2008 Nellie Tayloe Ross Dinner & Banquet  

The 2008 Nellie Tayloe Ross Dinner and Banquet is scheduled for Saturday, March 1, at the Plains Hotel in downtown Cheyenne. Among the featured guests will be Gov. Dave Freudenthal and First Lady Nancy Freudenthal, and our keynote speaker this year is U.S. Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, the South Dakota Democrat who is also the youngest woman serving in Congress. The Wyoming Democratic Party will also honor Cynthia Pomeroy, former director of the Wyoming Department of Employment, with the Nellie Tayloe Ross Award for her outstanding contributions to the state of Wyoming and the Democratic Party.

The theme of this year's gathering is "A Celebration of Women in Government and Politics." As part of the evening's program, the Wyoming Democratic Party will honor Cynthia Pomeroy, former director of the Wyoming Department of Employment, with the Nellie Tayloe Ross Award for her outstanding contributions to the state of Wyoming and the Democratic Party.

Gov. Freudenthal, Mrs. Freudenthal, and Rep. Herseth Sandlin will attend a private reception prior to the dinner. Tickets for this exclusive event, which begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Plains Hotel, are $100 a person.

You can call us to reserve your tickets for the events at 800-729-3367 or register at the top of this page.

The state party has reserved a block of rooms at the Plains for $70 a piece ($80 for a parlor room). For further information or to reserve a room, contact the hotel at 307-638-3311.

The dinner itself will begin at 7 p.m.; no-host cocktails begin at 6:30 p.m. Tickets for the dinner are $75 per person, or you and your group may prefer one of our options for a table of eight:

* $1,500 for a Gold Table

* $1,000 for a Silver Table

* $600 for a Bronze Table

After the dinner, Wyoming Democratic Party Chairman John Millin will deliver the Nellie Tayloe Ross Award to Cynthia Pomeroy, former director of the Wyoming Department of Employment.

Sunday morning's event will be a "mockus" that will focus on preparing for the Saturday, March 8, Democratic county conventions and presidential caucuses. The breakfast begins at 9 a.m. Sunday, March 2, and tickets are $30 per person.

PACKAGE DEAL: Anyone can attend all three events – the private reception, the dinner, and the legislative breakfast – for a package price of $180 per person.

As in past years, the Wyoming Democratic State Central Committee will also meet at the Plains during the afternoon before the dinner, beginning at 1 p.m. Central Committee members include our county party chairs, vice chairs, state committeemen and state committeewomen.

To recap, here is a timeline of the March 1-2 events:

Saturday, March 1

- 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.: Wyoming Democratic State Central Committee Meeting.

- 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.: Private cocktail reception with Gov. Freudenthal, Mrs. Freudenthal, and Rep. Herseth Sandlin. Tickets: $100 per person.

- 6:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.: No-host cocktails.

- 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.: Nellie Tayloe Ross Dinner and Banquet. Tickets: $75 per person, or choose a table option.

Sunday, March 2

- 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.: "Mockus" to prepare for county conventions and presidential caucuses. Tickets: $30 per person.

PACKAGE DEAL: People can attend the Saturday evening private reception with Gov. Freudenthal, Mrs. Freudenthal, and Rep. Herseth Sandlin, the Saturday night banquet, AND the Sunday morning breakfast for $180 per person.

Please reserve your tickets by Feb. 22. A very limited number of tickets will also be available at the door.

About U.S. Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, D-South Dakota

The Honorable Stephanie Herseth Sandlin is South Dakota’s at-large Member of Congress. She is a leader of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of moderate Democrats committed to fiscal discipline and strong national security, and is co-chair of the Rural Working Group, which is dedicated to raising the profile of issues important to rural America.

Rep. Herseth Sandlin is the youngest woman member of the House, and she became the first woman ever elected to the House of Representatives from South Dakota when she won a special election for the seat in June 2004. In 2006, she was re-elected to her second full term in the U.S. House of Representatives. She received more than 230,000 votes – the second highest vote total in the nation among House members.

She serves on the Agriculture, Veterans' Affairs, and Natural Resources committees, and she chairs the Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.