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Commitment to education in the classroom was the biggest factor for Saratoga Elementary School 3rd grade teacher Heather Strannigan’s recognition as this year’s Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2) Teacher of the Year. Strannigan graduated from Saratoga Middle High in 2014 and has taught at Saratoga Elementary School for seven years. “When I was in high school, I had an opportunity to be a student aide in a kindergarten class here at Saratoga Elementary School,” Strannigan said. “It gav...
The new school year is now here and I would like to take this time to reach out to both students and parents about the importance of making a new friend. When I first moved to Wyoming, I was scared to make new changes in my life. I wanted to know if people would be kind to me or not. Then I discovered how kind and friendly the people in the Platte Valley are. Every morning when I go to work, some stranger would say good morning to me. Whenever I go shopping some people would say hello to me and...
A public hearing on short term rentals (STRs) at the August 13 meeting of the Saratoga Planning Commision saw fiery discussion from a packed crowd. Many members of the public participated in the hearing, giving reasons both for and against regulation of STRs. Discussion on this issue originally began in 2023, when the Planning Commission considered creating an ordinance to limit the number of STRs in Saratoga. The proposed ordinance was tabled after Town Attorney Kylie Waldrip raised concerns it...
Bailey Miller 5th Grade - Encampment K-12 School Bailey Miller is one of three Encampment alum returning to the hallways, having graduated from Encampment K-12 School in 2017. She will be teaching 5th grade, the role previously held by Principal Jake Johnston. “I have a bachelor’s in elementary education. I started in Casper and did two years there and I was on the rodeo team. Then I went to the University of Wyoming where I continued my education and was on the rodeo team,” said Miller. “From...
When going to the Carbon County Fair, it’s a given that you have to enjoy the fair food. The grounds hold a wide variety of vendors who spend the week at the fair, from various food trucks to people in stands selling lemonade outside the exhibit hall. The concessions stand is a mainstay, offering a wide variety of foods to fair goers. The stand is run on a volunteer basis, with all proceeds going to Carbon County School District No. 1 (CCSD1). Students from CCSD1 work at the stand, giving t...
Valley residents saw new and returning candidates for the Board of Carbon County Commissioners participate in the Valley Service Organization (VSO) public forum on July 9 in preparation for the 2024 election. The candidates running for the three open seats are Gwynn Bartlett, Sue Jones, Jimmy Hinkle, John Espy and Garrett Irene. Jones, Espy and Irene all currently serve as commissioners and are running for reelection. Irene did not attend the forum. Patterson began the forum by asking Bartlett,...
Andrea (Andi) Dee Ward was born February 2, 1965 in Dillion, Montana. She was raised in the beautiful mountains of Beaverhead County and later moved to Lovell, Wyoming. Andi loved the western way of life; rodeo, hunting and fishing with her grandfather instilled a life-long passion for the outdoors. After graduating from Lovell High School in 1983, she moved to Saratoga, Wyoming to be closer to her parents, Roger and Suzie Cox. In 1988, Andi met and married Will Ward. Together they had two...
The Saratoga/Platte Valley Chamber of Commerce hosted its 3rd Annual Platte River Independence Day 5K Run/Walk on July 4. Runners and walkers appeared excited as a crowd gathered at the starting line to see them off. Kids and their guardians participated together to kick off the 4th of July weekend as young children also took part in the half-mile kids' fun run. Chamber CEO Amanda Knotwell said she had coordinated the event to take place during the annual Saratoga Volunteer Fire Department...
Fiery back and forth took place as the Saratoga Town Council held a special meeting to hire a new pool manager on June 26. Emery Penner, Director of Public Works, began the meeting by presenting the hiring recommendations from the interview board formed by Mayor Chuck Davis for the pool manager position. The board interviewed two candidates for the pool manager position. They recommended the council hire Sandy Beffa as the pool manager. Councilwoman Kathy Beck questioned whether Beffa was...
Carbon County School District No. 2 is being awarded the Innovative School Lunch Makeover Award, in recognition of their efforts to improve the nutritional quality of school lunches. The district applied for the Healthy Meals Incentives (HMI) grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which provided $149,589 to go towards equipment, supplies, training, student engagement and farm-to-school activities. The Innovative School Lunch Makeover “recognizes improvement in the n...
Every morning, Principal Mike Erickson greets students at Encampment K-12 School. Standing in the middle of the foyer, he gives fist bumps to both primary and secondary students as they start their day. On May 31, he will be giving fist bumps for the last time. After 19 years as principal and 30 years in education, Erickson will be retiring. According to the outgoing principal, now’s a good time to retire. Rather Early Than Late “There’s a lot of things that I’ll miss but anybody who knows m...
Seniors of Carbon County School District No. 2, you are about to officially take your first step into the “the real world.” I would make a reference to a popular reality television show which used to be on MTV, but I’m not sure if you’d get that reference. Nor am I sure I want to age myself, though I’m going to be doing that now. I, along with 35 other members of Saratoga’s class of 2005, sat through my own graduation ceremony 19 years ago. At 36 students, we were one of the largest classes to...
For over 50 years, Wee Folks Preschool has been an important part of the Hanna community in helping children succeed in early education. Recently, the program was on the brink of closing its doors. Due to a lack of funding, Wee Folks was left with no choice but to leave the building near Miners Plaza Shopping Center because of the cost of rent. This left parents concerned about where to send their preschool-aged children if the program couldn’t operate. Carbon County School District No. 2 S...
Linda Kay Fisher-Perue went to be with her Lord on April 25, 2024. She was born on December 12, 1947 to Howard and MaryLee (Stock) Weinert in Falls City, Nebraska. She grew up on a small farm near Falls City and attended a rural school through 8th grade. Linda graduated from Falls City High School and then went to the University of Nebraska for one year. From there she went to Peru State College in Peru, Nebraska, not far from where she was raised. She obtained a teaching degree, for home...
The 2024 Wyoming Legislative session was February 12 to March 8, 2024, at the State Capitol in Cheyenne. With this being my first budget session, I learned a lot and have a new respect for the process and the work and time that is put into the state’s budget. We heard 350 bill and passed a $10.6 billion Biennium Budget. One of the big issues this session was to find tax relief for the people of Wyoming. We passed 4 new bills for tax relief - HB0045 Property tax exemption for residential structures. - HB0004 Property tax Refund Program is an e...
The City of Rawlins recently announced the selection of its new attorney. Pinita Maberry-Nave, who previously served as the interim city attorney, is a native to Rawlins and graduated from Rawlins High School. She went on to earn her Bachelor of Arts in Astronomy/Astrophysics from the University of Wyoming before earning her Justice Degree from the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law in 2007. According to the press release, Maberry-Nave brings a diverse background to her new role as the...
The Valley Service Organization (VSO) has, once again, opened up the Youth Citizenship Award for graduating seniors from Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2). This scholarship awards a cash scholarship each year to a senior selected by the VSO Award Committee. VSO Chairwoman Cindy Walton has emphasized this scholarship is not based on grades. Instead, it is a cash award given directly to the student for their “community service and understanding of what it is to be a good citizen”. The award is open to graduating seniors from Sar...
Next time you are considering a burger or steak, consider 307 Pub and Grub. Not only are you sure to have a wonderful meal, but you will also be supporting the Platte Valley economy. That’s because 307 Pub and Grub buys local beef. To date, 307 Pub and Grub in Encampment has bought steers from Zeller Cattle, the Silver Spur Ranch, the Big Creek Ranch and, at the 2023 Carbon County Fair, a steer raised by Quade Jordan. Each steer is appropriately named 307-1, 307-2, and so on. These steers h...
The Wyoming State Legislature passed two senate bills aimed at incentivizing the recruitment and retention of volunteers for emergency medical services (EMS) this session, but neither address the need for a revamp in the reimbursement system that financially supports the service. The local director of South Central Wyoming Emergency Medical Service based in Saratoga, Stayton Mosbey, said these bills are “small steps in the right direction –everything that helps to attract someone to volunteer is worth it.” However, Mosbey said, there is anoth...
On Friday, March 15, 8th graders from Encampment, Saratoga, and Hanna-Elk Mountain-Medicine Bow schools took a field trip for 8th Grade Business Career Day. The students had the opportunity to visit different businesses in the Platte Valley. 8th Grade Business Career Day first started in 2016 by former Saratoga/ Platte Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO Stacey Crimmins and has continued each year except during the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic. Amanda Knotwell, Cimmins’ successor as Saratoga/ Platte V...
Mike Erickson, principal at Encampment K-12 School, will be retiring at the end of the school year after 19 years with Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2). On March 5, a community forum giving parents and staff a chance to speak with Erickson’s possible replacement was held. Jacob Johnston and A’Lisa Mueller, both made their case on why they should be picked as the next principal at Encampment. Both Johnston and Mueller took questions from the audience with Robin Brown as the mod...
Encampment K-12 School’s recent Books and Breakfast was in honor of local first responders. On March 6, parents, students, teachers and first responders met at the Encampment School Library to spend time reading together. This event encourages students to read books and improve their reading skills. After reading at the library, members of the community had breakfast in the cafeteria with local heroes who made important sacrifices in protecting children and the Plate Valley Community. This w...
It’s before noon on a Monday. The sound of oil on cast iron cuts through the air, just like the smell of hot cast iron. Mixed in is the odor of seared meat and the aroma of cooked vegetables and potatoes. On one skillet is Skyler Wood, making a batch of bacon home fries while, on the other skillet, Kayden Erick puts a sear on a cut of bison tenderloin. Douglass Campbell occasionally steps in between the two, offering some quick advice and bringing them supplies. This could be a scene from an e...
It can be hard to find just one word which would best describe Loren “Teense” Willford. A fifth-generation resident of the Platte Valley, Teense has been and is many things. A husband, a father, a friend, a Mason, a musician and a statesman. On February 3, though he was being honored by the Saratoga Masonic Lodge, it was difficult for those in attendance not to talk about Teense’s other contributions. “He’s always giving to something else, always supporting somebody else,” said Howard Hill...
With the 2024 Budget Session convening February 12, a number of bills are aimed at providing property tax relief to Wyoming residents. House District 47 Representative Bob Davis (R - Baggs) said the ramifications of some of the residential property tax relief bills being proposed for the upcoming legislative session need to be weighed against a loss in funding for essential government-funded services. For example, counties get 17.23 percent of property tax revenues, which they use to provide essential services. Some legislators are talking...
