WAM'n it Up in Pinedale
Wyoming Association of Municipalities
by Terry Allen
June 15, 2018
Katie Waldner, Member Services Manager of WAM sent me a note and asked if I'd like to take some photos of the WAM award ceremonies at the ice rink in Pinedale on Thursday evening.
WAM is an organization dedicated to building strong Wyoming communities. This three day event was chock full of, speakers, seminars, get-togethers and exercises designed to introduce municipal officers to new ways to help their communities grow. Katie said the Governor would be there and I could eat, too.
Dawn Ballou at Pinedale Online told me there was another WAM get-together on Wednesday up at the Museum of the Mountain Man where I could meet all the candidates for state office, and get fed there also.
I was really feeling in the chips when I discovered our friends Jeremy and Tara Bing of Lakeside Lodge had made the food, and Jason Tyler Burton was going to perform some of his original music.
There were a nice bunch of people on the lawn of the Museum of the Mountain Man sipping wine in the glow of a warm evening sun. No Wind! I noticed I was standing next to a quiet man and I looked at his name tag. It said "James Byrd." I said hi and we had a nice conversation about hard work and 'gettin' it done' and I learned he was a state legislator. He didn't say so, but I guessed his Mother had been Harriet Elizabeth Byrd who had previously held the same seat from 1980 to 1988, and was the first African-American to serve in the Wyoming State Legislature. The family has roots in Wyoming going back to before Wyoming was a state.
The WAM Banquet Dinner was held at our ice rink in Pinedale on Thursday evening.
Departing office in November, Governor Matt Mead spoke of some of the accomplishments during his two terms in office and of the fine people he had the pleasure to work with along the way. The rest of the evening was spent recognizing some of Wyoming's great municipal leaders and heroes... complete with capes and Superhero gestures.
I met Dr. Elizabeth Tucker at the bar. She stood out because her arm was in a serious cast and she was sporting a fresh shiner. Her award winning mustang Pilgrim, a fine red roan had been startled and things went south. But, in true western form, Dr. Tucker said she expected to be back at the operating table in 30 days.
Katie had asked if I would take some fun photos of guests in the outdoor equipment she had set up in a corner. If people agreed to pose for a fun photo, they would be eligible for a prize drawing. In my short-handed memory, I thought the outdoor equipment were the prizes...oops!
Things were going sort of slow over in the fun photo department until Ron Wild of Rocky Mountain Power came over and asked if he could get his picture taken. I suggested he kiss the antelope and to my surprise, he did. He then said: "I notice things are going a little slow for you...I've got a little juice around here...want me to help you out?"
I took a look at him and realized I couldn't tell a person had juice just by looking at him...except he seemed pretty confident so I just agreed. Sure enough, pretty soon I was swamped with people getting into the tent, taking a paddle in the kayak, getting kissed by the antelope and warming themselves by the make-believe fire. John and Emily Paravicini got in the tent and wanted their portrait done...and as they pressed their faces against the fine mesh...I thought of bank robbers in nylon stockings...but then they turned and smooched. Aaahhhh....
Thank you Katie for hiring me. I had a great time.
Thank you also to Dawn Ballou at Pinedale Online for cosponsoring this story.
Terry Allen: txpartisan@gmail.com
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