A special homecoming
Happy retirement!
Perrin Duncan, center with her parents, AnnClore and Walt. Perrin was crowned queen at the Homeless Alliance’s special homecomingtheme event. Page 2.
Keith and Debbie Kennedy at his retirement par-tee. Page 12.
OKC FRIDAY Vol. 59 No. 20• One Section • 12 pages • September 19, 2025
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www.okcfriday.com facebook.com/okcfriday OKC’s only locally-owned legal newspaper with all local news Serving affluent far north Oklahoma City, Nichols Hills & The Village for 51 years
United Way kicks off annual campaign United Way of Central Oklahoma (UWCO) 2025 Campaign Co-Chairs Lee and Suzie Symcox, left, announce this year’s Pacesetter total (above on the screen) during the nonprofit’s campaign kickoff event. Pacesetter organizations run UWCO workplace campaigns ahead of the traditional fall giving season to ensure the annual fundraising campaign starts off strong.
United Way of Central Oklahoma (UWCO) kicked off its 2025 annual fundraising campaign with a reception led by Campaign CoChairmen Suzie and Lee Symcox. The event brought together community leaders, partner agencies and donors to celebrate the power of collective impact. During the kickoff, the Symcoxes announced an inspiring milestone: $2,662,000 was raised through UWCO’s Pacesetter campaigns, thanks to the leadership of longtime Pacesetter Chairman David
Harlow and the dedication of the 2025 Pacesetter organizations. These early campaign leaders set the pace for a successful year, demonstrating the strength and generosity of our community. Over the next few months, more than 400 companies and organizations will coordinate workplace campaigns to raise funds for United Way’s Partner Agencies. Last year more than 12,000 donors contributed during the annual campaign effort and raised $17.6 million. The event also introduced United Way’s 2025 Fellows
Class. These individuals play a vital role in raising awareness and support for United Way’s mission. The Symcoxes expressed heartfelt gratitude to Fellows Program Chairman Sean Trauschke for his outstanding leadership and to the sponsoring organizations that make the Fellows program possible: American Fidelity, Arvest Bank, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma, Love’s Travel Stops, OG&E and ONE Gas. In 2024, the United Way campaign brought in $17.6 million. The goal in 2025 is to exceed that.
Wayfinder grants are announced By Rose Lane Editor The winners of the United Way of Central Oklahoma’s Wayfinder Grants were announced during the organization’s campaign kickoff. Upward Transitions took home $58,960, while the Lilyfield was granted $150,000. The competition took place in a “Sharktank” setting. The nonprofits seeking grant money presented their ideas to a panel and fielded questions from the judges. See GRANTS, Page 3
Village city officials dispute claims of abuse by Animal Welfare By Eric Oesch Staff Writer The Village has a very active group page on Facebook with posts mostly about lost or stray animals, recommendations for household services or praise for fellow residents. Within the past few weeks there have been nearly a dozen posts
claiming animal abuse and rude interactions with the Animal Welfare Department. Facebook posts have claimed difficulty in contacting the Animal Welfare Department, suggesting a policy that, “if you try to help a dog by picking it up and putting it in your yard and call Animal Welfare for help, you will be accused of being
the actual owner and charged a surrender fee.” “I just had the most awful interaction with an employee at the animal shelter, accusing me of being the owner and just trying to surrender the dog,” said one online post. “He was in a terrible mood and then treated that poor sweet dog so terribly I won’t sleep right.
FRIDAY’s
Big hits, bigger egos
Fire, police to compete in the Battle of the Badges to benefit Special Olympics By Eric Oesch Staff Writer Bragging rights are on the line when police and fire departments in The Village meet for the Fifth Annual Battle of the Badges softball game. What started as a lighthearted rivalry between police and fire has grown into something the community looks forward to every year. The game is scheduled for 10 a.m., Saturday, Sept 27 at Perri Field on the
“He picked up the dog by the collar and threw it in the truck hitting the dog against the truck,” the post claimed. “I’m so appalled. At least he could have been kind and spoke gently to the very scared dog. I’m just sick.” Another post claimed they tried to call Village Animal Welfare on an issue saying, “I twice left him a message to
Casady School campus, 9500 N. Pennsylvania. The grudge match began over 30 years ago with the police and fire departments meeting as a fun way to get together outside of their professional duties. Today the event is a charity event brought back five years ago as a way for the departments to interact and raise money and awareness for Special Olympics. See SOFTBALL, Page 3
Cat of the Week This is Bennie Jet (like the song!) Macey Mosier adopted him from Happy Hounds in OKC. He is the snuggliest cat and loves to go on walks in his cat stroller. “I’m entering Bennie to be Cat of the Week because he is so awesome and adorable,” Macey said. Email Pet of the Week submissions with complete descriptions to: rose@okcfriday.com.
please call me back. I had a simple question. They refused to return my calls. Now I don’t know what to do for future problems.” Village Mayor John Allen said he has not received calls or complaints other than being tagged in a Facebook post. See VILLAGE, Page 11