Your source for news in Hot Springs County
Your source for news in Hot Springs County
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This past weekend, all of our fall sports got into full swing as the Hot Springs County High School Football program had its opener against Shoshoni. It was great to come out of the starting gate with a win, as the Bobcats took down the Rangers 48-0. Our middle school players also kept Shoshoni out of the endzone in their 42-point victory. It was also a night for some amazing accomplishments by individual players as well. But, awesome as the victory is, there’s still a long way to go before those late October and early November, and, h...
We have been very fortunate this summer (knock wood) to have missed any kind of major fire in Hot Springs County. As we watch the devastation of Hurricane Harvey and wait for landfall of Hurricane Irma, let us not forget there are 44 fires burning in our neighboring Montana. Add to that fires burning across Washington, Oregon, Idaho and California and its no wonder our skies are smoky. As of last Friday, there were 106 new fires, including four new large fires. Fifty of those are nowhere close...
Another Labor Day has been here and we take a day off of work, we go to the lake, we have a picnic and no one knows what we are celebrating. Ask 100 people what Labor Day is about and you might get one or two right answers. No one under 30 has a clue. And I bet less than one in a thousand can name one Labor Leader, past or present (and Jimmy Hoffa doesn’t count). For those that don’t know, from late 1800 to mid-1900 the labor movement in the United States aimed at protecting the industrial workers (often women, children, and people of col...
As of this weekend, members of at least 16 teams – fully one-half of the NFL – have protested during the playing of the national anthem, by sitting, kneeling, eating, or raising a clenched fist. The respectful and patriotic practices of standing, covering your heart with your right hand or cap, and maybe even singing, were ignored by these “men.” It should be noted that these “men” collectively earn hundreds of millions of dollars each year playing a game, a game that is not played anywhere else professionally (as far as I know) except in Canad...
If not for change and man’s innate desire to keep moving, everyone west of the Mississippi would still be crammed, elbow to elbow in New York, Ellis Island would never have been built and the Statue of Liberty wouldn’t be gracing the harbor. Of course, with change comes some measure of inconvenience. Ironically, “convenience” plays into the most recent change to the Thermopolis landscape as we watch the demolition of Maverik, a “convenience” store. It’s sure to create some issues, missing one of our gas stations for several weeks, but be...
Greetings Hot Springs County Patrons, The new school year is off to a terrific start. Students and staff are settling into their classes, and parents and families are establishing their routines. There is a great deal of positive energy at the start of a new school year. For our seniors, they are experiencing their “last first-day”, and for our youngest students, it is the beginning of a journey that will literally change their lives. Having had the humbling privilege of serving children for more than two decades, I have had the great opp...
The solar eclipse Monday was, in many ways, a first-time experience all over town. While the event itself was “once in a lifetime,” it also brought high sales numbers to local businesses and restaurants, created a multitude of RVs, campers and tents in our town and the campgrounds at Boysen and in the canyon, and brought an enormous amount of traffic. The number of vehicles coming in, out and through Thermopolis was incredible. Even more so, there were only a few minor accidents — though there was an unfortunate incident in which a dog was s...
Rarely in life are we blessed with truly “tingly” moments. Not those hair raising moments, but the ones that are breathtaking. I know some folks around here couldn’t understand what all the “hub-bub” was about, why people were coming across vast oceans to our little town to see an eclipse. For some, it was going to be an inconvenience they didn’t want to deal with. We’re pretty set in our ways and having that many people coming to town was a bit scary for some. I can’t tell you how many times...
People who study cultures have often written and maintained the “territoriality” of groups they study. That seems to me to be a very elitist way of saying there’s no place like home. That was brought “home” to me by a recent visit by my sister-in-law and my niece. They were very pleased with themselves for having driven nearly the width of the country from their home in Georgia to California to Oregon to here from whence they would continue their travels on the way to Minnesota and home again. While I admired the energy of my eighty-ye...
We’re very happy that you’ve chosen our neck of the woods to experience this dramatic celestial event and we’re hoping to show you a great time while you’re here. As you go through these pages along with the Solar Eclipse special section, you’ll find we have a lot of things going on during the next few days. There’s a little something for everyone. Friday night will feature our ArtStroll downtown with all manner of arts and music. There will be everything from homemade soaps and lotions to a “make and take” solar art project. Saturday kicks...
The final planning meetings are being held, hotels and campgrounds continue to fill their empty spaces and specially tinted glasses that are ISO 12312-2 certified have quickly become the latest “must have, sell out” items. With less than a week to go before the big event, there’s still a few questions out there, which nobody can really answer until Monday has come and gone, such as “Will we actually get the influx of people everyone is predicting?” “Will there be enough gas, food and other s...
With all due respect to the one who wrote the eclipse is not a chance happening. The eclipse is nothing less than a part of God’s great creation, no more and no less. The eclipse is the result of a shadow created by the moon passing between the sun and the earth. Yes, God through the Bible warns us in many ways. Check out Matthew 25:31-40, but it is not up to us to make judgments about each other. Check out Romans 10:5-13. Our basic task in this life is to live according to the two great commandments. Check out Mark 12:28-31. Trust God, live i...
This past week was certainly a busy one, with the Gift of the Waters Pageant, Big Horn Basin Folk Festival and Kiwanis Craft Fair providing plenty to do in Hot Springs State Park. The fairgrounds were busy as well, with the Lions Club Ranch Rodeo and, of course, the Hot Springs County Fair. Going to the fair is always an enjoyable experience, as there’s so much to get involved in, whether it be entering an exhibit, helping out with concessions or just having some fun during the family night or pig wrestling. Admiration goes out to those student...
Annually, as we approach another Perseids Meteor Shower in August, I am reminded of a day back in 2000, and a wildfire. It was August 11. The Kates Basin Fire was burning the ridge from Blondie Pass to the Wind River Canyon. The day began fairly benign. Crews were making progress building fire line. Breezes were just 3-5 miles per hour. But then, just after noon, the wind began gusting to 45 miles per hour. With humidity around 10 percent and temperatures above 90, the fire exploded. Working on Mexican Pass that day was Jim Burnett, an...
A Thermopolis councilman expressed his concerns about problems residents and tourists might face during the weekend of the eclipse. I thought they were comical. However if he is right and I am wrong we could have problems. We do have a small police force. I know a pastor who always “packed” in church when he preached. One Sunday, I told him “I was ‘packing.’” He said, “good.” I didn’t say “a bible.” A sheriff advised me to “pack” all the time. I asked the police department if this letter is breaking any laws and an officer said, “No problem, it...
Like a lot of other people I am looking forward to seeing the total eclipse on the 21st. I’ll watch it from my back porch. This is not a random chance happening as the evolutionary crowd would have you believe but rather a Divinely created event to show God’s Power, Glory and Love. His Power described in Job 38:4 and II Chronicles 2:6; His Glory described in John 1:3-4; His Love for us described in Psalms 8:1-6. This eclipse was calculated to happen here to the second hundreds of years ago. Anything that can be calculated that accurately doe...
Growing up we were always told to “put your best foot forward.” Today’s generation hears “dress for the job you want.” Both phrases should be on our minds as we prepare for the influx of visitors coming to Hot Springs County in about three weeks. If these visitors have a great time in Thermopolis while they’re here, chances are they will return and of course, will be telling their friends about this great little town in the middle of Wyoming. With that in mind, it would be a good time to start putting our best foot forward. Let’s get out there...
Last weekend I took the opportunity to do something I haven’t in . . . I can’t remember when. I fished. At a small lake about 10 miles from my in-laws I was re-acquainted with that age-old pass time that comes with the cycle of casting, untangling, getting frustrated, occasionally taking a poke from the hook and, yes, even catching a small crappie, bluegill or bass every so often. While I seem to remember drinking was a part of that process the last time with a rod and reel in my hand, I tho...
If we’ve heard it once, we’ve heard it repeatedly; words count. As a retired English and writing teacher, I’ve lost track of the times I’ve used that phrase or one that was similar in meaning. I emphasized making the words convey as accurately as possible content when you wanted the hearer or reader to understand your meaning or feeling. In a public setting, there were ways of conveying your emotions that were not acceptable, and those that were. People were scandalized by the recorded words of a former president copied from tapes made that wer...
I am intrigued by Hanes W. Hall’s letter, putting forth the concept of the possibility of the imposition of “martial law” by the president. Seems to be another unfounded (and confounding as well) conspiracy theory from a particular political party. Only the current president could impose a national system of “martial law.” I personally have heard nothing - zero, zip, nada - about the president even remotely considering such an action. And I’m curious, why would the president want to do that in the first place? For no reason that I can think o...
Several times a month someone asks me what economic development is, or does. While economic development is unique to each community, there are basic building blocks intended to create a continual cycle of development. The Wyoming Economic Development Association has produced a series of “building blocks” to guide communities in Wyoming. Each level provides a foundation for the next. Most economic developers work on developing all tiers simultaneously. The first level of the building blocks is Leadership/Civic Development & the role of pub...
Next week, the Hot Springs County Fairgrounds will be busy as the 2017 County Fair gets into full swing. Of course, youth involved with the fair will be plenty active as they prep their exhibits, weigh their animals and prepare to show them in the arena. Plenty others not showing animals will have exhibits in several ag-related fields as well as work such as photography, beadwork and ceramics. Even if you’re not an exhibitor, the week provides an opportunity to come on down to the fairgrounds and cheer on our local youth and admire the work p...
I wrote to our local Wyoming House Representative on the subject of cannabis in the Bible and have received zero responses to my multiple attempts at communication. He needs to explain why he refuses to acknowledge the 81 percent of Wyoming residents that want medical cannabis to be made available in this state. Thank you. Have a great week! Editors note: The letter from Sondeno to the house representative can be found online at www.facebook.com/bennett.sondeno/posts/10209437020623068....
If the President declared martial law it would be too late for every voter to notify state and federal government of their own personal needs....
I know the kids are going to hate hearing this, but its just four more weeks til school starts! Most summer vacations have been taken and now its just the slow, hot move toward that first day of school. As a kid, I really looked forward to that first day of school. I grew up in a neighborhood with no other kids for blocks, so most of my summer was spent at the library, reading books or practicing my cursive writing. My grandmother would pick an article out of the paper every day to have me...
