Murray Journal | January 2022

January 2022 | Vol. 32 Iss. 13

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TWO MURRAY LEADERS RIDE OFF TO ONE SUNSET

By Shaun Delliskave | s.delliskave@mycityjournals.com

T

heir tenure as Murray elected officials included presiding over one of the most tumultuous times in the city’s history since World War II. Now Mayor Blair Camp and City Councilor Dale Cox’s terms will end in January, after overseeing the town in a pandemic and watching a wave of new development proposals that will change the face of Murray.

Camp and Cox took office in 2018, without any clue that a pandemic crisis would overtake them halfway into their term. Murray has not faced such a crisis in its history since World War II redefined the community eight decades ago.

Moreover, the ever-changing nature of the pandemic made it especially difficult to govern.

“Early on was a real challenge because there was so much information coming in,” Camp said. “So many conflicting voices. We literally met regularly, and we got really proficient with Zoom. We had a lot of meetings on what type of mask mandates we had to do. What do we need to do to protect the public and protect our own employees?”

“It’s been interesting; there’s been a lot of unknowns,” Cox said. “We have to do the best we can with the information that we have at the time, and the information you had, shifted.”

In addition to a lethal virus that Murray’s employees would encounter with the public, city leaders had to deal with the economic fallout of losing sales tax revenue. According to the State of Utah, Murray had one of the steepest declines in tax revenue in the entire state, and city operations were jeopardized.

Continued page 4

Mayor Blair Camp in the Murray City Mayor’s office. (Shaun Delliskave/City Journals)

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Continued from front page “The mayor asked that they suspend the base budget, and then he presented us with a (new) budget, and then we asked the department heads to cut 5% off that. They did because we had no idea what that impact would be on city funds. We wanted to make sure that we maintained city services like fire, water and sewer. We weathered the storm pretty well; the department heads did a great job. It wasn’t quite as drastic as we thought it would be, but the sales tax became steady. At the end of the year, we were able to put most of the things back that were cut,” Cox said.

“Thankfully, so far, it’s bounced back.

Murray’s sales tax is booming. It’s increasing, and it’s higher than last year,” Camp added.

Murray’s growing pains

The pandemic also created a backlog of new development proposals. Utah’s governor and legislature have sided with developers in staring down municipal building regulations. Mixed-use has become the latest thing, as retailers such as RC Willey and Kmart shut down and large box stores remain vacant.

“I was in a meeting about a month ago with Gov. Spencer Cox, who said, ‘All those who ran on the platform of no development, you better have something else to run on because we’re going to develop.’ If we are going to develop, it has to be smart development. I am not a fan of high density. I think Murray can develop with medium to low density,” Cox said.

Developers have proposed mixed-use developments to meet housing demands and still provide a commercial tax base by incorporating high-density housing with storefronts. However, at the beginning of 2021, the onslaught of mixed-use applications became so overwhelming that the city council enacted a six-month moratorium (the longest allowed by state law) to study the matter and adopt new zoning types.

Journals T H E

During that time, the city came up with Village and Center Mixed-Use zones that modified the amount of housing that could fit on a site and defined how a project has to incorporate into surrounding neighborhoods.

Mayor Camp said, “The big-box retail seems to be a thing of the past. I was sorry to see RC Willey shutter its Murray store. If your question is, if you want to see high-density housing go into these former commercial sites, the answer is yes and no. I think the former Kmart site is a great location for this mixed-use because you have 900 East with carrying capacity.

“But I don’t want to see every vacant lot or store become high-density housing. No, I don’t. I do recognize there’s a need for some, but I think the key to it is careful planning. A lot of these areas that people are complaining about high-density housing going into are zoned for that. The general plan calls for that.”

“I can’t tell you how many times people have said to me, ‘I want the old Murray.’

And, I asked them, ‘What old Murray? The Murray when the smokestacks were here or when this was all farmland and there were no houses? What old Murray are you referring to?’ Murray continues to progress. Progress is hard; progress is hard on me. But progress is inevitable, it’s just on how you do it,” Cox said.

Still, Camp and Cox are cautious regarding development, especially past Murray projects that have ended up problematic or were approved under old zoning regulations.

“I would have never voted for Bonnyview Apartments (4900 S. Commerce Dr.) or the 4800 Lofts (4900 S. Galleria Dr.) development. That’s too dense, but people have to realize that those were rezoned a decade ago. We can vote no and tell him they can’t build, and then they can sue the city and still build,” Cox said.

“The Fireclay is an area that causes huge problems. It was the first of its kind.

A man of many hats, Dale Cox was president of the Utah AFL-CIO before being elected as city councilor.

(Shaun Delliskave/City Journals)

The commercial wasn’t built that was supposed to be built. The parking structures that were supposed to be going in there weren’t built. The developer walked away after the apartments were built. We’ve been left to deal with those kinds of issues and challenges,” Camp said.

Murray downtown

Perhaps the most extensive development during their time in office was the entire revamp of downtown Murray. Two years ago, the city finished constructing a new firehouse that serves as headquarters for the Murray FD and demolished the old fire station whose property is part of a new city hall.

It’s a project that was supposed to have been completed this year.

“I was hoping to have it completed during my term, but we weren’t able to do it due to the delays caused by COVID and the cell phone tower. We’re going to have a new city hall, the first new city hall since 1908

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built specifically as a city hall. That was one of the things (former Mayor) Ted Eyre really wanted. He was afraid that it really wouldn’t get done. Ted was really pushing for those two things and asked me to do [it] when I was running for mayor—see that city hall would get done and see that a project gets started on State Street,” Camp said.

The 48th and State development project would transform the east side of State Street into a huge mixed-use project with two six-story mixed-use residential buildings comprising 262 rental units. In addition, construction would raze a half-dozen century-old storefronts on State Street and two historic homes on Poplar Street. A September open house attracted the attention of many, including historic preservationists.

“That meeting was hijacked by a historic preservation group,” Camp said. “I think their complaint was that they didn’t have enough input. Therein lies a problem. How do you give the public input before you give

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Murray City Journal

Mayor Blair Camp in the Murray City Mayor’s office. (Shaun Delliskave/City Journals)

them input?”

Cox said, “I like the developer, but what I didn’t like was the process. I understood when we picked the developer why we kept that one close to the breast, but once we had picked the developer, it should have been an open, public process. Maybe have a committee with some rational citizens, people from the city, and the developer sit down and discuss what we needed to build instead of presenting what we have.

“I think the best option is getting more public input to decide what will work there.

It has to work with the property. You have to have a group of people that have a vision of what will go there. A developer can build

and make their money, but also it has to be a valuable asset to Murray citizens. And that doesn’t come from the mayor’s office or the council or planning and zoning. It comes from a group of people, with different backgrounds, that can sit down and discuss and come with something that works.”

Camp added, “It’s a good, viable project. I thought it was enough; people apparently don’t, and that’s fine. History will bear out whether it was good to put it off or to wait for something else, but we’ve waited many years for something to happen to that corner.”

Nixing re-election

Mayor Blair Camp was a firefighter before his election as Murray City mayor. (Shaun Delliskave/City Journals)

MurrayJournal .com

With so many significant projects in the works, why not run for re-election? Camp actually had a short stint as mayor before his full term as mayor. When Mayor Ted Eyre, dying of cancer, declined to run for a second term in 2017, then-City Councilor Blair Camp had already declared himself a candidate for mayor. However, Eyre died in office before completing his term in August 2017.

City Councilor Diane Turner was appointed acting mayor until the city council could appoint an interim mayor. Camp had filed as a candidate for mayor and applied to be made interim mayor, and he was seated by the council in September 2017, thus giving Camp the status of an incumbent in the election and giving him a three-month term as mayor.

“I never intended to be a career politician when I ran for city council. My plan was to run for two terms and then retire. I never intended to run for mayor. I just intended to run for council. Ted Eyre asked me when he learned that he wasn’t going to be able to run again if I was interested in running for mayor, and I told him no, I wasn’t. Then he asked me again, and he asked me again, and it got me thinking about it. All of a sudden, I found myself encouraged to run for mayor. I thought, ‘I probably have enough gas left in my tank another election,’… so I thought it would be a fairly seamless transition,” Camp said.

With Camp’s seat vacant, the city council appointed Pam Cotter to fill his position due to his interim appointment as mayor.

While Cotter was not running for election, Dale Cox made his first election bid to fill District 2’s council seat. Cox handily won his election.

“I never wanted to be a career politician.

I wanted to get in and do what we accomplished. That is, secure a good tax base and

expand where we can make sure the men and women working for Murray are taken care of, because that, in turn, will make sure that the citizens are taken care of. I’m 71 years old. I’m done, and you need young minds that have good ideas,” Cox said.

Legacy

With their exit from politics, each has travel on their schedule. Cox has a motorhome that he and his wife, Jan, plan to get away in, while Camp and his wife, Paula, hope to add a few miles on their side-byside. In addition, there are specific things that they wish to be remembered for.

“When I came on, we were bleeding employees because we didn’t have this (wage-step) program. We weren’t the lowest totem pole, but we were not very high, and we were a training ground for city employees. We were able to put the step program together and bring their salaries up to what they should be,” Cox said.

According to Camp, he feels that finally getting the downtown revamp underway has given him the most satisfaction. With the completion of the fire station and the start of city hall, only the 48th and State project is incomplete.

“Yeah, there’s been a lot of satisfaction being mayor, as far as getting something accomplished and moving forward with projects, working with department heads, and so forth, but there are also days I wonder ‘why on earth am I doing this?’

“The people that work for Murray City have been terrific. Most are very professional and want to do a good job. But even more importantly, the residents I deal with have been supportive. It has been great serving the people of Murray. All in all, people in Murray are good,” Camp said. l

City councilor Dale Cox plans to hit the road in his RV after his term ends. (Shaun Delliskave/City Journals)

January 2022 | Page 5

Local legislative forum answers parents’ questions concerning education

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

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legislative forum, as part of region 19’s PTA series of events that are coming into Murray School District homes via Zoom this year, presented topics from parent involvement to education funding.

Here’s what, in part, was discussed prior to this year’s state legislative session

by Murray legislators and a representative with the Utah State School Board. The event was hosted by PTA region 19 legislative vice president Marci Muszynski, who posed questions to the panel that were submitted by Murray School District parents.

How do the legislators ensure the majority opinion isn’t overshadowed by a more vocal minority in school safety and curriculum?

Rep. Carol Spackman Moss, District 37: Sen. (Kathleen) Riebe and I are on the education committee and the last few monthly meetings, we have had parents there who have very strong feelings. First of all, they rarely are on topic and they’re the same ones who come to school board meetings who disrupt, and their complaints aren’t on the agenda. They’re mostly not parents in the district.

One of the most important things we can do as elected officials is to remind parents that we have a process. For example, with the continual complaint that we’re teaching Critical Race Theory, we don’t teach it. It’s not a curriculum. Whenever a new curriculum is introduced…take financial literacy, for example…it starts with the state school board creating standards for a particular program.

Then, it goes to the district, and they create a curriculum for financial literacy. Then those teachers who are assigned it, have summer workshops. Teachers would work together to create lesson plans. So, the point is, people who are claiming certain things are being taught, when in fact they are not being taught, we need to remind them that we have a process to go through. It isn’t just teachers randomly deciding whatever they want to teach is fine. We must stick to those processes otherwise there’s chaos. Parents need to know we follow guidelines. Teachers are people who follow rules…and we teach kids that. So, if kids think that people coming in yelling and shouting and making noise and accusations are going to change things for the better, that’s how kids, they’re going to act. This is really a critical time. Too many times, we hear from the negative. The good, involved, respectful, engaged parents need to organize too.

Sen. Kathleen Riebe, District 8: We need you to get involved. We need you to show up to our school board meetings. We need you to show up at the legislature and say that, “We like our education system. We like our teachers.” Frequently, people say, “Well, I haven’t gotten any emails that say I like this” and I always use the example of the bumper sticker on the back of the car that says, “Call if you like my driving.” Well, I

Page 6 |January 2022

bet no one calls to say they like the driving.

They only call if they don’t like the driving.

And secondly, the (Utah) State Office of Education has a lot of committees that vet our standards, and we need common-sense families on those committees. We have frequent-fliers, who are just mad and want to disrupt the system and that isn’t helpful to us. We are all really working hard in the system to try to create a betterment for our kids and our families.

Sen. Gene Davis, District 3: We’re structured as a society; right now that even though you don’t live in the Murray School District, there are those who will try to disrupt the meetings. They will fill a lot of the misinformation in there. A lot of the parents are picking up on the misinformation there.

Probably the best thing you can do as parents, is to know the truth. You need to work with the school districts to find out what the truth is so you can counter with some of those claims that are out there of misinformation.

State school board rep. Janet Cannon, District 8.: (on CRT) This sort of blindsided us. Critical Race Theory came from Harvard Law School in the ’70s. It’s a college-level curriculum. There’s nothing appropriate for it to be taught in K-12 and it’s not taught in K-12. When people came to us and were so upset, accused us of teaching Critical Race Theory, it was really an accusation looking for where the problem was. It really isn’t being taught in Utah schools. It’s a problem in search of a place to land.

What bills do you anticipate coming forth in regards to in transgender and gender non-conforming students’ participation in athletics regardless of gender at birth?

Davis: I think we’ll see the same bill that we’ve saw the last two sessions, trying to really discriminate against transgender individuals. Parents themselves are becoming more aware and sensitive of their children’s identities. That’s why we’re seeing perhaps a little more openness in the discussion about transgender. They’re becoming more aware and more accepting of that, so they’ll expect the rest of society to respect and accept their children as well.

Riebe: I also believe we will see that (same bill). I think though it has become increasingly unpopular for these bills to be run. We were at the Silicon Slopes breakfast and a lot of very prominent business owners said that it is very hard for us to recruit people to come to the state of Utah if we are going to run bills that seem exclusionary or hateful. That message was heard that morning. The other thing is that we are trying to bring the Olympics here and we’re trying to bring other sporting venues here. Outside looking in, it’s not a good look for the state of Utah. I think this is influencing some of the decisions as well….With our state with having the largest rate of suicide, I think this

Sen. Kathleen Riebe, of District 8, was one of three legislators who were joined by a state school board representative, on region 19’s PTA legislative forum speaking on educational issues. (Screenshot)

is something that we need to be cognizant of.

It’s not a matter of whether we want to delve into it, we have to; and we have to look at the mental health of our students. When I was on the state school board with Janet (Cannon), we talked about what our mission was going to be. I was like, I just want my kid to make it to adulthood at this point because we’ve had heard of so many kids having self-harm issues. I just want them to have a safe place and make it to adulthood. Some days that’s how we feel and some days, that’s how they feel. It’s important that we meet them where they are and try to give them the support they need. We need to be there for them.

Moss: 1) There’s never been any student in Utah, ever, transgender trying to play in girls sports. 2) The high school activities association has rules in place…that a student must be on hormones for a certain amount of time. It just becomes a hot-button issue. My heart goes out to kids. I want kids to be happy, to be safe and to be healthy. The beautiful thing is that the kids are becoming much more accepting of kids with differences now.

They don’t have a problem with it. It’s adults who are making it a problem. I want school to be a safe environment for all students.

Cannon: (At the state school board) We have a standards and assessment committee and we’re dealing with this issue right now.

The take we have on it is that we’d like to address something that might be helpful for teachers who are on the ground facing these issues in their teaching careers. We’re trying to put together what federal laws say, what the state of Utah laws say, regarding these things, and then that may be helpful examples for teachers who are dealing with this.

What efforts are being made to work toward fully funded IDEA (Individuals

with Disabilities Education Act) and section 504 (prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability in programs and activities) in Utah?

Riebe: Some of the problems we have with fully funding IDEA, 504s and IEPs (individual education plans), is that we have difficulties coding them. We actually leave money on the table because we can’t code them properly and so we aren’t getting the Medicaid funding that we need to get.…

Our needs have grown. I would like to see us move to serving kids at a higher rate from K to three, and then we maybe will not have such a higher rate at four through 12. Our kids, they have disabilities when they come, they have learning disorders, so if we can approach those and we give them the help they need as quickly as possible, then maybe they can transition out of special ed. The antiquated thought of ‘I don’t want my kid in special ed,’ does not help anyone. It’s actually a detriment to our students to wait two years or to do these interventions. We should be attacking it full on and getting there quickly and getting them everything they need to try to figure out what’s going on and give them what services they need.

This year, we actually do have a big influx of money. Every time I meet with school districts, I’m like, ‘Let’s try everything’ and let’s keep really good data on it. This way, when we get to the end of three years and our money starts to evaporate, we can say this is what we thought we were doing for years, but it didn’t work as well as this is going to work. I hoping that we’re trying everything and we’re trying to meet the needs of our kids. 504s, IEPs, they are so hard to negotiate. You could give every dollar and you still may not have enough. l

Murray City Journal

Measuring the impact of ranked choice voting

By Justin Adams | justin.a@thecityjournals.com

T

his election cycle, multiple cities in the Salt Lake valley opted to take advantage of a pilot program for ranked choice voting, made possible by the state legislature. As opposed to a traditional election, where voters must select one candidate, RCV allows voters to rank any number of candidates according to their preference.

Proponents of the method point to the benefits of making the switch, from encouraging more candidates to run and increasing voter turnout, to making elections more fair and less antagonistic. While some of these benefits aren’t easily measured, some of them can be. So, how did this round of RCV experimentation turn out?

To get a sense of how much RCV impacted local elections this year, The City Journals took a look at the numbers for a few key metrics. First reporters compared the number of candidates and voter turnout to the same races held in 2017. Then reporters asked the question: did RCV actually change any of the election results?

Number of Candidates There were eight cities which took part in the RCV pilot: Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake, Millcreek, Cottonwood Heights, Sandy, Draper, Midvale and Bluffdale. Riverton would have but only had one candidate for each election. Within those cities, there were 17 races that utilized RCV. (A couple races would have used RCV, but it ended up not being necessary because there were only two candidates.)

There were 73 combined candidates who ran in those 17 races, an increase from 63 candidates who ran for those same positions in the primary stage in 2017. However, that increase is almost completely accounted for by one city, Sandy, which saw an increase of three to eight candidates in its mayoral race and from two to six candidates in its race for an at-large seat on the city council.

Cottonwood Heights was another city that saw an increase in candidates, with five candidates competing in both its mayoral race and one of its city council races (compared to three in each race from 2017).

Salt Lake City saw the biggest decrease in its number of candidates, with two fewer candidates vying for its second district seat and three fewer candidates vying for its seventh district.

Voter Turnout How about voter turnout? Does giving people the chance to rank multiple candidates encourage more people to participate? Not according to this year’s races.

Of the 17 races we looked at, there was a total voter turnout of 115,851. That’s up just a little bit from 2017’s turnout of 115,008.

Recognizing that there are a number of possible variables that can impact turnout for a given race, here are a few of the outliers in this category. Remember, this is comparing

MurrayJournal .com

2017 to 2021.

A Bluffdale race for two seats on its council increased from 1,418 ballots counted to 3,344.

Salt Lake City’s first district race saw an increase from 1,621 to 3,381.

Despite having seven candidates vying for two at-large seats, Draper’s voter turnout dropped 20%, from 10,853 to 8,610.

Even in Sandy City, which had a hotly contested and crowded mayoral race, turnout decreased from 23,007 to 21,246.

Did it impact results?

Under RCV, the ballot counting process takes place over several rounds. After the first round, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, and their ballots then revert to those voters’ second choices. This creates the possibility that whichever candidate receives the most first-place ballots, won’t actually win the election. You might have a candidate who receives the third-most votes in the first round end up winning the election because they built a broad base of support and was able to win the majority of the second place votes. So, did that happen in any of these elections?

For the most part, no. In almost all the races, the candidate who received the most first-place votes went on to win the election.

The one exception being Millcreek’s District 2 race, in which Jeremiah Clark held a narrow lead after the first round of votes, but ended up losing to Thom Desirant by nine percentage points.

So what?

Based on this initial look at some of these metrics, it might seem like RCV made a huge impact on this year’s elections. But Stan Lockhart, a spokesman for Utah Ranked Choice Voting, said that it’s too early to draw long-term conclusions about the effectiveness of RCV. “Twenty-three cities in Utah used ranked choice voting this year, and it was the first time for 21 of those 23 cities. We need to be careful in extrapolating too much,” he said.

In regards to measurables like number of candidates and voter turnout, Lockhart said those have always been driven more by local issues. If there’s something controversial that’s taken place at the city level, like a tax increase or a land use decision, that’s more likely to drum up interest in an election than a change to RCV. A better measure of RCV’s success, according to Lockhart, is how voters felt about the process…a question that Utah RCV teamed up with Y2 Analytics to help answer.

“I think the most important metric that we should focus on is voter satisfaction. How did the voter feel about the experience of ranking their vote. And the survey vote shows as high as 90% of the voters thought it was easy to use,” Lockhart said.

Additionally, 62% of poll respondents

Election assistant Becky Overacker helps first-time voter Zyon Bruce in Draper where they held ranked choice voting for the first time. (Mimi Darley Dutton/City Journals)

said they liked voting with a ranked choice ballot.

Learning curve Lockhart acknowledged that there can be a little bit of a learning curve when it comes to RCV, both for candidates and voters.

For candidates, the implementation of RCV opens up another component of campaign strategy that they normally wouldn’t think about: coordinating with other candidates and forming coalitions. For example, a group of two or more like-minded candidates can encourage their voters to rank them in the top three spots. Lockhart said he didn’t see a whole lot of such coordination in the races which used RCV. One exception was for one of the council races in Salt Lake City, where two candidates jointly paid for a postcard advertisement, where one candidate was featured on one side, and the other candidate on the flipside.

There’s also a learning curve for voters, who might not realize the power they have by taking advantage of the ranked choice feature.

If a voter only ranks one or two candidates and those candidates get eliminated, that voters’ ballot becomes “inactive.”

In a close election, a large number of inactive ballots represents voters who could have potentially swung the election one way or another. That’s exactly what happened in Sandy, where the top two candidates for mayor were separated by just 21 votes. However, there were over 4,000 inactive ballots (voters who had chosen to not rank either of the two finalists). If voting is all about using one’s voice, Lockhart suggested that fully ranking every candidate on the ballot is voters’ best way to maximize that voice.

“If those voters had ranked more candidates, they would have been more relevant in that round,” he said about that Sandy mayoral race. l

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January 2022 | Page 7

Viewmont fourth-grade teacher Kristen Snow was all smiles after completing the Boston Marathon Oct. 11 with her fastest time, 3 hours 44 minutes. (Photo courtesy of Kristen Snow)

Elisa Salazar plays cornerback on the Utah Falconz and chaired the Board of Directors for the Murray Area Chamber of Commerce. (Photo courtesy Utah Falconz)

A Murray firefighter and Bumble, the Salt Lake Bees mascot, help out in Operation Santa. (Photo courtesy Jerry Summerhays)

Duncan Wonnacott sports a bloody nose during a physical region game last January. (Travis Barton/ City Journals)

With a twist of a connector, Gov. Spencer Cox activated the LTE network with the help of Murray High student interns Catherine Martinez and Adam Dansie. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Dead City performers, complete with fake wounds and real bandages, relax after being treated in a Murray FD mock drill. (Photo courtesy Tom Roberson)

Kris and Kecia Cox stand with their children Adrie, Kyrie, Noah, Bree, Claire, Mia, and Livvy after being announced as the Utah Council for Exceptional Children’s Parents of the Year. (Photo courtesy of Murray School District)

Jon Paleka and Dallas Anderson (third and fourth from left) broke a Guinness World Record with their “Farthest Marshmallow Propelled and Caught in the Mouth” attempt. (Photo courtesy Dallas Anderson)

Page 8 |January 2022

Murray City Journal

Murray 2021: Olympic medals and more

Paralympian Ali Ibanez displays her medal to two future Olympians at Murray Park. (Shaun Delliskave/City Journals) Dogs were invited to try out an obstacle course at the Humane Society of Utah’s Bark at the Moon event in May. (Photo courtesy of the Humane Society of Utah)

Little Cottonwood Creek in Murray Park flowed well below its average in June. (Shaun Delliskave/City Journals)

Nathaniel Coleman displays his Olympic silver medal and his honorary Murray gold medal. (Shaun Delliskave/City Journals)

Murray High’s Landon Stock buries a penalty against Highland last spring. (Travis Barton/City Journals)

Murray High students built this 4,900-square-foot house near Wheeler Farm over a three-year period, which sold this past spring for almost a million dollars. (Quin Drury/Murray High School)

MurrayJournal .com

Murray residents are now permitted to raise chickens in their yard after a unanimous vote from the City Council. (Photo courtesy Utah State University)

Murray resident Sophie Lowry crowned Days of ’47 queen for 2021. (Photo courtesy of Sophie Lowry)

January 2022 | Page 9

Murray 2021: Olympic medals and more

Seventh-grader McKay Andrew pushes through his first race at Soldier Hollow in August. (Photo courtesy Kent Sutcliffe)

Shawnti Diaz, 2021 Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Salt Lake Youth of the Year. (Photo courtesy of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Salt Lake)

Page 10 |January 2022

Then-Cottonwood student body president Faith Godina catches the ball at first base in their April 28 game against Hillcrest High. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Tenisha Hicks received a Comcast RISE award for Black-owned businesses. (Photo courtesy Tenisha Hicks)

Chef KC Gray shows his students the proper technique to prepare chicken. (Julie Slama/City Journals)

Murray City Journal

January City Hall update

By Shaun Delliskave | s.delliskave@mycityjournals.com

W

hat once stood as monoliths beckoning some unknown civilization before Murray was settled now has steel girders attached and is now starting to look a lot like a building.

With the cell tower gone and foundations in place, construction crews have completed three stories of the new City Hall. The east side, which will house many administrative offices, including the city council and mayor’s office, has risen soonest.

The west side of City Hall, which will house the police headquarters, has crews still working on concrete foundations. (Shaun Delliskave/ City Journals) l

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January 2022 | Page 11

‘We are trying to survive’—what it’s like fighting COVID on the front line in Murray

By Shaun Delliskave | s.delliskave@mycityjournals.com

I

n Murray’s IMC emergency room, intubations are high-stress procedures requiring skilled medical staff to place a tube down a patient’s throat to pump oxygen into their lungs. After nearly two years of COVID, Dr. Adam Balls, ER medical director at IMC, knows the procedure all too well.

Like other ER staff across the nation, Balls watches the toll of battling that disease on his colleagues. The never-ending flow of COVID patients overburdening the number of available beds impacts medical workers not just physically but mentally as well.

“We are trying to survive,” Balls said.

“We are trying to put on our best face and treat each of our patients with respect and dignity despite our internal stress and anxiety. It has increased the amount of burnout among our ED caregivers, and we have spent additional time focusing on ways to better take care of our mental health and look out for the well-being of each other.”

No stranger to tense medical situations, Balls spent four years active duty in the USAF and served two deployments to Iraq and Germany as the team lead for a critical care air transport team. Since 2015, Balls has been IMC’s emergency department medical director.

“Life has been in a constant change of change over the last few years. Fear and un-

certainty during the early stages of the pandemic have been replaced by frustration in continuing to treat patients with COVID-19 who refuse to protect themselves with available vaccines. The hospitals have run at or above capacity over the last two years due to increased COVID volumes in the medical floors and ICU,” Balls said.

In December, the surge in COVID cases rivaled the previous winter. According to a Utah Department of Health analysis, unvaccinated Utahns were 15.5 times more likely to die of COVID-19 than vaccinated people and 9.3 times more likely to be hospitalized.

“We initially had a dip in our ER volumes during the spring of 2020 due to the lockdowns and social distancing. As our volumes have returned to normal, we continue to treat high numbers of sick COVID-19 patients while taking care of other emergency conditions,” Balls said.

However, not just the lack of beds that is challenging Balls, but the decrease in staff.

Hospitals throughout the state have seen medical staff burnout translate into resignations.

“The burden of COVID-19 has caused an increased turnover in our ER staff, and nationwide there are significant nursing shortages that make staffing our EDs much more difficult. Many excellent nurses have decided to leave the chaos and stress of the

ED to seek employment at other lower-stress health care sites or even take jobs outside of healthcare,” Balls said.

Personally, Balls says that he understands his colleagues’ fatigue. But, according to him, “It has increased the stress in my work as a bedside emergency physician and increased the amount of stress, anxiety, and worry in my role as ED medical director and worrying about our caregivers and patients.”

With the December arrival of the omicron variant of the coronavirus, Balls says that he is not too surprised.

“The virus may continue to mutate, and this will require modifications to current vaccines to prevent infection from additional variants. Mutations (and other viruses) will continue to cause pandemics in the next few years, and we hope the public takes these Murray IMC’s ED Medical Director Adam Balls. new illnesses seriously,” Balls said.

In October and November, protests took (Photo courtesy Adam Balls) place on Murray’s State Street against the federal vaccine mandate. It’s not clear why not only protects you, it reduces the spread the protestors chose IMC’s emergency de- of COVID-19 in the community and protects partment entrance rather than a federal gov- our friends and loved ones from becoming seernment building as their protest site. verely ill and hospitalized due to COVID-19.”

“COVID-19 doesn’t discriminate,” Balls In early December, 82% of all COVID said. “Vaccines work. Those with chronic cases in Murray belonged to those who were medical illnesses and the elderly are at in- unvaccinated, according to the Salt Lake creased risk of severe illness if they become County Health Department. Out of 49,105 infected with COVID-19. Getting a vaccine Murrayites, there have been 8,054 cases of

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Murray City Journal

COVID since the outbreak. Furthermore, out of the 1,274 Utahns who have died from the disease, 56 were Murrayites. While Murray School District had low incidences of COVID, schoolchildren this year have a higher incidence than last year.

Utah’s vaccination rates have improved, especially when the vaccines were approved for children ages six and up. Salt Lake County reported that vaccination clinics were busy in November when the approval was granted.

“The vaccines have truly provided a great defense against COVID-19. We are grateful for the safe and effective vaccines that were developed to provide excellent immune protection against COVID-19. As more people continue to be vaccinated, we will continue to make progress in the fight against COVID-19. We have also realized that the COVID-19 pandemic has not turned into an endemic disease that we will continue to deal with each year, much like the influenza virus,” Balls said.

While some people take issue with vaccine mandates, others have an issue with vaccines themselves.

“I am frustrated that many have been misled by the misinformation surrounding COVID-19 and the vaccines. I hope that people get their knowledge and facts from reputable sources and begin to trust the opinions of their medical providers in regard to the safety and efficacy of vaccines,” Balls said.

Even with the drama going on in and outside the ER, Balls doesn’t regret going

into emergency medicine.

“During my college career, I realized I didn’t want to work in a desk job. My sister finished her degree as a nurse, and I became interested in medicine through her example, getting my EMT certification while in college and shadowing my wife’s uncle, who worked as an emergency medicine physician. I wanted to use my skills and training to become a physician in the ED that cared for people during their acute medical or trauma emergencies,” Balls said.

On top of all that, he serves as medical director for the Murray Fire Department. He oversees the medical care of the crews, does monthly quality learning reviews with each shift, and reviews Murray FD’s medical policies and procedures.

Balls was honored in 2018 for his efforts to improve mental health and wellness for first responders. The Ten4 Responding organization recognized his work with the Murray FD. Ten4 Responding is part of the veteran’s Honor365 group and, according to its website, honors those who “respond to the concerns regarding suicide in the world that is impacting those who serve.”

Still, Balls remains hopeful that more of the public will receive their vaccines and accompanying boosters. The COVID vaccine and boosters are free. People can learn more about the vaccines and boosters online and how to obtain one from the Salt Lake County Health Department website: slco.org/health/ COVID-19. l

Murray Covid data from January to December 2021. (Graph courtesy Salt Lake County Health Department)

Intensive Care Unit rates between May 1 to December 1, 2021. As COVID rates increased, so did ICU utilization, accounting for most ICU hospitalizations. (Graph courtesy of Utah Department of Health)

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January 2022 | Page 13

Utah organization celebrates 10 years of empowering local women

By Hannah LaFond | h.lafond@mycityjournals.com

G

uests gathered at Venue 6SIX9 in downtown Salt Lake City in November for a black-tie gala to honor nine outstanding women. Those celebrated women were the 2021 graduates from WoWUtah.

“WoW” stands for “Women of Worth,” and the Utah-based nonprofit works to help women who have overcome difficult circumstances such as addiction, abuse or disease. The women selected for the program go through a year of workshops and training to help them gain self-worth and give them the tools they need for a fresh start.

Each of the women is paired with a mentor, a volunteer who is there to help through the entire journey.

Along with teaching them valuable life skills, each participant is given a makeover. According to WoWUtah’s Facebook page, they are gifted a collection of business attire and casual clothing selected by a team of stylists. “So she can feel confident and beautiful in her personal and professional life.” They also give each graduate formal wear and shoes for the gala event.

While the program usually spans a year, the graduates at Friday’s event had been with WoWUtah for two years. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, workshops and classes that usually would have taken place in person switched to online. As

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a result, WoWUtah decided to keep the same participants for another year so they could better experience the program.

Gala attendees enjoyed watching videos made by the 2021 graduates WoWUtah gala venue. to highlight (Courtesy of WoWUtah) their achievements.

Following their video, each graduate walked across the stage, just like in a classic school graduation. Then they were invited to say a few words about their experience, all of them finishing with the proclamation of “I am a woman of worth.”

Barbara Moeller, who graduated from the program in 2012, now sits on WoW’s Chair of Mentees. Speaking about her experience, she said, “WoW helped me to find out how amazing it is to be myself. I had gotten lost under the pressures and circumstances in life. The program gave me the tools to defend myself against challenges that eroded my self-worth. The magic is

Members of WoWUtah’s board with founder Judee Guay and husband, Lewie Guay, at the center. (Courtesy of WoWUtah)

being paired with a mentor for a journey of self-discovery. I not only found my worth again but learned to be responsible and accountable for how I comport myself.”

Along with honoring the 2021 graduates, the gala also celebrated the 10 years WoWUtah has been in operation. Judee Guay, who founded WoW and now works alongside COO Marie Jess to keep it running, spoke about the organization’s beginnings.

She started WoW after she got a second chance at life. Guay recalled her years spent in an abusive marriage and how hopeless she’d felt. Hopelessness, only made worse by autoimmune diseases she was suffering from at the time. But, slowly, she was able to put the pieces back together. She left the abusive marriage, lost 100 pounds, and started to heal.

Going through such a life-changing experience made Guay want to help other women overcome their struggles. So, she started WoWUtah in 2011. Though she had a vision, Guay said their first gala was nothing like the event that evening.

“If anybody had told me that 10 years later this would be here, I wouldn’t have believed them,” she said, looking out at the crowd.

The guests were also invited to participate in a silent auction to raise money for WoW’s continuation. The auction included prizes such as theater tickets, gift baskets, romantic getaways and several cakes. The evening presenter and a member of WoW’s advisory board, Ty Bennett, joked that he’d won several cakes that his children had bid on for him.

Speaking of how WoWUtah has op-

erated and will continue to operate on donations, Guay said, “[WoW] has been supported by volunteers, including the directors, executive board and advisory board. No one has received remuneration, and it will stay that way with all donations going toward the women being served now and in the future.”

After presenting the graduates, Guay and Jess took turns presenting awards to those who’d helped WoWUtah throughout its 10 years. One of the award recipients included Chad Hymas, a highly respected international speaker who is also on WoW’s advisory board. Hymas was given the Inspiration Award.

Sheri Thompson, who’d come all the way from Arizona for the event, was given the Soul Sister Award. Guay told The City Journals, “Sheri's incredible connection with her WoW sisters and the mentees is why she is so deserving of this award.”

They also surprised Bennett, the presenter, with the Legacy Award, for being with WoW from the beginning.

Guay finished by surprising her COO Jess, and her husband, Lewie Guay, with the Founder’s Awards.

After the awards, they finished the evening by inviting the women of WoW to perform a special musical number. They stood on the stage to sing “Breaking Free; Becoming My Best Me,” WoW’s official theme song, written by Nina Angela Lee, the president of Wow’s Executive Board.

WoWUtah will be helping another group of women in 2022. l

Murray City Journal

January 2022 FREQUENTLY REQUESTED NUMBERS Grant Elementary . . . . . . 801-264-7416 Heritage Center (Senior Programming) . . 801-264-2635 Hillcrest Jr. High . . . . . . . 801-264-7442 Horizon Elementary . . . . 801-264-7420 Liberty Elementary . . . . . 801-264-7424 Longview Elementary. . . 801-264-7428 Ken Price Ball Park . . . . . 801-262-8282 Miss Murray Pageant (Leesa Lloyd) . . . . . . . . . . 801-446-9233 McMillan Elementary. . . 801-264-7430 Murray Area Chamber of Commerce.. . . . . . . . . . 801-263-2632

FACILITY HOURS

Murray Arts Advisory Board (Lori Edmunds) . . . . . . . . 801-264-2614

Monday - Friday

5:30am - 9pm

Murray Boys & Girls Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . 801-268-1335

Saturday

7am - 5pm

Sunday

9am - 2pm

Murray City Cemetery . . . 801-264-2637

HOLIDAY HOURS

Murray Community Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . 801-264-7414

January 1 New Year’s Day

Murray High School . . . . 801-264-7460 Murray Museum . . . . . . . 801-264-2589

8am-4pm

Holiday Fitness Classes Kidzone closed on Holidays

Murray Parks and Recreation Office . . . . . . . 801-264-2614 Murray Parkway Golf Course . . . . . . . . . . . . 801-262-4653 Murray Park Aquatics Pool . . . . . . . . . 801 290-4190 Mick Riley Golf Course (SL County). . . . . . . . . . . . 801-266-8185 Parkside Elementary . . . . 801-264-7434 Riverview Jr. High . . . . . . 801-264-7446 Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation . . . . . . . . 801-468-2560 Salt Lake County Ice Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . 801-270-7280 The Park Center . . . . . . . . 801-284-4200 Viewmont Elementary . . 801-264-7438

• • •

Game ON! - The Park Center on Wednesdays 2:30pm Sports for Minis - 3-5 year old begins in February Fitness Classes - Spinning, aquafit and studio classes

•

Murray Aquatics Club (Swim team) -

• • •

Play Programs @ The Park Center Basketball, Volleyball & Pickleball Women on Weights - FREE for members | Begins in January Evolution Swim Lessons - February registration opens Jan 18 @ 12pm

16 and older $7 per class or $50 for 10 classes

Tryouts for new swimmers on Mondays 6:45pm $5.00 tryout fee

Recreation Director | Soni Hirasuna Recreation Coordinator | Janica Gubler Recreation Coordinator | Tasha LaRocco

The Park Center Director | Marci Williams Assistant Park Center Director | Joe Gourley Aquatics Manager | Sena Vick

THE PARK CENTER 202 E. MURRAY PARK AVE. PARKS AND RECREATION OFFICE 296 E. MURRAY PARK AVE.

MCREG.COM MURRAY.UTAH.GOV

C ULTURAL A RTS

Storytelling workshops are a great opportunity and fun way for children, teens, and adults to develop story writing and storytelling skills. As workshops are confirmed, locations and schedules will be posted on the Cultural Arts webpage (www.utah.gov/1293/MurrayStorytelling-Showcase). You can also email any questions to klindquist@murray.utah.gov.

Liberty After School January 11 – January 27, 2022. Tuesdays & Thursdays only. 3:15 – 4:45 p.m. Liberty Elementary (140 West 6100 South). Open to students grades 3-6. (students do not need to attend Liberty Elementary to participate).

Parks & Rec Office January 22 – March 5, 2022. Saturdays only. 1 – 3 p.m. Open to any students grades 3-12.

Parks and Recreation Office (296 E Murray Park Ave).

Senior Recreation Center For ages 18 and older. Dates TBA (most likely to start in February). For questions, please contact Senior Recreation Center at 801-264-2635.

Registration: Registration form can be found on webpage and will be available on first day of workshop.

For more information or updates, email klindquist@murray.utah.gov

Candy Display at City Hall!

Can you guess the family story depicted in the candy displays? Hint: the golden brick building in the first window is the future home of the Murray City Museum!

These sweet festive displays are available to view in the central hallway display case in Murray City Hall (5025 S State Street) from December 1, 2021 – January 28, 2022.

City Hall hours are Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Artists: Raelyn and Bill Webster

JANUARY 2022 MURRAY SENIOR RECREATION CENTER 10 East 6150 South • Murray, Utah 84107 801-264-2635 seniorrec@murray.utah.gov murray.utah.gov/140/Senior-Recreation-Center mcreg.com Monday-Friday 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Thursday 8 a.m. – 9:30 p.m.

Closed Saturday and Sunday DAILY LUNCH BY CHEF OMAR LIMON Date: Tuesday through Friday Time: 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Cost: Cost is $4; prior registration not required SPECIAL EVENTS Winter Family Concert Series Date: Monday, Jan. 10 – Still Swingin’ Monday, Feb. 14 – Vaudeville Nouveau Time: 7 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Cost: Free; no appointment needed open to all ages; doors open at 6 p.m.

Mardi Gras Date: Tuesday, Mar. 1 Time: 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Cost: $10, reserved seats; registration begins Tuesday, February 1 CLASSES Ceramics Date: Tuesday and Thursday Time: 9 a.m. – noon Cost: $1.50 each class plus cost of supplies Grief Support Date: Friday, Jan. 7 Friday, Jan. 21 Time: 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Cost: Free; Register now Vital Aging: Healing Broken Trust Date: Tuesday, Jan. 18 Time: 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Cost: Free; register now Nutrition: Eating Seasonally Date: Tuesday, Jan. 25 Time: 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Cost: Free; register now

EXERCISE Using the Lifetime Vibe Machine Date: Thursday, Jan. 6 | Thursday, Jan. 20 Time: 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Cost: Free; register now PROGRAMS Thursday Evening Social Dance Live Music provided by Tony Summerhays Date: Thursdays Time: 7 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

Cost: $5 Mexican Train Dominos Game Date: Thursdays Time: 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Cost: Free

HEALTH SERVICES Haircuts Date: Friday, Jan. 7 | Friday, Jan. 21 Time: 9 a.m. – noon Cost: $9; advance appointment required Blood Pressure Clinic by Harmony Home Health Date: Thursday, Jan. 13 Time: 10:30 a.m. – noon Cost: Free; no appointment necessary Toenail Clipping Date: Tuesday, Feb. 15 Time: 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Cost: $11; advance appointment required; registration begins Tuesday, Jan. 11 TRIPS Wendover Date: Thursday, Jan. 13 Time: 8:30 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Cost: $22; register now

THE MURRAY SENIOR RECREATION CENTER 10 East 6150 South (West of State Street) • 801-264-2635

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Murray City Journal

MurrayJournal .com

January 2022 | Page 19

Cottonwood basketball returns Photos by Travis Barton

Noah Widerburg looks to fire a pass to Aiden Oliphant. Widerburg has moved to the point guard position this year facilitating just as much as he’s scoring averaging 14 points and six assists per game.

Jackson Price is a steady presence off the bench so far this season.

Aiden Oliphant drives to the basket in a preseason game against Northridge. Through Dec. 13, the Colts were 3-1.

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Robbie Yates drops in a three as he contributes 13 points per game so far for the Colts.

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January 2022 | Page 21

After two near-.500 seasons, Cottonwood football needs more players

By Brian Shaw | b.shaw@mycityjournals.com

T

wo 4-5 seasons, their best finishes in back to back years in more than a decade have the Cottonwood Colts football team thinking ahead to even bigger things in what will be year four under head coach Casey Miller.

But, as the coach stressed, Cottonwood is still in dire need of one thing in particular as it will begin its third season, and possibly its last, as a football independent: more kids.

“We don’t have enough players to really get a good practice during the [season during] the week,” Miller said. “Kids who are linemen have had to play wide receiver or running back at a skill position, so we get used to slower kids than we face in games at practice.”

The necessity to have to play players both ways has also had other adverse effects on the program: simulated practices, fewer healthy bodies and more turnovers and penalties.

“We can’t afford injuries so we do very little full contact at practice to help keep kids [healthy],” Miller said. “In games, things are faster and harder than we are used to so kids make more mistakes.”

The Colts finished the past season with about 30 healthy players, added Miller, the former Hillcrest High coach who has been coaching at Cottonwood in some football capacity for seven years. He spent several years

After two 4-5 seasons, the Colts are looking to level up with more players. (Photo courtesy Casey Miller)

as a Colts offensive coordinator under former coach Bart Bowen, and then Miller took over the top job after Bowen left to take a head coaching position at Logan High School.

But when Bowen was at Cottonwood, he had the same issues as Miller in getting players to come out for the football team. Numbers were low for Bowen’s teams as well, to the point that after a 1-9 season, and after completely rebuilding the program’s inventory, the roster numbers to a degree and team standards

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said he’d had enough, according to Miller.

“He ended up burning himself out and decided that his sanity depended on being somewhere that was not in as bad of shape as Cottonwood,” said Miller, who then said players in the program begged him to apply for the vacant head coaching job, and added they went so far as to ask the Cottonwood administration to hire the Colts’ then-offensive coordinator.

Like Bowen, Miller was handed the thankless task out of the gate of trying to mo-

tivate the 17 kids he did have on his varsity roster to finish games. As a member of a brutal Region 6 that included Highland, Skyline and Brighton, this was a tall order for Miller in his first year as head coach: all were blowout losses.

“We went 0-10, got shut out nine times, and only scored 13 against West on a fluke KOR [kickoff return] where they over-ran a squib-kick, and then we scored on their third or fourth string late in the game,” Miller said.

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In Cottonwood’s first year under Miller almost every region game the Colts played in had a running clock by the third quarter, so he asked Cottonwood athletic director Greg Southwick to petition the Utah High School Athletics Activities Association, or UHSAA, to move the Colts football program to independent status.

After reviewing Cottonwood’s body of work in football over several years the move to independence was granted two years ago

by Utah’s high school sports governing body, and so the Cottonwood program under the new coach Miller was given a lifeline when it was near its death.

“Instead of having to play Corner Canyon, Olympus, Brighton, we were able to schedule more 2A and 3A schools to level the playing field,” said Miller, who added that scheduling JV teams from larger schools also helped hone the Colts’ competitive nature in his second season as they began their climb back up the ladder.

For a program that had a tradition of winning in the 1990s and 2000s but has never won a state title, nobody in the program including Miller wanted to see Cottonwood football cease its operations for the first time in school history.

Data collection As a football independent, the Cottonwood football program is by no means out of the woods yet, but there have been signs of a resurgence under Miller. As an independent, the Colts have begun to show that they can again compete for four quarters against high school programs in Utah. A narrow loss to 2A power Summit Academy coupled with a signature win over 5A rival Murray this past season have given Miller and Southwick cause for hope.

But in order to make a successful move from independent status back to Class 5A membership and complete the cycle back to football prominence, this Cottonwood program still has work to do in several areas, noted Miller.

“We still have a long way to go if we are going to be put back in a region after next season,” he said. “We would be an average 2A program as it sits now.”

To that end, Miller said he has devised several strategies to attract junior-high aged players.

First, the Cottonwood Ute Conference little league program restarted three years ago after an absence, and sixth to eighth graders will begin to infuse more life into the Colts football program, Miller predicts. Seeds of that have already begun sprouting into the freshman/sophomore team. But the growth in this area is minimal: Cottonwood still doesn’t have enough players to field a JV team—something Miller said that almost every 5A program has.

Second is a tool Miller has already implemented the past two summers: a weeklong, college-style football camp. Because the ma-

MurrayJournal .com

After two 4-5 seasons, the Colts are looking to level up with more players. They ended the season with about 30 healthy players. (Photo courtesy Casey Miller)

jority of potential players in the Cottonwood area cannot afford to attend summer camps on college campuses, Miller—who coached at the NAIA college level at Benedictine and was a quarterback there as well as at Cyprus High where he was a Region 5 MVP—has brought this much-needed college camp experience to these kids.

Miller estimates that these summer camps alone could bring in at least 10, if not more, kids from the seventh and eighth grades in the next two years. But this is a slow play that could take years to bear any fruit.

The third and final strategy was to have Miller, and his coaches and players, start walking through Cottonwood’s hallways and talk to kids who might want to give football a try. If it sounds easy enough, it actually isn’t according to Miller who said this strategy usually yields between three to five new players every year.

These are kids who, before having gone to this camp, had either never played football or were kids who were students at Cottonwood’s renowned accelerated AMES school who weren’t already on some other high school’s team—Miller said several play at Kearns and Bingham, and started on their little league youth teams. Or they were kids who had played soccer or another school-sanctioned sport before trying some American football for a change.

Because kids are also on social media frequently these days, Miller and his staff also put out messages on Twitter and Snapchat reminding kids about things going on in the football program. But there’s only so much the Cottonwood coach and his staff can do.

Drawing conclusions Year three will likely be the last for the Colts as a football independent, Miller believes. With all of Cottonwood’s other athletic

programs now participating in Class 5A’s Region 7—enjoying success it hasn’t had in many years—Miller is still a bit resistant having his team travel as far as 300 miles round-trip for one game to Uintah in Vernal, for example.

That said, his Colts have taken road trips as far as Carbon in Price this past year—losing in a 41-34 barnburner classic—so in Miller’s view his team is capable of competing week in and week out on the road as well as at home.

Their record in away games during Miller’s tenure has shown this to be true, however, the Colts just aren’t at a 5A level because of the low number of players that are currently on the roster, he said.

“When we do face a 2A or 3A school [Carbon is in 3A] and the numbers are even, you can feel a different vibe,” he said. In order for that to change, Miller said the Colts need more bodies on the field.

“For varsity [in 2021] we had between 30 and 35 [players] depending on injury. We dressed five sophomores,” Miller said. “We also had 13 seniors this year which is most since I got here…but most schools have 20plus if they are 5A.” If you were to count up all of Cottonwood’s players on the varsity and freshman/sophomore teams, the Colts would have 60 total bodies available—if the school were to be called back up to 5A right now.

And so to keep up with the Cedar Valleys, Stansburys and Hillcrests in the new Class 5A Region 7, this Cottonwood football program buttressed by an open enrollment policy that already draws students from all corners of the valley must find a way to find more players. The program already reaches out into the school’s accelerated programs in engineering, drama and the sciences—Miller is a biology teacher by trade. These strategies have unearthed some diamonds in the rough, including

kids who never played the sport.

“We had two of those [13] seniors who didn’t play [football] until this year, so really we had 11 [experienced players],” Miller said.

“Today in class we were watching our first draft of the team’s highlight video and my students all were saying things like, ‘Where is the rest of our team?’ or ‘Is that all the people we have?’—because of how few players they see on the sideline.”

That said, Logan had 24 seniors under Bowen this past year, said Miller. At Cottonwood, the kids are getting accustomed to not having as many kids as the teams they face, added Miller, but he would like find at least 10 to 15 more players for next year.

Twenty more players would make the Colts even more competitive right now, Miller said, but if Miller wants to put Cottonwood back at the level of a 5A or 6A program he needs to double his numbers to 120.

The final message the Cottonwood head coach wants to send to prospective players, and their parents, is that the program is doing things the right way. A 3.17 first-term team GPA, a focus on academics over athletics—the team doesn’t hold practices from October to the end of the school year—and a team on the rise are all reasons Miller believes prospective students should choose Cottonwood Colts football after two near-.500 seasons.

“We have a great staff that really love the kids,” he said. “We know football and have a fun atmosphere in the program. We are looking for kids who want to work hard and get early playing time on the varsity level.”

For more information about Cottonwood’s football program, contact coach Miller at: mrmiller-science.weebly.com/football. html. l

January 2022 | Page 23

Murray teen with Down syndrome, older sister excited as state drill competition approaches

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

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ne thing Bree Cox didn’t anticipate was being an overnight media sensation as a 14-year-old.

A video her mother shot in May shows Bree telling her dad on the phone she made the Murray High drill team went virtual, causing most viewers to smile as the Hillcrest Junior High ninth-grade student broke down in tears of joy, unaware that she could cry when she was elated.

“I like I made it on the news,” said Bree, who has Down syndrome. “I am excited to dance.”

That excitement still carries on during drill’s competitive season as Bree and the rest of the team are working toward competing in 5A state in early February at Utah Valley University.

“Practices get pretty insane this time of year, but it’s nice to have a good team that we all love to make it all worth it,” said Bree’s sister, 17-year-old Adrie, who also is on the team. “We’re running our routines and cleaning them; everything is a little bit harder because they’re a lot more detailed and longer than our football performances. We nitpick all the little things to make sure that they’re ready and make sure we’re all doing the same thing.”

Their competition season kicked off Dec. 4 at Herriman High’s Mustang Classic, followed by competition at Davis High’s Davis Valley Classic Dec. 18. They also plan to take the floor at Roy High’s Royal Classic Jan. 15. The team competes in military, hip hop, jazz and show, a category added to the state repertoire last year.

For this year’s show competition, Murray will take its creativity to bring the character, Frozone, from the “The Incredibles” to life. To research the character, the team held an outdoor movie night where they watched the animated movie together.

“We have the music, lots of parts from the movie and the catchphrases he says in it, the costumes that are exactly like it and some girls who rollerblade to make it look like skating. It’s very fun,” Adrie said. “I really like show (category). It shows off your personality a lot more than military.”

The two sisters, at the encouragement of their coaches, were to compete in two-minute solo dances at Davis and Roy. Both dances were choreographed by teammates who selected their music. Adrie’s piece is called, “Girl,” while Bree’s dance, which shows off her flexibility with leg holds and kicks, is called “Love Your Heart.”

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Bree Cox, center, dreamt of being part of the Murray High drill team with sisters, Adrie, left, and Kyra, right, years before she was old enough to try out. (Photo courtesy of Kecia Cox)

Murray City Journal

Hillcrest Junior High ninth-grader Bree Cox, who has Down syndrome, made the Murray High drill team and is competing alongside with her sister this year. (Photo courtesy of Kecia Cox)

“I get to dance for people,” said Bree, who adds that she dances because it makes her happy. “I get to do the splits. I do a cartwheel. I like to show people what I can do.”

Adrie said people like to watch her sister perform as well. One thing that draws them in is her “facials,” which draws in viewers.

“Bree is really good at putting on a show for everybody. She has facial expressions that get everybody in the room to watch her.

She just lights up the room,” Adrie said. “After all of our performances, all of my friends say, ‘You did great, but I got to be honest. I watched Bree the whole time because I just couldn’t keep my eyes off her.’”

Both sisters said besides the joy of dance, they dance for and with their teammates.

“I like my drill sisters,” Bree said, adding that she already has made some good friends.

Adrie said the same is true for her: “The team gives you built-in best friends which is always very nice to have when you’re going in high school.”

During Adrie’s freshman year, Murray made it to the state finals. Last year, the com-

peted in the semifinals. This year, Adrie said the approach from their coaches is to focus on their dance and doing their best.

“As long as we put our best foot on the floor, then they’ll be happy with it, and we all know that if we really do put our best that we can make it to the finals. It’s an unspoken goal all of us really would love to do,” she said.

The team is coached by head coach Keylee Mundee and assistants Halle Dansie, Crista Peterson, Brooklyn Bowen and Joni Wouden.

Adrie and Bree began dancing when they were young, however, their mother, Kecia, said Bree set her mind to dance in high school when she was in grade school.

“Bree started dancing as soon as she could walk at age three, and has never stopped dreaming of being on stage with her sisters,” said their mother. “The dream (to be part of the drill team) started for Bree back when her oldest sister Kyra started drill six years ago. Kyra and Adrie did drill together for two years and then Kyra graduated and helped Bree try out for the team.”

With younger sisters, Mia, twins Claire

Murray High Spartan smile at their first drill competition, Dec. 4, at Herriman High’s Mustang Classic.

Bree and her sister Adrie Cox are in the front row on the left. (Photo courtesy of Kecia Cox)

MurrayJournal .com

and Livvy, who love to dance, as well as brother Noah, the Cox legacy of being involved in drill may be longstanding. In the meantime, there’s plenty of dancing and fun at home. When Adrie hears Bree say she’s the best dancer in the family, she laughs.

“As sisters on the team, we spend a lot of time together; you get a lot closer and work toward goals together. It’s really fun to see Bree improving and she really loves it. You can tell that she wants to work hard and the fight to get in all the dances, which is amazing,” Adrie said.

Bree said she liked watching Adrie dance, something she has done since she was younger as she watched both her older sisters perform. Then, she watched YouTube videos of their routines to learn and polish the moves for tryouts.

Going into her audition, Bree said she was excited, not nervous, because “I knew it.”

That hard work paid off in May, and now, both girls hope it will for their competitive season. Team practices began during the summer, followed by team three-hour workouts after school three days per week and also, from 6 to 8:45 a.m. every other weekday, which both girls admit the hardest part of drill is waking up to be ready at that early hour.

It also means after morning practice, Bree, and other ninth-graders walk to the nearby junior high for the rest of their day’s classes.

When there aren’t performances, Saturday practices also can be added. In the fall, Murray’s drill team performed at most of the home football games. They also will be taking the floor to perform routines at some of the home basketball games.

Bree remembers her first Murray High drill performance.

“I was excited. A lot of people came to watch,” she said. “It’s fun dancing.” l

Murray High junior Adrie Cox is proud of her sister, Bree, and gives her a hug before their first competition on Dec. 4. (Photo courtesy of Kecia Cox)

January 2022 | Page 25

The Millcr Millcreek Rotary Club: 2020 UTAH CLUB OF THE YEAR

Murray basketball back at it Photos by Travis Barton

Mia Auclaire leads the Spartans so far with her 15 points per game.

Millcreek Rotary is a non-traditional, socially interactive Rotary club that provides opportunities to serve our local and international communities.

Are you interested in joining with us to make a positive change in our community, and our World?

MILLCREEK ROTARY BENEFITS: • Low Dues • Fun Events • Great Fellowship • Convenient Meetings • Helping our GREAT Community • 2020 State Club of the Year!!!

The Murray bench erupts after a hustle play led to a steal for the Spartans. Murray was 1-3 at press deadline.

We usually have one Community Service Project each month, call for details.

Monthly Meetings, Social Events, and Service Projects!

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Meetings are usually twice a month at 5:30 pm at Youthlinc Center in Millcreek.

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Karen Hansen 801.573.4957 karenkhansen66@gmail.com

Page 26 |January 2022

Vanessa Anaafi puts up a three in the team’s first game of the season against Alta.

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Utah Virtual Academy teams up to provide food for Murray Children’s Pantry

By Julie Slama | j.slama@mycityjournals.com

W

hen the pandemic hit, Utah Virtual Academy administration knew there were students and families in need of meals within its own school community.

They also knew there was no way they could serve their community within the confinement of their small food storage area, on the sixth floor in an office building during the pandemic’s guidelines, such as social distancing.

So, they moved their food pick-up initially to the parking lot, but knew in the long run, that was not a viable solution, said Lu-

Ann Charles, UVA student services administrator.

After not knowing how to help, Charles learned of the Murray Children’s Pantry, and reached out to see if a partnership could be formed.

“They’re close to our office, maybe three or four blocks away,” she said. “We’ve had some of our students go volunteer there and some of our families already have a connection there.”

Not only can UVA families pick up items they need every Tuesday and every

third Friday, Charles said the school also is continuing its partnership with a school in Utah County to provide food for the pantry.

“Our parent advisory committee really wanted to be a good partner, so they came up with finding a way we could partner in volunteering, giving time, and resources, if possible,” she said.

The partnership is with Oak Canyon Junior High students, who recently brought a truckload of supplies to the Murray Children’s Pantry, and UVA helps to unload and organize the donations.

The UVA-Oak Canyon partnership formed when Charles posted on her social media about the need for donations for one particular family who had struggled, and they had just gotten an apartment after living in a car. A former Idaho high school classmate she had lost touch with, responded saying his junior high students would love to help furnish that family’s apartment and provide food. Since then, Oak Canyon Junior High has continued to bring food donations; first to UVA, and now to their partnership pantry.

“It’s been a really great opportunity for kids to work together,” she said. “We’ve had great response from families coming out and helping, it serves our students in

A Utah Virtual Academy student helps sort food donations made to the Murray Children’s Pantry.

(LuAnn Charles/Utah Virtual Academy)

need, and it’s a real big boost to the Murray Children’s Pantry.” l

As part of the school’s partnership with Murray Children’s Pantry, Utah Virtual Academy students and families contribute food and help sort it for distribution. (LuAnn Charles/Utah Virtual Academy)

Page 28 |January 2022

Murray City Journal

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It was time to take action.

My husband tends to overthink in a death-spiral sort of way, so our conversation went from “What kind of paint/flooring should we get?” to “What if we spend two weeks with our dog in a tent in a blizzard?” I let him ruminate for a while before moving to the next phase.

We talked about painting the rooms ourselves and laughed hysterically for a couple of hours. We are not the DIY kind of people.

We once assembled a bookshelf together so I knew we needed to hire a professional; either a professional painter or a professional divorce attorney.

We reached out to our friend, Rick Hepner, who was delighted to paint our home, plus he got to enjoy our 4-year-old granddaughter following him around asking him what he was doing, why he was doing it, how long he’d be doing it and if he wanted to play Barbies.

While preparing the walls, Rick discovered ecosystems behind our furniture where sentient beings lived in and breathed only dust.

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Once the dust was hauled away and the walls were beautifully painted, we turned our attention to the floors. Our carpet crossed the prairie in the back of a handcart, survived nuclear testing in Southern Utah and was definitely sprouting tentacles. Time to toss it before it murdered us in our sleep.

Then came the discussion of wood versus carpet. My husband is old school and likes soft carpeting, probably so he doesn’t break a hip if he falls. I like the clean line of wood. We compromised with me getting wood flooring in my office, and carpet everywhere else; except the bathroom. We’re not animals.

When it came time to move furniture out of the house, I threw things away willy-nilly.

I took bags of clothes and shoes and children to Goodwill. My husband followed behind me, taking things out of donation bags and hiding them. He has sentimental attachments to items like water bottles and lanyards and the blouse I wore when we saw the Blue Man Group in 2008.

Finally, the walls were painted, flooring was complete, furniture was moved back and everything was right with the world. But our dog was hyperventilating.

Before renovation (BR), she’d nap under the guest bed, which is now in another home.

She wandered the halls, forlorn and lost, carrying her bone from room to room, trying to navigate her apocalyptic new world.

Not only that, but the wood floor distressed her and she refused to walk on it. She slept on the couch until midnight. Then I heard her toenails clicking as she walked across the floor and threw herself onto her bed, sighing loudly, so we’d know she’d been inconvenienced.

For a while, we played The Floor is Lava to keep the carpet looking bright and new. But walls get scratched and carpet gets stained because life is a messy, dirty, grimy experiment where sometimes you don’t know if the stain on the carpet is blood or pudding, and your dog needs therapy, and your husband unpacks the donation bags. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

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January 2022 | Page 31