Sorted by date Results 176 - 200 of 1682
I have worked in public health for almost 20 years, and one of the top concerns that always comes forward is access to quality health care for an affordable price. Fast forward to today where I am proud to lead the Enroll Wyoming program where we focus on this issue, specifically. Enroll Wyoming is a nonprofit whose mission is finding those who need health care and health insurance and helping them find solutions that work for each individual’s situation. We are grant funded and provide free assistance to anyone in Wyoming who needs help n...
This Saturday night, the clock will change from 11:59 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. When it does, some will be out celebrating and will cheer and kiss and raise a glass. Others will be spending a quiet evening at home with their family (and may still cheer, and kiss, and raise a glass). Others will be sleeping soundly in their beds and miss the moment entirely. Of course, the clock changes from 11:59 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. every night, but some nights we pay more attention - especially when that shift of the...
During the Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays my family and I watch Hallmark and Lifetime Christmas movies. It’s become quite a little tradition. They are all very similar in nature, but we never really look at them as “if you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all”, even though most of them go as follows: Boy meets girl, but they have other commitments or issues they are dealing with. Then boy and girl fall in love. Then something tears them apart. Then they find each other, usually on Thanksgiving or Christmas Day and live happily ever after. So...
Last weekend I was sitting in the Broadway Theater in Rock Springs, but my heart was transported back to Victorian London. I watched characters I've known for as long as I can remember bring one of my favorite Christmas stories to life once again. Marley's screams gave me goosebumps, I teared up when Tiny Tim said "God bless us, everyone," I sat back in surprise when the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come loomed over the stage, and I laughed when Scrooge threatened to raise Bob Cratchit's salary.... Full story
Imagine how great it would be if you or your family didn’t get sick from a respiratory infection. What infections are these you may ask? They include, for example, flu, flu-like illness, adeno virus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), common cold, conjunctivitis, pharyngitis, tonsillitis, bronchitis, bronchiolitis, pneumonia, Coxsackie virus, Streptococcus, Pneumoccous, tuberculosis, and more. Providers at the Specialty Clinics of Sweetwater Memorial, as well as the physicians in the emergency room and on the medical/surgical floor at M... Full story
Dear Editor, In politics, all decisions do not reach the same level of importance. Some decisions matter very much in the moment but will be forgotten within a decade. Others will be viewed by future generations as a turning point that causes generational harm. Public Servants who understand the importance of those moments, and vote with future generations in mind, define the very word, “Statesman.” Senator John Barrasso made such a decision this week. In voting against a bill with a name right out of an Orwellian novel (the so-called “Respect...
As energy transitions occur across the globe, one has to question if policy makers are learning from the experiences in other states and nations. We would be wise to pay close attention. Change is coming, and today’s energy sector will look different in the near future. Those two dynamics are a given. However, if we garner anything from what is happening in Europe and California, it is that chaos ensues when energy transitions are rushed through unrealistic public policy goals. Wyoming is an energy producing state and proud of it. Our energy p...
Each fall, the reality of living at 6,237 feet and above sets in with early cold temps, and, ideally, early snow. Fortunately, the stockpiling of winter moisture begins as the blanket of white covers the valley, giving us hope of refilling reservoirs and ending a pattern of drought. For most it’s a shock to the system and a reminder to dig out snow shovels and boots, and get the snow tires swapped on. Winter sports enthusiasts are getting an early start to winter fun, while those who don’t love the cold dark months are wrapping up in swe...
The holidays are here! But it seems to be increasingly less clear - or at least more debated - which holidays should be celebrated when. Growing up, holidays weren't as extended as they are today, at least not in my family. Halloween didn't involve much more than carving pumpkins a few days before and trick-or-treating the night of. Thanksgiving was always limited to the festivities that day, including watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and going to Grandma's house for the traditional... Full story
Dear Editor, Please print this. I don’t know who she was but it’s important to me that she see this. There are indeed angels among us. I want to sincerely thank the lady who shocked me the other day. She paid entirely for my new set of tires on my car. Thank you generous angel! I am so in awe at your kindness. I will try to pay it forward, although it may take awhile. Carol Aldinager Green River...
The old adage “Don’t put the cart before the horse” may certainly be applied to the push to get electric vehicles on our nation’s roads. Don’t get us wrong. We are not against electric vehicles. We just hope Wyoming keeps ahead of the curve so that electrical generation and distribution infrastructure can keep pace with the increased demand for electricity. Wyoming could take a lesson from California on how not to handle this situation. Just weeks ago, the California Air Resources Board set a policy requiring all new cars sold in that stat...
Dear Editor, What can be done about the behemoth of the federal government, regulation and corporate overreach? My generation has allowed the deterioration of freedoms we took for granted as kids. The unholy alliance of Big Government, Big Pharma, and the Military-Industrial complex, usurp our freedoms, leaving us feeling powerless to effect changes. We elect individuals who promise to reduce government size and reach; sadly, they’ve failed us. The federal bureaucracy and “lifers” in Congress will never reduce government, limit their time...
The votes have come in and the people have made their voice heard in the general election, thanks to the freedom we have in our country to participate in the process of choosing the people who will lead us. These days, politics seem to be more divisive than ever, with polarized positions, “us vs. them” mentalities, all-or-nothing stances, and a tendency to demonize anyone who doesn’t agree. However, there is one thing people on all sides of the political spectrum seem to agree on — the importance of voting. The Star receives a number of lett...
Dear Editor, The Truth for which I am speaking is not your self truth or being true to your-self but truth based on facts. Facts based truth is what gives a community long term stability, self-reflection and positive growth for everyone. Trust is something built over time through demonstrated true experience and professionalism. Every voter wants to trust that their candidates are being truthful and every candidate states they are truthful. During the primary the question was asked by a voter, “How do I know a candidate is being truthful?” The...
Last year, I augmented my role as an elected member of Wyoming’s House of Representatives to become a witness before the House Judiciary Committee as it considered whether cannabis should become legal in our state. I told my colleagues about my life-long struggle with ulcerative colitis, which forced me to leave the military as I underwent elaborate treatments, dropping in weight from 160 pounds to only 119. I spoke of how using cannabis helped me get through that physical trial. I acknowledged that cannabis, like any drug, can be abused – but...
Dear Editor, Since the August 16th Primary elections some members in our Wyoming legislature are conspiring to limit the authority of the Secretary of State. I feel as if those in our State Legislature that want to do this are stripping “We The People” of this great state of our vote. We voted for Chuck Gray and do not see a need for any reason for the Secretary of State to have some of their authority taken away from that position and handed to other positions. Rep. Dan Zwonitzer, co-chair of the Joint Corporations, Elections, and Pol...
Shortly before Ed Buchanan left the secretary of state’s post early to take a judgeship, the Wyoming Republican Party wrote a letter asking him to stay on through the November election. Party officials wrote that asking an interim secretary of state to oversee an election with only a few weeks on the job would be setting that person up for failure. There was just too much to learn in that short of a time. Buchanan was undeterred. When he resigned, Wyoming law required the state GOP to help find the person to finish out his term. S...
I am back! Some of you might not have even noticed or missed me, but some of you may have noticed I haven’t written in a few months. In fact, I have been asked by some people why they hadn’t seen any new articles in the paper or on my website in a bit. The answer is simple. I was tired. I wasn’t sleepy tired, although there have been a few days. I wasn’t depressed tired. I wasn’t tired of writing. I was just busy, pulled in many directions, mostly at work, and I was giving everything I had left (which wasn’t much sometimes), to my family. But...
Dear Editor, There is much about Wyoming that our visitors adore. Lots of room, peace and quiet - good neighbors and a great heritage. We’re the smallest state in the union - but a state of solid citizens. One of the most significant ingredients in this character is a belief in God and one of the most compelling types of evidence for that belief is the “Cokeville Miracle.” Recently, I have contacted our national senators and representatives with a proposal that we share our faith by promoting and creating a national memorial remembering that ev...
One summer during my college years, I had a roommate who suffered from suicidal thoughts. She’d attempted suicide before we met, and been hospitalized, but continued to struggle. Back in the late 80s, there was very little public understanding of mental health issues, and the stigma was even stronger than it is today. Our other roommate and I didn’t know what to do, or where to turn. Not surprisingly, we didn’t handle it well. However, we did one thing right: we restricted access to lethal means. We secured the knives, and took control of her m...
Dear Editor, Your article in the 9/8/22 issue entitled “Non-Profit Scrutiny” on page one and continued on page 3 with the title “Fraudulent activity with federal funds poses risk to Sweetwater County” is incorrect and should be retracted. The embezzled funds were private funds from families whose children were enrolled in the RS-YAHC Early Learning Center, not federal, state, county, or any other governmental funds as inferred in your article. The federal funds in question are those that Rachelle Morris obtained through her sham LLC under t...
Wyoming doesn’t need another warning that we can no longer rely on the fossil fuel industry to propel our economy and pay the lion’s share of our government services. We’ve seen for years growth in renewables like wind and solar. Coal plants are retiring in favor of cleaner sources of energy. The market is responding to climate change with innovation that will reduce our country’s dependence on carbon-based fuels to power our cars, our homes and our industries. Earlier this month, we saw yet another sign of the change that is coming, regardl...
Dear Editor, I am just a nobody but if I was a someone that would be listened to, I would ask that people consider more regarding what their values could have in regards to a person’s life. Anyone who has been in trouble with the law knows that you gotta pay to play. What if a person wasn’t playing? What if a person could not pay? To treat human beings like cattle and use them to make money is wrong but that is most local government’s “cash cow.” Excuse the pun. As I said, I am a nobody but I would like to believe that somebody would notice if...
I grew up in Middle Earth. Granted, my first journey there was when I was five, and Gollum in the animated 1977 “Hobbit” film scared me so bad I couldn’t watch anything remotely strange or fantastic for a few years. But the rest of my family loved the first two “The Lord of the Rings” films that had come out in the early 2000s, so I eventually got pulled in. I watched “The Fellowship of the Ring” and “The Two Towers,” and, at the risk of being cliche, they changed my life. I got my hands on t... Full story
Labor Day is a day to celebrate the workers who keep our country running. They’re the ones who keep our businesses open and our economy strong. However, as I’ve visited policymakers, business owners and workers throughout the state, one question invariably pops up: Where have all the workers gone? We’ve all heard the phrases “the Great Resignation,” “quiet quitting,” “boomeranging,” “gig workers,” and other new terms to describe a new workforce and workplace. But what does this mean to businesses clamoring for help and workers still looking...
