News

OKLAHOMA CITY – Legislation to address the issue of unsolved cases of missing and murdered Native American people has been approved unanimously by the full Senate. Sen. Paul Rosino, R-Oklahoma City, is the principal author of Senate Bill 172, known as Ida’s Law.

The measure is named for 29-year-old Ida Beard from El Reno. A citizen of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, she went missing in 2015 and has never been found.

LaRenda Morgan, Beard’s cousin, helped craft the legislation.

The Canadian and Woodward County OSU Cooperative Extension Centers will jointly host the What’s Up With Wheat meeting on March 10 from noon to 1 p.m., with Josh Bushong, West District OSU agronomist as the guest speaker.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Low-interest federal disaster loans are now available to Oklahoma businesses and residents as a result of President Biden’s major disaster declaration, U.S. Small Business Administration Acting Administrator Tami L. Perriello announced.

The declaration covers Canadian, Carter, Cherokee, Comanche, Cotton, Hughes, Jefferson, Le Flore, McIntosh, Oklahoma, Okmulgee, Osage, Pittsburg, Stephens, Tulsa and Wagoner counties as a result of the severe winter storms that occurred Feb. 8-20, 2021.

Friday, March 12 is the last day to apply for voter registration in order to be eligible to vote in the April 6 election.

The Senate approved legislation last week expanding educational opportunities for Oklahoma families.

Senate Bill 783, by Sen. Adam Pugh, R-Edmond, modifies the Education Open Transfer Act to allow students to transfer to another public school district year-round.

Pugh, who serves as the chair of the Senate Education Committee, said the bill is needed to provide families more flexibility to find the school that meets the needs of their child.

STILLWATER — Native American communities, storytelling and earth and space curriculum are set to combine in one ambitious project made possible through a $3.3 million National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) cooperative agreement with Oklahoma State University College of Education and Human Sciences.

If you are a senior citizen who enjoys where you are living but has a desire, a need or a want for connectedness and also who wants to give back to others, VillagesOKC offers help to remain active and maintain a productive life.

VillagesOKC is a nonprofit service for adults ages 50-plus and is funded by an annual membership fee, which helps members to continue living in their own homes but become connected and supportive of each other.

LAWSUITS

Capital One Bank N.A. vs. Marita F. Wornom for $3,625.56 to pay a debt plus interest, costs and attorney fees.

OU Federal Credit Union vs. Christopher Allen Menefee for $2,515.76 to pay a debt plus interest, costs and attorney fees.

Capital One Bank N.A. vs. Jajuan Pendleton for $2,745.86 to pay a debt plus interest, costs and attorney fees.

Conn Appliances Inc. vs. Michael Gilliland for $1,757.06 to pay a debt plus interest, costs and attorney fees.

A collaborative road project that was about a decade in the making was celebrated last week as Cheyenne and Arapaho leaders joined with a Canadian County commissioner in a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Billed as the Concho North Road Improvement, the $5 million project targeted close to five miles of North Reformatory Road, running north of Concho to 192nd Street and east to U.S. 81. The two-lane blacktop was widened to allow for shoulders.

Too many people with water let their faucets run wide open for several days, hoping their pipes would not freeze.

That’s the story in a nutshell as to why much of El Reno was without water for a week, said Mayor Matt White and members of the city staff.

City Manager Matt Sandidge, Fire Chief Jason Duff and Water Superintendent Chris Smith joined White in the weekly El Reno Live program.