Walker, Olene S. (Olene Smith), 1930-2015

<p>I grew up in what was known as Wilson. It was the west part of Wilson, almost to Taylor and West Weber. I grew up on a farm. We actually had three different units and a total of about 130 acres, which was a little larger than most of the farms. I lived in an area where there were many small farms and families were able to survive on them. I didn’t realize growing up that most of the people were rather poor, but no one ever thought we were poor. Since my father was involved in education—he was principal of an elementary and then a junior high and then of Ogden High School, before he became Superintendent of Ogden City Schools for, I believe, around twenty-four years. We probably were better off than most families in the area but no one thought they were poor. I didn’t even consider the issue. It was a rural existence and we all worked on the farms when I was young. We grew tomatoes, potatoes, sugar beets—those hard, involved crops and we
still grew alfalfa and had dairy and beef cows, horses, pigs, and chickens as well. It was really quite a rural life.</p>

<p>My father used to joke that the farms were his golf game and we all played. As a result, he was very busy with his job as Superintendent and with the farms. In addition, he was Stake President for twenty-five years. I don’t remember him, in terms of church, not sitting on the stand because he was made Bishop when I was three or four years old and then was made Stake President when I was nine. I was thirty-four or thirty-five when he was made a Patriarch. So he was involved and he was really a workaholic. I’ve decided that in my old age. He got up early, farmed, went to his job, and he was always there before eight and didn’t get home until five thirty or six. We ate dinner and then we went back and farmed, often in the dark.

<p>Olene S. Walker’s straightforward definition of leadership speaks volumes about the remarkable woman whose steady path to power led her at age 72 to serve as Utah’s first woman governor, from November 5, 2003, to January 3, 2005.</p>

<p>Never in 25 years of public service did the namesake of the Weber State University (WSU) Olene S. Walker Institute of Politics & Public Service make excuses or balk at obstacles. Walker set an ambitious agenda for her term as governor, and in just 14 months accomplished many of the goals she had set forth in 14 far-reaching initiatives. Walker established statewide programs to encourage early literacy skills and help children in foster care transition to adulthood. She acted to protect watershed areas in all Utah counties, and made progress toward reforming Utah’s tax code, among other accomplishments.</p>

<p>Walker “is a shrewd politician, a woman determined to make a difference with the power she has earned,” The Salt Lake Tribune wrote in naming Walker its 2003 Utahn of the Year. “She is a mother, grandmother, an educator, and a businesswoman as well, with a palpable feel for the people who live here and for their needs and aspirations. She seems the kind of person our forefathers had in mind when they aspired to create a government ‘of the people, by the people, and for the people.’ ”</p>

<p>Olene Walker (née Smith; November 15, 1930 – November 28, 2015) was an American politician who served as the 15th governor of Utah. She was sworn into office on November 5, 2003, shortly before her 73rd birthday, as Utah's first female governor. She was also the first female Lieutenant Governor of Utah. She was a member of the Republican Party.</p>

<p>Walker was born Olene Smith in Ogden, Utah, in 1930 to Thomas Ole Smith and Nina (née Hadley) Smith, the second of their five children. She graduated from Weber High School. Walker received her bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University, her master's from Stanford University, and her doctorate in education administration from the University of Utah.</p>

<p>Walker's began her career in the Utah House of Representatives, including a term as Majority Whip, during which she helped create Utah’s Rainy Day Fund. She served as the fourth Lieutenant Governor of Utah for the 10 years prior to becoming governor. She founded the Salt Lake Education Foundation and served as its director. She served as director of the Utah Division of Community Development. She has chaired the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice, the Utah State Housing Coordinating Committee, the Governor's Commission on Child Care, and the National Conference of Lieutenant Governors. She also became the first woman governor of Utah. Senator Orrin Hatch said Walker "truly paved the way for women in government in Utah." Also, throughout her political career "her passion across the board" was education.</p>

OLENE SMITH WALKER was born in Ogden, Utah. She received her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degrees from Brigham Young University, Stanford University, and the University of Utah, respectively. While serving as Utah’s first woman lieutenant governor, Walker spearheaded many important initiatives, including education programs, budget security measures, health care reform, and workforce development. She led the Healthcare Reform Task Force that resulted in establishing the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), ensuring affordable healthcare for Utah’s children. She also served as chair of the Workforce Task Force, resulting in the development of the Department of Workforce Services. She was chair of the National Conference of Lieutenant Governors and president of the National Association of Secretaries of State—the first lieutenant governor ever to serve as president of that organization. Walker was a leader as well in the Utah House of Representatives, where she served as majority whip. Sworn in as Utah’s first woman governor in November, 2003, she led the state toward improvements in literacy and education.