August 2017
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HILLCREST HIGH TRIO’S AWARD-WINNING DEVICE could revolutionize concussion diagnosis By Julie Slama | Julie@mycityjournals.com
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n a competition that attracted nearly 150 business idea submissions from high school students throughout the state, three Hillcrest High School teenagers received several top entrepreneur awards with their idea that may revolutionize concussion diagnosis. Junior Madison Hooper and sophomores Shreya Mahassenan and Marie Miskin developed HeadShot, a device that measures brain activity of regions of the cortex that helps athletes know how to better care for and handle their concussions. “It’s a better idea for diagnosing where concussions are as MRIs and CT scans can’t identify where the concussions are on the brains,” Madison said. “Using electrode sponges, our device can pinpoint exactly which part of the brain is affected, helping patients know how best to care for their concussions.” The team received several awards at the 2017 High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge in mid-April for their project. They were the winners of the $1,000 STEM Entrepreneur Award and the Impact Hub In-Kind Award. Madison and Shreya, who presented their project in front of a panel of judges April 15, also won $1,000 Lassonde Studios Scholarships to live in their accommodations if they choose to attend the University of Utah after high school graduation. The Institute provides students opportunities to learn about entrepreneurship and innovation. “It’s definitely surreal,” Shreya said. “There were so many great projects in the competition. Through doing this, I learned a lot of people deal with concussions, so I grew confident in our idea.” They began their project in January when Madison went to the counseling office in January and saw a flier about the entrepreneurship challenge. “I decided to form a team and invited Shreya and Marie to join me. We brainstormed for ideas and since we’re all athletes, concussions came up,” Madison said. Shreya, who plays hockey, has been diagnosed with a concussion—twice. “I still have some pretty bad migraines
resulting from my concussions. I hit my head on the ice and one week later, it spiked. I underestimated the amount of time I needed to recover and realized the severity of the injury. It really opened my eyes to the diagnosis and unknown certainties of the healing process. It put my life on standstill—not just sports, but class and everything. It took me three months to get back to normal. It’s definitely a problem and our device will benefit so many people in the world who are hit hard or impacted in the head,” she said. The group researched other student-athletes, who play soccer and basketball, who have had concussions and second-impact syndromes. “They all said they’d want a more specialized treatment plan,” Madison said. The group talked to others in the medical and science fields as they developed their working theory and prototype. “We wanted to help work out a specific brain imagining device that would have safe technology and medical approval,” Shreya said. Once their concept was in place, Marie, who recently moved to Utah, took over the design process. “I learned drawing from my mother,” she said. “I hadn’t ever drawn anything scientific before, but it was good to put my art to use for something outside of my norm, to draw for an intended purpose.” Having had a concussion in basketball in California, Marie said she first looked at pictures of brains before getting her first sketch of the device a few hours later. After a few more attempts, she shared her work with her teammates. The group then worked quickly days before the competition to create a model, which they had on display at the state challenge. Only Madison and Shreya presented their device as Marie’s mother died days before the competition. Marie arrived in time for the showcase later that day. “She saw my drawings before she died and she was proud that I put my talent to use.
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Hillcrest High’s Shreya Mahassenan, Madison Hooper and Marie Miskin developed a device that may revolutionize concussion diagnosis and treatment. They won several awards at the High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge. RSL’s field in October. (Julie Slama/City Journals)
Maybe I could put my art into drawing prototypes or inventions as a career. This competition taught me how to talk to a lot of people and how to explain a project. I’ve never done that before. I’ve really enjoyed coming up with an idea, finding out what we’re passionate about and researching to find a solution. This is a great group of girls who are smart and have a mindset to help change the world,”
Marie said. Shreya agreed. “I learned that we could find an innovative solution to a problem. It’s satisfying to know we’ve made a device that can benefit others.” Madison said their project doesn’t end with the competition. Together with the STEM Action Center, who awarded them a scholarship, they will work to create an actual product Continued on Page 6
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Midvale City Journal
Hillcrest student becomes entrepreneur with own dancewear clothing line The Midvale City Journal is a monthly publication distributed directly to residents via the USPS as well as locations throughout Midvale. For information about distribution please email circulation@mycityjournals.com or call our offices. Rack locations are also available on our website. For subscriptions please contact: circulation@mycityjournals.com The views and opinions expressed in display advertisements do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions held by Loyal Perch Media or the City Journals. This publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written consent of the owner.
The Midvale Team CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Bryan Scott bryan@mycityjournals.com EDITOR: Travis Barton travis@mycityjournals.com ADVERTISING: 801-254-5974 DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING: Ryan Casper ryan.casper@mycityjournals.com 801-671-2034 SALES ASSOCIATES: Melissa Worthen melissa@mycityjournals.com 801-897-5231 Steve Hession steve@mycityjournals.com Josh Ragsdale Josh.R@MyCityJournals.com 801.824.9854 CIRCULATION COORDINATOR: Brad Casper circulation@mycityjournals.com EDITORIAL & AD DESIGN: Ty Gorton
By Julie Slama
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any teens are hanging out with friends or texting them on their phones this summer. Hillcrest High School sophomore Annabella Oliver may be as well, but she also is spending hours creating patterns and sewing ballet leotards and costumes for her own clothing line. “I really love ballet and realize it’s hard to afford beautiful dancewear that has personality,” she said, adding that some dancers wear up to 50 leotards. Knowing she also needed money to pay for extra ballet classes as well as pointe ballet shoes several times per year, Annabella turned that realization into an idea. “My mom is a seamstress and I love designing dancewear, so together we created a pattern, chose fabric and tried out my design,” she said. That was last August. Fast forward through several attempts with different fabrics for the right stretch, feel and look, several kinds of paper to make lasting patterns, sewing lessons from her mother and an abundance of ideas. One year later, Annabella is sewing alongside her mother and has created several dancewear lines under her own label, Anna May Ballet. “I love working with my mom and spending more time with her and learning from her. I have become more independent and it’s fun to see my ideas turn into actual dancewear,” she said. Together, they’ve created
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leotards, rehearsal skirts, pointe shoe bags, shorts and other items in lines such as “pretty in pink,” “black tie” and “holiday collection,” but insist on making quality items that are affordable, Annabella said. “Most handmade leotards are $40 to $50 where other companies charge three or four times that. Ours are better quality so they should last longer and they fit a dancer’s body where some from China aren’t the best fitting,” she said. Annabella has a business and marketing plan, relying on experience from classes she has taken at Hillcrest. She’s also used those classes to compete at the state and national Future Business Leaders of America competitions. She also has a website, annamayballet.com, which she maintains — again from learning how to create a website at school. “She is very focused and knows what she’s doing and putting what she’s learned to practice,” said her mother, Ronda, who has been an accountant and has helped with their own family business. “This is a partnership and we speak business terms and work together. It’s also a way she will be able to support herself as she continues to dance. It’s been good to have a more grown-up relationship with her.” They sew three or four hours per week during the school year, but it comes after Annabella’s schoolwork and rehearsing six days per week at Ballet West. This summer, she also danced several
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Draper teenager Annabella Oliver has created her own dancewear clothing line. (Ronda Oliver)
weeks with Oregon Ballet. She also has studied with Ballet Austin. Her goal: to be a professional ballerina with the Royal Ballet in London. While Annabella is busy perfecting her dance, her dancewear line is making progress as well. She’s been invited to take part in
a fashion show as well as had her dancewear professionally photographed. “I created it with the idea to feel beautiful and be able to have long-lasting dancewear that is affordable,” she said. “But by doing so, I’m hoping it will help create more opportunities for me in ballet.” l
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M idvalejournal.com
Annual swap meet satisfies nerds’ needs for collectibles By Travis Barton | travis@mycityjournals.com
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uinn Rollins affinity for LEGOs started in his teenage years and it hasn’t stopped despite being a parent with two children. “I didn’t have them as a really young kid and then as a teenager when I got into them, I didn’t ever get out of them,” Rollins said. Rollins was one of multiple vendors at Big Shiny Robot’s Nerd Swap Meet in June. It was the fifth such swap meet held by Big Shiny Robot and fourth at the Bohemian Brewery in Midvale. The swap meet serves as a chance for “nerds” come sell and purchase various items from LEGOs and Hot Wheels to comic books and Magic the Gathering cards. “What makes it kind of fun,” said Lucas Ackley, Big Shiny Robot co-founder, “is everybody’s got their stuff they’ve collected and inevitably most of us end up spending the money we make on the stuff we see here.” Big Shiny Robot is a Salt Lake City-based website with a noted podcasting network. It covers “nerd news,” according to the website whether it’s games, comic books or Star Wars. Through the combination of a Bohemian Brewery sponsorship and a need to discard lots of Comic-Con collected items, the swap meet was born.
“And that was four years ago, and a lot of people showed up so we kept doing it,” Ackley said. Held in the parking lot of the Bohemian, beer and bratwursts were available adding to the laid-back environment. “It’s just a chill event for the community,” Ackley said. “For Big Shiny Robot, one of the big things when (co-founder) Brian (Young) and I started it was we wanted to build the community here and do stuff like this where you just show up and hang out and…have a good time.” It’s an opportunity to rub shoulders with people who share your excitement, Rollins said, that you don’t often get as an adult. “Honestly, a lot of us are introverts. We love our toys, our comics, our T-shirts, our stuff… I love my LEGOs, but other people love other things and I admire that,” Rollins said. “Wearing their passion on their sleeves, it’s a positive thing and it’s something you can’t always do at work or at home even.” At Rollins last count, he had more than 1,500 LEGO characters. As he’s grown older, he said his love has for them has increased. While his two boys, ages 12 and 15, will get LEGOs as presents. Rollins said he has
Quinn Rollins and Lucas Ackley look at books during Big Shiny Robot’s Nerd Swap Meet at the Bohemian Brewery in June. (Travis Barton/City Journals)
a standing contract with them where if they don’t touch the toys for six months “the rights revert back to the purchaser.” “Sometimes, I actually do that,” he said.
His love for the toy has only grown through the years, especially now that he’s part of the Utah LEGO Users group. “Since joining them, I have become even more obsessed. It’s kind of a problem,” Rollins said. While he sold some of his LEGOs at the swap meet, it also allowed him to find other items of interest. “It’s fun, I probably spend as much on other people’s stuff as I make,” Rollins said. He added he was eyeing some decorative couch pillows of Star Wars and Marvel Comics in the booth next to him. Ackley got some “Simpsons” figures and a Game & Watch Nintendo, while selling some comic books and graphic novels. “I think everybody here is a sucker for different things which makes it interesting. I’ve always been a sucker for old ‘Ghostbusters’ stuff or old Nintendo Mario stuff…the kitschier it is the better,” Ackley said. With plans to continue, Ackley—who had to turn down 10-15 vendors this year—hopes to keep it right there at the parking lot of the Bohemian. “I don’t see any reason to do it anywhere else,” he said. l
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Midvale City Journal
Canyons Film Festival teaches organizational, literacy skills By Julie Slama
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Julie@mycityjournals.com
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t’s a few months after the red carpet at the 8th annual Canyons Film Festival has been rolled up, but what students learned in creating their entries will be put to use in the classroom. District Education Technology Specialist Katie Blunt said the skills students learn, such as organization and literacy, translate into their classroom work as well as in the films they create. “The students start with brainstorming, turn their idea in to a story with a story board and screenplay, they write, they research, they synthesize the information to learn how best to communicate their message,” she said. “It’s a group project, they learn how to collaborate. These are skills that translate into the classroom as well as into the real world.” Through the process, students learn not only how to create their film, but also how to edit and revise. “Students learn how to do revisions just like they may have to with a writing assignment in school. We see improvements in films from year to year,” said Blunt, who is the project lead of the film festival. She also said it allows the students to become creative, which can be seen from stop-motion films to creative features. “Being creative and coming up with my own ideas is part of the fun of the film festival,” said Midvale Middle School sixth-grader Abigail Slama-Catron, who has won five awards in the past five years at the film festival. “Last year, I just took an idea of what all my dog could accomplish in his daily life and went with it—up until he chose to fly.” This year, Abigail won the middle school documentary, “Strike Out,” based on her First LEGO League team’s project. “I look into what I’m doing and what’s going on around me for ideas as well. I’ve made PSAs (public service announcements) about selling Girl Scout cookies or helping homeless pets. I’ve made documentaries about a church providing a temporary home and hand up to transitional families and about the construction of Mt. Jordan Middle School. I like directing people and creating the films, but I do it because it’s fun.” Abigail and other students in the school district can get assistance, if they choose, from their educational technology specialists, who are assigned to schools to teach students numerous skills. “I’ve learned about using a tripod, organizing my storyline so it’s not going all over the place and preparing before I actually begin filming,” Abigail said. The district also provides tutorials to help students, Blunt said. This year, it was on storyboards. Next year, students can look for enhanced audio and scriptwriting. “We try to identify areas in the films where all students can improve,” Blunt said. Through the years, the interest in the film festival has increased. Five years ago, there were only 50 entries. This year, there were 154 entries by 442 students at 24 schools. Some students were multiple winners, such as Liam Morgan of Brookwood Elementary in Sandy. Liam teamed
Canyons School District spokesman Jeff Haney and Secondary Education Technology Specialist Camille Cole present Midvale Middle School’s Abigail Slama-Catron with her award for best middle school documentary. (Julie Slama/City Journals)
up with his sister, Chloe, to be the elementary PSA winner for “Road Rules” and he won elementary animation with, “My Little Story.” Liam and Chloe also were repeat winners from last year—as was Entrada High Draper Campus teacher Wade Harmon, who submitted “Any Given Saturday” that won both the teacher film category and the Utah American Graduate Teacher Film Award. Another double winner were the high school documentary winners, Gavin Hawkins, Ethan Perry and Connor Cagle of Entrada High Draper Campus, with “Merry Joseph.” They also won the Utah American Graduate Champion Award. Other PSA winners include Emily Erickson, Indian Hills Middle, and Cassidy Wixom, Corner Canyon High. Other animation winners include Ethan White, Draper Park Middle, and Alma Sabey, Connor Cagel, Devin Johnson, Entrada High Draper Campus. Newscast winners include James Anderson, James Covey, Anna Fetzer, Jade Fiedler, Amelia Harris, Cole Madsen, Kaden Morzelewski, Raegan Simmons, Priscella Smingler, Jamus Wangsgard, Quail Hollow Elementary; Draper Park’s journalism classes; and Christopher Collins, Connin Fife, Sean Garrick, Bethany Hardy-Smith, Joshua Hurt, Madison Jolley, Gabe Schino and Taylor Sampson, Corner Canyon High. Other documentary winners include Belle Davidson, Basil Gillette, Payton Romero, Clara Biesinger, Lucero Reyes, Addison Darling, Bianca Brito, Mason Daytonn, Maddox Titan Schaugaard, Aliyah Wilkins, Mia Yanagui, Elise Montesinos, Bell View Elementary. In the feature category, the winners include Charlotte Smith, Sunrise Elementary; Tayler Peisley, Sara Batoo, Alysya Brown, Eastmont Middle; Amelia Pena, Isaac Bowen, Corner Canyon High. The Utah American Graduate Elementary Inspiration Award recipient is Krissy Holsonbach, Midvale Elementary; and the Utah American Graduate Documentary Award winners are Ethan Perry, Gavin Hawkins, Alma Sabey, Entrada High Draper Campus. The poster contest winner is “Film the Stars” by Joshua McGee, Draper Park Middle. l
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Not like the movies: SWAT team saves lives and avoids shoot-outs By Ruth Hendricks | Ruth.H@mycityjournals.com
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mages of black-clad police officers with shielded helmets rushing in to shoot everything in their path comes from TV and movie depictions of SWAT teams. Officer Jason Mudrock with the Unified Police Department (UPD) would like people to know that isn’t a realistic image of SWAT. “The primary function of domestic SWAT in the US is to save lives. Period.” Mudrock is the team leader for UPD’s SWAT team. “The reason why SWAT teams are used,” said Mudrock, “and the acronym of Special Weapons and Tactics is because they are specially trained with different weapons than are available to local street level law enforcement, different tools to be able to deal with an unusual or a more dangerous elevated event.” Mudrock explained that, “We’re viewed as more or less the big stick of the organization. There isn’t a bigger hammer we can take out of our tool box to do the job.” Whenever the SWAT team is requested, a threat analysis must be done to make sure that the level of force is justified. “We have very strict guidelines on how and when our team is deployed,” said Mudrock. The threat analysis uses a matrix of information. For example, in a request for SWAT to serve a high-risk warrant, Mudrock looks at known information about the subject, such as his criminal history, what the warrant is for, how the subject has dealt with law enforcement in the past, and his propensity to use firearms in the commission of crimes.
Then information about the target site is reviewed. Could the home be booby trapped? Is the target building fortified? Is there a school nearby? All the variables are used to determine whether SWAT is needed or not.
Officer Jason Mudrock, leader of UPD’s SWAT team. (Jason Mudrock/UPD)
Once a threat analysis has been completed, it must be approved by the SWAT commander or division commander. Then it would go to Mudrock for operational planning. The tactical decision model that is used for all situations is called the “Priorities of Life.” Citizens often don’t understand these priorities, but SWAT uses them to decide how to approach an operation. Mudrock explained that the first priority is always hostages, because they cannot leave the area or help themselves. They are at the mercy of the hostage taker. Second come uninvolved citizens. This includes anyone in the area such as neighbors and bystanders. The goal is to get them out of the area. The third priority is patrol officers who may have been first on the scene or responded to the call. SWAT’s goal is to make sure these officers are safely moved away while SWAT takes over. Fourth in priority is the safety of the SWAT team members. Fifth in priority is the suspect. “Sometimes it is necessary, when we look at the Priorities of Life, that we must take a life to save one. This is hard for people to understand. We do want to keep the suspect safe, he’s a priority, but not if it comes at the price of the higher priorities. The suspect is the one that has chosen to be in that situation.” The sixth priority is property. Mudrock noted that some people don’t like this, but proper-
ty can always be replaced. If breaking a door or window, or blowing a hole in the side of a house will help save someone, that’s a good tactical decision. It’s much safer for SWAT officers to be able to quickly enter through a window or wall instead of having to navigate through a house and go through the only door to a bedroom where the suspect has a gun aimed, ready to shoot. Mudrock would like the community to understand that the SWAT team is there as a resource to save lives. Officers know that when they’re deployed, it’s the worst case scenario. “We want the public to know that we have a highly competent, well-trained tactical team,” said Mudrock. “We’re not a bunch of trigger happy, bloodthirsty folks.” On average, UPD’s SWAT team is called out 60 times per year. So how many times was deadly force used from 1991 to 2017? For that 26year period, there would be an average of 1,560 SWAT deployments. “Understand that every time we go on an operation, someone is believed to be armed.” Mudrock reported that deadly force was only used three times during that period. “Truly our mission is to save lives, because if we wanted to go in there and hurt all those suspects, there would be lots more instances. But that’s not our job.” In those situations involving armed suspects, Mudrock is sure that if there weren’t all the special tools and tactics that SWAT uses, there would have been many more that ended in a lethal confrontation. l
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Page 6 | August 2017
Midvale City Journal
Hillcrest High’s Richins named Canyons Virtual High School teacher of year By Julie Slama |
Continued From Front Cover
Julie@mycityjournals.com
Canyons Virtual High School’s teacher of the year Sam Richins, also teaches and coaches at Hillcrest High. (Julie Slama/City Journals)
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ince the inception of Canyons Virtual High School in 2011, Hillcrest High School’s Sam Richins has taught students in geography, philosophy, sociology, psychology, U.S. history and American problems. At 5 a.m., before the school day begins at Hillcrest, Richins is teaching at the virtual high school. “For me, it’s a flexible teaching position where I can make a positive impact,” said the 17year veteran teacher who coaches Hillcrest boys’ basketball team afterschool. “Students choose the virtual high school for various reasons — anxiety if they fall behind in their schoolwork, needing to catch up after an illness, flexibility for their schedules. Teachers communicate mostly through emails, or calls, to develop a personal relationship.” Canyons School District Director of Education Technology Darren Draper said Richins’ commitment to communicating with students was one of the reasons he was selected as Canyons Virtual High School’s teacher of the year. “He does a great job reaching out to students through email, text, calls,” Draper said. “He will do whatever it takes and constantly go above and beyond to communicate with his students to
and then talk to middle school students about becoming entrepreneurs. “It was great that we all became good friends and together, we created a project that can impact the world,” she said. Another Midvale team advanced to the final round, where they got the chance to pitch their ideas to judges, made up of many influential community leaders. Teams’ ideas and business presentations ranged from a portable solar panel to affordable homes for the homeless. Five students, two who attend Midvale Middle School, presented an air scare device. The project is an innovative small, portable and non-polluting air dancer, which makes a positive impact by making air travel safer and saving birds’ lives by scaring them away from airports, said Midvale Middle sixth-graders Abigail Slama-Catron and Eric Snaufer, who worked with Beehive Academy sixth-graders Allison Drennan and Tim Holt and Alta High’s Katie Drennan. They were awarded $1,000 for the best prototype, which has been tested and proven effective at the Salt Lake International Airport. Their award was sponsored by Zions Bank. “Today was a milestone day to have the High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge and the Utah Entrepreneur Challenge together,” said Mike Winder, vice president of community development at Zions Bank. “The energy was explosive and amazing.” The goal of the Utah High School Entrepreneur Challenge is to help high school students explore innovation and early stage business. “It was an incredible experience to see up-and-coming entrepreneurs showcase their hard work and pitch their idea to the judges,” said Stephanie Gladwin, a University of Utah senior and chair of the High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge. l
make sure they’re understanding and learning.” As the teacher of the year, Richins was presented a gift basket and a banner during a faculty meeting at Hillcrest High. “He’s always done a great job, and he has a large load of students he teaches,” Draper said. The number of students has increased through the years. Draper said that there were less than 100 students when Canyons Virtual High began. In 2015, there were 3,000. This past year, they had 34 teachers across the state teaching 4,000 students registered for classes, 300 of those students came to register from outside the district. “It’s a second job for most of our teachers. We provide lesson plans to fit the curriculum. The teachers know the students’ strengths and weaknesses and find ways to support them,” he said. Many students are enrolling in the six free credit hours Canyons offers its students. “They may be taking online driver’s education, required PE or financial lit, or some classes that are required for graduation, but don’t fit in their schedules,” Draper said. Canyons Virtual High also meets the needs for credit recovery to accelerated learning, he said. “We offer 50 courses students can take in high school and many take them concurrently with their high school experience whether it’s in astronomy and photography or French and honors math. When a student wants to boost a grade, they can enroll in our high school to retake the course while working with their high school counselor,” Draper said. He said that many of the students are self-motivated and, with teachers’ support, they are having positive experiences. Richins said he appreciated being recognized. He also has been honored by the Fraternal Order of Eagles as teacher of the year and by Sandy City Youth Council, where student members honor teachers who have made an impact on their education. “Teaching is my passion,” Richins said. “It’s an honorable way of making a living and making a positive impact in the world we live in.” l
The case of the chopped-down trees
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hat do you do when the city cuts down some trees that provide welcome shade? Marlynne Pike owns a duplex west of Union Park at 7360 S 700 E. Pike lodged a complaint that in May the city had cut down some large trees adjacent to the park and next to the duplex. A dirt path runs along an old canal outside the western edge of the park, and is sandwiched between homes on the other side. “The old shade trees had a massive base and provided valuable shade to the duplex, which saves on electricity costs,” Pike said. She also noted the benefit to the air from trees in general. Pike explained that during a windstorm, a branch from one of those trees landed on the shed of a neighboring home. Pike claimed that the city came and removed a number of trees along the waterway because they didn’t have the money to main-
By Ruth Hendricks |
Ruth.H@mycityjournals.com
tain them. According to Pike, both residents of her duplex were upset. One contacted the mayor’s office and said she was told that these were junk trees, and the city could do what they wanted. “For living in Utah, we need to keep all the huge shade trees,” said Pike. She believes that the city should at least replant them. Pike also believed that the city was planning to take out all the trees along this waterway because they don’t have the money to maintain them. Larry Wright, Midvale public works director, was contacted by City Jouranls to investigate this mystery. Wright confirmed that two trees were cut down after a section of a tree fell and damaged the roof of a shed. He confirmed that the trees were “junk trees” that had grown on their own. “The trees were examined and both had large splits at the bot-
tom and were determined to be unsafe,” said Wright. Stephen Black, with the public works department, said that the city may remove more trees in the future because of concern about additional safety issues. Trees have been trimmed in the past, but some have grown out of control and staff worries there could be more property damage. About the possibility of replanting, Wright said that there were no immediate plans. There has been some talk in the past about turning that land over to the county. “The ground is unusable, it’s a small strip of property along an old canal,” said Wright. Nothing has been decided about what will be done with the land. While residents may hate to lose large trees and the benefit of their shade, it appears that the concern for safety was the priority for the city staff. l
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MIDVALE CITY ELECTED OFFICIALS MAYOR JoAnn B. Seghini Email: joanns@midvale.com CITY COUNCIL District 1 - Quinn Sperry Email: qsperry@midvale.com District 2 - Paul Glover Email: pglover@midvale.com District 3 - Paul Hunt Email: phunt@midvale.com District 4 - Wayne Sharp Email: wsharp@midvale.com District 5 - Stephen Brown Email: sbrown@midvale.com
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As I See It
We are nearing a new school year. It will be exciting for many students who have been bussed to Crescent for the last two years. Midvale Middle School will have a ribbon cutting announcing that the new school is ready for its students. This new school is located on Pioneer Street and is part of the education campus where the Midvale Elementary School is located at the end of Chapel Street. It is a beautiful building as well. Please mark your calendars so that you can come on a tour. Part of the construction has been to change the design of the school entrance on Wasatch Stree. The school entrance aligns with Adams Street and will help to solve traffic problems of the past. Cars and buses will enter on this new street section. Those traveling to the elementary school will go straight ahead, middle school traffic will go to the right and Oak Street traffic will go to the left. This will be a safer intersection that has been there in the past. School crossing for the elementary students will remain on Center Street. State laws do not require lighted crossing for middle schools or high schools. As a reminder, talk to your children about safe crossing by telling them that they must make sure that the driver sees them before they cross and this includes checking drivers in every lane of traffic. Make sure that they never text while walking through traffic. During a police event, officers sent a policeman in civilian clothing as a pedestrian on Center Street. They issued more than 100 tickets to people who did not see or stop for the person crossing the street. The police will continue to monitor compliance in the future, but make sure you talk to your
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EMERGENCY OR DISASTER CONTACT Public Works (7 am to 5 pm) (801)567-7235 Public Works On-Call (after business hours) (801)580-7274 OR (801)580-7034 Fire Dispatch – Unified Fire Authority (801)840-4000 Midvale Police Precinct (385) 468-9350 or Police Dispatch Unified Police Department (801)743-7000 EMERGENCY 911
CITY NEWSLETTER
By Mayor JoAnn B. Seghini
WHO TO CALL FOR… Water Bills Ordering A New Trash Can Reserving the Bowery Permits GRAMA requests Court Paying For Traffic School Business Licensing Property Questions Cemetery Water Line Breaks Planning and Zoning Building Inspections Code Enforcement Graffiti North of 7200 S Code Enforcement/Graffiti South of 7200 S
AUGUST 2017
MEET YOUR CANDIDATES AT HARVEST DAYS SATURDAY, AUGUST 12, 2017 Midvale City Park, Amphitheater CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATES - ON STAGE FROM 2:00 TO 3:00 PM MAYORAL CANDIDATES - ON STAGE FROM 5:00 TO 6:00 PM Candidates will have booths in the park
children about being aware. Center Street carries traffic from many communities in the west and east of our community and is very busy. This four lane street requires the pedestrians to watch carefully. In September, the Midvale City Council will be honoring four students who completed a science project. I will quote from their interviews. Eric Snaufer of Midvale Middle School said, “They designed a bionic scarecrow which is a miniaturized air dancer. It’s meant to scare birds from a large area. We estimate a 100 foot radius from our testing at the Salt Lake International Airport. We currently have made five and two are at the airport now and have proven to work.” Abigail Slama-Catron, also from
Four Sandy sixth-grade students created an innovative solution to birds striking airplanes and received a national award from EPA Acting Deputy Regional Administrator Suzanne Bohan (left). The students are Eric Snaufer, Allison Drennan, Abigail Slama-Catron and Timothy Holt. Photo by Julie Slama Midvale Middle School said, “The problem we are trying to solve is bird strikes like what happened with The Miracle on the Hudson when birds crashed in the planes engines causing it to land on the Hudson River. So this shows bird strikes is a big problem. What we are doing is scaring away birds to save lives.” The Midvale Middle School students teamed up with two students from the Beehive Academy of Science and Technology, a charter school in Sandy. Allison Drennan said, “ we filed for a patent. We hope to provide our environmentally portable, waterproof bionic scarecrow to more airports and places around the world too.” Timothy Holt, also from Beehive Academy report that “We won the U.S. President’s Environmental Youth Award presented by the Environmental Protection Agency. Only two groups are honored with this national award in region 8: a K-6 division and a 6th grade through high school award. We’re one of 10 in the nation for the older group. It means a lot to us that we’re recognized for making a difference in our world”. The air dancer is seen in the community advertising businesses. It is usually red and has a face at the top and air causes it sway and bounce. These student saw that this could be designed to keep air traffic safe and to protect birds and wildlife. The student wanted to reduce bird strikes that injure and kill birds and cause damage and safety issues to people. There were 218 birds that hit planes at the SLC International Airport in one year. Strikes kill birds and cost the airlines $900 M per year. This information was reported by Julanne Slama. Special recognition must also be given to the teachers, schools, and parents who encouraged these outstanding students.
In The Middle of Everything MIDVALE CITY HARVEST DAYS 2017 Schedule Of Events
This is your PERSONAL INVITATION to attend the traditional community event that started in 1939 MONDAY & FRIDAY, AUGUST 7TH & 11TH AND THE FOLLOWING MONDAY, AUGUST 14TH NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES Kick-off the festival with neighbors and family in your own Midvale neighborhood. This establishes relationships that strengthen our union of communities. PLEASE CALL (385) 468-9350 TO ARRANGE A VISIT FROM THE MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL, STAFF, UNIFIED POLICE & UNIFIED FIRE Limited to 10 party visits per night First Come First Serve
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 9TH HALL OF HONORS, ART SHOW & YOUTH AMBASSADORS INDUCTION CEREMONY Midvale Performing Arts Center (695 W. Center St.-7720 S.) 5:00 – 9:00 pm Arts Show
FRIDAY, AUGUST 11TH NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES
SATURDAY, AUGUST 12TH MIDVALE CITY PARK - 455 W. 7500 S.
HARVEST DAYS PARADE
10:00 am – Locate the parade route at: www.midvaleharvestdays.com ENTERTAINMENT & GAMES FOR THE FAMILY Noon to 5:00 pm Bounce Houses, Face Painting, Pictures with Princesses, Food Trucks and more! ENTERTAINMENT ON THE STAGE: Midvale Main Street Theater, The Walker Brothers, & Quick Wits
Midvale City honors those who have dedicated their lives to making Midvale a better place. Midvale artists of every level are also showcased in the annual juried arts show.
7:00 pm Opening Band TBD 8:00 – 9:30 pm Feature Entertainment OSMOND-CHAPMAN ORCHESTRA Starring DAVID OSMOND
Light refreshments will be served.
FIREWORKS 10PM
DINNER AND BINGO IN THE BOWERY 5:30 – 6:30 pm
Fire & Police Demonstrations
5:30 – 6:30 pm 6:30 pm
Dinner – Midvale Mining
Free Bingo in the Bowery
Must be 12 or older to play & win. Raffle for kids under 12. Bingo sponsored by Midvale City and local merchants. *Free giveaways for adults & children
On July 11, 2017 at City Council Meeting, Dalin Hackett said it was his pleasure to present Brandon Smith to be appointed as Midvale City Treasurer. Dalin said he was hired six months ago and has done a great job for us. Brandon Smith said he enjoys working for Midvale City and it has been a very enjoyable experience. Midvale City would like to welcome and congratulate Brandon Smith as our new City Treasurer.
Limited to 10 party visits per night First Come First Serve
Hall of Honors Inductees: Trent Jepson & Iris Buhler
THURSDAY, AUGUST 10TH
Midvale City Appoints New City Treasurer
PLEASE CALL (385) 468-9350 TO ARRANGE A VISIT FROM THE MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL, STAFF, UNIFIED POLICE & UNIFIED FIRE
FREE CONCERTS AMPHITHEATER STAGE Food Trucks Available Bring blankets and chairs
7:00 pm Induction Ceremony /Awards
WWW . MIDVALECITY . ORG
Midvale Unified Police Officer of the Month On July 11, 2017 at Midvale City Council Meeting, Police Officer Bendixen was awarded Police Officer of the Month. Officer Bendixen was dispatched on an attempted abduction detail. Upon arrival, Officer Bendixen met with the victim, a juvenile female, who informed him a male in a van had asked her to get inside. The girl said “no” and went home and told her father. After reviewing video surveillance from a nearby business and confirming the events reported, Officer Bendixen began driving through apartment complexes in the area and located the van despite its appearance having being altered. Through his investigation, Officer Bendixen located an address for the suspect. Officer Bendixen made contact at the suspect apartment, and was met by a male who matched the description given by the young girl, although he had taken steps to alter his appearance by shaving off a beard. Officer Bendixen took the suspect into custody and transported him to jail. Through Officer Bendixen’s tenacious efforts and desire to locate this offender a potential child predator was identified and removed from the streets thereby protecting the children of our community.
AUGUST 2017 CITY NEWSLETTER WWW . MIDVALECITY . ORG
PETAPALOOZA: A Pet Adoption Extravaganza Salt Lake County Animal Services Join Salt Lake County Animal Services for the LARGEST pet adoption event in Salt Lake County on Saturday, August 26 from 9 AM – 4PM! This is the 4th Annual Petapalooza, a Pet Adoption Extravaganza you won’t want to miss. This is a FREE, family-friendly event at The County Library: Viridian Event Center in West Jordan.
Be Bright, Recycle Right! WHAT N T TO RECYCLE PROPANE TANKS ALWAYS PROPERLY DISPOSE OF PROPANE TANKS
TOP 10 CONTAMINANTS 1. Plastic Bags 2. Needles/Biohazardous Waste 3. Wire, hose, cords, rope & chains 4. Propane Tanks 5. Yard Waste/Wood 6. Motor Oil Containers 7. Electronics 8. Food Waste 9. Clothing/Shoes 10. Mercury Containing Objects
Summer is in full swing and barbeque season is underway. As you use your gas-fired barbeque grill, be sure to use the propane tank safely and follow the manufactures’ instructions. Never bring your propane tank indoors or into an enclosed space. If you suspect a leak, do not use the propane tank. Be sure to have a certified dealer perform any maintenance or repairs that are required and do not attempt to empty or cut open a tank.
“Propane tanks of any size are never allowed in any curbside bin.” If your old propane tank has outlived its usefulness, be sure to dispose of it properly! Improper disposal of propane tanks poses a serious safety threat to waste and recycling workers. These tanks contain compressed flammable gas that can cause fires or explosions when compacted inside of garbage trucks. And regardless of their size, propane tanks are never allowed in curbside recycling bins. Even tanks that seem to be empty can contain a small amount of gas that must be properly recovered and the tank depressurized. Propane tanks can be properly disposed of at outdoor exchange facilities or dropped off at household hazardous waste (HHW) locations throughout the valley. The Trans-Jordan HHW accepts propane tanks for free. Your questions, comments, and ideas are always welcome!
There will be hundreds of adoptable dogs, cats, birds/ducks, and reptiles from over a dozen different pet rescues across Utah! The Food Truck League will have tasty offerings from a variety of yummy food trucks. If you’re not looking for a pet, there will be over 50 different vendors: from pet related products, to treats for humans! Join us for this farmers market like atmosphere at the The County Library: Viridian Event Center, located in West Jordan at 8030 S 1830 W. The vendor market will spread out into the adjacent West Jordan Veterans Memorial Park. Current pet owners bring your pups there will be fun events for them: a pet psychic, Course A ‘Lure for them to race through, a pet photo booth, and more! Salt Lake County Animal Services will be on hand to vaccinate, microchip, and license pets in our jurisdiction as well. For more information visit AdoptUtahPets.com, call 385-468-7387, or email animal@slco.org.
Employee Spotlight Devin Warr Storm Water Maintenance Plan Inspector Devin has been a Midvale City employee for seven years. He started as a Water Operator, became Public Utilities Inspector and now works as the City’s Storm Water Maintenance Plan Inspector (SWMP Inspector). As the SWMP Inspector, Devin’s main responsibility is to work with new businesses and developments in setting up their storm water plans so that they meet the City’s requirements. He also conducts annual inspections of these plans as well as routine maintenance and outfall inspections. Before joining Midvale City Devin worked for the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District as a Water Operator and for Riverton City as a Water Operator. When not at work Devin enjoys spending time with his family. He loves the outdoors and is a great hunter.
Please contact education@transjordan.org and you may be mentioned in our article or FAQ page. Visit transjordan.org/recycle for more recycling information.
Q: How clean do food containers need to be for recycling? Propane Tanks at HHW
Photo by Lesha Earl – Trans Jordan
A: Food waste can contaminate good recycling. Containers do not need to
be squeaky clean, but a general rule is that no food or liquid spill out if the container is upside-down.
When asked the following questions, Devin’s re- If you were a wrestler, what song would they play while you walked to the ring? sponses were… Till I Collapse by Eminem. Coke or Pepsi? Water, I don’t drink soda. Who is your favorite author? I like reading to continuously learn new things, but I don’t have a specific favorite author. Morning Person or Night Person? Night Person. If you could meet any famous person, who would you meet? Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson What is your favorite fairy tale, myth, or legend? Thor. What is the weirdest food you have ever eaten? Curdled sour milk. In a movie of your life, who would play you? Bradley Cooper, specifically from the movie Serena.
What is your favorite dinosaur? T-Rex. If you had to change your first name, what would you change it to? Mike. It’s the name you give someone when you don’t know their real name.
Page 10 | August 2017
Midvale City Journal
A step back in time: Midvale Historical Society celebrates 40th anniversary By Ruth Hendricks | Ruth.H@mycityjournals.com The Midvale Historical Society celebrated its 40th anniversary on Saturday, June 17 at the museum at 7697 South on historic Main Street (700 W.) in Midvale. Members of the Utah Treasures Association came about a week before and buried some items in the ground behind the museum. Volunteers from the association helped visitors use metal detectors to look for the hidden objects. Guests were able to keep what treasures they found, which were mostly coins. Bill Miller, president of the Historical Society, was pleased with the turnout for the event. “We’ve had a good crowd throughout the day,” said Miller. Inside the museum, families toured the exhibits. Kids enjoyed trying to type on an old typewriter. “It’s cool,” said Daverra Stewart. Her brother also tried it out, but it was difficult to press the keys. Among the exhibits in the small museum is the military uniform of Jimmy Martinez, which symbolizes a tragic story. Martinez and two of his friends, LeRoy Tafoya and Tom Gonzales, grew up together in Midvale. “They were three best friends, they lived close to each other, went to school together, were the same age,” said Miller. All three young men went to serve in the Vietnam War, and in late 1967, within a span of 16 days, all three were killed in combat in different locations. The uniform had been displayed in the home of Martinez’s parents. “This is the uniform they sent home from Vietnam. The dad took a bookcase and made it into a memorial,” said Miller. The uniform resided there in the home for almost 50 years. When the mother and father passed away, the family decided to donate the uniform to the museum. “It was an awesome experience when we
picked that thing up,” said Miller. Now tattered and with holes in places, Miller has been trying to get the uniform restored, but so far has been unable to find someone who can do the specialized job. Another exhibit honors one of Midvale’s famous residents, astronaut Don Lind. Lind attended Midvale Elementary School, graduated from Jordan High School and received a bachelor of science degree with high honors in physics from the University of Utah. Lind went on to earn other degrees including a Ph.D. Lind waited 19 years to finally get his turn to break the boundaries of the earth, longer than any other continuously serving American astronaut. From April 29 to May 6, 1985, Lind flew on the Space Shuttle Challenger to conduct a scientific mission called Spacelab 3. After completing 110 orbits, Lind returned safely to earth. The museum’s display for Lind features photos, newspaper articles, and patches Lind earned from NASA. On the more domestic side, the museum displays several antique sewing machines along with quilts, clothing, sewing patterns, and even an antique spinning wheel. The museum has yearbooks from the local schools, historical photographs and other books dealing with Midvale history. The mining roots of the city are prominently featured. Miller and the other volunteers who keep the museum going hope to celebrate many more years of history in Midvale. Admission to the museum is free. It is open from noon to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. Private tours are available during off hours by calling the museum at (801)569-8040 during regular hours to schedule an appointment, or email Miller at billybert01@aol.com. l
Keep Our Community Safe Remember August is Back to School Traffic Nearly 70% of Car Accidents Occur Within 10 Miles of Home! Sooner or later it’s going to happens to most of us – getting into a car accident. The vehicle insurance industry estimates all motorists are likely to be involved in at least four auto accidents in his or her lifetime. Additionally, very young or novice drivers are more likely to be involved in a car accident, as opposed to more experienced drivers. More revealing are interesting survey facts that of all collisions that occur, 52% occur within a 5-mile radius of home while an astounding 70% occur within 10 miles. Although the vast majority of accidents occur close to home, most of them tend to be relatively minor. Perhaps you’re leaving your neighborhood and a neighbor pulls out of their driveway and hits your car in the side. Or maybe you’re at the neighborhood grocery store and you have a small fender bender in the parking lot. But serious injuries can occur especially when we add to our neighborhood roads increased pedestrians, loose pets, playing children and recreational runners and bikers. Local traffic safety issues for our communities is always an ongoing concern. Data from surveys also show that the farther from home the accident occurs, the more severe it tends to be. This is especially true for accidents that occur on busy highways and interstates where vehicles are traveling at much faster speeds over longer distances. Why do so many accidents occur so close to home? The surveys shed some light on this important question. Broadly speaking, drivers tend to have a false sense of security when driving close to home. For example, drivers are less likely to wear their seatbelts when driving to the neighborhood convenience store. Another big factor is distractions. Whether it’s talking on a cell phone, texting, scanning the radio or eating while driving, any little thing that diverts your attention from the road can open the door for a collision. When on a busy highway, drivers are more likely to maintain their focus on the primary task at hand and save the cell phone call, texting or radio scanning for later. Most Law enforcement, safety experts and personal injury attorneys, are pretty vocal about distracted driving. Local personal injury attorney - Ned Siegfried of Siegfried & Jensen sees cases of this type everyday and reminds us: “Just because you’re close to home doesn’t mean the danger of a car accident is lowered. In fact, you should be even more cautious when driving in your neighborhood or down to the corner mini-mart. Driving
UTAH G N I T C E PROT S FOR E I L I M A F YEARS 7 2 R E V O
Museum display of antique sewing machines and handcrafted items. (Ruth Hendricks/City Journals)
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the speed limit and simply being aware dramatically reduces the chance of you being in a car accident, regardless of whether you’re just cruising down the street or traveling in another state.” Stay safe - Avoid these dangers! These three major factors can also significantly increase the risk of being involved in a car accident: Driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol (DUI / DWI) Speeding - Nearly one-third of all car accidents are caused by someone driving over the speed limit or driving too fast for the current weather and/or road conditions Driving while distracted - which includes texting, eating, applying make-up or any other behavior that takes a driver’s attention away from the road While not all of these accidents result in a fatality, the overwhelming majority of them result in some type of injury, property damage or litigation. Also, important to note that data from the Annual U.S. Road Crash Statistics journal suggests more serious car accidents are more likely to occur during specific days of the week, as well as during specific times of each day. The following is a breakdown of the days of the week and times of day when a fatal car accident is most likely to occur: Monday — 7am to 9am and 3pm to 6:00 pm Tuesday —7am to 9am and 3pm to 6pm Wednesday — 7am to 9am and 3pm to 6 pm Thursday — 7am to 9am and 3pm to 9pm Friday — 9pm to midnight Saturday — midnight to 3am Take note that weekday mornings and late afternoons with its increase traffic dangers are also times school children are on the move. With schools back in session this month it’s a good reminder to watch out, slow down and avoid distracted driving. Protect your family – Before an accident! Mr. Siegfried advises: “The only thing you can do to protect your family before an accident is to have enough insurance. With uninsured drivers, more expensive vehicles on the road and the high cost of medical care for any injury - it’s vital to make sure your family is adequately covered. In many cases - you can increase your insurance limits up to ten times for just a few additional pennies a day. This greater coverage will adequately protect yourself and your family. Review with your insurance company the benefits of increasing your liability, uninsured motorist coverage (UM) and under-insured motorist coverage(UIM). It’s one of the best values out there. “- Ned Siegfried
INJURY ATTORNEYS
August 2017 | Page 11
M idvalejournal.com
Staff, faculty preview new Midvale Middle School By Julie Slama | Julie@mycityjournals.com
Plan today, not tomorrow. Plan together, not alone.
The new Midvale Middle School is expected to be completed this summer and open to about 750 students this fall. (Julie Slama/City Journals)
W
hen hall monitor and school store coordinator Leann Gilchrest walked in the dusty cement hallways and rooms filled with construction materials of the new Midvale Middle School, she was overjoyed. “I am so excited to see the openness of the school — to see out the windows and see mountains,” she said. “It’s soothing and relaxing. There’s classroom wings for each grade level, as well as areas for the entire student body with geometrical shapes within the structure that blends bits of our old school with the new one. It’s like school community itself, bits and pieces blending together.” The red brick structure, with its bright splashes of paint and design, reflects Midvale’s ethnically diverse and industrial, working class roots, said VCBO Architecture Associate Brian Peterson. “We took from the school theme, ‘strength in unity,’ and used that as a common value and nucleus in building the school,” he said. “It’s individual pieces coming together to make a whole just like the student body itself.” Gilchrest and Peterson are referring to the combination of multiple ethnicities attending the middle school, including students from the neighborhood and those who commute to the school to prepare for the challenge of attending nearby Hillcrest High’s international baccalaureate program. This summer, the 210,000-square-foot building is undergoing finishing touches to prepare for the 750 students who will be attending the new school in the fall. “To design a building for 50 years is pretty hard when you consider the previous building was built before there were smartphones or laptops and they couldn’t know what technology would be needed. So, we tried to be flexible with a building that could move with the times and be adaptable for what the future may hold,” Peterson said. The groundbreaking for the new school was held June 11, 2015 with about 150 current, former and future students, teachers and administrators joining city and school officials who also said farewell to the former 62-yearold Midvale Middle building, which was torn down to give room to the new school. The past two years, students have been attending school in the former Crescent View Middle School
building in Sandy. The new building, with its highlights of red, orange, yellow and green offices and hallways, got rave reviews from staff and faculty who got their first looks inside as the school year ended. “It’s amazing,” said Janie Canals. “It took the heritage from our school and brought it into the next century. The architects were able to mimic the feel of the old school to fit that of our community, but at the same time, embrace the future for our students.” Peterson said the school was designed to be a resource for the entire community, with the use of a 40-foot atrium and catering kitchen that can be used for community events, as well as its fields for neighborhood sports teams. The atrium also can be doubled for teacher professional development trainings as well as a green room for television production classroom as broadcast controls and a green wall are in an accompanying room. Upon entering the building through the front entryway under a large M sign, students enter into a spacious commons, with administrative offices are on the left and the stateof-the-art 680-seat auditorium decorated in school colors of gray and maroon on the right. In the entryway will be the former school sign as well as display cases holding school memorabilia. The performing arts wing has several practice rooms for ensembles or soloists to practice as well as multiple storage units for instruments. Classrooms are divided into three wings, one wing for each grade, housing the core subjects of math, language arts, social studies and science. Within each wing, there is a space for collaboration amongst classes and “will allow more flexibility with our teaching,” said Principal Wendy Dau. Each wing is trimmed in contrasting colors — orange, yellow and green — to signify the grade level. There is an area devoted to Career and Technology Education classrooms, with laboratories as well as classrooms for students to explore subject areas from foods, carpentry, engineering, 2- and 3-dimensional art and business. Above the entry on the second level, the
library and computer lab has a view of the Wasatch Mountains and is “open and inviting,” Dau said. In addition to the lab, there will be 13 Chromebook carts, each with 35 devices to a cart, an iPad lab, two computer labs and a business lab with desktop computers. “Technology has been a major issue with our teachers and there wasn’t enough in our old building so now we have more than doubled it. As part of a grant, in the next few years, we should have a one-to-one ratio for Chromebooks for our seventh-graders,” she said. The media center is spacious as a place where students can gather, Peterson said. “We learned that students wanted a place to hang out as well as work on projects and we took that into account,” he said. “There’s even a reading nook right over the entryway.” The gymnasium, which has an indoor track above basketball courts, has a separate dance room and a fitness room, which could be used as a weight room. In addition, a health room is adjacent to the gymnasium. Special education will be offered in two cluster units with a quiet room and conference room. The cafeteria is spacious and has an outdoor commons area in back of the school. Students can choose from five different food lines then have a view of the Oquirrh Mountains while eating. Throughout the school will be pictures with biographies of prominent leaders in various fields, a gift from VCBO Architecture firm. “The heroes on the wall will be people of all different walks of life, different ethnicities, fields and abilities,” he said. “We’ll have Don Lind, Julia Child, Malala Yousafzai, Rosa Parks, Nelson Mandela, Marie Curry, Katherine Johnson, Stephen Hawking and others who have made an impact on our world and hope that students can relate and aspire to be like them.” The $38-million school building is part of the $250 million tax-rate-neutral bond voters approved in spring 2010. Several other school buildings including Midvale and Butler elementaries, Corner Canyon High School as well as Albion, Butler, Mt. Jordan and Draper Park middle schools have been built from the same bond. l
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Page 12 | August 2017
POSTPONE YOUR HEADSTONE
Dont Text & Drive
Midvale City Journal Local high school students give smiles, goals while playing for RSL’s unified team By Julie Slama | Julie@mycityjournals.com
R
ain poured soon after Real Salt Lake’s unified soccer team landed in Kansas City — and it didn’t stop. RSL’s unified team, which teams up area special education and regular education students in matches, was expected to take the field April 29 after the RSL team played Sporting Kansas City. However, fear of ruining the field spread, so their time on the field got changed to walking out, uniforms drenched, and waving to the fans as they were introduced.
Real Salt Lake Unified Soccer Team and Sporting Kansas City’s unified team forged a friendship when they took the field together. Sporting Kansas City travels to RSL’s field in October. (Maison Anderson/RSL Unified)
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“It was really awesome to be on the field, looking at the crowd and exchanging our team scarves,” said RSL player Kyle “Pickles” Kareem, who also plays for Jordan High’s freshman-sophomore team. With the game being rescheduled for indoors the next morning, it didn’t deter Pickles. Even when the team was split in half so they could play two games at the same time, Pickles remained focused. “It was a really fun game,” Pickles said, who got his first hat trick or three goals in the same game. “I was able to anticipate what they were doing after the second goal.” Pickles, and his team, ended up winning, but that wasn’t the point, he said. “It’s about what you do when you play and if you have fun. We love to go out to play for the sport of it and have that experience to go against other players,” he said. His dad and goalkeeper coach, Bryan Kareem, said that is his son’s mentality. “He doesn’t have an agenda or an ego,” he said. “He loves to play and he cherishes the opportunity to play with other kids and to have fun while playing with his teammates. He loves this team and knows he’s never alone on this team.” RSL unified player Maison Anderson, who is a sophomore at Hillcrest High School, agrees. He said another highlight was just being at the Major League Soccer game with the Sporting Kansas City unified team. “We sat together and not only was it fun to get to know one another, but to cheer for the plays, not just the teams,” he said. “When we met up, we knew it was about selflessness and becoming friends unified through sports. It gives us more satisfaction to help one another. This changes our perspective on life when we’re involved on a personal level.” A handful of local high school students participate on the co-ed RSL unified team, which is comprised of 16-year-olds to
25-year-olds throughout the state. Half of the roster is regular education students who partner with student-players who have intellectual disabilities. However, Coach Jenna Holland said that isn’t emphasized. “We’re a team, each player helping another to improve, and we’re there for the love of the sport,” she said. “It’s amazing to see the friendships develop between our players and now between the two teams from two states. That’s the beauty of the unified team. We don’t single out one player from another.” Holland said the unified team originated from an idea of Hillcrest High School junior Boston Iacobazzi, who ironically did not grow up playing soccer and got his first-ever goal in the Kansas City game. “Boston went to the RSL Foundation with his idea last year and a few months later, they were asking me to coach,” Holland said, adding that she had coached Special Olympics in Ogden for the past 18 years and coached the Special Olympics USA team in 2014. “This team melts my heart. It’s such an amazing team.” Boston, who credits special education teacher JoAnn Plant for inspiring him, has helped with Hillcrest’s unified team along with Maison and several other students who have played and cheered on their classmates. However Boston said when his counselor first suggested he become a peer tutor at school, he was uncertain. “I was kind of scared, but I really fell in love with all the kids,” he said. “They have the same things and want the same goals, but we tend to prejudge them that they’re not smart or strong and I’ve learned how wrong that attitude is. I have learned more from them than they have learned from me. They treat everyone with love and kindness and we need to learn that.” Boston, who is a sprinter for Hillcrest’s track team and will be school’s student body president in the fall, said that last year the RSL team, which included Hillcrest’s Ivan Yin, played Colorado. The team also traveled to the MLS All-Start Game in San Jose. This fall, RSL unified team played Hillcrest for the Husky Cup and will play other local unified teams preparing for the October 22 rematch against Sporting Kansas City unified team. Their games will include local teams — Jordan, Alta and Brighton high schools have unified teams in Canyons School District — as well as others throughout the state. Throughout the seasons, RSL players and staff will be known to give the unified team high-fives, have Leo the lion mascot cheer for the team and Kyle Beckerman gave the players a pep talk before a game. Before the season began, they held a “signing day,” where the unified team toured the locker room, got jerseys and then, joined the team at the America First Field in Sandy for a team photo. Maison, who has played club and high school soccer, said his first experience with the RSL unified team has been different than others. “Before our game against Sporting Kansas City, we ate together and we went to a Kansas City Royals game. It wasn’t in groups, but individually, and we talked about sports and having fun,” he said. “It’s not just about competition; it’s about becoming friends and being there for one another.” l
August 2017 | Page 13
M idvalejournal.com
Slowpitch softball helping people one Friday at a time By Billy Swartzfager | billy@mycityjournals.com
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A member of the Unmanageables up to bat in a game this season. (Billy Swartzfager/City Journals)
F
or 18 years the Clean and Sober Softball Association of Utah has been putting together teams of coed softball players for friendly competition while the players find comradery, support and some fun. The league is one of the largest in the state with 67 teams and seven divisions. Four fields in Sandy are home to many of the divisions. Games are played every Friday night from late March all the way in to November some years. The league is something powerful for many who are looking for a reason to stay away from drugs and alcohol. There is a rule that in order to play, one has to have been sober for at least 14 days. That may not seem like much, but to someone going through the struggles of addiction, two weeks can seem like a very long amount of time. Some players even attribute the league to their long term sobriety. According to Nick Daniels, league secretary and captain of the Unmanageables, he stayed sober in order to be on the diamond. “For the first sixty days or so, I stayed sober just so I could play ball,” Daniels said. He’s come a long ways from there, and has found others who have done the same. There are close to 15 people on his roster and most have stories similar to his and being together on the field every week gives them all something to look forward to as well as a sense of community . “We are more like a family out here,” Daniels said, “We know each other and are here to support each other.” The support and care for one another extends past game time as well. Many of the players are close due to the nature of their struggles and share time over the BBQ or at the bowling alley when not in uniform or during the off-season.
“This is a place where people can meet others with similar experiences, whether it’s someone in recovery for 20 years or someone who is just starting out,” Daniels said. Daniels’ story is similar to many of the people he faces every Friday night. He sought treatment for his struggles and heard about the league from others who had found it to be helpful. Many of the teams in the league are sponsored by treatment centers, made up of players who are participating in the center’s programs, or who have been through the center previously. Other teams, like the Unmanageables, are put together through various channels and pay their own way with help from sponsors. Daniels’ team gets a share of their league fees and money for jerseys from Lone Pine Cabinet. Most players discover the league through friends and support networks, or the league’s Facebook page. They generally reach out to a team captain, an old timer from meetings or one of the league’s numerous officials and board members hoping to get placed on a team. With 67 of them, it usually doesn’t take long to get someone a team to call their own, so they can begin the process of recovery, surrounded by a group of people who have been there and are willing to help. The league requires that participants be a part of a recovery program, though one could argue that being part of one of the many teams on a Friday night serves every bit as good as a meeting. Watching the teams play games shows just how close these folks are. They know each other’s first names, each other’s history. They share respect for the work they are doing off the field and it shows on it. The upper divisions in the league are competitive, but never at the expense of what really matters, which is the fact that the league helps people change their lives, and has been doing so for a long time. l
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Page 14 | August 2017
Midvale City Journal
A magical menagerie at Tyler Library By Travis Barton | travis@mycityjournals.com
I
t’s been 20 years since “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” was released to the world and its magic has spawned seven books, nine movies (and counting), countless fan clubs and, in Midvale, sock puppet pets. Tyler Library hosted its own Magical Menagerie on July 5 where people could make their own magical pets out of sock puppets. “It’s a fun thing, gets the creative juices going,” said Melinda Tooley, youth services librarian. The Magical Menagerie was part of Salt Lake County Library system’s wizarding at the county library. Throughout June and July, the public could participate in various activities and classes at the “Diagon Alley” shops held at different county libraries throughout the valley. It all serves as preparation for the additionally Harry Potter-themed O.W.L Camp that was held July 10-15 at the Viridian Event Center in West Jordan. Room was limited for the camp so Tooley said these activities, like the sock puppet class, made it so anyone could participate even if they couldn’t go to the camp. As a
former teacher and as a youth-focused librarian, Tooley said her favorite character from the Potter universe is Professor McGonagall. She says she can identify with the stern, but fair teacher. Tooley used her teaching skills to demonstrate how to make the sock puppets. She showed by using the heel as the top of the puppet’s head before tucking the toe so it fits in your hand and then glue the corners to keep the mouth in its place. After that is complete, she said, then you can “go crazy” putting on yarn for hair or buttons for eyes. “One of the things that’s fun about them is they are pretty easy. You can make them as hard or as difficult as you want,” Tooley said. While Tooley made three puppets herself— a cat, snake and turtle—she said they didn’t have to be animals. “That’s one of the beauties of them is they can be people, they can be animals, they can be monsters, they can be mythical creatures,” she said. Alexa Bacall helped her son, Kaden, make a dragon after having made a dog modeled after Fang, a character from the Harry
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Laurel Dalton shows off her sock puppet after she completed hers at the Tyler Library (Travis Barton/City Journals)
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ed people’s minds. “It’s a fun series, I think it really sparked a lot of kids’ imaginations,” Tooley said. “(The books have) been around a while and I know (for) my niece, and other kids I’ve known, it’s kind of lit them on fire for reading.” l
August 2017 | Page 15
M idvalejournal.com
Life
Laughter AND
by
PERI KINDER
MIDVALE
When I was 10 years old, my dream of living as an orphan was swiftly derailed when my parents refused to die. How else could I achieve the spunky, independent status that comes from living without parents who constantly insist on manners and bathing and church on Sundays? Being orphaned was the best option, but being motherless would work, too. My mom was aware of my wish for a motherless future and seemed to take it personally. She’d tell me to stop lying around the house like a depressed sloth because she had no intention of leaving me motherless. She assumed once I was permanently without maternal supervision I’d start drinking Coca-Cola and swear. I blame literature for my orphanic life goals. Most of the books I read featured young women who endured their motherless lives with flair. Jessie Alden, the 12-year-old heroine from “The Boxcar Children,” was one of my role models. After her parents’ death, Jessie lived with her siblings in an abandoned boxcar, keeping it tidy and preparing tasty meals by picking berries and gathering random kitchen scraps that she turned into
Parental Guidance Not Suggested
delicious stew. It didn’t matter that I couldn’t even boil an egg, I wanted to live with my sisters and brother in an abandoned train car. Still do. Pippi Longstocking had a big house in a Swedish village and a pet monkey named Mr. Nilsson. With her mother dead and her father lost at sea, Pippi’s outlandish behavior never got her grounded from the TV. In fact, she had a horse, a suitcase full of gold, and no one telling her to go to bed before midnight. Left at a boarding school, motherless Sara Crewe learns her father is missing in the war, and probably dead. She enters a life of servitude at the school and uses her imagination to stay upbeat by telling stories. I could tell stories for food. That’s basically what I do now. Scout Finch, the crusading heroine in “To Kill a Mockingbird” got along just fine without a mother. She wasn’t afraid to fight for what she knew was right. Scout inspired me to think about what justice really means, and to be outraged when justice isn’t served. And the queen of them all, Nancy Drew, shaped my entire life. With her wealthy father, Carson Drew, and her
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band of friends Ned, Bess and George, Nancy drove her fancy convertible through River Heights, her Midwestern hometown, that seemed to be bustling with international criminals. If her small town hosted so many depraved lawbreakers, certainly Murray, Utah, could have its share of brazen jewel thieves. Nancy was plucky and fearless as she investigated broken lockets, whispering statues and tolling bells. Her adventures left me breathless with jealousy because I knew her success could be directly attributed to her motherless stature. Then there’s Anne Shirley, Jane
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