About The Writers
Don Gammill
Don Gammill was born and raised in Ponca City and graduated from Ponca City Senior High School. He earned degrees from Northern Oklahoma College and Central State University, now the University of Central Oklahoma, in Edmond.
While in college, he was a sports stringer for The Oklahoma City Times . He joined The Oklahoman in 1986 after 11 years with the Enid News & Eagle.
The bulk of his career has been spent in newsroom management positions. In Enid, he was a sports writer, assistant sports editor, assistant city editor, city editor and spent the last four years as managing editor of The Enid Daily Eagle.
At OPUBCO, he has been a copy editor, state editor, special sections coordinator, special projects editor, “know it” editor, communities editor and author of the Traffic Talk column.
He was a co-founder of the company’s Newsroom 101 project for high school journalists and is a facilitator in OPUBCO’s Leadership for Life program.
He is a past president of Associated Press/Oklahoma News Executives and has worked closely with various professional journalism groups, such as Sigma Delta Chi and the Oklahoma Press Association.
He and his wife, Becky, live in Edmond. They have a son, Bryan, a corporate pilot. Bryan and his wife, Kristy, a professional artist, have three children: Sydney, Anna and Caleb.
Pat Nichols
Pat Nichols is a parent advocate for parents who have just learned that they have a child, any age, abusing alcohol and/or other drugs.
He and his wife, Vickie, have owned Nichols Travel in Edmond since 1978. He is a member of the Rotary Club of Edmond, Edmond’s Best Business Club, life member of the American Business Club and is an active member of First Presbyterian Church, where he and his wife serve as marriage mentors and Stephen Ministers.
He was appointed to Gov. Brad Henry’s task force on underage drinking and was a member of the Edmond mayor’s task force on underage drinking.
In November 2006, he was the speaker for the quarterly gathering of 300-350 Christian businessmen, called “PrayerMetro,” which previously hosted Mart Green of Hobby Lobby and former Mayor Kirk Humphreys. Their purpose is to encourage, inform and create a Godly atmosphere for fellowship. In 2007 he was awarded the Jim Thorpe Character Counts Award.
In 2010, Oklahoma County Commissioner Ray Vaughn appointed Pat to the Citizens for Juvenile Justice (advisory member), Oklahoma County Juvenile Bureau.
He was a frequent columnist for The Edmond Sun, hosts two education/resource meetings a month for families as well as writes a quarterly newsletter, funded by the City of Edmond. It is mailed to all households in the Edmond city limits with children ages 11 to 17. In addition he answers all calls coming to the Parents Helping Parents hotline (642-8198).
He and wife founded Parents Helping Parents in 2001. (www.parentshelpingparents.info), (www.twitter.com/parent2parent) Parents Helping Parents is a group of caring parents offering hope through resources, education and shared experience.
Chuck Mai
Born in Chicago, Chuck was reared in Des Moines, Baldwin City (Kan.) and Columbia (Mo.). It was in Columbia that Chuck attended high school and the University of Missouri – School of Journalism, earning his Bachelor of Journalism degree in 1972.
For 15 years, Chuck pursued a career in broadcasting, working in the news departments of radio and television stations in Aspen, Denver and Tulsa.
In 1987, Chuck joined the staff of AAA Oklahoma as head of the Public Affairs department. His duties include not only handling the club’s public and media relations and legislative/government affairs activities, but also administering the club’s many traffic safety programs, serving as the club’s community service projects coordinator, and editing Home & Away magazine, the member publication sent six times annually to all AAA members in Oklahoma.
Dave Koeneke
Dave is currently the executive director of the Oklahoma Safety Council, a non-profit and membership driven organization, and is directly responsible for their primary mission of providing safety training businesses throughout Oklahoma.
Previous to this position, Dave had various jobs in the occupational medicine and workers’ compensation areas of operations and marketing.
His earlier 20-year career was in the grocery wholesale business, first directing a distribution center and then corporately managing injury prevention and wellness for their 40-plus sites throughout the country.
Ken Tate
Ken grew up in Midwest City and graduated from Midwest City High School.
He is raising “three beautiful daughters who keep me very busy.”
He is a senior solutions consultant for R.K. Black in Oklahoma City, has been with the company for 10 years and “loving it!”
Joey Stipek
Joey Stipek is an online journalism junior at the University of Oklahoma.
He previously was editor-in-chief and news writing supplemental instructor for the Pioneer at Oklahoma City Community College.
He enjoys reading, basketball, and the music of Ted Leo and the Pharmacists.
