By Wally Kennedy

wkennedy@joplinglobe.com

MIAMI, Okla. — The residents of Picher have known for some time that their town was coming to an end, but for some it did not seem real until Monday.

That was the case for Susie Stone, a native of Cardin, who ran a gift shop in Picher for many years. On Monday, she attended a ceremony at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M; College to watch the transfer of $578,000 from the city of Picher to the college.

The money will be endowed to the NEO Development Foundation and will be used to fund a scholarship program for students from the Tri-State Mining District. It is the largest gift in the history of the foundation and the college.

Emotion-filled

“It’s emotional,” said Stone, tears welling up in her eyes. “You don’t want your town to end. But we are glad we are doing something with the money that was left over. Because in a way, this scholarship means that Picher will continue to go on.”

There was something else about which Stone was excited. The college will be the host for events pertaining to the history of the town, including the annual All-School Reunion, which was started nine years ago. In 2008, the event attracted 2,000 people.

“The college is going to host the All-School Reunion on the second Saturday in June,” she said. “We’re just so happy that they reached out to us.”

Tim Reeves, the last mayor of Picher, said he and Erik Johnson, Picher’s city attorney, talked about what to do with the city’s remaining funds. Johnson suggested an educational purpose, and that led to talks with Jeffery Hale, president of NEO.

“Picher had a lot of pride in its schools, and we wanted our legacy to live on,” Reeves said. “When we approached the Picher City Council about it, they thought it was the greatest thing ever — the idea that we were giving some kids an opportunity for an education.

“But the deal maker was the college accommodating the All-School Reunion Committee. No matter where they go, Picher was their hometown, and they were proud of it.”

Speaking at Monday’s ceremony were Hale, Reeves, Clay Roblyer, president of the foundation, and Ron Yankowski, a native of Picher who excelled in football and became an NFL player.

Hard work

Yankowski, who traveled to the event from St. Louis, Mo., said: “Things were not easy sometimes if you were from Picher and you were a miner. We knew what hard work was about. The hard work in Picher was the key to my success.”

Roblyer said Picher was an example of American capitalism, but that he related more to the labor side of the equation.

“The miners were the backbone, literally and figuratively, of those mines,” he said.

Noting that his father was a miner who held more than one job to make ends meet for his family, Roblyer said: “Their seeking of better times allowed many of us to have a better day. Most of us are standing on their shoulders.

“They provided us a platform for our future,” he said, suggesting that the scholarship ensures that the heritage of Picher will not be lost.

Hale said, “This endowment will enable NEO to pay tribute to the community that once was Picher and open the door to an education for those whose families live within the mining district.”

Hale said the gift is probably one of the most significant moments in the history of the college.

In exchange for the donation, the foundation will be responsible for ensuring that all of Picher’s records, photographs and town archives will be categorized and available to the public for research.

Johnson, Picher’s city attorney, said many lessons can be learned from Picher’s mining industry and the environmental contamination that contributed to the town’s demise. More than $60 million in federal money is funding the buyout and relocation of 700 residents, an operation that began when studies determined that parts of the town could cave in at any time.

Dissolution

Reeves said papers to dissolve the city will be filed in court after the first of the year.

The scholarship was named in memory of Carolyn Elmore, a city clerk in Picher for 20 years who died of cancer in October. Reeves said Elmore, an alumna of NEO, did all she could to help anyone who came through the doors of Picher’s City Hall.

About half of the 120 people who attended Monday’s ceremony were from Picher. Among them were Picher students who are attending NEO.

Logan Harris, 21, said, “It’s amazing, but for everyone here from Picher, it’s very emotional.”

The first scholarship could be offered in the fall of 2010, an NEO official said.





Historical link

Northeastern Oklahoma A&M; College was founded in 1919 as the Miami School of Mines. That was a year after Picher was founded. The school was established for the purpose of studying the science of mining and metals to further the development of Oklahoma’s mining industries.