Needs increase as some funding sources become shaky at the Hub

When the former Executive Director of the Hub on Smith, Carmen Rideout, took the reins over 25 years ago, the board informed her that her priority should be the preparation of the influx of the Baby Boomer generation.   

For a quarter of a century, Rideout did just that; prepare the Hub for the growth of the largest generation of seniors the Nation has ever seen.  

Wyoming has a larger share of the Baby Boomer generation (born between 1946 and 1964) than the national average, according to reports from the Wyoming Economic Analysis Division. 

When the Wyoming Economic Analysis Division examined the U.S. Census Bureau estimates, they found that the elderly population (age 65 and over) in the Cowboy State grew 3.5 percent between July 2022 and July 2023. In comparison, Wyoming’s total population only grew 0.4 percent during that year. 

The following year, 2023, AARP Wyoming published the Wyoming Healthy Aging Data Report. The report stated that more than 95,000 people in Wyoming were age 65 and over and that number was expected to grow.

During a recent appearance on Sheridan Media’s Public Pulse, Hub on Smith Director of Development Ryan Koltiska said the Hub has seen an increase in the use of services and attendance of programs. 

R. Koltiska

The Hub on Smith only expects the need for services to grow in Sheridan County, even as some funding sources are on shaky ground or could be cut altogether. According to Koltiska, it’s something current Hub on Smith Executive Director Keri McMeans has firmly on her radar.

R. Koltiska

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