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Show Page 12 The Ogden Valley News Volume XXX Issue XI August 15, 2023 M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E! By Becky Wood In 1955, Walt Disney launched a highly successful children’s series on ABC television called the Mickey Mouse Club. It was an hourlong program hosted by Jimmie Dodd who wrote the iconic Mickey Mouse theme song used to open every show; plus, the Goodbye Song, which was sung sadly and slowly at the end of the show. He also wrote other songs used in various segments. He was the “grownup” in the show, being quite a bit older than the young teenage cast members. He didn’t look it, but he was in his early fifties. He would not only sing, but also played the ukulele. The show would begin with the signature song enthusiastically sung by all the cast members who would then line up one in back of the other, marching in place, while the camera did a close up on each of their faces as everyone would shout out their individual names (the roll call): Bobby, Eileen, Annette, Tommy, Sharon, Karen, Doreen, Cubby! The girls wore box pleated skirts hemmed right above the knee and the boys wore slacks. Both genders wore an elbow, sleeve length white turtleneck sweater. At least they looked white on the black and white TV; the skirts and slacks looked grey. And, of course, they all wore their Mickey Mouse ears, even Jimmie, the grown up. We had our favorites, but everyone liked Annette Funicello the best. She was a little doll with dark curly hair and a sweet smile. And, as an older teenager, began starring in the popular beach movies: Bikini Beach, Back to the Beach, Beach Blanket Bingo, etc. Sadly, she died in 2013 of complications from MS. Mother sent away for our official mouse ears, which we proudly wore while watching each episode. We had joined the Mickey Mouse Club by mail and were honored to be Mouseketeers. We took our membership seriously, never missing one show. The television set was in a small room right off of the living room inside our Salt Lake City house near 33rd S. and 1885 E. I don’t know how long we lived there before returning to Huntsville, but by sister Willow was born there and sister Carole graduated from Olympus High School. There was a large saggy couch in that room, which was covered by an Indian blanket to hide the lumps and worn marks on the fabric. We would hop up on the couch and plop ourselves side by side, right in the middle, mouse ears placed carefully on top of our heads. To my amazement, no one else in the family (mom, dad, nor our two older sisters) wanted to watch the most wonderful show on earth so we had the whole bumpy couch to ourselves. Think what they were missing! Hats ready, arms reverently folded (we learned that in church), and then it would begin: Who’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me? M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E! Hey there, Hi there, Ho there. You’re as welcome as can be! M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E! Mickey Mouse (Donald Duck!), Mickey Mouse (Donald Duck!) Forever we will hold your banner highhigh-high-high! Come along and sing the song and join our jamboree M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E! I think, today, my sister Willow and I could both sing this song if we had to on the spur of the moment. The program involved a lot of singing and dancing and talking about activities like horseback riding, going to camp, and sometimes meeting celebrities. When it was too quickly over, the gang assembled again to sing the melancholy Goodbye song, which has the famous inserts after the C and after the Y Now it’s time to say goodbye, to all our company M-I-C, See you real soon! K-E-Y, Why? Because we like you! M-O-U-S-E (Willow and I could also sing this song if we had to, too!) “Forever we will hold your banner highhigh-high!” We are, and always will be, Mouseketeers! I don’t know what happened to our ears, but the memory of them is permanently ours. OGDEN CANYON cont. from page 1 • Call our hotline at 435-990-1050 • Email sr39paving@utah.gov • Visit our website, udotinput.utah.gov/ sr39paving For Your Safety - For your safety and the safety of those working in the area, please use extra caution; reduce speeds, and follow all posted signs and signals when driving through construction zones. Barrels and other traffic control devices are placed to guide motorists safely through the work zone, and to protect project team members. Mitch Shaw, work in Ogden Canyon should be completed by the start of school this fall. Projected Work Aug 7 - 18: Ongoing work in canyon to patch various sections, along with additional painting for roadway crosswalks and directional messaging. Short distance one-way alternating traffic control will remain inplace with pilot car operations. For Additional Project Information Roosters Brewing: The Little Engine That Could What started as a passion around community lift and a place to connect has blossomed into a buzzing enterprise operation that is still just as committed to putting community and people first. Union Grill, the classic Ogden restaurant approaching thirty, and Roosters Brewing Co have grown from being two restaurants with the same owners to being a full-fledged hospitality group incorporating three brands, six locations, and a seventh on the way. “We’re the little engine that could,” says Kym Buttschardt, owner. “We’ve just pushed and pushed little by little, believing in loving people and doing the right thing; it’s amazing what we’ve been able to build with our community over the years.” Owners Kym and Pete Buttschardt were recently recognized by the Utah Restaurant Association with the 2023 Golden Spoon Award, which is “Utah’s Restaurateur of the Year.” “We are truly honored by this award, and it’s been a perfect moment for us to look up,” says Kym, adding, “We’ve had our heads down doing the work, building B Street, opening the airport location, and then The Coop and what we’re building in our new location too. It was an honor to be recognized in this way and seeing that, yes, we really are making strides and putting our values into action throughout. It’s an honor and a timely energy boost for us.” The award is timely, as Kym mentions; the restaurant group has seen significant growth over the last five years, even as the pandemic unfolded. Roosters opened their “B Street” taproom and production brewery in late 2018. The brand was later awarded a contract through SSP America at the SLC Airport, and the Roosters Airport location was built and has been operational since August 2021. Roosters Layton, which has been open since 2005, was also offered an expansion opportunity when the restaurant next door closed its doors. The restaurant group made the choice to fully remodel this space and develop a new restaurant concept, “The Coop by Roosters,” as well as a new event space, “Events by Roosters.” The Coop is an elevated bar experience featuring craft cocktails and plates perfect for sharing. The space between the Coop and Roosters Layton has been built out as a private, flexible event and meeting space, “Events by Roosters,” featuring [confirm sf] of rooms that can be joined or divided to accommodate groups from 20 – 200 people. During all of this, the group also recognized a need for housing all of their administrative duties and ensuring the gritty, independent spirit is maintained. “As we have grown, we’ve recognized an opportunity to bring all the administrative services under one roof. We purchased The Depot building in Ogden with that in mind and have been building out an “enterprise” level of management services there. We’re calling that the Roosters Hospitality Group.” Introducing the Roosters Hospitality Group; owners Kym and Pete have selected core leadership by Chef Matt Lake and newly placed CEO Kim Bowsher, along with financial staff and support services to head up this new umbrella layer over the Union Grill, Roosters Brewing and Coop brands. Neither Lake nor Bowsher are entirely new to the group. Chef Matt Lake joined Roosters in early 2021. He has since been named Chief Operating Officer, overseeing all culinary operations, including catering. Bowsher, former Executive Director of the Ogden Downtown Alliance and owner of the Ogden-based media group kbENT has been working with Roosters for over a decade, supporting their branding and marketing efforts. Bowsher left the Alliance in February 2023 to pursue the opportunity to develop the Roosters Hospitality Group and has now been named Chief Executive Officer. What can guests expect from this changeover to the Roosters Hospitality Group? “Honestly, we’re hoping that for the customer side, it feels pretty seamless,” says Lake, who is working alongside Bowsher to build out the enterprise offerings. “We want to improve back-of-house processes and support our employees more which will all contribute to a quality of service and care the customer can feel, but overall we are staying true to our small business, independent spirit, in spite of the growth here.” “You can expect to see us more visible in our community engagement and doubling down on our values, and we want it to be a whole lot easier to book a catering event with us no matter which restaurant or location you’re working with,” adds Bowsher who is focusing on the brand visibility and reputation. Given Lake’s background with restaurants like Alamexo and Besito and Bowsher’s background with the Ogden Downtown Alliance, responsible for events like Harvest Moon and Farmers Market Ogden, you can also bet on more events that feature Roosters. “Oh, we absolutely want to do more events with… all of our business friends and partners,” says Buttschardt. “I’m banking on these two to make that a reality. It’s not that common for breweries of our scale to still brew beer in their dining, brewpub establishments. We do! And they want to showcase that.” “It seems like a small detail, but it’s really indicative of how we intend to do business,” says Lake, “stay true to our roots and our passion points even as we have grown. Our canned beer says it all ‘gritty town, great people, good beer.’” But the core of the Roosters Hospitality Group is truly the existing management and restaurant staff teams. It’s impressive that the managers of all locations, Historic 25th Street, B Street, Roosters Layton, Union Grill, and even the Coop all tout longevity records with the company that are generally unheard of in the industry - all are over a decade of employment with the group, most are nearing twenty years, and some are approaching thirty. There’s something to be said for a restaurant group with employment statistics like that, and the Golden Spoon Award acknowledges that as well. With the move to the hospitality group, folks will find it easier to book private events and catering, whether in Weber or Davis Counties onsite in the events rooms or offsite at a client’s location. All booking now happens from one easy point of contact, the Roosters Hospitality Catering Sales Manager, Angelica Sweet. The group is not actively seeking growth at this time but recognizes the opportunity for it. Quote Matt “This is a strategic time for us and probably for a while. We have work to do in-house and a lot behind the scenes to make this magic happen.” “People have rooted for us along the way because they see that reflection of their own community pride in everything we do,” says Kym Buttschardt, “and the commitment to preserving that is at the core of this move to an enterprise-level Hospitality Group.” About Roosters - Roosters Brewing Company originally opened its doors in 1995 on Historic 25th Street. They now operate five locations plus a sixth licensed location in the SLC Airport and a new concept opening fall 2023. They remain independently owned and locally operated. UTVs l Motorcycles Boats l Personal Watercraft Kayaks l Canoes l SUPs Snowmobiles On Site Rentals & Tours Eden (801) Pineview Reservoir/Marina Monte Cristo Trailhead l 745-3038 www.ClubRecUtah.com |