A number of movements are in action to help the economically disadvantaged and others in Carbon County.
The Southeastern Utah Association of Local Governments (SEUALG) is working with others in the community to help those who are economically disadvantaged in Carbon County.
First they are part of a group called the United Community Housing Alliance of Carbon County. To start the group has been focusing on the Hidden Valley Apartments behind Walmart.
“What we have been working on is beautification of the area,” said Renee Raso, a HEAT Specialist and Carbon County Circles Program Coach who works out of the AOG. “We want to clean the place up and till up the large field in front of the apartments and utilize it for a play area.”
The effort is part of the Big View Team of Carbon County Circles, a program being administered to help mitigate intergenerational poverty.
The housing authority has submitted a grant to improve the field. The submissions are being processed through Build it with KaBOOM! That organization puts out grants to areas that need funds. If the grant is awarded the complex will have a Design Day in which users, including many kids, will get to design their own playground.
While people from the community services area of the AOG are involved, it is a group effort of agencies, businesses and individuals making things happen.
Gayla Presett, the Director of the housing authority, is involved in the move. Also in the group is Cheryl Thayn and Kat Krum of United Way.
Private businesses include Kyle Heffernan from Sutherlands (whose store is donating $1,500 for the grow boxes, soil and supplies). Intermountain Farmers is also involved with Doug Warden the Manager who will be donating soil and other items. The Kiwanis Club will also be donating $500 when as the project moves farther along.
But there is more here than just fixing sprinklers, tilling up soil, cleaning up the area and box farming. There is an effort to grow beneficial relationships as well.
The Carbon County Sheriff’s Office is also involved in doing some foot patrols to get acquainted with the residents. The intention of that effort is to grow a good relationship with the peace officers in the area.
Polly Atwood from Juvenile Justice is also planning to do some classes on strengthening families.
Terry Johnson from the SUN Center at USU Eastern along with students who work with him are involved too. Every Saturday students from the University (through the SUN Center) go to the complex and do sports activities with kids there. They have also donated sports equipment to the Housing Authority.
In other community news, United Way sponsored a dance group this summer called Step Up so that kids could get into a program they could afford. The fee was $10 and if they attended they got $5 back. Krum came up with the idea for the group, and had cheerleaders from Carbon High come and work with the kids. A recital with the kids was done late last month at the Price Civic Auditorium with the help of Terry Willis, a councilwoman in Price.
There are also many people who donated costumes for the dancers. That program was for any low income families in the community, not just those from Hidden Valley.
On June 12 a group of volunteers went to the complex and did an outside cleanup around it. Many residents were involved, including a number of children. After the work was done there was a barbecue for those that participated.
“There were more kids than there were adults, but a lot of the people who live there work during the day so we expected that,” stated Raso. “We are going to set up another day like that in August and we will do it in the evening so more people can be involved.”
The group is in need of volunteers for the cleanup or for other kinds of activities that will be going on.
“We want anyone who wants to come to help out and we have all kinds of things they can do to help,” said Raso.
She said in time the goal is to work on the public housing grounds and facilities just off Cedar Hills Drive as well.
Groups work together to improve lives of locals
Kids help clean up yards at area public housing units.