By Julie Johansen
Captain Kyle Ekker retired from the Emery County Sheriff’s Office on Sept. 15 after serving the citizens of Emery County for over 36 years. He was honored by the Emery County Commissioners at the opening of their meeting on Oct. 4. Maegan Crosland, commission secretary, read the following tribute to Captain Ekker:
“At the time of his retirement, he was serving as Captain, Jail Commander and Emergency Manager for Emery County, along with a list of other assignments and duties, including Range Master. Captain was always striving to strengthen the skills of our law enforcement personnel to better protect themselves and our communities. He was also the driving force behind the Emery County Task Force and devoted years to the Rope Rescue Team, HazMat Team and Sheriff’s Emergency Response Team. As Emergency Manager, he put forth effort to protect the watershed from wildfires of 2012 and 2018, and obtained millions of dollars in state and federal funding to protect our watershed.”
Ekker was also commended by the Justice Department of the State of Utah for his contribution to Emery County and the State of Utah.
A second public hearing was then opened to hear additional comments on the rezoning of the land at and around the San Rafael Energy Research Center. As there were no public comments, the hearing was closed and the industrial zoning was approved.
An amendment on the agreement between Emery County and the Administrative Office of the Court of the State of Utah was also approved, which will allow the courts to use the third courtroom at the Emery County Courthouse.
Mary Huntington was then appointed to be the official representative for the county at the UCIP Annual Membership Meeting in St. George. Commissioner Lynn Sitterud will be the alternate representative.
The acceptance of an award from the State of Utah Division of Emergency Management in the amount of $128,000 was also approved. These funds are used for HazMat, Code Red, satellite phones, cyber security, mobile command posts and other services in the sheriff’s office. This is a Region Six award for 2022.
To conclude, Green River Mayor Ren Hatt and Commissioner Sitterud were appointed to the Nomination Commission of the Administrative Office of the courts to assist in the justice court judge selection process.