Ranching: the Land, the Lifestyle, the Legacy program

Date: June 7, 2007
Contact: Christine Czazasty, 307-467-5283 x 224

June 7, 2007                                                                                                                   

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE             

The Cultural Program Series continues at Devils Tower National Monument with Pat Frolander presenting “Ranching: The Land, The Lifestyle, The Legacy” at 8:00 p.m. in the amphitheatre on Thursday, June 14, 2007. This program will examine family ranching and passage to the younger generation. Maintaining open space in the west and its influence upon those who visit or plan to make their home here is given careful consideration. 

Ranching, by its very nature, provides wildlife habitat, scenic vistas, recreational opportunities and open space. In Wyoming, about twenty-five million acres is used for agriculture but since 1998 about 100,000 acres have been subdivided for development. The American Farmland Trust estimates that 2.6 million acres of prime ranchland could be converted to residential development by 2020. The Cowboy State has a rich history of ranching industry. People are drawn to the culture, vested in tradition, just as they are drawn to the wildlife that shares the same grassland as livestock. The land has sustained both for many generations. Private land provides fifty-six percent of the yearlong range and thirty-two percent of the migration corridors used by antelope, deer, moose, bighorn sheep and elk.  

Pat Frolander and her husband Robert own his family ranch in the Wyoming Black Hills near Sundance. Thirty-eight years of agricultural lifestyle have provided a wonderful environment in which to raise their family including three children, seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Pat has served as Wyoming’s representative to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, President of Wyoming Cattle Women Inc., Board of American National Cattle Women, Inc., Committee Chair of Wyoming Stock Grower’s Association, President of Crook County Cattle Women, Inc., as well as serving among various other boards and organizations.                             

All programs are free with paid $10/vehicle entrance fee into the monument. Program will move to the park's picnic shelter during inclement weather. For more information contact the Devils Tower Visitor Center at 307-467-5283 x 635 or visit our website at www.nps.gov/deto.