Speaker 1: Good morning, good morning, good morning, and welcome, welcome, Welcome
Speaker 1: to our special twenty twenty four Year in Review program.
Speaker 2: I'm Tom Davis and I'm Nathan Thompson. You know, Tom,
Speaker 2: twenty twenty four was a very busy year in our
Speaker 2: listening area, and when I was compiling this list of
Speaker 2: our top stories, I found our staff wrote more than
Speaker 2: thirty five hundred stories so far in twenty twenty four.
Speaker 1: That's an incredible number, with an average of more than
Speaker 1: sixty two stories each week.
Speaker 2: Well, thankfully for our listeners and our voices, Tom, I
Speaker 2: whittled the list down just a bit for our Year
Speaker 2: in Review. Now, of course, we need to start with
Speaker 2: our top story of twenty twenty four. I don't think
Speaker 2: there's anywhere else I can start except for the devastating
Speaker 2: tornadoes that impacted Barnstall and Bartlesville in twenty twenty four.
Speaker 1: Barnstall was first hit by a small tornado on April first,
Speaker 1: which damaged a couple of structures. But then the May
Speaker 1: sixth tornado occurred and we were I have on the
Speaker 1: air during both tornadoes, providing advanced warning and the reports
Speaker 1: of the damage.
Speaker 2: We need to talk about this storm that is just
Speaker 2: moving to the east of Harmony right now. That is
Speaker 2: a tornado warnstorm, confirmed tornado. That storm is moving to
Speaker 2: the northeast northeast now at forty miles per hour. Again,
Speaker 2: this is confirmed by a spotterer on the ground. If
Speaker 2: you are in Barnstall, a Vent, Talent, Wolco, you need
Speaker 2: to be in your tornado shelters now, all right. So
Speaker 2: for our chasers who are listening right now, I need
Speaker 2: somebody to head toward Oceleda Ramona area and if somebody
Speaker 2: can get ahead of that Barnstall storm, that would be
Speaker 2: good as well. Confirmed tornado is on the ground though
Speaker 2: we have a very dangerous situation right now. Just a
Speaker 2: few minutes ago. Here are some of the times that
Speaker 2: you need to be aware. Barnstay all about nine thirty seven,
Speaker 2: Talent nine thirty eight, Woolcoe ninety nlogny nine, the Woolarock
Speaker 2: area at nine forty six and Ocealeda Oceleda. You're not
Speaker 2: in the tornado warning at this point that you need
Speaker 2: to be watching this because that tornado warnstorm is knocking
Speaker 2: on your doorstep right now.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: I'm actually here in the using ranch where the towers
Speaker 3: are moving buller Rock and Bartlesville looking to the southwest.
Speaker 3: I can confirm with Chase kind of said, the winds
Speaker 3: that picked up a little bit, a lot of rain,
Speaker 3: and I think this thing's probably gonna come in rain round.
Speaker 2: Okay, So so just just be mindful if I tell
Speaker 2: you to move.
Speaker 3: Move if you can, if you feel like something's coming.
Speaker 3: That's what it does. A lot of lightning right here,
Speaker 3: a lot of lightning.
Speaker 2: The storm we've been watching to the southeast of Barnstall
Speaker 2: kevinis is heading kind of in that direction, so may
Speaker 2: need to head heads south as well. If you run
Speaker 2: the city of Bartolsville. This is a confirmed tornado warning.
Speaker 2: A confirmed tornado to the south of the Barnstall area,
Speaker 2: and maybe in you your tornado safe spots right now.
Speaker 2: Tornado simons are now sounding. Tornado simons are now sounding
Speaker 2: in Barlowsville. That's your signal. You need to be in
Speaker 2: your tornado safe spots right now. We will stay here
Speaker 2: with you online as long as we can. Here the
Speaker 2: Gap Road area is where we're seeing the circulation. Caleb
Speaker 2: Potter was just reporting from that area. But we do
Speaker 2: need to be taking shelter now in the city of Barlowsville,
Speaker 2: as well as in Dewey and then Evan far back.
Speaker 2: We're getting all set up downstairs. Okay, let's go ahead
Speaker 2: and head downstairs. And we are heading downstairs here at
Speaker 2: KWN in downtown Barlosville. This is a situation that we
Speaker 2: all need to take seriously, as this tornado warning had
Speaker 2: confirmed tornado on the ground near the Barnstall area. And again,
Speaker 2: if you are in city of Bartlesville, Judy, you need
Speaker 2: to be taking your tornado precautions right now. I'm on
Speaker 2: a portable microphone. Okay. Again, we are now in our
Speaker 2: tornado shelters here at the radio station as the storm
Speaker 2: continues to move on through.
Speaker 1: We did evacuate our studios and we headed to our shelter,
Speaker 1: but thanks to our technology, we were able to stay
Speaker 1: on the air throughout and provide updates even those first
Speaker 1: reports of damages.
Speaker 2: One of our show trackers is heading to is actually
Speaker 2: going to be heading back to his house because he
Speaker 2: does have damage pretty good side his house in East Bartlesville.
Speaker 2: So Chase, we're thinking much about it. Damage at Toxedo
Speaker 2: and Queenstown, and we've got people out looking for damage
Speaker 2: right now, so we'll be getting that over the next thing.
Speaker 2: I know we have an additional damage in Tuxedo and
Speaker 2: Avondale area as well. We're getting another I know we
Speaker 2: have multiple reports of damage.
Speaker 4: In our area.
Speaker 2: I know Evan Farbach has been following that for us.
Speaker 2: So Evan, tell me an update some of the storm
Speaker 2: damager hearing.
Speaker 5: The Yeah, a few of the things to mention again,
Speaker 5: you've mentioned a few of them.
Speaker 2: Toxedo and Avondale was a place we had confirmed damage.
Speaker 2: Had a confirmed tree down over Old Highway seventy five
Speaker 2: in between Oceanleda and Bartlesville, just north of Oceleda across
Speaker 2: Silver Lake there had a tree down all right, Hanton
Speaker 2: In reporting in Bartlesville, my goodness, taking a direct hit
Speaker 2: from this tornado. Now we're also getting multiple reports of
Speaker 2: structural damage now in Barnstall, multiple reports of structural damage
Speaker 2: in Bartlesville and now confirmed tornado damage. With those early
Speaker 2: reports coming from Barnstall, we had no idea at the
Speaker 2: time how terrible and deadly this twister was. It was
Speaker 2: rated an EF four and was the strongest tornado in
Speaker 2: Oklahoma since twenty thirteen. Millions of dollars in damage was done.
Speaker 2: Two people were killed and many people lost their homes.
Speaker 1: For the most part, Bartlesville has been able to rebuild,
Speaker 1: but there are a handful of businesses that are still
Speaker 1: closed near the intersection of Frank Phillips Boulevard and Washington Boulevard.
Speaker 1: Our friends in Barnstall, well, they've had it a bit
Speaker 1: more difficult.
Speaker 2: The wax plant was significantly damaged in the tornado, and
Speaker 2: what's the town's largest employer. After an initial promise to rebuild,
Speaker 2: the parent company backed out. Now in December, Mayor Johnny
Speaker 2: Kelly says, the town is just barely hanging on there.
Speaker 5: It is Christmas and there used to be Christmas lines
Speaker 5: all over here and callers everywhere, and you know, people
Speaker 5: preparing to have family get togethers in Christmas. And now
Speaker 5: all you have is empty loss that can't be rebuilt
Speaker 5: due to EhP, which is environmental historical preservation. We've been
Speaker 5: going through the process of getting people to bid the
Speaker 5: job of digging the test holes along the creek bank
Speaker 5: to check for artifacts.
Speaker 6: It's weird looking at nothing but flat landscape, but it'd
Speaker 6: be all right.
Speaker 1: Another story that has dominated our newscast this year is
Speaker 1: the trouble at Bartlesville's iconic Price Tower, the Frank Lloyd
Speaker 1: Wright design skyscraper, was purchased by a private firm in
Speaker 1: twenty twenty three with promises to revitalize the property, but
Speaker 1: those promises never materialized.
Speaker 2: In fact, Tom they've gotten markedly worse. Alarm bells first
Speaker 2: came to fruition after the building's owner, Cynthia Blanchard, was
Speaker 2: caught selling artifacts in the Price Tower in late April
Speaker 2: and early May. She told us at the time quote,
Speaker 2: she's tried to protect the tower. Well here she is
Speaker 2: in her own words.
Speaker 7: Stef we're protecting the tower because the other thing with
Speaker 7: these people that are feeding this reporter false information is
Speaker 7: behind the scenes, they're reaching out to me to try
Speaker 7: to buy the tower.
Speaker 8: I believe.
Speaker 3: Yes, you've had yes as offer.
Speaker 7: To as in this morning there was another one through
Speaker 7: a third party acquaintance that they're trying to say, Hey,
Speaker 7: we've got a buyer, but it's Craig. He's been calling me.
Speaker 7: On Monday, this third party acquaintance said, hey, you got
Speaker 7: a message from him. He wants to buy the tower.
Speaker 7: Let's all be friends again. So what is you tell me?
Speaker 7: What's going on?
Speaker 1: That contract to sell the Price Tower reportedly fell through.
Speaker 1: Multiple lawsuits have been filed claiming Blanchard signed the contract
Speaker 1: but then failed to deliver on the property, and additional
Speaker 1: lawsuits have been filed against Blanchard for selling the Frank
Speaker 1: Lloyd Wright artifacts.
Speaker 2: In August, Blanchard told us that she's not closing the
Speaker 2: Price Tower, which was another falsehood.
Speaker 9: We have had to sail back tremendously because we don't
Speaker 9: have the business. In August, we don't out. I didn't
Speaker 9: know that the employees were saying we were closing the doors.
Speaker 9: We have had to let some at least temporarily, let
Speaker 9: staff go. We've had to cancel reservres because we don't
Speaker 9: have the staff. We can't afford to keep the staff on. So, yeah,
Speaker 9: are we closing the doors. Not yet, but we don't
Speaker 9: know what the future holds because we have been attacked.
Speaker 2: Twelve days after that statement from Cynthia Blanchard, longtime tenants
Speaker 2: received eviction notices and began moving out of the Price Tower,
Speaker 2: including Bartlesville Monthly Magazine, which had office there for seven years.
Speaker 2: Keith and Christy mcphaiel told me they were concerned over
Speaker 2: the rhetoric that Blanchard was using and it had a
Speaker 2: negative impact not only on them, but also on the
Speaker 2: Price Tower itself.
Speaker 10: Hopefully everybody can keep informed with the facts and not
Speaker 10: all that you know, crazy yeah.
Speaker 8: And that's really what we want, is just everyone to
Speaker 8: get all the facts and let this play out like
Speaker 8: a shit good because at the very end of the day,
Speaker 8: we have to do what's best for the Price Tower
Speaker 8: and what's best for the city, and that's what we
Speaker 8: care about.
Speaker 1: Following the lawsuits, the Price Tower has literally gone dark
Speaker 1: and has been abandoned for months. The electricity and the
Speaker 1: water service to the skyscraper have been turned off. At
Speaker 1: least one of the lawsuits, the one for breach of
Speaker 1: contract between Blanchard and the McFarlane group, might be close
Speaker 1: to resolution. The next coordinata on that matter is just
Speaker 1: a week away on January seventh.
Speaker 2: On the education front, many great things occurred during twenty
Speaker 2: twenty four. The Bortleshell Agricultural Education Center opened in September.
Speaker 2: Voters approved a bond issue in twenty twenty one for
Speaker 2: the new center, which includes classrooms, greenhouses, a show arena,
Speaker 2: and animal barns for the school district's nationally recognized FFA program.
Speaker 2: Superintendent Chuck McCauley says he's pleased with the community's support
Speaker 2: of AG education and has plans to continue growing the program.
Speaker 6: Exciting day for the community of Bartlesville. I'm so pleased
Speaker 6: that we now have this opportunity within our school system.
Speaker 6: I'm so thankful for the strong community support now that
Speaker 6: we have, you know, three ACT teachers, two hundred and
Speaker 6: forty students enrolled in the program in eight through twelve,
Speaker 6: and we're also already making plans to continue to expand
Speaker 6: the program. So thankful for our voter support for the
Speaker 6: bond issue so that we can have this, and also
Speaker 6: thankful for the Lion Foundation for helping us fund the
Speaker 6: great houses. It's a great day for Marblesville.
Speaker 1: Wait Side Elementary School expanded and another expansion is under
Speaker 1: construction at Ranch Heights Elementary, showing the growth in Bartlesville
Speaker 1: public schools. We also were able to celebrate the outstanding
Speaker 1: students from across the entire listing area with the Patriot
Speaker 1: Auto Knight of Scholars and Champions.
Speaker 2: That's right. Tom Nowata High School senior Zach Long was
Speaker 2: named the twenty twenty four Patriot Auto Group Student of
Speaker 2: the Year during the eighth annual Night of scholars and
Speaker 2: champions at Oklahoma Wesleyan University, presented by Truity Credit Union
Speaker 2: in Bartlesville. Radio Long won a brand new twenty twenty
Speaker 2: four hun day venue from Patriot Atto, payment of the
Speaker 2: tag tax and title on the vehicle, a one thousand
Speaker 2: dollars scholarship, and a five hundred dollars gas card from
Speaker 2: Phillips sixty six.
Speaker 11: Oh, it's a major bussing. I'm very big blessing. I'm
Speaker 11: so excited for this opportunity. I'm just you know, I'm
Speaker 11: glad that I can be a good leader for my
Speaker 11: community and for all the communities around here. And I
Speaker 11: just thank God for everything that He's done for me.
Speaker 11: And this is a big blessing.
Speaker 1: It was certainly a great night and congratulations Zach. Bartlesville
Speaker 1: High School cross country star Gentry Turner was named the
Speaker 1: Female Athlete of the Year and Candy Valley High School
Speaker 1: multi sport female I'm Cooper Fogel was named the Male
Speaker 1: athlete of the Year. Both received one thousand dollars scholarships
Speaker 1: from Patriot Auto Group, Bartlesville Radio and Ascension Saint John
Speaker 1: Jane Phillips.
Speaker 2: On the political front, it was an election year, and
Speaker 2: we all know how the national election worked out, but
Speaker 2: it was particularly competitive in local races, especially for Bartlesville
Speaker 2: City Council. Three of the five incumbents lost their reelection bid,
Speaker 2: including Mayor Dale Copeland, Councilor Louren Roselle, and Quinn Shipper.
Speaker 2: All three incumbents lost two challengers, Tim Sherrick, Larry East,
Speaker 2: and Aaron Kirkpatrick.
Speaker 1: In the candidate forum hosted by k one just before
Speaker 1: the November election, it was apparent there was severe disagreements
Speaker 1: over the handling of the city's comprehensive plan, flock traffic cameras,
Speaker 1: and the city's homeless population, but by far a reaction
Speaker 1: to drag shows in public during the Bartlesville Pride Festival
Speaker 1: was the one that grew at least two candidates over
Speaker 1: the finish line. Here's Tim Sherrick.
Speaker 12: We just saw a lot of situations that we felt
Speaker 12: like needed to be addressed. We wanted to make sure
Speaker 12: that we properly represented the voice of the people and
Speaker 12: served them well, that we were in a position to
Speaker 12: protect the family values that have always been at the
Speaker 12: heart of Bartlesville and to make sure that the needs
Speaker 12: of the people are paramounts in front of.
Speaker 2: The city council and Larry East.
Speaker 13: I'd like to see adult entertainment to fush behind closed doors.
Speaker 13: That was really one of the biggest things that encouraged
Speaker 13: me to step up and try to get in here
Speaker 13: to make some change there and the homelessness situation that
Speaker 13: needs address.
Speaker 2: The issue over whether or not public drag shows will
Speaker 2: continue in Bartlesville is certainly not a settled matter. There
Speaker 2: will be additional debate on whether or not drag performances
Speaker 2: are considered adult entertainment or protected expression under the first Amendments.
Speaker 1: We also lost several community icons during twenty twenty four,
Speaker 1: including former Bartlesville City council Member Billy Rohan. She passed
Speaker 1: away suddenly in April after a brief illness. Former Bartlesville
Speaker 1: Assistant City Manager Tracy Rowles remembered.
Speaker 14: Ron her and her late husband Tom were true public
Speaker 14: servants who really cared about making things better, not just
Speaker 14: for a select few, but for everyone, and so we
Speaker 14: will really miss Billy and her contributions not only to
Speaker 14: the city but as friends of so many that she
Speaker 14: did it the right way, and then once she got
Speaker 14: to that position, she continued to do things the right way,
Speaker 14: always kept a community first approach, really cared about the
Speaker 14: community and wanted this wanted the city of Bartlesville to
Speaker 14: be the very best, So she'll truly be missed.
Speaker 2: One of Billy Rome's lasting contributions was the creation of
Speaker 2: the new Veterans Memorial at Veterans Park. The memorial opened
Speaker 2: to the public in November. Here's former city Councilor Quinnshipper
Speaker 2: on Rohan's contribution and where we.
Speaker 4: Stand today was a vision of Billy Roan, who loved
Speaker 4: this community, she loved her country, and if she had
Speaker 4: to have baked sales every Saturday to raise the money
Speaker 4: for this, whatever it was going to take, she was
Speaker 4: determined to have this Veterans Memorial in place in this spot.
Speaker 1: We also lost former Sheriff Pat Ballard, Va Zoo With
Speaker 1: Service and Technology Corporation, former West Side Community Center Director
Speaker 1: Morris mccorby, and Commissioner Mike Bouvier. But perhaps no one
Speaker 1: was more loved by the community than the man known
Speaker 1: as Bartlesville's Santa Ron Adams. He passed away on November thirteenth,
Speaker 1: but just before he died, the community came into say goodbye.
Speaker 2: He's been known as Bartlesville's very own Santa for more
Speaker 2: than three decades, and on Saturday night, dozens of community
Speaker 2: members showered Ron Adams with the blessings of love and
Speaker 2: Christmas carols as he faces the final moments of his life.
Speaker 2: Earlier this year, Adams was diagnosed with stage four liver cancer.
Speaker 2: His health has rapidly deteriorated, and he is in hospice
Speaker 2: care at the Journey Home between Bartlesviille and Dewey. Debbie Nie,
Speaker 2: a friend of the family, says she received a phone
Speaker 2: call from Adam's daughter Lindsay Saturday morning with a very
Speaker 2: special request.
Speaker 10: Well, Lindsay called me this morning and she said, I
Speaker 10: have a big ask, a really big ask. And I said, Hey,
Speaker 10: whatever you need, I'm here for you. And she said, well,
Speaker 10: if you can want to say no, you can say no.
Speaker 10: I said no, I want to say no. I'll make
Speaker 10: it happen. And she said, I'd really love to have
Speaker 10: carellrs here at six o'clock to night. I said done.
Speaker 2: Adams was born in Bartlesville in nineteen forty seven. He
Speaker 2: attended grade school and graduated from Call High in nineteen
Speaker 2: sixty five. He attended Oklahoma State University and graduated with
Speaker 2: a business degree. Professionally, he worked in banking for more
Speaker 2: than forty years before he retired, but it was his
Speaker 2: career in banking that helped Adams become Bartlesville Santa. He
Speaker 2: also became involved in the Shriners organization and performed as
Speaker 2: a clown bringing joy to children's lives, a tradition that
Speaker 2: continued as Santa.
Speaker 5: My mom always said I wasn't shy.
Speaker 2: Adams is certainly not shy and certainly not lacking any
Speaker 2: compassion children. In addition to his Santa duties, Adams was
Speaker 2: the longtime president of the Bartlesville Playground Association, the nonprofit
Speaker 2: group that operates the Kittie Park. He retired from that
Speaker 2: in twenty nineteen, and following a stroke, he almost hung
Speaker 2: up the Santa hadn cloak, but persevered, doming he still
Speaker 2: had love and joy to spread. He has given countless
Speaker 2: hours as a volunteer at the Dewey Hotel and continued
Speaker 2: his portrayal of Santa for thousands of children at events
Speaker 2: across the region. Following his cancer diagnosis in early twenty
Speaker 2: twenty three, Adams received several immunotherapy treatments, but his family
Speaker 2: says they knew what the outcome would be. In the
Speaker 2: past few weeks, his daughter says, the cancer took over
Speaker 2: and they made the tough decision to place him at
Speaker 2: the Journey Home. Saturday's love from the community gathering and
Speaker 2: singing more than twenty minutes of Christmas Carol's had a
Speaker 2: profound impact on Ron, his wife, Debbie, and his daughter Lindsay.
Speaker 2: Lindsay came outside and in tears thanked the gathered crowd.
Speaker 2: Nie says she knows the impromptu carol singing was a
Speaker 2: miracle for the family. She says she was not surprised
Speaker 2: by the community support.
Speaker 10: This is Bartlesville. Visit Bartlesville does this, this is our hometown.
Speaker 2: A small blessing of Christmas music, a large outpouring of
Speaker 2: love from the community, but not as large as Ron
Speaker 2: Adam's heart and his devotion to bringing joy as Bartlesville
Speaker 2: Santa at the Journey Home in Bartlesville.
Speaker 1: Thank you for joining us for a year in Review
Speaker 1: special from all of us at Bartlesville Radio. We wish
Speaker 1: you a most prosperous new year. I'm Tom Davis.
Speaker 2: And I'm Nathan Thompson. Our commitment to you, our listeners
Speaker 2: will remain in twenty twenty five as we bring you
Speaker 2: the stories that are important to you. Thank you for
Speaker 2: allowing us to be k One, the one you trust