Meet Your Writer: Lori Roll

Popular Writer Always Full of Interesting Information

by Tim Hudson

When you talk to Lori Roll it’s like taking a journey, as the interesting stuff just keeps coming. Every minute or two there’s an interesting rabbit hole, and you don’t even have time to explore them all.

Sample Lori interview answers: “And I lived in Maine for a while ... When I was in DC I got to interview Henry Kissinger, and just a tiny bit intimidating ... I got to see the Kennedys, it was really powerful.”

So yeah, you kind of get the idea, and we will get to all of that. In her own words: “I have the honor and privilege of writing about the movers and shakers in our community — the legends. I thought it was important that the living legends in our community be recognized while they were still living. I have gotten to interview a lot of really lovely people who were, and are, instrumental in making our community what it is, such as John Hughes, Fredrick Drummond, Glen Cox, Bob Fraser, Pete Silas, Dick Chain, and Art Gorman. That has been a great privilege,” she said.

Going back, though, Lori actually grew up in Tulsa but spent her senior year in our fair city, graduating from College High. From there it was on to Tulsa University where she graduated with degrees in public relations and journalism. At that point, she ended up in Washington, D.C., where she was Senator Henry Bellman’s assistant press secretary. “I did a lot of speech writing,” she said. “It was always amazing to be in DC, and I lived up on the hill, which is very different. it was a great place to be a single person, to be young and ride the subways.”

From there it was on to the state of Maine for the next 17 years. “Being a girl from Oklahoma, I was ready to get some wide open spaces again,” she said. “My family called and asked if I could come and help with the family businesses.”

That business is the Phoenix Insurance Company, which serves as her current “day job.” She quickly became involved in a variety of things around the city of legends, saying that her mom and dad had been very involved so “it was easy to get plugged in.”

That was 18 years ago. In that time, she participated in Leadership Bartlesville and numerous other activities. “It was a family tradition to get involved,” she said. “I had written since I was little, and wrote for several magazines.”

She is best known for writing for bmonthly. “I like Illuminating the unusual people and aspects of our community, because Bartlesville is a little gem. There are a lot of people who might not be in the spotlight, and I really enjoy bringing recognition to those people and activities through their story,” she said. “That’s what I’m excited about. I really enjoy learning about people, and helping introduce them and what’s meaningful to them to Bartlesville, because it makes for a richer community.”

The writing is not too much to prevent her from participating in a number of community events. “Today I’m teaching a painting class at the Waterworks Art Center in Tulsa, and I also teach at the Bartlesville Art Association. I enjoy doing that and the organizations I work with in Bartlesville,” she said. “I’m really proud of our community. I think we have a lot of unusual people and activities and aspects of our community, and I’m very glad to be a part of it.”