Around The County
ROCKETRY WEEKEND COMING UP
Rockets to be launched Sept. 28-29 at Pawhuska Airport
Tulsa Rocketry and the Pawhuska Chamber of Commerce are pleased to announce High Frontier 16, an amateur rocket launch, which will take place at the Pawhuska Municipal Airport, Sept. 28-29. For the sixteenth year in a row, hobby rocketry enthusiasts from across Oklahoma and several surrounding states will converge on Pawhuska for two days of rocket launches, competition events, and fun. The launch is expected to be the largest of its kind in Oklahoma.
Approximately 300 rocket flights are anticipated during the event. The rockets will be models constructed of cardboard, plastic, wood, and composites and will range in size from small models weighing only a few ounces to larger models weighing 20 pounds or more. Some of the larger rockets are capable of reaching altitudes of 10,000 feet or more and can carry video cameras, radio transmitters and other instruments aloft.
Rocket flights will start at 9 a.m. each morning and continue throughout the day until approximately 5 p.m. Admission is free to the public. Children under 18 can launch their rockets for free when accompanied by an adult.
For lodging and area information, visit the Pawhuska Chamber of Commerce website at http://www.PawhuskaChamber.com.
Questions can also be directed to either Paul Reed at 918-691-6737 (cell) or by email at prefect@tulsarocketry.org or to Hal Ellis at (918) 760-9754 (cell) or by email at hal121@cox.net.
BOWRING PRECINCT CHANGES
Now at Whippoorwill Baptist Church
The polling place for Precinct 570101 has been changed, Kelly Chouteau, Secretary of the Osage County Election Board, has announced.
Voters in the precinct formerly voted at Bowring School, 87 CR 3302, Bowring.
Beginning immediately the polling place for Precinct 570101 will be at Whippoorwill Baptist Church, 35 CR 3577, Pawhuska.
For more election related information, call the County Election Board at 918-287-3036, email at OsageCounty@elections.ok.gov, visit www.elections.ok.gov or our website at www.osage.okcounties.org.
VOTERS CAN APPLY FOR ABSENTEE BALLOTS
Ballots available for Pawhuska school bond vote
Voters in Osage County who want to have absentee ballots mailed to them for the Sept. 10, 2019, Pawhuska I00257 Special School Election should apply now, County Election Board Secretary Kelly Chouteau said today. Although the County Election Board can accept applications for absentee ballots until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, September 4, 2019, Chouteau urged voters who want to vote by absentee ballot to apply early.
Absentee ballot application forms are available at the County Election Board office located at 630 Kihekah Ave., Pawhuska, Oklahoma. An online version of the form can be filled out and submitted electronically at: www.elections.ok.gov. A print form can also be downloaded at that address.
Voters who have requested an absentee ballot can track their ballot at http://www.ok.gov/elections/Voter_Info/Online_Voter_Tool/.
Ballots must be in the hands of County Election Board officials by 7 p.m. on Election Day to be counted.
Chouteau said any registered voter may vote by absentee ballot in any election in which he/she is eligible to vote. It is not necessary to give a reason for voting absentee.
“While anyone can vote absentee without giving a reason, the law still provides several excuses, and it is to the advantage of some voters to use one of them,” Chouteau said.
By stating one of the following reasons on their applications, absentee voters can activate special conditions that make it easier for them to use absentee ballots. The reasons are:
Voters who are physically incapacitated and voters who care for physically incapacitated persons who cannot be left unattended may vote absentee. They may apply only by mail, by fax, by email, online by accessing http:/www.ok.gov/elections/Voter_Info/Online_Voter_Tool/ or via an agent who is at least 16 years of age and who is not employed by or related within the third degree of consanguinity or affinity to any person whose name appears on the ballot.
Voters who are confined to nursing homes in the county may vote absentee. An Absentee Voting Board actually goes to the nursing home a few days before the election, sets up a small polling place and allows these persons to vote under circumstances similar to those at a regular precinct polling place. They may apply only by mail, by fax, by email, online by accessing http:/www.ok.gov/elections/Voter_Info/Online_Voter_Tool/ or via an agent who is at least 16 years of age and who is not employed by or related within the third degree of consanguinity or affinity to any person whose name appears on the ballot.
Military personnel and residents of the county living overseas and the spouses and dependents of each group are eligible receive absentee ballots. These voters may apply only by mail, fax, or by email. Military personnel should contact the Voting Service Officers in their units for application forms and additional information or visit the Federal Voting Assistance Program website (www.fvap.gov/oklahoma) for more information and instructions. Residents of Oklahoma living overseas can obtain the same materials from any United States military installation and from United States Embassies and Consulates as well as on the FVAP website.
Sample ballots are now available on the Oklahoma State Election Board’s Online Voter Tool at http:/www.ok.gov/elections/Voter_Info/Online_Voter_Tool/ or at www.osage.okcounties.org for voters who want to get a preview of what will be at stake in the September 10, 2019, Pawhuska I00257 Special School Election. Sample ballots are also available at the Osage County Election Board office. Kelly Chouteau, Secretary of the Osage County Election Board, said that sample ballots can be viewed at the Election Board office, located at 630 Kihekah Ave., Pawhuska, Oklahoma, during regular office hours, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Sample ballots also will be posted outside the precinct polling place on Tuesday so that voters can review them before casting their votes.
For more election-related information, call the Osage County Election Board at (918) 287-3036, e-mail at OsageCounty@elections.ok.gov or visit www.elections.ok.gov or www.osage.okcounties.org
CLOSED PRECINCTS FOR SCHOOL BOND VOTE
Absentee ballots to be available
Osage County Election Board Secretary Kelly Chouteau has announced that the Pawhuska I00257 School has opted to close Precincts 102, 103, 110, 111, 113, 301 and 306 in Osage County for its Pawhuska I00257 School Special Election scheduled for Sept. 10.
State Law allows a school district to close a precinct if it’s not entirely within the district’s boundaries, and if there are fewer than 100 registered voters in that part of the precinct. There are 24 voters in precinct 102, two voters in precinct 103, 35 voters in precinct 110, two voters in precinct 111, 0 voters in precinct 113, one voter in precinct 301 and one voter in precinct 306.
Voters who are registered in precincts 102, 103, 110, 111, 113, 301 and 306 will receive an application for absentee ballots from the County Election Board. They can fill out, sign and return the application form to the County Election Board to have a ballot mailed to them. Applications for absentee ballots must be received by the County Election Board no later than 5 p.m. on Sept. 4. Voters who receive their absentee ballots by mail must return the voted ballot to the County Election Board by mail. Absentee ballots must be in the County Election Board’s hands by 7 p.m. on election day to be counted.
These voters also may vote by in-person absentee at the County Election Board office from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. Sept. 5 or Sept. 6.
Any registered voters in precincts 102, 103, 110, 111, 113, 301 and 306 who believe that they may reside in the Pawhuska I00257 School District and who have not yet received an absentee ballot application from the County Election Board should call the office immediately at 918-287-3036.
PAWHUSKA PUBLIC LIBRARY NEWS
New public library hours will begin after Labor Day, on Monday, Sept. 9
New library hours will be: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m; Thursdays only, from 1 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.; and Saturday hours will be 9:30 a.m. - 1 p.m.
The library will be closed Aug. 31, Sept. 1 and Sept. 2.
The new schedule reflects patron use. There are fewer patrons arriving from 5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., and requests for opening at 9:30 a.m. The library is located at 1801 Lynn Ave. in Pawhuska.
There will be an Adult Program, Sept. 9 at 1 p.m. An Oklahoma highway patrolman will be present to discuss older drivers and their driving needs. OHAI has presented programs at the library before, so our citizens are familiar with this organization. Earlier classes included tai chi and nutrition.
NATIONAL INDIAN TACO CHAMPIONSHIP
Vendors and sponsors are being accepted
From 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Oct. 5 the annual National Indian Taco Championship will be held in downtown Pawhuska on Kihekah Ave. Call or email Reba at the Pawhuska Chamber of Commerce for details about becoming a vendor or sponsoring the event at 918-287-1208 or at Reba@pawhuskachamber.com.
FIRST SATURDAY AT PAWHUSKA’S FIRST FIREHOUSE
This is a monthly event the first Saturday of each month
On 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. Sept. 7, stop by Pawhuska’s First Firehouse at 118 1/2 Main St. (between the Constantine Theater and City Hall) for an art show or event. There are monthly door prizes too. This is sponsored by Preserving Arts in the Osage.
THE LODGE AT TAYLOR RANCH NEWS
A fall festival is planned for Oct. 26
Plan to stop by the Lodge at Taylor Ranch 3 p.m. - 7 p.m. Oct. 26 for games, a live band, vendors, food, animals, hayride and more. Bring the family. Located at 22005 State Highway 99, Pawhuska.