Mary Crafts built Culinary Crafts from nothing and turned it into the largest off-premise catering company in Utah. She ran it for over 40 years. She won Best of State 28 times. She catered events for Oprah Winfrey, Sir Elton John, two presidents of the United States, and hundreds of Fortune 500 companies. She hosted a cooking show on PBS. She received over 60 awards as a businesswoman and empowerment icon.

Then she sold the company to her children and started over.

In 2018, Mary launched Mary Crafts, Inc. as a speaker, author, influencer, podcaster, life coach, fitness guru, and healer. At 65, she summited Mt. Kilimanjaro. She was recently awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the International Caterers Association and named 2026 Entrepreneur of the Year by the Mountain West Capital organization. At 72, she says life has just begun. And if you spend five minutes with her, you believe it.

Mary is sitting down with Start School to talk about what she's learned building a company over 40 years in one of the most demanding industries there is. How she went from a small catering operation to serving presidents and Fortune 500 companies. What it takes to build a brand that wins Best of State 28 times. How she thinks about reinvention and why she started a whole new career after selling the company. What she's learned about resilience, health, and staying in the arena when most people would have stopped. And what she'd tell someone who is starting something today and wondering if they have what it takes.

She'll take your questions. She'll give you real answers. No fluff.

If you're building something, thinking about building something, or trying to figure out what comes next, this is the room you want to be in.

June 11: Dan Burton

June 15: David Bradford

June 16: Arian Lewis

June 30: Ryan Gardner

This ain't your average meet and greet. It's a boots on the ground experience designed to test your instincts, strengthen your resolve, and connect you with others cut from the same cloth all in support of a cause built for the next generation of Utah founders.

​Riding for a Reason: Start School

​Every dollar raised at this event fuels Start School Entrepreneurship for the 99%, a free program from Silicon Slopes.

​🔹 What's on the Trail:

• ​Helicopter Rides — rise above the dust and take in a higher view of the frontier.

• ​Trap Shooting Showdown — steady your aim, trust your instincts, and compete for bragging rights.

• ​Breakfast — hearty, chef-crafted meals shared with fellow trailblazers.

• ​Swag & Spoils — premium gear and recognition for those who come out on top.

Claim your spot. Ride with the right circle. Lead from the front and lift the next wave with you.

Join Neumont University's Chair of Applied Artificial Intelligence, Omkar Terse, on June 8, for a info session on how Neumont is preparing students for careers in AI through its Bachelor’s degrees in Applied Artificial Intelligence and AI Engineering, as well as its Master’s degree in Applied Artificial Intelligence.

The conversation will cover Neumont’s hands-on, project-based approach to AI education, emerging career opportunities in the field, and scholarship opportunities available through Neumont’s partnership with Silicon Slopes and Tech Buzz Media.

Most startup events are built for the one percent. The venture-backed. The ones chasing a 10x return for someone else's fund. The ones who measure success by how much money they raised instead of how much they built.

StartFEST is for everyone else. The solo founder. The bootstrapper. The person who wants to build a profitable business that supports their family. The company that grows slowly, treats its people well, and is still standing in twenty years. The best businesses rarely make the headlines. Start School is built for founders who know the difference.

More than 400 companies are now part of Start School. No tuition. No equity. No hidden agenda.

It's a free entrepreneurship program from Silicon Slopes, built in partnership with Mountain America Credit Union. Every dollar from StartFEST goes back into it. When you buy a ticket, you are paying for the next founder who shows up wanting to build something real.

Start School takes self-leadership seriously because the founders who last almost always do. It's the track you won't find at any other startup event, and it's the reason Start School exists in the form it does.

In this episode of the Go-To-Market Podcast, host Amy Osmond Cook, co-founder and CMO at Fullcast, sits down with Brian Samson, founder and chairman at Plugg Technologies, to talk about the rise of nearshoring, global talent strategy, geopolitics, and why Latin America is quietly becoming one of the most important innovation hubs in technology.

Brian shares how his experience living in Argentina helped shape the vision behind Plugg Technologies and explains why companies are rethinking offshore development models in favor of real-time collaboration across similar time zones. 

The discussion also explores the hidden advantages of hiring talent from complex economic environments where adaptability, resilience, and problem-solving aren’t buzzwords, but survival skills.

The 2026 Sports Tourism Symposium will take place on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, from 9:00 am - 2:30 pm, hosted by Miller Sports + Entertainment at America First Field (9256 S State St, Sandy, UT 84070). Stick around after the Symposium for a special experience as we host an England vs. Croatia FIFA World Cup watch party to keep the energy going!

America First Field is home to Real Salt Lake (MLS) and Utah Royals FC (NWSL). The venue has become iconic, hosting major events like U.S. national team games, World Cup qualifiers, the 2009 MLS All-Star Game, the 2013 Gold Cup, and even the 2025 Pacific Nations Cup.

The Sports Tourism Symposium brings together municipalities, event organizers, and hospitality partners from across the industry to share ideas, explore trends, and collaborate on strategies that make our communities stronger through sports.

In this episode of the Silicon Slopes Mental Health Momentum podcast, host Dr. David Morgan sits down with Dr. Amy Osmond Cook for a timely conversation about resilience, leadership, anxiety, entrepreneurship, and the hidden mental health challenges affecting today’s workforce.

Amy opens up about growing up in the legendary Osmond family, and how mental health, depression, and anxiety among family members shaped her understanding of resilience, vulnerability, and leadership. 

She also discussed the emotional impact of AI disruption, generational shifts in work culture, the pressures facing Gen Z, and why mental health conversations can no longer be separated from business leadership. 

This episode explores what it really means to lead through uncertainty, especially in a world shaped by economic instability, rapid technological change, burnout, and rising anxiety levels.

Utah's technology community has needed this for a while. On September 11, 2026, it arrives.

STACKED Summit is Utah's premier event on AI, cybersecurity, SaaS, and data analytics. The inaugural summit takes place at Salt Lake Community College, and we built it for the people closest to the work: the builders, operators, engineers, and executives who are navigating the most consequential shifts in the industry right now.

Not networking for the sake of it. Not panels that go nowhere. Real sessions, real practitioners, and real conversations about the problems worth solving.

Six tracks. One room. Everything that matters in Utah tech right now: AI, Cybersecurity, Data, Systems, Builders, and SaaS.

Hundreds of founders, engineers, operators, and executives will be there. The first STACKED Summit is the one people will say they didn't want to miss. We'd like to make sure they don't.

Tickets are now available. Sponsorship opportunities are open. We are accepting speaker proposals.

Be part of the first one.

September 11, 2026. Salt Lake Community College.

Partner with Silicon Slopes, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and amplify your impact across Utah's most dynamic tech ecosystem. Here, tax-deductible giving meets tangible ROI, innovation meets influence, and your brand connects with the builders shaping tomorrow.

Shape the Future of Silicon Slopes!