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The call is getting more common as I enter my mid-40s. It generally comes from a friend, about my age, who knows I work for AARP, and hopes I can help them navigate the services available in Wyoming to help a loved one stay at home as they age. Their question is simply, “how do I keep mom/dad out of a nursing home for as long as I can?” The best advice is to ask for help sooner than later. Develop a plan, figure out what supports are in your community. Emily Loos of LIV Health, a home services provider in southeast Wyoming, suggests a vis...
It’s a battle that’s been waged for a long time now and it doesn’t show any signs of letting up. There’s a movement amongst state legislators to have the legal notices published by municipal and county governments in their local newspapers instead published solely on their governmental websites. At a time when the state and its city and county governments have been hit hard by a sluggish minerals industry and the impacts of a pandemic, it makes sense to cut costs wherever they can be cut -- at least that’s the surface argument. There’s s...
Women often put the needs of their loved ones before their own. That may be truer than ever this year, as mothers juggle working from home, virtual learning and childcare along with the usual everyday responsibilities. As members of the Prevent Cancer Foundation’s Congressional Families Cancer Prevention Program®, we encourage women to take this month to prioritize their health as we observe Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer and second-most common cause of cancer deaths among American wo...
Lumpy, a walking, talking lump of coal wearing a miner’s hat and gloves, serves as the Energy Policy Network’s mascot. “Affordable and plentiful, I keep America’s lights on and economy moving,” Lumpy says in a speech bubble on EPN’s website. To be charitable, I won’t offer what else Lumpy resembles. I will offer a rewrite of his speech, though. He should be saying, “Thanks for the handouts, Wyoming taxpayers!” Because while coal is still plentiful, it’s no longer affordable, either in economic or environmental terms. But that hasn’t stopped...
The coronavirus has made quite a surge in Wyoming over the past week and a half. Much of the infections have been in Albany County, home to the University of Wyoming, and have included 11 freshmen football players according to UW’s public relations office. Sweetwater County, while not experiencing the same large increase other counties have seen, hasn’t been spared either. As of Monday evening, the Wyoming Department of Health reported Sweetwater County had 31 active cases of COVID-19, up from 10 active cases reported Sept. 28. We’re seein...
When you ask a physician why they became a doctor there is often a pattern that emerges. It is usually one of three things: they have family members who were doctors, they went through a significant health issue of their own, or they had a family member or close friend who went through a serious health issue. In my case, it was the latter. Sadly, there have been many such experiences with people I love but let me share with you the first I can remember. I was five years old. She was my neighbor, the only person who could over-rule my mother on...
Conservative groups throughout Wyoming have been pushing resolutions to county commissioners which would push back on the state’s health orders and cite a person’s ability to make their own decisions regarding their health and precautions to adhere to. Most recently, such a resolution was passed by the Uinta County commissioners. A similar resolution, which also would have been nonbinding, was presented to the Sweetwater County commissioners weeks ago and died for a lack of a second -- meaning a second commissioner did not support the ini...
Being alone isn’t nearly as bad as having someone else follow you through the darkened corridors. You know there are impostors amongst your group, but you’re never exactly sure of who they are. Is the person standing with you as you fix wiring near the administration room really just looking out for you as you work? Or, are they waiting for the opportunity to eliminate a fellow crew member during the few seconds your eyes are focused on your job? Worse yet, are they waiting for the opp...
Over the years, I have been fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to show mayors, county commissioners, Governor (Mark) Gordon and other elected leaders and stakeholders around one of my favorite places in the world -- the Greater Little Mountain Area (GLMA). This special place is renowned for its breathtaking landscapes, cherished for its sought-after hunting and fishing, and deeply valued for its significant economic and cultural significance to Wyomingites. Newcomers are always stunned by the beauty of the wide-open spaces and wildlif...
If you build it, they will come. That statement, an often misquoted line from the film “Field of Dreams,” has been applied to economic development meaning once something is built, support will follow. This has been true for the Jamestown area. After a new water system was built in the Jamestown-Rio Vista Water and Sewer District, interest in developing land which previously had no access to water suddenly took off. The Love’s Travel Stop under construction is likely only the beginning of commercial investment in the area. Proof of this can b...
America’s economy has been hamstrung by COVID-19 and revitalizing it must be the essential mission of the next administration. Key to that recovery is the need to explore and responsibly develop America’s energy and minerals. This President recognizes that a healthy country must be free. That a free people are a healthy people anxious to build a vibrant economy, a strong health care system and a country able to stand on her own two feet as the envy of our globe. Such a country, a people, an economy can lead the way to solving the most urg...
My name is Dr. Vishwanath Pattan and I am the Medical Director of Endocrinology at Wyoming Medical Center in Casper. Endocrinology is the study of hormones, and as an endocrinologist I treat patients for a wide variety of diseases related to hormonal deficiencies and imbalances. That includes many patients with diabetes. At my clinic, Wyoming Endocrine and Diabetes, I treat patients from across Wyoming, and I have noticed an alarming trend for my diabetic patients in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic: an inability to monitor and control...
Golden Hour Senior Center offers a lot of good to Green River. Many may only be aware of the center through the baked goods it sells during the Green River Farmers Market or as the place grandma and grandpa go to have lunch and socialize with their friends. In truth, it’s a bit more important than that. While Golden Hour does offer a chance for seniors to socialize and enjoy a hot lunch or a game of Wii Bowling, the fact of the matter is the center is a lifeline to a lot of seniors who wouldn’t get out as much otherwise. Programs offered thr...
I’m a lifelong resident of Wyoming and the older I get; the more certain inconsistencies seem to become evident. For example, local and state leaders often talk about the need to diversify the economy, but continue to double down on the minerals industry that has historically provided the state and many of its communities with what can only be described as giant piles of cash. It’s a state with leaders who often shun federal assistance, but is extremely dependent on federal spending. It’s a sta...
Small business owners are some of the strongest, most resilient people you will ever meet. They know what it’s like to take risks, work hard, make tough decisions, and turn a profit to benefit their community. The last few months have been arduous for Wyoming’s rural small business owners and entrepreneurs. Yet once again, we’ve seen that in times of crisis, small businesses step up to provide for their employees and serve their hometowns. At the Small Business Administration, we have made it our frontline mission to support small busin...
As we are forced to air high-five and elbow bump instead of hug or shake hands right now, in the FACE of Covid, I think it’s important to note several other very important things we are FACING. The face is a very important tool we all have. We use it to show expressions and attitudes – it really is very communicative. We use many phrases involving the face such as “face paint”, “get your game face on”, “face the music”, “being two-faced” and “face the facts”. We can even remember many important social distancing requirements with the w...
The skate park on Uinta is one of the most used recreational parks in Green River. When at the park, you can definitely tell it has had its fair share of wear and tear. After seeing how in need of some renovations the skate park was, I contacted Brad Raney. Raney, being the parks and recreation administrator, I believed he could share some insight. The first thing I asked Raney was if there had been any discussion or suggestions to renovate the park. To which he replied yes, and that it was on a long list of amenities to be done. Along with...
When I was younger my parents would let me stay up late to watch “The Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson. I will never forget when it was announced that he would be leaving the show and Jay Leno would be the new host. I was shocked and upset. How could anyone possibly sit behind that desk and host the show as well as Johnny? My family begrudgingly started watching Jay Leno as he took the stage. The show was not the same, but over time we came to accept the new host and what he brought to the show that was different and new. Change is dif...
It isn’t often you hear an athletic director beg fans to follow directions. During last week’s football scrimmage with Mountain View, the school district’s athletics director, Tony Beardsley, did exactly that in an attempt to get fans to follow health guidelines designed to limit the potential spread of the novel coronavirus. A large group of children behind Wolves Stadium having their own football game, none of them wearing masks or socially distancing themselves as they played. A threat to end the scrimmage because health directives weren’t b...
Albert Einstein conducted thought experiments to figure out theoretical problems. Let’s do one of our own. Suppose that you fell and broke your left leg and had to be in a cast for eight weeks. Would you expect your left leg to be as strong as your right leg when the cast was removed? Of course not. You know that muscle that is not exercised gets smaller and softer. Secondly, would you expect that, by sitting in a recliner for the next two months, your left calf would magically grow back and strengthen to where it was before? Of course, you w...
I usually don’t share conspiracy theories, but one recently appeared in my inbox that was so wild it stopped me in my tracks. Cheyenne, according to the sender, is extremely vulnerable to an attack by Colorado socialists who would likely stop at nothing to blow up the city’s refinery, a chemical plant and even Warren Air Force Base. “What the nation is putting up with now are armed miscreants supported by big money and backed by leftists from Hollywood to Silicon Valley and Democrat leaders,” warned the writer. Good grief — how will Cheyenne be...
It’s fair to say the University of Wyoming is facing some serious budget problems, like almost every other governmental entity in the state. A recent article from the Casper Star-Tribune reported the university prepared to take a cut of at least $42 million due to the pandemic and the state’s own revenue woes. Up until recently, the university has projected a 20% decrease in enrollment until the state announced it would provide education grants to residents that had become under employed or unemployed due to the pandemic. Now the col...
Dear Editor, Overall nobody is all that concerned about another abuse case involving family members. Let the law handle it. Why not publish an investigative report on the federal budget deficit that involves every American? When have you and your staff ever went out and investigated a story? Never. Investigative reporting does not happen anymore. Kevin Bertagnolli Rock Springs...
Kate Sarosy is the AARP Wyoming State President, but you may know her as the former mayor and city councilman in Casper. She says during her campaigns in the 2000’s it never occurred to her to specifically court the age 50+ vote. She isn’t alone. While research tells us candidates tend to court young voters, older voters are deciding elections. According to US Census data, 90.5 percent of registered voters aged 50+ participated in the 2016 election. In Wyoming, the 50+ voter remains reliable. According to the Secretary of State, 81 percent of r...
There’s nothing like knocking off a few bruised and battered “Republican in name only” incumbents in a Wyoming primary election to make self-proclaimed “real conservatives” whoop and holler. Four-term moderate Sen. Michael Von Flatern (R-Gillette) had the biggest target on his back, with several groups and well-heeled conservative donors out to end his political career. They helped Troy McKeown trounce Von Flatern by more than 1,000 votes last Tuesday. He wasn’t the only high-profile GOP legislator to fall out of favor with voters. House Majori...
