We quit at noon and a few of us treated ourselves to hamburgers at the General Store. Thanks to everyone who came out to help -- you went above and beyond and I know the State Park management appreciated the effort! We'll do it again sometime and hopefully get some Boy Scouts and other civic groups involved. I personally want to give a special THANK YOU to Mary Ann Teply, a member of Friends of Roman Nose State Park Assoc. That woman has a heart of gold. She spent the morning at the #OKGAC activity in spite of the weather and in spite of the fact that she was heading up the RELAY FOR LIFE event that same evening!
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The "Movie Night at the Park" organized by the Chamber of Commerce for Saturday April 14 was questionable for a while because of the cold and windy weather. Teresa France, director of the Chamber, posted "...The event still happened it was just moved to the Lodge. Kyle (Roman Nose Mgr), myself and Friends of Roman Nose State Park are planning many more movies in the Park in the upcoming months ahead. We will have Food Trucks and fun events planned. Please follow the Chamber page for details on the next event! Or sign up for our Chamber mobile club to get events scheduled in our community as a text. Text: Watonga to mb#: 30218"
[Other ways to keep up on what's going on in our area are Facebook pages -- Blaine County OK Community and Watonga Community Events, AND public Group pages: Watonga Events and Roman Nose State Park Friends. Because I am on the Board of Directors of Red Carpet Country tourism association, I feel that getting information out about events and activities is important and not every group, especially non-profits, can afford advertising in the local newspaper. The local paper does a great job reporting on agriculture, sports, oil and gas, politics, church and school news, but I'm not sure how a mummified monkey found in an old store in Minneapolis or 'zombie racoons' in Ohio are of interest to Watonga readers. [I could be wrong!] There is more "local" news to report on - like entertainment and community service projects, fundraisers, etc. So I hope you will share the information you get here and spread the word that there are other sources of news and information available.]
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On Sunday afternoon, the Chaparral Retreat hosted singer/songwriter/ troubadour CHUCK DUNLAP for a house concert. Chuck was one of the musicians on the ground floor in Stillwater OK that began blending blues, folk, rock, and alt-country music into the genre pegged as "Red Dirt". He has opened for Emmy Lou Harris, Johnny Lee Hooker, Levon Helm, Muddy Waters ... to name a few. Pretty impressive! At this show he played some songs from his new CD "Full Circle", some of his older tunes, and a couple of covers, my favorite being the classic "Sixteen Tons" by Tennessee Ernie Ford. It was a laid back afternoon with a couple of new folks showing up for the show. I am continually amazed at the talent we've been able to get out here. If you haven't been to one of the Oklahoma House Concerts, you can't imagine what you are missing. An added benefit of the Oklahoma House Concert is that we attract visitors from out-of-town, who bring tourism dollars to Watonga businesses (grocery store, liquor store, winery, restaurants, gas stations ...).
After most of the audience had left on Sunday, we shared stories and conversation with Chuck and Vic over bowls of hearty bean soup before they headed off for Stillwater and then on to New Orleans. Chuck and Vic confirmed what other touring musicians have told us: they like to play house concerts because it is intimate and "homey", and people are there to listen to them. I highly recommend checking out Chuck's music and his new CD at www.chuckdunlapmusic.com.
COMING UP:
Roman Nose State Park will host the April meeting of the Red Carpet Country Board of Directors, giving our board a chance to see first hand the beauty of our State Park and meet the new management and staff.
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April 27 - 29, 2018 are the dates for the Spring Roman Nose Hills Trail Ride. This event brings in visitors from all over the state -- great for tourism for Watonga and Roman Nose State Park. Information and registration are available on the website, www.romannosehillstrailride.com. The Trail Ride is held twice a year and is one of the best-organized, best-attended pleasure trail rides in Oklahoma. Non-riders are welcome to come out for meals (see website for cost) and entertainment. It is always a fun family weekend as there is plenty to do at the Park (fishing, hiking, cookouts, putt-putt golf, and paddle-boat rentals). The event is sponsored by Watonga Kiwanis Club.
Call in pre-registration is encouraged - Jeff Fritz 580-830-0235.
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The T.B. Ferguson Home & Museum is holding its
annual Tea fundraiser on Sunday, May 6, 2018
at 2:00 PM at the First Baptist Church, 301 N. Noble, Watonga. The theme will be "Pottery World of Oklahoma" and a presentation on decorating with pottery will be given. Tickets are $8.00 and must be bought in advance and can be purchased from any Friend of the Ferguson Member or call the museum at 580-623-5069 to reserve your seat. Light refreshments will be served. Email address is historic.tbfergusonhome@gmail.com
See also Ferguson Home Museum on facebook
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Lot more stuff coming up, but this is all I have time to write today. BUT, mark your calendar for the next OKLAHOMA HOUSE CONCERT on Friday, May 4. It is almost Cinco de Mayo and we plan on having something special. Watch for details!!
/Linda Barrett
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