Welcome to #HOMETOWNHUSTLE – a SweetwaterNOW exclusive series where we highlight hardworking individuals in our community.
This month we sat down with Angela Wilson, a realtor, business owner and volunteer who manages to juggle three careers, a statewide leadership role and a calendar that would exhaust most people, and still makes the case that nobody is too busy to give back.
The Backstory
Wilson did not set out to become a multi-business entrepreneur. It happened the way most things do in a family business, gradually, then all at once.
Her parents started The Oil Can on East Flaming Gorge Way back when the east end of Green River was not much of anything. They ran it for roughly 15 years before Wilson purchased it from them in 2001. She has owned it for 25 years this year and is planning a summer celebration to mark the milestone.
“It’s been in my side of the family for quite a while,” Wilson said.
The day-to-day operations are handled by Curtis Hunt, who has been the shop’s manager for 22 years. Wilson handles the books, payroll and the business side of things, a role she has played in some capacity since her parents first owned the place.
From Lending to Listing
Before real estate, Wilson spent years in finance, working as a lender at State Bank and Trona Valley Credit Union. When the Dodd-Frank Act made it harder for buyers to qualify for mortgages, she found herself frustrated watching people get shut out of homeownership.
“I was tired of it being my fault people aren’t getting into houses,” she said. “So I’m going to change careers and become a real estate agent and help people get in homes.”
She got her license and has been a realtor for 12 years, spending nine of those with Home Smart Realty Group. She has since earned her associate broker’s license as well.
The switch traded one kind of stress for another, she admits, and when a deal falls through, the pressure still lands on her. But the reward more than makes up for it.
“It’s always the best day when you get to closing and they’re like, I never thought I was ever going to be able to own a home and here I am,” Wilson said.
Her favorite clients are first-time homebuyers. With Sweetwater County’s limited housing inventory and home prices that have risen sharply since the COVID-19 pandemic, helping someone navigate that process and land on the right fit carries real weight.
She also works with longtime residents leaving the area, people who have been in the same house for 40 years, raised their families there and are finally heading somewhere with warmer weather and less wind.
“That one is always bittersweet,” she said. “You’re excited for them in their next chapter, but sad for them to leave that behind too.”
Storage, Serendipity and a Retirement Plan
In 2013, Wilson and her husband Paul added a third business to the mix, Mr. Storage Space in Rock Springs. The opportunity came up and they moved on it.
“It was either purchase them or there was 10 people behind us that were going to buy them,” Wilson said.
She manages the storage units. Paul, who spent 30 years with the railroad before going self-employed, now does home inspections, radon mitigation and handyman repairs.
Running the State
This year, Wilson is serving as president of Wyoming Realtors, the state association representing roughly 2,500 licensed realtors across Wyoming. It is a volunteer position with no pay and significant responsibility.
The board governs association policy, provides member education, offers a healthcare plan for self-employed realtors and ensures the state stays in compliance with National Association of Realtors standards. With only three paid staff members, most of the work falls to the 17-member board and its subcommittees.
Wilson has been building toward the role for years, starting as treasurer of the Sweetwater County Board of Realtors, serving as local board president in 2017 and then moving up through the state structure as southwest district vice president before being elected through the vice president and president-elect track to her current post.
One of her goals for 2026 has been quarterly broker town hall meetings across the state, a resource that did not previously exist.
“It’s something we’ve not done in the past,” she said.
Her path to state leadership mirrors a broader pattern. Wilson has served on the YWCA board and spent eight years on Sweetwater County’s planning and zoning commission, consistently looking for ways to plug into the community around her.
“I truly believe you’ve got to give back to your business, to your community,” she said. “Share your knowledge, share your wealth that way.”
She pushes back on the idea that being busy is a reason to opt out.
“When people say, ‘Oh, I’m too busy to do that,’ I’m like, no. I promise you, I work a full-time job, we have two businesses, and I volunteer. You have time.”
So if you haven’t already, be sure to stop by The Oil Can, HomeSmart Realty Group or Mr. Storage Space.
The Oil Can
- Address: 1365 E Teton Blvd, Green River.
- Hours: Open Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Saturday 8 a.m.-2 p.m.
- Phone Number: (307) 875-7557
HomeSmart Realty Group
- Address: 639 Pilot Butte Ave., Suite B, Rock Springs.
- Hours: Open Monday-Saturday 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
- Phone Number: (307) 870-6675
Mr. Storage Space
- Address: 2151 Yellowstone Road, Rock Springs
- Hours: Open 24/7
- Phone Number: (307) 382-5305
