Senate Review by Senator Allison Ikley-Freeman

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The following article contains opinions from the author that do not necessarily reflect those of Sandite Pride News or its staff. To submit an Op-ed contact Sanditepridenews@gmail.com

Last Thursday was the final day for third reading of bills in the House of origin. This simply means bills not passed off the Senate floor are dead for this session. We start the next step in the legislative process as we begin to consider House bills in Senate committees. Last year, the Legislature considered 2,289 bills, of which only 324 became law. This year, 1,061 SBs and Senate Joint Resolutions have been filed, with 429 passing off the Senate floor in time for last week’s deadline.  

I currently serve on five Senate committees; Education, Appropriations, Budget & Rules, Health & Human Services and the Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services. 

Ensuring access to quality health care and mental health care services are just two of my passions and my professional experience as a mental health therapist brings a unique perspective and skillset to my role as a legislator. Focusing on the importance of mental health, I authored several measures this year that would be another step in helping students in Oklahoma schools.

Senate Bill 266 requires each school district to adopt policies related to suicide awareness and training and the reporting of student drug abuse. This includes adopting a training program and providing the program made available by the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse (ODMHSAS). Teachers, students, and administrators are granted immunity from employment discipline and civil liability for carrying out certain actions detailed by the measure. I authored this bill because it’s essential for more people to understand depression and suicidality and the importance of increasing awareness in our district and across the state. Just within our Senate district, schools report seeing an average of eight suicide notes a day. This is an eye-opening statistic that supports the need for increased education, programming and funding to address mental health care for Oklahoma’s students.

A second bill I authored this session is Senate Bill 452, which was created as a result of an interim study between the Department of Juvenile Affairs, DMHSAS and the Department of Education to create alternatives to school suspension for students. SB 452 directs school districts to consider restorative practices instead of out-of-school suspension for students who assault school personnel. Restorative practices could include community service, requiring the student to apologize, assessment for mental health, and referrals to mental health professionals and would be made available to all students of the district. The measure specifies that school districts must provide for a student’s reengagement if suspension or alternative school settings are utilized and also asks school districts to create a threat assessment for a student convicted of a violent crime.

If you are excited or concerned about any piece of legislation moving into the Senate from the House in the coming weeks; especially related to the committees I serve on, please reach out and let’s talk. Don't forget include your address so we know you are a constituent of our district. If you need help determining your Senate district, we would be happy to assist you. If you are visiting the Capitol and would like to stop by, our new office is located in Room 524.

As always, on any issue please feel free to contact my office at 405-521-5600 or at Allison.ikley.freeman@oksenate.gov. Please let me or my assistant, Audra, know if we can be of assistance to you. It is an honor to serve Senate District 37 and I look forward to continuing to represent you.  

Senate Review by Senator Allison Ikley-Freeman

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The following article contains opinions from the author that do not necessarily reflect those of Sandite Pride News or its staff. To submit an Op-ed contact Sanditepridenews@gmail.com

As the end of the fifth legislative week comes to a close, our focus has now shifted to hearing bills on the Senate floor. Last week was the deadline for Senate bills to be heard in committee, and at the end of that deadline there were still 511 bills in committee, with 9 failing in committee. As of the end of this week, there were 333 pending bills on Senate General Order, with 201 already passed on the Senate floor and sent to the House. Our next deadline is March 14, which is the last date for bills and joint resolutions to be heard in their chamber of origin. Any measures not heard by this date are generally considered dead for this legislative year.

Many of you know one of my strongest areas of interest and focus is mental health. Before being elected to the Senate, I worked as a mental health counselor. It’s always been my belief that it’s less expensive to address mental health issues early, so early intervention in public schools is a logical place to start. 

Oklahoma has some of the highest rates for mental illness and substance use disorders. In 2012, Oklahoma ranked third in the nation (22.4%) in any mental illness and second in the nation (11.9%) for substance abuse disorders. This means that between 700,000 and 950,000 adult Oklahomans need services, but most are not receiving the care they need to recover from their illnesses. As the years have passed, the statistics haven’t changed much, and in some regards, have grown more even more concerning.

This week, the full Senate approved Senate Bill 257, which increases the full-time employee limit from one to two employees for the State Board of Licensed Social Workers. The Board currently utilizes one full time employee and two temporary employees to supervise almost 1,500 licensed social workers. Licensure boards assist the government in fulfilling one of its main covenants to the public- protection from harm. By having specific occupations regulated through licensing government can help its citizens know when someone offering goods or services in this area is meeting basic expectations for safety of their consumers. An understaffed board translates to less thorough supervision and can lead over time to a lack of meeting the public's expectations. This change will help the State Board of Licensed Social Workers continue to meet your standards for public safety in the profession. 

It’s an honor to serve Senate District 37 and I look forward to continuing to represent you in the days ahead. As always, I welcome your input on concerns and issues. If you are visiting the Capitol and would like to stop by, our new office is located in Room 524. My office number is remains (405) 521-5600 and my email is allison.ikley.freeman@oksenate.gov. Please let me or my assistant, Audra, know if we can be of assistance to you.

Why doesn't Sandite Pride cover more high school programs?

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Why doesn’t Sandite Pride cover Debate, Academic Competition, Theater, Band, etc. like we do with sports? Don’t we care about all Sandites? Don’t all our hardworking kids deserve recognition?

I would hope it goes without saying that of course we do care, but from the outside looking in I can see why it might not seem that way. Unfortunately we only have one full time writer and there’s just not enough hours in the day at this time. Sports are a lot easier to cover for a number of reasons. 

The baseball and softball teams, for example, use an app for scoring the games that automatically uploads all of the stats online where I can access them. Cross Country and Track results are also posted online. While I try to attend as many games as possible, it’s a great convenience to be able to cover those sports remotely. 

With wrestling, most tournaments are also scored online. And the duals are easy to get information on when I can’t attend because 100% of wrestling stats are scoring stats that go in the book. I have a good relationship with the wrestling coaches and can easily get information when I’m unable to attend events.

Football is only ten to thirteen games a year, so that’s easy to cover. I have also been appreciative of the volleyball coaches and basketball booster club for helping to provide results for those sports. 

Fine Arts and some sports have been neglected simply due to accessibility and time constraints. For example, while the school provides an app/website with sports schedules, rosters, etc., the debate and academic comp schedules aren’t even available on the school website. Some coaches, current and past, have been difficult to communicate with.

If the coaches of the underrepresented programs were to reach out or email us info, they would most certainly get coverage. But with my 80-100 hour work weeks, I just don’t have the extra time to be attending more events or emailing/calling people to track down info and expand our coverage.

In the almost three years since Sandite Pride incorporated, it has become self sufficient, but not yet profitable enough to be able to hire a second full time writer. Our team recently decreased from four to three. One accountant, one writer, and one part time writer, whose day job has increasingly conflicted with his ability to assist in local coverage. Notice what our team is lacking: a sales person, and an assistant.

As the only full time employee, I do 95% of the writing. I attend sporting events every Tuesday and Thursday, and most weekends. I’m at Board of Education meetings, City Council meetings, public forums, community events, ribbon cuttings, etc. I have business meetings to attend, I’m constantly driving hours away to road games, and in all of that mess I also have to find enough advertising to keep the bills paid.

In light of all of that, I hope you can understand why we don’t cover everything I would like to. In a perfect world, I would have multiple full time writers working together to make sure nothing goes without coverage.

Take a look at our Wrestling homepage, and the tremendous amount of time and energy that went into compiling that information. That level of care and dedication is what I want to bring to everything in Sand Springs.

I would love to have easily accessible databases on hand for every sport, as well as debate, academic competition, theater, band, national merit scholars, and more. If I had it my way, you could type in the name of anyone who ever lived in Sand Springs and find every single life accomplishment.

But I’m only one man. I’m 24, this is my first business, and I ran it like most people run businesses, we wouldn’t be providing half the coverage that we are. The fact is, it’s a passion project, not a get-rich scheme, and I can guarantee nobody else would put half as much time and effort into it.

Any time someone from the community can send us information, photos, etc. it is greatly appreciated. Sandite Pride is very much a grassroots response to a community need, and we need the community’s help to reach our goals.

Unlike other organizations, we aren’t backed by out of state billionaires with infinite resources at our disposal. We don’t have a downtown skyscraper with dozens of writers and photographers shooting on $2000 cameras. I’m just a kid with a personal laptop and a cheap camera trying to make a difference. 

So if you think there’s something we could be doing better, please help us. If you’re attending events that we’re not at, take down some notes, snap a picture, and send it all our way! Try your hand at writing if that’s something you’re interested in.

And most importantly, if you own a business or know someone who does, encourage them to advertise with us so we can expand our team and bring even more recognition to the great people who make this town what it is. 

Attorney General Hunter Advises Health Board to Amend Rules on Medical Marijuana

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OKLAHOMA CITY – Attorney General Mike Hunter today advised the State Board of Health to convene a special meeting to amend the rules it passed regulating medical marijuana.

Attorney General Hunter said his advice is faithful to and in accordance with the new law created when Oklahomans voted in favor of State Question 788.

“The current rules contain provisions that are inconsistent with the plain language of State Question 788 and the State Board of Health acted outside of its authority when it voted to implement them,” Attorney General Hunter said. “Although I didn’t support State Question 788, the people of the state have spoken and I have a legal duty to honor the decision made by the electorate. My advice today is made pursuant to that responsibility as attorney general.

“Moving forward, I encourage all stakeholders to engage with the legislative working group looking at medical marijuana to ensure they have their concerns and recommendations heard and addressed by the legislature.”

In a letter sent today to Health Department Interim Director Tom Bates, the attorney general writes, the board’s role in limiting the forms of marijuana products is confined to food and safety standards that are in line with food preparation guidelines, not prohibiting the sale of smokable, vapable, edible or other forms of marijuana.  

Attorney General Hunter also took issue with the board’s action to require dispensaries to hire a pharmacist, writing, “the board has not been given any express or implied statutory authority to impose additional requirements on licensees. Thus, the board rules improperly require every licensed dispensary to have “a current licensed pharmacist” present “on-site at least 40 hours per week.” Nothing in the text of State Question 788 expressly or impliedly authorizes this rule.”  

Other concerns outlined in the letter include:

  • Restricting dispensaries to limited locations;
  • Prohibiting dispensaries from co-locating with other businesses;
  • Requiring medical marijuana be grown, processed and dispensed in enclosed structures;
  • Requiring a surety bond for licensing;
  • Setting hours of operation;
  • Limiting the amount of THC in flower, leaf or concentrate for sale or distribution.

“I have no doubt that the board in good faith sought to regulate marijuana in a manner it believed would best promote the health and safety of Oklahomans,” the letter concludes. “However, in so doing, the board made policy judgments not authorized by statute. Such policy decisions are the exclusive prerogative of the legislature and the people.”

Read the full letter, here: https://bit.ly/2LvVQMO.

OPINION: Gubernatorial candidate Chris Powell calls for Terri White's resignation

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After learning that Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Commissioner Terri White may have been the individual who wrote the proposals to ban smokable cannabis from dispensaries and to require dispensaries to employ pharmacists, Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Chris Powell said a resignation is in order. 

"If media reports are correct and Commissioner White did instigate these obstructionist measures designed to thwart the will of the people as expressed in the landslide vote in favor of SQ 788 then she ought to resign. No one with such contempt for the voters should be heading a state agency."  

SQ 788 was approved on June 26th with nearly 57% of the vote in an election with exceptionally high turnout, causing Governor Fallin to change her mind about calling a special session and putting responsibility for making rules regarding medical cannabis in the hands of the Board of Health, who added each of the last-minute amendments against the advice of the Health Department's general counsel, Julie Ezell. These were similar to several obstructionist proposals offered by the Oklahoma State Medical Association on Monday.  Lana Ivey, executive director of the Oklahoma Osteopathic Association, was quoted as saying "Terri (White) pretty much generated the recommendations..."

Powell, who finished first in the Libertarian gubernatorial primary with 49% of the vote but still faces a runoff, believes that voters are fed up with state government officials that forget they work for the people. "The political establishment routinely makes it clear that they don't care what voters think," said Powell. "If Commissioner White was behind these measures to gut SQ 788 then she is part of the problem along with Gov. Fallin who eagerly signed the rules in yet another display of blatant disregard for the wants and needs of the people of Oklahoma."    

Governor Mary Fallin Vetoes Most of Revised Budget Bill to Bipartisan Criticism

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Governor Mary Fallin on Friday evening signs paperwork vetoing most of House Bill 1019X, a revised budget bill approved by legislators in special session. She kept intact parts of the bill that temporarily preserve funding for key health and human services until lawmakers return in another special session to approve long-term funding solutions.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Governor Mary Fallin vetoed most of the revised budget bill approved by legislators in special session Friday. She kept intact parts of the bill that temporarily preserve funding for key health and human services until lawmakers return in another special session to approve long-term funding solutions.

Lawmakers failed to act on other requests the governor made in her call for a special session, such as addressing a long-term solution to continuing budget shortfalls; the need for more consolidation and other efficiencies in all areas of state government; clarifying intended exemptions to the new 1.25 percent sales tax on vehicles; and a pay increase for K-12 public school teachers.

The governor vetoed all but five of the 170 sections contained in House Bill 1019X, which was passed earlier in the day by the state Senate and approved earlier last week by the House of Representatives.

“House Bill 1019X does not provide a long-term solution to the re-occurring budget deficits, and within three months we will come back facing an estimated $600 million shortfall,” she said.

Fallin said her action results in amending the general appropriations bill approved in May by lawmakers during the regular legislative session.

“This will preserve a safety net for core health and human services until legislators come back for a second special session, which I intend to call in the near future,” said Fallin.

Fallin’s action keeps intact a $30 million emergency appropriation to the Department of Health, which will allow the agency to make its next payroll and be funded without cuts through the remainder of this fiscal year, which ends June 30.

Her action will provide funding for the short term for three health care agencies that were facing severe cuts because they were to receive most of the $215 million earmarked in a proposed cigarette cessation fee, which was struck down as unconstitutional earlier this year. The Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, the Department of Human Services and the Oklahoma Health Care Authority were facing cuts unless revisions were made in the current fiscal year budget.

“My action avoids immediate health and human services cuts and provides time for legislators to come back and approve revenue proposals that can provide a permanent fix,” Fallin said.

“As governor, I would like nothing more than to adequately fund agencies. The constant budget crisis has put us in survival mode. I want us to thrive. We will thrive when we can adequately and consistently fund our core services. That will happen when we find sustainable and predictable revenue sources.”

Fallin said she vetoed most of HB 1019X because it came perilously close to using most of the state’s available one-time funds in various accounts and drawing down on available savings in the Rainy Day Fund. Signing the measure would have left the state with few available funds to deal with an estimated shortfall of more than $600 million in the next regular legislative session, which begins in February.

The governor’s action will result in doing away with $60 million in cuts to state agencies and using $60 million from revolving funds, as called for in HB 1019X. The measure also called for using more than half of the state’s $83 million in cash reserves; a smaller amount will be used as a result of the governor’s line-item veto.

“Our inability to find a long-term solution to our budget problem puts our citizens and our economy at risk,” said Fallin. “We cannot give up. We must find solutions. Our citizens want a state government that works for them. They are tired of gamesmanship and want leadership. As difficult as it might be to return to the state Capitol, we must do so. As governor, I pledge, as I have done throughout this difficult period, to work with the Legislature. We came so close, with over 70 percent of the House and over 75 percent of the Senate voting for a viable budget plan.

“Some legislative leaders have stated that revenue measures will be taken up in February when lawmakers return in regular session,” Fallin said. “But I am very skeptical because next year is an election year and the pressure not to do anything will be greater.

“We must find sustainable, predictable recurring revenue to fund our core services and get us out of the constant crisis. Let’s finish our work for the sake of our great state and our hardworking people. I love this state and her people, and I will continue to work tirelessly with the Legislature for them.”

Former Oklahoma Libertarian Party chairman and current gubernatorial candidate Chris Powell issued the following statement in response to Gov. Fallin's veto:

"This latest plot twist in the ongoing budget fiasco exemplifies the ongoing failure of leadership from the Governor's office. We are in our fifth year of budget shortfalls, but our first year of serious attempts by Gov. Fallin to do something about it.

Unfortunately, her desired solutions have largely been regressive new taxation. Despite paying lip service to real spending prioritization by calling for 'efficiences' and consolidation, the Governor has not publicly offered specific proposals and among the provisions of HB 1019 that she vetoed were all of the spending reductions passed by the Legislature.

We need to reform our tax structure. Governor Fallin failed to do so for years. When she finally did take action, it was an attempt to tax everything from haircuts to child care to your electric bill. Not addressed by the Governor or the Legislature are hundreds of millions of dollars annually in incentives to various special interests. Now, after calling a special session without having a real plan in place and seeing it fail, the Governor wants to cost the taxpayers even more for another special session without any good reason to think it will be any more productive than the first.

As Governor, in addition to addressing reform of the tax structure, I would seek to eliminate as many incentives for special interests as possible, move to really prioritize spending, and seek to consolidate overlapping and redundant state agencies. And I would not call a special session until after developing a plan to proceed by bringing leadership of both parties from both the House and Senate to the bargaining table all at the same time. Governor Fallin's failure to provide leadership will almost certainly lead to a second failed special session."

Senate President Pro Tempore Mike Schulz, R-Altus, released the following comment on the governor's veto of the revised FY'18 budget:

"We are surprised by the governor’s veto. The governor’s office was involved in the negotiation of the revised budget agreement, but did not indicate the agreement was insufficient and would be vetoed. The revised budget agreement was not the Senate’s first choice to resolve the budget crisis but it was the only option after the House showed it was not able to meet the constitutional standards of raising revenue. Bringing the Legislature back into special session at this point seems like a waste of time and taxpayer dollars. The governor’s veto doesn’t help Oklahoma thrive, it only serves to throw our budget further into chaos.”

Editorial: It's high time to beautify Sand Springs

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This Centennial Clock is one of dozens across the State, commemorating Oklahoma's hundredth anniversary. 

Sand Springs is a wonderful community. I love it here. I was born and raised in Sand Springs and I've lived here for the majority of my life, with stents in Nowata, Bartlesville, Owasso, and Norman. I'm fairly well traveled for an Oklahoman of my age. The average American has visited only twelve states and at my 23 years of age I have been fortunate enough to spend time in seventeen, not counting layovers. 

I am not a turnpike traveler. I like to go with the land, not through it. I take the two-lane highways through the small towns that the interstate forgot. I read about them as I go, I stop in the downtown districts and see the sites. I use the pokestop information on the Pokemon Go! app to find unique parks, murals, statues, and other landmarks that I might otherwise drive right by. 

One thing I'm always struck by is how little art we have in Sand Springs. We have two existing murals and one that's still being painted. We have one statue and a handful of historical markers. That's it. If you visit nearby communities right here in Oklahoma, you're inundated with art. Not just the big cities like Tulsa or Oklahoma City, which have hundreds of murals across town. Sapulpa is the size of Sand Springs and has artwork on every corner. Drumright has a mere 3,000 people and yet their town is inundated with murals. 

Sapulpa Public Art

Drumright Public Art

Cushing Public Art

Sand Springs is in a pivotal time right now. With the demolition of the old steel plant, increased commercial development in RiverWest, and new businesses investing in downtown, the town has the opportunity to build momentum and really push Sand Springs into a new era of success. With the commercial development, we should also focus on developing the aesthetic so that the town doesn't lose its identity and end up like another Owasso or Broken Arrow, indistinguishable from Tulsa. 

The following are just a few areas that I think are ripe with potential for branding Sand Springs as a beautiful destination for a weekend getaway or a unique and perfect town in which to build a family and a future.

This grassy hillside is one of many empty areas that could use a little glam in Sand Springs. This spot is located on the southern side of US64 at the intersection with Main Street. The City already has beautification projects planned for many such areas, pending the passage of General Obligation Bond Proposal No. 4 this November, though this specific site hasn't been mentioned yet. A small flower garden here would go a long way, and it doesn't need to be some big expensive government project. This is the kind of simple project that a local youth group could knock out in a single afternoon. A mix of decorative rock and perennial plants would provide a low-maintenance and quality improvement to the town's beauty.

Nothing better to follow the hillside garden than a "Welcome to Downtown Sand Springs" mural. The US64/Main Street intersection is the gateway between old and new Sand Springs. On the south side you have the RiverWest development and the upcoming Sheffield Crossing development. An eye-catching garden and mural will help usher visitors from the modern growth to the heart of the city and hopefully encourage name-brand shoppers to spend a little time among the Mom and Pop shops that make our community unique. Efforts would need to be made to seal all of the cracks in the concrete where the weeds penetrate. Overpass murals have been done excellently in other communities, such as the I-244 intersection with North Greenwood Avenue in Tulsa.

Of all the sites in Sand Springs in need of a face-lift, this needs it the most. I mean no disrespect to the property owners, but most of downtown is red brick so this sticks out like a sore thumb. This is the side of the Yesterday to Now building and the parking for Hammond Family Dentistry. The white paint has clearly been touched up in various spots over the years so none of it is one consistent shade. This is also highly visible and unobstructed, making it a wonderful spot for a mural. The length of the building would bode well for a timelapse mural of Sand Springs throughout the years. 

There are many sites in Sand Springs that don't necessarily need a facelift, but would be fine candidates to receive murals if the community was in favor of more community artwork.
Left to right, top to bottom:

  • 21 East Broadway, owned by Montie Box Rental, currently leased by Bodley Insurance. 
  • 26 East Broadway, owned by Bekim Rexhepi LLC, leased by Napoli's Italian Eatery. This former site of the Sand Springs Trolley Depot aught to bear some reminder of its storied past.
  • 11 East 2nd Street, owned by Thomas & Sharecia Nowak Family Trust, leased by Boost Mobile.
  • 15 East 2nd Street, owned by Sand Springs Welfare Association, leased by Security Finance.
  • 100 North Main Street, owned by Tallent Electric, leased by Edward Jones and Chamber of Commerce.
  • 107 North Main Street, owned by Frank and Catherine Suraci, unoccupied. This is the first wall you see after entering downtown via Main Street.
  • 100 North Main Street, different side of aforementioned building.
  • 118 North Main Street, owned by Vazgen Minassian, leased by Doug's Rebuilders. 
  • 217 North Garfield Avenue, owned by Southwestern Bell Telephone Co. This building is probable the most visible location in downtown for a mural. 
  • 209 North Main Street, owned by IOWA LLC, occupied by Law Offices of Cynthia Phillips and Technology Consulting Services. 

This mural by Josh Butts is halfway done. The eastern side has yet to be primed due to the close proximity to power lines. 

The City of Sand Springs recently commissioned a pair of murals by Tulsa artist Josh Butts. One of these murals is about halfway finished on the abandoned Monarch Cement Co. silo just west of the Avery Drive-Highway 51 intersection. Neither the location nor the design of the second mural has been announced as of yet. City Council authorized $49,500 for the pair of them, funded by the Economic Development Capital Improvement Fund. That money is generated by a hotel tax.

SEE RELATED: City of Sand Springs commissions mural for abandoned Monarch Cement silo.

$49,500 is a lot of money to most people. It may not be a lot of money for a pair of high-quality murals, but it's a lot of money to the average Sand Springs citizen. 

I'm not advocating that the City authorize another $300,000 for murals. I'm a conservative. I believe that the government exists to provide essential services and nothing else. I love the mural being painted by Josh Butts, and I would love to see more of his work around Sand Springs, but I don't personally believe that the taxpayers should be forced to pay for it. 

Sand Springs is blessed with countless service groups and organizations. There are dozens of churches and youth groups. We have great organizations like Beautiful Living in Sand Springs, the Sand Springs Rotary Club, the Power of Partial Improvements, and hundreds of involved citizens who are constantly open to improving the community. 

The Rotary Club donated $70,000 in 2015 to help open a free public splash pad in Case Community Park. Case Community Park received a $2 million donation from Mike and Pat Case. The Rotary Club also sponsors Centennial Park where the sandy springs from which the town draws its name are located. Word of Life Church recently held a work day at Limestone Elementary where they painted several rooms throughout the facility to help the school district rebrand all their schools with black and gold. Church That Matters recently held a city-wide service day where they worked in parks, painted a bridge, worked at a shelter for victims of domestic violence, and even gave out free quarters at local car washes and laundromats.

The town has a long history of those with excess giving back to those with little. The town was born out of the charity of Charles Page, who used his wealth to open an orphanage and widows' colony. He also opened an amusement park and gave away major incentives to attract businesses to the town to provide jobs for his "children." Page had a sense of community that is still very much alive in the hearts of thousands of Sandites to this day. 

You don't have to be a millionaire oil baron to make a difference in your community. Maybe you can't commission a painting, but you can probably give five bucks towards a community enhancement fundraiser, or pick up a shovel and help plant a garden, or help pick up trash and tree debris after a thunderstorm. A few thousand people working together can get a lot done. Let's stop waiting on the City to pass bond issues and raise taxes to get things done. Let's just be involved citizens, get things done ourselves, and make this town the most unique community in the country. 

Wilson's Call: Missions are not an event, they are a way of life

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The following is a monthly newsletter shared by Michael and Baylee Wilson. The full-time ministers are from Sand Springs and consider Word of Life to be their home church. 

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MONTH

Fontil now has his own 6X10 room, sleeping on a bed, receiving meals on a regular basis and hearing about the saving grace of Jesus Christ. 

Fontil

You remember Fontil? One of our Haitian friends found him sleeping on trash under some banana leaves and cardboard exposed to the elements. She moved him to Lascahobas to keep a better eye on him. He seems to have dementia. There are times we see him and he doesn't know where he is or what's going on around him. When we met him he was sharing a 6X6 room with another man and sleeping on the floor not knowing where his next meal is coming from...

Fontil now has his own 6X10 room, sleeping on a bed, receiving meals on a regular basis and hearing about the saving grace of Jesus Christ. 

From Death to Life

The Bible says to go lay your hands on the sick and pray for them to be healed. Today we saw that happen. We walked down a steep windy trail, walked along a river bank into a group of houses really close together. As we navigated through these houses we came to THE house we were looking for. We walked in to a man struggling to breath. We went in to pray for him and he accepted Christ and he gave his last breath right after we finished praying. God took him from glory to glory. He is healed by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

After he passed, we walked out of the house and 3 voodoo priest came running up. They said that "Voodoo" told them to hurry before he dies so they can save him. They were late because our God is always one step ahead and this world offers what only God can give. Jesus Christ has defeated death and he stole the keys to the grave. God is so good! 

His Hope Ministry Growth

We are so excited to let you all know that we are now feeding eight abandoned elderly a week and increased to three feedings a week! 

We are still believing to start a home/living facility for our elderly. We know this may be a long way off, but we believe with God and your help, we can make it happen. To give them a place to live means we will be able to give them the care that they need on a daily basis, feed them every day, allow them to spend time with others their age, and be able to share the gospel in their every day lives. Please join us in prayer about this. 

Celebrate

Baylee and I celebrated two years of marriage in our favorite place, as well as Baylee's 23rd birthday!

We are so happy to share these joyful moments with the amazing people of Haiti. We look forward to a lifetime of happiness and serving together!

Michael will be doing a monthly Facebook live video where we will talk about everything missions. We will talk about Haiti, local & global missions, what it means to be on mission and everything else under the sun!

There will be an episode on the first Monday of every month at 6pm (CTD). I am excited to see how God uses this to be glorified. 

WE NEED YOUR HELP. Would you please send suggestions for what you would like to hear about? Simply message Wilson's Call on Facebook to share your thoughts.

Prayer Request

In Haiti you pay for your rent a year at a time and at the beginning of the year. We are believing that God will provide it all this month so that we can have a year of housing behind us and another amazing year of ministry in front of us here at RTS Missions! This would free up resources to be used in other ways to further the kingdom of God in Haiti for the glory of Jesus Christ our Lord. We're believing that God is going to show up in a big way!

Would you consider joining our mission team with a one time donation this month? Thank you all for your continued prayer and support! We could never tell you how much we thank God for each and every one of you!

For more details message Baylee or myself or follow these steps
(all donations are tax deductible)
1. Go to www.rtsmissions.com
2. Click the red "donate" button
3. Create an account
4. ***click the scroll down arrow and select "Michael & Baylee Wilson"***
5. Enter and donate the amount God puts on your heart to give.

Praise Reports: We had our first ever Game Day at our house for those in the His Hope ministry, along with some other elderly in the neighborhood. We ate together, played bingo, sang a few songs, and prayed together. It was an amazing day and they all had a great time. We are working on putting together our next event for them and they are looking forward to it. 

Thanks to your generosity, we were able to pay for the first year of kindergarten for a little girl whose mom and dad left her whens she was a baby. She means the world to us and we were blessed to be able to do this for her. She is enjoying school and we pray that she makes many friends and learns more each day. 

OPINION | Does protesting the protesters make you a crybaby too?

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The following is the opinion of an individual. It does not reflect the opinions of the company, the Editorial board, or the company owners. Opinion pieces from differing viewpoints are welcome, so long as they are written respectfully.

"I don't personally believe that black people are persecuted in America. I don't believe that there is still systemic racism in America. I have seen no evidence of it. I could be wrong. But the fact that there's a large amount of my fellow countrymen who feel persecuted, denigrated, and unfairly treated is concerning to me. It should be concerning to you. If you call yourself an American, you should care about all Americans. You should care about unity, understanding, and constructive discourse.

Rioting, looting, vandalism; these are all still present in our society. So when someone chooses to make a silent, peaceful protest that doesn't harm anyone in any way, we should applaud that.

I attend sporting events every week. Usually 2-3 a week. I see young people and adults, athletes and fans, casually standing during the anthem, not paying attention, looking at their phones, whispering to their neighbors, etc. I was raised to stand at attention, hand over heart, eyes on the flag. When the music starts you drop everything, get your hands out of your pockets, and take off your hat. I'm more annoyed by someone pretending to be patriotic but not actually paying attention than by someone kneeling, being quiet, and respecting those around them.

Many of the NFL athletes who kneel during the anthem have made statements that their actions are in no way intended to be disrespectful to the men and women who fought for our country. They simply want to bring attention to something that concerns them, and something that should concern all of us.

Our country has a problem that needs to be fixed. Maybe we have a problem with systemic racism. I don't know. But I'm 100% confident that we have a major problem with communication. People are too hostile. Both sides of the fence. Conservative, Liberal, Moderate, Christian, Atheist, Black, White: I have friends and family of all labels. The one thing that I consistently see in all of them is an inability to separate emotions from logic and listen to opposing viewpoints.

I've had friends who portrayed the stereotypical snowflake liberal, who think 50% of the country and everyone who voted for Trump is a disgusting racist. I've had friends who portray the stereotype of a hypocritical christian bigot. I've seen church employees talk about cleansing the world of Muslims who are unwilling to convert.

I also know a lot of loving and accepting people, both Christian and otherwise, who try to be compassionate to everyone.

There was a time when the radicals were a slim minority fringe group. The silent majority was middle of the road. Maybe it's the prevalence of social media. Maybe it's manipulation by the mainstream media. Maybe it's politicians, Hollywood, the NFL, whatever. Or maybe it's all of us. No politician, actor, or news reporter can force me to hate. They cannot force me to discriminate, stereotype, or make inflammatory statements. 

It's time for the American people to take responsibility for the condition of our country. Our economy is changing, our culture is diversifying, our values differ wildly. We can't keep pretending that our way is the only way, my way or the highway. We can't keep expecting people to settle for the status quo when they're not the ones benefiting from it.

The fact is, both sides are patriots. One side believes themselves to be defending their country from disrespect. One side wants to improve their country and see it move forward and succeed. There's no reason to be so bitter towards each other. The fact is, you can love your country and still see its flaws. America has done horrible things. Japanese internment camps, native American genocide, slavery, Red Scare trials, Salem witch hunts. America has also done incredible things. We defeated a world power to gain our independence and stand up to tyranny. We defeated the Nazis, we fought a war to end slavery, we fought a culture war to end segregation. 

There are people who actually hate America and want to see it fall. People who are actively plotting against us. Instead of condemning people who want to make America better, why not condemn people who actually want to see America fall?

Abortion, Confederate heritage, economics, nationalism, religion, sexuality. The number of controversial topics grows every year. People need to understand that it's human nature to feel threatened by the unknown. To be opposed to change and difference of opinion. But what separates humans from animals is our ability to use reason, to empathize with our neighbors, and to work together to make this country better for everyone, not just a few. 

The next time you see something that offends you, breathe. Relax. Don't waste your time being offended. It doesn't change anything. Take the opportunity to learn about someone else's viewpoints. You don't have to agree with them. You're not going to catch a disease. Stop freaking out on people, calling them racist, bigot, idiot, libtard. We used to spank our kids for calling people names. Nowadays it's grown adults treating each other like children, lashing out at people in anger with no goal of understanding them. Choose to be an adult today."

Senate District 37 candidate Brian O'Hara speaks at community forum

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Brian O'Hara, a Republican candidate for Senate District 37, spoke at the Sand Springs Chamber of Commerce candidate forum at Tulsa Technology Center Monday morning in Sand Springs.

The following is a transcript of his opening remarks. Candidates were given a five-minute time limit, followed by a question and answer session.

"It's fantastic to be here, and what's even more fantastic is the fact that my wife and I have been married 34 years (points to McAtee and Nollan), 36 years, 35 years. That says a lot about the candidates that you have running for this office. 

There are certain people that when they run for office, they're a part of your community. I have been incredibly blessed to have been a part of your community. That's why I decided to run. Like Phil and others, I've had the opportunity to hear what you guys have to say. Not only on the doorstep, not just for the last two or three months, but for the last five years.

Working for Congressman Bridenstine, I've had to hear your concerns. I've had to listen. It's a privilege to know what you guys are talking about. Yes, education clearly is the first and foremost thing on most of your minds.

I want to set your minds at ease right now. I know people ask me, and they often ask me because they know where the congressman stands, 'where do you stand on education?' Well let me explain to you. I have five children, all five of them went to public school. My last just graduated from Jenks. I've had six exchange students come into my home. All six of them went to public school.

I was a PTA president. My wife has been a part of the PTA as well. My mother taught, my brothers teach - one has passed away - so I have a real desire to work on education. My youngest son's going to go to UCO and what he wants to do is be a teacher. Again, I have a vested interest because I don't want him coming home.

I say all this to say this. Congressman Bridenstine, and some of you may know this, does support vouchers. I met with a very conservative group, and I knew where they stood on vouchers. And they asked me point blank, where do you stand on vouchers? I said I don't support them, and I explained why.

One, the money. Two; when you allow City government, State government, Federal government to come into your classrooms, whether it be home schooling or private school, then you have the ability to have those entities tell you how to educate your children. And most of you are sending your children to private school or home schooling because you don't want that.

The budget is the second thing I hear on the doorstep, and you hear often. I've been saying this for two and a half years. The budget needs to be our priority. I owned a business, I owned a couple of Subways before I came to work for the congressman. It is ludicrous for us to consider the last two weeks of the session what we're supposed to do in the beginning of the session.

As a businessman, if I wanted to say my subway sandwiches, this is what I need to sell, at the end of the month rather than the beginning of the month, I would have gone broke. So I understand how important that is.

I was a City Councilman in Jenks. Look, Elizabeth (Grey) will tell you, we need to find a way to help fund them. The safety districts is something I will support. And what that does is give you the opportunity to decide what you want your money to go to.

Going back to education, one of the things I'd like to start seeing us do on education is to allow you, the individual voters, the people in the school districts to decide. We have an antiquated system that's thirty years old on how we fund schools. We need to look at that. We need to give off-the-top dollars, your dollars. Only about 78% of the money you use, you pay in taxes, actually goes to your school district. We have to change that. We have to allow you guys to decide where you want your money to go. So I would advocate that we change the funding to allow you guys to have your schools in better shape.

There are a lot of other things going on. Those are just three areas where I think I can be of benefit to you. But the main thing is, Phil said it, is relationships. I've built relationships over the past five years. With each and every one of you. I've come to your events. I've come to Chillin' and Grillin'. I've come to Boo On Broadway and I've had the opportunity to meet you individually, so I know who you are. I know where you stand on the issues. Now also note, that unless we build relationships what we do at the Capitol won't matter. 

So I'm asking for your support. The Republic primary is September twelfth. I would love for your vote. My cards are out there, my personal cell phone is on them. Any questions you have, I'll answer. And sometime's it's not going to be the answer you want, but it'll be an honest answer, it'll be a truthful answer, and I appreciate your support."

Senate District 37 candidate Phil Nollan speaks at community forum

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Phil Nollan, a Republican candidate for Senate District 37, spoke at the Sand Springs Chamber of Commerce candidate forum at Tulsa Technology Center Monday morning in Sand Springs.

The following is a transcript of his opening remarks. Candidates were given a five-minute time limit, followed by a question and answer session.

"I'm used to being the guy in the background, doing the research. I know a lot of you out here in the audience already, and you know our background as a family. Maybe you don't know that I grew up in Tulsa and went to Tulsa Public Schools. I graduated and went to Oklahoma State University where I met my lovely, and through some miracle - I'm not sure how - I managed to talk her into marrying me, and we've been married thirty-six years ourselves. 

What was neat about that is, she brought me back to Sand Springs at a home football game when John Blake was still playing football. When Barry Switzer was recruiting him I saw him in a big fur coat down on the sidelines. But what was neat about that was the home town feel that we had here in Sand Springs, in the stadium. When Jadine walked around, she knew everybody. That's something I didn't get in Tulsa. I said, 'Jadine, when we get married I want to move back to Sand Springs and I want to raise our kids here.' That's what we've done. 

We have three kids, two grandkids, and we're blessed to have our two grandkids living close to us. I love being a papa, it means more to me than anything else.

Now a bit more about me and my career. I got a computer science degree at OSU when computer science was not the cool thing to get. I went to work for the oil and gas industry. I've been in the industry about thirty-five years as an information technology professional.

I'm a nationally-certified project manager. I think during my process of my early years I learned how to manage projects and programs, I learned how to lead teams, learned how to work on big IT budgets, learned how to deliver things as promised - on time and under budget. 

My recent employment with EMC, I had to work with Fortune 100 customers like Chesapeake, Devon, Williams, Conoco, Phillips 66, OU, OSU, and a lot of companies here in Oklahoma. What I found in working with those companies is, they had big demands like I know this job has. Like I know the job that my wife has to do. Meeting those demands is not going to be easy, but you've got to keep your word. You've got to keep your promises, and you have to do the best you can do to make it happen.

You've got to develop relationships with people in the organization. You've got to develop relationships with the people up in the House, and in the Senate. You have to develop relationships in the business community and in the school community. I think that's maybe an advantage that I have a little bit at least in the Sand Springs and West Tulsa and Berryhill area, because I've knocked on a lot of the doors that Jadine's knocked on. I've heard the concerns of the people at the door.

The number one polling issue is education and education funding. That is the number-one polling. What's number two? The State budget. How do we fix the State budget. Then public safety and health follow that.

Those are the big issues, and they're glaring everybody in the face. Everybody has answers to them. There's a lot of opinions on both sides of the aisle. There's even opinions within the caucus itself, and that kind of fragmented everybody to try to come up with a solution this past year which we didn't come up with too many good solutions this past year.

My wife and I, we've served all our lives in the community. We enjoy serving. We're at a stage in life now where our kids are grown up. This is something that I could do full time. I could be your State Senator full time.

I have a personal passion for education. My wife was on the school board for eleven years. I worked closely with her behind the scenes doing research and working with the schools. Heck, I was on the committee that helped build the stadium that we have now after fifty-seven years of the rock stadium that we had before. What a great project that was for Sand Springs. Our new stadium that we have and the track out there and our fine arts center. Those are some of the things that we've done.

We've got a lot of good things happening in Sand Springs in our community business-wise with the Vision 2025 corridor, our parks, our quality of life projects have really stepped up. We've had a lot of new things.

I want to take that excitement and that energy to the State Capitol. I want to say there are a lot of great things we can do, all we have to do is get together. We've got to come together, we have to stop this bickering between the aisles. And really, the Republican caucus is so big, there's bickering within the caucus itself. Those don't all work good together.

I'm just excited to be here. This is so much fun. I've been on the sidelines for seven years and I've wanted to get in the game. Coach, call me in! And I haven't had a chance. This is an opportunity and I'd appreciate your vote on September twelfth."

Senate District 37 candidate Nicole Nixon speaks at community forum

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Nicole Nixon, a Republican candidate for Senate District 37, spoke at the Sand Springs Chamber of Commerce candidate forum at Tulsa Technology Center Monday morning in Sand Springs.

The following is a transcript of her opening remarks. Candidates were given a five-minute time limit, followed by a question and answer session.

"My name is Nicole Nixon. I'm a mom. I live in Southwest Tulsa.

Three of my community schools were consolidated. The schools that were consolidated; they'll have you believe that it was because we have low enrollment numbers. They'll have you believe that we have too many schools out there and we're spending too much money on them. The truth is, the more that I dug into this, the more their numbers were skewed, and the more none of this made sense. 

I was told that they were going to consolidate North Tulsa schools but because of the Betty Shelby case, that they didn't want to have a riot on their hands. So they attacked Southwest Tulsa. 

As far as the funding, Tulsa Public Schools is the second largest school district in Oklahoma. Tulsa Public Schools is not properly utilizing their funding. And the second-largest school district in the state not properly utilizing their funding is sending a message to the legislature that none of the public schools are adequately utilizing their funding. It makes all of us look bad. And when they stand their and they point their finger at the legislature, half of the reason that they have problems is because they put themselves in that. It's not acceptable. 

I used to be a metal salesman. I worked in the steel industry. I am familiar with hard hats, safety glasses, steel-toed boots. I worked with tons of manufacturing businesses: aerospace, defense. I have the ability to negotiate.

I want to have a voice when it comes to my children's education. I want all of us to have a voice when it comes to our community and what is going on in our legislature. It's not acceptable what they're doing.

We have leaders that are not being leaders. A good leader makes more leaders. They have tried to blame it on the freshman legislators. But when in actuality, they haven't reached out and tried to help them learn or pulled them on the team. They've been using them as pawns. 

I decided to run because I'm tired of it, as most of us are. As far as job growth and our economy, education comes number one. We have a great education, we attract businesses, we have a well-educated workforce.

Some of you may have seen me on the news. I was down in Oklahoma City at the Capitol, fighting for our schools. If you visit my website, there's media links to all the reports of me standing up and fighting. Tonight I'll be at the Tulsa Public Schools Board meeting, like I am at most of those board meetings.

Without a presence by the parents and the people, we have no chance of making government accountable to the people. We've got to step up, join our PTAs. You don't have to have a student that goes to school there to join. We have to make a bigger presence. 

As far as bringing more voter awareness, I think the key to that is having a solid election day every year. From school board all the way up, we need to create a culture where people know 'today is voting day and I'm gonna go vote for this candidate, but I know there's going to be a whole bunch of other names on that list and I don't want to get it wrong.' We need to have them looking at our school board members. We need to have them showing up. We've all got to do this together.

I humbly ask for your vote. Give me a voice. I just want to be able to help my children and your children and our state. I want to have the opportunity to get in there and find out what is going on and start fixing the root of our problems rather than treating symptoms."

 

 

 

Senate District 37 candidate R. Jay McAtee speaks at community forum

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R. Jay McAtee, a Republican candidate for Senate District 37, spoke at the Sand Springs Chamber of Commerce candidate forum at Tulsa Technology Center Monday morning in Sand Springs.

The following is a transcript of his opening remarks. Candidates were given a five-minute time limit, followed by a question and answer session.

"My name is R. Jay McAtee. Today's my anniversary, I've been married to my wife thirty-five years today. I love you dear.

I'm a lawyer in Tulsa and a judge here in Sand Springs. I've been a municipal judge for fifteen years, it's taught me a lot. I've represented businesses and families for thirty-five years. I represent workers' compensation businesses and insurance companies, defending workers' compensation claims. 

I've been living in South Sand Springs (Prattville) since 1990. I live on Overholt Drive off 51st Street. Raised my two kids there, my wife and I did. We call Sand Springs home. I attend First Presbyterian Church, I'm a Clerk of Session there. I've been attending First Pres for sixteen-seventeen years. That's my church home.

That's who I am. Now why am I running for State Senate District 37? It's not for the money. I don't need it. I'm a successful attorney, I've got a good practice. My wife asked me 'why are we doing this?' I told her because I'm fed up of forty-eighth or worse. It's time I give something back to this state, and I think I've got the ability to do that. 

Just yesterday, what was in the Tulsa World? 'Deep-pocketed non-profits use dark money to sway Oklahoma elections.' Oklahoma is controlled by special interests. That's not right. We need to take Oklahoma back. We need to give it back to the citizens of Oklahoma. And I don't intend to let special interests dictate my vote. I truly believe that special interests have caused Oklahoma's problems.

The legislature needs to take the budget and make it their number one item on day one, February 8-9, 2018 and they need to not attend to any other business until that budget is addressed. Folks, you can't cut forever. I'm a businessman. You cannot cut down to the bone. If you get to the bone, you're done. So we have got to figure out how to meet Oklahoma's budgetary needs.

Gross production tax - yes I made the oil industry mad at me last week when I went in front of the State Chamber's lobbyists and I said this. First thing out of their mouth was 'where do you stand on gross production tax?' Well folks, the reality of it is, the horizontal drilling is robbing us. That horizontal gross production tax is for the first three years. You know what they get in the first three years? They get all that they're gonna get out of that well. 

The vertical drillers are paying 7%. They're getting robbed. And we're getting robbed by out-of-state interests - big oil - and it's time for them to step up and help fix Oklahoma.

We can't pay our teachers until we figure out how to do the budget. I am absolutely in favor of paying teachers. My mother taught in Laverne, Oklahoma, out in the panhandle thirty-plus years. She had her Master's in English. I believe in teachers. It's a profession just like lawyers, just like anything else. There's good, there's bad, there's mediocre, and there's excellent. I think teachers generally are excellent, because they're responding to a calling, and we need to support them.

We need to support roads and bridges, we need to do a lot of things, but none of it's going to happen until we have bold leadership that's ready to step up at the Capitol and say 'no, we are going to stop the special interests from dictating to Oklahoma what Oklahoma needs.' 

I hope I get your vote. We have a lot of good candidates running against me. It's gonna be a fun race."

Senate District 37 candidate Rick Hardesty speaks at community forum

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Rick Hardesty, a Republican candidate for Senate District 37, spoke at the Sand Springs Chamber of Commerce candidate forum at Tulsa Technology Center Monday morning in Sand Springs.

The following is a transcript of his opening remarks. Candidates were given a five-minute time limit, followed by a question and answer session.

"What I'm hearing is, we need to get our schools better funding. We need to get more money into our education system. To me that makes sense as a small business owner in needing to have a viable workforce and things like that...The reason I started running, the main reason, was I sat and watched...and they have practically closed every school over there and it kind of got me angry.

Normally I'm not that politically involved, but after seeing all this going on I decided that our legislators that we currently have in Oklahoma City aren't really doing the job that they're supposed to be doing. That's looking out for the best interests of our state, not just a few corporate entities. 

The reason I think I can do a fairly good job over there is that I also do real estate, and in real estate we negotiate stuff every day. That's what real estate is. If I take a contract with a customer to sell their house or sell their business, I'm gonna get them the exact highest price we can get. And vice-versa. If I'm working with a buyer, I'm going to get them a property as cheap as I can. So every day, we're negotiating and I'm good at it. 

It's gonna take the citizens in the community to get together with public forums and let them know exactly how you feel.

We have over 75 different business tax incentives in Oklahoma in the name of promoting new business. They're not working. Very few of them give us a return on our investment and that's by their own studies. We have a tax incentive commission and they randomly pick different ones. And of the last report they did, ten out of the eleven that they did had a negative impact on our state. The businesses that are taking advantage of the tax incentives are the larger corporate people who are trying to hit a home run. 

I think that we had the opportunity to get our horizontal well drilling credit back to 7% and we missed out on it. In Oklahoma they've been paying 1%. Now it's 2%, which is far below the national average. If they go to Texas they're going to pay 11-13%. If they go to North Dakota they're going to pay 13%. In Oklahoma they pay 2%. I think it's time to do away with that. That was set up in times for if oil prices dropped below $15 per barrel. That's costing us hundreds of millions of dollars a year that could go toward other things. 

In all the surveys that are taken to attract businesses into Oklahoma, good education system was the number one answer to attract corporations and companies to start businesses in Oklahoma. It's not tax incentives. We need to get our priorities straight, put money back where it matters. That's my goal."

Residents give their opinions on Sand Springs in online survey

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In the fall of 2015, the City of Sand Springs launched an online survey for residents of Sand Springs. More than 600 individuals responded, representing more than 3% of the population.

43.9% of residents view the image of Sand Springs as Good. 19.7% of residents have a negative view of the City. 44.5% of residents believe non-residents have a Below Average view of the City. 55.4% of residents believe non-residents have a positive image of Sand Springs.

28.4% of residents rank the quality of life in the city as High, 66.9% ranked it as Moderate, and 4.7% ranked it as Low.

79.8% over residents rank the quality of Public Safety as above average. 1.2% rank it as below average. 82.9% of residents are satisfied with Police services in Sand Springs while 1.8% are dissatisfied. 90.6% of residents feel safe while walking alone in their neighborhood. 71.3% of residents feel safe walking in downtown Sand Springs at night.

85.9% of residents are satisfied with Fire response services. 84.9% of residents are satisfied with the Emergency response service provided by the Fire Department.

49.3% of residents would definitely support a funding mechanism to hire additional police and fire personnel. 44.5% would possibly support it, and 6.1% would not support it. 

85.4% of residents are satisfied with the variety of housing for sale. 63.9% of residents are satisfied with the variety of housing for rent. 81.6% of residents are satisfied with the overall condition of housing.

76.5% of residents have a favorable view of the appearance of downtown. 74.7% of residents are satisfied with the appearance of the business areas outside of downtown. 

89.9% of residents sited Additional Retail/Restaurants as the primary development need in Sand Springs. 75.4% of residents listed Hardware/Home Improvement as the top retail need in Sand Springs. 93.2% of residents desire more Sit-down Establishments. 49.3% of residents visit Tulsa to eat very frequently. 

46.3% of residents would definitely like to see an increase in establishments providing night life opportunities. 71.1% of residents would definitely support the redevelopment of old industrial areas as something else other than industrial.

47.5% of residents definitely support the construction of the Sand Springs Dam, 43.9% would possibly support it, and 8.6% would not support it. 64.3% of residents would definitely support development of the Arkansas River, 30.9% would possibly support it, and 4.8% would not support it.

51% of residents definitely support a system of city-wide trails, 41.2% would possibly support it, and 7.8% are opposed. 

35.9% of residents would like to see additional Residential Development West of town, 31.6% said South of town, 24.4% said North of town, and 8.1% said East of town. 70.3% of residents are in favor of the annexation of additional lands into City Limits. 34.8% of residents support additional multi-family apartment complexes, with 24.9% opposed. 

25.7% of residents are dissatisfied with the Sand Springs Parks and Recreational Opportunities. 36.1% are dissatisfied with the quantity/quality of parks in Prattville. 33.5% are dissatisfied with the quantity/quality of parks on the North side.

73.6% of residents cited a need for the demolition or redevelopment of blighted areas. 35.4% of residents said the Street and Road Conditions were in the greatest need of public improvement. 59.8% of residents believe Sand Springs road conditions are the same as other communities, while 27.6% believe they are better and 12.7% believe they are worse.

If public funding is required to improve the city, 66.1% of residents would support a dedicated sales tax, 33.1% would support a revenue bond, 31.2% would support a property tax, 21.6% would support development fees, and 15.8% would support a surcharge on utilities. 

Editorial: To the Oklahoma State Legislature

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Senator Dan Newberry,

I hope this contact finds you in good spirits. I am writing as a citizen of your district, a resident of the 74063, to request your vote AGAINST SB609's creation of a scholarship savings program that would in any way shape or form direct monies towards private schools that could and should otherwise be used for the improvement of our public education programs. 

Private schools should remain in the private sector. Parents already have the option to remove their child from public schooling, they should not however be allowed to remove funding from our public schools and redirect it to an entity that does not exist for the public. I do not get a refund for roads I don't drive on for the use of improving my private driveway. Neither should private schools be funded by public money that should be used for the good of the whole community. 

As a passionate supporter of our public education system, I will be unable to vote for any senator or representative who would seek to remove even a penny from our already dismal public education funding. With Oklahoma already near the bottom of the nation in per-pupil funding, it is absurd to consider removing money from a starving school system. 

I hope you will do what is right by our young people and continue to invest in their education. Oklahoma should be making every effort to improve our public schools, not throwing in the towel and giving up on them. 

I hope to see your name not just in opposition of this bill, but in favor of bills that will increase our public education funding, especially in terms of teacher pay. It's time to end the exodus of teachers to Texas and other neighboring states. It's time we establish competitive pay for our educators so that we may attract the best and brightest. It's time to acknowledge that our single greatest asset is our children and that our responsibility is to build for them a better future and give them the tools necessary to build one for themselves. ESA is not the answer and it does not represent the values of Oklahomans. 

Thank you for your service to our community and thank your for your time in reading this email. I trust we can count on you to make the right decisions for our children. Our community looks to you for leadership, please don't let us down. 

Respectfully,

Scott Emigh
Editor-in-Chief
www.SanditePride.com

Editorial: To the Dreamers

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

People often give up on their dreams because they don't see success right off the bat. Today marks 1 year since I launched Sanditepride.com and I've invested over $2000 thus far. I didn't get sponsorship on day 1, or month 1, or even quarter 1.

But what I did do is reach more than 30,000 people this past year. That's just individual devices. Last month alone I had more than 20,000 views. When I started I barely broke 400 in the first three months.

I'm still a long way from where I want to be, but I've met a lot of incredible people who have been so supportive to me along the way. That's why I do this, for the people. I love people, I love to hear and tell their stories and see them succeed and celebrate their success.

My team and I have seen five straight months of growth and it hasn't been easy. It's been the furthest thing from easy. I put in more than 60 hours a week on a slow week. I got 4 hours of sleep Friday night in a Super 8 motel in Oklahoma City where there were people fighting in the street, drinking in the parking lot, and I had to call the cops after midnight due to gunshots.

I'm extremely shy and yet I have to force myself weekly to talk to people I'm intimidated by. I have diagnosed anticipatory social anxiety and depression. Every time I go into public I'm scared I'm going to offend somebody. That people won't like me. And it's not a baseless fear. I've had complete strangers message me to tell me that nobody takes me seriously as a writer. That I'm a disgrace. People can be cruel. Are they just mean-natured? Or acting out of some insecurities of their own? That's not for me to decide. But that kind of stuff tears at you. You wonder if you'll ever amount to anything. You wonder if your friends and family are just humoring you, and if you're really just a big joke. You think about quitting. It's not a passing thought. It haunts you.

But I can't quit writing. It's not in me. It is me. I am a writer. I've been doing it since I was a small child. It's the only thing in me that's ever persisted. Everyone goes through phases. At points I wanted to be a veterinarian, a director, an airborne ranger--live a life filled with danger. But all of that passed, and writing always persisted.

And so I've chosen to persist, come what may. Because to leave my dreams within my pillow would be something I could never live with. Because the lows I hit when people tear me down are nothing compared to the low I would live in were I to resign myself to a regular 8-5 job building someone else's vision instead of my own. And the lows are nothing compared to the highs.

The highs of hearing a parent tell you how excited their kid was when they saw an article you wrote about them. The highs of having complete strangers talk to you at the super market like you're old friends because they read your articles every week. The highs of seeing people succeed, from athletes at State Championships to singers on American Idol. Their joy is my joy, their heartbreak is my heartbreak. In the ministry I considered every teen who walked through the doors to be "one of my kids." That attitude has carried over into this new venture. Every young person I have covered means more to me than they'll ever know. Even the one's I've only known from afar, and never met.

I dream with them, and hope that I may use my dream to further theirs. 

So I say to you, don't give up on your dreams. There will be better athletes. There will be better photographers, better singers, better actors. But the talents and passions that God has put on your heart are there for a reason. Don't ever let anyone tell you you're not good enough. Don't let someone else's insecurities contribute to your own. People who have failed to fight for their dreams like to stand in the way of other dreamers. Fight for your dreams, don't become another cynical bystander who lets life happen to them instead of making this life their own. 

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” --Howard Thurman