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Good morning! Here are today’s temperatures:

⛅ 26 – 45° Logan | ⛅ 35 – 53° Salt Lake

⛅ 24 – 49° Manti | ⛅ 28 – 50° Moab

⛅ 29 – 56° Cedar City | ⛅ 36 – 61° St. George

It’s Christmas Eve, and for many, it’s normally a time to gather with your family. I personally will join about 30 of my aunts, uncles and cousins to eat as many rolls as I can and listen to the Luke 2 story. However, I have spent two Christmases away from home, and it was hard to be far from family during the holidays.

My colleague Mariya Manzhos knows this all too well: she has spent many Christmases far from her home in Ukraine, first as a student in Utah and now in Boston with her husband and children.

“For many, the holidays are about joy, abundance and togetherness,” she writes. “But for those separated from their family — or missing some of its members — the holiday season can make that void feel especially stark. I am still unsure how to make sense of the dissonance of celebrating the holidays in the U.S. while my family navigates the season in war-torn Ukraine. The void is accompanied by an unrelenting worry that has become the background to everyday life.”

Read more about how to navigate the holidays when your family is far away.

Also on our minds:

Can BYU’s experience in bowls help the Cougars upset Colorado?
4 things we learned from the Matt Gaetz ethics report
How safe are chairlifts at ski resorts?

Utah lawmakers, parents and youth rally for homeschooling advocacy

Utah Home-education Organizations for Parental Empowerment (UHOPE) held its official launch rally at the state Capitol on Wednesday.

UHOPE is a coalition of home-education groups dedicated to “protecting, promoting and preserving home-based education options for Utah families.” Its leaders say UHOPE exists because “the right to homeschool is under attack.”

Senate President Stuart Adams, House Speaker Mike Schultz and other Republican lawmakers were there to voice support for parental choice in education.

Read more about the launch event and homeschooling in Utah.

Poll: Trump’s policy promises garner widespread support from Utahns

Utahns are largely supportive of President-elect Donald Trump’s policy promises, including his plans to conduct deportations and reduce U.S. involvement abroad, a new poll found.

The latest Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics poll, conducted by HarrisX, asked registered Utah voters if they support or oppose 20 of Trump’s stated policy promises, from his plan to end the conflict between Israel and Hamas to replacing the Affordable Care Act.

Here are some key findings from the poll:

Utahns back Donald Trump's policy promises on immigration, the economy and foreign policy.
7 in 10 Utah voters think the U.S. should reduce its involvement in foreign conflicts.
Only two Trump promises are unpopular: his promise to end Obamacare, and his plan to pardon Jan. 6 rioters.

Read more about how Utahns feel about Trump’s plans.

More in Politics

4 things we learned from the Matt Gaetz ethics report (Deseret News)
Renae Cowley & Frank Pignanelli: The Grinch for border czar? Christmas characters as political figures (Deseret News)
GOP Senate committee assignments: What committees will Mike Lee and John Curtis sit on? (Deseret News)
Reaction to Biden reducing death sentence swift, divided (Deseret News)

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Utah

Have you ever been stuck on a ski lift? (Deseret News)
Photo gallery: Christmas baskets hit the spot (Deseret News)
‘This has been my life’: Redwood Swap Meet closes as site redevelopment looms (KSL)
Police 'traffic stops' issue joy instead of tickets during 7th year of Operation Giveback (KUTV)

The U.S.

EPA: Methane emissions are down in drilling basins (Deseret News)
A million taxpayers will soon receive up to $1,400 from the IRS. Who are they and why now? (The Associated Press)

The World

Greenland to Trump: We’re not for sale (The Hill)
Israeli defense minister claims responsibility for first time for Hamas leader Haniyeh's assassination (Reuters)

Sports

Can BYU’s experience in bowls help the Cougars upset Colorado? (Deseret News)
Will BYU beat Colorado in the Alamo Bowl? A porcupine makes his prediction (Deseret News)
BYU has added a transfer defender from the SEC (Deseret News)
3 inspiring moments from a big sports weekend (Deseret News)
Family, board games and sweets: What Utah coach André Tourigny has planned for the Christmas break (Deseret News)

Faith

‘I couldn’t feel God’: How past trauma can interfere with current faith (Deseret News)
Derwin Gray: How to treasure Christ this Christmas (Deseret News)

Health

FDA says decongestant in many cold medicines doesn’t work. What does help? (PBS)
Deck the halls (extra carefully): Common Christmas injuries, illustrated (CNN)

🗓️ Events Calendar

We put together a calendar list of events and activities going on around the state of Utah the next month. Check it out and let us know if we are missing anything!

Check your inbox tomorrow morning for more news from the Beehive State and beyond!

And reply to this email or email newsletters@deseretnews.com to tell us what you think of Utah Today.

Thanks for reading!

— Ariel