Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.

John 6:35

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Week 7 football games are scheduled for Thursday, due to the annual fall break, as most of the county teams are coming off a good week.

Compared to previous weeks, there are not any really big games. See the updated district standings and schedule HERE.

See the whole story HERE.

Oklahoma fishing report

This week’s Oklahoma fishing report.

ONE YEAR AGO

2024--LeFlore County football teams had a good week as they went 6-1 in Week 6 football games going into the short week leading up to Thursday’s games over the fall break…Voters in LeFlore County who want absentee ballots mailed to them for the Nov. 5 general election, should apply now, according to County Election Board Secretary, Sharon Steele…Wolves host fifth-ranked Kingston Thursday… Howe Public Schools and the Howe Lions’ Air Rifle competition team played host to the first SAR (Student Air Rifle program) State Tournament…Pocola girls advance to Class 2A state championship girls… The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Michael John Jones, 41, of Talihina, was sentenced to 63 months in prison for one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine.

10 YEARS AGO

2015—School board salutes state academic championships for fast pitch softball and the cheer team at Monday’s meeting. Coaches were introduced along with players…Special city council meeting rescheduled. The meeting was to have an executive session on terminating interim public works director Tim DeWitt…Trail of Tears scheduled for Oct. 24…Poteau BallonFest is coming up…Brooke Nicholson is band homecoming queen, escorted by Benjamin Walker…Heavener Methodist Church to hold fall bazaar…Cameron First Baptist Church to hold its 125th anniversary…Poteau is undergoing revitalization…Heavener FCCLA members go to conference…City of Heavener is accepting applications for a new city manager after Larry Jones walked off the job…Heavener loses to Sequoyah-Tahlequah at state tournament.

20 YEARS AGO

2005—Hodgen School Board bond election is defeated…Three county fire departments receive aid…Monika Killion is band homecoming queen, escorted by Tyler Hall…Safe room construction at school hits a snag…Lions Club names queens and escorts…Wilburton downs Heavener, 17-0…Pat Shatsar named employee of the month at Jim E. Hamilton Correctional Center.

30 YEARS AGO

1995—Dog saves family from fire…Transfer station raises rates, reduces hours…Head start holds open house…CASC receives $150,000 gift…County Republicans hold banquet…Larry Brooks named employee of the month at Heavener Elementary…Eufaula runs past the Wolves, 36-20…Jim and Nancy Shore purchase Jim Mixon Insurance Agency.

40 YEARS AGO

1985—Bids sought for new track, football stadium renovation…OSU salutes former Heavener graduate Byron Bird…Junior Miss contestants to appear on television…Heavener Class of 1967 to meet…Big Creek Baptist Church sets new attendance record…Heavener stomps Warner, 31-7…Jump over to the Rock Diner for the best frog legs in town…Gary Hooper, owner of Heavener Sonic, joins Heavener Lions Club…Merle Kinney of Heavener named a representative at Carl Albert Junior College.

50 YEARS AGO

1975—Congressman Carl Albert announces Heavener has been named a Bicentennial City…Cindy Huie selected Heavener band homecoming queen…Forest Ranger Bob LaVal said that the fire danger is high due to recent dry conditions…Kenneth Clubb has a 1974 Luv pickup truck for sale…Stanley Hardware is having a huge reduction sale…Skelton’s Dairy Crème and Café is open 24 hours per day…Don Knotts stars in “The Shakiest Gun in the West” this week at the Liberty Theater.

60 YEARS AGO

1965—Plans have been completed for a town meeting to discuss bringing in a new town doctor as Dr. Hogeboom is leaving and Dr. Fair is attempting to retire…28th annual Livestock and Poultry show is scheduled for next week…A senior class float depicting McHale’s Navy won first place in Heavener’s homecoming parade…Heavener Chamber of Commerce president Phil Freeman said there are 73 members in the organization…Ride the Southern Belle between New Orleans and Kansas City…Bill Skelton has a two-bedroom mobile home for sale…Rock Hudson and Leslie Caron star in “A Very Special Favor” at the Liberty Theater this week.

70 YEARS AGO

1955—Welton Kelly has resigned his position as Hodgen Postmaster…Heavener School will be out Thursday and Friday for the annual state teachers’ meeting…Local Chevrolet dealer Bill Hembree announces that sale and delivery of the new 1956 Chevrolets starts in Heavener on Oct. 31…Miss Martha Felder will be named homecoming queen at the football game with Hartshorne…Bee Davis of Hodgen has a 1949 Chevrolet half-ton for sale.

90 YEARS AGO

1935—The WPA announced that in order to put more people to work, it is reducing the amount of time for projects to be completed…A survey crew is almost finished with the planning for a road between Heavener and Waldron, Arkansas…The government has announced the CCC crew at Holson Valley will be closed…The editor believes J.M. “Alphabet” Brewer has lived here longer than any other resident. Brewer came to Heavener in 1879…Mrs. Hendrick has a good coal and wood stove for sale…The sidewalk in front of the Liberty Theater is being replaced to keep water from entering the building during heavy rains.

100 YEARS AGO

1925—A.M. Rosenbaum of Heavener was seriously injured while oiling the big steam shovel at Pine Mountain as he fell some 20 feet from the platform he was working on. He is recovering at a Fort Smith, Arkansas hospital…A.B. Scott of Zoe has been found guilty of complicity in the partial destruction of the home of J.T. Pope. Jeff Burnett, recently released from the prison at McAlester for committing the crime, testified Scott promised to pay him $350 to burn the home down. He only received $50 and on Scott’s refusal to pay the balance, Burnett gave information to the police, leading to the arrest of Scott…Campbell-Malone Drug Co., your Rexall Store in Heavener, has Jonteel hair nets for sale.

Aaron Castillo of Heavener was born May 4, 1997 in Brownsville, Texas to Jose Castillo and Olga Lydia (Castillo) Hernandez and passed away Oct. 11, 2025 in Oklahoma City at the age of 28.

Funeral service to honor Aaron’s life is 3 p.m. Saturday at the Light and Hope Fellowship Church in Heavener with Reverend Jose Castillo and Brother Kane Riggs officiating. Burial will follow in the Castillo Family Cemetery in Howe with military honors by the Poteau DAV #63 under the direction of Dowden-Roberts Funeral Home in Heavener.

Aaron was a 2015 graduate of Heavener High School. He worked at Fedex. He was a loving fiancé, father, brother, son, uncle, cousin, and friend. Aaron was a member of the 633 Church in Spiro. In his free time, his favorite thing was to spend it with his sons and family. Aaron was a veteran, serving his country in the United States Marines. He will be deeply missed by all whom knew and loved him.

Survivors are his parents Jose Castillo and Olga (Castillo) Hernandez of Heavener; his fiancé, Victoria Garcia, of the home; three sons Aaron Castillo, Maddux Castillo and Jacob Castillo, all of Heavener; one sister, Destiny Castillo, of Heavener; four brothers Arnoldo Castillo of Heavener, Abraham Castillo of Heavener, Alejandro Castillo of Heavener, and Guillermo Sarmiento and wife Alejandra of Texas; three nieces Lydia Castillo, Alexis Castillo and Kenia Sarmiento; two nephews Arnoldo Castillo, Jr. and Emiliano Sarmiento; numerous other relatives and friends.

Aaron will lie in state beginning Friday from 1 until 6 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the funeral home.

Pallbearers are Arnoldo Castillo, Abraham Castillo, Gilberto Perez, Raul Aguilar, Alejandro Castillo, Victor Castillo, Paul Castillo and Nicolas Castillo

To sign Aaron’s online guestbook please visit www.dowdenrobertsfuneralhome.com.

Helen Marie (Pitchford) Deffenbaugh of Poteau was born June 25, 1929 in Hartford, Sebastian County, Arkansas to Lester Kendricks and Amy Edith (Blaylock) Pitchford. She passed into Heaven on Oct. 10, 2025 in Heavener at the age of 96 surrounded by loved ones. Of all the things she did in life, the one that she was proudest of the “Living That Coach Wife Life”.

Funeral services to honor Helen’s life are 11 a.m. Saturday at the Dowden-Roberts Funeral Home Chapel with Pastor Brock Hardin and Jerry Pitchford officiating. Burial will follow in Heavener Memorial Park, under the direction of Dowden-Roberts Funeral Home of Heavener, Oklahoma.

Helen graduated from Van Buren High School. She was married to her “Coach Ed” for 67 years. He had been known to look at her with a twinkle in his eyes and say, “See that lady? The Lord put her in my life. She’s the best thing that ever happened to me”. He served in the Marines one year and then the Army for three years. He carried a picture of Helen while he served and told everyone that she was his pin-up girl.

Helen and Ed were married on Sept. 5, 1953 at the First Baptist Church in Van Buren, Arkansas, when he had returned from his military service. They moved to Houston, Texas where Ed would graduate from the University of Houston with an Education Degree in 1959. Helen worked for Texas Eastern Gas and Transmission during that time as a professional secretary. She said she could walk the long halls of that building as fast as anyone and faster than some, even in her high heeled shoes. She also had to walk about a city block and a half through all kinds of weather to get to and from the building in those high heels.

Helen was a committed coach’s wife as he served 47-seven years as a Texas High School assistant coach and Head Coach. Everyone knew she was dedicated to her Coach Ed and in his commitment to his students in Crockett, Marshall, and SPX Houston, Texas. Nine of his former players signed professional contracts, and over 50 received college scholarships.

The couple made their home in Poteau after Coach Ed retired where they were surrounded by their large families. They also owned the former Lester and Amy Pitchford home in Heavener, Oklahoma. This home was well known as the family’s White House and it served as a nucleus for family gatherings and celebrations over the years. The house echoed with laughter, songs, and what was believed to be the best shared food. It was a place where the family could gather, hold hands, and pray for the food and those present as well as missing.

On Nov. 11, 2020 Coach Ed was recognized and honored by St. Pius X as they dedicated their new St. Pius X High School Baseball Wall of Honor and placed a plaque as the very first inductee and center piece of that Wall of Honor. The plaque read that he was beloved by students and players and he will forever be remembered as the “Father of the St. Pius X Baseball Program”. In 2011, Coach Ed was inducted in the Texas High School Baseball Association Hall of Fame. Helen was always celebrated along with their coach.

The players and students at St. Pius knew and respected Helen for her dedication to their Coach Ed and team. They said they had played even harder when Mrs. Deffenbaugh was where they could see her because they had been told she had been a Miss Arkansas. One day Helen asked them who had told them that. They said “Coach Deffenbaugh had told them”, to which Coach replied with a smile that she was HIS Miss Arkansas. They continued to declare her to be their Coach’s Miss Arkansas for the many years that followed and those young men had later told their children and grandchildren of their coach and his Miss Arkansas.

The nieces and nephews knew they could look up in the stands at any ballgame or school activity and see their Uncle Ed/Cliff and Aunt Helen supporting them. They often went to them asking for advice and they were eager to share when they thought it was to their benefit. Together they were an example to those around them of what love and guidance should reflect. Several of the SPX former students shared that they raised their children and grandchildren by the Deffenbaugh philosophy of life. They conveyed that they learned from them to “never quit when the going gets rough”.

Helen watched baseball and football at every opportunity. For nearly 70 years, she was a dedicated Houston Astros supporter and was known for her unwavering loyalty and passion for them. The main reason she took the newspaper was to follow the team’s lineup, batting averages, and other statistics.

Helen had a kind heart and reached out to others. She could always be counted on to call, write letters or cards for all occasions. It was rare that she ever forgot a birthday or an anniversary. She had a gift for remembering events and stories and could quote details and experiences about those that had touched her life through the years. Helen will be remembered and missed by many whose life she had touched.

Surviving family members are one brother Bill Pitchford and wife Lynne of Heavener; sisters-in-law Patsy Pitchford of Bossier City, Louisiana, Norma Pitchford of Poteau and Laura Mae Deffenbaugh of Arkansas; numerous very special nieces, nephews, cousins, and other relatives and friends that brought her great joy and support; innumerable students and their families that her husband coached and especially those of St. Pius X Houston, Texas that continued to be a special family throughout the years.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Edwin C. Deffenbaugh; three sisters Wanda Faye and husband Carl Richmond, Ida Sue and her husband Jesse Finch, and Bexta Jean Pitchford; three brothers Bobby Carrol and wife Patsy Pitchford, Earl Eugene Pitchford, and Lester K. Pitchford, Jr.

Pallbearers are Jace Pitchford, Jett Pitchford, Jerry Pitchford, Garrett Lynn, Ryan Jackson and Scott Hairrell. honorary pallbearers are Helen’s many nephews and grand nephews, the countless number of players that Ed Deffenbaugh coached and that loved the two of them.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you make a donation in your area for a youth or little league baseball team in honor of Helen.

Viewing is from noon until 6 p.m. Thursday and 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. Friday. The family will visit with friends on Saturday at the funeral home from 10 until 11 a.m.

To sign Helen’s online guestbook please visit www.dowdenrobertsfuneralhome.com.

Treasa Lynn (Salsman) Fitzgerald of Heavener was born Jan. 2, 1958 in Morris to Clyde Raymond and Ruby Marie (Little) Salsman and passed away surrounded by her family Oct. 9, 2025 in Heavener at the age of 67.

The funeral service to celebrate Treasa’s life is 2 p.m. Monday at the Freedom House Fellowship Church in Heavener with Brother Sam Dyer and Dalton Luman officiating. Burial will follow in Heavener Memorial Park under the direction of Dowden-Roberts Funeral Home of Heavener.

Treasa Fitzgerald, a cherished member of the Heavener community, passed away after a life filled with love and resilience. Treasa graduated as the salutatorian from Howe High School in 1976. Her high school years were highlighted by her roles as a cheerleader, class president, and vice president. She was actively involved in journalism and the Future Homemakers of America.

In the early years, Treasa pursued a career as a Barber and Respiratory Therapist in the 1990’s. Although she faced health challenges that led to her retirement in the early 2000s, Treasa’s spirit remained unbreakable, and she approached life with a positive outlook. Above all, she fiercely loved and protected her family and friends, finding immense joy in the time spent with them.

Treasa was a loyal and caring friend, always ready to support those around her. Her mornings were often spent enjoying coffee while watching her favorite show “The Hagees.” She also loved the “Golden Girls”. Treasa will be remembered for her unwavering kindness, her dedication to her loved ones, and the warmth she brought to all who knew her.

Survivors are one son Dylan Roberts and wife Kaci of Heavener; four grandchildren Kynlee Paige and Kason Roberts of Heavener, Brody and Adrian Cheshier of Heavener; father of Dylan and friend Max Roberts of Heavener and his companion Nancy Cox of Poteau; one niece, Brittany Salsman of Shawnee; six nephews David Salsman, Jr. of Fayetteville, Arkansas, Michael Salsman and wife Bethany of Hichita, Scott Salsman and wife Lexi of Canton, Ohio, Jason Salsman and wife Ashtyn of Morris, Sean Salsman and wife Shannon of Wichita, Kansas, and Caleb Salsman and his wife Tiffany of Tahlequah; cousins Gwen Kirkpatrick and husband Ron of Glenpool, Alice Gregg of Oklahoma City, Rhonda Harder of Glenpool, Brad Bridges of Mound, Morgan Byars and husband Jeptha of Beggs, and Aaron and Ethan Thompson of Beggs; lifelong friends Susan Dodson and husband Darrel of Howe, Wanda Lawrence and husband Rob of Cameron, and Cheryl Felthousen of Edmond; caretaker and friend Rhonda Armstrong and husband David of Panama; several great-nieces and great-nephews; numerous other loved ones and friends.

She is preceded in death by her beloved parents; her husband, Danny Fitzgerald; her two brothers David Salsman, Sr. and Michael Salsman, her best friend Jeanne (Jones) Jackson, and her dearly loved dog, Marj. She also leaves behind four uncles, one aunt, numerous cousins and other loved ones.

Pallbearers are David Salsman, Jr., Sean Salsman, Mark Place, Geoff Slusser, Sean Covey, and Brad Morris. Honorary pallbearers are staff of Dowden-Roberts Funeral Home and Cremation Center, members of the Heavener Fire and Rescue, Scott Salsman, Ron Kirkpatrick, Darrell Dodson, Aaron Jackson and David Armstrong.

In lieu of flowers the family request donations be made in Treasa’s honor to either Gideon Bibles or Second Chances Retail Store at 1100 South Broadway, Poteau, Oklahoma 74953.

To sign Treasa’s online guestbook please visit www.dowdenrobertsfuneralhome.com.