DOC bringing back community service program

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
After over a year of lockdowns at Wyoming Department of Corrections facilities sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the department will be bringing back the community service program by mid-summer. 
According to the DOC compliance manager, C.J. Young, both the community aspect and the fire mitigation aspect for a number of inmates from the Wyoming Honor Conservation Camp, located north of Newcastle, will return. Up to 60 individuals have participated in the program, depending on their security classification, he said. 
At the start of the pandemic, the program stopped, as reported by City Engineer Mike Moore during a council meeting. At that time, he said that regular city employees were taking on the additional tasks that DOC inmates had been doing. 
Last year, the Weston County Fairgrounds also expressed the need for more volunteers as it prepared for the annual county fair due to the lack of assistance from the honor camp because of the lockdown. 
“The WHCC crews are a huge benefit to our fairgrounds. While we were able to use their crews, our fairgrounds looked better than ever,” manager Kara Fladstol Brown said. “Also, their assistance in the past has allowed us to make some major improvements and our facility more marketable.” 
She noted that the crews have helped with everything from grounds maintenance to performing essential aspects of setting up and cleaning up during the fair. 
“After not having them available this last year, we have realized how much we rely on their assistance throughout the year and especially at fair time,” Brown said. “The Niobrara County Fairgrounds and Wyoming State Fair managers have also expressed how much they have missed having the crews and how difficult this last year has been without their assistance. These crews are one of the ways small fairgrounds like Niobrara, Crook and Weston are able to operate and have successful fairs.” 
According to the department’s website, the Wyoming Honor Conservation Camp crews have helped with various projects in addition to the fairgrounds  in both Weston and Crook counties.  City parks in Newcastle, Upton, Lusk, Moorcroft and Sundance, Weston County Road and Bridge, prescribed burns with U.S. Fire, and wildland fire fighting in Wyoming and South Dakota are among those who benefit from work done by the DOC crews.