• If you have not yet received your first ZAP Tier I or Zoological payment for 2017, then it will likely be received within the week. Accounts Payable has busily been processing the payments. Thank you, again, for your patience with this payment. We expect to resume our regular monthly payment schedule at the beginning of next month (July 2017). 
• You may be receiving notices from the County asking you to sign up for a card payment system. We do not recommend you sign up for this card and, instead, sign up for EFT whenever possible.

• Tier II Advisory Board members are busy reviewing the 175 applications received this year. You will be notified in early fall of the board's recommendations. 
• You may receive requests for clarification on your application through ZoomGrants.com. Your timely response to these requests is essential for the review process. Please be sure you receive these requests by whitelisting (or adding as a safe sender) [email protected] to your email client.  
• You may be receiving notices from the County asking you to sign up for a card payment system. We do not recommend you sign up for this card and, instead, sign up for EFT whenever possible. 

It Changed Everything: A ZAP Success Story
By Pilar Davis | Repertory Dance Theatre

My name is Pilar Davis. I work in the Performing Arts and I wouldn’t be here without ZAP.

I grew up in Ogden. In the bad years. We were poor, hitting the stereotypical markers you’ve heard: public assistance, food assistance, single-parent household, brown, subsidized housing, sketchy neighborhood—you get the idea. My childhood was difficult; living in poverty is hard and full of sorrow, crushed dreams, and disappointments. When I was in the 2nd grade, my school offered the reward of a trip to Salt Lake (in the middle of the day!) to the Capitol Theatre to see a matinee performance by Repertory Dance Theatre. I was a good student and got to attend.

#mindblown – It was the first show I’d ever attended. It changed everything. I was hooked. I remember the show was about science and germs—taught and conveyed through dance. I had never seen ANYTHING like it, felt anything like being in the theater in the dark with 1500 other kids, and I wanted MORE.

Destinations to Explore: Week 1
By Michelle Ludema | Salt Lake County Zoo, Arts & Parks

Ready to get started on the ZAP Kids Summer Passport?  There is a lot of great stuff happening this week (June 6 through June 11).  Visit any of these destinations to earn stamps in your passport.  

We Are UMOCA
By Alex Vermillion | Utah Museum of Contemporary Art

For the last 86 years, the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art has been showcasing complex and highly impactful contemporary art in Utah. But UMOCA is so much more than the contemporary artwork displayed within our walls. We are educators, artists, and innovators. 

Our goal is to inspire artistic experimentation, community enrichment and a connection to the world through engaging experiences. Our team is comprised of dedicated, passionate—and, albeit, entertaining—individuals who are mighty in our small number. Together, we help create the magic of the Museum, including designing and providing our free community art education programs that are necessary for the growth and longevity of Utah’s beautifully diverse arts culture. 

About the Kids Summer Passport
By Megan Attermann | Salt Lake County Zoo, Arts & Parks

What is the ZAP Kids Summer Passport?

The passport will challenge you to visit new places. We know you like to explore. And we know exploring the world around you can help you build a better world. That's why we hope you'll join our journey to explore some of the best places in our own backyards. So, grab a passport -- and a friend -- and discover the superb destinations around you. 

How does it work?

1. Pick up a passport at your local Salt Lake County Library (while supplies last).*
2. Visit the destinations listed in the passport between June 2 and August 20. Ask the destination to "stamp" your passport. 
3. Get "stamps" from five different destinations.
4. Bring your passport back to the library to reserve your spot at the Final Destination Celebration at Clark Planetarium. It will be out of this world. 

*While you're at the Library, take the Summer Reading Challenge for even more chances to win! 

Passport Cover Design Contest
By Megan Attermann | Salt Lake County Zoo, Arts & Parks

We asked you what zoo, arts and parks mean to you. Children from across the county submitted designs through their local library. We got a lot of great designs, and the competition to choose the winning design was so close. Each of the designs was so good.

We are happy to announce that Adventure is right outside your front door, by Sophia, got the most votes. This design will be printed on the front of our Kids Summer Passport this year! Congratulations, Sophia!

Travel the World at Discovery Gateway Children's Museum
By Kristin Jahne | Discovery Gateway

Children of Hangzhou: Connecting with China is the newest exhibit at Discovery Gateway, opening to the public on May 19. Children of Hangzhou: Connecting with China presents four children from Hangzhou in several environments, including at home, at school, and in the countryside. The Chinese children will introduce themselves through media and the activities of their daily lives. Visitors will discover that Chinese life today mixes ancient traditions with modern lifestyles. This exhibit is a bridge to learn about China and build cross-cultural understanding. It features original artwork created to present a unique Chinese aesthetic that delivers an immediate and unmistakable impression: You are in China.

Through this exhibit, Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum strives to increase awareness around China. In distinctively Chinese settings, visitors will “meet” children with different interests and in different environments. The exhibit will dispel stereotypes and demystify the nation of China. It is organized into several components with lessons and activities woven throughout.

• Four to five images
• About 700 words
• A short, snappy title
• A short, two to three sentence bio of the author
• An engaging story

• The Bboy Federation | They Reminisce

• January 2
• January 9
• January 23
• January 30 
• And beyond!