Reflections and Connections

Bound by more than blood

(Final part of the story, see sjrnews.com) After the Norte trial concluded, Mark Gudmundsen didn’t know why some unexplained internal force compelled him to move to Bluff and work for his granduncle, Jacob Adams. Unknown to Mark, Jacob had a nearly identical experience forty-four years earlier. ...

Mark Gudmundsen receives the Distinguished Flying Cross in World War II. Courtesy photo

The burdens we carry

(Part 3 of series. Mark Gudmundsen shot and killed Alexander Norte in Part 1. Gudmundsen found not guilty of murder in Part 2. Oct 2 and 9 SJR or sjrnews.com.) We all carry personal burdens. Some are conquered easily and others are not. The more difficult ones are sometimes rechristened as demons....

State of Utah vs Mark Gudmundsen

(Part 2 of a series. In Part 1, Mark Gudmundsen shot and killed Alexander Norte in 1935 near Parowan. See the Oct 2 SJR or sjrnews.com.) A Coroner’s jury convened the next day to review the facts to determine if a murder trial of Gudmundsen was justified. On the stand, Gudmundsen admitted to...

Mark Gudmundsen from his Burley High School yearbook.

A cowboy’s personal demons

Tom Doherty, a 20-year veteran police officer said... “Even if you’re justified, killing someone means you’ve taken something away that can never be given back, never replaced, never repaired, never ameliorated. It’s absolutely irreversible. That’s a heavy burden to carry...” Years ago, I had the...

Monticello High School football team that claimed a state title in 1969. Front Row, I to r: Terry Nash, Randy Butler, Donny Torres, Mark Adams, David Bronson, John Roring, Keele Johnson, Dave Smith, Steven Maughn, Richard Smith, Curtis Redd, Mike Wilcox, Scott Boyle, Back Row, I to r: Jimmy Broderick, Kipper Wight, Danny Cressler, Tom Evans, Bill Codner, John Larsen, Joe Mirabol, Ron Wat- Dalton, John Johnson, Roy Dean Cressler, Paul Nielson, Kerry Freestone, Spencer Frost, John Snyder, John Fellmeth.

Broncos help Bucks win first state football championship in 1969

Most who know me are thinking, “What is this guy doing commenting on sports? He barely knows the difference between a football and a basketball, and he certainly wasn’t any good at either game!” Yep, right on both counts, but I have a perspective on the last game of that 1969 season not shared by...

Janet Ross poses with a quilt featuring panels from chapters in her new book A Place Called Home. Staff photo

A sense of place

In her recently published book titled A Place Called Home: Quilting a Life of Joy on the Colorado Plateau, Janet Ross spoke to me of the need to develop and maintain a strong “sense of place”. From the Preface of that book… “…from a sense of place, we form a commitment to protect the place where we...