LEADSTHE CHEYENNE-LARAMIE COUNTY CORPORATION

FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT R e p o r tR e p o r t WINTERWINTER20112011

LEADS Achieves Milestone Anniversary Cheyenne LEADS is pleased to recognize that 2011 marks its twenty-fi fth

year in the business of, well, businesses! This is such an exciting time to live and work in Laramie County. Although we have felt the impact of

the nation’s economic downturn, our community has continued to attract new businesses and jobs at a time when many states have been losing them.

Throughout LEADS’ existence, we have seen several places and faces come and go. The one constant is our commitment to our mission: LEADS is recognized as a premier economic development organization that brings progress and prosperity to the entire community of Laramie County.

LEADS President/CEO Randy Bruns relates a story that is worth sharing in honor of our 25 years: At an event in Casper several years ago I was asked why LEADS exists. It was a strange question but an easy answer: "Because the Cheyenne community wants it to exist," I responded. And it is true — Cheyenne LEADS is a product of this community's desire to have economic development and it is the tool to ensure economic development happens. That was true 25 years ago and remains true today. I am proud of what we have accomplished — and pleased that Cheyenne and Laramie County expect nothing less.

Tour at NWSCPage 1

25 Years of Cheyenne LEADS: A Timeline Pages 1-3

Board of Directors Update Page 4

Staff UpdatesPage 5

Welcome Newest LEADS Members Page 6

Chairs Throughout the YearsPage 7

Anniversary Edition

Anniversary Edition

1986-20111986-2011

1986 1990 1994

25 Years of

September 1986: Cheyenne LEADS

becomes incorporated.

1989: Jack Crews is hired as the fi rst

President of Cheyenne LEADS.1994: Sierra Trading Post and

SafeCard announced.

1990: First business park, Cheyenne

Business Parkway, acquired; Puma

Steel announced.

LEADS ReportPage 2

1995 1998 2003

1996: EchoStar announced.

1998: VAE Nortrak, Quark, Rex Distribution & KABO announced;

Progress & Prosperity I.

1999: Truss Craft announced.

2000: Cheyenne Technical Center Built; Grobet USA announced.

25 Years of

2002: Lowe’s Distribution Center announced;

Jack Crews retires; Randy Bruns hired as

President & CEO of Cheyenne LEADS.

2003: Progress & Prosperity II.

Winter 2011 Page 3

2004 2010 2012

Fall 2011: Construction for NWSC completes on

schedule to open for research by Summer 2012.

2006: Wal-Mart Distribution Center announced.

2007: NanoDiscovery Corporation

announced for Arundel Technology Park

in CBP.

September 2011: Cheyenne LEADS’ Manufacturing Spec

Building breaks ground in Swan Ranch.

July 2010: Jet service begins between Cheyenne

Regional Airport and Dallas/Ft. Worth on American

Eagle Airlines.

2005: North Range Business Park acquired;

groundbreaking held.

25 Years of

LEADS ReportPage 4

Board of Directors Update Welcome to new member of the Cheyenne LEADS Board of Directors

Brian D. Heithoff is the General Manager for High West Energy, Inc. (HWE) of Pine Bluffs, WY. HWE is an electric utility serving parts of NE, CO and WY, including a signifi cant portion of the geographical area of Laramie

County. Brian joined HWE in June of 2011 after having served as the CEO/GM for Consumers Energy of Marshalltown, Iowa for the previous 11 years.

Brian’s previous positions were CEO of USA Solutions of Brighton, Colorado, Manager of Financial Services for United Power, Inc. of Brighton, CO; and has also worked for Morgan County REA in Ft. Morgan, CO and Clay-Union Electric in Vermillion, SD.

Brian is married to Jennifer, and has twin daughters who are 15 and another set of twins who are 11. Brian graduated from Briar Cliff College in Sioux City, IA with a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting.

Brian is: a 2000-2001 graduate of the Iowa Association of Business & Industry’s “Leadership Iowa” program; a member of the Cheyenne Noon Rotary Club and formerly of the Marshalltown Rotary, including having served on the Marshalltown Rotary Board of Directors; a former director and treasurer of Touchstone Energy; a former director of the Marshalltown Medical and Surgical Center; a former director on the Pinnacle Bank Board of Directors of Marshalltown, IA; a former director on the Marshalltown Area Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors; a former director and chairman of the Marshall Economic Development Impact Committee (MEDIC); a former director of the Nevada Economic Development

Corporation (NEDC); a former director and treasurer of the Marshalltown Community YMCA-YWCA; a former director and secretary of the Marshall County Arts & Culture Alliance; a former steering committee member for the Iowa Valley Leadership program; former steering committee member for the Iowa Valley Community College Sustainable Agriculture and Entrepreneurial program; has helped coach youth basketball, baseball and softball; and has helped with Awana and other ministries at First Baptist Church in Marshalltown.

Brian D. Heithoff High West Energy

The Board

learns about

the diverse

power sources used

in data centers on

a recent tour of

the NWSC. See our

Facebook page for all

tour photos!

Board Tours Completed NWSC Meeting and tour held in NRBP

The Board of Directors meeting was held November 16, 2011 in the conference room of the newly-constructed NCAR-

Wyoming Supercomputing Center (NWSC). This gave board members the chance to tour the facility as well to view the work being done in the NRBP in support of the NCAR (National Center for Atmospheric Research) project. On November 8, 2011, NCAR announced that IBM will install critical components of a petascale supercomputing system at the NWSC. The company was selected following a competitive open procurement process. The new system, named Yellowstone, is expected to be delivered to the NWSC early next year. It will be the new facility’s inaugural system. Once installed, the system will go through a testing period before being made fully available for scientifi c research in the summer of 2012.

Winter 2011 Page 5

Staff Update One welcome and one goodbye for Cheyenne LEADS staff

On November 4, 2011 Cheyenne LEADS announced that Vice President of Business Development Scott Sutherland was resigning to accept the position as President & CEO of CAEDA, Inc., the Casper Area Economic

Development Alliance. Just a few days later, LEADS announced that we hired Anja Bendel in the position of Director, Business Development for Cheyenne LEADS. Bendel was formerly employed as the Executive Director of the High Plains Economic Development District (HPEDD) of which LEADS is a part. LEADS worked with the HPEDD to coordinate the completion of key district projects while maximizing Bendel’s overlap time with outgoing Sutherland.

Sutherland had been with Cheyenne LEADS for over four years and has been instrumental in helping the organization build its capacity, increase its net worth, work with the legislature on important legislation and help close key projects to bring jobs into Laramie County.

Randy Bruns, President & CEO of Cheyenne LEADS said, “The organization will miss Scott’s capable pursuit of economic development and I will personally miss his drive, innovative approach and just plain hard work. Taking a longer term view, we all will benefi t from a good relationship between LEADS and CAEDA.”

Sutherland started with LEADS as Business Development Director in September 2007 and was promoted to Vice President in July 2008. Sutherland said, “I have truly enjoyed working with LEADS for these last four years. Cheyenne is a wonderful community and it has been a pleasure to be a part of helping the community progress. I am sorry to leave LEADS and all of the wonderful contacts and friends I have made, but I am also very excited to return to my hometown and take the position of President and Chief Executive of CAEDA. I have full confi dence that LEADS will continue along the same successful path.”

Bendel has an MBA from the University of Colorado Leeds School of Business and an MA in German from the University of Colorado. She has worked in economic development for the past four and a half years with experience in banking, software and international business prior to that. Bendel explained, “In the past two years I’ve worked with Cheyenne LEADS on several projects for economic development in southeast Wyoming and have really enjoyed working with the team. The support from the community for projects is excellent, and the organization has been able to position Cheyenne and Laramie County to take advantage of great opportunities. I look forward to my new position and to help continue that momentum.”

Randy Bruns, President & CEO of Cheyenne LEADS, said, “We are very pleased to welcome Anja as a member of the LEADS professional team.”

Sutherland’s last day at LEADS was November 28, 2011 and he started with CAEDA the very next day. Bendel offi cially started on November 16, 2011.

Anja BendelLEADS Director of Business Development

Scott SutherlandFormer LEADS Vice President

Save the Date: Friday, March 16, 2012Annual Banquet & Meeting

Little America

LEADS ReportPage 6

OCTOBER

HIGH WEST ENERGYHigh West Energy is a member-owned electric cooperative. They serve consumers in Wyoming, Nebraska and Colorado. Their service territory consists of 3,500 miles of line and serves over 9,000 meters at an average of 2.6 customers per mile.Class Five Business MemberContact: Brian Heithoff , General Manager307-245-4300www.highwest-energy.com

DALMAC HOMES AND REMODELINGDalmac Homes & Remodeling is a southeast Wyoming based residential remodeling and new home builder. They have been building and renovating extraordinary homes for almost three decades. Their quality craftsmanship has earned them a reputation as one of the region’s premier Design/Build companies specializing in universal design, remodeling, renovations and additions, custom homes and unique custom accessory and equestrian buildings to accent your home. Business MemberContact: Arla Johnson 307-635-2575 www.dalmachomes.com

EICON CONSTRUCTIONEicon Construction is a Wyoming based excavation com-pany with full line services including heavy hauling, land scaping, reclamation, and oil fi eld support services. Although we are a young company, together we have a combination of 40 years experience. Partners Mark Eisele and Mark Linger are Cheyenne natives who are familiar with regional soils and the climate conditions. Licensed and insured, we strive for customer satisfaction. Call us today for a consultation.Business MemberContact: Mark Eisele 307-631-5642 or 307-630-0325

JANET MARSCHNER Individual Member

EASTER GUNN Individual Member

NOVEMBER

DT’S LIQUOR MART & TUSKER’S BAR This membership is in addition to DT’s Package Liquor & Lounge, which is a separate location and already a member. Both stores are open 365 days a year, that means ALL holidays! DT’s sells it all. We have a huge global wine selection including the larg-est selection of special orders. We also have a huge selection of liquor and beer. Wherever you’re going, we’re on the way! With two convenient locations and liquormart pricing, you can’t go wrong. Cant make it to the liquormart on Pershing and Ridge? Stop by our package store on Licolnway where you’ll get the same liquormart prices!Business MemberContact: Kevin Georges, Vice President307-634-3334www.dtsliquors.comwww.dtsliquors.com/tuskersbar.asp

CIRCLES WYOMINGCircles Wyoming builds relationships and understanding to bridge the gap between poverty and well-being for the work-ing poor. We work with volunteers from the middle-class and can help businesses reduce turnover. Circles Wyoming is an economic and workforce development initiative of Connections Corner funded by the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services and local supporters. For information about a proven method to build better communities, please visit our site or call today.Nonprofi t Organization MemberContact: Tim Thorson, Executive Director 307-634-3333www.connectionscorner.org www.connectionscorner.org/Circles-Model

Welcome to Our Newest Members of Cheyenne LEADS!

Winter 2011 Page 7

Chairs Through the Years of Cheyenne LEADS Board of Directors

1987 Michl McGee McGladrey & Pullen

1988 Jim Helzer Unicover Corporation

1989 J. Michael Powers Powers Builders Supply

1990 Phil Shaff er Cheyenne Light Fuel & Power

1991 Phil Shaff er (re-elected) Cheyenne Light Fuel & Power

1992 John Nigh Rocky Mountain Bank FSB

1993 Cindy Pomeroy First American Title

1994 Rick Kaysen Cheyenne Light Fuel & Power

1995 Chuck Bohlen Laramie County Community College

1996 Keith Richardson Sierra Trading Post

1997 Jim Hearne McGladrey & Pullen

1998 Bob Peck Safecard Services, Inc. (Trilegiant)

1999 Tom Stuckey Wells Fargo

2000 Stan Foss Community First National Bank

2001 Paul Howard RBC Dain Rauscher, Inc.

2002 Mike Ceballos Qwest Communications

2003 Rex Lewis Puma Steel

2004 Larry Wolfe Holland & Hart

2005 Scott Walker Wyoming Tribune-Eagle

2006 Mona Pearl WSLC

2007 Bob Strasheim Mechanical Systems, Inc.

2008 Matt Pope First Interstate Bank

2009 Georgiana Stewart First American Title

2010 Steve Lovas US Bank

2011 Jim Murphy AVI Engineering

LEADS ReportWinter 2011

LEADS BOARD OF DIRECTORSCHAIRJim Murphy, AVI Engineering, Inc.

VICE CHAIR Leigh West, Cheyenne Regional Medical Center TREASURERMark Stege, Cheyenne Light, Fuel & Power

SECRETARYDixie Roberts, Ameriprise Financial Services

PAST CHAIRSteve Lovas, US Bank

DIRECTORSLynne Boomgaarden, Belcher & Boomgaarden LLP

Randy Bruns, CEO

Kevin Burke, HollyFrontier Corp.

David Johnson, CenturyLink

Ken Dugas, McGee, Hearne & Paiz, LLP

Randy Ford, Brewster Miller Financial

Ed Georges, DT’s Liquors

Bob Harmon, Holiday Inn

Brian Heithoff , High West Energy

Gary Imig, Sierra Trading Post

Brandon Kramer, Bank of the West

Ann Nelson, American National Bank

Matt Pope, First Interstate Bank & Joint Powers Board

Catherine Rogers, Individual

Barry Sims, Taco John’s International

Kim Sutherland, #1 Properties

Tom Stuckey, Wells Fargo Bank Wyoming

Stephanie Teubner, Warren Federal Credit Union

Stan Torvik, Laramie County Community College

Scott Walker, Wyoming Tribune-Eagle

Christine Weber, EchoStar Communications

Bob Womack, Spradley Barr Motors

EX OFFICIOJohn Gross, Eastern Laramie County

David Haring, Cheyenne Airport Board

Rick Kaysen, Mayor of Cheyenne

Darren Rudloff , Visit Cheyenne

Dale Steenbergen, Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce

Gay Woodhouse, Laramie County Commissioner

LEADS STAFFAnja Bendel, Director of Business Development

Tara Alexander, Director of Marketing & Communications

Karen Gastineau, Offi ce Manager

Wishing prosperity for you & your business in the New Year!