Eight outstanding Oklahomans have been selected for induction into the 80th class of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. These accomplished Oklahomans will join 613 individuals who have been inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame since 1928.
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"Induction into the Hall of Fame is the highest honor any Oklahoman can receive for contributions to and representation of our state," said Glen D. Johnson, a 2006 inductee and chairman of the board of the Oklahoma Heritage Association.
The 2007 honorees are: Clayton I. Bennett, Oklahoma City; Laverne native Jane Jayroe Gamble, now of Oklahoma City; Clinton native Toby Keith, now of Norman; David Kyle, Tulsa; Hoffman native Clara Luper, now of Oklahoma City; Aubrey K. McClendon, Oklahoma City; Chief Gregory E. Pyle, Durant; and Muskogee native Linda K. Twine, now of New York.
Clayton I. Bennett
Clayton I. Bennett serves as president of Dorchester Capital, a diversified private investment company. Dorchester's current investment concentration is in real estate, health care, technology, energy, professional sports and a broad variety of other investment activities. Bennett is an officer and director of numerous business entities.
Bennett currently serves as chairman of the Oklahoma State Fair and the Oklahoma Industries Authority. He is a past chairman of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, the Oklahoma Heritage Association, Downtown Oklahoma City, Inc. and the Oklahoma Health Center Foundation. Bennett serves as a board member of the following civic and charitable organizations: Oklahoma City Industrial and Cultural Facilities Trust, the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma City Boathouse Foundation, the Research Institute for Economic Development and Casady School.
In 1990, Bennett received the Dean A. McGee Award, which is presented annually to an individual who has made significant contributions to the development of downtown Oklahoma City. In 1997, he was presented the Economic Development Citizen Leadership Award by the National Council of Urban Economic Development. This national award is presented annually to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the field of urban economic development.
Bennett attended Casady School in Oklahoma City and the University of Oklahoma.
Bennett is married to the former Louise Gaylord. Together they have three children, Mollie Inez, Christine Marie and Gaylord Graham.
Jane Jayroe Gamble
Many Oklahomans know Jane Jayroe as both a former Miss America and a former television news anchor in Oklahoma City.
During Jayroe's year as Miss America in 1967, she was the first Miss America to visit a combat zone and started the Miss America tradition of providing entertainment to our military every year.
A graduate of Oklahoma City University with a master's degree from the University of Tulsa, Jayroe enjoyed a 16-year career in broadcast journalism. She served as a prime time news anchor in Oklahoma City and in Dallas/Ft.Worth. Representing KOCO news, she received several journalism awards for her work on education issues. Jayroe also was the first female named "Outstanding News Personality” in the Dallas/Ft.Worth television market.
A third generation Oklahoman, Jayroe has been appointed to leadership positions by four Oklahoma governors and served as Cabinet Secretary of Tourism for the State of Oklahoma and director of the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation.
Jayroe was the first woman to chair the Oklahoma Academy. She has served in a variety of leadership roles at UMC Church of the Servant and served Oklahoma City University as a trustee for many years. She serves on the boards of the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, the Oklahoma Heritage Association and the Oklahoma Centennial Commission. Jayroe is a former trustee of the Sarkeys Foundation. She is a graduate of Leadership Oklahoma City and was on the initial board that developed Leadership Oklahoma.
Jayroe is a much sought after speaker, and she produced a set of audio devotionals and created seminars for women titled Living Grace-fully and Esther Women. Jayroe recently co-authored her biography, "More Grace than Glamour,” with Bob Burke and wrote the essay for David Fitzgerald's book, "Oklahoma 3.”
Married to Gerald Gamble, Jayroe lives in Oklahoma City. She has one son, Tyler, who is married with two children.
Toby Keith
One of the most recognizable superstars in America, Toby Keith was born in Clinton. He received his first guitar at age 8, but didn't turn to music full time until 1984 where he played the honky-tonk circuit in Oklahoma and Texas with the band Easy Money. Keith's 1993 self-penned debut single "Should've Been a Cowboy” went to No. 1 on the charts to begin his career in earnest. It was the most played single in the 90s. Toby has sold 30 million CDs and his new CD "Big Dog Daddy” is set for release June 12th. He has 22 #1 singles. Toby has won numerous awards including one of the most prestigious, The 50 Million Spins award from BMI. The other BMI recipients include John Lennon, Elton John and The Bee Gees.
Keith's philanthropic nature keeps him busy spending time with children suffering from cancer or performing for our troops. He is on his fifth USO tour and frequently visits soldiers in hospitals. In 2004, he helped to found Ally's House, where Oklahoma children with cancer can get help with medical bills, short-term housing, travel, clothing, groceries and other needs, and in 2006, he founded the Toby Keith Foundation. Keith also contributes to Make-A-Wish Foundation, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the Salvation Army, among many other charities.
In 2005, Keith started his own record company, Show Dog Nashville. The same year, he opened "I Love This Bar & Grill” in Bricktown. He starred in the Paramount/CMT film Broken Bridges in 2006. The soundtrack for the movie made music history as the highest debut for an independent label.
He and his wife Tricia have three children, Shelley, Krystal and Stelen, and make their home in Norman.
David Kyle
David Kyle joined the Oklahoma Natural Gas Company, a division of ONEOK, in 1974 and became president and chief operating officer of the company in 1997. In August 2000, he was named chairman, president and CEO, and in January 2007, he became chairman of the board of ONEOK.
Kyle, a native of Wichita, Kan., grew up in Oklahoma City where he graduated from John Marshall High School. He earned a bachelor of science degree in industrial engineering and management from Oklahoma State University and received a master's in business administration from the University of Tulsa. He is also a graduate of Harvard Business School's advanced management program.
Active in civic, community and industry affairs, Kyle currently is a director of the Bank of Oklahoma, N.A., the Oklahoma Business & Education Coalition, Oklahoma Business Roundtable, the Oklahoma Heritage Association, and the Tulsa Metro Chamber of Commerce. He serves as trustee of Tulsa Community Foundation, the Philbrook Museum of Art, and the University of Tulsa. Kyle is a member of the National Petroleum Council and a past director of the American Gas Association and Southern Gas Association.
He is past chairman of the Oklahoma Chapter of The Nature Conservancy and past governor of the OSU Foundation board of trustees. Kyle is a past director of the Oklahoma Academy for State Goals, the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Bank One Oklahoma, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma, Junior Achievement of Greater Tulsa, and Tulsa Area United Way. He has served as a trustee for OSU-Tulsa, the Hillcrest HealthCare System and the former Children's Medical Center.
Kyle was recognized as a 2002-2003 Outstanding Business Alumnus by the University of Tulsa, College of Business Administration. In 2004, he was inducted into the Oklahoma State University College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology Hall of Fame. Kyle was inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame by the Tulsa Historical Society in October 2006.
Parents of four, Kyle and his wife Tracy make their home in Tulsa.
Clara Luper
During 41 years as an award-winning Oklahoma educator, Clara Luper taught history and made history. She grew up near Hoffman, which is northeast of Henryetta. She received her bachelor of arts degree from Langston University and her master's degree from the University of Oklahoma.
Known as the mother of the civil rights movement, Luper coordinated one of the first publicized sit-ins in the nation when she led the historic event in a sit-in at the Katz Drug Store lunch counter in Oklahoma City.
Thanks to her patience and persistence, Katz eventually desegregated the lunch counters in all of its 38 stores in Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas and Iowa. Luper also led the Oklahoma City Public School integration fight and the first "Freedom March” in Tulsa to desegregate public accommodations.
Throughout Luper's extraordinary career, she has received numerous honors, including, the National YWCA Individual Racial Juctice Award, Oklahoma Federated Women's Club Service Award, NAACP National Youth Advisor of the Year Award and Presidential Citation awarded by the National Association for Higher Education. Luper received an honorary doctorate from Oklahoma City University, where 30 students from underrepresented groups are granted full scholarships in her name. Recently, the Oklahoma House of Representatives named a state highway in her honor.
She has been inducted into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Afro-American Hall of Fame, was appointed honorary colonel in the Oklahoma National Guard and was named by Oklahoma Today.com as one of 100 Notable Oklahoma Women of Style.
Luper was the first African American vice president of the Oklahoma City Social Science Teachers Association and the first African American vice president of the Oklahoma County Teacher's Association. Luper also was one of the first women to run for a national office from the State of Oklahoma when she entered the Senate race in 1972.
Luper is a mother of three and grandmother of four.
Aubrey K. McClendon
Aubrey K. McClendon, an Oklahoma City native, is the chairman of the board, chief executive officer and a director of Chesapeake Energy Corporation.
McClendon graduated from Duke University with a bachelor of arts degree in history in 1981. Growing up in Oklahoma City, McClendon attended Belle Isle Elementary School and Heritage Hall Middle and Upper School.
McClendon began his career in the oil and natural gas business as a landman for his uncle Aubrey M. Kerr. In 1983, he formed a handshake oil and natural gas partnership with Tom L. Ward that led to the incorporation of Chesapeake in 1989. Chesapeake began with an initial capital of $50,000 and fewer than ten employees.
Today, Chesapeake is the third largest independent producer of natural gas in the U.S. and the most active driller of new wells in the U. S. The company currently employs 5,100 people, 3,400 of whom are Oklahomans, and has an enterprise value of nearly $30 billion. Chesapeake is a member of the S&P 500, the Fortune 500 and is routinely listed among the best places to work in Oklahoma.
McClendon is actively involved in numerous charities and philanthropic projects aimed at improving educational, vocational and quality of life opportunities in Oklahoma. He serves on the board of directors of the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, the State Fair of Oklahoma, the Oklahoma City Public Schools Foundation and Oklahoma City Boathouse Foundation.
McClendon is married to the former Kathleen Upton Byrns of St. Joseph, Michigan. The McClendons live in Oklahoma City and have three children: Jack, Callie and Will.
Gregory E. Pyle
Chief Gregory E. Pyle became chief of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma in 1997, after serving more than 13 years as assistant chief of the tribe.
Pyle has been active in Choctaw government since 1975, when he was elected by popular vote to the Agricultural Board to oversee the Choctaw Nation Ranch at Tushka Homma, Oklahoma.
Education always has been a priority for Pyle. During his tenure, Pyle initiated the Choctaw language program, including Internet interactive classes, accredited classes in public schools and distance learning classes in universities and colleges. The Choctaw scholarship program has been expanded to serve 5,000 students, and a new career development program has just begun.
Pyle's sincere interest in the history and culture of the Choctaw people has encouraged enthusiastic participation in heritage-based events such as the annual commemorative Trail of Tears Walk, Pow-Wows, Choctaw signings, stickball games and other Choctaw gatherings.
Also under his leadership, a new hospital was constructed in Talihina, including a diabetes wellness center, a hospitality house, a recovery center and a women's treatment center.
In addition, independent living communities for elderly have been constructed in six towns, four child development centers have been opened and five community centers have been built.
Pyle received the SBA Region VI Minority Small Business Advocate of the Year award, was named Distinguished Alumni at Southeastern Oklahoma State University and was named an honorary member of the Oklahoma State Troopers Association.
He has served on the board of directors for the First United Bank, the Durant Area Chamber of Commerce, the National Indian Health Board and the Oklahoma Area Indian Health Board, where he also served as president.
Pyle and his wife, Patti have two children and six grandchildren.
Linda K. Twine
Linda K. Twine is a renown conductor, composer and music educator. She currently is the music director of the hit Broadway musical "The Color Purple.”
Her other Broadway credits include "Caroline, or Change,” "A Year with Frog and Toad,” "Jelly's Last Jam,” "Big River,” "Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music,” "Ain't Misbehavin'” and "The Wiz.” Linda has composed and arranged theatrical works produced off-Broadway, regionally and internationally. Her choral works have been released by major American music publishers.
Twine was born in Muskogee and remains proud of her Oklahoma roots. Her grandfather, William Henry Twine, was a pioneer lawyer who made a homestead claim near Chandler, Oklahoma Territory, in the 1891 Sac and Fox Run. She now lives in New York.
The 80th Annual Oklahoma Hall of Fame will be held November 8 in Oklahoma City at the Cox Convention Center. Tickets for the event will go on sale in September. For more information about the Oklahoma Hall of Fame or the Oklahoma Heritage Association, call Millie Craddick, executive administrator of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, at (405) 523-3203 or e-mail her at mc@oklahomaheritage.com.
