Democrats hold convention

By PATSY STODDARD Editor

The Emery County Democratic Party met for their county convention on April 28 at the Museum of the San Rafael in Castle Dale.
County chairman, Gary Petty introduced those nominating candidates for office. Tracy Jeffs nominated Emery County Sheriff Lamar Guymon for a ninth term. “Sheriff Guymon has much experience and is totally dedicated to the citizens of the State of Utah. He finds lost people. He holds the hand of bereaved people. He is a man of integrity and is a remarkable individual who lives to serve. I nominate Sheriff Lamar Guymon,” said Jeffs.
Sheriff Guymon said, “I appreciate your support and I appreciate my dear wife, Gayla for her 32 years of support. I love my job. I am blessed to live among great people. Emery County is a great place to live, work and raise families. I take care of the county’s needs as much as the budget and manpower allows. We help senior citizens, giving them a ride to the store or clinic and sometimes just someone to talk to. We counsel parents when the young ones go astray and if someone enters our care we treat them with as much dignity and respect as they will allow. When people travel, we work to see they travel safely.
“When people recreate in our county, we work to assure they have a safe experience, but we won’t allow them to destroy our public lands. We work hard to keep neighborhoods and schools safe. We recruit, select and train deputies to meet our high standards. Our drug court program is nationally recognized. Our haz-mat team is understaffed and underfunded, but we work hard to be prepared. Our DARE trainer, Sgt. Martin Wilson has been asked to be a national trainer of DARE officers.
“Our drug task force works to protect communities and control the drug problem. Our jailers work 24 hours per day and are well-trained. The office workers assist in all the functions of the sheriff’s office,” said Sheriff Guymon.
He appreciates all the volunteers in the county who work with search and rescue, neighborhood watch, citizens corps, CERT teams, EMTs and all those who serve.
Sheriff Guymon encouraged citizens who hear a story or gossip to call him directly or ask a deputy about it. He said that sometimes they make mistakes, but he takes responsibility for any mistakes and learns from them. Along with his job, you inherit some enemies because of the nature of the work.
Sheriff Guymon said he would like to continue to fulfill his responsibilities into the future. “I love my job, I love coming to work, I love the county and hope the people give me an opportunity to continue to serve as the county sheriff, I have paid my dues and learned my lessons and feel I am the best man for the job. What we have done and experienced in the past prepares us for the future. I am prepared to lead Emery County into the future so it remains safe and a great place to live, work and play.
Joyce Staley nominated Commissioner Gary Kofford for a second term as Commissioner A. She said Gary was born in Huntington and graduated from Page High in Arizona. He worked on the Glen Canyon Dam for a time and returned to Huntington where he married Glenna Jones. They moved to Salt Lake where he spend 30 years working for Mountain Fuel, now Questar. He was manager of the Ogden region. They have three sons and one daughter and 14 grandchildren. In 1985 he returned to Emery County and bought an older home to remodel. He worked for a time at Johansen and Tuttle and then served a mission to Singapore. “I nominate Gary Kofford for Commissioner A,” said Staley.
Commissioner Kofford said, “I have enjoyed the position and tried to make a difference. It is a pleasure to represent the Democratic party. I look forward to the future and am focused on where we want the county to be in the next four years. I am proud of the Democrats. I have been critical of some Republicans in the courthouse. Look at where we are with the election machines. The Republicans should be proud of themselves. Emery County deserves better. We need to take credibility and honesty back to the courthouse. That needs to happen.
“I have done some good things while in office. We are working on a new 911 system and Jeff Guymon with the IT department has worked on a new addressing system which will work hand in hand with the 911 system. You will be able to call in on a cell phone and the exact location of that call will appear on the screen.
The Moore cut-off road has drawn some criticism. Rep. Matheson has made the funding for that road possible. It will be completed in the next four years. One phase is completed and phase II is nearing completion. When it’s done it will be a $20 million investment in the county. It has added to our economic base and is equivalent or better than a lot of economic development.
“I have worked on the DBT expansion project, they are putting in a new warehouse and office at $1.5 million. The employees from Price will be moved over here. They were on their way out of the county, but we brought them back and they are investing in Emery County. They were going to move their business to Grand Junction, but the employees didn’t want to go.
“I am confident the PacifiCorp will announce the building of Hunter 4. We are still in the running for that. I think that will surface and it will be built here. As we look to the future we need people to get us where we want to go,” said Commissioner Kofford.
Nathan Johansen nominated Kent Wilson for Commissioner B. He began with a joke about politicians. He said a group of doctors were gathered and they were discussing which group of people were the easiest to operate upon. Librarians, construction workers etc. One physician said that politicians were by far the easiest to operate on because they have no guts, no heart, no spine and their head and rear end are interchangeable.
This brought laughs from the audience. “This doesn’t describe Kent, because he has a lot of heart and a lot of guts. I have known Kent a long time and we are in business together. I’m not sure what qualities you look for in an elected official, but Kent has all the qualities necessary to be the next commissioner and when he is elected the citizens of Emery County will be well served,” said Johansen.
Kent Wilson accepted the nomination and said he is more proud to be a Democrat now than when he walked through the door. He thanked Nathan for the nomination and said he was a good friend. He said he is married to Julie Watson and combined they have seven children. Both of their fathers are former county commissioners. He has had people ask why he wanted to run for commissioner and different answers have come to him. He loves Emery County and has lived here all his life. “The older people have helped make Emery County what it is today and I want to be a part of that. The good people of Emery County have supported my business through thick and thin and I want to give back. I have served on several boards through the years. I am proud of the dislocated employees program we started which helped retrain coal miners when the mining jobs in the county were reduced.
“I have been chairman of several boards. As the owner of a convenience store, every customer is my boss and I want their experience in my store to exceed their expectations. There is always room for improvement. We also sell horse trailers and I have learned to negotiate. I have the skills to make a good commissioner. I would work to find compromise and bring everyone to the middle and help keep everyone happy.
“The customers that come into our store are treated with respect and dignity. I will treat the voters and the citizens with dignity and respect. I will listen to what the people of Emery County want and help Emery County suceed. A vote is sacred and I will be loyal and true to the citizens,” said Wilson.
Keith Ware nominated Kollette Collogie for the office of clerk/auditor. He said he has known Kollette for a long time and she is well capable of doing whatever she tries to do. She is very intelligent and knows nothing about Diebold voting machines,” said Ware.
Collogie said she was raised in Ferron and has lived in Castle Dale for 30 years. She said she would bring a level of integrity to the office of clerk/auditor. She has worked seven years for Emery Telcom and is currently managing Dr. McKell’s front office. She is a Castle Dale City council member. She wants the doors to be open to the clerk/auditor’s office and she would be friendly to the public and listen to people.