CASPER, WY — The St. Mark’s Episcopal Church is preparing a special worship service and reception on Dec. 2 at 5:30 p.m. to honor what would have been the 50th birthday of Matthew Shepard, a native of Casper whose 1998 murder sparked a national conversation on hate crimes.
Local roots and faith‑based remembrance
Shepard was baptized, confirmed, and later commended into God’s care at St. Mark’s. He attended local schools, including Dean Morgan Middle School and Natrona County High School, before enrolling at the University of Wyoming. The church’s Social Justice Team wrote, “Matthew was a child of St. Mark’s, and he was a child of Casper.”
Service details and memorial fundraising
The service will be held in the church sanctuary, followed by a reception in the parish hall where fundraising for a permanent memorial will begin. A Casper‑native ironworks artist is creating design renderings for the memorial, which will be displayed during the reception.
“Our purpose is not to focus solely on one aspect of who Matthew was, though his identity is an important part of his story,” the team said. “We look simply to gather to remember a young man who belonged to this community — and to give hope to anyone who resonates with his story, and with the particular ache of being an outlier in one’s own town or state.”
Historical context and past opposition
In October 1998, Shepard, then a 21‑year‑old University of Wyoming student, was brutally beaten and left tied to a fencepost outside Laramie by two men he had met at a bar. He later died from his injuries at a Fort Collins hospital. His death became a galvanizing event for LGBTQ+ people worldwide and led to the passage of hate‑crime legislation.
Thousands gathered in Casper for his funeral service at St. Mark’s, and the city saw anti‑gay protesters from the Westboro Baptist Church, led by Rev. Fred Phelps, marching in nearby City Park with incendiary signs and homophobic chants.
Family legacy and ongoing advocacy
Matthew’s parents, Dennis and Judy Shepard, founded the Matthew Shepard Foundation, which has successfully lobbied for hate‑crime legislation and provided training for law‑enforcement and prosecutors.
The upcoming service and memorial fundraiser continue that legacy, offering Casper residents an opportunity to honor Shepard’s memory within a faith‑centered setting while supporting a lasting tribute in the church’s parish hall.
Original reporting: Oil City News (Casper WY) — read the source article.
