Dec. 2-3, 2023 by muskogeephoenix

MUSKOGEE muskogeephoenix.com SPECIAL COVERAGE December 2-3, 2023

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CLASS 6A II FOOTBALL

Vol. 72 — No. 48 Founded Feb. 18, 1888

STATE CHAMPS

Photo by Von Castor

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Special Coverage

Roughers claim first state title since ‘86 By Bryce McKinnis Phoenix Correspondent

EDMOND — For the first time in 37 years, the Gold Ball will return to Muskogee High School. Junior quarterback Jamarian Ficklin accounted for four touchdowns to lead the Roughers (11-2) to their 10th state championship in school history and first since 1986 in a 28-26 decision over Stillwater in the 6A II title game Friday afternoon at Chad Richison Stadium. Third-year Roughers coach Travis Hill was elated after the win. “I have a weird way of explaining it. I get to be high for the next couple of days, because I get to see the pictures of them [players] smiling. ... It’s a natural high,” Hill said. “I’m just so ecstatic for them.” The teams traded scores until Stillwater missed an extra point after Kendrick Talon’s VON CASTOR/Special to the Phoenix third touchdown run, cutting the Roughers’ Roughers’ Ondraye Beasley catches a second-quarter touchdown pass. lead to 21-20. five consecutive plays to “We knew we weren’t MUSKOGEE 28, STILLWATER 26 going to come in here and start the possession. STILLWATER 0 14 6 6—26 Ficklin (Espinosa kick) TEAM STATS Stillwater meticulously have anything besides a MUSKOGEE 7 7 14 0—28 SHS — Talon 13 pass from Chance Acord SHS MHS dog fight with Stillwater. drove down the field. On a SCORING SUMMARY (Long kick) First Downs 23 21 They were here last year. third-and-5 pass attempt First quarter Third quarter Passing Yards 98 149 from the 22-yard line They’re champions,” MHS — Jamarian Ficklin 1 run (Valente MHS — Ficklin 19 run (Espinosa kick) Comp-Att-Int 15-18-0 10-11-0 that fell incomHill said. “To Espinosa kick) SHS — Talon 1 run (Kick failed) Rushes-Yards 51-270 46-175 plete, the Piooverthrow a Second quarter MHS — Ficklin 2 run (Espinosa kick) Total Yards 368 324 neers benefitchamp, I don’t SHS — Talon Kendrick 18 run (Brodey Fourth quarter Fum-Lost 1-0 1-1 ted from a pass care what Long kick) SHS — Holden Thompson 2 run (Rush Penalty Yards 8-81 8-78 MHS — Ondraye Beasley 25 pass from failed) Punts-Avg 3-31.7 2-39.9 interference level, that’s call and inheralways hard to ited a fresh set ing 2-point conversion, thing,’ which we had Ficklin finished the About 6,300 total specdo.” of downs. Five but a hoard of Roughers struggled with the last game rushing for 86 tators made it to Edmond Muskogee plays later, defensive linemen stunt- two weeks. yards and three touchfor the game. surrendered with 20 seced his progression a few “Two weeks in a row, downs on 21 carries. “Muskogee’s a football a fumble to onds remainfeet short of the goal line. we’re fortunate to come He was 10 of 11 for 149 town. Always has been, the Pioneers ing, Thompson “All I saw was 20 secup with it. ... That’s yards with no intercepalways will be,” Hill said. with 3:41 — Travis Hill took his final onds on the clock,” Hill when the emotions come tions and one touchdown “To see them all come remaining in touch of the said. “After you settle out,” Hill said. “You to Ondraye Beasley in together, and football’s a the game. The game 2 yards for a touchdown and get your coach- don’t take it for grantthe second quarter. Setool, that’s a great thing. Pioneers gave the ball to down. ing down, your emotions ed until there’s 0:00 on nior receiver and UNLV It’s a tough community. Holden Thompson, who Stillwater dialed up a start creeping in. You that clock and make sure commit Kayden McGee They always say there’s finished the game with a direct snap to Kendrick say, ‘all we’ve gotta do there’s no yellow on the caught three passes for nothing tougher than a game-high 199 rushing for the potential score-ty- is take care of this ... field.” 63 yards. Rougher.” yards on 35 carries, on

“Muskogee’s a football town. Always has been, always will be.”

Special Coverage

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Ficklin carries, passes Roughers to state title By Bryce McKinnis Phoenix Correspondent

“He’s hell on wheels. Makes me a good football coach and makes all of us good coachEDMOND — Muskogee es.” High School Junior quarFicklin put together one terback Jamarian Ficklin accounted for more than 280 of his best performances in his first state championship combined rushing and passgame, passing 10-11 for one ing yards one week ago in a touchdown and no inter36-35 win over Deer Creek in the Class 6A II state semi- ceptions and rushing for 86 yards and three touchdowns finals. After the victory, against a resilient Stillwater which launched the Roughdefense. Ficklin accounted ers into Friday’s championfor every point the Roughers ship game, Muskogee coach scored, save four Valente EsTravis Hill made a bold pinosa extra points. statement: “Starting off with my “I’m a good coach because [Ficklin is] our quarterback. freshman year, you know, we went 2-8, turned around ... When he’s gone, I’ll have went 10-2. It’s just all a to find out if I can coach matter of being behind coach again. He’s that good of a Hill,” Ficklin said, recipfootball player.” rocating the praise to his After Muskogee’s 28-26 coach. “He’s able to put us in win over Stillwater to win the 6A II state championship the right position to do it.” For the second consecutive Friday afternoon in Edmond, week, the pair embraced each Hill doubled-down. other on the field in an ap“I’ll say it again. He can parent display of mutual rerun. He can throw. He’s one spect moments after winning of the best leaders I’ve ever been around. One of the best a playoff game. To the observant eye, it’s easy to underkids I’ve ever been around. stand why Hill trusts, not and now, he’s a championship quarterback,” Hill said. only Ficklin’s talent, but his

VON CASTOR/ Muskgoee Phoenic

Muskogee quarterback Jamarian Ficklin dives for one of his three rushing touchdowns.

poise and why Ficklin trusts, not only Hill’s play-calling, but his greater plan. A number that stuck out in Friday’s state championship win: Ficklin carried the ball 21 times, more than any other Rougher. “It feels good, you know,

they put all their trust into my hands for me to be able to take over the game, for coach to be able to believe in me like that,” Ficklin said. Muskogee fans have one more year to find out if Hill can coach. Minutes after the game’s end Ficklin boasted

plans to bring a second consecutive title back to Muskogee a year from now. “For us to be able to be behind coach Hill just means a lot,” Ficklin said. “He puts all of his trust into us, so we put all of our trust into him.”

Muskogee defense rides roller coaster in title game By Ronn Rowland rrowland@muskogeephoenix.com

years. Pioneers running back Holden ThompCharles Dickens wrote son busted through the “It was the best of times, Muskogee line for 199 yards on 35 carries and it was the worst of one touchdown. times.” However, when MuskThe opening line from Dickens’ classic novel “A ogee’s defense needed a Tale of Two Cities” could stop at the most important time, it answered the not be more appropriate call. in describing the MuskWith 20 seconds reogee defense during the maining in the game, Roughers’ 28-26 win in Friday’s Class 6A II state Thompson took a handoff and ran around the championship game. left side for a 2-yard The Roughers surrentouchdown to cut the dered 368 yards of total Roughers’ lead to 28-26, offense to defending forcing Stillwater to go champion Stillwater, a team that MHS had fall- for two to tie the score. Looked like the worst en to twice in the last two

of times. But, on the snap, Talon Hendrick ran up the middle and was stopped, but he headed to his right and had his legs taken out from under him by Deyonn Bowler. Hendricks reached for the goal line with the ball but came up onehalf yard short. For the second consecutive week Muskogee had stopped a potential two-point try in the final 30 seconds to preserve a playoff win. The Roughers recovered the ensuing onside kick. Jamarian Ficklin knelt down and then pan-

demonium began. The best of times. MHS defensive coordinator Steve Craver was like a proud papa. “I’m just proud of them,” he said. “It’s a testament to the leadership that we have on this football team. It wasn’t a call that we made, it was just our players leading up the other players.” Senior defensive lineman Vernon Pepiakitah, one of 21 Roughers finishing his time in Roughers green with a state title, finished with seven tackles, two for loss, and played just as hard as his

name is to pronounce. It’s Pep-pee-YAH-kihtah. “This means everything to me,” Pep, as he’s know to his teammates, said while celebrating on the field with fans, students coaches and teammates. “All the blood, sweat and tears, the hard work — everything.” The best of times. Before Stillwater’s final drive, which began at its 35-yard line, Pepiakitah said the defense got together and knew what needed to be done. “It boiled down to last game, most defensive se-

niors want a gold ball for the city, for us and for the team,” he said. On several occasions the Roughers defense had the Pioneers in long-yardage situations only to let them slip away, either by big plays or penalties. The worst of times. But Pepiakitah said the coaches told the team to “stay patient and the plays will come yo you.” And for the city of Muskogee, students in Muskogee Public Schools and the Roughers players and coaches — the best of times.

WAY TO GO ROUGHERS! STATE CHAMPS 2023

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Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Scenes from a title game Muskogee High School won its first state football championship since 1986 by defeating Stillwater, 28-26 in Edmond on Friday. The Roughers brought home the Class 6A II state championship trophy.

Special Coverage Photos by Von Castor

MUSKOGEE muskogeephoenix.com Okie from Muskogee: Wiseman carrying on family traditions Story on Page 3

WEEKEND

December 2-3, 2023

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INSIDE

AI alters how first responders handle emergencies Machine learning electrocardiogram (ECG) readoutperforms gold standard ings to better identify patients experiencing a heart for detecting heart attacks potentially attack that healthcare providers

age patients suffering the most severe heart attacks caused by total blockage of coronary arteries — the type most difficult to detect from an ECG and in immediate need of cardiac catheterization. “We’re doing things with this technology that human beings cannot do,” said Dr. Christian Martin-Gill, UPMC’s Chief of the Division of Emergency Medical Services (EMS). The machine-learning tool us-

might otherwise miss. The developmental algorithm’s results outperformed current gold standards for detecting heart attacks, according to a novel study published in the peer-reviewed medical journal, Nature Medicine. dashboard for ambulance proWork is underway to incorpo- viders and emergency departrate the algorithm into a digital ment staff to more quickly tri-

By Eric Scicchitano CNHI News Service

SUNBURY, Pa. — Nothing kills more people in the U.S. than heart disease, and researchers within the UPMC health enterprise are using machine learning to advance the breadth and efficiency of

State champions return home

es advanced math, computation and computer engineering to identify more than 700 different features on an ECG, he said. “When a human is looking at an (ECG) tracing, we’re probably looking at several dozen different things we may recognize. … A computer is able to look at hundreds and it’s able to do that within minutes,” Martin-Gill said. See AI, Page 2

Historic homes featured on Wagoner tour Rose Garden Club’s annual Christmas tour showcases part of town’s history By Cathy Spaulding cspaulding@muskogeephoenix.com

with the biggest smile on Friday night was Albert Parish. His two sons, Ayrion and Ayrius, play for the state championship team. Parish said he was the coach for the Paul Young Saints — a youth football team his sons and many of their teammates played on since second grade.

Historic homes are part of the Wagoner Rose Garden Club’s annual Christmas home tour this weekend. The tour runs from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday and will feature six homes: • Cagney and Sydnie Roberson home, 302. S. McQuarrie Ave. • Valina Enslen home, 402 S. McQuarrie. • Darrell and Joy Morgan Home, 1306. S. McKinley. • Roy and Kathy Nichols home, 1507 S.E. 13th. • Darvin and Nita McClellan home, 704 S.W. 21st St. • Rory and Deborah Robertson home, 1103 S.W. 24th St. Tickets are $15 and are available at any of the houses, said tour organizer Paula Templeton. Two houses date to the early 20th Century. “They are just unique because they are part of Wagoner history,” she said. The Enslen home was built in 1896 by cattleman and rancher John Gibson. It is on the National Register of Historic places. Templeton said it has its original ornate woodwork and staircase.

See ARRIVAL, Page 7

See TOUR, Page 2

MANDY LYNN CORBELL/Special to the Phoenix

Muskogee Roughers celebrate their Class 6A II football state championship in their locker room at Rougher Village. Many fans turned out to welcome the Roughers when they arrived from Edmond.

Fans cheer as team arrives at Rougher Village By Wendy Burton Phoenix Correspondent

Friday’s popular catchphrase, “There’s nothing tougher than a Rougher,” definitely applied to the Roughers’ biggest fans, too. Many waited in the chilly, drizzly weather for hours for a chance to cheer for the champion team as they arrived home. Others lined up in their cars along

both sides of Rougher Road. All erupted into contagious shouts, roars, whistles, and excitement as the team buses rolled into Rougher Village. After all, the Muskogee Roughers won the state football championship for the first time since 1986 — as many of the waiting fans witnessed when they were in

grade school. Miea Harvey, mother of Wesley Harvey, a left tackle for the Roughers, said she was very young when the Roughers last took state. “So, I don’t remember that, but I’m so happy these boys brought it home,” she said. “It was super exciting, and it was time.” Perhaps the proudest fan

5 School board requires proper qualifications

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What degree level is re“If the person is employed by the thousand (5,000); quired to be on a school school district governed by that • The school district has an ADM board? board or is related within the second of less than four hundred (400), the “A person must have received a degree by affinity or consanguinity board of education has adopted a high school diploma or certificate of to any other member of the board policy providing for such candidate high school equivalency to be eligible or to any employee of the school eligibility and the board member as a school board candidate.” district. But the prohibitions shall who is related to any employee of Does a candidate need to not apply if: the school district complies with the be registered to vote in the • The person related to the board provisions of subsection E of Section district? member is employed as a substitute 5-113.1 of this title.” “Yes, with the county election teacher by the school district purHow should school board at an address in the geographi- suant to the provisions of Section boards fill an unexpired cal boundaries of the election district.” 6-105 of this title or as a temporary term? What disqualifies somesubstitute support employee if the “Vacancies shall be filled by apone from being a candischool district has an Average Daily pointment by the board.” date? Membership (ADM) of less than five — McAlester News-Capital

KODI WALKER, WARNER B.J. Harris, Kodi’s great aunt, sent in this photo of the new member of the family. Nominate a smile: Send photos of someone smiling to features@ muskogeephoenix.com

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county election board at an address located within the geographical boundaries of the district for six months preceding the first day of the filing period. In school districts What are some requirethat are divided into election disments to become an eligible tricts, a candidate must have resided candidate for a school board in the district for at least six months seat? preceding the first day of the filing “A person must have resided in period and have been a registered the district or, if the board seat is voter registered with the county in an independent district, have election board at an address located resided in that district for at least six within the geographical boundaries months preceding the first day of of the election district for six months the filing period, and have been a preceding the first day of the filing registered voter registered with the period.” Oklahoma state statutes details qualifications for becoming an eligible candidate for a school board prior to the Dec. 4-6 filing period for elections held on Feb. 13, 2024.

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Vol. 72 — No. 48 Founded Feb. 18, 1888

Local

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Online health care organization recognizes NSU

MEMORIALS FLORENCE CAROLINE EGAN BOWLES WAYLAND 1930 - 2023 Caroline died peacefully on Nov. 17, 2023, from congestive heart failure at the age of 93. She was born on April 3, 1930, in Muskogee, Oklahoma to Jim and Violet Egan. She attended Oklahoma City University where she was the first person to receive a Bachelors Degree in Sacred Music. Her major was in voice. While attending college she met ministerial student, Bill Bowles, and they married in 1950. They had three children, Bob Bowles, Carol Bowles, and Beth Bowles. After spending 17 years in the Methodist ministry in Oklahoma, they left the ministry and moved to Boulder. Caroline became active in volunteer work at Boulder Community Hospital, Boulder Civic Opera, and Boulder Chorale. The Chorale’s director moved from Boulder and the group asked Caroline to take over the directing responsibilities. The Chorale at the time had only 15 members and when Caroline left 16 years later the membership had grown to 60 members. Caroline looked at directing the Chorale as one of the most joyful experiences of her life. In 1982, Bill and Caroline divorced and in 1987 Caroline married Vince Wayland. Vince’s work was in the field of supercomputing and they spent many enjoyable years working in England and Germany plus several cities in the United States. During this time, they traveled extensively in Europe which was a great joy to both of them and they continued to travel after Vince retired. For 27 years they went each April to their timeshare in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. This was one of the

highlights of their year. Caroline volunteered at Boulder County Hospice for 17 years. She felt the loving care Hospice offered the community was very important and much needed. She loved to play bridge and spent many happy hours at the bridge table. Her music was very important to her and she was quite fortunate to be able to sing in her church choir until she was 87. Reading brought her great pleasure and she enjoyed reading all kinds of literature. Caroline was predeceased by her parents, her brother, James Albert Egan, and her grandson, Kelly McCabe. She is survived by her husband, Vince, her son Bob Bowles (Leslie), her daughter Carol Jensen (Paul), daughter Beth Bowles (Paul Sessum), stepdaughter Kirsten Wayland, stepson Sean Wayland, granddaughters Amy Jensen and Christine Wayland, and 3 wonderful nieces. Contributions can be sent in Caroline’s name to: Tru Hospice, 2594 Trailridge Dr. E., Lafayette, CO 80026, or to Music Program, St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, 4515 Grinnell Ave., Boulder, CO 80305. A Celebration of her life is being planned sometime in the spring around her birthday in April. If interested, please send an email to Caroline@theWaylands.com with the Subject Line: Celebration.

DEATHS Danny Joe Chaffin, 66, of Muskogee, Retired Muskogee Public Schools electrician, passed away Wednesday, November 29,

Submitted by NSU

2023. Memorial service: 1PM, Tuesday, December 5, 2023 @ Cornerstone Funeral Home Chapel, Muskogee

Northeastern State University has been listed as one of the top bachelor’s in health care administration online for 2023-’24 by EduMed. The online health care organization administration program was rated as one of the top programs in the nation, listed as 15 out of 50 top schools recognized. It was also the only program ranked in Oklahoma. The programs are ranked on a combination of factors like affordability, accessibility, and commitment to student success. NSU offers three emphasis options for the HOA program: healthcare administration, health informatics, and long-term care. Courses are offered in

education, move into leadership positions, or shift to a non-direct patient care setting. “For the past few years, the NSU HOA Program faculty has worked diligently to reform this program to meet the needs of both current and future students,” Dr. Courtney Hamby, NSU assistant professor of management and program coordinator, said. “It is our ultimate hope that passionate healthcare leaders will emerge from this program. We hope that our students have a hand in improving the quality of the health care delivery system across Oklahoma and beyond.” The rankings were recently published by EduMed, a leader in supporting student’s

pursuits of an online or hybrid education in allied health, nursing, and medical fields. “Receiving recognition and ranking nationally is an honor for the HOA program,” Hamby said. “It signifies quality and productivity within the academic area compared with peer institutions.” Hamby emphasized the importance that rankings play in shaping the opinion of potential and current students alike. She said many potential students make decisions based on the recognition and ranking of the program. For more information about NSU’s HOA program, visit nsuok. edu/hoa.aspx or email Hamby at healthcaremgt@nsuok.edu.

AI: Facial recognition tech alerts civil liberty advocates Continued from Page 1

Artificial intelligence (AI) and its subsets like machine learning are changing how first responders do their jobs, through robotics, speech recognition and advanced algorithms. Firefighters in California partnered with the University of California San Diego’s ALERTCalifornia program, using artificial intelligence to scan a network of 1,032 cameras to detect fires and other abnormalities and notify first responders for further investigation. A video analytics system powered by artificial intelligence is now in use at the Michigan State Capitol to detect whether someone is smuggling a gun into the building, with images shared instantly to trained staff to determine if there’s a legitimate threat. The software can share detailed alerts including imagery and suspect location with internal and external law enforcement in as little as 3 seconds. Facial recognition technology is increasingly used within law enforcement, a development raising concerns among civil liberty and privacy advocates. The U.S. Government Accountability Office released a report last year that found that in 2020, 18 of 24 federal agencies with law enforcement officers used AI largely for building surveillance and computer access. In a separate survey, 14 of 42 such agencies said the technology was being used in criminal investigations. On GAO’s recommendation, three of the agencies have since implemented tracking systems. Ten others were conducting research on facial recognition technology including the Department of Justice, which

This Weekend! Muskogee Little Theatre presents

Dec. 1st & 2nd @ 7:30 p.m. | Dec. 3rd @ 2:00 p.m. Dec. 7th, 8th & 9th @ 7:30 p.m. Tickets: www.muskogeelittletheatre.com Sponsored by:

an eight-week format, and the program can be completed 100% online. “We are thrilled to receive this acknowledgment for our programs,” NSU President Rodney Hanley said. “This ranking is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our faculty and staff who are committed to providing students with the best possible education.” Students can begin the program in January, March, August, or October. The online and flexible scheduling format allows working adults and health care professionals the option to work full-time while pursuing higher education. Additionally, health care professionals working in the field can further their

311 S. 3rd St.

text, Generative AI can help.” The applications of artificial intelligence — AI — are growGenerative AI can ing exponentially and will continue to do so as the technoloanalyze information gy advances even more. about past incidents Today, CNHI and The Muskogee Phoenix continue an alongside incoming ongoing series looking at AI and its potential benefits and data about a current concerns in various parts of everyday life. This latest part emergency to quickly revisits AI and its use in emergency response. Previous parts determine where speof the series have looked at AI’s use in education, health care, cific resources would business, social media and the military. An upcoming part best be dispatched, will look at journalism. he said, adding that was conducting applied trators. Programs like it would be particuresearch on the relathat used in Delaware larly helpful to boost tionship between skin County are becoming emergency response tone and false match increasingly more com- as volunteerism in fire rates. mon. and emergency mediAs explained by the cal services continues ‘CALL AFTER CALL’ National Urban Securi- to shrink. “A huge “911 is now a tech ty Technology Laboraproblem is listening industry,” said Antho- tory of the Department to people, translating, ny Mignogna, Chief of Homeland Security, identifying what are of Communications AI technology picks up the important variables at Delaware County on direct conversations that would increase the Emergency Services in and background noise. need for intervention southeast PennsylvaIt compares call inforimmediately so you can nia. mation to thousands do better resource alloArtificial intelligence of past data points, ac- cation leading to better is incorporated into the cording to the federal outcomes,” Kumara county’s 911 center, agency, and can sugsaid. helping dispatchers gest relevant questions The use of Predictive handle about 800,000 for the dispatcher to AI in law enforcement emergency calls placed improve call efficiency does present ethical to the center. and emergency rechallenges, Kumara The center uses Presponse. said. He likened its use pared AI to transcribe Mignogna said a to the “pre-crime” pothe calls, having rolled year-end analysis will lice program in the Tom out the technology in determine just how Cruise movie, “Minorimid-October. It serves well AI is functioning ty Report.” to verify what a caller in the Delaware County The technology can is saying, Mignogna 911 Center. He’s albuild off of historsaid, allowing dispatch- ready looking toward ic data to determine ers to marry what they broadening the use of geographic areas that hear with what they’re the technology includtend to be more violent reading. ing foreign language than others, he said, “We want to know translation, imaging, perhaps leading to inwhen someone says video and GPS. creased police patrols. ‘gun,’ ‘shot,’ ‘not “We’re looking for But, such technology breathing,’ ‘car.’ It tools like this to help can also lead to dangerflags that,” said Miand take some stress ous stereotypes and ungnogna, who sits on the off (dispatchers). It’s intended consequences Prepared company’s call after call after call when data is limited to inaugural customer ad- for 12 hours. It makes certain ethnic groups visory board along with life a little easier,” Mi- or races, Kumara other first responders. gnogna said. warned. “It helps us expedite “In order to avoid our call processing HELPFUL TECH, this, you need to samtime.” BE CAUTIOUS ple the population It also helps, he said, Professor Soundar properly. When you do when the center is Kumara, director, Penn that you have better short-staffed and exState University’s Cen- understanding of the periencing heavy call ter for Applications of nuances of how these volume. Artificial Intelligence patterns among people More than half of and Machine Learning are changing,” Kumara 911 centers in the U.S. to Industry, said Gensaid. “For all this, you are facing staffing erative AI is becoming need a lot of data from emergencies, according more commonplace the past. When you to a study released in within emergency redon’t have the data February by the Intersponse. your guess is as good as national Academies “Computers are not an algorithm’s guess.” of Dispatch and the good at understanding Eric Scicchitano is a National Association context,” Kumara said. writer for the Sunbury of State 911 Adminis“To understand con(Pa.) Daily Item.

ABOUT THIS SERIES

Tour: Proceeds to help veterans, dogs Continued from Page 1

“It’s just a beautiful home,” Templeton said. The Roberson’s brick home dates to 1914. The brick home at 302 S. McQuarrie dates to 1914. “There’s just a lot of history in them.” The home tour supports two charities. Wagoner Community Outreach is a faithbased ministry that offers monthly meals and groceries. Wagoner Area Neighbors is a cooperative community effort to offer charitable

services. Templeton said proceeds also will help veterans and a program that helps find homes for dogs. “We would not have the funds to support anybody without the homeowners and the people coming to view the homes,” she said. “We need to make sure the money goes to good causes in support of the community, and it takes an army to keep it successful. Wagoner people have been so giving.”

IF YOU GO WHAT: Wagoner Rose Garden Club Christmas home tour. WHEN: 1-4 p.m. Sunday. WHERE: Cagney and Sydnie Roberson home, 302. S. McQuarrie Ave. Valina Enslen home, 402 S. McQuarrie. Darrell and Joy Morgan Home, 1306. S. McKinley. Roy and Kathy Nichols home, 1507 S.E. 13th. Darvin and Nita McClellan home, 704 S.W. 21st St. Rory and Deborah Robertson home, 1103 S.W. 24th St. TICKETS: $15, available at any homes on the tour.

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West was last captain of Indian police The United States Indian Police (USIP) was established in 1880 in an effort to curb the lawlessness that had invaded Indian Territory following the Civil War. Each of the Five Tribes had a police force, usually referred to as Lighthorsemen, but these officers only had jurisdiction within their own tribe. They could not arrest anyone who was not a member of their own nation. To overcome this jurisdictional issue, John Q. Tufts, the Indian Commissioner serving the Five Tribes in Muskogee, organized the U.S. Indian Police. This unit would enforce federal law and assist the tribal police in enforcing tribal law. Most of the officers who served as Indian Police were recruited from the various Lighthorse organizations. The USIP were under the direction and authority of the Indian Agent to the Five Tribes who worked from the Union Agency in Muskogee. Many of the Indian Police were also commissioned as U.S. Deputy Marshals, giving them the authority to arrest non-Indians. The USIP, like the Union Agent, was headquartered in Muskogee. The first captain of the U.S. Indian Police was Sam Sixkiller, a Cherokee officer and a Deputy Marshal. Sixkiller was shot to death by outlaws on Christmas Eve in 1886. The last captain to serve the Indian Police before Oklahoma statehood was another Cherokee named John C. West.

tain of the Indian Police in 1905 when a permit fee imposed by the Muscogee Nation on businesses owned by Three Forks non-tribal individuals History caused a major dispute. Most of the businesses West was a large man in Muskogee refused to standing over six feet pay the fee even after tall with the typical Union Agent Leo Benbushy mustache that nett and federal judge was a popular style of John Thomas ruled that the day. A Civil War vet- the fee was legal. eran, West served under On June 2, 1905, InGeneral Stand Watie dian inspector George during the war. Wright authorized the He was called the City Indian Police to shut Marshal of Muskogee, down any business that serving during the years had not paid the tax, between 1889 and 1892. which was virtually Since the town didn’t every business on Main have a municipal govern- Street. As the police ment in this time frame, proceeded to close these West most like was an businesses, it created Indian Police officer quite a stir in Muskpaid by the Union Agen- ogee. At the Patterson cy. Being headquartered Mercantile, customers in Muskogee, he would trying to enter the have kept a lid on lawstore were physically relessness for the town. strained by the police. From 1894 to 1896, A.W. Robb, PatterWest was also the Sherson’s manager, then iff of the Canadian swore out warrants for District of the Cherokee the arrest of John West Nation. This district had and seven of his officers the distinction of being for assault and battery! the location of Youngers The Muskogee police arBend where Belle and rested the Indian police Sam Starr had their and took them to mayor home. West was the F.B. Fite for a judgment. nemesis to the Starrs Despite strong pressure and it is likely that he from Muskogee busiarrested the outlaw nessmen, Fite ruled that couple on more than one he had no authority over occasion. tribal matters and disJohn’s brother Frank missed the charge. West also served as an At Oklahoma stateIndian policeman and hood law enforcement marshal. He had run-ins efforts changed sigwith the Starrs as well nificantly. John West and once shot the horse retired from USIP and Sam Starr was riding. spent his last years The bad blood between living in Porum. It was these two lawmen and here that he died in 1929 the Starrs eventually and was buried in a famled to Sam and Frank ily cemetery nearby. shooting and killing one Reach Jonita Mullanother. ins at jonita.mullins@ John West was Capgmail.com

Jonita Mullins

OKLAHOMA CITY — The City of Muskogee received approval for $2,000,000 in funding Thursday from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve the City’s water infrastructure. Construction of upgrades and improvements to the water system will be financed by the Oklahoma American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant program along with $2,000,000

in local funds. The City has a raw water line that is past its life expectancy and needs to be replaced. These proceeds will be used to complete an assessment and survey on the raw waterline, construct a booster station, and add a back up generator at the water plant. Joe Freeman, chief of the OWRB’s Financial Assistance Division, calculated that the City’s customers will save an estimated

$3,278,200 compared to traditional financing. The ARPA grant program is administered by the OWRB with funding from the U.S. Department of the Treasury and appropriated through the Water and Wastewater American Rescue Plan Act grants program. This OWRB program has been structured to provide communities and other eligible entities financial resources necessary to address water and

The Muskogee Phoenix encourage civic clubs, school organizations and area residents to submit photos and news items. Send items by email at yournews@ muskogeephoenix.com.

Story of Sugar Plum Fairy It’s a mixture of excitement and sadness as I decorated the Christmas tree with real (breakable) ornaments for the first time in 17 years. As soon as the first grandbaby arrived, I put everything breakable away for another time and had only plastic ornaments without hooks (everything tied with ribbon or twine). With the youngest now in kindergarten, and none of them interested in helping me decorate any longer, I dusted off the real deal and broke two ornaments in the process. I had the day to myself to decorate the house and tree and had a twinge of excitement thinking of what I could accomplish without grandkids dictating multiple ornaments on one limb or everything decorated except the top limbs. I knew it was time to let go of this tradition as they no longer wanted to come over and decorate another tree. It’s sad to think those days are over and I hope I can hold onto the monthly cousin overnight for a couple more years with the younger ones. The two oldest grands are running at full speed,

wastewater infrastructure needs within their systems. Since 1983 the Water Resources Board has approved over $7.0 billion in loans and grants for water and wastewater infrastructure improvements throughout Oklahoma. “We are grateful to State Legislators from the Muskogee area for their continued support of our financial assistance programs,” said Julie Cunningham, Executive Director of the OWRB.

OMRF scientist to investigate immune cells Submitted by Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation

OKLAHOMA CITY — Fifty years ago, immunologists were just beginning to understand a newly discovered type of white blood cell that would come to be known as the T cell. Decades of research have since shown these protective cells to be so crucial, we couldn’t survive without them. Fast-forward to today, and research stands at a similar infancy with a closely related immune cell called innate lymphoid cells, or ILCs, says Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation scientist Xiao-Hong Sun, Ph.D. The National Institutes of Health recently awarded Sun a $3.4 million grant to continue unraveling mysteries about these cells, including whether they may offer clues about the differences in immune reactions between children and

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City receives $2 million grant for system improvements Submitted by Oklahoma Water Resource Board

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

way of thinking, so I didn’t send out my usual Thanksgiving Day cards and won’t be doing the Christmas ones either. Down I did, however, receive home a text from my 17-yearold granddaughter on living their best lives. Pa- my birthday. It simply pa gets his feelings hurt said, “Happy Birthday. they don’t come over as Thanks for always being often and I must remind there.” This text sent me him they will come back over the moon as even around, hopefully sooner though we don’t play than later. My grandbabies anymore for hours daughter will be a senior on end and I barely get next year and anytime two words out of her on I even think about it I holidays, it confirms she feel the tears ready to knows I’m always going spill over at every “last” to show up when she’s event. performing, when she I was lucky to have needs me and even when grandparents who lived she doesn’t. just up the street and unWe will be going to her derstood when to take a performance in the Nutstep back and wait. They cracker this weekend. were so important to me I’m tearing up now just as a child and even more writing about it. She’s so when I was an adult. beautiful, graceful, talI was fortunate to have ented and will be going their time for life lessons away to college sooner and opinions, whether I than I am ready for. Time agreed with them or not, does go by so fast. It they were always there. seems like just yesterday Cards have taken a we were lining up dolls, back seat to texting, pretending they were in for everything from get dance class. well wishes to birthdays. She will always be my I was mailing cards to Sugar Plum Fairy and I all the grands until my will always be there for daughter told me to save her. the stamps, they weren’t Sandy Turner writes impressed. I’m trying re- about family and lives in ally hard to adapt to their the Midwest.

Sandy Turner

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tions differ between children and adults,” MAIN NUMBER 918-684-2828 Sun said. “Childhood NEWS / LOCAL 918-684-2900 onset of asthma and Story tips/releases: news@muskogeephoenix.com food allergies are just Letters to editor: opinion@muskogeephoenix.com two examples. This new Submissions: yournews@muskogeephoenix.com study may help explain SPORTS / LOCAL 918-684-2904 the underlying causes email: sports@muskogeephoenix.com and suggest new thera- CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING 918-684-2800 peutic approaches.” Classified/Legal Notices: classified@muskogeephoenix.com “It took a half-centu- RETAIL ADVERTISING 918-684-2804 ry of painstaking work email: advertising@muskogeephoenix.com by scientists around the world to get to our PUBLISHER/EDITOR Ed Choate 918-684-2875 current understanding email: publisher@muskogeephoenix.com of T cells,” said OMRF AD DIRECTOR Joe Mack 918-684-2804 Executive Vice Presiemail: jmack@muskogeephoenix.com OMRF/Submitted dent & Chief Medical PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Bill Martin 918-684-2955 email: bjmartin@muskogeephoenix.com OMRF scientist Xiao-Hong Sun has been granted a $3.4 mil- Officer Judith James, M.D., Ph.D. “That’s oflion grant to investigate immune cells. ten how science works. adults. ago. Dr. Sun is applying Find us online! “It’s far too soon to Initially, researchers similar approaches to say whether we will believed ILCs origunderstand ILCs in an someday discover ILCs inated only in bone accelerated way. I’m facebook.com/MuskogeePhoenix; play a role as profound marrow. In 2019, Sun excited to see where muskogeephoenix.com as T cells,” said Sun, discovered the thymus, her research leads.” who holds the Lew and a gland near the heart, Sun’s grant, No. The Muskogee Phoenix (USPS 369-000), Copyright 2020, is pubMyra Ward Chair in can also produce them. 1R01AI178947-01, lished Tuesday through Saturday at 214 Wall Street, Muskogee, OK Biomedical Research at The thymus trains the was awarded by the 74402. All correspondence and address changes must be addressed to: OMRF. “But I hope this immune system to dis- National Institute of Muskogee Phoenix, P.O. Box 1968, Muskogee, OK 74402-1968. All mail research will begin to tinguish friendly cells Allergy and Infectious subscriptions must be paid in advance. The Publisher reserves the right to change subscription rates upon notification by mail to subscribers, answer that question.” from invaders. It tends Diseases, part of the notice contained in the newspaper itself, or otherwise. Subscription Sun joined OMRF to shrink and become NIH. Oklahoma City’s by rate changes may be implemented by changing the duration of the in 1999 and studied T less active as we age. Presbyterian Health subscription. Periodicals postage paid at Muskogee, OK 74402 and at additional offices. The Phoenix is owned by CNHI, LLC. cells until pivoting her “Our previous discov- Foundation provided research to ILCs when ery was important befunding for Sun to colPostmaster: Send address changes to: Muskogee Phoenix, scientists discovered cause it may shed light lect preliminary data P.O. Box 1968, Muskogee, OK 74402-1968 them about a decade on why immune reacfor this research.

State

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Efforts to criminalize homelessness growing in Oklahoma By Mindy Ragan Wood Oklahoma Voice

according to an analysis from the National Homeless Law Center. OKLAHOMA CITY According to the — A national push to criminalize homeless- center, which has tracked legislation ness is impacting the state as cities and law- across the makers introduce pol- country icies aimed at regulat- since the ing encampments and 1990s, Oklahoother support for unma’s push housed Oklahomans, to punish legal experts say. homelessEfforts to criminess is nalize homelessness through tickets, fines moderate compared or arrests aren’t new, to other state legisbut have increased latures which have in the last few years passed laws forcing partly as a result of homeless people to get the issue becoming more visible due to the mental health treatment or attempted COVID-19 pandemic,

to ban camping on state-owned land or criminalize sleeping on sidewalks. Still in the past few years, there’s been growing efforts across Oklahoma to regulate everything from homeless encampments to panhandling to feeding unhoused residents. “Criminalization doesn’t work,” said Eric Tars, senior policy director for the cen-

918-684-2804

ter. “If it did, there would be no homeless people.” According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, Oklahoma’s unsheltered homeless population has increased by 15% over a decade. It has steadily risen since 2015. Estimates show 1,317 people were living on the streets in 2022. Politicians said they’re feeling increasing pressure from constituents to address homelessness in their communities. In the past two years, two GOP state lawmakers have led unsuccessful legislative efforts to address homeless encampments. Two Senate bills would have effectively banned the encampments by requiring them to comply with building codes. One of them also required cities to monitor encampments for possible contamination of city water supplies. Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, who ran one of the measures, said in an email that his Norman constituents are concerned with crime and sanitation. “This is very difficult as we have court decisions that seek to prevent mistreatment of all citizens, including homeless, and this is not necessarily bad, but makes addressing the issue difficult,” Standridge said.

people suffering from passed an ordinance “chronic and untreat- that limits feeding ed mental illness.” four or more homeless Cicero officials did people without a pernot return a message mit in the downtown seeking comment. area. Tars, with the State Rep. Monroe homeless law center, Nichols, D-Tulsa, who believes it’s unconstiis also running for tutional because the mayor, said his city’s restriction violates homeless the right populato free tion is assemgrowing bly, freeand residom of dents are speech frustratand when ed. The permost reformed cent data as part of for Tulsa religious County beliefs, shows also vihomeolates lessness religious grew by expres6.6% in sion. 2022. ShawThe nee City issue Manager needs Andrea more atWecktention — State Rep. Monroe Nichols, muelfrom city ler-BehD-Tulsa and state ringer leaders, did not Nichols said. respond to phone and “I think one of the email messages seekbiggest challenges we ing comment. continue to face is this Efforts to criminalbalancing between ize homelessness in having services that Oklahoma City have are widely and immefailed in recent years, diately available and including a panhanmatching that with dling ban on public anything we might do easement like medion the enforcement ans. It was overturned side,” he said. by the U.S. Supreme The state should be Court. a partner with cities The city has since to help fund housing pledged to invest solutions and treatmillions of dollars ment services that ad- in affordable housdress the underlying ing initiatives to end causes of homelesshomelessness. City ness, Nichols said. leaders declined to Norman business approve camping bans owners have urged on public and private CITIES’ TAKE STEPS TO city leaders to crack property last year. BAN HOMELESSNESS down on homelessness Some cities’ policies City leaders in Okla- amid complaints about overlook long-term homa City, Tulsa, panhandling, encamp- solutions that could Shawnee and Norman ments and violent lead to far better have also tried to tack- crimes in the wake of outcomes, said Dan le the issue by passing two recent stabbings Straughan, executive local ordinances. and one shooting that director of the HomeA poll in Tulsa, by police said involved less Alliance. The nonthe Cicero Institute, homeless people. The profit assists people found its residents city’s homeless popuout of homelessness favor tougher polilation is up by 16 peo- through partnerships cies like forced treatple from the previous with housing advocacy ment for mentally ill year. groups. homeless people and Norman Mayor Lar“City councils view prioritized funding ry Heikkila said there themselves as havfor those services over is often little the city ing relatively few subsidized housing. can do to address some tools in their tool Nearly half of Tulsans of those complaints, belt,” Straughan also disapproved of such as panhandling. said. “Their kind of the city council’s han“Constituents have knee-jerk response is, dling of the issue. complained to me ‘Well, we’ll just pass The institute presses about panhandling, an ordinance to outlaw for what it calls “sysbut the Supreme that’ when there may tem-wide accountabil- Court has said panbe more constructive ity and real solutions” handling is freedom ways to address that.” to homelessness. It of speech, ” Heikkila He suggested city calls for banning said. leaders partner with unauthorized street It can also be diffinonprofit organizacamping, paying non- cult to evict encamptions to boost affordprofits based on perments because it’s not able housing supply formance, and amend- against the law to be rather than filling up ing civil commitment homeless, he said. jails at taxpayer exlaws for homeless Shawnee recently pense.

“I think one of the biggest challenges we continue to face is this balancing between having services that are widely and immediately available and matching that with anything we might do on the enforcement side.”

Okie Well, I’m proud to be ...

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

‘True’ or ‘transplant,’ Okies celebrate Muskogee

Mike Wiseman shows some of the dents and marks his Malibu stock car has endured over the past few races.

Interview and photos by Cathy Spaulding

Wiseman carries on family traditions Third-generation tire-shop owner Mike Wiseman was born with automotive blood. He said his grandfather, Bill Wiseman, had a tire shop at 24th Street and Okmulgee Avenue. His father and uncle sold tires. Now he and his brother own shops on opposite sides of Muskogee. Mark Wiseman owns Discount Tire on North York Street, while Mike owns Discount Tires on North 32nd Street “I was destined to be here,” Mike Wiseman said. “That’s what I like to do I enjoy the tire business.” Wiseman recalled getting into the business early. “Changing tires when we started, washing white walls,” he said. “We started out at a dollar a day. That’s what we made. I was probably 7 at the time. I’m sure they were doing more babysitting than us working. But that kind of taught us the right way to be. We learned how to do a job and do it right.” Wiseman also followed his father into auto racing. “He used to race in the early 1970s,” Wiseman said. “We used to watch him, and we got a chance to race motorcycles back when I was younger.” That was when the family lived in the Oswego/Parsons area of southeast Kansas. He said his father raced at Thunderbird Speedway after the family moved to Muskogee. “It was just an awesome time” Wiseman said. “I got to stand up and take pictures with him when he won trophies. Wiseman said he was about 10 when he started helping his dad at the races. “Helping him work on the car, build motors, changing tires,” Wiseman recalled. “He was pretty strict on trying to get stuff done right, do it the right way, and the way he wanted it done.” He said his father raced within 100 miles. He won the championship at Tri-State Speedway in Pocola. “Then I started racing when I was 14 or 15,” Wiseman said. “Dad helped me get a car.” Wiseman said he stopped racing a while to raise a family and get established in the tire business. He started back up around 2013.

HOW DID YOU COME TO BE AN OKIE FROM MUSKOGEE? “Family. My grandpas kids were all going different directions in their employment. He had a farm in Kansas and he wanted to try to keep his boys together if he could, so they ended up selling the farm and moving here.”

RETURNING TO FORM TOOK SOME TIME

Mike Wiseman said it took a few years to get back into car racing. “It’s a lot of work,” he said, adding that he usually finished fifth or sixth during races. “Then I started getting a little bit better and a little bit better,” he said. “When we got a little better we started venturing out a little bit.” He won the Oklahoma State Championship two years in a row — 2015 and 2016. “That was a thrill, it was the whole state of Oklahoma,” he said. “It was racing for IMCA (International Motor Contest Association). You just race at different tracks around the state and gather points. Whoever got the most points is how you placed in the state.” He recalled racing at Tri-State, Southern Speedway near Ada, Longdale Speedway near Enid, as well as Outlaw and Thunderbird at Muskogee. Wiseman said he races about one or two nights a week, mainly locally. “I’ve been racing at Salina lately, up at Salina Highbanks,” he said. “It’s a big banked curve.” Tri-State is his favorite track, he said. “When you race there, you know what the track is going to be like,” he said. “If you go to some of the other places, it’s a guessing game whether it’s going to be real rough or muddy or whatever. TriState is always nice and slick and smooth. It’s a dirt track, too.” STAY CLEAN GETS YOU UP FRONT

Wiseman placed first in the Spooker race, held at Tri-State in October. He said the biggest challenge was trying to get two cars ready to race. “There were about 26 that entered that race,” he said. “You race heat races, and there’s about six cars in a heat. I ended up winning the heat. That’s what qualifies you for the A feature, and I qualified third, but they had a redraw and inverted the field and I started ninth.” That’s not an easy start. “You have to pass a lot of cars to get to the front,” Wiseman said. “It took me about 12 laps to get to the lead. I was leading the rest of the way.” He said his secret was “not to touch anybody, not to tear anything up, just get through there.” At the end he was three car lengths ahead. “You’re just thinking, you gotta keep your head together, you’re going to pull this off and win,” he said. Although he’s excited about winning, Wiseman said car racing is mostly a friendly competition. “A competition among friends,” he said. PROPER PROTECTION IS KEY TO SURVIVAL

Mike Wiseman holds his first place trophy for winning the Tri-State Spooker stock car race near Pocola.

MEET MIKE WISEMAN AGE: 59. HOMETOWN: Muskogee. EDUCATION: Sequoyah and Grant Foreman Elementaries, Hilldale High School, Indian Capital Technology Center. PROFESSION: Owner of Discount Tires. FAMILY: Wife, Rena; three children, Mea-

gan, Carleigh and Mitchel; two grandchildren. RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION: Christian. HOBBIES: “It’s always something to do with cars. Racing now, at the moment, with me and my son. Mess with hot rods or street rods. I like to travel whenever I get the chance. Fishing.”

“I liked being around friends that He said he races factory stock. enjoyed being in the competition,” he “It’s a stock suspension car, A said. “I didn’t have much to do, Get a stripped car down the body, motor car put it together, get it ready to go.” chassis and roll cage,” he said.

Q&A

WHAT DO YOU LIKE BEST ABOUT MUSKOGEE? “It’s a nice hometown. Not too big, not too small. I love it here.”

“If we could grow and have something more for the kids to do, and not get too big.”

WHAT WOULD MAKE MUSKOGEE A BETTER PLACE TO LIVE?

WHAT PERSON IN MUSKOGEE DO YOU ADMIRE MOST?

“My grandpa, Bill Wiseman. Always be honest and do a hard day’s work. He was in World War II, a scout.” WHAT IS THE MOST MEMORABLE THING TO HAPPEN TO YOU IN MUSKOGEE? “Birth of my kids.” WHAT DO YOU DO IN YOUR SPARE TIME? “It seems to be racing now. Dirt track.” HOW WOULD YOU SUM UP MUSKOGEE IN 25 WORDS OR LESS? “It’s a warm, friendly town. Not too big. Neighbors helping neighbors.”

Wiseman now races with a 1980 Malibu with a Terminator chassis, which he has had for three years. “It’s a brand of who made the car: Terminator,” he said. “I bought this car used.” He said the Chevy had already been prepped to be a stock car. “I just had to put a motor and transmission in it,” he said. “I have to put a new body on it every year.” The biggest challenge is the work and expense that go into preparing the car, he said. Accidents on the racetrack can take a toll on a car, he said. “Somebody just can’t drive or run over you,” he said. “Or driving over their head, which I’ve done some of that myself. Going too fast that you can’t control a car. Throttle control and steering, just try to drive to your abilities.” Wiseman said he protects himself by wearing a fire suit, fire resistant gloves, fire resistant shoes and a fire resistant helmet. The roll bar also is crucial. He recalled one accident in 2013. “Friday the 13, 2013, I rolled the car seven times at Thunderbird,” he said. “Then the car caught on fire. “ Fortunately, he did not have to go to the hospital. “I got in the ambulance, everything was OK,” he said. “It’s on YouTube, too. A friend of mine, his wife had caught the whole accident.” He said that whenever he recalls that wreck, he thinks of how lucky he is. “The outcome could have been a lot worse,” he said.

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Nature/Faith

Positive outcomes depend on innovative approaches to conservation The Great Shearwater, an Atlantic species, can conceivably be seen in the same California area as the local Pink-footed Shearwater, which nests in Chile, and Bulwer’s Shearwater that nests in New Zealand, and the same scenario occurs in the Atlantic with a Shorttailed Shearwater photographed at Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Short-tails are normally a New Zealand breeder that goes to Arctic Canada or Alaska in the Pacific basin, so they know travel. Puffins and murrelets routinely make passage from one ocean basin to another, and they have been within the Atlantic basin for the last two decades. Northern Gannet is another vagrant species traveling across the North Atlantic and has breeding/wintering grounds along the Gulf coast, but in 2011, three were seen on the northwest coast of Alaska. By 2012, one became established on the islands of California and was still observed this past September. They have the advantage of a long lifespan, so they can exist for decades in a new location waiting for another member of their species to begin a new population. That has happened assorted times, when a bird can find new habitat in remote places where they were initially vagrants. Manx Shearwater, a North Atlantic breeder, can be found in British Columbia, as we find them up and down the Pacific. Swinhoe’s Storm-petrel, a North Asian breeder, is

true ecosystem restoration. Partners are working on terrestrial vegetation and even pollinators, like the endangered yellow-faced bee. These ecosystem connections are a vital part of understanding how seabirds play a role in larger terrestrial and oceanic ecosystems. The true tropical island does not have the introduced coconut palm. If native vegetation is returned, we can have islands more suited to seabird habitat. Seabird forests would bring back seabirds in great numbers, not always rare birds, like terns or boobies, and they are important in unusual ways that we are beginning to understand. They deposit marine nutrients on islands, and that low infusion of nutrients from the land into nearshore systems increases plankton numbers, coral reef growth, and harvestable fisheries. Pexels.com Seabirds are in cataclysmic declines, yet capable of The northern gannet is a seabird, the largest species of the gannet family, Sulidae. It is native to the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean, breeding in Western Europe and Northeastern North America. It is the largest seabird in the tremendous movement in response to change. Some of northern Atlantic. those opportunistic events places, where we know seaer birds started colonizing, result in successful colobirds breed, but possible like Bulwer’s Petrel breeding nization, but the process locations from introduced there, sometimes nesting in depends upon area breeding, predators and sea level Hawaii, and the Southern and historic and new habitarise. Fences can be built in Hemispheric breeding Kertion. Seabird restoration has Birding Today the Kilauea Point National madec Petrel, yet they can be benefits to both ecosystems Wildlife Rescue in Kauai, seen ground nesting in Niand human economics, like Hawaii, a multi-partner hoku in this protected space. fisheries. now found in the Selvagens project, initiated more than That could be the first record As wandering seabirds beIslands of Portugal in the a decade ago, with the goal southern species breeding in gin a new chapter, positive North Atlantic. The Elegant to bring Hawaiian Petrel and Nihoku. outcomes depend on innovaTern, from our west coast, is Newell’s Shearwater, two Work is being done in tive approaches to conservanow an established breeder endangered species, to nest Mokio Preserve on Molokai, tion. in Spain. in this protected area, which and there is a chance that Deb Hirt is a wild bird reConsidering conservation is successful. Those birds are not just one species, but an habilitator and professional action for seabirds, we need breeding and returning as entire community of seaphotographer living in Stillto protect not just extant new regional adults, and oth- birds might be introduced, a water.

Deb Hirt

Believing means more than believing God exists You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. — James 2:19 Demons are theists. They not only believe in God, but they believe that there is only one God. They believe it so intently that they tremble at the thought. What does their theism get them? They believe in God intently, yet they are still doomed to eternal destruction. Likewise, there will be many that stand before God at judgment, who have been ardent believers, who will receive the same condemnation from the very God they

Stephen Parker

God produces a lifestyle that is radically different than the life of the believer. That is why the Grace for Bible has so many teachthe Day ings about attitudes and behaviors: fallen humanity does not know how to claimed to have known think and act correctly. their whole lives. They To be a believer (theist) were not believers at means so much more all, but rather, practical than to agree with the atheists. demons that God exists. Atheists believe that One cannot be a believer there is no God, but athe- without striving to be a ism is more than a mere disciple (follower). philosophy or thought And He was saying process. If a belief in God to them all, “If anyone impacts every thought wishes to come after Me, and action of the believlet him deny himself, er, so will atheism imand take up his cross pact the lifestyle of the daily, and follow Me. For non-believer. whoever wishes to save To live as if there is no his life shall lose it, but

Annual Christmas Home Tour December 2 & 3 Benefitting Kelly B. Todd

whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it (Luke 9:23-25).” A true theist not only believes that there is a God, but he believes everything that God teaches. The atheist does not believe the words of God, because he does not believe that there is a God. There is a third type of person, the one who believes in God but does not believe the teachings of God. That is a practical atheist. That means that such a person is an atheist in practice, regardless of what he claims. He is a hypocrite. The demons believe in God but do not obey God. They tremble in part because they know God, know his power, and also know that they are doomed to destruction. Thinking about God causes them to tremble. They are practical atheists. It does not matter what they “believe” or espouse because what they live for, stand for, and die for is not God-focused. Jesus said, If you love me you will keep my commandments (John 14:15). Walk the streets

of your town and ask each person that you meet if they believe in God. In the Bible Belt you will find that a majority will affirm a belief in God. Then ask them about teachings from God that he expects of his disciples: sexual purity outside of marriage, refraining from using the Lord’s name in vain, attending worship assemblies, etc. Now ask if they do those things religiously. You will find that the majority of people who claim to be believers (theists) are actually functional atheists. Like the demons they hold God in very high esteem, but not so much that they will change their lifestyle to receive approval from him. If they do not seek approval, they will be disapproved and will eventually end up in the same realm as the demons, who are also theists. This discussion hinges on the dual definition of “belief.” One is mental assent and the other is active faith (faith and belief have the same root word in the original). Charles Blondin

walked a tightrope across Niagara Falls on July 15, 1859. Before one trip he asked the crowd if they believed he could push a wheelbarrow across the tightrope. Having witnessed him making several trips back and forth, the audience cheered its belief that he could do so. One fellow at the front of the crowd was over the top in his excitement at Blondin’s prowess. Yet when Blondin asked him to get into the wheelbarrow he turned white as a sheet. He believed that Blondin could do it but he did not trust him to do it. A theist who believes in God but who puts no trust in what God teaches in not a theist. He is living exactly the way an atheist does. How many folks who claim to believe in God would you estimate to be practical atheists? They believe in God but they do not believe his teachings. What do they hope to gain from their practical atheism, because unlike the demons, they don’t even tremble? Reach Stephen Parker at fam4evr@sbcglobal. net

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the day of the tour or online at https://kbtoddcpcenter. tofinoauctions.com/cht2023/

» TOURS: • Kimberley and Von Castor home, 3900 Clubview Drive. • David and Marcie Hewson, 3321 Severs St. • Bobbi and Jeff Knack, 3907 Clubview Drive

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» TOURS: • Alex Wilson and Joel Cousins home, 2129 W. Okmulgee Ave. • Julie and Steve Grober home, 509 N. 12th St. • Fite Estate Inn and Spa, 443 N. 16th St. • V.R. Coss house, 1315 W. Okmulgee Ave. • Three Rivers Bed and Breakfast, 2601 W. Broadway.

Annual Christmas Home Tours benefit Kelly B. Todd

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Local/State

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Report shows uptick in state’s prison population Oklahoma 529 gifts can last By Keaton Ross Oklahoma Watch

Oklahoma’s prison population is growing after years of steady decline, according to a Bureau of Justice Statistics report released Thursday. On Dec. 31, 2022, Oklahoma incarcerated 22,745 people, a 2.3% increase from 22,235 in December 2021. Oklahoma had the nation’s fourth-highest incarceration rate at the end of last year, trailing Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas. Oklahoma was one of four states where more than 1% of male residents were serving a prison sentence of one year or longer. State prison admissions increased 6% during the survey period, from 5,799

in 2021 to 6,145 in 2022. Conditional supervision violations, parolees sent back to prison for breaking the terms of their early release, rose 14.2%. The rise in admissions reflects a justice system recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. In late March 2020, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ordered courthouses statewide to close. Most counties did not resume jury trials until the late summer. Forty-two states and the District of Columbia saw their prison populations rise between 2021 and 2022, according to the report.

The voter-approved passage of State Question 780, which reclassified some drug and property offenses from felonies to misdemeanors, helped Oklahoma reduce its prison population by nearly 20% from 2018 to 2020. Lawmakers made the state question retroactive in 2019, prompting the early release of 462 prisoners in the largest single-day mass commutation in U.S. history. While lawmakers have taken up some criminal justice reform bills in recent sessions, including a measure that will expedite the criminal

record expungement progress, efforts to overhaul Oklahoma’s criminal sentencing code have stalled. House Bill 1792, which aims to organize 1,100 felonies while reducing or maintaining the state prison population, could be reconsidered when the Legislature reconvenes in February. State corrections officials reported an inmate population of 23,007 on Nov. 27, including 1,029 prisoners awaiting transport from county jails to Department of Corrections facilities. Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch. org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.

Arrival: Community gathers to support players Continued from Page 1

“(After the game) Ayrion and Ayrius just hugged us, so overwhelmed,” he said. “They all played excellent, and I’m proud of all these boys.” Terri Brossett was also on hand to welcome home the state champs. Brossett is a teacher at the high school and student life council sponsor. She and a group of students decorated the locker rooms before they headed to Edmond on Friday to watch the game. “We knew they were going to win,” she said. “Then we came flying

home to make sure we got here before they did.” The Perez family showed up hours before the team’s arrival and decorated their car with black, green, and white streamers. Their two grade school children have played football and been a cheerleader in the youth leagues, and the whole family are big sports fans, Joe Perez said. “I came out here straight after work in my work clothes,” he said. “We’re big fans. We come to all their games.” Former Rougher

Skyleer OneBear also showed up to greet the returning players and coaches. OneBear said he played for the team two years ago, and the Muskogee graduate listened to the game in his ear while at work and school Friday afternoon. “I had a huge smile on my face,” he said. Jennifer Harkin and family were there to wait for the team to arrive. They, too, drove to Edmond to watch the game. Her son Kaden, a 10th-grader on special teams, played in the game Friday, she said, and Muskogee

really turned out for the game. “The entire home side was a ton of Rougher fans,” she said. Another family of a teammate, Jay Roberts, was eagerly waiting for the bus to arrive. Roberts usually plays with the team, but is injured, so the family went to Edmond to watch the game. They said they couldn’t be more excited for the Roughers. “I think it’s great for the city,” said Leandra Roberts, Jay’s mother. “It brings the city together. And they deserve the attention.”

lifetime, provide tax benefits Submitted content

Oklahoma families looking for gifts this holiday season beyond the latest fads have a chance to give a gift that can last a lifetime with Oklahoma 529. “In a world filled with tech gadgets and trendy toys, Oklahoma 529 offers families a unique holiday gift option that can grow with a child rather than being something a child outgrows by season’s end,” said State Treasurer Todd Russ. “Even better, the funds from Oklahoma 529 accounts can be used for nearly any education path chosen.” Russ said opening a new account from now through Dec. 15 also offers another advantage. New accounts can receive a $100 bonus when opened with $500 or more and recurring contributions of $100 or more per month are set up until June 30, 2024. New accounts can get a $50 bonus when opened with $250 and recurring contributions of $50 or more per month are set up until June 30, 2024.1 Parents, grandparents, relatives or friends may open an Oklahoma 529 account on behalf of a beneficiary or contribute to an existing account using OK529

Ugift®. With the average American planning to spend $9232 on gifts this holiday season, it’s a good way to potentially give long-term benefits. “Aside from being a great way to save for higher education, account contributions also can provide tax benefits to Oklahoma families,” Russ said. “An Oklahoma 529 account can be a smart choice for Oklahomans that can help students and their families now and in the future.” Oklahoma taxpayers can reduce their state taxable income by up to $20,000 if married filing jointly ($10,000 filing single), from contributions made into Oklahoma 529. Plus, taxpayers can carry forward larger gifts into future years. Any earnings are tax-free if used for qualified higher education expenses such as tuition and living expenses. Oklahoma 529 funds can also be used to help pay for CareerTech, professional and graduate school, K-12 tuition up to $10,000 annually per student and apprenticeship costs for programs registered and certified with the Secretary of Labor under the National Apprenticeship Act.

• Medicare and Social Security Planning • Employee Benefits • Risk Management • Human Resources

MUSKOGEE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS — AGENDA WHAT: Muskogee Board of County Commissioners regular meeting. WHEN: 9 a.m. Monday. WHERE: Muskogee County Services Building, 400 W. Broadway, Suite 010.

AGENDA

Consider: • Purchase orders, monthly reports and minutes of the Nov 27, 2023 regular meeting.

Local

• FY2023 Emergency Management Performance Training Grant. • Presentation by the American Red Cross concerning their role during a disaster.

& Hiring

Guide to Best Jobs

• Business Succession Planning • Individual Medical

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Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

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THE FIRST AMENDMENT: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

Opinion

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

OUR VIEW

Roughers state title unites Muskogee

What Muskogee High School accomplished Friday transcends the football field. The euphoria of the Roughers’ Class 6A II state championship is something an entire city can share. And it has the ability to bring our city together in a way few events possibly can achieve. Muskogee’s 28-26 victory over the Stillwater Pioneers makes the 2023 Roughers champions forever. And Muskogee — as highway signs are soon to say — is the proud home of champions. It’s human nature to want to belong to something or some group. We want to be linked by some common bond. We want to close the gaps between each other. Sports — in magical moments like this — can do just that. The Roughers victory achieved on the field will be a part of our hearts and lives forever. We will remember the way our hearts jumped as Muskogee recovered an onside kick attempt to clinch the state championship. We will remember what it felt like to cheer our Roughers as they arrived home. We will smile for days at anyone who walks by, high-five strangers, cheer loudly at anyone wearing Roughers T-shirts or hoodies. This victory makes us all one tribe today — truly Roughers Nation. Sports makes you feel. Sports makes you realize you are alive. It is the only thing not scripted in most of our daily lives. If you listened to the game or watched it at local watch parties, you did not know what was going to happen next. You lived with every exciting play and wilted a little at every penalty flag. The Roughers are champions. And we got to experience it. And we are forever grateful to our forever champions.

MUSKOGEE muskogeephoenix.com

Publisher Ed Choate publisher@muskogeephoenix.com News news@muskogeephoenix.com Editorials in “Our View” are the institutional opinions of the Muskogee Phoenix’s Editorial Board. Columns, commentaries, letters and cartoons on the Opinion Page are the views of their respective writers and artists and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Editorial Board.

Anxiety, pessimism, meet vitality Victory in World War II filled some economists with foreboding. Today, many people on the left, including some who insist that they are on the right, proclaim an urgent need for government to supplant markets in allocating capital to rescue the economy from doldrums. So, remember the postwar calamity that did not happen. Anticipating the dismantling of the government’s encompassing direction of the wartime economy, and restoration of a market-driven economy, Cassandras thought that vast reductions of military spending, coinciding with millions of demobilized soldiers flooding the job market, might mean a 1940s depression worse than that of the 1930s. MIT’s Paul Samuelson, who in 1970 would become the first American to win the Nobel Prize in economics, and whose textbook educated several generations of college students, worried that there could be “the greatest period of unemployment and industrial dislocation which any economy has ever faced.” Instead, there was the postwar boom. James Pethokoukis of the American Enterprise Institute relishes reminding us of this in his new book “The Conservative Futurist: How to Create the Sci-Fi World We Were Promised.” The year now ending is, he notes, the 50th anniversary of 1973,

sistors on a microchip would double every year (later changed to every two years). Pethokoukis notes that by 2019 a typical Intel Commentary chip contained 5 billion transistors at a cost of a penny per 100,000. Moore when slowing rates of once wrote that if cars imgrowth of the population, proved at the pace of comthe economy and labor puters, “they would get productivity signaled the 100,000 miles to the gallon end of the boom, and the and it would be cheaper beginning of rational pesto buy a Rolls-Royce than simism. The pessimists park it.” underestimated what the A threat to national viRev. Martin Luther King tality is what Pethokoukis Jr. called (in his 1963 calls “the precautionary “Letter from Birmingham principle.” It holds that Jail”) Americans’ “bottom- significant undertakings less vitality.” should not begin until King coined this phrase threats of damage from eight years after the Salk them are fully understood. polio vaccine was anDue caution is, of course, nounced on the 10th anni- wise, but much of the exversary (April 12, 1955) of hilaration of life comes the death of the nation’s from not knowing — not most famous polio patient, being able to know — what Franklin D. Roosevelt. is over the horizon. Undue King cited national vitalanxiety about possible conity five years after Pan sequences of innovations American World Airways breeds what Brink Lindsey (remember that casualty of of the Niskanen Center others’ superior vitality?) calls “the anti-Promethean began regular service to backlash.” Technology — Europe. Until 1958, more e.g., the internet — can be people crossed the Atlantic injurious and abused, but by ships than by airplanes. it is, on balance, mightily (Interestingly, it is estibeneficial, and not to be mated that 80 percent of blamed for human abuses the world’s population of it. today still has never taken Many of today’s anticia flight.) Also in 1958, the patory anxieties about arintegrated circuit, a.k.a. tificial intelligence might the computer microchip, be well-founded, but not arrived. its threat to cause enorTwo years after King’s mous joblessness. Until the celebration of Americans’ middle of the last century, national vitality, Gordon many women were teleMoore, co-founder of Inphone operators. Displaced tel, propounded Moore’s by mechanical switching Law: The number of trantechnology, they moved on

George Will

to other jobs. Pethokoukis says ATMs led to increased bank teller jobs as it became cheaper to open bank branches. He imagines finding ways to employ the energy around and beneath us. The Earth’s molten core is about as hot as the sun’s surface (11,000 degrees Fahrenheit), and will generate heat for billions of years as radioactive elements decay. “The continuous energy flow is roughly thirty terawatts” — trillions of watts — “almost double all current human energy consumption.” And: “There are no theoretical obstacles to placing tech in low-Earth orbit that would convert some of the 173,000 terawatts of solar energy continuously striking Earth, an amount ten thousand times annual global energy consumption.” Vitality that translates into economic growth can be transformative. “The difference between an economy growing at 2 percent for the next fifty years and growing at 4 percent over that span is,” Pethokoukis notes, “massive — a $60 trillion economy in 2076 versus $160 trillion.” A prudent society does not assume that such things are achievable. However, a dynamic society does not allow anxieties about the future to constrict is horizons, or to seek security in the embrace of the state. Reach George Will at georgewill@washpost.com.

Will we embrace or reject our worst impulses, flaws? “We pledge to you,” Donald Trump told a New Hampshire rally, “that we will root out the Communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country.” In a radio interview, he charged that terrorists and criminals are breaching our borders and “poisoning the blood of our country. It’s so bad, and people are coming in with disease. People are coming in with every possible thing that you could have.” Trump’s words echo the hate-filled language of history’s worst tyrants. “Calling people ‘vermin’ was used effectively by Hitler and Mussolini to dehumanize people and encourage their followers to engage in violence,” Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a New York University historian, told the Washington Post. John F. Kelly, who served as Trump’s chief of staff, said to CNN that his former boss “admires autocrats and murderous dictators.” But Trump is also a very American figure who reflects and exploits nativist impulses that have always polluted American life. That xenophobia, or hatred of foreigners,

movements of suspicious discontent.” In 1753, Benjamin Franklin denounced the German immigrants flocking to PennsylCommentary vania as “generally the most ignorant Stupid Sort of their own Nation.” In the mid-19th is rooted in the fear of incentury, virulent anti-Catholfection — both the infection icism flourished; Hofstadter of ideas and the infection of quotes an 1855 Texas newsdisease. The first virus, goes paper: “It is a notorious fact this deranged and dangerous that the Monarchs of Europe argument, poisons the naand the Pope of Rome are at tion’s political bloodstream; this very moment plotting the second corrupts the phys- our destruction and threatical bloodstream. But both ening the extinction of our maladies have the same goal political, civil, and religious — to degrade our national institutions.” Even the prescharacter, to weaken our de- ident, the paper alleged, “is fenses against our enemies. tainted with the infectious Trump fits this pattern venom of Catholicism.” perfectly. His rant against In 1882, Congress banned “radical left thugs” is classic new Chinese immigrants political demagoguery. His from entering the U.S. and alarm over germ-ridden imbarred those already here migrants plucks the second from becoming citizens. chord of conspiracy. During World War II, more Sixty years ago, the great than 100,000 Japanese political historian RichAmericans were forcibly ard Hofstadter called this evacuated from their homes strain the “paranoid style” and businesses on the West in American politics, and Coast as “security risks.” Afwrote in the November 1964 ter the war, survivors of Naissue of Harper’s magazine, zi persecution were prevent“The paranoid style is an old ed from entering the U.S. and recurrent phenomenon and denounced for harboring in our public life which has two pernicious “isms”: Judabeen frequently linked with ism and communism. It took

Steven Roberts

the civil rights bills of the mid-1960s to fully protect Black voting rights a century after the Civil War. Trump launched his political career by appealing directly to this paranoid tradition, vowing to build a wall across the southern border and declaring, “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. ... They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” As president, he kept returning to the same ugly themes: banning travelers from Muslim countries, denouncing immigrants from “s—-hole countries” like Haiti, praising white supremacist marchers in Charlottesville as “very fine people,” blaming China for the COVID-19 pandemic and using a racist slur to refer to the disease, etc. In his campaign for a second term, he’s doubling down on his nativist appeals. He promised “the largest deportation operation in history” to loud applause in Waterloo, Iowa. More than 140 years after the Chinese Exclusion Act, he’s vowing to crack down on trade with Beijing and “ban Chinese

companies from owning vital U.S. infrastructure in sectors such as energy, technology and agriculture,” reports the Associated Press. The final piece of the paranoid style, notes Hofstadter, is the leader who proclaims himself a savior, the only one who can redeem the country’s honor. And at a Texas rally, Trump did just that, declaring that the next election is “our final battle” and vowing, “I am your warrior. I am your justice.” “The paranoid spokesman sees the fate of conspiracy in apocalyptic terms,” writes Hofstadter. “He traffics in the birth and death of whole worlds, whole political orders, whole systems of human values. He is always manning the barricades of civilization. He constantly lives at a turning point.” This time, Trump is right. We are at a turning point. He fully represents the paranoid tradition, our worst impulses and deepest flaws. Will we embrace or reject them? Steven Roberts teaches politics and journalism at George Washington University. He can be contacted by email at stevecokie@gmail. com.

Local

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

CHEROKEE NATION CALENDAR OF EVENTS December 5 Wilma Mankiller Barbie Celebration: Join the Wilma Mankiller Foundation, the Wilma Mankiller family and the Cherokee Nation as they celebrate the legacy of Wilma Mankiller and her presence in Barbie’s Inspiring Women Series. This event, which is open to the public, will take place from 10 a.m. to noon at the Chota Event Center, 3307 Seven Clans Ave., in Tahlequah. Because of a backlog and high demand for the dolls, there will not be Barbies available to purchase at the celebration — but there will be lots of celebration! Looking for a job with the Cherokee Nation? Cherokee Nation Human Resources will be conducting open job interviews from 2 to 4 p.m. at 17723 S. Muskogee Ave. in Tahlequah. Receive one-on-one assistance with your application and an interview with a Human Resources representative. While a résumé is not mandatory, it is highly encouraged to bring one along. For more information, please contact Human Resources by calling 918-772-4278 or by emailing hr-recruitment@ cherokee.org.

December 6

Looking for a job with the Cherokee Nation? Cherokee Nation Human Resources will be conducting open job interviews from 10 a.m. to noon at Will Rogers Health Center, 1020 Lenape Drive, in Nowata, Okla.

Receive one-on-one assistance with your application and an interview with a Human Resources representative. While a résumé is not mandatory, it is highly encouraged to bring one along. For more information, please contact Human Resources by calling 918-772-4278 or by emailing hr-recruitment@ cherokee.org.

December 7

Sequoyah Invitational Basketball Tournament: Come get rowdy and root on your favorite teams at this year’s tournament hosted by Sequoyah High School at the Place Where They Play gymnasium on Dec. 7, 8 and 9. Games will start each day at 10 a.m., and the last game each evening will be played at 8 p.m. For more information, please contact Justin Brown at 918-453-5179 or justin-brown@ cherokee.org. Children under 5 get in free; $5 for all other ages. Cherokee Nation Emergency Medical Services will hold a Stuff the Ambulance event Dec. 7, 8 and 9 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Walmart in Tahlequah. The EMS crews will be collecting toys that Cherokee Nation’s Indian Child Welfare office will hand out to children. Bring a happy holiday to children by stopping by and donating any of the following items: blankets (small throw blankets), diapers and wipes (all sizes needed), shampoo and conditioner, toothbrushes and toothpaste, toys for all ages, puzzles, board games, clothing for all ages,

winter coats, shoes, gloves, hats, scarfs, sports equipment and balls. For questions, please contact Jodie Rainwater at 918207-3830 and jodie-rainwater@ cherokee.org.

December 11

Get into the holiday spirit by stopping by the W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex in Tahlequah from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. for a Christmas Open House. Take photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, learn about Cherokee Nation programs, enjoy refreshments and possibly win a door prize. For more information, please contact Channing Rogers at 918-500-2197.

December 12

The Council of the Cherokee Nation is holding their Christmas Social and Open House from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Tribal Council Committee Meeting Room at the W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex in Tahlequah. Christmas dinner will be served. For questions, please contact gayle-miller@cherokee.org. The Cherokee National Youth Choir will perform a Christmas concert at Elm Tree Baptist in Tahlequah at 6:30 p.m. This event is free and open to the public. Elm Tree Baptist is located at 1390 E. Crafton St. in Tahlequah. Looking for a job with the Cherokee Nation? Cherokee Nation Human Resources will be conducting open job interviews from 2 to 4 p.m. at 17723 S. Muskogee Ave. in Tahlequah.

December 14

All fluent Cherokee speakers are invited to this free monthly luncheon held from 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. every second Thursday of the month and hosted by the Cherokee Nation Language Department at the Durbin Feeling Language Center in Tahlequah. For more information, please call 918207-4901 or email language@ cherokee.org. Cherokee Nation and the Oklahoma Blood Institute will be holding a blood drive at the W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex in Tahlequah. This event is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Tsa-La-Gi Community Room. Donors will receive a long-sleeve holiday T-shirt and a copy of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” by Dr. Seuss. For more information, please contact OBI at 877-340-8777 Cherokee Nation Community Health Nursing at 539-234-1816.

December 15

Sean Stemaly is set to perform a free show at Track 5, located inside Hard Rock Tulsa, at 9 p.m. Stemaly has

rapidly become a prominent figure in the country music industry. His transition from a heavy equipment operator to a Nashville-based artist reflects a distinct blend of country and rock influences, drawing inspiration from industry legends like Brooks & Dunn, Waylon Jennings, Van Halen and more. Learn more at www.hardrockcasinotulsa.com or by calling 918-384-ROCK. The Hard Rock Live box office is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

December 15 & 16

Deana Carter is putting on a show at SEVEN Bar located inside Cherokee Casino & Hotel West Siloam Springs on Friday, Dec. 15, at 9 p.m. and Lee Creek Tavern located in Cherokee Casino & Hotel Roland on Saturday, Dec. 16, at 9 p.m. The shows are free to the public ages 21 and up. Deana Carter is the renowned artist behind her debut album, “Did I Shave My Legs for This?” and the mega hits “Strawberry Wine” and “How Do I Get There.” For more information on Cherokee Casino & Hotel West Siloam Springs, call 800-754-4111 or visit www. cherokeecasino.com/west-siloam-springs. For more information on Cherokee Casino & Hotel Roland, call 800-256-2338 or visit www.cherokeecasino. com/roland.

December 16

Cherokee Nation citizen and acclaimed mezzo-soprano singer Barbara McAlister will highlight her latest set of youth vocal students at a recital beginning at 2 p.m. at Sequoyah Chapel in Tahlequah.

December 22 & 25

Cherokee Nation’s W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex, satellite offices and health centers will be closed to observe Christmas. Cherokee Nation W.W. Hastings Hospital urgent care and emergency department and other emergency services will remain open.

December

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December 28

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The Wilma P. Mankiller Health Center in Stilwell will be holding a breastfeeding class for pregnant and new mothers from 5:30 to 7 p.m. This class, which is free and open to the public, will review the benefits of breastfeeding and techniques for new

mothers. The Wilma P. Mankiller Health Center is located at 471688 Hwy. 51 in Stilwell, Okla. Snacks will be provided. For questions, please contact Bailey Waldrop at 918-696-8846.

Ongoing

Explore the “Bill Rabbit: Variations on a Rainbow” exhibit at the Cherokee Nation Anna Mitchell Cultural & Welcome Center in Vinita, Okla. Named a Cherokee National Treasure for Painting in 2011, the late Bill Rabbit was renowned for his works depicting Cherokee history and culture. This exhibit looks at such works while exploring art from throughout his career, including Southwest-inspired jewelry, pottery, sculpture and stone carving. It also examines Rabbit’s experimentation with paint, technique and color throughout his life. The exhibit, which runs through May 12, 2024, includes some 40 works loaned by his daughter — artist and Cherokee National Treasure Traci Rabbit — from her personal collection. The Anna Mitchell Cultural & Welcome Center is located at 953 E. Illinois Ave. in Vinita. For more information, email info@visitcherokee.com, call 877-779-6977 or go to VisitCherokeeNation. com. The Cherokee National History Museum in Tahlequah presents “Cherokee Delegate: An Unalterable Promise.” Know the history behind Cherokee Nation’s pivotal call to Congress to seat its delegate in the U.S. House of Representatives. The exhibit, which runs through June 1, 2024, looks at a story hundreds of years in the making. Visitors will learn about the treaties between the Cherokee Nation and the United States of America – including the 1835 Treaty of New Echota – at the foundation of this right. The exhibit also discusses how this role is unlike past Cherokee diplomatic representatives, and it looks at the appointment of Cherokee Nation Delegate to Congress Kim Teehee. Admission to the museum is free and is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The Cherokee National History Museum is located at 101 S. Muskogee Ave. in Tahlequah. For more information, email info@visitcherokee.com, call 877-779-6977 or go to VisitCherokeeNation.com.

Handmade Arts & Crafts Textiles Beadwork Stickball Sticks Flutes Baskets Dolls Leatherwork Prints Craft Kits and More!

The John Hair Cultural Center & Keetoowah Museum Presents The

2023 Native Art Show & Sale Featuring

Medicare annual enrollment ends December 7. Act now. Call 918-594-5251, Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. (TTY 1-800-722-0353) ccokadvantage.com

The UKB Tradition Keepers and other Keetoowah Artisans

Friday & Saturday, December 8-9 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. 18280 W. Keetoowah Circle, Tahlequah, OK 74464 $1 Raffle Tickets for sale at the museum. CommunityCare Choice, Inc. is an HMO plan with a Medicare contract. Enrollment in CommunityCare Choice, Inc. depends on contract renewal. Plans may offer supplemental benefits in addition to Part C benefits and Part D benefits. The Senior Health Plan service area includes Tulsa, Creek, Craig, Delaware, Hughes, Mayes, Muskogee, McIntosh, Nowata, Okmulgee, Osage, Ottawa, Pawnee, Pittsburg, Rogers, Wagoner, and Washington Counties. Please call Customer Service for assistance at 9 18-594-5323 (TTY: 1-800-722-0353), Monday – Sunday and some holidays from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. October 1 – March 31 and Monday – Friday from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. April 1 – September 30. Y0131_ 2024 SHP R4_M

Raffle drawing held Saturday, December 9th at 4:30 p.m. www.facebook.com/johnhairmusuem

Muskogee Phoenix

Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

www.muskogeephoenix.com

Watch party goers cheer Roughers By Cathy Spaulding cspaulding@muskogeephoenix.com

As the Muskogee Roughers clinched the Class 6A II state championship Friday, some of the loudest cheers came from 133 miles away. “They’ve been saying they were going to win state before the season even started and they made it happen,” said Gabby Rosson, who joined a table of fans at Maxine’s Gastropub, which showed a live-streaming of the 28-26 Roughers’ victory. Fans who filled the restaurant, and a live-streaming at the Roxy Theater, cheered nearly every Rougher play. Earnie Asbill, who watched the game with his son at Maxine’s, called it a “well-played game.” “We partially blocked that extra point attempt, and that was the margin of the game right there,” Asbill said. “They made it a two-pointer. Those can come back to haunt you. It was a well-played game on both sides.” Asbill said he didn’t graduate from Muskogee, but lived here for 45 years. “We’re doing good,” he said. “I’ve been a Rougher fan for a long time.” Unity made this year’s Roughers a great team, he said. “They’ve played together since they were freshmen,” he said. “A lot of them are seniors now. Plus, we’ve got a new stadium, new facility. That can’t do anything but help.” People at Rosson’s table also listened to the game on the radio, which was six minutes ahead of the live-streaming. They kept their cheering to a minimum so the other fans could watch the game on their own. At the Roxy, long-time Tony Goetz kindergarten teacher Jennifer Hunter cheered nearly every positive play. “I have many kids I taught out there on that field,” Hunter said. Muskogee Public Schools was dismissed Friday, allowing Hunter, and other Muskogee Public Schools staff and students to watch the game. Cherokee Elementary third-grader Xzavier Franklin joined his grandmother, Dee Vann to watch the game at the Roxy. “I’m here to watch the Roughers win,” the boy said. Early Friday morning, dozens of fans and family members gathered in front of Rougher Village to send the team off. Several fans carried signs supporting individual players. A sign cheered the “Dynamic Duo 1 and 8,” quarterback Jamarian “Bird” Ficklin and wide receiver Kayden McGee. Kim Jones, whose daughter is on the MHS dance team, joined in the cheering. She said she planned to attend the game. “We’ve been watching them play since they were in the second grade,” Jones said. “Watching their confidence grow each year, being humble. It makes a mama’s heart proud.”

CATHY SPAULDING/Muskogee Phoenix

Muskogee Rougher fans, from left, Dee Vann, Cherokee Elementary third-grader Xzavier Franklin, Trudy Cooper and Kamisa Wilson cheer the first Roughers touchdown of the state championship game.

Muskogee Rougher fans, from left, Karlie Toon, Abigail Scott, Chell Fausett, Dice Dawson, Tracy Scott and Gabby Rosson, huddle around a smart phone, listening to a radio broadcast of the tense final seconds of the Roughers’ state championship victory over the Stillwater Pioneers.

FRIDAY’S PREP ROUNDUP, SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE Phoenix staff reports FORT GIBSON 54, HILLDALE 49 (B) — In a back and forth game Fort Gibson was able to hold on for the win. Cooper Wicks paced the Tigers (1-1) with 16 points while Ky Murrell and Blane Scott both finished with 10. Hilldale (0-2) was led by Ty Wilson, Cole Leach and Mason Forhan all with 14 points. OKTAHA 75, CANADIAN 43 (B) — Tyler Roby had 32 points to power Oktaha (4-0) while Alfred Taylor added 18. BRAGGS 61, WEBBERS FALLS 23 (B) — Braggs (5-1) had a dominate showing as it led 35-10 at halftime and was powered by Sam Hensley who finished with 16 points. Stryker Chappell had 11 points for Webbers

Falls (1-1). EUFAULA 62, MORRIS 34 (B) — Maddox Bridges scored 14 of his 23 points in the second half as the Ironheads earned the win. Eufaula (1-1) led 31-15 at the break. PORUM 46, ARKOMA 37 (B) — Michael Wright scored 23 points to help Porum (1-3) to the win. MOUNDS 66, HASKELL 60 OT (B) — After trailing the entire game and down 50-30 after three quarters, Haskell mounted a monumental comeback outscoring the Eagles 288 in the fourth quarter to send the game to overtime. The Haymakers (0-2) were led by Dylan Ozinga and Brady Neal with 25 and 20 points, respectively. SUMMIT CHRISTIAN 50, PORTER

24 (G) — Lauren Lindell and Kassidy Pickard both had seven points in leading Porter. The Lady Pirates (0-1) trailed 41-17 after three periods. FORT GIBSON 48, HILLDALE 20 (G) — Fort Gibson had little trouble in defeating its rival Hilldale as it turned a 21-11 halftime lead into a 37-15 advantage after three periods. Addy Whiteley led the Lady Tigers (20) with 17 points while Darian Diles had seven for the Lady Hornets (1-1). MCCURTAIN 67, GORE 41 (G) — The Lady Pirates found themselves down early 17-4 in the first period and saw the deficit grow to 30-19 after the second. Natalie Casteel finished with 18 points for Gore (0-2). OKTAHA 65, CANADIAN 37 (G) — Ava Scott was on fire for Oktaha

as she had 24 points followed by Mileigh Needham with 12. The Lady Tigers (5-0) were tied at the end of the first period, 15-15 but then went on a 23-5 run in the second quarter to go into the break with the 38-20 advantage. WEBBERS FALLS 53, BRAGGS 29 (G) — Braggs dug itself into a deep hole in the first period as it fell behind 26-3 and could not recover as the deficit widened to 38-8 at intermission. Bridgette Baer led Webbers Falls (2-0) with 16 points and Teralynn Colston added 11. For the Lady Wildcats (0-6) Kaylee Ashley registered 15 points and Katelyn Chandler had 10. EUFAULA 51, MORRIS 28 (G) — Eufaula led 20-18 at halftime, but a 22-3 run in the third quarter was the

difference stretching the Lady Ironheads’ lead to 42-21. Maddie Ballard finished with 13 points for Eufaula (1-1). PORUM 61, ARKOMA 20 (G) — Courtney Pease had 19 points, Mesa Coulston added 12 and Adisen Dishman finished with 11 to lead Porum (4-0). HASKELL 46, MOUNDS 35 (G) — Riley Westmoreland had a triple-double in the Lady Haymakers’ win as she had 12 points, 10 rebounds and 13 steals. Hayden Ward led all scorers with 13 points. Haskell improved to 1-1.

Saturday schedule

BASKETBALL Porter at Gore, 3/4:30 p.m.

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Outdoors/Sports

FISHING REPORT

Fort Gibson: November 25. Elevation is normal and stable, water temperature 58°F and clear. (USACE Lake Level) Crappie fair on hair jigs, minnows, and tube jigs around brush structure, docks, and main lake. Blue catfish good on shad around channels, main lake, and points. Paddlefish fair snagging around channels and main lake. Report submitted by Cody Morris, game warden stationed in Wagoner County. Grand: November 26. Elevation is normal and stable, water temperature 55°F and stained. (USACE Lake Level) Largemouth bass fair on Alabama rigs and crankbaits around brush structure, coves, and shorelines. Blue catfish fair on chicken liver, cut bait, and hot dogs below the dam, docks, and main lake. Crappie fair on hair jigs and jigs around brush structure and docks. Report submitted by Riley Willman, game warden stationed in Delaware County. Greenleaf: November 26. Elevation is normal and stable, water temperature 58°F and stained. Largemouth bass good on Alabama rigs, crankbaits, plastic baits, and spinnerbaits around brush structure, docks, main lake, and points. Crappie fair on minnows, slabs, and small lures around brush structure and docks. Channel catfish slow on chicken liver, cut bait, and worms around channels, main lake, and points. Report submitted by Dylan Langford, game warden stationed in Muskogee County. Keystone: November 28. Elevation is 3 ft. below normal and stable, water temperature 62°F and stained. (USACE Lake Level) Largemouth bass slow on hair jigs, jigs, and plastic baits around brush structure, coves, and rocks. Crappie fair on jigs, minnows, and plastic baits around brush structure, docks, and standing timber. Blue and channel catfish slow on chicken liver and cut bait. Report submitted by Bradley Magby, game warden stationed in Creek County. Lower Illinois: November 25. Elevation is normal and stable, water temperature 58°F and stained. Rainbow trout fair on caddis flies, in-line spinnerbaits, midges, and PowerBait below the dam. Comments: Best times are early morning and late evening, and best areas are below the dam and at the Watts area. Report submitted by Brek Henry, game warden stationed in Sequoyah County. Tenkiller: November 26. Elevation is normal and stable, water temperature 60°F and clear. (USACE Lake Level) Crappie good on minnows, tube jigs, and worms around brush structure, docks, and main lake. Largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass fair on crankbaits, jigs, and plastic baits around brush structure, channels, and docks. Report submitted by Cody Youngblood, game warden stationed in Cherokee County. Webbers Falls: November 26. Elevation is normal and stable, water temperature 58°F and stained. (USACE Lake Level) Largemouth and spotted bass fair on Alabama rigs, crankbaits, jigs, and plastic baits around brush structure, coves, main lake, and shorelines. Crappie fair on jigs and minnows around brush structure and main lake. Blue catfish fair on chicken liver and cut bait below the dam, river channel, and river mouth. Report submitted by Dylan Langford, game warden stationed in Muskogee County. Eufaula: November 24. Elevation is 1.5 ft. below normal and stable, water temperature 55°F and stained. (USACE Lake Level) Largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass fair on crankbaits, jigs, lipless baits, and plastic baits around main lake, points, riprap, and rocks. Blue, channel, and flathead catfish fair on chicken liver, cut bait, dough bait, live bait, live shad, and shad around channels, river channel, and river mouth. Crappie good on crankbaits, hair jigs, spoons, and worms around channels, docks, riprap, and rocks. Report submitted by Jake Rowland, game warden stationed in McIntosh County. Robert S. Kerr: November 24. Elevation is normal and stable, water temperature 50°F and murky. (USACE Lake Level) White bass good on hair jigs, jigs, and minnows below the dam. Blue, channel, and flathead catfish good on chicken liver, minnows, shad, and worms below the dam, river channel, river mouth, and tailwater. Crappie good on hair jigs, jigs, and minnows below the dam, creek channels, river channel, and tailwater. Report submitted by Logan Shimp, game warden stationed in Haskell County.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND EXTENSION

The northern bobwhite’s range (pictured) is nearly statewide, while the scaled quail is restricted to the western edge, including the Panhandle.

Tips for quail hunters If quail hunting is your bag of oats, there’s no better time than the present to pick up your shotgun, grab a box or two of shells and, by all means, if you have a good bird dog, bring it along as well. While I no longer pursue this delectable tasting upland game bird as often as I’d like, it does bring me back to a time in my early teenage years and my first honest to goodness “organized” quail hunt which turned out to be a humbling experience to say the least. Two gentlemen from our neighborhood in Bixby were excellent bird hunters and they both had bird dogs. I had a spot to hunt over in the steep hollers of Westville and they took me, as I couldn’t drive just yet. Their dogs pointed, and we located a lot of quail. Unfortunately, I’ve never been a good wing shot. For the novice quail hunter, be

vation, there are two species of quail found in Oklahoma. The northern bobwhite’s range is nearly statewide, while the scaled quail is restricted to the western edge, including the Panhandle. Both species are ground-dwellers, primarily foraging on seeds JOHN KILGORE and insects. Areas with high amounts of forbs can act as a prepared to burn up the calories food source in two ways – providing nutritious seeds, and and wear tread off the sole of attracting protein-rich insects. your boots. Though insects are seasonal in While hunting, I was struck with a bad case of cramps in my nature, forb seeds are long-lastlegs like I’d never experienced at ing and can be utilized into fall and winter. any time. Prime foraging or “bugging” I was in great shape since I areas have a wide diversity of was playing football and wresforbs, including ragweed, crotling for Bixby. However, these two older gen- tons, sunflowers and legumes. In addition to a reliable food tlemen had to almost carry me source, quail require adequate out of a holler or two that day. nesting, protective and loafing In retrospect, I appreciate them taking the time to take me cover. Though able to nest in a vaafield. riety of places, quail prefer According to the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conser- building nests in mature, native

Kilgore’s Corner

bunchgrasses 12 inches in diameter and eight inches in height. Once chicks hatch, they are immediately moved to “weedy” areas with high insect activity. Morning and afternoon feeding sessions are separated by time spent resting and digesting while in loafing cover. The ideal cover is at least three feet tall with a closed canopy and relatively open ground conditions. You can chase quail from Nov. 11 through Feb. 15 statewide. Daily limit is 10, with 20 in possession after the first day. One regulation is that no covey of quail can be shot while resting on the ground which is commonly called “pot shooting.” Please consult the full ODWC hunting regulations. Be sure of your target. Gun safety is top priority. Contact Kilgore at jkilgoreoutdoors@yahoo.com.

QUAIL HUNTING RULES AND REGULATIONS Season Nov 11, 2023 - Feb 15, 2024 Statewide.

Pot Shooting At no time may any quail or covey be shot while resting on the ground, commonly called “pot shooting.”

Daily Limit 10 daily, 20 in possession after the first day.

Public Lands Seasons on public lands may vary from statewide seasons. Consult public hunting lands special regulations.

Legal Means of Taking Shotgun (conventional or muzzleloading), longbow, legal raptors and as otherwise provided under General Hunting Regulations.

Shooting Hours Official sunrise to official sunset.

– ODWC

Former Colorado players were told they weren’t ready for Prime Time Associated Press

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Luke Eckardt recalled the excitement of finding out that Deion Sanders would be his new head coach at Colorado. After all, who wouldn’t want to play for the charismatic Pro Football Hall of Fame member and ex-major leaguer known as “Prime Time” during his playing days and now just “Coach Prime?” “It was a feeling of awe because it’s Deion Sanders, and you play video games like ‘Madden’ and he’s on there,” Eckardt said in an interview with The Associated Press. “You’re playing with a

controller. Now it’s different. It’s a real dude. That’s what I thought at first. But then it was like a seeping feeling of fear.” At his first meeting with his new charges, Sanders told them no job was safe and there were transfers on the way. Video of his talk went viral. Eckardt chose to take it as a challenge and work even harder during winter conditioning and spring practice. Eckardt practiced with the Nos. 2 and 3 offensive lines, got positive feedback from his position coach and thought he performed well at right tackle in the spring game. In his mind, he had done enough to stick around.

He was cut the next day after a meeting that lasted less than five minutes. By the end of the spring, Sanders had cut more than 50 players and another 20 left on their own in what is believed to be the biggest roster overhaul ever seen in college football. Sanders ended up with 86 newcomers on the 114-player roster, kicking off a season where the Buffaloes started 3-0 and were the talk of the nation for weeks before fading to a 4-8 finish, three wins better than last year but without a bowl trip. Most of the displaced players entered the transfer portal.

Some walked away from football. And some more will leave the Buffaloes soon enough because Sanders has been adamant that there are more holes to fill. He promised to bring in more talented players after watching his quarterbacks, including son Shedeur, get sacked 56 times; only Old Dominion was worse across the 133 teams in the Bowl Subdivision. Some coaches criticized Sanders for leaning so hard on the transfer portal to revamp his roster. Coach Prime offers no apologies, though he indicated he and his staff will be more targeted in filling needs this time around.

Puzzles/Etc.

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Student daydreams about ex Dear Harriette: I have not dated in a year, and due to lack of closure, I cannot stop thinking about my ex. I have not thought about him as frequently as I did when we first ended things, but now that I have become sort of a recluse and do not go out very much, I have been daydreaming about it more. I know I need to get out of the house. Last year, I would go out every weekend and meet new people, which may be because I was a college freshman in a new city, but it was also nice to meet people from different backgrounds and have a lot of options of people to start talking to. However, this year, I barely go out, and if I do, it is to see my friends. I want to get back on the horse, so to speak. I am past what happened last year, but I am not sure

ests you. Plan to go to openings of art events, films, holiday bazaars — whatever you can do out and about. Join a club Harriette that does something you Cole find interesting. It could be skating, drawing, that I am ready for a re- coding. Who knows? lationship again. Do you Whatever looks interestthink that I should start ing when you research talking to people again? activities in your area. How do I do that? — Push yourself to get out Turning the Page of your house and open Dear Turning The your eyes to new friends. Page: It is time to It will be hard at first, change your patterns. but you are worth it. Being a recluse and Dear Harriette: I’m spending time with fervently dedicated to a only a small group of cause and am currently friends will not help you spearheading a donation shake this melancholy. drive for the holiday It is time for a radical season. The charity I change. While you may support aids a populanot need to go out every tion in dire need, yet I weekend like you did last lack experience in donor year, it could be wise relations. How can I to make a strategy for effectively approach pogoing out much more tential donors or secure frequently. Look around resources for this cause to learn what’s going on during the holidays? in your town that inter- — Supporting a Great

Sense and Sensitivity

Cause Dear Supporting A Great Cause: What will help you the most now is your dedication to your charity of choice. Learn as much as you can about it and the people it serves. Make a list of people you know and businesses in your community that might care about the work the charity does. Then visit the businesses and speak from the heart about the need that they can help fill. Call or visit with your friends and tell them what you know about this great cause. Remind everyone that they can potentially get a tax write-off by being generous, so now is a perfect moment to give. If you have data on how the money gets spent, be prepared to share that as well. People want to know that their money will be used responsibly.

One loser fine; two losers fatal Our friend A.N. Other said, “An anonymous person once said, ‘What he doesn’t know would make a library anybody would be proud of.’” Well, anyone who knows everything in my bridge library would make a partner everybody would be proud of. For sure he would know the correct way to play today’s four-spade contract. West guesses well, leading a club. After East has played three rounds of the suit, how should South continue? East opened with a weak notrump (12-14 points), which is popular in those parts of the world that used to be known as the British Commonwealth. When South overcalled in his major, North had an automatic raise to game. If you want to save money com makes it easy. They South must assume the the next time you shop for curate coupons targeted for trumps are breaking 3-2, but organic, all-natural, gluten-free health-conscious consumers, he must avoid walking into a or just healthier products at with items sold at stores like trump promotion. the store, one way to save is Whole Foods and Sprouts. It’s The wrong play is a spade to with coupons. But searching free to use, and you can downdummy’s king. If East can win through circulars and websites load lots of free printable that and lead the 13th club, can be a huge waste of time. coupons. The website mambosprouts. — Danny Seo the defenders must get a trump

DO JUST ONE THING

CROSSWORD

Bridge Phil Alder

promotion. If East has only two spades, declarer can succeed by leading a spade honor from his hand at trick four, but with the given distribution, East wins with the ace and leads the last club. West’s ruff effects a trump promotion. The correct play is to cross to dummy with a diamond before leading a low trump to the queen. (The diamonds must be 3-2. If West had a singleton, surely he would have led it at trick one.) Finally, play the spade jack from hand. Now the contract is assured. You can ruff the 13th club low in hand, overruffing in the dummy if necessary. Look for a line of play that will work whatever the lie of the cards.

HOROSCOPE — December 2 Take a leap forward and follow your dreams. Use your imagination and drive to get where you want to go. Refuse to let others interfere with your plans. Be true to yourself and make this a year to remember. Altering your lifestyle or living arrangements will allow you to focus on what’s important. Don’t stand still when movement is necessary. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) — Speed up the process, do your research and make things happen. Focus on saving, security and stabilizing your situation. Know what you want and leave nothing to chance. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) — Share your feelings and desires. Do whatever it takes to bring about change if you aren’t happy. Formulate a plan, share your intentions and finish what you start. Take a concise approach. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Observation is your best bet. Size up what’s happening and figure out how you fit into the mix. You can stabilize your life and current situation if you are firm about your plans. PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) — Discipline and patience will help you advance. Trust your instincts and follow your heart.

Astrograph Eugenia Last

Kindness and understanding will help you avoid getting into an argument or no-win situation. ARIES (March 21-April 19) — Put more time and effort into money management. Look for a learning opportunity that will increase your awareness about something that concerns you. Participation will give you an inside view. TAURUS (April 20-May 20) — Stick to the basics and don’t let emotional matters spin out of control. Consider what you want and how you can make your dreams come true. Take an energetic approach and have some fun. GEMINI (May 21-June 20) — Put more thought and interest into your relationships with others. A trendy new look will boost your confidence and encourage you to take a leadership role. CANCER (June 21-July 22) — Trust your instincts; you

won’t be disappointed. Keep an eye on what others do, but don’t let anyone convince you to do something that benefits them more than you. Protect your well-being. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) — Follow through with your plans. Don’t dismiss something you want to do because someone is interfering or coaxing you to take a different path. Do what suits you and let others do as they please. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) — If you get upset, implement the changes necessary to flip your mood around. It’s up to you to follow the path that makes you happy. Change begins with you. Trust and believe in yourself. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) — Don’t get discouraged; take charge and turn your dream into a reality. Trust and believe in who you are and what you have to offer. Personal gain is apparent, and travel and learning are favored. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) — Keep an open mind, but question whatever sounds farfetched. A change will lead to a unique opportunity. Put your energy where it counts and refuse to let outside influences stifle your achievements.

DATEBOOK — December 2 Today is the 336th day of 2023 and the 71st day of autumn. TODAY’S HISTORY: In 1823, President James Monroe announced a policy aimed at preventing further European colonization of the Americas, later known as the Monroe Doctrine. In 1988, Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as prime minister of Pakistan, becoming the first female leader of an Islamic nation. In 2001, the energy trading company Enron filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In 2015, terrorists shot and killed 14 people and wounded 22 in San Bernardino, California.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS: Georges Seurat (1859-1891), painter; Maria Callas (19231977), opera singer; Gianni Versace (1946-1997), fashion designer; Stone Phillips (1954), journalist; Ann Patchett (1963- ), author; Lucy Liu (1968- ), actress; Britney Spears (1981- ), singer; Aaron Rodgers (1983- ), football player; Charlie Puth (1991- ), singer-songwriter. TODAY’S FACT: In 1942, a team led by Enrico Fermi engineered the first controlled nuclear fission chain reaction under the stands of the University of Chicago’s Stagg Field. TODAY’S SPORTS: In 1967, Hall of Fame center Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia

76ers missed 22 free throws in a single game, setting an NBA record that stood until Jan. 20, 2016, when the Detroit Pistons’ Andre Drummond missed 23. TODAY’S QUOTE: “We look back through the lens of what we know now, so we’re not seeing it as the people we were, we’re seeing it as the people we are, and that means the past has been radically altered.” — Ann Patchett, “The Dutch House” TODAY’S NUMBER: 112 — days Barney Clark, the recipient of the first artificial heart, lived after it was implanted on this day in 1982. TODAY’S MOON: Between full moon (Nov. 27) and last quarter moon (Dec. 4).

Comics

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

DENNIS THE MENACE

FAMILY CIRCUS

Hank Ketcham

Jeff and Bil Keane

PEANUTS

Charles Schulz

PEARLS BEFORE SWINE

Stephan Pastis

BLONDIE

Dean Young & John Marshall

FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE

Lynn Johnston

BIG NATE

Lincoln Peirce

GARFIELD

Jim Davis

Asking for help sign of weakness Dear Annie: My brother has a chronic mental illness. For all his life up until two years ago, he lived in the same city as my long-divorced parents, and there he received support from them as well as from community mental health services. Two years ago, he moved to another city, one he has long felt strongly drawn to and that is far from our parents, me and any other family members. My parents have continued to provide him with financial support, but neither of them can continue doing this, at the rate they have been, for much longer. My father told my brother that he needs to get connected to mental health/ life skills services in the new city or my father will gradually decrease the monthly amounts he sends. The main goal is to find a professional who will help my brother manage the money he receives from my parents. My brother does not seem to remember the mental health and life skills services he’s had in the past. He says that he doesn’t need them now. He is incredibly resistant to any discussion about this. My father has indeed started decreasing my brother’s monthly stipend. My brother already

Dear Annie Annie Lane

lives below the poverty level and, if he doesn’t comply with my father’s contingencies, it’s likely that he’ll soon be homeless. My brother has social security benefits and housing assistance, but that alone is not enough to live on. He believes he can’t work. He needs my parents’ stipends for basic necessities. He is scornful of suggestions we offer regarding budgeting, using local food banks, washing his clothes by hand (his laundry expenses are unusually high) and the like. He does not spend the money my parents send him wisely, and he continually asks for more. We are just hoping that there are services that will help him budget and conserve his money, and that he will use them. We have provided him with all the information we have found about services local to him and have offered to call them with him. He responds with belligerence. Annie, my questions are: One, do you think my dad is doing the right thing by making his financial support to my

NANCY

WALLACE THE BRAVE

BEETLE BAILEY

brother contingent on him seeking services? And two, can you think of anything we haven’t yet tried to support him in gaining those services? — Worried Sister Dear Worried Sister: It’s difficult to watch someone you love struggle in the way your brother has, but your father’s approach has purpose. There’s a difference between supporting your brother in a way that’s beneficial and enabling his dependence. Your brother needs people in his corner, and he has that. He must also be willing to help himself, especially if he’s set on living alone. The suggestions you’ve all made to him are good ones. I also wonder if seeing a doctor wouldn’t be the best next step. He feels he cannot work — is that purely due to his mental health, or is there a physical issue that needs to be addressed, too? Continue to be a shoulder he can lean on while vehemently insisting that he utilize local resources and take steps to better his situation — before homelessness becomes not a possibility, but a reality. Ultimately, asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness: It’s the greatest sign of strength. Send your questions for Annie Lane to dearannie@creators.com.

Olivia Jaimes

Will Henry

Greg, Brian and Neal Walker

CRABGRASS

Tauhid Bondia

BORN LOSER

Chip Sansom

BABY BLUES

Rick Kirkman & Jerry Scott

PICKLES

Brian Crane

ZITS

Jerry Scott & Jim Borgman

Puzzles/Etc.

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Employee nervous Mother, 54, wants a third child about work speech Dear Annie

Dear Harriette: I have a big work conference coming up, and I am worried about my public speaking skills. Normally, I am pretty calm in social situations and I get along with everybody well, but whenever it comes to presentations or big meetings, I get really anxious. I just got promoted, so I had to prepare a speech at the last minute, and I do not want to mess up in front of my peers and higher-ups. The conference is in a few days, and I am struggling to keep my cool. I am distracting myself so I do not panic, but I also want to go over the speech as much as possible so that I am prepared. Do you have any advice for how I should prepare to go into this conference or how to keep my composure when I deliver the speech in front of hundreds of people from my company? — Speech Stress Dear Speech Stress: You are doing the right thing by practicing your speech and becoming familiar with what you have written. On the

Sense and Sensitivity Harriette Cole

day of the speech, you should be able to “own” it — meaning you should know what you are saying and merely refer to text infrequently rather than needing to read from the page. To get your nerves together, take three cleansing breaths before you go into the room. Consciously tell yourself that you are in control and that you are ready. Think about who will be in the room; your colleagues will want you to do a good job. Remember that you are presenting to a supportive audience. Look out at your peers and make eye contact with one of your personal confidants. That will give you positive energy as you begin. Then go for it! Send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

HOROSCOPE — December 3 Don’t stop focusing until you are satisfied with the results. Don’t trust anyone to take care of your responsibilities for you. Avoid those who have inconsistent and unsupportive opinions of your plans. Put your energy where it counts, and let your intelligence help you maintain balance and integrity. Everything will fall into place. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) — Don’t let an emotional situation push you in the wrong direction. Be honest about how you feel and what you want. Don’t let anyone exploit or mislead you. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) — Set your sights on what you want and make personal adjustments that protect you from anyone who doesn’t respect or share your values. Look at the big picture for the best perspective. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Get the lowdown before you decide to part with your money or possessions. Evaluate what’s worthwhile and decide how to invest in your future. Look for a simple solution that eliminates drama. PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) — Engage in what’s new and exciting, be helpful and let go of what’s no longer valid. A practical plan and a desire for positive change will lead to more opportunities. Bide your time. ARIES (March 21-April 19) — Consider making yourself more marketable. An open-minded approach to technology and what’s trending will help you decide what direction is best for you. Discuss your intentions with a loved one. TAURUS (April 20-May 20) — Look at your life and decide what you want to keep and what you can do without. Distance yourself from situations that bring you down or cost

Astrograph Eugenia Last

you. Be wise regarding money matters. GEMINI (May 21-June 20) — Pay attention to your surroundings. Fix what is not working for you and make personal improvements that lift your spirits. Do the work yourself, and you’ll feel pride in what you accomplish. CANCER (June 21-July 22) — An unexpected emotional response will prompt you to rethink your next move. Protect yourself from gossip and those trying to use you to their advantage. Rely on your intelligence. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) — You’ll find pleasure in playtime or being with a loved one. Brighten up your surroundings or host an event that gives you a chance to share what you’ve worked so hard to achieve. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) — Confusion will occur if you let others interfere. Make decisions that promote peace of mind and a friendly atmosphere. Don’t feel like you must participate in something dreary. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) — Refuse to let someone dictate what you can do or say. Go the distance, get the truth and press forward in a direction that leads you to like-minded people and projects you care about. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) — Live, learn and experience life. Study your options, form your opinions and do what’s best for you. When opportunity knocks, open the door and take advantage of whatever comes your way.

DO JUST ONE THING It’s important to take efforts to make sure our feathered friends avoid colliding with windows at our home. There are many things you can do, but one key thing when placing a birdbath or a bird feeder outside is to keep it at least 30 feet away from windows. This

is the minimum distance to prevent confusing reflections in the window. You can also cover the outside of the window with one-way transparent film; it lets you see outside, but it creates an opaque finish on the outside. — Danny Seo

Dear Annie: At 54, my mother, already blessed with two academically accomplished children in the 8th and 12th grades, yearns for a third child. I am nearly 18 years old and will soon leave for college. My father, 57, is adamant that he doesn’t want another baby. With retirement as a middle-school teacher within a decade’s grasp, the idea of raising another child weighs heavily on him, having managed students his whole life. Nobody except my mother wants another child. To facilitate this wish without enduring another pregnancy, she’s exploring surrogacy, encouraged by medical professionals who believe her fertility levels can produce a new life. I’m concerned about my mother’s demanding work schedule, as she works from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., yet she still strongly desires to add another child to our family. Would a 12-year-old want a father in his 70s? Am I selfish in ques-

CROSSWORD

really excited to share the holiday season together for the first time as husband and wife. My childhood family Annie is very small. I only have Lane my mom and sister nearby and a brother who tioning the allocation of lives 2,000 miles away. resources, as my mother My sister has been marcontemplates funding ried to her husband for a new lifetime while three years, and every lamenting her inability year we have been celeto pay full tuition for a brating holidays with my private college? Is it OK sister, her husband, his for my mother to divide parents and my mom. our family, countering Things have been fine up everyone’s wishes but until last year. her own? — Parenting My brother, who lives at 70 across the country, came Dear Parenting at 70: out here for a month Your mom would be par- during the holidays. My enting at 54 at first. A brother is the different 12-year-old wants a lov- one in a family of consering father, and it doesn’t vative Christians. He is a matter what age he is. If homosexual liberal; he is your mom really wants still very loved nonethea child, that is up to her less. My brother-in-law’s and your father. Try not parents have never met to place your own judge- him before. Knowing ment on her and focus how they feel about gay instead on how exciting people, he has never college will be for you. come out and told them Dear Annie: I’m a that he’s gay. But they newly married 32-yearmust have discussed old woman, and my him and figured it out on husband is 31. We’ve their own, because two been married for three days before Christmas months, and we’re both last year, they told us

they were not coming because they couldn’t be around someone with “his views and lifestyle.” Of course, we were hurt and very offended because he is a member of our family. Anyway, my husband is not religious, but he is a wonderful, sweet man and the most incredible husband. He and I have decided to host Christmas this year at our new house, and my brotherin-law’s parents will be there. I’m worried they will be rude to my husband once they discover his lack of religion. I’m truly expecting the worst. Any advice on how to handle the situation if that does in fact happen? — Worried Wife in Mississippi Dear Worried Wife: Try not to anticipate a fight before it even happens. Everyone might love that you are hosting and all get along. It is Christmas, for goodness’ sake. One rule of thumb to avoid arguments during the holidays is to agree not to discuss religion or politics.

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Did you know that HEARING LOSS is linked to*: Dementia, Depression, Anxiety, Falls, Balance issues, and Social Isolation

You are invited to participate in a special promotional event being conducted as part of a local outreach program in your area. The purpose of this event is to introduce our newest technologies to as many patients as possible from a major U.S. supplier of hearing instruments. Take advantage of this limited time oﬀer. You represent the segment of the population which is most likely to experience hearing loss and tinnitus (ringing and other sounds in the ears), and we have the tools to help you. Do you or a loved one struggle with any of the following common hearing issues?

Take this quick FREE hearing survey to ﬁnd out!

• Do you have trouble hearing conversations in noisy environments, like restaurants or parties? • Do you find yourself frequently asking people to repeat themselves? • Do you have difficulty hearing high-pitched sounds? • Do you feel like you need to turn up the volume on the TV or radio to hear it properly? • Have you noticed any ringing or buzzing sounds in your ears? • Do you have a family history of hearing loss? • Have you ever worked in a noisy environment, such as construction or manufacturing?

If you or a loved one checked even one of these boxes CALL NOW for a FREE hearing evaluation. In exchange for spending approximately 45 minutes of your time with us, you will receive a:

FREE $100 Restaurant.com Gift Card You will also receive a FREE hearing evaluation using an Audiometer – much like you probably experienced in grade school. Neither inspection will cost you a penny, nor are you under any obligation. In addition, a trained hearing care professional will be conducting demonstrations of incredible new digital hearing instrument technologies.

FOR A LIMITED TIME WE ARE OFFERING A 100% RISK FREE TRIAL* Miracle-Ear® is conducting this special promotion in order to introduce its newest technologies to as many patients as possible. The FREE $100 Restaurant.com Gift Card* is our way of saying thank you for participating. This program will be conducted Monday through Friday. Oﬀer ends 12/08/23.

We expect a very high demand for appointments. If you’d like to participate in this event and experience the Miracle-Ear 100% RISK FREE TRIAL*, please call your local Miracle - Ear Oﬃce listed below for an appointment today. SPECIAL PROMOTION SITE:

Miracle-Ear Center 1601 W Okmulgee St Muskogee, OK 74401

918-910-8191

Code: 23DecLoss *Limit one voucher per household. Hearing evaluation must be completed and must show 40 dB loss to receive free voucher. New customers only. Does not apply to prior purchases. Free gift card may be used toward the purchase of food at participating restaurants where a minimum purchase may also be required. See restaurant.com for details. Not redeemable for cash. While supplies last. Offer expires in 30 days. † If you are not completely satisfied, the aids may be returned to the office of trial within trial period in satisfactory condition. See store for details. *Hearing Loss and Dementia Linked in Study conducted by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine 91862.1-02

Weather

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

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Classifieds Almost unlimited words. Up to 5”.

• Items priced $300 or less. • Must list price & phone number in ad. • Excludes pets, vehicles & garage sale ads. • Limit 1 item per customer. • Runs 3 days M-F only.

Place a classified

Call 918-684-2803 or send a Fax 918.684-2878 or Place your ad online 24/7 @www.muskogeephoenix.com Hours are 8:00 am - 5:00 pm Monday to Friday

View the Classifieds Online at: www.muskogeephoenix.com

If you would like to advertise in this space call 918-684-2803.

DELIVERY DRIVER

The Muskogee Phoenix is accepting applications for 1 Part Time Delivery Driver Position. The Phoenix supplies the Van to drive, pikepass and fuel. Applicants must possess a Class D Driver’s License with proof of personal vehicle insurance and must pass a MVR check prior to hiring. Forklift Operator Required. The work Schedule for each week would be : Mon-Fri 10pm-6am Sat 6pm-8pm Duties include driving & delivery by pallet jack or several bulk skids to Claremore, Pryor, Tahlequah, and/or McAlester. Approx. 32 hrs/week. Applications may be filled out between 8:30am & 4:30pm Monday-Friday Muskogee Phoenix 214 Wall St. NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE

ŚĞƌŽŬĞĞ EĂƟŽŶ͕ ŚĞĂĚƋƵĂƌƚĞƌĞĚ ŝŶ ďĞĂƵƟĨƵů dĂŚůĞƋƵĂŚ͕ KŬůĂŚŽŵĂ͕ ŝƐ Ă ŶĂƟŽŶĂů ůĞĂĚĞƌ ŝŶ ƚƌŝďĂů ŐŽǀĞƌŶŵĞŶƚƐ ĂŶĚ ĞĐŽŶŽŵŝĐ ĚĞǀĞůŽƉŵĞŶƚ͘ dŚĞ ƚƌŝďĞ ŝƐ Ă ĚǇŶĂŵŝĐ͕ ƉƌŽŐƌĞƐƐŝǀĞ ŽƌŐĂŶŝǌĂƟŽŶ ƚŚĂƚ ĂĚŵŝŶŝƐƚĞƌƐ Ă ǀĂƌŝĞƚǇ ŽĨ ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ ŚĞƌŽŬĞĞ ƉĞŽƉůĞ ŝŶ ŶŽƌƚŚĞĂƐƚ KŬůĂŚŽŵĂ͘ ŚĞƌŽŬĞĞ EĂƟŽŶ ŽīĞƌƐ ĂŶ ĞǆĐĞƉƟŽŶĂů ĞŵƉůŽǇĞĞ ďĞŶĞĮƚƐ ƉĂĐŬĂŐĞ ǁŝƚŚ ŽŵƉƌĞŚĞŶƐŝǀĞ ,ĞĂůƚŚ͕ >ŝĨĞ͕ ϰϬϭ;ŬͿ͕ ,ŽůŝĚĂǇ WĂǇ͕ ^ŝĐŬ >ĞĂǀĞ ĂŶĚ ŶŶƵĂů >ĞĂǀĞ͘

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Cherokee Nation Human Resources

P.O. Box 948, Tahlequah, OK 74465 | 918-453-5292 Employment with Cherokee Nation is contingent upon drug test and background result. Indian preference is considered.

-(94 (<*;065 ^P[O 3(5+ :H[\YKH` +LJ [O H T Estate of Sam Casteel 106435 South 4475 Rd. • Vian, OK

2 miles west of Vian, OK on Hwy 64, then south 3 miles to the river, then back west 1-1/2 mile. TN 65 New Holland Tractor with Loader, 4 Wheel Drive • Large Nice Browning Gun Safe • Several Guns & Rifles • 8' Heavy Duty Drag Type Brushog w/Hyd • Powder River Auto Catch Squeeze Chute • Lincoln Power Arc 4000 Welder • Acetylene Cutting Torch Set • Tool Chest • Hand Tools • 25 Gallon Portable Sprayer • 3 Pt Tandem Disk • Small 3pt Rock Rake • Numerous 16' Wire Panels • 16' Flatbed Trailer • Bench Grinder • Metal Welding/Work Tables • Ladders • Dewalt Cut-Off Saw • Live Cages • Metal Shelves • Sheet Iron • Creep Feeder • Lots of Scrap Metal • and ...

147 Acres w/Hunting Cabin bordering the Sequoyah National Refuge

WRIGHT-WAY AUCTION SERVICE

Tommy Wright, Auctioneer 918-774-5196 View full list & photos at: www.wrightwayauctions.com

CAXCA

LISTINGS & PICS: WWW.BARTHOLETAUCTION.COM or FACEBOOK

EXCEPTIONAL 2 DAY AUCTION Public Auction of Bates Instrumentation, LLC

(Approx $1.2 Million in Assets to be Sold, Along with Real Estate)

1805 N.W. 7th St, Stigler, OK SATURDAY, DEC. 9th @ 10 a.m. & THURSDAY, DEC. 14th @ 10 a.m.

Directions: From Intersection of Hiway 9 & 7th St., Go North on 7th approx 1 mile (Just past School) Follow Bartholet Auction Signs!

SATURDAY, December 9th@ 10:00 a.m.

Will be an All day Auction selling Farm & Ranch Equipment, Shop Inventory & Supplies

SELLING THURSDAY, December 14th @ 10:00 a.m. Real Estate - 3 bedroom/2 bath Ranch Style Home sitting on Approx. 7 ½ acres with a 2,300 Sq Ft Shop - 2 Storage Buildings with Pipe Corrals (sells at approx. 12 noon) Complete Construction Equipment Inventory, Dump Trucks, Work Trucks, Trailers, etc. VISIT OUR WEBSITE OR FACEBOOK FOR 180+ PICTURES & COMPLETE LISTINGS **** NO BUYER’S PREMIUM ****

6 VW 6WUHHW : 0XVNRJHH 2. 2I¿FH &HOO

To Place Your Ad Call 918-684-2803

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SELL!!! 918-684-2803

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Page 8—Saturday-Sunday, Dec. 2-3, 2023—Muskogee Phoenix

Look Who’s Hiring

McAlester Stockyards Special Replacement Cow & Bull Sale Saturday, December 9th at Noon! Selling over 600 head of Cows, Heifers, Pairs & Bulls 20 Red & Black Angus Influence Heifers heavy bred to lbw Angus Bulls 50 Angus & Baldy Bred Heifers bred to Reg. Red Angus bull, 900# 20 Angus Heifer Pairs calves out of Power Plus Bulls 25 Red Angus Heifers bred to lbw Red Angus Bulls, plus 5 head of 7 yr olds. 3 Reg. Angus Heifers AI bred to Square B True North 150 Angus Influence Cows 3-6 yr olds bred to Angus Bulls 40 Black Cows bred to Angus & Hereford Bulls, 3-5 yr olds 30 Colored Cows 3-6 yr olds bred to Charolais Bulls 30 Braham & Red Brahma Cross Cows 3 yr olds bred to Gray Brahma Bull 50 Charolais Cross Cows 5-6 yr olds bred to Charolais Bulls 50 Mostly Black Cows 4-8 yr olds bred to Charolais Bulls 35 Mixed Cows 2-5 yr olds bred to lbw Angus Bull HERD SELLOUT!

80 hd HERD SELLOUT

We are seeking an Sales Representative to join our team! You will resolve customer questions and offer solutions to drive company revenue. Responsibilities: • Present and sell company products and services to new and existing customers • Prospect and contact potential customers • Reach agreed upon sales targets by the deadline • Resolve customer inquiries and complaints • Set follow-up appointments to keep customers aware of latest developments • Create sales material to present to customers Qualifications: • Previous experience in sales, customer service, or other related field • Ability to build rapport with clients • Strong negotiation skills • Deadline and detail-oriented We are looking for a premier multimedia sales executive. Are you a self-starter? Do you want to make as much money as possible? Are you a great conversationalist? Can you manage multiple deadlines? Can you sell a portfolio of products that include print, digital and magazines? If you say "Yes I Can" we would like to talk to you! Job Type: Full-time Salary, plus commission Benefits: • 401(k) • Dental insurance • Flexible spending account • Health insurance • Life insurance • Mileage reimbursement • Paid time off • Paid training • Vision insurance advertising@muskogeephoenix.com

50 F1 Crossbred Cows 4-9 yr olds bred to Angus Bulls 2nd & 3rd stage 17 Reg. Hereford Cows 4-7 yr olds bred to Brahma Bulls 10 Tigerstripe Cows 4 yr olds bred to Angus Bulls

BULLS 9 Reg. Angus**4 Reg. Maine/Angus**2 Reg. Beefmaster**5 Reg. Charolais** 1 Red Angus**5 Black Baldy** 1 Hereford/Char Cross

For additional consignments see our website www.mcalesterstockyards.com NEW BUYERS PLEASE REGISTER BEFORE SALE DAY. 918-423-2834

PUBLISHER’S NOTICE: All real estate advertised herein is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise “any preference, limitation, or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination.” This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings adver tised are available on an equal opportunity basis.

DARK SIDE OF THE HORSE

Samson

SERVICE DIRECTORY

Include your business in this section for as low as $99/Month* (includes graphic or logo). *Includes 30 days print and online.

For More Details Call Kris at 918-684-2803 CONCRETE

CONSTRUCTION REMODEL

FENCING

GARAGE DOOR

LAWN & GARDEN

LIVESTOCK/FEED

CONCRETE

DRYWALL

YOUR BUSINESS HERE

HEAT & AIR

LAWN & GARDEN

ROOFING

LAWN & GARDEN

TREE SERVICE

If you would like to Advertise in this space, please call Kris at 918-684-2803 CONSTRUCTION REMODEL

YOUR BUSINESS HERE

If you would like to Advertise in this space, please call Kris at 918-684-2803 CAXCA

FENCING

CLASSIFIEDS

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, Dec. 2-3, 2023—Page 9

PUBLIC NOTICES Published in The Muskogee Phoenix November 26 & December 3, 2023

distribution, discharge of the Special Administrator, and closing said Estate.

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF MUSKOGEE COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA

Witness, the undersigned, Judge of the District Court of Muskogee County, State of Oklahoma, this 17th day of November, 2023.

IN THE MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF PATSY VERLAINE BURWELL, Deceased. Case No. PB-2023-142 COMBINED NOTICE: NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE OF HEARING UPON PETITION FOR SUMMARY ADMINISTRATION, AND FOR FINAL ACCOUNTING, DETERMINATION OF HEIRSHIP, AND DISTRIBUTION AND DISCHARGE Notice is hereby given to all persons interested in the Estate of Patsy Verlaine Burwell, also known as Patsy Verlaine Whiteside, 3800 Eufaula Avenue, Muskogee, OK 74403, Deceased, on the 17th day of November, 2023, that the purported Last Will and Testament of Patsy Verlaine Burwell, dated February 2, 2016, has been produced and filed in the District Court of Muskogee County, Oklahoma. Petitioner is Margaret E. Bates, 3800 Eufaula Avenue, Muskogee, OK 74403. The names and addresses of the heirs, legatees, and devisees of the deceased are: Kelleye D. Pfeiffer, formerly Kelleye D. Hutchinson, 19008 Windy Pine Cove, Jonestown, TX 78645, and Margaret E. Bates, 3800 Eufaula Avenue, Muskogee, OK 74403. The probable value of Decedent’s Oklahoma probate estate is believed to be less than $200,000.00. All persons receiving notice or any interested party may file objections to the Petition at any time before the final hearing and send a copy to the Petitioner, Margaret E. Bates, c/o Wallis Law Group, 1019F Waterwood Parkway, Edmond, OK 73034 or that person will be deemed to have waived any objections to the Petition. If an objection is filed before the hearing, the court will determine at the hearing whether the Will filed with the Court shall be admitted to probate, whether summary proceedings are appropriate and, if so, whether the estate will be distributed and to whom the estate will be distributed. The claim of any creditor, not shown in the Petition, will be barred, unless the claim is presented to the Special Administrator, through her attorney, no more than thirty (30) days following the granting of the Order admitting the Petition and Combined Notice. The hearing on the Petition is set in the courtroom of Judge Orvil Loge on the 4th day of January, 2024, at 9:00 a. m. in the County Courthouse, Muskogee County, State of Oklahoma, when Summary Administration and the final accounting may be approved, final orders made determining heirship,

s/s Orvil Loge JUDGE OF THE DISTRICT COURT KATHY E. WALLIS, OBA #18485 ADRIENNE M. MARTINEZ, OBA #33961 WALLIS LAW GROUP 1019F Waterwood Parkway Edmond, OK 73034 405-726-9888; fax 405-437-1321 kwallis@wallislawgroup.com Attorneys for Petitioner

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix December 3, 2023

any) held by each creditor with respect to such claim, to Erin Blythe Watson and Jared DeSilvey, CoPersonal Representatives, at 321 Court Street, Muskogee, OK 74401, on or before the following presentment date: February 8, 2024, or the same will be forever barred. DATED this 20 day of November, 2023. Erin Blythe Watson Co-Personal Representative for the Estates of William L. DeSilvey, Jr., and Barbara Joann DeSilvey, deceased Jared DeSilvey Co-Personal Representative for the Estates of William L. DeSilvey, Jr., and Barbara Joann DeSilvey, deceased

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix December 3, 10 & 17, 2023

NOTICE Muskogee County Commissioners are now accepting 6month bids until 9:30am 12/18/2023. For full bid sheets contact Muskogee County Clerk’s office @ 918-682-2169 or visit website https://muskogee.okc ounties.org/offices/co unty-clerk

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix November 26, December 3, 10, 17, 24 & 31, 2023, January 7 & 14, 2024

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF MUSKOGEE COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA In the Matter of the State of Oklahoma in the Interest of A.L., DOB: 03/05/2021 Alleged DEPRIVED Juvenile(s) as defined by the Laws of the State of Oklahoma. Case No. JD-2023-30 NOTICE BY PUBLICATION

LEGAL NOTICE The Town of Webbers Falls is accepting bids for the demolition and clean up of Garden Walk apartments located at 100 W. Oak Street. Bids will be accepted till 4pm on January 15, 2024. Please mail all bids to PO Box 179 Webbers Falls, Oklahoma 74470. For more information please call City Hall at 918464-2920.

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix November 26, December 3, 10 & 17, 2023 LEGAL NOTICE The Town of Webbers Falls is accepting bids for the repair of a roof located at 105 E. Commercial Street. Bids will be accepted till 4pm on December 18, 2023. Please mail all bids to PO Box 179 Webbers Falls, Ok 74470. For more information please call City Hall at 918-464-2920.

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix December 3 & 10, 2023 IN THE DISTRICT COURT IN AND FOR MUSKOGEE COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA In the Matter of the Estate of WILLIAM L. DESILVEY, JR., Deceased and BARBARA JOANN DESILVEY, Deceased. Case No. PB-2023-131 ALIAS NOTICE TO CREDITORS All creditors having claims against William L. DeSilvey, Jr., and Barbara Joann DeSilvey, deceased, are required to present the same, with a description of all security interests and other collateral (if

THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA TO: FATHER, UNKNOWN FATHER, of the above child(ren) YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED pursuant to Okla. Stat. tit. 10, §7006-1.2 that the State of Oklahoma, by and through the District Attorney in and for the 15th Judicial District for the State of Oklahoma, has filed a petition, stating with particularity the facts which bring the children under and within the purview of the Statutes of the State of Oklahoma, specifically, Okla. Stat. tit. 10, §7001-1.1 et seq. together with the relief requested, specifically praying for termination of the parental rights and that control and custody of said juvenile(s) be vested in such person, state agency, or institution as the Court may seem to be in the best interest of said juvenile(s), for the reason that: the parent(s) have failed to correct the condition in which the child(ren) were found to be deprived, the parent(s) have failed to support the child(ren) and the parent(s) have failed to exercise parental duties and responsibilities and therefore adjudicated such and that at least three months has passed since given the opportunity to correct the condition. FURTHER, that the above named parent(s), guardian(s), and interested persons must appear before the District Court in and for Muskogee County, in the District Courtroom at Muskogee, Oklahoma, at the hour of 9:00 a.m., on the 9TH day of JANUARY, 2024, when and where the Court will proceed to hear the merits of said Petition or grant such relief or make such

orders that the Court deem necessary and proper in these premises. You are advised that the respondents, parents, guardians, custodians or other interested parties, and each respondent juvenile is/are entitled to be represented by an attorney at each and every stage of these proceedings and if a state of indigence exists, such parties are entitled to a Court appointed attorney, all of which at public expense. FURTHER THAT IN THE EVENT (other than the person(s) of the child(ren) concerned) the parents, guardians, or interested persons fail to appear as summoned herein, the Court will receive the testimony and evidence produced by the State on the date and at the time so indicated and will proceed to grant such relief and make such orders as the Court deem to be necessary and proper in said cause as may be supported by the findings on the merits of said cause of action. FAILURE TO APPEAR AT THIS HEARING SHALL CONSTITUTE A DENIAL OF INTEREST IN THE CHILD(REN), WHICH DENIAL MAY RESULT, WITHOUT FURTHER NOTICE OF THIS PROCEEDING OR ANY SUBSEQUENT PROCEEDING, IN THE GRANTING OF THE PETITION FOR THE TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS FOR ANY AND ALL TIME AND IN THE CHILD(REN)’S ADOPTION. DATED this 29 day of NOVEMBER, 2023. Orvil Loge JUDGE OF THE DISTRICT COURT

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix December 3, 10 & 17, 2023 IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF MUSKOGEE COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA JUVENILE DIVISION In The Matter Of A. L. Alleged DEPRIVED CHILDREN Case No. JD-2023-30 NOTICE OF PUBLICATION TO CODY LEE, FATHER COMES NOW LARRY EDWARDS, the District Attorney, of Muskogee County, State of Oklahoma, by and through LARRY EDWARDS, District Attorney, and gives notice to the FATHER of the alleged DEPRIVED juvenile(s) A.L. that the State’s Petition will be heard on the 9TH day of JANUARY, 2024, at the Muskogee County Court House, State of Oklahoma, at 9:00 a.m., you have a right to have an attorney present to represent your legal rights as the FATHER of the alleged DEPRIVED child(ren). Hereby take notice that said hearing could materially affect your parental rights in relation to said minor child(ren), and the Court may order that you provide child support for said minor child(ren) in the event that the child(ren) are taken into legal custody and made a ward of the Court. No

further notice of said hearing will be given. ROBYN BOSWELL, COURT CLERK MUSKOGEE COUNTY By Jeanett Seabolt Deputy

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix December 3, 10 & 17, 2023 IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF MUSKOGEE COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA CREDIT ACCEPTANCE CORPORATION, Plaintiff, v. BARBARA FLEMING & MICHAEL FLEMING, Defendants. Case No. CS-23-590 NOTICE BY PUBLICATION Barbara Fleming & Michael Fleming you are hereby noticed that you have been sued by Credit Acceptance Corporation and you must answer Plaintiff’s Petition on or before January 29, 2024 or a money judgment in the sum of $8,171.53 plus interest will be rendered accordingly. Dated this day November 17, 2023 By: Aspen Sumpter Deputy Court Clerk For Muskogee District Court Clerk (seal) APPROVED BY: Greg A. Metzer, OBA # 11432 METZER & AUSTIN, P.L.L.C. 1 South Broadway, Suite 100 Edmond, OK 73034 (405) 330-2226 (405) 330-2234 (FAX) ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFF

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix November 26, December 3 & 10, 2023 IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF MUSKOGEE COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA C ST. MUSKOGEE APTS, LLC, an Oklahoma Limited Liability Company Plaintiff, vs. JANICE LONG, VOIN LONG, BENJAMIN LONG, GLEN TRINH, CHRISTINA TRINH and ROGER STOKES, if living and if deceased, the known and unknown heirs, executors, administrators, successors, devisees, trustees and assigns of JANICE LONG, VOIN LONG, BENJAMIN LONG, GLEN TRINH, CHRISTINA TRINH and ROGER STOKES Defendants. Case No. CV-2023-909 NOTICE BY PUBLICATION

THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA Janice Long, Voin Long, Benjamin Long, Glen Trinh, Christina Trinh and Roger Stokes, if living and if deceased, the known and unknown heirs, executors, administrators, trustees, successors, devisees and assigns of Janice Long, Voin Long,

Benjamin Long, Glen Trinh, Christina Trinh and Roger Stokes, if any. You, and each of you, are hereby notified that C St. Muskogee Apts, LLC as Plaintiff, has filed in the District Court of Muskogee County, State of Oklahoma, their petition against the Defendants who may claim some interest in the following described real property, to wit: A part of Lots 2 and 3 in Block 393 of the City of Muskogee, Muskogee County, Oklahoma, more particularly described as follows, to wit: Beginning at a point in the Southerly line of said Lot 3 a distance of 155 1/3 feet Westerly from the Southeast corner thereof; thence Northerly parallel to the Easterly line of said Lots 2 and 3 and across Lot 3 and into Lot 2 for a distance of 142.5 feet; thence Westerly to a point which is 140 feet Easterly from the Westerly line of said Lot 2 and 150.5 feet Northerly from a point on the Southerly line of said Lot 3 which is 150 feet Easterly from the Southwest corner of said Lot 3; thence Southerly 150.5 feet to said point on the Southerly line of said Lot 3 which is 150 feet Easterly from the Southwest corner of said Lot 3; thence Easterly 29.97 feet, more or less to the Point of Beginning That the Plaintiff is the owner of said real property and in the actual and peaceable possession thereof. That said Defendants, and each of them named herein, claim some right, title, lien, estate, encumbrance, claim, assessment or interest in and to said real property involved herein adverse to that of said Plaintiff, which constitutes a cloud upon the title of said property, as is set forth in the Petition filed herein, reference made thereto. That the Defendants, and each of them, be adjudged to have no right, title, claim, estate or interest in and to the real property involved in this cause of action and that they, and each of them, be perpetually barred and enjoined from setting up or asserting any right, title, claim, estate or interest in and to said property. That said Defendants, and each of them, must answer the Petition filed herein by Plaintiff on or before the 10th day of January, 2024, or said Petition will be taken as true and correct and judgment rendered accordingly decreeing that said Plaintiff is the owner of the property described in said Petition, to the exclusion of the Defendants named therein. Given under my hand and seal the 21st day of November, 2023. Robyn Boswell, COURT CLERK MUSKOGEE COUNTY, OKLAHOMA By: Arthur Parsons Deputy WRIGHT STOUT & WILBURN, P.L.L.C. Paula Ranallo Wilburn, OBA # 12446 300 W. Broadway; P.O. Box 707 Muskogee, Oklahoma 74402-0707 (918) 682-0091/ Fax: (918) 683-6340 Attorney for Plaintiff

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix November 26 & December 3, 2023

The names and addresses of the heirs of the Deceased are as follows:

IN THE DISTRICT COURT IN AND FOR MUSKOGEE COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA

NAME AGE ADDRESS RELATION

In the Matter of the Estates of Stephen W. Caywood and Terri Donnette Caywood, Deceased. Case No. PB-2022-9 Judge: Orvil Loge NOTICE OF HEARING FINAL ACCOUNTING, DETERMINATION OF HEIRSHIP, DISTRIBUTION AND DISCHARGE All persons interested in the Estates of Stephen W. Caywood and Terri Donnette Caywood, Deceased are hereby notified that on the 14th day of December, 2023, at 9:00 o’clock A.M. in the District Court of Muskogee County, Oklahoma, before the Honorable Orvil Loge, the Final Accounting, Determination of Heirship, Distribution of the Estate, and Discharge of the Administrator will be heard and ordered and all persons interested in said Estate are notified then and there to appear and show cause, if any they have, why the same should not be done. The Final Account and Petition for Distribution will be filed herein on or before the 21st day of November, 2023 Orvil Loge Judge of the District Court Notice prepared by: Jim McClure, OBA# 11422

Published in The Muskogee Phoenix November 26 & December 3, 2023 IN AND FOR THE DISTRICT COURT OF MUSKOGEE COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA In re the Estate of CHARLES RAY LONG, Deceased, Case No.: PB-2023-147 Judge Orvil Loge COMBINED NOTICE OF HEARING ON PETITION FOR SUMMARY ADMINISTRATION, NOTICE TO CREDITORS, AND NOTICE OF FINAL ACCOUNTING, DETERMINATION OF HEIRSHIP, DISTRIBUTION AND DISCHARGE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a Petition for Summary Administration pursuant to 58 OS § 245 has been filed on the 20 day of November, 2023, setting forth the following information: 1. The name, address, and date of death of the Deceased are as follows: CHARLES RAY LONG whose address was 2705 Boston Street, Muskogee, OK 74401 and whose date of death was October 12, 2023. 2. The name and address of the Petitioner are as follows: Bonnie Long whose address is 2705 Boston Street, Muskogee, OK 74401. 3. A Last Will and Testament of the Deceased does not exist.

Bonnie Long Legal 2705 Boston Street Muskogee, OK 74401 Spouse Dale Greenfeather Legal 924 Spring Manor Dr Edmond OK 73025 Child Michelle Hinkle Legal 800 Buffalo Springs Dr Fort Worth TX 76140 Child Melissa Long Legal 8908 Tenderfoot Lane Aubrey TX 76227 Child Maranda Robinson Legal 506 Surrey Ln Lufkin TX 75901 Child Callie Price Legal 1408 Birch Lovington NM 88260 Child 4. The total value of the estate as set forth in the Petition is less than $200,000.00 5. The names and addresses of the creditors of the Deceased are as follows: No Known Creditors 6. Any interested party may file an objection to the Petition with the Court at any time prior to the final hearing and send a copy of the same to the attorney for the Petitioner at the address shown below. All persons not so filing such an objection will be deemed to have waived any objection to the Petition. 7. If any objection is filed before the hearing, the Court will determine at the hearing whether summary administration is appropriate and, if so, whether the estate will be distributed and to whom the estate will be distributed. 8. All creditors having claims against the Deceased are required to present the same, together with a description of all security interests and other collateral if any held by such creditor with respect to such claim, to the Petitioner at 330 N 4th Street, Muskogee, OK 74401, not later than 30 days following the filing of the Petition and this notice or the same will be forever barred. 9. The final hearing on the Petition, Final Accounting, Determination of Heirs, Distribution of the Estate, and for Discharge of the Personal Representative is set for 1-11-24 at 9 AM before the Honorable Judge Loge at the Muskogee County Courthouse in Muskogee, Oklahoma. DATED this 20 day of Nov, 2023. Orvil Loge JUDGE OF THE DISTRICT COURT HAMMONS HAMBY & PRICE, PLLC 330 N 4th Street Muskogee, OK 74401 Telephone: (918) 683-0309 Facsimile: (918) 686-7510 Attorney for the Petitioner

P H O E N I X C L A S S I F I E D S SELL!!! 9 1 8 - 6 8 4 - 2 8 0 3 CAXCA LPXLP

Muskogee Phoenix Saturday-Sunday, December 2-3, 2023

Health

Chronic sleep deficiency increases insulin resistance in women, especially postmenopausal women Submitted by National Institutes of Health

Chronic insufficient sleep can increase insulin resistance in otherwise healthy women, with more marked effects in postmenopausal women, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The findings, published in Diabetes Care, highlight the importance of adequate sleep in minimizing the risk for type 2 diabetes, which can develop when the body fails to effectively use a key hormone, insulin, to maintain healthy blood sugar levels. “Women report poorer sleep than men, so understanding how sleep disturbances impact their health across the lifespan is critical, especially for postmenopausal women,” said Marishka Brown, Ph.D., director of the National Center on Sleep Disorder Research at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), which co-funded the study with the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), both part of NIH. Previous studies have shown that sleep restriction can elevate risk for conditions such as cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and disordered glucose metab-

olism, which can lead to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. However, many of those studies were done only in men or focused on shortterm, severe sleep restriction. The current study enrolled only women and sought to determine if a prolonged, mild restriction of sleep – a reduction of just 1.5 hours each night – increased women’s blood glucose and insulin levels. Insulin helps regulate glucose in the body, and when the body’s cells build resistance to insulin, they become less able to use it effectively and can cause a person’s risk for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes to rise dramatically. For the study, researchers recruited 40 women, aged 20-75, who had healthy sleep patterns (at least 7-9 hours per night), normal fasting glucose levels, but had elevated risks for cardiometabolic disease due to having overweight or obesity or a family history of type 2 diabetes, increased lipid in the blood, or cardiovascular disease. To establish a baseline for the study, women wore a sensor on their wrists to record their sleep and determine their typical sleep patterns for two weeks and kept nightly sleep logs. The women then

completed two six-week study phases in a random order – one where they continued to follow their healthy sleep patterns, and one where sleep was restricted. In between they took a six-week break to recalibrate. During the adequate sleep phase, participants maintained their typical bed and wake times. On average, they slept for 7.5 hours per night. In the sleep restriction phase, participants delayed their bedtime by 1.5 hours per night, while maintaining their typical waketime. During this phase, they slept 6.2 hours per night, which reflects the average sleep duration of U.S. adults with insufficient sleep. At the beginning and end of each study phase, participants completed an oral glucose tolerance test to measure glucose and insulin blood levels, along with an MRI scan to measure body composition. The researchers found that restricting sleep to 6.2 hours or less per night over six weeks increased insulin resistance by 14.8% among both pre- and postmenopausal women, with more severe effects for postmenopausal women – as high as 20.1%. In premenopausal women, they found that fasting in-

sulin levels rose in response to sleep restriction, while levels of both fasting insulin and fasting glucose tended to increase in postmenopausal women. “What we’re seeing is that more insulin is needed to normalize glucose levels in the women under conditions of sleep restriction, and even then, the insulin may not have been doing enough to counteract rising blood glucose levels of postmenopausal women,” said Marie-Pierre St-Onge, Ph.D., associate professor of nutritional medicine and director of the Center of Excellence for Sleep and Circadian Research at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York City, and senior author on the study. “If that’s sustained over time, it is possible that prolonged insufficient sleep among individuals with prediabetes could accelerate the progression to type 2 diabetes.” The researchers also looked at whether changes in body weight explained the changes they saw in insulin and glucose levels, as people tend to eat more in sleep-restricted states. However, they found that effects on insulin resistance were largely inde-

pendent of changes in body weight, and once the women started sleeping their typical 7-9 hours per night again, the insulin and glucose levels returned to normal. “This study provides new insight into the health effects of even small sleep deficits in women across all stages of adulthood and racial and ethnic backgrounds,” said Corinne Silva, Ph.D., Program Director in the Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, & Metabolic Diseases at NIDDK. “Researchers are planning additional studies to further understand how sleep deficiency affects metabolism in men and women, as well as explore sleep interventions as a tool in type 2 diabetes prevention efforts.” About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

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WEEKEND COMICS SUNDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2023

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If you don’t help stop bullying, who will?

Parents, teachers, school administrators, health care professionals, law enforcement officers—we all have a responsibility to prevent bullying.

To find out how you can help stop it, log on to www.StopBullyingNow.hrsa.gov A campaign of the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, and the U.S.Department of Health and Human Services.

Since the founding of our nation, the role of newspapers in our democracy has been crystal clear. We have been, and will continue to be, the eyes and ears of the American people. After all, the right of free speech is meaningless if no one knows what’s really going on. That’s why more than 100 million Americans depend on their hometown newspapers daily and why today’s newsrooms are staffed with dedicated, highly trained reporters and experienced editors who bring you the very best journalism found anywhere, in print and online.

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