Wyoming Rural Electric News April 2023

STORY BY ILENE OLSON

WYOMING TOUGH

I wasn’t sure what I was going to write about this month until on March 22 I attended my daughter’s soccer season opener in Cheyenne. The crowd was dressed for the weather (see photo) and the girls were dressed for soccer, shorts and all (see other photo). The snow got so bad they thankfully postponed the second half until the next day. But I gotta give the girls credit, they were tough.

That got me thinking about a conversation I had with lineman Josh Serr from Garland Light & Power at their annual meeting last month. He was telling me about working with his fellow linemen in the storm that hit pretty much all of Wyoming. And that got me thinking about all the other linemen and the conditions they have had to work in during this brutal winter in Wyoming. Talk about Wyoming tough!

I know I say this every year when we celebrate Lineman Appreciation Day, which this year was on April 10, but these folks deserve to be celebrated every day. For the past several years one way we recognize these folks and this profession is by having a proclamation signing with the Governor. Governors Freudenthal, Mead and now Gordon have taken the time every year to visit with linemen we invite from the co-ops and other utilities to come to the state’s capital for the event.

I don’t want to split hairs here and I know that being a lineman is a tough and very rewarding job, be it with a rural co-op or an investor-owned utility, but if you think about where our crews have to operate in some of the most remote parts of our state, where the weather can be a bit harsher than in the more populated areas, it’s truly amazing. The great thing is, I know the member-owners of the rural electric cooperatives do appreciate what our crews do to keep the lights on. I hear comments about it at annual meetings and see posts on social media sites from the member-owners across the state expressing their appreciation. And while these guys are Wyoming tough and tend to be more comfortable just doing their jobs, I know most of them secretly appreciate being recognized for the job they do. So thank you to all the linemen, and stay tough!

SHAWN TAYLOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

POWERLINE TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM

THE WREN MAGAZINE WYOMING RURAL ELECTRIC NEWS

The official publication of the Wyoming Rural Electric Association

The WREN Magazine, Wyoming Rural Electric News, volume 69, number 3, April 2023 (ISSN 1098-2876) is published monthly except for January for $22 per year by Linden Press, Inc., Periodicals postage paid at Cheyenne, WY (original entry office) and at additional mailing offices.

WREN Magazine is owned and controlled by rural electric cooperatives in the interest of the economic progress of rural areas specifically and the entire population of Wyoming and the nation generally. WREN Magazine has a total average monthly paid circulation of 41,346 for 11 months ending September 2022.

WREN Magazine is delivered to rural electric member/ consumers and other subscribers throughout the entire state of Wyoming and the nation.

Acceptance of advertising by WREN Magazine does not imply endorsement of the product or services advertised by the publisher or Wyoming electric cooperatives.

WREN STAFF

Publisher: Linden Press, Inc.

— Editorial Team — Maggie York

Alison Quinn

— Design Team — Dixie Lira

David Merkley

Shawna Phillips

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

High West Energy, Pine Bluffs –Michael Lerwick, President Big Horn REC, Basin –John Joyce, Vice President Wheatland REA, Wheatland –Sandra Hranchak, Secretary/Treasurer

Basin Electric, Bismarck, ND – Paul Baker

Bridger Valley Electric, Mountain View – Ruth Rees

Carbon Power, Saratoga – Kenny Curry

Garland Light & Power, Powell – Scott Smith

High Plains Power, Riverton – Brett Gardner

Lower Valley Energy, Afton – Scott Anderson

Niobrara Electric, Lusk – J.D. Wasserburger

Powder River Energy, Sundance – Mike Lohse Wyrulec Company, Torrington – Dewey Hageman Deseret Power, South Jordan, UT – Gary Nix

Tri-State G&T, Westminster, CO – Julie Kilty

SUBSCRIPTION RATES

$22 per year, Single copies $2 each Subscribe Online: bit.ly/SubscribeWREN

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To purchase call (307) 996-6552.

OFFICE OF WREN OWNER 2312 Carey Ave., Cheyenne, WY 82001

SEND ADDRESS CHANGES AND CORRESPONDENCE TO PUBLISHER AT WREN Magazine • 214 West Lincolnway, Suite 21C Cheyenne, WY 82001, [307] 286-8140 wren@wyomingrea.org

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— Send address changes to — The WREN Magazine, Wyoming Rural Electric News, c/o Linden Press, Inc., 121 E Mountain Ave, Fort Collins, CO 80524, [970] 221-3232. Include 3-digit co-op code.

Keegan on the left, Kyler on pole, Owen adjusting his gear on ground, and Abner looking for instruction from fellow students.

PHOTO BY LANCE CALDWELL, POWERLINE TECHNOLOGY INSTRUCTOR, WESTERN WYOMING COMMUNITY COLLEGE

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Town Tales

CODY FROM WYOMING HISTORICAL SOCIETY WYSHS.ORG

A SHORT HISTORY OF CODY, WYOMING

BY LYNN J. HOUZE AND JEREMY M. JOHNSTON

George Beck first met William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody in Sheridan, Wyoming, shortly after developing plans to open an irrigation project along the Shoshone River. Beck knew he and his fellow investors needed to generate publicity to lure settlers and investors, so he asked Buffalo Bill to be president of the irrigation company. Not liking the first location Cody chose, Beck decided to establish a new community to be named Shoshone.

Beck detailed the survey in his memoir “Beckoning Frontiers.”

“I drew a map and taking one of our engineers, Charles E. Hayden, I drove a stake in the ground. Today that spot is in about the exact center of the town of Cody … I laid the map down, put a rock on it … Just then a summer whirlwind came along … picked the map up and started it heavenward. Hayden and I followed it as far as we could … we eventually decided our map was recorded in Abraham’s Bosom. We drew another.”

When Buffalo Bill learned the name of the proposed town was not Cody, he reached out to the U.S. Postmaster. Beck recalled, “It was not long after that before I received formal notification from Washington that we had a post office and that its name was Cody.” Knowing the challenges of community building in rural Wyoming, Beck left the matter alone. “That’s how one town got to be named after one man. As it pleased Buffalo Bill tremendously and did the rest of us no harm, I let it go at that.”

The combination of Buffalo Bill’s international fame and Beck’s management, along with both men’s political connections, barely ensured the project’s success. Beck later saved the day when he requested his family friend Phoebe Hearst, mother of William Randolph Hearst, buy all the water bonds to keep the company solvent.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

See George W. T. Beck’s

Clockwise from left: George Beck walks past the Cody Municipal Power Plant.

PHOTO BY JACK RICHARD COLLECTION, MCCRACKEN RESEARCH LIBRARY, BUFFALO BILL CENTER OF THE WEST

Buffalo Bill and George Beck relax in a hunting camp.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MCCRACKEN RESEARCH LIBRARY, BUFFALO BILL CENTER OF THE WEST

George Beck inspects the water flow of the Cody Power Plant he established in 1904.

PHOTO BY JACK RICHARD COLLECTION, MCCRACKEN RESEARCH LIBRARY, BUFFALO BILL CENTER OF THE WEST.

Knife Versus Snake

Next time something slithers too close, be prepared!

Someyears ago, my girlfriend and I visited the Southwest town of Sedona. It’s a wonderful place. While jewelry stores, art galleries and upscale boutiques have crept into Sedona’s downtown, the air still maintains an electric charge. In one of these Sedona stores I acquired a Bowie knife that soon proved well worth the sticker price.

Disappearing into the stunning red rock formations that Sedona is known for, my girlfriend and I set out to hike Bell Rock, a butte just south of that famous desert town. We couldn’t have been happier.

Our happiness didn’t last long. Before we knew it, we stumbled upon a rather nasty diamondback rattlesnake. Acting quickly, I pulled my Bowie knife out of its holster and gave Mr. Snake a quick shave. We were lucky. Not only did my skill with a knife ensure our safety, but I had the makings for a new rattlesnake belt.

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“The

01. Platte County Public Health, along with volunteers from seven other service organizations, provided local program information to member-owners prior to the business meeting.

02. 2022 Electric Youth Leadership Camp participants briefed the membership on their experiences at the camp. Left to right: Hayden Hocker, Isabella Milton and Shayne Eagleton.

03. Doug Smialek, Wheatland’s new District 1 Director, will replace Britt Wilson. WELCOME, DOUG!

04. Outgoing Director, Britt Wilson. Britt opted to not seek reelection this year. For 15 years of selfless dedication and service to our cooperative … THANK YOU, BRITT!

05. General Manager Don Smith gave the annual report for the co-op.

06. 251 member-owners took advantage of the free blood screen at the health fair sponsored by Wheatland REA.

General Manager Molly Lynn provided an overview and discussed the business of the cooperative.

PHOTOS BY LONNIE TUCKER, TRI-STATE GENERATION & TRANSMISSION

SPARKING OPPORTUNITY

TECHNOLOGY, TRAINING & WYOMING’S NEXT GENERATION

Today’s educational opportunities in Wyoming include several out-of-the-box methods for training in contemporary careers, as well as bringing modern approaches to more traditional lines of work. Often, they require less time in school and prepare students to enter the workforce in highly sought-after professions.

BY ILENE OLSON

Student welder practices stick welding on a pipeline simulator in the late hours of the night.

Powerline Technology

When he’s home from college for a weekend or a holiday, Hagan Jones can’t wait to get back to school. Jones, of Farson, is a student in the newly created Powerline Technology program at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs.

“It’s probably the best schooling I’ve ever had,” he said.

Jones, 22, said he already has an associate degree in electrical instrumentation, but he’s wanted to be a lineman since he was a junior in high school. Back then, an electrical service company brought trucks and a pole to his school, and showed students how safe and fun being a lineman could be.

Then the Powerline Technology program “popped up, and I could walk right into it. It was just perfect,” Jones said. “The first two weeks, it’s just getting your brain wrapped around the fact that you’re safe to climb,” Jones said. “After that, it’s just fun.”

One of the things he likes most about the program, and his future career as a lineman, is getting to work outside, no matter what the weather. That in itself is a mark of success, since one of the program’s goals is to train linemen who are accustomed to and comfortable with working in Wyoming’s harsh climate.

THE POWERLINE TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM BEGAN LAST AUGUST WITH SEVEN STUDENTS, ALL FROM WYOMING. THE COLLEGE OFFERS A ONE-YEAR CERTIFICATE PROGRAM IN POWERLINE TECHNOLOGY AS WELL AS A TWO-YEAR ASSOCIATE DEGREE IN APPLIED SCIENCE.

Dr. Kimberly Dale, president of Western Wyoming Community College, said, “it is the first and only program in the state,” Dale said. “It began through a conversation I had with Shawn Taylor, executive director of WREA, regarding the high need for this career pathway in the State of Wyoming.”

Jones said he plans to get his associate degree. Then he plans to stay and work in Wyoming.

PHOTOS BY LANCE CALDWELL

Above: The class working towards their 20-foot mark about a week after getting their climbing gear.

Below: Kyler Aullman getting comfortable on the pole early on.

WORKING TOGETHER FOR WYOMING

The launch of a new Powerline Technology program at Western Wyoming Community College was a success for the college, the Wyoming Innovation Partnership and the electrical energy industry. It is an example of what can happen when education, industry and state agencies work together toward a goal that none would likely accomplish alone.

WWCC President Dr. Kimberly Dale said the Powerline Technology program trains men and women to repair and erect powerlines to ensure access to electrical power for communities. The jobs they are training for are considered highneed, high-skill and high-pay, with graduates in the field earning $89,000 in their first year.

Lauren Schoenfeld, executive director of Wyoming Innovation Partnership (WIP), noted that in the past, “Wyoming was attempting to recruit powerline operators out of other states because there was no training program in Wyoming. But it was hard to find people to work in Wyoming’s harsh climate.”

The WWCC program appears to be working, as all seven students who registered last fall are from Wyoming.

“I met four or five of them a month and a half ago,” Schoenfeld said. “They’re very excited, working alongside these industry partners. I understand that they do want to stay in Wyoming.”

WIP involves the University of Wyoming, the state’s eight community colleges, the Wyoming Business Council and the Department of Workforce Services, with representatives of each of those organizations and agencies serving on the partnership committee.

That’s who initially guided and still continues to guide the conversation regarding the Powerline Technology program, as well as other projects that the partnership is undertaking or considering, Schoenfeld said. The partnership’s committee is now processing applications for phase two of WIP, which will begin in July.

“We want to invest in programs that are sustainable for the future ... and will support our state,” she said.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE WYOMING INNOVATION PARTNERSHIP, VISIT WIP.WYO.GOV.

A close up of a lineman’s climbing gear.

Farm Training

Onions grown and harvested through the Central Wyoming College Farmer Program.

A training program for aspiring and beginning farmers launched in spring 2021 at Central Wyoming College in Lander. The program allows flexibility and innovation for students in the agricultural field.

Students can take crop production practicum over a summer (April through September) to improve their farming skills, said Ethan Page, CWC Faculty of Local Food and Agriculture. Or, they can roll the practicum into a three-semester certificate. They can also work toward a two-year associate of applied science degree in Regenerative Small Scale Farming, a program that launched last fall and focuses on the fields of horticulture science and other growing systems, such as hydroponics and aquaponics.

Unlike most agriculture programs in Wyoming, this one emphasizes fruits and vegetables.

“Our program is setting out to show that it’s possible to grow good food for your community on a small scale, and how that can have a big impact,” Page said. “We all have to eat, and knowing who is growing your food is a step toward making our communities more resilient and sustainable … In time, we hope to have a network of small growers that contribute to the food system in some way.”

Bringing focus back to small, local producers has positive economic impacts and improves health outcomes, Page said.

Farm Training students can enter a farm incubator program, where they start their small farm business on land owned by the college, or they can start their farms off the incubator.

SO FAR, 16 STUDENTS HAVE FINISHED THE CROP PRODUCTION PRACTICUM, AND FOUR BECAME INCUBATOR FARMERS. FOURTEEN STUDENTS HAVE ENROLLED IN THE FARM BUSINESS COURSE.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF CENTRAL WYOMING COLLEGE

Above: Ann Reynolds holds up carrots grown during the program.

Below: Ethan Page and Ben Butler fertilizing.

Teresa Tibbets, left, and Emily Gaynor, right, pose with flowers grown in farm program.

Left to right: Ben Butler, Douglas Nelson, Emily Gaynor, Page Cannor, Ann Reynolds and Trina Baker.

Welding Academy

Western Welding Academy in Gillette trains men and women for careers in welding. Trevon Wilson, 21, of Davenport, Washington, started a six-month course at the academy about three months ago, but he is working at an accelerated pace and plans to finish the program in just four months. Wilson already has a pipewelding job lined up in Washington and said he is learning all processes of pipe welding, such as TIG, stick and stainless, and carbon pipe work.

Western Welding Academy said the private trade school was founded in 2019 by Chief Executive Officer Tyler Sasse. Recognizing the labor shortages in the welding industry, Sasse was prompted to move back home to Wyoming “with the mission of creating the finest welding school in the world.”

The school focuses on work ethic, accountability and integrity, Sasse said, and the curriculum is set up like a job site, with instructors who all have realworld experience in the welding industry and students clocking in and out each day.

“I firmly believe that to be the best, you have to learn from the best,” Wilson said. He believes the academy is preparing him well for his future career.

Beau Barkley, Marketing Director at Western Welding Academy, said Western Welding Academy graduates now work in a wide range of industries, including power plants, computer-chip manufacturing plants, dairies, breweries, NASA, SpaceX, Tesla, refineries and the oil and gas industry.

Student welder battles the Wyoming elements as he practices stick welding on an outside pipeline simulator.

AS OF MID-MARCH, 140 STUDENTS WERE ENROLLED IN THE WESTERN WELDING ACADEMY, WITH 98 PERCENT OF THEM COMING FROM OUT OF STATE.

Law

They say play is work, and work can be play. Nowhere is that more evident than in the Outdoor Education & Recreation Leadership program at Northwest College in Powell.

Program Director Keith McCallister said students experience water-based, land-based and snowbased activities first-hand during their courses. Outdoor education also comprises a ropes/ challenge course and instruction in program development, risk assessment and wilderness medicine, among other topics.

Powell is the perfect place for the course, McCallister said.

The city of 6,800 people is located approximately midway between Yellowstone National Park and Big Horn Lake National Recreation Area, surrounded on all sides by mountain ranges.

Students who complete the Outdoor Education degree will be qualified for, or on the path toward, many outdoor-based careers.

NWC’s Conservation Law Enforcement program includes outdoor education courses combined with law enforcementbased curriculum. Justin Spaulding, who teaches criminal justice at Northwest, said the program includes instruction in environmental law and environmental science, range management, wilderness first aid, criminal law and investigations, and geographic systems, among other topics.

The degree is preparatory for students who are interested in careers with the Bureau of Land Management, forest service, Game & Fish, etc., though additional training or education may be needed for some of those careers, Spaulding said.

Students who enter the Conservation Law program usually are “a little more outdoorsy,” Spaulding said. “These students like to get lost in the outdoors for weeks at a time.”

Sarah Wood fits that mold.

A first-year student in the program, she’d had a hard time finding any degree programs at bigger universities that she thought she would stick with. Wood said she loves being outside and has always known she wanted to get into law enforcement.

“I figured this would be an awesome foot in the door to that world as a conservation law enforcement officer.” She also plans to complete the outdoor leadership skills certificate program to add to her resume. W

THE PROGRAM IS GEARED TO A TWO-YEAR ASSOCIATE DEGREE, BUT THERE IS ALSO AN AERIAL ADVENTURE OPERATIONS (ROPES COURSE) CERTIFICATION. INDIVIDUAL COURSES ARE OPEN TO ALL NORTHWEST COLLEGE STUDENTS.

Ilene Olson is a freelance photographer, writer and editor in Powell.

PHOTOS BY KEITH MCCALLISTER

Students taking part in a 5–6-day river expedition down the Green River through Desolation Canyon in UT.

Outdoor students teach rappelling from the Science and Math building during a student activity program.

Outdoor students gaining firsthand wilderness experience ice climbing in the stunning Southfork Valley.

IF YOU CARE, LEAVE THEM THERE.

OH, DEER!

There is no daycare for baby wildlife, so when mom has to find food or move nests, she temporarily leaves her babies behind. Mammal mothers, like deer and rabbits, will carefully hide their babies in tall grass to conceal them from predators. The babies know to stay quiet and still while mom is gone to remain hidden from any danger. Humans may be alarmed to see baby animals all alone, but this is natural and safe behavior in the animal world!

In almost every instance, if you see a baby animal on its own in the wild, it’s simply alone, not abandoned. Typically, healthy wildlife babies are just waiting for their mom to return.

WHERE’S MOM? LEAVE THEM WILD.

Some baby animals, like reptiles and amphibians, never need their mom’s help. They are fully independent as soon as they are born. Others, like baby birds that have all of their feathers, often spend several days on the ground while they learn to fly. Even though the baby bird may look alone, its parents are nearby to protect and feed it. It is rare for baby wildlife to actually be abandoned. Just because the mother is not visible, doesn’t mean she’s not close by and watching over her babies. Remember, humans are predators to wildlife! The mother will return to her babies when the area is clear of all potential predators.

When it is not needed, human intervention only makes survival more difficult for wildlife. The best way to help wildlife is by leaving them wild. If you care, leave them there! The only time baby animals need our help is when they are injured or orphaned as a result of human presence. If a baby animal is seriously injured, or if it was brought to you by a cat or dog, or if you know its mother is not alive, call Wyoming Game and Fish Dispatch and they will contact your local game warden or biologist to assist.

BY GAYLE M. IRWIN

Sights and Sounds of Spring Birds: A Welcome Reprieve from Winter’s Grasp

They dance in greening fields, often throwing sticks and clods of dirt. They trill from fence posts. They dart in and out of wooden nest boxes. Sights, sounds and antics of sandhill cranes, western meadowlarks and mountain bluebirds bring evidence of spring’s arrival to Wyoming and surrounding states.

I’ve watched sandhill cranes feed and frolic in the pastures of my friends’ ranch near Kaycee. I’ve listened to meadowlarks sing from fences near the highway, and I’ve observed the colorful wings of bluebirds flying between grassy areas and nesting boxes. Each encounter to me signals springtime, and oh – how I long for that lovely season this year!

The Cowboy State endured one of the fiercest winters most people remember in recent years. Heavy snow, frigid temperatures, incessant wind and constant road closures interrupted and disrupted travel, school and business, impacting family gatherings, food and postal deliveries, lamb and calving operations, and more. How welcoming and exciting have the crocus and daffodils been, rising above ground, bringing smiles of joy and relief as spatters of purple, pink and yellow dot the landscapes! Add to that the return of birdlife, from small songbirds to large raptors, waterfowl and wading fowl – all culminate in dispersing our winter doldrums.

For me, three bird species that splash upon Wyoming’s canvas during this season are ones that not only bring color, but also special tricks of their trade.

Male western meadowlark on a fence post.

Large groups of sandhill cranes, for example, create a cacophony of noise; even a pair perform dances and call one another during courtship. Their migration is amazing – thousands of these lanky birds fly more than 1,000 miles from their southern winter homes in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to summer nesting areas ranging from northern Canada to Fairbanks, Alaska.

In Wyoming, large flocks (sometimes called sedges) often stop to rest and feed in areas of eastern Wyoming as well as along the Platte River in Nebraska. On a March several years ago, my husband and I encountered nearly 500 sandhill cranes during a wildlife watching excursion near Torrington. What a sight, especially when the birds took flight!

The flashes of blue upon the return of mountain bluebirds also are show-stoppers for me. The skycolored feathers of the male make quick appearances as they flit from grasses to fences and dart from the sky into holes of wooden nest boxes people provide on fence posts. The parents dart in and out of the small holes, sometimes raising more than one clutch of young during the summer. Female bluebirds are a paler blue, nearly gray, yet the appearance of both sexes signal spring’s arrival in Wyoming. Sadly, the number of mountain bluebirds are decreasing, in some areas as much as 20 percent, according to the American Bird Conservancy. People who administer nest boxes agree with the assessment that this species is declining as they report seeing fewer pairs returning and less eggs produced and young raised. Because they are cavitydwellers, and because many animals, including other birds, eat eggs, bluebirds in Wyoming and beyond are well-served by that extra help of wooden nest boxes and conserving the remaining prairie and grasslands they need for habitat.

Fence posts also provide another Wyoming spring resident with sanctuary.

The western meadowlark, Wyoming’s state bird, perches on such places, and, like a singer on a stage, warbles its unmistakable, flute-like song. Hearing this chorus, for me, is a sure sign of spring! Not only do I enjoy hearing the meadowlarks’ music, but watching the flashes of yellow and brown as the birds glide from fence post to fence post or from electrical wire to steel posts along a highway, lifts my spirits. Whenever I witness these lovely larks, a sense of warmth envelopes me.

Western meadowlarks mean a lot to many people. They are also the state bird for Wyoming’s neighbors, Montana and Nebraska, as well as three other states. According to the All About Birds website, only the northern cardinal is the state bird for more states – and just by one. Western meadowlarks mean “home” to many prairie and mountain states.

Home – for me that implies warm, inviting, safe, cozy. Those words also describe spring – warmer temperatures, inviting sunshine, cozy colors from nature’s palette, and safety, as flowers emerge from the hardened earth, leaves sprout at the end of branches, and birds of different

shapes and sizes return to Wyoming to nest, creating a home for their young.

Watch for and listen to the western meadowlarks, mountain bluebirds and sandhill cranes as they herald spring’s arrival. These amazing birds bring with them abundant sunshine amid sapphire skies, colorful and fragrant flowers, and soulful symphonies of song, all of which stir our souls to embrace a new season of spring. W

Gayle M. Irwin is a freelance writer based in Casper.

Home – for me that implies warm, inviting, safe, cozy. Those words also describe spring ...

Above: Male mountain bluebird near a nest box.

Top: A flock (or sedge) of cranes at the Table Mountain Wildlife Management Area in eastern Wyoming.

The Watch for When It’s a Million O’Clock

Precision in a classic package

When traveling the globe, my friend Cynthia has a term for that slightly delirious, unmoored feeling of jumping time zones and not being sure what hour it is: “It’s a million o’clock.”

I found myself in such a situation this past summer while changing planes in Jakarta. My phone had run out of juice, and I’d somehow managed to pack my phone charger in my checked bag. I had a long layover and might have missed my flight entirely if it weren’t for my In the Nick of Time Watch. This sturdy chronograph has a precision movement that oscillates an incredible 32,768 times per second. With a 24-hour dial, 60-second dial, 60-minute dial and a date window, this timekeeper will help you stay on top of whatever your travels throw at you.

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IS AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE (EV) RIGHT FOR YOU?

As EVs become more accessible, you may be considering adding an electric vehicle to save money on fuel and maintenance while reducing emissions. To save even more, check for federal and state incentives and ask your local electric utility when it’s cheapest to charge.

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More Than Four Seasons

BY GENE GAGLIANO

Gene Gagliano, former elementary school teacher, children’s book author and current Wyoming State Poet Laureate, has 19 published books, several of which are award-winning, including “Dee and the Mammoth,” “C is for Cowboy,” “Is it true?” (winner of Wyoming’s Best Read for 2018), “Wedge of Fear,” (2018 3rd Place Evvy Award), “Snap,” (2019 2nd Place Evvy Award) and “My Teacher Dances on the Desk.” Gagliano was the subject of a recent PBS documentary, the recipient of a Wyoming Celebrate Literacy Award and an Arch Coal Teacher Achievement Award.

His poetry books written for adult audiences include “A Wyoming State of Mind” and his newest, “More Than Four Seasons.” Enhanced by beautiful photography, you’ll want to read “More Than Four Seasons” over and over. It’s a journey of the heart, the joys and sorrows of life, its challenges and triumphs. As you read, prepare to see the everyday in a new light, and to revel in nature’s carousel of seasons, the little things and the grand.

For more about Gagliano and his books, visit gargene.com or his Facebook author page, facebook.com/dancingteacher.

FEBRUARY BOOK REVIEW BOOK GIVEAWAY

ORDERING INFORMATION:

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IS AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE (EV) RIGHT FOR YOU?

As EVs become more accessible, you may be considering adding an electric vehicle to save money on fuel and maintenance while reducing emissions. To save even more, check for federal and state incentives and ask your local electric utility when it’s cheapest to charge.

+ IS YOUR DAILY COMMUTE UNDER 330 MILES?

Most of today’s electric vehicles have a driving range-per-charge between 50 to 330 miles. If your daily commute is under 250 miles per day, there is likely an EV model that will fit your needs.

+ DOES YOUR HOUSEHOLD HAVE MORE THAN ONE CAR?

If you live in a household with more than one car, an EV likely represents a big opportunity for your family to use an EV for commuting. Use your current gas-powered vehicle when it is not convenient to use an EV.

+ DO YOU HAVE OFF-STREET PARKING AT YOUR HOME?

All plug-in electric vehicles require charging. Charging can be done with a standard 120V outlet or you can have a 240V charger installed in your garage or driveway.

BY SHAWNA PHILLIPS

Poetry is Everywhere Can you find it?

When you pause to look for it, you can find poetry in everyday moments. Maybe they’re ironic, perhaps they’re a bit dramatic; the start of an epic tale, or an ode to seasons past. But comedy or ballad, it’s worth the search.

E S I M I L S O R F S H A K E S T E M E R S D N

S I L N O S R E M E L F R O S E S A P P O N O O

W O L L E R H Y M F N H O M E D C O N S D A D S

O H W I L D D A L L E G O R Y L I M E E L R R I

R A H Y E O N P Y O C I S O N N E T Z S O R H L

V I I E G G P U R O O G S A P P H O T T N L Y V

E K T A E A M R I T N E M B M A J N E I G N M F

R W F L S P E H C I S I M I L E M L L N F O E L

S T O Y E A T Y M L O B P R T O E S P A E I N Y

E U R E A L A M T O N R L E H G N G U S L T P R

P K D M S L U V S N A O A F Y I J N O R L C L I

S I B E S C H A O G N W T R M B A I C E O I A C

E P Y H O M E L R Z C E H U L E M N O F W D T A

S Y R C M E T E F O E M R K I P L W N R H E E L

T N O S N I K C I D B S E U M E D O S W I L D E

T A M E R H Y T H F H A Y V D M U R E C U A H C

E M A V E Y F H H A I N O M T A E B A S K V A N

N T N A L Y R I K C R G Y E B E A W Z A I S R A

N I I L L D O E H U E E B

Cowboy Life

BY NEVA BODIN

It’s 4 a.m. and you roll out of your teepee—the cattle are waiting and so is the camp cook. You grab some breakfast and choose your mount from your string of six, remembering which one you wore out yesterday while riding possibly 20 miles rounding up cattle for the branding iron. By noon, you need a fresh horse. The horses get a day or two off, you don’t. Your break will come maybe 30 days from now … or not. This was Lua Kelly’s cowboy life.

“We’d average branding 200 calves a day … [and] as many as 400 a day,” Kelly said, speaking of the cattle held in place by cowboys on the range or in the branding pen.

Lua Kelly was inducted into the Wyoming Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2022.

Kelly said his induction was “an honor and a privilege. I’ve known a lot of guys who were inducted in the past, and it was an honor to be put on that level with them.”

The Wyoming Cowboy Hall of Fame exists “To preserve, promote, perpetuate, publish and document Wyoming’s working cowboy and ranching history through … honoring individuals who broke the first trails and introduced that culture to this state.”

“I wouldn’t trade it for the world. It’s been good to me!” Kelly said of his life as a cowboy. He’s talking about, at age 5 or 6, riding Socks—his first horse—bareback, his pride as a young boy taking a tin of tomato juice out to his dad and a hired hand working in the hayfield, as well as taking part in his first roundup at age 14.

Lua giving his grandchild a ride after branding for the day.

WYOMING COWBOY HALL OF FAME CO-OP SPOTLIGHT

He’s also remembering the time he spent, during his two-week furlough from the army, in a three-day horserace across the Wind River Range with his father, as part of the Wind River Mountain Men against the Pinedale Rendezvous Men.

“We had better traveling than the Pinedale group; timewise we came in ahead of them,” said Kelly. “They were a group of men interested in mountainmen days. They were in the Wyoming inaugural parade for Lyndon Johnson in Washington, D.C.”

And Kelly is talking about the cowboy life he’s still living at age 80, ranching with his son—a life where he “appreciates hard work and a dedication to survive.”

Kelly was born near Morton, Wyoming, in a former two-story hotel, made into a home for him and six sisters. His dad owned a diversified ranch raising hay, grain, chickens, hogs and a small herd of cattle. When Kelly was 10, his dad sold out and began working for other ranchers, and he began helping his dad feed cattle,

run the scatter rake in the hayfield, and work during roundups.

They worked for the Grieve Land and Cattle Co. putting up hay, holding three roundups a year, branding, and trailing up to 500 head of steers at a time to Shoshoni—a two- to three-day drive— for shipping on the railroad. During this time, Kelly graduated from high school, known as Fremont County Vocational High School, in Lander.

In 1964 Kelly was drafted into the army for two years which included 13 months in Vietnam. He was a records clerk. “For a cowboy, it was kind of degrading,” he said.

After the service, he returned to Grieve’s ranching operation, where he “enjoyed the freedom of the big outdoors and the compadre of other cowboys” again.

The “big outdoors” included the branding and the roundups. “We’d start the fall roundup first of September or end of August. By the time we got everything rounded up and sorted,” Kelly recalled, “it would be right about first of October. I think we had close to 2,000 head of cows out there.”

Then romance entered his life. “I like to tell people I picked her up on the streets of Lander,” Kelly said, speaking of his future wife, Rosalyn Beck. While driving down Main Street, a young woman driving a passing car caught his fancy. “I honked at her … She honked back. We stopped and visited, and it blossomed from there.” They married in 1968 and raised two daughters and four sons.

Grieve sold his ranch in 1977. Kelly and his family moved on to Van Irvine’s Diamond Ring ranch near Midwest where they raised beefalo, and then to Frank Moore’s Spearhead north of Douglas. He cared for cattle and sheep at these ranches. His last 18 years of ranching, before he “retired,” was on the Double Eight Ranch in Elk Mountain. Remembering his experience at Van Irvine’s, where they crossed Angus and Charolais with buffalo bulls, he said, “We had one cow that was mostly buffalo. She would lead the herd into the corral then come back out before we got the gate shut. You didn’t mess with her any!”

About a year after his “retirement” at age 65, Kelly and a son leased a place near Medicine Bow. He lives on the ranch now, raising cattle with his son and family, continuing the cowboy life. Sadly, Rosalyn passed away in February 2011.

Times change. While they still have horses for wrangling, much of their work is now done with four-wheelers. “It’s faster to get from one place to another,” he said. And cattle are shipped by truck instead of rail cars. Perhaps cowboys never retire. W

Neva Bodin is a Casper-based freelance writer, author, artist and poet.

We had one cow that was mostly buffalo. She would lead the herd into the corral then come back out before we got the gate shut. You didn’t mess with her any!

A horse named Ginger: “Bucked everybody off that tried to ride her but me.” - Lua Kelly

Lua dragging a calf to branding.

3 CARROTS, SLICED

3 ONIONS, SLICED

1/2 CUP OLIVE OIL

1/2 CUP FLOUR

1 TBS SALT

10 TBS CURRY POWDER

1/2 TSP CAYENNE PEPPER OR HOT SAUCE, TO TASTE

1 TBS LEMON JUICE

Brown carrots, onions, olive oil and flour together. Add enough water to make a gravy. Cook for 20 minutes. Press through a colander until you can’t get any more liquid out. Add salt, curry powder, cayenne pepper and lemon juice. Add cooked meat (lamb, turkey or chicken). Serve over hot rice and cover with condiments like coconut, peanuts, raisins, sunflower seeds, chutney, sliced ripe olives and Chow Chow relish.

WREN STAFF

CURRY

6 BONELESS PORK CHOPS

2 TSP CURRY POWDER, DIVIDED

1/3 CUP MAYONNAISE

1 TSP SALT

1 TSP BLACK PEPPER

1 TSP GARLIC POWDER

1/3 CUP HONEY

Heat grill to medium-high heat. In small bowl, mix honey and 1 teaspoon curry powder. Set aside. In a medium bowl, mix mayonnaise with salt, pepper, garlic powder and 1 teaspoon curry powder. Add pork chops and toss to coat. Grill pork chops about 4 minutes per side. Using a meat thermometer check temperature, and when pork is 135° brush each side of the pork with the honey in the small bowl. Remove pork when it reaches 145° and transfer to a plate to rest for a few minutes. Brush pork with additional honey curry sauce and serve. I serve grilled asparagus with the pork chops.

NANCY DENK RIVERTON

SLOW COOKER TOFU CURRY

1 LB FIRM TOFU, CUBED

1 SWEET ONION, CHOPPED

1 RED PEPPER, CHOPPED

1 YELLOW PEPPER, CHOPPED

3 CLOVES GARLIC, MINCED

2 TBS FRESH GINGER, MINCED

2 CUPS SWEET CORN

1 TBS GARAM MASALA

1/4¼ CUP RED CURRY PASTE

1 TSP KOSHER SALT

1 15OZ CAN COCONUT MILK

2 CUPS VEGETABLE STOCK

1 6OZ CAN TOMATO PASTE

Add all ingredients to a slow cooker and cook on low 5-6 hours; high for 3-4 hours. Serve over rice!

Hot tip:

Spice it up by adding chili powder.

Cool tip:

Garnish with cilantro for freshness.

WREN STAFF

A Lineman’s Life

Two years out of the Navy

The Spring of ’83, Looking for work Out in Laramie.

Job Service sent me to a job alright, As a summer helper with Carbon Power and Light.

Started by apprenticeship January of ’84. Little did I know then What was in store.

Started with Wheatland REA

May of ‘88

Was only going to stay five years, but along came fate.

Met a local girl She squared me away, 34 years now What can I say?

The years have gone by and they’ve taken their toll, I’m 63 now, and still climbing poles.

We share a selection of WREN readers’ creative writing (poems, limericks, haiku, short verse, and prose) every issue as space and content allow. To be considered for publication, please include the author’s consent to be submitted, his or her mailing address, and confirmation that the work has not been published elsewhere. If you would like us to return your work, include a self-addressed, stamped envelope.

JEFF LOSEKE WHEATLAND

SUBMIT A PHOTO

 wren@wyomingrea.org

 214 W. Lincolnway Ste. 21C Cheyenne, WY 82001  wyomingrea.org/wren-submissions

Please include your name, hometown and a title.

Please submit high-quality digital files* or an original we can scan, as well as details about the artwork, the artist’s name, and the co-op. *Use the highest quality setting on your camera, or save digital artwork as a .jpg or .tif file with at least 300 dpi resolution.

If you would like your work returned, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope.

FEATURED EVENT

01 | SOUTHEAST

CENTENNIAL ONGOING

Nici Self Historical Museum: Museum grounds and exhibits open Thu-Mon 12-4p. Free. Info niciselfmuseum.com.

CHEYENNE

MAY 13

24th Annual Cheyenne Mineral, Gem and Rock Show: 9a. Archer Complex, I-80 east of Cheyenne. A group of rock, crystal and gemstone vendors get together with the local rock club, Cheyenne Mineral & Gem Society, for people to come and buy whatever strikes their fancy. This year on Mother’s Day weekend. $3 for ages 13 and up. Info at rockandmineralshows.com.

CHUGWATER

THURSDAYS

Acoustic Jam Session: Stampede Saloon & Eatery music venue open for Thursday night jam session. Info 307-422-3200, stampedefun@aol.com.

ENCAMPMENT

MAY 27

C.J. Box Book Signing: 3:30-5p. Encampment Museum. Free. We will have his new book “Storm Watch” along with some of his others. Info 307-327-5308, gemdirector@gemuseum.com.

2ND ANNUAL POWDER RIVER BASIN SHEEPHERDERS FESTIVAL

GILLETTE  MAY 4-6

Join us for an event focusing on both the historic and modern culture of working sheep in the Powder River Basin, from the Scots and Basque who immigrated here at the turn of the 20th century to the modern Quechua Sheepherders, who come from their mountain homes of South America to work the sheep of Wyoming.

Introductory Lecture: May 5 at 6:30p

Festival: May 5 & 6 from 9a-4p

Location: Rockpile Museum (entrance into the parking zone on 1st Street)

Cost: Free

For more information call 307-682-5723 or visit rockpilemuseum.com.

NORTHEAST

MEDICINE BOW

ONGOING

Museum and Gift Shop: Open daily 8:30a-4:30p. 405 Lincoln Highway. Info 307-379-2383.

WRIGHT

MAY 13

Silver Sage Family Fun Night: 5-7p. Community Center Building. Cover charge of $20 per family or $10 per person includes spaghetti dinner. Desserts sold separately. All proceeds go to the Silver Sage Senior Center. Live and silent auctions, 50/50 split, quilt raffle, games for kids, and prizes. Info 307-680-1606, wrightsilversageseniorcenter@gmail.com.

02

CLEARMONT

JUNE 24-25

SageRidge Art Workshop: Classes include needle felting, tapestry weaving, 3-D needling, macrame, knitting, wet felting, and for kids: bone painting and plant weaving. Class prices range from $20-$45 per participant. All class supplies included in price. Info Linda sageridgeranchwyo@gmail.com, facebook.com/SageRidge.Mill.Critters.

ONGOING (THROUGH MAY)

Museum Winter Hours: 10a-3p Thurs and Fri or by appointment. Clearmont Historical Center. Free and open to the public. Info Sandy 307-758-4685, 307-752-9214.

GILLETTE

MAY 3

Northeast Wyoming Career Fair 2023: 10a-3p. Gillette College: Pronghorn Center 3807 College Dr. Info www.facebook.com/ profile.php?id=100082337592700.

MAY 13

Prince of Peace Lutheran Church’s 11th Annual Strawberry Festival: 8a-3p. 203 W. Flying Circle Drive. This fundraising event supports youth service projects and local nonprofits. Last year we were able to award $3,000 each to the following: Prince of Peace Youth who spent 6 days in Duluth, Minnesota doing service work, Pilots for Christ, and Campbell County Suicide Coalition. This year we’re supporting our youth and their service projects Safe Kids, Suicide Coalition, and the Edible Prairie Project. We have homemade strawberry jam, bake sale, strawberry patch kids’ games, live music, vendors, lunch, live plant sales and a HUGE silent auction with many generous donations from local businesses and members of our congregation. All are welcome to enjoy our family friendly event, we have something for everyone! Info 307-682-4509.

MAY 15

|

NORTHEAST

BUFFALO

THURSDAYS

Bluegrass Jam Session: 6:30p. Occidental Saloon. Free. Info 307-684-0451.

Bombing Wyoming: 7p. Rockpile Museum. Dave Marcum will be giving a presentation to discuss a campaign of incendiary balloon attacks Japan conducted against the U.S. at the end of World War II. At least 13 balloons made it as far as WY, with one coming down near Newcastle. Dave is an independent researcher studying the history of the Transcontinental Airway in WY and the history of the Cold War in the state. He’s a graduate of the University of Wyoming and is retired from the United States Air Force and from Laramie County Community College, where he taught political science courses for over 20 years. Info 307-682-5723, rockpilemuseum.com.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CAMPBELL COUNTY ROCKPILE MUSEUM

ONGOING

New Exhibit on Display at the Rockpile Museum: “My Corner Office: Views and Reflections from the Powder River Basin” featuring photographs of Powder River Basin photographer Alan Nash. Info 307682-5723, rockpilemuseum.com.

Ava Community Art Center: Info 307-682-9133, avacenter.org

HULETT

ONGOING

Hulett Museum and Art Gallery: 8a-4p Mon-Fri. Free. Info 307-467-5292.

Senior Center Events: 145 Main Street. Carry-in dinner 12:30p third Sun. Rolls and coffee 9a Thu. Info 307-467-5743.

MOORCROFT

ONGOING

West Texas Trail Museum: Now open year-round 9a-5p Mon-Fri. Info 307-756-9300.

Senior Center Events: Coffee and rolls 9a Wed. Toenail clinic 9a fourth Thu, dinner 6p fourth Thu. Info 307-756-9550.

NEWCASTLE

FRIDAYS

Bingo: 7:30p. VFW Hall. Free.

SECOND & FOURTH

WEDNESDAYS

Gigi’s Closet: 9a-1:30p. First United Methodist Church.

Gently loved clothing available for babies to adults. Info 307-746-4119.

SUNDANCE

WEDNESDAYS

Storytime: 10:30a. Crook County Public Library. Info Tonia 307-283-1008.

UPTON

FIRST & THIRD WEDNESDAYS

Bingo at Senior Center: 6:30p, $10 for 10 cards. Info 307-468-9262.

ONGOING

Senior Center Activities: 1113

2nd St. Lunch is served at noon Mon-Fri for $4. Call for reservation before 9a at 307-468-2422 or 712-400-9056. Coffee and treats at 9a on Tues. Exercise program at 9a every Tue and Fri. Card elimination and potluck every third Mon at 5:30p. Ask about medical equipment loans. Info 307-468-9262.

NORTHWEST

BASIN

MAY 6

Dan Miller Cowboy Revue: 7p. BCAC. Advance tickets $25 per person or $30 at the door. Info Carmen 307-899-0446.

CODY ONGOING

Cody Country Art League Gallery: 9a-5p Mon-Sat. 836 Sheridan Ave. Info 307-587-3597.

DUBOIS

MAY 12

“Kids Corner: Aquatic Insects”: 10a. Dubois Museum. Erin Hannelly with Dubois-Crowheart Conservation District will present this Bailey Tire & Pit Stop Children’s Exploration Series program about aquatic insects and how they can be used as an indicator of water quality. We will use Earth Force monitoring kits to test water from the Wind River. Hands-on fun for all kids. $3 per person. Advanced registration appreciated. Info 307-455-2284.

MAY 25

Kiwanis Safety Roundup & Bike Rodeo: 12:50-3:10 p. Dubois K-12 School. Dubois K-5 students. Info 307-455-2243.

THIRD WEDNESDAYS

Wyoming Health Fairs Monthly Wellness Screen/Blood Draw: 7-10a. Dubois Medical Clinic. Appointments encouraged. Info 307-455-2516, whf.as.me/dubois.

FIRST & THIRD THURSDAYS

Farmer’s Market: 2:30-4:30p. Headwaters Arts & Conference Center. Featuring local produce, baked goods and bread, dairy products, jams and jellies, herbs and salves. Info 307-455-2027.

FRIDAYS

Story Time: 11:30a. Dubois Branch Library, 202 N First St. Free. Stretches, story, songs, crafts and fun! Ages birth-5 years. Info 307-455-2992.

GREYBULL SECOND SATURDAYS

Greybull Ladies Coffee: Greybull Library. Info 307-7652100.

HYATTVILLE

MAY 28

Hyattville 19th Annual Cowboy Carnival: 8:30a. Hyattville Community Center. $10 adults, $5 ages 12 and under, $25 for one immediate family. Come celebrate a great family event with something for everyone to enjoy! Events include sharpshooter contests, quilt show, kids games, BB gun shoot, 5K race, photo contest, live auction, book sales, vendors, area history, plant sale and a delicious old-fashioned barbecue with lamb, pork, and beef followed by homemade pies and featuring live music by Layne and Liam Jordan, local Hyattville musicians. The quilt show begins May 27 from noon4:00p with a $5 admission. Info Mary Burns maryhyattburns@ gmail.com, 307-469-2366.

LANDER

MAY 13

“Lander Area Petroglyphs”: 10a-1p. Pioneer Museum. Join us for a Wind River Visitors Council Adventure Trek to visit Lander Area petroglyphs. Visit a unique site with many examples of Native American rock art. Approx. 1.5 miles of hiking over uneven ground to reach the site. Meet at museum, bus to site. $12 per person; reservations required. 15-person limit! Info 307-332-3339.

MAY 25

“Lander 100 Years Ago – 1923”: 7p. Pioneer Museum. Join the staff for this Wyoming Community Bank Discovery Speakers Series program of an illustrated talk on what life was like in Lander in 1923. Free. Info 307-332-3339.

SATURDAYS

Acoustic Music Jam: 11a-1p. Lander Bake Shop. Info 307-332-3237.

ONGOING

First Friday: New artist and local musician each month. Art show reception 5p, music 6p. Middle Fork Restaurant. Info 307-335-5035, facebook.com/MiddleForkCafe.

METEETSEE

MONDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS

Meeteetse Recreation District: 10:30a yoga. Info 307-899-2698, meetrec.org.

MONDAYS

Toddler Storytime: Mondays after school. Meeteetse Library. All kids grades 1+ not in school. Legos, board games, crafts stories, songs and more. Info 307-868-2248.

POWELL

MAY 6

Children’s Day Festival: The Homesteader Museum has partnered with Heart Mountain, ILC to help the 1940s game station! Info 307-754-8000.

MAY 14

Second Sunday – Happy Mother’s Day!: 12-4p. Homesteader Museum. Free. Donations welcome. Join us for a cup of coffee, conversation and crafts. Bring your current craft, sit and strike up a conversation in the craft circle. Not interested in crafts, then take your time and stroll around the museum with friends and family or sit down with a cup of coffee and join the conversation. Info 307-754-9481.

MAY 19

Last day to visit the Homesteader Museum Gallery: Vote for your favorite entries submitted by the public in the Powell Pride Postcard & Sticker Contests that have been on display since April 11th. Winners announced on the May 23rd.

MAY 26

Homesteader Museum Book Club: 9a. Homesteader Museum. Meeting to discuss the book “If You Tell” by Gregg Olsen. Info Homesteader@ parkcounty-wy.gov if interested in joining the book club.

RIVERTON

MAY 17

Gold Fever in the Atomic Age: Wyoming’s Uranium: 6p. Riverton Museum. Free. For the 70th anniversary of uranium being discovered in the Gas Hills, join local uranium industry historian Zach Larsen to learn about Wyoming’s uranium mining industry, its sudden rise and just-as-precipitous decline. Info rmsitemanager@ fremontcountymuseums.com, 307-856-2665.

MAY 27 & 28

Wyoming Weapons Collectors 34th Annual Memorial Weekend Gun Show: 9a-5p Sat; 9a-3p Sun. Fremont County Fairgrounds. Admission $6; children 12 and under free with an adult. Info 307-742-4630.

WEDNESDAYS

Acoustic Music Jam: 6:30-8:30p. Holiday Inn Convention Center. Free. Join in or listen as musicians and dancers perform. Info 307-856-8100.

PreK Tales & Tunes: 10:30a. Riverton Branch Library. Ages 3-5. Free. Info 307-856-3556.

Starlight Storytime: 5:30p. Riverton Branch Library. Ages birth5. Free. Info 307-856-3556.

THURSDAYS

Toddler Move & Groove: 10:30a. Riverton Branch Library. Ages birth2. Free. Info 307-856-3556.

SATURDAYS

Farmer’s Market: 9-11a. Little Wind Center at the Fremont County Fairgrounds. Info 307-851-7562.

Send complete information by JUNE 15!

Please send events occurring in the month of August by June 15, and September by July 15 for inclusion in the WREN.

Also, be sure to include the date, title, description, time, cost, location, address and contact information for each event.

Photos are always welcome.

ONGOING

Library Activities: PreK Tales & Tunes Wed 10:30a; Starlight Storytime for birth-5 Wed 5:30p; Toddler Move & Groove birth-2 Thu 10:30a; LEGO Club grade 2-5 Thu 4-5p. Info 307-856-3556, fclsonline.org.

THERMOPOLIS

MAY 27 & 28

3 On 3 Basketball Tournament: Starts at 9a. Thermopolis Wyoming High School Parking lot. Put on by the Bobcat Booster Club. Register through the Bobcat Booster Club Facebook page at facebook.com/ BobcatBooster. Info Brandon Deromedi 307-864-6511.

SECOND SATURDAYS

Great Until 8!: 4-8p. This event showcases the businesses who are staying open until 8p or later in town. Shop after 5p and enter in for a chance to win $100 gift certificates. The $100 gift certificate will be valid at the business with the winning receipt. Info 917-589-7852, mainstreetthermopolis@gmail.com.

SOUTHWEST

LYMAN

THURSDAYS

Storytime: 11a, Lyman Branch Library, all ages are welcome, free. Info 307-787-6556, uintalibrary.org.

MOUNTAIN VIEW

MONDAYS

Look for more events at wyomingrea.org/news.

QUESTIONS & SUBMISSIONS:

 wren@ wyomingrea.org

 [307] 286-8140

 214 W. Lincolnway Ste. 21C Cheyenne, WY 82001

 wyomingrea.org/ wren-submissions

Cub Scout Pack 7798 Meeting: 3:45p. Presbyterian Church on 3rd Street. We are always accepting new boys who are in 1st to 5th grades. Info MarNae at 307-677-2566.

WEDNESDAYS

Storytime: 11a, Uinta County Library. Info 307-782-3161.

ONGOING

Community Classes: Fitness, computer, workforce and kids’ classes are available. Valley Learning Center. Times and prices vary. Info 307-782-6401, valleylearningcenter. coursestorm.com.

WREN CLASSIFIED ADS ARE $0.75 PER SIX CHARACTERS

CONTACT:  SHAWNA@GOLINDEN.COM

FOR SALE

Aermotor Windmills and parts, cylinders, pipe, rod, submersible pumps, motors, control boxes, Hastings 12 ga. bottomless stock tanks, Shaver Outdoor Wood Boiler Furnaces and more. In business for more than 77 years. Herren Bros., Box 187, Harrison NE. 1-308-668-2582.

For Sale! Goulds 3ST1H1A4 Centrifugal Water Irrigation Pump 1-1/2" x 2" Never used. 3500 RPM. Internet cost: $3K to $3500. Asking $1500. Bought for house but pumps 175 Gal/Minute. Way too big! Have stats and wire diagram. Call John (307) 752-7028, Sheridan, WY.

New & Used Coal Stokers, parts, service & advice. Available for most makes. Thanks. 307-754-3757.

Pain Balm, best topical for muscle, joint or chronic pain. Resolve your aches, pain, soreness & Arthritis discomfort. Works within minutes. 100% pure essential oils like juniper berry, rosemary, ginger & more! Free standard shipping anywhere in the United States. Call 702.234.3866.

WANTED

We Pay Cash For Mineral & Oil/Gas Interests producing & nonproducing. 800-733-8122.

Frontier Auto Museum Looking For Oil Company Gas Pumps, Globes And Signs. Also looking for general antiques for our antique shop. Please go to our website FrontierAutoMuseum.com. Located in Gillette WY, our passion is to preserve Wyoming history and the nostalgia of the past, especially Parco, Sinclair, Frontier, Husky and any car dealership along with all brands. We are also always looking for neon motel or store signs, WY license plates and WY highway signs and State Park signs. Please call Jeff Wandler 307-680-8647 wandlerfrontier@gmail.com or daughter Briana Brewer 307-660-2402 relics@frontierauto.net.

WANTED CJ or Wrangler reasonably priced. Any condition but rusted. 512-797-1664.

MISCELLANEOUS

Soon Church/Government uniting, suppressing “Religious Liberty” enforcing “National Sunday Law.” Be Informed! Free materials. TSBM, PO Box 374, Ellijay, GA 30540, tbsmads@yahoo.com, 1-888-211-1715.

ROCK

BY JACKIE DOROTHY

FEVER

It was a peculiar looking rock, no bigger than my pinky, but the texture and facets caught my eye. It was rusty orange with black bumps and felt strangely weighty in my palm. I had scooped it up amid the prickly pear cacti and scanned the Wyoming horizon, enjoying the day out in the sage as I pocketed my find.

My husband and I officially caught the “rock fever” years ago and it wasn’t letting go. However, it wasn’t jade or pretty quartz that I found myself personally collecting. It was the unusual rocks that are scattered around our state that I found so fascinating.

We had gathered quite the odd collection on our family hikes over the years as we scoured the landscape. The most interesting rock, however, wasn’t my ugly little nugget but a heavy stone that we found in our rock garden by the house. It had been left behind by past rockhounds and, after tripping and stumbling over it for years, our curiosity brought us to the local rock shop. “Happens all the time,” Ava Cole later told me as we stood in their family store in Thermopolis. “Someone will find a rock and bring it to us. Once they find out they have something, then they are hooked.”

Ava and Eddy Cole.

PHOTOS BY JACKIE DOROTHY

When we entered the store, Eddy Cole immediately placed a piece of foam on the glass counter and out came his magnifying glass. He didn’t waste any time but got to work examining the small boulder my husband had placed in front of him.

His verdict? Our garden decoration was a stone meteorite.

Eddy pointed at lined marks marring the surface. “Because of the flow pattern right here and the fact that it’s real shiny in some parts and it has been very, very hot, but the heat does not go way into it, I know it’s not volcanic.”

Nodding his head, Eddy explained the story of the stone before us. Suddenly, it was more than just a rock. He pointed out the bubbles, explained how it probably entered into the atmosphere and that it had too much iron to explode on impact.

“This one is definitely an iron nickel meteorite,” Eddy’s eyes twinkled and he nodded at our son. “Wow. Good one. I wouldn’t part with it if I was you, okay?”

Our 12-year-old’s eyes widened and he nodded back at Eddy. It was obvious a new generation was catching the rock fever, too.

Eddy must have recognized the look because his smile widened and he leaned in to share his secrets. “There’s a good place for meteorites out in the hills. There

was a strike there and it scattered along that whole hillside. And it’s an iron nickel meteorite that would pick up with a magnet metal detector.”

He gave directions to the strike and nodded again. Almost sheepishly, after all that excitement, I dug my ugly find out of my pocket. “And I have a rock for you to look at.”

Eddy didn’t miss a beat. Out came the magnifying glass and he studied my specimen. He turned it around, pointing at the black edges and the rust. “It’s hematite that is altering to limonite.”

I found myself smiling. Suddenly my ugly nugget was something. “Limonite, hematite and magnetite are primary iron ores that we use to make steel,” Eddy explained. “That yellow is altered iron.”

He gestured for us to follow him to a small display and handed over a limonite they are selling. I recognized the facets and black shapes that are featured on my own small sample. He explained how the rock is formed, what shapes it takes and even how it is mined.

“It’s a different kind of life,” Eddy mused as he placed the rock back on the shelf. “It’s not a nine-to-five job. It’s seven days a week, 18 hours a day. You never stop learning, there are always new discoveries. And then you have to keep refreshing so that you don’t get stale.”

He would know. Eddy is world-renowned for his knowledge about

geology and the major discoveries he has made with his wife, which includes the dinosaurs in Hot Springs County. The Coles are eager to share their love of rocks and this rock fever is definitely contagious.

“They are all cool rocks that we like,” Ava explained. She winked and added, “And they like us.”

Both she and Eddy agree, it is the Wyoming Jade that most rock hunters are looking for, not my misshapen orphans.

“Jade has always been a stone of good fortune,” Ava said. “Our Wyoming jade is a nephrite. It can be black to green apple.”

“Here’s the first piece I found,” Eddy said, reaching into his pocket. “I’ve carried it around so long it’s become polished!”

He took out a flashlight and the jade instantly became translucent, its deep green glowing beneath the light. They showed us more beautiful samples of the polished rocks they have collected in the Cowboy State and it was with reluctance that we finally left.

As I carefully put my limonite in my own pocket and we gathered up the meteorite, we knew that more rockhounding was in our future. As a family, we are on a journey to learn the stories of the rocks around us – of both the pretty ones and the ugly ones. W

Jackie Dorothy is a freelance writer, historian, and owns a marketing agency in Thermopolis.

It’s not a nine-to-five job. It’s seven days a week, 18 hours a day. You never stop learning, there are always new discoveries.

Eddy identifies the metorite.

Limonite rock.

NATURE WALK BOUQUETS

Get

Make Vases

To make nature walk bouquets, you will need cardboard, scissors, and a marker!

2

Draw a vase (any shape!) on the cardboard

Take a Walk

1 1

2

Have your kids pick dandelions, leaves, flowers, long grasses, and other treasures with stems as you walk around

3 3 4

Poke holes in the cardboard above the vase

When all the holes are full, display your vases or gift them to your neighbors as a fun way to connect and build relationships

Give your kids their vases and head outside together

Show your kids how to place things in their vases by poking them into the holes in the cardboard

outside, take a look around you, and find beauty in the little things – time with your kids, fresh air, spring colors, and a super easy activity that will engage your kids’ creativity, observation, and motor skills!