OK Gpaul and fellow Fodorites,

I come from LDS Pioneer ancestors, was raised LDS in southern CA, stopped practicing the religion after college, am a die hard skier, and now live in Park City.

G, Park City would be a wonderful option. It started as a mining town and became a ski town. Even though it is growing rapidly (read exploding), it is still a very nice place to live with a fabulous climate. There are lots of LDS who live there, but more non-LDS. I never really see any conflicts, but then I don't have kids. I am told the Park City school district is the best in the state and there are several private schools in town too.

Many, many people who live in Park City moved there for the skiing! We have a huge population of New Yorkers, Floridians, and Californians. Non-skiers probably just don't understand. It's a very sophisticated town, with well-educated and very tolerant people. But it still has a small town feel. Very relaxed, friendly, helpful folks. Life generally revolves around the outdoors. Nearly everyone in my neighborhood skis, boards, bikes, runs, whatever. If you live in PC, you must own at least one dog. It's nickname is Bark City.

Newsflash people: SLC County (the valley) now has a 60 - 40% ratio of LDS to non. You are sadly misinformed, or living in the distant past, if you think otherwise. My new boss just moved here a year ago from Long Island. His kids go to private Catholic school and have made fast friends with all the LDS and non kids in their new neighborhood. They are included in neighbor's parties, adults and children.

A couple weeks ago, I asked his wife how she was liking Utah so far. Her exact words: well, I have to be honest, I LOVE IT!

So, there you go. Personally, I think UT is far crowded enough now, but nothing is going to stop the growth.

And, yes you can get drink in UT, I do it all the time!

I am only basing my own thoughts on my own experience , with about half my family being Mormon and most of them living in Utah.

in colorado you might look at the high school in frisco - summit county high. skiing at araphoe basin, keystone, breckenridge & copper mtn.
or about 45 mins west in vail. more great skiing at vail & beaver creek.

both towns have soccer programs. i believe vail has a good swim team too.
housing in vail will be more $$ than most of summit county.
if money is no object you could look at aspen. they have everything.

Wow, sylvia3... that is harsh and not at all true.

I have also not found living in LDS areas, even rural ones, to be an isolating experience. I lived both in Logan, which is a medium sized college town and another very small town in southern Utah. While I am sure they would like to convert everyone they can, I have been prostelized much more heavily by evangelical Christians than I ever was by Mormons.

I never felt I was being ostracized because I was not LDS-to the contrary, people went out of their way to make me feel welcome and a part of the community.

If you do decide Utah is not to your liking, you might also consider Georgetown, CO. It is a charming small mountain town, originally based on mining and is the county seat of Clear Creek County. It is a very short drive to either Arapahoe Basin or Berthoud Pass and a slightly longer but still easy drive to Dillon, Vail, Steamboat Springs, etc. It is also a quick and easy drive into Denver when you need the attractions or resources of a larger city.

Dayle, with the very greatest of respect....you can move the ENTIRE population of Long Island to Utah and the push to convert will get that much stronger

Our sking friends moved to Colorado Springs years ago and still love it. I think being non-Mormon in Utah would be a real drag.

"Wow, sylvia3... that is harsh and not at all true"
Actually, it is very true. I speak from my own experience, of course (Idaho and Utah), but have heard the same story many times (including friends who don't live near more cosmopolitan ski areas in Utah). One of the basic tenets of the LDS church is to convert.

I am close to quite a few Momon families and over the years I have expected them to try to convert me but that conversation has never happened in all these years.
Outside of the traditional Mormon missionaries (who have never even stopped at my new house... 6 years) I have never had a Mormon try to convert me and I am surround by them and consider them to be close friends.
To me, having Mormons for friends and neighbors is just wonderful.
I would eventually like to move to Utah or Colorado and would be lucky to find a nice neighborhood with a high population of Mormons. That way I could be insured of that community spirit and care for your neighbors that is often lacking in other areas. Also, I can generally expect that their kids will not terrorize the neighborhoods. They probably will not have pitbulls and be blasting music.
I just can't think of one single thing that would keep me from moving to a Mormon area!

oops-- I meant Steamboat Springs -- big difference!

There are many religions that send out missionaries. All the missionaries of any religion that have knocked at my door have always been polite.

It's pretty simply handled just by politely letting them know you are definitely NOT interested and would prefer NOT to be contacted again in the future.

Just like any time someone offers/sells you something at your door or over the phone, it's not really that hard to reply with a firm NO and request no future contact.

I can relate to Gpaul here. When my daughter was in middle and high school we lived a rather small town (by SoCal definition) with a very high Mormon population, complete with 2 wards (in a relatively small town) and a lovely seminary across the street from the high school. In many ways, as a parent it was great because I knew the teen parties were chaperoned, and, in general, family values abounded.

But, I enjoy diet coke and adult beverages, DH enjoys a smoke, without judgment from my neighbors, thank you. I like being able to have some wine with my dinner when I et out or to go out for a cocktail in my neighborhood. I did not have much in common at all with most of the other moms in town. The LDS influence was very strong in my town, and affected local politics, PTA, school functions, and social events. A large percentage of local businesses were Mormon owned (the local stationary store also sold garments) and virtually nothing was opened on Sundays. In general there were many things that seemed to me to be terribly conservative and out of step with modern LA county, and I grew up in Pasadena!

I liked the people well-enough, but let's just say we ran in different circles and shared some different values. And, I should note, that my daughter had her share of difficulties in school, being a non-member. In many ways the LDS parents dominated many of the student activities. her LDS friends always wanted to take her to church with them (we went to the Presbyterian church and did not want to be converted). School trips included visits to temples & to BYU (on Oahu and in San Diego), which left non-LDS students sitting outside waiting while the LDS ones were in the temple. I was a working mother, which, in the minds of many LDS mothers meant that I was less of a parent and that my daughter needed to be cared for by them. And, that meant to many that she needed to be taught LDS tenets. It made my daughter uncomfortable and at times infuriated me.

Again, I have nothing against anyone because they are a member, or against the LDS in general. But it can be challenge living a largely LDS community if you are not a member. It would be a consideration for me if I were relocating, just as I would consider local politics or other attitudes.

Here today,

That's amazing that the local schools did field trips to BYU and temples. BYU Hawaii I can kind of see as it's a college, but the Hawaiian temple? I've never heard of a temple being open to a school field trip. That is not their purpose.

Why did you not protest to the district about the separation of church vs. state? If I had been in your shoes, I would have! Plus, don't field trips require a parental permission sign off? Couldn't you just have withheld permission if you didn't want your daughter to attend a particular field trip?

Not criticizing here, just curious.

These were not field trips, but band trips that included visits to the La'ie temple and to the BYU Oahu campus, and another band trip to SD for a competition that included a stop at the SD temple.

There is a huge difference between school field trips and trips taken by activities or clubs. The band boosters, who were largely LDS parents arranged these activities on the band trips.

And, yes the reason the band boosters were mostly LDS parents has a lot to do with the LDS family values and the fact that none of the booster moms were working moms. I was a single working mom, and then later a remarried working mom, and while I made every attempt to be involved in DD's life and participate in her activities, I was not able to take up to a week off from work to travel with the band to competitions. Nor did I feel particularly welcomed by many of the established booster clique. Many of them had been boosters together for years, having had several kids in band over the years or they knew each other for a long time from church.

I did not post these examples in any way to find fault with these parents, since without the parents who were able to travel with the kids none of them would have been able to go on the band trips. And since the majority of the parents and kids on these trips were LDS, it makes sense from their point of view that they would want to visit such places. I was only sharing experiences of a non-member living in a largely LDS community for those who might not understand why Gpaul might prefer a non-LDS community. The same could apply to someone who is strongly anti-gun not wanting to live in a community that is made up of a lot of hunters and NRA members, or someone who is of a different faith thinking they perhaps did not want to live in an Amish community; or someone who prefers an urban lifestyle not looking to move to a rural hippie community.

Gone 2,

Ah, now it makes more sense. "Booster's" vs. school field trips. No, I didn't think you were being critical. Having spent the summer after high school at "CCH" in 1972 I can agree with you about the small town and LDS church dominated society there.

Now I'm really confused!!!!!!

On the one hand living amongst Mormons translates to peace and quiet, family values, not-too-liberal views on everything, etc. But, the main question still remains: are their efforts to convert getting stronger and more alienating to those that don't wish to go LDS? Or, as many of you point out, "we want to be friends but don't push on the convert stuff" can in fact go over pretty well?

Again, my first choice was (is?) CO, specifically either Boulder, Golden, Evergreen or Littleton. The big plus is Soccer, but strategically SLC is much better for ski travel to West Coast, Idaho, Wyoming, Arizona, and even to Aspen, Telluride, etc.

Keep all the info. coming, MUCH OBLIGED!

Gpaul, why are ypu against Ca, Or, and Wa? You stand the best chance of happiness on the Left Coast, not the interior West. Just sayin'.

Gpaul,

In my opinion, you would be very happy living in Park City. I am. I've lived in my neighborhood for 8 years and only once (to my knowlege)have the LDS missionaries traveled through.

As a no longer practicing Mormon, I just told them I was "inactive" and that I didn't care to be contacted. I never have been since. No one is forced to convert any more than Catholics or Buddists, or whatever. I think a lot of people exaggerate LDS conversion efforts.

I'm sure you have LDS neighbors where you live? Are they pressuring you?

I don't know of any LDS neighbors in my development, but there are many in the Park City area. Again, they are in the minority in Park City. They are also in the minority in many neighborhoods in the SLC valley.

In Provo, LDS are definitely the majority, but you aren't interested in living there anyway.

Only you can decide for yourself. I wouldn't move somewhere without an extended visit to the area so I could do my homework.

Good luck!

PS - our snow is much, much better than the west coast.

Oh, important note: did you know there are more LDS members in California than in Utah?

Yeah, Gpaul might be happy moving to Park City, but I seriously wonder about a 14-15 year old boy. It will be hard on him, regardless, but especially if the move is to a small town, where life-long friendships are often forged by that age. What's he saying about a possible move, Gpaul?