2024 in Review

At Peace of Mind: Your Journey, Your Way, our first years were dedicated to learning, building relationships, defining our mission, finding and creating opportunities for the participants we serve, and identifying our place and purpose amid human service organizations within Laramie and Albany County.

2024 was a year of unimaginable growth. We more than doubled both the number of participants we serve and our team of dedicated direct support professionals. Our team worked diligently to keep expenses to a minimum in order to use our funds to make opportunities possible for the people we support including major sporting events, Laramie and Wyoming events, shows, hikes, and even reaching a dream of noodling in Oklahoma.

Led by our Training Coordinator, Logan Roszel, we joined the Department of Vocational Rehabilitation to provide employment services through DVR and the STEP program through Laramie High School. Our Assistant Director, Lynora Tolman, procured an affordable professional marketing assessment and plan. She established a social media committee and launched an ambitious social media campaign aimed at sharing our mission, showcasing the difference we make on a daily basis. We had our share of challenges, but this year held many moments of joy and pride at the progress we made together.

As we swirl into our fourth year, we have set some bold and lofty goals. As a team we will be working to clearly define our goals and specific action steps to reach them.

First and foremost, with the threat of budget cuts this summer, we must, as always, focus on building and diversifying funding. The bulk of our funding comes from the Medicaid waiver. While continuing, and increasing, our fundraising efforts, our goal is to add a board member with fundraising and grant writing experience to help us find potential donors and seek nonprofit grants. We have started a fundraising committee, but we need a knowledgeable leader to guide our team.

Secondly, we have been working to build a durable medical equipment loaning closet including disaster supplies and guides to disaster planning. We hope to partner with Albany County, WY Emergency Management and Albany County Fire District # 1 Central this year to host a disaster emergency planning workshop specifically geared toward the people in our community who have disabilities and their teams. We are quickly outgrowing our space, so part of this goal includes developing a partnership with other community agencies to assist with storage solutions. As a volunteer for the American Red Cross of Wyoming Disability Integration Initiative, I’ve seen first hand the critical need for these programs following Hurricane Ian, Helene, and Milton. We may not have hurricanes in Wyoming, but we certainly do have wind! I learned that the scariest part of riding out the hurricane in Orlando for someone from Wyoming is the water. Our winds speeds exceed hurricane winds way too often!

Finally, we will begin the process of bringing adaptive sports to the forefront in Laramie and Albany County by developing a loan program for adaptive sports equipment. Twenty five years ago, I dreamed of starting a respite care program for kids with disabilities attached to a ski resort to provide a meaningful sports experience for kids while their parents could enjoy the slopes. We hope to partner with other agencies in and around the adaptive sporting community to develop inclusive options. This goal is definitely a long term goal. It’s huge! It’s exciting! It’s terrifying! I can’t wait to get started!

We hope you will join us in working to find the resources, funding, and partnerships to achieve these goals for our community! I can’t imagine a better team to embark with on this exciting journey. As my husband likes to say, we are the Peace of Mind you’re looking for.

Here’s wishing you a year of health, wealth, and endless opportunities!

Happy New Year!


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