"52454"
Sayer Dunkley
I had the wonderful opportunity to meet with my Grandparents, Paul and Bonnie Dunkley. They have lived in the city of American Fork, Utah for the majority of their lives. They also have 6 children who have all gone on to have kids of their own. I was lucky enough to interview him primarily while my Grandma added her insights. When you are around Paul, you can’t help but smile. He uplifts everyone he meets. Paul is outstanding when it comes to engineering and technology. He also loves teaching people what he knows best. He was able to teach at Utah Valley University for about 40 years and loved it.
I first asked both of my grandparents what their favorite memories were growing up near Utah Lake. My Grandpa responded that he loved going fishing. He also loved finding quicksand and seeing who could stand in it the longest without going under, and ice skating from the American Fork Harbor clear to Saratoga Springs and back. He also loved water skiing with his friends and would go after his friend's dad got off of work. They would go all day until they wore themselves out. Those were the best sleeps he said. My Grandma said she loved going with neighbors, who owned the Saratoga Springs Resort, on their boat and water skiing. She also said she loved driving the boat sometimes. When they had a young family, they enjoyed fishing together. They loved catching catfish, white bass, and carp. They mentioned my aunt reeling in a huge carp one day. The smiles on their faces were priceless as they thought back on those beloved memories.
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When asked the question why my grandpa decided to work at Geneva Steel, he quickly answered, “money.” At that time Geneva Steel provided many jobs for families. Even some came from other states to come and work there. This caused Utah County to grow quickly in population. He said before he accepted the job to work at Geneva Steel, he was working at a place called Signetics as a test engineer while also working on his degree. He asked if he could get a raise and they said they couldn’t, which led him to get a job at Geneva in 1976. He had a friend who started working there. The friend told them what my grandpa could do and he got hired. He became the electrical engineer for Geneva and fixed all the computers.
As the interview went on, I asked him what experiences he had there. Overall they were positive experiences. Made lots of friends, worked hard, and of course as mentioned before, a good-paying job. However, one day, on July 31, 1979, an accident happened that could have easily ended his life. He said a new employee was on a big transfer car that had a cable on it, so they could move it easily. They had a big 10-ton beam attached to the car. He told them that he wanted to come through because he had just finished fixing a machine. This led him to become the Hero of Electronics. They started to let them through, but the two employees running the car were goofing off and one of them started laughing, jerked the cable, and the 10-ton beam became loose and fell on my grandpa. He got smashed between a handrail and this beam. It landed right on his chest. The handrail made a divot where my grandpa's body was. He was bleeding internally and had several bones crushed, but he was out of the hospital in a week. A miracle for sure. My grandpa is part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and he wore the religious garments that they wear in this religion. It is promised that these garments will protect your body. He believes he was saved because he was wearing them at the time of the accident.
As the interview went on, I asked him what experiences he had there. Overall they were positive experiences. Made lots of friends, worked hard, and of course as mentioned before, a good-paying job. However, one day, on July 31, 1979, an accident happened that could have easily ended his life. He said a new employee was on a big transfer car that had a cable on it, so they could move it easily. They had a big 10-ton beam attached to the car. He told them that he wanted to come through because he had just finished fixing a machine. This led him to become the Hero of Electronics. They started to let them through, but the two employees running the car were goofing off and one of them started laughing, jerked the cable, and the 10-ton beam became loose and fell on my grandpa. He got smashed between a handrail and this beam. It landed right on his chest. The handrail made a divot where my grandpa's body was. He was bleeding internally and had several bones crushed, but he was out of the hospital in a week. A miracle for sure. My grandpa is part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and he wore the religious garments that they wear in this religion. It is promised that these garments will protect your body. He believes he was saved because he was wearing them at the time of the accident.
Fast forward a couple of years, and Paul had started working in the mornings at Utah Valley University as a professor, a shift as a test engineer up in Salt Lake, and nights at Geneva. He did that for 10 years. He also went to many other companies and taught electricians for those companies. When Geneva was starting to go under, there was a big layoff. Once they hired a new electrician, they needed someone to train them. They asked my grandpa if he wanted to teach these new electricians everything they needed to know.
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Lastly, I asked him what his thoughts were on how Utah Lake was treated by Geneva Steel. He went on to say they were magnificent to the lake. They had a pond that they would let all the rolling water that they used go into, which then led to another pond where the water settled. The first pond was named Christiansen Lake after the man who designed the pond. They had a couple of these ponds to help clean the water before putting back into the lake. He said they didn’t pollute any of it, and had measures to keep it clean. They also recycled many substances to use on various projects that they would do. He said they were always trying to keep the air and water around them clean. When inspectors would come out to test the pollutants that they would emit, they said it was one of the best places they have seen that does a good job of keeping it clean. He also was able to work closely with the lake with the machinery that was by it that needed fixing, so he had a first-hand experience with the lake and saw what they did to it.
They also had bag houses that would help catch the dirt and pollutants that would go into the air. They used an old destroyer battleship generator to generate power to suck up the pollutants from the air. They then would take that dirt and put it into a pit. They are still using the sediment from that pit today to make roads and various other things that may need it. He said they were cautious with everything they did.
In conclusion, my grandpa loved working at Geneva Steel. His face lit up when he talked about the many memories that he had there. He is so grateful for the job he was able to have and to have a way to provide for his family. He said if it weren’t for it eventually shutting down for good in the 90s, he would have stayed there until he retired. On his jacket, which he had given to him from Geneva Steel it had a number. This number was 52454.
In conclusion, my grandpa loved working at Geneva Steel. His face lit up when he talked about the many memories that he had there. He is so grateful for the job he was able to have and to have a way to provide for his family. He said if it weren’t for it eventually shutting down for good in the 90s, he would have stayed there until he retired. On his jacket, which he had given to him from Geneva Steel it had a number. This number was 52454.
Works Cited
“Geneva Steel - Alchetron, the Free Social Encyclopedia.” Alchetron.com, 29 June 2022, https://alchetron.com/Geneva-Steel.
News, Deseret. “For Decades, Geneva Steel Ruled Utah County Economy.” Deseret News, Deseret News, 13 Sept. 2010, https://www.deseret.com/2010/9/13/20140573/for-decades-geneva-steel-ruled-utah-county-economy.
Strack, Don. Geneva Steel, 21 Jan. 2019, https://utahrails.net/industries/geneva-steel.php.
“The Saratoga Resort - Saratoga Springs, Utah.” Hutchings Museum Institute, 26 Apr. 2021, https://johnhutchingsmuseum.org/the-
saratoga-springs-utah-resort/.
News, Deseret. “For Decades, Geneva Steel Ruled Utah County Economy.” Deseret News, Deseret News, 13 Sept. 2010, https://www.deseret.com/2010/9/13/20140573/for-decades-geneva-steel-ruled-utah-county-economy.
Strack, Don. Geneva Steel, 21 Jan. 2019, https://utahrails.net/industries/geneva-steel.php.
“The Saratoga Resort - Saratoga Springs, Utah.” Hutchings Museum Institute, 26 Apr. 2021, https://johnhutchingsmuseum.org/the-
saratoga-springs-utah-resort/.