Observations...

Looking for a way to cool off this weekend? The Monkey Island Fire Fighters and Auxiliary are holding an ice cream social Saturday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the firehouse, featuring lots of homemade ice cream. The entire family is invited, fire department officials said…The MIFD Auxiliary is also looking for people to set up and sell from their booths at the Craft Fair and Bake Sale Nov. 4…call 257-5614 for info. A booth costs only $20…Remember the Bassmasters Elite Top 100 fishing tournament the first week of June? It was hoped that the event would bring lots of business to the area and apparently it did, judging by sales tax reports for that period. Grove had an increase of 9.5% over the previous year; Bernice a 33.1% increase; Fairland a 34% increase; Ketchum a 12% increase, and Langley a 12% increase. Delaware County was up 12%...The state jail inspector visited the Ottawa County jail this week and guess what, found the place understaffed and over occupied, just like almost every county jail in the state. The problem is that there is a waiting list of more than 1400 prisoners for the Big House in Lexington, which backs up into every county. All this is caused by the state legislature's failure to deal with the prison problem at the state level, foisting the fix on the counties which can't deal with it except to build more huge jails and tax the residents to do it…With marina gas now over $3.50 a gallon, how long will it be before the boat makers come up with a fuel efficient engine…otherwise we are liable to see more sailboats on Grand Lake. Last Saturday we took a trip to the dam, used $87 worth of gas and saw less than two dozen boats out on the lake…If you think the controversy for the Grove city manager issue is over, think again. Judging by the emails and posts to our blog, one side is not giving up...What's up with the lake level going down...nearly three feet in the past two weeks, down to 741.46 Thursday afternoon. GRDA says the reason is the drawdown for the annual Japanese Millet seeding now going on in the upper reaches of the lake. We thought this ridiculous program had been cancelled since it doesn't work. It illustrates the retarded mindset of FERC employees in Washington who insist the lake be drawn down at the hottest, dryest period of the year. Your tax dollars at work...If you are traveling by air soon, remember that you may not put any liquids or jels of any kind in your carry on luggage. This includes toothpaste, lotions, sun tan creams or oils, baby oil, perfume, cologne, mouthwash, contact lens solution, eye wash, etc. Pack these items in a clear plastic bag and put in your checked luggage. This is a result of the heightened security alert Thursday after a terrorist bomb plot to blow up 10 airliners was uncovered in London...
Grove's water consumption is holding at 3.5 to 3.8 million gallons a day and the tanks are holding their own, according to John Gibe, City Water Dept. head; there has been compliance with the voluntary ban on lawn watering, he reports...

Lendonwood's Major Event of the Year Set

Lendonwood Gardens will be “all lit up” for its major fund-raising party of the year, set for September 23, said Cindy Reynolds of Grove, chair of the event. With a theme of “Light the Night,” the garden party will feature a dinner of tasty hors d’oeuvres, beverages, and a “fabulous dessert,” Reynolds said.
The party will be held from 5 – 7:30 p.m. at Lendonwood, a public botanical garden located at 1308 West 13th Street (Har-Ber Road) in Grove. Entertainment will be provided by Miami guitarist Jered Swopes and catering will be handled by Auntie Em’s Catering of Grove.
A silent auction is planned, offering 11 themed gift-baskets for the highest bidders. Themes of the gift baskets will include gardening, entertainment, the English garden, cooking and barbecue, fishing, pets, automotive, golf, fitness and spa, “visiting grandkids,” and Grand Lake. Many of the gift basket items were donated by individuals and area merchants, Reynolds said.
In addition, a drawing will be held for a Chanel gift basket valued at more than $300. Party entrance tickets will serve as tickets for the drawing.
“We are planning a wonderful evening that will be fun as well as supportive of one of our area’s true treasures, Lendonwood Gardens,” Reynolds said. “Our whole community benefits from having Lendonwood here, and we hope the community will turn out to support this grand asset and enjoy the garden party.”
Information on purchasing tickets for the garden benefit, which are $25 per person, may be obtained by calling Lendonwood Gardens at 918-786-2938. Serving with Reynolds on the Garden Party Committee are Robyn Carnett, Donna Killion and Mardee Dodge, all of Grove.
Lendonwood is a three-acre, non-profit botanical garden supported by volunteers and donations. The garden is open to the public year-round, from dawn to dusk.

The Canine Corner...by Missy MacTavish

The headline in the local paper says "Dog Blamed in One- Car Crash."
What?
Last time I checked, dogs could not drive a car due to the distance between the steering wheel and the brake. The newspaper report said the dog died in the crash after it caused a distraction with the driver and his female companion. The driver, the article said, was trying to get the dog away from him when he hit a bridge pier near Quapaw.
So the highway patrol has blamed it on the dog.
Excuse me, but what was the female companion doing at the time? Since she was thrown out of the vehicle she must not have been wearing a seat belt.
Perhaps the young man was paying too much attention to the female companion and the dog thought he should focus on his driving. Perhaps the dog had a tetch of jealousy.
I think I've seen everything when the highway patrol starts blaming a dog for a car crash.
Especially when he dies…dead dogs tell no tales. Or is it tails?

Until next time, Bark On! Miss Missy

Grove Chamber Head to Serve on State Board

Lisa Friden, president of the Grove Area Chamber of Commerce has been elected to serve on the board of directors of the Oklahoma Chamber of Commerce Executives Association (OCCE).

Friden has served on the organization’s audit and scholarship committees. “I am honored to be elected to serve on this statewide board. My term will allow me to represent Grove and keep us in the forefront at the state level” stated Friden.

Other officers include Roy Williams, President, Oklahoma City Chamber, serving as President, Ruth Littlefield, President, Jenks Chamber, serving as president-elect, Rich Cantillon, Ponca City Chamber serving as secretary and Shelia Lee, Vice President, Lawton/Ft. Sill Chamber as past president.

Other board members include Karl Burkhardt, Pauls Valley Chamber, Mary Helfenbein, McAlester Chamber, J.C. Kinder, Sand Springs Chamber, Jim Fram, CCE, CED, Bartlesville Chamber, Mita Bates, Ardmore Chamber, and Nancy Keith, Shawnee Chamber.

Playmakers Announce 06-07 Season

There’s a lot of comedy and music in The Playmakers upcoming season, beginning with the youth production, a musical based on Aesop’s Fables, and ending with a musical based on Robert Fulghum’s credos, developed he says, from things he “learned in Kindergarten.” Not every play is about childhood things, though those silly, somewhat childlike ladies from the Farndale Housing Estate will add to the laughs. And, some of the characters in the classic comedy, “Bus Stop,” are still quite innocent.
The Playmakers are bringing back the discounted Flexible pass but have combined it with a Season Ticket for this eleventh season. These ‘passes’ may be purchased in groups of four, six, or ten, and may be used in any combination for the five regular season shows. However, they must be purchased by September 5th. Further information is available by calling The Playmakers, 918-786-8950.
“Don’t Count Your Chickens Until They Cry Wolf,” is the lively musical with almost sixty characters from Aesop’s Fables. The Off Broadway Troupers, the youth wing of The Playmakers is already hard at work to make this production a delightful experience for all ages. Opening September 9, it will run Saturdays, Sundays, and Tuesdays through September 24.
It is followed by the zany British Farce, “The Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Townswomen’s Guild Dramatic Society’s Production of The Christmas Carol.” If you missed the first Farndale production, you are advised to get your reservations early, and take a break from the holiday stress to laugh yourself silly. It opens Thanksgiving weekend on November 24 and runs through December 9.
Oklahoma’s centennial will be celebrated with an original drama by an Oklahoman.
“Onxy Sky,” by Bret Jones, Director of Theatre at East Central University in Ada, Ok.,
is a drama set in the “dust bowl” period in Lyle, Oklahoma. The story centers upon a young married couple who are trying to survive, settle down with one another, and deal with family issues, including the death of a brother. The play is naturalistic in tone with a sense of foreboding concerning the constant fear of the coming “black rollers” that act metaphorically as another character in the play. The play is based upon historical events and upon situations that the playwright’s grandparents experienced during this period time living in Oklahoma. The Playmakers, Oklahoma’s Theatre of the Year, is the first community theatre to produce this play. It runs from February 16 through March 4.
Who could forget Marilyn Monroe in “Bus Stop,” the classic comedy by William Inge which opens April 13 and runs through April 29. And where is Grove’s “Marilyn” just waiting in the wings for a chance to be a star? This may be the only classic play in which the ‘cowboy gets the girl.” The girl is Cherie, who “won a amateur contest down in Joplin, Mo.” The cowboy is Bo Decker, a champion rodeo rider who’s hardly ever seen a girl, and seems to think he can just rope & tie her as he does one of his steers. Put them together in the middle of a spring snow storm in a tiny bus stop, and watch both of them learn about love.
A musical version of “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten,” opens July 13 and closes July 28. This is a refreshingly intimate combination of musical theatre and storytelling based on Robert Fulghum’s best selling credos, derived, he says, from childhood. So tell all those friends and family members to come to the lake at this time, and you’ll know what to do with them.
For a brochure with details about the Season as well as the Flexible Season passes, call The Playmakers at 918-786-8950.

In Photo: Students rehearsing for "Don't Count Your Chickens Until They Cry Wolf: Back row from left: Rylee Tate, Alen Cantrell, Scott Sanders, Lynsey Popp and Raven Feather.
Front row from left: Zac Johnson, Krayton King, Kabrey King, McKenzie Miller, Delany Vaughn, and Heather Cantrell.

Advertise in The Grove Observer

This past week more than 1,400 people took a peek at The Grove Observer. You can advertise to this audience through Advertz. You write your own ad up to 50 words and pay $25 a week. Interested? Call 791-0203 or email your ad to groveobserver@yahoo.com. You can even email us your color photo to put in the ad.

Library Speaker is Eddie Faye Gates

The speaker at the Grove Public Library's Third Thursday program on Aug. 17 is Eddie Faye Gates, a woman who has spoken to audiences in many places, but with the same purpose--to inform on the "Black Experience" and to promote peace, harmony, and justice.
Gates addresses the Third Thursday program at 12 noon. Everyone is invited. It is a brown bag lunch. Drinks and dessert are provided.
Gates brings a world of experience to her message. She was born a sharecropper's daughter In Okmulgee County, Okla. Her parents taught their eight children, two others died young, to work and learn. Graduating from Okmulgee's Dunbar High School in 1951, Gates was selected to attend Tuskegee Institute in Alabama where for three years she learned both in class and in activism. She and Norman Gates, who had received his B.S. degree and 2d lieutenant bars at Tuskegee two weeks earlier, married in 1954. Three months later Lt. Gates was called to active duty in the U.S. Air Force, and before long the new couple was living in London, England. Five children, 12 moves, a B.S. degree for Eddie Faye, and 14 years later, Gates left active duty and the family settled in Tulsa.
Eddie Faye began a 22-year career as a history teacher at Edison High School. She then became an administrator the Tulsa Public Schools. She was curriculum coordinator for social studies for all grades and was responsible for designing a curriculum that depicted the history, achievements and role models of all Americans. After retiring in 1992, Gates wrote her first two books. "Miz Lucy's Cookies: And Other Links in My Black Family Support System" is an autobiography. Next Gates wrote "They Came Searching: How Blacks Sought the Promised Land in Tulsa."
When the Oklahoma Legislature created the Oklahoma Commission to Study the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, it should be no surprise that Eddie Faye Gates, historian and activist, was one of the eleven members. "Riot on Greenwood: The Total Destruction of Black Wall Street" was the book Gates wrote recording the accounts of black and white witnesses.
Gates will have copies of her books for sale and autographing, and will take questions from the audience.
The Grove Public Library and Friends of the Grove Public Library sponsor the Third Thursday programs.

Making of James Movie on tap for Society

Those who attend the monthly meeting of the Delaware County Genealogical Society will hear about the making of the Jesse James movie. The society meets Tuesday, Aug. 15, at 7 p.m. at the Grove Public Library.
The year is 1938. People were sitting in a diner drinking coffee just across the state line in McDonald County, and in walked Henry Fonda, Tyrone Power, and Nancy Kelly. All were very big movie stars in that time. What's going on? They wondered. It was the filming of the Jesse James movie.
Most of the movie was shot in McDonald County where many locals were part of the production. Over the years, the McDonald County Library at Pineville has collected thousands of pictures about the movie and the stars.
Carrie Cline, McDonald County library director, will present a program on "The Making of the Jesse James Movie." The presentation will include many photographs from the library's collection, and many stories of local folks and the move stars -- when Hollywood came to the Ozarks.
And in case you wonder why Pineville has Jesse James Days each August, it's in remembrance of the movie. The real Jesse James was never there, so far as is known. The public is invited to all meetings of the Genealogical Society. The society supports the genealogical collection at the library with funds, materials, and volunteers. A short social hour follows the programs.

A Matter of Faith

By Carol Round

AND THAT HAS MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE
”Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:20 (NIV)

I grew up attending a small church that was only a block from where my sister and I grew up. We walked to Sunday school each week.

Eventually I drifted away from the church. And though I have always believed in God, I didn’t know Him.

We can attend church every time the doors are open. We can listen to the sermon, sing hymns of praise, participate in church activities and still walk out the door without knowing the Lord personally.

About six years ago, I realized that something was missing in my life. I didn’t know what it was. I just felt this gnawing emptiness inside that nothing could ease.

Shopping for clothes, shoes, purses and jewelry gave me a temporary high. Staying busy to occupy every waking moment didn’t fill that hole. Escaping through reading one fiction book after another provided no relief. Working harder to earn more money couldn’t fill me up. Neither could the various dating relationships I had.

Nothing could fill that void in my heart except a personal relationship with my savior. He continued to patiently knock at the door until I opened it and let Him in. And that has made all the difference.

God’s patience with me has helped me to be more patient with those around me. His acceptance of me—faults and all—has made me less critical of others. His willingness to forgive me has led me to forgive those who have hurt me. By His grace, I am a new person.

I sometimes refer to myself as the “old Carol” and the “new Carol” when talking about the change in me. Those who know me best have seen the transformation.

Another word for transformation is adaptation. The definition of adaptation “is the acquisition of modifications in an organism that enable it to adjust to life in a new environment.”

I have willingly allowed the Lord to transform me so that I can adjust to life in a new environment—an environment of love and acceptance because He first loved and accepted the person I was and who I have become through a personal relationship with Him.

I am still working—with His help—on becoming the woman He created me to be. I am a work-in-progress like the pieces of a puzzle that must patiently be fitted together to form a picture.

Many people have the pre-conceived idea that when you accept the Lord into your life, all of your troubles will magically disappear. Actually, my disappointments, my heartaches and serious illnesses increased—but so did my faith.

When I began to feel unfulfilled and empty, I think Jesus was knocking louder. His knock was more urgent. He was preparing me for what was to come.

I’m so thankful that He kept knocking—so blessed that He didn’t give up on me.

Do you hear Him knocking at your door? Open it. Let Him in.