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Show Viewpoints Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, January 27-30, 2018 The The Park Record A-19 A-19 Park Record. Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, January 27-30, 2018 editorial Urgency of Utah youth suicide task force can’t be overstated W letters to the editor Student bands need support Editor: Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and what better way to celebrate it than at the annual Park City Education Foundation PC Bands Sweetheart Gala? The Sweetheart Gala is a wonderful evening of catered dinner and dancing, accompanied by the award winning PCHS Varsity Jazz Ensemble. The Sweetheart Gala is the signature fundraiser for the PC Bands, which is comprised of numerous ensembles at TMJH and PCHS. To purchase tickets or to support the PC Bands by participating in the online auction or to make a donation, please go to www.pcbands.net. This year the Gala is on Friday, February 9th, at 6:00 pm at St Mary’s Church on White Pine Canyon Road. The evening begins with time to socialize with other guests while checking out the opportunity drawing prizes. After a catered dinner comes dancing and musical entertainment featuring many of the talented PCHS students. The online auction closes that evening, but you do need to be present to win. Many people in Park City may not realize just how accomplished the PC Bands program is. Last year, the The Park Record Staff PUBLISHER ....................... Andy Bernhard Editor ................................... Bubba Brown Staff Writers ......................Jay Hamburger Scott Iwasaki Angelique McNaughton Ben Ramsey Carolyn Webber Contributing ............................. Tom Clyde Writers Jay Meehan Teri Orr Amy Roberts Tom Kelly Joe Lair Copy Editor ............................ James Hoyt Engagement Editor.........Kira Hoffelmeyer Photographer .........................Tanzi Propst Office Manager ..................... Tiffany Piper Circulation Manager ............. Lacy Brundy Accounting Manager ......... Jennifer Snow ADVERTISING Classifieds/Legals ............. Jennifer Lynch Advertising Director ........... Valerie Spung Advertising Sales ......................... Lori Gull Jodi Hecker Erin Donnelly Lisa Curley Olivia Bergmann Production Director ..................Ben Olson Production .......................... Patrick Schulz Linda Sites marching band represented the state of Utah at the 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor in Honolulu Hawaii. Many spots in the Utah All State Band, Utah All State Orchestra, and Utah All State Jazz Band are filled by PCHS students each year. Chances are you have already heard students from PC Bands perform at events such as the Red Apple Gala, Running with Ed, and most recently at the 20th anniversary celebration of the Eccles Center. So come join us at the PC Bands Sweetheart Gala! And even if you can’t make it, you can still support the PC Bands by bidding on items at our online auction or making a donation. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to pcbands.net. Riki Case Park City Sundance ticketing process is disappointing Editor: In anticipation of Sundance 2018, my husband and I looked forward to obtaining tickets to Townie Tuesday and Best of Fest, billed as a “Thank you” to Summit County residents for accommodating the increased traffic and congestion associated with the Festival. We happily stood in line on January 13, 2018, arriving at 7 a.m. for the scheduled 8 a.m ticket distribution. We were certainly not the first to arrive nor the last; many people had started forming the line before 6 a.m. At 8 a.m. we expected to swiftly get our tickets. However, this was not to be; 1 1/2 hours later we received our tickets for Townie Tuesday. This meant that we waited 2 1/2 hours for our tickets. This was much longer than Letters Policy The Park Record welcomes letters to the editor on any subject. We ask that the letters adhere to the following guidelines. They must include the home (street) address and telephone number of the author. No letter will be published under an assumed name. Letters must not contain libelous material. Letters should be no longer than about 300 words (about 600 words for guest editorials) and should, if possible, be typed. We reserve the right to edit letters if they are too long or if they contain statements that are unnecessarily offensive or obscene. Writers are limited to one letter every seven days. Letters thanking event sponsors can list no more than 6 individuals and/or businesses. Send your letter to: editor@parkrecord.com For the record ith youth suicide rates in Utah continuing to rise at an alarming rate, sowing ever more tragedy in communities all over the state, it’s past time for strong action. State officials seem to think so, too. Gov. Gary Herbert took a major step to address the issue recently when he announced the creation of a youth suicide task force. The mission of the group, which will include elected officials, religious leaders, representatives of the LGBT community and suicide experts, is to study the problem and propose several solutions by a Feb. 15 deadline. That would be in time for the Utah Legislature to take action before the end of this year’s legislative session in March. That sense of urgency is critical when considering the prospect of how many lives could be lost by delaying implementation of concrete steps to combat the crisis another year. If 2018 is similar to 2017 — and there are no indications the youth suicide rate is slowing — it could be dozens. Last year, 44 Utahns ages 10 to 17 committed suicide, according to preliminary data the Utah Department of Health recently released. That number is tied for the largest the agency has recorded dating back to 1999, when 12 people in that age group took their own lives. The data makes the stakes clear. It’s hard to fathom the previous years. On Tuesday, the 23rd, we arrived at the Redstone Theater approximately 20 minutes before the show. The line seemed to move somewhat slowly, but everyone patiently waited to enter the theater. At the time the movie was supposed to begin, we were told that all seats were taken and we would not be admitted to the show! Shocked and dismayed, the at least 50 people still in line, were told that “when this has happened before” a second showing was possible, but no details were given. It would be an understatement to say that we were more angry than disappointed. At no time during the ticketing process were we told that more tickets were distributed than seats available. While I understand that there might be a small percent of people who do not show up, the amount of people turned away was excessive. If Sundance, really wants to show appreciation to the local community, they should at least show us the respect of not distributing more tickets than seats available. This does not advance Sundance’s image as a supportive community partner. I would hope for better management in the future. Anna Lea Kantor Park City Fonda’s past provides perspective on rally Editor: As I sat reading Jay Hamburger’s Wednesday January 24 article on the “Respect Rally” and the cheers drawn by actress Jane Fonda, I was promise the futures of those 44 children — and the 201 other Utah youths who have committed suicide this decade — held. And the pain the loved ones they left behind have endured is unimaginable. In Park City, the creation of the task force was met with enthusiasm, as several entities have made a community-wide push to address a broad range of mental health issues. Importantly, the Park City School District has been a leader of the effort, devoting significant resources to student wellness and fostering the creation of student peer groups in secondary schools trained in suicide prevention. The fact that there are no easy fixes when it comes to youth suicide, though, and that no one community has all the answers makes the state task force’s work even more critical. The district and other local organizations can use as much help as they can get, be it in the form of fresh ideas, increased funding or other support. It remains to be seen what answers the task force will ultimately find in a short time frame, but a crisis of this magnitude requires big thinking and bold action. There are too many lives on the line for the effort to yield anything less. Information about suicide prevention can be found at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline’s website, suicidepreventionlifeline.org. Anyone having suicidal thoughts can also call 1-800-273-8255 for immediate assistance. reminded of a powerful photograph from 1972 — one that provoked a tremendous amount of national anger and sadness. “Hanoi Jane” Fonda sat atop a North Vietnamese anti-aircraft device, complicit in her support for our nation’s enemy. Attendant to that photo were the faces of American pilots who’d been killed by that weapon and comments from their families who’d suffered such unimaginable sorrow. I am left to wonder how many rally participants were aware of this historic treachery or chose to forget, and whether that knowledge would have replaced their applause with silence and a moment of self-reflection and prayer for those who we’d lost. Respect Indeed, John Doppelheuer Park City People are what made America great Editor: What is it to make “America Great Again”. America was not always about the bottom line. People were more important. When businesses had a downturn salaries were reduced from the top down and everyone had a job. When the MBA’s from Harvard business school etc came to play a role in businesses it was all about the bottom line. The cutting of jobs became the norm to make the bottom line look better for wall street. When I was in school there was “cost-benefit” that was important and perhaps it cost more to keep people employed. It was the benefit that reaped the rewards 10 fold. I believe it created an environment of people caring for people and that extended into to service that was given the clients and the work environment was more than just a job. I still believe in good customer service and that people are the most important element. Holly Carlin Park City School faculty thanks new board members Editor: In response to negative public statements made about our new school board members at the last board meeting, and then Julie Eihausen’s allegations of ethics violations for board members electing a “friend” to replace her; we want to publicly say thank you to the new board members. Our new board members have given us (teachers) a voice and they have taken much time to listen to our concerns. They are making our schools safer by following homeland security recommendations. They have been transparent and they are working to earn our trust. In the spirit of communities that care, we thank the new board members for working towards creating a climate of trust, kindness, and most importantly, inspiring collaboration. Laura Waugaman, Cassie Olson, Joe Demers, Alane Gaspari, Tricia Perkins, LeAnn Rocchi, Vicky Rudolph, Kara Wales, Lana Youngberg, Aaron Webb, Jen Wheelwright, Jen Minson, Sheila Kirst Parley’s Park Elementary School faculty Photos by Kira Hoffelmeyer Asked at The Market How do you feel about a potential $50 million bond to preserve Treasure as open space, roughly twice the cost of an earlier proposal to reduce the development by half? Bitsy Beall Park City The most recent plan is the best, but I would like to see private donors go in and they could get a tax write off. Bob Anderson Park City I’ve seen a lot of development that I would rather not have, so I’d be willing to pay my share of the money. Diana Thompson Park City Absolutely I would be will to pay more in taxes to see the land preserved. Marilyn Brown Park City It would be exciting to see it voted on and preserved. The City owning it would give people time to breathe. Roger Strand Park City It’s an exceptionally good idea. We’ve had enough development, and the City Council was very brave in doing this. See these photos and more by following The Park Record on Facebook.com/parkrecord and Instagram.com/parkrecord |