July 19, 2023 Issue, Page 1 of 6

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Serving Western Oklahoma Since 1901 Wednesday, July 19, 2023 Weekday Ed Coalition Coordinator and Beckham ECHS County Associate District Judge Talk Alumni Spending Opioid Litigation Funds Reunion Approaches Submitted by Basil Weatherly Time is running out to pre-register for the upcoming Elk City Schools reunion of all students who attended or gradu- ated through the 2003 school year. Approximately 400 have already signed up for the event. ‘The reunion is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 4th, and Sat., Aug. 5th, at 4 p.m. in the Elk City Convention Center. Alum- ni will be treated to food, drink, a lot of visiting, and the sounds of Slim Pickin’s Band both evenings. Rick Nagle is organizing an ECHS golf scramble for 1 pam. Friday. Additionally, there will be tours of the Elk City school buildings, the Arrowhead Center, and park improve- ments for Friday and Sat. For registration information call or text Linda Cook at 580-799-0432. Steve Berry with the lockbox ; Judge Roper talks to the Elk City Commissioners. By Sheryl Ponce cent of the funds received must be used on abatement strate- gies. There are nine areas of work that was suggested,” Berry ex- During the three-minute public comment time of the Elk City plained. Commissioners meeting on June 21st, at their regular meeting, ‘Those areas include - to broaden the access to naloxone or Steve Berry, ICADC, Western Oklahoma Opioid Coalition Coor- ‘Narcan; to increase the use of medications to treat opioid use dis- dinator, and Beckham Associate County District Judge Michelle order; provide treatment and support during pregnancy and the Roper spoke about possible ways the opioid litigation funds postpartum period; expand services for neonatal opioid with- could benefit western Oklahoma communities. The two talked drawal syndrome; fund warm hand-off programs and recovery about the dollars that will be dispersed from the settlements services; improve treatment in jails and prisons; enrich preven- with Johnson and Johnson and three other opioid distributors tion strategies; expand harm reduction programs; and support which will go to the city and other communities. data collection and research. Berry spoke first and told the commissioners that he rep- Berry said that there is concern about duplication of services resents the western Oklahoma Opioid Prevention Consortium in the area for the distribution of Narcan that the coalition pro- along with the Beckham County Drug Prevention Coalition. He vides for free. had received an unofficial copy of the distributor settlement offer from various companies that will be expected within the upcom- “There’s no point in spending that money to do something that is already being done. So, we don’t want to duplicate ser- ECPS and MPS ing year. “The unofficial settlement copy that I got said that 85 per- See Opioid page 6. Announce ECPS Nurse Moves on to Enrollment Dates Pursue Higher Degree By Sheryl Ponce Elk City Public Schools along with Merritt Public Schools have posted their open enrollment dates on social media. For Elk City, this includes pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. All new and former students who did not complete the 22-23 school year in Elk City must pre-registers online at www.elkc- ityschools.com before Aug, 1st, in order to go to the open en- rollment at the following dates and building sites. Returning students who completed the 22-23 school year will have access to the enrollment forms Aug. 1st. ‘The Elk City Elementary, which includes pre-k through third grades, open enrollment date is Wed., Aug. 2nd, from 8 a.m, to noon. The Intermediate School, fourth through sixth grades, enrollment will take place Aug. 1st, from 8 a.m. until noon. and Seventh graders in the Middle School will be the following day, Aug 2nd, from noon to 4 p.m. ‘The eighth graders will be By Sheryl Ponce Sarah Senger and her husband, Patrick, on vacation. enrolling Aug 3rd, from 8 a.m. until noon. Elk City high school- Courtesy photo. ers, which include freshman through seniors will enroll Thurs- After 11 years being one of two school nurses, Sarah Senger, Heart Hospital in surgery. That was really what I enjoyed do- day, Aug. 3rd, from noon to 4 p.m. RwN,, signed off her school duties to pursue her degree as a nurse ing and, of course, we didn’t have heart surgery in Elk City. So I New student enrollment at Merritt will take place Aug. practioner. She has been attending classes over the last few se- 2nd, from 8:30 p.m. to noon, and each new enrollee must bring stayed home. When the boys were in second grade, I started with his/her birth certificate, shot records, social security number, mesters while taking care of students and teachers throughout the school,” Senger said. and two proofs of residency, which could be a utility bill, lease the school system. Throughout her 11 years, she has worked under three differ- “I started (as school nurse) in October of 2011. I wanted to be ent superintendents and probably 16 different principals. The agreement, or phone bill. Sophomores through senior students a nurse, but I also wanted to be a mom. So school nursing is just number of teachers and support staff that she has been able to must bring a transcript from his/her previous school in addi- the best fit for a mom because you can be a nurse but also have help have been countless. The school nurses have been possi- tion to the other mentioned requirements. the same schedule as your kids,” Senger explained. ble through Assistant Superintendent Cindy Buckmaster’s per- ‘The pre-k through fourth graders will enroll at the elemen- Prior to taking on the role as Elk City’s nurse, she stayed at sistence in pursuing a grant to fund them. tary school, while the fifth and sixth graders will go to the ad- home with her twin boys, Evan and Carter. Her husband, Patrick, “Cindy Buckmaster was instrumental in getting the grant ministration or middle school building. The seventh graders and she moved to Elk City so he could work in the family’s Pizza started. I will say she was always a very good ally for the nurses. through seniors will enroll in the high school. Hut business. She really believed in the health of our students and staff,” she For more information about enrollment contact the appro- “Before we moved to back to Elk City, I worked at Children’s continued. priate school and building or go to their website or Facebook Hospital. I've worked at Mercy, and then I worked at Oklahoma See Senger Page 2. page to see updates to the announcements. M Weather tomorrow 86 / 67 Vol. 120, No. 60 75 cents, 6 pgs. Mail delivery 580.225.3000 View online elkcityoknews.com