Getting to know Colleen Bliss

I was born in Ogden and raised in Salt Lake City in a large family.

I received my Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Education from University of Utah.
When my youngest went off to college I returned for my Masters Degree in Educational Technology - Utah State.

Rick and I were married in 1985 and moved to Bluffdale in 1987 - 27 years ago. We raised our 4 boys in Utah Public Schools. I taught school for 30 years (the last 4 years as a District Technology Specialist) and retired just last June. Rick was an Engineer at Alliant Tech Systems and is also recently retired.

I believe in contributing to our community, so along the way I volunteered in many ways in Bluffdale.

• Elected to Bluffdale City Council for 4 years.
• Served on the Bluffdale City Planning Commission for 8 years.
• I chaired Bluffdale Town Days for two years.
• I was a 4H Horse Club Leader - Go Bluffdale Bronc Busters!
• I began my community volunteering when I started a recycling center in the parking lot of little Bluffdale City Hall back in 1991 (with the help of some very wonderful neighbors and friends).

Our community is very important to us. Rick served as President of the Jordan River Parkway Foundation for many years while I worked on subdivision ordinances to allow for open space and trails. If you have enjoyed the Parkway through Riverton and Bluffdale, you have probably seen us there biking or walking. Our many volunteer hours and the efforts of many other people paid off. We now have a beautiful well loved trail in our community.

Two of our boys are running their own small business. Our youngest is applying for Medical School and my oldest is working for Zion's Bank. I say this because I am proud of my boys AND I believe in the value of Public Education! We'll talk more about that later.

We have ten grand children, nine living within 40 miles of us. Lucky! A great reason to insure that things are going well at the Utah Legislature.