Good Neighbor Award

We have an April Good Neighbor Winner!  He has served Hyde Park both on the Planning Commission and the Lion's Club. It is Mark Lynne!

Mark is the go-to guy if one has any questions about ordinances, what was done in the past, and all things Hyde Park.  His knowledge and historical knowledge are invaluable.  It would be impossible to count all the hours and hours, days, months, and years that he has given to us in service.  Mark is a member of the Planning Commission and regularly attends City Council and other city meetings to stay up on everything.   And then we can add his Lion's Club service and all that he has done to make it a success.  The Lion's Club is responsible for our fun Memorial Day Breakfast.   The funds from the breakfast go to support the city Easter Hunt, glasses for those in need, and other charitable projects.   Mark has served and helped so many through all his service and sacrifice.  Thanks is surely not enough!  We appreciate all he has done and continues to do! Congratulations Mark on being an amazing Good Neighbor!

Dave & Elisa Hoffman are our March Good Neighbors. They have made a big impact in our community with the service they have given with Ultimate Frisbee. We received 2 nominations for them. One reported that "they were watching games with about 600 kids running, laughing, jumping and diving and then congratulating one another on good plays, even the opposing team. Dave & Elisa set up water tables, mark fields, place scoreboards, and signal game starts and ends. And they do this at the RSL building too; moving soccer goals and walled curtains to switch from soccer to frisbee, getting games going, and blowing the horn for halftime and the end of games. They both interact with all the youth and young adults and always with a smile." The other nomination mentioned that "Dave is volunteer extraordinaire. He runs the city league which has games for middle school, high school, and adult teams. Dave also coaches the girl's high school team. All of this is volunteer!"

The Good Neighbor was announced at our program on Saturday evening of Hometown Days. In case you missed it, it was an easy and logical nomination from our mayor Bryan Cox, Car Show Director Landon Wiley, and City Councilperson Stephanie Allred. Our Good Neighbor winner for July is Marci Case! Marci is constantly working and serving Hyde Park residents. She serves a lot behind the scenes so you might not have realized it. She helped plan and execute our Car Show including registering cars, helping with the kids' box cars, and assisting the youth council in their responsibilities. Marci is the advisor for the youth council and helped with lots of preparations before Hometown Days. She created the banners for our Grand Marshals and Mini Moo float, found and organized prizes, and helped the youth council with their tie-dye shirts, just to name a few. It’s really quite endless in the service she renders. She was on the committee for the Car Show and the Hyde Porker BBQ contest lending ideas to make them both successful. She worked and served all through the Car Show and the entire day Saturday to help make Hometown Days a success. Marci works year-round starting with interviews and putting together the youth council. Her favorite youth council activity has to be the Spook Alley. Her ideas and vision make it a scary and fun activity for everyone. We are very lucky to have Marci serving in our city and helping in so many ways. Thank you Marci for being an incredible Good Neighbor to all of us!

And the winner for June is Kirt Sadler! Our Good Neighbor had a very busy winter thanks to all the snow that fell on Hyde Park. The nomination letter we received explained that they had noticed that Kirt routinely sent his work crew out to shovel snow. There were many houses that they dug out many times. The person commented how impressed they were to see this crew of 5 or 6 men happily shoveling people out and Kirt making it happen. Think back to our crazy winter to realize what a service this was! We were happy to meet Kirt and leave a basket of really great stuff to say thank you.

We know there were many that helped shovel snow all winter long and a big thank you to everyone who served others in that way. We live in a special place with the best people!

It was a 'treat' to surprise our Good Neighbors with a tasty basket of goodies. Stephanie and Joe Harding are the perfect people for the Good Neighbor Award. They are the best kind of people and are willing to help and serve in many different ways. They have opened their home for parties, socials, and dinners for soccer teams, Hyde Park royalty, the Youth Council, the Jr Council, and many more. They are friendly and welcoming to all and they love bringing people together. Stephanie hosts a fun Witches Night at Halloween with an open invitation to join the fun. She has also helped with the YC Spook Alley in creating rooms and anything else she was asked to do. Stephanie and Joe spent a year serving on the HP Royalty Committee. They spent countless hours undoing, re-doing, and building the new float. Joe used his building/construction skills to make sure the float was perfect. They both took many turns pulling the float in the parades that year all around the valley. And now Stephanie and Joe have been helping with the HP parade as Parade Coordinators. Their service includes soccer team coordinators, bake sale fundraisers, mowing, weeding, and helping neighbors.  They are both energetic, outgoing, fun and as you can see, service minded! And if you meet them you'll be instant friends. They have hearts of gold! Congrats to Stephanie & Joe and thanks for helping to make Hyde Park a wonderful place to live!

The luck of the Irish is with us in Hyde Park as we are lucky to have a city filled with wonderful people. And we are especially lucky to have Mike Tremayne as our Good Neighbor!

The Youth Council was joined by several neighbors in surprising and celebrating Mike as our winner this month. Mike serves on the Board of Directors for the 55+ community and it seems it was a community effort to nominate and acknowledge all that he has done to serve on the board and in his neighborhood. Mike spends time serving by clearing snow off many of the sidewalks, both for those that are unable to do their own and sometimes for those that are able to do it for themselves. It seems that he has been especially busy this year with all the snow! Mike is willing to help out with whatever is needed, and his neighbors express great appreciation for all he does!

February is a month of love and the Youth Council loved surprising our Good Neighbor. We think you're going to love this month's Good Neighbor Winner too - it's Larry Winborg! Many years ago Larry was asked to create a monument that would celebrate and depict the history of Hyde Park. And wow, did he ever serve us with his amazing talents! You can see the results of his genius in thought, imagination, and talent in the monument that is in front of our city building. This historical depiction is also in color in a beautiful oil painting in our city building's foyer. It has 5 panels that start with the Native American Shoshoni who lived in the valley for over 800 years as they lived and raised families, hunted, fished, and gathered food in the same mountains, streams, and canyons that surround us. Next came the trappers and frontiersmen who explored and cached furs. They opened this land and prepared the way for those that came next - the Mormon Pioneers. Men, women, and children, at great sacrifice, crossed oceans and rivers and walked more than a thousand miles to reach these valleys. They were followed by pioneers of many faiths. They established and built communities from California to Colorado, Canada to Mexico. The message of Larry's creation is to remember the settlers of Hyde Park who began plowing fields, digging canals, and building homes, farms, and schools. They raised strong and enduring families here. Remember that their efforts planted the seeds of all we now harvest and enjoy in this beautiful place. 'May we remember. May we always remember.'
Larry has been putting his creativity to work again as he considers ideas for the roundabout that will be on Center Street and Wolf Pack Way. His ideas are not just beautiful renderings but are filled with rich meaning and much thought, just as the monument is. We are beyond blessed and lucky to have such a gifted artist in our city and one who is willing to devote so much time to serving our community.

Larry has also served the residents in our city through his church. Again spending countless hours of service in many different ways to help and love neighbors and friends. He has shown his love for Hyde Park and the people who live here by being proactive in trying to preserve its beauty and personality. And we all know that behind all that service is a great woman with lots of support! Sydney and Larry are a powerful team and we are so grateful for all they have done for us. Congratulations to the Winborgs!

Our new Good Neighbor is John Lee! He has served Hyde Park for a long time and is so deserving of being honored. John has served Hyde Park and beyond in many sports. He has run the baseball program with scheduling and coordination with cities across the valley. John has been involved in every aspect of the different sports programs including signups, team rosters, field prep, uniforms, umpires, and coaching. John has coached not only baseball but lots of soccer and basketball also. He has either run our city's summer softball tournament or has been heavily involved including coordinating rosters and teams, field prep, and umpires. John has been involved in youth in our city in many aspects including scouts and camps, etc. His computer organizational skills were put to great use in coordinating many activities for the youth in the city. If you have ever coached or have been in charge of sign-ups or even prepping the fields then you have an understanding of the extent of John's amazing service throughout the years! There is so much work behind the scenes to pull off successful sports programs and John has managed to do just that! It would be overwhelming to know how many of our youth and parents in Hyde Park have been recipients of John's service. Thank you John on behalf of everyone who has benefited from your service!

Our November Good Neighbors are Mandy and Lance Gittins! We heard that the Gittins family are the first ones to help and love those around them and they lend many a helping hand. They have helped a neighbor put in a yard, have brightened days with a gift and the Gittins are concerned about the welfare and needs of families around them. They have also served and helped many people at Autumn Care. "Mandy bakes amazing bread and shares it with all." "She has become close friends to those who are home bound and need a friend." Lance is hard-working and so handy. He can fix fences or anything in the neighborhood and he is the one to help move trees and play with the kids. One nomination letter said, "We love the Gittins family. We have been shown love many times by their family."

"Their whole family is such a great example to ours of serving and loving." What a lovely tribute to a wonderful family! It's perfect for our holiday season as we reflect on all the things we are thankful for.

It's a month to be thankful and we are thankful for good neighbors everywhere in our city. We are especially thankful for this month's Good Neighbor couple -- they are Micah & Kari Barker!

We loved showing up and surprising them with our basket of goodies. They are described as wonderful neighbors as they "generously share from their garden, shovel snow, haul wood or dirt and fix a broken anything." Micah is described as always being the first one to show up when help is needed. "You never even need to ask—he just seems to appear out of nowhere ready to be of assistance. He is a real handyman and is so willing and anxious to help in any way." He is described as a guardian angel as he has gotten his neighbors out of more than one bind. Kari is his equal as she "has a wave, a smile, and a cheerful greeting whenever you pass by. She gives wonderful hugs and is full of words of encouragement whenever someone is down or struggling in any way." You can see why their neighbors are so grateful for the Barkers. And we as a Youth Council want to thank them for spreading lots of love in Hyde  Park and making a difference in their neighborhood!

No Halloween tricks here, only treats with wonderful Good Neighbors - Bruce & Brenda Dana!   The person nominating them thought they had probably already received the award because of what good neighbors they are.  New residents to Hyde Park said that the Danas “have been the most kind and sweet hearted people my little family has met!  They were the first neighbors to introduce themselves and welcome us to the community, as well as bring some sweets that my kiddos were very excited about!”  

They went on to tell us that Bruce notices them out hand shoveling the snow and lends his snowblower to help.  And the Danas saved the day with strength when they rescued a new puppy that got her head stuck under the fence.  Talks and visits with Bruce and Brenda are especially enjoyed!  And even the kids ask to go and visit our Good Neighbor winners.

Thanks to the Danas for the kindness they have helped to spread throughout Hyde Park!  They have embraced the saying: never pass up an opportunity to make someone's day.

Cue the drum roll, we have our August Good Neighbor Award winner ----- Reed Elder!

The Youth Council surprised Reed in the middle of August with a huge basket of treats and gift cards.  Reed is one of our favorites because of all the service he has done for us as a Youth Council.  He has helped us with our Spook Alley for years with not only ideas but supplies.  Weird things like 8" round pipe to hold tree limbs for spook alley trees and 5-gallon buckets with sand in the bottom to hold said pipes and tree branches, etc.  And he always helps with a smile and kindness.  Reed has also supplied the Side by Side that we used at the city celebration to pull the Barrel Train Car.  And both last year and this year along with the gas to drive it!!  He also supplied a second Side by Side that was used by our Road Apple Committee.  So many enjoyed fun at the celebration thanks to Reed!

Reed has given many, many hours through the years to Hyde Park through his service on the City Council and other committees.  You might not know this but these committees are volunteer hours where expertise is given to benefit all of us.  But now you know that all of us in Hyde Park have enjoyed the advantage of having such a great neighbor in our city!  We also thank Valerie because we know that behind all that service is a wonderful spouse that helps to make it happen.  Thank you Reed and Valerie for all you have given to help and serve Hyde Park!

We want to give a special thanks to our sponsors.  They help us put together an amazing and envious gift basket!  Alvey's Chocolates, Plant Peddler Floral, Kathy Kaye Foods, Great Harvest Bread Company, The Old Grist Mill, and Maverik of Hyde Park.  Please support these wonderful businesses!

Congratulations to the Trevor & Cheryl Harrison family!    They have served Hyde Park in so many ways.

Cheryl has been serving on the Youth Council since 2020 as an advisor and spent hours upon hours serving.  Not only has she created rooms for the Spook Alley, but she spearheaded a Leprechaun Treasure Hunt and helped with other activities every single month.  She has been a huge part of the Youth Council's success and fun!  She has a great talent for coming up with new ideas along with one that you will be hearing about -- the Hyde Porker Barbecue Contest.

Trevor has amazing graphic artistic talents he shared with the city.  If you have noticed the YC's t-shirts then you have seen the cool graphic design on the front. Trevor also designed the amazing and classy Car Show logo.  He used his skills to put the logo on business cards, posters, placards, and shirts.

Kyra & Hunter have both served on the Youth Council and have given lots and lots of hours to our community and beyond!  Kyra is currently on the council and we hope she stays for a long time.  She was the first to the Fun Run to help there and then to the parade to help with traffic and then spent the day helping run the games at our celebration and the activities in the evening.

The Harrison family has given a great deal of service in Hyde Park with smiles and kindness.  We appreciate all they have done to help make HP our little slice of heaven.