It Was a BIG, Really Really Really BIG, Big Read

THE BIG READ KEYNOTE BANQUETS were held over the weekend at three locations in Southeastern Oklahoma. On Friday night, Keynote speakers gathered at the Museum of the Red River in Idabel. Then on Saturday, the festivities moved to the Days Inn at Poteau, when LeFlore County libraries celebrated the conclusion of six weeks of programming centered on the Charles Portis novel True Grit. Finally, on Saturday night, speakers and panelists gathered in McAlester’s Old Town, site of the J.J. McAlester store mentioned in the book, to hear Pat Starbuck of Talihina in her portrayal of Mattie Ross (top photo). Photos continuing left to right include Wayne Hanway, director of the Southeastern Public Library System of Oklahoma delivering the welcoming remarks; and Alan Crone,  Tulsa’s KOTV meteorologist and McAlester native, who served as the emcee for the evening. Author Jay Jennings spoke about the life and works of Charles Portis, followed by Dr. Lewis Parkhill, who addressed the literary merits of the book. Ryan Spring of the Choctaw Nation Cultural Services division put the setting of the book into perspective as it related to Choctaw and Native American history, and Jim Dunn, CEO of the planned U.S. Marshals Museum at Fort Smith, spoke about law enforcement from Judge Isaac Parker’s court. Hanway presented several awards and gifts, including a print of the True Grit cover of True West magazine, to the emcee; the Mattie Ross award, for attendance at Big Read programs, to Dorothy Crone; and the Rooster Cogburn award, for Big Read program attendance, to Randy Roden (final photo). Dr. Richmond Adams of Eastern Oklahoma State College (next to last photo) served as moderator of panel discussions at all three Keynotes. The evening closed with a sing-along of Western songs, and Jennings took the opportunity to serenade one of the more unusual table decorations, a stuffed rattler. The Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.