May 2023

Ernest Edwin Fowler, known to friends and family as Ernie, went home to be with the Lord on May 12, 2023.

He was born Dec. 22, 1948, in Prescott, Ariz., to Chelcey and Eva Mae Fowler.

He was a 1967 graduate of Shawnee High School and joined the Army in 1968. He met his wife, Carolyn through her sister, Donna and his best friend, Tim.

Ernie and Carolyn married in July of 1973 and were with each other through all of life’s ups and downs.

Ernie was preceded in death by his brothers, Chelcey, James and Walter, and sisters, Yvonne, Freida, Ruby and Betty.

Before heading off to Oklahoma State, El Reno High School graduate Ty Vincent had a little work left to be done with his playing career in baseball.

Vincent started for the North squad in the 2023 Western Oklahoma Baseball Coaches Association’s Large School All-Star Game. The event was played at Radar Park in Weatherford.

“It was fun and it was pretty cool. It was the last time to play baseball before I moved on and I got to represent El Reno again in an All-Star game,” said Vincent.

Shirley Perkins Brown, a beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother, passed away peacefully on May 17, 2023, in El Reno. She was born Dec. 6, 1942, in El Reno to the late William M. Perkins Sr. and Ora Mae Brooks Perkins.

Shirley was a selfless, loving and generous woman who touched the lives of many and will be dearly missed by all who knew her.

Shirley was a lifelong resident of El Reno, where she attended Booker T. Washington from first to 11th grade. She later completed her GED at the American School through correspondence.

While they still have a few more days of school remaining, El Reno High School held its graduation ceremony Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

There were 218 seniors making up the Class of 2023.

Speeches were heard from the seven students earning either valedictorian or salutatorian honors.

Memorial Day services will be held in El Reno, Fort Reno and Union City on Monday, May 29.

In El Reno, American Legion Post 34 will direct this year’s service. The Legion and VFW Post 382 alternate coordination of the annual ceremony each year.

Michael Pruitt, acting commander at the American Legion, said the service is set for 11 a.m. at the El Reno Cemetery.

Gaylord News In-depth reporters have spent the past year producing a one-hour television show marking the anniversary of the 2013 Moore and El Reno tornadoes that killed 33 people.

“Hell in the Heartland: 10 Years” examines those traumatic two weeks in May and explores what has happened in the years following the storms that changed Oklahoma forever. 

Initially developed five years ago as part of a student’s service-learning project, the Redlands Community College Student Food Pantry opened its doors to meet the needs of its students who were experiencing food insecurity.

Now, as one of six Oklahoma public colleges and universities selected to receive an inaugural grant through the Oklahoma Hunger-Free Campus Act pilot program, Redlands intends to expand the service and streamline the operation.

Dolores Williams and Cynthia Bennett were longtime educators with El Reno Public Schools. When these two women passed away, their families asked that memorials be sent to El Reno Public School Foundation, focusing on Rose Witcher and Hillcrest libraries.

Understanding the impact these two had on all grade levels, the Foundation requested a grant from the Mary Kay Ashbrook Foundation

MARRIAGE LICENSES

Aaron Emmanuel Hendrix, 23; Shaylynn Marie Fisher, 22.

Connor Creed Delaney, 21; Madchen Sage Dahlvang, 19.

Devin Hunter Price, 29; Courtney Dawn Bowie, 27.

Michael Royce Williams, 47; Karrie Newman-Arnhart, 46.

Kenneth Wayne McMullen, 35; Alexandria Paige Thompson, 33.

Roscoe K. Gardner, 83; Lois Ann Olivier, 79.

Zacheriah Kane Wills, 27; Celine Victoria Wodka, 22.

Bradford Chapman Ellsworth, 53; Melissa L. Ellsworth, 47.

Richard Sean Witten, 43; Heather Marie Rich, 41.

Graveside services for Mary Anna Patzack Curtis will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, May 26 at the Hazel Dell Cemetery northwest of Minco. Services are under the direction of Huber-Reynolds Funeral Home, Minco.

Mary died May 20, 2023, in Indianapolis, Ind., at the age of 90. She was born and raised in Union City and lived in the Union City and Minco areas for many years. She moved to Indianapolis in 2017 to be closer to her daughter and grandchildren.