OKLAHOMA CITY –– The Oklahoma Impact Investing Collaborative (Collaborative), a subsidiary of MetaFund, in partnership with the Oklahoma City Community Foundation (OCCF), proudly announces the hiring of Linda Brinlee as Director of Rural Health Initiatives. In her role as director, Brinlee will work to identify opportunities for joint investments aimed at improving rural health in a 15-county area of southeast Oklahoma.

From NonDoc.com Two animal rights groups along with a former governor and former state attorney general criticized Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt last week for recording a video message supporting a game-fowl organization that backs legislation to reduce the criminal penalties related to cockfighting.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Only a week after seizing more than 36 tons of black-market marijuana in a single day, the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force (OCTF) and Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) have made another major seizure, this time in Pottawatomie County.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell announced the availability of another $300 million in Swift Current funding to help property owners across the nation become more resilient to flooding. Swift Current aims to speed up the award of Flood Mitigation Assistance funding to reduce the damage-repair cycle of repetitively flooded or substantially damaged properties.

Boy the weather has been nice these last few weeks! The conditions where I live were just beautiful… sunny days with average temperatures in the 60s to low 70s and little wind. It’s hard to believe that it’s the middle of November.

Last week, Oklahoma Tribal Nations came together for a twoday 988 Mental Health Lifeline Summit planned and coordinated by the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes in partnership with additional 988 Mental Health Lifeline grantees (Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Comanche Nation, Muscogee Creek Nation, Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma, Osage Nation, and Southern Plains Tribal Health Board) across Oklahoma. The event brought together Tribal leaders, Oklahoma 988 Tribal grantees, community advocates and mental health experts from across the country, including officials from the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

DURANT –– Southeastern Oklahoma State University has announced the schedule and speakers for the 15th Biennial Native American Symposium – “States of Sovereignty” – which will be held on the Durant campus on Friday, November 17. This event will be a hybrid event, with online options available as well as in-person attendance.

HUGO –– A resolution was reached last Tuesday at the Hugo city council meeting, regarding an item that has spent months on the agenda. A three-to-one vote was submitted in favor of purchasing surveillance cameras for various locations throughout the city.

WILBURTON –– The Eastern Oklahoma State College Agriculture Division is set to host the 4th Annual Agricultural Hall of Fame Celebration Nov. 18, 2023, at 6 p.m.