October 16, 2021 Issue, Page 1 of 18

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, October 16, 2021 Benefit to be held for Merritt School ECPD Officer Colt Lowry Board meeting held By Burgundy LeeHanrahan ‘The October meeting ofthe Merritt School Board was held on the 11th at 7:30 p.m. in the Administration Building. The meeting was called to order and all board members were pres- ent. There was a unanimous vote to approve the agenda as part of the minutes. A motion was made to waive the reading of the minutes of the regular Sep. 13, 2021 meeting which was approved as were the minutes. ‘The board voted to approve five different funds which are as follows: General Fund- purchase orders, change orders and payroll POs Benefit for Officer Colt Lowry who was diagnosed with stage four liver cancer to be held Oct. 30. Courtesy photo. Building Fund ~ purchase orders and change orders By Burgundy Lee Hanrahan items such as a Blackstone, weed eater, Downtown gift basket, Child Nutrition - purchase orders and change orders half ofa grass fed beef and concert tickets. A lunch of pulled pork, Bond Fund - purchase orders and change orders. Sicily McAbee, owner of Everett Blake Society, and JaCinda King, baked beans, chips, a sweet potato and water will be available for Sinking Fund - purchase orders and change orders owner of CrossFit Velox, say that a benefit for Officer Colt Low- Items in the funds included but were not limited to: chip- purchase for $10 thanks in part to donations from generous local ry of the Elk City Police Department will be held on Saturday, businesses. ping and sealing the parking lot, back payment on a former Oct. 30. ECPD posted on their Facebook on Sept. 13 that Officer teacher's retirement, Kiwanis membership, screening materi- Lowry had been diagnosed with stage four liver cancer along with A raffle for a Springfield Armory Hellcat OSP is currently ongo- announcing the forthcoming benefit. ing. Tickets can be purchased at the Police Department, Fire De- als for kindergarten, bus batteries, Xbox Live Gold Cards for ‘That Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., CrossFit Velox will be hold- partment or at Everett Blake Society for $20 a piece. You must Esports, air filters, fingerprint reimbursements and trash ing a Workout of the Day (WOD). Three person teams can reg- be 21 to enter. You don’t have to be present to win. All ATF rules cans. ister for $100. Spectators will be allowed for an entry fee of $5. apply. ‘The next item on the agenda was presentation of the King explained that the workout will be scalable to any skill level While the t-shirt preorder (which resulted in nearly 100 shirts monthly treasurer's report which was approved. and that you don’t have to be a cross fitter in order to participate. Monthly warrants issued as well as the Activity Fund Re- sold) is closed, there will be some shirts available for purchase on ‘The fact that CrossFit Velox is holding the benefit should come as no surprise - King says that the gym often does community the day of the benefit. port were approved by the board. outreach. McAbee, of course, was involved in organizing July's McAbee and King say that the benefit is 100% funded by dona- ‘The board accepted the resignation of Shane Kauk. Hometown Heroes event. tions and that they felt compelled to do this as “we take care of ‘The presence of one guest, the staff writer from The Elk Also taking place at the gym will be a silent auction featuring our first responders because they take care of us.” City News, was acknowledged. Item nine on the agenda was “Vote to approve/disapprove Appropriations and Budget for school year 2021-22 by func- California men charged with drug trafficking after tion and object and authorize the Superintendent to make code changes as needed,” which was approved. traffic stop with BCSO Item ten was “Review and discussion of Annual Fourth Quarter Student Dropout Report” and it was reported that By Shonda Little “Once we were in my vehi- cessively, rubbing his head, jit- vehicle and asked Jace to have there have been zero dropouts. dle, Dustin was visibly shaking tery and positioned his body as a seat in my patrol car while Item 11 was “Vote to approve/disapprove hiring a Base- Jace Mear and Dustin Mag- and his voice was trembling,” far away from me as he could,” I conducted my search,” the ball coach, PE and History teacher for the 2021-22 school neson have a lot in common. the deputy wrote. the deputy added. deputy wrote. They are both 24 and are both The deputy then identi- Magneson said they had year on a temporary contract.” Superintendent Daugherty ex- Through the search, the from Chico, Calif. fied the car’s passenger as Jace rented the vehicle in Chico, deputy allegedly found 49 files plained that typically when they have this application open in And, now, both men face Mear. Calif., and traveled to Las Ve- the summer they receive no applicants but when it was open of resin containing 84.40% drug charges after a keen-eyed Jace allegedly told the dep- gas, Nev. Beckham County Sheriff's Of- uty that they were traveling to THC, four small jars of THC He then stated that he had this time, they received six. Interviewed Keyshaun Smith and fice deputy allegedly observed Missouri to visit family for ap- left Las Vegas around 11 a.m. wax, smaller jars of THC wax, recommended that he be hired. The board did approve his ap- clues that indicated that they proximately one week. the previous morning and had a small box of pre-rolled mari- pointment. could possibly be carrying con- ‘The deputy returned to his only stopped for two hours in juana cigarettes and a small trolled, dangerous substances. patrol vehicle to write Magne- Amarillo, Texas. plastic bag containing THC Item 12 was “Vote approve/disapprove hiring adjunct At approximately 3:55 a.m. son a warning. Then, he asked After returning Mange- wax folded in wax paper. teacher for the 2021-22 school year: on Sept. 13, the BCSO deputy the driver where he and the son’s license, rental agreement In the passenger-side floor- Keyshaun Smith- 7th grade Geography/8th grade History.” was eastbound on I-40 when passenger were going. and warning, the deputy asked board, the deputy reportedly he observed a white car re- The driver's story alleg- if there was anything illegal in found a sandwich bag contain- Daugherty explained that this was necessary as Smith’s degree portedly cross the centerline. edly differed from his passen- his vehicle. He reportedly stat- ing marijuana and another is not in education so he will need to be emergency certified. After the vehicle crossed over ger’s, reportedly saying they ed not to his knowledge. containing mushrooms. Item 13: “Vote to approve/disapprove adding a trap shoot- the solid white fog line to the were bound for Arkansas for Magneson reportedly said ‘The two men were trans- ing account to the Activity fund.” It was explained that the roadway’s right, the deputy ac- the passenger to take care of that he did not mind if the tivated his emergency lights to “some legal matters.” deputy searched the rental car. ported to the Beckham County team has been receiving donations, which they use for ammo Detention Center. They have signal for the car to pull over. The deputy stated that “He then admitted to me and such, and they need a place to put the money. ‘The item The deputy made contact Magneson continued to shake, that he had a medical mari- since been released on bond. was approved. with the driver, Dustin Magne- and his voice continued to juana card from California and They are due back in Beck- son, and asked for his driver's tremble. had some marijuana in the ham County District Court on 14: “Principal and Athletic Director reports.” It was report- license and proof of insurance. “He was also yawning ex- vehicle. I then returned to the Dec. 6. ed that the 5th/6th grade team won their game and that the high school football team had also won their game. It was also reported that there were 3,000 spectators at the high school Weekly COVID-19 Data game and it was a high-energy crowd. Superintendent's report was the next item on the agenda. Staff Report before (Sept. 26 - Oct. 2). pitalizations are from people locations of the Beckham A. Enrollment: 852 compared to 838 this time last year for On Oct. 13 the District five who are 44 years of age and County Health Department ‘There were 189 deaths to in- anew high. Southwest Oklahoma County younger. clude 24 in SW Oklahoma. The have been offering walk-ins as. B, OSSBA District 9 meeting: Daugherty said that he had Health Departments released average age of cases was 39 As of Oct. 13, Beckham Coun- sent out a message to the board but had not heard from anyone their weekly COVID-19 report years. There have been 1,853 ty had 65 active cases of CO- well as appointments for ad- for the week of Oct. 3 - 9. It COVID-19 total hospital ad- VID-19. ministration of the COVID-19 so he needed to know if anyone wished to attend the meeting. was shared that Oklahoma missions in the last 30 days in As of Oct. 12, 49% of the pop- vaccine. For more informa- C. Discuss ESSER II: this is a grant available to schools for ranks 9 (out of all States and Oklahoma. ulation in the state of Okla~ 86.1% (1,596) of hospital ad- homa aged 12 years and older tion, you can follow the Beck- COVID related expenses. There must be a good faith effort to DC) in the cumulative death rate (per 100,000) of reported missions in Oklahoma during were fully vaccinated against ham County Health Depart- COVID test 10% of the student population each month. There COVID-19 cases in the last 7 the last 30 days (as of Oct. 11) COVID-19 while 56.8% of the ment on Facebook, call them will be a part time employee hired to handle test administra~ days. There were 8,643 new were non-vaccinated; 2.9% population aged 12 years and at (580)928-5551 (Sayre) or tion and their salary will be paid out of the grant. COVID-19 cases were reported (54) were partially vaccinated. older have received at least one during the past week. That is a 11.0% (203) were fully vac- dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. (580)225-1173 (Elk City) or With no new business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:54 7.3% decrease from the week cinated. 26.2% of new hos- Both the Sayre and Elk City visit vaccinate.oklahoma.gov. pm. «IU Weather tomorrow @ 73/46 Vol. 119, No. 83 75 cents, 18 pgs. Mail delivery 580.225.3000 View online elkcityoknews.com