Wyoming
Obituary: William F. Shepherd
William F. Shepherd: 1943 – 2024
William F. Shepherd, a still-life and landscape artist, was born in Casper, Wyoming. His father Walter (Shep) M. Shepherd owned Shepherd Motors in Casper and was a prominent leader (President) in the Central Wyoming State Fair. He attended the Natrona County public schools. His father and his mother, Mary Alice (MA) Brown, also had a small property outside of town where Bill learned about ranch life. He had two siblings, Suzanne (deceased) and W.M. Shepherd of Hot Springs, Arkansas. He graduated high school from Missouri Military Academy.
Bill enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served as a corpsman/medic in the early years of the Vietnam war, assigned to the Marine Corps. He served on South Vietnamese border near the Demilitarized Zone, where his unit engaged is some of the most heavy combat operations in the war. Upon the passing of his father, he returned to the US to serve out the rest of his military service.
Bill enrolled at the University of Wyoming on the GI Bill, where he studied art, earning a BFA in 1974 and an MFA in 1976. Settling in Laramie, he embarked on his lifelong career as an artist, painting both abstract and still-life works. His work became a study of movement, light, and color saturation, evolving into a signature exploration of these dynamic elements.
In the late 1970s, he began visiting galleries in Santa Fe and moved to Galisteo. He was mentored by Arlene LewAllen, a Santa Fe arts educator and gallerist who helped introduce Bill to the commercial art world. He settled in Nambé and spent most of the rest of his life living and painting at Las Acequias farm. Among his many friends in the Santa Fe art scene was his former partner, the late Gayle Maxon, Director of Contemporary Art and curator at the Gerald Peters Gallery.
During his early years in New Mexico, Bill painted trout streams, refining his craft and dedicating himself to capturing the motion of water and the light refraction off objects submerged beneath its surface on large oil canvases. He became renowned for his striking depictions of river rocks beneath rushing water, rendered on expansive canvases that conveyed both movement and depth.
Throughout his life, Bill had a deep love for the outdoors and adventure. He enjoyed hunting, trout fishing, rock climbing, kayaking, and cycling with friends and family. An avid traveler, he explored North America extensively, preferring long drives that allowed him to take in the countryside. A black belt in karate, he had a lifelong fascination with Samurai swords and collected several over the years. He also took great joy in participating in the Mother’s Day Whitewater Races on the Río Grande, an annual tradition in New Mexico. Bill embraced both the challenge of the whitewater and the camaraderie of the event, making it a cherished part of his life.
He frequently traveled to Mexico, exploring remote villages, camping, and collecting folk art. He kayaked across the Sea of Cortez, forming friendships with environmentalists in Baja California. His painting of the vaquita, a critically endangered porpoise native to the region, was featured on a Mexican postage stamp.
His artistic focus evolved from landscapes to still lifes depicting Western themes, which he painted in his adobe studio in Nambé. His oil paintings featured Navajo weavings, Hopi Kachinas, Pueblo pottery, Mexican souvenirs, and cowboy memorabilia—objects he meticulously collected during his travels throughout the southwestern U.S. and Mexico. This period marked the culmination of his mastery of light and shadow, as he developed a unique technique that captured the intricate surface topologies and morphologies of his subjects with absolute realism. His work became a study in precision, where every texture, reflection, and interplay of light was rendered with remarkable depth and authenticity.
He received numerous awards at Western art exhibitions, and his work is featured in the permanent collections of the St. Louis Art Museum, Lamar University, the University of Wyoming Art Museum, the New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe, and the Hirshhorn Collection in Washington, D.C., among others. His work is also held in private collections across the United States, including those of some of Wyoming’s most prominent figures—individuals who recognize and invest in exceptional art.
Bill’s legacy in American Realism continues through his works, which are represented at LewAllen Galleries in the Santa Fe Railyard.
Nick Perkinsnick@upslope.mediaEdit Profile
He is survived by his son, Matthew Girard Maxon with his wife, Aleishall; in-laws, Alexis and Marshall Girard; granddaughters, Toscana Paz and Matiz Pascal Girard Maxon; and his brother, W.M. Shepherd. He was a cherished uncle to William Carey Brewster, Jr of Lakewood, Colorado.
Bill’s family and many friends will miss his sense of humor and his zest for life.
–written by Donna Berg, Robin Martin and Bill Brewster.
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CASPER, Wyo. — High school athletics in Wyoming could see some drastic changes in the coming years following legislative changes to the state’s education budget, the Wyoming High School Activities Association recently announced in a statement.
According to the WHSAA, Wyoming school districts are facing a projected $3.9 million shortfall in activities funding, forcing officials to consider significant cuts to high school sports and extracurricular programs.
The WHSAA shared details regarding a new “silo” funding model implemented by the Legislature, stating that the recalibrated block grant model reduced funding for student activities and extra-duty responsibilities from $46.3 million to $42.4 million, an approximately 8.4% decrease statewide.
WHSAA Commissioner Trevor Wilson said the restructuring also restricts district access to an additional $76.2 million in previously flexible funding.
“A significant portion of the [April 28 WHSAA Board of Directors] meeting was dedicated to discussing the projected funding shortfall,” Wilson wrote.
The WHSAA is weighing several strategies to address rising costs with fewer resources. Proposed changes include eliminating regional tournaments and reducing the number of teams qualifying for state events from eight to four; limiting wrestling to two classes and restricting track and field state participants to the top 16 marks; making cuts to soccer, indoor track and field, Nordic and Alpine skiing, swimming and diving, spring golf and tennis; and reducing in-person speech and debate events by half and centrally locating All-State Music events to minimize travel. The board also recommended increasing gate admission or implementing student participation fees to offset costs.
While the WHSAA release states that no plans have been finalized and the various changes are currently just possibilities, Natrona County School District 1 Board of Trustees member Mary Schmidt criticized the WHSAA’s handling of the news at Monday’s board meeting.
“I take some issues with this, [including] the sheer fact that we as Board of Trustees members have not talked about that at all,” Schmidt said. “It is not our intent and it has not been brought to us to cut our athletics or activities budget for the upcoming school year. … I take issue with them picking sports and getting the community upset and ginning them up to be upset that this is all going to be cut when that hasn’t been discussed.”
Later in the meeting, Superintendent Angela Hensley clarified that Natrona County School District 1’s athletics and activities budget saw a reduction of roughly $550,000 in the coming year’s budget, but said the local school district does not plan to cut any sports.
“Thank you, Trustee Schmidt, for saying this, because I think people are wondering — we are not planning to cut athletics and activities for next year,” Hensley said. “We do have to take a look at our entire budget as we have talked about, as we learn more about these new rules that come in.”
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Republished with permission from Wyoming News Now, a TV news outlet covering the Cheyenne and Casper areas.
Cheyenne City Council has introduced a temporary moratorium, or pause, on new data center construction.
“The end goal is to actually have regulations in place, to have really heavy public involvement with this with data centers,” said Councilman Mark Moody.
The proposed ordinance is not a permanent ban on data centers and would not affect data centers currently under construction.
Councilman Moody says this is a bipartisan issue.
“I just want to make this clear, I’m not against data centers. We do need them from a national security perspective,” he said.
He said there needs to be more public input and regulations regarding data centers in Cheyenne.
The ordinance would require city staff to study data center impacts such as electricity usage, electricity tariffs, closed-loop cooling systems, groundwater impacts, agricultural impacts, and land value.
Cheyenne LEADS, the economic development corporation for Cheyenne and Laramie County, reported in November 2025 that there are 12 operational data centers in Wyoming, five under construction and plans for 43 data centers announced across the state.
“There needs to be more public input with this, and also to see how many we can sustain here in this community, cause there are talks of 43, and then another day 70. How many can we sustain here?” said Councilman Moody.
The proposed moratorium will now go to the Public Services Committee on Monday, May 18 at noon in the Municipal Building.
Sheridan will play in the North Regional Tournament at Gillette, while the South Regional Tournament will be played at Rock Springs.
North Regional Tournament at Gillette:
Checking record vs. highest team in the quadrant not involved in the tie, Thunder Basin gets the #1 Northeast seed over Campbell County, because the Lady Bolts went 3-1 vs. Sheridan, whereas the Lady Camels went 2-2.
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 NE) Thunder Basin vs. (#4 NW) Jackson – 11am
(#2 NW) Natrona County vs. (#3 NE) Sheridan – 11am
(#2 NE) Campbell County vs. (#3 NW) Kelly Walsh – 1pm
(#1 NW) Cody vs. (#4 NE) Worland – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Thunder Basin/Jackson winner vs. Natrona County/Sheridan winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh winner vs. Cody/Worland winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Thunder Basin/Jackson loser vs. Natrona County/Sheridan loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh loser vs. Cody/Worland loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
South Regional Tournament at Rock Springs:
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 SW) Laramie vs. (#4 SE) Torrington – 11am
(#2 SE) Cheyenne East vs. (#3 SW) Green River – 11am
(#2 SW) Rock Springs vs. (#3 SE) Wheatland – 1pm
(#1 SE) Cheyenne Central vs. (#4 SW) Cheyenne South – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Laramie/Torrington winner vs. Cheyenne East/Green River winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Rock Springs/Wheatland winner vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Laramie/Torrington loser vs. Cheyenne East/Green River loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Rock Springs/Wheatland loser vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
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