About
Mission Statement
The mission of the El Reno Chamber of Commerce is to be the catalyst for business and community growth, increase the aesthetic values of the community and endeavor to create a more enlightened business and public opinion regarding legislative affairs.
Awards
2009 Community Awards
Teacher of the Year: Nancy Salsman
Nancy started teaching at the age of thirty-two. She received her B.S. in Elementary Education from Southwestern Oklahoma State University with a minor in Computer Technology, then she went onto gain her Master’s in Education in School Administration from the University of Central Oklahoma.
Nancy Salsman is the daughter of late Fred and Jeanette Everett. Nancy was born in Oklahoma City and lived in Utah with her parents, two sisters and brother until they moved back when she was in the fourth grade.
Nancy has been married to Larry Salsman for thirty-two years and they have a son Bryan and a daughter Amy, who is married to Cannon and they have two children Tanner and Madyson. Nancy’s father was her biggest inspiration; he had always pushed for his children to accomplish great things.
Congratulations to Nancy Salsman, El Reno’s Teacher of the Year!
Officer of the Year: Officer Tony Smith
Officer Tony Smith was named Police Officer of the Year by his follow officers and supervisors. Tony has been a member of the El Reno Police Department since April of 2006 and is currently assigned to the Patrol Division. During the past three years, Tony has proven to be a natural leader within the Police Department. Tony is a member of the Canadian County Special Operations Team, serves as a field training officer, and is an assistant shift supervisor.
Tony’s family resides in El Reno and serves our community with pride and integrity.
Congratulations to Officer Tony Smith, El Reno’s Police Officer of the Year!
Firefighter of the Year: Jesse Lesperance II
Jesse began his career in 2005. He is an honors graduate of El Reno High School and attended Redlands Community College. He graduated at the top of his class at the inaugural Fire Academy at Eastern Oklahoma County Technology Center.
Jesse currently holds the rank of “Driver” for the department. A partial list of his professional accomplishments include; Nationally Registered Emergency Medical Technician, Firefighter I and II certification, HazMat Operations and Advanced Open Water Diver. He is a member of the departments Open Water Rescue and Recovery Team as well as the Oklahoma Office of Homeland Securities, Technical Rescue Response Team.
Jesse’s commitment to his profession is second only to his commitment to his family, church and the community. His wife, Angela, is a sign language interpreter for the El Reno Public School system. Jesse, Angela and their two sons, Grady and Gage, are members of the First Baptist Church where Jesse is a member of the Men’s Ministry. He and Angela volunteer with the youth at church. He is always there to help a friend or neighbor in need without any expectation of recognition.
Due to his outstanding, unselfish and dedicated service, not only the to the Fire Department, but also to the community and the citizens of El Reno, we are proud to name Jesse Lesperance II, El Reno’s Firefighter of the Year!
EMS Employee of the Year: Clint Brower
Clint has been a Paramedic at Parkview Hospital since October 1992. He is certified as a Critical Care Paramedic which allows him to use more advanced skills in treating patients with life threatening trauma. Clint assists the Emergency Department in the care and treatment of patients on a daily basis, and he helps other departments when they have a need.
Clint has recently taken on more duties in the EMS Department as he assists the EMS Supervisor and EMS Director to maintain the day to day operations. He enjoys mentoring EMS students, molding them into talented and outstanding community servants. He is the self-appointed “man in charge” and keeps everyone on their toes with his quick wit and fun-loving personality.
Clint and his wife Stacy have 4 children, Shelby, Riley, Chase, and Baylee. They also mentor his niece, Kenzie. His family supports him in his role and takes great pride in his ability to help others.
Clint strives to see Parkview Hospital continue to serve the community and to increase patient volume, satisfaction and confidence in the care provided. He looks forward to exciting changes in the months to come.
Congratulations to Clint Brower, El Reno’s EMS Employee of the Year!
City of El Reno Employee of the Year: Lee Adams
“It’s a labor of love”. These are the words that Lee Adams, El Reno Cemetery Sexton, used to describe his job at the City. He has over 28 years of experience working in cemeteries in Oklahoma, spending the last five years at the El Reno Cemetery. Mr. Adams and his wife Irene have two kids, Chris and Shaina ( sha · na) and seven grandchildren. In his spare time, Mr. Adams enjoys riding with his motorcycle ministry group, the Fellowship of Christian Bikers; and playing with his grandchildren.
The improvements and quality of the El Reno cemetery are due in large part to Mr. Adams and his staff’s dedication and attention to detail. In the future, he hopes to continue the beautification at the cemetery, refurbish old headstones and borders, and restore the historical appearance of the cemetery.
For his dedication, care and tireless work effort, it’s an honor to name Lee Adams the City Employee of the Year.
Public Official of the Year: Rep. Ryan McMullen
Ryan McMullen was elected to serve in the Oklahoma Legislature in the fall of 2004. Early in his career, he was elected by colleagues to serve in one of five elected leadership positions in the House of Representatives. McMullen’s service as Chairman of the Democratic Caucus made him the youngest legislator in Oklahoma history to be elected to House leadership. He serves as the ranking member on the House Agriculture and Rural Development Committee.
A few of McMullen’s legislative accomplishments include reforms to increase investments in Oklahoma’s roads and bridges, streamline agricultural regulations, and equalize building funds to Oklahoma schools . In 2007 McMullen was given the Oklahoma State School Board Association’s Legislative Award for his commitment to Oklahoma’s children.
This past Legislative Session, Ryan authored a bill that established a formula for awarding educational building grants to school districts that have struggled to maintain quality educational facilities. This year was the fifth consecutive year that McMullen authored legislation to address the inequities that he sees in the ability of Oklahoma public schools to address their infrastructure needs and it finally passed!
Our gratitude is due Rep. McMullen and we are proud to name him El Reno’s Public Official of the Year!
Organization of the Year: El Reno Area Arts Council
In the spring of 2007, Bonnie Jordan and Dorrie Parrott made a commitment to bring art back to our community. Hence, the El Reno Area Arts Council was born.
The Art Council participates in many community events including Fort Reno Tombstone Tales and the Candlelight Tour as re-enactors and guides, Appetite for the Arts, and partnered with the City of El Reno to fund and bring about the new City Logo. These educational opportunities have given El Reno children an opportunity to showcase their artistic talents and learn new ones.
With the help and backing of the El Reno Area Arts Council, the El Reno Arts Festival has continued to grow and is attracting many great artists. Besides excellent artists exhibiting their artwork, the Art Festival includes free children’s educational art activities, free live entertainment, great food and demonstration art. Attendance has continued to grow, coming both from El Reno and other communities. In their quest to bring more and more people into El Reno for events, The Arts Council will continue to support the Arts Festival as well as other events and activities in this great City.
Many Arts Council activities are being planned for the future including bringing both children’s and adult theater back to El Reno, sponsoring music festivals as well as additional arts and crafts shows, and providing scholarships to college bound art students. Plans are also in the works to bring workshops to El Reno to teach painting, pottery, photography, music, dance and even cooking to adults and children. Their aim is to work toward an atmosphere in which the arts can grow and be enjoyed by all.
Congratulations to the El Reno Area Arts Council, Organization of the Year!
Business of the Year: Ross Seed Co.
Customer Service is the key to Ross’ business philosophy. The Ross family has high expectations for their employees. They maintain a high level of service through product training, customer service training, secret shopper reports, and a staff with positive attitudes. The store and employees sponsor many community events and are active in several worthy causes. They area active in on-the-job training classes partnering with the schools to help young people learn real-world skills and build character.
The Ross’ strive to help each one of their employees develop into, not only a good employee, but a good person. They are active in store operations and are easily accessible to both employees and customers. It is the Ross family’s hands-on management that has helped the business succeed for almost 60 years.
We are grateful for the Ross family’s commitment to El Reno and are proud to recognize them as El Reno’s Business of the Year!
Citizen of the Year: Richard Steanson
Richard was in the public school system for 30 years as a teacher, coach, dean of boys and athletic director. His colleagues referred to him as "the Sheriff". His students knew Mr. Steanson to be firm, but kind.
After retirement Richard had more time to dedicate to volunteer organizations and even invested in a local restaurant. Richard is a member of First Christian Church, El Reno Lions Club, the Children’s Miracle Network Board, the El Reno Arts Festival, Keep El Reno Beautiful, the TURF committee, Relay for Life, and the El Reno Special Olympics. He is involved with the El Reno Public Schools Health Fair and mentoring program and Blessing Baskets.
Richard and his wife Bobette have two sons: Joe Don and his wife Laura Ann who live in Austin, TX and John, who lives in El Reno. They also have two grandsons, Jonathan and Reid.
Mr. Steanson currently works at the Bank of Union as community relations coordinator. This position gives him the perfect opportunity to convey his work in the community he loves to the business world. Richard likes the idea of having a chance to repay El Reno for being the kind of town in which he is proud he raised his children. Richard relishes the chance to help others succeed and dedicates himself thoroughly to the task.
We are proud to name Richard Steanson El Reno’s Citizen of the Year.
Community Volunteer of the Year: Brian Hill
Brian Hill was born the youngest of five children to Glen and Treva Hill. He grew up in El Reno and graduated from El Reno High School. He has been involved in El Reno Little League sports for the past 18 years, long before his children began playing on the teams. He began coaching boy’s baseball in 1991 and has been involved in running little league baseball for 15 years and has been the commissioner for the last five. He has also coached girl’s basketball for 12 years, boy’s basketball for 9 years and just last year began coaching little league football. He also provides private lessons, free of charge!
Brian has invested countless hours working on the little league fields and facilities. During baseball season, Brian sacrifices approximately 15 hours a week to prepare the fields. This year has been especially challenging due to ongoing construction at the baseball complex. No bathrooms and limited electricity have created extra problems, but they have been overcome for the benefit of the league.
Brian donated all the lettering for the new backstop at the EHS Baseball field and was able to get all of the other supplies donated. He has worked with the City of El Reno to get new fencing for the high school and little league fields.
Brian is married to Kellie and they have four children: Dahlton, Haley, Hunter, and Brice.
Brian Hill’s commitment to the youth of our community is the reason why he is this year’s Community Volunteer of the Year!
Roy Stevenson Meritorious Service Award: Jack & Pat Reuter
Jack and Pat Reuter are long time residents of El Reno. They have a great love of history and it’s evident in everything they do. Historical Reenactments, films, style shows, and commercials are just a few of the projects in which the Reuters are constantly involved. They give presentations to local schools, scout troops, civic groups, churches, home extension groups, and historical societies. They also act as historical interpreters for Fort Reno. Jack and Pat have been active in the Canadian County Historical Museum since its grand opening in 1970 where Jack has served as President and currently serves on the board. Pat is the curator of the museum which contains her extensive vintage dress collection. Their most extensive reenactment was a two week long movie production about the Chisholm Trail Cattle Drive for the Duncan Chisholm Trail Museum. Jack served as the authenticity consultant and Pat furnished the clothing.
Jack and Pat have a daughter, Vicki Proctor, who grew up presenting living history and now serves as President of the Canadian County Historical Society. They have two grandchildren, Trisha Murray and her husband Jay and Shane Proctor and his wife Mindy. They also have three great-grandchildren: Brady Proctor and Madison and Miles Murray. All of whom can be seen attending or participating in living history presentations.
Jack and Pat’s love for El Reno and its rich history runs deep. They never hesitate to describe our roots to tourists or citizens of our community. It is the Chamber’s privilege to honor them for a lifetime of service to our community.
Please join me in congratulating Jack & Pat Reuter, recipients of the Roy Stevenson Meritorious Service Award!
