The Eastern Wyoming College Board of Trustees split Tuesday in approving separate school policy proposals to address issues surrounding transgender students and faculty on campus.

Crystal R. Albers
Posted 3/16/18

“I just think it’s very important to give back to the community you live in – that’s just a reward in itself,” career volunteer Linda Kessler said in an interview with the Telegram this week.

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The Eastern Wyoming College Board of Trustees split Tuesday in approving separate school policy proposals to address issues surrounding transgender students and faculty on campus.

Posted

LAGRANGE – “I just think it’s very important to give back to the community you live in – that’s just a reward in itself,” career volunteer Linda Kessler said in an interview with the Telegram this week.

Kessler, despite living on a ranch near LaGrange and approximately 40 miles from the county seat, once served on seven boards at one time – including the Board of Cooperative Educational Services in Gillette, which assists the needs of special children, in addition to providing regular education and administrative roles.

Kessler served on the BOCES board for 11 years; as an emergency medical technician for LaGrange Rescue Unit for 20 years; the LaGrange Fire Department for 17 years; LaGrange Fire Protection District for 14 years; and the Goshen County Lodging Tax Board for 10 years.

“The governor appointed me to the State Rehabilitation Council for three years – I was up for my second appointment when my husband passed – so I had to turn that down,” Kessler said. 

“I’m currently on the Lagrange Cemetery District Board – that meeting’s a little closer,” she said. “We also started a local boating club down at Hawk Springs Reservoir. I’ve served on that board for 40 years to kind of help with maintenance … we’ve planted trees, we did a drip system.”

Many residents may also remember Kessler from her more than 31 years as a member of the Goshen County School District No. 1 Board of Trustees. Kessler resigned from the role in January.

“(Originally,) I had some teachers ask me if I would consider running, which was a little odd because, not having children, I was not sure of how the school system operated,” Kessler said. “I won. At that time, it was a three-year term, but the legislature took the off-year off because of the expense, and the three-year term turned into a four-year term, which turned into a 31-and-a-quarter year term.

“It really is (rewarding),” she continued. “The best reward you receive, come May when you shake hands with every one of those graduates at our high schools, you just beam – those kids are so good.”

Kessler’s path to becoming a career volunteer began when she met her husband in Cheyenne.

“I was born in Denver, Colo. but my folks moved to Cheyenne when I was three months old,” she said. “I attended elementary and high school in Cheyenne and graduated from Central. Then I was a legal secretary in Cheyenne … my husband was settling his father’s estate – that was how we met – he was working with one of the attorneys I worked for. He came back and asked me out for dinner.”

The pair married and Kessler moved to the family ranch about nine miles west of LaGrange, which “started a whole different line of education,” she said.

“I guess when you’re a city girl – the closest I’d ever been to a cow is an uncle who had a dairy farm in Colorado,” Kessler said. “Dairy cows and ranch cows are very different.”

Kessler and her husband were married nearly 30 years before he died, and she’s now lived on the ranch for 47 years.

“The first branding was interesting,” she recalled. “Back then, we had the rope and drag – a lot of them still do. I was busy in the house with several other neighbors’ wives cooking to feed all of them. There were a few late calves and my husband wanted me to help. I am very special to animals, so when he earmarked, I yelled, when he vaccinated, I yelled, when he branded, I yelled, and when he castrated, I really yelled.”

There are still cattle on the ranch, however, they have been leased out. Kessler also has cats and dogs with which to share the wide, open spaces.

“I really don’t know if I could move back to town,” she said. “I’d have to have a little bit of space … I enjoy the peace and quiet. I don’t deal with town traffic and noise and light pollution and everything else. I can walk out at night, see the stars and the moon and hear the coyotes.”

Kessler has devoted much of her life to volunteering, and now she said she’s also ready to explore her creativity.

“When my husband passed, I was on seven different boards – that abruptly changed, and I started dropping off of them. I am now down to just two,” she said. “I have lots of crafts, things in tubs you always think are going to be winter projects – I just haven’t had enough winter. I’m really looking forward to that.”

Although it may require a little extra time or even a bit of a drive, Kessler encourages everyone to volunteer if given the opportunity.

“I think, in small communities, you have probably a better chance of helping some group out – especially Goshen County,” Kessler said. “I would encourage people to volunteer, even if they can just do one day a month at the nursing home or animal shelter. They should be able to find a group in the area they’re interested in … if you can just help on one little project, you’ll be amazed at how good it makes you feel.

“Fortunately, I had time,” Kessler added. “So, I tried to put it to good use.”