Oil City News - September 25-October 3, 2025 - Fall Faves!

Oct 3, 2026

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Fall Faves! issue of Oil City News dated September 25–October 3, 2025, featuring community stories and local updates. Covers Casper’s Primrose Retirement Community annual spelling bee, highlighting Phyllis Hahn’s longtime connection to writing and her path to the Region 1 championship, plus how engagement activities support resident mental sharpness. Also reports Natrona County Health Department plans to offer child COVID-19 and flu vaccines starting Oct. 1 amid evolving federal CDC guidance and coverage uncertainty, including potential costs.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLifestyle

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time18 min

AccessFree to download

HOW DO YOU SPELL WINNER?

Winning Words: Casper Primrose resident spells success in regional spelling bee

COMMUNITY HEALTH

Natrona County Health Department to offer child COVID, flu vaccines amid CDC changes

FREE! BUSINESS A3 EVENTS A5 MOVIES A7 OPINION A9 PUZZLE A11 PEOPLE A11 OFFLINE, BY DESIGN SEPTEMBER 25-OCTOBER 3, 2025 FALL FAVES! PAGE 3 FOR A MORE INFORMED AND CONNECTED COMMUNITY MORE AT OILCITY.NEWS HOW DO YOU SPELL WINNER? Winning Words: Casper Primrose resident spells success in regional spelling bee BY DAN CEPEDA FEATURES EDITOR CASPER, Wyo.–There’s an old compliment for newspaper people and authors: “They’ve got ink in their veins.” Phyllis Hahn has ink in her veins. Whether that ink is a primary cause for her 95-years of health and vitality is debatable, but it certainly couldn’t have hurt. Until last year, Phyllis lived her entire life in Lusk, and spent decades writing columns and features for the Lusk Herald. She’shad one book on Lusk’s history published several years ago, and is wrapping up another focusing on the Wyoming politician Jim Griffith. Even during her down time, Phyllis has always felt an urge to keep the words flowing.“I used to have about 50 penpals,” she said. The ink doesn’t fall far from the tree, perhaps. Her granddaughter, Miranda Berdahl, owns Wind City Books in downtown Casper. Phyllis is the perfect candidate to represent Casper’s Primrose Retirement Community in its annual company-wide spelling bee competition. The contest is done remotely, with residents of Primrose facilities in five different cities competing for the Region 1 title. The top two finishers get to compete in the company-wide finals that take place in October.“This will be my first spelling bee since 8th grade,” said Phyllis, about 10 minutes before competi- Phyllis Hahn laughs after answering correctly while competing in the annual Primrose Region 1 Spelling Bee on Monday, Sept. 22, 2025. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City News) tion kicked off just after noon on Monday. She sits facing a laptop on a table in front ofa large screen TV that also serves as the facilities theater room. Phyllis lived in her longtime Lusk home until just last year, when a nasty fall convinced her it was time to move closer to family and into assisted living. She said the facility had come highly recommended by another friend, and it gives her enough freedom and mobility to stay active. Spelling bees are one of numerous activities designed to keep residents mentally sharp and engaged, according to Life Enrichment Coordinator Talia Thornburgh.“Are you excited,” Talia asked Phyllis shortly before competition.“Kind of,” Phyllis deadpans. Like any good newspaperwoman, she keeps her emotions mostly to herself. Introductions are made online, led by a facilitator based in another corporate facility. Phyllis is competing against residents in Billings, Cheyenne, Grand Island and Gillette. It only takes one round for two residents to be eliminated withincorrect answers. The remaining three go on to compete for several more rounds. Marline in Billings is a living dictionary, confidently blasting out spelling faster than you can say,“Hey, Google.” Phyllis will occasionally write down the words before answering.“I’ma very visual person,” she said later. The third contestant misses “taciturn” in round 8, leaving Phyllis and Marline to sprint to the finish. For a minute it seemed like Marline would get tripped up by “leviathan,” but that one got Phyllis too. So on they want. Finally, Phyllis was done in by “ingenious,” and Marline earned her Region 1 championship. Phyllis still gets to return for the championship bee, where she’ll compete against all 34 Primrose properties around the country. Talia will give her a list of words to study in about a week, she said.“I think we’re all at the same level in our lives,” said Phyllis of her fellow competitors. “Maybe I’ve got a chance, you have to think positive.” COMMUNITY HEALTH Natrona County Health Department to offer child COVID, flu vaccines amid CDC changes BY DAN CEPEDA FEATURES EDITOR CASPER, Wyo. — The Casper-Natrona County Health Department will begin offering COVID-19 and

FAQs

What is the spelling bee described in the article, and how is it organized?

Primrose’s annual spelling bee is conducted remotely, with residents from Primrose facilities in five cities competing for a Region 1 title before advancing to company-wide finals in October.

Why did Phyllis Hahn move closer to family, according to the story?

A nasty fall last year convinced her to move closer to family and enter assisted living, where the facility supports her freedom and mobility to stay active.

When will the Natrona County Health Department begin offering child COVID-19 and flu vaccines?

The department plans to begin offering the vaccines on Oct. 1, providing an option for children amid changes in guidance.

Oct 3, 2026

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