Sen. Reynolds Urges Oklahomans to Petition Inhofe

State Sen. Jim Reynolds is urging Oklahomans to mail or email petitions to U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe to help secure an appropriate location for a U.S.S. Oklahoma Memorial at Pearl Harbor. Sen. Inhofe, who supports the project, said the more public support he receives, the better the chance he’ll have of convincing fellow members to get behind the project.

Several of the remaining survivors of the U.S.S. Oklahoma recently traveled to Oklahoma for a reunion and were honored in the State Senate. The survivors said the U.S. Navy and the Parks Department have only offered them a small location in a restricted area so remote they complained even native Hawaiians couldn’t find it.

“The U.S.S. Oklahoma is one of three large battleships that never sailed again after the December 7, 1941 attack. With 429 men killed, it sustained the second largest loss of life. Yet it is the only one of those three ships not to have a permanent memorial at Pearl Harbor,” Reynolds said.

“Sen. Inhofe knows how important the memorial is but he needs our support. The more public we make our message, the more strength he’ll have when convincing other members that the citizens support this memorial. The bottom line is these veterans need our help to get this done. All we need is for Oklahomans to take a few short minutes to send a letter or email to Sen. Inhofe.”

Sen. Reynolds said people could send letters requesting Inhofe’s help with the U.S.S. Oklahoma to 1924 S. Utica, Suite 530, Tulsa, OK, 74104, or by email at karla_niemann@inhofe.senate.gov (there is an underscore between karla and niemann.)

“When these veterans were here earlier this month, they asked for our help. I’m urging Oklahomans across the state to come to the aid of these American heroes. There’s no way we can repay them for their service to our country, but this will mean the world to them,” said Reynolds.

Sen. Reynolds said although the survivors tend to hold their reunions in other states, they felt so welcomed in Oklahoma this year that they voted to hold next year’s reunion here as well. He said the veterans felt a strong bond with the state for which their ship was named.

“Wouldn’t it be wonderful if their return next year to Oklahoma was not only a reunion, but a celebration of finally getting a worthy location for the U.S.S. Oklahoma Memorial? I believe if enough citizens take the time to write Sen. Inhofe, we can make that a reality for them.”

, Sen. Jim Reynolds at 405-521-5522, or by email at Reynolds@lsb.state.ok.us. For more information Senate Communications Office - (405) 521-5774