Glenrock Independent

09/12/2026

Glenrock pauses Flock contract
By Charles Farmer

GLENROCK — The Town of Glenrock has put a pause on auto-renewing its contract with Flock Safety, the company behind the controversial Automated License Plate Readers that have been on the outskirts of Glenrock and Rolling Hills for two years.

“What I do know for sure is that the contract is not being renewed on Monday,” Glenrock Town Attorney Amy Iberlin said Friday.

Town Councilmembers, Police Chief Colter Felton and Iberlin have questions about the system and the contract that were raised by residents at the Aug. 25 public Q&A hearing, according to Iberlin. Until their questions are answered, the auto-renewal is on hold.

Iberlin doesn’t get a vote, unlike council, but wants to have her questions about the language of the contract answered before anything is renewed.

More . . .
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The Town of Glenrock has put a pause on auto-renewing its contract with Flock Cameras, the controversial Automated License Plate Readers that have been on the outskirts of Glenrock and Rolling Hills for two years.

09/10/2026

Freebie of the Week:
Opinion

Aug. 28 marked the beginning of another year of Friday Nights under the Lights. High school football in Wyoming is what sports should be – players and coaches coming together, representing their town, their team, and their families (to paraphrase H.G. Bissinger).

Opponents will compete on the gridiron over the next dozen or so weeks, all in search of that mythical thing called a state title.

However, there’s a third team on the field each Friday, and they are why I pen this letter.

Without referees, there is no Friday Night Lights. There wouldn’t be football on the other nights of the week either.

Across Wyoming, game officials are preparing to step on the gridiron and protect the game. They’ve been meeting as associations since July. Many went to officiating training camps in June. Most (hopefully all), have been studying game film, taking rules exams, and refreshing their on-field mechanics – all due to a deep desire to represent the game and our avocation with excellence.

Yet across Wyoming we are desperately short of officials, and not just in football. Don’t be surprised if your local school has a contest postponed, rescheduled, or even cancelled due to a shortage of officials. It’s happening in all classifications in Wyoming – even Class 4A!

The reasons for the shortage are plentiful, but the most significant reason is poor treatment. Now Wyoming is a far cry from other states in this department – it ’s pretty rare to have a situation regarding the treatment of officials boil over – but it’s still a key factor in why officials are leaving and why roughly 80% of new officials quit within the first two years.

Let’s be honest, officiating interscholastic sports isn’t something we officials do for the money. We certainly don’t do it as an excuse to be away from our families multiple nights a week. We do it so this generation of student athletes can experience those same wonderful moments between the lines that many of us had in our formative years.

As this season begins my request and my prayer is simple: Let the players play, let the coaches coach, and let the officials officiate. I assure you, we in the latter are taking our roles just as seriously as the first two.

And, P.S. – we don’t care who wins.

Respectfully,

Tyler S. Spear,

WHSAA State Coordinator of Football Officials President,

Laramie Football Officials

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Glenrock Independent is a community newspaper covering local events, news and sports.

09/10/2026

Freebie of the Week: SPORTS
Herders denied victory by three yards, fall to Pinedale in opener 15-14
By RJ Morgan

The old adage is that football is a game of inches. That about sums up the season and home opener for Glenrock High School as the winning points were left at the three-yard line Sept. 4 in a 15-14 class 2A non-conference afternoon setback to Pinedale.

After surrendering two first-half touchdowns, the GHS defense made sure there was a chance to win. They shut down and shut out the Wranglers in the second half to open that door of possibilities.

All that was needed by the offense was eight points . . . somehow, some way. It literally came down to the final seconds when the Herders got that much-needed touchdown, but the conversion failed with seven seconds remaining and Pinedale escaped with a one-point decision.

The contest was sandwiched by Glenrock touchdowns as the crew scored on the first possession of the year. The Converse County boys pushed PHS downfield thanks to the muscle and blocking of senior Gene Hershley, senior Chance Mendoza, junior Brady Calmes, senior Kyler Sorensen, and several others.

A pair of nine-yard gains by sophomore Joel Williams and junior Kelton Stewart carried the team across the 50. That set up Brody Allen to take care of the rest as he eventually burst into the end zone from one-yard out and scored the two-point conversion to make it 8-0 with 9:00 left in the opening period.

The Wranglers had an immediate answer. They used seven short runs to pull the defense in before launching a rainbow pass over the defense to a wide open receiver in front of everyone and scored on a 44-yard catch to even things at 8-8 with 5:03 left in the half in the first quarter.

After the early fireworks, it turned into a defensive clash as both teams managed one touchdown each in the final three periods. Glenrock’s final three possessions of the half ended in a pair of punts and the first turnover of the season.

For the Wranglers, they punted once and went for it on a fourth and 20, but got 19 yards before senior Terryn White made a clutch stop to give the ball back to his offense. They weren’t denied on their third and last touch of the ball and scored on a 24 yard run to take a 15-8 advantage into the locker room.

The Herders attempted to start the second half the same as the first with several good gains courtesy of Allen and Stewart, while Williams converted a fourth down with a five-yard run. However, the penalties that plagued the team in the first half returned in the second, which stalled a couple of drives.

Glenrock pinned Pinedale back on its own nine on its first possession. The guests did nothing with it as Talon Humphrey, White, Allen and Williams each made big plays to force a punt.

The Herders couldn’t take advantage of those defensive stops. They punted two more times and a second turnover created havoc.

The defense delivered all 32 minutes and did so again when Williams pounced on a fumble in GHS territory in the final minutes of the game.

That gift gave the Herders a chance to run the two-minute drill – and did so with success. Allen scampered seven yards, Humphrey caught a fourth-down pass from Stewart and Williams had a couple of positive gains to get inside the 20.

That set up Stewart to score from a yard out on a keeper as he was led and pushed across the goal line for the touchdown with seven seconds remaining and down by one at 15-14. Glenrock went for the win but the conversion pass fell right at the goal line.

The Herders will try to get the winning points a little earlier this week with another home game on a rare Thursday night. They host Newcastle Sept. 10 at 6 p.m.

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Glenrock Independent is a community newspaper covering local events, news and sports.

09/10/2026

Freebie of the week:
Glenrock Library News

We are officially into September, that golden month of back to school, football, cooling temperatures, harvest happenings and sunny blue-sky days.

Our events are ramping up at the Glenrock Library as we celebrate the seasons!

KIDS & TEENS
Ms. Rita will resume Storytimes on a temporary basis on Wednesdays (only) at 10 a.m. in the children’s section of the library beginning Sept. 9.

Our teen events are back, led by Mackenzi, our new (YA) young adult librarian.

Sept. 10, from 4-5:30 p.m. there will be a Teen Barista class to make popping boba. Sept 11, from 6-8 p.m., teens can enjoy an after- hours movie night to watch “The Goonies.” Sept. 12, from 3-5 p.m., there’s another afterhours teen event to play Laser Tag!

The following week there is a Teen Craft Class to make Perler Bead Art Sept. 15 from 4-5 p.m.; a Teen Chef (Dot Cakes) Class Sept. 17 from 4-5:30 p.m., and a Teen Art DIY Class for clay sculpting from 4-5:30 p.m. Sept. 18.

ADULT ACTIVITIES
We have our Adult Cross Stitch & Craft Circle Sept. 14 and Sept. 28 from 2- 4 p.m., as well as a free Adult Fallalallapalooza Diamond Painting Class Sept. 17, from 6- 8 p. m.

Participants in the Diamond Art class may choose designs from several different holidays and themes, including fall/Halloween, Christmas, scenic and travel. Register for planning purposes for this class at 436-2573 or via email at tlehner@conversecountylibrary. org

September is International Women’s Friendship Month. To celebrate we’re having an adult “Autumn Friendship TEAquinox Party” Sunday, Sept. 20, at 2 p.m. Sign up ahead of time and save your seat.

FAMILIES
This is a big weekend coming up:

Sept. 19 we’ve got two exciting events. First off, our own Wyoming Wildlife Tracker team (one of only six licensed and certified teams in the state), will be giving a demonstration of how their two-and-four legged members can help hunters find wounded game if the animal gets away.

Amanda Alexander and her family members/partners will have their trained dogs demonstrate their skills at 1 p.m. out at Glenrock’s South Rec Complex. Please sign up at the number or email above for this free and family friendly event.

Then, also on Sept. 19 at 7 p.m., we are happy to welcome back Casper College Professor of Astronomy and Physics, Dr. Andrew Young, for the Glenrock Library’s annual “NASA International Observe the Moon Night” event, a “celebration of lunar observation, science, and exploration.”

This NASA sponsored event is designed as an occasion where “everyone, everywhere, every year” is observing the night sky together. The program invites observers around the world to come together and celebrate Earth’s moon through direct observations, hands on activities, lunar-themed watch parties and more!

For more information, see https://science.nasa.gov/moon/observe-the-moonnight

But, before we go out to the courtyard to get a gander at the moon, Dr. Young will present a short, fascinating program on NASA’s newest project, launched Aug. 30, the “Nancy Grace Romans Infrared Space Observatory.” Its massive telescope will study “Dark energy, exoplanets and the large-scale structure of the universe.” Please register at the email or phone number given above to save your seats!

https://www.glenrockind.com/article/808,glenrock-library-news

NASA explores the unknown in air and space, innovates for the benefit of humanity, and inspires the world through discovery.

09/09/2026

Glenrock, Green River and other communities question use of license plate readers over lack of transparency, cost to taxpayers and risk of unreasonable search and seizure.

09/02/2026

Freebie of the Week in News:
Rolling Cedar, LLC: ‘We are not attached to any data centers, we’re just a power plant’

By Cinthia Descloux

New natural gas-fired plant in the works, estimated to employ 427 at peak, then 15 full time permanent jobs when completed

Rolling Cedar LLC’s Rolling Cedar Power Plant Project, a partnership developed between 8 Rivers (of Durham, North Carolina) and Kindle Energy (of Princeton, New Jersey), will not be supplying any data centers with the electricity they create once the project is up and running, according to 8 Rivers President / CEO Damian Beauchamp.

Beauchamp declined to release how much the project will cost, citing they “still have bids out.”

However, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) gives a baseline figure of $836 per kW for a utilityscale H-Class simple-cycle gas turbine (source: Capital Cost and Performance Characteristics for Utility-Scale Electric Power Generating Technologies).

Estimates for building a natural gas-fired power plant of this size and producing approximately 430-megawatts could cost somewhere between $280-$515 million for engineering, procurement and construction, according to EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction), depending on actual costs at the time.

Beauchamp and representatives from the two companies were in Glenrock, Douglas and Rolling Hills Monday and Tuesday to hold open houses in those communities and to answer questions from the public.

“We are not attached to any data centers – we’re just a power plant. Everyone is chasing after data centers, so we decided instead to focus on the gaps that weren’t being filled,” Beauchamp said Monday morning following a presentation at Eastern Wyoming College in Douglas. “We hope to be interconnecting with . . . (RMP) substations, but we don’t have anything (in place) now.”

Construction on Rolling Cedar is expected to begin in May, 2028. The plant is estimated to move into commercial operations between June, 2030 and early 2031 Beauchamp stated.

DETAILS

The Rolling Cedar power plant is planned as an approximately 430MW, simple cycle gas turbine natural gas-fired electric generation facility, located on a permanent footprint north of the Dave Johnston power plant and on Rocky Mountain Power-owned land, Beauchamp said, approximately three miles east of Glenrock in Converse County.

It’s also expected to be mostly water-free, Beauchamp stated at the Douglas meeting, saying water would likely only be needed for sinks and bathrooms.

However, they would like access to limited water, if possible, during the high temperatures in summer months.

“The plant will be water-free, as we’ve planned for it. We’d like to have water during the hottest days (for operations and MW output),” he explained.

In a letter to the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality dated Aug. 12, representatives explained the project will include the installation of natural gas combustion turbine generators, emissions control equipment, underground natural gas pipelines and related infrastructure. During the construction period of approximately 26-months, temporary roads, lay down areas and workspace will also be established within the project site boundary.

Access to the site will be via WY0 95 from the north and Tank Farm Road from the south. A combination of existing private access roads will be used for construction and operations.

EMPLOYMENT

Beauchamp said there will be approximately 15 permanent jobs associated with the power plant once it’s up and running. The workforce at its high is estimated at 427 jobs during a three-to-fourth month construction peak, with an average of about 265 people to be employed over the construction timeline.

“Our goal is to become part of the (Converse County) community . . . We want to tap into the local workforce first, check into colleges, then Casper,” Beauchamp noted.

WHAT’S NEXT

At this time, the final project design is underway. Beauchamp said geo-technical work is going on now at the site.

Rolling Cedar, LLC, is applying for a Wyoming Industrial Development Information and Siting Act Section 109 permit to construct and operate the plant.

According to the project’s fact sheet, Rolling Cedar will be a significant capital investment in Wyoming and will support the Converse County and Wyoming (economies) through the creation of construction and operations employment opportunities, as well as the purchase of regional goods and services, when possible. The complete economic benefits and anticipated impacts from the project are still being determined and will be fully analyzed through the permitting process.

The submittal of a Converse County Notice of Industrial Activity is anticipated by the first quarter of 2027.

A permit for this project is not required by Converse County, as the county is not zoned, according to Commission Chairman Jim Willox. He said Road & Bridge will be partnering with Rolling Cedar when it comes to working on roads.

“We’ve already started a lot of work with Road & Bridge,” Beauchamp confirmed.

The permit application to the Industrial Siting Council is planned for submittal this fall, with a public hearing tentatively planned for the first quarter of 2027.

Send a message to learn more

09/02/2026

Freebie of the Week: Sports
Potential Served
By RJ Morgan

Spikers score two wins at season opener in Douglas

Acouple of key losses to graduation have left some important shoes to fill on the Glenrock High School volleyball team. That was noticeable in season opener over the weekend but it was also clear that help is on the way which made for a successful trip Aug. 28-29 to the annual Douglas Invitational.

The Herders had a couple of competitive sets that got away which could have turned things into a great weekend. However, they still returned home after the first tests of the year having served up one victory on each day of the tournament to make the trip an overall success.

Of the 16 teams in action, no one started the day or season with a tougher match than Glenrock. The squad kicked off pool play against eventual individual champion Gering and gave the Nebraska girls plenty of problems in the first set before falling short 25-20, 25-10.

That was big enough of an opening test to serve up the first surprise of the season a few hours later. It took an extra set and plenty of rallies and clutch plays but the Converse County girls rallied to take down state-ranked Sundance 25-18, 2325, 16-14.

The Herders did a little bit of every thing good in the second official match of the season to score the first victory. It all revolved around new starting senior setter Zoey Wasik who distributed the ball to her lethal hitters.

It was those hitters who did plenty of damage in caging the Bulldogs. Seniors Sheridan Sarvey and Taitum Helmey, junior Bella Mora and sophomore Brylee Anderson unleashed numerous attacks from the outside and middle to pick apart the Sundance defense in occasions to score the win.

Glenrock ended the first day against a familiar foe - Buffalo. The group had a chance to make things interesting in both sets but fell short in the first meeting of the season 25-20, 25-17.

After a night’s rest, the Herders returned to Douglas for bracket play and delivered the second win of the season. This time, however, it didn’t take near as much drama when they took down Alliance (Neb.) in straight sets 25-23, 25-20.

Glenrock was still tested and saw a sizeable lead in the opening set fade away. An eight-point lead disappeared before head coach Ashlee Lopez called time out to get the team back on track to get the win.

Every girl to step onto the court played a role in the victory. Junior Bailey Cornella, junior Peyton Dona, senior Veronica Rossi and a loud and proud student section all played a role in boosting the team to victory.

Another Nebraska team kept GHS from getting it’s first win streak of the season. Scottsbluff held on to take the first set and eventually the match in a 25-19, 25-12 decision.

The preseason road doesn’t get any easier this weekend. Glenrock will travel Sept. 4-5 to the annual 4A loaded Gillette Invitational.

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Glenrock Independent is a community newspaper covering local events, news and sports.

08/26/2026

PLEASE NOTE EDIT: The concert is Thursday evening Aug. 27 -- yes, that's Thursday, Aug. 27. Tomorrow! =D

LIVE @ the Glenrock Library concert Thursday evening:

The popular award-winning duo of Stephanie Bettman & Luke Halpin return to the Glenrock Library for a performance on the courtyard stage Thursday, Aug. 27, at 6 p.m.

The duo continues delighting audiences all over the country and are celebrated for their lyrical song writing, soaring harmonies and warm rapport with audiences.

The concert is free and family friendly. Attendees are welcome to bring blankets, lawn chairs, water, etc.

For further information, contact Tamara Lehner at 436-2573, or email via [email protected]

PHOTO:
Bettman / Halpin courtesy photo

08/26/2026

Freebie of the Week: Community

Town balances Flock camera transparency with citizens’ concerns

By Charles Farmer Today
After being in place for two years, four Flock cameras on the edges of Glenrock and one in Rolling Hills have caused a furor among residents.

The cameras, after Flock and Automated License Plate Readers in general came to national attention, have caused Glenrock residents to demand answers from Police Chief Colter Felton and the town council. The cameras were approved in a public budget hearing two years ago, not a regular session. The camera in Rolling Hills went before a regular session, according to Felton. The cameras cost about $3,000 annually per camera, not including an installation fee. The Glenrock town council, at the meeting on Aug. 10 proposed a work session with themselves, Felton and any member of the public to help assuage fears and concerns about the system. The meeting was scheduled for Aug. 25 after the Independent went to print.

Jack Smalls, a Glenrock resident, calmly spoke in front of council on Aug. 10 to express his, and the small crowd in the audience’s concerns.

“I’ve known about the Flock cameras for quite some time,” Smalls said. “I don’t think the public was aware of what they actually did at the time, because they were new.”

The Flock cameras in Glenrock take picture, not video. Every vehicle that passes gets a picture of their license plate taken. Pictures are retained for 30 days per Glenrock’s usage policy. Many of the details or settings can be adjusted to an individual department’s policy, and Glenrock’s policy is publicly available on the town’s website, along with an FAQ from the company.

Officers can look up a car by plate, partial plate, or a description — for example, an officer could search “Black truck” for a given time frame. The system does identify features broadly, such as a camper, bumper stickers or a roof rack. Officers cannot look up details more specific than that, and Glenrock P.D. cannot search “Trump sticker” or “Biden sticker,” just bumper sticker more generically. The cameras, which are Falcon models, do not pickup faces well and are not equipped for facial recognition. Felton did a short demonstration using his own police vehicle as an example.

“We can’t use it for traffic enforcement,” Felton said. “We can’t use it for harassment or intimidation, usage based solely on a protected class such as s*x, religion, any of those kinds of things, or any non-law enforcement or personal use.”

Every search is logged with a case number and the officer who used it. When Felton runs the audit, which is updated on Glenrock’s website and available as a public record, they redact the license plate searched, to protect the privacy of those who may be accused or suspected of a crime.

Balancing the investigative tool and the public’s privacy is on the mind of Felton. There have been multiple examples nationwide of officers abusing the system for personal or suspect reason, including a case in Florida of a deputy tracking a woman he met on a film set, then pulling her over in a traffic stop to ask her out.

Felton is aware of these controversies that have become nationwide news in the last few years.

“It’s an audit,” Felton said. “I perform the audit periodically, and then I can see every search that’s happened and the officer that did it.”

Searches require a case number or the test function, which shows up as test on an audit. They use the “test” case number to periodically check the cameras, but also in training situations. Felton says they use police vehicles during those test searches.

The audits are available on Glenrock’s website under the police department section. Additionally, Felton is aware of the concerns of the citizens of Glenrock and Rolling Hills, so he’s made himself available to answer questions. He wants to use the system as transparently as he can, but says if the city council votes to remove it, or the Supreme Court deems ALPR systems unconstitutional, they will take them down.

He said (he would be) present at the work session on Aug. 25 to further answer questions.

Still, citizens have questions.

Some see the redactions as a lack of transparency from Glenrock and are still looking for answers. Glenrock has seen officers investigated in the past.

“I’ve lived here in Glenrock for a lot of years,” Smalls said. “You know, I went to school here in Glenrock, and I know for a fact how many cops that got arrested or fired or thrown in jail for heinous crimes. So I can’t trust our system for being anywhere remotely close to being honest.”

Editor’s note: This is an ongoing story. The next installment will be available in the Independent Sept. 2. This article has been edited for clarity.

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Glenrock Independent is a community newspaper covering local events, news and sports.

08/26/2026

Freebie of the Week: Sports

THE BOYS ARE BACK
https://www.glenrockind.com/article/757,the-boys-are-back

Dozens of Herder football players are back in the pads

2026 VARSITY FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Friday, Aug. 28 @ Lander scrimmage (and Cody), 4 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 4 HOME v. Pinedale, 2 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 10 HOME v. Newcastle, 6 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 18 @ Big Horn, 6 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 25 at Burns, 7 p.m. Friday,
Oct. 2 HOME v. Wheatland, 7 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 9 @ Torrington, 6 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 15 HOME v. Moorcroft, 6 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 23 @ Tongue River, 6 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 30 State quarterfinals Friday.
Nov. 6 State semifinals
Friday, Nov. 13 State championship

GO HERDERS!! 💜💪

Glenrock Independent is a community newspaper covering local events, news and sports.