Local News
6-27 OKC watch
Survivor of Oklahoma City bombing shares story
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Priscilla Salyers nearly gave up knitting after she was seriously injured during the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995.
The 58-year-old said the pain of losing friends and co-workers in the bombing made it impossible to find joy in the hobby she once loved.
But Salyers said she forced herself to return to knitting. She shared her story Friday with visitors at the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum.
“I didn’t want to knit anymore. I had just lost my joy,” said Salyers, who fell five stories after the bombing and was discovered under a pile of rubble. “But if I didn’t grab back on to what I love, they may as well have killed me.”
Some colleagues at the U.S. Customs Office on the fifth floor of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building where she worked recovered a basket of yarn, covered with debris, and returned it to her.
Salyers said she became motivated to return to knitting after learning other survivors had similar experiences — one man who lost a daughter and a grandson who no longer enjoyed woodworking or a woman who couldn’t start sewing again.
She finally used the yarn to craft a sweater with 168 stars, one for each victim of the April 19, 1995, blast that remains the nation’s most deadly domestic terrorist attack.
The “First Person: Stories of Hope” lecture series will continue every Friday during the summer at the museum.
The goal is to give visitors a real-person perspective on how the bombing affected people’s lives, said Lynne Roller, the museum’s deputy director.
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3-13 Calendar: Edmond senior center
Monday
1 p.m.: *Beginning tap
2:15 p.m.: *Jazzercise Lite -
3-13 Community: your news
Bureau encourages mail-back of census questionnaires saves taxpayer dollars
The 2010 Census is well under way, with the U.S. Census Bureau mailing 2010 Census questionnaires to about 120 million addresses nationwide. The questionnaires will arrive March 15-17. Residents are encouraged to complete the 10-question census form when it arrives and to return it in the accompanying pre-paid envelope as soon as possible. -
Edmond officer becomes part cop, part detective
An Edmond Police officer is a hybrid — part street cop, part detective.
And because of her invaluable service to the Edmond Police Department, Officer Patricia DeMoss has been named the agency’s Officer of the Month for February.
Edmond Police Officer Nathan Fountain nominated DeMoss for the award, which involves voting by DeMoss’s fellow officers. -
A few facts about wills, advance directives
Q: What is a living will? Do I need one? What about a durable power of attorney?
A: A living will, also known as an advance directive, is one of the building blocks of a good estate plan. The advance directive lets you make end-of-life medical decisions now, sparing your family from difficult decisions later. -
Elementary students raise $3,593 for charity
An area elementary school raised $3,593 that will give children clean drinking water where it does not otherwise exist.
Students at Deer Creek’s Prairie Vale Elementary School raised the money, which will be donated to WaterIsLife.com, an Edmond charity that gives water filters to children in developing countries.
The small, portable filters hang around the neck of a child and provide pure water for one year. Among other places, they are supplying clean water in Haiti, a nation recovering from the devastating earthquake that leveled much of the capital city. -
Memorial student produces CD for Swine Week
Edmond Memorial High School senior Bryce Merritt recorded his third CD this year and donated 100 percent of his proceeds to Swine Week, the annual fundraiser the high school put on this week.
The school chose to raise money this year for the Jimmy Everest Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders in Children at the OU Medical Center.
Merritt has been singing since he was young, and he began performing at the Oklahoma Opry in Oklahoma City at age 10. Since then, he has performed at weddings and opened for musicians like Billy Currington and Craig Morgan at Frontier City. -
Spring Break offers fun, service
Mention of the words “Spring Break” conjures up images of tan college students partying on beaches or in night clubs.
As spring and summer breaks approach, many Edmond residents are preparing for trips abroad.
Janny Toma, a client service representative with Edmond’s Nichols Travel, said she has been extremely busy helping customers with travel arrangements leading up to the annual week of sun and fun. Toma said she has served families and students, who are going to places like the Bahamas, the Virgin Islands and San Juan, Puerto Rico. -
Candidate takes aim at state salaries
An Oklahoma City businessman would lower executive pay for the governor and state of Oklahoma department and agency heads if voters elect him governor in November, he said.
Roger L. Jackson has joined Republicans vying for Oklahoma’s 2010 gubernatorial seat. Oklahomans For Roger Jackson for Oklahoma Governor 2010 has filed paperwork recently with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission. -
Edmond Y breaks Strong Kids goal
The Edmond YMCA raised $105,291 during its Strong Kids Campaign this year, surpassing the goal of $105,000.
The money raised during the annual fundraiser supports families nationwide who cannot afford to be involved in the programs and services the Y offers.
All the YMCAs in the Oklahoma City area raised 99 percent of their goal, which was $926,100.
Although the Edmond Y raised more than its goal, Executive Director Mike Roark thinks that more money will trickle in even after the campaign, which ended Tuesday. -
3-12 Health: in brief
Bass Pro Shops hosts spring break blood drive Saturday
Bass Pro Shops and Oklahoma Blood Institute will team up in an Oklahoma City-area blood drive Saturday. All healthy adults 17 and older are encouraged to donate blood 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday in the bloodmobile at Bass Pro Shops, 200 Bass Pro Drive in Oklahoma City’s Bricktown. - More Local News Headlines
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3-13 Calendar: Edmond senior center
