The Lincoln County News asked various community figures and its staff to reflect upon what they love most about the United States and what they hope to see in the future in celebration of the semiquincentennial. Here is what they had to say.
We live in the best country in the world. We didn’t get there by accident. We need the attitude of being thankful for that.As a country, we are 250 years young, and we should celebrate the freedoms we have every day. Closer to home, I am proud to be from a city that loves, recognizes and promotes the commitment and sacrifices made by our veterans to provide us with the freedom we enjoy. From the commemorative park to the banners that line our Main Street, we take every opportunity to honor our veterans. We are a town that loves to fly our flag, and our firemen take advantage of every opportunity to fly their huge flag over Route 66 from their ladder truck. Our Main Street looks its best when we are flying our flags from the same light poles our veterans are displayed on. The foundation, freedom, and success of our country rests on the backs of our current and past veterans’ sacrifice. Our love and pride in our city, county, country, and veterans cannot and will not ever be in question. We are blessed, and this is something we will always celebrate.
Bob Pearman, Stroud City Manager As our nation approaches its 250th anniversary, I’ve been reflecting on what I love mostaboutAmericaand what I hope we continue to improve for future generations.
What I love most about the United States is our enduring commitment to freedom, the rule of law, and the belief that every person has the opportunity to make a difference. Those ideals have guided our nation for nearly two and a half centuries. While our history includes challenges and imperfections, it is also a story of resilience, accountability, and the determination to build a more perfect Union.
As a police chief, I have the privilege of witnessing the best of our communities every day. I see neighbors helping neighbors, first responders answering the call without hesitation, and residents working together to overcome adversity. Public safety is not the responsibility of law enforcement alone—it is a shared commitment built on trust, mutual respect, and a willingness to serve one another. That spirit of service is one of America’s greatest strengths.
If I could change one thing, it would be the growing division that too often separates us. Healthy debate is essential to democracy, but lasting progress depends on our ability to listen, respect differing perspectives, and remember that we are all working toward the same goal: stronger, safer communities and a brighter future for the next generation.
As we prepare to celebrate America’s 250th birthday, I hope we remember that our nation’s strength has never come from perfection. It comes from our willingness to serve, to sacrifice, to learn from the past, and to leave our communities better than we found them.That is the legacy worth celebrating—and it is a call to action for each of us. Let us re-commit to serving one another, bridging our divides, and strengthening the bonds that hold our communities together. Together, we can ensure thatAmerica’s next 250 years are defined not by what separates us, but by what unites us, and by the civic responsibility we all share in shaping a stronger, more united nation.
Clint Gaylord, Stroud Police Chief For me, my love for the U.S. really lies in my deep, unending love and respect for the arts. I’m a voracious reader, a writer and I love the theatre. If I’m not listening to music, there’s a song rattling around in my head. I love that in this country, there are so many experiences, backgrounds, cultures, perspectives out there waiting to be discovered just by picking up a book or watching a movie, play or musical. By putting on a pair of headphones, closing your eyes and listening.
The arts are a reflection of who we are, as well as showing what we could be. They allow for the deepest of expression, be it pain, love, hope, fear and everything in between. It can be messy and complicated. It can also be breathtakingly beautiful. Art can move us, whether it’s something as simple as feeling seen and understood, or spurring us into action. It can also entertain, soothe or take us away from the hecticness of life for a moment.
Now, the arts aren’t something that is uniquely American -- they exist all over the world -- but I love that I live in a country that has such diversity in the arts. I feel that today we’ve never had so many different voices and walks of life represented in our books, films,TVshows, plays and music, and that this is something that should be protected and celebrated. Yes, there’s still work to be done, but we’re all a work in progress. And I’m excited to see what new art is waiting to be unleashed. For it’s through art, be it written, visual or audio, that we can speak our truths, be they painful, healing, joyous, or anything and everything in between.
Emily Kalka, LCN Editor Major milestones like America’s 250th birthday often call for a grand display of patriotism. While I adore the thundering boom of fireworks that light our nation’s skies every 4th of July, my love for this country comes from a quieter, more sacred place. It is rooted deeply in the senses––anchored to the shared, weathered experiences of everyday life.
It lives in the screeching yawn of an old screen door swinging open into Grams’ kitchen, where the ghost of morning coffee and bacon lingers long after breakfast. It is the sting of salt and sweat on my brow from mending a barbed-wire fence for the umpteenth time (yes, umpteenth is a word), answered by the cool shock after jumping into the creek at dusk, where the dirt from a hard day’s work dissolves into the muddy water.
My appreciation belongs to the red dirt lullaby of tree frogs, crickets, and the hollow wail of coyotes beneath a full prairie moon—a familiar, wild melody that sung me to sleep every single summer night of my youth.
It is present in the shift of the seasons, too. I feel it when the first crisp breath of autumn cuts through summer’s heavy, lingering heat. It arrives just as the sun dips low, bleeding across the wide Oklahoma sky in a rich, bruised tapestry of fiery crimson and dusty orange. And it is there in the sudden electricity of the bleachers, when the high school band rises to play the fight song, sending a collective shiver through the crowd as we cheer another hard-fought touchdown under the Friday night lights.
Americaisvast,messy,andbeautifullycomplicated, but its true spirit lives in these small, overlooked fragments. This 4th of July, I am choosing to step away from the national noise. Instead, I am celebrating the poetry of the ordinary, the quiet moments that settle into a soft nostalgia, and the freedom to live our lives on our own terms in the places we call home.
Crystal Simpson, LCN Office Manager If you’ve been paying any attention to social media lately, you may have seen the waves of foreign fans currently in the United States for the World Cup. Matches are being played across the country, and wherever their national teams go, the traveling faithful are not far behind. Scotland took over the streets and bars of Boston, Spanish fans packed downtown Atlanta and Argentines painted Kansas City blue.
Teams are also getting a close look at everyday America, using communities beyond the usual tourist trail as home bases. Algeria is training in Lawrence, Kansas, Spain in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Germany in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Lawrence has especially embraced Algeria, decorating streets and storefronts, while the University of Kansas band learned the Algerian national anthem and hundreds gathered to welcome the team.
Scotland’s traveling supporters, known as theTartan Army, thanked Boston, Providence and Newport for receiving them “with open arms and unbelievable hospitality” after a local supporters group helped them findaffordableaccommodations.Asathankyou,Scottish fans pledged nearly $30,000 to local charities. A German fan who goes by FreddyLA7 on X has gone viral for his posts that feel like someone falling in love with America for the first time. He documented his road trip with a couple of his friends through Atlanta, Chattanooga, Auburn, New Orleans, Houston and Oklahoma City. His posts have highlighted college football stadiums, gas stations and roadside institutions such as Buc-ee’s and Waffle House.
Some arrived expecting the hostile, chaotic and hopelessly divided America they had seen in headlines and online. What many have found instead is theAmerica most of us are familiar with: strangers giving directions, buying each other drinks, recommending local spots and welcoming visitors as though they belong here.
America has real problems, and no sporting event erases them. But as the country turns 250, the World Cup offers a timely reminder of something worth celebrating: Americans are often much kinder, more open and more united than we or the rest of the world are often led to believe.
Andrew Frazier, Staff Writer