Wyoming Prospectors Association

03/13/2026

Good afternoon, members!!

I apologize for the delay in getting this out, the board was struggling with deciding whether to have a meeting this month, or not...

We have decided to skip this meeting for a couple of reasons:
-The main reason to have a meeting this time of year is to finalize the date of the annual outing and start working on the location.
-We received VERY FEW responses to the question of having the outing in July versus June, and every one of them was just fine with moving the date, so at the next meeting we will finalize that the date for the 2026 annual outing will be July 31-Aug 2, as this was the most preferred of the 4 responses that we received.
-We will be having a corner post subcommittee meeting after the next regular meeting, so we wanted to make sure that all of the members know about it so that you can all make it to the meeting. The corner post committee will begin working on this project as soon as possible once this ridiculous winter/spring is behind us, so we want to be prepared to start ASAP.

With this information, our next meeting will be APRIL 11, 2026. The meeting will be held at the Grubstake in Atlantic City, unless the weather takes a drastic turn and buries Atlantic City in snow. The restaurant has graciously accepted our reservation for lunch at noon, followed by the meeting at about 1 pm. If you want to eat lunch, try to be there a little before noon, so that we can get our orders in and be ready to start the meeting by 1. Also, there will be the corner post committee meeting following the meeting.

09/25/2025

Come see us this Saturday at Eastridge Mall in Casper! We'll be set up at the craft fair, doing panning demonstrations and giving out information about the Wyoming Prospectors Association!

06/25/2025

NOTE ABOUT WATER FOR OUTING.
The water for the outing should be fine the creek just needs to be damned just below the crossover if you look down the creek from the cross over you will see evidence of where it's been damned before it doesn't take much just enough to get two or three inches to run over the bank to the right of the dam into the ponds we usually dam it up on Thursday about noon and by Friday noon the ponds are almost full by Saturday morning they'll be full if you have any questions about where to find it text me or or call 307-33-8871

06/25/2025

Outting Reminder

From: Wyoming Prospectors
Sent: Tuesday, June 24, 2025 10:47:09 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients:@.MISSING-HOST-NAME.
Subject: Quick Reminder

Good evening, fellow gold enthusiasts! As a reminder, our annual outing is this weekend, June 27-29th. We are gathering at Ron Bixler's property, located about a mile east of Atlantic City on the Fort Stambaugh Loop road. There will be signs posted for those of you who have never been there.

I was up on the mountain earlier this week, and stopped in at the site. I don't know if the beavers changed their dam, or someone destroyed the one that was holding most of the water in at the site, but there is VERY LITTLE WATER to be found now, and it isn't easily accessible. If you have recirculating equipment, that will be the best option, as the ponds are almost completely dried up. We will still set up as much as possible, just come prepared if possible!

Saturday evening will be the annual meeting, at which time we will elect new officers and go over pertinent business.
Volunteer organizations can't survive if the members don't help. We need people to help in leadership positions, as well as maintaining our claims and submitting forms to show work done on each claim. WE CAN'T DO THIS WITHOUT ENOUGH PEOPLE STEPPING UP TO DO THEIR PART!! We understand that not everyone is physically capable of doing the hard work, but if everyone does what they can, it will help so much!

Prior to the meeting on Saturday, we will barbeque hamburgers and hot dogs. All members are welcome to join us for the dinner meeting. Please bring a side dish or dessert if you can! After the meeting, we will hopefully get a fire or two going, and enjoy each other's company.

I hope to see many people on the mountain this year, even if you can only make it for the day on Saturday!

01/07/2025

WPA NOV. MINUTES
Wyoming Prospector’s Association
Regular Meeting Minutes
November 9, 2024
The meeting was called to order at 10:05 a.m. at Next Level Gymnastics in Riverton.
Officers present: Bob Platzer (President) via phone, Shawn Raymond (Vice President), Jacque Stoldt (Treasurer), Esther Jarvis (Secretary), and Deb Palmer (Board Member).
There were 20 members, 3 kids at the meeting.
Esther Jarvis read the meeting minutes from the September 14, 2024 meeting. Les Armstrong motioned to accept the minutes as read. Shawn Raymond seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Correspondence: No correspondence at this time.
Jacque Stoldt read the treasurer’s report. Shawn Raymond motioned to accept the treasurer's report. Deb Palmer seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed. There was a discussion regarding the CD and savings interest rates. Jacque Stoldt was able to negotiate a higher rate with the bank for the CD’s that were coming due as well as the savings accounts.
Officer/Committee Reports: Claim Post Committee: Bob needs a list of who wants to help with this. Jacque will create that list and get it to Bob. Will plan to do the work in late spring/early summer.
Old Business:
The canopies are not on sale yet and have not been purchased yet. Bob stated that they still have not received the BLM paperwork yet for the club claims. Bob called and was reassured that it was approved and should expect to receive it mid-November. We still need gold for the WPA – Randy called and no one is willing to sell their gold.
Keith Blair requested information from Wyoming.com for a secure site and hasn’t received anything from them.
New Business:
There was a request made that not just board members make motions and seconds, so it doesn’t appear that only board members are present and making decisions. Allowing the general membership to make motions ensures they agree and are being listened to.
Motion was made to give a $50 donation to Next Level Gymnastics for allowing the WPA to use their facility for the meetings. Joyce Raymond motioned to accept the motion. Rosemary Blair seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
The next meeting will be on January 11, 2024. Location: Next Level Gymnastics, 29 Country Acres Rd., Riverton, WY (just north of Walmart). We will have a carry-in potluck lunch at noon, followed by the meeting at 1.
Jacque Stoldt won the 50/50 raffle.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:55 p.m.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP WITH ANYTHING RELATED TO THE WPA, FEEL FREE TO
CALL 307-333-3061 OR EMAIL [email protected]

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09/05/2024

Minutes AUGUST 2024
Wyoming Prospector’s Association
Regular Meeting Minutes
August 10, 2024
The meeting was called to order at 10:16 a.m. at Miner’s Grubstake in Atlantic City.
Officers present: Bob Platzer (President), Jacque Stoldt (Treasurer), Esther Jarvis (Secretary), and Deb Palmer (Board Member).
There were 19 members, 1 guest, and 4 kids at the meeting.
Esther Jarvis read the meeting minutes from the June 22, 2024 meeting. Paula Jones motioned to accept the minutes as read. Bob Platzer seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Correspondence: Jacque discussed that the Prospector’s mining journal had an article about the BLM increasing fee for mining claims, she was not sure if this affects the WPA due to the exemption. Randy stated it will affect new claims and the fee is going from $160 to $220 per claim for the BLM not the county fees. Bob stated that he has the exemption paperwork and will send it on Monday as the latest it can be postmarked is September 1st, 2024. Currently, it is $15 per claim and $105 total – Bob will call and see if the fees have increased. Jacque stated the mining journal also had an article discussing progress towards reclamation dredging in California and this may be eventually help make progress for Wyoming.
Jacque Stoldt read the treasurer’s report. Les Armstrong motioned to accept the treasurer's report. Deb Palmer seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Officer/Committee Reports: Nothing at this time.
Old Business:
Outing: Jacque thought it was more successful than last year – had more people come and stay with 3 new memberships and an additional membership about 2 weeks later. The raffle was successful and there was a positive $436 from the outing whereas last year it was negative about that same amount (this was including all the costs such as food, port-a-potty’s etc.).
Day In The Park: A table was purchased for $76 due to the late fee. Five members attended and assisted with the table. Sold $110 of merchandise and 9 raffle tickets. 2 new members signed up from attending day in the park. Downsides – it was very hot and the spot was out of the way by the politicians. Discussed that this would be good to continue, but to sign up early and try to get a table in a better location. Jacque and Sierra stated there was booth that was making blown glass necklaces, and they were about to have their gold put in the glass and have it put on a necklace. They talked to him and it will cost $10 per necklace to make, will need to supply the gold to be put in the glass. Could have these made for a fund raiser or to have in supply to sell. It was discussed that the association’s supply of gold is dwindling and will need to replenish. Randy will call Carl Anderson who has offered to sell the association some gold in the past. The gold can be sent in plastic vials each with a certain amount of gold in it. Seirra motioned to make 10 necklaces for awareness and get more people interested in joining the association. Jacque seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed. Suggested to sell them for $30 to $40 to make some money off them. Price will be determined at a later date.
Bob discussed that the canopies are old and the association needs to invest in 2 more 12 x 12 canopy’s. Also discussed having some posters made up with pictures for membership recruitment (include benefits, what the association promotes), also discussed having photos of some of the claims to show at events like Day In the Park. Randy stated he has a print out of the association purpose. Discussed could print out posters and store them in a large tube to prevent them from creasing/tearing. Jacque motioned to purchase 2, 12x12 canopy’s and to be looking for them on sale with the season ending (limit will be $400 for both). Deb Palmer seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed. Jacque will send an email out when she finds a good deal and asks others to be looking for deals and notify her.
Coin Raffle: Not many tickets have been sold – we have 240 tickets out and only a handful have come back. 1000 ticket were made and the price for each is $10, and Randy is donating 2 Morgan silver dollars for 2nd and 3rd place. The drawing will be held at the September 14th meeting. Anyone interested in selling tickets needs to email [email protected] or call 307-333-3061. Jacque will make a flyer to put up around town and to send to members in other towns to put up to try to get more tickets sold. Please send your tickets to the PO Box by the Monday before the meeting (September 9th) if you are not planning to attend the meeting on September 14th when the drawing will be held.
Ordering sweatshirts/jackets: Double Dutch designs has been trying to email the invoice to the current Wyoming.com email and it has not been going through – it is a good thing we have a new email address.
Gold Rush Days: Terry Anderson was there for both days. Several members helped on Saturday and 2 people (Terry Anderson plus one more person) helped on Sunday. There was a lot of kids that participated. Gold Rush Days is always the weekend after July 4th. There is a scavenger hunt on August 17th up at South Pass City. Jacque will try to sell some tickets there. Laurel Nelson mentioned that people have asked about gold panning that used to happen in Atlantic City in front of the Grubstake. Could consider doing that again along side another existing event in Atlantic City.
Part of the gift for Bixler was sent to him. We are waiting on the rest of the order from Double Dutch Designs to send the rest.
Emailing out meeting minutes: Please let us know if you want to get the paper copies of the meeting minutes. This will be the last minutes that will be mailed to everyone. If you want to continue receiving paper copies, you must call Jacque at 307-333-3061 or Esther at 307-855-9327. Moving forward, they will all be emailed.
The next meeting will be at the Miner’s Grubstake in Atlantic City on September 14, 2024. Breakfast will be available for $14.00 per person if you would like to eat. We will meet at 9:00 am for breakfast, and begin the meeting when we finish eating, around 10:00. Drawing for the coin raffle will take place that day – you do not need to be present to win.
Jacque Stoldt won the 50/50 raffle.
The meeting was adjourned at 11:21 a.m.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP WITH ANYTHING RELATED TO THE WPA, FEEL FREE TO
CALL 307-333-3061 OR EMAIL [email protected]

08/02/2024

JULY MEETING MINUTES
Held June 22nd at Outing
Wyoming Prospector’s Association
Regular Meeting Minutes
June 22, 2024
The meeting was called to order at 6:06 p.m. at Bixler’s property near Atlantic City.
Officers present: Jim Brines (President), Shawn Raymond (Vice President), Jacque Stoldt (Treasurer), Esther Jarvis (Secretary), and Deb Palmer (Board Member).
There were 32 members, 2 guests, and 11 kids at the meeting.
Esther Jarvis read the meeting minutes from the June 8, 2024 meeting. Shawn Raymond motioned to accept the minutes as read. Chip Lansbury seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Jacque Stoldt read the treasurer’s report. Shawn Raymond motioned to accept the treasurer's report. Kim Raymond seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Correspondence: No correspondence at this time
Officer/Committee Reports: Nothing at this time.
Old Business:
Coin Raffle: Jacque was able to get the raffle tickets for the 1/10th ounce gold coin that was purchased. We will sell 1000 tickets for $10 each, and Randy is donating 2 Morgan silver dollars for 2nd and 3rd place. The drawing will be held at the September 14th meeting. Anyone interested in selling tickets needs to email [email protected] or call 307-333-3061. The tickets will be sold in books of 10 and each member can obtain 2 books at a time. More can be given, but the money for the books given out will need to be collected first. We will mail tickets to anyone who can’t be delivered to in person.
Day In The Park: There was discussion about having a booth at the day in the park in Riverton. This is on the same day as the memorial for Eugene Raymond. There will be a cost for the table. It is July 13th, from 8-3.
New Business:
Emailing out meeting minutes: There was a discussion about those wanting a hard copy mailed versus emailing the minutes out. Stamps are going up to $0.73 per stamp in July, there have also been issues with the Wyoming.com email system (being able to attach the minutes, etc.). Discussed setting up a Gmail account and utilizing a Google Drive to share files, keep an updated roster, etc. A live updated rooster can be shared there with a column that denotes who would like to have a hard copy mailed and who prefers an email sent. The biggest benefit of utilizing email to get minutes out is the cost-savings. Jacque Stoldt motioned to create a Gmail email account. Shawn Raymond seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed. Please let us know if you want to get the paper copies of the meeting minutes. This will be the last minutes that will be mailed to everyone. If you want to continue receiving paper copies, you must call Jacque at 307-333-3061 or Esther at 307-855-9327. Moving forward, they will all be emailed.
Grubstake: There was a discussion about ways to track who gets a breakfast at the meetings there. At the last meeting there may have been 4 breakfasts that were charged for, but did not actually eat. It was decided to have a sign up sheet on the officer’s table for who eats breakfast to ensure that everyone who eats pays and to avoid being charged for breakfasts that are not eaten.
Elections:
President: Bob Platzer was nominated by Esther Jarvis, Shawn Raymond seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed. Vice President: Shawn Raymond volunteered. All ayes; motion passed. Treasurer: Jacque Stoldt was nominated by Shawn Raymond, Larry Carter seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed. Secretary: Esther Jarvis was nominated by Shawn Raymond, Bob Platzer seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed. Shawn Raymond moved to cease nominations, Terry Anderson seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Since Bob Platzer is the claims agent and president. The vice president will need to verify claims are done correctly.
The next meeting will be at the Miner’s Grubstake in Atlantic City on August 10, 2024. Breakfast will be available for $14.00 per person if you would like to eat. We will meet at 9:00 am for breakfast, and begin the meeting when we finish eating, around 10:00.
Ty Jarvis won the 50/50 raffle.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:56 p.m.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP WITH ANYTHING RELATED TO THE WPA, FEEL FREE TO
CALL 307-333-3061 OR EMAIL [email protected]

07/13/2024

We're all set up at Day in the Park!! Come learn how to pan for gold, get raffle tickets for a 1/10 ounce gold coin mined and milled in the South Pass area, and become a member today!!

07/13/2024

Join us at Riverton's Day in the Park tomorrow from 8-3! We'll have a booth in the city park, and we'll be teaching gold panning and selling raffle tickets! See you there!

07/09/2024

COIN RAFFLE

Wyoming Prospectors Association is raffling off this 1/10th ounce gold coin, with proceeds to benefit the Association! This coin was mined and milled right here in the South Pass area! It is #168 of only 250 made. It will be a collector's item!
Tickets are $10 each
The drawing will be held September 14th, at the Miner's Grubstake in Atlantic City. You need not be present to win.
We are only selling 1000 tickets for a chance to win this piece of Wyoming gold mining history! Message us to get tickets now!!

06/19/2024

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP WITH ANYTHING RELATED TO THE WPA, FEEL FREE TO CALL 307-333-3061 OR EMAIL [email protected]
*We will nominate and vote on officers at the meeting*
Everyone is welcome to come to the annual outing and attend the meeting after the meal on Saturday evening. There is a minimal charge for guests for dinner.
Some highlights of the annual outing:
*WPA merchandise will be for sale
*Gold panning, highbankers, sluices, drywashers will be set up and running
*Metal Detecting Competition (bring your metal detectors!)
*Dinner and meeting Saturday evening
*Breakfast Sunday morning
*Raffles and 50/50 drawing Saturday evening
*Many laughs and great conversations!!

Wyoming Prospector’s Association
Regular Meeting Minutes
June 8, 2024
The meeting was called to order at 10:06 a.m. at the Miner’s Grubstake in Atlantic City.
Officers present: Jim Brines (President), Shawn Raymond (Vice President), Jacque Stoldt (Treasurer), and Deb Palmer (Board Member).
There were 19 members, 1 guest, and 2 kids at the meeting.
Shawn Raymond read the meeting minutes from the April 13, 2024 meeting. Paula Jones motioned to accept the minutes as read. Les Armstrong seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Jacque Stoldt read the treasurer’s report. Shawn Raymond motioned to accept the treasurer's report. Paula Jones seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Correspondence: No correspondence at this time
Claim Post Committee: 1 post was replaced last month on the North East corner of the Mary D1 claim.
Old Business:
Annual Outing: Remember that the Saturday dinner is a potluck meal!! The WPA is providing pork and beef roast, hamburgers and hot dogs. Plan to bring a side to go with these meats!
Coin Raffle: Jacque is going to take our plan to the print company in Riverton and have them create raffle tickets for the 1/10th ounce gold coin that we bought. We will sell 1000 tickets for $10 each, and Randy is donating 2 Morgan silver dollars for 2nd and 3rd place. It was decided to have the drawing at the September 14th meeting. Hopefully, we will have the tickets before the Day in the Park in Riverton. We can kick off the fundraiser there. Anyone interested in selling tickets needs to email [email protected] or call 307-333-3061. We will mail tickets to anyone who can’t be delivered to in person.
New Business:
Day In The Park: There was discussion about having a booth at the day in the park in Riverton. It would be a great opportunity to kick off raffle ticket sales, and if we have some help, we can do a gold panning station as well. Please let us know if you can help with this event! It is July 13th, from 8-3. Any help is appreciated!
Gold Rush Days: South Pass City’s Gold Rush Days will be held July 6th & 7th. They are looking for volunteers to help teach gold panning during the event. A few people stepped up to help at the meeting. If you can help, even for just a few hours on one of the days, please let us know ASAP!! It is a blast and it is so neat to watch kids’ eyes light up when they see the gold!
The next meeting will be at Bixler’s property near Atlantic City on June 22, 2024 following the meal.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:57 a.m.

05/29/2024

Meeting Minutes May 11, 2024
The meeting was called to order at 10:22 a.m. at the Miner’s Grubstake in Atlantic City.
Officers present: Jim Brines (President), Shawn Raymond (Vice President), Jacque Stoldt
(Treasurer), Esther Jarvis (Secretary), and Deb Palmer (Board Member).
There were 20 members and 4 kids at the meeting.
Jim Brines read the meeting minutes from the April 13, 2024 meeting. Shawn Raymond
motioned to accept the minutes as read. Barbara Martin seconded the motion. All ayes;
motion passed.
Jacque Stoldt read the treasurer’s report. Shawn Raymond motioned to accept the treasurer's
report. Deb Palmer seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Correspondence: The annual USPS fee was paid. Shawn Raymond motioned to renew PLP
membership. Barbara Martin seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Claim Post Committee: will work to get the posts set on the Mary D-1 today.
Old Business:
Annual Outing: The outing will be June 21st-23rd this year. Ron Bixler agreed to host us again, so
it will be in the same place as last year, next to the old Bridgebuster claim. We are asking that
you tell us if you are going to come, so that we can have a head count for the dinner. You can
email [email protected] or call or text 307-333-3061 to RSVP. Port-A-Potties are set up.
Randy might be able to get a gold medallion that was made with South Pass gold for $300.
Discussed buying one for a fundraising raffle. Jacque Stoldt motioned to purchase one if
available. Deb Palmer seconded the motion. All ayes; motion passed.
Jacque Stoldt contacted the ICMJ regarding an ad for the outing and it would need to be sent in
earlier. ICMJ staff suggested to Jacque to advertise for 2 months prior to the event. Other local
venues such as County 10 are expensive. Could have a staff member from County 10 come to a
meeting and report on the meeting.
Les & Janiece won’t be at the outing. They will set up & take down the signs and bring the
cooker up. They will not be able to get ice or cook, Les offered use of coolers if needed. Shawn
will get ice if he is here and Keith will get the ice if Shawn gets called out. Randy will do the
cooking.
Gold in Your Backyard: Keith Blair stated the idea is still going and he needs anyone’s ideas.
They are still looking for someone with a dredging operation. Email Keith
([email protected]) with any ideas.
Memorial Service will be held on July 13th for Eugene Raymond at 10am at the Davis Funeral
Home in Riverton, a light luncheon will be served at the Reach Foundation following the service.
Anyone is welcome to bring a dish to share.
New Business:
The next meeting will be at the Miner’s Grubstake in Atlantic City on June 8, 2024. Breakfast
will be available for $14.00 per person if you would like to eat. We will meet at 9:00 am for
breakfast, and begin the meeting when we finish eating, around 10:00.
Deb Palmer won the 50/50 raffle.
The meeting was adjourned at 11:22 a.m.
PLEASE RSVP BY THE JUNE 8th MEETING TIME IF YOU ARE PLANNING ON COMING TO THE
ANNUAL OUTING ON JUNE 21st - 23rd
TO RSVP FOR THE OUTING, OR IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP WITH ANYTHING RELATED TO
THE WPA, FEEL FREE TO
CALL 307-333-3061 OR EMAIL [email protected]