LARAMIE, Wyo. -- Wyoming shoppers choosing to buy gifts at local mom-and-pop stores this holiday season can sample cookies with Mrs. Claus and refuel at Santa's Saloon, and kids can send letters to the jolly old elf via Pony Express riders.

Trey Sherwood, executive director of the Laramie Main Street Alliance, acknowledged most of the money shoppers spend at corporate chains ends up out of state, but when people buy local, they support their neighbors, and 68 cents of every dollar stays in the community.

"And it turns into payroll for local jobs, and it turns into support for our little-league teams," Sherwood outlined. "Because small businesses are often the sponsors for our youth sports."

Historic downtown Laramie, founded as a railroad town, is celebrating small businesses all week, capping off with a holiday parade. Instead of a traditional tree, officials will light up the city's historic train.

In addition to Santa, the "Old West Holiday" in downtown Cheyenne also features lights and decorations on architecture dating back to Wyoming's territorial days. Many buildings are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Haylee Chenchar, vice president of the Cheyenne Downtown Development Authority, said small businesses have turned downtown into a festive winter wonderland.

"Everyone who comes to downtown, they will not only get to do their holiday shopping and support local businesses, but they really get a one-of-a-kind holiday experience that can't be replicated anywhere else," Chenchar explained.

Sherwood pointed out folks also can support most local businesses, and avoid big-box store supply-chain logjams, from the comfort of your sofa.

"Supporting local through online, you can sit in your pajamas at home and know that you are still making an investment in your downtown by shopping local, not having to worry about it being shipped late," Chenchar concluded.

New York State's Outdoor RX Coalition is launching a website to spread the word about its services.

Established in late 2020, the coalition is a partnership between the New York State Division of Veterans Services and the Sierra Club. It was born through the state's Outdoor RX Act. The program gives veterans opportunities to engage in outdoor therapeutic activities that research shows can benefit their mental health.

Retired U-S Army Lt. Col. Aaron Leonard, a campaign manager for the Sierra Club and co-chair of the coalition, said there's great benefits to being in nature.

"We know that when a veteran spends time in the outdoors with other veterans, and they have a trained outdoor leader with them on that experience," he said, "that veteran will see a significant decrease in their sense of loneliness, which is directly connected to a potential for suicidality for that veteran."

He explained that the outdoor therapy model pairs a trained outdoor leader with participants, and the activities vary widely - from simple hikes to kayaking, multi-day backpacking and rock climbing. The most important aspect is for the group to converse about shared experiences as veterans.

As a veteran, Leonard added, he's seen the benefits of being outdoors. He first went through a therapeutic outdoor program prior to leaving the Army, and said he found it calming. It let him open up about challenges and experiences. He's hoping to share this sense of belonging with other veterans also adjusting to civilian life.

"Time and time again, I see the same thing happening with them," he said. "Where somebody who might be reserved or having a difficult time in their life, in a short amount of time they open up, became more willing to participate in therapies, outside of what we're doing in the wilderness. Perhaps visiting the VA for the first time."

One barrier he has found, specifically in and around New York City, is people questioning why the outdoors might be good for them. He said the coalition also plans to work on a study examining how veterans can better access New York's state parks and public land, as well as public transit and disability access for older veterans.

Although the official holiday passed earlier this week, a "Day of the Dead" celebration is being held this Saturday in New Haven.

The 12th annual event, hosted by Unidad Latina en Accion, includes a parade, traditional foods such as "pan de muertos," and face painting. The Day of the Dead celebrates the lives and spirits of loved ones who have passed away. Typically an altar, called an "ofrenda," is built to the person, with their favorite foods and other remembrances.

Nayeli Garcia, a community organizer with Unidad Latina en Accion, said it's been a tradition in her family for generations.

"It's something that my great-grandma did, then passed it to my grandmother, and then passed it to me," she said. "Even though I live in the United States, I still believe it and I'm still doing my culture. I did it on Nov. 1. I hope my kids will stay doing this. The culture shouldn't die."

Garcia worries these traditions might fade away if younger people don't have the chance to learn about and participate in them.

The celebration will be held starting at 4 p.m. Saturday at 26 Mill St. in New Haven. At the event, people can have their faces painted and work on a giant altar to honor loved ones that are no longer with us. Community members can bring a photograph of a loved one or a community hero as part of the altar. Garcia said she enjoys the tradition, and finds comfort in the belief that, even for a short while, her loved ones are nearby once again.

"This makes me happy, because I truly believe that they come visit us," she said. "I couldn't be able to say goodbye to my great-grandpa, so I hope that he comes visit me and that hopefully, one day we meet each other in the other life."

Unidad Latina en Accion also will pay tribute to migrants who lost their lives crossing the U.S. border seeking a better life. And they'll honor several New Haven activists who've died in the past year, including George Edwards, Art Perlo and Robin Latta.

The Teton Raptor Center was recently awarded a $10,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation to help the site become a year-round destination for anyone interested in learning more about the region's owls, eagles, hawks, falcons and other wild birds.

Amy McCarthy, executive director of the Teton Raptor Center said the property, which sits along Highway 22 heading into Wilson, was originally a classic ranch for prized Herefords spanning 137 acres.

"Which encompassed a number of outbuildings, a homestead, as well as the iconic wind-proof Gothic Hardeman Barn. That's the real treasure and icon of the property," McCarthy said.

From the 1930s through the 1980s, Hardeman Barns was a working ranch. When developers moved in to build town homes, the Jackson Hole Land Trust stepped in to purchase the barns and meadows to conserve what is widely seen as a "character-defining" property for Jackson Hole valley communities.

The Teton Raptor Center, which had been caring for injured wild birds from its founder's home, moved onto the property in 2008. In 2017, the Center purchased a 27-acre parcel and started raising money to rehabilitate the historic structures.

McCarthy said one goal of the project is to retain and showcase the hand-made wooden rafters that make up the interior ceiling of the wind-proof barn.

"So an experience at Teton Raptor Center would not only bring the natural history of owls, eagles, hawks and falcons into one's learning experience, but they will also get a cultural immersion in this historic space," McCarthy said.

The Center has raised about 90% of its $12-million dollar capital campaign goal, and McCarthy said it's on track to open the iconic Gothic barn to the public next spring. She said the best way to save an old building is to use it. While that does mean there will be some level of adaptation, there is a way to balance the history and the future of these special spaces.

"We have to make this building accessible and safe, and support from historic-preservation organizations is essential to celebrate the past while giving it a future," McCarthy said.