Wyoming

One couple relocated from Wyoming to South Carolina but moved after 5 months due to cost of living and traffic

Published

1 year ago

September 28, 2024

Press Room

One couple relocated from Wyoming to South Carolina but moved after 5 months due to cost of living and traffic

Morgan and Dawson Mitchell moved to Charleston in March.
They planned to stay for a while, but the cost of living made it difficult.
They relocated to Mississippi to help build their financial future instead.

Morgan and Dawson Mitchell were sick of the cold when they decided to move to Charleston, South Carolina.

The Mitchells are originally from Mississippi but moved to a small town in Wyoming in 2022. By the end of 2023, the couple said they were ready for their next adventure.

After visiting Charleston in January of the same year, they decided it would be ideal for their next move.

“Charleston seemed like a great place to have good weather and move back to the South a little closer to family and friends,” Dawson, 27, said.

“I love beach towns,” Morgan, 28, added. “And I was in the wedding and events industry, and that’s really, really big in Charleston, so I was super interested in it.”

When Morgan was offered a job in the events industry in Charleston in March 2023, it seemed like the perfect chance to relocate. Dawson worked as a bartender and server when they arrived in Charleston, and he was hired as an HVAC sales representative three months into their move.

But just five months after they relocated, the Mitchells discovered Charleston didn’t live up to the hype for them.

Charleston challenges

The Mitchells told Business Insider that the cost of living in Charleston almost prevented them from moving there.

According to Zillow, the median rent in the city is $2,800, but the Mitchells didn’t want a place that cost more than $2,000 a month, so they struggled to find an apartment.

“That was just shocking to us being from rural areas,” Dawson said, adding that it was important to stay within their budget, as they knew they could afford a mortgage for less in other areas.

Eventually, they found an apartment to sublet on Facebook Marketplace with five months left on its lease for $1,850 each month.

The cost of living in Charleston was difficult for the Mitchells.

Morgan and Dawson Mitchell

“It was very much like, ‘Let’s just do it for five months,’” Morgan said. “‘If we don’t like it, if it doesn’t work out, we don’t have to stay.”

Once they moved to Charleston, the cost of living continued to be a pain point for the Mitchells regarding expenses like eating out or gas prices. They said gas was particularly frustrating because they found themselves stuck in the car more than they anticipated.

Their rental was just eight miles from the office where Morgan worked, but she said she spent at least 45 minutes in the car each way to and from her job.

“It’s very low country, so there’s not a whole lot of open land to build new roads and infrastructure,” Dawson said.

“For us, our quality time together is really important, and we were stuck in the car separate for so long,” Morgan said. “We have Banjo, our dog, so by the time we made it home, it was like, ‘OK, go take him out, cook dinner, time for bed.’”

“All of our free time dwindled,” she added.

Morgan said she spent most of her birthday visit to King Street, a major shopping destination in the city, in July trying to park.

“I almost gave up,” she said. “I was just trying to take myself to Sephora for a nice little treat, and I had to make rounds for 45 minutes trying to find a parking spot.”

Missing Southern charm

The Mitchells also hoped that moving to Charleston would help them reconnect with the Southern culture they had been missing while living in Wyoming.

But they said Charleston didn’t feel as Southern as they thought it would. They said they had few chances to connect with other Southerners during their time there.

Despite life’s difficulties in Charleston, the Mitchells tried to prepare to stay longer term.

“We did put an offer in on a house, and we were really excited to stay there for a couple of years, and then that fell through,” Morgan said.

They said they could have renewed their lease on their rental, but the management company that owned it increased their rent to $2,250 a month, which they weren’t willing to pay.

The Mitchells couldn’t find another apartment under $2,000 that fit their needs. They said the only options they found were in areas where they would not have felt comfortable walking Banjo at night.

Soon, it felt like they weren’t destined to stay in Charleston as they had thought.

“We love and kind of take pride in the fact that we’ve bopped around and moved all around and like going on these little adventures,” Morgan said. “But we did want to be closer to family; his grandparents are getting older.”

The Mitchells also plan to invest in real estate, but given the cost of living in Charleston, they didn’t feel like they could launch that career there.

“We started taking all these things as signs, and we’re like, ‘We have this opportunity to get out and go somewhere cheaper and build our savings,’” Morgan said.

Returning home

Morgan and Dawson ultimately moved back to Louisville, Mississippi, when their lease in Charleston expired on August 1.

When the Mitchells spoke to BI, they had just signed a new lease in Louisville on an apartment that costs just $1,350 a month — $900 less than they would have paid on their similar Charleston unit.

Morgan and Dawson also started new jobs when they moved. Morgan is now a social media manager at a medical facility, and Dawson is working remotely as a loan originator. Dawson said the HVAC company he worked for in Charleston offered him a slight raise when he put in his notice, but it wasn’t enough to entice them to stay.

“We just knew it wasn’t the right thing,” Dawson said.

Despite moving twice in such a short period, the Mitchells told BI they have no regrets about their stint in Charleston.

“I think it was just one of those things that we had to try it for ourselves to be able to come back here,” Morgan said.

Though they can still see themselves moving around throughout their lives, the Mitchells said they are excited about the financial opportunities returning to Mississippi offers them.

“We chose to come back to Mississippi because our money will go so much further,” Dawson said. “We can buy two properties for what half a property in Charleston would cost.”

“We’re always going to look back and be like, ‘What a fun summer we had,’ but we knew it wasn’t long-term,” Morgan said, reflecting on their time in Charleston. “So we might as well just come back here and start building our savings the best we can.”

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Wyoming

Wyoming Coaches Pick the Best of 1A & 2A Boys Basketball in 2026

Published

5 hours ago

March 11, 2026

Press Room

Wyoming Coaches Pick the Best of 1A & 2A Boys Basketball in 2026

The top boys’ basketball players in Wyoming for Classes 1A and 2A were chosen for the 2026 high school season. The Wyoming Coaches Association has unveiled the all-state awards for this year, as voted on by the head coaches in the two classifications, respectively. The Wyoming Coaches Association only recognizes one team for all-state, and only these players receive an award certificate from the WCA. WyoPreps only lists all-state players as defined by the WCA.

WCA 1A-2A BOYS BASKETBALL ALL-STATE SELECTIONS IN 2026

Each class selected 14 players for all-state, reflecting a broad recognition of talent across Wyoming. Notably, congratulations go to Hulett’s Kyle Smith, Brady Cook from Lingle-Fort Laramie, and Carsten Freeburg from Pine Bluffs, who earned all-state honors for the third straight year. In addition, eight more players achieved all-state status for the second time in their prep careers.

Class 1A

Paul McNiven – Burlington

Bitner Philpott – Burlington

Ammon Hatch – Cokeville (All-State in 2025)

Hudson Himmerich – Cokeville

Kyle Smith – Hulett (All-State 2024 & 2025)

Anthony Arnusch – Lingle-Ft. Laramie

Brady Cook – Lingle-Ft. Laramie (All-State 2024 & 2025)

Tymber Cozzens – Little Snake River (All-State in 2025)

Corbin Matthews – Lusk

Max Potas – Meeteetse (All-State in 2024)

Jace Westring – Saratoga

Hazen Williams – Saratoga

TJ Moats – Southeast (All-State in 2024)

Nic Schiller – Upton

Read More Boys Basketball News from WyoPreps

WyoPreps 1A-2A State Basketball Scoreboard 2026

WyoPreps 3A-4A Regional Basketball Scoreboard 2026

WyoPreps Coaches and Media Final Basketball Poll 2026

1A-2A Boys Basketball Regional Scoreboard 2026

WyoPreps Boys Basketball Week 11 Scores 2026

WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-25-26

WyoPreps Boys Basketball Week 10 Scores 2026

WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-18-26

WyoPreps Boys Basketball Week 9 Scores 2026

WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-11-26

WyoPreps Boys Basketball Week 8 Scores 2026

WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-4-26

Class 2A

Caleb Adsit – Big Horn

Chase Garber – Big Horn

Carsten Freeburg – Pine Bluffs (All-State 2024 & 2025)

Mason Moss – Rocky Mountain

Oakley Hicks – Shoshoni

Kade Mills – Sundance

Cody Bomengen – Thermopolis (All-State in 2025)

Zak Hastie – Thermopolis

Ellis Webber – Thermopolis (All-State in 2025)

Joseph Kimbrell – Wright

Mitchell Strohschein – Wright (All-State in 2025)

Adriano Brown – Wyoming Indian

Heeyei’Niitou Monroe-Black – Wyoming Indian (All-State in 2025)

Cordell Spoonhunter – Wyoming Indian

The 2026 state champions were the Saratoga Panthers in Class 1A. They beat Lingle-Fort Laramie, 50-45, in the championship game. The 2A winners were the Thermopolis Bobcats, who repeated as champions, after a 45-38 victory over Wyoming Indian in the title game.

Lusk versus Rock River high school basketball 2026

Game action between the Tigers and Longhorns

Gallery Credit: Courtesy: Lisa Shaw

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Wyoming

New laws establish a statewide literacy program

Published

17 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

New laws establish a statewide literacy program

A pair of bills signed into law last week aim to build out a more comprehensive system of literacy education across Wyoming’s public schools.

One mandates evidence-based practices and requires regular screenings for dyslexia, while the other enables the Wyoming Department of Education (WDE) to hire a dedicated literacy professional to oversee statewide compliance.

Gov. Mark Gordon’s signing of both bills on Friday was the latest accomplishment of an ongoing push for improved literacy standards. That push has been spearheaded by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder.

“Wyoming is not going to let a single child fall through the cracks,” Degenfelder said during a public bill signing last week. “We are not going to fall behind when it comes to ensuring that our children can read at grade level.”

The primary bill, Senate File 59, establishes a statewide K-12 program for teaching students to read that is built on “evidence based language and literacy instruction, assessment, intervention and professional development that supports educators, engages families and promotes literacy proficiency for all Wyoming students.”

The bill defines evidence-based strategies as those that conform to the science of reading, a term that will be defined and updated by Degenfelder’s office. Nationwide, it generally means putting academic research into practice in classrooms. SF 59 specifically prohibits the exclusive use of “three-cueing” — a strategy once widely employed to teach reading but which education experts now say is outdated and less effective than other strategies.

It also requires annual dyslexia screeners for students below the third grade, and testing for reading difficulties for all students.

The screeners are used to identify the severity of reading difficulties in order to direct “tiered” support that offers the most intensive interventions to the students most in need, while still providing “evidence based” language instruction to all students.

Each school district must formulate an individualized reading plan “for each student identified as having reading difficulties or at risk for poor reading outcomes.”

Districts must now report to the state annually regarding their literacy-related work. Any district where 60% or more of the students are struggling will be required to implement “summer literacy camps or extended supports, including after school support and tutoring.”

The bill also requires literacy related professional development for teachers and specialists “appropriate to their role and level of responsibility” related to literacy education.

SF 59 was backed by dyslexia advocates and literacy specialists.

Senate File 14, the other literacy bill signed into law Friday, appropriates $120,000 annually for the next two years for a full-time position at WDE “to assist school districts in implementing a reading assessment and intervention program and language and literacy programs.”

Both bills go into effect July 1.

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Wyoming

Wyoming Announces 2026 Football Schedule – SweetwaterNOW

Published

1 day ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

Wyoming Announces 2026 Football Schedule

Samuel “Tote” Harris. Photo from gowyo.com

LARAMIE — The University of Wyoming and the Mountain West Conference announced the Cowboys’ 2026 football schedule Monday, a slate that opens with the Border War and concludes with back-to-back home games in Laramie.

Wyoming opens the season Sept. 5 on the road against Colorado State in the 118th edition of the Border War. The Cowboys then host Northern Colorado on Sept. 12 in the home opener before traveling to Central Michigan on Sept. 19.

The Cowboys begin Mountain West play Sept. 26 at home against Hawaii in a matchup for the Paniolo Trophy. Wyoming then faces back-to-back road games at North Dakota State on Oct. 3 and San Jose State on Oct. 10.

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Wyoming returns to War Memorial Stadium on Oct. 17 to host conference newcomer Northern Illinois before facing Air Force at home on Oct. 24. The Cowboys will have an open week on Oct. 31.

The Cowboys open November with road games at UNLV on Nov. 7 and at UTEP on Nov. 14, marking Wyoming’s first meeting with the Miners as members of the Mountain West. Wyoming closes conference play by hosting New Mexico on Nov. 21 and wraps up the regular season with a nonconference game against UConn on Nov. 28 in Laramie.

Each Mountain West team will play four home and four road conference games during the 13-week season, which will conclude with the Mountain West Football Championship Game featuring the two teams with the highest conference winning percentages. The championship game date will be announced later.

With the conference schedule set, Mountain West television partners CBS Sports, FOX Sports, and The CW will begin selecting broadcast games, which could include moving some contests to non-Saturday dates. Network assignments and kickoff times will be announced at a later date.

Season ticket renewals for the 2026 Wyoming football season are now available. Fans can renew their tickets online by visiting gowyo.com/tickets and logging into their account.

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