It's that time of year to celebrate and welcome the spring season with blooming flowers and the Dogwood Days Festival in Idabel, Oklahoma. Take the short drive from Texarkana for a weekend of fun The downtown area comes alive April 4-5 for the annual event featuring arts and craft vendors and sidewalk sales from downtown merchants as visitors stroll through the beautiful dogwood trees Other activities will include a Bull in the Woods competition The best part of the Dogwood Festival is taking a short trip to Beavers Bend Park and enjoying scenic tree-lined views of the majestic dogwood trees surrounding the park For more information go to the Idabel Chamber of Commerce Facebook page. Enjoy a weekend of fun at the Dogwood Days Festival in Idabel. Oklahoma on April 4-5, featuring everything from a 5K race to a car show and more!\nRead More It's that time of year to celebrate and welcome the spring season with blooming flowers and the Dogwood Days Festival in Idabel, Oklahoma. Take the short drive from Texarkana for a weekend of fun For more information go to the Idabel Chamber of Commerce Facebook page. - Rating: 3/5 (318 reviews)- Read more on Tripadvisor OK — The United States Postal Service is focused on building a more stable and empowered workforce and is seeking motivated individuals to fill Rural Carrier Associate (RCA) and Postal Support Employee (PSE) positions in Idabel A postal job offers employees the ability to work where they live lifelong benefits and career advancement opportunities throughout the entire agency.  Postal officials are hosting a Job Fair at the Idabel Post Office to answer questions about employment opportunities and to assist with the application process Rural Carrier Associate (RCA) - At $20.38 per hour an RCA is responsible for the delivery and collection of mail and serves families and businesses in rural and suburban areas An applicant must have a valid state driver's license and demonstrate and maintain a safe driving record Becoming an RCA could be the first step to becoming a full-time Postal Support Employee (PSE) – A PSE performs a variety of sales and customer support services The job primarily involves providing services to customers over the retail counter at postal branches Benefits may include paid vacation leave and health insurance If you enjoy working regularly with the public to serve your community this may be an excellent fit for you Those unable to attend the job fair may apply at www.usps.com/careers The United States Postal Service is an independent federal establishment, mandated to be self-financing and to serve every American community through the affordable, reliable and secure delivery of mail and packages to 169 million addresses six and often seven days a week. Overseen by a bipartisan Board of Governors, the Postal Service is implementing a 10-year transformation plan, Delivering for America restore long-term financial sustainability dramatically improve service across all mail and shipping categories and maintain the organization as one of America’s most valued and trusted brands The Postal Service generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage products and services to fund its operations Copyright© 2025 United States Postal Service An official website of the United States government Open Search  Mobile Menu Okla.— The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will hold a two-day wild horse and burro event Oct As part of the program’s efforts to find every horse and burro a good home BLM now offers up to $1,000 to adopt an untrained animal This incentive will be offered for every animal in Idabel BLM announced additional steps to secure the health and safety of animals through the Adoption Incentive Program including conducting inspections of wild horses and burros within six months of the adoption date Animals offered at the event are adult and yearling horses along with burros that once roamed free on public lands in the west BLM periodically removes excess animals from the range to maintain healthy herds and to protect other rangeland resources The Adoption and Sale Program is essential for achieving these important management goals BLM has placed more than 280,000 of these animals in approved homes across the country BLM staff will approve applications onsite Qualified homes must have a minimum of four hundred square feet of corral space per animal A six-foot corral fence is required for adult horses; five feet for yearlings; and four-and-a-half feet for burros stock-type trailers with swing gates and sturdy walls and floors BLM staff will be on hand to assist with the application process The Idabel Rodeo Arena is located at 1001 NW Ninth St., Idabel, Okla. 74745.  For more information, call toll-free 866-468-7826 or visit www.blm.gov The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations An official website of the Department of the Interior who was wanted on a felony warrant issued by the Choctaw nation Stinnett was wanted for possession of stolen property possession of firearm by a convicted felon Idabel police say they located and arrested Stinnett in the northwest part of Idabel He was found hiding under a vehicle and was taken into custody without incident Local breaking news delivered as it happens News headlines delivered at 7:00 am Monday - Friday News headlines delivered at Noon Monday - Friday News headlines delivered at 4:00 pm Monday - Friday Weather forecast delivered at 9:00 am daily Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: Roscoe Chester and Ruby Lee Routh in Oak Hill Community  Fay was a devoted mother and grandmother known affectionately as Memaw to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren She always had an open ear for the ones she loved Fay was an avid reader and enjoyed watching Hallmark movies she enjoyed making ceramics and crafting doll clothes for her nieces She cherished discussing current events with her family and friends always keeping lively conversations at the heart of any gathering Fay’s warm personality and openness made her a friend to many She was a member of Glorybound Independent Church in Garvin Roscoe and Ruby Routh; paternal grandparents Earl and Hattie Routh and maternal grandparents Ovie and Charlie Pollard; father of her children Fay leaves to cherish her memory her children Neal Routh of Broken Bow and Roger and Veda Routh of Golden Community; sisters Cameron McDonald of Wright City and Kyson McDonald of Broken Bow; twenty-four great-grandchildren; very special great-grandson Briar Harkey; one great-great-grandchild; a host of nieces other relatives and a multitude of friends 2025 at Bunch-Singleton Funeral Home Chapel at Bunch-Singleton Funeral Home Chapel with Bro Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInMcCURTAIN COUNTY (KSLA) - The National Weather Service (NWS) has confirmed a tornado touched down in McCurtain County Monday The EF-1 storm had peak winds of 93 mph and happened between Broken Bow and Idabel No injuries or deaths were reported in connection with this tornado STILLWATER – I’m not sure whether you classify it as respect or caution; but I heard from a friend in southeastern Oklahoma the day after one of the pillars of the Idabel High School athletic family Sammy Lopez passed away and we chose to be very concervative about reporting the tragedy My understanding is Coach Lopez died doing what he loved He was the baseball and softball coach at Idabel High School and got to coach both of his twins in Matrail in baseball and Mercades in softball The coach and dad got to see Matrail accept a college scholarship to play football at Oklahoma State and was with his family on the official visit Coach Lopez is on the far right of the picture. Sammy Lopez also saw his daughter win a Class 3A State Championship in basketball for Idabel and with both of the twins heading into their senior year in high school this was so tragic to think about.  This was what we wrote on our general message board when we learned about his passing Please keep Oklahoma State 2025 football commitment Matrail Lopez and his family in your thoughts and prayers Just terribly sad event last night as his father Idabel softball and baseball head coach Sammy Lopez Below is a link to the Idabel Schools Facebook story on Sammy Lopez' passing keep this family in your thoughts and prayers The same day the Idabel Public Schools posted a tribute on their facebook account Sammy Lopez was a valued member of the Idabel Public Schools family known for his unwavering dedication and passion for both his work and the students he coached he made a lasting impact on countless students and colleagues Sammy Lopez was not only a dedicated employee but also a mentor and friend to many His legacy will live on in the hearts of those who were fortunate enough to know him On Sunday, July 7, The Oklahoman in their continuing series on the top high school football players in the State of Oklahoma featured Matrail Lopez of Idabel at No It opened with Scott Wright writing of a conversation between Sammy and Matrail Lopez on their way back to Idabel after Matrail attended Oklahoma State’s “The Show” camp on June 12 Matrail was there along with other committed receivers in the 2025 recruiting class for the Cowboys in Kam Powell and Royal Capell On the four hour ride home to Idabel it sounded like father and son had fun conversation on what could develop there loved being able to coach them and share in their dreams for the future “Sammy was a family man,” Idabel High School head football coach and athletic director Scott Pratt said to Scott Wright of The Oklahoman “He was always gonna be present when his kids were involved His family is very important to him.” I’ve known friends that lost a parent in high school The power of positive thinking and the love of people around them is the key to dealing with it I do believe he is a strong young man and he has so many people around him that care about him and will support him and his family “Sammy is looking down right now and wants to see Matrail and all of his kids do great things,” Pratt added in The Oklahoman article Remembering that will be important for Matrail Mary was a cherished member of her community and a loving mother and friend.  She cherished spending time with her family Mary was known for her passion for arts and crafts She also had a keen interest in reading and playing video games with a particular fondness for the Zelda series Her creative spirit and warm presence brought joy to all who knew her and Dee Brazil of Louisiana; her grandchildren Talon Tucker and Lyric Tucker; and several nieces A Memorial Visitation will be held from 6-8 PM on Monday at Bunch-Singleton Funeral Home Chapel in Broken Bow  Billy “Myrl” Wheeler went home to be with his Lord on Saturday Myrl was an Idabel High School Class of 1952 graduate Myrl lived most of his adult life in Holly Creek where he ran a small cow/calf operation and custom baled hay He loved hunting and especially enjoyed introducing each of his six grandsons to the joys of outdoor life He also enjoyed camping at Broken Bow Lake each spring and spending time fishing with family and friends There was always plenty of fish caught for his annual birthday fish fry celebration.  Myrl was preceded in death by his parents; brother Florence Ann Graham and Virgie Green Faircloth Curtis “Dink” Wheeler of Idabel; daughters Terry Prater of Broken Bow and Cathy and husband Mark Baker of Idabel; Randall and Sandy Baker of Ponca City; Eli and Michaela Prater of Van Alstyne TX; Drew and Kelsey Prater of Broken Bow; Koty and Kaitlin Wheeler of Idabel; and Skyler and Hailey Wheeler of Idabel; and seven great-grandchildren Gareth Baker and Addison Christie; Jonah Price He also leaves a host of family and friends to cherish his memory and remember all the good times with him He was a 2003 graduate of Broken Bow High School.  He was assistant coach at the Middle School from 2015-2021 He and his family later moved to Idabel where he was head baseball and softball coach He coached his team to Regional Champs for the first time since 1921 He was a dedicated and compassionate person and will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him He is preceded in death by Dorothy Hester “Mamaw Dot”; brother Calvin Woods; maternal and paternal grandparents; and mother-in-law Sammy leaves to cherish his memory his loving spouse of twenty-two years Antwon Ayers and Eric Young; sisters-in-law Visitation will be held from 2:00-5:00 p.m. 2024 at Bunch-Singleton Funeral Home Chapel Tesla is returning to Hard Rock Live on Nov Vocalist Jeff Keith reflected on taking FFA in high school and said "They taught me a lot Email notifications are only sent once a day singing a variation of Merle Haggard’s ‘Okie From Muskogee’ anthem “But I’m proud to be an Okie from Idabel.” Keith took part in a phone interview before returning to Oklahoma for a flurry of home-state Tesla tour stops: Nov 13 at Hard Rock Live at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino The Durant show will get Keith closest to his roots and spent childhood years in northern California relocated to Broken Bow in the seventh grade He moved to Idabel the following year and remained there through the completion of high school in 1976 Tesla vocalist Jeff Keith is a graduate of Idabel High School Keith volunteered that he majored in FFA I where he picked up welding skills (he said he still has a Lincoln arc welder) watched a calf be born and learned peanuts are grown underground “A lot of people don’t know that,” he said adding that some people think peanuts grow on a tree or a little plant You’ve got to pluck them at the right time you’ve got to pluck them at the right time and dry them out.” Education wasn’t limited to school during that time period The Idabel years came after his mother and father had divorced “and it was a really big deal for me and it taught me a lot about life and how to survive and how to make it and how to make the best of things and to do your best and have fun doing it.” Keith worked as a kid to help make ends meet he would walk to the McCurtain County Gazette and get copies to deliver just to straighten up the house because she was working and my stepdad was working and my little sister was in daycare and going to school And then I would shower and walk 3 miles to Bob’s Drive-In.” Keith described Bob’s Drive-In as a “Dairy Freeze kind of thing where you could come up to the window or come inside.” Keith worked there serving customers meals like fish baskets and chicken baskets white and yellow baskets and working for a buck an hour at 13 years old,” Keith said Tesla vocalist Jeff Keith performed at Hard Rock Live in 2022 and the tour will head to Newkirk and Durant afterward Keith worked at Bob’s Drive-In with a buddy and they would put in a quarter and make song selections “I remember an instance where we played (Kris Kristofferson’s) ‘Why me Lord did I ever do...’ — and I remember a customer saying ‘What the heck did you play that song for?’ And we said and the next thing you know they are playing George Jones and Merle Haggard and all this great stuff Keith said he psyched himself out because he would “hear” things in a dark field while jogging home “So what I did was I saved enough and got a bicycle from Western Auto,” he said That way I could just pedal fast all the way home.” What would have qualified as a great day in Idabel Listening to music on favorite eight-track tapes “That was the eight-track tape days where you could maybe pass out or go to sleep and you wake up and the music is still going — maybe in the same spot where you just fell asleep a few hours earlier.” And that was the extent of Keith’s musical background He said no one would have imagined he would someday be in a rock band fronting a band responsible for three platinum studio albums and a platinum live album that was at the forefront of the 1990s “Unplugged” movement And Tesla is still touring today on the strength of the material Keith returned to California after high school and lived in Georgetown a little logging town in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains A Hard Rock Live crowd reacts to Tesla vocalist Jeff Keith in 2022 “If you would have asked me at age 23 ‘What are you going to do for the rest of your life?,’ I would have said ‘Keep them brakes adjusted Life-changing dominos started to fall when Keith Keith won the contest by singing Sammy Hagar’s “Your Love is Driving Me Crazy.” Competitors included a faux Sammy “I went in to use the bathroom and a guy was in there and he was all decked out in red — red spandex “His hair had hairspray in it and everything I said ‘What song are you going to sing?’ He goes ‘I am the Red Rocker.’ I didn’t know Sammy Hagar was the Red Rocker I didn’t even know Sammy Hagar was the singer of Montrose A bigger payoff came when two female friends urged him to go to the big city (Sacramento) and sit in with a band Keith was such a rookie that he was clueless when he sat in with the group He didn’t know how close to hold a microphone and had never worked with a monitor system before Recalled Keith about his band mates: “Brian (Wheat) said ‘I couldn’t tell you if the guy is any good This guy knows nothing about monitors and speakers and microphones or nothing.’ Frank (Hannon) goes but he came over to share the mic with me and I heard his voice in my ear and he’s our guy.’ And that’s what got me in.” City Kidd morphed from top 40 cover band to a group that was worthy of a contract with Geffen Records A name change to Tesla was part of the transformation How many other bands wanted to make that kind of leap and fell short Keith said the band got good advice from management: “They said You may be just playing to five drunk people who could care less who you are then you get up there on the stage and you play as a band and you play these songs from the heart and there may be five drunk people who could care less You are going to feel good about performing those songs.’ We always used that as the basis.” Tesla’s first two albums generated six singles that reached the top 40 of Billboard’s mainstream rock chart — “Modern Day Cowboy,” “Little Suzi,” “Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out),” “Hang Tough,” “Love Song” and “The Way It Is.” The band’s biggest hit was “Signs,” a cover of a 1971 hit for the Canadian rock band Five Man Electrical Jam Tesla covered the song on the aptly named live album “Five Man Acoustical Jam.” Keith said the album came about because Tesla was touring with Motley Crew and instead of sitting in a hotel room during a two-night break the group huddled to record some live songs with acoustic guitars Keith said the guys in Tesla resisted prodding to re-record the material They stuck by their guns — live is live — and “Five Man Acoustical Jam” became a monster seller The album was a mix of covers and Tesla songs Other members of the band chose “Truckin’” (Grateful Dead) “Lodi” (Creedence Clearwater Revival) and “Mother’s Little Helper” (Rolling Stones) ‘There’s a song I grew up hearing on the radio in Idabel and it was called ‘Signs.’ And they go get a recording of it and we’ll learn it.’ This is back in the cassette tape days A friend knew Keith was looking for “Signs” and found a 45 record even if they hadn’t heard of it,” Keith said I got to be great friends with Les Emmerson and Five Man Electrical Band we kind of covered it and sort of made it our own even though it’s a Five Man Electrical Band song.” Keith said listeners loved the rawness of the live album and that was around the time MTV was starting its “Unplugged” venture “They wanted us to do the first one,” he said “We couldn’t do it because of some different things but we ended up doing like the third or fourth one There are bands that seem “like” other bands “We’re just like anybody else,” Keith said but when you come down and write your own song It’s not like we came out with something just brand new and all that We were doing the same thing as everybody else We take all this great music we had listened to and cut our teeth on and we’re in a position to write songs We’re still playing those songs we wrote from the heart 38 years later.” Keith said during the interview that he’ll always be an Okie at heart He talked about an instance when a radio station wanted the guys in Tesla to arrive in a limo Keith — proud of his Okie and California logging town background — was reluctant because he didn’t want to misrepresent “who I am.” He was persuaded into taking the limo ride The Tulsa World newsroom is committed to covering this community with curiosity, tenacity and depth. Our passion for telling the story of Tulsa remains unwavering. Because your story is our story. Thank you to our subscribers who support local journalism. Join them with limited-time offers at tulsaworld.com/story jimmie.tramel@tulsaworld.com Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly Leon Russell's touring band will be joined by guest artists at a Friday May 2 concert event dubbed “Leon Live Presents: The Shelter People." She said she felt “blessed beyond words” being asked to … The Tulsa-based music artist is releasing a new album In "Never Say Never," Josh Crutchmer shares behind-the-scenes stories from four sold-out concerts at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device Account processing issue - the email address may already exist Invalid password or account does not exist Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account Your request has been blocked by our security system due to potential security concerns Please contact us for assistance affectionately known as “O.C.” OK where he attended school at Oak Grove School through the eighth grade he and his brothers worked the fields with his father while his sisters continued schooling would come home after school and teach him everything she’d learned He accepted Christ at the age of 12 at Oak Grove Baptist Church in Idabel OK and was baptized in the “Government Pool”.  he and two of his cousins along with one of their wives formed a quartet and they would go to different churches around the area and sing moved to Kansas City in 1952 and started working various jobs including a car wash He began working for Santa Fe Railroad in April 1953 he worked at Armour Packing house until it closed.  In 1973 was promoted as the first Black foreman at Santa Fe He also trained in plumbing from master plumber Mathis and later went to plumbing school in Olathe He worked plumbing jobs on the side while still at Santa Fe he retired from Santa Fe Railroad on April 13 He was a youth Sunday School teacher for a number of years he was the oldest living member of Bethel’s congregation and a faithful servant.  His hobbies included watching various sports and news programs took pride in caring for his lawn and kept it well manicured He loved spending time with family.   brother-James Johnson and a great great grandson-Christopher Johnson Jr his children Rickey Johnson of Leavenworth bonus daughter-Patricia Briggs both of Kansas City TX; maternal uncle William (Bill) Wilson-SanFrancisco 6 grandchildren Mikesha Bradner (Arik),Jasmine Johnson TN];  9 great-grandchildren Christopher Special acknowledgement to Bessie Glass,Cathi Johnson Karen Shepherd  and a host of cousins IDABEL — Sidelined for nearly two months, Ravian Larry was driven solely by his goal of getting back on the football field before last season was over The Idabel running back suffered a partially torn posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee after just two games — in which he had rushed for 323 yards with six touchdowns But the injury sent him to the sidelines for the rest of the regular season igniting his focus to return before the Warriors’ season was finished Larry returned for Idabel’s two playoff games Rated No. 26 on The Oklahoman’s Super 30 recruit rankings for the class of 2025 Larry looked like he was ready to break loose for a 1,500-yard season before the injury he rushed seven times for 65 yards in the two postseason games as the Warriors finished up an 11-1 campaign his 70 is better than some people’s 100,” Idabel coach Scott Pratt said “He’s been in the weight room all summer long here He comes up and puts in individual time going through bags and footwork drills More: A look at The Oklahoman's 2025 Super 30 high school football recruiting series As his teammates watched Larry rehab his knee week after week “It was real impressive,” said Idabel receiver Matrail Lopez I know he wasn’t able to show very much in playoffs He’s looking forward to coming back and having a great year.” Larry has capitalized on the added motivation to better himself heading into his final season of high school football Beyond costing Larry the vast majority of his junior season which had shown significant momentum beforehand Larry had picked up five scholarship offers led by Colorado and SMU from the Power Four conferences to go along with North Texas so Larry knows how important his summer and fall will be “He’s got to do some proving here if he wants to go play at the next level,” Pratt said and part of that is being in the weight room and being dedicated to it The Oklahoman's Super 30: How Jamarian Ficklin's horse helped Muskogee QB grow as a leader Larry’s times in track season dipped in the aftermath of the knee injury but he still managed a fourth-place finish in the Class 3A 100 meters at 11.02 seconds But team camp gave him the opportunity to feel like himself on the football field again he’s expected to add an outside linebacker role to his Friday night duties “I haven’t played defense since middle school,” he said with a laugh “I played a little bit at team camp and it was exciting.” Larry’s college future remains at running back Now he’s just waiting for his next opportunity to show off his talent “I just gotta keep working hard,” Larry said The Oklahoman’s Super 30: Jon Grimmett’s growth leads to purpose at Pauls Valley The Oklahoman’s Super 30 feature series will spotlight each high school football player on the Super 30 recruit rankings for the 2025 class through July 21 25 on the list in Wednesday’s edition of The Oklahoman Here are the previous players we’ve featured: - A massive fire destroys a rubber mixing facility in Southeast Oklahoma - A massive fire on Sunday destroyed a rubber mixing facility in southeast Oklahoma The blaze started in the afternoon at the Red River Mixing Plant on Lincoln Road Fire Chief Greg Oliver says nearly a dozen fire departments and about 50 firefighters responded to the blaze at the plant "Getting the water to the actual fire through all the metal was a big challenge and the heat kept us a pretty good ways away from it," said Oliver Oliver says the plant fire was the largest fire he's battled as chief of the Idabel Fire Department tall plumes of black smoke were rising from the facility The Red River Mixing Plant was built in 2015 It's located near SETCO's main production facility The manufacturing company makes speciality tires for heavy equipment The SETCO Tire and Rim's main facility was not impacted by the fire Company officials says production will continue at their main plant Mayor Craig Young says SETCO is one of the largest employers in the city "I talked to the owner and they plan on rebuilding It was a major part of the plant," said Young The cause of the fire is still under investigation the SETCO company has sold more than a half-million tires to more than 20 countries