Latest Posts

Industries all over the world have been impacted by COVID-19. One that comes close to home is the cattle industry.

The market has dropped, drastically. Cattle are now worth 25 to 30 percent less than just weeks ago, which may come to a surprise since beef prices at the local grocery store have dramatically increased.

The problem originates from the way packing and processing plants have been affected.

According to some in the agriculture industry, the efficiency of the plants has been hit hard by the pandemic.

This is the third installment in a series looking back at El Reno Public Schools efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In his classroom at Etta Dale Junior High for just the second time since leaving for spring break back in March, Tyler Hill could tell there was a different vibe in the building.

“I guess it feels like the end of school since we have been gone for so long. But backing up all my stuff and seeing the room empty, it sort of brings it all together,” said Hill.

As work continues to replace the Rock Island overpass, detours will be in use during the construction, expected to take more than a year, said reports from the Oklahoma Department of Transportation.

North and southbound traffic will be shifted to a detour just to the east of the bridge through summer 2021 as part of an ongoing bridge replacement project.

The detour will be one lane in each direction and wide loads will be restricted to no more than 12 feet in width.

Rodney Haydon was digging in the dirt and planting the flowers he had bought his wife for Mother’s Day when he got a call from El Reno Superintendent Craig McVay.

“I was in the backyard working and had my phone connected to the stereo and waiting on Craig’s call to hear what the board had decided on the direction of the basketball program,” said Haydon.

In a life marked at a young age by a tragedy that shook the state, Brooks Douglass forgave but never forgot.

“Ultimately, we have to move on — not forgetting our loved ones or forgetting what happened — and live our lives to the fullest,” the former state senator once said of the murder of his parents in 1979.

“This is what I had to do.”

Douglass will be remembered Friday at a memorial service in Oklahoma City. The lawyer, entrepreneur and world traveler died Saturday at his home in Texas after a long battle with cancer. He was 56.

After two months of being closed to the public, the Canadian County Courthouse will resume its operations Monday — with some adjustments.

Canadian County District Judge Jack McCurdy issued an administrative order that sets out guidelines for reopening the courthouse, closed since mid-March.

The order states that beginning May 18, the courthouse will begin a gradual reopening with a limited docket.

El Reno’s Bradleigh Baker will be among the 100 Oklahoma Academic All-Staters featured in a OETA Public Television broadcast Saturday, May 16 and Sunday, May 17.

With the cancellation of its Academic Awards Banquet due to COVID-19, the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence is partnering with OETA Public Television to broadcast the 30-minute tribute to award-winning students and educators at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, May 16, and 3:30 p.m. Sunday, May 17.

The program will also be shown on OETA World Channel at 8:30 p.m. May 23 and 7:30 p.m. May 30.

Canadian County CASA Inc. (Court Appointed Special Advocates) recognizes longtime volunteer Jeff Coan.

For nearly five years, Coan has served as a CASA, speaking up for the best interests of two brothers in the child welfare system. The siblings have had at least three caseworkers and have moved over 40 times in the time Coan has been assigned to their case.

In describing why he became a CASA and why this work is important, Coan says, “I felt called to help children and I believed CASA was the best way to invest my time and efforts into my community and its future.”