March 25, 2023 Issue, Page 1 of 8

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Weekend Edition Vote on Sales Tax Extension to be onan 4th @ aah eset ct & serve Jocelyn Kos and Wade Shower. ‘Barefoot in the Park’ —— Newlyweds Played by High School Seniors By Sheryl Ponce ARE Depart Red Carpet Community Theatre's production of Neil Si- mon's “Barefoot in the Park” opened Friday, March 24th, and By Sheryl Ponce and fire departments. They would be meeting with department runs throughout the weekend along with the following week- heads to determine the needs of the police and firefighters. end on March 31st through April 2nd. Tickets can be pur- What is being called CAPPS2 Protect and Serve will be voted “Elk City’s fire station requires expansion to house all the de- chased online at www.rcct.org. Leading the show are Joceyln. on by Elk City residents on April 4th. The tax is the extension partment’s fire trucks. The fire trucks that do fit must back in Kos, Merritt High School senior, and Wade Showers, senior at of a half cent tax that started in 2015 to help pay for Elk City’s instead of pulling in forward,” the tax announcement said about Hammon High School. Kos is the daughter of Jason and Jaime new elementary school. If approved this extension will extend the vote. Kos and Kerri Mitchell. Showers is the son of Scott and Beth the half cents for eight more years and repurposed to remodel ‘They also need larger classrooms and more fire department Ann Showers. and upgrades to the police station and fired department. living space is also needed because they are available 24-hours- ‘The pair play Corie and Paul Bratter who are newlyweds and ‘The City of Elk City joined with Elk City Public Schools to a-day. The police station needs to be remodeled because of the have opposite personality dispositions. They both have been build the elementary school and the city will be paying off the extreme wear and tear of their facility. The transformation and working to hone their characters over the past month to make needs of each department have increased over the years. There loan two years early. This tax extension will be used to remodel their 1960 characters believable. are more police on the force and their equipment, which has be- “('m playing Paul who is in his mid 20s and a lawyer in the the 40-year-old police station and modernize the 70-year-old come more technical, must be kept in a safe, dry place. 1960s. He is really a normal person, and he has had a hard time fire station. ‘The fire department also needs additional space for the fire- getting out ofhis shell to have fun and break some rules. He is Last month the City Commission voted to hire Katie Ar- more of a rule follower than a free spirit,” Showers said. cher’s architectural firm, REES Architect to meet with the police See Vote page 2. Showers portrayed Willy Wonka in RCCT’s production of “Willy Wonka’ last year. He has found that Paul's character is a little more difficult to play. “This character has been a challenge to bring to stage be- cause rather than a big personality like Willy Wonka, itis a very Volunteers Needed for the New General Store real normal person that you could meet at Walmart. It’s also been a challenge to be that normal person,” he continued. When Showers first started with the show, he believed that plained. the character was unlikeable, but with the directors’ help he She said that over the years, the group has also helped as tour has been able to make him more relatable. guides and employee substitutes. They have decorated the mu- “| think he’s very relatable now. There’s a large part of the seum during the Christmas holidays, and they have brought population who have a harder time cutting loose. They have a college professors, authors, and other to the complex to talk thinner set of morals or have a harder time getting away from about the history, which includes Route 66, the Great Western those morals. And yet, that doesn’t make them an impossible ‘Trails, and the Washita Battle Site. person to like, nor does it make them boring, And as you see in the show, Paul, towards the end, realizes that his wife's way of “We have provided summer evening entertainment oppor- viewing the world is just as important as his view. He needs to tunities with local poets, authors, artists, vocalists, and musi- cians. A class on preserving antique artifacts has been offered, cherish her and her ways of viewing the world to meet in the middle rather than trying to conform everything to his way of and a quilt truck brought in during the summer for lessons and with fabric,” Garrison added. The National Route 66 Museum was dedicated in June of See RCCT page 2. By Sheryl Ponce 1998. That addition to the Old Town Museum brought more travelers through Elk City on their Route 66 trek across the Pat Baker’s ‘The Western Oklahoma Historical Society has been working United States. As the Route 66’s 100th birthday approaches in to build a new General Store to Elk City’s National Route 66 2026, there will be significantly more visitors, therefore, do- Museum Complex, and they are ready to receive guests. The cents will be a vital part of welcoming them to the complex, as well as teaching them about Route 66. Services Set museum docents are now looking for volunteers to greet guests in the store. This is a new area of responsibility so that docents “We would like to encourage more people in our area to join will be able to interact with the wide variety of guests who visit the docent organization and assist others in gaining knowledge the museum ona daily basis. of our local history. It is great fun serving as a docent. We visit “The Western Oklahoma Museum Docents are a group of vol- with people from all across the US and around the world,” Gar- Longtime resident and leader in Elk City passed away last unteers dedicated to encouraging people to learn more about rison said. week. Her family will receive friends on April 7th from 4 p.m. our museum and our history. Our main contact with other Docent volunteers add to the total experience that visitors to 6 p.m. at Martin-Dugger Funeral Home, located at 600 W. people is in the Drug Store at the National Route 66 Museum, Country Club Blvd. have at the museum. They are able to provide information about Baker’s celebration of life will take place Sat. April 8th at but we have been involved in many other opportunities, too,” See Store page 2. 11 a.m. at First United Methodist Church in Elk City. Carla Garrison, director of the Western Oklahoma Docents ex- «UM 0, Weather tomorrow @ 61/ Vol. 120, No. 24 75 cents, 8 pgs. Mail delivery 580.225.3000 View online elkcityoknews.com