#WyoStrong stories, brought to you by Wyoming Community Bank, highlight Wyoming perseverance, ingenuity, creativity and resilience.
Banners for each student in the graduating classes from Pathfinder High School (PHS) and Lander Vallery High School (LVHS) will be hung on the light poles up and down Lander’s Main Street.
You will be able to see the Class of 2020 starting Sunday, May 10th, and they will come down on Friday, May 29th, shared organizer and Class of 2020 parent Tara Berg. The senior banners will only be hung on empty light poles so the deployed LVHS grad service member banners will remain up.
Tara explained she saw the idea on Facebook and connected with Patti Massey who spearheads the athlete banners for senior nights. Part of the concern for this recognition was timing. Being able to have someone make the banners, have a fast turnaround time to get them in hand, and coordinate hanging them up all before graduation. Fortunately, Tara has already received them from Fremont Auto Reconditioning. “They were great to work with,” she said. “A great group of parents are already lined up to hang the banners as well.”
Another main factor was collecting senior photos from students since they are working remotely. Tara was able to get most of them from the yearbook at LVHS, and Gannett Peak Elementary staff member and Class of 2020 parent Chanin Thomas organized getting senior photos from PHS.
Tara and her husband Brett, Fremont County School District #1 Board Chairperson, had planned to donate the funds to make this special recognition happen. However, throughout the process, there have been so many donations made by businesses, and Lander residents, Tara shared. Along with significant donations from Napa Auto Parts, Western Printing, and Tara and Brett’s business Baldwin Creek Rental Company, an additional $1,000 has been donated by community members, not just parents, to see this through.
“The City of Lander has been exceptional in trying to recognize the students,” Tara said. “There has never been any hesitation with them.”
After the banners come down, it hasn’t quite been decided yet where they will go immediately after. They might go directly to the students or be hung on Baldwin Creek Road by LVHS near where the senior athlete’s banners are currently displayed.
