News Stories
I have written many news stories in my job as a public relations specialist, as well as on various topics for college assignments. Short news stories are provided here in my portfolio.
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Much of my current published work can be found in Utah State Today under my byline. Additional stories can be found in the annual reports from the Utah Water Research Laboratory.
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During fall 2022, I worked for BYU's The Daily Universe on the lifestyle desk. Although I wrote on a variety of human-interest topics, I am most proud of my work on sustainability and climate action. My published news articles can be found in the blue section below.
Human Profile
This is the written part to the interview video found on the Video page.
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There were many things Aydan Huezo liked about South Korea: the food, the people, the other kids on base. It was there he adapted to life in a military family, following wherever his dad’s job took them.
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Now 22 years old, Aydan Huezo has joined the ROTC at BYU to follow in his father’s footsteps. His preparation to enter the US Air Force has taught him to find balance between his love for his family and his love for his country.
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As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Aydan’s parents instilled in him a desire to serve his family; as a member of the US army, Aydan’s father Alfonso inspired in him a desire to serve his country.
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“He definitely looks up to his dad and is extremely grateful to him for his service in the military and for always being there for us even though it is a demanding career,” said Adeline Huezo, Aydan’s mother.
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Growing up in a military family enabled Aydan to experience different cultures, especially when his family was stationed in South Korea and Germany.
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“It helped me realize that our world is huge but beautiful, and we need to make every effort to try and understand each other despite our differences,” Aydan said.
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Currently, Aydan is making every effort to juggle his many responsibilities: planning, scheduling, carving out time for homework and workouts.
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His roommate, Branden Kinghorn, noticed how the ROTC has made Aydan more respectful, obedient, and dedicated. “He definitely has a lot of willpower.”
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And Aydan’s willpower fuels his excitement for his future career as a tactical air control party officer, which he says entails being on the front lines to provide air support for infantry units.
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As Aydan continues on his journey, he is excited to express his national pride but also looks forward with faith to raise a family.
“It’s actually a deep conflicting feeling within me—knowing that family is everything, but then also having this extremely, like huge, desire to serve in the military. …I continue to look to the Lord for guidance on that. This is the path that I’ve chosen so far—who knows what will happen in the future.”
Wildlife and Range Club restores Provo delta riverbanks
BYU's Wildlife and Range Club held a restoration project at the Provo River delta on Saturday Nov. 5.
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Volunteers cut willow poles at the site of a future park and planted them along the delta to help restore the riverbanks and create hatching grounds for the June sucker fish.
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Paula Trater is a biological technician from the Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission. She worked with the Wildlife and Range Club to put together this conservation project.
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"Who doesn't want to root for the native fish?" Trater said.
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She said there were originally 13 species of native fish in Utah Lake, and now there are only three left. The June sucker is one of them.
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"We're doing everything we can to bring them from the brink," Trater said.
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She said the site they are planting the willows at used to be Skipper Bay. It is about 260 acres that will hopefully provide enough habitat for the fish in their vulnerable larval stage.
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"The fish and the humans — we're connected," Trater said. "What's good for the fish is going to be good for us down the line."
The students spent the first hour in the mud, armed with work gloves and pruners. Trater said that all the willows on the future park site would be destroyed, so they gathered as many clippings as they could to transplant them to the bay site.
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The students spent the second hour at the bay, fixing the branches into coconut-fiber riverbanks.
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Jake Barnes, a senior in the wildlife and wildlands conservation major, is the president of the Wildlife and Range Club. He said the club's goal is to help those interested in the field to network and get field experience that they would not otherwise get in their traditional classes.
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"It's just a fun atmosphere and it helps you get jobs that not only bring fulfillment and fun, but also I feel like it can help you connect very well with other people and God and His creations," Barnes said.
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Eliza Cash is a member of the Wildlife and Range Club. She said she got involved because her friends in the major were a part of it.
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"We're getting the opportunity to plant some stuff and to get exposure to different kinds of job opportunities in our future," Cash said.
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Cash said that conservation is a joint effort between those who take care of the wildlife and those who take care of the wildlands. Restoring the wildlands of the Provo river with these willows, Cash said, "will ultimately help the wildlife."
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"This is a very community-based project, and it's fun to see what projects influence the people around us and how the community can get involved," Cash added.
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Trater said anyone can sign up for the Saturday tours they do from April to August, and there is always work to be done with invasive species and wild gardening.
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"There's a lifetime's worth of work for you guys out there," Trater said, speaking to the club volunteers. "There's lots of stuff that needs to be restored."
Covering a Government Meeting
UTAH—A bill outlining the process to choose a new name for Dixie State University passed 6-1 in the Senate Education committee meeting on Mar. 1.
The bill is a substitute that lengthens the name-choosing process to include more public feedback and involvement. It also includes a heritage committee appropriated $500,000 to honor the name “Dixie” that will be used on campus.
“We recognize the great heritage in southern Utah and in the Dixie community in St. George,” said the bill’s chief sponsor Kelly B. Miles.
Over 200 people attended the meeting virtually as well as in-person, both for and against the name change. Senate Sponsor Michael K. Mckell recognized several students who had commuted from Dixie State University to speak in the meeting, including Penny Mills, DSU’s Student Body President, and Miss Dixie State winner Morgan Olson.
Both spoke in favor in favor of the bill. “It’s in the best interest of our students, of our peers, of our futures,” said Mills. She spoke of the deep concerns among the students regarding the university’s name, concerns that many didn’t know about until Cicero Group conducted a study.
During the public debate, several graduates from DSU said they’ve found opposition to their alma mater’s name as they’ve entered the workplace outside of Utah. Many have left the name off their resumes in order to avoid problems.
DSU President Williams sees these issues as the main reason behind the name change. “This is not about cancelling our heritage,” he said. “This is about saving the future of our graduates by celebrating our past and how it has created a foundation for this future.”
Many members of the St. George community spoke against the bill during the public debate, and several of the comments were about perceived one-sided proceedings.
Troy Blanchard, a community member raising his children in the area, said that the community has not been able to present its case, while the university has been given a full time slot during the meeting to present a united front.
Others opposed spoke of cancel culture. “The heritage, the tradition, the culture of southern Utah is quickly being eroded by this,” said St. George lawyer Tim Anderson.
The bill ultimately passed and will go on to the Senate for a floor debate. Name recommendations are projected to return to the Utah State Higher Education Board by the end of 2021.