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July 14, 2023 | Vol. 2 Iss. 28
Covering Your Community
Morgan is healthy place to live It has been ranked #1 or #2 among Utah counties for health factors and outcomes.
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MORGAN COUNTY NEWS Since 1929
NEWS BREAK NATO Summit to be held this week As this week’s NATO summit approaches, two major developments have taken place in the lead up to the meeting. The most surprising news is that Turkey has dropped its formal opposition to Sweden joining NATO. Up until this week, Turkey had spoken out against Sweden’s membership due to what it saw as Sweden’s soft approach to the Kurdish resistance organization the PKK. It was widely believed that Turkey was holding out for admittance to the European Union in exchange for Sweden’s admittance to NATO, though that appears to no longer be the case. In another development, President Joe Biden will be meeting with Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky during the summit to discuss security issues.
‘1000 Year rainfall’ covers parts of the Northwest
RACE TRACK for the Running of the Balls.
Running of the Balls: when golf balls raced to raise funds
By Olivia Rees
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n the evening of June 24, the community gathered together to experience a refugee fundraiser hosted by Morgan Valley Care (MVC). In a fun twist of planning, participants could experience Running of the Balls, barbeque dinner, silent auction, music, and a community spirit special to Morgan Valley. Beth Brathwaite, organizer of MVC, fondly described that spirit as “a
Courtesy Photo
big ‘ahhhhh!’ that speaks ‘I’m home!’ to your soul.” This event drew people who stumbled upon it while filling their car with gas or stopping in for a drink at Hinds with an estimated 350 people participating coming from all over Morgan, Ogden, Bountiful, and Utah Valley. Gary and DaLynn Patterson, owners of Hinds Country Store, provided the gathering place. “It [Hinds] is a hub,” described Brathwaite, “where
you go to catch up with old friends, enjoy a delicious lunch or an ice cream cone together. It’s a place to take your grandkids to hear the ‘cha-ching’ of the original cash register from the store. So, although a unique place to host a dinner, it is no surprise that Hinds served as the venue, the gathering place, for our fundraiser. The Pattersons provided a Rib & chicken Dinner complete with
FUNDRAISER on page 2
MHS Debate team goes to nationals By Verlene Johnson
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fter a successful year of competitions including region and state, Morgan High School Debate team had the opportunity to go the National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA - speechanddebate.org) High School Speech and Debate NATIONAL Championship Tournament which was held July 11-15 in Phoenix, Arizona. With more than 6,000 competitors at the event, the competition for MHS students was high. Those students included sophomore, Jaqsyn Rudd and junior Bryan Justice (BJ) Hone who qualified in Duo-Interpretation as a main event. They each competed in supplemental events as well: Jaqsyn in impromptu and original poetry and BJ in impromptu. “I really quite enjoyed the whole experience,” commented BJ. “The people were all really nice, and I learned a
MHS DEBATE on page 2
Rainfall totalling almost 8 inches fell in West Point, New York in six hours on Sunday, in what is being called a “once in a millennium level” event. Large amounts of rain also fell up and down the coast, as well as throughout the region as far west as Pennsylvania. Flooding and water alerts are in effect throughout the northwest, with one death having already been attributed to the torrential storm. New England, Vermont, and Connecticut are also in danger of severe flooding over the next few days.
Colorado man cited for landing helicopter in Grand Teton On Saturday around 3 p.m., Grand Teton National Park law enforcement rangers responded to a call that a helicopter had landed on the west shore of Jackson Lake, inside Grand Teton National Park. According to officials from the park, rangers located the copter as well as pilot Peter Smith and a companion picnicking along the lake. Smith, the owner of West Elk Air in Gunnison, was charged with two violations under the Code of Federal Regulations: “operating or using aircraft on lands or waters other than at locations designated pursuant to special regulations” and “use of aircraft shall be in accordance with regulations of the FAA.” If convicted, Smith could be fined $5,000.
Gas prices once again slowly falling As part of the seemingly constant rise and fall of gas prices over the last year, the trend at present is downward. After several weeks near the $4.00 mark, average gas prices across Idaho (the 7th highest prices in the country) have crept downward to around $3.85. Predictions are that the slide will continue unless something major in the supply chain changes, but experts have been famously bad at predicting gas prices over the last year. JAQSYN, TOMARA, BRYSON AND BJ at the national debate tournament.
Photo by Lisa Hone