Town Crier: Helping Others

We are delighted to announce that I-Reach for Art is returning to The Hangar for our 12th annual fundraising event! We invite you to mark your calendars for Aug. 12, 2023. Doors will open at 5pm with Prairie Wife as the evening's Emcee and I-Reach for Art favorite, Michael Stirrett playing a variety of music. At 8:00 pm we are honored to welcome back Sheridan's Tris Munsick and the Innocents as our headline entertainment for the Riding for the Brand concert. In addition to the exceptional entertainment, we will also be selling unique items produced by participants in our program, holding our annual quick draw, live auction, silent auction, dessert dash, gun and 50/50 raffles and offering wagon rides courtesy of the Powder River Percherons!

I-REACH 2 Inc. has facilitated opportunities for individuals to REACH their highest level of independence in Natrona County since 1999. IR2 provides services to 46 individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities 24 hours per day, seven days a week. The last three years have been an incredibly challenging time in terms of keeping the checkbook in the black while continuing to provide the high-quality services and supports our organization is known for. We need your support now more than ever. For more information please contact Tina at 307-265-8086, [email protected] or www.ireach2.com

Come and enjoy Wilma May's famous Indian tacos, sopapillas and a drink for the Wyoming Grand Chapter Distinguished Guest Fundraiser Order of the Eastern Star. Join us from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 17 at the Casper Shrine Club, 1501 W. 39th Street, Casper, WY 82604 Cost is $15.00 for each person (takeout is available)

Kim Hiser with "The Whimsy Boutique" will be set up in the Shrine parking lot for a fun shopping experience. If you need more information, contact Shirley @ 307-234-6022

The Fleece Blanket Project will not meet in June, July, and August. We will resume making blankets from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 16. We meet the third Saturday of each month from September through April.

We celebrated our 7 year anniversary on Jan. 30, 2023.

As of April 22, 2023 we have made 1,864 blankets which have been given to 29 organizations who give them to those who are in need of comfort and warmth.

If you would like to be involved in this project or have any questions, please contact First Christian Church at 307-234-8964 or Debbie Mestas at [email protected].

The Third Annual ART IN THE PARK Festival hosted by Art On The Go is now seeking artist vendors!

The event is Saturday, Sept. 23 at Mike Sedar Park from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

There will be artist vendors of all kinds, food trucks, music, art demos, raffles, kids events & more!

10’ X 10’ booth spaces are affordably priced: $30 for Art On The Go members; $50 for nonmembers.

For more details or to reserve booth space, please visit artonthego.org and click on the Art In The Park event tab.

The Giving Table is collecting non-perishable food to help provide for families who need a little extra. Each month of the year they are collecting a different item. The Giving Table is a drive-up food pantry hosted by City Park Church every Tuesday from 5 to 6 p.m. No ID is required.

On average each week, 20 to 25 volunteers pack and hand out around 175 boxes of food.

Items to be collected:

To drop off donations please bring them to City Park Church at 804 S. Wolcott St, Casper Wyoming, on Sunday through Thursday. from 9 a.m. to noon If you have questions please call the church at 307-234- 6946.

Our newest social worker has joined the care team at Central Wyoming Hospice and Transitions, due in part to a generous grant from the Wyoming Community Foundation. Douglas resident Desirae Laird will be serving our patients in Converse County, and she says it's important to her to be able to help her friends and neighbors.

"I am very excited to work for an organization whose primary focus is patient care," she says, "and to serve the community I live in." Expanding our team in Converse County allows more people to stay home with hospice services, and the Wyoming Community Foundation's $10,000 grant for hiring and training has helped make that possible.

PEO is selling Wyoming throws. The 100% cotton 4’ x 6’ throw designed by Casper PEO members, exhibits images of Wyoming in a multi-colored design.

They are a perfect Mother's Day Father's Day, graduation and wedding gift.

All proceeds from the sales support PEO projects to help educate women through grants, loans and scholarships.

More than 80,000 women have been recipients of PEO projects.

To purchase or order a Wyoming throw, call Becky at 307-259-3350.

The event will be held on Saturday, Sept. 16, from 2-10pm, at City Park, 711 S Center St.

To register, go to www.relayforlife.org/wyoming and click on Join this Relay or call 800-227-2345.

Wyoming Food for Thought Project is in need of volunteer help to pack weekend food bags and then deliver those bags to schools and homes. Since January of 2013, Food for Thought has been helping feed kids in need over the weekends and long school breaks.

Each week over 1,000 children receive food bags but it takes many hands working together to accomplish this. Wednesdays at 4 p.m. food bags are packed. This activity takes under an hour and is great for people of all ages and abilities. Packing takes place at 1014 Glenarm in north Casper each Wednesday.

Delivery drivers pick up bins packed with food bags and deliver them out to the community each Thursday morning. This is a great activity for service groups, parents with kids at home looking for service learning opportunities, and retirees. The deliveries take under an hour and are an important part of making sure no kid goes hungry in our community. Other ways to help include hosting food drives. If you are interested in becoming involved please contact Beth at (307) 337-1703 or show up on any Wednesday afternoon to help pack food bags. Wyoming Food for Thought Project is a local, grassroots, independent organization whose operations depend upon many hands in the community helping.

Thank you for helping us be the change.

Last month, we held a Family Volunteer Day. Families graciously gave their time to help sort and pack boxes here in Casper full of both shelf-stable food and fresh produce. Then the food boxes were sent off to one of our mobile pantry sites for distribution to individuals and families in need. (The group averaged an impressive packing rate of five boxes per minute! Bravo and thank you to them!)

Each box contains foods that families can make a meal out of. We try to be thoughtful about pairing items that they can cook into real meals.

It's worth noting that we are making more of these kinds of deliveries these days, in response to increased need for food assistance throughout Wyoming.

While packing, one of our volunteers, Jason, commented how great it is to see how far Food Bank of Wyoming is able to stretch a dollar.

Thanks to your support, we are efficiently serving Wyoming residents who are experiencing food insecurity, both through our stellar network of Hunger Relief Partners and through our own Mobile Pantries in communities that do not have readily available access to food.

We are grateful to you, our volunteers, supporters, and advocates.

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