Month: February 2020

The end of January marked six years since the tragic vehicle accident that took the life of Dean Townsend. His legacy of kindness is still remembered to this day. Dean, Lynn Labrum, and Chad Orme had been close friends. Dean had worked for Lynn for over 35 years and they eventually became business partners. After Dean’s passing, Cody Labrum became a partner in the business and though their business continued to grow, the partners were looking for a way to honor Dean. Lynn Labrum says, “Dean was always helping others. He made a big impact on the community.”

Seraph Young was the first female to cast a vote in Utah on February 14th, 1870. 150 years later, the Basin will be celebrating this momentous movement that forever changed the face of politics, women’s rights and modern America. Starting on Thursday, February 13th, there will be a special event as Uintah County Clerk/Auditor Mike Wilkins will present ‘Come Learn How To: “Make Your Vote Count”’. He will inform individuals about the Primary process during the presentation at the Uintah County Heritage Museum from 6pm to 7pm tonight.

The Ute Indian Tribe issued a press release on Tuesday, February 11th titled “Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Ute Indian Tribe’s Exclusive Right to Control its Lands”. The release states: “On January 9th, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit reaffirmed its position that the Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation has the exclusive power to control hunting and fishing rights on its tribal lands.

USU Uintah Basin is doing something special to support, celebrate, and honor the women of the Uintah Basin with their Year of the Woman campaign. Janet Row, Director of the Family Support Center of the Uintah Basin, was selected as this week’s representative. Utah State University Uintah Basin shared a video highlighting her on their Facebook page. As the person who nominated Janet, Heather Tucker shares that Janet is a dedicated and hard worker that has done a lot of good in the community but doesn't care about getting credit for it.

The burden of cancer has many unmeasurable weights that seem to drag those dealing with it into a puddle of despair and loneliness. The ‘Let’s Talk: Uintah Basin Cancer Support Group’ hosts a monthly meeting offering educational and emotional support for cancer patients, as well as survivors, caregivers, family and friends. Cecilia Sullivan is the groups coordinator and says that they continue to have strong online support through their Facebook page with an average of three to four people attending the meetings.

A Uintah County man made his initial appearance in court on Monday on charges related to a relationship with a minor. According to the Affidavit of Probable Cause, 29-year-old Kevin Robert Butler was arrested on January 20th for the offenses of 3rd Degree Felony Unlawful Sexual Conduct with a 16-17 Year Old with the offense dates listed as February 26th and July 6th of 2019. On Monday, the same day as his initial court appearance, a new Affidavit of Probable Cause was filed adding 24 new offenses against Butler, 5 of which were 1st Degree Felony Sexual Exploitation of a Minor and 19 of which were 2nd Degree Felony Sexual Exploitation of a Minor.

The Uintah Basin was represented well at the 2A State Wrestling Tournament in Richfield over the weekend. Duchesne High Wrestling won the 2A State Title with 244.5 points and Altamont Wrestling took second place with 220 points. Wrestlers from both teams competed well and placed. Individual first place champions were Duchesne’s Ethan Clayburn and Ryker Blackburn and Altamont’s Riggin Boger, Dean Thompson, Cash Robb, and MacIntynre Thacker. Congratulations to both teams on your success!

Using wax figures to honor loved ones and paying tribute to famous figures has been a practice since the Middle Ages. Who would have thought that we would have one locally, even if it was for a limited time? At Lapoint Elementary, Mrs. Keddy’s third grade recently held their Wax Museum presentations for their literacy core. The kids consulted with their teacher and family to select either a famous figure or someone that is important to them. They then researched important facts, gathered photos, and wrote about the individual’s life that was then displayed on a tri-fold poster.