By Angela Brooks<\/p>\n
LARAMIE, Wyoming, Dec. 24. SOME of the most prominent men in Laramie have stripped off their clothes to raise money for an eight-lane competitive swimming pool.<\/p>\n
About 35 local men cast off their inhibitions \u2014 and business suits \u2014 for a 2004 calendar designed to raise money for an eight-lane pool at the Laramie Community Recreation Center.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to show these normal, dignified people in their jobs, being a little undignified,\u201d said Lisa Kinney of Friends of Community Recreation. <\/p>\n
\u201cWyoming Male Celebs\u201d is a takeoff of a calendar done in Iowa where everyday men posed nude to raise money. Hoping a similar idea would work in Laramie, Kinney collected beach supplies and began calling businessmen.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re a group of women, so we decided men would be the best subjects,\u201d Kinney chuckled. <\/p>\n
Some weren\u2019t so keen on the idea, but others gladly joined in on the fun.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people who made it into the calendar were very fun-loving and understood it was just going to be a silly way to raise funds for the pool,\u201d Kinney said.<\/p>\n
All photos are wholesome, like the one featuring Laramie bank presidents Gary Negich, Dan Furphy and Stig Hallingbye.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there was a bit of disbelief that (Kinney) would ask me,\u201d said Negich of First Interstate Bank. \u201cI thought she\u2019d go ask the cheerleaders or the firemen, something like that.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the photo, Negich, 51, poses topless with his comrades in an office at First National Bank. <\/p>\n
Negich said he got a few strange looks when he appeared in the bank wearing nothing but swimming trunks. Since then, Negich has been the butt of several jokes and has even been asked for autographs. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s something that bankers don\u2019t normally do \u2014 get semi-naked for the public,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
But Negich said he was happy to help with the eight-lane pool campaign. First Interstate Bank contributed about $37,000 to the effort two-years ago. <\/p>\n
Other pin-ups include former mayor Joe Shumway and County Commissioner Pat Gabriel posing in city council chambers with lifejackets and beach towels.<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. September,\u201d Ivinson Memorial Hospital CEO Jeffrey Feike, models a life preserver, rubber ducky and snorkel. <\/p>\n
And in perhaps the most daring photo shoot, Laramie police officer Mitchell Cushman strikes a pose on top of a police car in subzero temperatures, wearing a lifeguard uniform and sunblock.<\/p>\n
The $12 calendars are available at Chickering Bookstore, The Other Store and Grand Newsstand in Laramie.<\/p>\n
Kinney said the group would most likely release another calendar for 2005.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor those people who didn\u2019t get the opportunity this year, we\u2019ll be calling next year,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
In just four months, Friends of Community Recreation has raised over $1 million for the pool, including funds from the Albany County Recreation Board.<\/p>\n
City officials estimate pool construction could cost about $1.25 million. The group recently hired architects to create design documents so the exact costs are known.<\/p>\n
Kinney said the documents are finished and the cost estimates will be complete in about 2-3 weeks.<\/p>\n
Architects will begin working on a change order the pool if enough money is raised by Jan. 6.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the group has kicked-off other creative fundraisers, such as a polar bear run and an art raffle. Pool supporters can also purchase bottled water and be among the first to pour water into the pool.<\/p>\n
(Courtesy Laramie Boomerang)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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