But at first, there was no river anyone wanted to go to. That was the problem in front of some of the brightest in Oklahoma City. The three advocates first came together in the 90s – Pat Downes, Mike Knopp, and Mayor Ron Norick. Some would say the best of the best, but they had to turn dirt into water. They knew what they wanted.

“But there were others in the community that frankly laughed when you would talk about let’s do something about the river. Because it seemed like such a preposterous idea from where it was to that kind of, at that point, unimaginable for some people.”

Pat Downes with the Oklahoma City Riverfront Authority. There was a time when the Oklahoma River was thriving. A zoo, arcade, and parks brought a carnival like atmosphere to the banks of what was then the North Canadian, but that was back when the Model T was the car of choice. Soon the water was spilling out over the river and flooding parts of the city, so the Army Corps of Engineers tamed it.

“So what you ended up with was a waterway that was completely flood resistant but was arguably America’s ugliest river. So we had really traded the blight of flooding for the equally problematic blight of an area that was very undesirable.”

String of Pearls was one of the more ambitious plans to make the river a river again. It first was proposed in 1980, but never got enough traction to become reality. Few saw the potential of the river, and few wanted to invest in it. However, Mayor Norick was one of the few.

“That really kinda started it. And not too long after that, is when the Boathouse Foundation was created. And I think that’s really what kicked off that whole development area.”

Mayor Norick had started that downstream current, and Pat Downes wanted to join in. He knew you couldn’t have blue without some green.

“It’s relatively easy to do things when you have money with which to do them. The real challenge is taking an idea or a vision, particularly one that might be dismissed easily out of hand as too expensive or too ambitious or too bold…”

Mayor Ron Norick is the kind of guy that wins you over by walking into the room. He would go anywhere, and everywhere. Dominoes game? How about bingo? If they were voters, let him make his pitch…

“And what we’re doing here is something for your kids and grandkids. And that would get them. Because I’d have people say well I don’t go downtown, it’s not safe, I wouldn’t go down, there’s nothing to do, and on and on,” said Norick.

“I said, ‘That’s fine, you may not go downtown, but maybe your kids would like to go downtown someday, maybe your grandkids. Maybe they’d like to work here, have a place to get employment rather than go to Dallas or Kansas City or anywhere else.’”

The biggest hurdle had always been the ballot box thought. The first MAPS had nine projects, from a library to the ballpark to the river. A lot of different interests, and Mayor Norick said the city’s law department first wanted votes on each one…

“And I said it won’t pass. If you do that, it’s not going to work, because people are going to pick and choose, we had done some initial polling, and there was only two projects that even came close to 50 percent people liked and that was the river and the library.”

“So I basically said we’ve got to figure out a way that we can do this in one ballot, and finally the legal department figured [it] out. It’s going to be an up or down, it’s going to be an up or down vote, one little box. Either you like it or you don’t like it.”

Getting that up vote was a task that required as much help as was out there. Ray Ackerman took up the cause. As head of an advertising agency in Oklahoma City, he knew how to win people over. And the river had always been part of his life, to the point where he’s now known as Old Man River…

“We almost immediately started seeing progress. The baseball park was the first thing that came out of the ground, and then one by one they kept coming.  And finally the river, which was most controversial. The river and the canal, very prominent people in this town were opposed.”

Still, getting MAPS passed is one thing. Actually convincing people to use the river is another.  No matter who I talked to, it all came back to one guy. Just listen to Oklahoman reporter Steve Lackmeyer…

But it wasn’t until ground was broken for one of the dams, and a guy by the name of Mike Knopp came out with some fellow rowing enthusiasts. Now normally the river bed would be dry, but during this groundbreaking, there was just enough water from some recent rains that you could put a canoe  in there, you could put a boat and actually do something with it.”

Said Lackmeyer, “But it was almost laughable to watch them rowing in this very dirty waterway, waterway that you were used to seeing weeds, old TVs, junk…”

Rowing started as an activity for Knopp, who paid the bills as a lawyer for the FAA. To really get the sport going, he quit that comfortable paycheck to literally jump in. That boat ride started to turn the city’s eyes towards the dirty ditch that was the North Canadian River…

“Well I remember some surprised looks of the people on the bank. I also remember really the cheers of the folks seeing that happen.”

Lackmeyer was there.

“And as you watched them, and you looked toward the skyline, this was off of Eastern Avenue, where the Native American Cultural Center is being built, and you began to realize, well maybe something can be done.”

Now, as Oklahoma City University’s head rowing coach, on top of Executive Director of the Oklahoma City Boathouse Foundation, Knopp is Oklahoma River. He’s gone from dreaming for water to dreaming about the next boathouse. The first came when Chesapeake CEO Aubrey McClendon pledged his support, turning underwhelming blueprints into the showcase Chesapeake Boathouse, with a sweeping design…

“I think January 17^th, 2006 to be exact, which is the day we opened the Chesapeake Boathouse, was one of those moments.”

That boathouse started the current. Devon was next to build, and SandRidge, OU, and OCU all have plans to build their own facilities. All of this sounds nice and all, but buildings need tenants. Who better than USA Canoe Kayak?

“They get the no excuse assurance that if they have the desire to work hard, if they have the belief that they can be the next great champion, then we’ve got everything else here that you need to do that. We’ve got the best gear, we’ve got the best coaches, we’ve got the best facilities and we’ve got a community who will support you.”

Joe Jacobi, head of the program, moved it here just a couple months ago. That, despite what he saw when Oklahoma City first held the US Olympic Trials back in 2008…

“It was the Chesapeake Boathouse and a lot of temporary structures like platforms and tents and a lot of rented gear along the side of the river to host this Olympic trials.”

Now, he’s saying things like this…

“This looks like the future of kayaking. I say it’s the Jetsons go kayaking.”

You really do feel like you’re in some utopia. The buildings wouldn’t be out of place on a space colony. Add the Chesapeake Finish Line Tower and the Devon Boathouse to the Chesapeake Boathouse. All three fit seamlessly with each other, futuristic with easy curves. It makes for a striking appearance seen so close to a river. But it works.

That was back in 2009, and it means another 60 million dollars for the river. Already, the investment, as part of MAPS, has brought more development and more hotel rooms. When this next phase of MAPS is complete, the Oklahoma River will become one of the few in the world that can host night racing thanks to new lights, and will also get a whitewater course, a better timing system, and more seating.

About a month ago, Traylor Rains watched the Olympic Trials on a grassy hillside in the shadow of the Chesapeake Finishline Tower. Rains didn’t grow up in Oklahoma, so the thought of a river in Oklahoma City came across as an oxymoron….

“To me, it’s put us on the map and when I have friends that come and visit, they’ll say things like “Oh this is nice for Oklahoma”. The things is it’s nice period. Not just for the state of Oklahoma and it’s great we’re looked at nationally now for different things and we can have this and bring the tourism and bring things like this here, I love it.”

The river has become both a world-class training facility and just a place to learn how to kayak, or get up on a paddleboard.

“So we’ve gone from, in just a few short years, from mowing to rowing, and that’s a cool thing.”

The cuts could eventually total more than three-quarters of a percent.

The plan calls for a reduction from 5.25% to 4.8% mostly offset by removing 33 tax credits, deductions and exemptions on people making more than $35,000 a year.

Senate Appropriations Chair Clark Jolley says the offsets can guarantee no cuts to departments like education.

“I would be very surprised, very surprised if at the end of the day that could even enter into the realm of possibility. Teachers will not lose their jobs because we are giving tax relief to Oklahomans.”

But, Representative Joe Dorman one of the few Democrats who showed up at Thursday night’s press conference says he doesn’t believe that.

“There will be cuts to education. There are going to be cuts to teachers’ jobs. We’re going to see cuts across the board to every state agency. Some people want to see that. I think a lot of the persons that are very much on the right would like to see a downsize of government on all levels.”

The total impact on the budget will be $31 million the first year and $101 million the second year.

A drop to 4.5% will go into effect in 2015 if the state growth exceeds 5%.

Joint Income Tax Reduction Plan

The bond is supported by Governor Fallin.

Choctaw Senator Cliff Aldridge says he doesn’t have any problems with the cultural center itself which might be good for Oklahoma City, but can’t imagine putting more money into it from the state.

He says the Native American Cultural and Education Authority started this project just asking for $33 million from the state, then another $25 million and now wants an extra $40 million.

“We think the management of the construction of this facility has been poor at best and that’s one of the reasons why we’re trying to dissolve this agency and move it over into tourism to hopefully get some better guidance on anything that might happen.”

Aldridge says the state is already paying $5.5 million a year for $63 million in bonds, and this bond issue would raise the payments to $9 million a year.

Republican Senators who signed a pledge opposing the plan:

Sen. Patrick Anderson, Enid
Sen. Cliff Aldridge, Choctaw
Sen. Mike Mazzei, Bixby
Sen. Steve Russell, OKC
Sen. Josh Brecheen, Coalgate
Sen. Bill Brown, Broken Arrow
Sen. Kim David, Wagoner
Sen. Rick Brinkley, Owasso
Sen. Gary Stanislawski, Tulsa
Sen. Greg Treat, OKC
Sen. Mark Allen, Spiro
Sen. Eddie Fields, Wynona
Sen. Anthony Sykes, Moore
Sen. Ralph Shortey, OKC

One of the measures would eliminate the Commission on Human Rights overseeing the agency.

If House Joint Resolution 1092 passes, it would go to a vote of the people to abolish the Commission and put the Governor in charge of the agency as well as the hiring and reviewing of the director.

Republican Representative Jason Nelson says in the Commission’s place would be four advisory boards of five people each to oversee different aspects of the agency.

“The panels, the way they’re in the bill currently, one would deal with children and family issues, one with disability issues, one with aging issues and one with administrative issues.”

Three other bills were introduced at a press conference on Monday which would deal with vertical integration of the child welfare division, public disclosure of child deaths or near deaths and a worker certification program.

Opponents of the law call the ruling unprecedented.

Oklahoma County District Judge Donald Worthington says the bill could serve no purpose other than preventing women from abortions and punishing those who do it.

Michelle Movahed with the Center for Reproductive Rights says the bill which passed last year is one of dozens of anti-abortion bills which have made it through the legislature.

“I certainly hope that the judge’s unequivocal rejection of these legislative attempts to restrict a woman’s ability to control their bodies is a warning sign for legislators who keep playing politics with women’s health.”

She says House Bill 1970 restricted medical care by prohibiting off-label uses of abortion inducing drugs.

The state could still appeal the judge’s decision to the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

Just saying the name can usually bring out negative opinions from Oklahomans especially in light of the high profile deaths of children in its care over the past few years.

Making changes to the state’s largest agency isn’t easy.

But, a new direction could change the way people view the department.

It’s not hard to find people who’ve had some negative experience with the Department of Human Services.

I caught up with Anna Greene-Hicks in the Student Union at OSU.

The university web developer tried unsuccessfully to get DHS to investigate an incident of abuse to a child in her own family to no avail.

And, even witnessed a friend’s son abused by her ex-husband new wife.

“They called me and asked me what I knew and I’d seen her slap him in Wal-Mart and they still didn’t investigate, so you know, they just closed it without talking and visiting or anything.”

Anna says in her experience DHS seems to just focus on the bigger cases, and many of the little ones slip through the cracks.

But, it’s the bigger cases which make the headlines, like Kelsey Smith-Briggs who died just a couple months short of her third birthday in 2005.

Despite being closely observed by the agency, Kelsey was killed and her mother and step-father were convicted and sentenced in her death.

Former TV reporter, Britton Follett co-wrote a book called “Who Killed Kelsey?” and says the agency didn’t hold frontline employees accountable.

“In Kelsey’s case, all of the case workers were not terminated, one was even promoted for not doing their job, and so accountability in my opinion is the one thing that DHS has to do to make a change in the system.”

But, the fault might not lie entirely with the social workers.

Jim McGoodwin is a former attorney with the State Auditor’s Office.

“You have people who’ve been there for quite a while, but you also have a lot of people who are brand new to the job. I’ve known some of those people and I can tell you it is an emotionally tough job.”

Jim McGoodwin was part of the auditing process for the DHS for many years and says case workers have the lowest salaries of any Oklahoman with a college degree, but they’re often required to make life and death decisions.

“Given the time they have, the caseload they have, they have to make the best judgment possible. And, they’re either going to take them from their parent or they’re going to leave them with the parent and either way there’s always the possibility of having made the wrong decision.”

The Department is currently undergoing massive changes.

Director Howard Hendrick departed after leading the agency for 14 years

While searching for a new leader, State Finance Director Preston Doerflinger is serving as interim director.

He says he’s found employees aren’t the problem.  Instead the agency is plagued by dysfunction because it hasn’t addressed the real issues.

“There is a tendency, i think, to some degree because of the nature of the business to move from crisis to crisis and not always take the time to camp out on a given issue and try to determine the root problem.”

While DHS tries to figure out the root issues and address them, lawmakers are finalizing details on reform legislation known as the Pinnacle Plan.

The five-year proposal would increase the training for workers and increase transparency and accountability for the agency and its employees.

House Speaker Kris Steele says it should make a major change in the way cases are handled.

“There’s a disconnect between the program employees that render the service and the field operations so a supervisor may not have direct oversight over a case load and so we’re going to move that to a vertical sort of restructuring of the organization.”

The Pinnacle Plan is expected to cost more than $100 million and will help pay for more child welfare workers and pay raises for current workers.

But time will tell if people like Anna Greene-Hicks see changes in the process.

“I think it’s got to be more than just throwing more money at it. You can pay people thousands of dollars more a year they might not be doing their job. But, I don’t have the answer. I just know it’s broken.”

Some of the details of the Pinnacle Plan are expected to be released this week.

The cars start lining up as early as 1. They reach beyond the senior center, past the pharmacy, to the next corner, and the next, and the next. An older lady, Melba, was towards the front of the line. A line she never thought she would need.

“No, not when we was younger, I didn’t. But when you get older, it’s a lot different.”

It stretches up to God’s Garage, in tiny Yale, Oklahoma. This might be the most action downtown sees every month, but that’s how it goes.

“You know that the need is there and maybe that it is hidden and maybe that people don’t address the need that there is, and I just wanted to address the need.”

Natalie Newby wanted to help, but didn’t really plan, she just did. In 2003, she and a couple volunteers would run between the Church basement and cars to deliver food. Now, it’s turned into a monthly event, with the efficiency of an assembly line.

LaDawn Simpson calls out to the other volunteers. She talks with the people that pull up. But before things got started, she showed me what’s in a box.

“We have what, potatoes, chicken, sweet potato fries, bread, onion, cereal…”

There’s about 20 people devoted to boxing everything up, checking each car in, and loading them up. By the end Monday night, they’ll pass out anywhere between 200 and 250 boxes. Without that box?

“We’d do what we did before we started getting it…without on some stuff. And what’s that kind of stuff?  Medicine and food, I spend enough on medicine over there.”
The program touches all generations. Eric has three kids – Autumn is eight, Brooklyn is six, and Violet three. As Natalie dropped off the box at his apartment at the end of a roundabout, he tried to contain his emotions.

“See my kids happy to have food makes me happy to know they’re not growing up like I did.”

Yale is just one of more than 50 towns that get deliveries thanks to the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma. It’s gone from distributing about thirty million pounds in 2009 to more than 45 this past year. To keep their shelves stocked, they’re in the middle of a food drive. And Saturday letter carriers across Oklahoma will take donations.

“If our children don’t eat, they can’t think. And if they don’t think, they can’t learn. And if our children don’t learn, then the future of our country is at risk. We need to raise a good generation of well-educated, well-trained, fed children.”

Steve Riggs is one of the chairs of the Letter Carrier’s Drive.

“We tend to think of it like this. Once you’ve seen a hungry child, you don’t ever want to see another one. And this is the way that we can give back, this is the way we can fight hunger.”

Compared to the cities, more plates go empty in rural Oklahoma. According to the USDA, the state’s poverty rate in rural areas is about three percent higher than in urban, nearing twenty percent.

“Medford, Buffalo, Gotebo, three or four places in Dewey County. All of these are rural areas that never have in their entire history experienced problems with hunger until just recently.”

Bob Bearden is also working with Riggs. The letter carriers drive is part of the Regional Food Bank’s month long campaign, running all the way to May 25^th. For this Saturday, canned goods just need to go in a plastic bag before 7 AM.

“All you have to really do is just put food out either in your mailbox or outside your mailbox. It makes it very easy to do something that is for a good cause, and you really don’t have to leave your home.”

That food goes beyond filling up an empty stomach. As Eric said:

“Little towns, they take care of their people, they do. I like it, and that’s why I’m not back in Arizona.”

Governor Fallin didn’t mince words at the state Republican Headquarters, “I am here today to say that I fully endorse governor Mitt Romney for the next president of the United States.”

Governor Fallin had yet to put full endorsement behind any of the candidates during the primary, but she says she supports his stance on economics and energy.

“I believe Governor Romney has both the vision and the experience and the know how to keep America moving in the right direction.”

Fallin says she will do everything she can to make sure Governor Romney carries all 77 counties just as Senator John McCain did in 2008.

“…If I’m president of the United States, I’ll worry about your job not my job…”,

“… focus on creating more jobs in Oklahoma.”

“…Where are the jobs?!”

At all levels of government, we hear the same question; where are the jobs and how do we make more? Recently I spoke with a few scientists and business owners who had found their answer.

“People particularly in our subject are healthy but either underemployed or unemployed at almost a 6:1 ratio. We feel because of some soft tissue injury while they’re in their prosthetics at work results in them having to have prolonged down time.”

Dr. Carol Dionne is an Assistant professor at the OU Health Sciences Center. Dionne’s team wants to make prosthetics that are easier to maintain and keep workers out of the hospital. Dr. Dionne told me, OCAST made her work possible and laid a foundation for future research.

“This one particular project is 100% of it. And from the OCAST grant results I springboard into higher levels of funding that provide research dollars here on campus. So it’s very enriching, it’s kind of a catalyst so to speak, OCAST is.”

OCAST, or the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology, it’s a state agency that gives public dollars to budding entrepreneurs and Oklahoma companies developing new technology. They want to create growth but they don’t give grants to everyone with an idea.  Executive Director for OCAST, Michael Carolina explains.

“Initially, we look at the scientific merit of it. Is it relevant in today’s science? Does it meet a market need? Will the project create jobs? There’s a very heavy focus on creating jobs, sustaining businesses so that they become very competitive in their market place.”

Short version, OCAST puts its money on the horse most likely to win and so far, their bets seem to have paid off.

“For every one dollar that the state puts into OCAST we get a return, a return on investment of twenty dollars.”

Dr. Lena Flood is hard at work on one of those horses; she’s a research scientist for ICX Nomadics, an Oklahoma company that focuses on research and development.

“We are developing a specialized instrument testing for micro-toxins that are found in wheat specifically grains for that reason we are trying to specialize one of our instruments for food safety testing.”

It’s not a new idea, she says, similar tools are used in colleges, universities, and in medicine. But it’s not as common in food safety. In the next several years, Flood’s group hopes to have a marketable product that sets a new standard in food safety.

“Some of the testing that is currently used are not optimal they could be improved upon. We want to produce an alternative for testing for these particular types of micro-toxins. It’s important to test for them because some of them are carcinogens; some of them cause food poisoning.”

Another OCAST client is Token X. Dr. Jerry Dawkins and Alex Pelzod founded the company.

“OCAST provided matching funds into the organization and then we also leveraged OCAST’s partner I2E, Innovation to Enterprise. I2E supported us defining the business plan, putting us into contact with angel investors.”

I2E is a private non-profit company that helps close to thirty startups each year with the difficulties of launching their businesses. OCAST’s focus is on the technology behind a project, so they often refer clients to I2E when they need help on the business end.

“We manage several investment funds, the seed fund for example that money comes from OCAST we also manage funds that have federal dollars and we manage a large angel investment group, wealthy individuals who invest their own money in startup companies.”

Recently the partners have added a little more sugar to the pot; they help their clients make a run at even more funding from the federal government.

“The National Institute of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Defense, they all have allocations to fund small businesses who are working on certain innovations that relate back to whatever that agency’s needs are.”

Oklahoma businesses haven’t been very successful in attracting these federal grants which is why OCAST and I2E stepped in. Grant applications have been filed but until an answer comes from the hill, all anyone can do is wait and keep their fingers crossed. Science may not take the limelight in Oklahoma but its entrepreneurs and researchers are trying to make their own leaps in technology.

Click above to hear the audio postcard.

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Now, Brian lives in Yukon and works in Oklahoma City. He’s part of the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder program at the VA Medical Center in Oklahoma City. While making music isn’t part of the program, his counselors have said it’s a good outlet. If you need help, call the Veterans Center in Oklahoma City at 405-456-5186, or the VA Medical Center at 405-456-1000.

Hear more of Brian Allen’s music.

Some of his work in Iraq.