Business and Tourism Reporter

Renée Jean

Renée Jean is the business and tourism reporter for Cowboy State Daily and is based in Cheyenne. Previously, Renée spent seven years covering energy and agriculture in North Dakota and Montana. She has won many writing awards over a 30-year career, and has written magazine articles for Guideposts.

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Latest from Renée Jean

Jackson and Teton County is the undisputed king of Wyoming tourism, but even Torrington officials are stunned but the town’s 97% spike in visitors. Much of that is driven by archaeology, while other small Wyoming towns are showing similar trends.

Rural Tourism: Torrington’s Short-Term Rentals Take 97% Leap, Other Small Towns Spike Too

Teton County is the king of Wyoming tourism, but rural Wyoming towns are showing a spike in visitors. Torrington officials are stunned by the town’s 97% increase in visitors — much of that driven by archaeology. Rawlins and Powell are seeing it too.

Renée JeanMay 02, 2026

James Cary Lambert learned a lot during his 33-year career as a UPS driver. Chiefly, that the little things matter, and people are more important than packages.

Wyoming Jobs: What James Lambert Has Learned After Driving A UPS Truck For 33 Years

For 33 years, UPS driver James Lambert has delivered much more than boxes on his UPS route, the last 15 in a remote section of Laramie County. He’s turned a sometimes rough-and-tumble job into friendships, snowy rescues, and laughter-filled memories.

Renée JeanMay 02, 2026

In Wyoming, cattle outnumber people, but the number of veterinarians treating food animals has shrunk by about 90% since World War II, and only 5% of new vets are interested in the job. That puts Wyoming’s, and the nation’s, food supply at risk.

Wyoming In Dire Need Of Large-Animal Veterinarians

In Wyoming, cattle outnumber people, but the number of veterinarians treating them has shrunk by 90% since World War II, and only 5% of new vets are interested in the job. One vet in Wheatland said desperate ranchers outside his area are "begging for help."

Renée JeanMay 02, 2026

The maker of an AI-powered robot chef that will cook for you wants to move its manufacturing to Cheyenne. Once you load the robot with ingredients, it will drop them into the pan, stir and cook according to an app-driven recipe.

Founder Of Robot Chef Wants To Move Manufacturing From China To Cheyenne

The maker of an AI-powered robot chef that will cook for you wants to move its manufacturing from China to Cheyenne. Once you load the robot with ingredients, it will drop them into the pan, stir and cook according to an app-driven recipe.

Renée JeanMay 02, 2026

President Trump in the Oval Office on Thursday, April 30, 2026

Economist: Trump Pipeline OK Could Mean High-Paying Jobs, Big Tax Revenues For Wyoming

Wyoming economist Rob Godby says the state could gain new jobs and increased tax revenue after Trump's approval of the Bridger Pipeline carrying Canadian crude through Crook, Weston, Niobrara, Goshen, and Platte counties. “Pipelines aren’t minor,” he said.

Renée JeanMay 01, 2026

In New ‘Longmire’ Book, Sheriff Walt Has To Solve The Murder Of Guy Everyone Hated

Everyone Hated Pepper McKay, so when he turned up dead, Sheriff Walt Longmire had a lot of suspects to rule out in his latest “Longmire” mystery, “The Brothers McKay.” Wyoming author Craig Johnson’s 22nd “Longmire” novel is set for a May 26 release.

Renée JeanApril 30, 2026

Hotels, Convention Center And Indoor Arena Could Follow PRCA To Cheyenne

Now that the PRCA’s move to Cheyenne is official, local leaders are sketching big plans to turn the 416-acre Hitching Post subdivision into a Western "Field of Dreams" for rodeo. That could include hotels, a convention center and an indoor arena.

Renée JeanApril 28, 2026

A driver for Righteous Roues Logistics with a fully loaded delivery van. The compnay mostly delivers in Montan but also covers some areas in Wyoming.

Amazon’s Rural Push Brings Fast Deliveries — And Jobs — To Remote Wyoming

Amazon is spending $4 billion this year to expand its reach with same-day and next-day deliveries to some of America’s most remote places, including in Wyoming. For rural residents and small businesses, the fast deliveries are game-changing.

Renée JeanApril 27, 2026

Rick French dressed for an opera-singing occasion in a velvet green jacket with a cream-colored shirt and crisply ironed black pants. Singing opera takes both skill and the right mindset.

Wyoming People: The 95-Year-Old Classically Trained Tenor Who Sings Opera In Cheyenne

Rick French, aka “Ricardo” when he’s singing opera, is a classically trained tenor who has performed with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. Folks in Cheyenne know the now-95-year-old for singing opera for years at a local Italian restaurant.

Renée JeanApril 26, 2026

As Wyoming is riding an explosion of industries connected to data centers and artificial technology, nursing is a high-demand career that pays well. “AI will never replace us,” nurses say about their industry’s resistance to automation.

‘AI Will Never Replace Us’: Wyoming Nurse Rides Booming Career Wave

Wyoming nurse Ashley Myers escaped hardship into a high-paying nursing career. Her success story highlights rapid wage growth in the health care sector. "AI is a great tool, but it will never replace us. We have to have people to do this work," she says.

Renée JeanApril 26, 2026

Central Wyoming Colleg culinary student Ryan Bradshaw sauces up a bison skewer with huckleberry sauce for an all-Indigenous lunch menu served during the 2026 Innovation & Entrepreneurship Conference.

Wyoming Culinary Students Learn How To Cook James Beard Winner's Indigenous Menu

Wyoming culinary students this week learned how to prepare a celebrity chef’s Indigenous menu — only ingredients native to North America. No wheat, no sugar, no beef, pork or chicken — ingredients European settlers brought that displaced indigenous foods.

Renée JeanApril 26, 2026

Canadian designer Olivier Dupon has submitted a motorized, 3,920-piece Big Boy 4014 LEGO kit to the company’s Ideas page. If the kit gets 10,000 votes, it will be among designs advanced to LEGO’s review pool for potential production.

Fan Of Cheyenne-Based Big Boy 4014 Pushes To Make Famed Locomotive Into LEGO Set

A superfan of the Cheyenne-based locomotive Big Boy 4014 has submitted a motorized, 3,920-piece Big Boy 4014 LEGO kit to the company. If his idea gets 10,000 votes, it will be among designs advanced to LEGO’s review pool for potential production.

Renée JeanApril 25, 2026

Other Authors

Renovation of the Atlas Theatre has uncovered artifacts that hint at new ghost stories. Among the items are hand-sewn railroad overalls stuffed into a ceiling and an Italian stiletto knife.

Secrets In the Walls: Cheyenne's Atlas Theatre Renovation Uncovers New Mysteries

If a novelist was dreaming up cool props for a haunted theater, they couldn’t beat what a renovation crew found hiding in the ceilings and walls of Cheyenne’s Atlas Theatre. The discoveries add puzzling historical details about the theatre's early days.

Renée JeanApril 25, 2026

Cheyenne’s real estate market is heating up, with luxury home sales, industrial demand, and data center growth driving a surge that’s reshaping the city’s economy and housing landscape.

Cheyenne's Million Dollar Real Estate Market Growing As Data Centers Fuel Growth

Cheyenne’s real estate market is heating up, with homes between $800,000 to the low $1 millions becoming more commonplace. Real estate agents credit data centers, an "extremely business-friendly environment" and the intersection of I-80 & I-25 for the surge.

Renée JeanApril 25, 2026

Food Freedom Fight: State Orders Cody Creamery To Stop Selling Raw Milk Lattes

The State Ag Dept. has ordered Cody's Hippy Cow Creamery to stop selling its popular raw milk lattes. Tyler Lindholm, the architect behind the Food Freedom Act, says the state is wrong and will push for a legislative fix. "That's just insane," he said.

Renée JeanApril 24, 2026

Mohan Dangi poses in front of Central Wyoming College's Sacagawea statue. He still remembers removing snow from the surrounding sidewalks on campus at 3 a.m. in the morning, when he was a CWC student.

From Nepal To Riverton, One Student’s 30-Year Journey Leads To Global Partnership

When a young student from a rural Nepali village with no running water finally found his way to America and Central Wyoming College in Riverton 30 years ago, it was a leap of faith. He was back Thursday to explore partnerships between Wyoming and Nepal.

Renée JeanApril 24, 2026

Andrew Stockett, lead engineer for TerraPower's Test and Fill facility, talks about how the facility will be used to test every component of TerraPower's new Natrium plant in Kemmerer to ensure everything works as it should.

TerraPower Starts Building Wyoming Nuclear Plant Despite 60 MPH Wind Gusts

TerraPower officially began building its first-of-its-kind nuclear power plant in Kemmerer on Wednesday, despite 60 mph winds that grounded cranes. “In not too long, we will be producing power right here on this site,” a TerraPower official said.

Renée JeanApril 23, 2026

From left, Gov. Mark Gordon, Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality Director Todd Parfitt. and Nuclear Regulatory Commission Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards Director Andrea Kock pose for a photo after signing an agreement that allows Wyoming to regulate radioactive byproducts from mining rare earth minerals.

Wyoming Makes Deal With NRC To Regulate Uranium And Radioactive Rare Earths

Wyoming signed a deal with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Tuesday that allows the state to regulate uranium and radioactive byproducts from mining rare earths. It gives the state another edge during a push for nuclear plants and domestic rare earths.

Renée JeanApril 22, 2026

Glen Romig poses with Wyoming's First Lady Jenny Gordon and New York Times bestselling author C.J. Box during the release for Romanowski Rye.

Joe Pickett Fans Converge On Pine Bluffs To Buy C.J. Box's New Romanowski Rye

Fans lined up in a crazy-long line Saturday to buy bottles of Nate Romanowski Rye signed by Joe Pickett author C.J. Box. This year’s rye continues a collaboration between Box and Pine Bluffs Distilling that started last year with Joe Pickett Bourbon.

Renée JeanApril 20, 2026

Kemmerer Races To Build Homes As TerraPower Nuclear Plant On Fast Track

This spring kicks off a race to build housing before a TerraPower nuclear power plant construction boom to keep as many of its long-term workers in Kemmerer as possible. That’s key to capturing the growth potential for the small Wyoming town.

Renée JeanApril 19, 2026

Rawlins is trying to shake its reputation as a drive-thru town for travelers on Interstate 80, but not intending to stop except for gas and a bathroom break. A push is on to show those visitors that there's plenty to see if they’d stay overnight.

Rawlins Wants To Shake Reputation As Drive-Thru Town For I-80 Travelers

Rawlins is trying to shake its reputation as a drive-thru town for travelers on Interstate 80 who don't stop except for gas and a bathroom break. A push is on to show those visitors that there's plenty to see if they’d stay overnight.

Renée JeanApril 19, 2026