“Yes, Virginia, there is Santa Claus!”

Christmas came early for the community of Wewoka when, early in December, an anonymous donor gifted funds to repair the town’s Centennial Clock.

Situated on the grounds of the Seminole County Courthouse, under the shade of the storied Seminole Whipping Tree, the four-faced clock has marked time in downtown Wewoka since it’s placement over a decade ago. It is one of over 130 Centennial Clocks that exist throughout Oklahoma’s 77 counties. The timepiece, which also includes chimes and an elaborate sound system, was a project of the Citizen’s Improvement League of Wewoka (CILOW) to celebrate the Oklahoma Statehood Centennial in 2007.

CILOW raised over $50,000 from Wewokans far and wide to purchase the clock as a testament to Wewoka’s unique place in the history of the Sooner State.

Like many of the other centennial mechanisms across the state, enduring the assault of over a decade of Oklahoma’s weather and a limited budget for maintenance had the clock falling into disrepair. The internal chronometer stopped keeping time almost two years ago and the bulbs that illuminated all four faces had either dimmed or gone out completely. The clock’s manufacturer, the Verdin Company of Cincinnati, OH, was reticent to provide solutions to any of the state’s ailing clocks, carillons, or chimes.

Fortunately, Jeff Bezdeck, owner of VOX Audio in Oklahoma City, had an answer. Bezdeck was the contractor that originally worked with the Oklahoma Centennial Commission and the Verdin Company to install all of the centennial pieces throughout the state. His familiarity with the inner-workings and electronics of the clocks made finding long-term solutions to the problems rather easy, if not expensive.

The extensive repairs to the Wewoka Centennial Clock included replacing the four original electric movements in the clock with Swiss-made mechanisms, mounting new minute- and hour-hands, upgrading the automatic controls. installing an atomic receiver antenna inside which keeps the clocks correctly on time by receiving data from a military satellite, and replacing the fluorescent lighting with new energy-efficient and longer-lasting LED bulbs. A good cleaning of the clock’s exterior was also performed.

Additional repairs will be made in the spring to the clock’s external sound components and to some of its electronic audio elements. The total cost of the repairs and upgrades was over $10,500.

Funding for the project was provided by a donor who wished to remain anonymous. “Wewoka’s ‘Secret Santa’ values and celebrates Wewoka’s rich history,” stated Richard Ellwanger, coordinator for the renovation project. “They were pleased to provide funding to rehabilitate the city’s Centennial Clock and partner in such an historic project. The clock will now be a constant reminder of Wewoka’s renowned past while always counting our journey into the future.”