Starr Stratford loved growing up in a small town, so when she and her husband were looking for a place to live in Utah 20 years ago, Midway fit the bill.
The Wasatch County city felt familiar, like her hometown of Ephraim, and was “just a beautiful place.” In addition, her mother-in-law lived in Midway, and it was close enough to her husband’s job.
The move from Seattle worked out. Two decades later, the family is still there, and Stratford is running for a seat on the Midway City Council.
“I love Midway and feel like this is a good way for me to be able to give back a little bit,” she said of her bid for public office. “I feel pretty passionate about Midway and keeping Midway a great place to live. I love my neighbors and I love the community.”
Stratford earned a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Brigham Young University and a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Washington in Seattle.
She studied public administration because she was interested in doing some kind of nonprofit management. Stratford was special projects manager of the Association for Utah Community Health for five years and executive director of Community Health Connect for nine years. Those jobs involved connecting people, including many who were low income or uninsured, to community resources and safety net services. After that, she became a stay-at-home parent.
Stratford has served on various committees throughout the years and said she loves being involved in the community.
“I like working with people and collaborating,” she said. “I think I have some good skills and background in that management arena.”
Managing the city’s inevitable growth and keeping Midway a “really great place to live” even as it changes is her No. 1 issue.
There is no simple solution, Stratford said, but by hearing all sides of the issue and digging deep for solutions to the accompanying challenges, the city can make changes that support infrastructure, handle traffic, keep open space and retain Midway’s rural charm, she said.
“I think some of those things are really attainable,” Stratford said. “The city’s been doing a great job with some of these so far, and I think we can keep working on a lot of those same issues.”
She feels strongly about keeping open space and has previously worked with the nonprofit Preserve Midway, which is dedicated to providing options to preserve the rural character, open space and heritage of the city and its surrounding lands. Good planning can make that happen, Stratford said.
“I do feel passionately about keeping that feeling of open space,” she said.
Stratford plans to gather feedback from community members “and see how we can work to keep Midway Midway.”
Six Midway residents are running for the two open seats on the City Council. The other candidates are Andy Garland, Craig Knight, Randy Lundin, Genene Probst-Miles and Jared (JC) Simonsen.
Ballots will be mailed beginning the week of July 22. The primary, which will narrow the field of candidates down to four, is on Aug. 12. Voters can select up to two candidates. The general election is on Nov. 4.