OKC FRIDAY Happy Birthday Ann!
Vol. 56 No. 26 • One Section • 16 pages • November 25, 2022
$1 per copy
Jo Rowan, retired director of the Ann Lacy School of Dance at Oklahoma City University does the splits in celebration of Lacy’s 95th birthday, while Melanie Shelley, the interim director, holds a card to Lacy from students while retired Dean John Bedford looks on. Page 13
www.okcfriday.com facebook.com/okcfriday OKC’s only locally-owned legal newspaper with all local news Serving Oklahoma City, Nichols Hills, The Village, Quail Creek, The Greens and Gaillardia for 48 years
31 throw in their hats for Village city manager
The Thankful Issue
Fridaylanders say what holiday means to them Compiled by Rose Lane Editor From family, friends and newborn babies to health and the community, Fridaylanders are thankful for much this Thanksgiving. In this first-ever Thankful issue, we tell those stories. The following are responses from readers: As Thanksgiving approaches, I will always remember the joy and busyness around preparing for all the family that was to come over for dinner, when I was a kid. Mom had me tear two or more whole loafs of bread in preparation for making the stuffing. I loved to watch my mom as she chopped vegetables and organized the many pots and pans and steamy potions in preparation for the next day. This year, though mom is no longer with us, I am so grateful for a mom and dad who saved and sacrificed to better the lives of their children. As my husband and I begin to prepare to have our grown children join us for Thanksgiving dinner, I will rejoice in the ability to gather and give thanks in a free country, where fresh food is available, interesting conversation is not censored, and love and gratitude through
actions and deeds can be passed down to the next generation. Happy Thanksgiving to all. — Susan Webb I am most grateful for family, special friends, and those that give their time, talent and treasure to our wonderful community. — Carrie Leonard I am thankful for the generous people of Oklahoma who make this the best place to collect blood on the planet. Even the COVID pandemic did not stop the remarkable flow of caring from volunteers who assure hope, healing, health and comfort for patients needing a transfusion. For the blood supply, the Oklahoma Standard purrs in overdrive! — John Armitage As David, I’m grateful for a beautiful and brilliant spouse. As a dad, I’m thankful for my amazing kids. As a mayor, I’m thankful for a community that continues to believe in itself and invest in itself. — Mayor David Holt There’s so much to be thankful for and of course, at the top of my gratitude list is my family and health. I’m also deeply grateful to the community of women I work with who uplift me everyday. — Cindi Shelby
By Eric Oesch Staff Writer
Above: Sarah Butler and Frederika Toll's Heritage Hall preschool class has been busy showing what they are thankful for. Teghan Freymiller and Ryder Clark are pictured with their class’ Thankful turkey.
Brooks Pennoyer raises his hand to ask for more during the Casady School Thanksgiv ing Feast. The children enjoyed bread and applesauce they made themselves.
A nationwide search is underway in The Village to identify a replacement for City Manager Bruce Stone who earlier this year announced his January 2023 retirement after 37 years of service to the city. A total of 31 applicants have submitted their resumes for the position of managing the Oklahoma City suburb of 9,660 residents. “We received 21 full applications directly under the terms of the posted position profile, and an additional 10 partial applications from LinkedIn’s ‘Apply Now’ function,” said City Attorney Jeff Sabin who leads the search to replace Stone. “This is within my range of expectations. “City manager positions become available quite often, but I think positions in a community with the size, proximity to a major metro, and economic and political stability of The Village are quite rare,” said Sabin. “The average tenure of a city manager nationwide I believe is between 4-6 years.” In September, the City Council announced the position opening and placed a position profile/recruitment brochure on job placement websites including the International City/County Management Assoc, National League of Cities, Oklahoma Municipal League, and similar sites in Texas, Kansas and Missouri. “We have received applications from across the country,” said Sabin. “Not every state is represented, obviously, but nearly every region of the country is represented. A majority of the applications are from Oklahoma and surrounding states. “People with an interest or experience in municipal administration typically are members of these professional organizations or follow the interest groups we targeted,” said Sabin. “Posting with these organizations was intended to ensure interest from serious candidates dedicated to careers in public and municipal administration.” The initial review and screening of applications has been completed, and a preliminary round of interviews of final candidates has been conducted by Sabin, Mayor Sonny Wilkinson and Councilman Bubba Symes – the longest serving member of the City Council. See VILLAGE, Page 5
See THANKFUL, Page 2
Halls of OCGCC won’t be filled with debutantes this Saturday By Rose Lane Editor For the first time in 75 years, no Beaux Arts debutantes are to be presented at the Debutante Ball, the Saturday after Thanksgiving at the Oklahoma City Golf and Country Club. The Beaux Arts Society decided to end the debutante organization last spring. Past Beaux Arts kings and the then-current committee members received letters announcing the move. Rich in tradition, the first ball was held in 1945 for the benefit of the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. In addition to a king, the society at that time named a queen.
Over the years, thousands of young women and men have been introduced to society through the Debutante Ball. The young ladies were presented by their fathers before an audience of family and friends. The court also consisted of a class of men, the escorts; two young pages and the king, who was announced at the ball. The tradition had been handed down for generations. Beaux Arts provided funding for OKCMOA to add to its permanent collection. At the time of the announcement of the end of the tradition, several community leaders said they would be willing to help to revive it, possibly in a more modern way.
FRIDAY’s Dogs
of the Week Dillon and Reese Blad, with their 6month-old Cavapoo puppies, Coco and Elliott. Their parents are Brian Blad and Nicole Dobbins Blad. Send Pet and Baby of the Week nominations with complete descriptions to rose@okcfriday.com. Submissions are used in the order they are received.