Valeria Fugate

As Wyoming looks to grow its business sector, local manufacturers can play a vital role. The Connex program is a federal initiative under the National Institute Standards of Technology that is looking to grow manufacturers within the U.S. and Wyoming.

For parents who previously had to take hours off work to bring kids to the doctor’s office, Laramie County School District 1 may have a new solution for you.LCSD1 and Health-Works staff will soon provide on-site physical and behavioral health services to LCSD1 students, faculty and staff.

Military members at F.E.Warren had a fiesta today to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. The event was not only to recognize the diversity service members bring to our military but to Wyoming as well. On Friday, F.E. Warren military members celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month with a fiesta at the Trails End Event Center.

As parents know, kids and parents have tons of activities to get to. So how can you make sure kids are safe, with the right car seat, in case of an accident? This is National Child Passenger Safety Week, and Safe Kids Laramie County staff are holding an event on Sept. 24th from 10 am to 1 pm.

As we move out of summer and into the fall, outdoor water enthusiasts are not out of the deep end yet. Wyoming Game and Fish officials want you to check your water crafts before entering waterways or storing your gear. The Public Information Officer for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department says they have recently identified the presence of Asian lams in the Glendo Reservoir.

Wyoming has a history of being a mineral-rich state, and now it may be adding gold and copper to its roster. We spoke with an official of a new company attempting to invest in Wyoming.CK Gold Project officials just submitted a mining permit application to the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) this week to mine for gold and copper.

The Wyoming Rescue Mission has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Workforce Service and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for the right to hire Christian employees only.

As we begin feeling the first chills of fall, Mother nature is letting us know winter is coming and with its comes winter driving. As a way to prepare, wydot is letting folks know they are opening up the Wyoming travel authorization program or w-tap ahead of the 2022 -2023 winter season. With it, drivers can receive authorization to travel on sections of closed roadways during the winter when it is deemed safe.

Weeds, cracked sidewalks and overgrowth. These are some of the annoyances tenants face when the surrounding areas aren’t maintained. So who’s responsible, and what are they responsible for?”The first thing I would do is have a conversation with my property owner, which would be the landlord.

In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, we’re highlighting Hispanics who help improve the community. We spoke to a business owner helping Latinos get checked for cancer and more. Andrea Arenas knows the value of an opportunity.

The Wyoming Air Guard held its second annual “Discovery Day” on Friday, helping students and STEM take flight. This tri-state event showed about 800 students all of the opportunities Wyoming STEM fields hold. ”It’s our pride and our passion to try and make sure that our students leave the district able to contribute to society. If we don’t work really hard on that STEM engagement, we’re going to lose some of those opportunities for kids, so this is huge in helping us make sure they are ready for the future,” said Lindsey Stutheit, Career & Technical Education Coordinator- LCSD1.

The U.S. Senate unanimously passed legislation by Sen. Cynthia Lummis to reduce the spread of a toxic chemical at commercial airports. Polyfluoroalkyl, or PFAS, is a toxic chemical used in fire retardants. It is a forever chemical that does not break down and is used at Wyoming airports. This new bill would leverage existing Federal Aviation Administration funding to purchase devices necessary to test their firefighting equipment.

Railroads and workers’ unions reached a tentative agreement early Thursday morning after almost striking prior to the compromise. According to officials, a strike would have created supply chain issues across many industries and sectors. In a statement, Union Pacific says, “We look forward to the unions ratifying these agreements and working with employees as we focus on restoring supply chain fluidity.”

After months of preparation and training the Wyoming Air Guard’s Modular Airborne, Fire Fighting Systems or MAFFS unit has been called out to help fight wildfires in the western states. There are two national MAFFS units from California and Nevada already in Idaho working on wildfires in the northwest.

The Wyoming blockchain stampede runs from September 19th to the 23rd at the University of Wyoming. This will also include the cyber security conference, which will have several keynote speakers, including Dr. Erik Huffman. He is the CEO and Founder of Hand-Shake Leadership and is a Cybersecurity and Cyberpsychology researcher.

Thanks to some out-of-state fires, most of Wyoming woke up to smoke and haze Tuesday morning. According to Wyoming State Forestry, wildfires have been burning in Idaho.“They had some pretty intense fire behavior. The fire conditions and weather all lined up for erratic fire behavior and rapid fire growth. That caused most of the smoke to be filtering in from those areas,” said Jerod DeLay, Assistant State Forester, Fire Management Officer.

In an effort to take care of one of their own, Culver’s is raising funds for a local 16-year-old boy that died in a tragic car crash. Zane Bellis Oliver died on Sept. 4th, in the parking lot of a McDonald’s on Lincolnway. According to Police, Bellis-Oliver lost control of his car, hit the curb at high speed, and rolled the vehicle. He was ejected and died at the scene. The other three passengers inside the vehicle were taken to the Cheyenne Regional Medical Center for treatment.

’m standing here at the Cheyenne Frontier day event center at congressional hopeful Harriet Hageman’s watch party. National networks are setting up as folks are starting to trickle in for the results of tonight’s primary election. The sense of anticipation is growing as voting starts to wind down and those results start to come in.

An energetic and excited crowd at the Republican Nominee Harriet Hageman’s watch party was ready for a win, and boy did Harriet Hageman deliver on Tuesday evening. With about a 30 percent lead over the incumbent U.S. House Representative Liz Cheney, the crowd was cheering and clapping for Hagemans’ winning speech on Wyoming values and American ideals.

As women’s issues garner more attention in news spotlights, so do foster care and adoption. We sat down with an adoptive Mom to learn more about those realities in Laramie County.All to understand what it takes to take care of Wyoming’s children when they fall into crisis and parents can’t help.

With the primaries behind us, many look to the general election to secure the offices for the year ahead, but there’s an office that is changing sooner than anticipated.We talked to officials to see what they might mean for Wyomingites and future elections.

Wyoming still remains one of the states with the highest rate of suicide. Experts say the isolation, bootstrap culture and high gun ownership all play a factor in this statistic. But officials say that as mental health awareness grows, so do community resources and local support. The Wyoming Department of Health is encouraging everyone to attend the Wyoming Suicide Prevention Symposium on Sept. 26 - 27 at the Little America Hotel and Resort, the event is free and open to the public.

In preparation and celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, the Cheyenne Hispanic Festival Committee is working with the Wyoming State Museum to set up a variety of display tables to showcase the different Hispanic and Latino countries and cultures in Wyoming. The tables will include flags, toys, hats, and artisan works.

Does foreign investment in Wyoming make our state secure? That was one of the hot topics up for discussion at the Greater Cheyenne Chambers of Commerce, Action and Advocacy committee meetings on Tuesday. It is the transparency of investments in the state and our communities.

With inflation on the forefront of everyone’s mind, retaining educators and the cost of quality education are quickly becoming the focus of budget and long-term revenue projections.The Wyoming Joint Education Committee held its meeting on Tuesday morning, and Community College funding, Capital Construction, and future costs were up for discussion.

If you haven’t already heard about the corner crossing case in Wyoming, It involves four Missouri hunters who came to hunt in Wyoming.They were charged with criminal trespass by a neighboring private land owner when the hunters built a makeshift ladder to cross from one corner point of public land to another.

With school starting up again, our focus turns to getting kids ready with school supplies and textbooks for the new year. But one of the things that may not be covered in school outlines is student rights. Especially when it comes to freedom of expression and discrimination, with LGBTQ rights, dress codes, racism, recent book bannings and history lesson restrictions.

Nothing feels as special or helps uplift our spirits than when we can help make things better for someone else. From the “Flame of Hope” to helping hands, a couple of local non-profits were highlighted in the community on Friday.

Despite folks celebrating labor day later this week, Wyoming is still dealing with a worker shortage, according to state officials. We looked at how the workplace and labor force has been changing recently and why state leaders are concerned.

Former Vice President Mike Pence came to Wyoming Thursday and he had a lot to say about the Oil and Gas industry, and the U.S.’s role.Pence spoke on Thursday at the Rockies Petroleum Conference about the war on American Energy and Energy independence.At the conference Former Vice President Mike Pence was a featured speaker along with U.S. Senators Cynthia Lummis and John Barrasso.

The Wyoming American Civil Liberties Union weighs in on a U.S. Supreme Court case that could determine if the Indian Child Welfare Act/ICWA is racially biased and unconstitutional. A case pending in front of the U.S. Supreme Court could affect Native American tribes across the U.S. and the Arapaho and Shoshone tribes here in Wyoming.

The State of Wyoming is getting sued for not upholding its constitutional duty according to the Wyoming education association and the association want to make sure Wyoming students get equal access to education. The group filing the law suit includes educators and officials...That are increasingly concerned about the state of Wyoming schools.

The crowd at Harriet Hageman’s election watch party was ready for a win, and boy did Hageman deliver, with a lead of over 30 percent over the incumbent. The crowd was electric, cheering and clapping for Hageman’s speech on Wyoming values and American ideals. In a landslide vote, Hageman, the new congressional leader, now becomes Wyoming’s GOP Nominee for the U.S. House Representative and will take on Democrat Lynette Greybull in the general elections.

As the workplace requires growing technical skills to stay competitive in the work arena, community colleges find themselves at the forefront of helping students bridge skill and opportunity. Monday morning, President Joe Schaffer gave his State of the College presentation at Laramie County Community College; he discussed what they are doing to help students stay competitive in the workplace.

We continue with a follow-up update on the Bocanegra case.42-year-old Rocsand Bocanegra was charged with second-degree homicide for allegedly stabbing 58-year-old Jess Smith in his residence on Aug. 8th at around 5:30 a.m.The event happened allegedly with about 6 other witnesses in the residence and fled before deputies arrived on the scene.

As the voting season heats up, many may ask about where and how to vote and if their votes are secure and counted. Voter security has found itself under the spotlight in recent times. The need to verify voters is a real focus. When Wyomingites register to vote, the state’s registration verification system jumps into action. It ensures a voter is a real person, not a felon, that they haven’t recently died, and is of legal voting age.

Rocsand Bocanegra, aged 42, was charged with second-degree homicide for allegedly stabbing 52-year-old Jess Smith. Monday in the 700 block of Mitchell Court. Deputies responded to a report of a stabbing at about 5:30 a.m. on Aug. 8th. Bocanegra fled the scene before deputies arrived.

As the sword and shield of Wyoming, the military is known for being ever-ready when an emergency strikes. But who organizes the response? As part of the Wyoming Military Department, the Wyoming Joint Operations Center plays a major role in an emergency.

Nationwide, there’s a teacher and school staff shortage and it’s also happening in Wyoming. Currently, school teachers and staff across the state are dwindling, and officials are looking at new ways of keeping and bringing staff to the table. With the new school year right around the corner, what do staff shortages mean to the upcoming school year?

The abortion trigger bill debate continues Tuesday. A judge listened to the second round of arguments about whether to continue the restraining order on Wyoming’s abortion ban. Almost two weeks after granting a temporary restraining order (TRO) to block Wyoming’s abortion ban.

Smokey Bear started out as a cartoon campaign in the 1940′s. In the 1950′s, after a bear cub survived a large forest fire in New Mexico, the US Forest Service helped turn the “Smokey” bear cub into a legend, becoming a fire fighting icon 78 years later.

We sat down with Superintendent dr. Margaret Crespo to address the concerns some parents are voicing regarding books in the LCSD1 school system. During the last LCSD1 board meeting, community members took issue with some titles with “concerning text” they had found from a Facebook message post about books in school libraries.

The behind the Chutes tour shows how animals stay safe for their performances for the Daddy of Them All.

With its iconic engine, billowing smoke and loud hoots, the big boy steam engine is off.It pushed off from Cheyenne this morning, making its way down south to Denver. Thursday marks the 160th anniversary of the Union Pacific.Big Boy steam engines like this one were used to carry services and goods across this nation while it was being built.

One of the best parts of going to Cheyenne Frontier Days is the food! From the classic favorites of turkey legs to corn dogs and lemonade. There’s something familiar and something new every year. This year folks can look forward to new sweet and savory sandwiches, to even a donut grilled chicken sandwich. If you’re feeling like something more exotic, there’s Chinese food, spicy corn Elote.

The Sugarloaf Mountain fire remains active this afternoon near Laramie Peak, in the Medicine Bow National Forest. The fire is around 400 acres in size as of this afternoon, it was first reported yesterday, and according to Albany County Emergency Management, it prompted evacuations late last night.

It’s a piece of local flavor and history for all to enjoy. Cheyenne Frontier Days had its Parade Tuesday morning. Families and locals were out to see the festivities alongside visitors from out of state.” I planned. I bought tickets for the rodeo in January, so I’m staying here for 3 days... I fell in love with rodeos,” said John McKinney, visiting from Massachusetts.

Women of all ages, or rather cowgirls, were celebrated today. At the kick-off brunch and fashion show at Little American Monday morning.“To come in and keep the history of women in the west alive. We hear a lot about the cowboys. But actually, it was the women who tamed the west,” said Sharon Russell, former President of Cowgirls of the West.

Pro-choice advocates in Wyoming are now trying to halt Wyoming’s pending abortion ban, through the courts. Governor Gordon certified Wyoming’s abortion trigger bill Friday. The bill is anticipated to go into effect on Wednesday according to authorities. A lawsuit filed in Teton county aims to slow or stop the process.