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Show Viewpoints The A-13 Park Record. Wed/Thurs/Fri, December 12-14, 2018 editorial A challenge awaits Miners, but it comes with a big opportunity A letters to the editor Community comes together Editor: The community of Park City came together again, for the 11th year, to host a festive holiday party for hundreds of underserved children. What began as a construction service project for Park City Sunrise Rotary Club in 2007 has fortuitously grown into a festive Christmas party for over 600 children. The kids, who were accompanied by their families, all gathered the evening of Dec. 4 at Park City High School. There were Christmas presents to receive, movies to watch, games to play, cupcakes to win, food to enjoy and of course a chance to speak with Santa Claus. This annual community holiday celebration has become a tradition for hundreds of children and their families who are greeted, welcomed and encouraged to enjoy the hospitality of a caring town. Many thanks to all who offered their time, talents and resources to provide an evening of fun for so many families. These families are the backbone of the community who provide a valuable, reliable workforce for our busy resort town. Thanks to Done To Your Taste Catering, Park City High School Latinos in Action, South Summit Interact Club, Beethoven Festival Park City, Holy Cross Ministries, People’s Health Clinic, and Arts Kids. Park City remains an example of a warmhearted community whose citizens celebrate residents from all walks of life. We are proud to call Park City home. Karen Nielsen Park City Sunrise Rotary Club president-elect Full respect for Old Glory Editor: The trees along S.R. 224 are lit. The wreath is on the White Barn. Our prayers for snow are being answered. As we welcome visitors to our town, let’s not forget that many of them are veterans, service members and military families. Some come to engage in winter sports through the National Ability Center’s recreational programs. Others seek to The Park Record Staff PUBLISHER ....................... Andy Bernhard Editor ................................... Bubba Brown Staff Writers ......................Jay Hamburger Scott Iwasaki Angelique McNaughton Ben Ramsey Carolyn Webber Alder Contributing ............................. Tom Clyde Writers Jay Meehan Teri Orr Amy Roberts Tom Kelly Joe Lair Copy Editor ............................ James Hoyt Engagement Editor..Christopher Samuels 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 ................... Jodi Hecker Erin Donnelly Lindsay Lane Sharon Bush Production Director ..................Ben Olson Production .......................... Patrick Schulz reconnect with loved ones as they enjoy the singular Park City experience. Whether these individuals are active duty, separated or retired, they all come to town with at least one thing in common: They understand the rules and regulations surrounding the care and display of the U.S. flag. The U.S. Flag Code, formally known as Title 4 of the United States Code, is a set of customs that was codified in the 1920s and then signed into law in December 1942 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. While violations of the U.S. Flag Code are not enforced, it is considered respectful for civilians to follow the guidelines, which include illuminating flags on display 24/7, or lowering the flag to half-staff 30 days from the death of a former president. I would like to thank every business, nonprofit or private residence that flies a flag in Summit County. Their acts of patriotism show support of our country and those who serve in our military branches. Just remember that the stars and stripes hold very special meaning to individuals who put their lives on the line for our freedom. By displaying and handling the U.S. flag according to the U.S. Flag Code, our community can show support at an even higher level. The full code can be found at http://www.usflag.org/uscode36.html#USFC. Valery Pine Behr Park City Environmental efforts promoted Editor: Recycle Utah would like to extend thanks to Park City Mountain Resort and EpicPromise for their continued support of our recycling, educational programs and 100 Mile Meal. We align with EpicPromise and their Commitment to Zero to create a more promising future for generations to come. With the support of EpicPromise, Recycle Utah is able to educate nearly 5,000 Summit County students on best practices in recycling, water protection, energy conservation and more and recycle nearly 3.5 million pounds a year. Park City Mountain Resort also helps make our annual Water Festival possible, in which over 500 fourth-graders learn about our most precious natural resource, water. These programs ensure that the youngest members of our community are empowered to lead sustainable lives to protect the environment they will grow up in. Thank you to Park City Mountain for your commitment to our local community in Park City. We at Recycle Utah are 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 big challenge, and an opportunity commensurate with it, await Park City High School’s athletic teams two seasons from now. On Thursday, the Utah High School Activities Association finalized realignment for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 athletic seasons. The organization bumped PCHS up to Class 5A, the second largest classification, in all sports except football, where it will continue to compete in Class 4A. The move marks the beginning of a new era for the Miners. Having competed in the lower and middle tiers of Utah high school sports throughout the history of the PCHS athletic program — achieving plenty of success along the way — they’ll go toe-to-toe with some of the most prestigious athletic programs in the state. And PCHS will have the chance to establish itself as their equal. Despite some concerns from PCHS about the equity of UHSAA’s reclassification process — the Miners were slotted into Region 5, where the nearest school is 42 miles away, after seeking placement in the much closer Region 6, also in Class 5A — the school and its athletes are eager for the test. The adjustment, of course, won’t be easy. In Region 5, the Miners will line up against the likes of Bountiful, Bonneville, Box Elder, Farmington, Viewmont and Woods grateful for the support as we continue to educate the next generation of environmental stewards. Carolyn Wawra Recycle Utah executive director Rosy picture has thorns Editor: To every supporter of government-run health care, the single payer system, I offer the following quotes from the Dec. 7 edition of the Times of London, UK. Headline: Millions of patients face three-week wait for GP “Three million patients a month are waiting more than three weeks for a GP appointment, according to official figures that reveal the scale of the pressure on surgeries.” Note: GP refers to a general practitioner. “A review by the former national cancer director published last week concluded that Britain’s poor cancer survival rates were partly due to the lack of timely access to GP care.” “British cancer patients die sooner than those in other countries, and the study by Sir Mike Richards, published by the Health Foundation, said the ‘gatekeeper’ role of family doctors meant that patients were being diag- Cross. All are formidable foes. And all, with the exception of Farmington, which opened this fall, have a long history of success competing among the largest schools in Utah and full trophy cases to prove it. And when the Miners qualify for the state playoffs, the competition will only get tougher. For a handful of PCHS teams, it will likely take some time before the rewards of moving up in classification manifest themselves in victories and, eventually, region and state titles. But others appear ready to immediately prove they can play with the top programs in Utah. The boys golf team, for instance, seems fully prepared. The squad has dominated Class 4A, and Class 3A before it, on its way to 11 consecutive state titles. Joining Class 5A will allow the Miners to see how they stack up against other elite teams over the course of a full season. The same goes for the volleyball, tennis and swimming programs, which have flourished in Class 4A and look primed to adapt to a schedule with an increased degree of difficulty. Regardless of how quickly the Miners earn victories and titles in their new region, though, one thing seems certain: They’ll find a way to meet the challenge. And that makes the move up in classification an exciting time for both young athletes in Park City and the community cheering them on. nosed too late.” “Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chairwoman of the Royal College of GPs, said: “Our patients are waiting too long to secure a GP appointment. We know this is frustrating for them and their families, and it’s frustrating for GPs and our teams too. We want to deliver timely care to patients, in the early stages of illness, to avoid conditions getting worse, when they can be both more distressing for patients and more costly for the NHS.” This is not the rosy picture our Socialist friends paint. It is reality. Thomas Hurd Park City Let us enjoy the mountains Editor: Square Top is a long-time popular backcountry ski route accessible by hiking out from 9990 chairlift. I, along with many Parkites, have been skiing it for decades without incident. This season is different. I recently spent a sunny day in the side-country when I, along with several other ski groups, was approached by a group of snowmobiles after skiing the shoulder of Square Top. A middle-aged man immediately approached me and aggressively told me to leave and never come back as it’s private property. In an effort to be respectful to private property borders, I politely asked where the property line was so I can avoid it next time I’m in the area. I also suggested they put up “no trespassing” signs. The man responded by aggressively yelling and harassing me, saying he would pull my pass (obviously, he can’t do that) and threatening physical violence if we ever returned to the area. What I experienced is not uncommon. I’ve spoken to several acquaintances who have been harassed by the same aggressive snowmobile guide. After speaking with several members of Park City Ski Patrol, we learned that this guy has been a problem all season and many people have been harassed by this man in a similar nature. While the Square Top ridgeline is all National Forest land, we learned that much of the land near Square Top is owned by a family, and they have become increasingly irate about the public using their land. If they want skiers to stop skiing their land, they need to take proper steps to post signs informing us to stay away. Otherwise, please stop harassing the Park City natives and let us enjoy our amazing mountains. Tom Clark Park City The Park record Pulse Here’s a sampling of the conversation readers are having on our Facebook page. To visit the page, go to Facebook.com/parkrecord/. This shameful one-day special session with no public hearings is why the public’s confidence in our democratic systems has been eroding for years. We are teaching our children that voting doesn’t really matter. For our representatives to so casually thumb their noses at public plebiscites is one major reason why democracy is threatened. We can expect our plebiscites on gerrymandering and the expansion of Medicaid to be targeted next. Wisconsin, Michigan and now Utah have been disgraced by the actions of the GOP.” Drew Bell, on article titled “Summit County’s GOP state representatives vote in favor of medical pot compromise” I’m all for healthy eating but this is absurd. Kids deserve treats! I think there are bigger problems in the schools than my child getting an M&M as a reward. Stop putting so many unnecessary restrictions like this in place.” Kim Olson, on article titled “New wellness policy aims to support healthy habits in Park City schools” The Park Record attained permission to publish these comments. It seems like there would be more housing in Salt Lake, and the resorts should run park-and-ride shuttles from Foothill. This would cut down on traffic, pollution and help solve workforce housing.” Jamie Bowen Schwarzenbach, on article titled “Seasonal workers without housing in Park City struggle to find anywhere to live” Yup, we all feel the struggle. It is true. Try having three jobs and still struggling. And on a strict budget. This town is pushing the 20s/30s labor workforce out! Been here 8 years but it’s harder every year to survive.” Liz Laskovics Marcy, on article titled “Park City young people ‘feel like they’re being pushed out,’ official says” My son worked on this crew last year and had nothing but great words to say about the leadership, the teamwork, and how dedicated the shift crew is to their job and role with the DV mission. Way to go snowmaking crew!!! It’s a hard job.” Sarah Jones McCarty, on article titled “Inside the snowmaking process at Deer Valley Resort (photos)” |