The Kellyville Heritage Days Foundation organization will now be managed by Town Administrator and Police Chief Shelly Garrett.
Vice President of the HDF, Tonya Lee, told Sapulpa Times that she, President Vernon Chisum, and Secretary Barbara Morris, could no longer take care of the organization, due to illness and personal issues. “So we handed it over to the City,” Lee said.
An appreciative Garrett and Board of Trustees accepted several donations from the group during the monthly Town meeting on Tuesday night. “We donated $1,000 to the Senior Citizens Center and $3,151.07, the LED light, and the oil derrick across from J’s Country Cafe to the Town,” said Lee.
“We’ve been working on getting an awning for the picnic table down by the oil derrick. We asked them to purchase that with the money we gave them,” she said.
Lee said that the organization has “been around for awhile—”well before she became involved. “We met once a month at the Senior Citizens Center at Town Hall. We used to have a dance once a month on Saturdays, with food and drinks, to raise money.”
The primary fundraiser was the Heritage Days event, which historically, was held the second week of May. “Everyone kept complaining it was too hot,” said Lee, “so we were going to do it in September.” But then the car show vendor was unable to participate this year, she, Chisum, and Morris weren’t up to being involved any more, and “everything just kind of fell apart.”
“I told [Garrett,] ‘I hope you can keep it going,’” says Lee. She commended Garrett for the other events and traditions she has started around town, including the upcoming fireworks show in late June. “It really shows something [about this town], Heritage Days,” concluded Lee.
In addition to things like the oil derrick and LED sign for the community, HDF’s biggest mission is donating money to residents who are in need or are struggling with unexpected downfalls, such as unemployment, illness, or tornado or fire damage. Lee says, “We would give people money here and there, not always a lot,” but always impactful and appreciated.
