Welcome to the
Burns Flat Community Newsletter
Online Edition of What's Up! in Business Development for Burns Flat
April 2009
If the Redbuds are blooming that can only mean one thing. That's right, it's time for a cold snap before we can really call it spring. And cold and snow and ice made their last stand at the end of March. Normally, for those of us just south of I-40, 1 April is the safe to plant stuff date--without having to worry too much about a hard freeze. Always remember your geography. Yes, any sort of weather is possible in Oklahoma.
All Washita County Residents to Get $7,500 in Federal Stimulus Money!
Checks are Already on the Way!
Now that's a good deal!!! Of course it is also the mandatory April Fools story, but I couldn't let the month pass without a little fun. Sorry, no windfall, but we do have a great newsletter for you.
Where is that Egg?
Mark your calendars for April 11th.
That is the date of the Burns Flat Easter Egg Hunt.
Look for details at Mozelles or The Eagle's Nest.
Mozelles says that 2009 is Your Year to Shine! The tanning beds have new bulbs and we have new prices. Stop by and check out what we can do for you!
Next Chamber Meeting
11 May 2009
12:00 pm (Noon)
Eagles Nest
Every Business has a Story!
Jordan’s Grandma – A History by Pat Hartronft
Jerry and Pat Hartronft started their arts and crafts career back in the 1970’s participating in weekend fairs and festivals with Pat’s oil paintings and Jerry’s tin can crafts. Their two sons, Stoney and Scotte, traveled with them. Tired of traveling on weekends, they opened their first store in Burns Flat in 1984 next to Jerry’s Eagle Home Repair. A second store was also opened in Clinton. The stores were named Yours Very Truly because the items sold were personalized.
In 1988, they remodeled and opened the Kountry Inn Restaurant in Dill City. A gifts section was added to the front area. This business was sold in 1994 to Bob and Ruth Chafins from Massachusetts.
From 1996 to 2000, Pat worked for Rudy and Lynn Ferrari as the breakfast cook in the newly rebuilt Superette. Lynn encouraged Pat to get back into crafts and sell them at the store. In the meantime, their grandson, Jordan was born in 1999 to Stoney and Mandy Hartronft. In 2005, Pat and Jerry opened a gift and home décor business in the Pioneer Shopping Center souoth of the High School. This store was named Jordan’s Grandma.
In 2008, Jerry purchased the old Conoco service station located at the stoplight in Burns Flat and remodeled it as a mini-mall. The Station has room for 3 businesses. Pat’s business offers gifts, jewelry, purses, balloons, greeting cards, home décor, and assorted pieces of furniture. Sevan’s Secrets, named after their granddaughter-Sevan Raychelle-has a selection of baby items—some created by Mom Mandy.
Jerry, aka Grandpa, has storage containers for sale or rent. These are located behind the mini-mall. The third space is currently for rent. Business hours are Monday through Friday form 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. or by appointment. The phone number is 580-562-3155.
Twilla’s Ion Foot Spa
For a low impact workout, try our toning tables. Toning tables make a huge difference in muscle toning, strengthening, and over all physical health. Our disabled customers are benefiting greatly using our toning tables--regaining muscle tone and strength while losing inches. The customers are able to move, walk, and feel better all around.
For those looking for a moderate to high impact workout, Twilla has added some new aerobic equipment. Young or old, no matter which workout you choose, “You will get results.” Loose inches and feel great at Twilla’s.
Feeling Tired? Sore Achy muscles? Fighting allergies? Just not feeling right? You may be full of toxins. Try our inon detox or some detox foot patches to get your body back into a state of “Harmony.”
Our hydromassage is another way to deox, relieve tired achey muscles, or just relax. You haven’t experienced a piece of heaven until you’ve tried a hydromassage at Twilla’s.
Word around town is Twilla has the best
tanning beds around. Customer comments are,
“I
actually tan,” quick results,” and “these beds are huge.” Come by and try one
and get that golden tan faster. You get more for your money at Twilla’s. Don’t
forget to ask about our new tan wedges.
Twilla doesn’t require a contract. Pay by the visit or the month. Come enjoy our great prices, clean and friendly atmosphere where you can get away from life’s troubles. Come meet new friends and become a healthier you.
Our hours are Monday through Friday 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. or by appointment. Call 580-243-9742 or 580-562-3155.
Grannies Rock!
National Day of Prayer to
kick off with breakfast at the First Baptist Church in Burns Flat.
The Burns Flat – Dill City Ministerial
Alliance will host a Prayer Breakfast at
7:00 a.m. at the First Baptist Church in Burns Flat. The keynote speaker will
be State Representative Ryan McMullen, but the purpose of this gathering is kick
off a day for God’s people to set aside this day for prayer. Alliance churches
will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. for those that wish to come to a
sanctuary and pray or to come and pray with their pastor. All families are
asked to make special efforts to pray throughout the day. We are God’s people.
Let us take this one special occasion and talk to our Creator all day long!
Prayer Breakfast Tickets
$10
Available in early April
Limited Seating
Check with any Ministerial Alliance Church
Town-Wide Garage Sale set
for 13 June 2009. Start identifying those treasures
that need to go because June will be here before you know it. Look for
more in May’s newsletter.
I Don't Want to Sit in Front of My House to Sell My Stuff!
Do you have too much stuff? It’s too good to throw away, but you just don’t have either the room or a need for it any more. Then you will want to start preparing for the town-wide garage sale in June. Start cleaning out those closets now.
Don’t want to sit on your front porch all morning selling items for fifty cents? Donate your items to the Cumberland Presbyterian Youth. They will host a garage sale at the church on the 13th to raise money for church camp. Donations accepted beginning June 8th. Receipts provided upon request.
Baccalaureate
is Just Around the Corner. The last two months of the school year
are jammed packed with activities and seem to fly by. Here is one to mark on
your calendar—Baccalaureate! Join us as we send our seniors into the world with
a special worship service for our BFDC Senior Class. The Baccalaureate Service
begins at 3:00 p.m. on the May 17th at the High School.
Mark Your Calendars! Vacation Bible School Dates for area churches are:
First Baptist Church, Burns Flat – 1-5 June 2009
Cumberland Presbyterian Church, Burns Flat – 20-24 July 2009
Shelter from Storms Requires Knowledge, Compliance, Patience, and Thanksgiving!
When the storm sirens are blaring don’t head
to either the high school or elementary school. They will not be open. The
designated community shelter is the basement of the John Ross building. For
those not familiar with this location, it is the old school building on the
north end of town. It is the brick building just north of the county road on
the west side. Paved parking is limited and a healthy dose of the golden rule
will be necessary to make this a viable shelter.
This year rules designed for the safety, health, and welfare of all people seeking shelter will be enforced. No pets of any kind will be allowed in the building. Only designated areas are available when the building is open. Smoking is not permitted anywhere in the building. These will be cramped quarters, but safety not comfort must take precedence in extreme circumstances.
While the facility may not be optimal, it is available. The school system not the city owns this property. The school board must balance appropriate use of public school facilities against potential liability and use of the John Ross building as a community shelter is the community solution for 2009.
Let’s cut to the quick on this storm safety business. This is an individual responsibility. Personal shelters, in home saferooms, timely evacuation to an available facility or other measures should be thought through in advance. If you choose to use the shelter at John Ross, please remember that it is provided for the use of many so be considerate, be helpful to others, be what we are known for here in western Oklahoma—just plain, old fashioned friendly. Oh yes, be thankful that this shelter is available.
Volunteers Needed! Stacy Cloyd needs volunteers to help with emergency readiness. If you would be willing to take a turn at opening the storm shelter at John Ross, helping people once they get there—children, elderly, disabled—then stop by Mozelles and talk with Stacy or call her at 580 445 5291.
Disaster
Preparedness Meeting draws 27. Community leaders hosted a disaster
preparedness meeting on 19 March 2009 at the Community Center. The meeting
commenced at 7:00 p.m. as Billy Yarbrough read the Burns Flat Disaster
Preparedness Plan. The plan is more focused on what the community will do
after something like a tornado hits, but included some information on what to do
when the sirens are sounded (see separate article). While the turnout was less
than hoped for, those present were given the opportunity to ask as many
questions as desired.
This plan and this meeting are certainly good first steps in a process we pray will not be needed, but prudence and civic duty require such planning.
PROMISE KEEPERS
Saturday
25 April
9:00 a.m.
Eagle's Nest
$5
Men of Integrity
You do not want to miss this meeting!
Until we get our own pharmacy again...
Grandview Pharmacy has been making weekly deliveries to Burns Flat. The pharmacy has multiple ways to contact them. You may want to find out if this is a good option for you.
Phone: 580 225 5550
Emergency: 580 799 4434
Fax: 580 225 6658
Editorial
We—Burns Flat-- may not have the best plans or the best facilities in the world, but we have a plan and we have a facility identified for emergency use. Sometimes we take too much for granted—that there will be a plan, there will be a facility, there will be somebody taking care of business. I don’t attend many town meetings, but know there is always a seat available. I too had hoped there would be standing room only for the disaster preparedness meeting and was disappointed when there were plenty of seats available. Since taking on the Chamber Newsletter, I have been to many chamber meetings and wondered where is everyone?
This is the challenge of the 21st century—to give my time to what’s important. What a challenge that is! God, country, school, city, chamber, little league, soccer, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, blood drives, oh yes, I almost forgot work, and then start the cycle again. The truth is that we make time for what is important to us. That means that we also say no to some things and trust that others will do what they can for the common good for the things to which they say yes. That concept is simply know as community.
Here is one for the common good that nobody wants to hear, but rings true for any plan. For the disaster preparedness plan to be of any value, it has to be tested. That doesn’t mean the whole town pretends that it was hit by a tornado or engulfed with a chemical spill. It does mean that key personnel need to run mock exercises with internal partners and external agencies and then have an honest debrief of what worked, what didn’t, who couldn't be contacted, and what had been forgotten altogether. That’s where the planning really begins. Plans sound good on paper but eyes open when plans are exercised. But that is also where the real return on investment begins. We have taken good first steps in getting ready--attaboys are due our city leaders and emergency response folks. We need to keep up the momentum with exercises, revised plans, and better community attendance at future meetings. In short, Good Job to the Burns Flat leadership for getting this far, now let’s take the necessary next steps.
Beverly Walls Retirement Reception
Cumberland Presbyterian Church
3-5 p.m.
Saturday
April 4th
For those that have only known Beverly as the Burns Flat Postmaster,
here is a glimpse into her career that spanned three decades.
*Beverly started
out as a clerk at Burns Flat in 1982
*She became Postmaster at
Rocky July 14, 1990
*Transferred to be Postmaster to
Sentinel March 6, 1993
*Assigned Postmaster at Burns Flat February 27,1999
Stop by and tell Beverly congratulations!
I hope that she is not offended that I sent this
announcement via email!!!
New Milestones
This month, What's Up passed an editorial milestone. Someone asked me what you had to do to get something listed in the community newsletter. After recovering from the shock of someone actually wanting to bring me news (most months resemble tooth-pulling without painkillers), I realized that What's Up needed a Letter to the Editor policy. Here it is.
If your submission has community value and is in good taste (No OSU jokes), then
I
will
try to find a spot for it. If you would like to have it published in the
hard copy edition, then you need to refine your thoughts to no more than 75
words. I can include longer comments online, but to get your remarks to
the newsstand, concision is essential.
Email submission is preferred. No pseudonyms or anonymous submissions will be considered. Other factors involved will be space available, timeliness of the submission, and the ability to verify the author. Emails and letters need the name and phone number of the person submitting the commentary for verification. Ads will not be accepted as letters to the editor; however, business information for Chamber of Commerce members is generally given priority and included in What's Up without charge.
Contact Tom Spence or Kathy Carlisle about ads for non-Chamber businesses.
Join the Chamber
You
do not have to own or manage a business to be a member of the Burns Flat Chamber
of Commerce, but if you do have a business in town, you need to belong to this
group. Why? There is no other group looking out for business
interests in Burns Flat. While there may be some competition among local
businesses; most are generally hoping that all succeed.
Successful business begets successful business and means more revenue stays in
and comes into town. Successful businesses also mean more local jobs.
But what can the chamber do for me? Give you visibility in this newsletter for one thing. Single copy distribution for Burns Flat averages 275 per month. Online readership is not tracked, but the online version is easily forwarded. If you have an online ad, you can paste the url of that ad into all of your emails--even the bazillion forwards you get each week.
Much attention has been given in this year's meetings to leveraging the Chamber to help local businesses. A group working for the common good is going to make some progress. A group working with only a handful of businesses makes much less progress.
Don't
sit on the sidelines complaining that business isn't good. Get on the
playing field with the Chamber and make something happen.
Got News?
Call Tom Spence
580 515 2995
or stop by the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Problems with Addiction?
The New Leaf Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) Group meets Tuesday evenings at 7:00 p.m. at the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Stay clean, stay sober, encourage each other to live an abundant life without drugs or alcohol.
—a 12 Steps Recovery Program—
What's Happening in our School System? Check it out!
or follow this link: http://www.bfdc.k12.ok.us/
Chamber Publishes Important Phone Numbers!
Jerry Mertz compiled a list of local business, service, and generally useful phone numbers. Pick one up from your local business or follow the link to the list on the electronic version of this newsletter. Updates and new information are always appreciated.
AA Groups Meet
Newcomers and old-timers welcomed!
New Leaf Group: Tuesdays @ 7pm at the Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Broad Highway Group: Wednesdays @ 8pm at 310 Pueblo Street.
Got News?
If you have some business, school, government, or information of general interest to the community of Burns Flat, please email it to Tom Spence for consideration to be included in this newsletter.
What's Happening in our School System? Check it out!
or follow this link: http://www.bfdc.k12.ok.us/
DIDJANO
Didjano (did you know) that most Fridays at 7:45 a.m. young Christian men and women meet in the High School music room? The group is called Youth Alive. They were the group that ran the See You at the Pole event this year. See You at the Pole was held from 7:30 to 8:00 a.m. at the BF-DC High School on 24 September 2008. The five churches of the Burns Flat - Dill City Ministerial Alliance are providing supporting services to Youth Alive in accordance with the following schedule.
Follow this link for important dates and updates at the Western Technology Center.
http://www.wtc.tec.ok.us for
more information.
The Super Bowl is over. March Madness is nearly over. Ouch! What am I supposed to do with myself??? Check out the short term classes offered at the Western Technology Center. Learn a skill that doesn't involve a remote control.
Remember, that you may pick up a hard copy newsletter at Chamber of Commerce businesses and other high traffic locations around town. Print and online versions vary somewhat based on deadlines, space limitations, and updates provided by community members (updates available online only).
See you next month!
This site hosted courtesy of
Hire, Contract, Outsource Locally!
Will
clean homes or other small jobs. Call Carolyn Parker at (580) 339-1658 or 1657.
Beauty Equipment for Sale. Large selection. Call 445-5291.
