Better Wyoming works in communities to identify problems many of us face across the state and to figure out ways to solve them.
Better Wyoming was founded in 2017 and has been doing advocacy work ever since. In 2021, Better Wyoming identified affordable healthcare access as one of the largest needs in the state and started to advocate for Medicaid Expansion and other policies that could improve healthcare access in Wyoming.
Better Wyoming’s campaigns attract passionate community members who want to see real change and then empower them to become community leaders. By raising leaders and giving them access to tools and advocacy skills that can create tangible results for their communities, grassroots initiatives lead to systemic changes. As individuals learn about the political process and how to interact with their elected officials to demand better policies, they can begin to use these skills outside of just Better Wyoming’s advocacy work
This type of civic engagement helps create a government that is responsible to the needs of its constituents and brings about policy changes that improves Wyoming and concretely benefits people’s lives.
Our Mission
Better Wyoming works in communities to identify problems many of us face across the state and to figure out ways to solve them.
We strive to improve our lives and the lives of our family and friends by listening to people’s needs, concerns, and hopes and then bringing these folks together to convince state and local government to act on behalf of concrete change.
We do this through educating people about important issues, training them to be community leaders, and mobilizing them to participate in the decision making that impacts their lives.
Accomplishments
Over the years, Better Wyoming has published nearly 400 educational articles about issues throughout our state. We have trained hundreds of grassroots advocates and local leaders about how to effect positive change in their communities. Better Wyoming's advocacy work has helped fight off dozens of policies that would have been detrimental to the well-being of people in our state, and we have made progress and won several policies that have helped impact jobs, the environment, and healthcare access, including the passage of Medicaid for Moms and protecting the Wyo. Department of Health's budget.
Our goal is to ensure that every Wyomingite—no matter who they are—has the opportunity to lead a prosperous, happy, and productive life.
Our Team
Nate Martin
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Nate Martin is a journalist and community organizer born and raised in Rock Springs. He has led Better Wyoming since 2017. Prior to that, he worked 15 years in publishing, communications, and journalism. Nate lives in Laramie, where he serves as a trustee on the Albany County School Board. He enjoys reading, woodworking, and hunting mule deer. Email: nate@betterwyo.org
Bella Pope
STATEWIDE ORGANIZER
Bella Pope is an activist, scientist, and music lover from southeast Wyoming. They work to support movements for accessible and quality healthcare, rural LGBTQA+ rights, and racial/cultural liberation. A lifelong student, Bella spends their free time watercolor painting, cooking with outlandish ingredients, and trekking through wide open public lands. Email: bella@betterwyo.org
Angela Silvester
LEAD FIELD ORGANIZER – LARAMIE COUNTY
Angela Silvester is a disability rights and healthcare access advocate and an active community member. She grew up in Utah but has lived in Wyoming for more than a decade, including Cheyenne for the last 8 years. She is a single mom of two who works hard to support and advocate for her disabled son. She also enjoys going on walks, reading, hanging out with her kids, and playing poker with friends. Email: angela@betterwyo.org
Carla Gregorio
FIELD ORGANIZER – LARAMIE COUNTY
Carla Gregorio is a retired principal, consultant, and a community organizer residing in Cheyenne. She comes from a military family and is an American who has Hispanic ancestry. Carla has a courageous mother, four siblings, and is married to Nick Gregorio. They have one adult son, two grandchildren, and their dog, RIO. Carla’s stewardship involves assisting underserved marginalized and minority populations. She enjoys family, friends, traveling, gardening, and is an avid pickleball player. Email: carla@betterwyo.org
Dakota Metzger
FIELD ORGANIZER – FREMONT COUNTY
Dakota Metzger is an activist and social worker based in Lander. She grew up in Colorado but has lived in Wyoming for 13 years. In her free time, you can find her riding her gravel bike, listening to podcasts, and hiking Sinks Canyon with her dog, Bosler. Email: Dakota@betterwyo.org
Daniel Galbreath
FIELD ORGANIZER – NATRONA COUNTY
Daniel Galbreath is a nonprofit professional with focus on strategic communications and coalition building to make Wyoming a smarter and kinder place. Beyond his work with BW, he is active in LGBTQ+ organizing and advocacy. He also performs and teaches music. When he can, Daniel enjoys talking with unearned intensity about theology and roping his long-suffering husband into ambitious garden projects. Email: daniel@betterwyo.org
Kerry Drake
COMMUNICATIONS
Kerry Drake’s journalism career began in 1976 as a reporter and photographer for the Wyoming State Tribune. He has since worked as a reporter and editor for the Wyoming Eagle (1987 – 93) and the Casper Star-Tribune (1993 – 2013). He lives in Cheyenne with his wife, Corrynne, who’s a copy editor for WyoHistory.org. Email: kerry@betterwyo.org
Andrew Mittelstadt
DEVELOPMENT AND MARKETING MANAGER
Andrew Mittelstadt is a fundraiser and activist born and raised in Casper. Prior to joining Better Wyoming, he did conservation work throughout the state and worked in development for Wyoming Public Media. Andrew lives in Laramie where he enjoys cooking new recipes every night, attempting but failing to grow anything in his garden, and trying to keep up with his son. Email: andrew@betterwyo.org
Board of Directors
From left to right: Mike Geraci - Jackson - Co-Founder of DRMG.co, Liz Storer - Jackson - President & CEO of the George B. Storer Foundation, Jai-Ayla Sutherland - Casper - Program Officer/Mass Violence and Atrocities at Stanley Center for Peace and Security, Nate Martin, Executive Director at Better Wyoming, Grace Cannon-Wallace - Sheridan - Director of WYO Play, Susan Lasher - Cody - Writer/Editor
Better Wyoming in action
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