When Herriman City created the Friends of Herriman nonprofit last year, its purpose was to provide meaningful programs to connect residents. The group is made up of individuals willing to invest time and money in activities that promote healthy living, physical activity and the arts to make Herriman a go-to community.

Chris Berbert serves as the Friends of Herriman board chair. He said there are four focus areas for the group: arts, culture, parks and trails. Each of these areas has a director to oversee programming, plus there is a director of events and volunteers, and a director of social, community and student interaction.

“We have four high schools in Herriman. We have a representative from each high school that’s a staff member, then we have a couple of students from each one of those schools,” he said. “All of these groups are organized and designed to create different programs within Herriman that individuals in the community can enjoy.”

Because Herriman has grown so fast, it’s been hard for city staff to keep up with the demand for arts and culture events. The Friends of Herriman frees up staff so they don’t have to organize all the events in the city. City leaders work closely with the group, and they’ve developed a relationship that furthers everyone’s goals. 

“The nonprofit was formed with the idea that we can help bring to the community more meaningful programs faster than the city could do on its own,” Berbert said. “I think when you grow as quickly as we’ve grown, part of the thing that tends to be a struggle is unifying a community.”

The Herriman Arts Council is now part of the Friends of Herriman. Arts programs in the city focus on the city’s summer musical, a children’s show, a youth theater workshop and performance, the acapella group Harmonyx, the orchestra and jazz bands and the children’s choir. 

Culture is divided into three different areas: diversity and inclusion, heritage and mental/physical health. 

Herriman’s first culture event will be the Health and Safety Palooza on Saturday, May 13 at Crane Park and Plaza (12998 S. Fort Herriman Pkwy.) from 9 a.m. until noon. There will be fitness demos and a Pedal Palooza with free bike helmets for kids. The event also features a BMX Bike trick show, food trucks and the Kids’ Teddy Bear Clinic provided by Lone Peak Hospital Herriman. 

The parks division creates events within the city’s parks and raises funds for new parks or park maintenance. The trails team will create fundraising opportunities to build new trails, organize volunteers for trail clean-ups and hold events within the city’s trails system. 

“Realistically we’ll probably have new events and new groups within what we currently have that are really able to provide a more meaningful impact to our community,” Berbert said. “We just want to make it so there’s something you could do every weekend, if you wanted, or even during the week.”

The Friends of Herriman partnered with artist Eric Dowdle to create a puzzle for Herriman featuring heritage images, key individuals and modern additions to the city. Sales from the puzzle will help fund future events. 

Berbert has met with other cities in the county to talk about the nonprofit and how it benefits growth and community in Herriman. To get information, sign up to volunteer or donate, visit FriendsofHerriman.org. 

“We’d love to have many people get involved,” he said. “Everyone’s passionate about something different. This is one area you can find your passion because there are enough different types of committees and groups and activities that you can find something you’re really passionate about.”  λ