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Show Page 8 The Ogden Valley News Volume XXX Issue VIII July 1, 2023 Utah Red Cross Volunteer Shares Survivor Story, Connection to June 20th World Refugee Day During World Refugee Day, held June 20, the American Red Cross of Utah brought attention to the plight of refugees and the vital support needed when people are forced to flee their home countries. One such refugee, Diane Bahati, is a local college student and Red Cross Board Member who vividly recounts her own journey as a survivor of violence in her home country, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). She was a small child when her family was forced to flee, but still remembers the support the Red Cross provided during her time in refugee camps. “In 2002, amidst the chaos of volcanic eruptions and the ravages of civil war, my family of nine fled the DRC,” said Diane, a 20-year-old University of Utah junior who is also a board member for the Utah Greater Salt Lake Chapter of the Red Cross. During their struggle, the Red Cross, alongside the United Nations and other relief organizations, provided invaluable assistance to Bahati’s family. “In the refugee camps, we were provided with essential first aid kits and hygiene products. In bold red letters on those kits were the words: ‘American Red Cross.’ Little did I know that 17 years later, I would proudly become a board member of the Red Cross myself,” she said. With an alarming surge in global displacement due to ongoing conflicts, violence, and human rights violations, the number of individuals forced to flee their homes has reached an unprecedented milestone of more than 108 million. Of these refugees, almost half are children under the age of 18. While World Refugee Day serves as a global reminder of the challenges faced by displaced individuals, Heidi Ruster, Chief Executive Officer of the American Red Cross Utah/Nevada Region, emphasizes the orga- nization’s unwavering commitment to providing year-round assistance. Heidi Ruster, Chief Executive Officer of the American Red Cross Utah/Nevada Region explained, “Every day, the American Red Cross – as part of our International Family Tracing program—transmits messages from all over the world to help families reconnect with loved ones.” This year, the Red Cross and Red Crescent network has facilitated the exchange of thousands of messages between families separated by disaster and conflict around the world, according to Ruster. “Armed conflicts and disasters leave millions of people in urgent need of humanitarian assistance every year,” she said. Diane and her family persevered, aided by the very Red Cross programs the 20-yearold college student now supports. “I want to help ensure that every child who has left their country is guaranteed safety, education and a better future,” she said. “And I plan to go to law school in hopes of becoming a change agent for peace in the world.” About World Refugee Day - The United Nations General Assembly held the first World Refugee Day on June 20, 2001, to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. The annual event celebrates the dignity of those who have been forced to leave their homes and is a global reminder of the challenges displaced individuals face. It also pays tribute to the efforts of all humanitarian workers in the field aiding refugees and providing hope. About the American Red Cross - The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members, and their families. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross. CHARITY YARD SALE cont. from page 1 hours that day, boxing up leftover donations, taking down canopies, and cleaning up the yard sale area. If you can drive a pickup truck or trailer that day to haul leftover donations down to thrift stores in Ogden, please email Chelsea at cjbros88@gmail.com. If you have questions, please reach out to Chelsea Slade at 385-288-8415 or at cjbros88@ gmail.com. Scan QR code. Last year’s Charity Yard Sale was a tremendous success. We raised over $25,000 and have helped some truly wonderful Ogden Valley families and were able to support a lot of patients so they could get free medical care at Seager Memorial Clinic. We are so grateful for the help and support we received! Thank you Ogden Valley; we love you! • Ripped, stained, broken, torn, or nonworking items • Furniture that has been incompletely refurbished/restained/rebuilt, etc. • Furniture over 30 pounds • Mattresses • Televisions VOLUNTEER - If you would like to volunteer at the yard sale, we need help sorting donations. To help sort, come by any time from June 30 through July 5. Signs will be up instructing you where to place items, and we will be there to supervise. OUR GREATEST NEED is for help cleaning up after the sale ends. Please come at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 8, ready to work! We could easily put 80 people to work for three WOAD WHACK cont. from page 1 transferred into county ownership in the 1970s by Dr Alvin Cobabe, in return for the county’s help in building the road that is now SR 158 to Powder Mountain. The parcel includes the headwaters of Wolf Creek. We will be clearing woad and other noxious weeds from this trail Saturday July 8, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Meet at the trailhead on Powder Mountain Road. Please come and help us maintain this beautiful trail. If you arrive later than 9:00 a.m., instructions will be left at the trailhead. We expect to be finished between noon and 1:00 p.m., but all help is welcome. Training will be provided to Newbies! Please bring shovels, cutters, water, sun- Spring 昀氀owers without noxious weed dyer’s screen, a hat, and… BUG SPRAY! woad. Thank you to the volunteers that cleared Please RSVP to Menzies.miranda@gmail. this beautiful area. com. NOXIOUS WEEDS cont. from page 1 soil activity and one application will often control dyer’s woad for two years. Please read and follow the label instructions. Dyer’s woad seeds. Please continue to make it a priority of clearing dyer’s woad from your property, along the byways in front of your property, and anywhere else you may come across this noxious weed during your excursions out and about within this beautiful Valley. Also, thanks and kudos to the many volunteers who, for so many years, have supported this annual effort—coming out to cut, pull, dig, or spray hundreds of dyer’s woad plants. Your commitment and efforts are sincerely appreciated! noxious weed, depriving millions of potential dyer’s woad seeds the opportunity of finding spots in Ogden Valley to germinate, grow, and produce hundreds of new plants—continuing the destructive regeneration cycle. Many remain vigilant all summer long. Control - Dyer’s woad can be hand pulled while soils are moist in the spring; however, it’s probably best to plan on using a shovel. The crown of the plant is approximately an inch below the soil surface. If the root is broken off or cut below the crown, the plant will not survive. However, if it is cut off at ground level, it will rapidly produce more flower stalks and go to seed. Plants pulled while they still have yellow flowers can be left in the field; none of its seeds will be mature enough to germinate. However, if all of the flowers are gone, some of the seed will be viable and plants should be collected and put in the garbage. Chemical control of dyer’s woad can be very effective. Small landowners will want to use 2,4-D with a surfactant (an adjuvant that helps the herbicide spread on, stick to, and penetrate the leaf surface). This herbicide works well while the plants are young. Once the dyer’s woad is mature enough to have flowers the 2,4-D is not very effective. Large property owners will get their best control with Escort or Telar. These products are Shown here is the initial forming rosette of Dyer’s woad in full only sold in larger size the dyer’s woad plant. This is a great time for bloom. packages. They have some spraying the plant. |