Click your favorite station to learn more
98.5 The Fox
105.5 KLCY
104.5 KVEL
92.5 Jack
KNEU 1250A Uintah High School Senior has been selected as a candidate in an elite national program. Emily Despain has been named a candidate for the United States Presidential Scholars program which selects around 4,500 students each year for their leadership, service, and scholarship accomplishments.
Being a single mother is difficult. Being a single mother trying to receive training for better opportunities is close to impossible. The wonderful people at Allred’s Landscaping and Construction are offering much needed help because they see how UBTech positively impacts the community. “They are out in the community,” shared the Allreds.
One Vernal woman is proving that age doesn’t have to hold you back from new hobbies and experiences though she doesn’t understand what all the fuss is about. Madge Fillingim took up bowling in her 70’s and has since crushed her goal of bowling 100 in a game. Madge is now 98-years-old and bowled a cool 165 last Thursday. The week before that was a 160.
KVEL in association with Utah State University Uintah Basin will be having a series of talk radio discussions focusing on local social issues. The series called Marriage and the Family will be presented by USU’s Dr. David Law and USU FCHD Graduate Latrisha Fall. Dr. Law is an Associate Professor of Family, Consumer and Human Development and is actively studying family life with three current research projects.
Both the Uintah Basin Healthcare and Ashley Regional Medical Center have been experiencing high volume of patients suffering from flu and RSV in the Emergency Room. Be aware that both facilities have activated their flu policy which affects visitation.
What could have been a deadly situation, thankfully turned out to just be a highly inconvenient one. A rockslide in Glenwood Canyon in Colorado closed I-70 on Tuesday. National Weather Service reports that “rapidly freezing and thawing temperatures combined with precipitation make for ideal conditions for rockslides in extreme terrain.” Tuesday’s rockslide was an important reminder of the dangerous impact that winter weather can have in western Colorado. It took most of the day for crews to clear the roadway enough for one lane to be open. Highway 40 felt the increase in diverted traffic.
USDA Rural Development will be holding webinars and workshops to help provide information about their ReConnect Program. This program offers loans, grants and combinations thereof to aid in bringing broadband to rural areas. The hope is to bring high-speed broadband that will enable rural communities to perform critical needs such as precision agriculture, as well as fuel long-term economic development.
Still in the mood to do some ice fishing? Then plan on joining DNR at Starvation State Park for the Starvation Ice Derby on February 9th. The tournament will have a walleye and trout category with only the first 200 people allowed to compete. Registration will be at 6:30am, while the event will start at 7:30am and go until 12:30pm.
Influenza is hitting community members and the Department of Health reports that the 2018-2019 influenza season has had an increase in activity in Utah. Although the number of reported influenza-associated hospitalizations reached a season-high of 93 they are still below the historic average.
Uintah Basin Healthcare has extended sincere thanks for some generous donations received. The Newfield Foundation recently donated $50,000 to the Uintah Basin Medical Center. Half of that amount will benefit the Villa Adventures Program and half is for the Nursing Simulation Program. Uintah Basin Healthcare also recently offered their thanks to a young man who made a donation for his Eagle Project.
Elected officials attending the Uintah County Commission meeting on Monday were surprised to learn of a proposed resolution to reduce their salaries, with several stating this was the first they had heard of the proposal. A public hearing and Resolution 01-07-2019 were listed on the agenda under the title ‘Elected Official Salary Adjustment’. After reading from the Resolution, Commissioner Bill Stringer explained that the salaries of the Sheriff and County Attorney would remain the same because of the complexity and responsibilities their positions hold but that the remaining positions, including the Commissioners, Assessor, Clerk/Auditor, Recorder, and Treasurer would be lowered to $85,000. When the meeting was opened to public comment, several elected officials stood and shared their concerns and questions, stating they felt “taken back” and didn’t understand the purpose and what the money will be used for. Commissioner Stringer stated that they had met with most of the elected officials and that the rational is to consider the economy when determining salaries. Chief Deputy Attorney Jonathan Stearmer stated at the beginning that the Resolution shared was not the same draft that he had. One of the questions Stearmer had concerned Mike Wilkins consolidated position as Clerk/Auditor and the consideration of his pay according to Utah Code. Other concerns were shared by members of the public as well as by other county employees including Economic Development Director Sylvia Wilkins who felt worried about other local economic impacts this could have. After all input was received, Commissioner Stringer said he felt the Commission needed to better investigate Utah Code before making a motion. The other Commissioners agreed and the topic was tabled. The audio of the meeting is posted at www.pmn.utah.gov under Entity: Uintah County and Body: County Commissioners with this agenda item beginning at about 2 hours 6 minutes. During the meeting, the Commission also suspended Policy 450, that has to do with benefit continuation of elected officials after leaving office. Both agenda items will tentatively be revisited during the February 25th Commission meeting.
Uintah Basin Healthcare recently had a ribbon cutting for their new 3D Mammography Suite. The Uintah Basin Healthcare announcement shared that they are very excited for what this equipment will be able to do for the healthcare of women. A sad fact is 1 in 8 women in the U.S. will develop breast cancer, yet many women avoid a simple mammogram because it is uncomfortable or intimidating.