Here is the continuation of the Year in Review that we started in last week’s edition.
Apr. 16 - Churches across Lincoln County celebrated Resurrection Sunday in unusual ways, whether it was preaching to an empty sanctuary while recording the sermon or preaching to a parking lot of cars.
Pottawatomie County District 1 crews began working on problems to fix the North Canadian River near Brangus Road and Garrett’s Lake Road.
Cars lined up to participate in the first ever Jericho Drive around Stroud Wednesday, April 8 at 7 p.m. as citizens of Stroud drove a 10 mile route around Stroud seven times praying, singing and reading scripture.
Apr. 23 - Project H.E.A.R.T., a senior nutrition program that serves meals for people who are 60 years old and older, sees an increase in the number of meals served as senior centers close throughout the county.
The bridge project off Highways 66 and 18 in Chandler nears completion.
Grant Elerick was named the Region 2 Male Athlete of the Year award.
Apr. 30 - Stroud Regional Medical Center was included in a flyover by the Oklahoma Air National Guard’s, 138th Fighter Wing, In an effort to salute and thank all healthcare workers, first responders and other essential personnel working the front lines to fight COVID-19.
Marshall and Mary Ruth Taylor celebrated their 70th anniversary in a unique way, since she was in the Chandler Nursing Home and he wasn’t allowed in.
Shelley Dobson of Wellston adopted the racing greyhound named Starsky when his racing career ended due to COVID.
May 7 - The Lincoln County Commissioners voted to reopen the courthouse.
After 15 years, Stroud Head Football Coach Chris Elerick stepped down as the head coach and history teacher and started the 2020-2021 school year as the Special Projects Director.
The National Wrestling Coaches Association announced Wednesday that Chandler’s Heath Gray is the 2019-20 National Wrestler of the Year.
May 14 - Hearings for several defendants charged with felonies in Lincoln and Pottawatomie Counties were moved to coming months due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Area grocery stores and restaurants were experiencing shortages and higher prices in beef products brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lincoln County had recorded its second death from COVID-19.
May 21 - Meeker and Chandler Public Schools hosted graduation parades for their graduating seniors.
Stroud City Council board members approved to enter Phase One of the proposed electric rates from the CH Guernsey Rate Study.
Chandler school board hired Joseph Shawn Blankenship as the head coach for the boys basketball team and John Childress as the head coach for the wrestling team.
May 28 - Memorial Day was observed throughout Lincoln County.
16-year-old Wellston student Shaley Barnes created and runs her own nursery business - Sha’s Nursery - for her Supervised Agriculture Experience (SAE) for FFA, which won first place in the state 2020 FFA Proficiency Awards nursery operations category.
Although this year’s spring sports season came to an abrupt halt, many schools across Lincoln and Pottawatomie County awarded their athletes with Athletic Awards.
Jun. 4 - Bob Palmer of Palmer Studios painted two murals in Chandler, one for the Helping Hands Community Foundation and the other for the Gypsy Corner Boutique.
For the first time in history, the Sac and Fox Nation cancelled the Sax and Fox Pow Wow.
Lincoln County Commissioners agreed to apply for CARES Act funding for reimbursement of expenses the county may have incurred due to COVID-19.
Jun. 11 - Civic leaders and Chandler citizens gathered at the Douglas Gym to be a part of the Open Forum on Race Relations and Tensions.
Stroud and Meeker hosted their high school graduations.
McLoud area resident Christopher Steven Ledbetter, 29, was arrested by FBI agents and charged with unlawfully possessing a fully automatic machine gun.
Jun. 18 - Saturday, June 13, hundreds of people walked down Main Street in Chandler to show unification within the community.
Chandler Ministerial Alliance President John Casey and Chandler Ministerial Alliance Treasurer Kirk Holloway presented a check for $15,318 to Chandler Police Chief Matt Mattheyer for the purchase of body cams.
The Meeker Town Board authorized Administrator Dickie Walton to spend up to nearly $90,000 toward the renovation of Glenn Crest Park.
Jun. 25 - The City of McLoud celebrated 125 years Saturday, June 20. City Chamber member Dean Hill presented Mayor Stan Jackson with a proclamation from Gov. Stitt recognizing the 125 year historical legacy of McLoud and proclaiming June 21, 2020 as “McLoud Day” in the state of Oklahoma.
Voters in Lincoln and Pottawatomie Counties had plenty to decide as they headed to the polls for June 30 primary.
After spending 39 years in the district in various capacities, among them the last 20 years as superintendent, Dale School Supt. Charlie Dickinson retired June 30, turning the reins over to Ky Wilkins.
Jul. 2 - State Rep. Zack Taylor, who gave up his District 28 House post, was the winner in his bid to fill the District 28 Senate seat in the primary election.
The splash pad next to the city pool in Chandler opened; This project was funded and created by the Chandler Lions club and the City of Chandler.
Meeker hosted the annual Rodeo Parade.
Jul. 9 - Communities throughout Lincoln County celebrated Independence Day.
Former Lincoln County judge, Craig Key, 55, who was charged with multiple crimes in 2013 and sent to prison, faced revocation of his suspended sentence for his apparent failure to pay restitution and court costs.
The Town of Tryon has resolved a variety of internal control deficiencies that were identified in the past four annual audits.
Jul. 16 - Lincoln County Fair board voted to have the Lincoln County Fair, but with only livestock exhibits and limited other activities.
Joe and Lindsey Ready hosted the Sinkin Teeth Fourth Annual Noodlin Tournament Sunday, July 12.
Stroud graduate Grant Elerick won the Jim Thorpe High School Player of the Year award in football.
Jul. 23 - The Lincoln County Courthouse remained open to the public but the court side shut down after a judge and Court Clerk employee tested positive for COVID-19.
Wellston Chamber of Commerce hosted the inaugural Deep Fork River Festival Saturday, July 18.
Earl W. Wilson, 55, of Tulsa was charged with first-degree murder for a 35-year-old crime in Lincoln County.
Jul. 30 - Trey Ireland, of Stephenville, Texas, scored a 79 on Friday night and won the bull-riding at the 80th annual Chandler rodeo.
The Helping Hands Community Foundation delivered three food pantries to towns in Lincoln County including Carney, Meeker and Davenport.
Meeker’s Tim ‘T-train’ Whitfield became a part of Moline, IL’s Indoor Football League team, The QuadCity Steam Wheelers.
Aug. 6 - Residents throughout Lincoln County received unsolicited seeds sent from a variety of countries including China.
Lincoln County commissioners approved the Estimate of Needs for the 2020-2021 Fiscal Year, which included a $50 pay raise for all full time employees.
Teddy bears were donated to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol from the Agra Club of the Oklahoma Home and Community Education.
Aug. 13 - Chandler City Council met and discussed mandating a face mask in public for the City of Chandler and scheduled a special meeting for Tuesday, Aug. 18, at 5:00 p.m. to take action.
Chandler second-grader Keton Dietz won the Reno World’s Championship over the weekend and is now the top-ranked wrestler in the country for his age and weight.
North Rock Creek School opened a daycare facility for teachers and staff.
Aug. 20 - Chandler City Council and Meeker Town Board both voted to take no action regarding a mask mandate within their communities.
34 residents at the Chandler Therapy and Living Center tested positive for COVID-19.
Davenport Public Schools was awarded an $8,000 grant through the Aviation Education Grant Program provided by the Oklahoma Aviation Commission.
Aug. 27 - Pottawatomie and Lincoln County entered into the COVID-19 Orange Level Two, which is 25 to 50 cases per 100,000 residents.
Marlon Miller unseated incumbent Troy Evans in the race for Lincoln County Commissioner District 2 Tuesday, getting just over 68 percent of the vote in the Republican runoff.
The second annual Oklahoma Cross County Races Association racing event took place at Stroud Lake.
Sep. 3 - The Meeker FFA Chapter was one of 10 national finalists for the 2020 Model of Excellence, presented by the National FFA Organization.
Stroud received $161,000 in funding to rebuild two of the filters at the water treatment plant.
The Stroud Lady Tigers rolled through three games of the 66 Conference tournament Thursday and Saturday, beating Meeker 9-0, Seminole 7-4 and Chandler 11-5 to win the championship and establish themselves as contenders for a repeat trip to the Class 2A state tournament.
Sep. 10 - The USDA announced that its school lunch program had been expanded to allow all school students throughout the nation to eat breakfast and lunch free through the end of 2020.
Construction started Tuesday on the bridge over Captain Creek on SH-66B on the west side of Wellston.
Chandler Lions broke six-year streak in rivalry game against the Stroud Tigers and took home the trophy for the first time since 2013.
Sep. 17 - The Chandler, Prague and Meeker FFA Chapters received a 3-star rating from the National FFA Association, and Meeker was previously announced as one of 10 finalists for the 2020 Model of Excellence.
The Oklahoma Hot Boat Association presented the third annual Route 66 Shootout at Stroud Lake Sep. 12 - 13.
State Farm agent Austin Cory provided needed materials to the Chandler Fire Department for Fire Prevention Week, an annual awareness campaign that teaches fire safety.
Sep. 24 - Two positive cases of rabies were reported in bats in Lincoln County around Bell Cow Lake in Chandler.
The Meeker Town Board, meeting as the Public Works Authority, voted to raise water, sewer and trash rates effective Nov. 1.
Lincoln County recorded its 10th death attributed to COVID-19 within the last week and the number of people testing positive in Pottawatomie County climbed above 1,200.
Oct. 1 - Pottawatomie County recorded its 10th death attributed to CO-VID-19 and the number of people testing positive in Pottawatomie County climbed to nearly 1,400.
All of the playground equipment for the Glenn Crest Park renovation in Meeker was erected and in place.
Oct. 8 - Chandler residents Steve and Jean Lucas accepted donations of old t-shirts to be turned into diapers for expecting mothers in Nicaragua.
Two absentee ballots that were mailed from the Stroud Post Office and later returned to those voters as undeliverable was caused by a problem with the automation at another Post Office
Stroud and Dale headed to the fastpitch softball state tournament while North Rock Creek headed to the volleyball state tournament.
Oct. 15 - During Fire Prevention week, Stroud firefighters dressed up in their gear and headed into Parkview Elementary to teach student important lessons regarding fire safety.
Gary Wayne Harper Jr., 47, of Drumright and Constance Edwards, 31, of Cushing were charged with aggravated trafficking in illegal drugs when Carney Police Chief Jacob O’Donnell pulled them over for an expired tag and found 2.3 pounds of methamphetamines.
Stroud and Dale fastpitch closed out the season as two of the top four teams in the state in Class 2A.
Oct. 22 - Three Stroud residents, Julie Bivin, Elizabeth Lau and Tiffany Morris, crossed another item off their bucket list this month and ran the Oklahoma City Run to Remember half marathon.
Lincoln County commissioners had approved a budget for the 2020-2021 Fiscal Year and it included a $50 per month pay raise for all county employees.
To help get more milk and dairy foods to those who need it, local dairy farmers helped provide a refrigerated cooler to Helping Hands Community Foundation and Food Pantry in Chandler.
Oct. 29 - A late October ice storm forced several school closures and caused power outages throughout areas of Pottawatomie and Lincoln County.
Meeker FFA President Connor Benn was the top four in the nation for speech writing.
Voters in Lincoln and Pottawatomie Counties could begin in-person absentee voting (Thursday, Oct. 29) for Tuesday’s Nov. 3 General Election by casting their ballot at the County Election boards in Chandler and Shawnee.
Nov. 5 - History was made as the Meeker FFA Chapter won the National FFA Model of Excellence award, making them the best FFA chapter in the nation.
Both County Commissions officially declared a State of Emergency due to the ice storm that greatly impacted Pottawatomie and Lincoln Counties.
Voters in Pottawatomie County set at least one new record in Tuesday’s General Election with heavy early voting and Lincoln County’s early turnout was significantly higher over four years ago as well.
Nov. 12 - Meeker sophomore Riley Randall brought home the Class 3A cross country state championship. The Chandler girls cross country team won the Academic state championship by having the highest grade-point average of any team in the state.
Seven area athletes brought home All-State honors, including Riley Randall, Meeker, crosscountry; Madison Ham, Stroud, cross-country; Braxton Bussell, Meeker, cross-country; Leah Brannon, Chandler, cross-country; Jadyn Young, Stroud, fast-pitch; Emma Davis, Stroud, fast-pitch, and Jordan Coody, North Rock Creek, cross-country.
Nov. 19 - Eight-year-old Hunter Mash felt the need to help his community with one of his favorite pastimes, reading, and constructed two little libraries for others to enjoy books for free.
State Sen. Allison Michelle Ikley-Freeman was formally charged with first degree manslaughter, accused of causing the death of a Bristow man in a fatal traffic collision in May.
Jimmie Rae Brownfield, 13, of Davenport, set a new national record Saturday, deadlifting 215 pounds.
Her record is in the 114-pound class and is recognized by the United States Powerlifting Federation.
Nov. 26 - Lincoln County Commissioners had taken action aimed at building a new county jail rather than renovating the current one.
Dec. 3 - The Stroud Chamber of Commerce awarded Stroud Public Schools Superintendent Joe Van Tuyl as the 2019 Citizen of the Year.
The filing period for school board offices in Lincoln and Pottawatomie Counties opened.
Meeker High School presented academic letterjackets to five seniors, Callie Sellers, Aidan Williams, Kaycee Babek, Conoor Benn and Cade Patterson.