“Five, Six, Seven, Eight, ready?”  National High School Finals Rodeo Queen Chelsea Lind said.  She led the group of Queen contestants in line dance practice to the George Strait song, “Good Time,” in the Heritage Center at Camplex on Friday.

National High School Finals Rodeo contestant Jade Blackwell kicks back in his friends truck outside of the Wyoming Center on Saturday.

Oklahoma National High School Finals Rodeo contestants from left, Lane Wilhelm, Joe Lufkin, Cody Goertzen and Todd Lindstrom,right, from Garden Valley, Idaho, listen to rules and guidelines during the mandatory meeting at Morningside Park in cam-plex on Sunday.

National High School Finals Rodeo contestant Kale McKenzie,18,left, is following his father’s legacy by competing in the finals. Allan McKenzie won the National High School Finals in 1983.

Jack Kitaif competes in the bareback riding event of Tuesday evening’s performance of the National High School Finals Rodeo at Cam-plex.

National High School Finals Rodeo contestant Sam Williams, of Greenbrier, Ark., plays his guitar and sings in the band, Fallen Oak, when he is not involved in rodeo activities.

Todd Lindstrom wrestles with his steer during second performance in the National High School Finals Rodeo on Monday morning.

Jacey Johnson finishes through the poles during performance number five on Tuesday evening.

A jackrabbit haulted events in both arenas of Morningside Park at Cam-plex Tuesday evening during the fifth performance of the National High School Finals Rodeo.  The jackrabbit eluded any who attempted to catch it as it darted between the barrel racing and the bull riding arenas for about five minutes.

Cutting contestant Corbin Carpenter, of Jonesville, La. broke his neck in 2008 while bullriding. Carpenter said a lot of work and prayer helped him to recover from breaking his C6 and C7 vertebrae.

Guinness World Record attempt

Nate, our photo editor

Mancel Griggs, of Frasier, Colo. bows his head during the opening prayer of Wednesday morning’s performance of the National High School Finals Rodeo.  Griggs’ son, Josh, is competing in this year’s rodeo.

National High School Finals Rodeo contestants from left, Will Gentry, Blaine Corey, Chris Rinn and Kane Larsen finish trap shootng at the Gillette Gun Club on Wednesday.

Jake Choate finished his bareback ride with no score in the performance eight on Thursday morning of the National High School Finals Rodeo with a time of 25.771.

Trevor Kautzman finished with no score in the team roping event during performance eight on Thursday morning.

Warren Frey traveled to the National High School Finals Rodeo from Eunice, La. to see three of his grandchildren compete, Shane Frey, Kaitln Frey and Kylie Frey.

Jerry Harper, of Paradise Valley, Nev. serves up a full breakfast of eggs, pancakes and bacon to his rodeo family, including his NHSFR contestant son Sam, at right.  Jerry and Nancy Harper’s other son, Joe, is also competing in the rodeo.  The Harper’s set up their canvas tents and teepees on a campsite in the Boxelder campground.  For several months each year the Harper’s have a nomadic lifestyle, living out of their tents as they move their cattle across a 50 mile ranch in Nevada.

Sienna  Rucker of Homer, Alaska, finished with a time of 19.36 in the barrel racing event during performance eight on Thursday morning.

Nick Armstrong escaped an aggressive bull after no score in the bull riding event of performance eight on Thursday morning.

Talent show- shot through some stage equipment

National High School Finals Rodeo contestant Clay Elliott rises from his saddle bronc ride with no score in performance 11 on Friday evening.

Dalton Cooper,18, of Enterprise, Kansas, prepares for his bull ride during the tenth performance of the NHSFR on Friday morning. “I’m not scared, I just have respect for the animal,” Cooper said.  After two rerides Cooper finished with no score.

Dalton Cooper,18, of Enterprise, Kansas, prepares for his bull ride during the tenth performance of the NHSFR on Friday morning. “I’m not scared, I just have respect for the animal,” Cooper said.  After two rerides Cooper finished with no score.

National High School Finals Rodeo fans watch as the American flag is displayed during the singing of the national anthem at the opening of performance 11 on Friday evening. Friday’s rodeo performances were dedicated to the United States military service men and women.

Taylor Canaday of Grangeville, Idaho made it through the poles with a score of 26.312 in performance 11 of the National High School Finals Rodeo on Friday night.

Karl Milner has 27 species of pheasants, there are 62 species living in the world.  Milner said his goal is to own all 62 species, which will be a challenge because some breeds are very rare.  A Chinese Ringneck pheasant makes his way around the pen at Lakenvelder Farm.

Bob White Quail

Karl Milner cradles a bundle of one day old Chuckars inside a 95 degree brooder on his farm.  Milner keeps the birds in constant heat for six weeks, then moves them outside so they can learn to maintain their body temperature.

Temmericks Trogopan pheasant

Ray Kruse passes over his horse, “Fancy,” to his daughter, Cassidy, as she competes in the Campbell County Cowgirls events at Cam-plex on Tuesday evening.  The Campbell County Cowgirls and Cowboy’s will meet on Thursday, then take a break for the rest of the month due to the National High School Finals Rodeo.

Gillette Heat softball’s 16U team watched their teammate, Shelby Ryno, tobble over a fence to catch the ball during warm up practice before their game against the Cheyenne Extremes at Bicentennial Park on Friday.

Gillette Heat softball’s 16U team warmed up before their game against the Cheyenne Extremes at Bicentennial Park on Friday. Gillette beat Cheyenne with a score of 7-5.

Gillette Heat softball’s Aspen Richardson waits in the dugout for the game to open against the Cheyenne Extremes at Bicentennial Park on Friday.

Karl Milner and his son, Theodore,8, catch Broad Breasted White turkeys inside one of the brooders on their farm, Lavenvelder Farms, on Tuesday.  Milner and Theodore handed the turkey’s over to Milner’s wife, Kathy, for her to move them to an outside pen.  After Milner’s birds hatch in an incubator they are kept inside brooder under constant heat for up to six weeks then moved to outside pens as they grow.

I got to hold one of the beauties

“All I’m catching is seaweed,” Nathan Coor,9, said.  He put down his fishing rod and laid back on the grass to take a rest.  ”We got up really early, he’s still tired,” Taylor Coor,12, said.  Nathan and Taylor joined their older brother, Floyd Hackett, and Hackett’s father-in-law, Junior Manson, at the Fishing Lake on Thursday morning. In their first hour the group caught and released two Bullhead Catfish and one trout. Nathan and Taylor,of Springtown, Ark., come to Gillette for two months each year during their summer break to visit family.

Carson Martinson,6, studies the clay whistle made by Will Lopez,18, during “Mud Week” at the AVA art center on Wednesday.  Lopez shaped his whistle into a duck and named him Super Duck.  Mud week is offered from 9:00 a.m. to noon through Friday.  The class is focused on teaching the fundamentals of working with ceramic pottery. Students between kindergarten and sixth grade have learned how to create pinch pots, coil pots and slab pieces.

Stocktrail Elementary kindergarten students line up behind their teacher, Melissa Wooldridge, to head outside during their celebration of “End of the Ol’ Stocktrail,” on Wednesday, June 2, 2010.

Our reporter Michael DiBiasio on assignment in the best light

Our reporter Tony Raap on assignment

About 15 Wild Horse 4-H Club members joined together using toothbrushes and scrub brushes to clean the Samson statue on 4J Road on Friday.  The 4-H’ers clean and wax the statue twice a year through Gillette’s adopt a statue program.

The man Andy Chapman on left.

From a paintball story just outside of Gillette

Gillette Rustler Keegan Williams slides safely into second as Rapid City Rising Star Matt Skinner leaps for the catch during the second inning of their game at Legion Field on Tuesday.

Megan Zigray,12, holds closely to her family’s five year old dog, Tank.  ”We thought he was a little dog and he should have a big name,” Zigray said.  She sat on her perch with Tank to watch her brother, Austin Zigray, play short stop for the Gillette Rustler’s in their game against the Rapid City Rising Stars on Tuesday.

Our reporter Steve, he rocks

Gabriel Prosser,4, glides down the slide on the Raider ride at the North Star Amusements Carnival on Thursday.  The carnival is set up in the Aquatic Center parking lot and will continue through Saturday night.

Children riding the Pharaoh’s Fury feel their stomachs turn as they reach the peak of height at the North Star Amusements Carnival on Thursday.  The carnival will continue through Saturday, it is located in the Aquatic Center parking lot.

Our Dustin.  Legend.

Our Nate on the right interviewing Charley, a youth pastor in town that organized a local mission trip to fix up the home of a family in need in Gillette.  The following images are from that story.

Casey Brown,24, from left, and Jessi Runyon,13, paint plywood flooring pieces in front of Dena Lindstrom’s home on Tuesday.  New Life Wesleyan’s youth group took part in a local mission trip and renovated home of Dena and her two children, Janeaha,16, and Jamie,12.

Kyla Mock,16, from left, and Paige Austin,17 work against paint dropping from the ceiling as they prime a bedroom in the home of Dena Lindstron on Tuesday.  Mock and Austin took part in a mission trip with their youth group at New Life Wesleyan Church to repair and restore the Lindstron home in Gillette.

Sara Reile,18, from left, Amy Bradley,17, Callie Wilson,18, Paige Austin,17, scoop up pieces of sheet rock and plywood debri in the living room of Lindstron’s home on Tuesday.  The Lindstrom’s home had holes in the floor, broken windows, leaky plumbing and a broken stove before the youth group took up the renovation mission.

New Life Wesleyan youth member Jessi Runyon,13, leaps up the new deck steps at the Lindstrom home on Thursday.  Donated building materials scattered throughout the yard were used to restore the mobile home.

Callie WIlson,18, sweeps the hallway of Lindstrom’s home late in the evening on Thursday, June 18, 2010.

At 9:15 p.m. on Thursday New Life Wesleyan youth group members Cassie Williams,13, from left, and Jessi Runyon,13, paint the living room of Dena Lindstrom’s home.  The group worked late each night to reach their goal of completion by Saturday.

Paige Austin,17, from left, and Amy Bradley,17, plant flowers along the outside of the Lindstrom home on Friday, June 18, 2010.

Charley Carpenter, youth pastor of New Life Wesleyan Church, receives a hug from his daughter Faith,3, as he coordinates details of the mission on his cell phone.  Carpenter was constantly in touch with several local companies who donated materials for the renovation.

Liquivision Technology Diving Services diver, Uriah Redberg, left, suits up his co-worker Tyson Parker as he prepares to dive into the City of Gillette’s million gallon sized water tank on Wednesday. Parker worked to pump out sedament and inspect the tank.

Adam Boothe waits for cars to approach the hospital so that he can offer valet parking services on Thursday.

Hladky Construction employees Justin Eliassen, left, and Mario Torres lay out their retaining wall measurements at Sage Valley Junior High School on Friday, June 18, 2010.  Projects including new staircases and handrails are scheduled to be completed by Aug. 13.

Thermopolis, Wy.

Thermopolis, Wy.

Hot Springs in Thermopolis, Wy.  Travel story with Michael DiBiasio, captions coming soon.

Reporter Michael DiBiasio

Dark humor.

J.B. King works with his group to design, cut and weld a piece of art during the welding rodeo event in the Donkey Creek Festival on Saturday.  Participants welded art work to fit under the “Western Spirit” theme of the competition.  The welding rodeo was open for the public to watch from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Kain Sherman,10, signs a message to his father before releasing the balloon at a roadside memorial where his father,Jeffrey, died in October 2008.

Reashell Sherman rests her hand on a roadside memorial for her late husband, Jeffrey, who died in a car crash in October 2008. Reashell Sherman’s cousin, Christopher Sievers, also died in the crash.  Sherman put a sign on the wooden post that read “Love Never Dies.” Family and friends signed the post and placed flowers at it’s base.  About  25 people attended a rememberence ceremony on Saturday at the crash site south of Gillette.

Campbell County Human Society President Jennifer Hackney rescued Tanner three years ago.  “I’m very proud of him because he’s a cool dog,” Hackney said.

Campbell County High School Head Soccer Coach, Carl Matson, gives instructions to the girls team during their practice on Tuesday, May 18, 2010.

Campbell County High School junior Missy Schultz defends the goal during practice on Tuesday, May 18, 2010.

Kaiah King,3, rests from her perch as students and parents tour the projects at the 2nd Annual Elementary Technology Showcase at the Lakeway Learning Center on Thursday, May 20,2010.

“I’m a movie buff,” Schaefer said. He watches about two movies a week during his off work hours, usually he prefers a snack of cherry pepsi and hot tamalies.  As an employee Schaefer is allowed to bring his family and view movies for free at the Foothills theater.

“Thank you, have a good day,” Rod Schaefer said as customers left from viewing Shrek The Final Chapter at Foothills Theater.  Schaefer said the customers are great because they’re always in a good mood when coming to the movies.

Rod Schaefer,General Manager at the Foothills movie theater, starts the film, Letters to Juliet, on Wednesday, May 26, 2010.  Schaefer always watches the opening scenes to be sure the film is playing properly.

Left to right, Delaney Knottnerus, Eric Borchers, Alyson Borchers, Desha Matuska and Emma Jarvis watch the hail storm from inside the Foothills theater on Wednesday, May 26, 2010.

“That was freaky,” Desha Matuska said as she held up pieces of hail to show Alyson Borchers, at right, outside the Foothills theater following the hail storm on Wednesday, May 26, 2010.

Paintbrush Elementary fifth grader Josh Kuhbacher placed 5th in the 75 meter dash during the track day held at Campbell County High School on Tuesday, May 25, 2010.

Sunflower Elementary fifth graders from left, Adie Polk, Demi Paben, Sydney Bond, Cheyenne Domingue and Sarah Kramer cheer on their classmates during the track day at Campbell County High School on Wednesday, May 25, 2010.  All fifth grade students in the county were invited to participate in activities including a meter dashe, shot put, relay race and softball throw.

Sunflower Elementary third grader Brandon Blankenship tries his hand at roping a practice steer head during a field trip to the Rockpile Museum on Tuesday, May 25, 2010.

me

Electrical foreman Stephen Necklason, left, hands over a U.S. flag to Apprentice Lineman Jimmy Wenzel on the corner of Douglas Highway and Eighth Street.  Gillette Department of Utilities issued 60 flags for Necklason and Wenzel to place on Wednesday, May 26, 2010.  The flags are in honor of Memorial Day, they are scheduled to stay up through the Fourth of July.

Twin Spruce eighth-graders follow assignment instructions from their teacher, Braidi Lutgen, during their leaf morphology lab exercise at Lasting Legacy Park on Wednesday, May 26, 2010.

“I love the smell of these things,”Bridgette Arhart said as she breathed in the Crabapple blossoms during her leaf morphology lab exercise at Lasting Legacy Park on Wednesday, May 26, 2010.

Twin Spruce eighth-graders from left, Chris Vaughn, Adam Coggeshall and Kyle White tackle their leaf morphology lab exercise at Lasting Legacy Park on Wednesday, May 26, 2010.  Their science teacher, Braidi Lutgen escorted the class of 21 students down to the park to complete the lab activity.  Students were instructed to collect five different leaf samples from around the park, then compare and identify the collection to their class morphology descriptions.

My co-workers.

Thomas Ivancsich, left, and Thomas Dunkl make their way toward Buffalo on Interstate 90.  Relatives from Eisenstadt, Austria, the two are in a journey across the United States on their bicycles.  Their trip began in Brooklyn on May 1, 2010.  They’ve traveled an average of 80-90 miles per day and expect to reach Los Angeles by June 27, 2010.  “It’s our first time in America and the people are very friendly, nice and helpful,” Dunkl said.  “The land is, wow.  It’s great, it’s so big.”

“This is a lot of toothpaste,” Rochelle Ross said.  The five-year-old helped her mother, Terrina Ross, separate the donated items for troops serving at Camp Leatherneck in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. The comfort items were collected on a Campbell County School District bus driven by Jimmy Bentz and parked outside of Wal-Mart to accept donations for the troops at Camp Leatherneck. Personal items such as sunscreen, eye drops, skin lotion and towels were collected for the troops after a fire destroyed most of their supply.

Loretta Maynard, Donald Smith and Lukas Najera,3, sign a banner for troops serving at Camp Leatherneck in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. The banner was taped on  a Campbell County School District bus driven by Jimmy Bentz and parked outside of Wal-Mart to collect donations for the troops at Camp Leatherneck. Personal items such as sunscreen, eye drops, skin lotion and towels were collected for the troops after a fire destroyed most of their supply.

Kayla Graves dives into a group hug with her classmates following their graduation from Campbell County High School on Sunday, May 30, 2010.

My fantastic co-workers Michael and Nate following graduation coverage!

Home in Lizella, Ga.

Brenda rescued the earth worms in Bowling Green, Ky.

Bowling Green, Ky.

Munfordville, Ky.

Indiana

Missouri

OMAHA

Iowa

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Gillette, Wyoming

Gillette, Wyoming

Brenda ate this for her husband Mark.

My neighborhood in Gillette

At Devil’s Tower National Monument

Outside of my apartment

Black Hills, South Dakota

Heading east on I90

Badlands National Park, South Dakota