A note from Steve:

I hope everyone had a happy summer despite Retro Metro OKC taking a break from its meeting schedule. This break was a good time for us to get some behind-the-scenes details addressed, and quite frankly, I was a bit overbooked with work and family obligations.

We have a fun fall schedule lined up, starting with an opportunity at 6 p.m. Monday, September 9, to tour the remodeled Calvary Baptist Church:

Attorney Dan Davis, himself a history buff, has done a superb job working with Retro Metro OKC’s own Catherine Montgomery in doing a very impressive preservation job – one I suspect will win some serious national recognition.

Calvary Baptist Church may be one of the most if not the most significant historic structure still standing representing the history of our city’s black community. I am hoping that this might be just our first gathering at the church – it is my goal to invite someone like Anita Arnold to share the history of Deep Deuce with us at a later time.

The Calvary Baptist Church is located at NE 2 and Walnut. I suspect there might be a few of us who might choose to walk down to the Deep Deuce Grill or to the Wedge afterwards for a late dinner.

Our October meeting will be on Monday, October the 7th, and will offer even more fun as we are given the chance to get an up-close view at the contents of the Century Chest at the Oklahoma History Center. The Century Chest was opened earlier this year – and may be the best preserved time capsule in our state’s history.

Chad Williams, deputy director of the Oklahoma Historical Society, will be our host as he tells us about the items found beneath the First Lutheran Church. You can read more about the collection at www.okhistory.org/centurychest/.

And, here’s a video you can watch about the treasures contained in the Century Chest:

http://www.okhistory.org/centurychest/history.php

The meeting starts at 6:30. The Oklahoma History Center is located just off NE 23 and Lincoln (across from the Governor’s mansion) at 800 Nazih Zuhdi Dr.

Our annual holiday party will be held 6 p.m. Monday, December 9th at the Hart Building, 720 W Sheridan along Film Row. It’s quite an appropriate gathering spot for us, considering it was a gutted shell of a building when most of us last saw it during our Film Row presentations in 2012. We will likely be doing a pot luck meal of sorts, and I’ll share more details as we get closer to the date.

We will not be meeting in November, and during our December gathering we will be discussing the likelihood of switching to a bi-monthly schedule.

Also, we are very, very close to seeing the first batch of Hale Photography images posted online. A.J. Kirkpatrick, meanwhile, is preparing to set up another scanning session for the remaining Hale materials.

As an aside, be sure to check in at www.retrometrookc.org on a regular basis. Our in-house genius, website creator Justin Tyler Moore has generously set us up with a blog that is being updated weekly now by Lynne Rostochil. Justin also is tweaking the site and fixing some glitches in the collections scroll bar and will also be creating a links page showing all the collections.

Some of you have tried contacting me and may have found that frustrating. Forgive me – again, it’s been a crazy several months for me. I hope to get caught up on communications this next week.

Thanks for all you do to make Retro Metro OKC the success it is.

– Steve Lackmeyer, president, Retro Metro OKC.