Randy Dean

Randy Dean is a Wyoming native, and has been a beekeeper for over 30 years. As a young man, Randy worked at Union Pacific Railroad. He retired from the Carpenters Union in 2006. After years of beekeeping, he noticed rapid changes in climate and the disastrous effects of Colony Collapse Disorder. He knew that something needed to be done, and founded Save The Buzz.

Q&A

Q: What made you decide to start bee keeping?

My friends grandfather was a beekeeper and had left a lot of old equipment behind. My friend convinced me to buy some honeybees. The bees scared me at first but after handling and working with them, I found them very interesting and challenging. It took years to figure them out. I am still learning.

Q: Why did you start this nonprofit?

Years back when the mites hit, I lost most of my hives. When the colony collapse disorder started, then I thought, what's going to happen next? Will most of the bees in the U.S. be wiped out? So I decided I'd better learn how to keep them here. Wyoming is at a high elevation and there is not a lot of agriculture, there is very little spraying of pesticides, one of our only obstacles is the cold weather. Heavy duty hives keep honeybees safe. I thought it would be a worthwhile cause. 

Q: What do you think the honeybees future looks like?

Until there is bee-friendly control of pesticides in this country, we are risking the future. That's why Wyoming is such a good retreat, we don't have the big agriculture. There is no constant spraying. Wyoming is an ideal place to save honeybees.

Randy in action