PROVO — An organization that has been a beacon of hope for Utah children and families just got a big upgrade in Provo.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County on Friday held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its newest facility, marking the start of a new chapter in providing support for those who need it the most.

The new Kent B. Nelson Clubhouse, 131 N. Olympic Blvd., replaces the organization’s former Provo clubhouse, which had been in operation for more than 50 years. Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County leaders said they had outgrown the aging facility and needed a larger, more modern space to support more community members.

“This new clubhouse is more than a building — it’s a central place where we can coordinate programs, support our staff, and amplify our impact across the region,” said David Bayles, CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County, in a statement.

The organization’s mission was something the late former Utah County Commissioner Tom Sakievich was passionate about. His wife Marji and daughter Emily Sakievich attended Friday’s grand opening ceremony just as if he would’ve wanted to.

“He loved this project, and it meant the world to him,” Emily Sakievich told KSL. “This was actually one of the last places he went before he passed. (He) and my mom stopped by to just see how progress was going; he would be so excited to see this come together.”

The former commissioner died last December at the age of 72. Tom Sakievich resigned from the seat in September 2024 after being diagnosed with glioblastoma brain cancer.

Emily Sakievich said her father was a big supporter of helping children in the Boys & Girls Clubs feel supported while he was in office.

“He would have all of them come to his office and talk about how government works and how they can be a part of it someday,” she said.

The new 20,000 square-foot facility expands on resources and programs offered at its previous site for community youth and families experiencing hardships.

The clubhouse will provide safe, engaging, and educational programs in a modernized building fit to serve more than 14,000 Utah children and teens.

A variety of programs including after-school, summer activities and STEM learning will be offered at the new facility. Other resources include internet safety programs, mental health support, nutrition initiatives, and housing assistance for families experiencing homelessness.

“We’ve been able to increase the capacity so much and add preschool and other things; we can even benefit more families — and we can benefit them for a longer period of time, from younger to older, where there are no gaps.” Provo City Council Chair Katrice MacKay told KSL. “So I’m really excited. It’s a fantastic thing for the city and for our residents.”

Leaders of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County say the new $6 million Provo clubhouse was designed as a welcoming space where children and teens can explore new interests, build life skills, and receive mentorship from caring staff.

“The Boys & Girls Clubs have been a cornerstone of youth development in Utah County for decades,” said Janet Frank, board president, in a statement “This new clubhouse strengthens that mission, allowing the organization to extend its reach and impact across the entire region.”

Friday’s event took place while children who attend the Boys & Girls Clubs were in school, so another ceremony for kids and their families is planned for the end of the month.

“The Boys & Girls Club is for every kid out there,” Bayles said. “We want to accomplish what every parent wants for their kids — we want them to have a safe place to learn and grow, to be successful in school, to build social skills and to go on and be great members of society.”

Celebrate Mother’s Day with à la carte brunch at Lady Madison featuring seafood, entrées, desserts, and premium beverage options.

Celebrate Mother’s Day in sophisticated style at Lady Madison, located inside Le Méridien Washington, DC, The Madison. Join us on Sunday, May 10, 2026, from 12:00–3:00 PM for an elevated à la carte brunch experience in downtown Washington, DC.

Enjoy a refined selection of chef-driven brunch classics, fresh seafood, seasonal salads, and elegant entrées. Highlights include a Build Your Own Omelette, Crab Benedict with lime hollandaise, Chilled Seafood Trio, and signature mains such as Roasted Rack of Lamb, Cedar Plank Sea Bass, and Marinated New York Strip Loin.

End on a sweet note with classic desserts including Crème Brûlée Cheesecake, Fruit Tart, Strawberry Shortcake, and Passion Fruit Cake.

Enhance your experience with beverage offerings, including bottomless Mimosas and Bloody Marys for $30 with house selections. Piper-Heidsieck Champagne is also available by the glass for $16 or by the bottle for $49.

Reserve on OpenTable:
https://www.opentable.com/booking/experiences-availability?rid=1426987&restref=1426987&experienceId=695240&utm_source=external&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=shared

À La Carte Menu

Les Œufs & Brunch
Egg White Frittata — $24
spinach, tomato, mushrooms, green onion
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit

Build Your Own Omelette — $24
ham, smoked salmon, vegetables, cheeses (choose up to 3)
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit

Crab Benedict — $24
lime hollandaise, salsa cruda
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit

Brioche French Toast — $17
berry compote, whipped butter, maple syrup

Les Froids & Salades
Chilled Seafood Trio — $28
Jonah crab claws, shrimp, cocktail sauce

Spring Berry Salad — $17
brie, berries, champagne vinaigrette

Golden & Crimson Beet Salad — $18
red wine vinaigrette
Add protein: shrimp, salmon, skirt steak +18 | chicken +16

Les Plats Principaux
Roasted Rack of Lamb — $42
mint sauce, huckleberry reduction, sweet potato purée, asparagus

Cedar Plank Sea Bass — $49
saffron rice, spring vegetables

New York Strip Loin — $42
mushroom sauce, truffle croquette potatoes, haricots verts

Les Desserts — $14
Crème Brûlée Cheesecake
Fruit Tart
Strawberry Shortcake
Passion Fruit Cake

CASPER — Discarded rocks thrown outside the geology department at an upstate New York college in the 1920s became gems in the eyes of the boy who picked them up.

They were also stepping stones to a career and life that led to 68 years of leading the growth of Wyoming’s — and America’s — mining industry.

Politics and philanthropy also helped John Wold earn accolades like Wyoming Man of the Year in 1968 and Oil/Gas and Mineral Man of the 20th Century in 1999.

But the longtime Casper resident left that century behind and kept going to work in his downtown office, pursuing new ideas and enterprises nearly until his death on Feb. 19, 2017, at age 100.

Peter Wold, 78, remembers his dad as a man who was “driven” and focused, but who always made time for his wife and children. 

As he co-leads the oil and gas business started by his father back in 1950, Peter said his dad’s portrait on the wall reminds him of the principles and “purpose” that guided his life.

“I think that he motivated me, and I would say the same for my brother and my sister,” he said. “We’ve all tried to stay engaged in community activities and philanthropy and be good fathers and a mother.”

He not only contributed to the evolution of Wyoming’s energy industries, his financial generosity endowed a geology chair and two chairs of religion at Union College in Schenectady, New York. 

He also endowed the Centennial Chair of Energy at the University of Wyoming and his lead 1994 donation to Casper College became the Wold Physical Science Center.

U.S. Sen. John Barrasso, who characterized Wold as a “legend” when he died in 2017, said even though nearly a decade has passed since then, his legacy is all over the Cowboy State — even if younger generations now don’t recognize his name.

“As a professional geologist, John’s contributions to the mining industry revolutionized the way our nation extracts minerals today,” Barrasso said. “Casper College students continue to benefit from John’s generosity and are reminded of him every time they walk through the Wold Physical Science Center.

“John passed on his love for Wyoming and his energy expertise to his family,” the senator added. “He would be so proud of how his children and grandchildren carry on the family business and his tradition of giving back to the state and people he loved so much.”

Big Into Rock

Peter Wold said his dad’s successes in part came from his education, continuous learning and ability to compartmentalize and head for the goal — something he loved to do on the hockey rink as well.

Born in New Jersey, John Wold grew up on the Union College campus where his father, Peter I. Wold, was a distinguished physics professor. The family lived on campus.

While growing up, a young Wold became fascinated with the excess rocks being tossed out by the college’s geology department and started his own mineral collection. 

Following graduation from high school, the Eagle Scout attended Union College and became an exchange student at St. Andrews University in Scotland. 

While at Union College, he played on the hockey team, and he graduated with a bachelor of arts in geology and went on to Cornell University to earn a master’s degree in geology as well.

Prior to World War II, Wold worked in Oklahoma and Texas for an oil company, but in 1941 he volunteered to help the U.S. Navy’s Bureau of Ordinance researching magnetic mines. 

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, he was sent to Midway Island as a physicist involved in degaussing or demagnetizing submarines to protect them from magnetic Japanese mines.

Navy Man And Inventor

Although he never officially attended Navy officer training school, Wold was given a commission and went on after his Midway assignment to serve as a gunnery officer and executive officer on destroyer escorts.

Peter Wold said his dad’s wartime ship assignments did not involve any significant battles.

It was while in the Navy that Wold had an idea to improve the masks of divers while watching them work.

He applied for a patent in July 1946 for his improved “underwater goggle.”

“The purpose of this invention is to provide an efficient underwater goggle, simple of manufacture, which is of such form that it will fit with water-tightness the contours of most faces without alteration or tailoring by the wearer,” he wrote on the application.

Wold wrote that the design was meant to be flexible enough that it could be worn “across or below the nose of the diver with equal water-tight integrity.”

The inventor received his patent in Casper on Oct. 3, 1950, and it was something he was always proud of.

Peter Wold said he kept it framed on his office wall during his business career.

The Oil Field Calls

After the war, John Wold married his wife, Jane, and worked for Barnsdall Oil on the Gulf Coast. 

By 1949, Peter was born, and that winter the Wold family was sent to Casper to establish an office for Barnsdall Oil.

The family drove from Houston to Denver and found the roads north had been blocked by the infamous blizzards of 1949 for the previous two weeks. 

Peter Wold said his dad liked to tell the story of how he only had enough money for one night in a Denver hotel.

The next day, his dad said it was like a “miracle” and the road opened, allowing them to reach Casper. The highway shut the next day and stayed closed for two more weeks.

In 1950, Wold launched his own firm, Wold Oil Properties, as a consulting petroleum geologist, and never looked back. 

A search of Wold in old newspapers shows his progression of accomplishments in both his business life and Republican politics in Wyoming.

Ahead Of His Time

In 1953, in addition to growing his new business, he was a member of the Natrona County Republican Party Executive Committee.

He ran for and won a state House seat in 1956. In 1960, he became the state Republican chairman, as well as a member of the nation’s Republican National Committee. 

In 1964, he was the Republican nominee for Wyoming’s U.S. Senate seat to run against Sen. Gale McGee.

His political office high point culminated in his election as Wyoming’s U.S. House representative in 1968 as Richard Nixon was winning the White House. 

He was the first professional geologist ever elected to the U.S. House. While there, he authored and sponsored the National Mining and Minerals Policy Act of 1970.

That legislation was instrumental in laying the groundwork for Wyoming’s and the nation’s mining industry. 

It directed the U.S. to develop a stable domestic mining industry that’s economically sound and encourages private investment. It also called for standards to dispose of and reclaim mining waste and land to mitigate environmental impacts.

While he was proud of his time in Congress, the scientist and businessman who liked to get things done was stymied there. 

“He recognized that he was one of 435 congressmen and that frustrated him,” Peter Wold said. “He said, ‘I’m going to go for the Senate.’”

In 1970, he took on McGee again and lost, as Republicans took a beating in the Nixon midterm election.

Peter Wold said his dad never ran for office again but stayed interested in politics. 

On the business side of his life, John Wold excelled and was able to use his geology, chemistry and economics savvy to see opportunities that others might miss. 

He also could see when those opportunities were turning south.

During his lifetime, Wold started companies that got involved in pursuing coal, uranium, trona, and coal gasification. But each of those sectors came at different times of his life and career.

“When he focused on something he focused primarily on that project,” Peter Wold said. “He was active in the coal business, in the uranium business. But he did those separately, compartmentalized. 

“You have to be really good at what you are doing.”

Business Ventures

A joint venture with Peabody Energy and Consolidation Coal Co. (now CONSOL Energy) put Rocky Mountain coal in the spotlight. 

In 1973, he started Wold Nuclear Co. and was a co-discoverer of the Christensen Ranch uranium ore deposit in the Powder River Basin.

He also became the principal in the development of the Highland uranium mine in Converse County, which once was the largest uranium production operation in the U.S.

Peter Wold said his dad used a technique with paper cups and a tiny piece of film on the bottom of each cup that would be buried for a few days on potential uranium lands. 

While he did not invent the technique to detect radon gas, he used it on a huge scale.

“They wanted to see what radiation penetrations there were,” Peter Wold said. “They laid thousands of those cups all over Wyoming, New Mexico, and Texas. 

“With that information they were able to determine there were uranium ore bodies.”

Wold’s holdings of potential uranium lands in south Texas led to an unforeseen talc mining opportunity, so he created American Talc Co., which became one of the largest talc operations in North America. It was sold to Daltile in 2017.

Wold’s interest in trona mining in the southern Green River Basin led to patents on solutions-based mining processes that he worked to create and develop with a Colorado firm. 

But several years of work and roadblocks led him to sell the reserves he bought. The technology he helped develop, however, helped transform the trona industry.

Wold also bought a coal gasification idea during the first decade of this century and became chairman and CEO of GasTech.

The company sought to develop gas from deep layers of coal in the Powder River Basin through pumping oxygen down into the beds and setting them on fire. 

He worked with an Australian company that had pioneered a similar concept in Australia.

A demonstration plant never came to development.

Peter Wold said his dad’s efforts to develop coal and coal gasification in Campbell County came from his understanding that the coal, natural gas, and oil in the county held more BTUs of energy than all of Saudi Arabia’s oil.

During his life, John Wold’s expertise was sought by many companies that recruited him for their boards.

Hole In The Wall Ranch

Outside of energy, Wold enjoyed Wyoming’s outdoors and sports. 

In 1977, he bought the Hole in the Wall Ranch southwest of Kaycee where the notorious Hole in the Wall Gang left their hoofprints fleeing the law. 

Peter Wold said his dad did not buy the land because of the history.

“It was because of the fishing,” he said. “The Hole in the Wall Ranch has the Middle Fork of the Powder River as it comes out of the Bighorn Mountains and it runs through the ranch. And it is really good fishing. 

“Dad loved to recreate and he loved fishing and one thing led to another and he said, ‘We ought to buy this place,’ so we did.”

While his dad was not that interested in cattle ranching, Peter Wold is. 

Today, the ranch runs 600-800 head of Black Angus cattle.

Wold also was key to the development of the Hogadon Basin Ski Area on Casper Mountain and helped support the building of the Casper Ice Arena, where he coached young hockey players.

As he grew older, macular degeneration, a trait that ran in his family, started to take Wold’s eyesight. 

Peter Wold said his dad’s loss of vision frustrated him. Even though he couldn’t see well, he kept driving a car into his mid-90s.

“He didn’t like being dependent on someone to take him to the grocery store or bring him down to the office,” Peter Wold said. “The macular degeneration was very discouraging to him.”

Before he died, John Wold put money toward finding a cure for his blindness that became the Wold Family Macular Degeneration Center at Oregon Health & Science University’s Casey Eye Institute at Oregon Health and Science University. 

The institute touts the center as a “central hub” for ongoing research and clinical care efforts as well as a “catalyst for further discovery and innovation by having research, clinical care and clinical trials all in one place.”

Throughout his life, the former college athlete never stopped moving and working to stay fit. 

Wold would do leg lifts and stomach crunches before getting out of bed. In his 90s, he was still running down his street even on ice and snow. 

He continued to challenge himself mentally and never retired.

Legacy Of Giving

As Peter Wold and his brother Jack continue to work in the oil business started by their father, they and their sister, Priscilla Longfield, also continue the legacy of giving launched by their parents.

Peter Wold said the family foundation donates about $3 million a year. 

The foundation’s directors include his brother, sister and himself, but John Wold’s eight grandchildren are now involved in choosing who the benefactors will be as well.

While his dad could be a “taskmaster” who wanted his children to have purpose and goals, Peter Wold said he also instilled a desire for them to make a difference in their time.

Peter Wold agrees he feels a “weight” and responsibility that flow from his dad’s accomplishments, and he thinks about that.

“How can I live up to his expectations? What should I be doing that would have him proud?” Peter Wold said. “He left a wonderful legacy that our whole family is proud of.”

When John Wold died at 100, the Casper Star-Tribune dubbed him Wyoming’s “citizen of a century.”

Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.