1. Adventures from the Frontier
By Glenda Stoldt
At the time this was written for the local newspaper I lived on 35 acres in Niobrara County, Wyoming, and the closest town (Lusk)
was 30 miles away.
“Where’s the nearest Walmart?” That’s how it all started.
One thing is for sure, the people of Lusk, Wyoming, are the most helpful anywhere, especially to
newcomers. Ask a question, and you’re likely to get the same answer from several folks in town. When
asking where the nearest Walmart is, we were directed to Rapid City, South Dakota (a three-hour drive
one way).
Upon returning home at 11:00 p.m. on the day of our shopping excursion to Rapid City, I realized that at
some point during the rush to get everything unloaded, that the front door of my house got closed and I
was locked out. Everything I needed in an emergency was in the house; my keys, my purse and my cell
phone. No spare key! Panic!
My sister and I decided that the best course of action was to just spend the night at her place (she’s next
door), and make the trek up to our neighbor’s place, the Conard’s, in the morning. After a long night of
sleeping in a queen bed with my sister, her three cats and a dog, I was overcome with the desire to find a
way back into my own home.
I got up early, grabbed a bottle of water and set out for the Conard’s place. I was in luck! They were
headed into town and just driving past our place. I took off running down the driveway waving my arms.
They saw me and pulled up into the drive and asked if everything was okay. I told them what had
happened. Of course that led to questions like, “Don’t you have a spare key somewhere?” They used
their cell phone to try and find a locksmith for me. On Sundays, locksmiths in the area are scarcer than
free money. So, we called the Sherriff’s office. The dispatcher said they’d send someone out. My kind
neighbors then departed with assurances that they’d check in with me when they returned from town.
Sherriff Kerry arrived. After several attempts to find a locksmith and finally giving up, the Sherriff went to
work on trying to figure out how to get me back into my house. It was futile. Turns out, my house is a
fortress. After much deliberation, we decided to call on our neighbor at the Boner Ranch. The Sherriff also
thought to call Terry, the owner of the Ace Hardware store in town and ask him to deliver a new door knob
to the Sherriff’s department so that he could pick it up and bring it out.
Phillip Boner and his grandson arrived shortly and proceeded to drill a hole in the lock of the door knob. It
was the strongest lock in the history of door knobs. Phillip broke 3 drill bits before he gave up and went
home to get his saw.
Long story short, Phillip sawed off the door knob, Terry delivered the new door knob to the Sherriff’s
department as promised, Sherriff Kerry returned with the new door knob, and the Conard’s stopped by to
make sure I was okay. My other neighbor, Mr. Davis (of the Davis Ranch), heard about all the
‘commotion’ and stopped by as well.
An unfortunate event turned into the perfect opportunity to experience the true meaning of good
neighbors and to witness just how far our Sherriff’s department will go to rescue a citizen in distress. I
also learned a valuable lesson, keep spare keys in a few places.
I humbly thank, and am grateful beyond words, to everyone that helped.
If I never go to Rapid City again, it’ll be too soon. Stay tuned for future adventures From the Frontier.