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from the Department of Journalism & Communication
May 2, 2013
All the Local News:
Same-sex marriage isn’t legal in Utah, but not uncommon; Miss Millville pageant, court & cops; Idaho artist Cherryn Girdwood; do-gooders fight back; divorce in Utah; Al’s expanding; ‘Beat the Boot!’ and remembering Alan Hashimoto, plus A-TV News’ last show of the year.
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| “Spring Blooms” is a painting by Rigby, Idaho, artist Cherryn Girdwood. See story below. |
The Hard News Café named as the 2013 Society of Professional Journalists’ best independent student news website in the InterMountain West.
Officially banned, marriage equality alive and well in Utah
By Katie Swain
LOGAN—Cary Youmans and Reid Furniss met for the first time while
still in high school in Idaho, helping a mutual friend make a movie
spoof. Furniss was convinced the two would meet again. But 33 years later, they found each other again via Facebook, and
immediately felt a connection. They fell in love and moved in together
not long after. The couple has been committed to each other for nearly
three years now. The Logan couple aren’t married, although they’d like to be. But as a
gay couple in Utah, the issue of marriage is complicated for Youmans
and Furniss. “Just marry me already!” Furniss joked to Youmans.Parking lot crash becomes big mess for Logan woman
By Dawn Otterby LOGAN—A Logan woman was arrested after signing a false name to her written police statement. Logan Police Lt. Brad Franke said police were suspicious after a minor car accident between Rachel Vasquez, 28, and another driver in the InstaCare parking lot. After further investigation police discovered Vasquez was impersonating her sister and driving with a suspended license.“What’s really sad about this is that a minor traffic incident turned into this whole ordeal,” Franke said.
Rush to early marriage feeds Utah’s higher-than-average divorce rate
By Dani Hayes LOGAN—Utah has a higher-than-average divorce rate compared to the national average. According to a 2009 U.S. Census Bureau study, the national divorce rate is 3.4, with Utah slightly higher at 3.6. The state has a strong emphasis on marriage, largely stemming from the Mormon religion that dominates the culture. “People gravitate to coupling,” said Brian J. Higginbotham, associate professor at Utah State University specializing in marriage and family therapy. On average, Utahns are 2 years younger than the U.S. average when it comes to marriage, and because of their relative youth, said Higginbotham, Utah newlyweds deal with unique stressors.
Cherryn Girdwood: Idaho woman’s art roots her to the Earth, to lifeBy Dani Hayes
RIGBY, Idaho—To see one of her paintings is to glimpse into her soul. Fragments of her life are cemented within each stroke of hardened paint on the store-bought canvas. When you buy a Cherryn Girdwood original, you are buying a piece of Cherryn. “She is literally painting her life experience,” said best friend Jennifer Heath. “Cherryn paints what’s in her heart, so the type of person she is, the life she lives, comes out in her paintings.”
Council reschedules Miss Millville pageant
By Tanner Simmons MILLVILLE—The annual Miss Millville Pageant has been rescheduled to May 23 due to lack of participants and a schedule conflict with the Mountain Crest High School junior prom. The pageant is a longstanding tradition for the city for more than 20 years. “Miss Millville is a unique pageant. It is not a beauty contest,” said City Council member Mark Williams. “Any girl that is a junior in high school and resides in Millville is allowed to participate.” With only five contestants thus far, Williams hopes that more girls will show interest before the time of the event.
Expanded Al’s Sporting Goods means sad farewell to Logan Burgers
By Jessica Sonderegger LOGAN—Depending on who you talk to, the storyline is either progress and growth, or the little guy getting crushed by a big neighbor. The 500-pound gorilla in this case is Al’s Sporting Goods, which has bought a 10-acre parcel at 1000 North and Main Street and build a 130,000-square-foot shopping center, including a 60,000-square-foot Al’s superstore. And then there are the little guys: other local businesses who will have to move when Al’s breaks ground on the new project, as early as next month. Logan Burgers and Sandwiches owner Manju Oberois says she is being “forced out.” “I feel bad,” Oberois said. “[They] gave us no option.”
Logan man pleads guilty to controlled-substance counts
By Tanner Simmons LOGAN—A Logan man pleaded guilty to two criminal counts Tuesday morning at his arraignment in First District Court. Leonel Figueroa stood before Judge Clint Judkins pleading guilty to possession or use of a controlled substance and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
Smithfield man asks city to remove snow-storage ‘doughnut’
By Tanner Simmons SMITHFIELD—Neil Sessions came to the City Council with snow removal problems. The cul-de-sac at 280 S. 789 East, where he resides, features a “doughnut” or circular patch of land in the middle of the street designed for snow storage. “I come before you today to seek permission to remove the doughnut on our street,” Sessions said. “I know it wouldn’t be cheap but it is causing lots of problems for my wife and me to get out of our driveway when snow is piled really high in front of our house.”
‘Beat the Boot!’—commuters, renters clash with city on parking policies
By Katie Swain
LOGAN—Utah State University student Jeff Parker is rekindling a push
for Logan City to change its policy regarding booting, the hated
practice of attaching immovable metal “Denver boots” to the tires of illegally parked vehicles. Commuter
students and apartment residents despise booting companies, but landlords and others say
illegal parking takes parking spaces away from tenants who pay for them. “Deep down, everyone hates booters,” Parker, an economics major, said. “I think everyone’s in agreement there.”Court date reset for Logan man after no-show
By Paul Christiansen LOGAN—After Nathan Cook, charged with forgery, a third-degree felony, and theft, a misdemeanor, failed to appear before Judge Thomas Willmore for a scheduled pretrial conference, the judge issues an arrest warrant and Logan police officers arrested Cook Thursday afternoon. First District Court Judge Kevin Allen was not amused. “Nathan, I know you have a lot of court things you have to go to but you have to go to those,” Allen said. “You just cannot miss court or you’re going to get another warrant.”
USU NEWS
Remembering Alan: ‘Campus literally stopped’ when art prof died
By Katie Swain
LOGAN—Spontaneous. Quirky. Blunt. Creative. Honest. Persistent.
Maverick. Mentor. Innovator. Devoted. Rebellious. Whirling dervish.
Hurricane. A tornado of ideas. That was Alan Hashimoto, the Utah State University graphic design professor who died in February at age 58 in his office. The response from the students and faculty has been intense and emotional. “He affected so many people,” said Meagan Roach, one of Hashimoto’s
students. “Campus literally stopped because of his passing in a moment
of silence.”Sociology prof makes a difference before career move to Chicago
By Jessica Sonderegger
LOGAN—Her students recognize her as one of their most influential professors; her colleagues know her as a valuable asset to their team and research. And Amy Bailey’s only been teaching for three years. “She is a passionate teacher who really knows how to communicate difficult material,” said PhD student Beth Kiester. “She’s also just a great person,” said fellow sociology professor Christy Glass, “and I’ll miss her very much,” as Bailey leaves USU for a post in Chicago.
The last A-TV News show of the year—Cache Rendezvous
LOGAN—Anchors Jenna Lynn and Victoria Cardon and the A-TV News staff talk to USU’s Truman Scholar, explore a makeover for roads in Franklin, Idaho; making sushi with Randall Henry and Tmera Bradley test-drives a new truck. All this, the last Aggie sports until Fall, and springy weather.
‘Caring for America’—Feminist scholar describes underappreciated caregivers
By Jessica Sonderegger LOGAN—Feminist scholar Eileen Boris of the University of California, Santa Barbara, came to Utah State University this week to introduce faculty and students to her current research. In a state that is far from the forefront of the organizing efforts of workers’ rights, Boris spent the afternoon discussing the collaborative efforts of low-wage care workers outside the borders of Utah. “The premise of our book is that the labors of care, reproductive labors as they’re called, are work,” Boris said. “ That cooking, cleaning and caring is work.”
OPINION
Do-Gooders—Many locals respond to bad news by pitching in to help
By Jessica Sonderegger LOGAN—After times of national crisis and despair, it can be difficult to look past the evil that threatens our neighborhoods and communities. Events such as September 11th, the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, and the Boston Marathon bombings are all events that shake our spirits and convince us that we are living in a scary, unpredictable world. But it is because of those events that we should look for the good and find solace in our very own communities.
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