William (Bill) Doyle Reed Obituary

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Born to James Doyle (Doyle) and Mary (Pauline) Reed on May 13th, 1943, in McAlester, Oklahoma, William Doyle Reed (Bill) was welcomed into his heavenly eternal home on May 2nd, 2024.

When he was 29 years old, he was called into ministry. He attended the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas where he obtained a Master of Divinity and later a Master of Business Administration from Indiana Wesleyan. 

Bill had a staunch engineering career.  He moved all around the nation, from coast to coast working as an engineer for high end companies and ministering God’s word, but it was not until he became Vice President of Farradyne Motors in New York that he garnered the most satisfaction in his engineering career. He designed, developed, manufactured, and tested a submersible pump motor for Farradyne.

He met the love of his life, Shirley Ann, and they were married on October 23rd, 1999, and made their home in Poteau, Oklahoma.  Five years later they moved to Canandaigua, New York, before moving to Eureka Springs in 2010 where they built a beautiful home on 149 acres with unparalleled views of the Ozark Mountains.  

He was a hard worker.  At 80 years of age, before he received the report on the return of the cancer, he was still working and was asked when he was going to retire, of which he replied, “when I die”, which proved to be incorrect as his weakened condition prohibited him from working.  

Bill is survived by his loving wife of more than 24 years, Shirley Ann Reed of the home; sister Joyce Ranallo of Muskogee, Oklahoma; children Laurel Darnell Reed of Bella Vista, Arkansas, Christa Dyonne Reed of Jane, Missouri, Melynda Dawn Norriss of Bentonville, Arkansas, and Jonathan William Reed and wife Tiffany of Siloam Springs, Arkansas; two stepdaughters Bridget Renee Bennett of Berryville, Arkansas and Brandy Lynn Armstrong of New York; five grandchildren, six great grandchildren, two nieces, several cousins and many friends.  He was predeceased and has joyously reunited with his parents Doyle and Pauline Reed and beloved granddaughter Jessica Janae Reed and many other family members that he loves so dearly.

He loved the Lord Jesus, his wife Shirley, family, and many friends.  He was active in Valley View Baptist Church in Eureka Springs, Arkansas where he taught senior adults and served on several committees for more than 14 years.  

Bill will be remembered as a man who had a zest for life and lived it fully.  He fought the hard fight, battling cancer.  His legacy of loyalty, love and devotion will live on through his family. 

Arrangements under the direction of Nelson Funeral Service. Online condolences may be sent to nelsonfuneral.com. © Nelson Funeral Service, Inc. 2024.

Drummond Files Lawsuit Opposing Biden Administration's Radical Title IX Rule Change

OKLAHOMA CITY (May 6, 2024) – Attorney General Gentner Drummond filed a federal lawsuit today challenging the Biden Administration’s new change to Title IX rules that radically rewrites the longtime federal protections by adding gender identity.

Filed in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Oklahoma, the suit asserts that the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) under Education Secretary Miguel Cardona has created an unconstitutional reworking of Title IX protections.

“In doing so … it ignores the literal text of the statute and the purpose behind the creation, it disregards the lack of public support for the proposed rule, and it jeopardizes the equal opportunity that has been afforded to female athletes ever since the establishment of the statute,” states the filing.

“The Department attempts to make these drastic and detrimental changes while relying on a Supreme Court case that has no connection to Title IX. Perhaps worst of all, implementation of the Final Rule would serve to isolate and deny the group of athletes that the statute was originally designed to promote and protect – female athletes.”

The suit notes that the changes actually harm female students.

“Students of both sexes will experience violations of their bodily privacy by students of a different sex,” the lawsuit states. “Indeed, the Final Rule also ignores psychological and safety concerns. For instance, a recent study points out that ‘limited research has explored girls’ experiences of competing on boys’ sports teams,’ noting unique challenges to female athletes. … Female athletes describe ‘having to navigate tensions and problematic assumptions of girls’ inferiority in sport.’ Meanwhile, research shows that female athletes are more willing to participate in single-sex athletics and less likely to feel self-conscious in single-sex athletics.”

The litigation also notes that the rule violates the Tenth Amendment by usurping authority belonging to the States and to Congress. The Title IX change, which is slated to take effect Aug. 1, conflicts with Oklahoma state law prohibiting transgender girls from taking part in women’s sports and requiring school bathroom use according to biological sex, not gender identity.

Today’s filing reflects concerns Drummond expressed in a May 2023 public comment to the USDOE opposing the then-proposed rule as being “riddled with flaws.”

Read the filing here. The May 2023 public comment is available here.

Attorney General Drummond Delivers Testimony to Congress to Oppose EPA Rule Expansion

WASHINGTON DC (May 7, 2024) – Attorney General Gentner Drummond told a U.S. House subcommittee this morning how a revised rule by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will have devastating consequences for Oklahoma and other states. Drummond had been invited by the House Subcommittee on Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Materials to deliver testimony for a hearing titled “EPA’s RMP Rule: Failures to Protect the American People and American Manufacturing.” The subcommittee is part of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Drummond told subcommittee members he has filed a number of lawsuits against the Biden Administration for federal overreach, but the agency he has litigated more than any other is the EPA.

“Unfortunately, EPA consistently promotes policies and issues rules that are bad for businesses, harmful to consumers, and outright hostile to America’s oil and gas industry,” he said. “The rule under review today is no exception.”

Slated to take effect Friday, the expanded final rule of the EPA’s Risk Management Program (RMP) will impact facilities that handle threshold quantities of specific chemicals.

“Adding to the regulatory burden of any private enterprise without providing sufficient corresponding benefit is a recipe for economic drag. The final RMP rule is a new burden that potentially applies to a wide range of businesses and facilities in my state and across the country,” Drummond testified.

“The obvious and most concerning entities are petroleum refineries and chemical manufacturers, but the list does not end there. Also subject to the new rule would be chemical and petroleum wholesalers and terminals; midstream gas plants; agricultural chemical distributors; food manufacturers and packing plants; and a wide range of other businesses that use substances covered by the new rule.”

While the EPA estimates that compliance to the rule will cost businesses more than $250 million annually, the Attorney General noted that American consumers will be subject to far greater costs, especially at the gas pump.

“There would have to be a very substantial benefit to justify these costs,” said Drummond. “Unfortunately, the new rule provides none. It is the proverbial solution in search of a problem.”