My first introduction to the Sill Family Living Center – and Ashton, Evans & Brazier involvement – was late in my project, as I was reviewing the article Modernism on Campus (Oliver). This work was not on my original list of A&E structures, nor had it surfaced during research. I found that the Sill Center’s planning and construction had been widely covered in the local press, but unlike other A&E work, there was almost no mention of the architect, other than Raymond Ashton serving as cook at a barbecue to celebrate the completion of the firepit (Home Ec plans); and as master of ceremonies at a birthday party for Sterling Sill (U.of U. to honor). The political back story is well covered in Virginia Cutler's oral history (Cutler). It appears as though Ashton, Evans & Brazier were cut out of the actual building design process. In short, when Cutler approached Sill (President of the University Regents) with the idea of remodeling an off-campus home to serve as the Home Ec lab building, Sill recommended Raymond Ashton as “the very best architect in town.” The two of them quickly visited Ashton in his office. Cutler (1976) quotes Ashton as saying: "You mean to sit there and tell me that you as chairman of the Board of Regents to [sic] a second-class solution for the most important subject of the university. Why that's the most ridiculous thing I ever heard. l wouldn't touch it. I wouldn't have a thing to do with something like that because it is wrong in the first place. You can't do such ‘stupid idiotic thing as this. … This is the state university you're talking about. Buy an old house? …. you've got to plan it so that it suits the needs of whatever you’re going to use it for. You've got to have the right site. …. The best site you can get on the campus. I pledge that we will do all the architectural work to design it to plan it to get it built. But I won’t do one thing if you're going to buy an old house."Sill asked how much it would cost, Ashton answered: “I never work to a price. I work to a standard. If you are willing to take me on my terms, I'll work to a standard but not to a price. I'm not going to mention a price.”Ashton, Cutler, and Sill immediately called Ray Olpin’s office (President of the University). Olpin cleared his calendar and they met with them that day. Together they looked at a future campus plan. Olpin pointed to the planned site for the President’s home and said that he was willing to give it up for the Home Ec building. They headed to the site and watched a beautiful sunset over the mountains. The deal was done. Or so they thought. Ashton “put his best man on the job” and returned with plans. They weren’t at all what Cutler had in mind: “too institutional … needs to be more open …soften it up.” Coincidently, she left soon thereafter for a visiting professorship at the University of Washington. She visited some contemporary homes in Seattle, received some sketches from their architects, and returned home. Roger Bailey (a well-known Modernist architect) was in the midst of arranging for a position at the University of Utah and had a connection with Cutler. They hit it off immediately and in Cutler’s words: “I had the feeling that Ray Ashton … never would get the [vision] but Roger caught on immediately. And so Roger Bailey drew up a plan for me that was just beautiful… [T]hen I had to figure out how I could get this done by Ray Ashton… Ray Ashton would never accept anything from Roger Bailey.” [Quotes in this section from Cutler. I strongly recommend reading pages 56 – 72 which cover the architectural standoff and fundraising].