“I can’t believe something like this actually happened,” senior Joi Blackmon said into the microphone. “What started as a guest speaker became a school project that is now here in front of the governor. I just didn’t think things like that could happen.”
Blackmon and 14 other Triumph High students were among the special guests at the Wyoming State Capitol on Wednesday the 12th to witness Governor Mark Gordon sign House Bill 246, “Wyoming Wednesday”, into law.
The bill is a culmination of the efforts the Cheyenne and Triumph community put forward to encourage “unity in the community” through the wearing of Brown and Gold on Wednesdays.
The guest speaker Blackmon referred to is Angel Maldonado, community organizer and owner of Presidential Barbershop, who introduced the “Brown and Gold”, “unity in the community” ethos to the senior class in September. He and many other individuals that visited Triumph, in Spartan Day activities or the January 15 “Kickoff” assembly, were also present at the Capitol.
“Having so many of the people that participated in this project be here now is just awesome”, student Layla Guevara said.
Over the course of the schoolyear, the senior English class and other motivated students planned community outreach, the school assembly, and produced Triumph-designed and –created t-shirts to spread the message.
It has been an invested, diligent effort. Many of the same students had attended the capitol the previous month to support the bill’s introduction in the House by Representative Clarence Styver, the bill’s sponsor. Meeting the legislators and gaining insight into the process inspired some of the students to use their own voice. Blackmon spoke before the governor and assembled officials, as did students Saphearya Brownson and Ben Brannan.
“I’ll keep it short”, Brownson said. “I just want to say that this is something I never thought we could do or be a part of. It’s so cool to be here!”
Gordon started the event by welcoming the students and other guests by sharing some of the unique features of the room, including the embroidered chairs representing each of the 23 counties in the state.
“I really like the art and the history of the capitol”, said student Isaac Perry, who had visited the capitol on the earlier field trip. “That was cool detail.”
The painting Potter’s Bull by English artist Thomas Mesker (famed for the two bullet holes in the canvas, resulting from its days hanging at the historic Cheyenne Club) was the backdrop for the commemorative photos of the event. Many of the students queued up to get their own unique photos with the governor. The students also received commemorative pens Gordon used to sign the bill.
In a Facebook post later that evening, Governor Gordon called the signing “inspiring”. “What began as a barbershop conversation about division in public life became a school effort at Cheyenne’s Triumph High School to encourage community spirit and unity, and to spread that message statewide.” Triumph’s students were specifically cited in the post as support for the bill’s passage.
The Wyoming Wednesday bill encourages Wyoming citizens to wear brown and gold on the second and fourth Wednesday of every month, reminding the people of the state that whatever their divisions and conflicts, there is one thing we all share: an obligation to be good neighbors.
