December 2-9, 2011 by C.C. Observer

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Volume 1 • Issue 35

December 2 - 9, 2011

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National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, which is observed annually on December 7, is to remember and honor all those who died in the event. On August 23, 1994, United States Congress, by Pub.L. 103-308, designated it so. It is a tradition to fly the Flag of the United States at half-staff until sunset in honor of fallen patriots. On Sunday morning, December 7, 1941 America’s naval base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was attacked by the forces of the Empire of Japan. More than 2,400 Americans were killed and more than 1,100 were wounded. The By Nicholas attack sank four U.S. DeLaat Navy battleships and damaged four more. It also damaged or sank three cruisers, three destroyers, one minelayer and damaged 188 aircraft. That will have happened 60 years ago on Dec. 7th. It is amazing that we remember and honor September 11th (as we should) every year with what seems like greater and grander ceremonies. But Pearl Harbor Day? Well, that was so long ago, we can let that die out right? I mean, most kids in school do not even have grandparents who were alive then. Like many other events, it is time that it be forgotten; and can you believe that I had to sit and listen to someone say that the other day? Forget the day that entered us into the greatest war we ever fought? Forget about the over two thousand Americans that lost their lives? Hey, let us just forget about WWII all together. Yes, I know that we do not get time off of school or from work for Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day (like the government workers need more holidays anyway) and while we are at work or school there are too many things on our mind to think about December 7th. But ask yourself, is that day important? Should we take time out of the day and remember what took place? Absolutely! Here is what I am going to do this year. I am going to wake up in the morning and put my American Flag and POW/MIA flag at half-mast as ordered. I am going to go to work that Wednesday, and get this newspaper ready for print. That evening, I am going to sit my children down and show them video footage of Pearl Harbor. I will talk to them about it, and tell them about how Pearl Harbor started the war that their Great Grandpa was in. I am going to go outside that evening, put my flags back at top-mast, salute those flags, then say a prayer for all of the first victims of WWII, who all died on this day 60 years ago. You will not be forgotten, not while Americans hold in their heart the pride of our country and our fallen, who has given us that freedom to forget if we so choose...But we will not forget.

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Community

Campbell County Community Members wake up early on Thanksgiving to participate in the Turkey Trot. Many place have adopted this “work out before the meal” event, and it was a hit this year at Camplex Park.

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COMING SOON!!! Cloud Seeding research needs extension

Two years and an additional $2.4 million is what researches are projecting they need in order to complete their cloud seeding project. They have already received $11 million and

have been researching since 2005. Their purpose is to determine whether cloud seeding helps the winter snowpack, providing more water for irrigation. This would

HEROES and HELPERS day

prevent new dams and reservoirs being built. The state Water Commission has to approve the request so the researchers can stay until March 2014.

Local ﬁre protection score improves

A FREE Holistic Service Day provided to the community for Caregivers. Come and experience de-stressing and relaxation which promotes a relaxation response in the brain and increased circulation in the body to promote well-being and health.

By Paul Wallem - Basin Radio News Campbell County Fire Chief Don Huber recently had good news for local residents and businesses whose insurance rates are affected by their community’s Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating. The ISO rating scale ranges from 1 to 10. Class 1 represents the best public protection, and Class 10 indicates no recognized protection. If your insurance provider looks at ISO ratings, those numbers can have an impact on the cost of your residential or commercial premiums. According to Huber, the current Public Protection Classification Rating for the Campbell County Fire Department improved from a 5/9 to a 4/9. “4/9 means we are a four in the city and we are a nine in all areas five miles outside of a fire station,” explains Huber. “So it’s a nine for all areas beyond five miles of a fire station.” With the significant lack of water supply in Campbell County, Huber says it would be difficult to improve the 9 rating for areas outside a five mile radius of a fire station. Nonetheless, he is proud of the community’s efforts to improve the city’s fire protection score

from five to four. After receiving a slight downgrade nearly one year ago, Huber says they immediately began working to find ways to bring their fire protection score back down to a four within the city. As a result of the improved score this month, he was quick to thank others in the community for their efforts. “If it wouldn’t be for the sheriff’s office changing their dispatch equipment, if it wouldn’t be for the city taking care of the infrastructure, we couldn’t do this,” describes Huber. “Thank the county and the city for relocating fire stations.” By working with the sheriff’s office, Huber says there were various things they were able to do to improve their ISO score. “Stuff like monitoring our towers for our radio communications, how many dispatchers they have on call at one time, and various items like that,” Huber explains. As far as the city’s infrastructure is concerned, Huber says the rating organization looks at a community’s water supply to determine if it’s capable of keeping up with the demand both for drinking wa-

ter and fire protection. “The City of Gillette has been great about keeping up with the infrastructure as the city continues to grow,” Huber says. In addition, Huber says residents will notice the fire department out in the community doing inspections. “One of the items that we’ve changed is we are running inspections now on commercial buildings,” he says. “So you’ll see a lot of our trucks out driving around with the crew to do inspections on commercial buildings, and these are all efforts made to reduce the ISO rating.” Huber added that even though he is pleased with the improved ISO rating, the fire department will not become complacent. As a result, they will continue their efforts to communicate with the ISO agency for further improvements. “The ISO is currently working on revising their standards, and once they publish those then we will do another review of where we’re at,” Huber says. Based on prior support from city and county leaders, Huber says he only expects the community’s ISO rating to improve in future years.

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1103 E. Boxelder, Suite C Gillette, WY USA 82718 Picture provided by local Campbell County Shopper

Black Friday big in Gillette Black Friday hit hard in Gillette last week. Though we did not have a woman pepper spraying a group of people for an x-box, there was some comedy. I went with my mother-in-law this year, who had come out for Thanksgiving to see her grandkids. Both she and I had never been to a Black Friday event before, but we were willing to give it a try. First, there were no carts anywhere; I had never seen Wal-Mart run out of carts. I ﬁnally found one at the end of the parking lot with a broken wheel, not that I needed a cart anyway because it was so crowded that you could not push it anywhere. You were supposed to wait until midnight to unwrap the cellophane around the pallets in the middle of the isles, but patience ran out by most people and the pallets were almost empty before midnight. There were whole families there, with one nice resident turning to us and saying “I think that most of Gillette is here!” While in other areas like Florence, Alabama where a man had to be tazed, or San Leandro, California where a man was shot, and more. In Campbell County there were no arrests (associated with black Friday), and I did not see even a bad attitude. We did not have any pushing or shoving, and we did not even have any yelling. That shows the integrity of Campbell County and her residents.

Other arrests around the Country:

•Two South Carolina shoppers were robbed at gunpoint in the parking lot near a Hilton Head Island Wal-Mart. •In upstate New York, two women were injured in altercations that broke out at a Rome Wal-Mart that had just let Black Friday shoppers into its electronics department. One man was charged with disorderly conduct. •In the Phoenix suburb of

Buckeye, Wal-Mart shopper Jerald Allen Newman was roughed up by police as he put a video game in the waistband of his pants as he tried to lift his grandson so he wouldn’t be trampled by a crowd. Witnesses told Phoenix TV station KSAZ that police thought the 54-year-old grandfather was stealing the video game. •In Kinston, N.C., an early Friday scuffle erupted between Wal-Mart customers trying to snap up cellphones marked down from $200 to $35. An off-duty Kinston police officer working security for the store pepper sprayed several consumers. One unidentified shopper was arrested. •Police used a stun gun to subdue Wal-Mart shopper Brian Shellnutt in Milford, Conn., after he allegedly hit another shopper in a Thursday night fight while waiting to buy video games. Shellnutt, 26, faces assault and other charges. •A man was arrested in a scuffle at a jewelry counter at a Kissimmee, Fla., Wal-Mart. And near Muskegon, MI., a teen suffered minor injuries after being knocked over and stepped on repeatedly in a consumer rush to the electronics department. -In Trussville, an 18-yearold Pinson man was charged with disorderly con¬duct because of an incident at the Best Buy -Ten OCCUPY activists were arrested when WalMart brought in the Del City Police to tackle and handcuff the participants as they were peacefully leaving the store. Four women and six men were arrested. -Jerald Allen Newman, 54, has come to symbolize the mayhem of the day after he was videoed with blood streaming down his face as he was arrested by police officers in Phoenix, Arizona. The police say he was shoplifting and sustained the injuries because he resisted arrest and became aggressive after being found with a video game

Lease to mine Rare Earth is set A three square mile lease in Northeastern Wyoming has been acquired by a Brooklyn company who plans to mine the rare earth elements. First, Royal Energy Resources Inc. will have to receive a permit from Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality. Rare earths have be-

come increasingly popular and high in demand because of our “greener” living in the United States. They are used in things like wind turbines and hybrid vehicle’s batteries. This company, as well as Rare Elements Resources, also plans to mine the elements from Bear Lodge Mountain as well.

“To forget our history, the people who created it, and why it was created, is to forget why we are free and who died for our freedom.” - Nicholas De Laat

down his pants. But Mr. Newman’s tearful eight-year-old grandson, Nick, has spoken out to defend his grandfather to ABC News, saying: ‘I only got one game and people were trying to take it away from me and put it under his shirt so no one would take it’ -In another incident, two men at the Toys “R” US store in California, pulled out riﬂes and shot each other, amidst thousands of holiday shoppers. The tragedy did not even spare a woman, eight months pregnant, who, along with a number of other female shoppers, had to be taken to hospital after being crushed and/or suffocated. -The glass doors at the Green Acres Mall in Long Island shattered, as impatient shoppers pushed through; store authorities were forced to call police for crowd control and plead for order, according to a Seattle Times report. A temp worker, Jdimytai Damour, was thrown on to the ﬂoor and trampled, as a stream of people crushed him. He was later declared dead.

-In Muskegon Michigan, a 10th grader was trampled under a pile of adults for an $8 video game. -Chicago: 1 shooting, 3 stabbings, and 62 assault charges. -Detroit: 46 Stabbings, 9 shootings, and 196 assault charges. -We could report on this throughout our whole paper. ……Still want to move away from Campbell County?

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The Campbell County Observer Staff CampbellCountyObserver.net (PP-1) Volume 1 Issue 35 The Campbell County Observer is published by Patriot Publishing L.L.C. in Gillette, WY every Friday. Postmaster: Send address changes to 5105 Tarry St. Gillette, WY 82718 Writers Candice De Laat - Owner/Publisher CandiceDeLaat@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Nicholas De Laat - Owner/Editor NicholasDeLaat@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Sandra Boehler (Charities/Fundraisers/Veterans Events) SandraBoehler@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Keary Speer - Editor KearySpeer@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Glenn Woods (Political Column) GlennWoods@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Anne Peterson - Advertising Sales Manager AnnePeterson@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Mike Borda (American History) MichaelBorda@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Brittany Miller - Sales/Marketing BrittanyMiller@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Elizabeth Albin (Wright) ElizabethAlbin@campbellcountyobserver.com

Traci Jefferson - Sales/Marketing TraciJefferson@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Lin Stephens LinStephens@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Cyndee Stoneking - Sales/Marketing CyndeeStoneking@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Josh Uzarski (Science) JoshuaUzarski@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Owen Clarke - Ad Design OwenClarke@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Ken De Laat (About Nothing) KennethDeLaat@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Ken McCoy - Distribution Manager

“Juice” (Political Cartoonist) Juice@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Pattie Ladd - What’s Going On PattieLadd@CampbellCountyObserver.com Clint Burton - Photographer ClintBurton@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Jeff Morrison (Local History Contributor) JeffMorrison@CampbellCountyObserver.com

Community

Featured Crime Burglary - Nov. 20

Crime Stoppers needs your help in solving several destructions of properties that occurred in the south western section of Gillette on 11-20-2011. A witness reported seeing a white four door full size pickup occupied by two younger males strike street and stop signs at Lexington and Shoshone. The passenger was seen getting out of the vehicle and picking up the street signs and leaving the stop sign. Several other signs were found to be run over in the same area of town. The tire tracks from the other locations were the same as the ones found at the ﬁrst reported incident. The value of the signs is estimated at $1,800.00. If you have information that can solve this or any other crime please call Crime Stoppers at 686-0400 or the High School Crime Stoppers at 682-4185. You can remain anonymous and may earn up to $1,000 in reward.

Joke of the week

“Dumb Wyoming Laws” Submitted by Ruth Eckenson

• It is illegal to wear a hat that obstructs people’s view in a public theater or place of amusement. • It is illegal for women to stand within ﬁve feet of a bar while drinking. • You may not take a picture of a rabbit during the month of June.

Cheyenne

• Citizens may not take showers on Wednesdays.

Jayden’s Friends Beneﬁt Auction By Sandra Boehler On November 19, The Wyoming Biker Association, an organization that raises money to help with medical expenses for chronically ill children in Northeast Wyoming, held their 8th Annual Jayden’s Friends Beneﬁt Auction. The event was held at Jake’s Tavern with dinner starting at 5:00 PM followed by the auction. Several items were auctioned off by Chuck Wood and his assistant Daryl. The crowd who braved the weather that evening were very generous with their bids and enjoyed the competition of out bidding their friends and family to purchase items that were dear to them. The WBA puts in a lot of preparation hours collecting and preparing items for this cause. Work begins early on the day of the auction as all items need to be transported to Jake’s, then all items need to be tagged with a description for the auctioneer along with a lot number and a tag for the buyer number to claim their purchase at the end of the evening.

The group of volunteers worked hard throughout the auction. They showed bidders the items and made sure all items were arranged in a manner that makes it easier for the purchasers to receive their items to take home. They would like to thank all who attended our event again this year and gave so freely from your hearts. We all have a soft spot for children in our heart but that spot grows when you know that child is ill and needs the help of others to make sure they receive the proper care from doctors. This would not be possible for a lot of them without the funds that are raised by WBA through the generosity of our community. A huge thank you to all who attended and supported this auction and to Jim and Barb at Jake’s for allowing us the use of their facility. They would also like to thank Carol and Chuck Wood who along with their staff volunteer their services each year for this auction. You are all a blessing to our children.

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JACKDANNY to perform at Jake’s Tavern

JACKDANNY will perform at Jake’s Tavern (5201 So. Douglas Hwy, Gillette, WY 82716) on Dec. 9 from 8 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. JACKDANNY is a hot, new country blues band with two unique voices and great songwriting put together with hard driving ﬁddle and lead guitar in their album, “Full of Desire.” Jackie Rossman and Dan Perezchica create the sensational country blues duo known as JACKDANNY from the wilds of Wyoming. They have been singing and songwriting together since high school. JACKDANNY’s been on the road performing in clubs and casinos as well as living life of the road. Jackie started her musical career at age 10 on the violin. She learned guitar at a young age also and started writing songs

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as young as 12. At 17, Jackie was on the stage singing and performing with her ﬁddle when she met Dan. Dan comes from a line of singers and songwriters who have given him his style of guitar playing and songwriting that helps make JACKDANNY a ﬁery duo. Together they’ve struggled with life’s dreams and life’s excitement. JACKDANNY has been blessed by the good Lord with beautiful songs and a great talent of singing and performing that has gotten them opportunities to open up for some of country’s biggest names like David Allen Coe and Chris Young. Now you can enjoy their songs too on their upcoming album “Full of Desire.” JACKDANNY dedicates “Can You Hear Me” to those who suffer with Alzheimer’s.

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State veterans service ofﬁcer conducts outreach in Weston County during December

Alisa Cochrane, state veterans service ofﬁcer for the Wyoming Veterans Commission and writer for the Campbell County Observer, will be conducting outreach to assist veterans and their families with their state and federal beneﬁts, claims, and healthcare. She will be available at the Crook County Courthouse, 309 Cleveland, in

Sundance, on Dec. 6, from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Cochrane will be available at the Moorcroft Town Hall, 104 N. Big Horn, in Moorcroft, Dec. 7, from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. She will be available at the Weston County Courthouse, 1 W. Main St., in Newcastle, on Dec. 14, from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. During periods of inclem-

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ent weather, please check with the staff at the outreach locations to ensure the service ofﬁcer will be available. Cochrane is available to meet with veterans and their families in their homes and after hours. Please contact her for more information and to schedule an appointment at 307-6965048.

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Joke of the week

“Dictionary for women” Submitted by Liethia Stanely

Argument (ar*gyou*ment) n. A discussion that occurs when you’re right, but he just hasn’t realized it yet. Airhead (er*hed) n. What a woman intentionally becomes when pulled over by a policeman. Bar-be-que (bar*bi*q) n. You bought the groceries, washed the lettuce, chopped the tomatoes, diced the onions, marinated the meat and cleaned everything up, but, he “made the dinner.”

Local Educator named Peabody Energy Leader in Education David Hardesty is recognized for his dedication to students and awarded $1,000

David Hardesty of Conestoga Elementary was named a Peabody Energy Leader in Education for the 2011-12 school year, and awarded $1,000 for his commitment and dedication to students. As a fifth grade teacher and former Unites States Coast Guard officer, Hardesty leads by example in his classroom and instills the core values of honor, respect and devotion to duty. He led his students to research and develop an anti-bullying presentation, which included the effects of bullying, solutions to the problem and a new school policy and action plan. His students presented their work throughout the community and at the Wyoming State Showcase, a parent council meeting. The school board adopted new policies on bullying and Conestoga Elementary became a pilot school for the Olweus Anti-Bullying program, which Hardesty chairs. The Peabody Energy Leaders in Education program rewards dedicated education professionals—from teachers and coaches to librarians and counselors—who inspire and motivate youth to succeed. Award recipients are selected throughout the school year by a committee of top educators and business leaders.

“David Hardesty is truly an inspiration to his students and the community. He engages with students and encourages them to be the best they can be,” said Vic Svec, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications for Peabody Energy. “Peabody created the Leaders in Education program to give outstanding educators like David the recognition they deserve.” The Leaders program was developed in Missouri in 2009, and reflects Peabody’s commitment to make a positive impact in the communities where the company’s employees live and work by honoring those who inspire students. The 2011-2012 award program is continuing to accept nominations and is open to educational professionals of public, private and independent schools in designated communities where Peabody Energy employees live and work. Nominations may be made at www.PeabodyEnergyLeadersInEducation.org. Winners are selected from a diverse group of educators. They can range from veteran teachers to individuals in support staff roles such as administrators, coaches or counselors.

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Balanced choices can help preserve holiday enjoyment Submitted by Kim Deti-Wyoming Department of Health A Wyoming Department of Health official says being mindful of the potential pitfalls holiday food and activities may pose to heart health can help keep the season enjoyable. “No one wants to deal with a health crisis during the holiday season,” said Dr. Wendy Braund, state health officer and Public Health Division senior administrator with the Wyoming Department of Health. “We may eat meals that are especially rich in fat and sodium. Some people experience holiday stress. We may drink more alcohol. Some people smoke or use smokeless tobacco products,” Braund continued. “All of these things can contribute to an increased workload for our hearts.” “Unfortunately, many heart-related hospitalizations can be triggered by the food and lifestyle choices we may make during this time of year,” Braund said. Dave Ivester, Wyoming Department of Health Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program manager suggests carefully reading the labels on purchased foods as one simple strategy to help. “Modern technology allows us to buy

easy-to-use ingredients or foods that are already prepared,” Ivester said. “Sodium is a particular concern for heart health, and many prepared foods and packaged ingredients contain much higher amounts of sodium than we may realize.” Package and can nutrition labels list the sodium, fat and other nutrients by the number of servings per container. “However, it’s easy to forget that many foods contain more than one serving,” Ivester said. For example, a chicken broth label lists the nutrients per serving with most cans containing two servings. “The sodium content is typically around 960mg per serving or 1920mg per can, which is much more than an expert recommends most people have for an entire day,” Ivester said. Braund said, “Of course everyone enjoys a treat from time to time, especially during this season. We certainly want people to enjoy their holiday celebrations. But it is also a good idea to make informed and balanced choices overall during the season to avoid a potential heart-related health crisis.”

WyARNG hosts monthly memorial for veterans in November Submitted by Trudy Woodcock/MSgt. WY NG Deputy Public Affairs Officers/Joint Force Headquarters-Wyoming

A state-wide effort to help bring closure to families who lost a veteran began in June 2010 with monthly memorial services conducted by the Wyoming Army National Guard’s Honor Guard Team, in partnership with the Wyoming Veterans Commission. The latest ceremony was be held in Casper, at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery, Nov. 30, at noon, with participation from the Natrona County

United Veterans Council, other individual veterans, and the Wyoming Army National Guard Honor Guard. The goal is to provide military honors to a larger number of deserving Wyoming veterans. The service opens with the Pledge of Allegiance, a prayer, the reading of the names of the Wyoming veterans who died during the month, a rifle volley, the playing of “Taps” and the folding of the U.S. flag.

The Wyoming Army National Guard provides free military honors for veterans’ individual services; however, some veterans, for one reason or another, never receive the honors due. Veterans’ organizations interested participating in future services should contact the Wyoming Army National Guard’s military funeral honors office at 307-772-5136.

Cantaloupe (kant*e*lope) n. Gotta get married in a church. Clothes dryer (kloze dri*yer) n. An appliance designed to eat socks. Eternity (e*ter*ni*tee) n. The last two minutes of a football game. Exercise (ex*er*siz) v. To walk up and down a mall, occasionally resting to make a purchase. Hair Dresser (hare dres*er) n. Someone who is able to create a style you will never be able to duplicate again. See “Magician.” Hardware Store (hard*war stor) n. Similar to a black hole in space-if he goes in, he isn’t coming out anytime soon. Childbirth (child*brth) n. You get to go through 36 hours of contractions; he gets to hold your hand and say “focus...breath...push...” Patience (pa*shens) n. The most important ingredient for dating, marriage and children. See also “tranquilizers.” Waterproof Mascara (wah*tr*pruf mas*kar*ah) n. Comes off if you cry, shower, or swim, but will not come off if you try to remove it. Valentine’s Day (val*en*tinez dae) n. A day when you have dreams of a candlelight dinner, diamonds, and romance, but consider yourself lucky to get a card.

Community Road to Recovery There is a young man that lives in Sleepy Hollow who, while I am writing this article, is coming home. He started in Campbell County Hospital, and ended up in Denver. He had a long and hard recovery, but received an unprecedented support from family and friends in our community. His name is Josh Franzen, and he is neighbors with the owners of the Campbell County Observer. For the past few years, he has been friends with everyone in the neighborhood, and has put a touch of warmth in the hearts of all the people he has met. Below, we decided to print the Facebook updates from his parents. If you are friends of this wonderful family, you would have seen the support on Facebook alone, and I believe that support helped Josh through his recovery. It was not all bad for him, as the day before he was released, members of the Denver Bronco’s came and signed a bear and walked with him. They were #17 Quan Cosby, #2 Adam Weber, #65 Manny Ramirez, #34 Kyle McCarthy, and #97 Jeremy Beal. Josh, I am so happy to see that you are coming home. You don’t know how relieved Candice, the kids, and I are that you are ok, and that I can beat you many more times at Darts in the Garage! –Nicholas De LaatNovember 5th Sure wish Josh was feeling better. It’s so hard to see him like this. He won’t get out tomorrow after all, the doctor said at least a few more days. Poor guy! Please keep Josh in your thoughts. –MomHe has cellulitis in his left leg. It is a very bad infection of the tissues inside. It has caused fevers as high as 103.7. It is swollen and very painful. It also has moved up and down his entire leg causing a huge deep reddish purple coloration. Josh having cerebral palsy doesn’t make things easier because the infection affects his muscles and mobility as well. He’s a pretty sick boy. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.MomNovember 6th Wanted to update all of you... We are in Denver. Josh was flown here by jet. I came with him. Donnie and his mom are on their way. Josh is stable, he is intubated, and he has been since we were in Gillette. He is calm and resting, for the first time in three days. His infection is not responding to antibiotics. We are hoping to find the answers here. He will have a procedure to remove a port that got lodged in his bone, from an iv site. Other than that, nothing has changed. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. We

are blessed to have so many people that care for Josh. Thank you all!–MomNovember 7th Thinking of my son Josh. Get better brother!!!! Daddy loves u!!!! – DadWanted to check in and give you all an update. There has really been no change. They are still concerned Josh’s infection is spreading. So they will not consider taking him off the vent until there are signs of the infection subsiding. They also will want to remove the port in his bone surgically. However, the infection is the number one priority at this time. They are telling us that we are looking at a two week time frame. They will have to wean Josh off the vent which is, at least, a good three days away. Josh will also require some rehabilitation, which will be started here then continued in Gillette. They basically said we are in the marathon phase, it will take time, patience, and waiting to get through this process and it all depends on Josh and how he responds. The echo that they did on his heart today looked good. His blood sugar levels are normal, so we are not looking at diabetes. Please keep Josh in your thoughts and pray often. We are grateful for all your comments and encouragement. I’ve been reading your posts to Josh as well. He definitely knows that he is loved by so many!-MomNovember 8th I’ve had quite a few people asking where Josh is at... So to save time I’m posting it here, it is PSL Rocky Mountain Children’s Hospital. in Denver. He is in the pediatric ICU,room #3.-MomAn update on Josh: They were able to put the (PIC LINE) in this is a safer and better access site for blood draws and IV. It’s better than the femoral artery site. This will also allow him to be treated at home with iv antibiotics, when he is released. They will do an MRI and thyroid panel tomorrow. They did mention possibly taking him off the vent Friday depending on how his infection is. Then it will be very important for Josh to cooperate so he can continue to heal and get better. He also will have a long rehabilitation ahead of him that will start here. He’s been enjoying his iTunes music through headphones and is resting comfortably. Thanks again for all your posts and encouragement. :)-MomNovember 10th Hey guys, Josh had a rough day yesterday. There were a few issues. The last few days he’s been calm and comfortable. However, yesterday, especially in the evening, he seemed very

restless and agitated. His heart rate and blood pressures were elevated and he was extremely fidgety. I just called and checked in on him this morning, and he, again, had a few more episodes throughout the night. They were able to give him a sponge bath and turn his music on. This seemed to help and he is comfortable now. The thyroid panel they ran yesterday was great, so no issues there. He is still running high fevers, so they took more cultures yesterday, hoping to get results of those today. The infection no longer seems to be spreading. However, blisters are covering the infected area now. Please keep him in your thoughts. I’m hoping that he will have less agitation today, and remain comfortable. It’s so frustrating and heartbreaking to see him struggle like he did last night. We should know more today about their plans for taking him off the vent. As always I am thankful for all the thoughts and prayers by so many. Have faith today will be a better day! Love you all!MomHey everyone! I’ll keep this short tonight... Josh is having an awesome night! Fevers are gone, infection is losing its redness, BP is good and he is calm and comfortable. They are changing his sedation with the hope of waking him up and taking him off the vent Saturday, if he can tolerate it. He’s still going to have pain because if the blisters rupturing and skin sloughing off. So it will be a process of wound care and rehab for his muscles after being off his feet for over a week. However, we are optimistic! It’s amazing how the power of prayer, being surrounded by love, faith ,and encouragement can make everything all better. To all if you... You are amazing, thanks for thinking of my Josh!!! We are blessed!!!-MomNovember 12th Well Josh has had a few setbacks. He started getting hives yesterday; today they are twice as bad and getting worse. He also started running a high fever again of 103.2. Good news is the fever broke. They are worried about him having infection in his lungs now. His white blood count is elevated and they’ve been getting a lot of stuff from his lungs when they suction. So, they’ve switched to another antibiotic to treat the lungs and his leg. They’ve been giving him Benadryl for the hives but it isn’t working. It seems for every step he takes forward, he takes three backward. So frustrated! Josh is not tolerating their measures to getting him off the vent. So we are now unsure when that will happen. Please pray for Josh. He needs comfort and healing. He is a very sick boy!-Mom-

November 13th A good day for Josh... They are lessening the amount of breathing the vent his doing for him. He’s tolerating it well and is now doing more breathing on his own. The rash and hives are still awful, but they are still thinking it’s because of the antibiotics. They are hoping to wake him up on Tuesday, as long as he continues to respond well and hold his own. I, unfortunately, wasn’t able to go and see him today... of all the times to get strep throat, I have it now. I went to walk in clinic because my throat was hurting terrible this morning. I have to be on the antibiotic 24 hours before I can go to the hospital. I’m not a happy Mama, I miss my Josh and need to be there for him.MomNovember 17th Hey there!! I just wanted to give an update on Josh. Yesterday was a very rough day...Josh was very agitated and his lung functions weren’t improving. His heart rate and blood pressure were elevated as well. Donnie and I were at the hospital all day until 11 pm and even then were finding it hard to leave. I will tell you I felt helpless, fearful, and broken. I appreciate all the prayers and support...God does hear us and answer our prayers. This morning I am relieved to say Josh is doing very well. He is resting comfortable, not fidgeting, blood pressure and heart rate is great. His lung X-ray this morning showed a slight improvement...(a little goes a long way with me). They are changing some of his settings on the vent to start the weaning process. I put Josh in God’s hands last night, and I will continue to from here on out. There is a long road ahead...but with all of your support, faith, and

prayers. That road won’t be as rough. We are blessed to have so many that love Josh. We are thankful and luv each and every one of you! Keep those prayers coming!!!!-MomNovember 19th Well Josh got off the vent and is now resting. He’s doing very well now to recover from all this and get back home. –DadPraying tomorrow will go well. They are going to start lifting Josh’s sedation

Continued on Page 7 Band and Orchestra Instruments · Sound Systems

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Community Road to Recovery... Continued from Page 6 at 8am and plan on removing the breathing tube by 10am. We are preparing for a long day. However, it is the ﬁrst step to Josh’s recovery. He’s got a long road ahead of him, but things are looking up. Thank you all for your love, prayers, and support.-MomPrayers please!! Josh is coming off of the sedation and is becoming more aware of his surroundings. However, he is very agitated and confused. He is having a hard time. Please pray for his comfort and strength. I can only imagine what he is feeling. So heartbreaking to see him struggling and scared.MomJust wanted everyone to know Josh is off the vent and the tube is out. . He is doing well. Still confused and a little agitated, but otherwise everything looks good. He’s got a lot of recovery to do. Hoping he’ll bounce back quickly. He’s already talking a little (Imagine that).....We are blessed!!!-MomNovember 23rd Hey everyone, An update on Josh...He is doing better. Everything was great until about 5:30 last night. After being off the antibiotics for only 12 hours his cellulitis ﬂared back up. So he is back on the antibiotics. He is also having wound care on his leg and other areas. He is having quite a bit of leg pain. Despite this set back,

he is very determined to get on his feet. He tried standing yesterday, and his legs were dead weight. Today we have had him up, with the help of PT and the parallel bars; three times and he stood for about 15 seconds with support. He is so willing to try, so proud of him. He has a long, difﬁcult, and rough rehabilitation ahead of him. We must continue to be positive and hopeful about his recovery. I will admit it disheartening to see how much his physical strength and mobility have diminished. Just want the best for him. We are still looking at another week or longer in Denver. We cannot express enough, how much all your support, prayers, phone calls, cards, balloons, gifts, get well wishes and love have meant to us. We are truly blessed!!! Thank you all!! Also, Josh has been moved to the fourth ﬂoor room 4412 in the pediatric unit. Things are looking up, please continue to keep him in your thoughts and prayers.-MomNovember 24th We have so much to be thankful for! Josh is having a good day. We have friends and family that are supportive, caring, loving, and giving. We are not with all our family today, but we have each other. Josh is getting better. Shannon has given us a home, and cooked turkey dinner for us. She brought it up to

the hospital, so we could have Thanksgiving dinner with Josh. Shannon you are amazing!! We are truly blessed. Love to you all!Mom-

November 29th Josh’s walk with the Bronco players this morning! –DadNovember 30th We are WYOMING bound!! Whoot whoot!MomMessage from Mom and Dad We are home!!! Josh is doing well, he is glad to be in our home with family. Josh will remain on antibiotics for the next few weeks. Dr. Ammari will follow his care here in Gillette. Josh has a long road ahead of him to get him back on his feet. He is making progress, however, his mobility is gone. We will work with physical therapy, home health, and respite care to get him up and going. Thank you all for your constant support, encouragement, faith, and prayers. You all have been amazing. We are so blessed to live in such a wonderful community with great people and friends.

November 28th Josh did great today. This morning he walked 90 feet with 1 break but this afternoon he went 150 feet with 1 break. What kid! Sounds like Wednesday we will be headed back to Gillette ﬁnally! Thanks for all the support everyone has given us. –Dad-

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Fall Commencement set for Dec. 1-3 at UW

Fall commencement ceremonies at the University of Wyoming will be held Thursday-Saturday, Dec. 1-3. The multicultural graduation celebration will be at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1, in the Wyoming Union Yellowstone Ballroom. Friday, Dec. 2, at 4 p.m., the College of Arts and Sciences program, along with a ceremony for College of Agriculture and Natural Resources graduates, will be held in the Arts and Sciences auditorium.

Also Friday, the College of Engineering and Applied Science will hold its program at 7:30 p.m. in the Arts and Sciences auditorium. The College of Business will hold its ceremony Saturday, Dec. 3, at 10 a.m. in the Arts and Sciences auditorium. At the same time, the College of Health Sciences program will be held in the Wyoming Union Yellowstone Ballroom.

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Wreaths across America

The public is invited to a ceremony for Wyoming’s state remembrance wreath on Monday, Dec. 5 at 1 p.m., in the rotunda of the Wyoming State Capitol. The ceremony is part of the Wreaths across America program that honors veterans and their families during the holidays. The ceremony in the rotunda will be hosted by the Wyoming Veterans Commission. Everyone, especially family members of deployed military and deceased veterans, is invited, as well as veterans, veterans organizations, and military personnel. The ceremony will include a moment of silence in remembrance of deployed military and deceased veterans and their families. The remembrance wreath will remain in the rotunda through-

out the holiday season. Dec.10 will mark the 20 anniversary of wreaths, donated by Worcester Wreath Company, in Harrington, Maine, being donated to decorate the graves at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., and the fourth year of a national campaign dubbed “Wreaths Across America” that will bring the same remembrance wreaths to more than 230 national and state veterans

cemeteries and monuments across the nation. This year, as in past years, wreaths will be donated for a special ceremony at each state capitol. For more information about the capitol rotunda ceremony, contact the Wyoming Veterans Commission at 307-777-8151. To learn more about the national “Wreaths across America” program, go to www.wreathsacrossamerica.org.

Mail this form, along with payment, to our office at 5105 Tarry St. Sleepy Hollow (Campbell County), WY 82718

12 Weeks - $12.00 26 Weeks - $25.00 52 Weeks - $50.00

Name Address Phone Number

Joke of the week Submitted by Donnie Lakerson via Facebook

To Pay with a Credit/Debit Card, please call our office at (307) 670-8980 or visit our website at www.campbellcountyobserver.com

Last year I had my chance to do the traditional thing of shooting my own turkey for Thanksgiving . . . you should have seen the people scatter in the meat department!

Community City of Gillette offers rebates for home energy audits and home irrigation audits

Home energy audits

The City of Gillette is offering a $125.00 rebate for Home Energy Audits conducted by the City’s partner, Green Steps, Inc. The retail price of the audit is $250.00 of which $125.00 is returned to the customer in the form of a rebate check. This means that for only $125.00, a homeowner can identify if energy efﬁcient improvements are justiﬁed. If improvements

are justified, a homeowner can then decide which improvements to make and in what sequence. Home energy audits will help you learn: • Techniques to lower your home’s energy use • How much money you could save when you use less energy • How energy efficiency can also improve your comfort year-round Potential positive outcomes from making improvements include: • Savings on utility bills (electricity and natural gas) • Fewer drafts and more comfortable rooms • Efficient use of heating and cooling systems Only 50 audits will be of-

acteristics of the irrigation system and subsequent recommendations are provided on how to improve the efﬁciency of the system. In addition to suggestions for making capital improvements to the irrigation system; participants are educated about proper maintenance procedures and are also provided with a watering schedule as well as advice on how to implement landscape best management practices. Only 40 home irrigation audits will be offered. Please call Michael Foote, City of Gillette Sustainability Coordinator at 686-5228 to reserve your spot for next year.

fered this year, so register today with John Schneider (Green Steps, Inc.) at 307620-5360.

Home irrigation system audits

The City is partnering with the Center for Resource Conservation to conduct irrigation audits during the summer 2012. The two (2) hour audit will cost $99 and the City will rebate $49.50 back to the homeowner. Audits are planned for midJuly 2012. The intention of the program is to assist homeowners conserve water by operating their irrigation systems in an efﬁcient manner. During the audit, several tests are conducted to measure the char-

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City of Gillette is offering opportunities for residential utility customers to improve the performance of their homes and save money on their utility bills. Rebates are now available for the following programs:

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The Gillette Area Leadership Institute (G.A.L.I.) Class of 2011-12, sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce of Campbell County, will be selling rafﬂe tickets to raise funds to support the Gillette Area Leadership Institute Class of 2012-13. G.A.L.I. is a community leadership program offered to individuals who want to learn more about the diverse business and government entities throughout the area. The 9-month program’s curriculum includes visits to local agricultural, mining, educational, media, governmental, medical, judicial, and human service organizations throughout Campbell County. In order to complete the graduation requirements, each participant is required to attend two board meetings for an organization not afﬁliated with their own profession, complete four hours of community service and participate in an event to raise funds to support the next year’s institute. In order to accomplish the fund raising requirement, the Class of 2011-12

will be sponsoring a raffle of a bronze buffalo sculpture, sculpted by local artist Dr. Patrick Love. Raffle tickets are $10 and can be purchased from any G.A.L.I. Class of 2011-12 member. The beautiful sculpture can be viewed at the following locations: November 14-30: Campbell County Chamber of Commerce, 314 S. Gillette Ave. December 5-16: City of Gillette Clerk’s Office, 201 E 5th St. December 19-30: Collins Communications, 3795 Collins Rd. January 2-13: Powder River Dental, 1211 S. Douglas Hwy. January 16-27: Powder River Dental, 805 S 4-J Rd. January 30-February 10: Wells Fargo Bank, 500 S. Douglas Hwy. February 13-24: Gillette Optometric Clinic, 609 4-J Ct. February 27-March 9: Campbell County Court House, 500 S. Gillette Ave. Drawing to be held March 18, 2012 at the NEWCA Home Show

G.A.L.I. Class of 2011-12 Members include Laura Besler (First Interstate Bank), Cheryl Chitwood (Campbell County Government), Ashlie Coker (Daly, Davidson & Sorenson), Del Rae Cox (Campbell County Government), Joe Fischer (Gillette Optometric Clinic), Faith Harvey (Powder River Dental), Patrick Love (Powder River Dental), Shane Miller (Collins Communications), Jody Mills (First Interstate Bank), Ashlee Mills (Fischer, Gillette Optometric Clinic), Donna Morgan (YES House), C.J. Pond (Powder River Energy Corp.), Aaron Rodriguez (Wells Fargo Bank, NA), Connie Scigliano (Campbell County Government), Cindy Staskiewicz (City of Gillette), Taezia Storbeck (Powder River Dental), Bridget Vanderpool (Campbell County Memorial Hospital), Karissa Viergets (Campbell County Memorial Hospital), Tatyana Walker (YES House) and Lacy Woodard (Powder River Dental).

Local vehicle sought in connection with buck poaching me and he said, ‘I’m certain that it’s this vehicle. I saw them driving back and forth all day and I saw them parked there,’” Seeman says. The buck mule deer was found shot, the head cut off, and the meat abandoned late afternoon on Saturday about 10 miles south of the Sheridan County border on the Upper Powder River Road in northern Johnson County. According to Seeman, nothing else was removed from the deer. “Based on the evidence at the scene, it appears that this animal was simply shot for the head,” Seeman says. “Poachers like these take away opportunities for law-abiding sportsmen and everyone who values Wyoming’s wildlife.” Seeman believes the likely reason for killing the deer is for trophy, which state statutes prohibit. Fines range between $5,000 and

“An FBI Investigation” Submitted by Derek Jaginst

The phone rings at FBI headquarters. “Hello? I’m calling to report my neighbor, Clifford. He is hiding marijuana inside his firewood!” “Thank you very much for the call, sir.” The next day, FBI agents descend on the neighbor’s house. They search the shed where the firewood is kept. Using axes, they bust open every piece of wood, but find no marijuana. They swear at the neighbors and leave. The phone rings at the neighbor’s house. Hey, Clifford, did the FBI come?” “Yep.” “Did they chop your firewood?” “Yep.” “Great, now it’s your turn to call. I need my garden plowed.”

I Buy Militaria

Submitted by Justin Wolffing Officials continue to search for an older, darkcolored passenger vehicle with a white paint chip on the hood with Campbell County license plates in connection with the poaching of a buck mule deer. “It was an old beat up car, probably not even worth $500,” explains Buffalo Game Warden Jim Seeman. “But it did have kind of a white front of the hood, like either the paint had chipped off or was faded. It was obvious it was kind of a different color, and it was a defiantly 17 county plates. So I’m hoping if somebody saw that or knew of some guys that went out and shot a deer that they would step up to the plate.” Seeman says the property owner who reported the beheaded deer carcass saw this vehicle around the scene of the crime for some time. “He immediately called

Joke of the week

Old Military Equipment

$10,000 and/or up to a year in jail. Bucks are especially vulnerable this time of the year, Seeman says. “It’s their rut, their mating season,” he adds. “So they’re visible along the roads, you know, they kind of act crazy and stupid so they’re fairly easy to get close to.” A cash reward is available for evidence leading to the arrest and conviction of any person violating Wyoming statute 23-3-107(a), wantonly taking or destroying a big or trophy game animal. Seeman asks that anyone with information regarding this or any other wildlife violations contact the Sheridan Regional Ofﬁce at 307 672-7418 or call the Stop Poaching Hotline at (877) WGFD TIP - (877) 943-3847. Callers can remain anonymous.

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Where is this picture taken?

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Veteran Owned Business 8

Public Pulse “Super Committee” hopeful that repatriation tax holiday will boost economy Members of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, also known as the “Super Committee,” are hopeful that a repatriation tax holiday allowing domestic companies to claim profits made overseas at reduced tax rates will boost the economy by encouraging capital investment and job growth here in the United States. A similar proposal was enacted in 2004 (P.L. 108-357), however, and, according to a May 2011 report by the Congressional Research Service, “while empirical evidence is clear that this provision resulted in a significant increase in repatriated earnings, empirical evidence is unable to show a corresponding increase in domestic investment or employment.” The report highlights 12 companies that took advantage of the tax holiday but did not increase employment, and, in most cases, reduced employment in the years following taking advantage of the tax holiday. Below is MapLight’s analysis of campaign contributions to members of the Super Committee from PACs and employees connected to the companies mentioned. Contributing Organization (PAC/Employees)

Citigroup Colgate-Palmolive Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell IBM Merck and Company Motorola Solutions National Semiconductor PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble Total Recipient

Camp Total Frederick Upton

Upton Total James Clyburn

Clyburn Total

$586,331 $2,450 $178,550 $160,999 $205,858 $209,920 $161,525 $89,296 $10,575 $74,943 $253,524 $187,370 $2,121,341

Organization

Citigroup Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell IBM Merck and Company Motorola Solutions National Semiconductor PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$50,800 $31,750 $17,000 $27,120 $1,350 $26,000 $4,500 $2,000 $6,564 $34,000 $18,000 $219,084

Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell Merck and Company Motorola Solutions PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$70,600 $4,000 $17,000 $22,000 $19,996 $3,500 $40,100 $6,000 $183,196

Citigroup Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell IBM Merck and Company Motorola Solutions PepsiCo Pﬁzer

$16,000 $2,500 $9,500 $22,500 $200 $26,500 $19,500 $10,000 $44,764 $151,464

Jeb Hensarling

Citigroup Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell IBM Motorola Solutions PepsiCo Pﬁzer Hensarling Total John Kerry

Kerry Total Jon Kyl

Kyl Total Max Baucus

Patrick Toomey

Toomey Total Patty Murray

Total Contributions (Jan. 1, 2001 - Jun. 30, 2011)

Total (Jan. 1, 2001 Jun. 30, 2011) Christopher Citigroup $8,000 Van Hollen Ford $2,500 Hewlett-Packard $250 Honeywell $20,000 IBM $2,750 Merck and Company $1,000 Motorola Solutions $2,000 Pﬁzer $10,000 Procter & Gamble $1,000 Van Hollen Total $47,500 David Camp

Baucus Total

$22,750 $3,500 $3,000 $12,500 $1,500 $1,000 $11,000 $8,500 $63,750

Citigroup Colgate-Palmolive Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell IBM Merck and Company Motorola Solutions National Semiconductor PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$271,181 $1,950 $24,250 $82,949 $31,188 $194,220 $20,000 $18,300 $8,575 $6,779 $42,310 $13,950 $715,652

Citigroup Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell IBM Merck and Company Motorola Solutions PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$67,050 $7,000 $4,500 $11,000 $1,750 $7,500 $9,500 $9,100 $10,000 $8,500 $135,900

Citigroup Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell IBM Merck and Company Motorola Solutions

$45,400 $23,350 $16,000 $15,000 $3,600 $30,900 $4,500

Murray Total Robert Portman

Portman Total Xavier Becerra

Becerra Total

PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$12,500 $24,100 $12,800 $188,150

Citigroup Colgate-Palmolive Honeywell IBM Merck and Company Motorola Solutions PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$12,700 $500 $250 $1,500 $4,400 $2,000 $1,000 $5,750 $7,000 $35,100

Citigroup Ford Hewlett-Packard Honeywell IBM Merck and Company Motorola Solutions Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$3,050 $1,000 $11,800 $17,500 $1,000 $13,500 $7,000 $18,500 $5,000 $78,350

Citigroup Ford Honeywell IBM Merck and Company PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$74,400 $12,100 $10,300 $2,050 $6,225 $10,000 $10,000 $114,120 $239,195

Citigroup Hewlett-Packard Honeywell Merck and Company Motorola Solutions PepsiCo Pﬁzer Procter & Gamble

$15,000 $12,000 $21,500 $3,500 $1,000 $4,500 $5,500 $1,000 $64,000

Grand Total

$2,121,341

For our future issues, we would like to have our readers submit their favorite holiday recipes for publishing. Please feel free to enter yours and send them to kearyspeer@campbellcountyobserver.com and please include pictures if you feel so inclined!

Letters to the Editor You may submit your letters to the editor the following ways: Mail your letter to 5105 Tarry St., Gillette, WY 82718 or Email your letter to: Letters@CampbellCountyObserver.com All letters must be under 250 words and must be signed with a valid name and telephone number. We reserve the right to not publish any letter for any reason. We will call you before printing your letter for veriﬁcation that you wrote it for two reasons. The ﬁrst is that we do not want to print a letter that has the wrong name on it, and the other is that it is the position of this newspaper that any public opinions or writings where the source is hidden is not worth being printed.

Patriot Publishing is a small publishing business starting up right here in Wyoming. We not only publish the Campbell County Observer and calendars, but anything in print. We will soon also have a monthly publication that we think you will enjoy. If you have a book and can’t get a major company to publish you, we are a new and American-owned publisher that may print your work. Please feel free to contact us at anytime with your idea.

Joke of the week

“The new Bill of Rights” Submitted by Ken Routhesen Nearly everything has changed in the United States since the Bill of Rights was written and adopted. We still see the original words when we read those first 10 Amendments to the Constitution, yet the meaning is vastly different now. And no wonder. We’ve gone from a country of a few million to a few hundred million. The nation’s desire to band together was replaced by revulsion of togetherness. We exchanged a birthright of justice for a magic bullet, and replaced the Pioneer Spirit with the Pioneer Stereo. We’re not the people who founded this country and our Bill of Rights should reflect this. As we approach the 21st Century, it’s time to bring the wording up to date showing what we are and who we are. AMENDMENT I Congress shall make no law establishing religion, but shall act as if it did; and shall make no laws abridging the freedom of speech, unless such speech can be construed as “commercial speech” or “irresponsible speech” or “offensive speech;” or shall abridge the right of the people to peaceably assemble where and when permitted; or shall abridge the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances, under proper procedures and providing that the monies can be afforded. AMENDMENT II A well-regulated military force shall be maintained under control of the President, and no political entity within the United States shall maintain a military force beyond Presidential control. The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall be determined by the Congress and the States and the Cities and the Counties and the Towns. The right to protect yourself has been absorbed. AMENDMENT III No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house without the consent of the owner, unless such house is believed to have been used, or believed may be used, for some purpose contrary to law or public policy. AMENDMENT IV The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures may not be suspended except to protect public welfare. Any place or conveyance shall be subject to search by law enforcement forces of any political entity, and any such places or conveyances, or any property within them, may be confiscated without judicial proceeding if believed to be used in a manner contrary to law. All families do not enjoy the right to exercise judicial, civil, or compensating power against Department of Family Services for the actions they perform to protect said children, even when wrong.

AMENDMENT V Any person may be held to answer for a crime of any kind upon any suspicion whatever; and may be put in jeopardy of life or liberty by the state courts, by the federal judiciary, and while incarcerated; and may be compelled to be a witness against himself by the forced submission of his body or any portion thereof, and by testimony in proceedings excluding actual trial. Private property forfeited under judicial process shall become the exclusive property of the judicial authority and shall be immune from seizure by injured parties. AMENDMENT VI In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to avoid prosecution by exhausting the legal process and its practitioners. Failure to succeed shall result in speedy plea-bargaining resulting in lesser charges. Convicted persons shall be entitled to appeal until sentence is completed. It shall be unlawful to bar or deter an incompetent person from service on a jury. Any productive member of society making a mistake shall enjoy the right to pay in excessive ﬁnes and penalties to make up for said individuals listed in sentence 1 of this amendment. AMENDMENT VII In civil suits, where a contesting party is a person whose private life may interest the public, the right of trial in the Press shall not be abridged. Judges suing over pants ruined by dry-cleaners shall have special privileges to more compensation. AMENDMENT VIII Sufﬁcient bail may be required to ensure that dangerous persons remain in custody pending trial. There shall be no right of the public to be afforded protection from dangerous persons, and such protection shall be dependent upon incarceration facilities available. Excessive bail will only be given to those who contribute to society and are not deemed dangerous, for the purpose of Court income. AMENDMENT IX The enumeration in The Constitution of rights shall be construed to deny or discourage others which may from time to time be extended by the branches of Federal, State or Local government, unless such rights shall themselves become enacted by Amendment. AMENDMENT X The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution shall be deemed to be powers residing in persons holding appointment therein through the Civil Service (i.e. EPA-MSHA-FBI-ATF-OSHA-NSACIA-LABOR-CZARS-DFS-Police-Fire-Courts-Councils-Municipalities-AOA), and may be delegated to the States and local Governments as determined by the public interest. The public interest shall be determined by the Civil Service.

Public Pulse Changes proposed to emergency snow removal

Bold Republic Weekly

By Paul Wallem - Basin Radio News

Dear Senator Enzi By Glenn Woods

I wanted to make sure to thank Senator Enzi for calling in for an interview on my radio show. His press secretary e-mailed me saying that the Senator was not able to make it back into town for Thanksgiving, but wanted to make sure to talk to everyone in Campbell County about what has been doing while he was away in Washington DC. Now, for those who listen to my show you know that I am a self-admitted BLOW HARD! I have four hours a day, ﬁve days a week to make my point of view and state my case. I have free reign to complain and moan about anything that I wish, as long as I don’t bring down the wrath of the FCC on the radio station. So, when I have an interview like Senator Enzi I make a point to put my opinions aside and let the guest speak. After, I will have all the time in the world to voice my opinion. While I do respect Mr. Enzi and all that he has done for Gillette, Campbell County, the State of Wyoming, and this nation, I found that, after our conversation on air, he and I have a lot that we disagree on. Mr. Enzi, On your 1% idea, I agree. Cutting one penny out of every dollar that the government sends is not a bad idea. In just a few years the budget will be balanced and most of the cuts will happen without anyone even noticing that they are occurring, thus eliminating the usual partisan, election year, squabbles over our bloated federal budget. Not a bad idea. Keep pushing it. Now, about that Internet Sales Tax: Your idea is that businesses that earn over $500,000 a year in internet sales will receive a computer program from participating states to collect out of state taxes. Anyone making a purchase will have to

enter in their zip code, the tax will be calculated and the business will then collect that tax and send it to the state in question. I see many problems with this idea. 1) Remember, the income tax was supposed to be a “small,” “temporary tax,” on just the wealthiest to help pay for a war. What is the IRS today? For that matter take any government program, of any kind, and show me where it has stayed small, within budget, and under control. Trust me, Senator, when I say that it will not be long until this idea has spiraled out of control. Eventually, the average house wife, trying to raise a little extra cash by selling figurines and bath soaps from her laptop in the kitchen, will have auditors from California knocking on her door. If you don’t believe me I’d like to point to the numerous stories of yard sales around the nation that have been paid a visit by the local tax collector. 2) Auditors from another state can come into Wyoming to check the books of a local business, then levy fines and penalties. The state governments may not have a problem with it, but the people do. 3) We, the people, are struggling out here. We are looking for any way we can find to make more money and save money. This is not the time to find another way to tax the people or tax business, even if the tax is only on those “big box stores.” This is the time for our government to back off, spend less, and allow people and businesses of all sizes to make and keep more of what they make. --- When I speak of government in this case I mean government in all its forms, from the city on up to Washington DC. Government is taking plenty, thank you. It’s time to spend less. 4) People out here are just sick and tired of gov-

ernment ﬁnding new ways to take out money. Mr. Enzi, enough is enough. It is time to focus on smaller government, not increases in revenue. Now, Mr. Enzi, about that vote to raise the debt ceiling. Wow, was that a big mistake. 1) In our interview you told me that your vote prevented the government from going into default, thus preventing a crisis. You got some bad advice from your friend Phil Gramm, a once Democrat, now a Republican. Despite what Mr. Gramm told you, Congress’s failure to raise the debt limit would in no way cause a default on our national debt. The federal government will still have more than enough money to fully service our debt. Next year, about 7 percent of all projected federal government expenditures will go to interest on our debt. Tax revenue is projected to cover at least 70 percent of all government expenditures. So, under any circumstances, there will be plenty of money to pay our creditors. If Congress refuses to raise the debt ceiling it would force the administration to prioritize payment of those obligations that must be paid to maintain our full faith and credit. 2) No sir, the debt ceiling is not a “marker,” as you called it. It is supposed to be a law, preventing Congress from over-spending. Continuing to raise the ceiling each time we reach it is what gave rise the movements like the Tea Party. Mr. Enzi, with all due respect --- It is time to pay attention to what the people are saying and stop listing to what Washington is saying. We would rather you spent your time and energy dismantling the bloated waste and excess of government, rather than adding an item more.

During Monday night’s Gillette City Council workshop, the council reviewed new items that will be on the agenda for their upcoming city council meeting on December 5, including amendments to the city’s snow emergency ordinance. “Currently there’s an emergency snow route ordinance in the City of Gillette which restricts parking on certain streets when the snow depth exceeds four inches,” explains City of Gillette Police Chief Jim Hloucal. “We’re proposing a change to that ordinance just to make it more proactive so that we don’t have to wait as long before we require those vehicles to be moved off those routes.” As it stands now, city ordinance restricts the time of day the police department can notify owners to remove their vehicles from snow emergency routes when snow depths exceed four inches. Under the proposed amendment, the police department would be allowed to notify owners of vehicles parked on emergency snow routes by telephone to move their vehicles “whenever practicable”. “It will better enable the streets division to plow those ahead of having so much snow on them and having people plowed in,” says Hloucal. “It’s a relatively minor change that we’re proposing to the ordinance.” Hloucal says the list of emergency snow routes will also be revised in an effort to update the existing ordinance. “There are a couple of streets on there that no longer need to be considered snow emergency routes,” he says. In particular, the proposed changes would eliminate Boxelder Road between 4-J and Highway 59, Rohan Avenue between 2nd and 8th Streets,

To listen to Glenn Woods morning radio show tune in to 1270am KIML Gillette Monday through Friday from 6 - 10 a.m. www.boldrepublic.com

State ﬂag ﬂown at half-staff on Nov. 30

Governor Matt Mead ordered the State of Wyoming ﬂag be ﬂown at half-staff at the Capitol in Cheyenne and in Campbell County from sunrise to sunset on November 30, 2011 in honor of former State Senator Lawrence “Larry” Gilbertz who passed away November 26, 2011. Mr. Gilbertz served as the Senator for District 23 from 1993 to 1998.

and 4th Avenue between Burma and Highway 1416 as emergency snow routes. Besides the emergency snow routes, general snow removal on all city streets was also a topic of discussion during Monday’s workshop. City of Gillette public works director Rick Staskiewicz emphasizes that the streets division doesn’t enter residential areas unless there is four or more inches of snow. However, the streets division will be working with the police department to identify problem areas. Likewise, City of Gillette administrator Carter Napier says the streets division will keep public safety in mind. “I would indicate to you as I’ve indicated to [the streets division] that if in fact you’ve got a particular area that is causing signiﬁcant concern and it happens to be in a residential area and we’re not past the four inch threshold that we like to see, I would be comfortable in requesting [the streets division] in going over there and make the conditions as safe as possible without effectively going into a residential clearing program that would require us to be in all the residential areas,” Napier describes. Gillette City Council president Kevin McGrath brought up a concern that waiting for four inches of snow is asking a lot of the people in the residential neighborhoods near downtown, where the hills can be daunting. In turn, he expressed an interest that those areas being quickly identiﬁed as trouble spots. Likewise, Councilman Robin Kuntz expressed concern that even though a winter storm may not dump four inches of new snow on the ground, there could be several different storms within a week that each drop two to three inches of

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snow. As a result, Kuntz asked for feedback on how the streets division should approach those situations. In all, McGrath and Kuntz noted they have no interest in curb-to-curb snow removal throughout the entire city. On the other hand, they want unique cases to be given appropriate consideration. At that point, Councilman John Opseth said they could “what if” the issue of snow removal to death, and said he wanted to move forward with the snow removal policies as they were written. City of Gillette Mayor Tom Murphy agreed with Opseth, saying that’s why they have the terms “rare” and “emergency” snow removal. “Mr. Opseth suggested that we go with this ordinance and I have to agree with him,” the mayor says. “We have to have some kind of guidelines to go by.” Napier helped wrap up the subject by saying if the city becomes snowbound, meaning total snow accumulation is so great that getting rid of the snow becomes troublesome, the city is prepared to hire contracts to help dispose of the snow. In addition, when it comes to residential problem areas, Napier summarized by saying the snow plow crews won’t be sent off on excursions to residential neighborhoods when the snowfall is clearly below four inches in response to singular, isolated traffic accidents. “However, when we do have areas that are more significant in their difficulty and they’re reported to us, I’d be very comfortable sending out a crew to make that circumstance safe,” he concluded.

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Wednesday, December 7

-Joint Powers Lodging Tax Board, 5 p.m., George Amos Memorial Building

Thursday, December 8

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-Parks & Beautiﬁcation Board, 5:30 p.m., 2nd Floor Community Conference Room, City Hall -Campbell County Public Land Board, 7 p.m., Cam-plex Board Room

Monday, December 12

-Wright Town Council Workshop, 7 p.m., Council Room, Town Hall -Wright Town Council Meeting, 7:30 p.m., Council Room, Town Hall

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Public Pulse Letters to the Editor

Medical freedom on Tribal Lands the next gaming sensation? Submitted by Wyoming Liberty Group The Wyoming Liberty Group (WyLiberty) released its latest Liberty Brief, Medical Freedom Zones today. It shows how the State of Wyoming or a tribal nation could create a zone where health care professionals may serve patients and conduct research free from most government intervention. “The American health care system today is riddled with government prohibitions and inefﬁciencies. The Medical Freedom Zones brief is a blueprint for the creation of health care competition and choice with the best practices in tort reform, arbitration, and medical innovation,” said Benjamin Barr, counsel at WyLiberty and the brief’s co-author. “Our brief shows how tribal lands offer the best opportunity

for medical liberty because, as in the case of gaming, tribal sovereignty protects activities on reservation land from the heavy hand of government interference.” Americans have looked abroad for cheaper and more innovative health care options. In 2008, about 540,000 Americans travelled for health care treatment. India, for example, is expected to earn $2.2 billion in medical tourism revenue by 2012. To stem this ﬂood and allow Americans to get the quality health care they need without travelling abroad, the Medical Freedom Zones brief includes a primer on tribal and state sovereignty to show how local jurisdictions might capture this market. “Our report shows how the creation

of a freedom zone in Wyoming could quickly attract medical investment and entrepreneurialism,” said Steve Klein, WyLiberty staff attorney and report co-author. “If the state chooses not to pursue a freedom zone, the semi-sovereign status of tribal nations could also provide an escape valve from our centrally planned system. Independence from overbearing federal or state regulations could create the solution many Americans are looking for.” “Medical Freedom Zones promise to be islands of medical freedom in a sea of over-regulated medicine,” said Barr. “We invite you to consider the creation of medical freedom zones and engaging the Wyoming Liberty Group in reclaiming our lost liberties.”

Local jobless rate remains among the lowest in Wyoming Submitted by Nathan Kobielusz - Basin Radio

Campbell County continues to boast one of the lowest unemployment rates in Wyoming. In October, the county’s jobless rate remained unchanged from the previous month at 4.0 percent. Statewide, however, the unemployment rate nudged downward from 5.8 to 5.7 percent last month. According to the Research & Planning section of the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, the number of people in Campbell County looking for work that have yet to find a job increased from 1,066 in September to 1,068 in last month. Despite the slight increase, the unemployment percent remained steady because the county’s labor force, defined as people either engaged in paid work or who were available for work and had made specific efforts to find work during the month, increased as well from 26,346 to 26,831 over the same period.

Despite the flat unemployment rate in Campbell County, it remains significantly lower than one year ago when the jobless rate stood at 4.8 percent. Of the 25,851 people in Campbell County working or looking for work twelve months ago, 1,303 couldn’t find a job during October 2010. In October, Campbell County had the third lowest jobless rate in the state. Sublette County and Albany County led Wyoming with the lowest rates of unemployment last month with 2.8 and 3.9 percent, respectively. In contrast, Teton County posted the highest rate of unemployment last month, 7.8 percent, followed by Lincoln at 6.6 percent, Fremont at 6.2 percent, and Sheridan and Laramie Counties at 6.1 percent each. Teton County also experienced the largest over-the-month increase in unemployment from 5.1 to 7.8 percent. However, this

trend is natural, according to the Research & Planning Division, as the summer tourist season ends and the winter season has yet to begin. The Research & Planning section of the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services says most county unemployment rates followed their normal seasonal pattern and increased. They stated that cooler temperatures typically mean employment ﬁgures tend to decrease in construction, professional and business services, and leisure and hospitality. According to a report issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics this morning, the number of seasonally adjusted people looking for work throughout the state remained ﬂat at 16,800 while the civilian labor force increased by approximately 800 people to 292,400. Over the last twelve months, Wyoming added roughly 2,900 jobs and ex-

Governor Mead opposes closure of rural Post Ofﬁces

Governor Matt Mead is pushing to prevent the closure of rural post offices in Wyoming. He original sent a letter to the United States Postal Service in August expressing his concern. The U.S.P.S. has listed 43 post offices in the state that could potentially be shuttered. Governor Mead’s letter to the Regional Manager of the U.S.P.S. said closing these post offices is not a solution to the budgetary problems the Postal Service is facing. Governor Mead notes that these closures would add 40-60 miles of driving for rural residents to get their mail, but that the U.S.P.S. told some Wyoming people they could use an office 120 miles away. “Making this journey - whether 40 miles or 240 miles - driving sometimes unpaved roads, often covered by slick snowpack for more

than six months a year, is a hardship and a safety hazard,” Governor Mead wrote. He also points out that many of these rural residents do not have reliable access to the internet for communication making the Postal Service even more important. “I do recognize that there need to be cuts made to ensure the U.S.P.S. remains viable, but I hope that other ideas come to the fore,” Governor Mead said. “Some of these rural post offices are already open less than five days a week and so it is appropriate to look at other options that spread the sacrifice across the country. “Expecting small towns to absorb the closure of their post offices is not realistic. These post offices are a vital part of our communication network in the rural West,” Governor Mead said.

perienced a decrease in unemployment from 6.6 to 5.7 percent. The largest seasonally adjusted job gains throughout Wyoming occurred in trade, transportation, and utilities; and manufacturing, adding 900 and 100 positions respectively. At the same time, statewide job losses occurred in professional and business services, which shed an estimated 700 jobs in October, followed by leisure and hospitality, and government, losing approximately 500 and 200 jobs respectively. Throughout the nation, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says state unemployment rates were little changed or slightly lower in October. In total, 36 states and the District of Columbia recorded unemployment rate decreases, while 5 states posted rate increases, and 9 states had no rate change. Again, Nevada registered the highest unemployment rate in the country at 13.4 percent last month. California experienced the second highest jobless rate at 11.7 percent. On the other hand, North Dakota registered the lowest unemployment rate in the nation at 3.5 percent, followed by Nebraska at 4.2 percent. Altogether, 26 states including Wyoming reported jobless rates signiﬁcantly lower than the U.S. ﬁgure, while 10 states and the District of Columbia had measurably higher rates, and 14 states were not appreciably different from that of the nation. The national unemployment rate was little changed in October at 9.0 percent, down 0.7 percent from a year earlier.

Dear Editor, With the New Year coming, I would like to take this opportunity to tell everyone to get involved. There is a new election coming, and there is much to do. We have a President who is putting us on track to be a welfare nation. We have Federal Senators who think that it is ok to regulate our lives (including light bulbs), and could care less about States’ Rights. We have a Representative who doesn’t have a mind of her own, but is great at the child’s game of follow the leader. We have State legislatures that pull extra taxes to pay for charities and do not have the guts to go after the federal government because of their political careers, and is allowing our “Last Free State” to be subjected. Locally, the spending...gosh the spending. The County and City spend so much money it is ridiculous. I thought that we were living in Chicago or New York when I saw their budget and spending. The worst part is, they think it is ok to spend other people’s money on crap like weed gardens in the middle of a road (making the road much more dangerous), a new “field of dreams,”, and many more things that are extremely unnecessary (but tax us on a necessary pipeline). ELECTION YEAR IS COMING, VOTE THEM ALL OUT!!!!! Ken Grieves From Editor Nicholas De Laat: I state this all the time, but I will state it again. You must get involved, which obviously you are. I can tell you educate yourself and you attend meetings, keep it up. There are many ways to do something about the hazardous direction our governments are steering us down, some of them you are already doing. Go to meetings, write in letters in the newspaper, form groups. Other possibilities are to run for office. I agree with you on most of your comments, and I am paying close attention to this election on all levels. Make sure you read Glenn’s article, he hits on the problem with the president election. One thing I would like to see out of just one candidate, on any level, is a statesman… not just using the word, but performing the actions with courage. Dear Editor, What you have done with your newspaper is nothing less than extraordinary. To start a business out of your basement, that business being the number one failing business in the country, and to make a success out of it in just 8 short months has taught me something. All those motivational speeches in high school about how you can do anything, well the Observer inspires me. Instead of the regular papers, you have found what we want, and have been so successful that I notice that other publications are copying your innovation. Thanks for the inspiration, and I would like to be a part of it someday if you have an opening. Kaytlen Buchman via. Email From Editor Keary Speer: Dear Kaytlen, Thank you so much for writing in with your kind words! Nick definitely is inspirational in many ways. He did something that many people are unwilling to do that it’s essential to being successful, and that is take risks. The risk taking is what keeps people from following their dreams, but not Nick. I believe that, though it has not been an easy road, his risk is, and will, pay off. I hope that he continues to inspire in positive ways and you, yourself, are inspired to do great things! Let us know how that goes.

Dear Editor, Where is Ken? I would like to see him back working. Is he ok? Donna Forsing via. Facebook. From Editor Keary Speer: Though I would not say that Ken is 100%, he is looking forward to coming back this week to continue his work for us! He is insistent that he is ready and can’t wait to get going. Continue your support of him and I am sure he will be better motivated than he already is (if that is even possible)! Dear Editor, I love your jokes that you put in the Observer. You are very talented in combining news and magazine style print for a local newspaper, and I think you have a great thing going. I was a little upset however about your joke a few weeks ago “What do you call IRS agents jumping out of an airplane…..Skeet” Though I know political jokes are funny and always in fashion, I took this one to heart because I work for the IRS. I am proud of the work that I do, keeping people paying their owed taxes so that we can have a government to run. People will cheat at the first opportunity, and we are the enforcement that makes everyone play fair, and contribute equally what is owed. Again, I love your paper; I just wanted the opportunity to state my case. Cynthia Crawford via. Email From Editor Keary Speer: Dear Cynthia, Thank you for writing in! I am glad that, for the most part, you are enjoying our paper as much as we enjoy providing it! As for the jokes, we take suggestions and try not to publish anything too offensive. However, unfortunately usually jokes are at the expense of someone. I am sorry that this time it was at yours! Hopefully, we can spread it out to others. We try to joke fairly and hope that everyone takes it as just that, a joke. Feel free to submit some of your own as well! I am glad you are comfortable enough, however, to let us know and plead your case! I am sure you are the best IRS agent they have to offer and that the stigma you face is just that, a stigma. Thanks for keeping our tax streets clean! From Editor Nicholas De Laat: Politicians, Lawyers, and IRS, you are asking for jokes if you take these jobs. You should always let them run as water off your back. You should see the jokes around the office thrown out all the time. I am a believer that everything can be laughed at, and we should. Only then can you truly be happy. By the way, I must say that I support the Fair Tax which would eliminate the IRS, but then it would force you into the private market (accounting) and you could make more without all the jokes!!!!....... Please don’t audit me…. Dear Editor, I loved your response to the letter last week about the gentleman who was complaining about too many police officers. You do a great job of informing the gentleman that though you can have too much at one point, the City of Gillette is on target. Where did you get those states? Are they available to the public? Christina Medihap From Editor Nicholas De Laat: Thank you. I think so too. I have always been a believer that before you form a quick judgment, you should do the research. Here is the website I got the information off of: http://www.ci.gillette.wy.us/ Modules/ShowDocument. aspx?documentid=4583

Hunting/Fishing What’s Going On? Friday, December 2 -Stone Monkey Band @ Jakes Tavern -12 Days of Christmas: 4pm at Advocacy for Visual Arts Center -ABATE Float Decorating, 12 p.m. -AVA-Twelve Days of Christmas, 4 p.m. -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -New Life Wesleyan Ladies Community Craft Show, 5-9 p.m., Cam-plex Equality Hall -Open MIC Night, 7 p.m., Brother’s Coffee -Chamber Singers Christmas Dinner 6:30pm at Chophouse -Pinnacle Bank Shop Local Drawing, 1708 W. Hwy. 14-16, 682-0089 -Holiday Lighting Contest AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Last Call Group-10pm Saturday, December 3 -Stone Monkey Band @ Jakes Tavern -Holiday Lighting Contest -SAT Testing, 8 a.m., CCHS North Campus -AVA-Collage Making, 9 a.m. -Chamber Singers Christmas Dinner 6:30pm at Chophouse -New Life Wesleyan Ladies Community Craft Show, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m., Camplex Equality Hall -RCM Barrel Race, 10 a.m., Cam-plex East Pavilion -Horse Drawn Wagon Rides, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m., Downtown Gillette -Teen Dungeons & Dragons, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., CCPL -Gillette is the Place to Bee Holiday Promotion, 2nd Drawing, 12 p.m., Gillette Cheese House -4 – 6th Grade Wii-Play Saturdays, 1 – 4 p.m., CCPL -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -Teen Open-Play Video Gaming, 1 – 4 p.m., CCPL -Centennial Christmas tree Lighting, 4:45 p.m., Campbell County Courthouse -ABATE Toy Store Parade Gillette Ave, 5 p.m. -Parade of Lights, 5 p.m., Downtown Gillette -Visit with Santa (After the Parade of Lights), 5:30 p.m., Teacher’s Corner/Kid’s Mart -Elite Fly’s Party, 6 p.m. AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Discussion-8:30 am Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Last Call Group-10pm Sunday, December 4 -CCPL-CLOSED -WBA Meeting, 1 p.m., Jakes Tavern -Holiday Lighting Contest -Holiday Parade of Homes. Tickets at Coffee Friends -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -Jingle Bell Hike to Santa, 2-4 p.m., Cam-plex Park AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Morning Spiritual-10:15 am Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Monday, December 5 -AVA-Little Tikes, 1 p.m. -AVA-Twelve Days of Christmas, 4 p.m. -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -12 Days of Christmas: 4pm at Advocacy for Visual Arts Center -Cottonwood K-2 Program, 7-9 p.m., Cottonwood

-SVJH Band Concert, 7 p.m., CCHS North Auditorium -TSJH Holiday Choir Concert, 7 p.m., Cam-plex Heritage Center AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Tuesday, December 6 -HealthCHECK Testing, 7-11 a.m., CCMH Lab 6881222 -Story time, 3-5 yr. olds, 10:30 a.m., CCPL -AVA-Preschool Art, 2 p.m. -AVA-Grade School Pottery, 4 p.m. -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -Community Tree Lighting: 5:30pm Gillette College -Teen Card Game Club, 4-6 p.m., CCPL -Phagan Photography: Holiday Family Portraits, 6-8 p.m., Zip Printing, 307689-3589 -Conestoga 2nd & 3rd Grade Program, 6 p.m., Cam-plex Heritage Center -AVA-Bracelet Making, 6:30 p.m. -TSJH Holiday Band Concert, 7 p.m., CCHS Auditorium AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Beginners-6:45pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm AA-514 Bison Ave. Wright, WY Group-7pm Wednesday, December 7 -Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day -Early Release, 1 p.m. Secondary, 1:30 p.m. Elementary -Children’s Immunization Clinic, 8-11:30 a.m., Public Health -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -Children’s Department Christmas Decorations, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., CCPL Wyoming Room -Story time, 3-5 yr. olds, 10:30 a.m., CCPL -12 Days of Christmas: 4pm at Advocacy for Visual Arts Center -Story time, All Ages, 11 a.m., WBL -AVA-Twelve Days of Christmas, 4 p.m. -Children’s Immunization Clinic, 4-7 p.m., Public Health -AVA: Nesting Bowls with Naomi, Two Part Class: Dec. 7 & 14, 6-9 p.m., -Legion Riders Meeting, 7 p.m., American Legion AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Thursday, December 8 -HealthCHECK Testing, 7-11 a.m., CCMH Lab 6881222 -Country Elegance- Accessory Party, 9 a.m. – 7 p.m., 219 S. Gillette Ave., 682-1760 -Toddler Time, 18 month 3 yrs. old, 9:30 a.m., CCPL -Story time, 3-5 yr. olds, 10:30 a.m., CCPL -AVA - Homeschool Kids, 2 p.m. -Young Adult Christmas Crafts, 3-8 p.m., WBL -AVA – Grade School Kids Club, 4 p.m. -Phagan Photography: Holiday Pet Portraits, 6-8 p.m., Zip Printing -Families & Jammies, 6:30 p.m., CCPL -AVA-Bracelet Making, 6:30 p.m. -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -Paintbrush K-6 Choir

Concert, 6:30 p.m., Paintbrush Gym -Rawhide Music Program, 6:30 p.m., Rawhide Gym -Little Powder All-School Music Program, 7 p.m., Little Powder -Adult Anime, 7-8:30 p.m., CCPL -Teen Anime, 7-8:30 p.m., CCPL AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Friday, December 9 -Jackdanny Band @ Jakes Tavern -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -Chamber Singers Christmas Dinner 6:30pm at Chophouse -12 Days of Christmas: 4pm at Advocacy for Visual Arts Center -Pinnacle Bank Shop Local Drawing, 1708 W. Hwy. 14-16, 682-0089 -AVA-Twelve Days of Christmas, 4 p.m. AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Last Call Group-10pm

Warden’s Corner

The bobcat season opened November 15 will remain open until March 1, 2012. Bobcats may be taken by several means including ﬁrearms, leg-hold traps, quick-kill body-grip traps and with snares. All traps and snares must be marked with the trappers name and address or Department assigned trapper ID number. To take a bobcat hunters and trappers need to purchase a furbearer/ trapping license which expires at the end of the year. Don’t forget to purchase your 2012 license if you plan to hunt or trap bobcats throughout the entire season. Trapping is a great way to get outdoors in late fall and winter and may bring in some extra income if bobcat prices are right.

Saturday, December 10 -Wyoming Day -ACT Testing, 8 a.m., TSJH -Gillette College: Kid Free Christmas Shopping, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m., Gillette College Tech. Center, 307-674-6446 ext. 4500 -Chamber Singers Christmas Dinner 6:30pm at Chophouse -Breakfast with Santa @ Brothers Coffee, 9-11 a.m. -Teen Dungeons & Dragons, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., CCPL -Stock Dog Trials, 10 a.m., Cam-plex Barn 3 -Rockpile Museum: Old Fashioned Christmas Crafts, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m., 682-5723 -Christmas Family Crafts Day: 10am at Rockpile museum -Gillette is the Place to Bee Holiday Promotion, 3rd Drawing, 12 p.m., Farmer’s CO-OP -4 – 6th Grade Wii-Play Saturdays, 1 – 4 p.m., CCPL -Teen Open-Play Video Gaming, 1 – 4 p.m., CCPL -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -WBA Christmas Party with Jackdanny Band @ Jakes Tavern, 6 p.m. AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Discussion-8:30 am Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Last Call Group-10pm

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Layaway Available! We accept all 102 E. Lakeway Rd. (307) 686-5757 Hrs: Mon 12:30-5:30 Tue-Fri 9-5:30 Sat. 9-4 major credit cards.

Sunday, December 11 -Powder River Symphony: Sounds of the Holidays, 3 p.m., Cam-plex Heritage Center, 682-8802 for tickets -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Morning Spiritual10:15am Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm Monday, December 12 -AVA- Twelve Days of Christmas, 4 p.m. -Festival of Lights: Camplex Park -12 Days of Christmas: 4pm at Advocacy for Visual Arts Center -Wagon wheel 3rd & 4th Grade Program, 7 p.m., Cam-plex Heritage Center AA-2910 S. Douglas Hwy Midday Serenity-12 noon Happy Hour-5:30pm Hopefuls (BB)-8pm

Hunting for a good deal?

HOME OF THE ADULT DAYCARE CENTER 302 E 2nd • Gillette • (307) 682-9442

Where is this picture taken? Answer from last week

CLC (Fifths) $10.35 Jack Daniels (Fifths) $22.45

Recluse Elementary School

(Tax included)

Sports Report Pronghorn Men win toughest challenge of the season By Vic Wright - Basin Radio In a game that had eight players from the two teams that were native to Chicago, seven technical fouls, three ejections and one fight, the Gillette College Pronghorns defeated the North Dakota State College of Science (NDSCS) Wildcats, 100-93 Friday night at the South Campus. The Pronghorns fell behind quickly due to the Wildcats success beyond the arc, making 46.7 percent in the first half. Sophomore Tommy Woolridge of NDSCS had 24 of the Wildcats 52 points in the first half. Gillette College was able to cut NDSCS’s lead down to 15 and go into the locker room down 52-37 after one stanza. The second half is where it really got interesting. With 17:24 to go in the game, Woolridge got in the face of Reece Maxwell. The two started shouting a few words at each other, when all of a sudden Woolridge faked a punch at Maxwell. This sent Ezekiel Odonkor, also a player on the

court for the Pronghorns, to come to Maxwell’s defense. Players from both teams got into a brief scuffle until the refs and coaches split everyone up. By the end of it, Maxwell was given a technical and Woolridge was given two technicals and ejected from the game. Asante Smiter and Tony Lowry Jr., both Pronghorns, were also ejected for clearing the bench to participate in the scuffle. The ejection of Woolridge was the difference maker of the game. He would finish with only those 24 points from the first half, but was easily leading the Wildcats and was causing tons of trouble for Gillette on the floor. With 11:43 to go in the game, Gillette College fought back for its first lead of the game. The momentum, as well as a huge Pronghorn crowd in the stands, helped the team build its lead into double digits. However, NDSCS wouldn’t go down without a fight. With a little over

two minutes left, the Wildcats cut the Pronghorns lead down to four, thanks to missed foul shots by GC and tipped Pronghorn inbound passes into the hands of the Wildcats. After a couple clutch free throws and defensive rebounds by the Pronghorns with less than a minute to go, Gillette College earned its hardest win of the season. Kash McKinney led the Pronghorns with 26 points, followed by 22 from George Edwards. James Hunter also finished in double digits with 17 points. Kalen Foreman and Lucas Reller had eight points each, while Matt Strickland finished with six. Smiter left the game with five points and Odonkor and Maxwell both had four. The Pronghorns play their second of two games in the M & M Oil Field Services Thanksgiving Classic Saturday against the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture Aggies at 7:30pm at the South Campus.

Photo by Nathan Kobielusz - Basin Radio

Kash McKinney led the Pronghorns with 26 points Friday night against the Wildcats.

Twin Spruce Warrior Wrestling

Results from the Spearfish Invitational Tournament on Nov. 29 Twin Spruce brought 64 wrestlers to the Spearfish Invitational Tournament on Nov. 29, with 44 placing in the top four of the eight-man brackets. Wrestlers that placed first in the tournament include Tanner Potter, Wyat Bulkely, Jeremy Hullinger, Hunter Rawlins, Dalton Mckinsey, Devon Belt, Travis Tatkenhorst, Tyler Anthony, Xavier Smith, Mason Bonar, Lane Barbour, Zach Clark, and Colby Chandler. Placing second in the tournament were Blake Griffin, Kaleb Gossel, Gabriel Guz-

man, Austin Cunningham, Tucker Gorton, Daniel Gould, Wyatt Rising, Logan Wagoner, Logan Bulkley, Johnny Ross, Troy Fisk, Zach Harbor, and Ethan Allard. Finishing in third place were Alvin Ross, Colton Galambas, Jose Ramirez, Rhys Wandler, Mike Essen, Dallas Hartman, Tyson Keith, Ariel Dixon, Colton Sills, Dylan Kirkpatrick, and Corbin Vassar. Wrestling that placed fourth were Kolter Izatt, Zane Fichter, Houston Taggart, Kurt Kremer, Hayden Niehoff, Coy Rumfelt, Michael Cunningham, and Jacob Guire.

Warrior Wrestling Results from Nov. 22

Photo by Nathan Kobielusz - Basin Radio

Jordon Scott-Benson put up 15 points Friday night versus Little Big Horn College.

The Twin Spruce A Team defeated conference foes Sheridan and Buffalo by a score of 57-29, and 66-23. Earning victories against Sheridan were Kaleb Gossel, Austin Cunningham, Mason Bonar, Logan Wagoner, Johnny “Hoss” Ross, Lane Barbour, Dylan Kirkpatrick, Zacharaiah Clark, Colby Chandler, and Blake Grifﬁn. Earning victories against Buffalo were Kaleb Gossel, Austin Cunningham, Michael Cunningham, Hunter Rawlins, Wyatt “Bad-Moon” Rising, Mason Bonar, Logan Wagoner, “Freightrain” Lane Barbour, Ariel Dixon, Zach Clark, Colby Chandler, and Blake Grifﬁn. Earning victories in B team action were Kolter Izatt, Fatham Dixon, Jose Ramirez(2), Anthony Johnston, Wyatt Bulkley, Trpy Fisk, Coy Rumfelt, Tyler Anthony,Jeremy Hullinger, Dylan Kirkpatrick, and Tanner Potter.

Women defeat Little Big Horn in Sheridan

“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not to where it has been.” -Wayne Gretzky

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By Vic Wright - Basin Radio The Gillette College women earned their third win of the season against Little Big Horn College Friday afternoon, 90-57 despite committing 25 turnovers in the game. Free throw shooting was huge for the Pronghorns, as they made 17-19 from the charity stripe. Gillette College also took advantage of 20 steals, as only nine were taken away from them. Gillette College also had 55 rounds- 32 of them on defense. It was another big game for Iesha Greer, who led the Pronghorns with 20 points

Leave Your Mark on Campbell County...

on the afternoon. Jordan Scott-Benson put up 15 points, as Freshmen Alex Ward and Jordyn Croft ﬁnished with 13 and 10 points. Kenosha Wright had nine and Kim Caywood seven points. Diarra Carrington and Christina Davis had six points each, as Elisha Hensey and Jessica Davis had two points. The Pronghorns take on Fort Carson next in Sheridan on Saturday at 1pm.

100% financing available! $165,000 move-in ready! Brand New Land/Home Package in Wright! Hickory Cabinets throughout! Front Porch!

Set-up Ready to Move IN

Who’s Brand is this in Campbell County?

3 BED 2 Full bath

Find out in next week’s Campbell County Observer

Call Susanne 680-4793 Office 687-0333

Sports Report What’s Going On In Sports? Friday, December 2

-CCHS State Drama, Riverton -CCHS Wrestling (JV) Powell Invite, Powell -CCHS Wrestling (V) Billings Invite, Billings -Gillette WILD vs. Billings, 7:30 p.m., Centennial Ice

Saturday, December 3

-CCHS State Drama, Riverton -WJSH State Drama Tournament, Riverton -CCHS Wrestling (JV) Powell Invite, Powell -CCHS Wrestling (V) Billings Invite, Billings -CCHS GBB/BBB vs. Green River, 10 a.m., North Campus -Gillette WILD vs. Billings, 8 p.m., Cam-plex

Monday, December 5

Photo by Clint Burton-Campbell County Observer Photographer

Nachelle McGrath and Rita Lubnau of the Campbell County Heathcare Foundation accept a check for the Heptner Cancer Center, from Tyler Cavan and Chris Miracle of the Gillette Wild Junior Hockey Team. The Wild auctioned off their pink jersey’s that were worn the month of October for breast cancer awareness.

-WJSH DEV B/G BB, Upton -CCHS Wrestling (JV/V) vs. Kelly Walsh, 5 p.m., North Campus

Tuesday, December 6

-WJSH B/BB @ Glenrock -WJSH G/BB @ Glenrock

Thursday, December 8

-CCHS GBB/BBB Camel Tournament, North/South Campus

Friday, December 9

-CCHS GBB/BBB Camel Tournament, North/South Campus -CCHS Wrestling (JV) Lusk Invite, Lusk -CCHS Wrestling (V) Rapid City Invite, Rapid City -WJSH Coal Miners Classic, Wright/ Glenrock -WJSH Wrestling @ Lusk, 12 p.m. -CCHS BSW Casper Relay, 1 p.m., Kelly Walsh High -Gillette WILD vs. Helena, 7:35 p.m., Helena Ice

Saturday, December 10

-CCHS GBB/BBB Camel Tournament, North/South Campus -CCHS Wrestling (JV) Lusk Invite, Lusk -CCHS Wrestling (V) Rapid City Invite, Rapid City -WJSH Coal Miners Classic, Wright/ Glenrock -WJSH Wrestling @ Lusk, 9 a.m. -CCHS BSW Gillette Pentathlon, 9 a.m., Aquatic Center -Gillette WILD vs. Great Falls, 7:30 p.m., Great Falls

Classifieds Help Wanted

Homes for Sale

Autos, Trucks and Vans

Wanted to Buy

Cook needed at Lu La Bells. Motivated and Energetic. Days Only. Apply at Lu La bells.

Home for sale by owner in Western Way. Asking $239,000 for the 1,800 sq. ft. 3 bedroom 2 bath home with an unfinished basement and a two car garage. Fully fenced, large landscaped yard with a sprinkler system. Home is within walking distance to the new recreation center and the new elementary school that is being built. Please contact me at 307-670-1209 if you are interested.

1981 Harley Davidson FXB-Sturgis, 1st dual-belt drive to commemorate Hill-Climb @ Sturgis, Jack-Pine Gypsies rally started in ‘41, 50th anniversary model. 12K on straight-up original paint, new Moetzler’s driven-by beefed Shovel, 102hp at wheel. Perfect in every aspect, serious inquiries only, loan is $15K and value of over 25K. Ben 680.7464, 3-other older bikes and this has to go to the right person!

I Buy Militaria. Swords, uniforms, bayonets, medals, guns/parts, field gear. 6827864

Local journalists wanted. Always wanted to try? Must be 16 yrs of age. Contact us at CampbellCountyObserver@gmail.com Advertising Sales for our weekly paper. Great commission rate, set your own hours. Contact us at CampbellCountyObserver@gmail.com Contributors wanted for weekly newspaper. Need a doctor, a Politician, a lawyer, and more to contribute an article a month. E-mail CampbellCountyObserver@gmail. com for more information. Sports writers, event writers wanted. Gillette, Write, Recluse, Rozet. Call 6708980. State Wide Sales people. Print Advertising Sales for new State-wide newspaper. Call 307-299-4662 Delivery Driver wanted. Retired? Want a little walking around cash? Work one day per week delivering the Campbell County Observer to people’s homes. Contact the Campbell County Observer at (307) 6708980. Website/ad designer wanted. Must be familiar with building/maintaining websites and website advertising design. Commission and base salary pay. Call the Cowboy State Free Press at 307-670-8980

Merchandise 1939 HA Selmer Trumpet $750 OBO. 6871087 Spyder Semi-auto paint ball gun. cal..68 Special Edition.Only used twice! New $300 For you $175 plus two canisters. Call 680-1302 If you are interested in purchasing Nutrient Rich Ranch Raised Beef grown locally, call 307-340-1108.

Tri-level house for sale 4 bed 2 bath $209,000 (307) 670-1925. Gorgeous land home package set up in Wright. 3 bedroom, 2 full baths, hickory cabinets throughout, front porch, central air, and much more. Financing available. For a personal showing call (307) 6870333 40+ Acres 2 miles south of Wright 1999 Atlantic Oak Modular. $250,000 OBO Call 307 - 680 – 2374 FSBO 2,688 SF home on corner lot with fenced back yard. 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, upgraded kitchen, finished walkout basement, oversized garage. $259,000. 307-680-9180.

Apartments for Rent 1-5 bedroom units available for rent. Please contact Real Estate Systems of Gillette Inc at 307-682-0964 for all the updated details. Spacious & new, 1, 2, &3 bdrm affordable apartments available now! Call 685-8066. Washer and dryer in every unit. Private sunny patio or balcony. Special move-in rate, 1 bdrm: $694, 2 bdrm: $777, 3 bdrm: $888. Move in now and deduct $ 200 off first month while special lasts. Call Konnie or Celeste at Highland Properties 6858066.

Health problems? Try doTERRA certified pure essential oils. 307-680-0363. www. myvoffice.com/healingisbelieving

My First Computer hardly used. Asking $15. Call 605 - 545 – 1188

Campers & Motor Homes

Five roasts and twelve pounds of hamburger for a flat rate. $150.00. All ranch raised beef. This is an approximate savings of 10% on the total. Contact Jason Walker at 307-686-0577

Camping/Fishing Minnows, crawlers, leeches, fishing tackle, boating and camping supplies. Fully furnished cabin rentals, 50 Amp Full Hookup RV sites 5 minutes from Keyhole Reservoir in Pine Haven. Empire Guesthouse & RV Park 307-756-3454. www.empireguesthouse.com

Toys (ATV’s, Boats, etc.) Boat for Sale with trailer. Needs work. Call 670-8980 for info.

WILL PAY CASH FOR CAMPERS. Call Scott (307) 680-0854. Manual Transmission for 93’ Chevy Pickup 4wd. Must be in good shape. Call 257-2306.

‘76 Electra-Glide would consider trade on Pan or Knuck if ya know of anyone, ‘81 sent it to LA-S&S, 11.5to1 and dualplugged to run regular-gas, had burn-out time at Hog-Jam! Ben 680.7464.

Like new Horizon Elliptical. $300 obo. Call 299-7058 for more info.

2003 Chevy Monte Carlo SS (White) with 137,000 mi; $6500. Call 307 - 689 – 0966

Heavy Equipment/Trailers

1983 Ventura (Chevy) for sale. WORKING WET BAR. Closet, fold down rear seat bed, caption swivel chairs. Great shape. Needs carburetor adjustment. Newly rebuilt Transmission, 400 Turbo. $4,000.00. Call 307-670-2037.

Sporting Goods

6x10 trailer. Great shape, fits your biggest Harley. $1,400 obo. 299-4967. 1981 Circle J 4-horse Horse Trailer. New floor, paint and wiring. $2500 OBO Call 307 - 680 – 2374

2004 Yukon Denali XL,6.0 Motor, Loaded 1981 Circle J 4-horse Horse Trailer. New $14,000 OBO 660-9351 floor, paint and wiring done in shop class 2 years ago. No rust only used once since 1986 Toyota Tercel 4x4. $1050.00. Call redone. $2500 or OBO Call 307 - 680 – 307-299-5918 2374

Guns for Sale .38 Colt detective’s special. $525.00 obo Call (307) 682-7864 .380 Smith and Weston Bodyguard. Built in laser site. $450.00 firm. Trades possible. Call (307) 682-7864. 1903 Springfield. 30o6 Cal. U.S. Military. $700 obo. Call (307) 682-7864

Personals

Business Opportunities

Great Jerky http://www.rberlinger.jerkydirect.com/

2008 Hyundai Sonata LMTD, 40,000 mi. $13,500, Call 307-660-2532.

Newspaper vending machines. Contact us at: CampbellCountyObserver@gmail.com

Interested in founding a Sherlock Holmes Society in Gillette? Contact gillettesherlockians@gmail.com for info.

Home Appliances/ Furnishings Microfiber couch with 2 recliners combined. Green. $100 Call 299-4967. Booth Table. L-shaped. With Chairs. Seats 6. $500.00 Call 299-4967 Chest Freezer. $100. 307-299-5918 Storage Unit Sale!!!!! Home stereo, car speakers, 2 dressers, mattress and box spring sets $20, chests, coffee table, chairs, end tables and much more. Call (307) 682-7864

Pets Welsh Corgi Puppies. 3 females, and two males. 682-2598

1997 32ft. Class A Motor Home. Sleeps 6, Only 31,000 Miles. Asking $17,000. Call (307) 660-7520. Large Private RV/Camper Lot for rent. Big yard, trees. All utilities available. $400 per month, $400 deposit. 1 year lease. Call (307) 660-1007. 5th wheel camper for sale. Call Skip (307) 680-0073

Toy Parts & Accessories Stock pipes for Sportster. 500mi. Stock pices for Dyna Wide Glide. 1500mi. Email baxtersmom62@gmail.com for info. Harley Accessories for sale. Call 307-6708980. Ask for Tammy.

Seeking a new member for our team! Looking for a public water system operator for sampling, monitoring and maintenance of water systems. Must be able to obtain a level 1 water license within one year. Will train highly motivated individual. Clean driving record, drug testing and background check. Wages are DOE. E-mail resume to therese@waterguywyoming.com or fax to 303-686-4044.

Our Roots Gold Rush By Mike Borda

While the get-rich-quickscheme may seem like a modern day event, it has been happening since the invention of currency. Every era seems to offer its own rewards, along with the accompanying dangers. For the pioneers of the American west, their opportunity came in 1848 when gold was found at Sutter’s Mill in California. This event not only transformed the American economy of the day, but it kicked off boom period that would eventually lead California to the national prominence it still holds today. Until 1848, the area near Coloma, California was simply a mixture of ﬁelds and forests. A lumber mill was the areas main source of income. That is, until January 24th. John Marshall, one of the mill’s supervisors, saw a glimmer in the ground. He brought it to the attention of the owner, John Sutter, and together they deduced that it was in fact gold. This was a bit alarming to them at ﬁrst, however. They knew that it would attract miners, and Sutter already had big plans for the area, as he wanted to create farmland. Rumors soon started, however, and within months, it was in the local papers. In August of

1848, the news had already reached the east coast. It was only a matter of time, however, until the area was filled with prospectors and miners, relegating Sutter to near poverty. Later arrivals to the area, known as “Forty-Niners” for the year they entered the industry, caused a massive boom in population. San Francisco transformed from a small town of around 1,000 in 1848 to a city of more than 25,000 in just two years. Some estimates place the total population increase of this time at 300,000, all in search of new fortunes. The real impact of the gold rush, however, lies in the actual fortunes that were made and lost during this phenomenon. While there were undoubtedly prospectors who did find success in gold, the most successful people were actually the merchants who supplied and re-invented the gold rush itself. For example, Levi Strauss patented his jeans as clothing for miners. Along with Strauss, countless numbers of salespersons, bankers, inventors, and artisans found long ranging success from the Gold Rush. As for the gold itself, the total amount of gold found is unknown. Some groups claimed finds that would

result in millions of dollars today, while others found none at all. The best estimates of today are that around 28.4 million troy ounces of gold were found in the first decade of the rush. In today’s dollars, it would result in just over $10 billion. However, the more lasting financial gains were made by the population itself. Because California experienced such a large population gain, it resulted in millions more people hearing about the lifestyles in the area. The population only continued to climb, and this led to wide economic diversity well after the gold had started to dry up. As we have seen, California today boasts one of the nation’s strongest economies, and is a hotbed for technological innovation. The California Gold Rush of 1848 was more than just a race to find gold. It was the beginning of a revolution in industry, economics and culture. Because of this discovery, many found riches and many found poverty. However, the world found a new area to come together, populate, and industrialize, and there is no doubt that this forever changed our country.

Campbell Co. Fire Dept. November 23, 2011

- At 7:37 AM to the 200 block of Limestone Ave. to investigate a possible CO leak, no CO was present. - At 7:38 AM to the 200 block of Gillette Ave. for a person stuck in the elevator, CCFD was cancelled en-route, person was able to exit elevator before our arrival. - At 9:24 AM to the 700 block of W. 6th for an EMS assist. - At 12:35 PM to E. Boxelder Rd. for a 2 vehicle collision that involved leaking battery acid, spill was neutralized by CCFD.

November 25, 2011

- At 4:22 AM to the 2300 block of Boxelder Road for a medical assist. - At 9:18 AM to Black Hills St. for an EMS Assist. - At 12:54 PM to the area of Benjamin in the 8 mile subdivision for a reported well head fire, upon arrival it was determined to be on the Montgomery Rd. We found a resident burning his dump, he was advised to call the Sheriff’s Dept. the next time he wants to do a controlled burn. - At 2:40 PM to Interstate 90 near mile marker 118 for a 3 vehicle accident with injuries, no extrication was needed. - At 4:16 PM to the Wild Horse Cr. Exit on Interstate 90 for a reported power line arcing, Powder River Energy was notified. - At 4:42 PM to 505 S. Gillette Ave for an automatic fire alarm, it was a trouble alarm that was reset, no fire.

- At 4:10 PM to the alley behind Elm St. for a small dumpster fire, it is believed to have been started by charcoal briquettes. - At 7:15 PM to Stone Crest Dr. for a residential fire alarm, prior to our arrival we were cancelled by the alarm company. - At 7:55 PM to Quincy Rd. for a wood pile that was on fire, upon arrival the homeowner had extinguished the fire with a garden hose. The wood started on fire due to its proximity to a burn barrel. - At 7:59 PM to Interstate 90 mile marker 132 for a report of a vehicle fire, upon arrival nothing was found. Crews checked to the county line and could not locate a vehicle, all units returned to service.

November 28, 2011

- At 7:50 AM to the intersection of Lakeway Rd. and Dogwood Ave. for a leaking battery, cancelled en-route. - At 9:33 PM to the 700 block of Sako for an EMS assist.

November 29, 2011

- At 11:54 AM to the 3300 Block of Watsabaugh for an EMS assist. - At 12:47 PM to the 4100 Block of Maverick Drive for an EMS assist. - At 4:48 PM to 2501 Nogales Way for a gas line that was hit by a horizontal boring machine. Firefighters dug out the hit gas line and clamped it off. - At 4:53 PM to the area of Harder Dr. and Vivian Ct. for a suspicious fire, juveniles had tried to set fire to some grass clippings. - At 6:53 PM to 2501 Dogwood Ave. for an automatic fire alarm. Juveniles had pulled a pull station, no fire. The alarm was restored. - At 7:21 PM to 1647 Pathfinder Circle for a residential fire alarm, cooking set off the alarm and units cleared shortly after arrival. - At 7:32 PM to Dakota St. for an EMS Assist.

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November 27, 2011

- At 12:38 AM to South Garner Lake Road for a medical assist. - At 1:36 AM to Warren Ave for a medical assist. - At 4:38 AM to South Hwy 59 for a vehicle accident. Upon arrival found that the vehicle had struck wildlife. - At 7:37 AM to Warren Ave. for an EMS assist. - At 7:42 AM to N. Heptner for a CO detector activation, we checked the house with our monitors and replaced the batteries in the detector, we believe the detector is faulty and recommended it be replaced.

Where is this picture taken? Answer from last week Outside the front entrance of Gillette College

Head toward the Airport

ENough SAid 15

Our Roots “Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by Naval and Air Forces of the Empire of Japan. It is obvious that planning the attack began many weeks ago, during the intervening time the Japanese Government has deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace. The attack yesterday on the Hawaiian Islands has caused severe damage to American military forces; I regret to tell you that over three thousand American lives have been lost. No matter how long it may take us to overcome this pre-meditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory. Because of this unprovoked, dastardly attack by Japan, I ask that the congress declare a state of War.” - President Franklin D. Roosevelt Photo by Charles J. Belden

Winter Cattle Drive on the Pitchfork

Weekly Trivia Question

The Great Die Up

Who was the main leader of the Boston Tea Party? Look in next week’s paper for the answer

By Jeff Morrison

Wyoming has seen its share of hard winters. Years where the ground is covered in snow by October and not seen again until May; spring blizzards that dump nearly two feet of snow in less than two hours; whole months where temperature stays well below zero. Fortunately, these kinds of winters are generally rare. But anyone who has lived in Wyoming for a decade can remember at least one, and those of us who have lived here for four or more decades can remember several. But it is safe to say that no one living today ever experienced a Wyoming winter as harsh and tragic as the winter of 1886-87. To call it the “storm of the century” would be a gross understatement. Such a winter was unknown prior to its arrival and has never been equaled since. The territory of Wyoming was utterly unprepared for a winter of such magnitude, and nearly every business and occupation came to a complete standstill during the worst parts of it. The first great boom industry of Wyoming, cattle ranching, never fully recovered from the effects of it. But the seeds for the financial disaster the winter was credited with, along with the astronomical loss of livestock it caused, were sown long before the first snowflake fell. In the 1880s “Cattle was King”. Anyone with a sizable bankroll, or enough financial backers, could buy a large herd of cattle and cowboys, drive the herd north from Texas or east from Oregon, then turn them all loose on the vast open grasslands of Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, Nebraska and the Dakotas to wander and eat, and become insanely wealthy as a result. Or so they were led to believe. Unfortunately, most of the Great Cattle Barons had more money than cow-sense, and by the mid 1880s the open range had been overstocked to the point of ruin. The spring of 1886 did not bring much rain and a severe drought dried up what little ground water there was. Streams that had always flowed with water dried up and so the cattle tended to bunch where water could be found, eating away what little grass could be found. Grasshoppers and prairie fires helped deplete the available feed and the great herds of cattle were in a weakened and half-starved state even before the weather turned cold. Some of the smarter Barons saw trouble brewing for the winter and made plans for moving their herds north to Alberta or at least north of the Missouri before the snow flew in the hopes of finding more abundant grass. A few tried to cut hay,

but thanks to the drought and grasshoppers there wasn’t nearly enough hay to feed even a tenth of the cattle that occupied the plains. Worse yet, more and more cattle continued to arrive from Texas even as the first snow of the season began falling. These un-acclimated herds became the winter’s first victims. In the words of cattleman John Clay, “Even with the best of winters it would have been a case of suicide. As things turned out it was simple murder, at least for the Texas cattle.” In Montana and northern Wyoming the winter had set in by mid-October. It snowed nearly every day the month of November and one storm in early December lasted three straight days without a let up. In between the snow storms, the snow melted just enough to refreeze and make foraging for grass nearly impossible for the cattle. When they did manage to paw through the frozen crust there was nothing for them to eat. Jack Flagg, cowboyturned-newspaper-man remembered, “they were compelled to keep moving to keep from freezing, and their feet were cut from the frozen snow until their trail could be followed by the blood which flowed from them.” The cattle weren’t the only things struggling in the snow. Another storm blew in on January 6th and continued unabated for ten days, resulting in four feet of snow on level ground and unbelievable drifting in the wind. A lone train managed to struggle into Douglas in mid-January, the first in two weeks, and was promptly shut down for the winter, “as it can get neither backwards nor forwards.” High winds were literally blowing trains off the tracks in other places. The stagecoach from Sheridan to Buffalo slogged through the 36 mile run in 36 hours. A picture of Laramie, taken at some point during the winter, resembles a lumpy mogul field at first glance; but a closer inspection reveals the lumps of snow to be the very tops of house roofs. What little hay existed was mostly gone by midJanuary. Although the normal ranching routine called for letting cattle fend for themselves all winter and laying off most of the hired hands, many of the few cowboys available went to extraordinary lengths to try to move herds to more sheltered locations. Several of these cowboys joined the growing list of the winter’s victims as a result. In late January a Chinook blew in and began to thaw the deep snow. This prompted a wave of optimism among the Wyoming newspapers at the time, who predicted the winter

was winding down and the worst was over. Ironically, little to no mention of the horrendous stock-losses ever made it into the Wyoming papers. They seemed to have been operating under the assumption that if no bad news gets reported, no bad things would happen. Not only were they wrong about that, they were wrong about the weather as well. The Chinook, which lasted only a few days, did not fully thaw the deep accumulations of snow before the temperature dropped once again and the wind-whipped storms returned. This time, the melted puddles and slush froze hard and made the surface treacherously slick under the fresh snow. The cattle that slipped and fell in their highly weakened state often could not stand up again and died where they fell. Now unable to paw through the hard frozen ice for water, the cattle began to die of thirst as well as starvation. In their search for water, many cattle wandered out onto rivers and broke through air pockets. But in their frantic drive to get at the water, many were pushed into the icy water by press of animals behind them and drowned. No one could ignore the plight of the dying cattle. Passengers riding the Union Pacific transcontinental railway were assaulted with the sight of dead cattle in their thousands from Nebraska to Utah. Starving mobs of cattle drifted into the relative shelter of towns to gnaw on shrubbery, trees and garbage, bombarding the residents with their pitiful bawling day and night. When they could no longer find enough to eat, they died in the streets. Finally, in late March, the real thaw began. Mounds of dead cattle could be found in every gully, wash and fence line from Canada to southern Colorado. The swollen rivers were not only full of ice from the spring breakup but thousands of dead cattle could be seen washing downstream as well. The stench of decaying carcasses permeated the air. What cleanup could be done took most of the spring. Finding what cattle remained took all summer, due to the cattle having drifted further than normal in their attempt to escape the raging storms. The final tally of loss was not complete until the next fall. “When the work was over that fall the loss was estimated to have been 80 percent, and in some cases heaver,” Jack Flagg reported. “One man on the head of the Belle Fourche turned loose 2,500 head of through cattle [in] the fall of 1886, and during 1887 he did not gather more than 100 head.” Another Crook

County ranch was reported to have lost 11,090 head out of 12,000. A few lucky individuals made it through the devastating winter with as little as 10% losses, but most did not. For all of the dead bodies found that summer, most of the missing cattle were never accounted for, even taking into consideration those that were swept away in the rivers. It turned out the Cattle Barons were terrible bookkeepers as well as bad cattlemen. Because so many cattle had been literally turned loose onto open range for so long, it was virtually impossible for the owners to actually count their cattle. So they had devised an estimating system called “book count,” that took the number of cattle bought, added what was thought to be “natural increase” and subtracted what was purported to be “natural losses” and that was the number of cattle the owner claimed. If it sounds like cooking the books it is because that is exactly what it was. There was no actual proven formula used and as a result the “increase” was inflated for the benefit of stockholders, while the “losses” were underestimated for the same reason. When the roundup of 1887 was over it was quite easy to count what was left and write the rest off as lost. As a result, nearly half of the cattle reported killed in the winter of 1886-87 probably had never existed in the first place. Thanks to mismanagement and greed, the sun was already setting on the day of the Cattle Baron before the snow flew in 1886. The Great Die Up proved to be the last nail in the coffin for most of the large cattle outfits and although it would take another decade and a nasty range war to completely change the way cattle ranching in Wyoming was done, the winter of 1886-87 forever changed those who survived it. Montana cattle ranching pioneer Granville Stuart summed it up after doing everything humanly possible to save his cattle and still losing two thirds of them. “A business that had been fascinating to me before suddenly became distasteful. I never again wanted to own an animal that I could not feed and shelter.”

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Weekly Trivia Answer from Last Week Who was the first president of the Continental Congress? In 1765 Randolph found himself at odds with a freshman burgess, Patrick Henry, over the matter of a response to the Stamp Act. The House appointed Randolph to draft objections to the act, but his more conservative plan was trumped when Henry obtained passage of five of his seven Virginia Stamp Act Resolutions. This was accomplished at a meeting of the House in which most of the members were absent, and over which Randolph was presiding in the absence of the Speaker. Randolph resigned as attorney general in 1766. As friction between Britain and the colonies progressed, he became more in favor of independence. In 1769 the House of Burgesses was dissolved by the Governor in response to its actions against the Townshend Acts. Randolph had been Speaker at the time. Afterwards, he chaired meetings of a group of former House members at a Williamsburg tavern, which worked toward responses to the unwelcome tax measures imposed by the British government. Randolph was elected as presiding officer in both the First and Second Continental Congresses, in large part due to his reputation for leadership while in the House of Burgesses. He did not, however, live to see American independence; Randolph died in Philadelphia, and was buried at Christ Church. He was later re-interred at the College of William and Mary chapel.

Elizabeth Jones Agency 1001 S. Douglas Hwy., Suite 184 Gillette, WY 82716 Office (307) 682-6520 Fax (307) 682-3536

Elizabeth (Betsy) Jones, Agent CPIW, DAE, LUTCF