Four Wyoming Organizations Receive Community Challenge Grant Funding From AARP

Rooted in Wyoming

One of the Community Challenge Grants will go towards enhancements of the Sheridan VA Victory Gardens.

CHEYENNE —Today, AARP announced four organizations throughout Wyoming will receive 2024 Community Challenge grants – part of AARP’s largest investment in communities to date with $3.8 million awarded among 343 organizations nationwide. Grantees will implement quick-action projects that help communities become more livable by improving public places; transportation; housing; digital connections; and more, with an emphasis on the needs of adults ages 50 and older.

“AARP Wyoming is committed to working with local leaders, advocates and policymakers to make our communities better places to live for Wyomingites of all ages, especially those 50 and older,” said AARP Wyoming State Director Sam Shumway. “We are proud to collaborate with this year’s grantees as they make immediate improvements to address long-standing and emerging challenges across our communities.”

Here in Wyoming, projects funded include:

Rooted in Wyoming

Rooted in Wyoming will receive a $15,000 grant. The VA Victory Garden project in Sheridan will provide ADA paths, shade and irrigation to promote the health and wellbeing of elderly veterans. These upgrades will support local food production for community resilience and economic empowerment."The Sheridan VA Medical Center is a place of healing, and the Victory Garden is a special part of that work,” says Rooted in Wyoming Director David Johnson. “Connecting the community of veterans in Sheridan, Wyoming to fresh local food by empowering them to be part of growing their own produce is beneficial for their physical, mental, and spiritual health. Funding from the AARP Community Challenge Grant will be used to improve the Victory Garden by making it safer, more productive, and handicapped accessible for senior veterans. The AARP's support is greatly appreciated."

AARP's Sheridan Community Action Team

Catholic Charities of Wyoming will receive $12,000. This project will replicate a proven Care for Caregiver Workshops model which was piloted in Sheridan, in several Wyoming communities. It will provide training, ongoing support, and materials for the local programs.“The response to the Care for Caregivers Workshops held at Holy Name Parish in Sheridan in 2023 demonstrated that the workshops meet a real need in the community,” says Susan Bigelow, the project’s lead with Catholic Charities. “I am so pleased that through an AARP to Catholic Charities of Wyoming, we are able to expand that good work to three other Wyoming communities: Newcastle, Cheyenne and Casper. We have already met with church and AARP volunteers from those communities and started working on the three programs. In every case, local people have recognized the need that they believe this program will meet.”

AARP Wyoming

The City of Evanston/Urban Renewal Agency/Main Street Program will receive $12,500 in grant funding. This project will generate a more dynamic and active downtown with the purchase of three, concrete outdoor game tables placed in frequently visited public spaces and easily utilized by older adults and those with limited mobility.“We are super excited about receiving another AARP Community Challenge Grant award at the City of Evanston,” says Evanston Main Street Coordinator Meike Madrid.

“We thought such game tables would be ideal in our growing and active community, especially since they can be played by nearly every citizen or visitor of all ages and abilities. We are incredibly grateful to AARP for offering this amazing opportunity to improve the vibrancy and energy of our downtown, and we very much appreciate our partners for helping to make this possible, including the Evanston Chamber of Commerce, City Facilities Team, Parks & Recreation Department, Roundhouse Restoration, Inc., and the Evanston Urban Renewal Agency.”

Submitted by Buffalo, Wyoming's Legion

The American Legion Post in Buffalo will receive $5,350. This project will honor Veterans by installing 500 veterans markers in town cemeteries, and conduct outreach to their loved ones.“We are grateful to receive the grant from AARP,” said American Legion Spokesman Chuck Guilford. “This grant will facilitate the completion of this project that has been on-going for over five years. Veteran families have commended both organizations for taking on this important project for their loved ones who served this great nation.”

This year, AARP awarded three different grant opportunities, including flagship grants, capacity-building microgrants for improving walkability, bikeability and accessible home modifications, and demonstration grants that focus on equitable engagement to reconnect communities, housing choice design competitions and improving digital connections to endure disasters.

With funding support from Toyota Motor North America, the program is increasing its investment in pedestrian safety projects that will improve streets and sidewalks, create vibrant pedestrian infrastructure, engage community members and much more. AARP is also bolstering its investment in community resilience, rural communities, and addressing disparities.

“Whether it’s helping people access high speed internet or protecting public transit riders from rain and snow, small community projects can have a big impact on people of all ages,” said Nancy LeaMond, AARP Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer. “AARP Community Challenge grantees make our commitment to creating better places to live a reality through quick, innovative solutions.”

The grant program is part of AARP’s nationwide Livable Communities initiative, which supports the efforts of cities, towns, neighborhoods and rural areas to become great places to live for people of all ages, with an emphasis on people ages 50 and older. Since 2017, AARP [STATE] has awarded [NUMBER] grants and $[DOLLAR AMOUNT] through the program to nonprofit organizations and government entities across the state.

AARP Community Challenge grant projects will be funded in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. True to the program’s quick-action nature, projects must be completed by December 15, 2024.

View the full list of grantees and their project descriptions at aarp.org/communitychallenge and learn more about AARP’s livable communities work at aarp.org/livable.

Past Wyoming Community Challenge Grant Awards
The Casper American Legion received $30,000 for its Wyoming’s Fallen Memorial, a monument which will feature the name of every Wyoming citizen who has given their lives in combat defending the freedom of the United State since the start of Wyoming’s statehood. The Casper American Legion has worked with the Disabled American Veterans and Veterans of Foreign Wars to find a way citizens can observe the memorial by foot, wheelchair, or even car. The memorial is located at Patterson Park, along the North Platte River near Fort Caspar.

The Veterans’ Rock organization out of Cheyenne received $4,000 to help provide transportation to older veterans in hopes of helping them to stay independent. Veterans’ Rock will use this money to fund everything from rides in the organization’s vehicles, to city transit, commuter buses, and even to offer basic car repairs. Veterans' Rock, which opened nearly two years ago, is a nonprofit organization created solely to help veterans in need and their families with clothing, personal care items, foods, household goods, small apartment-size furniture, gas and food cards. The organization also offers veterans computers to help with job searches and telehealth, much needed gear, showers, and a washer and dryer for any veteran in need to do laundry.

Powder River Basin Resource Council (PRBRC) was granted $3,712 to provide accessible and safe seating and path lighting at an established community food forest frequented by families and older adults in Sheridan. The PRBRC and a host of dedicated food forest volunteers have been instrumental in developing and maintaining The Sheridan Food Forest over the last five years. The food forest is filled with apple and pear trees, as well as a wild berry thicket, vegetable garden, grape vines and a perennial pollinator garden and much more.

Children’s Museum of Cheyenne received $2,645 to provide a space for relaxation and contemplation on ADA-compliant outside benches, on the Children's Museum of Cheyenne property, close to the Greater Cheyenne Greenway. The museum will place the benches at 1618 O’Neal Avenue in Cheyenne and will be built by five retired volunteers. The Cheyenne Children’s Museum has recently begun construction of its facility.

The Town of Wheatland received $28,000 from AARP in 2021, which it used to construct pickleball courts at Lewis Park on Eighth Street in Wheatland. According to Wheatland officials, there are better than 100 pickleball players in town, ranging in age from 20 to 83. That group struggled to find a place to play last year during the COVID-19 pandemic. Wheatland used its grant funding to repurpose an underutilized area of the City Park. The community removed seven horseshoe pits (leaving five) and replaced them with two outdoor pickleball courts in an area with existing lighting, adjacent to existing restrooms.

In 2021, Evanston Main Street’s $12,550 grant went towards improving public spaces in downtown, as the Urban Renewal Agency plans to increase outdoor seating with the construction of two swing picnic tables, which will be placed in separate public gathering places.

One side of the picnic tables will be a solid bench, while the other side will have swings with the ends being open to allow for wheelchair accessibility. The second deliverable for the grant will be the addition of decorative crosswalks across Main Street. The crosswalks will bookend the area where the two swinging picnic tables will reside.

The Jackson Hole Land Trust was awarded a $10,250 grant from AARP in 2020 to provide benches in downtown Jackson. The Land Trust will partner with local artists and AARP’s Age Friendly Jackson, to purchase and install at least three locally-made benches. The benches will be located on The Block, a 1.3 acre of downtown greenspace that was recently preserved by the Land Trust. The Block will also include 100-year-old Cottonwood trees, ADA pathways through the greenspace. The Block is on the same street as a local assisted living center, and one block from the Jackson Town Square.

The Cokeville Senior Citizens Center is receiving $25,000 in 2020 Challenge Grant funds to improve walkability as well as the ability for citizens to access the town’s Senior Center. The grant is part of nearly $47,000 in community improvements, which will also include increasing access to the Cokeville City Park’s pavilion and restrooms, by adding ramps to each. The Cokeville project will include improvements to crumbling concrete, the addition of ramps, and replacement of a raised deck in the courtyard at the Senior Center, which will allow those with wheelchairs, walkers, or canes to take part in outdoor activities at the center.

In 2019, The North Main Street Association in Sheridan was granted $11,700 to fund a new gazebo, picnic table and nine benches along the North Main Trail. Meanwhile, The Jackson Hole Community Pathways project was awarded a $14,440 grant to help make downtown Jackson a more enjoyable space for the age 50+. Jackson Hole Community Pathways used the money on a design workshop to solicit input from those age 50 and over on downtown walkability, amenities, and activities. Pathways is also coordinating with Cycling Without Age and Teton Adaptive Sports for two Trishaw bikes that will provide rides to seniors around town.

In 2018, AARP’s Community Challenge program funded projects in Laramie and Rock Springs. In Laramie, a grant of $20,000 to fund a new fully accessible community garden to increase access to healthy food, multi-generational learning opportunities, and support a culture of health for all people living with mobility and disability challenges. In Rock Springs, a $5,000 grant has funded a mural to be prominently displayed in Downtown Rock Springs, which will depict the hard work and sacrifices of local miners and railroad workers.

In 2017, two Wyoming communities – Casper and Jackson – were awarded Community Challenge Grants. In Casper, the grant provided a safer and more convenient bus stop behind the city’s east side Albertsons at 2625 East Second Street. In Jackson, a similar bus stop was replaced in an area which was cluttered with weeds, a broken down vehicle and other trash in an underserved area of the community. A bench was placed on the site and age-friendly signage entices low-income seniors, disabled individuals, and young families to use the bus system.