Alvin Wiederspahn
Encyclopedia
Alvin Laramie Wiederspahn, usually known as Al Wiederspahn (born January 18, 1949), is a prominent attorney
in Cheyenne
who served for ten years as a Democrat
in the Wyoming House of Representatives
(1979–1984) and the Wyoming State Senate (1985–1988). He is married to Cynthia Marie Lummis
, a Republican
politician who was elected to the United States House of Representatives
in 2008, after serving as State Treasurer, and like her husband, as a member of both houses of the Wyoming legislature, representing the state capital, Cheyenne.
Wiederspahn was born in Cheyenne to J. Arling Wiederspahn (1916–2007) and Edvina Wiederspahn (1921–2004). The senior Wiederspahn was originally from Grand Island, Nebraska
, but he moved to Cheyenne in 1936. Arling Wiederspahn, who owned and operated the Wiederspahn Chapel of the Chimes funeral home
from 1956 to 1987, was a pioneer mortician in Cheyenne. He served as the elected Democratic coroner
of Laramie County from 1963 to 1979 and a member of the Laramie County Community College
board of trustees from 1970 to 1985. Arling Wiederspahn served by appointment of Democratic Edgar Herschler
on the Wyoming Board of Embalming.
Wiederspahn graduated with honors from the University of Wyoming
in Laramie
, the seat of Albany County west of Cheyenne. He then procured his Juris Doctor
degree from the University of Denver
Law
School in the Colorado
capital. He is a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon
fraternity.
Wiederspahn began courting the Republican Lummis while both served in the state House. They were both elected to the House in 1978 and married in 1983. Lummis was elected to the state Senate in 1982, when Wiederspahn won his third term in the House. She served in the Wyoming Senate for three terms through 1994, but Wiederspahn completed only one four-year term, having been defeated for reelection in 1988.
Lummis was elected treasurer in 1998 and reelected without opposition in 2002. She was term-limited from seeking a third election as treasurer in 2006. In 2007, shortly after the death of her father-in-law, she filed as a Republican candidate for the vacancy in the United States Senate
created by the death of incumbent
Craig L. Thomas. However, Democratic Governor
Dave Freudenthal
, with whom Lummis had previously quarreled, chose then state Senator John Barrasso
of Casper
to complete the first third of Thomas' Senate term.
Through his Wiederspahn and Reese firm in Cheyenne, Wiederspahn specializes in public utility law, municipal finance, estate planning, real property, health care, securities, and corporate law. Lummis is also a lawyer, a graduate of the University of Wyoming Law School. Wiederspahn is a director of First National Bank
of Wyoming and was formerly on the board of the Rocky Mountain Bank.
Wiederspahn is actively involved in historic preservation. He was the developer in the renovation of the Plains Hotel, a Cheyenne landmark that dates to 1911. The Cheyenne Historic Preservation Board has on occasion honored Wiederspahn for his work in the area. He is also a Wyoming advisor to the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Wiederspahn served on the advisory committee of Cheyenne's Vision 2020 project. He is a founder and former chairman of the Cheyenne Downtown Development Authority. He is active on the board of the Homeless Shelter and is an elder of the Trinity
Lutheran Church in Cheyenne. Wiederspahn is also active in the field of mental health
and is president of the Laramie County Association for Retarded Citizens. He is a member of the board of the Cheyenne Symphony.
Wiederspahn has also served as a volunteer judge of the juvenile drug court for Cheyenne, which hears approximately twenty-five cases per week.
Wiederspahn and Lummis also own ranches in Wheatland
and Lincoln County near Kemmerer
in western Wyoming. The couple has one daughter, Annaliese Wiederspahn, a graduate of Haverford College
in Haverford, Pennsylvania
. Wiederspahn has a sister, Janet Wiederspahn Hogg Haught, wife of Dwight Haught, also of Cheyenne.
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
in Cheyenne
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming and the county seat of Laramie County. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne, Wyoming, Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Laramie County. The population is 59,466 at the 2010 census. Cheyenne is the...
who served for ten years as a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
in the Wyoming House of Representatives
Wyoming House of Representatives
The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 60 Representatives in the House, representing an equal amount of single-member constituent districts across the state, each with a population of at least 9,000. The House convenes at the Wyoming...
(1979–1984) and the Wyoming State Senate (1985–1988). He is married to Cynthia Marie Lummis
Cynthia Lummis
Cynthia Marie Lummis Wiederspahn is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2009. She is a member of the Republican Party. She previously served as a state representative , state senator , and state treasurer .-Early life:Lummis was born on September 10, 1954 in Cheyenne...
, a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
politician who was elected to the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
in 2008, after serving as State Treasurer, and like her husband, as a member of both houses of the Wyoming legislature, representing the state capital, Cheyenne.
Wiederspahn was born in Cheyenne to J. Arling Wiederspahn (1916–2007) and Edvina Wiederspahn (1921–2004). The senior Wiederspahn was originally from Grand Island, Nebraska
Grand Island, Nebraska
Grand Island is a city in and the county seat of Hall County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 48,520 at the 2010 census.Grand Island is home to the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center which is the sole agency responsible for training law enforcement officers throughout the state,...
, but he moved to Cheyenne in 1936. Arling Wiederspahn, who owned and operated the Wiederspahn Chapel of the Chimes funeral home
Funeral home
A funeral home, funeral parlor or mortuary, is a business that provides burial and funeral services for the deceased and their families. These services may include aprepared wake and funeral, and the provision of a chapel for the funeral....
from 1956 to 1987, was a pioneer mortician in Cheyenne. He served as the elected Democratic coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
of Laramie County from 1963 to 1979 and a member of the Laramie County Community College
Laramie County Community College
Laramie County Community College is a full-service community college in Laramie County, Wyoming, with campuses in Cheyenne and Laramie and outreach centers at F.E. Warren Air Force Base and in Pine Bluffs. LCCC was established in 1968....
board of trustees from 1970 to 1985. Arling Wiederspahn served by appointment of Democratic Edgar Herschler
Edgar Herschler
Edgar Jacob Herschler , popularly known as "Gov. Ed", was the 28th Governor of Wyoming from 1975 to 1987. Herschler built a personal appeal to voters based on charisma, a small-town background, and shrewd political maneuvering to such an extent that he was the only three-term governor in Wyoming...
on the Wyoming Board of Embalming.
Wiederspahn graduated with honors from the University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...
in Laramie
Laramie, Wyoming
Laramie is a city in and the county seat of Albany County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 30,816 at the . Located on the Laramie River in southeastern Wyoming, the city is west of Cheyenne, at the junction of Interstate 80 and U.S. Route 287....
, the seat of Albany County west of Cheyenne. He then procured his Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
degree from the University of Denver
University of Denver
The University of Denver is currently ranked 82nd among all public and private "National Universities" by U.S. News & World Report in the 2012 rankings....
Law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
School in the Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
capital. He is a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is the only one founded in the Antebellum South...
fraternity.
Wiederspahn began courting the Republican Lummis while both served in the state House. They were both elected to the House in 1978 and married in 1983. Lummis was elected to the state Senate in 1982, when Wiederspahn won his third term in the House. She served in the Wyoming Senate for three terms through 1994, but Wiederspahn completed only one four-year term, having been defeated for reelection in 1988.
Lummis was elected treasurer in 1998 and reelected without opposition in 2002. She was term-limited from seeking a third election as treasurer in 2006. In 2007, shortly after the death of her father-in-law, she filed as a Republican candidate for the vacancy in the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
created by the death of incumbent
Incumbent
The incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
Craig L. Thomas. However, Democratic Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
Dave Freudenthal
Dave Freudenthal
David Duane "Dave" Freudenthal , is an American politician who served as the 31st Governor of Wyoming. A Democrat, he was reelected to his second term on November 7, 2006, and announced on March 4, 2010, that he would not attempt to seek a third term as Governor.-Education and early...
, with whom Lummis had previously quarreled, chose then state Senator John Barrasso
John Barrasso
John Anthony Barrasso is the junior U.S. Senator from Wyoming and a member of the Republican Party. He was appointed to the Senate following Craig L. Thomas's death and won a special election in 2008 to fill the remaining four years of Thomas's term....
of Casper
Casper, Wyoming
Casper is the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States.. Casper is the second-largest city in Wyoming , according to the 2010 census, with a population of 55,316...
to complete the first third of Thomas' Senate term.
Through his Wiederspahn and Reese firm in Cheyenne, Wiederspahn specializes in public utility law, municipal finance, estate planning, real property, health care, securities, and corporate law. Lummis is also a lawyer, a graduate of the University of Wyoming Law School. Wiederspahn is a director of First National Bank
Bank
A bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...
of Wyoming and was formerly on the board of the Rocky Mountain Bank.
Wiederspahn is actively involved in historic preservation. He was the developer in the renovation of the Plains Hotel, a Cheyenne landmark that dates to 1911. The Cheyenne Historic Preservation Board has on occasion honored Wiederspahn for his work in the area. He is also a Wyoming advisor to the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Wiederspahn served on the advisory committee of Cheyenne's Vision 2020 project. He is a founder and former chairman of the Cheyenne Downtown Development Authority. He is active on the board of the Homeless Shelter and is an elder of the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
Lutheran Church in Cheyenne. Wiederspahn is also active in the field of mental health
Mental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
and is president of the Laramie County Association for Retarded Citizens. He is a member of the board of the Cheyenne Symphony.
Wiederspahn has also served as a volunteer judge of the juvenile drug court for Cheyenne, which hears approximately twenty-five cases per week.
Wiederspahn and Lummis also own ranches in Wheatland
Wheatland, Wyoming
Wheatland is a town in and the county seat of Platte County in southeastern Wyoming, United States. The population was 3,548 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Wheatland is located at ....
and Lincoln County near Kemmerer
Kemmerer, Wyoming
Kemmerer is both the largest city and the county seat of Lincoln County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 2,651 at the 2000 census. It dubs itself the "The Fossil Fish Capital of the World" and the "Gateway to the West." As the county seat of Lincoln County, Kemmerer is the location of...
in western Wyoming. The couple has one daughter, Annaliese Wiederspahn, a graduate of Haverford College
Haverford College
Haverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States, a suburb of Philadelphia...
in Haverford, Pennsylvania
Haverford, Pennsylvania
Haverford is an unincorporated community located partially in Haverford Township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, USA, but primarily in Lower Merion Township in Montgomery County, about west of Philadelphia. It is on the Main Line, which is known historically for its wealth. As of August 2009,...
. Wiederspahn has a sister, Janet Wiederspahn Hogg Haught, wife of Dwight Haught, also of Cheyenne.