A worker at the Canyons Village base area of Park City Mountain Resort reported that he was assaulted by a man who complained about the resort’s social distancing efforts, according to a report from the Summit County Sheriff’s Office.

The employee, a 57-year-old Jackson Hole man, said he was working the Cabriolet lift when he saw a 57-year-old Park City man measuring areas on the concrete nearby.

The employee approached the man, who then pushed the employee, according to the report. The suspect left the scene but deputies were able to contact him via telephone.

The man told them he was upset the resort wasn’t doing enough to enforce social distancing.

Deputies indicated the County Attorney’s Office would screen the case for charges.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement responded to several other calls between Monday, Nov. 30, and Sunday, Dec. 6, including $20,000 in equipment stolen from a construction site and a woman hitting her ex-boyfriend with a car.

Saturday, Dec. 5

Deputies responded to a noise complaint in Summit Park and shut down a party, encountering about 30 people under the age of 21. A 46-year-old North Salt Lake woman rented the house for a birthday party for her daughter. Deputies indicated people had been drinking and that many attendees were 18 to 19 years old from the Wasatch Front.

Friday, Dec. 4

A 57-year-old Kamas man reported his ex-girlfriend came to his home and started shouting at him before speeding toward him in her car and crashing into him. The man indicated he rolled onto the hood of the vehicle and then back off when the 49-year-old Salt Lake City woman hit the brakes. He said he wasn’t seriously injured. Deputies indicated they impounded the vehicle and that they arrested the woman on suspicion of several charges.

Monday, Nov. 30

Deputies reported three thefts from a construction site on Bitner Road totaling more than $20,000 in stolen tools and equipment. The thief used a tool to cut into construction trailers, making off with at least $11,000 worth of tools and $10,000 worth of copper wire and electrical equipment. Deputies indicated the case would be forwarded to the Investigations Division.

The post Sheriff’s report: Liftie reports assault over social distancing guidelines appeared first on Park Record.

The Park City Police Department last week received a report of a party with loud people who were apparently encouraging others to drink alcohol in a manner popular with the collegiate crowd.

On Friday, Dec. 4 at 10:50 p.m., the police were told of a party somewhere along Park Avenue. The people were yelling “chug, chug, chug,” the person told the police. There was also loud music. The person who contacted the Police Department said the there was a similar issue the previous night. The police logged the case as suspected disturbing the peace.

Other incidents reported to the Police Department last week included:

On Sunday, Dec. 6 at 11:43 p.m., a suspected drunken driver was reported at or close to the intersection of Park Avenue and Kearns Boulevard. Just earlier, in an apparently unrelated case, a person suspected to be drunk was driving on S.R. 224 at 11:30 p.m. Public police logs did not provide details about the cases.

The Police Department over the course of a little more than an hour starting at 10:15 p.m. stopped six drivers, generally in the Prospector area. The police said violations included failing to use a turn signal, not stopping for a pedestrian in a crosswalk and driving a vehicle with a headlight not working.

Someone at 2:58 p.m. contacted the police regarding a wallet that was left in a ridesharing vehicle. The person told the police the driver refused to send the wallet to the owner, who was visiting Park City at the time the wallet was left in the vehicle. The case was logged on Lowell Avenue, but it was not clear from public police logs when the wallet was left.

On Saturday, Dec. 5 at 7:23 p.m., the police received a complaint about water exiting a manhole on Meadows Drive. Ice had formed around the manhole, the police were told. The Police Department classified the case as a utility issue.

A deer was seen off the road at or close to the intersection of S.R. 224 and Meadows Drive at 3:34 p.m. The person who contacted the police indicated it appeared a vehicle had hit the animal, but the person was not sure.

The Police Department at 11:12 a.m. received a complaint from someone on Lucky John Drive that six eggs had been thrown at the house. The police were told the eggs froze onto the structure, according to public police logs. The agency classified the case as suspected criminal mischief.

On Friday, Dec. 4 at 4:59 p.m., the police were told people were throwing snow at cars close to the Old Town roundabout, in the vicinity of Deer Valley Loop Road. Police logs described the circumstances as suspicious.

A deer carcass was seen in the road on an outbound lane of S.R. 224 at or close to the Meadows Drive intersection at 7:26 a.m. The police said the carcass was a traffic hazard.

On Thursday, Dec. 3 at 4:25 p.m., the Police Department received a report of a wallet that was either stolen or lost somewhere along Deer Valley Drive. The wallet disappeared several days prior to the police report. The agency logged the case as a suspected fraud, signaling that someone may have attempted to use credit or debit cards from the wallet. Public police logs did not provide details. Seven minutes earlier and in an apparently unrelated case, someone found a wallet on Park Avenue and turned it in at the police station.

The Police Department at 1:06 p.m. received a complaint about vehicles left in front of a driveway on Webster Court. The police were told it as an ongoing issue and apparently involved vehicles from a nearby construction project. The person who contacted the police indicated the issue has caused them to miss trash pickup, according to public police logs.

On Wednesday, Dec. 2 at 10:52 p.m., a police officer pulled over a driver at or close to the intersection of S.R. 224 and Meadows Drive, indicating the vehicle did not move into another lane as the officer was performing a traffic stop.

A traffic accident was reported on Main Street at 5:55 p.m. involving a driver making a U-turn. The police said the two vehicles were slightly damaged and neither driver wanted a law enforcement report.

A suspected drunken driver was reported at 4:47 p.m. at or close to the intersection of Kearns Boulevard and Sidewinder Drive. Public police logs did not provide details.

On Tuesday, Dec. 1 at 4:05 p.m., a hit-and-run traffic accident was reported on Rossie Hill Drive. The damage occurred the week before the report, the police were told. A note was left on the victim’s vehicle, but phone calls to the number were not answered, according to police logs.

On Monday, Nov. 30 at 10:44 p.m., a suspected drunken driving case was reported on Iron Horse Drive. Public police logs did not provide details.

The post Park City police blotter: Agency told of raucous party, yells of ‘chug, chug, chug’ appeared first on Park Record.

Maybe you missed out on nabbing a reservation to get on the slopes at Park City Mountain Resort on a weekend powder day.

Perhaps you don’t want to stand in lift lines with others during the pandemic and are looking for a hill of fresh snow all to yourself.

Or you could be seeking a different kind of winter adventure, one that involves an engine rather than skis and poles.

So you head into the backcountry.

This winter, you won’t be alone in turning to the wide open terrain in Utah’s mountains. Avalanche experts are preparing for a record number of people to flock to the backcountry as the pandemic and safety restrictions at ski areas entice them to look beyond resort boundaries for their fill of winter thrills.

While there’s plenty of space for (extreme) social distancing, a large increase in backcountry usage this season is cause for alarm. Officials are concerned that among those venturing into the wilderness will be people who lack the basic avalanche safety skills that should be a prerequisite to strapping on a snowboard or clicking into skis in the backcountry.

What’s that? You’ve conquered every black-diamond run in Utah? Being an above-average skier or snowboarder isn’t enough, which is obvious when you consider that avalanches frequently travel 70 or more miles per hour. The only way to guarantee you don’t get caught in an avalanche is to avoid triggering one.

Fortunately, there’s an easy place to learn. The nonprofit Utah Avalanche Center, for one, offers a number of safety classes for backcountry users. And even people who’ve safely traversed the backcountry in the past can use a refresher course, or take the next step in their education.

Classes, though, are not enough. Becoming educated about avalanche safety gives people the best chance to avoid a slide, but it does not eliminate the risk. Carrying the proper equipment — a shovel, an avalanche beacon and an avalanche probe, at minimum — may just save your life if the worst-case scenario strikes.

The backcountry is endlessly alluring, especially this year. There’s plenty of adventure to be had in Utah’s mountains away from the crowds and the chairlifts. But the dangers are not to be taken lightly, as evidenced by the six avalanche fatalities that have occurred in the state since the start of 2019.

Heeding the guidance of experts will give us the best chance to avoid increasing that number this winter, even as more people than ever explore Utah’s backcountry.

Backcountry safety resources can be found at utahavalanchecenter.org, including avalanche forecasts and educational courses.

The post Record editorial: Backcountry safety is not to be taken lightly appeared first on Park Record.

Wear masks for others

I was in the Saddleback lift line at the Canyons Village side of Park City Mountain Resort over the weekend. I am a healthy 60-something. There was a group of young adults, probably in their late teens or early 20s, behind me in line, several of whom had their masks down around their chins. I turned and asked them to please pull them up. Two of them looked at me like I had asked them eat something unpleasant, but they reluctantly pulled them up. As soon as I turned around to face forward, they pulled them back down. How can people not get it? That it’s not just about their own health, but also about the people around them? Are they OK with jeopardizing others because of the inconvenience of wearing a mask while in proximity to others? Please, Park City, make this small gesture. The sooner we all do, the sooner we won’t have to any longer.

Larry Rose

Pinebrook

Who’s a sore loser?

Regarding the letter titled “Choose rollbacks wisely” in the Dec. 5-8 edition, Mr. Miller is of course entitled to his opinion, but he lost all credibility when he stated, ”Only a ‘sore winner’ would completely erase everything done by his predecessor.” That’s rich, when you consider how the “sore winner” Donald Trump made every possible effort to reverse everything and anything with Barack Obama’s name on it. Thank goodness Trump wasn’t able to overturn the Affordable Care Act.

Diane Bracey

Old Town

Bear witness and speak truth

Bill Barr and Donald Trump have ordered the federal government to execute multiple death row inmates before inauguration day. Let us see this rush to execute federal prisoners as the inhumane publicity stunt that it is. I am wondering why they just do not set up firing squads on the South Lawn of the White House for maximum effect.

Under Trump and Barr, the federal government has executed eight federal prisoners so far this year. From 1963 to 2019, the federal government killed only three prisoners, all between 2001 and 2003. After Biden was elected last month, Barr scheduled three more executions. Lisa Mongomery is scheduled for Jan. 12. Cory Johnson will be executed on Jan. 14, and Dustin John Higgs the next day. All three of these cases involve capital crimes and no doubt of guilt. As an advocate for Lisa Mongomery argues: “We are not asking that she be absolved of guilt. We are asking that she be extended mercy.”

No one should live or die deliberately at the authority of one president when a week later they would have been spared by another. It is nationally endorsed cruelty. What is our role as citizens of this nation? It is to bear witness and speak of this to our families and friends. Perhaps a publicity stunt like setting up firing squads on the South Lawn is far fetched, but it tragically replicates the reason these people will be executed by the government in the coming weeks. We all need to have our eyes wide open, because democracies die in darkness.

Martha Macomber

Park Meadows

Lessons learned

I am writing in response to Susan Aleva’s letter, “Answers needed,” in the Dec. 5-8 edition. The mayor made a mistake but not a malicious one. In his enthusiasm Park City demonstrated (maybe not 100%) a response to a serious social issue. My hope is that in our non-diverse community, dialogue was started about Black Lives Matter, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others. This took me back to my youth demonstrating against the Vietnam War and other injustices. Not all our protests were positive, but it started dialogues and brought issues to the forefront. Wouldn’t it have been wonderful if every town in Germany during the 1930s wrote Jewish Lives Matter in their streets? I hope Mayor Andy, the messenger, learned a lesson; but the bigger lesson of racial injustice is the message we all must digest and learn to move forward as a human race.

Fred Rubinfeld

Pinebrook

The post Letters, Dec. 9-11: Wear masks for others appeared first on Park Record.

According to the Summit County Attorney’s Office, the following cases were heard on Monday, Nov. 30, in 3rd District Court at the Summit County Justice Center.

Ashlee L. Anderson, 20, of Salt Lake City, pleaded guilty to DUI, a class A misdemeanor. The court placed the defendant on court probation for 12 months and ordered the defendant to complete 48 hours of community service in lieu of two days in jail, pay a $1,390 fine and complete other standard terms and conditions. The court also imposed a suspended 178-day jail sentence.

Travis Carlon Book, 29, of Keokuk, Iowa, entered into a 12-month plea in abeyance to attempted purchase, transfer, possession or use of a firearm by a restricted person, a class A misdemeanor; and possession or use of a controlled substance, a class B misdemeanor. The court ordered the defendant to complete standard terms and conditions.

Kyle Eugene Strasser, 35, of Park City, pleaded guilty to possession or use of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor. The court placed the defendant on court probation for 12 months and ordered the defendant to complete standard terms and conditions. The court also imposed a suspended 364-day jail sentence.

Stojan Vladic, 66, of Park City, pleaded guilty to sexual battery and obstructing justice, both class A misdemeanors. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 11.

Cassie Elizabeth White, 33, of Park City entered into a 36-month plea in abeyance to attempted distribution of a controlled substance, a third-degree felony. The court ordered the defendant to complete standard terms and conditions.

Braxton Jess Jones, 20, of Sandy, entered into a 12-month plea in abeyance to wanton destruction of protected wildlife, a class A misdemeanor. The court ordered the defendant to pay restitution of $400 and complete other standard terms and conditions.

Matthew Thomas Powell, 53, or Fort Collins, Colorado, pleaded no contest to attempted possession, purchase or transfer of a dangerous weapon, a class B misdemeanor; and possession of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor. The court placed the defendant on court probation for 18 months and ordered the defendant to pay a $500 fine and complete other standard terms and conditions. The court also imposed a suspended 180-day jail sentence for the weapons charge and a suspended 364-day jail sentence for possession of a controlled substance. Those sentences would run concurrently.

Russell Robert Sweat, 46, of Duchesne, pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, a third-degree felony; possession or use of a controlled substance, a class B misdemeanor; possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor; ignition interlock violation, a class B misdemeanor; driving on a suspended license, a class C misdemeanor; and no insurance, a class C misdemeanor. The court imposed a sentence of zero to five years at the Utah State Prison for possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. That sentence would run concurrently with any other sentence the defendant is currently serving. The court also imposed concurrent 47-day jail sentences for each of the remaining charges with credit for 47 days served.

The post Court report: Week of Nov. 30 appeared first on Park Record.

Choose rollbacks wisely

In last Saturday’s paper, a “Perspective” piece by Mr. Thompson advocated rolling back the rollbacks from the last four years. Might I suggest that he not let his intense dislike of the outgoing president overwhelm careful selection of what to roll back?

• Keep the pressure on Iran; do NOT send them another $100 billion (yep, that’s a B) bribe to allow Iran to covertly continue their nuclear weapons program and support of terrorism in the Middle East.

• Keep wholeheartedly supporting efforts establishing economic and diplomatic relations between Israel and the Arab countries, bypassing the Palestinians who have shown absolutely no interest in regional peace for the past half century. And no financial support to the Palestinian government whose politicians line their pockets while their people suffer.

• Keep the pressure on our NATO allies to live up to the financial commitments that they have made for their collective security (think “fair share”).

• Keep the emphasis on protecting our intellectual property from China’s theft.

• Keep up the emphasis on cybersecurity, especially with respect to Russia, China and North Korea.

• Keep up the policy of not publicly degrading and insulting the leaders of hostile countries so they will at least talk (think North Korea).

• Keep the taxes on those “evil corporations” low so that they can compete internationally and hire domestically rather than move their manufacturing operations and headquarters offshore to take advantage of cheap labor and low tax rates.

• Keep the streamlined bureaucracies, regulations and processes in place that allowed “Operation Warp Speed” to develop and distribute multiple COVID vaccines in under a year.

• Keep the de-regulations in place that resulted in the lowest unemployment rates for women and all minorities in half a century and rising incomes for those same groups, and sharply lowered welfare roles.

• Keep our military strong; weakness will not encourage better relations with China or Russia.

Only a “sore winner” would completely erase everything done by his predecessor: choose wisely.

Ken Miller

Jeremy Ranch

What are you proud of?

So, Republican Party county chair, I read your letter to the editor that you are so proud of President Trump. So are you proud of the fact he kept the early information on the coronavirus from us the people and called it a hoax? Are you proud how he didn’t tell us how contagious it was, just telling us it will go away? Are you proud of him making fun of mask wearing and making it into a partisan political issue instead of pulling the nation together to do the simple thing of wearing a mask, which is well documented to slow the spread of the virus? And what of our election? Are you proud of his lying and false claims of fraud in our election despite no proof? Are you proud of his efforts to endanger American democracy and dupe millions of his supporters into questioning our election process, which is the foundation of our democracy?

Are you proud of his firings of the many dedicated civil service people for simply telling the truth and doing their job such as Chris Krebs, our former U.S. director of cybersecurity who told the truth about the election as being fair and just and one of the best run elections we have had? You should express yourself as being proud of such Republicans as Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger for preserving our democracy. Are your proud that they and their families are now receiving death threats and require security details to protect them as Trump continues his false claims of a stolen election? You should be proud of the many Republican-appointed judges and other state elected officials who have stood up to the Trump attempts to subvert our democratic process but not proud of Trump. I see you say you sleep well with your love of President Trump. I sleep peacefully now knowing that our democracy has been preserved with thanks to your fellow Republicans who did not buckle under the pressure from Trump to overrule the vote of the people.

John Schloderer

Park City

Answers needed

We, the people of Park City, are still waiting for the mayor’s answers to the numerous questions that have been raised over the past several months regarding the handling of the Black Lives Matter mural on Main Street. This is not going away! People are NOT going to forget. My advice to the mayor is to face the music. You were elected — you are not some sovereign power who can do whatever, whenever with no consequences. I think the power of being “mayor” corrupted your thinking. Your legacy, if you refuse to answer basic questions, will be the mural and the cover-up that followed.

Susan Alleva

Glenwild

The post Letters, Dec. 5-8: Don’t roll back Trump’s achievements appeared first on Park Record.

Since late spring, it’s been clear the 2021 Sundance Film Festival would be different. How drastic the changes required to keep everyone safe from COVID-19 would be, though, remained an open question.

We now know that hope of the festival at all resembling the typical event in Park City has been left on the cutting room floor.

The Sundance Institute made it official Wednesday when it announced that this edition of the festival will be held primarily online. Only one in-person venue will operate in Park City, at a reduced capacity — with even that contingent upon the health situation as the event grows nearer.

Amid the onslaught of depressing news this year, this comes as a particularly difficult blow, even if it is not a surprising one given the realities of the pandemic and the ongoing surge here and around the country.

Cinema lovers will still be able to watch the slate of films virtually and partake in other elements of the festival program. For all intents and purposes, however, there will be no Sundance in Park City this winter.

Nixing nearly all of the in-person elements of the festival in Park City is unquestionably the right decision. Sundance deserves credit for making it, as difficult as it must be to take the festival in a drastically different direction for one year and forego part of what makes the 11 days so special every January: the human connections.

But just because it was the prudent move doesn’t make it any less disappointing for filmgoers and those who benefit from the festival, most notably the countless businesses and workers that capture a slice of the tens of millions of dollars Sundance generates in the Park City area each year.

For a minority of residents, the absence of the festival for a year may be welcome. Some have grown weary of the myriad impacts that come with the Sundance spotlight, from traffic jams to the difficulty of finding a restaurant reservation during the festival’s packed opening weekend.

Those concerns are legitimate — and officials have taken steps to heed them — but are outweighed by the economic boon of playing a starring role in one of the world’s premier film festivals. And that’s not taking into account the prestige of hosting Sundance or the special experiences available to Parkites who embrace the mayhem.

Fortunately, Sundance organizers are adamant that this is a temporary change. The festival that has become such a significant part of Park City’s DNA will be back in 2022, assuming the pandemic is behind us.

We can’t wait.

Right now, though, that seems a long ways off as we confront the prospect of a winter that won’t be lit up by the Sundance stars.

The post Record editorial: Sundance makes right call, though it’s a difficult one for Park City appeared first on Park Record.

The Park City Police Department on Saturday, Nov. 28 at 3:50 p.m. received a complaint about the short-term parking spots outside the Main Street post office, which were taken at the time with vehicles that had license plates from outside of Utah.

The person who contacted the police said they were “assuming” the people who left the vehicles there were not customers of the post office, according to department logs.

There are restrictions on the spots outside the post office, but people headed elsewhere on Main Street sometimes leave vehicles there anyway.

Other incidents reported to the Police Department last week included:

On Sunday, Nov. 29 at 2:20 p.m., the police received a complaint from someone on Three Kings Drive about paint fumes from a neighboring residence. The police were told the fumes were sickening people.

On Saturday, Nov. 28 at 11:06 p.m., a police officer pulled over a driver on the 1100 block of Deer Valley Drive after observing the minivan stop in a travel lane, turn and then attempt a U-turn.

An officer stopped a driver on the 400 block of Main Street at 10:33 p.m., warning the person after seeing people not secured in the vehicle’s bed.

The Police Department pulled over a driver at or close to the intersection of Kearns Boulevard and Wyatt Earp Way, indicating the vehicle was speeding. The police said the vehicle was traveling at 50 mph in a location where the posted speed limit is 35 mph.

On Friday, Nov. 27 at 7:52 p.m., an officer stopped a driver at or close to the intersection of Kearns Boulevard and Buffalo Bill Drive, indicating the vehicle was traveling 69 mph in a location where the posted speed limit is 50 mph.

A person was suspected to be intoxicated at the intersection of Woodside Avenue and 15th Street at 5:36 p.m. Public police logs did not provide details.

The police in the afternoon hours pulled over a series of drivers in the southern reaches of Old Town, in the vicinity of Hillside Avenue and Daly Avenue after watching them make prohibited left turns. The drivers were warned.

A hit-and-run traffic accident was reported on Round Valley Drive at 11:04 a.m. Earlier, at 9:48 a.m., a hit-and-run case, apparently unrelated to the later one, was logged on Park Avenue. Public police logs did not provide details.

A party, described as large, was reported at 10:36 p.m. on Lowell Avenue. The police logged the case as suspected disturbing the peace.

A man was seen walking on Main Street yelling at 9:35 p.m. The police described the circumstances as suspicious.

On Thursday, Nov. 26 at 1:07 p.m., a deer was seen running toward and then through the Old Town transit center.

On Wednesday, Nov. 25 at 10:22 p.m., the police received a complaint from someone on Aerie Drive that a nearby house was “vibrating so bad that he feels it in his house.” The police were told there was construction underway and described the circumstances as suspicious.

The police at 8:12 p.m. checked on a driver on Park Avenue in a vehicle with light flashing, finding that the person was stopped to avoid performing too many tasks at once. The police said “it was a motorist being responsible.”

A driver may have hit a deer on S.R. 224 at 5:54 p.m. Nobody was injured and the accident scene did not block traffic, the police said.

The Police Department at 3:09 p.m. received a complaint about a person camping off Equestrian Way. The police were told the person had a hammock, backpacks and sleeping bags. The police classified the case as suspected vagrancy.

A drone was reported to be flying around a house on Moray Court at 10:53 a.m. It was last seen just before the call to the police, according to department logs. The person who contacted the police was not sure where the drone was launched.

On Tuesday, Nov. 24 at 8:34 p.m., the police received a complaint about a hit-and-run traffic accident on Park Avenue. The damage occurred while the victim was working, the police were told.

The police at 12:34 a.m. received a report of a car that was left in front of a residence on Park Avenue for an hour. It was “blaring” music the police were told. The Police Department logged the case as suspected disturbing the peace.

On Monday, Nov. 23 at 3:02 p.m., graffiti was reported on a Dumpster on Homestake Road. Public police logs did not provide details about the graffiti.

A dump truck reportedly “clipped” a truck of a roofing firm on Silver Lake Drive at 12:34 p.m.

The post Park City police blotter: Vehicles with out-of-state plates left outside post office appeared first on Park Record.

Anarchy, as usual

Seriously shocked was my first reaction to the arrest of a man at the Salt Lake City airport for refusing to wear a mask. Actual enforcement of public health orders is so rare in Utah that this affair stands out even more than Trump’s waistline.

But on reflection, it makes sense. Commercial airports are not really part of their communities, or even their states and nations. When you cross the airport threshold you enter some kind law enforcement twilight zone where no nonsense — zero — is tolerated in defense of public safety. Ironic, given that airports and airliners are already one of the safest places you can be, pandemic or not.

So don’t read too much into this. Anarchy as usual will continue in the Beehive State, most clearly as regards pandemic regulations, but also in realms like conservation and discrimination, where our population of law enforcement drones traditionally ignores the laws it does not like.

Tom Horton

Prospector

Little effort goes long way

Did you know that if you are shopping online this year you can double the benefit of your efforts by simply using Amazon Smile instead of just Amazon? At no additional cost to you, a portion of your purchase can be returned to benefit Paws for Life Utah, a local animal rescue organization. So far this year PFLU has received nearly $3,000 from this program to help defray the cost of helping our animal kinship. All you have to do is go to smileamazon.com, register Paws for Life Utah as your charity and then shop as usual. It is easy and seamless. Please remember every time you go to Amazon to shop, you must go through smileamazon.com. Shopping this way makes me feel less guilty about buying that one gift for me and it brings a big smile to my face knowing I’m helping out our furry friends at the same time. This little effort goes a long way!

Pat Vaughn

Midway

The post Letters, Dec. 2-4: Enforcement of public health orders is lacking appeared first on Park Record.

The end of the pandemic, though not yet within reach, is on the horizon.

The news in recent weeks of the apparently successful vaccines created by Pfizer and Moderna was perhaps the most encouraging development since the pandemic began. In the wake of the announcements, state officials offered clarity on when Utahns might expect to get a vaccination and when, at long last, things may return to some semblance of normal.

The long and short of it: Officials anticipate that there will be enough doses for the bulk of Utahns to receive vaccinations in the late spring or summer, with health care workers and high-risk people getting them sooner. When enough Utahns are vaccinated to achieve herd immunity, we can start putting the pandemic behind us.

Summit County residents — along with everyone else — now have a turning point to look forward to, a beacon of hope that will help get us through what seems certain to be a challenging winter.

As encouraging as the vaccine outlook is, however, it is not a signal to abandon the measures that have helped us weather the pandemic thus far. Rather, it should be motivation to soldier on, even as we long ago grew tired of the way COVID has changed our lives.

Coronavirus cases in Utah and Summit County remain elevated, and hospitalizations continue to stretch hospitals thin. Health officials expect another surge in the coming days after people gathered with friends and loved ones outside of their households for Thanksgiving, underscoring the reality that we remain in the worst phase of the pandemic so far.

In Summit County, the deaths of four residents from COVID-19 in recent weeks — after just one fatality in the pandemic’s first several months — has brought the danger of the coronavirus into sharper focus than ever before. County Health Director Rich Bullough has said the tragic increase in fatalities is a result of how quickly the virus is spreading.

Far from being time to let down our guards, we remain entrenched in the fight against the pandemic. That will continue to be the case until we reach herd immunity through broad vaccination.

If we squint, we can see that day on the horizon. We’ll finally be able to take off our masks, gather with others at a concert at the Egyptian Theatre or a football game at Dozier Field and revel in the human connection we’ve all missed so much.

With the finish line in sight, don’t let up. Instead, let’s push through and do our part to make sure as many people as possible reach it alongside us.

The post Record editorial: Vaccines are coming, but the end of the pandemic is not yet here appeared first on Park Record.