves, Seussian roast beast and smoke from your overused credit card. I’ve never smelled roasted chestnuts, but I imagine they have an aroma like a wet dog lying by the fire. Real evergreen trees emit the scent of fresh forests while making it hard to breathe for people with pine allergies.

Obviously, it’s easy to get caught up in what’s going wrong with the holidays, without paying attention to the feeling

behind the scenes. When I sit with that emotion, it’s one of peace, generosity, kindness, forgiveness and love. Things Hallmark Christmas movies are always going on about.

What if Hallmark is right? And I’ve never said that before.

Maybe the miracle of Christmas is noticing the small pleasures like when your friend sends you a funny card or your husband brings you a soft, fluffy blanket as you binge holiday movies. Maybe it’s reading stories to your grandkids or listen ing to grandparents share favorite Christ mas morning memories.

More than the senses, Christmas is about time. A time to pause. A time to be still. A time to remember. A time to breathe. A time to be grateful. A time to be with family. A time to reflect with wonder and awe at the beauty of this world.

Coming back to our senses, in a real way, slows time. It reminds us we’re not alone as we move together through these dark nights with bright stars, just doing the best we can.

Peri Kinder is an award-winning hu mor writer, hosts the Life & Laughter pod cast and was voted Best of State for 2022. She’s also a yoga/meditation instructor and life coach.

Peri Kinder Life and Laughter