Utah News

Patriotism is an oft-spoken word around Independence Day — and whenever there are historic moments grabbing Americans’ attention, such as U.S. military conflicts or a presidential election.

Given the fast-approaching Fourth of July holiday and the developing military crisis in Iran, Utahns can expect to hear plenty of talk about patriotism — and what it means to be a patriot.

It’s a complex subject that, while widely admired, is not always agreeably defined.

So where does the Beehive State rank on the “Red-White-&-Blue Pride Scale” compared to other states?

Pretty high — but not quite in the Top-10, according to a recently released WalletHub report.

Utah is ranked 12th in the “2025’s Most Patriotic States in America” report that measures 13 key indicators ranging from military enlistment numbers and veteran populations to volunteerism and voting in presidential elections.

“The most patriotic states have a lot of residents who serve or have served in the armed forces, high voter turnouts during elections and a high share of the population volunteering with national or local organizations,” noted WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

”Patriotism also isn’t concentrated in any one particular area — the top states are located in vastly different geographic regions.”

Utah’s celebrated volunteer rates are the primary reason for its top-12 report ranking in the patriotism study.

The state claimed the nation’s top spot in the “volunteer rate” and in the “volunteer hours per resident” metrics. Utah has an overall “civic engagement” ranking of No. 9.

But Utah’s overall patriotism ranking takes a bit of a hit because it’s on the back-half of the report’s “Military Engagement” ranking — coming in at No. 35.

Report: How to measure patriotism

In determining the most patriotic states, WalletHub compared all 50 states across two key dimensions: “civic engagement” and ”military engagement.”

The civic dimension counted for 75% of the scoring and included metrics such as a state’s share of adults who voted in the 2024 presidential election — along with several weighted volunteerism metrics such as “volunteers hours per resident” and service in volunteer organizations such as the Peace Corps.

Civic engagement points were also awarded for jury participation and whether a state requires civics education in school.

Utah: A volunteerism and civic education hub

Research recently gathered by the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute on the benefits of higher education revealed that Utah possesses greater income equality than any other state — while “ranking first for both formal volunteerism and informal helping among all 50 states.”

Informal helping is defined as the estimated share of residents who exchange favors with neighbors and do things like house sitting, watching each other’s children and lending tools to each other.

Institutionally, volunteerism and humanitarian service are also rewarded in Utah.

The University of Utah, for example, recently announced it would offer academic credit to students for “prior learning and service” that includes voluntary religious missions and participation in the Peace Corps and AmeriCorps.

Meanwhile, a recently passed law now requires graduating Utah high school students to pass 3.5 units of social studies — including a yearlong course on American constitutional government and citizenship.

Lower military engagement scores

Utah finished No. 35 in WalletHub’s “military engagement” dimension — which accounted for a quarter of the total points awarded in the patriotism report.

The report’s military-related metrics included the average military enlistees per 1,000 civilian adults between 2016 and 2021, veterans per 1,000 civilian adults, active-duty military personnel per 100,000 civilian adults, and the share of civilian adult population in military reserves.

A separate WalletHub study recently ranked Utah No. 29 in the state’s ability to provide veterans with a comfortable military retirement. In that study, the Beehive State scored high marks in economic factors — but much lower scores in quality of life and health care rankings.

‘Old Dominion’ tops patriotism report

So which state claimed WalletHub’s top spot in its 2025 patriotism report? Virginia.

For every 100,000 civilians in Virginia, there are over 1,850 active-duty military personnel, the third-most in the country, according to the report. And for every 1,000 civilians, there are over 103 veterans, the second-most in the country.

Virginia also ranks high on the report’s civic side.

The commonwealth has a high voter turnout rate, with 72.9% of residents having voted in the 2024 presidential election, compared to the national average of 66%.

Virginia also has the fifth-highest number of Peace Corps volunteers per capita, and it is one of the many states that require a standalone course in civics for high school graduation, according to the report.

The other four states numbered among the patriotism report’s top-5 list include Montana, Vermont, Colorado and Oregon.

Arkansas, meanwhile, is at the bottom of Wallethub’s “Most Patriotic States” list. It’s ranked No. 29 in “military engagement” and No. 50 in civic engagement.

A vote on whether to repeal a law banning public employee unions from negotiating contracts with their government employers won’t be on the ballot until Nov. 3, 2026, Gov. Spencer Cox announced Monday.

The governor had the option of calling a special election to put it before voters during municipal elections this November, but that would have come with some additional costs and logistical challenges.

In 2023, when the state had a special election to replace retiring 2nd Congressional District Rep. Chris Stewart, lawmakers allocated $2.5 million to cover the extra costs.

While many cities and towns have elections this November, some races are not contested — in Salt Lake City, for example, just four of the seven council districts are up — and voters in unincorporated areas of counties would not normally vote in those elections either.

Holding the vote in 2025, however, could have been beneficial for some lawmakers by ensuring that they would not be up for reelection at the same time as the vote on whether to repeal the anti-labor bill, Utah State University political scientist Damon Cann said recently.

The referendum could drive voter turnout and impact the outcome in swing districts.

Last session, Republican lawmakers passed HB267, a bill banning government entities from negotiating with public employee unions. Its main impact was on teacher unions, but it also impacted some police officers, firefighters, health care workers, librarians, and others.

Labor groups fought back, collecting more than 320,000 signatures in 30 days — 251,590 were eventually deemed valid — from voters to put a measure on the ballot to repeal the law, making it the most successful signature-gathering effort in state history.

The law has been put on hold pending the outcome of the November 2026 election.

Both the labor backers of the repeal effort and a group supporting the law and opposing repeal have said they were indifferent when the vote occurs and that their side would prevail, whether it is held this November or next.

If Cox had decided to call a special election, it would not have been the first time in Utah. In 2007, then-Gov. Jon Huntsman called a special election for a referendum to repeal the Legislature’s school voucher law. Utahns voted two-to-one to repeal the voucher law.

WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah (ABC4) — The Utah Grizzlies announced on social media Sunday evening they have begun the process of exploring a potential sale of the team.

“This is an emotional and difficult moment for our family and our organization,” the Elmore Sports Group, current owners of the Grizzlies, said in a statement. “Utah has been more than a home—it has been part of our identity. But ensuring the Grizzlies have the opportunity to thrive in the future may require new ownership and, potentially, a new home.”

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The team says in their statement the decision to explore a sale follows a period of transition for the longtime owners, following the death of former owner Dave Elmore in 2023 and the declining health of current co-owner Donna Tuttle.

The Grizzlies will compete in the 2025-26 season as normal.

No official sale or possible relocation has been finalized as both will require formal approval from the ECHL and other stakeholders.

The Grizzlies have been playing in Utah since 1995 when the team moved from Denver and have been playing at the Maverik Center since its opening in 1997.

Full statement from the Utah Grizzlies:

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Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah.

The tiny community of Pinto, located about 14 miles north of Pine Valley, is now under evacuation orders as the Forsyth Fire continues to spread.

Residents with trucks and trailers were seen leaving the remote settlement, which is only accessible by dirt road and difficult to find on maps. Some evacuees were transporting farm animals from the area’s numerous agricultural properties.

Others were arriving to help friends and neighbors evacuate their belongings and livestock.

“I came up to get my friend’s camp trailer and maybe drive a side-by-side down to Newcastle just to make sure it was out of the fire if it came down this way,” Jamie Gardner said.

The Salt Lake Tribune and Fox 13 News are content-sharing partners.

As high-desert winds swept through under a late-morning sun, a small group gathered Saturday on public land east of Lisbon Valley to protest the reopening of the Velvet-Wood uranium mine — Utah’s first project approved under a federal fast-track process tied to a declared national energy emergency.

The protest drew about 20 people to a site just over four miles from the Velvet-Wood mine in San Juan County, which will produce both uranium and vanadium. Uranium can be processed into fuel for nuclear reactors, while vanadium is commonly used in steel alloys.

From that vantage point, attendees could see the rugged hills in the distance, with the mine sites tucked behind them. Wind whipped through handmade banners that read “Don’t fast-track Utah into a wasteland,” “Keep Shootaring Mill closed” and “Stop Velvet-Wood Uranium Mine.”

“This cannot be happening,” said Luis Miranda, one of the organizers. “We are fast-tracking ourselves into creating a wasteland in Utah out of this precious environment. Today, we’re gathered here because we need to do something about this.”

The Velvet‑Wood project, owned by Canadian company Anfield Energy Inc., was approved by the Bureau of Land Management in May — just 11 days after the Interior Department ordered the agency to complete an environmental review within 14 days. That directive came in the wake of a January executive order from President Donald Trump declaring a “national energy emergency,” which allowed federal agencies to shorten certain reviews from months or years to as little as two weeks.

Critics say the accelerated timeline bypasses meaningful environmental analysis and public input.

“This fast-tracked permitting is reckless, unjust and dangerous,” said Ava Curtis, an environmental justice coordinator with a New Mexico-based coalition focused on uranium mining impacts and one of the protest’s organizers. “There’s just no way to ensure safety in such a short amount of time.”

The protest was the first of two being held Saturday. After the Velvet-Wood gathering, some participants planned to caravan 180 miles along the proposed ore transport route to the dormant Shootaring Canyon Mill near Ticaboo, which Anfield also plans to reopen. The route crosses tribal lands, Bears Ears National Monument and the Colorado River — raising concerns about potential contamination from uranium-laden trucks.

“These projects enrich foreign investors while endangering U.S. communities and sacred lands,” the press release about the event stated. “Permitting uranium operations that impact sovereign tribal lands, water systems and national monuments without public or tribal consent is a violation of trust.”

The Velvet-Wood site, which produced about 400,000 tons of ore between 1979 and 1984 before shutting down, now contains more than 5 million pounds of uranium ore, according to Anfield. The company says reopening the mine will disturb only three additional acres. If the Shootaring Mill does not reopen, the White Mesa Mill near Blanding — owned by Energy Fuels — remains a possible site for processing.

While the Bureau of Land Management has approved the project’s environmental assessment, Anfield still needs multiple state and federal permits before mining can begin. The Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining must approve the mine plan; the Division of Water Quality must sign off on a pilot water treatment plan; and the Division of Air Quality must authorize construction and modification of ventilation shafts. The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration also must approve mine safety infrastructure, and the project may still require local land-use or utility permits.

Curtis said she’s particularly alarmed by Anfield’s plan to pump and treat more than 50 million gallons of water currently stored in the mine.

“There’s the concern about specific health impacts of this mine — how it affects the community and the water — but also the precedent this sets for future extraction of uranium and other critical minerals,” she said.

State and federal officials have embraced the project as part of Utah’s broader effort to become a leader in the domestic nuclear energy supply chain. The state’s energy strategy includes investments in small modular reactors, uranium enrichment and fuel-processing infrastructure. In May, Gov. Spencer Cox praised the Velvet-Wood mine as an example of “a faster, more efficient permitting process” that supports energy independence.

U.S. Sen. John Curtis called the mine “vital,” citing national security concerns and the need to reduce uranium imports from Russia and China.

Miranda said those arguments overlook the environmental and social costs.

“What I’m seeing is a lot of false solutions,” he said. “Multinational companies get contracts to build these things that come at a constant cost to ratepayers, when we have other forms of energy.”

Jessica Wiarda, a Hopi researcher working in Utah through a fellowship with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, said uranium extraction often parallels colonization.

“It’s like a poison,” she said, describing uranium’s visual similarity to corn pollen, a sacred substance in many Native cultures. “Instead of worshipping the corn, some people are worshipping the yellowcake instead.”

Uranium’s path from mine to reactor begins with ore extraction. The ore is then processed at a mill into a concentrated powder called yellowcake, which is converted into gas and enriched before being turned into fuel pellets used in nuclear reactors.

Several members of the White Mesa Community — a Ute Mountain Ute village south of Blanding — also attended the protest. Residents there have long opposed the nearby White Mesa Mill, the country’s only operational conventional uranium mill.

“Our lands that belong to us … look how beautiful it is out here,” said Yolanda Badback. “Digging holes in the ground and hurting our Mother Earth, it’s like hurting us. She hurts as well.”

Local residents helped coordinate the protest through Moab Mutual Aid.

“The land needs us,” said Rachel Gravens, representing Moab Mutual Aid. “It is not just empty space. It isn’t just used for extraction. It is sacred and we need to be here to speak up for it and protect it.”

For Miranda, Saturday’s gathering was one step in a larger campaign against the extractive industry on the Colorado Plateau.

“This fight did not begin last month or with the Trump administration,” he said. “This land was stolen centuries ago and continues to be colonized. We continue to destroy the only possibility of a future beyond climate catastrophe.”

There’s never a dull moment in college football recruiting.

That was the case on Saturday night, as three-star wide receiver Perrion Williams pledged his commitment to the University of Utah during his official visit to Salt Lake City.

Major League Baseball should be in Utah. I’ll never stop saying it.

But while league expansion isn’t coming anytime soon, and the odds of another abrupt Arizona Coyotes-style relocation falling into Utah’s lap are low, that doesn’t mean the Beehive State can’t still host big league ball in the near future.

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As baseball’s widespread popularity has declined in recent years, MLB has been forced to get creative and try new things as a means to drum up more interest in the sport.

One such innovation has been the addition of “specialty games” to the league’s calendar each summer. These neutral site contests are played in unique locations and carry a specific theme that MLB can market like crazy during the July/August sports lull that precedes football season.

There have been 12 specialty games since 2016, with two more coming up in 2025. The most famous came in the form of the “Field of Dreams” game in 2021, when the Yankees and White Sox faced off in the famed Iowa cornfield from Kevin Costner’s 1989 tearjerker.

The event was such a smash hit that MLB brought it back the following year. The “Field of Dreams” game worked for three major reasons:

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• Solid, beloved source material to theme everything around.

• Cranking up the nostalgia factor to the max.

• A memorable, scenic location.

There’s a Utah version of the “Field of Dreams” game that could follow the exact same formula. It’s such a no-brainer that I can’t believe it hasn’t happened already.

Two words: “The Sandlot.”

‘You’re killing me, Smalls!’

If you’ve never seen “The Sandlot,” my condolences. You were either robbed of an important adolescent experience or didn’t provide it to your own children.

The film follows a young boy named Scotty Smalls who moves to a new town and is welcomed into a group of neighborhood boys who play baseball together every day in the summer of 1962.

The 1993 classic was filmed almost entirely in Utah, joining an esteemed collection of cinematic achievements within the state that include “Dumb and Dumber,” “Footloose,” “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” and “The Phone Call.”

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“The Sandlot” isn’t the best baseball movie ever made — truthfully, it probably doesn’t even crack the top five — but it very well may be the genre’s most iconic entry. It’s the seminal childhood flick, perfectly depicting the magic, terror and wonder of growing up and the bond shared with your closest friends.

Plus, it’s endlessly quotable, visually appealing, has a terrific musical score and introduced the world to the legends of Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez and “The Great Hambino” Ham Porter.

Seriously, Ham Porter puts up a Hall of Fame performance in this film. His actor, Patrick Renna — who looks the exact same today as he did in 1993 — really should have gotten some Oscar buzz for his work as Ham. As Babe Ruth says in the movie, “Heroes get remembered, but legends never die.”

So yes, “The Sandlot” definitely fits the bill as beloved source material to base an entire specialty game upon.

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Aside from the “Field of Dreams” game, MLB has done specialty games at the College World Series, Little League World Series, at a U.S. military base and a historic Negro Leagues stadium in Alabama.

This year, the Little League World Series game will return, along with a meeting between the Braves and Mets at … Tennessee’s Bristol Motor Speedway.

That’s right. MLB is playing a specialty game at a NASCAR racetrack. If that’s the best idea the league could come up with for this year, clearly the need for a “Sandlot” game is greater than I originally thought. Let’s make this happen.

Features for the game

The “Field of Dreams” game began with Costner leading the Yankees and White Sox out of the cornfield, then giving a heartfelt pregame speech to help set the stage for the rest of the evening.

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You can watch the sequence below. It’s pretty remarkable — Costner is Costner, after all — and perfectly matches the tone of the film.

The “Sandlot” game will need its own captivating introduction, although less dramatic than that of “Field of Dreams.” It’s a funny kids movie, so let’s keep things light and not overthink it.

All of the actors who portrayed the “Sandlot” kids need to be part of this. Let’s have them all take the field one by one as Booker T. & The MGs’ “Green Onions” (that bouncy organ song from the movie) plays in the background, and have Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez come out last to receive the biggest ovation of all.

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Not only should Scotty Smalls throw out the ceremonial first pitch to Ham Porter at catcher, but Benny should steal home during the pitch. It’s the perfect way to kick off the action, along with Ham shouting his signature “Play Ball!” afterward.

As for other movie-specific details, there needs to be an English mastiff on hand as a homage to “The Beast,” a Babe Ruth impersonator wandering around and s’mores sold at every concession stand.

The participating teams should wear 1960s throwback uniforms and the in-stadium soundtrack must stick to songs from that era, along with David Newman’s outstanding film score.

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If we really wanted to go overboard with this, we could put a swimming pool on one side of the outfield and a couple of carnival rides on the other to pay tribute to each of the related, iconic scenes from the movie. That may be too much for just one game, but it’s fun to dream big.

And finally, the night should end with fireworks, although it would be much more appropriate if the fireworks went throughout the entire game.

Finding the right teams

So who should play in this game?

Logistically, the two participating teams should each come from the West Coast to help make travel easier. The most obvious choice for the home squad would be the Los Angeles Dodgers, considering that the film takes place in Southern California and ends with Benny playing for the club.

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Plus, the idea of superstars such as Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman coming to play in Utah would be an absolute thrill. If this is Utah’s one chance to host MLB action, we might as well be treated to the best of the best, and the Dodgers can deliver the goods.

The Dodgers’ opponent should probably come from the American League to avoid them having to play a critical division matchup in a neutral site. Of the AL West teams, the Rangers and Astros are both too far away from Utah, and the Angels likely won’t travel the nearly 700-mile journey just to play someone who is typically just 30 miles away — although former Salt Lake Bee Mike Trout playing in Utah again would be quite the storyline.

Thus, the Mariners and Athletics would be most convenient, with the M’s being preferable, considering they’re a better and more marketable team.

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However, the Mariners were established in 1977 and therefore did not exist in the movie’s 1962 setting, making the A’s — who previously flirted with playing in Utah — the only remaining option.

So there’s our matchup: Dodgers vs. Athletics, live in Utah and wearing 1960s throwback uniforms. It should be a heck of a ballgame, especially if the A’s break out these incredible era-appropriate threads.

Which Utah ballpark should become the new sandlot?

The site of the actual playing field from the movie is in Salt Lake City’s Glendale neighborhood, but it’s much too small to adequately allow for MLB competition and crowds.

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Luckily for us, Utah has multiple existing ballparks that could easily host the “Sandlot” classic.

For starters, there’s the new Ballpark at America First Square in Daybreak where the Bees currently play. It’s an awesome place to watch a game, but it might be just a bit too new and nice to stand in for the rough and tumble 1960s sandlot.

There’s also Lindquist Field in Ogden, where the Pioneer League’s Ogden Raptors play. Ogden is a rather appropriate choice, as the movie’s infamous pool scene was filmed there.

The ballpark itself is wonderful, intimate and captures the small-town feeling prevalent in “The Sandlot.” The outfield fence could easily be altered to appear more similar to that of the movie’s dusty old sandlot, and the view is majestic. Lindquist would be an excellent choice.

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But Smith’s Ballpark in Salt Lake City would be the perfect choice.

Smith’s is only 2 miles away from the actual sandlot site. Its 1300 South and West Temple location has been home to a number of different baseball teams for nearly a century. It’s one of the top sports landmarks Utah has to offer.

And it’s in its final days.

With the Bees’ move to Daybreak and the University of Utah opening its own on-campus baseball venue soon, Smith’s sits vacant, still in good shape but without a tenant to enjoy it.

Salt Lake City has plans to redevelop the 13.5-acre site in the near future, but if there’s any chance of being able to host this “Sandlot” game, the ballpark should remain intact just a bit longer for such an opportunity.

The most fitting end to a century of baseball on that site would be to allow the historic, beloved ballpark to host the first regular season Major League game ever played in the state of Utah. It’s only right.

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There’s a real appetite for an MLB team in Utah, and filling Smith’s Ballpark with 15,000 fans for a “Sandlot” game would help make that abundantly clear. If “Field of Dreams” was worthy of two specialty games, clearly “The Sandlot” deserves at least one of its own.

Baltimore Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr. said it best: “You could be a kid for as long as you want when you play baseball.” At its best, this sport can bring out a magical, youthful glee in all of us. That’s ultimately what “The Sandlot” is all about, and that’s what a specialty game based on the film would honor, celebrate and hopefully capture anew.

So let’s play ball — in Utah!