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Articles from the December 14, 2023 edition


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  • Town Mayor responds to accusations of publicity stunt

    Dec 14, 2023

    At the December 5 Thermopolis Town Council meeting held at Town Hall Mayor Adam Estenson opened the meeting and tehn asked if there were any public comments during citizen participation. Jason Bowman stood and said, “I’d just like to speak to this most recent, what I call a publicity stunt by the chief of police. Calling in the officer that was on leave, I think, was uncalled for. I do feel that you guys are the oversight for the police department. The two officers that I feel did their job in this were barely mentioned in the press rel...

  • Community fundraiser

    Dec 14, 2023

    Dr. Travis Bomengen takes bids as Gary Nash auctions off trees and specialty items at the 23rd Annual Christmas Tree Festival held at the Community Church Fellowship Hall last week. The festival was sponsored by Hot Springs Health and Pinnacle Bank. More than $15,000 was raised, and all proceeds went to the Thermopolis Community Fund....

  • HSH CEO Alwin discusses his successes, obstacles and goals

    Jurri Schenck|Dec 14, 2023

    Hot Springs Health’s (HSH) CEO Scott Alwin, along with several of his staff, sat down and explained how the hospital’s culture has been transforming into a new form. Alwin started as CEO on July 1, 2022, just about one and a half years ago. Since that time, Alwin described some of his accomplishments. He said, “I think we’ve made a lot of great strides in many different areas. Number one, we’ve worked diligently to improve culture and reduce our turnover. We reduced our turnover rate from 25%...

  • Area churches plan holiday services

    Dec 14, 2023

    Several area churches have set dates and times for Christmas services. St. Francis Catholic Church – Sun., Dec 24, Christmas Eve Mass at 4 p.m.; Mon., Dec. 25 Christmas Day Mass at 11 a.m. Set Free Church – Sun., Dec. 24 at 10:45 a.m. until 12 noon. Rison Son Baptist Church – Sun., Dec. 24, Christmas Eve Service at 6 p.m.; Regular Services at 10:45 a.m. and Sunday Scool at 9:30 a.m. Living Waters Assembly of God – Sun., Dec. 24, Christmas Eve Service at 10:30 a.m. and Candlelight Service at 6 p.m. Community Federated Church – Christmas...

  • On the record

    Dec 14, 2023

    On the Record policy It is the Thermopolis Independent Record’s policy that all people arrested or cited under the “Accidents,” “Sheriff’s office” or “Police department” in the On the Record section are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. We print the names of all people upon their initial arrest. Highway Patrol Tuesday, Dec. 5 12:26 a.m. Kylie Bry Fisher, 29, was arrested for allegedly driving while under the influence of alcohol. Sunday, Dec. 10 10:26 a.m. Jacob Lee Horst, 42, was arrested for allegedly driving while u...

  • 'Tis the season for a packed events calendar

    Dec 14, 2023

    The ads on this page and throughout this issue of the Thermopolis Independent Record offer up a variety of events with something for everyone, so be sure to check them all out. Businesses are planning holiday open houses, there is an Angel Shop for kids to buy presents for their family members, musical performances, Christmas concerts, a Mustache and Beard Contest and more! Don’t forget to clip and save the Community Calendar ad on page 5. It is a quick reference guide to the time and location of our community events. The school calendar on p...

  • Buying craft fair goodies

    Dec 14, 2023

    Cindy Maddock buys some goodies from Dave Voorhees with the Shriners during the Christmas Craft Fair at the fair building last Saturday....

  • Let us know

    Dec 14, 2023

    Community events abound during the month of December as explained on page 3 of this paper. Winter sports for high school athletes have kicked off and the speech and debate season is in full swing. Between the Chamber of Commerce event calendar and the school district calendar, we are able to keep up on most of the scheduled events in our community. However, things do fall through the cracks. This time of year, and all year long, we ask organizers to let us know about their events so we can let the public know and put it on our schedule for...

  • The gift of peace

    Dec 14, 2023

    by Jill Pertler It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Or is it? People enjoy decorating for the holidays, cooking, baking, writing those non-brag family letters and finding the ideal gift for everyone on their list. Or do they? For some, many even, this is the most wonderful time of the year. People truly enjoy rearranging the living room to make room for a seven-foot evergreen. They look forward to lugging plastic tote bins from the garage or basement to sort through ornaments. Untangling masses of stringed lights rates as one of their t...

  • Goldie Mae Warren

    Dec 14, 2023

    Goldie Mae Warren, 85, of Worland, Wyo., passed away peacefully at the Worland Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center on December 7, 2023. She was born on February 9, 1938, in Cameron, Okla., to Elbert and Margaret Jane (Glenn) Ridenour. Goldie spent her formative years in Cameron, Okla., where she developed the values and warmth that defined her character throughout her life. Her journey took an unexpected turn when she crossed paths with Lawrence "Pinky", her future husband, at Fort Chaffee in... Full story

  • Barrasso blocks 'assault rifle' ban

    Dec 14, 2023

    by Sarah Elmquist Squires The Ranger Via Wyoming News Exchange RIVERTON — Wyoming U.S. Sen. John Barrasso on Wednesday blocked an effort to revive the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer attempted to push the measure through by unanimous consent. “Democrats want Washington to ban rifles and pistols because of the way they look,” Barrasso said on the Senate floor. “To do this, they describe semi automatic rifles as ‘assault rifles.’ They aren’t.” The ban, which was first passed in 1994 and expired a decade later,...

  • Bobcat wrestling season off to a great start

    Daniel Powell|Dec 14, 2023

    The Hot Springs County High School Bobcats and Lady Bobcats Wrestling Teams kicked off their seasons at the Powell Invitational Tournament last Thursday and Friday. There were twenty-two schools competing in the event, from both Wyoming and Montana. Teams from Montana performed well at the event, taking the top three spots in the boys standings, and two of the top three spots in the girls standings. Bobcats The Bobcats put in a good effort overall. Coach Travis McDermott said, "Friday during...

  • High school basketball season gets underway

    Daniel Powell|Dec 14, 2023

    The Hot Springs County High School Boys and Girls Basketball Teams commenced their 2023-2024 season last week, appearing in the Burns Winter Classic Invitational Tournament. Both teams traveled to Burns for games on Friday, and then to Wheatland for games on Saturday. Bobcats The Boys Varsity Team went three for three, taking games against Morecroft (80 -30) and Southeast (72-42) on Friday, and finishing the tournament with a win on Saturday in Wheatland (59 -45). Morecroft went 0-4 on the weekend, Southeast went 2-2, and Wheatland finished...

  • Bobcat speech and debate captures first at Green River

    Dec 14, 2023

    The Hot Springs Speech and Debate Team took home the 1A/2A first place trophy at the Evergreen River Classic Speech and Debate Tournament held at Green River High School on December 8-9, 2023. Coached by Lyle Wiley, Alyssa Brown, Grace Martin, Riley Jeffs, and Jean-Luc Willson, the Bobcats brought 18 varsity and novice students to compete in the tournament that hosted 12 schools and nearly 300 entries. In the varsity division, senior Chris Bapst broke into the Super Congress and finished in...

  • School concerts

    Dec 14, 2023

    Thermopolis Middle School and Hot Springs County High School band and choir members held their annual December concert last week in the school auditorium....

  • Why Wyoming sent 240 inmates to a Mississippi prison

    Dec 14, 2023

    by Maggie Mullen, WyoFile.com, via WNE The Wyoming Department of Corrections’ transfer of 240 inmates to a private Mississippi prison due to a staffing shortage is a temporary fix to an ongoing problem, WDOC Director Dan Shannon says. “We don’t have an inmate housing issue,” Shannon told WyoFile. “We have a staffing problem.” Roughly 25% of the department’s uniformed staff positions are vacant, with most of those occurring at the Wyoming State Penitentiary in Rawlins and the Wyoming Women’s Center in Lusk. To account for that, the department...

  • Experts: Not feasible to detangle state from Rocky Mountain Power

    Dec 14, 2023

    by Zak Sonntag Casper Star-Tribune Via Wyoming News Exchange CASPER — With nearly two million customers in six Western states and a total integrated system of generation and transmission that spans 10 states, PaciCorp is the largest privately owned and operated electric grid in the Western United States. Around 144,000 businesses and households in Wyoming rely on that grid through service from PacifiCorp subsidiary Rocky Mountain Power (RMP). And while the Cowboy State represents a meager .072% of the overall customer base, it has an outsized p...