Volume 5 Issue 11 Sunday, December 11, 2011

Community NewsGlenrock Mayor McQueary Steps Down - Page 2Fire/Death Investigation in Glenrock - Page 2Glenrock Medals in State Drama - Page 3Jordan Assumes W.E.A.D. Position - Page 3Pyatts Pieces - Page 3Bingo Night in Glenrock is Coming! - Page 3

Converse County and BeyondFederal Agencies Announce Initial Step to Incorporate Greater Sage-Grouse Conservation Measures into Land Management Plans- Page 4Park County Woman Pleads Guilty to Medicaid Fraud - Page 4and more!

News From The Nest

USPS to Cut Saturday Delivery - Page 5A Letter to Sec. Salazar - Page 5

Bird Odd’s and EndsCowboy Poetry - Page 6I’m Just Sayin - Bunkhouse Recipes - Page 6Straight Talk With Sassy - The Parrot and so much more in this issue of The Glenrock Bird!

Bird Business DirectoryArea Businesses - Page 7Bird Classifieds - Page 7

A big rig heading out towards a Converse County oilfield site moves through a herd of cows being pushed down Hwy 93 just outside of Glenrock last week. This trucker had a snack or two while mooooo-oooving through the cattle. Several times during the year cattle are pushed on the various open range areas of Wyoming’s roadways, while being moved from pasture to pasture. Photo Amanda Smith.

Cow Muncher On The Loose In Converse County

The Wyoming Department of Health’s Vital Statistics Services Office is warning residents to avoid commercial vendors who charge unnecessary high fees to individuals seeking official birth certificates or other similar certi-fied documents.

“We have seen a significant in-crease in official birth certificate requests this year due to Wyo-ming’s new driver’s license re-newal law,” said Jim McBride, deputy state registrar with the Vital Statistics Services Office. “For most of us, getting a license now requires either an unexpired passport or a certified copy of our birth certificate.”

For people born in Wyoming, certified copies of official birth and death certificates are only available from Vital Statistics Services. McBride said com-mercial online vendors who promise to obtain the documents must get them from his office. “These are secondary providers. People pay them to simply for-ward requests to us.”

“We suggest people contact our office directly rather than spending extra money,” Mc-Bride continued. “We’re hearing

about some secondary providers charging much, much more than the $10-13 we charge for the same documents.”

For more information or to or-der a certified birth certificate for those born in Wyoming, please call 307-777-7591 or go to http://www.health.wyo.gov/rfhd/vitalrecords/index.html. The Vital Statistics Services of-fice may also be visited in per-son in Cheyenne at 2300 Capitol Avenue on the first floor of the Hathaway Building.

“It’s clear these companies pay search engine advertising fees so their sites are listed prominently on online search results pages. For example, if you search for ‘Wyoming Birth Certificate,’ our Wyoming Department of Health site may not appear at the top of the list,” McBride said. “Many people simply miss our listing and unfortunately choose a com-mercial vendor.”

Individuals born in other states can find where to get certified birth certificates by visiting http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w.htm.

Wyoming Warns Of Those OfferingOfficial Wyoming Birth Certificates

Dance like there’s no tomorrowLove like you’ve never loved beforeAnd never, ever be afraid to show the real and wonderful you. -The Bird

On July 28th of this year 2011, five individuals jumped in to the fast moving Platte River in Douglas, Wyoming in an effort to save the life of a young lady. Four of the rescuers survived, along with the young female. The 5th, Deputy Bryan Gross of the Converse County Sheriff's Department did not survive.

On Saturday, December 10th those individuals were rec-ognized as heroes in their heroic and selfless acts in their assistance to Deputy Gross while putting their lives on the line to save the life of the young lady who went in to the Platte on July 28th.

Dustin Eubanks, Lawrence McPhearson, Lane Morgan and Keith Thompson are the four individuals were pre-sented with the Bill Daniels Neighborhood Hero Award by Converse County Sheriff Clint Becker and Linda Childears, President and CEO of the Daniels Fund.

Deputy Gross’ actions on July 28th represented the high-est standard of personal sacrifice and dedication required of all law enforcement personnel.

Four Citizens Honored For Coming To Assistance

Of Heroic Douglas Officer, Distraught Young Person

Rocky Mountain Power has asked the Wyoming Public Service Commission for per-mission to increase its prices in Wyoming. If approved, changes would likely take effect in Octo-ber of 2012.

Requested price increases vary for different types of custom-ers, based on the utility’s costs to

serve them. For an average resi-dential customer, the requested increase would amount to about $6 more per month. Most resi-dential customers with lower electricity use would see lower percentage increases.

Rocky Mountain Power says that for all electricity provides Continued Page 3

Rocky Mountain Power Requests Rate Increase

Sunday November 27, 2011 The Glenrock Bird Page 2

Community Message Board

Glenrock Library News

Meetings in Glenrock Where: The Senior Center East Door

(thrift store entrance.)When: Monday nights from 7pm - 8pm

Bird Special Announcements!

7-12th gr. Choir Concert Dec. 14 at 7:00pm in the GMS Auditorium

Glenrock Schools Music Concert Schedule

Glenrock Mayor McQueary Steps Down Glenrock Mayor Mike Mc-Queary who was elected dur-ing the last election has stepped down as Mayor of the Town of Glenrock as of the date of his let-ter of resignation below. He was sworn in as the new Mayor of Glenrock on January 10, 2011. McQueary held high hopes of continuing the development of a strong and viable infrastructure within the Town of Glenrock and will be deeply missed. His enthusiasm for positive growth was felt by all during his run for election last year and during his short tenure as Mayor. Linda Care of Glenrock has been a member of the Town Council for multiple terms, and will tempo-rarily act as Mayor as of yester-day December 8th, 2011. "Linda will act as Mayor Pro

Tempore until the meeting Mon-day night. At that time the coun-cil will enter into an executive session to choose a mayor to serve until the first meeting in January 2012. At that time who ever is elected in November will assume the duties of mayor for a 2-year term to keep us in line with the election cycle." stated Donna Geho, Town Clerk for Glenrock. Mayor McQuary's letter to the citizens of Glenrock is below.

December 8, 2011 Dear Citizens of Glenrock, Due to a serious, chronic medi-cal condition that has negatively affected my overall health to a point that I can no longer provide

the necessary time and energy to be a strong and effective Mayor, I am resigning on the signature of this letter.

To clarify my situation, I will tell you that my condition is squa-mous cell carcinoma (skin can-cer) that has taken on a seriously rapid growth rate. Squamous cell skin cancer is generally not a very aggressive cancer unless the patient has a weakened im-mune system. Because of both of my trans-plants, I have just such an immu-no-suppressed system. I am very disappointed not to be able to continue in my position as mayor.

I really had hoped to be able to

assist the Town of Glenrock to develop a strong, viable infra-structure that would have ben-efitted everyone in the future. But all of that aside, I certainly want to thank everyone that sup-ported me and voted for me in the election.

I do so appreciate all of the co-operation and assistance I have received during my short tenure as mayor. Most of all, I want to thank everyone for the kind thoughts, warm wishes, and heartfelt prayers that many of you have expressed or showntowards me during this time. Sincerely,

(Signature)Mike McQueary

Fire In Glenrock Results in TragedyAt approximately 4:45 AM the Glenrock Police Depart-ment Communications Center received a 911 call reporting a 5th wheel style camper on fire at 206 N 4th St. in Glenrock. Fire and ambulance units were immediately dispatched to the scene as well as a Glenrock Po-lice Officer.

Responding units arrived to find that the fire had been called in by a Glenrock Volunteer Fire-man who was passing through the area on his way to work. The fireman did locate a man just inside the door of the trailer. He was able to remove the man from the trailer and attempted to resuscitate the individual, but was unsuccessful. The deceased

has been identified as 66 year old Jackie Lee Beals.

All efforts to locate family mem-bers of the deceased have been unsuccessful. It is believed that Beals had been estranged from family for several years.

An investigation conducted at the scene by the Wyoming De-partment of Fire Prevention and Electrical Safety indicates the source of the fire was electrical in nature. The fire appears to have originated in a back area of the trailer where a heating pad and electrical blanket were in use to provide warmth for Beals’ two dogs. The dogs also perished in the fire.

Weihnachtsgrüße!! Christmas greetings in German from the li-brary! Visit our Mango Foreign Language database on line. Find out how to get connected. There are over 80 languages to choose from. Learn from the comfort of your own home. This database comes to us courtesy of the state library. Our Christmas tree is up and it is bare! We are in need of some mittens!! This year we are col-lecting mittens to donate to the Glenrock Senior Center. Bring yours in and help spread a little “warm” cheer to some special families in Glenrock. On December 12th we will start our “Food For Fines” that will last until December 23. This is a great way to start the year, fine free! If you have fines, please bring in the equivalent in non perishable food items to the li-brary and we will clear your fine!! We are recognizing the Rocky Mountain Food Bank this year in conjunction with our “Food For Fines”. Peggy Bussey han-

dles this in our community. This is located at the Senior Center. Hours are Tuesday: 5:00pm – 6:30pm, Thursday: 9:00 – 12:00pm. You may drop off your non perishable items at the Senior Center or at Peggy’s resi-dence, 754 South 3rd. You may also bring items to the library!! If you have any questions please call us at 436-2573 or Peggy at 436-5401. Peggy wants every-one to know that food is avail-able for Glenrock families in need, please take advantage of this community service. For Read Me A Story Decem-ber 10-17:The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg. December 17-24: Charlie the Christmas Caterpillar by Jeremy Huck. Pick up the phone and dial 436-2353 to listen to a good story. We’re on the web at http:wyldweb.state.wy.us/glen or at www.conversecountyli-brary.org. Our phone number is 436-2573. Fax number is 436-8525. Be sure to “friend” us on facebook!! Just look up Glen-rock Library.

Craig Capron

Doctor of Podiatric MedicineDr. Capron is trained in all aspects of foot, ankle, andlower limb care. From diabetic foot exams to bunions,hammertoes, and everything in between,Dr. Capron specializes in keeping hispatients healthy and on their feet.

CALL 307.358.7397 TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT

Local Glenrock firemen along with the Wyoming State Fire Mar-shall investigate the cause of a fire that broke out in the early morn-ing hours of Tuesday, December 6th on 4th street in Glenrock. Jack Beals and his two canine companions “Blue” and “Shadow” lost their lives in this tragic fire. See story at left. Photo Amanda Smith.

Sunday November 27, 2011 The Glenrock Bird Page 3

Glenrock Medals in State Drama CompetitionTwenty students from Glenrock High School joined over 600 tal-ented and enthusiastic students from around the state at the annual State Drama Competi-tion, which was held at Central Wyoming College in Riverton December 1 through 3. There were 27 schools, 1A through 4A, represented.

This event included competi-tion in both performance and technical areas of theater. Act-ing events included one-act plays and Group Performance Art, dramatic and humorous two person scenes, and dramatic and humorous monologues. Tech-nical events included original script writing, lighting, publicity, costume, scene, lighting and re-alistic and fantasy make-up de-sign. The Glenrock students par-ticipated in all of these events. In addition, Glenrock senior Cait-lyn Kumpula auditioned to earn acting and/or singing college scholarships.

The students participating from Glenrock were Lewis Allen,

Britney Bartz, Alyssa Biffle, Clarissa Bryner, Christine Da-vis, Amanda Dority, Mara Dor-ity, Ivy Engel, Steven Flynn, Na-than Hansen, Brooke Kissack, Ana Kroll, Caitlyn Kumpula, Amanda McGrady, Cole Nel-son, Logan Peasley, Cheyanne Pfander, Aimee Potter, Adrianna Williams, and Gideon Williams.

They were accompanied by Coach Ada Jane Pauline, As-sistant Coach Bob Duncan, and parent/coach Barb Kumpula.

The results included a Third Place State Medal for Adrianna Williams in First Year Fantasy Make-Up, Third Place State Medal for Alyssa Biffle in Third Year Fantasy Make-Up, All State Medals for Alyssa Biffle in Third Year Fantasy, Ana Kroll in Fourth Year Fantasy Make-Up, with an overall ranking of 7 among 21 entries, and Cait-lyn Kumpula for Second Year Publicity with a ranking of 8 out of 48 entries, as well as State Honorable Mention Certificates for Nathan Hansen and Steven

Flynn in Group Performance Art, Britney Bartz for Prosceni-um One-Act Play, and Adrianna Williams for Dramatic Mono-logue.

Other results included an over-all ranking of 6 out of 15 pro-ductions in Group Performance Art, with ten Glenrock students performing, a ranking of 5 out

of 45 Humorous Two-Person Scenes for Nathan Hansen and Lewis Allen, performing an original script the two created for the competition, a ranking of 9 out of 20 entries in First Year Fantasy Make-Up for Christine Davis,and a ranking of 12 out of 53 entries in First Year Publicity for Amanda Dority. Way to go, Glenrock!!

Make-Up artist Alyssa Biffle with model Ivy Engel- Third Place State Medal in Third Year Fantasy Make-Up

Make-Up artist Adrianna Williams with model Britney Bartz- Third Place State Medal in First Year Fantasy Make-Up

Make-Up artist Ana Kroll with model Brooke Kiss-ack-All State Medal Fourth Year Fantasy Make-Up

Local Glenrock firemen along with the Wyoming State Fire Mar-shall investigate the cause of a fire that broke out in the early morn-ing hours of Tuesday, December 6th on 4th street in Glenrock. Jack Beals and his two canine companions “Blue” and “Shadow” lost their lives in this tragic fire. See story at left. Photo Amanda Smith.

NOT THE GERBER BABY By Mike Pyatt

Christmas time again, and millions from my generation were nourished on Gerber Baby products, and likely recall the photo of the cuddly baby on their label, that has endured through the years. However, as we are celebrating the Birth of Christ, this Day of Days, in the midst of the tinsel, pageantry, gift exchange and the last min-ute rush for that “perfect” gift, it is easy to obscure the “Gift of Gifts” that was born more than two thousand year ago. No doubt, though he was fully human and fully God, he was surely cute and cuddly to the Virgin Mary. However, He was far more than that. He is wholly unlike the Gerber Baby. He is the incarnate Son of God that still gives hope and prom-ises a new start to all who will embrace Him and His claims. In 1949, President Harry Tru-man sent Christmas greetings to the nation by radio from his home in Independence, Mis-souri, here is a portion of that salient message: “Once more I have come to Independence to celebrate Christmas with my family. We are back among old friends and neighbors around our fire-side…Since returning home, I have been reading again in our family Bible some of the pas-sages which foretold this night. It was the grand old seer Isa-iah who prophesied in the Old Testament the sublime event which found its fulfillment al-most 2000 years ago. Just as Isaiah foresaw the coming of Christ, so another battler for the Lord, St. Paul, summed up the law and the prophets in a glori-fication of love which he exalts even above faith and hope. We miss the spirit of Christmas if we consider the Incarnation as an indistinct and doubtful, far-off event unrelated to our pres-ent problems…” Yes, Harry had it right. It is exactly the incarnation of Christ that gives true meaning to life,

and untangles the web of life. Jesus, a real baby who physi-cally developed like other ba-bies of that day, but, He was to one day walk on water, and, as the contemporary song “Mary Did you Know”, declares to Mary “…this child that you de-livered will soon deliver you.” That could never accurately be said of another baby. Never. For more than two millen-nia Christ’s birth has cast its redeeming shadow on the land-scape of history of the world, as no other figure. Ernest Renan declared, “All history is incom-prehensible without Christ.” And, whether peasant or king, indigent or President of the United States, we are all born to know Him, and make a deci-sion as to what we will do with the “Babe of Bethlehem of Ju-dea”, according to Matthew 2:1 Will we receive Him as Sav-ior, as our only certain link to heaven? Or will we be so mes-merized by the lights, trees, fes-tivities, the exchange of gifts, and endless shopping, that the Incarnation escapes us for an-other year? Of course there is nothing in-herently wrong with all the at-tendant festivities that surround this Day of Days, as long as we recognize that “Jesus is the Reason for the Season”. Mil-lions will celebrate Christmas around the world, in a multi-tude of ways. But how many will miss the true meaning of that day? Too many. Far too many. Most important is that we don’t miss it. After the gifts have been unwrapped let us not forget the real reason for “Christmas Morn”. As the oft-sung 19th Century hymn “Si-lent Night” succinctly declares, “Jesus, Lord at Thy Birth …Je-sus Lord at Thy Birth!” May it resonate in our hearts and lives all year. And, humbug to those po-litically correct institutions and organizations that trifle with the Day, calling it “Winter Break” or “Season Intercession”. Mer-ry Christmas to all. What do you think?

, it continues to be a very good value for its Wyoming custom-ers. Prices will unavoidably increase over the next decade, however, primarily due to grow-ing electricity use by the utility’s Wyoming customers (nearly 18 percent increase in overall elec-tricity use in about 5 years) and environmental regulations.

More than half of the costs in-cluded in this price increase re-quest are related to producing electricity. The other major items include environmental controls

at coal-fueled power plants, new substations and other infrastruc-ture projects to meet our custom-ers’ growing electricity needs. This price increase request does not include any new large wind or transmission line projects.

Rocky Mountain Power spokes-man Jeff Hymas said the com-pany recognize the economic stress its customers, Wyoming communities, our region and our nation are experiencing, and that Rocky Mountain Power will continue to hold down costs

within our control. Between 2006 and 2010, he says the company reduced its own ad-ministrative costs by more than 32 percent. “We are delivering higher quality service, and our employees are doing more with less,” said Hymas.

Hymas said the utility has prov-en programs to help customers save money by making energy efficiency improvements at their homes or businesses, and that customers can visit their website at www.wattsmart.com to learn

more. He said they also have programs to help customers experiencing difficulty paying their bills.

“We’ll continue working togeth-er with our customers, utility regulators and other stakehold-ers to keep electricity a good value now and into the future,” said Hymas. For more informa-tion about this price request, vis-it www.rockymountainpower.net/wyomingprices.

Rocky Mountain Power Rate Increase Continued From Front Page

Sunday November 27, 2011 The Glenrock Bird Page 4

Federal Agencies Announce Initial Step to Incorporate Greater Sage-GrouseConservation Measures into Land

Management PlansThe Bureau of Land Manage-ment (BLM) and the U.S. For-est Service (USFS) today an-nounced the initial steps in a formal planning process to evaluate greater sage-grouse conservation measures in land use plans in 10 Western states. The two public land manage-ment agencies are opening a 60-day public comment period on issues that should be addressed in Environmental Impact State-ments (EISs) and Supplemental Environmental Impact State-ments (SEISs) that will be pub-lished in the Federal Register on December 9. Based on ongoing threats to the greater sage-grouse and its habitat throughout the West, as well as the U.S. Fish and Wild-life Service’s 2015 deadline for making a decision whether to list the species under the En-dangered Species Act, the BLM and the USFS aim to incorporate consistent objectives and con-servation measures into relevant Resource Management Plans by September 2014. As a result, the accompanying environmental reviews will be conducted under expedited timeframes. “As the steward of more than half of all remaining sagebrush habitat in the United States, the BLM is playing a leading role in developing and implement-ing land management actions to conserve the sage-grouse and its habitat,” BLM Director Bob Abbey said. “Today’s ac-tion is the first step in formally involving the states, tribes, lo-

cal governments, researchers, organizations, and the interested public in addressing sage-grouse conservation in our multiple land management plans in 10 western states. Working with our partners, we will use these land use plans to implement actions range-wide so we can conserve and restore the greater sage-grouse and its habitat on BLM lands over the short term and the long term.” Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell said, “the agency is committed to conserving the habitat of the greater sage-grouse to prevent the species from be-ing listed under the Endangered Species Act. We welcome the in-vitation from the Bureau of Land Management to work together as one federal family on this impor-tant issue.” Greater sage-grouse currently use as much as 47 million acres of land managed by the BLM, and about nine million acres of land managed by the USFS. As many as 98 BLM Resource Management Plans address greater sage-grouse, while the USFS expects to evaluate con-servation measures into as many as nine Land and Resource Man-agement Plans considered high priority for the conservation of sage-grouse. The BLM and the USFS expect to prepare EISs to analyze proposed amend-ments to some Land Use Plans that are not currently undergo-ing amendment or revision. For plans already under amendment or revision, the BLM and the

USFS will consider incorpo-rating conservation measures, either through the ongoing amendment or revision process, or through SEISs. In an effort to encourage tai-lored, region-specific partner-ships, cooperation and resto-ration measures, the planning process will be coordinated under two regions: an Eastern region which includes land use plans in the states of Colorado, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota and portions of Utah and Montana; and a Western Region which includes land use plans in northeastern California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, and portions of Utah and Montana. Public scoping meetings will be held in communities throughout the west in January and February 2012 to provide an opportunity for interested parties to talk to staff and resource specialists and submit written comments on the proposal in person. In Wyoming, information workshops will be scheduled for January 2012 in Buffalo, Casper, Rock Springs and Worland For more infor-mation, visit Wyoming’s sage-grouse web site at http://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/programs/Wildlife/sage-grouse.html Specific times and locations for these meetings will be an-nounced through local media and on the BLM’s greater sage-grouse website at http://www.blm.gov/sagegrouse.

Attorney General Greg Phillips Joins 54 Other Attorney Generals In Fight Against

Robo-Calls To Cell Phones Federal Bill Erodes Americans’ Telephone Privacy

Cheyenne, Wyoming – Attor-ney General Greg Phillips today joined 54 other state and territo-rial attorneys general in asking Congress to oppose legislation targeting consumers’ telephone privacy. The “Mobile Informa-tional Call Act of 2011” [H.R. 3035] would amend the Com-munications Act of 1934 and allow for robo-calling to all cell phones, leaving consumers to foot the bill. For example, debt collectors and other businesses could place automated “infor-mational” calls to cell phones, impacting those who pay by the minute or have a limited number of minutes available. In addition, since businesses frequently have the wrong con-tact information, consumers could be getting and paying for repeated robo-calls on their cell phones to accounts that are not their own. “This federal measure invades the telephone privacy of Wyo-ming residents” said Attorney General Phillips. “If passed, H.R. 3035 would create a huge incon-venience for Wyoming consum-ers as they would be subjected to a flood of unwanted solicitations to their cell phones.” The attorneys general are asking members of Congress to reject

U.S. House Resolution 3035. As chief protectors of consumer rights, many state attorneys gen-eral would not be able to en-force their more strict state laws against junk faxes, prerecorded calls or text messages. “Wyoming statutes prohibit many robo-calls” Phillips said. “This measure could potentially interfere with Wyoming’s cur-rent efforts to investigate and curtail illegal robo-calls made to Wyoming residents.” This legislation would also nar-row the definition of what con-stitutes an illegal "automatic telephone dialing system." If passed, the new definition would only prohibit “random or sequential number generators” which means “targeted” calls would be permitted, General Phillips said. Currently, federal law allows robo-calls to be placed to people who have given their explicit consent to receive them or in case of an emergency. If this federal legislation passes, the law will be expanded to allow businesses to robo-call any con-sumer who has provided their telephone number in the course of a transaction – regardless if a consumer asks not to be con-tacted.

In the letter, officials also point-ed out that an increase in calls to mobile phones could present a hazard to drivers who may be-come distracted. A 2009 study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that cell phone use was involved in 995 or 18 percent of fatalities in distraction-related crashes. The proposal is currently being considered in the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Com-merce – the first step in the legis-lative process. Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller joined other consumer advocates in November to provide testimony in opposition to the legislation during a hearing before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Com-munications and Technology in Washington, D.C. Citizens can also voice their opinion on the proposal by con-tacting their representative or by voting on Popvox’s nonpartisan website https://www.popvox.com/bil ls /us/112/hr3035. Popvox will also forward con-sumers’ comments to members of Congress. All of the states and territories have signed the letter except Vir-ginia and Nebraska.

Park County Woman Pleads Guilty to Medicaid Fraud

Cheyenne, WY - Wyoming At-torney General Greg Phillips announced that Melody Sell of Cody was convicted and sentenced to a suspended two to four year prison sentence. She was placed on four years of supervised probation for fraudulently billing Wyoming Medicaid for services she did not provide and ordered to pay $22,704.31 in restitution to Wy-oming Medicaid. Sell provided rehabilitation services to developmentally disabled Wyoming Medicaid recipients through her business Achieving Independence. Sell billed Wyoming Medicaid for a twelve month period in 2007-2008 certifying that she provid-ed services for a client when that client was actually hospitalized

or in the Park County Detention Center. Sell pleaded guilty to a felony Medicaid fraud charge and was ordered to pay restitution and fines, fees and assessments. “Medicaid provides medical care for many of the most vul-nerable segments of Wyoming’s residents. Every dollar we can return to Wyoming’s Medicaid program protects the system and benefits our neediest and most vulnerable citizens,” Christine Stickley Director of the Medic-aid Fraud Control Unit said. The case was investigated by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Attorney General’s Of-fice and prosecuted by the Park County Attorney’s Office.

People convicted of Medicaid fraud may be excluded from fu-ture Medicaid participation. The Wyoming Attorney Gen-eral’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigates and prosecutes financial fraud by those provid-ing healthcare services or goods to Medicaid patients. The unit also investigates and prosecutes instances of elder abuse or ne-glect. Anyone wishing to report suspicions regarding any of these concerns may contact the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in Cheyenne (307) 777-3444 or (800) 378-0345. Medicaid fraud information can also be found on the Attorney General’s web site: http://attorneygeneral.state.wy.us

Cameco To Provide Toll Processing Services For Uranerz’s New Uranium Mine

In Campbell County Cheyenne, WY – Cameco Re-sources and Uranerz Energy Corporation have entered into an agreement by which material from Uranerz’s recently licensed Nichols Ranch

in situ uranium mine in Camp-bell County will be processed into uranium concentrate at Ca-meco’s central processing plant at the Smith Ranch-Highland Project in Converse County.

Smith Ranch-Highland is Amer-ica’s largest uranium operation and has the licensed capacity to mill four million pounds of ura-nium concentrate (yellowcake) per year. Recent production has been just under two million pounds per year. Commercial

in situ operations at the com-bined Smith Ranch-Highland Project began in 1988.

"Adding processing from Ura-nerz under a tolling agreement will help make both of our op-erations more efficient, ensuring jobs and continued growth in Wyoming’s uranium industry," said Cameco Resources’ Presi-dent Paul Goranson.

Uranerz is hiring additional per-sonnel to work at its site dur-ing construction and operation, and announced it is focused on achieving commercial produc-tion as soon as practical.

"The addition of up to 800,000

pounds a year from Uranerz will still allow full growth from our own new sites that we are work-ing to bring into production," Goranson said.

Cameco Resources of Cheyenne is America’s largest uranium producer and comprises the US operations of Cameco Corpo-ration of Saskatoon, Saskatch-ewan, Canada (NYSE:CCJ), which is one of the world’s larg-est uranium producers. Cameco Resources has about 350 em-ployees and full-time contractors at its Wyoming and Nebraska mines, its exploration and devel-opment office in Casper, and its headquarters in Cheyenne.

WWF Grants +60k to Wyoming WomenThe Wyoming Women’s Foun-dation has recently granted over $60,000 in funds to eleven or-ganizations that are creating opportunities for women and girls across the state. These com-munities include Casper, Chey-enne, Cody, Gillette, Douglas, Jackson, Laramie, Evanston and Sublette County,” said Richelle Keinath today.

According to Keinath, “These grants were awarded to groups in the state that support women in making strides toward achiev-ing economic self-sufficiency. Programmatic initiatives in-

cluded but were not limited to; access to job training, educa-tion and housing. Grants were also given to programs that create opportunities for Wyo-ming’s girls through education or mentoring curriculum. Funds provided to these organizations will strengthen Wyoming’s communities economically and give women and girls the tools to succeed.” For a list of all the 2011 grantees please go to the Wyoming Women’s Foundation website at www.wywf.org.

The Wyoming Women’s Foun-dation supports economic self-

sufficiency and access to op-portunities for women and girls in Wyoming by raising funds, making grants, advocating for change and providing leader-ship. It is an endowed fund of the Wyoming Community Founda-tion. For information call 307-721-8300 or visit the Wyoming Women’s Foundation website at www.wywf.org.

Sunday November 27, 2011 The Glenrock Bird Page 5

By DONALD J. HALL JR. To ensure its future the United States Postal Service (USPS) must do more than seek short-term fixes to its long-term finan-cial problems. Year after year, the United States Postal Service continues to raise postal rates to cover its growing expenses without adequately addressing its significant underlying orga-nizational and operational is-sues. Instead it is offering to cut service by eliminating Saturday mail delivery. These are complex problems requiring a comprehensive plan. Cuts in delivery service should be last on the list of consider-ations. Projected short-term cost savings from delivery cuts are minuscule in the context of the systemic change required and would only accelerate the decline in mail volume and rev-enue in the long term. It is dif-ficult to find any business that would choose to increase prices and reduce service as a path to sustainability, yet this is pre-cisely what the Postal Service is recommending. A healthy Postal Service is vital to Americans who depend on timely, affordable, reliable mail delivery. The dual strategy of raising rates while cutting Satur-day delivery is no way to sustain customer loyalty or encourage use of mail. It also overlooks the dependence many — includ-ing small businesses and rural

customers — have on six-day delivery. According to research from the Postal Regulatory Commission, an agency that provides over-sight of postal rate and service changes, the actual savings to ending Saturday delivery would be only about half what is esti-mated. The Commission also found that customers in rural and remote areas would be especially hard hit because their mail delivery would take longer, and that small businesses and other first-class mail customers who depend on timely delivery would be affect-ed far more than bulk mailers. Of course, change clearly is needed, but there are more sub-stantive steps that can be taken before cutting Saturday delivery to eliminate inefficiencies and achieve a sustainable solution to the fiscal dilemma. A reasonable funding plan for pension accounts, and especially retiree health benefit accounts, is one. Addressing excess capacity and associated costs are neces-sary as well. According to the most recent report of the Office of Inspec-tor General, the Postal Service has nearly twice the capacity it needs in its 260 processing and distribution centers to maintain quality service. Excess capac-ity at this level is something no

business could sustain and is a major factor in continued rate increases. Because wages and benefits make up more than 80 percent of expenses, postal management and union leaders must work together to find viable ways to manage these costs. In short, the solution to the fi-nancial crisis will not be found in failing to adequately serve small towns in remote areas. It’s about the need to address major structural issues embedded deep within the business model itself. It is important to remember that the Postal Service is an inde-pendent entity and expected to operate as a business. It is fully paid for by postal customers and receives no public funding — a critical distinction that often is misunderstood. I value postal employees, the work they do and the important role their service plays in our nation’s economy. To ensure its continuation, the service must address its underlying organi-zational and operational issues. Reducing delivery service to customers instead will only fur-ther jeopardize its future. Donald J. Hall Jr. is president and CEO of Hallmark Cards Inc., headquartered in Kansas City, Mo.

Cutting Saturday Delivery No Answer to Postal Dilemma

Dear Secretary Salazar;Dear Secretary Salazar; You and I have met. The photo here shows you and I shaking hands in the small western Montana town of Ovando.

During your visit to the “Crown of the Continent” this past summer, you stopped in Ovando to address a small crowd there to greet you, and to welcome you to the area. You praised conservation ef-forts in the area to save several wildlife species. However, you totally failed to address a very serious wildlife conservation disaster – the extremely nega-tive impact USFWS trans-planted non-native wolves are having on elk, moose, deer and other big game populations right in that same exact area. I was the one who dared to show up packing a wolf pro-test sign. If you remember, the sign read “Thank You U.S.F.W.S. – Non-Native Ca-nadian Wolves!” I know that you read the sign. When you were appointed Sec-retary of the Interior, you cer-tainly inherited a lot of tainted USFWS baggage, especially with the wolf problem. The sportsmen of the Northern Rockies have grown weary of watching wolves destroy the past 75 to 100 years of wildlife restoration. The very area you visited in the Blackfoot River and Clearwater River drain-ages has seen elk populations plummet by 80+ percent, deer numbers cut in half, and moose nearly wiped out by wolves that USFWS wrongly dumped into western Montana, most of Idaho, and northwestern Wyo-ming. Those who have footed the bill for wildlife conservation in the Northern Rockies have a lot of questions, and I hope you are man enough to provide some very honest answers. Probably the number one question plaguing the North-ern Rockies Wolf Recovery Project has been, “Where did the funding for this fiasco come from?” I and many oth-ers have spent countless hours on the internet researching every aspect of this project, and we have not been able to find where Congress ever au-thorized such funding. One reasonably high ranking for-mer USFWS staffer claims that the money was embezzled from the excise tax dollars that sportsmen pay on the purchas-es of firearms, ammunition, ar-

chery gear, fishing tackle and other similar outdoor products. He says the money was liter-ally stolen from the Pittman-Robertson Funds that, by law, are to be used exclusively for funding wildlife habitat and

fisheries improvement. Several other former USFWS staffers have said the same thing. They’ve claimed that among the various illegal uses of the $45- to $65-mil-lion stolen from these funds, USFWS covered the costs of trapping wolves in Canada…used the money for transport-ing them into this country…for construction of elaborate holding compounds …and for covering the salaries of those USFWS employees assigned to work on this project. If this is true, why isn’t former USFWS Director Jamie Rap-paport Clark serving time be-hind bars? I’ve heard that she even used some of the stolen money to hand out bonuses to USFWS staffers, including herself. Why did USFWS choose to transplant Canadian wolves (Canis lupus occidentalis) as replacement wolves for the na-tive wolf (Canis lupus irremo-tus) of the Northern Rockies? Sure, we’ve heard the claims that ALL gray wolves are the same. Hogwash! There’s a rea-son why earlier taxonomists recognized 24 subspecies of wolves in North America – and that’s because they had different characteristics, dif-ferent physical features, or different instinctive habits. For USFWS to simply lump ALL gray wolves together and claim they are ALL the same establishes a very dangerous precedence. What keeps them from doing the same thing with other species/subspecies? Using the same illogical logic, then the Sonoran pronghorn can easily be “unendangered” by simply trucking down a few thousand pronghorn from Wy-oming. Likewise, the threat-ened Florida Keys deer can easily be saved by transplant-ing thousands of whitetails from Iowa or Illinois, where there’s an overabundance. So what if they’re a bit larger subspecies? That sure didn’t stop USFWS when it comes to wolves, now did it? It’s extremely evident why USFWS took this route. First, the large number of wolves in Canada sure made their job easier when it came to sourc-ing wolves for the project. Secondly, it allowed overzeal-

ous USFWS “wolf experts” to greatly accelerate saturating the Northern Rockies with the aggressive apex predators. The manner in which the agency manipulated science, and re-placed one subspecies with another, is a violation of the Endangered Species Act itself. The residents of the affected region are extremely suspect of the real number of Canadi-an wolves transplanted where they never ever inhabited before. Was Northern Rock-ies Wolf Recovery Project coordinator Ed Bangs given carte blanche power with this project? Try as hard as one may, the mandatory USFWS Form No. 3-177 that is to be completed and filed for every wildlife shipment into the U.S. cannot be found for the wolves flown in from Canada. With-out those forms, there is no verification of the number of wolves imported…where they all came from…the subspecies of the wolves…or the cost of the shipments. In other words, there’s no paper trail. Who qualified the “wolf ex-perts” chosen to compile the Northern Rockies Wolf Re-covery Plan, and to compile the 1994 Environmental Im-pact Statement for this proj-ect that was submitted by USFWS? I personally have spent hundreds of hours mull-ing through these two official documents, and one thing is very, very clear. And that is what the so-called “experts” claimed, predicted, forecasted, and stated as “fact” was far from the wolf impact we are now realizing. When the time is taken to compare what was outlined in those two Wolf Re-covery Project documents to what has happened and con-tinues to happen, it’s easy to see that those experts missed by a country mile. Likewise, those experts failed to address a number of other negative is-sues wolves bring to an eco-system. Their plan and their EIS were far from complete – or correct. Was this an oversight on their part? Could it be that they were not qualified for assess-ing the impact wolves would have on the Northern Rock-ies? Or, were these documents just more of the lies, deceit and secrecy surrounding the introduction of non-native wolves here? Has USFWS turned against the sportsmen of this country, and now sides with the radical environmental groups? There are still far too many un-answered questions surround-ing the idiocy of allowing wolves to destroy what took nearly a century to rebuild. This is a building firestorm that has already ruined any trust that sportsmen have in USFWS. As we near the 2012 elections, things are sure to erupt. Toby Bridges LOBO WATCH

Toby Bridges (right) and Sec. Salazar meeting in Ovando, Montana.

Obamacare: Fires Caregivers, Hires Clerks and Administrators

Red Tape Decreases Care, Increases Bureaucracy. Today, U.S. Senator John Bar-rasso (R-Wyo.) discussed two recent articles that show how the President’s health care law decreases care and jobs across America. A recent USA Today article ti-tled “Health Care Jobs Grow…In Administration” highlights how the health care law forces providers to lay off caregivers so they can hire more clerks and administrators. A recent Washington Post article by George Will titled “Choking on Obamacare” talks about how the law’s crushing mandates are keeping businesses like Carl’s Jr. from hiring new workers. Excerpts of Senator Barrasso’s remarks on the floor of the U.S. Senate: “The health care law was sup-posed to actually work to get more doctors and more nurses and more x-ray techs and physi-cal therapists to take care of pa-tient—but that's not what hap-pened. “Now we see its administrative jobs that are up, not caregiver jobs. “As a matter of fact the USA To-day printed an article, and the ar-ticle actually talked about a New Hampshire hospital, and that hospital according to the article was forced to eliminate 5% of its work force.

“So here's a hospital, 5% of the work force is cut—many of those workers, nurses and other caregivers. Yet in spite of the fact they've had to cut, eliminate 5% of the work force, they're ac-tually still hiring. “Well, how can that be? Let's listen to what the hospital's vice president, Mark Whitney said, ‘we need to deal with new technology, new services, new regulations, electronic health records, government reporting requirements on quality.’ “A lot of this is related to the new federal health law. So they're eliminating nursing positions, positions of caregivers and hir-ing more people to push paper. Washington Post article: “Chok-ing on Obamacare” The article talks about the health care law's crushing insurance mandates and how those in-fluence those small and large businesses in terms of their willingness to actually hire new workers. “In the article they use the exam-ple of the restaurants ‘Carl’s Jr.’. There are about 3,200 of those around the country and the par-ent company says that they have created about 70,000 jobs and they want to hire more workers. “But the C.E.O. of the company, Andy Pudzder, says they can't hire more workers because they don't know how much they will

need to spend on health care. “But thanks to the health care law's complex formulas and many regulations which have not yet been released, and many of the uncertainties that continue to exist, this is a company that's going to have to guess about how much they'll need to spend on health care. “Well, they're guessing they're going to have to spend about twice the amount of money on health care as they did building new restaurants last year. “It doesn't take a lot to real-ize that hindering a company's ability to build new restaurants means fewer available jobs, con-struction workers, service sup-pliers, in a struggling economy.”

Sunday November 27, 2011 The Glenrock Bird Page 6

TJ Casey is a singer/songwriter, storyteller,

composer and entertain-er. He was raised up on ranches in Wyoming and Montana and now teach-es the "Code of the West" and poetry to students all

across America. Check him out at: www.tjcasey.net.

Dear Sassy, My boss caught me on facebook the other day. I got a WRITTEN warning. I should have known better because there are stupid post-ings all over our office building reminding all of us that we are NOT ALLOWED to utilize facebook during work hours. Well, my question is this.... I WAS USING IT ON MY PHONE so whats the big deal? Its not like I was using it on the work computer? And a WRITTEN WARNING? You can only get so many and then you are FIRED. Isnt it freedom of speech (I guess) to be able to use my own device at work so long as I'm not bothering anybody while doing it? I just think its unfair and I'd like to hear what you have to say about it Sassy. Is it fair for my boss to give me a written warning because he caught me on facebook on my OWN PHONE?????? While it was during work hours, it wasn't like I was surfing xxx sites! Hope you will respond. Not that it will change anything. But your response might at least make me feel better?

Jennifer in Mills Ok Jennifer, Please tell me you are 18 years of age and this is your first job. Seri-ously? First of all, Freedom of Speech: Go google that ammendment and re-read it. Secondly, whether you are in the storage room at work taking a nap or doing facebook on your cell, its the same thing. You are not doing the job you are being paid to do. Let me spell that out for you: You are being paid to work. Period. There is no room in any workplace for a person HIRED to do a JOB to do anything but what their job description describes. I would be willing to be bet your facility also has a cell phone policy in which you are more than likely breaking as well. Cell phones are to be used on breaks and lunch. So park your phone in your purse, get your attitude in check and get to work. And remember to please re-read those am-mendments.

Keep me posted, Sassy. Sassy@thgelenrockbird.com

Stay warm and wattsmart this winter.

We spend more time indoors during the winter, meaning it costs more to light and heat our homes. Fortunately, Rocky Mountain Power offers a variety of energy-saving ideas to keep your home comfy, cozy and ef-ficient. It’s what the company calls being wattsmart.

One of the easiest ways to save energy and money during the winter is turning the heat down. Set your thermostat to 68˚F when you’re home and 60˚F while you’re asleep or away. You can also buy a programma-ble thermostat, which will auto-matically adjust the temperature during the day. Additionally, make sure your furnace is working properly. Re-member to clean or replace fur-nace filters every month during the winter. A dirty filter reduces air flow and makes your furnace work harder. Sealing leaky ducts will also make your furnace run more efficiently. Finally, check to see if your furniture is block-ing heating vents, registers, baseboards, radiators or hot air returns.

Even the best furnace in the

world won’t keep your home warm and comfortable without enough insulation. Make sure there are at least six inches of insulation in your attic as well as plenty in your walls and floors. Always check the R-value of the insulation to ensure its quality. Do everything you can to pre-vent heat loss, including cover-ing drafty windows, installing door sweeps, weather stripping doors and caulking around win-dow frames.

While heating your home ef-ficiently is important, there are lots of other ways to be wattsmart during the winter. For example, insulating your hot water pipes and setting the water heater to 120˚F can help lower water-heating costs. Do all the little things to save energy, such as closing the fridge, turning off TVs, computers and other electronics when not in use and installing high-efficiency CFL bulbs.

You’ll spend a lot of time in-doors this winter, so make a few simple changes to save energy and money by being wattsmart. For more energy-saving ideas, please visit wattsmart.com, or call toll free at 1-888-221-7070.

The Song of the Ol’ Nighthawk

The cattle now are bedded;they’re settled for the night.

A northern breeze is blowing;the fire, flickering bright.

Cowboys in their bedrolls;too tired now to talk.

You hear the sound of an old cow horse

and the song of the ol’ nighthawk.

Hush now cattle;sleep all night.

Tomorrow you’ll trailwith the sun shinin’ bright.

Settle down dogies;everything is alright.You’ll be on the trail

with the first morning’s light.

Clouds are now a buildin’;no stars twinklin’ in the sky.

A last coyote’s howlin’with the wailin’ wind and sighs.

Camp cook’s cursin’ growlin’at swirlin’ dust in his sourdugh

crock.Cattle nervous restless bawlin’

and the song of the ol nighthawk.

Lightning starts to flashin’;thunder booming in the air.

Cattle up and millin’;cowboys cursin’ everywhere.

Cow boss is a wailin’;boys saddle that stock.

You can hear the hooves clatterand the song of the ol’ nighthawk.

The storm is all overit lasted all night .

The cattle and the cowboysare tired, but alright.

No cattle stampeded.Not one took a walk;

on account of the cowboysand the song of the ol’ nighthawk.

Old West Cowboy Recipe for: Hardtack Every cowboy had some in his saddlebags

- 2 cups stone ground flour

- 1 cup water

Combine the flour and water. Knead until smooth. Sprinkle some flour on a smooth surface and roll the dough flat until it is 1/4 inch thick. Cut biscuits out with a can or a glass making each biscuit about 3-4 inches in diameter. Poke holes into each biscuit with a fork. Place on a floured cookie sheet. Cook at moderately high temperature until done, about 35-45 minutes. It should come out hard and dry.

Sunday November 27, 2011 The Glenrock Bird Page 7

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