Published: October 07, 2009 08:24 am      

Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor,

When I was in my 20s I remember Senator Bellmon coming to our town and conducting what would be called now a town meeting.

As he was speaking a guy at the back of the room interrupted saying, “ I want to know why we don’t stop welfare.”

Senator Bellmon said, “First of all, that is a state matter. Second, most of welfare goes to Aid for Dependent Children. A mother with a child gets a $168 per month. How would you like to live on that?” He then went on with his speech.

The heckler (every town has one) then interrupted and said, “What are we going to do about all that foreign aid?” Senator Bellmon paused and said, “Eighty percent of our foreign aid goes to Israel, our only secure ally in the middle East,” and once again went on with his speech.

I remember not long after that he cast two unpopular votes. One was to give up the Panama Canal. The other was in favor of school busing to hasten integration.

Both votes were votes of principle. He probably lost 10 or more points in the polls. My intuition is he never considered how others would view his stands.

I learned a lot from Senator Bellmon. He always stood for what he thought was right whether it was the politically correct sentiment of the day or not. He was also not afraid of compromising with Democrats.

I think he was a simple old fashioned Marine who stood for what he believed in, backed down from no one, and left no Oklahoman behind.

Mike Cantrell, Ada



Dear Editor,

I want to take this opportunity to thank you for all the warm wishes and offers of friendship that have been extended to me. The outpourings of graciousness and hospitality from this thriving community have truly made my heart glad.

My principle interests for returning here have been to re-establish close relationships with my beloved parents and to acquaint myself with the necessary management responsibilities for land ownership. My family's land holdings along the Canadian River in Pontotoc County once extended to more than 1,000 acres. Today, only 450 acres remain intact, and it is my most heart-felt desire to protect it and nurture it for the future well-being of my brother Sam and myself.

As fate would have it, historically our land has not been a safe place to be. Since before I was born there have been repeated efforts by illegal marijuana growers to cultivate our property for their own personal ill-gotten gain. At present, there is a dangerous wild dog that has threatened our timber cutters, not to mention the wild hogs, coyotes and wolves in the area.

This is not meant to be a written invitation to hunters. My family’s land is under the protection of the Oklahoma Game Warden and has been named a Wildlife Refuge. My intention at this point is to say that I fully plan on protecting my own safety when I am alone on our property. Again, I would like to reiterate my gratitude to the residents of Ada (and Allen) for their caring and warm hospitality. Specifically, the organization of Rotary international has gone above and beyond in making me feel welcome here.

When I was a senior in high school at Pauls Valley, I received the Rotary scholarship. I was also given the opportunity to see president Ronald Reagan in 1986 because of my volunteer activities with the Pauls Valley Rotary Club. I love Rotary and believe whole-heartedly in its motto, “Service Above Self.”

In conclusion, I would also like to thank Governor Anoatubby and the Chickasaw Nation for giving me the impetus to return here. I am very proud of my Chickasaw and Creek heritage and fully believe in the mission of the Chickasaw Nation, “To enhance the overall quality of life of the Chickasaw people.”

It was my great-grandmother, Etta McCall, whose family donated the original land for McCall’s Chapel School. I love my family very much and am very proud to be Mack and Ruthie Kimbrough’s daughter. I am also extremely grateful to Ms. Shelly Miller for helping to reconnect a relationship with my mother that has been long overdue.

Lacy Kimbrough-Wilder, Ada