Midvale Journal | January 2023

Two men crouch, facing each other in a 15-foot circle. At the signal, they explode into movement, pushing and dodging until one of them steps out of the ring. The bout is over in a matter of seconds. This is sumo, and one of America’s top amateur wrestlers lives right here in Midvale.

“Shin-deshi:” A new recruit into sumo George Ferris never seriously considered sumo wrestling until he saw a billboard for a tournament while driving down I-15.

“I thought, ‘I’m a big guy. I’m relatively athletic,’” Ferris said. “When am I ever going to have a chance to do sumo?”

The Fitcon 2019 Sumo Cup was organized to give the best amateur sumo wrestlers in America a chance to gather and compete between the U.S. Sumo Open and the World Sumo Championships. According to a blogger on northamericansumo.com, many of the top American competitors and even wrestlers from Mongolia and England competed.

“So I showed up, they gave me a free T-shirt, and I went undefeated in two tournaments,” Ferris said.

Amateur sumo consists of bouts between nonprofessional and ex-professional wrestlers, as well as women and minors, who are ineligible to compete as professional sumo wrestlers.

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

George Ferris (right) tried sumo on a whim in 2019 and won gold in the Beginner’s Open category and the Men’s Team Competition. (Photo courtesy George Ferris)

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 cancer, 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 tolerated 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 influenza strains are likely to be most common that year, and vaccines are then tailored to combat these.

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Former White House photographer chronicles, shares inside the presidency

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

When former White House photographer Pete Souza was in fourth grade, he taped a photo from the New Bedford Standard Times on his closet door.

It was soon after the assassination of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy in November 1963 with Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson being sworn into the presidency with Jacqueline Kennedy by his side aboard a plane that would fly to Washington, D.C.

“For whatever reason, I was transfixed by the images that came out,” Souza recently told a standing-room only auditorium at Salt Lake Community College’s Grand Theatre. “There was something about the still image that even as an 8 year old, I was struck by enough so that I taped these pictures to my closet door. I know that the photograph taken by Army Capt. Cecil Stoughton, one of the two military photographers assigned to the Kennedy White House, became probably the most famous official White House photograph ever.”

Little did he know then that he found his future career. It took Souza enrolling in a photography class during his junior year at Boston University to realize “it’s what I wanted to do. It was magic to me.”

Souza, who photographed Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama during their presidencies, began his career shooting for the Hutchinson, Kansas newspaper. He moved on to the Chicago Sun Times, where amongst his assignments, he was to photograph the campaign of Harold Washington, who in 1983, became the first Black mayor of Chicago.

That same year, Souza received a call from a former photo director at the Kansas City Star, where he was turned down for a job. She invited him to join the White House photography staff during the Reagan era.

“One of the things I used to tell my

(Ohio University) students was, ‘don’t ever piss anybody off professionally because you never know how they’re going to help you some day,’” he said. “Being an official White House photographer was an amazing experience. Documenting the presidency for history, in a lot of situations, I was the only photographer in the room.”

He recalled covering Reagan when he greeted wounded Marines in 1983 after a terrorist attack in Beirut; watching the space shuttle Challenger explosion in 1986, all four summits with Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev; the Iran-Contra scandal; at the hospital following his wife Nancy’s breast cancer surgery; and even, joining him on vacation.

“He and Nancy would go to Camp David every weekend and ride horses and here he is helping her from a horse,” Souza said as an image projected on a screen behind him. “The idea is that you’re making photographs, not for the next day’s newspaper, but for the National Archives. Every single picture that I made during both during the Reagan administration and the Obama administration are now at the National Archives.”

Souza not only took the photos of the serious moments of the commander in chief, but also, the lighter ones.

“I’m trying to humanize them as much as possible. This is Reagan at a hotel in Los Angeles,” he said referring to another image. “I walked into the hotel room where he was staying, and he was folding a piece of White House stationery into the shape of paper airplane. He looked up at me and he’s, like, ‘I’ll be right with you.’”

Then, Reagan flew his official White House stationery paper airplane off the hotel deck.

After Reagan left the White House,

Souza freelanced for several publications, including National Geographic. Then, as a national photographer for the Chicago Tribune, Souza was among the first photojournalists to cover the fall of Kabul, Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks; he did so by joining the local Northern Alliance soldiers and crossed the Hindu Kush mountains by horseback in 3 feet of snow. Also, while at the Tribune, Souza was part of the team who were awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 2001 for explanatory reporting on the troubled air traffic system.

In 2004, Souza served as the official photographer at Reagan’s funeral. It was

during the flight from Washington, D.C. to Reagan’s final resting place in Simi Valley, California that he realized then he had never seen any pictures of JFK’s casket being flown from Dallas to Washington, D.C.

“Cecil made the decision not to be on the plane with JFK, but to take this film to a lab there in Dallas, get it processed, and get that picture sent out to the world. I can’t imagine trying to make that decision because my instinct would have been you got to be with the President on that plane. Cecil probably chose the right thing to do, but I don’t know that I would have been able to make that decision,” Souza said.

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The photograph of Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson being sworn into the presidency intrigued former White House photographer Pete Souza as a boy. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

That same year, while working for the Chicago Tribune, Souza was documenting newly elected U.S. Sen. Obama. He recalled Obama’s first D.C. office in the basement of the Dirksen Senate Office Building, with no windows or anything on the walls.

“People already were talking about that someday he might be a national candidate and I was like, ‘Man, this is going to be a great contrast photo if he ever makes it.’ The thing that struck me so much about that first day was that I’ve just met the guy, and I’m in his personal space, photographing as he’s having lunch,” he said, pointing out in his photograph that Obama’s young daughter Sasha was eyeing part of the uneaten sandwich. “It’s as if I’m not even there. He’s just more about his businesses. I’m about my business. For a photojournalist, that’s the kind of stuff that you want, right? Somebody who’s just going to do their thing while you’re doing it.”

Souza went on to become the chief official White House photographer.

“I was able to say to him, ‘Look to do this job the right way, I need unfettered access’ and he agreed. My goal was to create the best photographic archive of a president that had ever been done,” he said.

Souza captured moments, which now the world can see on his Instagram posts.

He has moments that highlight the passing of the Affordable Care Act to samesex marriage, from the president receiving the Nobel Peace Prize to Obama singing “Amazing Grace” as an eulogy for Rev. Clementa Pinckney, who was killed in 2015 in a Charleston church shooting. He also shared photographs of Obama touring the 9/11 Memorial Museum while under construction and visiting the firehouse where 18 firefighters died during the twin towers’ collapse.

Souza snapped historic moments.

He photographed Obama visiting Nelson Mandela’s prison cell in South Africa; reflecting at Martin Luther King Jr.’s memorial as the first Black president; sitting on the bus where Rosa Parks refused to give her seat to a white man; and joining in the 50th anniversary of the civil rights march in Selma, Alabama.

Souza’s lens not only saw the occasions that marked Obama’s presidency, but also personal times, when Obama and his wife have a quiet moment in a freight elevator or intertwining their hands on a boat rail in the Gulf Coast. His photographs show the president playing in the snow with his daughters, intensely coaching daughter Sasha’s basketball team or getting zapped by a 3-year-old boy dressed for Halloween as Spider-Man—all which audience members chuckled at as stories were shared.

“I would use quiet cameras, usually one with a wide-angle lens and another one with a short telephoto lens. I had a knack for being unobtrusive. President Obama, in his memoir, says I had an ability to remain invisible. I don’t think I was invisible, but I

think I was able to blend in so much so that I became part of the presidency. I could go right behind him and show things from his perspective and do it in a way not to disturb anybody,” he said.

Perhaps the first of two of the most emotional photos, Souza said, is when Obama and all the national security team were gathered inside a small room within the Situation Room complex in May 2011. Souza took a spot opposite of the officials who were watching a screen that showed Special Forces on the ground raiding the Pakistan compound of Osama Bin Laden, who claimed responsibility for the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“You’ve essentially got all the most important people in the executive branch of our government all jammed into this room and there’s nothing they can do. They are powerless in this moment because it’s totally up to those Special Forces guys on the ground. You can imagine the tension and anxiety,” he said, recalling that Obama quietly took a place in the corner. “As soon as they had Bin Laden, and the helicopters lifted off from the compound in Pakistan, everybody started filtering through. The reaction was very subtle. There was no high fives, no cheering.”

A second poignant photo Souza shared was when Obama gave a hug to the Wheeler family who just lost their 6-year-old son Ben during the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting.

“The worst day (of Obama’s presidency) happened five weeks after he was reelected. That morning, John Brennan, his homeland security adviser, came upstairs saying there were reports of a shooting at a school in Connecticut,” Souza said, looking at a photo he snapped at the time of the president “reacting as a parent.”

Before Obama spoke to the nation in the press briefing room, he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. It was the first time Souza had ever seen him do that.

“I think he was worried he was going to lose his composure. Later that afternoon when he went up to residence, Malia had just come home from school. He latched on to her and wouldn’t let her go,” he said to a noticeable collective sob in the audience.

As Souza looks back, and shares his first-hand account through books he published, talking and having his photographs

been displayed globally, and being featured in the 2020 documentary, “The Way I See It,” he knows his experiences are making an impact on others as it did himself.

“I realize how lucky I’ve been when I look back and see how much I’ve been able to witness, especially considering I did get a D in U.S. history,” Souza said, adding that history lessons when he was in school lacked stories and pictures. “There were some days where photographing at the White House was like watching paint dry. But when things were happening, there’s no other place I’d rather be than documenting things as history is unfolding. That was a great honor and privilege to be there.”

During his visit, he also met with SLCC students where he gave the advice to “go out and make pictures every day because that’s how you’re going to get better.” Souza said that because he had been a photojournalist prior to the White House, he was able to “anticipate and recognize moments—and that’s experience more than anything.”

SLCC Humanities Associate Professor Claire Adams said students came to know Souza as a storyteller as well as a photographer.

“His conversation was really informal and came from the storytelling angle as well as the more technical questions from our photography students,” she said, adding that each student received an autographed copy of either his No. 1 New York Times bestseller “Obama: An Intimate Portrait” or his recently released book, “The West Wing and Beyond: What I Saw Inside the Presidency.” “It’s apparent that it’s the dignity of the office that he cares about, not politics. He highlights it through his eyes and through his literal lens.”

Adams said that her Honors 2100 Intellectual Traditions class had watched portions of the documentary preceding his visit and was reviewing his presentation.

“The theme of that class is storytelling specifically. Pete Souza is a really good resource to use in terms of artifacts that we look at in the humanities, such as literature, photographs, art, music. His photographs are definitely something I’ll continue to use in classes,” she said, adding that students and the community took advantage of seeing his “Obama: Intimate Portraits” display at SLCC’s George S. & Dolores Doré Eccles Art Gallery.

SLCC Provost for Academic Affairs Clifton Sanders also was drawn into Souza’s photography and storytelling.

“He was captivating,” Sanders said. “The way that he was able to chronicle history through the photographs and give a little bit of information that no one would know other than him being there in those moments. The pictures are very compelling, but the stories really give depth to the pictures. I just got a sense that he was the person for that time in history. He’s really down to earth. There are no airs about him. What you see is really what he’s like. I can really appreciate that the way he documented and is sharing the history for us all to gain insight and witness it through him.”

The annual Tanner Forum on Social Ethics, funded in part by the O.C. Tanner Co., has hosted about 20 speakers from journalists to scientists “to encourage the community to learn more about the world and encourage us to think more critically about issues,” Sanders said. l

Pete Souza, former White House chief photographer, shared the story behind the photo of President Barack Obama and his family joining Sen. John Lewis and others at the 50th anniversary of the civil rights march in Selma, Alabama. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

I realize how lucky I’ve been when I look back and see how much I’ve been able to witness, especially considering I did get a D in U.S. history.

Pete Souza

Inclusivity increasing as more area high schools support unified sports and activities

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Hillcrest High School junior Kori Carmona Lopez wants to win, the same as any high school student-athlete.

“It’s my favorite part, of course,” she said.

Carmona Lopez, who plays unified soccer and basketball, bonds with her teammates.

“The best part of being a unified player is having helpers and making and being friends with them. I just love it,” she said. “We hang out, walk the mall, watch movies, do anything. They asked me to join LIA (Latinos-in-Action) so I’m doing more at school now. I just went to the Salsa-Salsa party; it was fun.”

That is a welcomed outcome, said Courtnie Worthen, manager of Special Olympics Utah’s Unified Champion Schools, that promotes a three-tier approach through unified sports, inclusive youth leadership and whole school engagement.

“The best things are the inclusion, the friendships they create, how the athletes are celebrated and are included in school activities,” she said.

Inclusion is increasing in area schools. When Worthen joined the Special Olympics staff four years ago, there were about 15 schools. Now, it’s “pushing 100.”

While Special Olympics encourages inclusion in all schools, a noticeable difference is seen in high schools. Brighton High Principal Tom Sherwood said it’s important.

“Everybody benefits,” he said. “We want our school to be a microcosm of our communities. Our special needs students don’t just make up 10 to 15% of schools; they make up 10 to 15% of our population. Inclusion needs to start in schools. The more we can learn to understand each other, the more it expands our humanity.”

Unified sports are a catalyst, Worthen said.

“Training and playing together often leads to friendship and more understanding,” she said.

Unified sports empower individuals with and without intellectual disabilities to play together, promoting inclusion through training and competition. Whether it’s sharing the ball in soccer and basketball or passing the baton in a track relay, students are participating in unified sports from elementary school to the professional level with Real Salt Lake’s unified team.

While the Utah High School Activities Association partnered to bring unified sports into high schools in 2012, a big push came two years ago when Gov. Spencer Cox and First Lady Abby Cox cheered on the high school unified soccer teams in the state championship games at Real Salt Lake’s stadium. Previously, state was

played on a high school field.

“The First Lady, as part of her initiative ‘Show Up,’ came on board and gave us a bigger microphone to share our mission. People started to notice and see what unified sports is and can be and they want to be a part of it,” Worthen said.

At this fall’s unified state soccer championships, Miss America Emma Broyles sang the national anthem, and Miss Utah Lindsey Larsen and RSL goalkeeper Zac MacMath joined her to award medals.

Last year, the unified state basketball tournament was held at Weber State University, which attracted college and semi-professional mascots and cheer squads to join high school cheerleaders in supporting the athletes. Unified track this year will be included in the state track and field meet at Brigham Young University.

Unified Champion School’s College-growth Coordinator Boston Iacobazzi said 37 high school unified soccer teams competed this fall and estimates 56 teams will play basketball in March.

“We’re looking at having three unified team sports and three unified individual or pair sports per year,” he said. “We have soccer, basketball, swimming and track and field right now; we’re deciding which sports to possibly add.”

Brighton, which won a state unified basketball title last year, also has students compete in unified soccer and has individuals on the swim team.

“If we truly believe high school sports add value to students’ educational experience, why wouldn’t you want as many students who are able to participate? It’s a very authentic experience and opportunity for everybody to benefit,” Sherwood said. “It’s a win-win.”

Jordan teammates sophomore Xavier Steggell and junior Cael Sieverts played together this past soccer season.

“It’s great to get to do sports and support each other,” Sieverts said. “We spend time practicing and hanging out together.”

Steggell added that it’s competitive, yet fun.

“We’re getting to enjoy the sport for the pure fun of it,” he said.

That’s what six-year Hillcrest High unified coach Shannon Hurst appreciates.

“I like the joy little things bring to the athletes, like kicking the ball or dribbling it down the field or court,” she said. “It offers perspective. Those little things bring so much happiness. The more buy-in and getting involved as faculty, with support from admin(istration) and our community, the bigger it has grown and been accepted. That’s important. They deserve the same kind of recognition, the same programming and the same support.”

Iacobazzi, who completed his student

teaching for his college degree at Alta High, reignited unified sports at the school.

“Being a coach gave me a different experience than being a partner,” he said. “As a unified partner, I was there to have fun playing alongside the athletes. As a coach, I’m teaching them how to be inclusive, playing together. What helped was the partners. A lot of them were peer tutors in the classroom. Alta’s girls’ soccer team taught a bunch of drills, and some of those girls just kept playing with the team.”

Iacobazzi didn’t grow up playing soccer. He first was a peer tutor, then his first soccer experience was playing for his high school unified team, under Hurst, when Hillcrest represented the nation at the 2018 Special Olympics USA games. Iacobazzi helped gain momentum with forming Real Salt Lake’s unified team.

In a state qualifying matchup, Alta played against Murray High, who eventually became state champions. Murray brothers Braedon and Turbo Domiguez played in the championships and their parents, Kim and Dean, witnessed their gold medal win.

“This program gives our kids a chance to get out and participate,” Kim Domiguez said. “As special needs’ parents, we spend all our time when they’re little trying to teach them the basics—how to eat, how to talk to somebody, how to interact. We’ve

missed out on our kids growing up playing soccer and basketball, so this has been really nice to feel like a soccer mom. We brought our cooler full of Gatorade, our canopy and chairs. This is our time to cheer for our kids.”

That feeling of “belonging” stretches to the athletes on the field.

“These kids are there for each other. They cheer for everyone. It doesn’t matter which side you are on. They’re excited for everyone to score and have that success. They still want to win, but they want everyone to have fun,” Domiguez said, adding that high school cheerleaders also cheer for every player at all schools.

Her husband said learning skills and translating those in a game has given his sons confidence and a sense of accomplishment.

“On the field, they learn key concepts of the game that you practiced with them, so when they get the goal or they get the stop as a goalkeeper, you can see that moment of joy when they see they ‘got it,’” he said.

Domiguez agrees: “It’s that love of sport and team in their eyes. It’s the same for all athletes. They will raise their arms, jump up and down, dance. They just light up.”

Parent Misti Smith watched her son Ashton play on Hunter High’s unified team.

Hillcrest High freshman Khloe Buchanan assists senior unified player Lupe Aspeitia dribble the soccer ball during the state playoff games in September 2022. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

“Our children would not get these opportunities if it wasn’t brought into the schools,” she said. “I would never have known that Ashton even liked soccer or basketball, but these opportunities came, and I’ve watched his competence and confidence grow. He feels like a rock star when he comes to these games.”

Hunter parent Christie Rasmussen was cheering on her daughter Whitney, who made the first goal of the state semifinals.

“My daughter is making friends that she necessarily probably wouldn’t ever had if it had not been for this program,” Rasmussen said, adding that now Whitney is a cheerleader for the Wolverines. “Because of this, our gen(eral) ed(ucation) kids come and cheer.”

That happened at the recent regional soccer tournament Hunter hosted when students came with their classes.

“When they cheered, these kids saw their faces there for them. It’s building the camaraderie between the students and making our athletes feel like they’re actual Hunter Wolverines and that they have a place here,” Rasmussen said. “It’s (partner student-athletes) who we parents thank God for because they’re angels on earth and make our kids feel like somebody.”

She credits unified sports as the spark that is extending more opportunities to special education students.

“Because of this team, it has pushed our faculty to realize our kids have these abilities that can be extended. Our theater teacher got approval for them to perform an adaptive musical,” Rasmussen said, adding that Whitney was cast as Belle in “Beauty and the Beast,” which was performed in early December.

Last spring, Hunter students pledged

to be inclusive by signing a poster that hung in the school and many students participate in the unified class taught by PE teacher and unified coach, Ashley Ellis.

Ellis said after-school practices aren’t feasible for everyone, so she created a unified class following the lifetime activities curriculum.

“I wanted our students to participate in unified sports, and thought, that’s a way to get more kids involved,” she said, starting with sharing with the partner students the history of Special Olympics and the goal of inclusion.

Together, they introduce different sports’ skills.

“As a PE teacher, I saw those kids come into our regular PE classes, and they were not as successful as they could have been. To flip the script and make the class for them and with our regular ed students helping them, it’s changed the playbook so they can be successful,” she said, adding often those partner students join the school’s three unified sports teams. “It’s been the greatest thing. Other schools may think this class is a big daunting task, but the benefit far outweighs any work. Through unified sports, they enjoy sport at its purest form. Unified takes everything that is good about sports and celebrates it.”

Hunter’s unified class is held before lunch.

“Everybody goes into the lunchroom together; they eat together and they’re all laughing. Before, many of them didn’t, they weren’t sure where they fit. Now, that inclusivity flows into other areas of our school,” she said.

Many schools have peer tutors who help students with disabilities be successful.

“They are their buddies who escort them to places, provide support and help them integrate with the rest of the kids,” Sherwood said, adding last spring, Brighton’s peer tutors organized a prom designed for about 50 students with severe cognitive or physical disabilities.

At Murray High, peer tutor Farrah Baldwin said she’s “there to help and answer questions, but not to do it for them.”

Her classmate Kendall Bridgewater is a peer tutor in a foods class.

“When these kids with disabilities go into gen ed classes, others get to understand the things that are easier and harder for them to do and that helps everyone be less judgmental and more just willing to get to know them,” she said. “Plus, with cooking, they’re learning a life skill and I’m getting to learn it too. The other day I learned there are five different ways to cook an egg.”

Both seniors are part of Murray High’s Best Buddies, a nonprofit organization that supports inclusion through friendship and leadership. Murray’s club activities stretch from making slime to pumpkin bowling to hosting a Friendsgiving. Plans are underway for a friendship walk in April.

“Everyone in the club knows they have a buddy and can hang out together,” Baldwin said.

Bridgewater is on board: “I want to be a person they can come to in the hallways or see outside of school and know they have a friend.”

Club adviser and unified coach Jessie Agiriga said they’re building an inclusive school environment.

“We want our community to realize everyone has a place where they belong, they are heard, and they are seen,” she said. “Our club officers, who are both special education students and their peers, plan and

organize activities for the school. As a result, our students naturally pair up to form friendships.”

Throughout the state, special education and general education students have paired up to serve on Special Olympics’ Youth Activation Commission where, as school leaders, they learn how to spread inclusion in their school, said Iacobazzi, adding at February’s youth summit, students will discuss the unified generation and how to empower peer leaders.

Special Olympics Utah CEO Scott Weaver explained that each step builds.

“We’re hoping they feel valued as an athlete and they’re seen as part of their school’s athletic program; they’re getting the attention at a pep rally and having fans in the stadium waving the flags and banners for them,” he said. “By having the opportunity to belong to a club, they’re impacting the school as leaders. The third part is whole school inclusion.”

Schoolwide activities have ranged from inclusive assemblies and themed spirit days to Disney Days and fitness challenges.

In addition to Unified Champion Schools, Worthen said two high schools recently were added to make four Utah schools who have met and are sustaining 10 requirements to qualify as national banner schools. Hillcrest, which earned the recognition in 2019, is the only one in the area.

Sherwood said inclusivity benefits both the school and the community.

“As schools start down the road of being as inclusive as they can and provide opportunities for all students, people are going to see the value,” he said. “Once you see it, then you’ll never turn back.” l

In May 2022, Brighton High held its first inclusive prom with peer tutors dancing along with special needs students in the school’s commons. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

At Hillcrest High, freshman Isabelle Wood pied math teacher Matt Synder during a schoolwide assembly in November 2022. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

“The guy who hosted the two tournaments came to me and said, ‘Look, you’re going to keep doing this. You’re too good not to,’” Ferris said. “So, I went to Nationals the next year and I got third place. That happened to be the Saturday before the Monday when everything got shut down with COVID.”

“After COVID took place, you know…I got bigger, like a lot of people,” Ferris continued with a laugh. “They had another Nationals in Salt Lake, I came back, and I got fourth place.”

“Shingitai:” Heart, technique and body, the three qualities of a wrestler

Ferris is definitely athletic.

“I did football, wrestling and track in high school,” Ferris said. “Then professional wrestling. I did rugby for a month. I’ve always been the pretty athletic guy who’s deceptively fast for his size.”

Ferris was around 340 pounds when he first competed and is now closer to 400.

“The guy who is No. 1 in the country was pushing 600 pounds,” Ferris said. “It’s rare for me to look at someone and think I’ve got a 250 pound weight disadvantage.”

Competitors of all sizes are welcome. There can be an advantage in weighing more than your competitor, but there is much more to the sport. To excel in sumo, a wrestler needs both strength and flexibility.

“My strength is phenomenal,” Ferris said. “But the flexibility is not there. You see these sumo wrestlers in Japan, who are heavier than me, doing the splits. And I’m over here struggling to get anywhere close to that.”

“The cool thing about sumo is you’re going against the other person, but your real opponent is yourself,” Ferris said. “I had a match where I hit a guy early. As soon as I touched him I knew that I got in his head enough that he defeated himself. I love that it’s really more mental than anything. It’s making sure that I’m mentally in the place to win. And when I don’t win, it’s on me.”

“I love football. I really love football so much,” Ferris said. “But there would be games where I can look at the score and say I had one of the best games of my life, but we lost or the refs caused the outcome. In sumo it’s so pure that that just doesn’t happen.”

Sumo does have a referee to moderate each bout, but the outcome is usually obvious.

“Very rarely does it come down to a ref’s decision,” Ferris said. “A lot of times what happens if it’s too close it’s like this match took seven seconds, let’s just do it again.”

“Kokakuka:” A person who loves sumo

Rob McConkie, the wrestler who came in third place at the 2020 Nationals, happens to live nearby in West Jordan. McConkie graduated from Jordan High School and works in software at Fidelity Investments.

Together, Ferris and McConkie are working on starting a sumo club that currently has around five members. Some of them went to the 2019 Fitcon and became interested when Ferris did. Others saw him on the news and reached out. The club meets in Ferris’ garage to spar.

“We’re just guys in Utah who love sumo,” Ferris said.

“I bought some mats from an old children’s gym, like for toddlers, and we train on those,” he said with a laugh. “We’re coming from the point of view of judo, wrestling, football, as opposed to how sumo is actually done. ”

They have an unofficial coach who trained in Japan and visits Utah occasionally.

“I’ve had a couple practices with the coach and we haven’t hit anyone yet, it’s just here’s how you do this, here’s how you do that,” Ferris said. “I was coming from the point of view of I’m just going to hit people as hard as I can. That’ll work for 65, 70% of people I can get a win on. But if I really want to get to that level and stay there….I haven't gotten above third place at nationals.”

“If I went against a professional from Japan I’d get my butt kicked,” Ferris said. “Those guys have been doing it since they were four. But I think I could go to the international level of amateur sumo and do pretty well. I just have to train a bit harder to get to that point.”

Ferris has been invited to compete internationally, but hasn’t had the funds to make it happen.

“Shusshin:” Place of origin

“I’m one of the 40% of Utahns who’ve moved here from California in the past 15 years,” Ferris said. “I’ve been here since 2009, that’s 13 years of my life. I don’t know how long it takes for me to be considered a Utahn, but I hope I’m getting close!”

Ferris first moved to Utah to attend Utah State University, where he earned a bachelor’s in political science. Ferris then earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Western Governors University. He lived in South Salt Lake and Millcreek before buying a house in Midvale.

“I love the Midvale community,” Ferris said. “I love how invested people are. It’s a mix of people who’ve lived here forever and people who have just moved here. It’s such a great community.”

Aside from working to improve his sumo technique, Ferris has two day jobs. He’s an equity consultant and stock plan administrator for an accounting firm and also writes public policy about economic empowerment for a think tank based in Washington, D.C. Ferris used to be heavily involved in politics.

“I don’t do as much (politics) now,” Ferris said. “I’m mostly writing about how to get people from one economic class to the next.”

“I grew up in Section 8 Housing, a single mom situation,” Ferris said. “In my family line, I was the first person to graduate from college, the first person to get a master’s degree. I started a small business and did a bunch of stuff no one else in my family has done just because of our economic situation. I was able to use that to kind of explain how did I do that and what things can be done to help people in a similar situation going forward.”

Ferris and his wife have two children: a 22-month-old girl and a one-month-old son who was born early and recently came home after spending time in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

Even with so much to keep him busy, Ferris joined the Harvest Days Festival Committee in 2022.

“I love working with George on the Harvest Days Festival Committee,” said committee member Rebecca Pipkin. “He is

super dedicated, even showing up to meetings when his son was in the NICU. He has great ideas for activities and was super fun as the bingo caller.”

Ferris acknowledged that moving bingo from Thursday to Saturday was a big change.

“You just don’t mess with bingo,” Ferris said with a laugh. “People have their traditions, and I really wanted to have it be something that was so fun people forgot it wasn’t on Thursday. I don’t know if I succeeded or not, but I tried.”

“Jonokuchi:” This is only the beginning

Meanwhile, Ferris keeps training. He wants to rise through the ranks and eventually compete at the world level. He’s continuing to improve his sumo technique with the help of his coach.

“He’s really had to kind of break me down from the beginning,” Ferris said. “We’ll start all over and go from there.” l

George Ferris holds his daughter at an amateur sumo competition in Salt Lake City. (Photo courtesy George Ferris)

“I’ve always been the pretty athletic guy who’s deceptively fast for his size,” George Ferris said. (Photo courtesy George Ferris)

Pay attention and slow down say school crossing guards to drivers

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Green and black ribbons are tied on posts at the intersection of an Orem neighborhood in memory of an 11 year old who was struck and killed in a crosswalk by a motorist.

Harm to a child is a constant fear amongst school crossing guards as they say there has been an increase of motorists who speed through school zones and crosswalks, or become distracted and aren’t being cautious to pedestrians, or may have forgotten that they need to stop until everyone is out of the cross walk.

The issue isn’t just in Orem.

Last spring, 11-year crossing guard Lorena Marcotte stood in the intersection of Isla Daybreak and Top View near Eastlake Elementary in South Jordan when her crossing guard partner Heidi Cook alerted her to a car entering the intersection that was “rolling right through the stop, heading right toward the girl.”

“She didn’t see us, despite wearing big yellow jackets, having orange cones set up and having our stop signs up. She was just zoned out,” Marcotte said.

After jumping out in front of the car, the driver “slammed on her brakes. Thankfully, she wasn’t going that fast,” Marcotte said.

Thanks to their quick actions, the girl safely made it to school and the mother wrote the crossing guards a note of appreciation, said DeAnn Bland, South Jordan Police Department crossing guard supervisor.

Bland said it’s important for motorists to be aware of their surroundings, especially in school zones.

“The longest drivers ever tend to stop is just a matter of seconds,” she said. “A few seconds matter. It meant all the world to that mother and her daughter.”

Earlier this school year, on the afternoon on Sept. 22, 10-year crossing guard Lisa VanWagenen was crossing a fifth-grade student at the intersection of 1000 East and 11000 South in Sandy when a motorist entered the crosswalk while both VanWagenen and the student were in the crosswalk.

“I was out there and I’m like, ‘Are you really going to hit me?’” VanWagenen said. “Then the driver saw me and stopped, and I proceeded to make sure the kid got across safely. I had told the kid, ‘Stay, wait’ because I didn’t know if the car was going to stop or not.”

A week earlier, VanWagenen’s crossing guard partner, Stacey Sierer had a nearmiss in the same intersection when a car entered the intersection after she crossed a second-grade student who was on his way to Altara Elementary.

“He was still in the intersection and…a car came and turned left and I was still standing out there with my stop sign,” she said. “There was another that morning who was going straight through. I had to stop him literally with my stop sign and say, ‘You can’t

go through here while I’m in the middle of the crosswalk.’ He just kind of shrugged.”

Sierer admits that crossing students with traffic is concerning.

“It gives me anxiety. When there are kids around, I’m watching, but otherwise I look away,” said the second-year crossing guard. “I love the kids and the hours works with my schedule. It’s a fun job except for worrying about the traffic and if you’ll survive.”

While VanWagenen said, “most are pretty respectful,” she estimates at least three or four motorists attempt or drive through the intersection every day while they are crossing elementary schools.

She said that often drivers don’t wait their turn and will proceed with the car in front of them.

“Everybody’s in such a hurry and they speed up to stop so they can say ‘I was here first’ so they can proceed,” VanWagenen said. “They should just set their alarm five minutes earlier or deal with being late. We all need to be observant and find patience to make sure these kids are safe.”

Sandy crossing guard supervisor Janice Parker said that throughout Sandy there have been such incidents, including having had two of her crossing guards hit by drivers in the past five years.

“We get lots of speeders; one car was going 50 mph in a 20 mph speed zone,” she said about a motorist recently driving by an elementary school. “We have issues everywhere; there’s really not a specific area that is worse than another one.”

The crossing guards say that it gets “scary” when motorists proceed or turn into the intersection before they’re out of it and that’s when they try to educate them.

“I’ll say, ‘I’m still holding the stop sign. I’m still in the intersection’ and try to remind them. I try to be nice and not try to be scolding, but it’s hard when they try to run me over,” VanWagenen said. “I’m here because I love these kids and want to keep them safe.”

In a school crossing walk—the one commonly referred to as a “ladder,” “zebra stripes” or “piano keys”—all pedestrians and the crossing guard need to be safely on the sidewalk before a motorist can enter it. These, and reduced school speed zone beacons, are determined through safe-walking routes which meet regulations, Sandy City Transportation Engineer Britney Ward said.

“The intersection at 10th East and 11000 South is really busy,” she said. “It’s a high traffic area with a lot of trips, a lot of vehicles and a lot of students there. There’s just a lot going on there.”

Even with safety precautions in place, Ward recommends “pedestrians should always be cautious when crossing the road and look and check if there are vehicles coming first. They can’t just count on the drivers suddenly seeing them or paying attention or see-

ing that there’s a crosswalk there.”

VanWagenen and Sierer are among 52 Sandy crossing guards who cross children 40 minutes in the morning before school and 30 minutes after school.

While crossing guards undergo training, their priority is to ensure the safety of the students. However, when the crossing guards have time to capture photos of the motorists who violate the law on their cell phones or jot the license plate down, they are instructed to turn it over to Parker, who works with the

Sandy Police.

Parker said violators can be issued tickets.

“There’s three things that are really issues: speeding through a school zone; going through crosswalks that are occupied; and talking on your cell phone and not paying attention,” she said. “People just need to realize crossing guards are there to keep your children in Sandy safe and they are among our everyday heroes every day. So slow down, pay attention and have some patience.” l

A driver illegally enters the intersection while Altara Elementary crossing guard Stacey Sierer is still in it. (Photo courtesy of Lisa VanWagenen)

Midvale 2022

Hillcrest wrestler Sam McDonough paints the first green stripe on the coveted Battle of the Axe traveling trophy, marking the fourth time in 53 years, the Huskies have won. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Mayor Marcus Stevenson takes the oath of office for the first time, using his grandmother’s Bible. His grandmother had a long history of public service. (Erin Dixon/ City Journals)

Eighth-grader Jayson Smith pets a dinosaur that visited Jordan Valley School. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Gov. Spencer Cox was in the audience when Hillcrest High School’s Vocal Ensemble performed at the capitol and stayed to talk to the students. (Photo courtesy of Amy Wareham)

Dozens of Hillcrest High School students competed in the inaugural Academic Olympiad competition that quizzed teams on both academic and elective classes’ material. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Hillcrest High senior Michael Houchins wins the jump against Murray High in the first state unified high school basketball tournament. (Julie Slama/ City Journals)

Hillcrest celebrates its only goal in the state playoffs. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Midvalley’s longtime custodian Jim Sheely said he felt “like a rock star” as students gave him high-fives and hugs during his final walk-out of the building. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Teens at Midvale Boys & Girls Club try out the new gaming chairs, part of a $20,000 makeover the club received through a partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Aaron’s. (Photo courtesy of Aaron’s)

Hillcrest’s Isabella Andrews commits to play soccer for Louisiana Christian University; she was sixth Husky to sign to play collegiate athletics. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

As their classmates and Boeing’s Scott Chapple watches, two East Midvale fifth-grade students learn its harder to break ice when chenille stems are frozen in with the water. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Gerry Swanson painted “Progress with Preservation” to represent his Yugoslavian heritage and their contributions made to Midvale. He wanted to capture the hard work ethic so often found in blue collar traditions. (Peri Kinder/City Journals)

Midvale Elementary Principal Lori Reynolds talks to students about the new book vending machine, which she and Real Salt Lake mascot Leo revealed at the school’s literacy night. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

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

CITY NEWSLETTER

By Mayor Marcus Stevenson

A YEAR IN REVIEW

Wow, I can’t believe it’s already been a year since I took o ce. I’ve been continuously humbled by this opportunity I’ve been given and hope that I’ve made our community proud in my time so far.

Taking on the role of mayor is hard to describe, as it’s a job that comes with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. It’s the most stressful job I’ve ever had and the most rewarding. With that, I’d like to take a moment to re ect on the last year and the many issues I’ve been working on.

INCREASED COMMUNICATION

For my rst mayor’s message back in February, I wanted to set the tone of communicating with residents about the important issues facing our community and how residents can get more involved. In that rst message, I wrote about the many volunteer opportunities we have throughout the city, including the community council and arts council. From then on, I’ve made a point to write about some of the most pressing issues facing our city, including growth, Uni ed Police reforms, our budget, the library, and more. I rmly believe that while we don’t have to agree on everything, communicating is key if we want city leadership and residents to work well together.

A COMMUNITY-ORIENTED MIDVALE

One of my rst assignments as mayor was to nd volunteers to serve on the Harvest Days committee to plan our yearly festival. I wanted to ensure this committee represented our city well – both our generational residents and the many new residents we now have. What we saw was a Harvest Days geared towards family activities, especially for young kids. I’m proud of this group to keep many of the traditional Harvest Days festivities, while also branching out to see how we can continue to improve this event.

In July, I hosted a Skate with the Mayor event to connect with both parents and young people where they’re at. I often joke that this event was just a good excuse for me to get on a skateboard, but the reality is that many people aren’t comfortable interacting with government. I want to make sure that Midvale City is meeting residents in more casual ways than a formal town hall or city council meeting, where we can hear from our community directly.

REVITALIZING MAIN STREET

As I hope you’ve seen, the city has done a lot this year to bring more pedestrian tra c onto Main Street. While I wish I could take all the credit for our progress, we truly have a dedicated sta who have been working hard to bring Main back to life. We held several events on Main Street this year, including a mural festival where 23 new murals were unveiled, the Main Street Car Show, the Trick or Treat on Main Street event for Halloween, and the Light Up Main Street event for the holidays. Beyond those events, we also worked with the Utah Food Truck League to host food trucks every Friday throughout the summer at city hall.

BUILDING EXTERNAL RELATIONSHIPS

A large focus of mine has been connecting with other elected o cials, businesses, and stakeholders who can a ect our city based on the decisions they make. Most notably, I’ve worked to build a relationship with the Salt Lake County Council, who recently approved increased library funding to ensure we have a library in our community. Also notable is the work that has been done around homelessness, speci cally working to get other mayors across Salt Lake County actively involved in helping those experiencing homelessness.

Lastly, I’ve spent much of the year working with Uni ed Police on four reforms around cost control, political control, and local control of the organization. Going through this process has allowed me to work more closely with our o cers and the administration of Uni ed PD. Other organizations can drastically a ect Midvale City’s residents, which is why much of my time has been focused on building relationships and inserting Midvale City into some of the most critical conversations that will impact our community.

LOOKING AHEAD

It’s been a wild year. As I think back to the progress that has been made and the grey hairs that I’ve grown, I’m proud of my rst year in o ce and I’m looking forward to the challenges that the next year will bring. Be on the lookout for more improvements to Main Street, increased conversations around our recreation center, and continued projects that increase pedestrian safety and access in our community.

Midvale Senior Center Classes

January is a time of new beginnings and opportunities. Join us at Midvale Senior Center for some new classes to give you a fresh new start in 2023.

ENHANCE FITNESS is an hour-long class designed for older adults that combines strength training, exibility, and cardiovascular exercise. Class members have experienced increased strength, greater activity levels and decreased depression. This class is taught Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 9:45 a.m.

JUST FOR MEN is a welcoming place where men share their interests with others and try new activities…or just sit in and share in the conversation. Our rst meeting will be held on Monday, January 9 at 1:00 p.m.

U OF U EXERCISE is a class taught by University of Utah Kinesiology students seeking professional careers in healthcare, tness, community health or teaching. This class focuses on cardio, strength and exibility but can be done standing or seated. It is taught on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9:00 a.m. starting January 17.

MUSIC IN MOTION is a movement class set to music that is easy on the body and good for the brain. It can be done standing or seated. It is taught through Repertory Dancy Theatre on Tuesdays at 11:45 a.m.

For more information on these and other classes or to register, call 385-468-3350.

In The Middle of Everything

Imperial Hall

By Bill Miller, Midvale Historical Museum

Walking north on Main St. (from Center St.) to Smelter St. you would run into the Imperial Dance Hall. (Corner of Smelter & Holden St.) The Purple Penguin Car Wash is now located there. The Imperial Dance Hall was opened just after the turn of the century (1900’s)

Much excitement preceded the grand opening. Proudly it was advised as the rst and only dance hall with a genuine spring oor in South Salt Lake County. It was a dance oor that ads snap and rhythm to your dancing. So, with eagerness the local ‘steppers’ awaited its grand opening.

THE IMPERIAL was designed to place the orchestra in an elevated position at the west center of the hall. The dancers had a clear view of the band and entertainers at all times. At the south end of the hall, high above the entrance and the concession stand was located the gallery. it was built for the convenience and comfort of the dance-music lovers, too old or too young or too tired of dancing.

The best bands of the day, both local and out of state, played the Imperial. Joy and laughter lled the hall as happy couples danced the dreamy waltzes, lively two step, or fast-moving fox trots. The ‘cozy’ dance for sweat hearts was called “the bunny hug”. Later came the tango for the Spanish lovers of fast-moving, stamping and twirling rhythms. The Charleston, the stomp, and “the frug” were popular dance steps, to bring joy to the westerners or “hill billy” environments, The Imperial sponsored country and western dancing.

Prior to closing, The Imperial, much to the sadness of the dance patrons the name was changed to The DANSANTE’ (Dawn’ Sawnt). It was named after a dance hall on North Main St. in Salt Lake City. Not many months after the name change, the grand old dance hall was closed.

After a while the hall opened as a skating rink. The life of the rink was short lived. After standing empty for a while the building was turned into the Grayson Apartments, for many years. Then in the 2000’s, a big storm took the building down.

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

Your Midvale City Planning Commission

The Midvale City Planning Commission is made up of ve members and two alternates. Planning Commissioners are appointed for four-year terms by the mayor with the advice and consent of the City Council. The Commission is in a manner to provide a balanced geographic, professional, neighborhood, and community interest representation of the community. Members are required to reside within Midvale City limits.

What does the Planning Commission do?

The Planning Commission is responsible for making recommendations to the City Council on the City’s General Plan (a document to guide growth, development and redevelopment throughout the City), Zoning and Subdivision Ordinances (rules for development, redevelopment and subdivision of properties), amendments to these documents, subdivision applications, and

on any special studies such as small area plans, parks and trails plans, or corridor studies which focus on a particular area of the City such as State Street or 7200 South. The Planning Commission is also responsible to administer the adopted land use regulations with regard to conditional use permits, large- and small-scale master plans, master planned developments, and other duties as more speci cally described in the City’s land use regulations and the Utah State Code.

How can I get involved?

Planning Commission meetings are scheduled the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month at 6:00 p.m. Meetings are held in the Council Chambers at City Hall. All meetings are open to the public. Residents may sign up to receive agendas and meeting information through eNoti cations at www.MidvaleCity.org/enotify.

SANDY CITY WATERLINE UPGRADE

EXPECT ROAD CLOSURES AND DETOURS

Sandy City’s contractor, COP Construction, and subcontractors will be performing construction as part of the Sandy City Waterline Upgrade project. The construction is expected to start at the end of January and end around May 1, 2023. As you can see by the following maps, some Midvale residents and businesses may be impacted by this important project.

The detours and road closures are needed so crews can complete the project in a timely and safe manner. Crews will notify residents via door hangers when the construction impacts their neighborhood. We appreciate the inconveniences for people who live in and around the area and thank you for your patience.

To maintain the safety of all, please reduce speeds and drive cautiously through the detour route. We thank you in advance for your patience

End of Jan. through May Keep an eye out for door hangers with more details about road closures and detours

Sandy City Waterline Project

Midvale City 2023 Recycling Calendar

Citizens Agenda Summary

City Council meeting agendas are often di cult for people to navigate. Filled with jargon and legal requirements on how an item must be listed, it can be a challenge to determine what council members are discussing or deciding on.

Midvale City sta now prepares a summary of the Midvale City Council and Redevelopment Agency meeting’s agenda items for the community to review. The o cial published agendas and supporting materials can be found at MidvaleCity.org/PublicMeetings

You can read the current Citizens Agenda Summary at MidvaleCity.org/CitizensAgenda

Participating in City Council Meetings

You may share your views with the City Council:

• During legally required public hearings

• During the regular open public comment period

• Other opportunities when the Mayor allows for public comment

Public comments may be submitted electronically for City Council consideration at www.MidvaleCity.org/ PublicMeetings. Submit comments by 5:00 p.m. the day before the City Council meeting. Please indicate if you would like your comment to be read during the City Council meeting.

Salt Lake County Animal Services

As the largest, no-kill, municipal animal shelter in Utah, Salt Lake County Animal Services is an extremely busy place. The sta see a variety of animals throughout the year from big to small: horses, goats, cows, pigs, snakes, pet spiders, turtles and obviously the traditional, dogs, cats, guinea pigs and rabbits. Here are just some Fun Facts from this year.

For more on how to get involved, adopt, license, microchip, or donate, visit AdoptUtahPets.org

*All numbers were from 1/1/2022 -11/1/2022

Scoop the poop at school playgrounds: ‘We’re not your dog park’

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Near Murray, there are off-leash dog parks in Taylorsville, Sandy, Draper, West Jordan and Salt Lake City, to name a few, but dogs are not allowed off-leash in Murray School District’s playgrounds.

“People are here at the school, and they start out with their dogs on their leash and then they just let them go,” McMillan Elementary secretary Teresa Bigelow said. “If people would just clean up, it would be really lovely, but it’s not happening. It’s not just at McMillan. All of the schools in Murray, and probably everywhere, are having problems with it.”

In nearby Canyons School District, East Midvale Community Schools Facilitator Shelley McCall said pet owners not scooping the poop is a problem.

“We have a significant issue at East Midvale which flares its ugly head when kids step in it,” she said. “I had three students yesterday come into my office for new shoes and pants. We do have ‘No Dogs Allowed’ signs posted just because dog owners aren’t responsibly picking up after their dogs and the kids are paying the consequence.”

In Murray District, signs posted direct dog owners that their pet needs to be leashed and any feces should be immediately picked up.

Bigelow said in addition to health, safety and environmental concerns, it also is an emotional one.

“When kids have stepped in it or they’re playing ball and they fall in it, they usually

end up with it on their shoes or clothes. It’s pretty devastating when a student falls in it or it’s all over their shoes. Kids don’t just say, ‘Eww, gross.’ It’s emotionally upsetting to them. They don’t know they’ve stepped in it, then they come back into the classroom and it’s on the carpet. Our custodians are having to clean carpets. Then, the kids need a change of clothes because it’s all over their pants, so we help them; we have extra stuff here for them to change into. It involves all of us—the custodians, the principal, the teachers, me, whoever, needing to clean it up, and assuring the students it’s all going to be OK,” she said.

While Bigelow said the doogie doo has been a problem for a while, it has increased the past few years. The situation also isn’t just a neighbor or two allowing their dogs off leash either, she said.

“People will drive up, park their cars and get out and let their dogs roam. Murray doesn’t have a dog park so there are not a lot of places for people that live in apartment complexes and different places like that to take their dogs and let them off the leash. They throw the ball way out in the field and there’s no way for them to possibly be able to see where their dogs go every single time. It would be one thing if they just cleaned up, but they’re not,” Bigelow said, who owns a dog herself. “This is not a dog park. We want to make the public aware so hopefully, we’ll have a few less kids sliding in it. All we ask is to be responsible dog owners and clean up.” l

School officials say dog owners should check school regulations regarding pet usage. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Junior production of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ sells out and brings life to Midvale theater

By Heather Lawrence | h.lawrence@mycityjournals.com

The theater on Midvale’s Main Street came alive Dec. 1 and 2 with a musical production of “Tim Nelson’s Alice in Wonderland, Jr.” The show was part of Copperview Recreation Center’s inclusive theater program and included a cast of 35 kids. The show sold out both nights even after extra seats were added.

“I am so proud of everyone. What an amazing show with amazing kids. I very much hope to see each of you at the next show we do,” wrote director Alex Kalaher to the cast and parents after the show. Kalaher co-directs the theater program at Copperview with Micah Taylor.

Kalaher’s philosophy is there’s space for everyone in theater. Everyone who auditioned in early September walked away with a part.

“The theatre industry can feel exclusive, which is why I ensure every child a role in my shows. My goal is to cultivate an environment in which kids feel safe to try new things, get excited about the art and feel confident.

“I do my best to make sure every child has a solo or duet singing line and their character is important and necessary to the show. Each of these 35 kids is unique, kind and fun. This safe space is inclusive of all gender identities, races and economic backgrounds,” Kalaher said.

Cast member Jaxon Anderson of Midvale is a 14 year old who doesn’t usually seek out the spotlight. His mom, Megan Daybell, was happy he was involved in something that used his talents. She also knew Taylor, a music teacher at Jaxon’s school, would help Jaxon have the courage to perform.

“From the initial audition, it was clear ‘just have fun’ was the guiding philosophy of this production. Allowing kids to be simultaneously silly and brave was the recipe for them to create something truly magical,” Daybell said.

Jaxon had a great experience and sang some solo lines. “It was really fun to perform the play for everyone. I loved singing the songs and just being part of the play,” he said.

Kalaher chose this version of “Alice” because it’s “geared for kids and gives everyone a chance to shine.” Comments like Jaxon’s validated her belief in the importance of theater, even for people who never go professional or pursue it seriously.

“There are so many benefits to kids who are involved in theatre. It builds obvious skills like public speaking and teamwork.

“But it also gives kids (and adults) a space to play. It gives them the confidence to exist as themselves and permission to enjoy something that might seem frivolous to oth-

ers. They learn to be creative, make mistakes and ‘find their people,’” Kalaher said.

That was the experience for third-grader Maddie Steadman of Midvale. Maddie auditioned with a song she wrote. She was cast with Rory Healy as Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee. Her mom Emily Steadman said Maddie made lots of new friends and had post-show blues as soon as it was over.

“Doing this play was the happiest I’ve ever been. I found my people, and I wish I could do it all over again!” Maddie said.

Kalaher has high praise for assistant directors Micah Taylor and Robyn Kibbie, who made the technical and visual elements happen on a tight budget.

“They are kind, hardworking, patient and amazing with kids. They both have theatre expertise—Micah is a teacher with a strong music background. He’s also crazy good at the technical aspects of theatre, like lights, sound and set construction.

“Robyn is a skilled costume designer and seamstress who is also a teacher. She heads up our costume projects and makes sure all the kids have what they need. She creates beautiful pictures with her creations. This is really the dream team,” Kalaher said.

A successful theater program presents a good problem—where to perform? Kalaher said they’ve outgrown the stage space at the rec center where they rehearse.

The show was eventually moved to The Pearl on Main theater, 7711 S. Main St. Formerly the Midvale Main Street Theatre, it was a last-minute venue. With 120 seats, Kalaher’s only concern was tickets sold out too fast.

“We had planned on using a school theater, but due to the holiday season and some miscommunication it didn’t work out. Thankfully, The Pearl on Main came to our rescue. It’s a wonderful space for our program,” Kalaher said. “I’m hoping to add shows next time so everyone who wants to can come.”

For information on future Copperview theater programs and productions, go to their website at www.slco.org/copperview, call the rec center at 385-468-1515 or email program coordinator Skyler Killian at skillian@slco. org. l

Maddie Steadman, front in green shirt, loved being in the Copperview Rec Center’s performance of ‘Alice in Wonderland” and can’t wait to perform again. (Heather Lawrence/City Journals)

Coaches weigh in on RPI after almost four years of the playoff system

By Greg James | g.james@mycityjournals.com

I

n 2019, the Utah High School Activities Association introduced the rating percentage index, a statistical system to compare and rank teams. The index establishes seeding for their state tournaments.

The purpose of the switch is to have the best teams meet in the final rounds of the playoffs.

“On balance, the RPI system is better than the old system,” Copper Hills Athletic Director Ben Morley said. “It has its flaws, and people will complain, but as long as everyone understands it was never meant to be a ranking system but rather a seeding system. It is working well in my opinion.”

Some people do not agree.

“More of your score (RPI) is out of your control than in it,” former Cottonwood head football coach Casey Miller said. “Region play by definition balances out. Your strength of schedule literally boils down to nonleague games. Region games should matter. It makes me laugh, people in Utah thought the BCS screwed over Utah every year, they hated it. What have we done, but created a BCS for high school. The irony makes me laugh.”

The rating is created by a formula from the team’s winning percentage, its opponents winning percentage and its opponents-opponent winning percentage. A less complicated series than it sounds. It takes into account the team’s wins and losses and its opponent’s strength of schedule. The system is similar to what the NCAA men’s basketball committee has used to seed its basketball tournament since 1981.

This season Corner Canyon’s football team had a score of .7395 for the No. 1 seed in the tournament. Taylorsville was the 26th seed with a .3008.

“For the most part, RPI doesn’t make a big difference to me,” Hunter boys soccer coach Brett Solberg said. “I am a big fan

of the new playoff format. I like that more teams get a chance to participate in the playoffs.”

In the former system, only the top four teams in each region qualified for the final tournament.

Herriman’s boys soccer team finished fifth in Region 4 last spring with only three region wins. Prior to 2019, they would not have qualified to participate in the playoffs. Instead, they were the 18th seed and defeated Westlake, Corner Canyon, West, Farmington and Davis for an incredible underdog story to a state championship.

“I love a good underdog story and this new playoff bracket allows for that,” Solberg said.

In 6A football, 24 of the 26 teams qualified for the tournament. The glamour of making the tournament seems to be reduced.

“Going to the state tournament is a big deal for some of our schools,” Cyprus boys head basketball coach Tre Smith said. “Getting a higher ranking is something your program can strive for and have goals to achieve for the year.”

In its current format, the team’s region placement means nothing.

Some say using strength of schedule exclusively gives an advantage to better regions. Teams in the top regions benefit from playing each other in the regular season. Similar to a Facebook algorithm their scores are elevated. In football, Region 2 has been labeled a lower tier and its top team (West) finished ninth in the final poll. Whereas Region 4 had three of the tournament’s top five teams.

“If you are going to make regions unimportant, just eliminate them and let the coaches schedule who they want,” Miller said. “I am an assistant at a school that did not make the playoff last year. I am telling our head coach to schedule the worst teams

he can find in the preseason. We win and as the season continues they keep losing. We get a small boost and end up 5-5. It doesn’t do us any favors to play good schools and lose.”

Scheduling can influence where your team finishes in the seeding process.

Hunter High School’s football team finished this season with a .3409 score. If they changed out the game against West Jordan and replaced it with a Corner Canyon game, despite an extreme chance of a loss to the Chargers their score would have improved by almost one point. They would have

moved up one seed in the state tournament.

Winning more often is the best way to raise your score, but a loss to a top team can also provide a boost.

“For Hunter is losing to Corner Canyon by 100 better for their program or playing a close one against West Jordan? Winning games is better for your program than losing them. If you are a good team you will need to beat a Corner Canyon team at some point,” Miller said.

Some teams have changed who they schedule to help them get a better RPI score.

“Teams definitely have to be more stra-

Cyprus guard Quetin Meza has helped his team ascend near the top of the UHSAA ratings. (Photo courtesy of Dave Sanderson)

“Those that keep track of high school athletics should have some kind of say,” Smith said.

In the past, the preseason games were an opportunity for coaches to try new players or positioning to see how it will work in region games. Now those games count more than the region games, it’s an up or down statistic for your RPI score.

“In soccer, because of RPI we cannot end in a tie,” Solberg said. “Some of our games have ended in long double overtimes or penalty kicks. With multiple games a week that gives more opportunities to have an injury.”

The UHSAA announces its final RPI rankings in each sport after the final regular season games have been played. Its Facebook and Twitter pages unveil the final rankings and state tournament pairings are revealed. In the future it could turn into a unveiling party on a YouTube- style release show. Strangely, they hide the numbers for two weeks before the final seedings are shared.

“Why do they do that, they have never said,” Miller said.

The final rankings can be big news for the players and teams.

tegic in the way they schedule, but I don’t think there is one best way to do it,” Morley said. “It is about striking a balance between putting together a schedule that allows you to both win games and do it against the best competition possible.”

Copper Hills girls soccer team has steadily dropped in placement. In 2019, their preseason games were wins, but schedules changed and they began playing tougher opponents, the losses added up and their score dropped.

“It definitely changed my approach to scheduling,” Smith said. His Cyprus basketball team was scheduled to play Pleasant Grove, Bingham and Corner Canyon in this year’s preseason. “Playing against better teams helps our program down the road in the big dance.”

“We should just eliminate the regions,” Miller said. “If I want to schedule weak teams and go 9-1, that is fine. My teams will end up as a five seed it doesn’t matter.”

Miller would like to see the UHSAA discuss the program with its coaches.

“There has never been any coach’s input. I still think even with the seeding we end up with three Region 4 teams and an

occasional Bingham or

It just causes complaining about seeding still,” Miller said.

Some coaches would like an unbiased human element to be introduced.

“Yes, absolutely yes, our players, coaches, parents, fans, school administration and everyone else is paying attention to the RPI rankings,” Morley said. “It has added a new interest and intrigue to high school athletics.” l

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Farmington.

Copper Hills basketball player McCoy Langston averaged 13 points per game last season and his team finished ranked sixth by the UHSAA. (Photo courte-

Dave Reeder) Right: Jalen Vigil pitched at Taylorsville in 2019, the last year of the old system used by the UHSAA. (Photo courtesy of Tim Peck photography)

Brighton High student-athletes set aside practice to spruce up East Midvale Elementary

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

Brighton High senior Caden Beames was one of 70 varsity and junior varsity football players who got off two buses at East Midvale Elementary one Friday.

The student-athletes weren’t there to sign autographs or watch youth play with the pigskin. They were volunteering to serve their community, spending a couple hours washing the walls and tables of the lunchroom, painting dinosaur footprints outside from the lunchroom to the playground, painting animals on the blacktop where students line up to enter the school, and helping a teacher with building shelves, desks and storage drawers for her classroom.

“We painted every animal we could think of like whales, pigs, dogs, birds, cows, bunnies, lions; I’m not even kind of an artist,” he said. “We were told that refugees from all over the world go to school and how, in a lot of cases, students don’t stay long, they come and go. It was really cool because they were just so thankful for everything.”

The football players, who at the time were in the state playoffs, gave up their practice that day to serve and said it was a good use of that time.

“It’s just fun helping out the kids and people at their school,” Beames said, who

also provided service this past year during a humanitarian trip to Ecuador. “People are appreciative, always so thankful and it makes me realize how lucky some of us are.”

Beames began playing football at age 8. Often, his mother serves as one of his teams’ supporters and was president of the little league. This year, she’s serving as Brighton High’s football board president for the second year.

“As a team, they perform a service project every year so as I was looking this year, one of my friend’s said she knew East Midvale needed a lot of help,” Lisa Beames said. “Our coach was so excited because the boys could give back to a school right here in our community and it would be hands-on, not just like asking people for money or having their parents make donations.”

Brighton Principal Tom Sherwood said once he learned of the opportunity, the school paid for the buses for the team. Adult volunteers and new coach Casey Sutera also helped.

“All our teams promote service, giving of themselves, their time and their talents, selflessly for the greater good of our community,” Sherwood said. “Coach Sutera really wants to build a program that focuses

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on character first. He wanted to be alongside his boys, rolling up their sleeves together and getting to work to make things better. It shows leadership, having our team give back to our community.”

Lisa Beames said the team also performed a service project this past summer under the direction coach Sutera.

“He is just amazing. He’s such a strong believer that these students are much more than a team of athletes. It’s about who you are on and off the field and helping play a part in these boys becoming good men as well as football players,” she said. “Instead of having a practice that Friday, he committed his team to do this. That shows who he is because most coaches are trying to find extra practice days and he actually gave up one. Personally, I’ve done this a lot of years with a lot of coaches and that was something shocking to me. It meant that much to him to give back and unite them with the community and each other. I think they came away with realizing that when you serve, what you get from it that means so much more and they learned they had to work together in a group in a different way than there used to. One of my favorite parts was seeing the kids who were in the after-school program become so excited to see these giant football players come in and how they were there to help their school.”

East Midvale Community School Facilitator Shelley McCall was pleased with their work.

“I had reached out to our custodial staff and our teachers and asked, ‘Does anyone have projects that keep falling to the bottom of their to-do lists because there’s so many

other things that go to the top?’ and we put together seven different projects,” she said, adding that the team also cleaned the hallways, scrubbed recycling bins, repaired GaGa ball courts, picked up trash and updated emergency kits for students. “I was very impressed by their eagerness to work, their focus, their respectfulness, and their kindness. They were interested in our school and wanted to help. They were incredibly efficient and fast and so when they said we still have 20 minutes, I gave them chalk to write ‘East Midvale Eagles Soar’ on our brick back wall. The kids loved it when they came to school on Monday.”

After the Brighton student-athletes completed the list, they huddled together to recap the experience.

“I talked about meeting needs within your own community,” said McCall, who along with other Title I community school facilitators recently were honored by Canyons School District as student support services professionals of the year. “I think that sometimes you can get really dissociated from what’s happening within our own school district and not being aware of what other families are struggling with. It is an important aspect of giving back to realize, for instance, there is food insecurity right here in Midvale and you don’t have to go oversees to help. They realize there are needs right here and they, and the teachers and parent volunteers, helped to meet those needs. Their coach was proud of the team and talked about how service is the highest level in leadership and how it’s important to have the ability to see outside yourself and to give your time and your resources.” l

Brighton High student-athletes volunteered to help out at East Midvale Elementary instead of holding their regular practice. (Photo courtesy of Brighton High School)

From the people who brought you Syncrete, nepotistic construction contracts and the ThrU Turn fiasco intersection, comes a mind-boggling project guaranteed to be unnecessary and over budget: the Little Cottonwood Canyon gondola.

The Utah Department of Transportation isn’t known for its rational, effective projects. It spent years studying the LCC traffic situation before making the wrong decision, but at least they didn’t go with the Little Cottonwood zeppelin.

Color me unimpressed with UDOT. Take 5400 South. Please. I travel this road every day and I know UDOT doesn’t understand east-west travel. Going from my home in Kearns to the I-15 interchange in Murray includes nearly 20 stoplights along that 7-mile stretch and I usually hit every. single. one.

There was a legend that if you drove exactly 42.3 mph, under the light of a full moon, you could travel 5400 South without stopping at one red light. Not true.

I blame my road rage on UDOT.

So, let’s talk about the gondola. With UDOT approving the nearly $600 million project, it must have overwhelming support. Nope. Local mayors, residents, environmental groups, Bigfoot and county leaders don’t want this to happen. A majority of the tens

of thousands of public comments are against the gondola.

Just a hair short of sketchy, Snowbird quietly bought land that could (will) be used for the gondola station at the base of Little Cottonwood. When the time comes, Snowbird will sell or donate (ha-ha) that land to the state.

Hikers, fishermen, sightseers and climbers don’t want the gondola. They don’t want to ride the entire length of the gondola system if their destination isn’t a ski resort. I guess UDOT could add a base-jumping experience if you want to parachute out of the gondola halfway up the canyon. But it will probably have an extra fee.

Measuring 8 miles, it will be the longest gondola system in the world and includes nearly two dozen towers, averaging 185 feet high. That’s about 17 stories. UDOT said the towers will be placed up the canyon by helicopters, like they’ll gently rest on the forest

floor where tree roots will wind around the base to hold them down, becoming part of the natural landscape.

No. Each tower will have a huge concrete base, requiring boulders and trees to be demolished. Not only that, but construction could disrupt animal migration patterns, pollute the watershed and highlight UDOT’s decision-making legacy.

UDOT explored options like rideshare programs, electric buses and road tolls that are less invasive, especially when trying to solve a traffic problem that only happens a few days a year. But those alternatives aren’t expensive and ridiculous, so that was a “no” vote from UDOT.

When you factor inflation, the project’s cost will be about $72 gajillion, paid for with “mystery funding” which we all know usually means “taxpayer dollars” in some fash-

ion. Even if you’ve never skied a day in your life, your tax dollars will probably help pay for a system designed by ski resorts, for ski resorts.

We’ve riddled this country with aging infrastructure. Obsolete railways, cables, steel and wiring lie unused and rusting. When the gondola becomes outdated, our grandchildren’s grandchildren will be stuck with the awful towers standing forever in the sacred space of Little Cottonwood.

UDOT’s track record is abysmal. I remember when it spent $700,000 to remove the stupid ThrU Turn on 5400 South. UDOT said the intersection wasn’t a mistake, just unnecessary.

That could be UDOT’s tagline: Building unnecessary mistakes. l

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