News

Poverty is deeply woven into the fabric of Oklahoma history.

Whether it is the result of tornadoes and dust bowls, oil industry booms and busts, a never-ending stream of bad guys or a century of ugly political feuds, poverty and its byproducts have shaped the Sooner State.

There is a persistent and worsening cycle of poverty in Oklahoma, set against a backdrop of rising population, stagnant wages and political disagreement over how to address the problem.

LAWSUITS

Mariner Finance LLC vs. Brittany Hignite for $2,225.28 to pay a debt plus interest, costs and attorney fees.

Midland Credit Management Inc. vs. Amanda Oburn for $4,885.50 to pay a debt plus interest, costs and attorney fees.

Capital One N.A. vs. Gina Wood for $3,025.51 to pay a debt plus interest and costs.

Discover Bank vs. Denise Alexander for $8,389.68 to pay a debt plus interest, costs and attorney fees.

Cavalry SPV I LLC vs. Erika Munoz for $6,051.56 to pay a debt plus interest, costs and attorney fees.

El Reno will begin operating a municipal ambulance service July 1. 

In a unanimous vote, the city council officially signed off on the plan that will see the creation of the El Reno Emergency Services Department.

Ed Fowler, formerly with Pafford EMS, will oversee the operation, expected to have close to 20 employees.

The action took place at the regular meeting of the council on Tuesday evening. 

Rain forced some changes to A Small Town Weekend, but participants and spectators appeared to be having too much fun to notice. 

The 27th Annual A Small Town Weekend drew throngs of people to Sunset Drive, also known as Route 66, as well as Adams Park.

The El Reno Firefighters Local Union 2367 had to move the Hot Wheels races to the nearby Trinity Lutheran Church basement and the El Reno Cruisers moved the car show to the paved parking lot just east of Memorial Stadium, avoiding the soggy, rain-soaked turf of Adams Park. 

Happy Father’s Day! 

This past weekend I went to the Oklahoma Press Association’s annual convention. It was held in Shawnee at the Grand Casino.

It was nice to see my fellow newspaper friends from across the state. We learned a lot, laughed a lot, ate some good food, maybe gambled a little and had an overall good time. 

Project Transformation (PT) is an eight-week summer reading camp hosted by Wesley United Methodist Church. 

About a month before the camp was scheduled to open, leaders learned that the federal Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cut funding to all Oklahoma AmeriCorps Programs.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said an El Reno teen was killed and another injured when the vehicle they were in crashed in Caddo County.

The accident occurred just before 4 a.m. June 10 at the intersection of US-281 and County Road 1120, two miles north of Lookeba. 

OHP reports said a 2018 Dodge Charger was being driven by Chiloh J.T. Whiteshirt, 18. Whiteshirt was taken by Air Evac to Baptist Integris Hospital and admitted in fair condition with leg and arm injuries. 

With clouds and rain gone by noon on Saturday, cars and crowds descended on Adams Park to take part in or watch A Small Town Weekend’s burnout, closed cruise and drag racing events.

Twenty drivers paid $20 each to bring their engine-rumbling and roaring sports cars and pickups to the ready line of the Burnout on Route 66. The goal was to produce voluminous, billowing clouds of tire-rubber smoke for at least 20 seconds - and they did.

Members of the El Reno Fire Department keep a close eye on the gauges while testing the water pressure and spray pattern on the water cannon attached to the department’s new platform truck.

A Canadian County jury is recommending life in prison for Agustin Salazar-Fraire after he was convicted last week of two counts of lewd acts to a child under 16 and four counts of rape in the first degree.  

The district attorney’s office said charges resulted from a pattern of ongoing sexual abuse of four juvenile boys over a 10-year period.