November 1, 2019 Issue, Page 1 of 10

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Don’t forget to set your clocks back before going to bed Saturday. a y Serving Western Oklahoma Since 1901 of high school and can be no older than 25 by the end of De- cember 2019. If a contestant is entering Miss Elk City, she must live within a 45-mile radius of Elk City. The Queen of the West competition is open statewide. Contestants are evaluated on: A private, 10-minute interview with five judges. That in- terview accounts for 25 percent of the overall score. — Talent. A maximum time of 90 seconds for the talent. This counts for 40 percent of the overall grade. —On-stage interview. This replaces the swimsuit competi- tion and is a continuation of the private interview. This com- ponent accounts for 15 percent of the total score. — Evening wear. This portion accounts for 20 percent of the score. “We are the oldest continuously running pageant in the state of Oklahoma,” Mikles said, noting that several women Brooke Goss, manager at Aspen clothing store here from Queen of the West have won Miss Oklahoma. Su- Macy Eminger Ava Cruchon san Powell, who was crowned Miss America 1981, was Miss on North Main Street in Elk City, looks through Elk City in 1977. Pageant winners for both Miss Elk City some clothes on Tuesday. The store will join other By Don Munsch, Editor and Miss Queen of the West date back to 1962. merchants in Elk City in having open hours on The 2020 Miss Elk City/Miss Queen of the West Schol- A letter to potential candidates, located on the pageants’ Sunday. It's a long-time tradition for stores to be arship Competition will be at 7 p.m. Nov. 16 at the Kelli website, states the purpose of the competition is “not only to open on the first Sunday in November. Aspen will O’Hara Center for Performing Arts in Elk City. produce winners but also to aid girls in the areas of self-con- be open from 1-4 p.m. Staff photo by Don Munsch. Saturday is the deadline for entry. fidence, poise, interview skills and, of course, the all-impor- Current title holders are Macy Eminger, Miss Elk City tant scholarship money. Cash and college scholarships will 2019, and Ava Cruchon, Miss Queen of the West 2019. be given to the winners and runners-up in the competitions.” Prospective SWOSU “We're one of the few dual pageants in the state,” said Ronda Mikles, executive director of Miss Elk City/Miss The Miss Oklahoma pageant will be the first week in June. Miss America 2020 competition will be in December in Queen of the West. “We're crowning two different queens.” students invited to event Competition rules dictate that a contestant must be 17 Connecticut. For more information on the pageants, access http://www. years old and have had to already completed their junior year misselkcity.com/. SWOSU Saturday, an event for prospective students and their family members, will be held Saturday on the Weatherford campus, according to a SWOSU release. Farmrail to discontinue excursion rail cars The annual event gives high school juniors/seniors as well as college transfer students an opportunity to visit the Southwestern Oklahoma State campus. Todd Boyd, director of the SWOSU Admissions & Recruitment Office, said more than 500 visitors are ex- pected. Events begin at 10:30 a.m. with a short presentation in the Fine Arts Center. Campus tours are available and an academic department browsing session in the Wellness Center. Students will receive a free lunch and tickets to the 2 p.m. SWOSU-Southern Nazarene football game. For more information, contact the SWOSU Admissions and Recruitment Office at 580-774-3782 or admissions@ swosu.edu for additional information. Medicaid expansion effort exceeds signatures By Don Munsch, Editor The effort to reach the necessary number of signatures to put Medicaid expansion in Oklahoma on the ballot suc- The external and internal view of a Farmrail train car in ceeded. Clinton. The excursion train program from Farmrail will no In fact, the number of signatures far exceeded what was longer be offered after this year. Staff photo by Don Munsch. necessary. Deadline for 178,000 signatures was Monday, and the Yes on 802 campaign gathered a little over 313,000, said Co- By Don Munsch, Editor and general manager of Farmrail. The company has been us- rey Lively, chief executive officer of Great Plains Regional Farmrail System Inc. in Clinton will discontinue its ex- ing an adult and children’s car for nearly two decades. The Medical Center. cursion service for its adult passenger car at the end of the child’s car already has been discontinued. Rentals for adult Supporters said State Question 802 would bring more than calendar year. car for personal use are booked until the end of the year. a billion of Oklahoma tax dollars back from Washington But people may still buy tickets for the Christmas Train “We never intended for the rail cars to be a regular, steady every year to deliver healthcare for nearly 200,000 Oklaho- Ride in November and December. source of revenue for us,” Petry said. “We knew the likeli- mans, help keep rural hospitals open, boost local economies The company never has had reason to run an excursion rail hood of that happening was pretty slim in Western Okla and create thousands of jobs. car more than on as-needed basis, said Judy Petry, president See Farmrail page 2. “All signatures are collected and turned into the attorney general,” Lively said, describing the process of what hap- pens now. “The attorney general's office will then verify all Hospital foundation to hold fourth gala the signatures are eligible Oklahoma voters.” By Don Munsch, Editor She said The Foundation is the non-profit side of the hos- He said there will be a small window of time for chal- Tickets remain for the fourth annual benefit gala for The pital. It’s managed by a group by community members who lenges. Supporters don’t expect any challenge because there Foundation of Great Plains Regional Medical Center. help raise funds for projects that are sometimes out of the were plenty of signatures, Lively said. The gala, which will benefit The Orthopedic Center of scope out of the daily budget, she said. “Then the attorney general will certify that we met all the Excellence at GPRMC and enhanced patient comfort, will In the first year of the gala, money was raised to buy new requirements for the initiative petition, and then they will be held Nov. 15 at the Elk City Center Convention’s South delivery beds for the maternity wing, Tosh said. hand that over to the governor to place on the ballot,” Live- Building. Dinner and live auction begin at 6 p.m. The eve- “We’ve purchased a CPR machine for the ER,” Tosh said. ly said. “The governor will have a choice of placing it on ning includes a silent auction, open bar and wine raffle. “We did pediatric respiratory equipment last year.” pretty much any ballot that he sees fit or possibly calling a Auction items include everything from trips to foreign lo- GPRMC Chief Executive Officer Corey Lively said the special election. Given his focus on fiscal responsibility, we cales, weekend getaways for two, Gucci bags and sports hospital tries to focus on purchasing items that will help don’t see him calling a special election because that will be memorabilia. make the hospital unique, such as the new birthing beds or costly. But it would more than likely be the general election “I think it’s just an opportunity for our community to CPR equipment. in 2020.” come together and have a good time to celebrate the end of “Last year, we bought a Vapotherm, which is a pediatric That general election would be in November 2020. the year and giving back to the hospital,” said Marnie Tosh, breathing apparatus that helped us keep more pediatric pa See Medicaid page 2. vice-president of The Foundation board. See Gala page 2. Weathi “4 Vol. 117, No. 88 Mail delivery View online il! TIN LU MU | ; tomorcl / 39 75 cents, 10 pgs. 580.225.3000 elkcityoknews.com