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Nearly 850 4-H and FFA students and over 250 coaches from 34 states gathered in Oklahoma for the 69th National Land and Range Judging Contest, May 5, 2022. After two days of practice at sites in the Oklahoma City area, the contest was held near El Reno, Oklahoma at the Cheyenne Arapaho Tribal Headquarters.
Read moreWaaaay back in August, at the start of this school year, Baby Yoda roamed our hallways collecting positive predictions for the upcoming school year. (Yes, Star Wars zealots, I know it’s not Baby Yoda.) The green guy himself was vacationing on Dagobah, so I opted for a Baby Yoda backpack, where I placed the prognostications of students from PK to 12th grade. As you can imagine, a distinct theme ran through them: the fear of more preemptive school closures. Of course, some drew pictures, and many shared hopes of new friends, but others relayed the nightmares of quarantines and forced virtual school. Their thoughts touched my heart and made Grogu’s little chin wrinkle.
Read moreAccording to the Oklahoma Hospital Association, between 2011 and 2021, Oklahoma saw some 20 hospitals close their doors. Most of those were in rural parts of the state. When a small town loses their local hospital, it is devastating for the entire community. First of all, it may be the closest, and sometimes the only place many local residents have for health care. Secondly, and also very importantly, our rural hospitals are sometimes the area’s largest employers, so when one closes, it can hurt communities in multiple ways.
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Right, Team Boomerang coordinated with the Red Cross, SSC President Lana Reynolds, and State Senator Zack Taylor to set up a food truck at the Kelly Haney Center on Friday offering free cheeseburgers and french fries to tornado victims. They explained they simply wanted to give back to the community. (Photo by Bob Melton) Below right: Lightning lights up the night sky during this past week’s storms that included an EF-2 tornado that caused widespread damage across the Seminole area and left many without power. (Photo by Jaxon Smith)
Read moreA crowd of 200 book lovers, authors, publishers and illustrators gathered for the 33rd Annual Oklahoma Book Awards on Saturday, April 30 at the Embassy Suites Medical Center in Oklahoma City.
Read moreThe isolation triggered by the pandemic has caused many seniors to re-evaluate their living conditions, particularly those who are living alone. “To be sure, the lack of nearby or live-in family members ranks high in considering a move to a more senior-friendly locale,” according to Rebecca Weber, CEO of the Association of Mature American Citizens [AMAC].
Read moreDirector Tanya N. Garfield of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Disaster Field Operations Center-West today reminded small nonfarm businesses in 24 Oklahoma counties and neighboring counties in Kansas of the June 6, 2022, deadline to apply for an SBA federal disaster loan for economic injury. These low-interest loans are to offset economic losses because of reduced revenues caused by drought in the following primary counties that began Sept. 28, 2021.
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