Hello John,

Lenise here with Stewardship Utah. Last week myself, TJ Ellerbeck (our co-director), and several other partners on our Community Change Grant spent the week in Washington DC talking to Utah’s federal delegation about the important work this grant would do.

You may remember an email from several months ago, when we excitedly announced our submission of the grant. However, a lot has changed since then. The grant, a partnership between Stewardship Utah; United Today, Stronger Tomorrow; the Navajo Utah Commission; and Utah Clean Energy, would be used to improve home heating infrastructure, weatherization, and help stimulate the local economy. These improvements reduce greenhouse gas emissions while improving indoor air quality and quality of life for community members.

Stewardship UT was proud to work alongside United Today, Stronger Tomorrow as a participant in a number of events and meetings in Washington DC this past week. Titled ‘Experts in the Field,’ it brought together 50 western delegates including elected officials, tribal leaders, non-profits, and small business owners to engage in dialogue with their respective representatives. Our Utah group included a few of us from Stewardship Utah and Utah Clean Energy, leadership from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, some small business owners, and Navajo Nation Council Delegate Curtis Yanito. 

Left to right: Sergio Sotelo (IBEW); Josh Craft (Utah Clean Energy); Tom Mills (IBEW); Codey Lindsay (IBEW); Eliza Cowie (Stewardship Utah); Andy Rasmussen (UTST); Delegate Curtis Yanito (Navajo Nation Council); myself, and TJ Ellerbeck (Stewardship Utah); Jason Nancino (Denali Electric LLC).

Stewardship Utah focused on conveying the importance of the Community Change grant program–which we spearheaded along with the Navajo Utah Commission. The grant includes funding for a workforce development program to incubate new contractor businesses on the Utah portion of the Navajo Nation to upgrade and weatherize homes that largely rely on indoor wood-burning for heating. We promoted the job development piece specifically, along with the weatherization aspect, and had warm feedback from the Utah delegation. Meetings were held with each member of Congress, Senator, and/or staff members to convey the importance of this funding to stand up localized training and create jobs long after the grant funding is over. We were thrilled over the support we received from Senator John Curtis, who met with TJ Ellerbeck, one of our Co-Directors, and Navajo Nation Council Delegate, Curtis Yanito. Senator Curtis was very enthusiastic about the grant goals. 

Navajo Nation Council Delegate, Curtis Yanito, shaking hands with Senator John Curtis.

We also extended an invitation to our federal delegation to visit the Navajo Nation to better understand the importance of this funding. Other goals included sharing the impact of federal programs funded through the Inflation Reduction Act and associated success stories from small businesses in Utah, identifying ways to collaborate with elected officials, and discussing Utah’s priorities during the budget process. 

It was a whirlwind of a visit – much time was spent traversing the Capitol end to end as we moved between the Senate and Representative’s offices. While much is still uncertain, we are excited by the conversation we had with our elected representatives and look forward to continuing to build these relationships in order to invest further in the rural communities of Utah. 

Onwards,

Lenise Peterman,

Rural Director

[email protected]

www.stewardshiputah.org