Elaine Scott

A Memorial Mass for Elaine F. Scott, 73, of Casper, will be celebrated at 12:00 Noon, Saturday, February 18, 2011 at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church by Father Robert Fox. Elaine F. Scott died in the Central Wyoming Hospice of complications of colon cancer. Elaine was born November 28, 1938 in Washington, D.C. to Matthew and Margaret Fenton. Matthew Fenton was an engraver for the U. S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing. Elaine grew up and went to parochial school in Washington, D.C. and then in its Maryland suburbs. Elaine went to Saint Louis University to study physical therapy, motivated to help the victims of polio who needed extensive physical therapy. However, by the time she graduated in 1960 polio vaccines had been developed and widespread polio vaccination had largely eliminated new cases of polio in the United States. After graduation Elaine practiced physical therapy in Georgetown Hospital in Washington, D.C. After several years she switched occupations, and moved to the Public Health Service, part of the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare. She became a computer systems analyst working on IBM 36 mainframe computers. In 1970 Elaine met Charles Scott of Casper who was working in the Office of the Secretary, Department of Health Education and Welfare. The two were introduced by her temporary supervisor who in addition to being a skilled bureaucrat was Jewish with effective Jewish match making abilities. Elaine and Charles married in 1975, a year after Charles had returned to Wyoming to run the family Two Bar ranch in Bates Hole, southwest of Casper. Elaine switched from being a Washington bureaucrat to being a Wyoming ranch wife. Using an early IBM personal computer Elaine and Charles wrote a computer program in the BASIC language that was used to evaluate individual cows on the ranch based on the performance of their calves. After their youngest child started kindergarten, Elaine went back to work as a physical therapist treating special education students with physical disabilities, working for the school district. After a period she left the school district for an independent practice, then went to work for the Natrona County Child Development Center giving physical therapy to handicapped children. She specialized in disguising the needed therapy exercises as play activities so the children would do them. During the last decade of her professional career, Elaine returned to school on a part time basis and received a Master's Degree in Special Education from the University of Wyoming. She also published a brief professional article in "Physical Therapy, "The Journal of the American Physical Therapy Association". After retiring from the Child Development Center Elaine opened and operated a store in downtown Casper, B is for Baby. The store specialized in clothes and educationally and developmentally relevant toys and games for infants and toddlers. Elaine served on the board of the Central Wyoming Counseling Center for about 9 years in the late 1970's and early 1980's, including a term as board chair. She left the board after her second child arrived. Elaine was elected to the Natrona County School Board at the 1998 general election, and was reelected once, serving from 1998 through 2004. She was board chair in 2001 and 2002 and succeeded in ending a feud between the school board and the Natrona County Education Association. In recent years Elaine has enjoyed her grandchildren, worked as a volunteer for CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) and enjoyed periodic domestic and foreign travel with her husband Charles. Elaine was preceded in death by her parents, by her older brother Matthew Fenton, and by her daughter Abigail. She is survived by her husband of 37 years, State Senator Charles Scott of Casper, her son Daniel of Casper, and two grandchildren. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorials to Seton House of Casper or to the Casper Court Appointed Special Advocates.

Service

Saturday, February 18, 2012 12:00pm

Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church

CY Avenue

Casper, Wyoming 82604