A6 The Emery County Review, Tuesday, April 29, 2008 LIFE SWELL is Celebrating the People of the San Rafael Swell Area Dr. Mike King Board names King interim president of CEU The State Board of Regents selected Dr. Mike King as the interim president of the College of Eastern Utah on April 21. Dr. King will assume his duties in May when current President Ryan Thomas leaves CEU. President Thomas announced his resignation last month. A formal search for the new president will begin once a study, requested by the Legislature, regarding the potential for greater collaboration and cooperation between the College of Eastern Utah and Utah State University is complete. (See House Bill 3, line 822, from 2008.) Details about the study will be released at a later date. “Dr. King will ensure that CEU continues to be a key component in the economic and workforce development in this region of the state,” said Board of Regents Chair Jed Pitcher. “The college plays an important role in meeting the higher education needs of eastern Utah, and Dr. King is a strong and capable leader. He will also play an integral role as the study moves forward.” Dr. King has been serving as the provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at the College of Eastern Utah since July 2004. Prior to that, he was the dean of arts and sciences at CEU from 2000 to 2004 and CEU’s biology department chair from 1997 to 2000. Dr. King came to CEU in 1996 as a biology instructor. He continues to teach ecology and environmental science courses at CEU. In accepting the appointment, Dr. King stated: “The College of Eastern Utah and I will miss President Ryan Thomas. He has made a significant impact for good on the college. He has worked tirelessly in the community, within the Utah System of Higher Education, with the Legislature and others to promote the interests of the college and to increase awareness of the value and challenges of higher education in rural Utah. “I envision continuing that effort and helping CEU develop greater name recognition throughout the state. We often feel like we’re the best kept secret in Utah when it comes to higher education. CEU is a wonderful place for students to start their college education. We have excellent faculty and very dedicated staff in Price and Blanding -- all interested in helping students achieve their goals. I’m grateful for this opportunity given to me by the Regents. I appreciate their confidence and look forward to working closely with them, the Commissioner’s Office, and community leaders to meet the higher education needs in southeastern Utah.” Dr. King currently serves on the Utah Concurrent Enrollment Task Force, the Higher Education Advisory Committee for the Utah Education Network, and the Utah E-learning Connection Advisory Committee. Prior to coming to CEU, Dr. King was associate professor and extension wildlife specialist at the University of Tennessee from 1988 to 1996, where he was responsible for developing state-wide extension education programs in wildlife management and directing the Tennessee 4-H Wildlife Project. Dr. King earned his Ph.D. in wildlife science from Utah State University. He earned master’s and bachelor’s degrees in Zoology from Brigham Young University and an associate’s degree from CEU. Dr. King and his wife, Jan Christensen King, have five children and seven grandchildren. Mrs. King has a master’s degree in education from Southern Utah University and a bachelor’s degree in education from Brigham Young University. She currently serves as the Reading First coordinator for the Carbon School District. Photo by Josie Luke Christy Gasser, her daughter Sarah Allred and granddaughter Brylei Allred. The mother and daughter business partners strive to make their floral business at its new location in Castle Dale a comfortable setting for their customers. A Blooming Family Business Mother and daughter team bring Creative Floral to Castle Dale Josie Luke For one, working with plants is a complete passion --- she just loves the smell of dirt. For the other it is the satisfaction of giving something beautiful to a person and seeing them smile. They brought their two joys together into a business that fits them both. Christy Gasser and her daughter Sarah Allred, the owners of Clawson’s Creative Gardens nursery, recently branched out their business by opening Creative Floral in Castle Dale on April 14. The floral, which offers fresh cut flowers, dry flower arrangements, home decor, candles and balloon bouquets is located at 66 East Main. Walking into the new shop, it is easy to see that the two are anxious to have people feel at home. Customers are greeted by a sight not unlike their own living room; couches and a coffee table offer them a place to sit down and feel comfortable spending a few minutes conversing with either of the pair, which is exactly what they intended. “I want people to know me by name,” Christy said. Christy’s love of plants began when she was young. She described how her mother, who loved flowers, “could never have a flower in our yard, because I picked it.” For Gasser, working with plants and flowers brings her peace. And working in the floral is even better, because it also brings her the joy of being around people. Sarah, on the other hand, finds her joy in making beautiful things. She loves seeing the joy in people’s faces when they see something that they love. Along with making beautiful flower arrangements, she likes to make anything she sees look better, enjoying clothing and interior design. One of the aspects of their business that they really enjoy is personalizing each item they sell to the person who will receive it, sending a bag of popsicles along with a balloon bouquet to children who had their tonsils out, or with a bottle of Sprite to a sick adult. Another is ordering flowers directly from the flower farm rather than getting them through a wholesaler. Although the shipping is higher on such flowers, they believe the fresher flowers are worth the price. They reported that they try to keep prices comparable to other businesses in the area, but they always try to add something a little extra to every arrangement they sell. They also each like putting together flower arrangements differently. Christy likes flower arrangements that are unusual and unique, while Sarah normally prefers symmetry. To contact Christy or Sarah at Creative Floral, call 381-5744. The shop is open Monday- Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. They will also open the shop after hours for special circumstances. Band concert highlights talent of young musicians Kathy Ockey The Emery County High School band and the Cottonwood Elementary and Castle Dale Elementary sixth grade students held their annual Spring Band Concert April 29 in the high school auditorium. Benjamin Carroll, band instructor, welcomed everyone and said donations would be accepted during the evening in behalf of Ryan Thompson. Ryan is a student at Emery High school and is currently having treatments while awaiting a liver transplant. Carroll said their first song, “Rise of the Fire Bird,” by Steven Reineke, was dedicated to Ryan and was an outstanding performance. This was followed by three more numbers which were performed equally as well. The combined Cottonwood and Castle Dale sixth grade stu- dents performed three songs that showed diversity in the style of music, beginning with a spirited march and ending with a great finale. Carroll said they “were sounding good and playing really well.” These students have only had band for one year and did exceptionally well. The high school band completed the evening with four REVIEW more songs including a beautiful arrangement of “America the Beautiful” with the audience standing to sing the first verse. The concluding song of the evening was the familiar “Bolero,” by Ravel. Carroll said the high school band had recently competed in the Region Music Festival and Emery High School was the only school to receive straight superior ratings. Carroll is to be commended for his teaching abilities and the beautiful music CASEY’S WORLD Middle Child Syndrome Worse than Imagined Casey Wood Being the middle child is not as unpleasant as the media makes it seem. It’s worse. Those who have never been the middle child can not fully comprehend the complete agony that is constantly tormenting a middle child. How do I know all this you ask? I am a middle child, or rather, once was. I know from experience the difference between being the youngest, the middle child, and now that my brother has gone on his mission, the oldest. As the youngest everything is handed to you. You are the favorite and you can wrap your parents, or as my siblings and I call our parents “The Parents”, around your finger. I was pretty good at this, but my sister has mastered the art. Let me give you a brief scenario of the complete control my sister has over “The Parents,” or in our case, Dad. “Dad, can I have $40 dollars to buy this new video game I’ve been waiting for? I’ll pay you back!” I say. “Ha,” laughs my Dad, “when pigs fly.” In walks my sister. She says, “Dad, my friend invited me to go to the mall tomorrow. Can I go?” “Of course, what time are you leaving?” “10:30. You see I can’t just go to the mall though… Can I have $130 dollars to spend on whatever?” She says using her best puppy dog eyes. “Will you pay me back?” says Dad. “Probably not.” “Oh well. Sure you can. Go get my wallet.” Now may I ask, where’s the justice? For those of you who hope to master this art, I’m afraid to say you have to begin nourishing it at a very early age, and if you’re reading this, it’s probably far too late. Now, as the middle child things are far different than they are for the youngest. You have to work for what you get, and you have to work extra hard if you hope to be noticed by your parents. You will never be forgiven a debt, and if you owe a debt you will pay them in full, and feel lucky if you aren’t charged interest. You’re not only expected to try to do your best in the things your doing, but you’re expected to be a mind reader, and know what your parents want at all times. You have to be able to know when they do and do not want help, what brand of milk to buy, and other crazy things, like what day of the week their birthday will be on in six years. As the oldest you’re in the second best position. It doesn’t compare to the utter manipulation the youngest has, but it’s a lot better than being in the middle. Your parents trust you. They trust you to pay your debts when you can, stay out late and not get into trouble, use a debit or credit card responsibly, drive wherever you need to go, go on dates, only go to good parties or any other number of things. While you don’t have the utter manipulation of the baby, you also aren’t hindered by the overprotection. Being the oldest gives you the freedom of trust. When you begin to experience and fully understand this freedom, you begin to realize, as I now have, that there are better things than being the youngest, and far better things than being the middle child. Man, I’m glad I got out of that sinking boat.