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Christmas magic was on full display at the 21st Annual Festival of the Trees, held at the Platte Valley Community Center in Saratoga on December 1. According to Saratoga/Platte Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO Amanda Knotwell, the annual event had approximately 250 people in attendance—the highest turnout in the past five years. This year’s event also raised more than $43,000 gross with $36,875 of that from the live auction held that night. While a number of items were auctioned off between $10...
At the November 21 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, the governing body approved the hiring of two part-time and one full-time dispatcher for the Saratoga Police Department. The two part-time dispatchers are Tiffany Moore and Tana Davi, the full-time dispatcher is Joshua Mathieu. “We’re doing the onboarding right but we’ve still got a couple of hoops to jump through to get the full-time going,” said Saratoga Police Chief Mike Morris. “Then we’ll be able to put him on the schedule and start t...
Ugly sweaters have had a place in popular culture since the 1950s, but it wasn’t until the 1980s that they truly entered the mainstream with Clark Griswold. On December 2, more than a dozen ugly sweater clad people could be seen dashing up Elm Street. “We only had 13 people show, which wasn’t too bad considering it was maybe 20 degrees and the wind was blowing 40 miles per hour,” said Kim Hemenway, director of the Saratoga Recreation Department. “We had some brave souls come out. The course wa...
When it comes to birthdays or holidays, a hand-made gift from a child will always carry a special place in the hearts of parents and grandparents. While that warm and fuzzy feeling can be great, sometimes children want the feeling of buying something for a loved one. That’s where Bridge Street Bargains and their annual Kids’ Shopping Day comes in. For the past several years, the all-volunteer thrift store has hosted a day where students from Saratoga Elementary School are able to shop for fam...
On the night of November 9, downtown Saratoga resembled something similar to a Hallmark movie as people milled in and out of businesses with shopping bags in tow as they participated in the inaugural Jingle Mingle. The shopping event was sponsored and developed by the Saratoga/Platte Valley Chamber of Commerce and its CEO, Amanda Knotwell. According to Knotwell, the idea of the Jingle Mingle first began in September. “I was out visiting businesses and stopped in to Strong Tower Designs,” sai...
On November 4, for one day only, the hot springs at the Saratoga Hot Springs Resort weren’t the only things heating up. In the Saratoga Room, just past the Silver Saddle Room, five couples learned Argentinian Tango. The class, which was taught by Amy Beaudet and Ilya Lisenker, was sponsored by the Platte Valley Arts Council. “When I first got onto the Platte Valley Arts Council, it came up as a possibility of bringing tango to the Valley. I think one of the long-time members had brought it up...
The famed author and satirist Mark Twain once said “write what you know.” Former Saratoga local and author Sarah “S.E.” Reichert did just that with the Sweet Valley series, her newest romance trilogy. Reichert, a graduate of Saratoga High School, spoke at the Saratoga Branch Library on November 21 to a group of dedicated fans about her newest series which begins with “Raising Elle,” released in May 2023. No Place Like Home “The book is loosely based in the Valley and I think if you know your way...
Over the past several years, Cassie and Tommy Orduno have added a number of businesses to Saratoga beginning with Bella’s Bistro and then adding the Saratoga Sandwich Company and SunnyCup. Now, the couple have added yet another business with The Lucky Pearl at 100 N. 1st Street. The location had previously been the home of the Laura M Art Gallery until owner, Laura Morrow, chose to close her business last year. When Laura M made her announcement, Cassie said she briefly considered opening s...
As the year draws to a close, the Saratoga Planning Commission is preparing for 2024. At their November 14 meeting, the planning commission discussed potential ordinances, a brownfield grant application and goals for next year. Processing Code Changes Emery Penner, zoning and planning director, raised the idea of a potential ordinance to the planning commission in regards to meat processing facilities. Currently, under section 18.39.020(B) of the Saratoga Municipal Code, a meat packing plant or...
The Saratoga branch of RNB State Bank recently presented checks totalling $600 to members of the community. On November 3, two checks for $200 each were presented to two Valley non-profit organizations and one check for $200 was presented to Liandro Escobedo. The presentation of the check to Escobedo was due to his success in a recent program called “Saving Makes Cents” in which people were asked to guess the amount of pennies in a jar. “We just decided to select a jar, fill it with penni...
The same struggle of employee shortages plaguing emergency call centers around the nation will also soon impact the Saratoga Police Department, which already has a small staff of dispatch workers. At the November 7 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, Chief Mike Morris told the council that he would soon be down to only two full-time dispatchers. The typical amount of dispatch staff for his department is four full-time employees. Dispatch Shortage “We’re running into a little bit of an iss...
In the southeast corner of Wyoming sits the state’s only university, home of the University of Wyoming Cowboys and alma mater of current NFL players such as Josh Allen and Logan Wilson. Just a stone’s throw away from War Memorial Stadium—which arguably becomes the most densely populated location during home football games—is a surprising looking structure with equally surprising contents. The American Heritage Center (AHC) is located within the Centennial Complex which catches the eye with its u...
At a special meeting held on November 2, the Carbon County Republican Party Central Committee selected three candidates for the vacancy on the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) following the resignation of Commissioner Byron Barkhurst. As was previously reported, Barkhurst’s resignation was accepted by the commissioners on October 17. At the same meeting, the BOCCC also declared a vacancy and provided a written letter to the chairman of the Carbon County Republican Party. The c...
As goes the Red Desert, so goes the rest of the country. This is the concern of Representative Bob Davis (R - Baggs) of House District 47. Davis’ district, while encompassing most of Carbon County, also includes portions of Sweetwater County which is included in the Red Desert. Since it was released in August of this year, the draft resource management plan from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for the Red Desert has been the center of controversy and debate. Conservation groups have p...
The Encampment Tigers’ nearly undefeated season came to a heartbreaking end on Friday as they were dealt a loss by the Burlington Huskies in the semifinal round of the 1A Six-Man Playoffs. A mere 7 points separated the Tigers and Burlington. “Our game against Burlington was a shootout as anticipated,” said Kegan Willford, head coach of the Encampment Tigers. “Burlington has a great team and they execute very well. Our team played hard and fought all game to try and gain the advantage but, in...
When Eric Soyez joined the United States Navy, he became the 3rd generation in his family to serve in that branch of the Armed Forces. His father and his grandfather had both served and had been jet mechanics. “I’ll be honest, I was a little bit of a hellraiser when I was a kid and I got myself in a little bit of trouble,” said Soyez. “I thought maybe it was time to turn the other direction and do something with my life.” While he followed—in a way—in the footsteps of his father and grandfather,...
Justin Brown can be pretty easy to pick out in a crowd. He stands at over six feet tall and is covered in tattoos. When he speaks, he has a bit of a southern drawl. Though he owns and operates TYK9 just outside Saratoga now, he was once a Ranger in the United States Army. He also spent six years working for Blackwater. Now a civilian, Brown works with domestic dogs and does K9 training shepherds and malinois. The drawl he has when he speaks is a holdover from being raised in the south, growing u...
Alan Brundage looks very unassuming. He’s tall, standing over six feet, and sports a beard and mustache. He speaks in a soft tone but with purpose and intent, making one feel that if he’s talking they better listen as it’s likely something worth being said. Brundage, who has lived in the Platte Valley for around two years now, spent nearly 50 years working for the federal government when one includes his time in both the United States Marine Corps and the United States Air Force. His stint...
When it comes to honoring veterans and their service to the United States, there are various ways in which people, businesses and organizations show their respect. It can be a “thank you” in passing on the street, a dinner honoring their service or a business offering discounts. One way in which the State of Wyoming and county assessors show their appreciation for someone’s service is through a veteran’s exemption for either property taxes or vehicle licensing. How does it work? Accordi...
It all started with some pumpkin seeds. “I found pumpkin seeds in Cheyenne. I grew pumpkins thinking they weren’t going to make it, I grew them in tiny medicine cups and they took off,” said Sophia Borg. “So, I had this big plan that we (StrongTower Designs and Palomino Hat Bar) were going to have a pumpkin patch. That grew from the pumpkin patch into the festival.” The festival is the inaugural Saratoga Fall Festival—or Saratoga FallFest—which was held on October 21 on east Spring Street...
After more than a decade, multiple blueprints and plans and a name change it seems there might be some progress for Never Forget Park. During the October 17 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, the governing body was provided an update from Stacy Crimmins, a member of the working group formed more than two years ago for the memorial park. With that update came a request to go out for bid for phase one of the long-awaited project. “In phase one construction, we will be seeking bids to include s...
In the midst of the United Auto Workers strike—which reached a tentative agreement with General Motors on October 30—law enforcement departments have had to be creative when it comes to restocking their fleet. Carbon County is no different. At the October 17 meeting of the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC), Sheriff Alex Bakken requested permission from the commissioner to purchase two used vehicles, both Ford Explorers which were already police packaged. “It means they are ready...
The Rock Creek Wind Gen-Tie Transmission Line hit a snag last week as the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) withdrew its decision to grant a right-of-way for the project to cross federal public lands in southeastern Wyoming. The announcement came in a press release from the group Albany County Conservancy who, along with retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Mike Lockhart, were plaintiffs in a legal challenge to the decision. The Rock Creek Wind Gen-Tie project is part of the Rock Creek...
It was a brisk, but beautiful, day for football on October 27 as the No. 2 Encampment Tigers hosted the No. 3 Meeteetse Longhorns for the quarterfinal round of the 1A Six-Man Playoffs. With the postseason now in full swing, the Tigers had no issue dominating their home field against Meeteetse, though the Longhorns came out charging for a playoff win. “Meeteetse started out strong, like any playoff team should, but we knew we had to stick to our game plan,” said Kegan Willford, head coach of the...
The season has come to an end for the Encampment Lady Tigers, who were knocked out of the 1A West Regional Tournament in two matches over the weekend. Last Monday, October 23, the Lady Tigers punched their ticket to the regional tournament in Riverton after taking down the Farson-Eden Lady Pronghorns in three sets. That win, while getting them into the regional tournament, also put them against the No. 1 ranked Riverside Lady Rebels who were 8-9-2 for the season and 4-0 in conference play. For...