December 2019

Canadian County Sheriff Chris West gained a new appreciation for the safety that America enjoys while on a recent trip to Israel.

“In the U.S., we aren’t surrounded by people who want to kill us,” West said.

“The Israelis definitely face some unique challenges we don’t have in the United States, and I was very impressed by how they deal with them,” he said.

West was in Israel from Dec. 8-17 in his capacity as a board member of the National Sheriffs Association and a member of its Border Security Committee.

Stanley Simon Youngheim, 94, of El Reno, passed away Saturday, Dec. 28, 2019. The son of Herman and Estelle Youngheim, Stanley was born in El Reno on March 29, 1925, and was raised and schooled alongside his brother, Aaron, nine years his senior, in El Reno until he graduated in 1943.

After a short time at both the University of Oklahoma and Texas A&M University, Stanley enlisted in the Army. There he served in Battery B's 533rd Rocket Field Artillery Battalion, where he obtained the rank of Sergeant, until his honorable discharge in early 1946.

Graveside services for Robert Duane (Sonny) Kuhlman Sr. of Yukon were held Tuesday in the Friendship Cemetery under the direction of Huber-Reynolds Funeral Home of Minco.

Funeral services for Johnny Warren Verser of Minco were held Monday at Minco First Baptist Church, with burial following in the Evergreen Cemetery. Services were under the direction of Huber-Reynolds Funeral Home.

El Reno High School’s girls basketball team, which fell to No.7 in the Class 5A poll, will try to snap a four-game losing streak Friday at home against Elgin. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

Despite defeating Weatherford in the final game of the 2019 portion of its schedule, El Reno High School’s boys basketball team slipped out of the Top 10 in the latest Class 5A poll. The Indians are No.13 and the fifth team from the Suburban Conference ranked in the Top 15 of the same poll. The Indians return to action Friday with a home game against Elgin, with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m.