Inhofe, Boren, Benge to speak during Legislative Breakfast

State and national speakers will be the guest speakers during the Legislative Breakfast, held Wednesday, Oct. 27 as part of the regional summit, "Regionalism: a United Voice for a Shared Vision," at Northeastern State University.

Scheduled speakers are Sen. Jim Inhofe, Rep. Dan Boren and Oklahoma State Rep. Chris Benge.The topic is "Giving Voice to Our Regional Plan." The buffet breakfast begins at 7:15 a.m. and will also be attended by other state, county, tribal and local officials.

"Never in the history of Northeastern have we had a U.S. senator, a U.S. congressman and a high-ranking member of the Oklahoma legislature on campus at the same time," said Jerry Cook, NSU director of community relations. "All three have individual times to speak and take questions and answers. This is a history-making event for us."

Inhofe is Oklahoma's senior U.S. Senator, having held his office since 1994. He previously served eight years in the U.S. House of Representatives and is a former mayor of Tulsa.

"He sits on the committee on armed services and is the ranking minority member on the committee on environment and public works," said Cook. "He is greatly involved and knowledgeable about highways, bridges and infrastructure."

Boren represents Oklahoma's second congressional district, which includes much of eastern Oklahoma, including Tahlequah. He served a term from 2002-'04 in the Oklahoma House, representing the 28th district.

"The Boren office has been helpful to economic development and education," said Cook. "They have helped NSU and other Oklahoma institutions secure funding and grants."

Benge was first elected to the state house in 1998. Before being named house speaker in January 2008, he served as appropriations chairman. As speaker he has championed energy reform in Oklahoma.

"His discussion will be informative and educational," said Cook. "He is knowledgeable of global commerce and economic markets. We're grateful that he has accepted our invitation to spend quality time with NSU, our partners and the people of the region."

Parties interested in improving the regional economy are encouraged to attend. The summit focuses on the 14 counties of Adair, Cherokee, Craig, Delaware, Mayes, McIntosh, Muskogee, Nowata, Okmulgee, Ottawa, Rogers, Sequoyah, Wagoner and Washington.

Founding summit partners are the Sequoyah Adair Cherokee County Empowerment Zone, the Cherokee Nation and NSU, though many other organizations and entities are now involved.

Registration fee is $75 to attend both days of the "Regionalism: a United Voice for a Shared Vision." Registration for either the first day or the legislative day is $35. The regional summit will be held at NSU's University Center in the Sen. Herb Rozell Ballroom.

To learn more about the work of the regional summit or to register, visit www.neokregion.org.