Patricia Ruth Tate, formerly Patricia Ruth Malone, of Tulsa, Oklahoma went to be with the Lord on Wednesday, June 22, 2022, at the age of 78. We are sure of her presence with the Lord because of her faith in Jesus as her Savior.

This past weekend was reunion time and some great articles were given to me to publish…. FUNNY, BUT TRUE *I used to be able to do cartwheels.

JUNE 28TH 1846: Adolphe Sax patents the saxophone. The Belgian inventor and musician invented several other brass instruments, but the saxophone became his most popular.

The bombs just keep on comin’. Explosions all around you, one after the next. Chaos rains down from missiles and constant shelling, not to mention “incoming” from land and sea. Infrastructure decimated by the hour; buildings leveled, possessions destroyed or abandoned; homes lost; lives lost. Indiscriminate killing is the new norm: citizens, all— men, women, children.

I saw my good friend Jim Keefer this past week. He is one of my favorite people and a blessing to so many folks. He also knows a lot about local history and I really enjoy listening to his memories about the “good old days.”

Bill J. Shipley was born April 1, 1930 to Audie and Opal (Pogue) Shipley, Bill passed from this life June 18, 2022 in Seminole, Oklahoma at the age of 92. Bill was born and raised in Holdenville, Oklahoma. After graduating from High School, he worked in construction with his uncle J.D. House, learning skills that would serve him his whole life. Bill was deeply patriotic and proudly served in the U.S. Navy for four years, stationed at the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station, Quonset Point, Rhode Island, and San Juan Puerto Rico, After being discharged from service, he returned to Oklahoma and the construction field. As a Construction Manager, Bill worked across the United States, Bill supervised the construction of numerous apartment complexes, student housing projects and residential homes. He also shared his knowledge of the trade, teaching vocational carpentry at Holdenville High School. He enjoyed a long career, retiring from the field in 2008 at the age of 78. For many years, Bill enjoyed fishing and spending time at Oklahoma Lakes. He was also an avid sports fan. He loved to watch baseball, football, and basketball. He rarely missed an opportunity to cheer on any of the OU Sooners, and took pride in his status as a lifelong fan. He is survived by his wife Ann (Jones) Shipley of the home, his sons, Lee Shipley (Edmond, OK), and Larry Shipley (Edmond, OK), and Mike Jones and wife April (Seminole, OK), Bill’s younger sister Shirley and her husband Eddie Nance, reside in Asheville, NC. Bill will be deeply missed by his grandchildren: Taylor Shipley (Dallas, TX), Kyle Kay, (New Braunfels, TX), Tanya Kay (Hartford, CN), Tyler Jones and wife Brittany (Venus, TX), Dustin Jones and wife Krista, Valerie Kiker and husband Derek, Lane Jones and Larsen Jones (all of Seminole, OK), Dustin Hatfield, and Amy Hatfield Hadley. Bill was also blessed with great-grandchildren, Zac Kay (San Antonio, TX), Shelby Kay (Euless, TX), and Brooks Jones (Seminole, OK). Bill leaves behind many cousins, nieces, nephews and relatives including, JannaBeth Tipton (Tulsa, OK), Kathryn Cooper and husband Kelly (Skiatook, OK), Jay Moore and wife Angie (Chesapeake, VA), John Nance (Palm Springs, CA), Clark Nance (Asheville, NC), Leslie Lee and husband Steven (Horntown, OK), Rex Nance and wife Heather (Asheville, NC), Stephanie Wilburn and husband Zack (Edmond, OK), Ryan Nance (Dallas, TX), and Julia Nance, (Asheville, NC). Bill is preceded in death by his parents, Audie and Opal (Pogue) Shipley. Wife, Jo Hatfield Shipley, her son Ronnie Hatfield, and her daughter Donna Cluck. Viewing will be 9:00am- 7:00pm Tuesday, June 21st and 9:00am-7:00pm Wednesday, June 22nd and Hudson-Phillips Funeral Home, Holdenville. Graveside services officiated by Rev. Doyle Long, will be at 10:00am, Thursday, June 23, 2022 at Holdenville Cemetery. Pallbearers will include Lee Shipley, Larry Shipley, Mike Jones, Dustin Jones, Tyler Jones, and Lane Jones. Services under the direction of Hudson-Phillips Funeral Home in Holdenville, Oklahoma.

Sharon Jene Dodson Hall passed away June 1, 2022 after a brief battle with lung cancer. Sharon was born to Floyd “Gene” and Mary Ella “Pat” Dodson January 29, 1943 in Lamar, Oklahoma.

Holdenville Cheerleaders Win Awards The 2022-23 school year is rapidly approaching and one of this year’s athletic squads has already established it’s self as an elite award winning team. The 2022-23 Holdenville High School Cheer Squad has been to summer camp and has won several awards! Coach Leslie Phillips’ group won awards for National Cheerleading Top Team Band Chant, won the Spirt Stick Award two days in a row, and secured two Awards for Excellence, and one Award for Superior! Coach Phiilips expressed her excitement when she expressed her thoughts on her team’s performance: “We attended OU cheer camp where they learned new stunts, cheers, and chants for upcoming seasons.

In what proved to be one of the most peaceful, productive meetings held by the Holdenville City Council in several months, a budget was passed for the upcoming fiscal year set to begin July 1. Included in that budget was the much-anticipated raise for Holdenville Fire Department employees. The council increased the fire department’s annual budget by more than $64,000, all going to wage increases. The bottom four ranking firemen received a raise to $13.00 an hour, the next two were raised to $14.00 an hour, the Lieutenant was raised to $15.00 an hour, the Captain to $16.00 an hour, and the Assistant Chief to $17.00 an hour. After budgeting for FUTA, SUTA, FICA match, and retirement, this was a total annual budget increase of $64,359.18 for the fire department.

Every day we see the challenges of patients who struggle to afford their medications. Patients who choose between food or bills and meds. This program can alleviate some of that burden but we know most of those patients do not have access to social media. So please share with your loved ones, your friends, neighbors etc. the benefit of this program!