Episode Details

A lot of people think “community help” means writing a check or joining a committee. Renee Fowler is here to prove something different: sometimes the most life-changing support is a ride across town, a truck for a furniture pickup, a cleaned-out fridge, or a safe ramp that lets someone in a wheelchair leave their home without falling. Renee founded Make a Difference Cheyenne, a Cheyenne, Wyoming 501(c)(3) nonprofit built to fill the gaps that other programs can’t touch because of grant rules, staffing limits, or eligibility cutoffs. 

We talk through what those gaps look like in real life: the bed voucher you can’t use because you can’t transport it, the older adult stuck with the city bus bag limit, the neighbor trying to pass an inspection while dealing with low vision, and the person who needs support but doesn’t have a built-in network. Renee also shares how she vets requests, why the organization avoids duplicating existing nonprofits, and how partnerships with groups like Veterans Rock, the VA, Habitat for Humanity, and Meals on Wheels help more people get served fast. 

One of the most practical takeaways is the volunteer model. Make a Difference Cheyenne runs on “opportunities” posted to Slack, so volunteers can jump in when they’re available without getting locked into weekly meetings. We also get into new work supporting struggling working households with Thursday-night food boxes, plus a critical Sunday food gap for unhoused neighbors that too many people never see. 

If you care about volunteering in Cheyenne, mutual aid, nonprofit leadership, or building a stronger Wyoming community one small task at a time, this conversation will give you real examples and a clear way to plug in. Subscribe, share this with a friend who wants to help, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show.