Garett Fisbeck Volunteers Christine Hoffman and LeAnn Tyson input data from surveys at the Homeless Alliance Day Shelter in Oklahoma City, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2017.
About two hours before daybreak, Dan Straughan slowly drives under the freeway overpass as two outreach workers shine flashlights into perhaps one of the darkest corners of Oklahoma City.
Their beams reflect on scattered trash, a backpack and what appears to be a tan blanket concealing something or someone.
Straughan circles his car back and into a nearby parking lot. As executive director of the Homeless Alliance, Straughan and a team of four outreach workers reach into the trunk for bags containing knit hats, socks, blankets and handwarmers. Holding a clipboard in his hands, he guides the team to the overpass, where they began the steep upward climb.
Oklahoma Gazette the best newspaper in Oklahoma during its recent 2017 awards gala in Stillwater.
Gazette competed in the statewide Oklahoma Pro Chapter contests largest newspaper division, earning first place in the Best of the Best / Best Newspaper division;
The Oklahoman earned second, and
Tulsa World took home third.
Journalists often make fun of themselves for being word people not math people, but conversations with past
Gazette editors and management show this is only the second time our paper has earned the top honor in about 25 years, if not longer.
Our success is the communitys success, and I want to thank every reader, staff member, reporter, independent journalist, photographer, intern, supporter, sponsor, social media follower, advertiser and especially the University of Oklahomas student journalists at the