Community Store re-opening

A volunteer hangs clothing at Our Community Store's new location on East Main Street in Stigler. The store reopens this week after moving from its previous location on state Highway 82.
Staff photo by Doug Russell

Stigler soldier wounded in Afgahanistan

By Doug Russell
News Editor

"First they gave me a watermelon, then they blew it up."
Nick Luttrell used those words to describe his 22nd birthday, a day that started with a patrol in a convoy and ended with Luttrell in a military hospital.
The Stigler High School graduate and three other soldiers were injured when their vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device while on patrol in Afghanistan, Lt. Col. Max Moss confirmed. Moss said the other three soldiers suffered only minor injuries in the explosion.
The son of Ricky and Tama Luttrell of Tamaha, Nick had been in Afghanistan for only a month when he was injured on July 20.
"He didn't say where they were, but he said he was going to a different area," Tama said.
It was like a scene from a movie. Although some of the soldiers in Nick Luttrell's infantry squad were quietly laughing and joking above the noise of the mine-resistant, ambush protected vehicle. Occasional radio chatter cut through the in-person voices. A dog barked somewhere in the distant blackness of the early morning
"He said it was kind of strange, and then he heard a 'clink, clink.' He said the next thing he knows he was going up in the air," Tama said. "He said it seemed like he was going up forever."
Nick said he seems to remember fellow soldier Casey Reynolds of Muskogee bending over him, shouting his name and urging him to wake up, but the next thing he really remembers as waking up in a military hospital in Afghanistan.
He'd suffered injuries to several vertebrae, as well as to his face and one ear.
"He said he thinks his weapon slapped him in the face when the explosion happened," Tama said. "He's not sure." (more on this story in this week's Stigler News Sentinel)

Stigler police officer Leon Upton displays the first place trophy the Stigler "Drug Bug" won from the Oklahoma DARE Officers Association. The Stigler DARE car was selected as the best DARE car in the state during the association's annual meeting.
Staff photo by Doug Russell

Get ready to go back to school

By Karen West
Staff Writer
The new school year is just around the corner and pre-enrollment at many area schools will be coming up quickly. All students need to ensure the school has copies of their shot records, social security cards, birth certificates and CDIB cards, if applicable.
Below is a schedule of pre-enrollment dates:
Kinta Schools
The pre-K, 3- to 4-year old program pre-enrollment will be on Aug. 3 from 9 a.m. until noon.
High school pre-enrollment will be:
12th grade — Aug. 3 between 9-11 a.m.;
11th grade — Aug. 3 between 1-2:30 p.m.;
10th grade — Aug. 4 between 9-11 a.m.;
Ninth grade — Aug.4 between 1-2:30 p.m.
The first day of school for Kinta Schools is Aug. 18.
Keota Schools
No pre-enrollment is necessary for students in pre-K through eighth-grade. High school enrollment is:
12th grade — Aug. 1 between 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the counselor's office.
11th grade — Aug. 1 between 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the counselor's office.
10th grade — Aug. 2 between 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the counselor's office.
Ninth grade — Aug. 2 between 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the counselor's office.
There will be enrollment on Aug. 3 is for those who miss enrollment on their scheduled day.
The first day of school for Keota Schools is Aug. 18.
Stigler Public Schools
Pre-enrollment for new students only will be held during the following schedule:
4-year-old program — Aug. 1-12 between 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the office.
Elementary grades — Aug. 1-5 between 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the office.
Middle school grades — Aug. 1-5 between 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the office.
High school grades — Aug. 1-5 between 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the office.
Current students need not pre-enroll.
Teachers report to school Aug. 8.
Grade, middle and high school classes begin Aug. 10 at 8:25 a.m.
The 4-year-old program and kindergarten classes begin Aug. 16 at 8:25 a.m.
Quinton High School pre-enrollment
Pre-enrollment for Quinton High School is as follows:
12th grade — Aug. 11 between 9-12 p.m.
11th grade — Aug. 11 between 12:15-3 p.m.
10th grade — Aug. 12 between 9-12 p.m.
Ninth grade — Aug. 12 between 12:15-3 p.m.
Seventh- and eighth-grade students need not pre-enroll unless they are new students. No one can pre-enroll without current transfer documentation.
The first day of school for Quinton Schools is Aug. 18.
Porum Elementary pre-enrollment
New students to Porum Elementary will need to pre-enroll on either Aug. 9 or 10 between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. If elementary students in pre-K through fifth-grade were enrolled in Porum School last year, or you pre-enrolled your 4-year-old, they will automatically be enrolled for this coming year.
Pre-enrollment for Porum middle and high school students will be as follows:
12th grade — Aug. 9 between 9-11 a.m.
11th grade — Aug. 9 between 1-3 p.m.
10th grade — Aug. 10 between 9-11 a.m.
Ninth grade — Aug. 10 between 1-3 p.m.
Eighth grade — Aug. 11 between 9-11 a.m.
Seventh grade — Aug. 11 between 1-3 p.m.
The first day of school for Porum Schools is Aug. 18.
McCurtain
Pre-enrollment for McCurtain Schools will be:
Ninth grade — Aug. 8 between 1:30–3 p.m.
Tenth grade — Aug. 8 between 1:30-3 p.m.
The first day of school will be Aug. 10, with classes beginning at 8 a.m.
Teachers need to report on Aug. 8.
Whitefield
There will be no pre-enrollment at Whitefield schools. Enrollment will be done on the first day of class.
The first day of school will be Aug. 10, except for pre-K and kindergarten, which will be Aug. 15.

Five die in Oklahoma waters

By Doug Russell
News Editor
Five people died in Oklahoma waters since July 21, according to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Two had been jumping off of bluffs or cliffs. Two were swimming near a dam and got caught in the current created by running water. The fifth had gone into the water to wash off mud.
A mother and daughter drowned Friday near the dam on the Lower Mountain Fork River in McCurtain County. (more on this story in this week's Stigler News Sentinel)