The
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Serving Wayne & Garfield Counties, Utah Loa • Fremont • Lyman • Bicknell • Teasdale • Torrey • Grover • Fruita • Caineville • Hanksville Panguitch • Panguitch Lake • Hatch • Antimony • Bryce • Tropic • Henrieville • Cannonville • Escalante • Boulder
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Garkane Energy Wins National Gold Award
Bryce Canyon National Park Invitation to Celebrate 6th Annual Utah Prairie Dog Day June 12, 2015
BRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK - Superintendent Lisa Eckert invites you to join the park in our sixth annual celebration of the Utah prairie dog, a native species to Utah and the Bryce Canyon area. Utah Prairie Dog Day is sponsored by the Bryce Canyon Natural History Association and will occur on Friday, June 12, 2015 from 10:00 a.m.
Utah prairie dogs. through 3:00 p.m. Planned activities include watching Utah prairie dogs and educational booths with fun activities for kids and adults alike. The Natural History Association has Utah Prairie Dog Day tshirts available for $5.00 that can be hand-colored at the festival. Don’t miss our special guest, “Petey the Prairie Dog,” who will be popping up from his burrow throughout the day! All activities will take place at
the Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center. Utah prairie dogs are considered a “keystone species” that perform a variety of important ecological functions including improving soil quality, providing prey and places to live for other animals, and maintaining meadow ecosystems. Park Deputy Chief of Resource Management, Chad
Courtesy National Park Service
Anderson states, “This year’s celebration of the Utah prairie dog is aimed at increasing appreciation for the species. Their ability to engineer the landscape adds to the overall diversity of both plants and animals.” Over 200 other species have been associated with prairie dog colonies, including wildlife that either depend upon or directly benefit by prairie dog activity for survival. “It cannot be overstated
how beneficial the Utah prairie dog is to the overall health of southern Utah’s meadows.” This year’s guest speaker, Nathan Brown, is a key player in helping to recover this species from its threatened status. Nathan works for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as an ecologist and specializes in Utah prairie dog recovery and management. Working with a broad coalition of federal, state, private and local stakeholders, he helps to develop recovery goals. Previously, Nathan worked for the state of Utah where he was also involved in Utah prairie dog monitoring, management, and recovery. Nathan’s presentation will focus on the species biology, habitat, and current recovery efforts. Please join us for this free presentation at the Bryce Canyon Visitor Center auditorium at 1:00 p.m. About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 407 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at www.nps.gov, on Facebook www.facebook.com/ nationalparkservice, Twitter www.twitter.com/natlparkservice, and YouTube www.youtube.com/nationalparkservice. —National Park Service
New Intermountain Home Health and Hospice Team at Garfield Memorial Hospital PANGUITCH - There’s a new Intermountain Home Health and Hospice Team at Garfield Memorial Hospital and they are just starting to accept new patients. Garfield Memorial Hospital Alberto Vasquez says “Patients have been asking for home health services by Intermountain for several years, and until recently, Intermountain wasn't in the position to offer this service in Garfield. But as we move to better manage the health for patients, we are now able to start providing this service.” Jeremiah Crandall, Intermountain Homecare Nurse Manager for the Southwest Region says Intermountain pressed forward and are committed to staying in the community with this team for the long run. “This will give continuity of care from the hospital to home,” says Jeremiah. “The same level of caring service you received at the hospital will continue at home until you have recovered.” Alberto Vasquez, along with Garfield Memorial Hospital Nurse Administrator DeAnn Brown, and Garfield Memorial Hospital nurses Marnie Blevins and Aubree Thompson, helped to bring this critically-needed service to Garfield County. Jeremiah says, “They know the importance of completing the flow of care; what we call continu-
ity of care. This is where the patient starts with the doctor in his office and goes through the hospital and finished treatment in the home, all with the same people caring for them. This ensures the highest level of care for the patient with the best outcomes possible.” Intermountain Homecare Nurse Jeremiah Crandall responded to three substantive questions about the new home health and hospice service at Garfield Memorial: 1-Where is the new team located and where do we call for more information? The team is located out of Garfield Memorial Hospital in the Administration building. There is no constant presence in the office as the nurses are in the field. Calls for now
REGIONAL WEATHER FORECAST FOR SOME BUT NOT ALL REGIONS REPRESENTED IN OUR NEWSPAPER COVERAGE AREA
THURS. JUNE 4 - WED. JUNE 10 MORE SPRING SHOWERS are possible this week. 50% chance of rain Friday through Monday, highs in low 70s, lows in 40s. Some winds, up to 15mph. Clearing on Tuesday and Wednesday with highs in the low 80s.
Courtesy of Garkane Energy
Neal Brown (at left), Marketing Manager of Garkane Energy, and Carl Boyd (at right), Garkane Board President, accept the Gold Award for Best Total Communication Program. LOA - Garkane Energy recently received national recognition in the 2015 “Spotlight on Excellence” awards program, sponsored by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. Garkane received a Gold award in the Best Total Communication Program category. The annual awards competition recognizes the top-rated communication and marketing efforts by electric cooperatives and related organizations. Participants in the awards competition competed with electric cooperatives of similar sizes from all over the United States. There were more than 780 entries
in the Spotlight on Excellence program, now in its 27th year, and Garkane Energy was fortunate to win the Gold award this year. Faculty members from the University of Missouri – Columbia, University of South Carolina and Ohio University Scripps-Howard School of Journalism judged the entries. Garkane received the Gold award for its yearlong communication efforts centered upon its 75-year history celebrations. The focus of the communication efforts were based on the self-published history book titled, Lighting The Plateau, written by Garkane’s Board President, Carl
Las Vegas Headliner to Appear at Hale Summer Theater June 19 and 20
should go to 435-868-5852. 2-What services does Home Health and Hospice provide? We are a full service provider. When a patient comes to us on home health, we do almost everything that can be done in the hospital at home. Some of the services we provide include: IVs, central lines and PICC care, and treatments including chemo and antibiotic treatments, wound care, post-surgery care, medication management, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, environmental safety assessments, fall risk and prevention, ostomy care, diabetic teaching and treatment. All of this can be Intermountain Cont'd on page 2
Garfield County Considers State of Emergency PANGUITCH - On Monday, June 8th the Garfield County Commission will be discussing a resolution declaring a state of emergency regarding the loss of enrollment in the Garfield County School District, and in particular Escalante High School. In 1996 when the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument was created nearly 150 students were enrolled in Escalante High School. Cur-
Issue # 1101
rently, there are only about 50, and if trends continue, the School District will be faced with some difficult choices. Closing the high school in Escalante would be devastating to the community and will encourage the town’s continued decline. The general meeting begins at 11 a.m. and the school enrollment discussion is scheduled for 2:00 pm. The meeting will be held at the Garfield County Courthouse, 55 South Main, Panguitch. —Garfield County
Ben Hale will perform at the Hale Summer Theater in Grover on June 19 & 20. GROVER - Watch out, Johnny Cash is coming to town! Ben Hale, Las Vegas headliner, will be performing at the Hale Summer Theater in Grover on June 19 and 20. Ben has been playing the role of Johnny Cash for the last two years in Harrah’s “Million Dollar Quartet” As a life long Cash and country music fan, it’s a role that suits him just fine, although he’s not all country. Prior to Quartet he played in a six year run of “Phantom of the Opera” at the Venetian. He has an incredibly wide range, from the low growl of Johnny Cash to the high operatic notes of Phantom. Ben will perform an evening of Classic Country hits that define the genre, including songs by Hank Williams, Marty Robbins, Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson to name a few. Reservations may be made by calling 435-425-3226 or 480772-6735. Performances begin at 8:00 PM. Seats are $15 and seating is limited, so it is wise to make reservations early for this special event. —Sandy Dietlein
Who sows virtue reaps honor. —Leonardo da Vinci
Boyd. “The history book does an excellent job highlighting what life was like in rural Utah before Garkane brought electricity to the region, and we wanted to convey that in an interesting way. We hope the members were able to get a copy and read through it to better understand the sacrifice the early Garkane employees went through to bring power to the region,” stated Neal Brown of Garkane Energy. Garkane Energy Cont'd on page 2
Open Seats on Escalante City Council
ESCALANTE - There are three seats on the Escalante City Council that will be opening up in the next election. The terms for Marlene Stowe, Guy Graham and Greg Allen are expiring in 2016. Residents who are interested in running for a seat on City Council must register at the city offices during the first week of June. The deadline for registration is June 8th. The City Offices, to accommodate election registration, will be open from 8 am – 5 pm Monday through Friday through June 8th. Residents who are interested must meet the city and state requirements to register. They must own a residence within the city limits and live in the city limits for 12 consecutive months. They must be a registered voter of the City of Escalante, a U.S. Citizen and having had no felony conviction (unless the right to hold elective office has been restored). To verify eligibility a driver’s license, passport or other documents will be required at the time of registration and swearing in. Commitment for council members is for a 4 year term. The city council holds 2 regular meetings each month, the first and third Tuesdays of each month. Each seat oversees a specific area. The current designations are Marlene Stowe, sanitation, Guy Graham, city water, Greg Allen, airport and storm water drainage. Escalante has registered 534 voters and the last election in Escalante had a voter turnout of 65%. The Utah State voter turnout in 2014 for local elections was 40%. —Escalante Chamber of Commerce
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BOXHOLDER
PRE-SORT STANDARD PAID RICHFIELD, UTAH PERMIT No. 122