Home Care In Paragonah, UT

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SALT LAKE CITY — Utah wildlife officials are reminding people to not dump pet fish or any other fish that doesn’t belong in a specific body of water after they say they found species of fish consistent with illegal dumping at four reservoirs in the state earlier this year.

State wildlife biologists discovered green sunfish in Yearns Reservoir in Sanpete County, largemouth bass in Newcastle Reservoir in Iron County, redside shiners in Paragonah Reservoir in Iron County, and smallmouth bass in Settlement Canyon Reservoir in Tooele County during annual surveys conducted in the state, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources said Wednesday.

Randy Oplinger, the division’s sportfish coordinator, explains that illegal fish introduction “seldom improve fisheries,” which is why illegal fish dumping can lead to a class A misdemeanor charge.

State wildlife officials say it’s not just dumping pet fish that’s illegal; it’s also illegal to move live fish from one body of water to another.

Illegal fish species may prey on or outcompete other fish species in a body of water, including sportfish, native fish or endangered fish species. They may also introduce disease into the water’s ecosystem and can negatively impact water quality, according to the division.

The division even has an educational program devoted to the matter.

“Illegal introductions typically ruin fisheries and threaten the species that live there,” Oplinger said in a statement.

Utah wildlife biologists have, in recent years, conducted several projects to clear out invasive species that were introduced in a body of water. Many of these involve rotenone treatments, which are used to kill all the fish in a lake, stream or reservoir before native or sportfish species are reintroduced.

This outcome tends to be “very expensive and takes a very long time,” Oplinger said, which is why he says the best way to avoid this is to not illegally dump fish.

Anglers who come across invasive fish species, see others illegally introduce a fish into a body of water, or see someone trying to relocate live fish are encouraged to report it by calling 1-800-662-3337 or contacting their nearest Utah Division of Wildlife Resources office.

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PAROWAN — Gov. Spencer J. Cox visited Parowan High School on Monday morning as part of his “Connecting Utah Tour” to visit at least one school in each of Utah’s counties this year.

“Education is the key to successful futures,” Cox said to the 300-plus students gathered in the auditorium at the beginning of the school day.

“I’m hoping you all have some plans post-graduation, to do something,” he added. “Not everyone needs a bachelor’s degree, although a bachelor’s degree is awesome and will certainly help you. Everyone needs skills. And there are different ways to get those skills so that you can have a good job in the future.”

Cox also emphasized the importance of the teaching profession.

“You have great teachers here, and we need the next generation of great teachers,” he said, adding that the state has been making efforts to increase educators’ wages.

“When we passed over $750 million of new education funding this year, a significant portion of that will go directly to our teachers,” he said.

Cox also touched on the importance of water conservation.

“I’m less worried now (about water) than I was six months ago,” he said. “We’ve had record snowfall; in fact, we’re at about 300% of normal here in southwest Utah, which is awesome.

“I’m so excited about that. And I’m so grateful for the water that we have received. Now, instead of praying for snow, I pray that it melts slowly.”

After Cox’s initial 15-minute opening remarks, Parowan High student government leaders Tate McNeil, Daisy Dunlap, Jayden Griffiths, Chloe Townsend and Harrison Cheney joined the governor onstage for a question-and-answer session.

The students asked Cox how became interested in politics, what he likes about Parowan and other rural communities, how to close the gender wage gap and his ongoing efforts toward promoting kindness and civility.

“I’m here to assure you that the world will reward you for your kindness and your goodness,” Cox told the students. “I see it all the time. Yes, sometimes the bad guys finish first, right? But mostly, over time, the good guys … actually do better in this life.”

The governor also shared with the students four keys to happiness: faith, family, friendship and work.

Cox then asked the students a few questions of his own, the last of which was for them to use one word to describe the United States right now.

Dunlap, the fifth and final student to respond, said, “I don’t know if this is a word, but ‘un-united’?”

Cox then noted that the most common word that most Americans use to describe the country right now is “divided.”

“We almost got it,” he said. “‘Un-united’ was very close.”

Other answers commonly given by respondents include “disconnected,” “intolerant’ and “weak,” he added.

Additionally, Cox said that when people were asked to use a word to describe their feelings about the nation, “Frustrated was the most common, followed by disappointed, exhausted, disgusted and angry.”

But Cox then offered a few suggestions for possible solutions.

“I don’t want to end on a negative,” he said. “I want to end up positive because what Chloe mentioned is absolutely right. We’re not talking to each other anymore. In fact, we’re doing the exact opposite. We’re just screaming at each other, right? And social media has exacerbated that.”

Cox said that a large part of the problem is that in today’s social media culture, “the loudest, the craziest, the farthest left and the farthest right voices are getting the most attention, right?”

However, he noted, “It turns out that 80% of us actually kind of agree on most things, with a little bit of emphasis one way or another.”

Cox encouraged those in the audience to take time to listen, communicate and spend time with people with different points of view. Doing so, he said, helps people solve problems better by working together.

“Don’t listen to debate, listen to understand,” he said. “What happens when we do this, it’s really magical, we can actually find common ground.”

Cox also noted that approximately 90% of the 575 bills passed by the 2023 Utah Legislature were done so either unanimously or almost unanimously. But those generally don’t attract much attention, he said.

“All you hear about are the 10 (percent of the time) when they really disagree,” he said.

Cox then encouraged the students to resist the urge to tear other people down, especially online.

“I hope you’ll join me today in being better,” he said. “Join me in treating other people with respect, especially if they disagree with you. And going one step further, there’s power in proximity, getting close to someone who is different than us.”

“Let’s get off the social media, have face-to-face interaction, and work to be builders,” Cox said as he concluded his remarks.

Principal Bailey then showed a brief slide show that featured a selection of photos from Cox’s own high school days, which were taken from one of Bailey’s old yearbooks (both Bailey and Cox are graduates of North Sanpete High, with Bailey being two years younger than the governor).

Cox also congratulated the Parowan boys basketball and girls volleyball teams for their recent state championships and joined with the crowd as they loudly clapped and sang the school’s fight song.

In addition to the Parowan High School student body, the assembly was attended by Iron County School District officials, teachers and staff, civic and community leaders and local law enforcement officers. The respective student government officers from Cedar High and Canyon View High also attended, with the students going up onstage afterward to greet the governor and pose for group photos.

Cox said afterward that his favorite part of the tour is interacting with the students.

“That’s one of the reasons we do this,” he said. “It’s my favorite part of these tours, sitting on stage, asking them questions, them asking me questions, really listening. We’re taking notes and learning from them. And I’m hoping that doing more of this will help them feel more connected, and that they are being heard and that we really are listening.”

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

CONTRIBUTED CONTENT — A small family business from Southern Utah has ranked among the top beef producers in the nation during the recently held Best in the West Beef Competition.

Reyes and Kacie Carballo run Dry Lakes Ranch, a farming and ranching operation dating back to the 1870s in Parowan. Together, they raise beef cattle and sell their beef in a brick-and-mortar shop on Parowan’s historic Main Street.

The competition brought together ranchers from major beef-producing states such as Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Colorado, Montana, Wyoming and more. Ranchers entered a selection of four cuts of beef, which were prepared by a professional chef in a double-blind taste test. The panel of celebrity judges scored the premium-quality beef on smell, texture and taste.

Kacie Carballo and her mother, Kay Benson, who run the meat shop together, carefully selected the cuts that would represent their operation best. They also let their youngest employee join in on the excitement; granddaughter Aria Carballo, who is just 8 years old, helped package and deliver the product to the competition in Riverton, Wyoming, visiting Yellowstone National Park on the way.

The beef cattle that are raised by the family in Iron County graze on native grasses, forbs and legumes in the mountain pastures below Brian Head, a local ski resort town. When the time comes, the beef cattle are finish-fed with a ration of nutrient-dense crops that were grown and harvested on their farm in Parowan.

Finishing cattle is one aspect that most cattle producers don’t conquer nearly as well as Reyes Carballo. It requires a keen sense of crop palatability and nutrient density, as well as the ability to interpret health and happiness in his cattle.

Their beef cattle are also dry-aged in a time-honored tradition.

“Properly dry-aged beef deepens the flavor of our product and tenderizes the beef in a way that mechanical or chemical tenderization can’t compete with,” said Kacie Carballo, owner and operator at the family’s meat shop. “Our beef has incredible flavor and hardly requires anything other than a dash of salt and pepper. Today’s consumer wants high-quality, clean and delicious food. They want an experience too, and we can offer all of that in one fell swoop.”

Dry Lakes Ranch Beef has also brought in products from other local farmers and ranchers and now offers pork, lamb, mutton, turkey and chicken to sell alongside their prize-winning beef.

Although they’re conveniently located, their customers aren’t limited to those in Southern Utah.

“We have customers coming from surrounding towns and cities on a daily basis, and regularly have customers coming from Salt Lake, Las Vegas and even California,” Benson said. “In fact, in the last two months, we’ve had our beef travel to New York City, Hawaii, Alaska and Mexico.”

They must be doing something right – they were the sole representatives from the state of Utah and ranked behind first place in a narrow three-point margin.

Dry Lakes Ranch Beef is located at 73 N. Main St. in historic downtown Parowan. They’re open Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and are closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays every week to haul cattle and fresh beef. They offer meat by the cut and by the pound, and also in bulk purchases if you prefer. Find them online or on social media @drylakesranchbeef.

• S P O N S O R E D C O N T E N T •

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

New signs were installed at the Iron County Fairgrounds in Parowan, Utah on Aug. 13, 2022. Reported by Jeff Richards.

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PAROWAN — New fences, gates and signs, all made out of iron and steel, have recently been installed at the Iron County fairgrounds, just in time for the annual county fair.

Iron County Commissioner Marilyn Wood, who helped bolt the new signs into place on Saturday, said the project was nearly one year in the making.

Wood said she had attended several Parowan City Council meetings last year as officials worked together on an agreement that would enable the county to ultimately take over ownership of the fairgrounds.

The signage and fencing plans for the entryways were among the various improvements that were discussed, Wood said, adding that the upgrades represented “what we envision the fairgrounds to be and the things that we’re planning on doing if the transfer goes through.”

Other improvements include new bleachers in the rodeo grandstands, along with additional space for concessions and vendors.

“When we took it over from Parowan, all of us commissioners felt like we really needed to fix it up and let Parowan know that we were serious about taking it over and making it better,” Wood said.

One important aspect of the sign project, Wood noted, is that it was accomplished at virtually no cost to the county or its taxpayers, as all of the materials, supplies and labor were donated by volunteers, herself and several members of her family included.

Saturday morning, Wood joined her husband Matt Wood in securing the large girders onto the chains using 1-inch bolts, while fellow Iron County Commissioner Paul Cozzens operated the lift below.

Two of the three signs that face 300 East on the fairground’s west entrances say “Iron County Fair,” but the northernmost one says “Old Paragoonah Road.”

Marilyn Wood noted that the driveway underneath the sign follows the path of the original road that linked Parowan and its neighboring town of Paragonah. The “Paragoonah” spelling on the sign is intentional, Wood said, noting that not only is that how the name of the town was originally spelled before one of the o’s was dropped, but also it also better reflects the correct pronunciation.

Wood said she is working on writing up a history of the old Paragoonah Road and the fairgrounds area, which will be placed on an informational marker near a pedestrian entrance on the west side.

The fourth and final marker to be installed Saturday was an “Iron County Fair” sign at the south entrance. For that last sign, Cozzens enlisted the help of his teenage daughter Brooklin, his adult son Brad and two of Brad’s young sons to go up with him on the lift and help attach the bolts.

“It’s part of our history,” Wood said. “These are going to be there for a long time.”

“That’s why Paul wanted to take his kids and grandkids up in that basket,” Wood said. “Every year when they come over to the fair, they’re going to say, ‘I went up there and put that sign up with my grandpa.’”

Altogether, a total of 742 volunteer man-hours were spent on the project, Wood said.

“We want to thank all the people who helped, because that was above and beyond,” she said. “A lot of those guys just put in a ton of work.”

After the basic idea for the entryway signs, gates and fences had been developed, Ron Larson drew up the design plans. Frank Nichols donated the vintage iron pipes, wheels and other metal pieces, with some of it coming from the old Iron Springs mine and the decades-old irrigation wheels coming from a parcel of farmland near Beryl.

Welding supplies were donated by DJB Gas Services and Matt’s Springs and Repair. John Vincent and Matt Wood did most of the cutting and welding work before the fencing sections were transported to Parowan, with Randy Wood doing most of the on-site welding to attach it all together.

BZI Steel donated the steel beams for the signs and also provided the plasma cutter that was used to cut out the letters. Luke Schmid of Cozzens Cabinets handled the computer work needed to send the designs to the cutter. The metal tabs to attach the signs to the chains were cut by Kearney Wood, who is also planning to help Tyson Nelson make gates for the south entrance.

Also helping out on the project were county public works director Bruce Anderson, in addition to Justin Goodwin and others from the county road department.

“We hope that these upgrades will help make our fairgrounds nice and welcoming to visitors,” Marilyn Wood added.

This year’s Iron County Fair, which has the theme of “Light up the Sky,” starts Sept. 1 and runs through Sept. 5. But while the fair is traditionally staged over Labor Day weekend, there are several other related events taking place throughout August. Events that already have happened include the Miss Iron County Pageant on Aug. 6 and the mud run and mud bog events last Saturday. Upcoming events include an ATV excursion, mini car races and a demolition derby on Saturday, and a trail ride and country music concert on Aug. 27.

Sept. 2 will be the first of three nights that a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association rodeo will be staged, with a fireworks show capping off each evening. Folks can also enjoy carnival rides and viewing the many exhibits at the fairgrounds throughout Labor Day weekend.

The Iron County Fair will wrap up on Labor Day (Sept. 5) with a 5K walk and run starting at 8 a.m., with the races being followed by a festive parade up Parowan’s Main Street at 10 a.m. Those events will kick off a full day’s worth of activities. For a full schedule and other details, visit the fair’s page on Iron County’s website.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

Estimated read time: 6-7 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

This story is sponsored by Robert J. DeBry—more than 200 years of combined experience practicing personal injury law. *Robert DeBry is retired from the practice of law.

It's a land where Rykers, Anbres and Kaiges roam free and creative baby names could be considered a fine art. In fact, Utah's penchant for strange baby names has received national attention, but that shouldn't be surprising considering Utah's geographical naming conventions.

Utah is rife with creative names—from Piute Reservoir to shining Panguich. Here are a few of the weirdest-named places in the Beehive State.

Tooele

Too-whata? If you've never heard the name of this Utah town spoken aloud, chances are you'll mispronounce it from the get-go. But when first settled, Tooele was much more phonetically friendly. Originally named Tuilla — pronounced just like it sounds — the town marks one of the state's first settlements, tracing its roots to 1853.

Today, the city of 30,000 remains a colorful community, although the origins of its name remains disputed, according to Tooele City. The Tooele County website reports many believe the word stems from a Native American word, as the Goshutes Indian tribe once lived in the area. Whatever the case, the pronunciation of Tooele is a sure way to tell who is — and more surely, who isn't — from Utah.

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Bicknell

Changing the weird name of a town to another weird name seems to be one of Utah's favorite pastimes. Like Tooele, the south-central Utah town of Bicknell was once called something equally strange: Thurber. Thurber was originally named for the first person to build a house in the area, A.K. Thurber in 1879. In 1897 the town moved in search of better water and soil but kept its name until 1914, according to capitolreef.org.

That's when things got a little funny in Thurber. A wealthy gentleman, Thomas Bicknell, offered a library with 1,000 books to any town that would change its name to his — Bicknell. Thurber wasn't the only willing candidate. Grayson, Utah, also wanted the naming rights — or more likely, the library — and in the end, the two towns shared the library and Grayson took Mrs. Bicknell's maiden name, Blanding, while Thurber officially became Bicknell. Confused yet?

Mexican Hat

Not to be confused with sombrero, Mexican Hat is a small village in southeastern Utah near the Arizona border. The town's funny name has a less-funny (and less creative) story behind it — it's named for the rock formation nearby that looks much like south-of-the-border headgear.

The 60-foot, sombrero-shaped rock sits just northeast of the town and is a sure sign that rafting aficionados have reached their destination.

La Verkin

And yes, that's two words. La Verkin, a small town in Washington County, was home to nearly 4,000 in 2018 according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But ask any of those residents the origin of their town's unique name and you might get nearly 4,000 different explanations. That's because La Verkin's naming story, like that of so many weird-named places in Utah, is largely unknown — and highly speculated.

According to the town's website, there are a few more popular theories. One is that La Verkin was derived (sort of) from a Spanish phrase meaning The Virgin. Others conclude the name is Native American for Beautiful Valley. And there's also evidence to suggest the town may have once been called Beaver Skin Creek, only to deteriorate over the years to LeaverSkin to Lavinskind and finally to La Verkin. Any other guesses?

Duchesne

Go ahead and call it "doo-chez-nee" if you want everyone to know you're not from Duchesne, which is actually pronounced "doo-shane." Of course, the northeastern Utah town has seen its share of name changes throughout the years (and it still settled on the difficult-to-pronounce Duchesne).

The town's naming history includes Dora, named for the daughter of an early settler. Later, the name was changed again to Theodore, after President Theodore Roosevelt. In 1910, the town settled on Duchesne, although many still called it Theodore. The name stuck in 1913 when Duchesne was officially incorporated.

Moab

The name likely makes you think of red rock and recreation, but the town's fame doesn't make its name any less unique. While the state's southern hub for all things outdoors might be quintessentially Utah, its name may be much more eastern —as in middle eastern.

According to a community website, the most accepted theory surrounding its name is biblical in nature. In the Bible, Moab is referenced as a dry and mountainous area near Jerusalem. Of course, Utah's early religious settlers would have known this reference and may have used the name Moab to contrast the dry, red-rocked landscape of Southern Utah from the rest of the Beehive State.

Paragonah

Originally known as Red Creek (which was arguably much easier to say and spell), this Iron County town became Paragoonah before finally and officially settling as Paragonah in the late 19th Century. If that's not confusing enough, the town was settled by residents of the nearby town of Parowan.

The name Paragonah is a Paiute Native American word, thought to mean red water, warm water or many waters — at any rate, it probably has something to do with water. Of course, that was also the case with Red Creek.

Kanab

The name Little Hollywood arguably has a more appealing ring to it than Kanab, but you can't fight history. The town, nicknamed Little Hollywood because of the number of movies filmed there was named Kanab, a Paiute word meaning "place of the willows."

According to the town's website, Kanab was settled in 1864 when Fort Kanab was built on the banks of Kanab Creek. Today, it's not just a popular filming locale, it's also a great spot to settle in when visiting Zion, Bryce or Grand Canyon National Parks.

Amalga

There's a little bit of sugar in Amalga, Utah — literally. In fact, the name of this small town, nestled just three miles west of Smithfield, comes from the sweet plant itself — sort of. The settlement was originally an agricultural community and home to the Amalgamated Sugar Company, for which the town was named, according to a University of Utah publication.

Unfortunately, a sugar beet blight ran the sugar operations in Amalga out of business, but the town – which now has a population of around 500 – continued the sweet life, complete with a central green space known as Sugar Park.

Eggnog

While some Utah town names are hard to pronounce and shrouded with mystery, the origins of others are painfully obvious. Such is the case with Eggnog, an unincorporated community in Garfield County. According to the highly limited information on the World Wide Web regarding this merry, yet mysterious little place, Eggnog was likely named for — wait for it — egg nog.

Utah may be famous for its oddly named geography, but unique names just add to the endless charm of the Beehive State. After all, no one wants to be ordinary — especially in Utah.

Celebrating Utah's uniqueness

Robert J. DeBry & Associates is dedicated to bettering the quality of life in Utah by providing education and services to the Utah community. If you've been injured in an accident and need legal assistance, please contact our office at 801-699-9999.

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