Conversations flow back and forth with innumerable cups of coffee in Thermopolis, the town where coffee groups are scattered every day of the week at various businesses ranging from Broadway Bakery to McDonald's.
At the Storyteller in downtown Thermopolis, owner Ellen Reed said there is a revolving door of regular coffee groups that each have their own self-assigned day. Of course, not everyone drinks coffee, but the groups still bear that name.
“There's the Catholic ladies, the sewing ladies and then there's the yoga ladies,” Reed said. “The retired teachers come on Wednesdays.”
To accommodate these small groups, Reed has placed tables strategically between shelves of merchandise, tucked away behind books and toys.
Martin Andreen, 87, is the oldest member of The Table of Knowledge coffee group and the only non-retiree of the bunch. He has been having coffee at the Storyteller in downtown Thermopolis for the past 15 years and rarely misses a morning chat. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
Members of The Table of Knowledge, a group of Thermopolis men who meet Monday through Saturday at the Storyteller in downtown Thermopolis. Coffee groups are a popular pastime in the town where 28% of the population is over 65. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
At the Storyteller in Thermopolis, owner Ellen Reed has dispersed her tables between the book shelves and merchandise to give her coffee groups their privacy and an opportunity to visit. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily)
The Table of Knowledge
At one long table, hidden behind the kids’ toys, a group of mostly retired men gathers six days a week for two hours every morning.
Reed has dubbed them the "Table of Knowledge,” and the men say that she is their moderator, keeping them from getting too rowdy.
Martin Andreen is one of the longest-standing members of the coffee group. At 87, he said that he had been coming for coffee, just plain please, for about 15 years. He is the only one who is not retired.
“He drinks his coffee out of a straw,” teased Jerry Deromedi. “He's an old timer!”
Deromedi has been coming for nearly three years now and enjoys shooting the breeze with the men. Otherwise, he said he would be out doing yard work and the talk is a more welcome way to start the day.
“We talk politics, religion and sports,” Deromedi said. “Gun rights, makes, models, and calibers.”
Glen Thomas, the youngest of the group, said that he learns a lot from just listening to the other men talk.
“I mostly just listen,” Thomas said. “Jerry talks about his grandkids all the time.”
As if on cue, Deromedi picked up his phone and started scrolling. He said that one of the things he liked best about his smartphone was that they could all share pictures as he showed Lambert Gunk the latest picture of his granddaughter.
Gunk has been coming to the coffee group for just over a year and enjoys the companionship.
“We just talk about everyday life,” Gunk said.
“And washing machines,” Thomas added. He gestured a thumb at Andreen. “Martin's a handyman and we get to pick his brain a lot.”
Although the group is usually the same men every morning, they never turn anyone away who would like to join in on the conversation.
“We're all different,” Deromedi said. “We respect each other.”
“Unless you're a Chiefs fan,” Thomas said. “We'll accept them, but we don't let them talk much.”
Kidding aside, Thomas said that the group makes their talks enjoyable, especially since they get threatened by Reed, who is his sister, if they get too loud or radical.
“We just like to keep everything calm and normal,” Thomas said. “Gotta respect the coffee shop.”
Ellen Reed prepares a specialty coffee for members of the regular coffee groups that meet everyday in her shop in downtown Thermopolis. She said it is a revolving door of groups who meet each day. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
The coffee groups in Thermopolis, Wyoming, all share one common theme. Connecting with other people in person and lots of laughter. Glen Thomas and Martin Andreen are part of a growing number in the town who have found the value in conversations. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
Jerry Deromedi and Lambert Gunk have gotten to know each other over coffee. The men meet every morning at the Storyteller in Thermopolis with a group that have been dubbed “The Table of Knowledge” by owner Ellen Reed. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily)
The Women’s Circle
At the same time that the men are chatting every morning in their back corner, other groups meet regularly at the round table situated between the greeting cards and kids’ books in the middle of the bookstore.
On Tuesdays, it is the sewing group that meets for about an hour beginning at 8:30 in the morning. Craft projects are rarely, if ever, discussed and there are other taboo topics the women normally avoid.
“We talk about what's going on with the community and upcoming events,” Collette Anderson said. “We don't talk politics or sports.”
This coffee group, like their male counterpart, meets throughout the week but just at different locations. Mondays are days to just walk, Wednesdays they are at the Gooseberry Quilt Shop and Thursdays it's coffee and donuts at Broadway Bakery.
“We just talk about our families,” Trudy Brooks said. “We just get together and socialize.”
The conversation can involve the entire group but as people arrive, smaller side conversations develop.
“Some days there might be ten of us,” Julie Enis said. “Then it's easier to talk one on one with the people on each side of you.”
The group has been meeting for about six years, and most are retired. For Enis, having this group of women has helped her get more involved in the community.
“It's just a nice thing to have since I retired and want to get out and involved,” Enis said. “Otherwise, I'm home and it’s just yard work and housework.”
“We're a good group of girls that really get along well,” Carol Biven said. “We know each other's skeletons in the closet!”
Coffee Therapy
All the coffee groups that rotate at Storyteller each week agree that the many meetings in Thermopolis are more therapeutic than anything else. These daily meetings are about being social in an age when so many people, of all ages, hide behind social media.
“You could sit here, and you can laugh about this stuff,” Thomas said. “That's what's good about this. We're not making fun of anybody, but we're just all laughing.”
The coffee goers have all connected over their morning drinks on a personal level and also look out for each other. Thomas said that if someone misses coffee more than two days in a row, they are checking in on them to make sure everything is okay. The sewing group says that they will send flowers or presents when someone is too sick to attend.
Tammy Redland summed up her own experience attending her coffee group in the digital age by simply saying, “It's a good thing.”
Jackie Dorothy can be reached at jackie@cowboystatedaily.com.
