January 14, 2020 Issue, Page 1 of 8

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Serving Western Weekday Edition Visiting author imparts love Wyatt to take over as chamber president of national parks, baseball By Don Munsch, Editor Angi Wyatt used to be a police patrol officer and de- By Don Munsch, Editor tective in Tulsa. Roy Deering didn’t do a lot of traveling as a kid, so he That was years ago, and finds visiting and writing about national parks to be gratify- her life has led her to Elk ing as an adult. City, where she today co- Deering, an Ada native who lives in Ada, will visit Elk owns Anadarko Dozer & City Carnegie Library at 6 p.m. Thursday to talk about his books, which are fiction books aimed at young teens. He SS Trucking in Elk City with husband Jay. They pur- also will speak to Elk City schools on Friday. Angi Wyatt chased the business in 2005, In town, he will talk about his young teen novels, includ- but Anadarko Dozer has been ing his second book, “The Day Old Faithful Stopped: A Yel- around since 1984, she said. lowstone National Mystery,” the first in the National Park The Wyatts put their roots down in Elk City, Tonight, Mystery Series. Angi will become president of the Elk City Chamber of Deering explained his inspiration in a telephone interview. Commerce during its annual banquet. A search committee “We never went anywhere,” he said, referring to his time asked Angi Wyatt whether she was interested, and she ac- as a boy and the single-parent home he grew up in. “I mean, cepted. if we went to Lake Texoma, it was a big deal. We just didn’t travel because mom couldn’t afford it, so I decided ifI ever Roy Deering. Submitted photo. “It will be tough to follow Ronda Smith,” Angi said had as a family and kids of my own, which I do now, we about the current chamber president. “She’s a very good businesswoman, she’s a very good president, she loves Elk were going to travel. So we got to traveling quite a bit.” City, she’s a very instrumental leader. She takes care of the The more he went to national parks, the more he enjoyed ily’s favorite trip was to the Redwood Forest in Northern fall festival. But she’s promised me that she will hold my them. Plus, the national parks had cheap admission. He wanted to visit as many parks as he could because he fell in California. hand and help me through this.” love with them, from Florida to Washington state. “T really don’t know if I have one that’s more of a favor- A Northeastern Oklahoma native, Angi Wyatt graduated ite,” he said. “I’ve just got several that I’m not real fond from Afton High School and then attended Northeastern His wife suggested he do series of books based in national of that I don’t like to talk about. ... I just think that every Oklahoma A&M College before graduating with a crimi- parks. He pitched it to a publisher, who was especially re- one of the has something that’s amazing and different. Even nal justice from Missouri Southern State University. She ceptive because she was a “national park freak, too,” Deer- ing said. the ones that I’m not impressed by, somebody else is [im- went on to join the Tulsa Police Department. She worked Asked to name his favorite park, he said for sheer beauty, pressed]. It’s just so cool to be able to walk in, and for $30 there for seven years. “T was a street cop for a long time, and then I made de- it was the Grand Teton National Park, but he said his fam- See Author page 2. tective and so I worked in the child crisis unit,” she said. The opportunity to buy Anadarko brought Jay and Angi to Western Oklahoma. The company’s main office is now in Elk City. “J told Jay I'd be interested in living in Elk City,” she recalls about when they toured the area years ago. See President page 2. Texola man running for Sharon Hutton, right, of Elk City stands with Elk City Rotary Club President Jeff Waters, left, District 55 seat and members of the Elk City Rotary Club, back, on Thursday afternoon with the 2019 Ford A Texola man and law Mustang from Barber-Dyson Ford in Elk City that Hutton won in the Christmas Car Giveaway. school student has declared Money from the raffle, from the tickets sales for the car, stays in Elk City helping such organi- his candidacy for Oklaho- zations as Meals on Wheels, Christmas in the Park, United Fund and Lincoln Teen Center, to ma’s State House in District name a few. Staff photo by Don Munsch. 55. Austin Gipson-Black is running for the seat currently Concealed held by Todd Russ. Gipson- Black sent a news release about his candidacy late last Carry class week. In the release, he said he is running for the State House held over and said he has hope that working policies can be brought Austin Gipson-Black because he thinks “we need leadership for the new decade” weekend back to Oklahoma. He said he will focus on the issues of child welfare, veteran affairs, healthcare access and class- room funding. “Public policy is personal for me,” he said in the release. “Having been a foster child myself, I understand the hard- Charlie Pollard shows a concealed ships that at-risk kids endure, but also what it is like to hope carry card to people attending a conceal to carry class Saturday af- for something better. When my older brother returned from serving our country in Iraq, I saw the challenges veterans ternoon at Cimarron Ridge Apart- face when transitioning back to civilian life. My nephew’s ments’ main office and lobby in school suffered so many budget cuts that his learning needs Elk City. Pollard educated people, couldn’t be met locally. My family isn’t alone. There are about a dozen in attendance, on thousands of Oklahomans across our part of the state with firearm laws and requirements for similar experiences. It’s time to elect someone who under- concealed carry. Staff photo by Don stands and listens to the needs of the people.” Munsch. . See District 55 page 2. Weather Vol. 118, No. 4 Mail delivery View online | . MT . | ; tomorrow | 53 / 75 cents, 10 pgs. 580.225.3000 elkcityoknews.com