Park City Stories
Today Hank Louis is a successful architect and philosophical leader of a non-profit organization that builds simple homes for Native Americans. In 1975, on his way to find a real job, Louis stops in Park City for a ski vacation. It was destiny that kept him here. As he tells the director of the Kimball Art Center Robin Marrouche in this edition of Park City Stories, he has realized his dream of writing for a newspaper - in this case THE Newspaper...
Hank Louis
Thirty years ago, when Vietnamese refugees were being turned away by nations all over the world, Father Pat Carley, then pastor of St. Mary's Catholic church convinced his parish to sponsor a young boy and girl who had been separated from their families. They eagerly agreed and on a cold winter's night, 15 year old Ying Houang and her brother Va arrived at the Salt Lake Airport. In this week's edition of Park City Stories, Ying and Father Carley shared some of their memories with Park Record editor Nan Chalat Noaker.
Ying and Father Pat
When Utah became serious about bringing the Olympics to Utah, it set about building the sporting venues that would be needed to woo the International Olympic Committee. Before the state was even an Olympic bid city, it built the ski jumps at what is now the Olympic Sports Park and with a bare bones operation hired a recent retiree from the U-S Ski Team - Jeff Volmrich - to run the programs. As he tells KPCW's Ann Johson in this edition of Park City Stories, he watched local kids make a name for themselves on the town's jumps.
In September 1986, Park City rallied around a baby girl - who was born with several birth defects - and her parents, Patty and Norm Smith. In this edition of Park City Stories, Patty Smith tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher how the town's residents showered her new family with love and financial support. And with the historic national health care legislation approval this week, Smith remembers how her family was nearly denied coverage for their new baby.
Jenny, Patty and Norm Smith
Park City Ski Team Devo Coach "Dar" Hendrickson first came to Park City in the fall of 1979 to ski as a member of the local race team. He and two other ski racers from the Midwest met some team coaches at a summer ski camp in Oregon who convinced them to make the move to Park City. In this week's edition of Park City Stories, Hendrickson tells Park Record editor Nan Chalat-Noaker about some of the highlights of his first years in town...
Dar Hendrickson
As Park City began it's construction boom years in the 90's, the jobs were plentiful and there was an marked increase in the number of immigrant workers moving to town. In the mid- 90's, then- deputy Park police chief Lloyd Evans worked to develop the department's community relations. Shelley Vebber, who was working park time in the Park City building department also noticed a big change in the town's demographic and helped form Connexion Amigo. In this week's edition of Park City Stories, Vebber and Evans talk about how they helped integrate the town's Hispanic population with the dominant Anglo community.
Shelley Vebber and Lloyd Evans
Brad Olch is probably best know for the three terms he served as Park City Mayor through the 1990's. Prior to that, however, he had spent a decade working to bring the Winter Olympics to Utah. As the 2010 games close, Olch tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher for this week's edition of Park City Stories about one of the greatest experiences of his life - being an Olympic torch bearer for the 2002 winter games.
Brad Olch
It’s been eight years since the Olympics came to Park City and at the time Park City cit manager Tom Bakaly was assistant city manager and his son Henry – just a toddler. As they tell the Park Record's Nan Chalat-Noaker in this week’s edition of Park City stories, the Olympics created lasting memories for their family.
Henry and Tom Bakaly
The 2010 Vancouver Olympics open today...and it was just 8 years ago when the world was welcomed to Park City - one of the venues for the 2002 Olympics. In spite of the IOC bribing scandal that shook the core of the Salt Lake Olympic Organizing Committee and 9-11 which almost jeopardized hosting the games, the 2002 Games stand out as one of the best memories for many Parkites, including Debbie Murillo-Schneckloth.
Before Park City became the world class destination ski resort it is today, it was just a small silver mining town. The 20 years or so when Park City made that transition from historic mining town to destination resort ushered in the opportunity for Park City's new economy - real estate. Craig Reece moved to town in 1973. As he tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher in this week's edition of Park City Stories - while Park City has gotten bigger, and a car is a necessity, it's still a town that brings together a certain breed of folk...
Craig Reece
Park City's First Events - Shirley Smith
A botched business deal didn't stop the Smith family from moving to Park City back in the 1970's. As Shirley Smith tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher,she was in on the ground floor with the early years of the Park City chamber bureau...when Park City began producing events to add to the summer arts festival.
Shirley Smith
For recent transplants to Park City - it's probably hard to imagine that State Road 224 used to be a two-lane country road. There was no center lane or shoulders on the side. There were other hazards as well: Winter storms and gusty winds would depost huge drifts of snow into the lanes. And cars also had to stop for twice-daily cow crossings. The Osguthorpe family ran a dairy farm before it was sold for open space to Park City. As CJ Schnickoth tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher for this week's edition of Park City Stories, when he first moved to town in 1971 he lived in Kimball Junction - which felt like a world away...
CJ Schneckloth
In the fall of 1965, Joe Hanley - who was born in the Miner's Hospital and raised in Park City - was just a 10 year old kid looking for something to do. As he told the Park Record's David Hampshire in this week's edition of Park City Stories, he has the distinction of being the only Park City kid to greet First Lady Lady Bird Johnson when she came to celebrate the opening of Treasure Mountain - today's Park City Mountain Resort.
Joe Hanley
This week Park City Story comes from local attorney Gordon Strachan. He spoke with Park Record editor Nan Chalat-Noaker about landing the town's first World Cup races and how they ultimately secured Utah's bid to host the 2002 Winter Olympics.
Gordon Strachan
Leslie Luyken arrived in Park City in 1980 after graduating from the University of California in Santa Barbara. In this week's Park City Story, she tells Nan Chalat Noaker that she got involved with the Egyptian Theater right away and it became her home away from home. While playing leading roles in local productions of Peter Pan, Chicago and Mame, Leslie supported herself waitressing at another Park City institution, Mileti's Bar and Restaurant, which she affectionately refers to as Park City's "Cheers." One role at the Egyptian, however, still stands out among her memories.
Leslie Luyken
Park City has seen some pretty bone chilling days over the last week. But nothing like it was back in December of 19760...when Madeline Smith first moved into town. As she tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher in this week's edition of Park City Stories, it was so cold in her old town house, located on Crescent Tram - between Norfolk and Empire - she went out to look for a job.
Madeline Smith
Park City's First Christmas Tree Lot - Val and Steve Chin
For the last few weeks, temporary fencing has been put up marking the Christmas tree lots that are going up around town - something we all take for granted today. However, it wasn't until the mid 1970's that Park City had it's first Xmas tree lot when Val and Steve Chin and their friends organized the town's first Christmas tree lot at what was known then as the Eley Garage at the corner of Park and Heber Ave. Today it's the Kimball Art Center. The old garage back then was owned by the Greater Park City Corporation - at the time, the owner of the Park City Mountain Resort. As Val Chin recounts to KPCW's Leslie Thatcher, the year was 1975 - the only year this group of friends operated a tree lot. It wasn't until several years later, when Steve came up with a plan to recycle Christmas trees...
Steve and Val Chin
Park City Bus Driver Neal Krasnick
With the snow-ride season nearly upon us, the Park City Public Works department is gearing up for the hundreds of thousands of people who will enjoy a free ride on the city bus system this winter. In this week's edition of Park City Stories, Neal Krasnick looks back at his 20 years as a seasonal bus driver for Park City... a system that - he told KPCW's Leslie Thatcher - runs very much the same today as it did 2 decades ago...
Neal Krasnick
John Spung likes to laugh - and even more - likes to make others laugh. He's one of teh original members of the Park City comedy troupe, Off the Top, and went on to form Park City Improv. Spung was named as the first-ever Mountain Town Stages Magestic Jester - the Royal Ruler of Fun. H'es also this week's choice for Park City Stories and was interviewed by Park Record Nan Chalat Noaker.
John Spung
Riding into Town - Rob Morris
Rob Morris and his wife Carlyle moved to Park City in 1974. One of Rob's first projects was to develop the Holiday Inn at the corner of State Road 224 and Kearns Blvd. The hotel later became The Yarrow while the Morris's went on to ride the crest of the real estate boom --Rob as a prominent Park City developer and Carlyle as a successful real estate agent. But Rob Morris' roots date back long before Park City became a destination resort town. In this week's edition of Park City Stories, Rob Morris tells Kimball Art Center Executive Director Robin Rankin about the days when Park City lived up to its reputation as a ghost town.
Carlyle and Rob Morris
29years ago, the first Jan'w Winter Welcome drew Parkites interested in raising money for junior alpine ski racing. As KPCW's Ann Johnson learned, Jan Peterson - for whom the local mountain sports store and the fall gala are named - came up with an idea for a fundraiser that has become the model for Park City's many non profits.
Jan Peterson
Park City Wedding - Laurel Ross
Laurel and Doug Ross celebrated their 29th wedding anniversary this month... The two had been coming to Park City for years to ski and eventually bought a condo which they shared with another couple They were both They both worked for what used to be known as Western Airlines which eventually merged with Delta. The pilot and flight attendant - who both grew up in Utah - were able to make Park City home when Western made Salt Lake one of its largest hubs.
As she told the Park Record's David Hampshire, their small wedding included some historic characters and places of 1980.
Laurel Ross
Kathy Mears Remembers Park City 1976
33 years ago, Park City was a very different place... Town basically ended at the Top Stop and everyone came to Main Street to do their grocery shopping, pick up a piece of pipe at Art's Hardware or have a beer. As long time resident Kathy Mears tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher in this week's edition of Park City Stories, living in a small town - where a car wasn't necessary - was a lot of fun.
Larry and Kathy Mears
Golden Nugget Arcade - William Kranstover
It was just a few years after The Who had released their rock opera, "Tommy" - a double album telling the story about a deaf, dumb and blind boy who became a pinball wizard - that William Kranstover moved to Park City and opened up the town's first pinball arcade. The Golden Nugget Arcade was located at 513 Main Street - the current location of the Crosby Collection. As he tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher in this week edition of Park City Stories, it was 1972 and he had just moved to town after teaching for a few years in Australia...
William "Kranny" Kranstover
The Cozy Bar - Annie Bowman
The Cozy - a bar located at the bottom of where Main Street used to end at Heber Ave.- was a popular spot for Park City miners and the newly arrived hippies and ski bums. As Annie Bowman told David Hampshire of the Park Record for this week's edition of Park Ctiy Stores, the Cozy was a place many called home...
Annie Bowman
A New Home in 24 Hours - Kathy Whalen Jones
It didn't take Kathy Whalen Jones 24 hours before she decided to make Park City home. It was December of 1979 when she lost her job at Alta and was on her way home to Minnesota...but not before stopping in Park City - on the advice of her brother - to check it out.
Kathy Whalen Jones
Kimberly Kuhen Remembers 9-11
For manyAmericans, September 11, 2001 was a life-defining moment. As Americans watcher their television screens and listened to their radios, they gasped and wept over the terror and horror of 9-11. Some of those who survived the nightmare are still haunted by it and many - each year - reflect on the gift - the realization of just how precisou life is. One of those whose life was changed 8 years ago today is Park City resident Kiimberly Kuhen.
Kimberly Kuhen
It was about 35 years ago this week when Sydney Reed got married and moved to Park City from New York City. She enjoyed the life of a ski bum for a year before deciding to get back to her career as a teacher. In this week's edition of Park City stories, she tells KPCW's Leslie Thatcher that back then the elementary school was located in what's now known as City Hall - in the former Marsac School.
Sydney Reed
The Bogardus - Sciara Family Came for the Summers
For many people who moved to Park City, they'll tell you they came for the skiing and stayed for the summers. For the Bogardus and Sciara family, they came for the summer to get out of the heat and humidity of the southeast and have come to love Park City's winters too. The couple and their 14 year old son Noah, celebrated their first year of living in Park City in June. Sibyl Bogardus and David Sciara shared their story with KPCW's Leslie Thatcher for this week's edition of Park City Stories.
Dave Sciara and Sibyl Bogardus
Greg Schirf - Park City Brewmaster
After brief stints in newspaper publishing, construction and real estate sales, Greg Schirf decided to follow his heart by opening Utah's first micro-brewery. Nan Chalat Noaker - the editor of the Park City has Greg Schirf's story in this edition of Park City Stories.
Greg Schirf and Mellie Pullman
Greg Schirf
