Our legislators in the Wyoming State House and Senate are elected to represent their constituents when they show up to work and make decisions that impact our communities.
But if citizens don’t engage with their representatives (and vice versa), we can’t be surprised when those decisions don’t reflect the will of the communities that they represent.
While some lawmakers might dodge their constituents (don’t get the Albany County Chapter started on Rep. Ocean Andrew), most are willing to sit down and listen to what people in their community have to say. They can even be persuaded to change their mind on votes if given enough pressure from members of their community.
And that’s exactly what members of Better Wyoming’s Laramie County Chapter set out to do.
After meeting with Senator Evie Brennan, volunteers learned she was on the fence about a few key issues, including mental health funding for school counselors, a topic being debated in the “Recalibration” committee.
Sen. Brennan sits on that committee, as well as chairing the Joint Labor and Health Committee, making her a key person to influence.
The Laramie County Chapter decided to focus their efforts on reaching out to Brennan’s constituents. Over one weekend, volunteers canvassed her district in Cheyenne, going door-to-door to talk with voters about mental health in Wyoming’s public schools. They gathered more than 50 handwritten postcards from residents who supported directing more funding toward mental health providers in K–12 schools.
At the same time, Better Wyoming volunteers and organizers shared their message publicly, publishing op-eds like “Wyoming’s teachers are great—but they’re not mental health professionals” and “Mental health is education”, which made the case that investing in student mental health is vital to keeping Wyoming kids learning.
When it came time for a second meeting and for the chapter to deliver the postcards, Sen. Brennan declined to meet, citing a recent foot injury. With a bit of logistical handoffs, Better Wyoming’s director, Nate Martin, managed to get the postcards from Cheyenne and presented them to her during the recent “Recalibration” meeting in Casper.
While we have yet to see how Sen. Brennan will vote on mental health funding in public schools, Better Wyoming volunteers took action, got involved, and made their voices heard.
