On April 9, 2019, my daughter Sloan was born. At birth, she was life-flighted from Mckay-Dee Hospital — where she spent several months in the Primary Children’s NICU. During this time, she was diagnosed with profound disabilities. This is something I never imagined I would have to face.

And I had to navigate it all as a parent — alone.

The following months were spent in the Primary Children’s ICU. As I managed our in-home hospital, I unexpectedly lost my mom and my husband.

As a widowed mom, caring for a toddler with profound disabilities, I’m concerned about what’s next for my beloved home state. I work full-time, am deeply involved in community and school programs, and strive to make Ogden a better place. If I didn’t have support from programs like Utah’s Medically Complex Children’s Waiver, DSPD, Social Security, or government-funded early intervention — Sloan and I wouldn’t be thriving as we are today.

My worries for our community intensified with the recent anti-DEI initiatives, led by Senator Johnson earlier this year.

As a direct result of this bill, the Weber State Women’s Center, along with its other inclusion programs and support centers, was forced to close. My family proudly hosted the Kim McCorkle-Harbath Memorial Scholarship through the WSU Women’s Center, which supported my mom as she pursued her degree at sixty years old.

As the rhetoric around anti-DEI laws, support center closures, and limited resources continues, It’s terrifying to see this and to imagine the limiting future it might mean for my daughter.

Last year, Stacy Bernal entered the race — a voice for underrepresented people like my mom and daughter. She’s focused on ensuring all voices are heard by our government leaders, I’m confident in her ability to surface our needs to the top. She epitomizes Utah values — something John Johnson hasn’t been able to do during his time in the legislature.

I’ll be voting for Stacy Bernal in this year’s election.

I hope you do, too.

Kari Harbath

Ogden

Newsletter