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Show Presorted Standard U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 11 Gunnison, UT ECRWSS Volume 3 • Number 39 Thursday, September 27, 2007 Copy Price • 75 cents It’s a great day for Sanpete! by MARK HENLINE Last Friday, the 21st, a ground breaking for the new Sanpete County Sheriff’s Complex was held. The ground breaking was hosted by county commissioners Claudia Jarrett, Mark Anderson and Bruce Blackham. There were around forty in attendance representing the Sheriff’s Department, the elected county officials, the contractors, the bankers and finance people, state law enforcement from CUCF, Mayors and city councilmen from around Sanpete and some private citizens. Each of the County Commissioners took a few minutes to say a few words. Claudia Jarrett stated that his project has been in the works for three years now and thousands of hours have been put into this large undertaking to this point. This complex will serve the whole county, Jar- rett said. Commissioner Bruce Blackham said, “This is a great day for Sanpete, this complex protects our future”. Blackham also stated that there is always opposition when change is involved and he commended the Sheriff’s Dept. for their courage in keeping this project moving forward. Commissioner Mark Anderson also commented on the many hours of hard work that have gone into this project. He then thanked the contractor for being so easy to work with. Everyone in attendance was then invited to come and say a few words, if they wished, and then take a turn turning over a few shovels of dirt. The new complex will house the county dispatch center and Sheriff’s Department. The Utah Highway Patrol, Adult Probation and Parole are also considering renting space in the new facility. The jail will house 128 inmates, including 50 contract inmates from the state, and up to 20 inmates from the Federal Marshall’s Dept. The new facility will also be able to house 16 women’s beds, which will save the county considerable money having to transport them to Juab or Sevier County. The state will pay $43.29 per day to house each inmate in the facility and the federal marshall pays $50.00 and up for each inmate per day. There will be at least 20 new correctional officers hired to work in the new jail, along with support staff. The cost of the new Sheriff’s Complex will be around 17 million dollars. There is a General Obligation Bond, underwritten by the citizens of Sanpete for $6 million. 8.25 million comes from CIB for 30 years at 2.5% interest, and 3 million from the USDA for 30 years at 4% interest. The county will also use some of its resources to help on the project. Commissioner Blackham stated that our present jail is overcrowded, unsafe and inadequate. We have had assaults and potential escapes over the past years. To delay constructing this facility will cost even more money and exposes the county to huge liability and safety concerns. The new Sheriff’s complex is located one mile south of Manti on Highway 89 on the East side of the road. When complete, the complex should prove to be a great asset to the citizens of Sanpete. Right: County Commissioner Bruce Blackham speaks at groundbreaking ceremony. Below: Architectural drawing of the new Sanpete County Sheriff’s Complex. Stake Young Women Conference to be held The Gunnison Stake will hold its Stake Young Women’s Conference on Saturday, September 29 in the Gunnison Stake Center from 9 am to 12 noon. The theme for this year’s conference is “Let Virtue Garnish thy Thoughts.” Those attending are asked to dress in Sunday dress. The guest speaker this year will be Janell Braithwaite of Centerfield. Janell was born and raised in the Gunnison Valley. She is the daughter of Eugene and Nancy Jensen and is married to Owen Braithwaite. They have four children, one recently passed away due to complications of diabetes; three are married, and a total of six grandchildren. Janell attended the Bryman School in Salt Lake her senior year receiving her Medical Assistant’s Degree. After working in the medical field for 20 years, Owen and Janell had the opportunity to purchase the Gunnison Subway. She has managed Subway for the past five years and has loved working with her employees and the public. Janell always endeavors to find the good in everyone and everything. These have all been such great learning experiences for her. Janell loves to spend time with her family, having hot dog roasts, boating, camping, golfing, and most recently, 4-wheeling and elk hunting! She loves working with the young women in the Centerfield 2nd Ward and has been their Laurel advisor for the past year. Janell subscribes to the saying, Attitude is everything, pick a good one! Following Janell’s talk there will be three work shops. The speakers for the workshops will be Stacey Peterson and Matt Reber. The third workshop will Mark Henline/Gunnison Valley Gazette Taunya Otten explains the workings of the dairy to Neil and MaryLouise Sorensen. Janell Braithwaite be a camp recap. Stacey Peterson is the wife of Andy Peterson. She was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada and came to Utah to school about eleven years ago and fell in love with Andy and Sanpete County about the same time. They have made their home in Mayfield. Stacey works as an educator in North Sanpete School District and currently serves as the Young Women’s president in her ward. Stacey loves to do crafts and spend time with her husband. Matt Reber was born and raised in Mesquite, Nevada. He is one of six children. Matt is an Eagle Scout and graduated from Virgin Valley High School and Seminary. After serving a successful mission to the Washington, Seattle Mission, he returned to Mesquite and continued to live and work there. At 24, Matt met Bradi Mangum. On August 21, 1993 they were married in the St. George Temple. He is the proud father of four children, all boys, except for three girls. Two and a half years ago, the Rebers moved to a farm between Centerfield and Axtell in hopes to raise their children in a smaller community. Stacey Peterson Barex Dairy open house by MARK HENLINE Matt Reber Matt has served in scouting for most of his adult life. He has received the District Award of Merit and the Silver Beaver Award. He attended Woodbadge and is a certified COPE Director. Matt’s true love is working with the youth of the church. He has worked with Young Men since he was one himself. He truly believes that scouting is where boys learn to be men. He knows how they think, how they feel and what they want for their future. Following the workshops lunch will be served. All Young Women in the Gunnison Stake ages 12 to 18 are invited to and encouraged toattend. An open house was held at the new Barex Dairy barn in Clarion last Friday and Saturday. The new barn is a state of the art milking facility that features a 72 stall carousel. Barex owners, Russell and Taunya Otten, said that the open house was a great success with over 700 people touring the facility over the two day period. The new barn is huge and required 2000 yards of cement during construction. Its main feature is, of course, the carousel which has 72 individual stalls. There is also two 10,000 gallon tanks to store the milk, these tanks are emptied every day. The Barex offices are on the second floor with windows to look out over the parlor. The barn also features a state of the art heating system. As the cows are milked the heat from the milk is used to heat the barn and the water as it enters the hot water heater. This method is very effective and is great for saving energy. The Ottens currently milk 1200 cows per day with plans to expand in the near future. Its amazing to watch the milking process. A cow enters a stall on the carousel every eight seconds. The first milker wipes down the cow’s utter and teats with disinfectant using what is called a spider glove. In the past a milker would have a bucket filled with chemical that he would dip a towel in before wiping down the cow. The spider glove is fitted with a tube that pumps the chemical through the glove and comes out as a foam. This saves on chemical, is cleaner and enables the milker to work quickly and more effectively. The next milker in line then wipes the cow’s teats with a clean towel and the third milker attaches the automatic milkers. It takes the carousel twelve minutes to make a full revolution. The average cow takes about six minutes to milk, when she is done giving milk the automatic milkers are released and the cow waits her turn to exit the carousel. The average cow gives about 75 lbs. of milk per day. Another amazing tool of the modern dairy is the use of the computer. Each cow is fitted with a computer chip that can be worn in a little box, either around the neck or around the ankle. As the cow enters the stall on the carousel, the cow is identified and her information begins to be tracked. The computer keeps an average of how many pounds of milk the cow gives per day. If the cow falls below her average, the computer recognizes it as a potential problem such as illness, or if her production goes up it is a sign that she is ready to be bread. As the cow leaves the carousel the computer will again read the chip and can separate the cow from the herd using automatic gates. This saves time and effort for the herdsman trying to separate the cow from the herd at a later time. The Barex Dairy, with its modern barn and facilities can produce milk so efficiently and in such great quantity that it would boggle the mind just a few short years ago. Russell, Taunya, and their family love the diary business and do their best to help promote the dairy industry. There are six different breads of dairy cattle recognized by the Dairy Farmers of America in the United States. Around 90% of the Barex herd is Holstein but the other five breads are also kept on the farm and are shown at fairs and in parades. If you missed the open house but would still like to see the new barn, contact the Ottens and arrangements can be made. |
