Oklahoma: A Story Through Her People

the sports included were tennis, softball,
basketball, golf, track and field, cross country,
wrestling, stickball exhibition, martial arts,
beach volleyball and lacrosse exhibition.
As Farris explained what really made
bringing the games here possible was “Our
community stepped up to the plate. Without
our partners it would not have been possible.”
Executive director of the Jim Thorpe Native
American Games, Annetta Abbott, elaborated
also on what made bringing the games to
Shawnee possible. “I want to thank Oklahoma
Baptist University. We were very excited about
the facilities. We were able to play an All-
Star football game, track and field, beach
volleyball, and basketball here,” she said.
“Without the partnership that we have formed
with Brian Morris and the athletic staff at OBU
that would not be possible. A key factor in
moving the games to Shawnee was having a
place to really host all of the events,” she said.
Other key venues for the games included
St. Gregory’s University, Gordon Cooper
Technology Center, FireLake Arena, FireLake
Ballfields, Firelake Golf Course, and Shawnee
High School. When Farris was approached by
Abbott in the fall of 2013 about relocating the
games to Shawnee as early as June 2014, Farris
took the lead in visiting with the key partners
to make the games possible. An additional
benefit to having the games at the various venues
in the community is the economic impact.
This is just another positive for Shawnee and
the community that welcomed the athletes
and the people they brought with them.
The Shawnee Trail Days Festival was another
new event scheduled right behind the Jim
Thorpe Games. The CVB partnered with Safe
Events for Families, and the event spanned
over parts of three days and two nights.
Sherri Rogers is executive director of Frontier
Country Marketing Association encompassing
twelve counties including Pottawatomie,
Lincoln, Seminole, Cleveland, Canadian, Grady,
Hughes, Logan, McClain, Okfuskee, Oklahoma
and Payne. According to figures recently
provided by Rogers, from the Economic
Impact of Travelers in Oklahoma Counties,
$3.1 billion is generated from those counties.
The efforts of the CVB and its community
partners help generate significant economic
impact through tourism:
• Pottawatomie County expenditures totaled
$75.97 million, ranking it thirteenth in
the state.
• The payroll generated from travel expenditures
in central Oklahoma exceeded
$850 million. Pottawatomie County payroll
expenditures at $8.84 million.
• More than 36,000 people are employed in
central Oklahoma’s travel industry.
• Pottawatomie County employs more than
550 people related to the tourism industry.
• Pottawatomie County’s 2012 local tax
receipts exceeded $1.38 million.
• State tax receipts annually exceed $170
million from central Oklahoma counties.
• More than $87 million was received in
local tax revenue by the twelve central
Oklahoma counties.
• During 2012, domestic travelers spent a
total of $7.2 billion in Oklahoma. Leisure
travelers spent more than $4.7 billion or
66 percent of the total, while business
travelers spent $2.4 billion.
• Among the $7.2 billion in leisure travel
spending, $5.2 billion (72.8 percent) was
spent by non-Oklahoma resident travelers,
while 27.2 percent was attributable to
Oklahoma resident travel in state.
Bottom Line: tourism remains strong in
this area and most of it can be attributed to
the efforts of the local Conventions & Visitors
Bureau in cooperation with other entities.
Left: Jim Thorpe Native American Games—
opening ceremonies.
Right: Inaugural Shawnee Trails Days.
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF EDBOLTPHOTO.COM.
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