03/17/2026
Leadership Ponca City Class 39 recently spent two impactful days in Oklahoma City for their State Government and Experience Session.
Day one took Class 39 to the Oklahoma State Capitol, where participants visited both the Senate and House Chamber Galleries and received special recognition from Senator Bill Coleman while he was presiding over the Senate. The class also heard directly from Attorney General Gentner Drummond, Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax, Senator Bill Coleman, Representative John Pfeiffer, and Representative Ken Luttrell For Oklahoma.
The group also gained insight into the role lobbyists play in the legislative process through a panel featuring Scott Bilger, Director of Governmental Affairs with Phillips 66, H.J. Reed of Loyal and True Strategies, and Jim Dunlap of Dunlap Consultants during a lunch provided by Phillips 66. The day concluded with a special tour of one of the most beautiful state capitols in the nation, led by Trait Thompson, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Historical Society.
Day two was spent at the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum. The class toured the museum and heard a powerful first-person presentation from Terri Watkins, a retired KOCO reporter who was on the scene that tragic day and even interviewed Timothy McVeigh, the domestic terrorist responsible for the April 19, 1995, bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building that killed 168 people.
It was a poignant and emotional experience that reminded Class 39 of the resilience of our state and the meaning of the Oklahoma Standard, a commitment to serve others, show kindness, and come together in the face of tragedy.
Pictured on the Grand Staircase leading to the Rotunda are LPC Class 39 members and representatives: 1st Row, L to R:
Katilynn Cowan, Hospice of North Central Oklahoma, Inc.; Alexis Kirk, Equity Bank; Jerome Orange, Stolhand-Wells Group; Cortney Burns, Opportunity Center, Inc.; & Shelley Arrott, Ponca City Chamber Representative. 2nd Row: Class 39 Chair Erica Fetters, Century Products LLC; Andrew Simmons, Next 1 Up; Ashley Adams, GRAND Mental Health; Eddie Schulz, City of Ponca City, OK - PCFD; Edgar Tafolla, Phillips 66-Ponca City Refinery; Blake Connelly, Phillips 66-Ponca City Refinery, & Ian Freeman, Pioneer Technology Center. 3rd Row: Manny Vazquez, First National Bank of Oklahoma; Spencer Grace, Spencer Grace for State House; Tim Williams, University Center at Ponca City; Dalton Cloud, CloudCo Electric; Kisha Oakes, Security Title Service; Sarah Martin, Northwestern Oklahoma State University; & Hunter Vap, Titan Title & Closing Ponca City. 4th Row: Seth Hammock, The Alley; Bethany Avila, Skyway CDJR of Ponca City; Scott Richardson, City of Ponca City; Justin Mathews, Paws On The Pavement; & Larin Davis, Ponca City Public Schools.
Not Pictured: Jimmy Farmer, Team Radio KPNC, Aletha Kearney, City National Bank & Trust, Abby Wilton, Winterrowd Talley Architects Inc., and Class 39 Chairs, Molly Kyler, Pioneer Technology Center; & Sean Grigsba, Kay County Sheriff's Office.
LPC Class 39 Title Sponsor: University Center at Ponca City
