Kim Henry Named To Sarkeys Foundation Post

From The Sarkeys Foundation Website ~ "Sarkeys Foundation announced Wednesday that it has selected First Lady Kim Henry as its new Executive Director.

"She will succeed Cheri Cartwright, the longtime Sarkeys’ executive director who passed away this spring. Henry, a former teacher, has served on the Sarkeys Board of Trustees since 2003.

“'Kim was the natural choice for the job,' said the Sarkeys Board of Trustees in a written statement issued after their decision. 'She has long experience with Sarkeys and tremendous leadership and administrative skills that will serve Sarkeys well going forward.'

"Sarkeys Foundation is a private foundation dedicated to improving the quality of life in Oklahoma by supporting the work of non-profit agencies across the state and offering professional development opportunities in those agencies.

“'I am delighted to serve Sarkeys Foundation in this new role and look forward to working with the board and staff to continue improving the quality of life in Oklahoma,'” Henry said.

"Although Henry will assume her Sarkeys’ duties immediately, she will continue to fulfill all her responsibilities and commitments as First Lady of the State of Oklahoma," the announcement said.

The members of the Sarkeys board of trustees are President Terry W. West, Shawnee attorney; Vice President Richard A. Bell, Norman attorney; Secretary-Treasurer Fred Gipson, Norman retired attorney; Teresa B. Adwan, Tulsa attorney; Kim Henry; Dan Little, Madill attorney; and Joseph W. Morris, Tulsa attorney.

The Sarkeys Foundation, the website reports, was formed in 1962 by S. J. Sarkeys, who was born in Lebanon in 1874 and emigrated to the United States when he was seventeen. On route to South America, he stopped to visit a brother in St. Louis who showed him a new invention: the carbide lamp. Sarkeys found a market for the lamps in Oklahoma and, as he peddled them around the countryside, he began to buy farmland and, later, oil and gas leases. The successful production from these holdings became the basis for the several fortunes he made and lost during his lifetime.

He was ninety when he died in 1965, three years after setting up the Sarkeys Foundation with 2,750 shares of Sarkeys Inc. stock. At the time of his death, the Foundation had made contributions of about $14,000. Since that time, grants totaling over $55 million have been awarded.

With assets of around $100 million, the Foundation provides grants to a diverse group of non-profit organizations and institutions, almost all of which are located in Oklahoma.

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Kim Henry On Palin Controversy: Kids Off Limits

By Jerry Bohnen/NewsRadio 1000 KTOK ~ Oklahoma First Lady Kim Henry's husband might be a Democrat but when it comes to the media's attacks on Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin over her pregnant and unmarried 17-year old daughter, she defends Palin's family.

'It angers me that a child is brought into it,' says Oklahoma's First Lady

"Kids are off limits," declared Henry in an interview with KTOK news. "They're completely and totally off limits. What you don't understand is how the kids will react to this and it's unfair to put them through it."

And the national media's handling of the story disturbs Henry, mother of three daughters. "It angers me that a child is brought into it. It makes me really sad."

The First Lady went on to say the actions of a child should not be brought into the political campaign and she admitted she didn't make good decisions when she was 16 and 17 years old. "That had absolutely no bearing on my parents and their parenting skills." Henry said her parents were great parents and did everything right.

She said it's especially difficult for children to handle the pressure of being in the political spotlight. "Other than the media, everybody's been really good to understand kids are off limits---it's not an issue."

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Kris Steele Honored By Child Advocates

Rep. Kris Steele will be inducted into the Child Advocates Hall of Fame in April by the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy, officials announced today

""I am honored and humbled to be included in the Child Advocates Hall of Fame," said Steele, R-Shawnee. "The vast majority of the people I work with want to create a better world for our children. I will continue to pursue that goal and I sincerely appreciate the efforts of all the officials and advocates who work alongside me."

In a letter notifying Steele of his selection for the honor, Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy Executive Director Anne Roberts wrote that Steele is among a group of policymakers who "have made a real difference in the lives of the children and young people of our state in the areas of juvenile justice, health and safety, child protection, education and poverty."

Steele and other honorees will be inducted at an April 22 ceremony at the Skirvin Hotel in Oklahoma City. Steele is chair of the House Health Subcommittee.

The event will also honor Steele's most prominent Shawnee neighbors, Governor Brad Henry and his wife, Kim.

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Henry Mission Trip Cost State $21,314

Oklahoma taxpayers paid more than $21,000 in security and miscellaneous expenses when Governor Brad Henry and first lady Kim Henry traveled to Ghana for a mission trip in June, it's reported. The Henrys paid their own travel and lodging expenses during the 10-day trip. But it cost the state $21,314 to provide a three-trooper state security team, Public Safety Department records show.

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Governor, First Lady Join Ghana Church Mission

Governor Brad Henry and First Lady Kim Henry will depart Friday for a 10-day church mission trip to Ghana, Africa. The Henrys will be part of an assistance group sponsored by His Nets, a non-profit Christian organization focused on combating the malaria epidemic in Sub-Saharan Africa. It's an out-of-the-ordinary absence for a sitting governor and means Lt. Governor Jari Askins takes the reins during his absence.

Mission members will provide malaria prevention education and distribute free mosquito nets to needy families in Ghana. The nets help protect people, particularly pregnant women and young children, from malaria and other mosquito-borne illnesses. Malaria claims the lives of thousands of Ghanaians each year and is considered the deadliest disease in Africa.

The Henrys are helping raise funds to pay for the mosquito nets. The mission group plans to distribute 5,500 nets at a cost of six dollars each.

Dr. Paul Calmes, the former pastor at the Henrys’ home church, the First Baptist Church of Shawnee, is leading the mission trip. This will be his third mission to Ghana.

The Henrys are scheduled to return on June 25. They are paying for the trip with personal funds.

Ghana is situated on the southern coast of West Africa and is bordered to the east by Togo, to the west by the Ivory Coast and to the south by the Atlantic Ocean. At 92,000 square miles, the country is about the size of the state of Oregon and has a population of approximately 22 million. Ghana is a constitutional republic and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, an organization of independent states comprised predominantly by former colonies of the British Empire.

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