Voter turnout was light, but there was overwhelming support for a Hughes County Emergency Medical Service (HCEMS) bond issue for $950,000, with 74 percent of the voters approving. Supporters stressed that this renewal did not raise property taxes but simply maintained the current level.

Comments to: andybowman839@gmail.com Coffeetimecolumn.com Several years ago, Andy contracted an illness that landed him in the isolation unit of our local hospital for two weeks. Visitors had to wear a mask, gown and gloves.

As the state endured a pandemic, high unemployment and an oil downturn, Gross Receipts to the Treasury show the Oklahoma economy pulled back by almost four percent during calendar year 2020, State Treasurer Randy McDaniel announced last week.

Holdenville Girls extend winning streak The Holdenville High School girls’ basketball team extended their post Christmas winning streak to six in a row last week by whipping Okemah 57-33 and Meeker 51-28. The girls have now won a total of eight in a row and have a 9-3 record for the season.

MRS. CATES’ 3RD GRADE: Caiden Henderson, Jayzen Mooney, Clovia Ford, Briar Lening, Ashley Cates MRS.

I’m always amazed when someone mentions something that appears in this column. I know it’s nothing extraordinary, but the things that happen to me are so ordinary that most everyone (beyond a certain age) has experienced it.

Jim Priest is CEO of Goodwill Industries of Central Oklahoma and can be reached at jpriest@okgoodwill.org. Stewart Friedman, in his book Parents Who Lead, urges parents to utilize the kind of leadership skills used in the business world.

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver caused a social media storm recently, closing a public prayer with “Amen and a woman,” as if the Hebrew word meaning “let it be” was somehow gendered. Cleaver, of course, later claimed the embarrassing episode was actually “a lighthearted pun” in recognition of women, a description that might draw water on paper, but which the video clearly shows is not the case.

Lumber J. Proctor 71-year-old Holdenville resident since July 2008 passed away Monday January 11, 2021 in Texarkana, Texas. He was born the oldest of 9 children on October 30, 1949 in McIntosh County, Dustin, Oklahoma to the late father that passed July 9, 2019 Charlie James Proctor. Lumber grew up in Oklahoma City area and graduated from Classen High School. He was baptized when he was 12 years old, belong to Weogufkee Baptist Church.

We received a really nice letter from our longtime friend Charles Stanford this past week that we wanted to share….. Bill, Sure was glad when you brought back the Holdenville News.