Vol. MMXIV No. 125Wednesday

May 14, 2014Covering Bristow and Creek County Oklahoma

Bristow News75¢75¢

By J. D. MeisnerManaging Editor

An aging set of outdoorelevators, only half of whichwork about half the time, isthe only feasible way forsome parishioners to get intoSt. Joseph's Catholic Church,in Bristow.

Members of the 100-year-old church have known forsome time that there wereproblems with the outdoorelevators that hoisted handi-capped and disabled patronsup eight feet from street levelto the level of the sanctuary.

photo by Caleb BrabhamDon Pound gives blood in honor of his father, Bob Pound, for the In “Memory of Bob Pound” BloodDrive at First Baptist Church.

photo by Caleb BrabhamJason Williams from Edison Elementary, Allison Hilburn from Bristow High School, SherryEdens from Bristow Middle School, Karen Flanagan from Bristow High School and AnnetteMcKinzie from Collins Elementary are Bristow Public School’s teachers of the year for2014.

memorial blood drive St. Joe’srafflingnew car

By Caleb BrabhamStaff Writer

Kalyn DarbyThompson, 25, Englishteacher at KellyvilleHigh School was arrest-ed and charged with onecount of felony second-degree rape on Monday,May 12. Her bond was setat $35,000.

According to court records, Creek CountyDetective Chrissie Underwood met withKellyville Police and Kellyville faculty on April16, learning that Thompson had an inappropri-ate relationship with an 18-year-old student andhad resigned earlier that day.

Kellyville Principal Danny Wood informedUnderwood that Thompson had been told thatshe could not see the student in question outsideof school after it had been discovered that thetwo had dinner together in January. Wood hadbeen informed by the student’s mother that thepair had sex on two different occasions in thepast three weeks, at Heyburn Lake and theRenaissance Hotel in Tulsa. The student latercorroborated the story to police.

Going to the Renaissance Hotel, DetectiveDrew Mullenix was able to confirm thatThompson had been a guest at the hotel.Thompson and the student’s phones weresearched, turning up text message conversa-tions, some of a sexual nature.

According to court records, the student hadbeen flunking English the previous semester. Asof April 16, the student had a 98 percent.

Kellyvilleteacherchargedwith rape

Kalyn Thompson

By Caleb BrabhamStaff Writer

Thursday, May 15, will bethe 71st Annual Creek CountyAg Tour put on by the CreekCounty Conservation District.Those embarking on the tourwill be able to register from 7a.m. to 8 a.m. at Mid-AmericaStockyards. Equipment deal-ers will be available at thistime, for farmers and ranchersto approach and discuss theirwares.

The tour will visit locationsincluding a tour of the CreekCounty Juvenile JusticeCenter, Gowdy Ranch and

By Caleb BrabhamStaff Writer

The Bristow School BoardMonday discussed the future of theBristow school system includingplans for renovations as well as anadditional grant from the OklahomaEducational Technology Trust forone of its schools.

Director of Operations CurtisShelton spoke briefly on the contin-ued plans for the agriculture educa-tion/wrestling facility.

“The building has been delivered.The framework is up,” said Shelton.“Through the 20th of this month,they should be putting the walls, the

insulation and the doors on thebuilding. Also this month they willstart the interior plumbing and thesidewalks that connect the twoAgriculture buildings and the rest-rooms.”

Shelton concluded saying thestraightforward project is on sched-ule. The plan has been for the agri-culture education/wrestling facilityto be open in time for the 2014-2015school year

Additionally, Shelton said that theBristow School Facility Boardapproved long-range facility planfor the next three years. The projectsprioritized by the board included

renovating the school’s old barn,installing sidewalk canopies atEdison and replacing floor coveringat the indoor baseball and softballfacility.

Principal of Bristow MiddleSchool Brian Burden announcedthat his school would be receiving a$65,000 grant, with $25,000 goingtowards professional development,from OETT, following in the foot-steps of Bristow High School, whoreceived its grant in June of 2013.The grant will fund the middleschool with the purchase of approx-imately 80 computers.

School board discusses district future

Bristow honors teachersBy Caleb BrabhamStaff Writer

Bristow High School award-ed some of its hardest workingand highest achieving teachersas teacher of the year for 2014.

Allison Hilburn and KarenFlanagan from Bristow HighSchool, Jason Williams fromEdison Elementary andAnnette McKinzie fromCollins Elementary werenamed as teachers of the yearand Sherry Edens, eighth gradeEnglish teacher at BristowMiddle School, was awardedas 2014 District Teacher of theYear.

Edens was able to achieve

this honor without ever open-ing a textbook.

“We never crack a text-book,” said Edens of the litera-ture based class. “I’m alwayslooking for true-life storiesstudents can relate to.”

Edens says that she is inter-ested in teaching life lessonsand relatable material to herstudents. Through introducingbooks to her class such as “TheOutsiders” and “Letters myMother Never Read”, whichconcerns surviving abuse,Edens addresses her studentson a personal level and encour-ages them to rise above what-ever personal situation they

might be facing. Though “TheOutsiders” is technically on asixth grade reading level,Edens hasn’t dropped it fromher curriculum because of theeffect the book has on herclass.

“I’ve had my kids tell me,‘I’ve never read a book all theway through before, but Iloved ‘The Outsiders!’”Recalls Edens.

Edens began her teachingcareer in 2005, working inCatoosa before transferringtwo years later to her home-town of Bristow.

“In Catoosa I wasn’t part of

High school announces valedictorians, salutarorianBy Caleb BrabhamStaff Writer

Three Bristow High School seniorshave been recognized for outstandingacademic achievement for the 2014school year. They are:

Dasia GivingsValedictorianAs the second oldest of 12, vale-

dictorian Dasia Givings, daughter ofAmber and Wash Givings, has neverbeen a stranger to helping out withher younger siblings. Givings saidthat her family helped her grow asmuch as she may have helped them.

“It’s the relationship first in myopinion. Before you can teach some-one something,” said Givings, whosays she hopes to be a teacher in thefuture. “If they don’t trust you,they’re not going to listen to you.”

But Givings’ responsibilities at

home are only a fraction of her per-sonality as she is also a member ofFFA, Leo Club, 2Much2lose, andchoir, showing a talent for music,playing chord piano as well as theguitar.

“I love working with kids and Ilove music,” said Givings, who willbe bound for Oklahoma BaptistUniversity this fall. “I was trying tofigure out a way to put those twothings together. What better than a

double major in music and educa-tion?

My mother wanted us all to be verygood at music. From the time that wewere little, she started putting us allin piano lessons and in choir.”

Givings says that she hopes to takewhat she’s learned and bring it toothers.

“I kind of want to find a smallcommunity, something like Bristowso I can get involved in the commu-nity and the school system and usewhatever I learn and the talents Godgives me through college.”

Taylor BookoutValedictorianValedictorian Taylor Bookout,

daughter of Stephen and JulieBookout, never settles for less in herstudies. For her, achieving valedicto-rian is not only an honor, it wasessential.

“I’ve never had a ‘B,’ ever, fromkindergarten to here,” said Bookoutwho, outside of her academic successis also a member of Leo Club, SWAT,

Dasia Givings Molly TurnerTaylor Bookout

See students, Page Three

See Teachers, Page Three

See Board, Page Three See Tour, Page Three

See Raffle, Page Three

Ag TourThursday

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