Wyoming
Drag queen fundraiser bashed by Wyoming GOP lawmakers for $3K health dept. grant; event raises HIV/AIDS awareness, treatment funds
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — A Wyoming Legislature group has criticized an upcoming drag bingo fundraiser as misappropriating state funds for its event. A representative from the Wyoming Department of Health shot that argument down.
On April 10, the Wyoming Freedom Caucus released a statement admonishing the health department for awarding a $3,000 grant request for organizers of the annual Drag Queen Bingo event, hosted by Wyoming AIDS Assistance, on April 27 in Laramie. The caucus stated in its release that it believes the use of tax dollars to fund the drag event is “an insult to those who have suffered and lost their lives to this deadly and serious disease,” referring to AIDS and HIV.
“Taxpayers should not be expected to fund the escapades of ‘boozed up cowfolk’ at ‘R-rated’ drag shows,” the caucus states in the release. “Publicly funded AIDS prevention efforts should be targeted on evidence-based strategies — not a perverted and scandalous event.”
The far-right legislative group, comprising 11 members in Wyoming’s House of Representatives, states on its website that it champions “smaller government, strong family values, and the protection of individual freedoms and liberties as outlined in the U.S. and Wyoming constitutions.”
Department of Health’s response
The health support organization Wyoming AIDS Assistance, which hosts the annual drag event, applied for and received just under $3,000 of federal funds through the Wyoming Department of Health’s Communicable Disease Unit, according to health department public information officer Kim Deti. The grant program’s purpose is to help prevent infections and disease by dispensing small grants to organizations working to achieve such ends.
“Because the event [Drag Queen Bingo] also includes an emphasis on disease prevention and testing in addition to its fundraising purpose, this expenditure of federal funds was deemed appropriate by unit staff,” Deti told Cap City News via email.
The grant awarded to Wyoming AIDS Assistance covers the cost of HIV prevention messaging and rapid HIV tests, which are freely available to attendees at the bingo event, according to Scott Cheney, founding member and board president with the organization. Cheney and Wyoming AIDS Assistance have requested and received the state grant for the drag event for around a decade.
“Through partnerships, volunteers and the incredible generosity of donors, we’ve made significant strides in raising awareness, reducing stigma and improving access to resources for individuals living with HIV and AIDS in Wyoming,” Cheney told Cap City News in an interview. “I think a lot of people want to think AIDS isn’t a problem anymore — and it still is. It has been for years. We’ve made strides in treatment, but strides in treatment don’t pay for someone living in Jackson to travel to Cheyenne for their treatments.”
The Communicable Disease Unit approves grant requests for a variety of organizations and initiatives, Deti said, including public nursing offices and nonprofit health clinics. Past grant recipients have used the funds for efforts such as testing, training of healthcare providers, distribution of infection prevention materials like condoms, advertising and education.
According to guidelines provided by Deti, the purpose of the grant is “to support community efforts in Wyoming which promote HIV, Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI), and viral hepatitis B & C prevention and testing as well as MPOX prevention and testing.”
‘Vital resource’ for Wyomingites with HIV and AIDS
The annual Drag Queen Bingo is the only fundraising event that Wyoming AIDS Assistance hosts, said Cheney, who has been operating the organization since the early 2000s. Drag Queen Bingo would be lucky to collect $1,000 in the organization’s early years, Cheney said. In 2023, Drag Queen Bingo raised $44,000.
Cheney and his team have raised $750,000 since Wyoming AIDS Assistance’s inception in the early 2000s. Every dime raised remains within the state of Wyoming and is directly given to residents living with HIV.
The bingo fundraiser isn’t just about entertainment, according to Cheney. The event provides free HIV rapid testing to guests and disseminates prevention messaging to attendees throughout the night. Overall, the event is consistent with Wyoming AIDS Assistance’s mission of raising awareness about HIV and supporting Wyomingites living with the virus.
“At the end of the day, what we’re doing matters,” Cheney said. “We are a vital resource to the state, to our communities, and we have been one for over 20 years. And we’re not going to stop.”
Wyoming
Wyoming 3A and 4A Boys Basketball Regionals Tip Off Postseason Play
The 2026 postseason has arrived for Wyoming High School boys’ basketball teams in Class 3A and 4A. They participate in regional tournaments from Thursday through Saturday. The regionals will be in Buffalo, Evanston, Gillette, and Lovell. Three sites will use the format: two wins qualify a team for the state tournament next week in Casper, or two losses eliminate a team. The 4A East Region has three loser-out first-round games on Thursday, followed by two days of games for seeding. The 4A East Regular Season champ draws a first-round bye and has qualified for the state tournament.
WYOPREPS 3A-4A BOYS BASKETBALL REGIONAL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULES
Except in the 4A East Regional, Friday starts with elimination games. The regional semifinals are on Friday night. The final seeds for next week’s state tournament will be determined on Saturday. The schedules below for this weekend are based on the brackets sent to WyoPreps. It is subject to change.
THURSDAY, MARCH 5:
Final Score: (3) Pinedale 58 (6) Mountain View 40
Final Score: (2) Cody 58 (7) Powell 46
Final Score: (1) Lovell 75 (8) Lyman 43
Final Score: (4) Lander 65 (5) Worland 40
FRIDAY, MARCH 6:
Game 5: Mountain View vs. Powell, noon – loser out
Game 6: Lyman vs. Worland, 1:30 p.m. – loser out
Game 7: Pinedale vs. Cody, 6 p.m. – semifinal
Game 8: Lovell vs. Lander, 7:30 p.m. – semifinal
SATURDAY, MARCH 7:
Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 8, 11 a.m. – loser out
Game 10: Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 7, 11 a.m. – loser out (at LMS)
Game 11: Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10, 5 p.m. – 3rd Place Game
Game 12: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 2 p.m. – Championship Game
THURSDAY, MARCH 5:
Final Score: (3) Douglas 85 (6) Rawlins 50
Final Score: (2) Wheatland 57 (7) Burns 40
Final Score: (5) Torrington 35 (4) Newcastle 28
Final Score: (1) Buffalo 69 (8) Glenrock 44
FRIDAY, MARCH 6:
Game 5: Rawlins vs. Burns, noon – loser out
Game 6: Newcastle vs. Glenrock, 1:30 p.m. – loser out
Game 7: Douglas vs. Wheatland, 6 p.m. – semifinal
Game 8: Torrington vs. Buffalo, 7:30 p.m. – semifinal
SATURDAY, MARCH 7:
Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 8, noon – loser out
Game 10: Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 7, 1:30 p.m. – loser out
Game 11: Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10, 7:30 p.m. – 3rd Place Game (if necessary)
Game 12: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 4:30 p.m. – Championship Game
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THURSDAY, MARCH 5:
Final Score: (NW-3) Kelly Walsh 64 (SW-2) Riverton 49
Final Score: (NW-1) Natrona County 77 (SW-4) Jackson 23
Final Score: (NW-2) Green River 50 (SW-3) Evanston 40
Final Score: (SW-1) Star Valley 62 (NW-4) Rock Springs 60 – Erickson makes a turnaround jumper at the buzzer off an offensive rebound for the Braves.
FRIDAY, MARCH 6:
Game 5: Riverton vs. Jackson, noon – loser out
Game 6: Evanston vs. Rock Springs, 1:30 p.m. – loser out
Game 7: Kelly Walsh vs. Natrona County, 6:30 p.m. – semifinal
Game 8: Green River vs. Star Valley, 8 p.m. – semifinal
SATURDAY, MARCH 7:
Game 10: Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 7, 11:30 a.m. – loser out
Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 8, 1 p.m. – loser out
Game 11: Winner Game 10 vs. Winner Game 11, 4:30 p.m. – 3rd Place Game (at EMS)
Game 12: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 4:30 p.m. – Championship Game
THURSDAY, MARCH 5:
Game 1: (1) Sheridan = Bye
Final Score: (2) Cheyenne Central 75 (7) Cheyenne South 35 – Bison are eliminated
Final Score: (3) Thunder Basin 75 (6) Laramie 59 – Plainsmen are eliminated; Bolts qualify for state
Final Score: (4) Campbell County 59 (5) Cheyenne East 39 – loser out; Thunderbirds are eliminated; Camels qualify for state.
FRIDAY, MARCH 6:
Game 6: Cheyenne Central vs. Thunder Basin, 4:30 p.m. – semifinal
Game 5: Sheridan vs. Campbell County, 7:30 p.m. – semifinal
SATURDAY, MARCH 7:
Game 7: Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6, 11:30 a.m. – 3rd Place Game
Game 8: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 2:30 p.m. – Championship Game
James Johnson Winter Showcase Basketball Tournament 2026
Photos from game action at the James Johnson Winter Showcase tournament in Cheyenne.
Gallery Credit: Courtesy: Shannon Dutcher
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