Projects and Activities
April 2008 Chapter News
NATIONAL NEWS
CHAPTER PRESIDENT’S COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA SET. All SUP Chapter Presidents and Chapter Presidents-Elect with their wives are invited to the Saturday April 19, 2008 Chapter Presidents Council Meeting at the Headquarters Building in Salt Lake City. The meetings begin at 10 a.m. and are scheduled to conclude at 2:00 p.m. The morning will begin with a joint meeting of all attendees. The women will then adjourn to a very special meeting highlighting Matt Dahl, general business manager of This is the Place Heritage Park, his wife and two or three docents from the Park. 
Many exciting changes have been made in the park over the past two years, and the Dahls have been in the midst of the change. During the same time, the men will separate into regional areas to counsel together on vital matters concerning the strengthening of the chapters and members. Following these meetings, a special luncheon has been arranged for all attendees. Frank Madsen (right), SUP Public Relations Associate Director, will share with us his experiences in Washington DC as an aide to Senator Hatch in helping open up the Soviet Bloc countries to the Church and overcoming Jewish opposition to the BYU Jerusalem Center. Since joining the SUP in 1999, he has contributed very significantly to its growth and realization of its mission, serving on several chapter and national committees. Several Modern Pioneer awards will be given and chapters will receive their new banners with award recognition for the period June 30, 2006 to December 31, 2007. Reservations for the luncheon should be made with our Executive Manager, Ron VanLeuven. The cost for the luncheon will be $10 a plate.
LETTER TO ALL SUP MEMBERS. In early April, a letter was mailed to all 2,200 SUP members with information on the Diamond Jubilee Fund, the Inspirational Pioneer Stories Project, and the 2008 Jubilee Medallion. We ask all Chapter Presidents to encourage their members to respond to these three programs. We are especially excited with the Inspirational Pioneer Stories project. These seldom told stories will be available on our website and can be searched in many detailed ways. We invite Chapter Presidents to have someone on their Board have a special assignment to encourage their members to submit their stories to the SUP as outlined in the letter.
SUP HISTORY ISSUE OF PIONEER MAGAZINE. We hope you have enjoyed reading about many of the exciting activities sponsored by the Sons of Utah Pioneers through the years in the latest issue of the PIONEER. We think this issue can be an excellent recruiting tool for new members. A limited number of extra copies were printed and can be obtained through our Executive Manager for $5.00 a copy.
2008 CONVENTION IN RICHFIELD FAST APPROACHING. The latest PIONEER magazine has registration information for the September 25-27 Convention on its back cover. We hope all members will get their registrations in early so they can sign on to the trek they want. Also, motel reservations should be made now to assure you will have a place to sleep. We think this will be a very well attended convention and look forward to the fine events the Sevier Valley Chapter has prepared for us. Remember, the 2009 Convention will be held in Ogden and the 2010 Convention will be in St. George.
CHAPTER NEWS
MILLS (South-East S.L.C., Utah) Scott Featherstone (left) was the speaker for the chapter meeting in March. He told the story of how George Frederic Handel created the music of the “Messiah” in a short twenty-four days during a time of great personal stress and debt. It is believed that whenever those who were present at the meeting hear the music of the Messiah they will remember the story. Inspired by Handel’s story, Scott and his wife, Lori, told how health difficulties in their own family served as an inspiration to write a screenplay and book involving all the characters at the time Handel wrote the Messiah. A string quartet of young musicians played at the end of the dinner, providing a memorable introduction for the speakers with their rendition of the Hallelujah Chorus.
GROVE CITY (Blackfoot, ID) In late February chapter members were edified by a slide presentation titled “Homesteading in the Idaho Desert”. The presentation was made by Fred Dykes (right) who retired from the Idaho National Laboratory after forty-one years of service. In his picture presentation he showed eighty different sites of homesteads, roads, canals, dams, cemeteries, schools, buildings and foundations of buildings all built in the latter 1800’s and early 1900’s. Mr. Dykes has cataloged a volume of history of the desert in several counties west of Blackfoot.
CEDAR CITY (Cedar City, UT) The March meeting of the chapter was a St. Patrick’s Fund-Raiser. It included fine food and a great program arranged by Haymer Morris. The event, as expected, had an Irish theme. Wayne and Carolyn Hinton were recipients of the Modern Pioneer Award. The presentation was made by the chapter at the Valentine dinner. A key area of the chapter’s effort and goals is Treks, Trails and Monuments. Leon Matheson is the person who guides (chairs) these programs.
SETTLEMENT CANYON (Tooele, Utah) Last month’s program was enjoyed by all as they listened to the Nash family sing many of the songs that are favorites of those who attended. Members are looking forward to a program in April to be given by Rex and Marsha Ward. The subject is about early American Colonial Life. The museum will be opening soon for the season. It will have longer open hours and so more docents are needed. During the years1854-55 Tooele settlers built a mud wall around most of the town to protect them against Indian raids. A monument commemorating the wall is being planned.
TRIAD CHAPTERS: CANYON RIM, SUGARHOUSE, BEEHIVE (Sugarhouse and North-East Salt Lake Valley, Utah) The program for the March meeting was under the direction on the Beehive Chapter, conducted by President Lee Steed. Lee took pictures with his camcorder of much of the National Encampment (Convention) in Mesa last fall and has edited and prepared his material for presentation. For the multi-chapter meeting he took the members, both those who attended the convention and those who did not, on a vicarious journey. The material included highlights of the meetings, along with the treks. The Sugarhouse chapter, with the help of many other chapters, has undertaken the construction of a Pioneer Monument to be placed at Rotary Park, just above the Hogle Zoo, at the entrance to Emigration Canyon. It will tower twenty feet high and a huge, bronze eagle, with wings out-stretched, will grace it.
BOUNTIFUL (Bountiful, Utah) Featured speaker for the March meeting was Brent Russon, the owner of Russon Mortuary. He told the group that throughout history there has been a desire of mankind to somehow preserve the human body after death. It was practiced in one form or another by various civilizations, but it was the Egyptians who perfected the art of “mummifying” the body. In every society that attempted to preserve the human body there was an underlying belief in life-after-death. Hence their great regard for the human body and their desire to preserve it. An enthusiastic audience asked many questions after Mr. Russon’s presentation. Music for the evening was by vocalist Renetta West.
SQUAW PEAK (Orem, Utah) The chapter members felt very fortunate to have Bronco Mendenhall as their guest and speaker for the March 19th meeting. Mr. Mendenhall spoke of the way he was called by an apostle to be the B.Y. U. football coach. He was challenged to bear his testimony often and to teach the necessity of being truthful. He will not recruit players who won’t live up to the standards of the university and the church. His call was obviously a spiritual experience. The chapter is planning a Provo History Trek on April 24th and will visit several sites that were part of the trek when they hosted the National Encampment in 2003. (We hope to report on that trek in the next Trail Marker.)
SEVIER VALLEY (Richfield, Utah) At the March 20th meeting chapter president, Gordon Topham, presented a program on Rock Art from around Utah. Gordon was employed for many years by the Utah State Parks Commission and first became interested in this subject when he visited “Newspaper Rock” in San Juan County. He showed pictures of this phenomenon, including pictures of some art before and after destruction by thoughtless individuals. Gordon’s interest in this subject is to encourage appreciation and preservation. Committee members continue to work on the chapter’s Water Wheel Restoration and their Sawmill Road Memorialization projects. Their Internet Web Page (www.svsup.org) has been updated to include information on the 2008 National Convention.
JORDAN RIVER TEMPLE (Southwest Salt Lake Valley) Guest speakers for the March chapter meeting were Dell and Shelia Argyle (right). They gave an interesting report of missions they have served: one to the Philippines and more recently to Albania. They were privileged to help with the open house of the first LDS chapel in that country. On March 17th chapter members held a mini-trek by attended a performance of “The Hasty Heart” at the Sugar Factory Playhouse in West Jordan. The performance was enjoyed by the 15 members who attended.
HURRICANE VALLEY (Hurricane, Utah) DeVon and Carol Armstrong gave a wonderful presentation on the history of the Muddy Mission. They presented books, pictures, and memorabilia about their ancestry. Their presentation prepared chapter members for their trek on March 15th to the Muddy Mission where they viewed the remains of the cities of St. Thomas and St. Joseph as well as Warm Springs, which was the headquarters of the mission. On March 26th, Junius Campbell came to their meeting and told of his growing up in Hurricane. He shared his unique poetry and his World War II experiences.