Pocola News

So often we wish we could help military families or show our support to service members in concrete ways. Right now, we have a chance to do that. Writing letters to Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, arguing the facts in support of the 188th’s mission, is a quick, simple and effective way to express your support. For some suggestions on writing the letters and an opportunity to send your message electronically, check out savetheflyingrazorbacks.com. The site has many more arguments like the few listed above to help you support your points. Letters should be sent by Friday. Standard mail delivery in Washington is slowed by security screening, so if possible send your message by email. Supporting our local unit and our neighbors is important, but even more important is doing what is right for the country. We believe continuing to use the remarkable facilities here — both natural and engineered — makes the most sense for everyone.

From going 4-17 a season ago, the Pocola Indians have now done a complete 180-degree turnaround by improving their record to 17-4.

Authorities are offering rewards for information in regard to two separate LeFlore County deaths in 2009. As much as $5,000 is being offered for information concerning the unrelated deaths of Joe Neff of Poteau and Jodi Wilson of Wister, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation reported.

Sherrell became Pocola’s 18th superintendent in 21 years. He said he does not know the timeline for seeking another district superintendent as he will not be involved in that process. School board members could not be reached for comment Tuesday. Sherrell said conflict is hard on a student body, and sometimes it is best for school administrators to look in another direction when they see they do not have the same line of thought as others there. Sherrell has straddled an uncomfortable position since early in the school year when conflict arose among school board members, some parents and Sherrell regarding funding, equipment and use of space for the district’s cheer and tumbling teams. The parents vocally supported Sherrell in the news media and at a subsequent board meeting.

A board member would not comment on the nature of the meeting, but did say the meeting is a review of the superintendent's job performance. The school board and the superintendent argued last year over funding for the high school's cheerleading program.

The three most definitive articles on SOPA and PIPA: Free Speech, Problems, Security (Links to articles on these 3 topics is at the bottom of the page) Fight for the Future is a non-profit organization fighting for people's freedoms in a new digital age.

Pocola is on the verge of tripling its win total from all of last season. Three players reached double figures as the Indians held off a late Whitesboro charge to win, 66-53, in the opening round of the LeFlore County Basketball Tournament on Monday. “When you didn’t win very many last year, a win’s a win, I guess, and we didn’t win very many,” Pocola coach Eric Ladd said.

A flurry of local candidate announcements in the last week and the full-on blizzard of presidential political coverage remind us that 2012 will be an election year. What, we wondered, drives someone to seek elected office? For some, perhaps, it's money, but surely not for all. Few really qualified elected officials make the money in public service that their skills might earn in the private sector.