Daily Darwin

[{"type":"text","text":"The Darwins finest hour....."}]

Darwin 5 31 24

Cowboy State Daily is Wyoming’s largest newspaper with Wyoming’s most experienced journalists. 

<title>Daily Darwin: Friday, May 31, 2024 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

The Darwins finest hour.....

Daily Darwin: Friday, May 31, 2024

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily reporter, Jackie Dorothy.

Jackie Dorothy

Agriculture

Raising show pigs can be time-consuming and, for many, a tough endeavor. From early spring to fall, 4-H and FFA kids spend one to two hours each day training and caring for their prized swine. 

Not only do the young owners have to ensure they keep their pig healthy and bring them to full weight, they also must train them.

Show pigs must learn to prance around a ring with their heads held high to show off their assets. The goal is a grand-champion title. This takes months of dedication on part of both the kid and the pig. 

The pig is then sold to the highest bidder at the annual fair livestock auctions.

“I will not deny the fact it is one of the hardest things I do every year is sell my animal and realize that I will never see these animals again,” Tymber Eckley, 19, of Hot Springs County told Cowboy State Daily at the Wyoming State Fair in Douglas. “But you have to keep it in mind, obviously, that these pigs are being raised to be eaten.

[{"type":"text","text":"“We are feeding the future of America.”"}]

A couple of years ago, Tymber’s pigs picked up a variation of "pig flu" at a jackpot and the results were devastating. Her family lost pigs and those that remained were not the champions Tymber had hoped for.

Her family now, like many others across Wyoming, raises an extra pig as a backup. If all their pigs survive, they have the option of selling the pig privately or entering a lottery to help their community.

Since 2020, these extra hogs can be given to local charities to help feed those in need through “Fair to Fork” created by First Lady Jennie Gordon and the University of Wyoming.

Each participant selected is given $750 for their hog and then picks a charity in their county to receive the meat. Tymber was selected in 2025 and her pig, Baby, was made into bacon and sausage for her food bank in Thermopolis.

“Raising a pig can be intense,” Gordon told Cowboy State Daily in a phone interview. “These kids are the cream of the crop and this program just gets kids that are already doing good work involved in their own community.”

Gordon said the reason she gives the prize money and a plaque to each winner at the State Fair every year is to honor their work.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Life of a Show Pig"}]

This year, 23 counties were represented. Sawyer Wilson, 12, was selected to give his pig to a Hot Springs County charity of his choice.

“It kind of opened my eyes about all the people that don't get food,” Sawyer told Cowboy State Daily. “It feels good. Feels like I'm helping people.”

Sawyer’s family ended up with six pigs this year. To raise a show pig, it takes more than just daily feedings.

“I feed our pigs two times a day,” Sawyer said. “And then we train them with a baby bottle taped to a little plastic pole and filled with Gatorade to teach the pig to hold its head up.”

Sawyer said one person will hold the pole and another will guide it along with two whips, training the pig how to walk properly in the ring with its nose in the air and almost prancing. They should learn to turn when tapped with the pig whip and to pop their head up on command.

Sadie Eckley, Tymber’s mom, said her kids will spend at least an hour or two each night caring for their hogs and getting their chores done.

“When you first get the pigs, you should start training them right away before they get set in their ways,” Eckley said. “My kids work their animals almost every day, and when they put in the hard work, they have success in the show ring.”

There is even a certain direction each kid needs to be able to direct their pig so they are showing properly to the judge.

Some pigs naturally do better than others, Tymber explained. Baby was a big goofball and pretty naughty in the show ring. Despite this, with persistence, Tymber gother trained and won a few ribbons.

“She earned her name by being a little dramatic baby,” she said. “She definitely liked to push her limits but she loved her treats, especially animal crackers.”

Sawyer’s had chosen his extra pig, Marshmallow, because of an “eyeball” mark on his side. 

“Marshmallow is kind of like a dog,” Sawyer said. “When you scratch him, he'll lay down.”

He was the first pig Sawyer had ever picked out himself and didn’t make weight as hoped. So now, Sawyer is keeping Marshmallow for at least a few more weeks to put on weight before his pig is taken for slaughter to make sure the charity gets the most meat possible.

His mother, Mandy Wilson, said raising pigs has been a valuable lesson for Sawyer. 

“He got the whole experience of going to the sale to learn,” Wilson said. “And then to go through the process of training his pigs to realize what makes a good pig.”

Wilson said pigs, in general, are easy to raise compared to other livestock. They each have a unique personality. 

“They're just fun,” Wilson said. “Marshmallow was always the pig that came out when you were mixing the feed and he was just a good pick.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Raised To Be Eaten"}]

When it comes time for the butcher barn, Wilson said her family keeps it mind it is their destination from the get-go and what they were bred for.

[{"type":"text","text":"It doesn’t mean that it is easy selling the pigs."}]

Gordon said she has personally gone to many sales over the years and gotten emotional watching some of the kids cry.

“It's been such a big part of their summer and they've gotten to know their animals,” Gordon said. “Their heart and soul is in the whole program and in their animals. It's a bit of a tear-jerker.”

Tymber said that over the years of her own career in FFA and 4 H it took a lot of hard work, dedication and passion behind each project. She said it has been ‘super cool’ to be in the livestock industry and she plans to continue to help out in the agricultural business.

“4-H and FFA kids work so hard,” Gordon said. “They're the future of our state and being able to work with them so closely has really been just the highlight of my career as first lady.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Hunger Aware"}]

Gordon told Cowboy State Daily one of the many reasons she began the program was because these extra pigs are Wyoming raised with the best genetics and feed. This provides great protein for those who normally don’t get it.

“Finding ways to help our neighbors that are struggling with food and security is what Wyoming does best and what we're all about,” Gordon said. “We should remember that everyone is one emergency away from being that person in need.”

The Fair to Fork program was developed in 2020 when the COVID pandemic threatened the public sale of show pigs at Wyoming county fairs.

“I thought to myself, 'Oh my gosh, what are these kids going to do that have already purchased their animals?'” Gordon said. “We started working with the UW Extension office and the 4-H team and came up with this idea of buying the pigs to donate to charity in lieu of the fairs.”

The fairs took place after all. Gordon then used the idea behind her program to raise awareness of hunger and to buy the extra hogs that the kids had raised. These extra animals are entered into a lottery and at least one pig per county is selected.

“One of the students actually went back and started volunteering at their local food pantry because of the connection that was made,” Gordon said. “It really is something that may make them lifelong volunteers and donors, and that's what we need to do is take care of our neighbors.”

Eckley encouraged Tymber to enter the lottery with their extra pig because she said is a strong believer in giving back to their community and wants to instill that in her kids.

“I think it's important for kids to learn that lesson at a young age,” Eckley said. “This was a great opportunity for my kids to help people in need.”

Tymber said the program was a good reminder that while their own freezers are full of the livestock they have raised, others are not so fortunate in Wyoming. During the process, Tymber discovered many people in her own community were not getting the proper protein she took for granted as someone raised in agriculture.

“I'll be the first to admit that I definitely kind of get blind-sided,” Tymber said. “I'm very fortunate to be able to raise livestock and fill my own freezers and I was reminded that some people don't get to do that.”

Gordon said they pay the kids for their hog to show appreciation for their hard work and then make sure the student is involved with giving away the meat.

“That way, they get to see the impact that they're having in their own communities,” Gordon said.

Pigs 2 Sawyer and his pigs 1 8 16 26

<title>Life Of A Wyoming Show Pig: Training, Tearful Goodbyes, And The Dinner Table | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Raising show pigs is a huge commitment for Wyoming 4-H and FFA kids working toward the Wyoming State Fair. Then comes the bittersweet part — tearful goodbyes when the pigs are sold to become dinner for the less fortunate.

Life Of A Wyoming Show Pig: Training, Tearful Goodbyes, And The Dinner Table

Around Wyoming

The old ash tree had stood for an estimated 60 to 70 years on the west side of the Washakie County Courthouse. It was 3 feet in circumference when, in 1999, a tree company declared the ash was dead and a hazard. 

[{"type":"text","text":"They were wrong."}]

When groundskeeper Heather Shryack discovered the stately ash had been healthy when it was cut down, she was determined it wouldn’t go to waste.

“She's a scrappy little gal, and she really knows her gardening,” said her husband, Terry Shryack. “Heather saw the whole tree was solid as a rock and that there was absolutely nothing wrong with it.”

The Washakie County Commission agreed that it was Heather’s tree and so she promptly hired an oil field company to haul it to her husband’s sawmill, despite protests from the tree company. Heather wasn’t going to be stopped in her mission to save the wood.  

“Everybody's upset when a big tree gets cut down here, without a doubt,” Terry said. “It was a treasure that we weren’t going to let get by.”

Over the years, Terry had made furniture out of the smaller pieces of the ash tree at his house in Winchester, including a rocking chair and small end tables. 

As the decades rolled by, he forgot about the large pieces of the ash tree he had stored in their shed — until he decided to build a table with local artist Calvin “Cal” Fulfer as an ultimate honor to the old ash tree.

The result is a 600-pound table with a river of treasure running through it.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The Artist"}]

Fulfer is an "old-school Deadhead" who spends his time in his workshop listening to the Grateful Dead and surrounded by repurposed art. 

Since retiring as a tile layer, he has dedicated the last decade to creating award-winning sculptures out of abandoned relics of the past. 

His walls are decorated with petroglyph fish made of old typewriter parts, Styrofoam Egyptian walls and computer circuit board bolo ties. Tiny snails made from old forks and marbles crawl across glass tabletops and a train sculpture runs its engine.

In the midst of this eclectic art, the giant ash table is set up in a corner and represents the largest art piece Fulfer has done to date. Fuller said it was based on a design from the Middle Ages.

“They call it a French trestle table,” Fulfer said. “They would send the servants out to put the table up for the banquet.”

The table can be disassembled into four sections by pulling out handmade dowel pins. A good thing, Fulfer said, considering the size. 

“Terry is a really accomplished woodworker and I'm more of a visual artist,” Fulfer explained. “It took him a year to build the table and me a year to build the top.”

This is the second table the duo built together. Two years ago, they built a table top out of Russian olive wood and Fulfer painted 101 goldfish as the accent. The table was for a fundraiser for Terry’s stepson, who had an emergency heart transplant. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The Treasure River"}]

Fulfer had discovered a technique of painting an acrylic layer of a fish and pouring resin over the painting. He will repeat the process up to eight times to create a 3D image of a fish people are convinced is more than just paint. 

For this ash table, Fulfer wanted to keep the theme western. He painted trout and crawdads rather than his usual goldfish.

“Terry just kind of turned me loose at the tabletop,” Fulfer said. “While I was searching for the right theme, I started the process by visiting ant hills.”

Fulfer said he pilfered the ant hills for their tiny sand pebbles, which he washed before pouring on the bottom of his resin river. As he worked, he began hiding treasure into the bottom of his river and larger river rocks.

“I inherited a bunch of stuff from my brother when he passed,” Fulfer said. “He was a jeweler, and so I thought, why not, and put some of his rings and necklaces into the table.”

The ash table now honors not only the old tree that was cut down in its prime, but also bits and pieces of Fulfer’s own family.

“We call it Guardians of Treasure Creek,” Fulfer said. “It just kind of evolved into its own weird, fun river.”

Pieces of the ash tree still remain remain and both Terry and Fulfer continue to find ways to make sure the wood is incorporated into useful art.

“I’m just glad they rescued that old tree,” Fulfer said. “It's tough to tell what we're going to come up with next.”

Ash tree 2 Calvin with river table 8 16 26

<title>Old Washakie County Ash Tree Cut Down By Mistake Remade Into 600-Pound Table | Cowboy State Daily</title>

When an old ash tree was cut down by mistake at the Washakie County Courthouse in 1999, the groundskeeper rescued the wood. For nearly three decades, huge pieces of the ash sat forgotten until a Worland craftsman built a 600-pound table from it.

Old Washakie County Ash Tree Cut Down By Mistake Remade Into 600-Pound Table

Bill Sniffin

Opinion

CSD Columnists

Today is Sunday, Aug. 16. With Election Day just 48 hours away, it is time to put on my prognosticator’s hat and try to figure out who will win Tuesday’s political races.

All the political excitement is in the Wyoming Republican primary. We are a one-party state, so everything happens in the primary.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Predictions And Favorites"}]

Cowboy State Daily columnists have some interesting points of view.

 Eric Barlow for governor and Kevin Christensen for U.S. House.

 Eric Barlow for governor and Steve Friess for U.S. House.

 Brent Bien for governor and Chuck Gray for U.S. House.

 Megan Degenfelder for governor and Chuck Gray for U.S. House.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Here is how I see these races:"}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"U.S. House"}]

A gambling man would probably pick Secretary of State Chuck Gray of Casper to win the race for U.S. House.

Nobody else in this race has his network of followers, and he has been consistent. Considered a lightning rod, Gray has always been in the news. Gray seems to enjoy “just being Chuck.”

For example, how many state officials in history have been invited outside during a heated discussion by a sitting governor who is known to be somewhat mild-mannered? Probably not many.

Longtime political writer Joan Barron calls Gray an “obnoxious grandstander.”

After thoroughly analyzing this campaign, based on my 56 years of watching politics in Wyoming, I came to the conclusion recently that Steve Friess of Jackson might pull off a last-minute upset over Gray.

A lot of Friess’ boosters claim that not since Wyoming sent first-termers Dick Cheney and Liz Cheney to Congress have we had the chance to send someone who can make a big difference like Steve Friess can.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"That argument may very well be true."}]

But there are seven other Republicans in the race, and unless large numbers of their supporters bail out and move over to Friess, this race should go to Chuck.

Those candidates are Jillian Balow of Cheyenne, Bo Biteman of Ranchester, Reid Rasner, Kevin Christensen, and Keith Goodenough of Casper, David Giralt of Mills and Richard Dodson of Sundance.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"It will be close."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Governor"}]

Like Gray, State Sen. Eric Barlow of Gillette has been the leader in his race from Day One. He has put together a tremendous team statewide and has boatloads of support.

As a former Speaker of the House, he was obviously well-liked, based on the number of legislators helping him. Has he heard of the “Speaker’s Curse?”

For some reason, Wyoming voters have not elected a House speaker or Senate president as governor in 50 years.

Megan Degenfelder of Cheyenne is young, at age 37, but has an amazing machine working for her. She has President Donald Trump working hard for her. She can honestly say that she will have the president’s ear if elected.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Folks, this is huge."}]

Her team has spent more than a million dollars attacking Barlow’s record. Based on all the TV ads and fliers, you would almost wonder why he is not in jail.

Barlow has not fired back much, which is commendable, but probably a bad tactic in these crazy political days.

The sleeper is retired Marine Col. Brent Bien of Cody. He has worked very hard and has a huge personal following. He lost the primary to Gov. Mark Gordon four years ago, receiving 48,572 votes.

If those same people vote for him, he just might win.

Despite a huge late surge by Degenfelder, I have a hunch Barlow will hold on and emerge victorious.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"U.S. Senate"}]

You would think this race would be a big deal. There are only 100 men and women in the U.S. Senate.

Current U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman has done an excellent job and has President Donald Trump’s endorsement.

Her biggest rival is 37-year-old Sam Mead of the well-connected Mead family from Jackson. His uncle Matt was governor, and his grandmother Mary Mead ran for governor.

He has worked hard and generated quite a bit of support.

Harriet will win and will do a great job as our next U.S. senator.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Other Races"}]

Longtime Casper State Rep. Steve Harshman should cruise to an easy win in the contest for state superintendent of public instruction. He is a longtime teacher and coach and has been a consistent leader in the state Legislature.

This is a case of one candidate having much better name recognition than the others, Chad Auer of Cheyenne and Tom Kelly of Sheridan.

The secretary of state’s race has been somewhat underwhelming. It is hard to find issues for the candidates to fight about.

Robert Short of Douglas appears to be the front-runner, although Rachel Williams of Cody has the Freedom Caucus folks working hard for her.

CJ Young of Cheyenne and Qwenton Oviatt of Hudson will finish out of the running.

State Treasurer Curt Meier of La Grange should have no trouble defeating challenger Scott Smith of Lingle.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Turnout"}]

Originally, I thought this election would have a small turnout.

Now I have changed my mind totally. We could easily have 130,000 to 150,000 total Republican votes.

The record was four years ago when 172,000 voted. Other recent years have seen turnout as low as 117,000.

The bigger turnout will favor Degenfelder and Friess, in my opinion.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Conclusion"}]

These are just my predictions as a columnist. What do you think?

We want to hear what you have to say. Cowboy State Daily will be running an election quiz, and you can see if you can top our staff. It will be in the Monday morning newsletter.

Managing Editor Greg Johnson won our last quiz two years ago, and Jen Kocher, one of our writers from Gillette, won it four years ago. Six years ago, Tom Lacock of Cheyenne won it.

That quiz will be in Cowboy State Daily Monday.

Sniffin headshot 7 2 25

<title>Bill Sniffin: Barlow, Friess, Hageman, Harshman, Short, Meier, Headed For Wins? | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Columnist Bill Sniffin writes: “Who is going to win? This primary election has so many variables. These are the folks I think will win on Tuesday.”

Bill Sniffin: Barlow, Friess, Hageman, Harshman, Short, Meier, Headed For Wins?

Employee kate meadows cropped

Kate Meadows

Tourism

The parking lot was mostly empty when a group of volunteers from Zion Lutheran Church in Rapid City rolled into Blessed Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Sturgis, South Dakota, at 7 a.m.

Fog hung from the tops of the pine trees like a delicate tablecloth. The air was cool and fresh.

It had rained hard the previous night — an unusual turn during a record-breaking hot and dry summer in the Black Hills — and the motorcycles were slower than usual to begin pulling into the church parking lot for breakfast.

But that morning, like every other morning for the past five days, the core volunteers were ready.

For more than 15 years, the church has opened its doors, its kitchens (first one and then two) and its hard-charging weeklong ministry to bikers looking for a hearty breakfast or dinner. 

As an estimated half-million bikers worldwide descend on the otherwise tranquil town of about 7,000 over 10 days, the devoted volunteers at Blessed Emmanuel work tirelessly to cook made-to-order breakfasts for free-will donations.

[{"type":"text","text":"The week of work funds the bulk of the church’s annual budget."}]

Soon after 7, the first customers arrived. A lone biker wearing a black T-shirt and faded black jeans placed his breakfast order with church member LuAnn Grossman, who greeted customers beneath an awning outside the church.

Most of the rest of his crew was still back at the campground, he explained, sleeping off the previous night.

[{"type":"text","text":"“Some of them are in rough shape,” he said."}]

Grossman smiled, handed the biker a number and gave his order to a runner. 

That runner, a middle schooler who will start school next week, made the rounds: First to the outdoor kitchen for eggs, hashbrowns and French toast according to what the order sheet specified, then to the indoor kitchen for bacon, sausage, biscuits and gravy and toast.

A full plate of hot food would soon land in front of the biker to accompany his cup of hot black coffee — a godsend in the morning’s cool and cloudy weather.

By the time the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is in full swing, Blessed Emmanuel Lutheran Church has become something of a second home for many rallygoers.

Eggs and omelets are cooked to order. Biscuits and gravy. Waffles, bacon, sausage, ham, toast and fruit.

There are tables beneath awnings in the church yard, where bikers can sit outside and swap stories. There is a dining room inside. Volunteers are everywhere – cooking, serving, busing, scraping plates, washing dishes, wiping down tables, visiting with rallygoers.

[{"type":"text","text":"And there is plenty of coffee."}]

But the ministry that now feels like a Sturgis institution began with a much humbler purpose.

[{"type":"text","text":"It started because Blessed Emmanuel needed the money."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"From 'Takers' To Givers"}]

Blessed Emmanuel began as a church plant in 2000, a new congregation that relied heavily on financial support from sister churches in the area.

[{"type":"text","text":"The congregation eventually needed to find a way to support itself."}]

“For a long time, we were takers,” said Kari Kannenberg, a longtime member of Blessed Emmanuel who has been involved with the breakfast ministry since it started in 2010.

[{"type":"text","text":"Church members began talking about ways to raise money."}]

Several saw opportunity in the rally. How could the church serve the scores of strangers who rumble in and out of its little town during one week every year?

In 2010, the congregation began serving meals during rally week, on a wing and a prayer.

The first breakfasts were prepared in the church kitchen, a cramped room about the size of three cubicles.

Volunteers cooked eggs, bacon, sausage, waffles, biscuits and gravy and toast in that tiny space.

[{"type":"text","text":"A lot of food in a small room."}]

But the idea caught on. At first, roughly 50 people showed up throughout the week. Then 100 a day. Then 150.

The weeklong fundraiser brought in money the congregation needed. More importantly, it eventually became something bigger than a fundraiser.

Today, proceeds help fund much of Blessed Emmanuel's annual budget, while some of the money is shared with other Lutheran congregations in the area.

“Our parish would not exist without this ministry,” said Pastor Robert Hinckley, who also serves as pastor at Grace Lutheran in Deadwood. “It really puts us on the map.”

The church that once needed supported from other congregations now has something to give.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A Well-Oiled Breakfast Machine"}]

By rally week, the operation at Blessed Emmanuel resembles a small restaurant with a remarkably large volunteer staff. A food inspector from the South Dakota Department of Health examines the property the first day to ensure operations are sanitary.

Volunteers serve breakfast every day from Saturday through Saturday and dinner Monday through Friday. The dinners – one homemade menu item each night – draw a crowd, but the breakfast is where the ministry really shines.

Bikers put in their order with Grossman under the awning just outside the church’s entrance. When someone orders a waffle, Grossman presses a button, which dings in the church kitchen, notifying the volunteer there to pour batter so the waffle is ready when the plate comes.

An entire wall of the dining room is lined with drinks and condiments where customers can help themselves.

For 16 years, a small Sturgis church that needed to raise money has welcomed motorcycle rallygoers with hot, made-to-order breakfasts. “Our parish would not exist without this ministry,” says the pastor for Blessed Emmanuel Lutheran Church.

Daily Darwin: Friday, May 31, 2024

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