As the second quarter of 2016 opened, Kansas firefighters were still working to contain the massive Anderson Creek wildfire that started near Camp Houston in western Woods County. Soon the end of the school year loomed with numerous events making for busy schedules. June brought wheat harvest, the Nescatunga Arts Festival and the beginning of summer.

April

Area firefighters were recovering from the all-out effort to contain the Anderson Creek wildfire and replenish supplies used during that process. Then another wildfire broke out in Woodward County, and units from Woods County went to help.

Jason Perks of Alva was driving a county road grader to help make fire breaks for Woodward County when his position was threatened by fast-moving flames. An Oklahoma City Channel 9 storm chaser team saw his predicament and offered him a ride, thus saving him from a life-threatening situation. Although the grader was damaged, county officials were surprised the motor still started up after the fire had passed.

On April 6, a grass fire started in a grassy, wooded area at the west edge of Alva. Fanned by wind and fed by dry vegetation, the fire was moving toward homes along Ridgeway Road. A forestry service fixed-wing tanker airplane offered to divert from their path toward Woodward County, dumping a load of retardant-laced water on the fire. Firefighters were able to control the blaze before any homes were damaged.

During the April meeting of the Alva Board of Education, plans to drop the district's coordination of the Alva educational co-op were announced. The co-op provided services to many northwest Oklahoma schools but several had dropped out. Three of the co-op employees found placement in open positions in the Alva school system.

Alva Business Manager Joe Don Dunham said the replacement of Alva water meters with new automatic reading meters was expected to be complete by the middle of April. The AMR meters allow the city to drive past addresses and read the meters with a computer program rather than sending an employee to walk to every address, open the meter cover and write down the reading.

The Alva Speedway opened for the summer racing season at the fairgrounds south of Alva.

Alva and Woods County hosted the annual Lt. Governor's Turkey Hunt. Guests enjoyed guided hunting trips, meals, tours of the area and conversation with locals. The hunt provides a showcase of the area for those who might be interested in business or industrial locations.

After receiving only one bid, the Alva Airport Commission decided to scale down their specifications for a T-hangar rental building to house eight aircraft. They eventually bid the building and construction separate from the dirt and concrete work with the city acting as the general contractor.

Northwestern Oklahoma State University named their outstanding graduates for 2016. Honored were Edana Caldwell in arts, Gary Sacket in business/professional, Tom Fisher in education, Linda Tuwiler for Ranger spirit, and Dr. Reid Holland in the humanitarian category.

At the April meeting of the Alva Hospital Authority, Share Medical CEO Kandice Allen announced the average patient census for March was 8.5 patients per day, the highest level since ten years ago. She attributed the increase to the implementation March 1 of the telemedicine association with hospitalist Dr. Robert Rader, MD.

The Alva Tourism Committee approved funding for the second annual Crazy Cool Boulevard Cruise and agreed to help financially with the NWOSU Football golf tournament fundraiser.

Alva High School choirs went to state and brought home five new superior plaques and the coveted sweepstakes award.

Longfellow Elementary students worked hard on exhibits for their school science fair.

The Alva Goldbugs baseball team won the district contest against Newkirk but lost in the regional tournament a week later.

Share Medical Center Foundation honored volunteers and donors with a banquet on April 21. Carroll Devinney was named volunteer of the year and also received an award for 2,000 hours of volunteer work. Dr. Ken Brown was also presented with his 2,000 hour pin as a volunteer.

Longtime lawman Arlo Darr passed away on April 27 at age 87. He had served as Woods County sheriff and as Alva police chief before retiring. His funeral at Freedom packed the high school auditorium.

The last day of April, a young man from Alva had his life cut short by a fatal wreck. Kramer Lewis was only 20.

May

NWOSU held their 117th spring commencement. Don Raleigh, an NWOSU grad in his eighth year as superintendent of the Pryor School District, was in the speaker.

The NWOSU Foundation presented their spring semester scholarship bill to the Alva City Council. The scholarships are funded by a half-cent city sales tax. Dr. Steve Lohmann told the council about the $2.9 million impact in the area by the NWOSU rodeo team.

The annual Kiwanis Little Olympics was held at the Alva High School football and track field.

NWOSU vocalists held a concert called "Sound Scapes" in the remarkable acoustical area of the former armory now used as a bus barn for the Alva Schools.

A distracted driver plowed into an Alva school bus on May 10. Three children were treated for minor injuries.

On May 11 teachers and staff from the Alva Public Schools were honored at a reception at the Alva Middle School. Honored retirees were Ramona Cummings, Helen Barrett and Becky Pingelton. Rising Star Chasity Enck and District Teacher of the Year Cara Bradt were also honored.

Alva Middle School's eighth-grade promotion was held with Alva High School graduate Karen Koehn as the speaker. Alva High School graduation was the next day with Dr. Steve Lohmann, another AHS grad, as the speaker.

As classes drew to a close, Washington Early Childhood Learning Center helped their young students celebrate the end of school with Water World. Children enjoyed lots of fun and games.

After initial bids to roof the Alva Public Library came in too high and were rejected, the Alva City Council approved a quote using a different material that would help bring the project within budget limitations. Work was set to begin the first of June.

Six Alva High School track team members earned the chance to compete at state. Going to state were RayRay Bell, Stephanie Spellman, Hayden Colwell, Travis Costello, Seth Milledge and Tevin Long.

Signaling the start of summer, the Alva Municipal Swimming Pool opened the last weekend in May for Memorial Day weekend.

June

As usual for many years, June began with the Nescatunga Arts Festival on the downtown square June 4.

Although there had been talk of an early wheat harvest, rains and cooler temperatures delayed cutting. The first load of wheat arrived on June 4 at the Alva Farmers' Cooperative elevator.

The Alva Kiwanis Club welcomed new NWOSU women's basketball coach Tasha Diesselhorst as the featured speaker in an early June meeting. Diesselhorst told of her family ties to the area, her experience and her plans for the team.

When rains cleared and temperatures began to rise, the City of Alva street crews were finally able to try out the asphalt overlay machine purchased from the county. They experimented first at the swimming pool parking and then started on much needed street work.

After a 2015 failed bid to open a healthcare clinic in Alva, Integris Medical of Enid once again filed an application in 2016. A hearing was scheduled before the Alva Planning Commission in June. Only four of the six commission members could attend. After hearing back and forth discussion, a motion to deny the permit ended in a tie vote. Two members voted in favor of denying the permit, one voted not to deny the permit, and one abstained which was counted as a no vote.

Instead of taking that non-recommendation to the city council, the decision was made to hold another planning commission meeting when more of the members could be present. The delay would also give Integris more time to prepare their answer to objections about the clinic. The delayed meeting was not set until August.

With indoor athletic events ended, NWOSU began extensive renovations on Percefull Fieldhouse, tearing up the floor and removing seating. New flooring and updated seating was in place for the start of basketball season.

Brad Franz was appointed as the new NWOSU athletic director, opening up the position of men's head basketball coach at the university.

The NWOSU men's rodeo team made history in June with steer wrestler J.D. Struxness earning NWOSU's first national title. The men's team brought home the 2016 Reserve National Champion Men's Team title from the CNFR.

Rep. Jeff Hickman made his final appearance as a legislator at an Alva Chamber of Commerce breakfast in June. He was term-limited.

The Alva Ambulance Service showed off their new Lucas device that delivers automated chest compressions for CPR, relieving ambulance personnel from the exhausting work of manual chest compressions during an emergency ambulance ride. Funding for the $14,000 device came through donations and funding from the BankIt program.

Beloved historic toys at Alva's Hatfield Park were unveiled after a facelift. After welding, repairs and painting, a new generation of kids will have the opportunity to play on the toys. The Alva Friends of Play raised financing for the effort which restored the big toy, the lighthouse, the climbing bobber and the S.S. Hatfield boat. Park employees along with BJCC work crews spruced up the park for the summer season, and a grant from TSET funded solar-powered lighting put in place by the city.

Speaker of the House Jeff Hickman spoke in Alva at the Chamber breakfast Friday, July 17. It was his last official Chamber breakfast after 12 years of public service.