Bob Barry Sr.
Cleveland Elementary, Taft Junior High and
Classen High School
2009 Wall of Fame Inductee

Bob Barry, Sr.’s name and voice is legendary in the world of sports. A 1946 graduate of Classen High School, Barry attended the University of Oklahoma and studied journalism prior to joining the U.S. Air Force in 1951.

His career in broadcasting began in 1956 at KNOR radio as a salesman, disc jockey and sportscaster. His big break came in 1961 when Bud Wilkinson selected him to call OU football and basketball games. Barry remained OU’s play-by-play announcer until 1972 when he called games for Oklahoma State University (1973-1990), Tulsa University (1973-1974) before returning to OU in 1991.

Barry joined KFOR-TV as a sports anchor in 1966 and was named sports director in 1970. He has been honored by his peers 15 times as Oklahoma’s Sportscaster of the Year, and inducted into the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame, Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame, and Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. In 2008, he was recognized as a Distinguished Alumni by OU’s Gaylord College of Journalism, Media Arts and Strategic Communications.

Barry is a former member of the Board of Directors of National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association and has served on many nonprofit and civic boards in Norman.

He turned over KFOR-TV Sports Director duties to his younger son, Bob Barry, Jr. in 1997 and retired from television broadcasting in 2008. Barry is entering his 32nd season as the voice of Sooner Football and basketball on the Sooner Sports Radio Network.

Skip Bayless
Northwest Classen High School
2008 Wall of Fame Inductee

At Mayfair Elementary School, Taft Junior High and Northwest Classen High School, Skip Bayless clung to the belief that he could at least play college baseball or basketball. That changed the first week of school his sophomore year.

"I took an advanced English course taught by the journalism teacher, Mrs. Burdette," Bayless says. "She assigned book reports, just to guage our writing ability, and of course I chose a sports book, a biography of Y.A. Tittle. She called me up to her desk after class on Friday of that week and I thought I was in trouble. She said, 'You are going to write for the school paper whether you like it or not.’ I resisted at first, but I will be forever grateful to her.'"

Forty years in newspapers, magazines, radio and television later, Bayless is amazed and honored he has been selected for the Wall of Fame recognizing outstanding alumni of Oklahoma City Public Schools. Bayless says: "Trust me, it wouldn't have happened if Liz Burdette hadn’t pushed me into writing and if Frank Boggs, the legendary Daily Oklahoman columnist, hadn’t encouraged and recommended me."

Mrs. Burdette entered Bayless for a sportswriting scholarship given annually by Vanderbilt University, the Grantland Rice Scholarship. Boggs wrote Bayless a compelling letter of recommendation. Bayless was the award’s first winner from west of the Mississippi.

That May of 1970, Boggs actually wrote his column in The Oklahoman and Times about this kid from Northwest Classen who had managed to win a full scholarship to Vanderbilt for sportswriting. "Most amazing thing that ever happened to me," Bayless says. "The sports columnist I read religiously every morning wrote about ME, and it wasn't because I'd been great in basketball or baseball, because I hadn't been."

In his usual dryly humorous way, Boggs zeroed in on Bayless' frustration with getting edged out for valedictorian of a class of 781. He quoted Bayless complaining that he made only one B in high school, in driver's ed, "because nobody made an A in driver's ed. I don't believe the girl who's valedictorian even took driver's ed."

Now, Bayless says: "I was embarrassed because my flippant remark came off as sexist. Yet, as much respect as I had for Justine Coyle, who was far smarter than I was, I still do not believe she took driver's ed."

Bayless interned one college summer under Boggs at The Oklahoman -- "greatest summer of my life" -- and Boggs helped him get a job right out of Vanderbilt at the Miami Herald ... which soon led to another at the Los Angeles Times ... and to the lead columnist position, at age 25, at the Dallas Morning News. Three years later he was hired away by the rival Dallas Times Herald for a salary that made news in the Wall Street Journal.

At the Morning News and Times Herald, Bayless won numerous awards, including Texas Sportswriter of the Year three times. He wrote three best-selling books on the Dallas Cowboys -- God’s Coach, The Boys and Hell-Bent. He wrote for Sport and Sports Illustrated magazines. And he did radio shows for Dallas-Fort Worth stations KLIF and KTCK, the Ticket.

In 1989, the late, great Dick Schaap invited Bayless to be a panelist on ESPN's "The Sports Reporters," and over the next decade, Bayless became a regular on the New York-based Sunday-morning show. In 1992, Bayless became a member of the original debate team on ESPN, "Prime Monday's" Knights of the Roundtable segments with Mitch Albom and Michael Wilbon. Bayless also had a weekend radio show on ESPN.

In 1997, Bayless left Dallas to become lead columnist at the Chicago Tribune, where in his first year he won the Lisagor Award for Chicago's best sports columnist and Illinois' Sportwriter of the Year. Four years later, he was rehired by his original employer, Knight Ridder, which owns the Miami Herald, to be lead columnist for the Knight Ridder chain, whose flagship paper is the San Jose Mercury News. Along the way, Bayless did regular commentary on the Golf Channel and became a regular guest host for Jim Rome's national radio show.

Finally, in 2004, ESPN hired Bayless to be a regular on the New York-based "Cold Pizza," debating Woody Paige on the daily morning show. In 2007, ESPN moved the show to its Bristol, Ct. base, changed its name to First Take and made Bayless the fixture of its First and 10 segments, bringing in different debaters each day (writers, broadcasters, entertainers, athletes and ex-stars) to take him on. The show has become one of ESPN's greatest ratings successes.

"LeBron James has asked if he could come in and debate me," Bayless says. "I've come a long way from Mrs. Burdette’s English class. But nothing in life makes me happier than getting back home to see my mom."

His mother Levita lives with her husband Andy in Northwest Oklahoma City and can still beat her son in golf, which keeps things in perspective for him.

Lela Bennett Sullivan
Harding High School - 2003 Wall of Fame Inductee

Lela Bennett Sullivan, a graduate of Harding High School and Oklahoma State University, is a mother, former teacher and devoted community volunteer. Among the many organizations that have benefited from her time and dedication are the Governor’s Commission on the Status of Women, YWCA, Oklahoma Crisis Council, Oklahoma Metropolitan Library Trust, OSU/OKC Liberal Arts Advisory Board, Lyric Theatre, Dean McGee Eye Institute Foundation, Oklahoma Aids Care Fund and Red Earth, Inc.

Currently, she serves as president of the board of directors for Red Earth, Inc. which promotes and preserves the culture and heritage of Native America. Sullivan has received numerous honors and awards for her service which include the YWCA's Outstanding Community Volunteer Award, Oklahoma City University's Mardi Gras Award for Community Service, FRIDAY newspaper's FRIDAY'S Woman Award, Oklahoma Hospitality Club's Woman in the News Award and the Junior League of Oklahoma City's Sustainer of the Year.

Excerpt from the 2003 Wall of Fame Program

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G.T. Blankenship
Classen High School - 1999 Wall of Fame Inductee

Blankenship, who attended Jefferson Elementary, Taft Junior High and Classen High Schools, earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Government and History and his LLB degree from the University of Oklahoma.

After his military service in the U.S. Air Force, he entered private law practice in 1956 and politics in 1960, when he was elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives. From 1966 until 1970, he was Attorney General for Oklahoma.

While in private business and law practice at Jopling and Blankenship (1973-1986), he also entered the banking field, serving as Chairman of the Board of Nichols Hills Bank & Trust Company from 1975-1990. He then became Chairman Emeritus and a member of the Advisory Board until he, again, took the chairmanship in 1996.

He has been a member of the Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma, also serving as chairman, and has involved himself with a number of foundations and committees.

Excerpt from the 1999 Wall of Fame Program

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Marion Briscoe DeVore
1988 Wall of Fame Honoree

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Sarah Caton Hogan
Classen High School - 1999 Wall of Fame Inductee

A graduate of Classen High School, Sarah Caton Hogan attended the University of Oklahoma before marrying Dan Hogan, III and becoming the mother of three sons and a daughter. Now that her children are grown, she devotes a major portion of her time to civic and educational organizations.

She served on the boards of the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics Foundation, where she served as president; World Literature Today; Metropolitan Library System Endowment Trust and Oklahoma City Alliance for Cultural Facilities. She is a member and past Chairman of the Board of Visitors of OU's Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art and the Boards of Visitors for OU's College of Fine Arts and College of Arts and Sciences.

Mrs. Hogan is former Chairman of the OU Board of Regents and of Health Sciences Facilities, Inc., past president of the Oklahoma Art Center (now the Oklahoma City Art Museum) where she chaired the Phillips Collection Exhibit and served on its exhibition council.

Formerly a member of the board of Oklahoma City's Junior League, Mrs. Hogan has been honored with OU College of Medicine Alumni Association's Community Service Award. Oklahoma City University's Dulaney-Browne Library Award, Red Lands Council of the Girl Scouts of America, Woman of the Year in Education Award, Association of Women in Communication's Byliner Award and the Governor's Arts Award for Community Service.

Excerpt from the 1999 Wall of Fame Program

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B.C. Clark, Jr.
Classen High School - 1998 Wall of Fame Inductee

B.C. Clark, Jr., served as Chairman of the Board of B.C. Clark, Inc., a family owned retail jewelry firm celebrating over 100 years in business in Oklahoma. The only son among six children of pioneer parents who settled in Purcell, Indian Territory, in 1892, Mr. Clark graduated from Classen High School and continued his education at Oklahoma City University, majoring in Business Administration.

The jewelry business has always been his first love and except for serving in the Navy as a gunnery officer during World War II, his 66 years with B.C. Clark Jewelers has been unbroken.

Mr. Clark has always been active in civic work and has served as President of the Oklahoma Retail Jewelers Association, Downtown Kiwanis Club, Oklahoma City Retailers Association, the Better Business Bureau of Central Oklahoma and the Last Frontier Council of Boy Scouts. He is also a recipient of the Silver Beaver Award, one of scouting's highest honors, and he has established the "B.C. Clark, Jr. Go to Camp" endowment fund. Recently Mr. Clark was bestowed with three honors: the "Pathmaker" award from the Oklahoma County Historical Society, the "Lifetime Achievement Award" from the Oklahoma Jewelers Association and an honorary doctorate of commercial science from Oklahoma City University.

Mr. Clark has two sons, Dr. Benton C. Clark, III and Jim C. Clark, seven grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. Mr. Clark and his wife, Jerry, currently reside in their home in Quail Creek.

Excerpt from the 1998 Wall of Fame Program

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Richard H. Clements
Classen High School - 1997 Wall of Fame Inductee

Richard H. Clements, Co-Founder and President of Clements Foods Company, is a 1944 graduate of Classen High School and a graduate of the University of Oklahoma. Selected for the Navy’s V-12 program, he served two tours of duty in the United States Navy.

He was the first elected Chairman of the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce and continues his active commitment to this community through service as a member of the corporate board of directors of the YMCA, trustee of the United Way, trustee of the Oklahoma Health Center Foundation and member of the Board of Visitors of the Fred Jones, Jr. Museum of Art.

Dick has served as President and Director of the National Preservers Association as well as President and Director of the National Salad Dressing Manufacturers Association. He is a former President and Director of the United Way, former Director of INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center, and former President and Director of the Better Business Bureau.

Other areas of service include former Board of Trustees’ President of the Oklahoma Art Center (currently named the Oklahoma City Art Museum), former Director of the Omniplex Science Museum, First National Bank and Trust Company and Local Federal Savings and Loan Association.

Dick and his wife, Mary, have three sons: Richard and his wife, Melissa; Robert and his wife, Sody; Edward and his wife, Matilda. They are also proud grandparents to seven grandchildren.

Excerpt from the 1997 Wall of Fame Program

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Andrew M. Coats
Northeast High School - 1998 Wall of Fame Inductee

Andrew M. Coats is a 1953 graduate of Northeast High School and a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Oklahoma.

In 1960, after serving in the navy, Mr. Coats returned to the University of Oklahoma to attend the College of Law. He was an Editor of the Oklahoma Law Review, President of the Student Bar Association and Order of Coif. In 1962, he was honored by the Oklahoma Bar Association as the outstanding law student in the state of Oklahoma and was selected the outstanding law graduate of 1963.

From 1971-72 he was an adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Oklahoma Law School and was President of the Oklahoma County Bar Association in 1976. In 1977, Mr. Coats was honored by the Oklahoma City University College of Law as the outstanding Lawyer in Oklahoma. He was the District Attorney of Oklahoma County from 1976 to 1980. In 1983, he was elected Mayor of oklahoma City, where he served until April 1987. He was President of Crowe & Dunlevy law firm in 1987 and 1988 and was President of the Oklahoma Bar Association in 1992.

Mr. Coats is past President of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the Charter President of the American Board of Trial Advocates in Oklahoma, and is a Fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. In 1995, he was selected as a Trustee of the United States Supreme Court Historical Society. On July 1, 1996, he became the Dean of the University of Oklahoma College of Law.

Mr. Coats and his wife, Linda, have three sons, Mike Coats, Sandy Coats and Dr. Michael Last, and a daughter, Jennifer Last.

Excerpt from the 1998 Wall of Fame Program

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Wayne Coyne
Classen High School - 2007 Wall of Fame Inductee

Frontman of famed alternative rock band The Flaming Lips, Wayne Coyne grew up in Oklahoma City and attended Classen High School. His artistic tendencies began early, mostly in the form of painting and drawing in his own distinctive style, and his early teenage years were spent listening to a variety of great music, played to him by his older brothers.

Finally able to afford his first guitar at age 15, Wayne mastered the basics in two weeks. Soon after, The Flaming Lips were born.

Since beginning the band in 1983, Wayne’s imaginative use of experimental sounds and stage antics have won critical acclaim. The band has released 11 albums and boasts three Grammy Awards and many other industry honors.

Wayne recently dabbled in film making and screen writing, with his debut movie “Christmas on Mars” to be released this year. The Lips will also hit Broadway as they team up with TV writer and show creator Aaron Sorkin to turn the group’s 2002 album Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots into a Broadway musical.

Wayne and his wife, Michelle, a photographer, live in Oklahoma City.

Excerpt from the 2007 Wall of Fame Program

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Admiral William J. Crowe
1987 Wall of Fame Inductee

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Edgar Cruz
Northwest Classen High School - 2005 Wall of Fame Inductee

Cited as Oklahoma’s best performing artist and acoustic guitarist for over three years by the Oklahoma Gazette, Edgar Cruz is an Oklahoma treasure. As a native of Oklahoma City, Cruz attended Monroe Elementary, Cleveland Elementary, Lincoln Fifth Year Center, Taft Middle School and graduated from Northwest Classen High School in 1980. Cruz went on to earn two associate degrees from Oklahoma City Community College, followed by a bachelor of music in guitar performance from Oklahoma City University.

He is the recipient of many industry awards and each year performs over 200 concerts, playing throughout America, Mexico, Europe and South America. With over 14 recordings to date, Cruz covers moods from Latin and classical to international, rock, jazz, mariachi, romantic and Christmas.

Excerpt from the 2005 Wall of Fame Program

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James R. Daniel
Linwood Elementary, Wilson Elementary, Taft Junior High and Northwest Classen High School
2009 Wall of Fame Inductee

A strong foundation in his faith and a sense of purpose has marked James R. Daniel’s life and career.

Born and raised in Oklahoma City, Jim’s success in the classroom was equaled by his success on the playing field. Jim graduated in 1958 from Northwest Classen High School where he led his teammates to the school’s first State Baseball Championship in 1957. He attended Baylor University on an academic/athletic scholarship where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Finance. Jim then completed the Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University.

Jim began his banking career right out of high school at Central National Bank of Oklahoma City in 1958. He joined Central’s affiliated bank, Friendly National Bank, in 1964 and became President and CEO in 1972. In 1993, BancOne of Oklahoma was formed when their parent company purchased Friendly and Central banks. Jim served as Chairman, President and CEO of BancOne of Oklahoma until 1997 when he joined the BancFirst organization. Jim is currently Vice Chairman of BancFirst Corporation where he serves on the Board of Directors, Executive Committee and Senior Loan Committee.

Jim is involved in many civic and charitable activities, both in Oklahoma and nationally. Jim serves on the Board of The Foundation for Oklahoma City Public Schools, having served as Chairman; Board member and past Chairman of Integris Health Systems; Chairman of The Oklahoma City Housing Authority; Board member and current treasurer of the Oklahoma Fellowship of Christian Athletes and is an active member and past President of the Rotary Club of Oklahoma City.

Jim also serves on the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention in Nashville, as well as serving as a member of the board of the Southern Baptist Convention Foundation; is a past Chairman of the Consumer Bankers Association in Washington D.C. and is a proud board member of the Baylor University Letterman’s Association.

To honor his parents, Jim personally committed $1 million to furthering advancements in the research and technology of stroke treatment; the Integris Health Systems’ James R Daniel Cerebrovascular and Stroke Center was named in his honor.

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L. Thomas Dulaney, Jr.
Classen High School - 2008 Wall of Fame Inductee

Luther T. Dulaney, made community service a priority all the while raising a family and building a family-owned business. Following in his father’s footsteps, L. Thomas Dulaney, Jr.’s life is a study in citizenship.

As a child growing up in Oklahoma City during the late 40's and 50's, Tom Dulaney made life-long friendships while attending the Oklahoma City Public Schools. At Nichols Hills Elementary School, lessons of service were reinforced as Dulaney was a member of Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. Dulaney attended Harding Junior High and Classen High School. After graduating from Kemper Military School, he attended the University of Oklahoma where he was a member of Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity. Upon leaving the University of Oklahoma Dulaney joined the Army Reserve and soon thereafter joined the family business, Dulaney's Inc., a wholesale appliance distributor.

As chairman of Dulaney's, Inc., Dulaney steadily grew the business and founded its successful subsidiary, Best Video. Today he serves as general partner of the Luther T. Dulaney Company, which concerns itself with real estate and investments. As successful as he has been in his business, he has been equally successful in cultivating success in many cultural and service organizations that enrich the lives of our community.

Numerous civic and educational organizations have benefited from Dulaney's creativity, energy and leadership. He was a founding member of the Pops Concert Series of the Oklahoma City Symphony. Dulaney and three other civic leaders founded the Phaythopen Charity Auction to benefit the Oklahoma Arts and Science Foundation, the genesis of the Allied Arts Foundation. This auction was the prime source of funding for twenty years. In 1998 he was King of the Beaux Arts Ball, the annual ball benefiting the Oklahoma Museum of Art.

As well as giving his energies to the arts for many years, Dulaney exhibited great commitment to the Rotary Club of Oklahoma City, including serving as President in 1972. In 2004 he was recognized with the "Service Above Self" award, one of only eleven recipients in the club’s ninety five year history. Dulaney served as co-chair of the Oklahoma City Festival of the Arts in 1982. For over thirty years he served on the board of the St. Anthony Hospital Foundation. Dulaney served seven years as treasurer of the Oklahoma Chapter of the Young Presidents Organization. Other boards he has loyally served on include the State Fair of Oklahoma, The American Red Cross, The Better Business Bureau of Oklahoma City, The Salvation Army, The Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, The Oklahoma City Symphony and the First National Bank and Trust Co.

Answering the need of children's safety, when Nichols Hills Elementary reopened, Wilshire Boulevard exhibited very heavy traffic. Thanks to the generosity of Tom and his brother, Richard Dulaney, the school now has a safe, curved driveway leading to the front door.

In his immediate community of Nichols Hills, he currently is President of the Nichols Hills Crime Prevention Committee and a member of the Nichols Hills Employees Scholarship Fund. He also serves as President of the Touchdown Club at the University of Oklahoma. In 2005 he received the University of Oklahoma Regents Alumni Award.

Tom Dulaney met his wife, Candy Willis, in the Leadership Oklahoma Class X. He is the father of three children Luther III, Lisa Dobbs, Geoffrey and grandsons Scott and Reid Fisher.

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Dr. Robert Ellis
Classen High School - 2000 Wall of Fame Inductee

Dr. Robert S. Ellis, Classen High School graduate, attended the University of Oklahoma and received his M.D. degree from Northwestern University in Illinois. Early in his career, Ellis was a U.S.A.F. (M.C.) Captain and flight surgeon. He has been practicing civilian medicine at Oklahoma Allergy and Asthma Clinic for more than 30 years.

Ellis has dedicated his life to healing others as a staff member of the following hospitals: St. Anthony, Mercy, University, Veterans Administration and INTEGRIS Baptist. He holds American Specialty Board Certification in three areas: Allergy and Immunology, Internal Medicine, Subboard – Allergy. He is a member of Oklahoma County Medical Society, Oklahoma State Medical Society and the American Medical Association.

Ellis is a Casady School Trustee, Omniplex Board Member and Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce Board Member. Ellis is also the Presbyterian Health Foundation Investment Committee Chairman.

Excerpt from the 2000 Wall of Fame Program

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Ralph W. Ellison
Douglass High School - 1994 Wall of Fame Inductee

Ralph Waldo Ellison was born in Oklahoma City on March 1, 1914. His father died when he was three. Mr. Ellison played trumpet in the Douglass High School band, graduating in 1932. He left Oklahoma in 1933 to study music at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. In 1936, he moved to New York City where he worked with the Federal Writers Project.

In 80 years, he touched the lives of millions of Americans through the power and beauty of a work published in 1952. Invisible Man follows a young, unnamed black man's humiliations in the segregated South and Harlem. The book predated and foresaw the issues raised by the civil rights and black power movements and the urban riots of the 1960s. It was the first book by a black author on the New York Times best-seller list and it won the 1953 National Book Award. In a 1965 poll of authors, editors and critics, it was named the most distinguished American novel of the post-World War II era.

Mr. Ellison died in New York City on April 16, 1994.

Excerpt from the 1994 Wall of Fame Program

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Harvey P. Everest
1985 Wall of Fame Inductee

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Helen Ford Wallace
U.S. Grant High School - 2005 Wall of Fame Inductee

Helen Ford Wallace has been a part of Oklahoma City education for years, starting out at Linwood Elementary and graduating from U.S. Grant High School in 1958. After completing her Bachelor of Science degree in journalism at the University of Oklahoma, she became the journalism teacher, yearbook and newspaper advisor at Northeast High School.

Wallace continued her 48-year career in journalism as a columnist for the Daily and Sunday Oklahoman, and currently writes for Parties, Etc., the Sunday morning society column. She has also lent her expertise to committees and boards for various community activities including Junior League, Beaux Arts Ball, Red Earth Festival, National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, OU Associates programs, Oklahoma Heritage Association and many more.

Excerpt from the 2005 Wall of Fame Program

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William F. Frankfurt and Kristin Reeves Frankfurt
Harding High School - 2007 Wall of Fame Inductee

Bill Frankfurt attended Putnam Heights Elementary, while wife-to-be, Kris Reeves, enjoyed Wilson Elementary. Then, they spent six years together at Harding High School, graduating in 1959.

Bill is CEO of Frankfurt-Short-Bruza (FSB), one of Oklahoma’s largest architectural engineering firms. His leadership in the industry has earned FSB a national reputation and a long list of repeat clients including the Kerr McGee Corporation, Devon Energy, Conoco/Phillips, Kerr McGee Corporation, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Air National Guard, American Airlines, United Airlines, USAirways, Federal Express, Olympic Airways, and the Federal Aviation Administration.

Bill is also a long-time advocate of education and healthcare issues and has served on various committees to promote these areas. He has served on the boards of the Oklahoma City Public Schools Foundation and Harding Charter Preparatory High School. In addition, Bill has served as president of the Oklahoma Chapter of the American Society of Heating and Refrigeration Engineers, and Society of American Military Engineers.

Kris’s lifetime of community service has benefited organizations such as the Junior League, Myriad Gardens, Omniplex, SSM Healthcare Systems and Westminster Presbyterian Church. Kris also still enjoys being active in the alumni organization for her alma mater. Giving back to her community, Kris has served as chairman of Oklahoma City University’s Award of Excellence Ball in addition to treasurer of the Oklahoma Humanities Council and treasurer of the Humanities Endowment Fund. Her honors include Myriad Gardens Volunteer of the Year; Oklahoma City University Community Volunteer Award; Junior League of Oklahoma City 2002 Mary Rumsey Baker Life Time Commitment Award; and Oklahoma Hospitality Club “Ladies in the News” 2004.

Married for 44 years, Bill and Kris have three children and two grandchildren.

Excerpt from the 2007 Wall of Fame Program

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Mex Rodman Frates
1986 Wall of Fame Inductee

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Rodman Frates
Casady High School - 2006 Wall of Fame Inductee

A graduate of Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, Rodman Frates went on to the University of Virginia School of Law, Charlottesville.

He began his education at Nichols Hills Elementary School and graduated from Casady High School.

He is the president and chief executive officer of C. L. Frates and Company, and a director of BancInsure, Granite Insurance Company, SpecTir Corporation, and SAMDA Corporation. Rodman was honored at the 1992 World Epigraphy Conference for his archaeological discoveries.

Rodman’s diverse civic interests focus primarily on education and family planning, and he serves on numerous civic boards including the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, KIPP Academy and the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics.

Excerpt from the 2006 Wall of Fame Program

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Edith Gaylord Harper
Classen High School - 1999 Wall of Fame Inductee

Mrs. Harper, a graduate of Classen High School, attended Colorado College and was a graduate of Wells College. Colorado College, where she served as a member of the Board of Trustees, awarded her an honorary degree in 1992 in recognition for her longtime interest in the college.

Mrs. Harper began her journalism career at The Daily Oklahoman and Oklahoma City Times and went on to further her career in New York and Washington, D.C., before returning to Oklahoma. She was president of the Women's National Press Club and secretary of Eleanor Roosevelt's Press Conference.

She was initiated as an honorary member of the National Capitol Chapter of Theta Signa Phi, a journalism sorority known today as the Association of Women in Communications. The Oklahoma City Professional Chapter of AWC recognized her civic contributions with its prestigious Byliner Award.

She founded the Inasmuch Foundation, which helps fund organizations in the arts and health and human services, and established the Foundation for Ethics and Excellence in Journalism. Mrs. Harper is Secretary Emeritus of the Oklahoma Publishing Company and serves on its board. She was inducted into the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame in 1989.

Excerpt from the 1999 Wall of Fame Program

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Vince Gill
Northwest Classen High School - 2001 Wall of Fame Inductee

Vince Gill is an Oklahoma native who left Oklahoma City shortly after graduation to pursue a dream - a dream that has made him one of the most popular country performers. Gill grew up in Oklahoma City playing banjo and guitar with local bluegrass musicians, and he has been playing ever since.

Gill has won 14 Grammy Awards including several Best Country Vocal Performance and Best Country Song Awards. He also received 18 Country Music Awards, more CMA awards than any artist in history. Gill was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1997 and the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 1999.

Gill enjoys working with Oklahoma City’s Special Care and most recently served as Honorary Chairman of their capital campaign.

Excerpt from the 2001 Wall of Fame Program

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Alan C. Greenberg
1993 Wall of Fame Honoree

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V. Burns Hargis
John Marshall High School - 2002 Wall of Fame Inductee

A graduate of John Marshall High School, V. Burns Hargis graduated from Oklahoma State University and the University of Oklahoma School of Law before embarking on a legal career of 28 years.

Spending his adult life working to promote Oklahoma City, Hargis co-founded the Oklahoma City Community Food Bank in addition to serving as president of various respected professional organizations. Through 18 years of volunteer efforts, Hargis has helped raise millions for various charities and is past-chairman of the Oklahoma City United Way Campaign. Hargis served as chairman of the Oklahoma Commission for Human Services under Governor Henry Bellmon, vice chairman of the State Election Board under Governor Boren and is currently chair-elect of the Greater OKC Chamber of Commerce. Still active in the political arena, Hargis co-hosts Flashpoint, the weekly KFOR-TV public debate program with Mike Turpen and mediator, Kevin Ogle. Hargis currently serves as vice chairman of Bank of Oklahoma (BOK) and its parent company, BOK Financial Corporation.

Excerpt from the 2002 Wall of Fame Program

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Rubye Hibler Hall
2002 Lifetime Achievement Award

Receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award is Rubye Hibler Hall, founder/executive director of the award-winning National Grandparents Academy.

Earning her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Langston University and a Master of Arts degree in English/Speech from the University of Oklahoma, Hall is also an OU Health Sciences Center speech pathology/neurology specialist.

The first African American appointed to the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education in 1974, Hall served as chairman in 1978-79. Her long-time involvement with the Oklahoma City Public Schools includes serving as a teacher of English, music, mathematics, speech pathologist, psychometrist, a diagnostician and counselor.

Excerpt from the 2002 Wall of Fame Program

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Dannie Bea Hightower
Classen High School - 2001 Wall of Fame Inductee

Dannie Bea Hightower has spent her life giving back to the community of Oklahoma City. Hightower graduated from Smith College with a degree in English Literature.

Over the years, Hightower has served on numerous boards in an effort to make Oklahoma City a better place to live. Most recently, she has focused on getting the Oklahoma Garden Festival off the ground, continuing efforts with the Harn Homestead, Children’s Medical Research at Children’s Hospital, and Sunbeam Family Services.

Hightower commented that "I seem to never outgrow the thrill of helping new projects get off the ground." This attitude is what has kept her busy over the years and has allowed our community to grow and flourish.

Excerpt from the 2001 Wall of Fame Program

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Carolyn Hill
Central High School - 2008 Wall of Fame Inductee

"Education has defined everyday of my life and continues to. It is the larger picture of ideas which stimulate inquiry, thought process, and the realm of possibility and opportunity." - Carolyn Hill, Culbertson Elementary School, Webster Middle School, Central High School

Carolyn Hill, a native of Oklahoma City, has been President and Chief Executive Officer of the Oklahoma City Museum of Art since 1994. She received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Oklahoma and completed post-graduate studies at The Juilliard School of Music, New York, and The Mozarteum, Salzburg, Austria, where she was awarded a diploma in conducting. An avid art enthusiast, Hill continued her studies over the course of many summer abroad.

She worked in education, music, and the visual arts in New York City for more than 30 years. She spent twenty years in posts including, faculty member and arts administrator at several private schools, including the United Nations International School, where she was Head of the Arts Department. She was music director and conductor for the Livingston Symphony Orchestra, New Jersey, and the New York Music Society Chamber Orchestra as well as Music Theater International's National Tour of 1776. Additionally, she was president and director for twelve years of the Carolyn Hill Gallery, New York, and Carolyn Hill Fine Art, located in New York and Oklahoma City.

Hill returned to Oklahoma City in 1993 and was appointed Executive Director of the Oklahoma City Museum of Art in 1994. During her tenure, the Museum has achieved and maintained fiscal stability, operating thirteen consecutive years in the black, and is debt free. She was instrumental in the Museum's successful $40 million Legacy Campaign to fund the Donald W. Reynolds Visual Arts Center, overseeing its design and construction, as well as its $3 million campaign to purchase Dale Chihuly: The Exhibition, the most comprehensive collection of Chihuly glass in the world. During her tenure, the Museum has gained national recognition with the establishment of a film program, the Museum School, outstanding international exhibitions, and thirteen endowments valued at more than $22 million.

Hill is a member of the National Arts Club in New York City and serves on the boards of Chamber Music in Oklahoma and the Business Improvement District, Downtown OKC, Inc. She received the By-liners Award for Arts in 1997, the Governor’s Arts Award in 2001, and the Stanley Draper Award for Community Excellence in 2003.

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Jeanne Hoffman Smith
Classen High School - 2000 Wall of Fame Inductee

Jeanne Hoffman Smith, Classen High School graduate, is a private practice clinical social worker. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Oklahoma City University in 1973. She received a Master of Social Work from the University of Louisville in 1976. She holds an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Oklahoma City University where she is currently a trustee.

Smith is an asset to the community with her desire to help people and also with her strong leadership abilities. She is an active Board Member with the Chamber Music Association, Presbyterian Health Foundation Grants Committee, Mental Health Association of Oklahoma County, and the Oklahoma Eye Foundation. She is a Board Member Emeritus for the Oklahoma Arts Institute. Smith also sits on the advisory boards and committees of the Oklahoma State Film Commission, World Literature Today and the Sunbridge Low Cost Counseling Service

Excerpt from the 2000 Wall of Fame Program

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J. Clifford Hudson
Parmalee Elementary, Webster Junior High and Northwest Classen High School
2009 Wall of Fame Inductee

Innovation is the hallmark of Cliff Hudson’s professional successes while compassion is the engine that drives his unfailing commitment to education. Hudson began attending Oklahoma City Public Schools in 6th grade when he moved from Wichita Falls, Texas to Oklahoma City with his family.

He graduated in 1973 from Northwest Classen High School and completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Oklahoma. He then studied law at Georgetown University Law Center prior to joining Sonic Corp.’s legal department in 1984. Hudson has served the company in a variety of capacities including general counsel, chief financial officer and chief operating officer prior to being named CEO and president in 1995, and chairman of Sonic Corp in 2000.

During Hudson’s tenure, Sonic’s system-wide sales have grown from $900 million to almost $4 billion. In addition to his Sonic responsibilities, Hudson is affiliated with many nonprofit and community activities, including his transformational leadership as chairman of the Oklahoma City School Board of Education, member of the Project KIDS committee whose work led to MAPS for Kids, and serving as a corporate partner for Wilson Elementary School.

In 1994, he was nominated by then-Senator David Boren and President Clinton to serve as Chairman of the Board of the Securities Investor Protector Corporation, where he served until 2001. He currently serves on the board of visitors of Georgetown University Law Center, as trustee of the Ford Foundation (New York), and is the Chairman of the Board of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

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Mayor Kirk Humphreys
Northwest Classen High School - 2007 Wall of Fame Inductee

Kirk Humphreys is a proud product of Taft Junior High and Northwest Classen High School. Known for his public service, Kirk served as Mayor of Oklahoma City from 1998 to 2003. Under his leadership as mayor, the city completed the historic MAPS Projects and approved MAPS for Kids, a sweeping revitalization of the public schools. Kirk has also served on the Putnam City School Board of Education.

Today, Kirk owns Humphreys Real Estate Investments, a real estate development company with properties in Oklahoma and surrounding states. He continues to be active in the community, serving on numerous boards and as a vice-chairman of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber.

Kirk and his wife, Danna, have been married for 35 years and have three children and four grandchildren.

Excerpt from the 2007 Wall of Fame Program

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Wallace Johnson
Douglass High School - 2004 Wall of Fame Inductee

While Wallace Johnson has traveled all over the world, he is proud of his Oklahoma roots. Johnson was born in Oklahoma City and attended Paige Elementary, Douglass Junior High and graduated from Douglass High School. He continued his education at the University of Oklahoma and played fullback for the Sooners, becoming the second African-American to play football at OU. Upon graduation, Johnson was commissioned through the OU Reserve Officers Training Corps program in 1961 and began a decorated 23-year military career.                        

Currently, Johnson is director of the Mentor-Protégé Program and deputy director of the Procurement Technical Assistance Program at Mason Enterprise Center for Regional Analysis and Entrepreneurship at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. The programs provide incentives for Department of Defense contractors to help small businesses and organizations employing the severely disabled and women-owned businesses develop technical and business capabilities. 

Johnson is a member of the Association of the United States Army, University of Oklahoma "O" Club, and is a lifetime member of the Disabled American Veterans.

Excerpt from the 2004 Wall of Fame Program

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Marylin Jones Upsher
Classen High School - 2006 Wall of Fame Inductee

To cite the personal and community contributions of Marylin Jones Upsher would require pages. She truly knows the joy and responsibility of giving to others, and does so with generosity, commitment and charm.

The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Jones, she was born in Oklahoma City and attended Wilson Elementary, Harding Middle School, Classen High School and the University of Oklahoma. She graduated from Mills College in Oakland, CA.

She is a member of Junior League, Winter Ball, Beaux Arts Society, Allied Arts, Oklahoma City Zoological Society, and a long-time board member of Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. Governor George Nigh appointed her chairman of Oklahoma Arts Council, which she served for four years.

She was a founding member and chairman of the Fred Jones Jr. Art Museum in Norman, named after her late brother. Marylin is also chairman of the Fred Jones Foundation, which benefits area civic, cultural and educational organizations.

Excerpt from the 2006 Wall of Fame Program

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Lou Kerr
Capitol Hill High School - 2001 Wall of Fame Inductee

Lou Kerr is an active leader in the community as well as the state and nation. She continually strives to give back to the two things she believes in most: people and the community. Kerr received a degree in Education and Health from Oklahoma City University and is an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from OCU.

As president of The Kerr Foundation, Inc., she evaluates and allocates funds to non-profit organizations, programs and institutions which enrich opportunities for all Oklahomans with an emphasis on our youth.

Kerr is an advocate for education and spends a great deal of her time focusing on programs that serve to educate and stimulate the minds of others. She serves on numerous boards and was a founding member and officer of the Oklahoma City Public Schools Foundation.

Excerpt from the 2001 Wall of Fame Program

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Eleanor Blake & John Elson Kirkpatrick
1990 Wall of Fame Inductee

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Linda Lambert
Edgemere Elementary - 2004 Wall of Fame Inductee

Born and raised in Oklahoma City, Linda Lambert began her educational career at a small elementary school north of downtown, Edgemere Elementary. She believes that the positive experience she had in those formative years gave her a head start for the future. Lambert attended Mills College in Oakland, California and the University of Oklahoma. 

Lambert currently serves as president of LASSO Corporation, an investment company with an emphasis on oil and gas development. She is also an active partner in the family business, Petree Valley Farms, located in Verden, Oklahoma.

Vice Chairman of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area Public Schools (OCMAPS) Trust, Lambert also serves on the Oklahoma City National Memorial Foundation, Oklahoma Rhodes Scholarship selection committee, is chairman of the board for Mercy Health Center and is the founding chair of Possibilities: Neighbors in Action. 

Lambert believes she is in the "oil and gas business for her living, and community service for her life."

"Educating our children is not just a school's job," commented Lambert. She went on to say, "It is up to each of us to support our children in learning for life." 

Excerpt from the 2004 Wall of Fame Program

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